FAT CITY: LOW FAT RECIPES

For my article on losing weight painlessly by cutting fat, click here. For Low Fat Cooking to Beat the Clock, click here.

Pesto Pizza
Greek Chicken
Curried Lentils With Basmati Rice
Raspberry Crème Brulee
Tofu Smoothie
Cocoa-Peanut Butter Shake
French Toast
Summer Salad
Cucumber and Corn Salsa

PIZZA

Pizza on a low fat diet? You bet. And pesto too. The pesto recipe appeared originally in the Los Angeles Times. I toasted the nuts to add more flavor and I added salt. The pizza recipe, which appeared in Eating Well magazine, is great cut up as hors d’oeuvres.

Oil-less Pesto

• 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
• 3 cups basil leaves
• 2 cups spinach leaves
• 8 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 to 4 tablespoons mineral water
• Salt to taste

Put nuts, basil, spinach, garlic, cheese, lemon juice and pepper in a food processor. Puree. Gradually add mineral water until desired consistency is achieved. Salt to taste. Serve with pasta, grilled fish or chicken. Makes about 1 cup.

Per serving (about 1/4 cup); 99 calories, 7 grams fat.

Low-fat Pizza

• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 large onions, sliced
• 8 cups wild mushrooms such as shiitake, sliced
• Salt and pepper
• 4 teaspoons fresh sage, chopped
• 1 recipe pizza dough (recipe follows)
• Cornmeal
• 1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Put oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and mushrooms, and sauté until soft. Season with salt, pepper and sage. Roll out dough into eight 6-inch circles. Place two at a time on a wooden pizza peel sprinkled with cornmeal. Top each with 1/8 of mushroom mixture and 1/8 of cheese. Slide into oven on quarry tiles or on turned-over baking sheet. Cook 10-14 minutes, or until crisp and lightly browned on the bottom.

Per one pizza: 321 calories, 5 grams fat.

Pizza Dough

• 4 to 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 envelopes fast-rising yeast
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons olive oil

In a large bowl, combine 3 cups flour, yeast, salt and sugar. Heat olive oil with 1 3/4 cups water to 105-115 degrees. Add to flour mixture and stir well. Gradually add more flour until dough comes together. Knead dough on a well-floured surface 8 to10 minutes. Cover and let rest 10 minutes. Punch down.

This recipe will make up to eight 6-inch pizzas or four 10 to 12-inch pizzas. The dough can be refrigerated or frozen.

GREEK CHICKEN

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 chicken breast halves on the bone, skin removed
• 1/2 medium onion, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• One 14-1/2 ounce can cut-up tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup Greek olives, cut in half and pitted
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup minced parsley

In a large nonstick skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Brown chicken on both sides. Add onion and garlic; cook 2 minutes. Add tomatoes with their liquid to the pan with the cinnamon, cayenne, salt, pepper and olives. Simmer, covered, 15 minutes. Turn chicken and continue cooking 10-15 minutes, until chicken tests done. Remove chicken to a warm platter. Bring sauce to boil with lemon and parsley. Boil a few minutes until slightly thickened. Our over chicken. Serve with rice or noodles.

Serves 4. Per serving: 215 calories 28 grams protein, 7 grams fat, 9 grams carbohydrate, 277 mg sodium, 73 mg cholesterol.

(Adapted from the Seattle Times.)

CURRIED LENTILS WITH BASMATI RICE

• 1 3/4 cups dried lentils (3/4 pound), cleaned
• 4 cups water
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 small green bell pepper, coarsely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 teaspoons grated ginger root
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 3 or 4 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• Two 15-ounce cans stewed tomatoes
• 3 or 4 cups cooked basmati rice

Combine lentils and water in a 4-quart saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until lentils are almost tender and all water has been absorbed, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in saucepan or deep skillet. Add pepper, onion, ginger and mustard seeds. Sauté, stirring, until onion is golden brown. Stir in curry powder, basil and 1 teaspoon salt. Add tomatoes and bring to simmer. Add lentils and simmer, covered, over low heat until lentils are very tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Adjust seasoning for curry and salt if desired.

Serve lentils over rice.

Serves 6. Per serving: 263 calories; 7 grams protein; 55 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fat (8 percent of calories as fat); 4.3 grams fiber; 0 cholesterol; 899 mg sodium.

