Spinach-Tomato Pie

I was feeling really motivated last night and decided to try out something that at first sounded a little too difficult. I found the recipe for this pizza online yesterday and thought it looked amazing. I am obsessed with pizza of all forms but deep dish is my all time favorite. I am a huge crust girl so I guess it makes sense.

Well last night after I pulled it out of the oven I could hardly WAIT to try it! It smelled soooo good! Boy did it live up to my expectations! It tasted just like a deep dish pizza you would get from Chicago...only healthier. The fresh tomatoes and the spinach went very well together along with the awesome crust...I felt like I was in heaven :)

You must try this if you are a pizza lover like myself and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:
Serves 6
1 10-oz. can refrigerated pizza crust
1 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained and squeezed dry
1/4 cup low-fat sour cream
2 Tbs. minced shallots
1 cup evaporated skim milk
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 large egg whites
1 large egg
2 ripe medium-sized tomatoes, thinly sliced
1/3 cup shredded low-fat Monterey Jack cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350F. Coat 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
• Shape dough into 4-inch circle; cover with kitchen towel; let stand 5 minutes. Roll into 11-inch circle on lightly floured surface. Fit into pie plate, and flute rim.
• Mix spinach, sour cream and shallots in mixing bowl. In separate bowl, whisk together milk, salt, pepper, egg whites and egg. Stir 1/3 cup milk mixture into spinach mixture.
• Spoon spinach mixture into bottom of prepared crust. Add layer of tomatoes, and top with cheese. Pour remaining milk mixture over cheese. Place pie plate on baking sheet.
• Bake 45 minutes, or until set. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Information:
Per Serving: Calories 230, Protein 14g, Total fat 5g, Saturated fat 2g, Carbs 33g, Cholesterol 45mg, Sodium 590mg, Fiber 3g, Sugars 9g

Spaghetti with Spinach and Mushrooms

I hope you all enjoyed your holiday this past weekend. I got to see my niece for the first time again since Christmas and that was amazing. She is 2 and it is scary how fast they grow! I can't believe how smart she was as well! I could go on and on about her but I will get back to the food.

I tried this recipe and fell in love! I am a huge pasta fan and am always looking for new ways to make it different and change it up a bit and this did it for me. This does have a lot of sodium so if you are worried about that you might want to watch your portions a little more. This tastes the best if you use really fresh spinach, it just makes all of the other flavors pop!

Ingredient list:
Serves 6

8 oz. spaghetti, broken into thirds
1 15-oz. can low-sodium vegetable broth
2 Tbs. tomato paste
1 Tbs. harissa, or 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/8 tsp. saffron threads
1 lb. mushrooms, quartered1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 tsp.)
1 lb. spinach, coarsely chopped
1 15-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350F. Place pasta on baking sheet and coat with cooking spray. Bake 5 to 7 minutes, or until golden, shaking pan once or twice to brown evenly.
• Bring vegetable broth, 21/2 cups water, tomato paste, harissa and saffron to a simmer in saucepan. Reduce heat to low, and keep warm.
• Heat large stockpot over medium-high heat, and coat with cooking spray. Add mushrooms, and cook 7 minutes, or until browned. Stir in garlic, and cook 1 minute more. Reduce heat to medium, and stir in pasta and 2 cups hot broth.
  
• Cook 4 to 5 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed, stirring frequently. Add spinach, chickpeas and remaining broth. Simmer 5 to 7 minutes more, or until noodles are tender and most of broth is absorbed, stirring constantly.
  
• Season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

Nutritional Information
Per Serving: Calories 274, Protein 12g, Total fat 3g, Carbs 51g, Sodium 490mg, Fiber 8g, Sugars 4g


And because I think Kayla, my niece, is so cute I figured I would add in a picture of her for good measure!