Chef Meg's Top 10 Recipes of 2011

Earlier this month, we shared the top 20 recipes that were tracked by members. Today I'm sharing my own top 10 recipes, as "chosen" by members. Of the hundreds of recipes I've created for SparkPeople, both for SparkRecipes.com and for "The SparkPeople Cookbook," these are the ones that have been tracked most often.

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VIDEO: Better Baking for the Holidays

Recently, we gave SparkRecipes.com a little facelift. Among the additions were a year's worth of informational, entertaining videos! Every day when you visit the site, you'll see one of my videos, full of seasonal tips and recipes.

Today we're sharing my video about Better Baking for the Holidays. In it, I share my best tips to lighten up your holiday favorites. Finally, you can have your cake, and eat it, too!

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Chef Meg's Decadent, Delicious (and Healthy!) Thanksgiving Menus

An Entire Thanksgiving Meal--for 400 Calories!

As you know, the typical Thanksgiving meal can include more calories than some of us eat in two days (more than 4,500 calories and 229 grams of fat, according to the Caloric Control Council)! Two years ago, I created SparkPeople's 500-Calorie Thanksgiving Feast. This year, I did even better. Not only do you get 7 brand-new recipes for Thanksgiving (plus several recipes and ideas from "The SparkPeople Cookbook"), but you get three sample menus. Thanks to my slimmed down but flavor-packed recipes, you can feast even if you aren't willing to blow your calorie budget. Would you believe that you can eat five different dishes, including dessert, for about 400 calories? 

I hope these recipes will soon become family favorites and healthy staples on your Thanksgiving table.

400-Calorie Trim Thanksgiving

• Chef Meg's Herb Roasted Turkey*
• Chef Meg's Mini Apple Tarts* (1 tart)
• Green Bean Casserole* (1/2 serving)
• NEW: Chef Meg's Carrot-Cranberry Salad
• NEW: Chef Meg's Pumpkin Butter Acorn Squash

500-Calorie Thanksgiving Dinner

• NEW: Chef Meg's Escarole Salad with Gorgonzola-Walnut Apple Crisps
• Chef Meg's Herb Roasted Turkey* (1/2 serving)
• NEW: Chef Meg’s Creamy Corn Pudding
• Wild Rice with Roasted Shallots and Garlic*
• Chef Meg's Sweet Potato Tarts (1 tart)
•  

600-Calorie Thanksgiving Feast

• Chef Meg's Pumpkin Soup with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
• Roasted Red Potatoes with Garlic Herb Oil*
• NEW: Chef Meg's Carrot-Cranberry Salad
• Green Bean Casserole*
• Chef Meg's Herb Roasted Turkey* (1/2 serving)
• Chef Meg's Apple Cider Gravy
• NEW: Chef Meg's Cranberry-Orange Creme Brulee

Want more recipes? Keep reading!

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How to Make Homemade Soft Pretzels

You and your family will love these super easy pretzels. The dough only needs 5 minutes to rest so from start to finish, this snack is ready in a flash.
 
You and your family will love these super easy pretzels. The dough only needs 5 minutes to rest so from start to finish, this snack is ready in a flash. Traditional soft pretzels contain a large amount of canola oil and butter toppings with a heaping dash of salt. Not these! I used only 2 tablespoons of oil in the recipe and spread egg substitute over the dough just before baking for a shiny low-calorie and fat crust. I did find white whole wheat flour at the grocery store. It packs all the nutrients but omits the dark whole wheat color that can scream “healthy” to some kids.

Yeast does not last forever. Check the expiration date on the package to make sure the yeast is still ready to do some work and make the dough rise.

My  soft pretzel:	A food court soft pretzel:
Calories: 194.1	Calories: 370.0
Fat: 2.9 g	Fat: 4.0 g
Sodium: 518.6 mg	Sodium: 930.0 mg

 

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My Favorite Pumpkin Recipes

The pumpkin celebration shouldn’t end with Halloween! Instead of just displaying those gourds, let's eat them! Here are some of my favorite pumpkin recipes to get you in the spirit! I promise that these pumpkin goodies are not among The 4 Most Fattening Fall Foods or these 5 Surprisingly High-Cal Halloween Treats!

