In these healthy “pizzas” large portobello mushroom caps stand in for pizza dough.  Serve several with a side of steamed greens for a healthy and filling vegetarian (and gluten-free) meal.  They’re also a great appetizer for any Italian theme menu.

Portobello Mushroom “Pizzas”

6 large Portobello mushroom caps

¾ shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

15oz can pizza sauce

1 tsp. dried oregano

1.            Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line rimmed baking sheet with tin foil and set aside.  Carefully remove any dirt from mushroom cap using a damp paper towel.  Remove gills from inside mushroom by gently scraping with a spoon, leaving sides of mushroom intact.  Place cleaned mushrooms on baking sheet.

2.            Fill each mushroom with ¼ cup pizza sauce and top with 2 Tbs. cheese.  Bake 15 minutes in preheated oven, or until mushrooms are softened and cheese is melted and golden brown in spots.  Sprinkle each mushroom “pizza” with a pinch of dried oregano.

6 servings

Nutritional Info per serving: 85 calories; 2.8g fat (1.8g saturated fat); 7.5 mg. cholesterol; 475mg sodium; 10g carbs; 2.3g fiber; 6.6g protein.

Give brownie sundaes a seasonal twist by topping them with peppermint stick ice cream and chopped peppermint bark.  Use your favorite brownies or make a batch of molten chocolate brownies (my favorite – see the index for the recipe) to use for these delicious sundaes.  It’s a casual and homey dessert that is sure to tickle everyone’s tastebuds this time of year.

I adore pumpkins – especially pumpkin pie.  Since I am gluten-free, I had to find a substitute for my traditional fall favorite.  I tried several crustless recipes and finally came up with one that is rich, delicious, and holds it shape so you really feel like you’re eating a slice of pumpkin pie.  It really makes a difference in the taste if you cook your own pumpkin but it’s still a great pie with canned.  Just be sure to use plain canned pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filing.  I’ve made this pie with butternut squash and it’s amazing – tastes really similar to pumpkin and the color is even better (a touch brighter).  I like to roast the pumpkin or squash in a 425 degree oven, cut in half and cut side down on a cookie sheet lined with foil and nonstick cooking spray, for about 45 minutes, or until it’s soft.  I usually put the pumpkin through a food mill or mesh sieve, but pureeing it should be sufficient.

Crustless Pumpkin Pie

15 oz. pumpkin puree

14 oz. sweetened condensed milk (fat free, low-fat or regular)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

¾ tsp. ground ginger

½ tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. ground allspice

1.            Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray 9” pie plate with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

2.            Whisk pumpkin, condensed milk, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and vanilla in large bowl.  Whisk in eggs until well combined.  Pour into prepared pie plate.  Bake in preheated oven until filling is set in center, about 50 minutes.  Cool slightly before serving or let stand at room temperature for up to 2 hours.  (Pie can be 1 day in advance and refrigerated.) Serve with dallop of spiced whipped cream.

Imagine the best olive mix you’ve ever bought.  The marinated olives you can make at home are infinitely better.  Combine a few simple ingredients that you probably already have in your house (garlic, wine, bay leaf, oregano, etc.), bake them with your favorite mix of olives, and serve them with crusty bread for a simple tapas-style appetizer.  The smell of these olives cooking will elicit moans from anyone in the vicinity of your kitchen.

Mediterranean Baked Olives

1 cup Kalamata olives

1 cup green olives, such as Picholine

1 bay leaf

3 cloves garlic, 1 sliced and 2 minced

1 tsp. oregano

1 Tbs. parsley

1 ½ Tbs. olive oil

½ cup dry white wine

1 ½ Tbs. olive oil

1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1.            Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Combine olives, bay leaf, sliced garlic and wine in baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Bake in single layer, covered, for 45 minutes or until olives are fragrant and swollen.

