Simple homemade gourmet (not out of the package) ramen noodles

Ok so I've been requested a few times to divulge my recipe for the yummy ramen noodle soup I keep posting pics of on my fit food Instagram account @phyliciasfitfood so here it is!

Super simple yet oh so delish! And you can totally make your own creations using whatever veggies or protein you desire. 

Pictured is spicy chicken broth with egg noodles, bok choy, carrot, broccoli, mushroom and hard boiled egg with sriracha! 

This is the basic broth recipe:

Makes two servings

4 cups water

2 stock pots (condensed stock) in chicken, beef or any flavor you want

A dash of hot sauce

Fresh ground pepper

2 spring onions chopped

2 tsp sesame oil

1 package of egg noodles or rice noodles

Optional ingredients:

Snap peas

Baby corn

Sween corn

Shredded cabbage

Sliced carrot

Peas

Bean sprouts

Bell pepper

Broccoli

Bok choy

Zucchini

Cilantro

Grilled chicken or beef slices

Tofu

Hard boiled egg

Bring the water to boil and drop in the stock pots. Stir to dissolve and add the hot sauce and black pepper. Now add all the veggies. If using dried noodles add those too and let simmer on medium for about 10 minutes or till noodles are cooked. If using soft already cooked noodles, add them for the last minute of cooking. Turn off heat and stir in the spring onions and sesame oil. Pour into bowls and serve with your choice of protein on top and hard boiled egg. Slurp and enjoy! 

Goats cheese, toasted garlic and herb stuffed squash blossoms

It was a great day at the Sunday farmers market today! I got so excited about my purchases that I had to put them to use the minute I got home! And with squash blossoms you really do have to use them the day you buy them as they are extremely delicate. I also found some edible flowers that make any salad really pop! And they don't have a strong flavor so they go with any type of salad.

I was inspired by a restaurant I went to a long time ago in Silverlake (can't remember the name of it) that had a seasonal menu and I ordered the stuffed squash blossom appetizer which was the first and only time I'd had them. Needless to say, they haven't left my mind. Finding fresh ones in good quality can be challenging but luckily not today! An added bonus is if you get the female blossoms with the baby zucchini attached!

Recipe

10 fresh squash blossoms gently washed and patted dry, 

remove any stigmas (where the pollen comes from) from inside the blossom.

1/2 c. Goats cheese

3 cloves garlic chopped

1/4 c. Fresh parsley chopped

1/4 c. Fresh basil chopped

Salt pepper to taste

3/4 cup olive oil for pan frying

Wild rocket, roasted beet and lemon juice vinaigrette(juice of 2 lemons and a splash of olive oil) to serve.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and quickly fry the garlic till light brown. Turn off heat and scoop all the garlic out with a slotted spoon and put in a bowl. Save the now garlic infused olive oil in the same pan to pan fry the stuffed squash blossoms later. Now, mix the goats cheese, parsley, basil and salt and pepper with the garlic till well mixed. With a small spoon, scoop about a table spoon amount of the goats cheese mix into the base of each blossom then gently twist the tops to close. It's ok if there is a little bit leaking out of the sides just try to wipe it away if there's too much leaking. Heat the oil again till hot and place about 4-5 of the stuffed blossoms in gently. There will be some popping so be careful! After about a minute, use tongs to flip each blossom and repeat till desired brownness. Remove and set on a paper towel to soak up excess oil. I also gently pat them on top with a paper towel. 

Now serve alone or on salad! Enjoy! (Photos below for step by step reference!)

Greek yogurt caesar dressing- only 55 calories per 2 Tbs.!

I absolutely LOVE Caesar salads but often have trouble finding a good one at restaurants or even a nice bottled dressing at the store. I'm definitely not a fan of bottled dressings in general as they are filled with too many additives and just taste plain weird. But, I was always a bit shy to make my own caesar because the thought of using raw egg. Well, I had an epiphany the other day, a Greek yogurt epiphany! So I whipped out my blender and threw in the classic Caesar ingredients EXCEPT for the mayo or raw egg but used Greek yogurt instead. I also tried adding lemon zest because I like and lemony dressing and the turn out was perfection!

It's everything I could dream of for the best caesar dressing. Creamy, tangy, rich and not to mention healthier than any caesar dressing out there! And since I just chucked al the ingredients into the blender, it was a snap to make! Using 0% fat fage total Greek yogurt cuts calories and adds healthy probiotics along with perfect texture, it's a win win for everyone. Don't be afraid of the anchovy either! I'm not particularly an anchovy lover but they are what gives the dressing that unique caesar flavor. Plus they're high in calcium! 

Caesar and turkey pita pocket.

I made an incredible kale Caesar salad first (massage dressing into kale and let sit for at least 30 minutes) and have literally had a different version of Caesar salad everyday for the last 3 days. I'm a little obsessed....but you will be too.

Healthy Greek yogurt caesar dressing (makes a 12 oz. bottle, good for about 1 week)

1 cup 0% fat Greek yogurt

1/4 c. Olive oil

Juice of 2 lemons + zest of 1 lemon

2 Tbs Dijon mustard

1 Tbs Worcester sauce

3 Tbs red wine vinegar

4 garlic cloves

5 anchovy fillets

Sea salt to taste

A generous amount of fresh cracked pepper

Place all ingredients into blender and blend on low till smooth. Keep refrigerated. Easy peasy!  