NEW: Chef Meg's No Added Sugar Pumpkin-Apple Butter
I love this spread this over whole wheat toast for breakfast with nut butter or to thicken my fall soups. My son Josh loves it with bananas. You won't believe I didn't add any sugar!

Calories: 19.9
Total Fat: 0.2 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 1.8 mg
Total Carbs: 4.9 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.2 g
Protein: 0.4 g

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Chef Meg's Favorite Halloween Recipes

Halloween is just around the corner, and my boys are already heading to costume parties. One of the twins went as a guy from the Blue Man Group two weeks ago--he looked so tall and grown-up!

My oldest son, Noah, is a high school freshman, and he's in a nutrition class. The teacher asked me and another mom, who's a dietitian and fellow author, each to make a healthy snack for the kids. Of course, we said yes. I made Caramel Popcorn, a member makeover recipe that's not only a hit on SparkRecipes.com but also made the cut to be in "The SparkPeople Cookbook: Love Your Food, Lose the Weight." I made eight batches in one weekend, and let me tell you, it was just as good a couple of days later!

This time of year starts the barrage of sweets and treats that lasts through the end of the year. Neighbors gather for block parties, schools celebrate with fall festivals, and friends use the cool weather as a chance to get together before the holidays kick into full swing.

Halloween can be frightful for those of us maintaining our weight or trying to drop some pounds, but it needn't be!

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A Dozen Staple Recipes from 'The SparkPeople Cookbook'

Thanks to each and every one of who has purchased "The SparkPeople Cookbook: Love Your Food, Lose the Weight." I know I keep saying it, but it truly was a labor of love for Stepfanie and me.
 
Everyone, from the media and co-workers to friends and SparkPeople members, keeps asking the same questions: Which recipe is your favorite?
 
Ask a chef which recipes are her favorite, and like a mother, she’ll answer, "I love them all equally." This cookbook was like a baby to me and, as a result, it’s filled with recipes I love. While each and every one is satisfying and nutritious, here are a dozen I think will become staples in your household. You can take a sneak peek at some of them, but you'll have to buy the cookbook to get the rest.
 

1. Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken. There’s a reason why this is the No. 1 recipe among SparkPeople members.

   Posted 10/19/2011  10:00:00 AM By:   : 38 comments   28,795 views

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Chef Meg's Loaded Potato Soup

My family loves potato soup but I prefer loaded baked potatoes. With this recipe, everyone wins! (Like this slimmed-down makeover recipe? Get more like it in the best-selling "SparkPeople Cookbook.")

This is not your traditional potato soup recipe. I've added yellow bell peppers and corn for a boost in vitamins and fiber then loaded on my favorite potato toppings tomatoes, cheese and lettuce.

This soup is loaded down--with nutrition not fat! A loaded baked potato can have 460 calories each, and potato soup has gobs of salt.

By the way, it's not a mistake that you put lettuce in this soup. The hot soup will wilt the lettuce, and you will be amazed with the taste within the dish.

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Thanks to You, 'The SparkPeople Cookbook' is a Hit

Golly, what a week this has been! Last week, I was in New York with The Slowest Loser to promote the book and tape my national TV debut, and this week--wow, are people noticing that we wrote a cookbook (a pretty darn good one)!

Before I share with you all the praise we've received, I want to thank each and every one of you who has bought "The SparkPeople Cookbook: Love Your Food, Lose the Weight" already.

What a fun time I had in New York! With the help of food stylist Nicki Sizemore (it's hard to do your own cooking when you're staying in a hotel!), we prepped Three Cheese Macaroni for the folks at Better TV--and it was a hit. Watch my clip from the show, which aired on Tuesday!
 
On Wednesday, The Cincinnati Enquirer ran an excellent story on the cookbook, with a can't-beat-it headline: SparkPeople book instant hit. A preview of the story was on A1, with a huge photo of Stepfanie and me on the cover of the food section, three recipes--and a great story that featured successful member Tara (HALLELUL). Even better, the online version had six photos! (Click here to read the story) All mentions of the cookbook are fun to see, but it's even neater to see an article on the book in the newspaper you read every morning (and the one where Stepfanie worked before coming to SparkPeople).

There's more--and you can win a copy of the cookbook, too!