2.            Meanwhile, combine minced garlic, parsley, oregano and olive oil in mortar and pestel until it resembles a thick paste.   When olives are done baking, pierce each olive with a knife or fork, and add parsley mixture, along with olive oil and crushed red pepper, tossing to combine.  Serve immediately or cool and store at room temperature for up to a week.

Serves 6-8

If you have the time, this is a wonderful weekend dish for entertaining.  It takes several hours, and there aren’t any short cuts you can take to cook the meat, but the majority of the time is hands-off and the results are well worth the effort.  Short ribs are economical for entertaining (in NYC I paid $35 for 4 lbs.) and, when cooked well, are rich in flavorful and extraordinarily tender.

I like to make the meat with enough time to refrigerate the sauce so I can skim the excess fat before reheating, but it’s not an essential step if you’re short on time.

Serve this over any type of mashed potatoes.  I made a mix of mashed apples and potatoes (cooked in apple cider) for a seasonal twist and the flavors married well.  I also served it with a side of shaved fennel and green apple salad and the crispness of the salad was a nice contrast to the rich meat and potatoes.  The only thing missing from the meal was a punch of color; the meat, potatoes and fennel were a bit bland to look at.  Chopped parsley as a garnish added a bit of color, but it wasn’t as visually appealing as I would have liked.  Mashed sweet potatoes or roasted beets would have added some color to the dish so I may try one of those additions to the meal next time.

This recipe is based on the basic recipe for braised short ribs in Simple to Spectacular by Jean-Georges and Mark Bittman.

Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine

2 Tbs. canola or olive oil

3 Tbs. butter

4 lbs. short ribs

Salt and pepper

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

4 large cloves garlic, chopped

1 bottle sturdy red wine, such as Zinfandel

4 branches thyme

4 stems parsley

1 bay leaf

½ cup chopped parsley, for garnish

1.  Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Add tablespoon of oil and butter to cast iron pot or covered roasting dish and melt over high heat.  Add ribs and brown well on all sides, seasoning meat with salt and pepper as it cooks (about 20 minutes total).  Work in batches if necessary [I browned the meat in 2 batches in a large cast iron pot].  Remove meat from, pour out fat and wipe pan clean.

2.  Add remaining tablespoon oil and another tablespoon butter to pan and melt over medium-high heat.  Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic with a pinch of salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring until the onions are soft (about 8 minutes).  Add red wine, thyme, parsley stems and bay leaf and bring to boil.  Add ribs, cover, and cook in oven until meat is very tender and falling from bone, about 3 hours.  Turn the meat once or twice an hour.

3.  Transfer ribs to a platter.  Strain liquid from vegetables in a medium bowl, pressing hard on vegetables to extract all of the liquid.  Refrigerate liquid separate from ribs and, once chilled, skim fat from sauce (there will be a tick layer that is easy to remove with a spoon, leaving a silky sauce below).

4.  To reheat:  Add sauce to pan and bring to boil.  Stir in remaining tablespoon butter and whisk until slightly thickened.  Add ribs and ¼ cup chopped parsley.  Heat ribs through, add salt and pepper to taste, and additional red wine if necessary (about ¼ cup at a time), and serve garnished with remaining chopped parsley.

Serves 4

This soup is the ultimate comfort food: It’s warm and creamy but completely dairy-free and healthy.  I like to make it for lunch on the weekend with grilled cheese or crostini topped with goat cheese, thyme and honey.  It’s equally great for entertaining.  I’ve served it as the first course for fancy 5-course dinner party wth rave reviews.  Butternut squash soup is one of my all-time favorite recipes that I make over and over again.

Butternut Squash Soup

3 lbs. Butternut squash (about 1 large)

1 med. onion, chopped

8 cloves garlic (5 if they are large), minced

3.5 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. fresh-ground black pepper

Optional: add Nutmeg (1/2 tsp.), cinnamon (1 tsp.) and cloves (1/4 tsp.)