(Adapted from "The Weekend Kitchen" by Joanne Lamb Hayes and Bonnie Tandy LeBlang, Crown Publishing)

RASPBERRY CREME BRULEE

The crème brulee recipe was adapted from one that appeared in the Los Angeles Times. You don’t have to use raspberries – almost any fruit will do.

• 2 cups non-fat milk
• 2 tablespoons non-fat dry milk
• 3/4 cup thawed egg substitute
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 36 to 42 fresh raspberries

Stir together 1/2 cup non-fat milk and non-fat milk powder until blended. Stir in remaining non-fat milk, egg substitute, 1/3 cup sugar and vanilla.

Place 5 to 7 raspberries in bottom of each of 6 (5-ounce) custard cups. Pour custard mixture over raspberries. Bake in pan filled with hot water to 1-inch depth in 325-degree oven about 35 minutes or until custard is set.

Chill. Fifteen minutes before serving, sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon sugar over top of each custard. Place cups on baking sheep and broil 4 inches from heat until sugar is caramelized. Makes 6 servings.

Per serving: 124 calories; 102 mg. Sodium; 2 mg. Cholesterol; 0 gm. fat; 24 gm. carbohydrates; 7 gm protein; 0.61 gm. fiber.

TOFU SMOOTHIE

If you avoid tofu, this breakfast drink might sound not up your alley. But the tofu is neutralized by the fruit and provides a nice low-fat protein base that will keep you going until lunch.

• 1/4 cup firm tofu
• 1/2 cup or more carbonated lemon-flavored mineral water
• 2/3 to 3/4 cup unsweetened frozen berries
• 2 packets of Equal or sweetener of your choice

Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor. Mix until smooth. Add more mineral water to thin if desired. Makes one serving

COCOA-PEANUT BUTTER SHAKE

Because of the high-fat peanut butter, save this for special mornings. Or use less peanut butter. Use lower-fat cocoa powder, not chocolate.

• 1 cup crushed ice
• 1 cup nonfat milk
• 1 heaping tablespoon peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 1 frozen banana, slightly defrosted
• Honey to taste

Put all ingredients except honey in a blender or food processor. Add honey to taste. Makes one serving.

FRENCH TOAST

French toast sounds fattening, but not if you use vegetable spray on the skillet and egg substitutes. Good quality, well-textured bread is essential. This recipe is adapted from "Low Fat & Loving It." Nutritional numbers don't reflect toppings.

• 1/4 cup Egg Beaters or other egg substitute
• 1/4 cup nonfat milk
• Dash vanilla
• Pinch each, sugar, grated nutmeg and salt
• 2 slices French or Italian bread, cut slightly on the diagonal, about 1 inch thick
• Vegetable spray
• Optional toppings: powdered sugar, honey, fruit preserves, maple syrup

In a shallow bowl, beat all ingredients together except bread and vegetable spray. Add bread, one slice at a time and briefly soak on both sides. Cook until nicely browned on both sides in a hot, non-stick skillet that has been sprayed with vegetable spray. Serve with topping of your choice.

Makes one serving. Calories, 259; protein 13g; fat 3g; carbohydrates 43 g; cholesterol 3 mg.

SUMMER SALAD

The following quick salad, adopted from "Low-Fat Meals in Minutes" by M.J. Smith (DCI Publishing Inc), contains four grams of fat per serving.

• 1 cup cooked shrimp
• 1 cup surimi (imitation crab)
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 2 tablespoons minced onion
• 1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
• 1/4 cup chopped pimento
• 1/3 cup fat-free mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup non-fat yogurt or non-fat sour cream
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Pinch cayenne pepper
• 4 cups chopped salad greens

Put shrimp, surimi, celery, onion, peas and pimento in a large mixing bowl. In small bowl, combine mayonnaise, yogurt, lemon juice, salt, pepper and cayenne. Mix well and adjust seasoning to taste. Add to seafood mixture and mix well. Put greens on a platter and top with seafood. Serves 4.

CUCUMBER AND CORN SALSA

A plain grilled breast of chicken or filet of fish looks a lot more appetizing with a nicely textured salsa. This recipe, from the Seattle Times, is fat-free.

• 1/2 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
• 5 medium plum tomatoes, diced (or 20 small cherry tomatoes, halved)
• 2 medium green onions, minced
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels, defrosted, or 1 cup canned corn
• 1 medium jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 medium clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• Salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons lime juice