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TIPS: Chop Onions Like a Pro--without Shedding a Tear

Have you ever heard that if you are trying to sell your house you should always bake a batch of cookies right before showing the house to a prospective buyer?  Supposedly the smell incites the potential buyer and "sells" the house.

Let me let you in on a secret. Forget the cookies--sauté some onions instead.  Walking into a room filled with a cooked onion aroma will put a smile and a "let's stay for supper" into anyone's mind.  The beauty of the onion is that the outcomes are endless.  Will they go into a spicy vegetarian chili, be layered on top a juicy lean roast beef sandwich, or serve as the star in steaming bowl of French onion soup? 
 
Onions contain potassium, vitamin C, folic acid, and vitamin B6.  For 1/2 cup serving they provide 1.6 grams of fiber, 1.2 grams of protein, and only 38 calories.
 
Varieties of Onions:
My favorite is the Vidalia, a Southern onion that is only around for a couple of the months in the summer.  You can eat them like an apple they are so sweet. 
 
Red or purple onions also are perfect for raw eating due to their sweetness and add a bonus with the color they add to the dish. 
 
Green onions are also called new/spring onions or scallions.  They are perfect in salads, topping bean tostadas, or on a veggie platter. 
 
The smelly one of the family is the yellow onion.  These onions are very strong in the raw state but become sweet once cooked.

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Chef Meg's 200-Calorie Chili Cheese Dog Makeover

According to the National Hot Dog Council Americans consume an average of 60 hot dogs per year. That's a lot of dogs--and a lot of fat and sodium!
If you are going to eat a hot dog, make some smart swaps. Switch out the white bun for a whole wheat variety, put aside the sugary ketchup for real diced tomatoes, select a leaner meat hot dog and add fiber-rich beans and corn to bulk it up.
Take a look at a traditional fast-food chili dog:

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The Best Kid-Tested Lunchbox Recipes

My nephew phoned me last week to tell me that his first day of kindergarten was great. He loved his teachers, made some new friends, and got to eat his cookie before he ate his sandwich and vegetables because his mom was not around to tell him that he could not--freedom at last! I had to laugh because it made me think just how many other kids out there do the same. I would guess a lot.

Can't you see them all now sitting at the lunch table together, unpacking their new lunch bags then holding up the after-meal treats as a toast to newfound freedom? Let's just hope the lunch lady does not catch on. I guess the moral of the story is that if you give them a treat you know they will eat it first, so why don't you send them with a healthy treat? Then everyone is happy. I like to pack Blueberry Flax Seed Muffins in my kids' lunch boxes for a sweet treat--one that will add fiber and fruit to the meal.

So besides a healthy treat, what else should you pack?

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Chef Meg's Easiest Recipes

This Labor Day, take some time off from cooking. I'm enjoying one last day of summer, and I hope you are, too.

Here are some of my favorite easy recipes. Enjoy!

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Chef's Secrets: Try These Unusual Combos to Add Flavor Not Fat

What's the secret to cooking like a healthy chef? Think beyond the usual flavor boosters of sugar, salt and fat. While they taste good on the tongue, they're not exactly good for us, are they?

Today I'm sharing some unusual yet delicious flavor combinations that will help you create wonderful dishes that aren't heavy on the fat.
 
Fruits
Fruit trees are busting at the branches this time of year. Peaches, plums, apricots and cherries are all in season right now. Because of fruit's natural sweetness, choose contrasting flavors.  (A note on combining flavors: Don't overpower your main ingredient. Add small amounts of your supporting ingredients until you have a dish that's balanced to suit your palate.)
Try:

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Chef Meg's 4-Pack of Pickled Vegetable Recipes

Pickling is a great way to extend the season and use up extra produce.
If heat or pressure canning is a bit intimidating to you, consider refrigerator pickles instead. You can preserve just about any fruit or vegetable in a salt and vinegar brine, then add flavor with herbs and spices.
Note: These recipes are high in salt, but they pack plenty of flavor! If you want to remove some of the salt, rinse your pickles before eating them.
With these four recipes, we went beyond basic cucumbers!

To start, I used a basic pickling mix, which you could use for a variety of vegetables.
Basic Pickling Mix
8 ounces white wine vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, washed and chopped
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf

I varied the recipe slightly to create four sweet, tangy, spicy and crunchy pickles!

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