Sunday Brunch: Baked Egg Pot

Thanks to an awesome sale at Debenham's I finally got my hands on a set of 4 mini Le Creuset casserole pots! Being a breakfast lover, the first thing I wanted to try was a baked egg pot. It's super simple to put together and they're perfect for a homemade brunch that is sure to impress. I basically used what I had in the fridge which is handy for making room for my usual big sunday shop.

All the ingredients I used happened to work so well together but feel free to experiment with your own egg pot. Just make sure you layer it with veg on the bottom, cheese in the middle, then protein and finally the cracked egg on top! Voila!

Seared Salmon Asparagus and Tomato Baked Egg Pot

For two people: 2 ramekins or 2 mini casserole dishes

3 tomatoes chopped
6 asparagus spears chopped
1 spring onion chopped
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 Tbs chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
*optional dash of old bay spice
2 tbs light cream cheese (1 for each pot)
1 cup seared salmon diced
2 eggs

Pre heat oven to 200c or 400f. In a small non stick pan, sauté the tomato, asparagus, spring onion, thyme, parsley and old bay spice, salt and pepper in the olive oil. When it starts to look like a chunky sauce, split the mixture between the two mini baking dishes. Scoop 1 Tbs of the cream cheese on top of the tomato mix. Place the chunks of salmon over the cream cheese making a slight dip in the middle for the egg then crack one egg gently into the dip. Place in the center of the oven uncovered for about 20 minutes or until the egg is cooked to your liking. Remove and let cool slightly then serve with crusty bread or pita for dipping. I also garnished mine with more chopped thyme. Dig in!

adding the cream cheese

Egg in the middle

Healthy Grilled Veggie Ratatouille

Ok, so everyone knows the movie but not many (including myself) have ever had or made Ratatouille!
I happened to watch the Pixar film recently and added it to my list of recipes to try. I searched the internet and got a general consensus of what a typical recipe is made up of but seeing as eggplant is one of the main ingredients and I'm not a fan of eggplant because I find it too mushy, I had to substitute it with some of my fave veggies.

Basically, Ratatouille is a brothy vegetable casserole. It was considered peasant food so the ingredients are extremely simple but all the flavors come together like a savory explosion! And best of all, its super easy to make.

Ingredients:

- 4 large tomatoes peeled and chopped (just drop them in boiling water for a minute and the skin will come of easily)
- 2 large zucchini sliced 1/4" thick
- 2 cups mushroom sliced
- 2 red, yellow or orange bell peppers sliced
- 1 red onion sliced
- about 10 cherry tomatoes whole
-5 stalks of asparagus chopped into 1" pieces
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh basil chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh thyme chopped
-salt and pepper to taste
-olive oil for grilling

Preheat oven to 190c or 375f. Grease a large glass baking dish and set aside. Heat some olive oil in a large skillet and add the garlic. Sauté till light brown, remove from skillet and set aside. Now add half the zucchini and saute on high till lightly brown but not fully cooked. Remove from skillet and layer zucchini into bottom of the baking dish. Take half the chopped tomato and sprinkle evenly over the zucchini. Then sprinkle half the garlic, basil and thyme. Season with salt and pepper.

Now saute the mushrooms lightly and add to the dish in a layer. Then saute the bell pepper lightly and add to the dish in a layer. Then saute the red onion lightly and add to the dish in a layer. All veg should be lightly browned but not fully cooked! Now layer the rest of the garlic, basil and thyme and season with salt and pepper again. Saute the rest of the zucchini and layer it on top. Arrange the asparagus and cherry tomatoes over the zucchini layer and put dish into the oven for about 20 minutes. You should see a nice char on the top veggies. Serve in bowls as it will be a bit soupy and add grated mozzarella if you like. Enjoy!

160 Calorie Quick and Easy Banoffy Pie

It's just so simple!

All you need is:

1 caramel flavor rice cake
1 Tbs of crunchy peanut butter
about 7 slices of banana
1 dolup of light vanilla whipped cream

Layer in that order and enjoy!

Healthy Baked Apple Bombs

At 205 calories these are amazingly half the calories of a slice of traditional apple pie but full on flavor! I was inspired by a recipe that I saw in Martha Stewarts Everyday Food Magazine but changed quite a bit of it to make it healthier. These are super easy to make and A LOT quicker than slaving away on a homemade apple pie!

Makes 4 servings and I served mine with low fat vanilla bean ice cream but I'm sure whipped cream or vanilla yogurt will work to.

Healthy Baked Apple Bombs Recipe

2 large Granny Smith apples halved and core cut out
1/4 c. chopped walnuts
1/4 c. chopped pecans
1/2 c. old fashioned or quick oats uncooked
2 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs orange marmalade (though strawberry or honey may work)
1 Tbs unsalted butter softened
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

Pre heat oven to 350f or 180c. Mix the nuts, oats, brown sugar, marmalade, butter, cinnamon and salt in a bowl very well. Dollop mixture into the middle of the apple halves dividing evenly. On a foiled baking sheet place stuffed apples 2 inches apart and bake for about 15 minutes or till the white part of the apple can be pierced easily with a fork. Let cool slightly and scoop out the apple from the skin to serve. Enjoy!