Plain yogurt or low fat sour cream for garnish (optional garnish)

Chives or fresh thyme, minced (optional garnish)

1.  Preheat oven to 400˚F.  Cut squash in half lengthwise; remove seeds and bake, cut side down, on pan covered with tinfoil and nonstick spray for 40-50 minutes (until completely soft).

2.  Meanwhile, in a large pot sauté onion and garlic in 1/2 cup broth (if you are using nutmeg, etc., add it here).

3.  Scrape squash flesh from peel and add to onion mixture; add broth at same time.  Bring to boil then reduce heat and simmer, with the lid on, for 20 minutes.

4.  Put soup into blender (1/3 at a time) and puree.  Serve in bowl with dollop of plain yogurt swirled in and minced chives or thyme sprinkled on top.

This recipe came about when I was cooking for a crowd but only had 4 ears of corn from my crop-share. Cutting corn off the cobb is a great way to make a little corn go a long way and mixing it with other complimentary ingredients, such as basil and tomato, adds a burst of summer flavor.

Grilling the corn makes the natural sugars caramelize and creates a nice charred flavor. This salad is a great use for late-summer corn, which generally has larger kernels that aren’t as tender and sweet as early-season corn.

Use the best ingredients you can find – super ripe tomatoes and fresh basil make this corn salad amazing.

Grilled Corn, Tomato & Basil Salad
4 ears of sweet corn
2 beefsteak tomatoes, cut into ½” pieces
½ C. fresh basil, chopped
salt & fresh-ground pepper to taste

1. Preheat grill. Shuck corn by removing husks and silk. (To remove pieces of clingy silk use a moist paper towel and wipe in a downward motion, from stalk to tip of cobb). Grill corn until slightly charred. Set aside to cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, stand corn vertically in center of large bowl and using a sharp knife, cut corn from stalk, allowing cut corn to fall into bowl. Squeeze any “milk” from empty husk into bowl and continue with remaining pieces of corn.

2. Add tomato and basil to corn and toss. Add salt and pepper to taste. Can be made up to 2 hours in advance and served at room temperature.

Serves: 6-8 as a side

My crop-share has been doling out green bell peppers in massive quantities.  While I love the sweet-earthy flavor of red, orange and yellow bell peppers, I find green peppers to be slightly bitter when raw and prefer them cooked.  After making several rounds of fajitas I decided to stuff the remaining bounty with a flavorful sun-dried tomato chicken sausage mixture.  I added some leftover cooked rice to the mix and it made for a deliciously healthy and satisfying meal.  Choose peppers that sit evenly if you plan to stuff them, and if your peppers are lopsided and/or wobbly, slice a very thin piece off the bottom to give them a flat base.

Some stuffed pepper recipes call for steaming or blanching the peppers before stuffing and baking.  I prefer a firm, slightly crisp pepper shell in this dish so I skip the pre-cooking.

Stuffed Peppers with Sun-dried Tomato Chicken Sausage

4 green bell peppers

1 lb. sun-dried tomato chicken sausage, removed from casing

½ C. onion, chopped

15oz can tomato sauce (I used no salt added)

½ C. green bell pepper, chopped (used leftover pepper from sliced-off tops)

2 Tbs. fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped + additional for garnish

1 ½ tsp. kosher salt

2 tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. dried oregano

¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Fresh-ground black pepper to taste

1 C. cooked rice (any kind will work; I used brown rice)

1 egg, beaten

4 oz crumbled goat cheese (optional)

1.            Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Slice tops off peppers (about ½” from top), carefully remove core and seeds and rise with cold water to remove any remaining seeds.  Set peppers aside and make the filling by browning the chicken sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onions and cook until soft and slightly brown.  Add chopped green pepper, tomato sauce, salt, garlic powder, oregano, red pepper flakes and black pepper.  Cook until peppers are slightly soft and adjust seasoning if necessary.

2.            Remove chicken mixture from heat and place in a bowl to cool for several minutes.  Add rice and beaten egg and mix well.  Place hallowed peppers upright in a pie dish and, using a tablespoon, carefully fill peppers with chicken sausage mixture.

