Health cooking - Baking with veggies

Hello all!
My monthly post of healthy cooking is about baking veggies. I grill, which you will hear about in the summer months, and steam veggies in almost every lunch or dinner meal. However, one of my friends had a party and baked Brussel sprouts. I promise you I could have ate the whole tray but thought that might not be acceptable at a party. I asked her what she did and it was simple, which is another concept I will write about. Some of the best food is simple foods! I've been making a variety of her recipe since.

I don't remember ever eating baked veggies as a kid. I know I didn't make them as an adult. NOW I know what I was missing; some delicious goodies. The BASIC recipe for most veggies is a little olive oil, salt and pepper. After that GO CRAZY! I've added garlic salt, different spices, and balsamic vinegar. I will say "keep the salt limited" but have fun with spices. It is hard for me to follow any recipe because I always throw my flare in with adding other "stuff".

Before Baking

After Baking

So today's recipe was difficult but I did follow the recipe: Parmesan Tomato Zucchini Bake. I felt like it was missing something. I liked it but not loved it.

So I made side dishes. The baked Brussel sprouts and broccoli was only EVOO, garlic salt and pepper. Loved it!!! I will be making this many more time. Similar recipe with cauliflower, zucchini, asparagus and mushrooms was EVOO, garlic salt and pepper but added the Italian spice and chopped garlic. The smell was wonderful and this simple recipe was a winner in my book! I bake them at 400 degrees and check it after 20 minutes to determine how much longer to cook the dishes. I like my veggies on the crunchier side so I don't cook mine as long as some people might like but I give you permission to cook the way YOU want to cook. You like crunchy then have crunchy but you need to not cook them as long. If you like soft veggies then let them cook a little longer. Make it the way YOU like them and your family.

So until next month, ping me with your thoughts and let me know what you think I should try next. Keep cooking healthy ...
~Tara Woolbright, Realtor 713-489-0507 or tara.woolbright@gmail.com

One of my biggest passions is cooking!

Happy 2017 and to trying new things!
I am going to try to share my experiences and recipes with each of you a couple of times a month.

My grandmother was a big part of my life. Although I didn't know it when I was growing up, I am truly blessed to have such an amazing woman as a role model in my life. My grandmother not only loved to sing, which was not really one of her talents, but she loved to cook. I remember that it seemed like the more people she had to cook for the happier she was in life. I want to make it clear that I don't always cook well nor does everything I cook even worth eating but that does not stop me. I love to grill or bake or pan fry healthy foods with a side of "extra" not so healthy.

So since my Houston December has not been that cold but we did cool off some, this post is for one of my favorite cold weather foods: Chili!

I tried this link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/three-bean-and-beef-chili-recipe.html
But only had 2 different beans, green bell pepper instead of red, no cumin and my own chili seasoning that was left over. I would leave out the carrots next time. To keep it healthier you can leave off the cheese but I did add a little to mine. Overall, very good and warm meal for a cool winters day.

Cheers my friends!