Bake peppers, uncovered, for 30 minutes or until peppers are bright green and slightly soft.  Top with goat cheese, if using, and return to oven for a few minutes to melt cheese.  Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately.

Serves 4 (serving = 1 pepper)

Here’s another great zucchini recipe for those with a bumper crop.  These savory pancakes are light, yet filling enough for dinner when paired with salad or corn on the cobb.  I used yellow summer squash for the batch pictured, but generally makes these with zucchini.  A combination of both zucchini and summer squash is a nice alternative too.  Using garbanzo bean flour makes these pancakes gluten-free and adds some protein, as does the tangy yogurt sauce.  The pancakes can be prepared in advance and kept warm in the oven; the yogurt sauce can also be made in advance and kept separate from the pancakes until ready to serve.

Zucchini Pancakes with Yogurt Dill Sauce

For pancakes:

2 small or 1 medium to large zucchini (or yellow squash), grated

¼ medium onion, grated

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 clove garlic, minced

6 Tbs. garbanzo bean flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 Tbs. fresh dill, chopped

½ tsp. salt

Fresh-ground pepper

2 Tbs. olive oil, divided

For yogurt sauce:

6oz plain Greek yogurt (fat free or 0% works well)

½ Tbs. fresh dill, chopped

Salt and fresh-ground pepper to taste

Additional sprigs of dill, as garnish (optional)

1.            Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with tinfoil and set aside.  Combine grated zucchini, onion, eggs, garlic, garbanzo bean flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in medium bowl and mix well.  [If your batter is very loose, you may need to add an additional 1-2 Tbs. garbanzo bean flour; the consistency should be similar to a thick pancake batter.]

2.            Heat 1 Tbs. olive oil in 12” nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Scoop ¼ cup of batter into pan a spread lightly with the back of measuring cup to flatten.  Repeat and cook 4 pancakes in the pan at a time.  Flip when bubbles begin to form around the edges and cook until moderately firm and golden brown on both sides.  Remove from pan, place on prepared baking sheet and keep warm in pre-heated oven while making the next batch.  Add remaining Tbs. olive oil to pan and make 4 more pancakes (recipe makes 8 pancakes total).

3.            Place additional cooked pancakes on baking sheet and keep warm in oven until ready to serve (up to 30 minutes).  Make yogurt sauce by combining yogurt, chopped dill, salt and pepper.  Serve warm pancakes with a dallop of yogurt sauce and a spring of dill, if using.

Now is about the time when gardens are brimming with ripe zucchini and the search for interesting ways to use your bounty has begun.  Among my arsenal of zucchini recipes (zucchini bread, stuffed zucchini, zucchini quesadillas, zucchini pancakes, etc.) is ratatouille.  This healthy, veggie-packed side is a great way to use up your zucchini, squash, eggplant, basil and tomatoes.  I like to make a big batch of ratatouille and server it as a side for several nights – sometimes with grilled meat or fish, other times over brown rice or pasta with some parmesan cheese, or even as an omelet filling.  It’s a great make-ahead side dish and it will keep for several days.

The trick with ratatouille is to try not to stir it too often so the vegetables can keep their shape.  You’ll need to do some stirring at the beginning, but the less stirring the better.

Ratatouille

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 large red or green bell pepper, seeded and cut into ¾” pieces

2 small zucchini, cut into ¾” pieces

2 small yellow summer squash, cut into ¾” pieces

1 medium eggplant or 2 smaller ones, peeled and cut into ¾” pieces

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 ripe tomatoes, diced or 15oz high-quality canned tomatoes (such as San Marzano)

1 C. water

½ tsp. kosher salt

fresh-ground black pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large cast iron pot or skillet.  Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes, or until soft.  Add bell pepper, zucchini, squash, eggplant, garlic, tomatoes and water, and gently stir to combine.  Add addition ½ C. water, if necessary.  Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, covered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Ratatouille will keep in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3 days.

Serves 6-8 as a side