Steamed Eggs with Beech Mushrooms

Grandma used to just make plain steamed eggs (蒸水蛋) and we would eat it warm with white rice. The trick to make this silky smooth is not to over beat the eggs and also steaming them in very low heat. If you never had this before, it's like eating a savory flan.

You can make this recipe with or without mushrooms. You can also used minced meat. Adding mushrooms gives more substance to this dish and it's actually a pretty good alternative for those that are watching their calories. We're doubling the bulk of eggs and also using mushrooms, which are a relatively low calorie food. Also, cover the eggs with plastic wrap so that excess water will not drip into the dish, causing it to be overly watery.

Ingredients
4 eggs
400 mL water
1 cup brown beech mushrooms
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Some chopped scallions

Lightly grease a casserole dish. Set up your steamer. Place a metal rack in the middle of the wok or a pot. Add in about 3 inches of water. Cover your wok or pot and let the water boil over high heat. Once the water starts to boil, turn the heat down to medium.

Combine eggs with water, salt, white pepper and sesame oil. Beat the mixture lightly until well combined. Add the egg mixture and mushrooms on the casserole dish.

Cover the dish with plastic wrap. Steam for about 20 minutes or until eggs are set.

To serve, top with chopped scallions, soy sauce and sesame oil. Serve warm.

Oven Baked Fried Chicken

I'm been craving fried chicken a lot lately but we all know it's full of grease and has tons of calories! I came up with this recipe by experimenting with my favorite spices and instead of frying it in grease, I opted on baking it on non-stick aluminum foil with some non-stick spray. Marinating chicken with milk before frying will make more tender and juicier, no one wants to eat a piece of dried chicken!


3 chicken breasts, cut into 3 pieces each

Ingredients (A) :
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon mustard
1/2 cup milk

1 egg
1 cup Bisquick Original Pancake and Baking Mix
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
non-stick aluminum foil
non-stick cooking spray
ziplock bag

Marinate chicken pieces with ingredient A in a ziplock bag for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight in the fridge.

Take chicken out of the fridge and let it stand until room temperature. Preheat oven to 450 °F.

Whisk egg and pour it into the ziplock. Mix well with chicken pieces. On a plate, combine Bisquick mix, salt and black pepper. Dredge chicken pieces on flour mixture.

Line a baking sheet with non-stick aluminum foil. Spray enough non-stick cooking spray on top of the foil. Arrange chicken pieces on top of foil. Spray more cooking spray on chicken pieces so that it helps to brown and crisp the chicken pieces. Bake for 15 minutes. Turn chicken and bake for another 15 minutes. Check to see if chicken is cook, if not bake for another 5-10 minutes.

Macaroni and Veggie Casserole

I made this with cauliflower and broccoli to bulk up the macaroni casserole. It's one of those days when I try to make something quick with things in my pantry yet trying to keep it low calorie. This recipe serves 6, about 285 per serving.

• 1 bag frozen broccoli (16 oz.)
• 1 bag frozen cauliflower
• 1 small chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 2 cups uncooked macaroni
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup fat free milk
• 3 cups water
  
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tablespoon margarine
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoon paprika
• 2 tablespoon dried basil
• Salt and pepper to taste
  

Microwave frozen broccoli and cauliflower on high for 10 minutes. Cook and drain macaroni. Combine broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and macaroni in a casserole dish.

Heat saucepan on medium heat and put in the margarine. Add garlic and onion and saute until onions are translucent. Add in dried basil. Add flour into mixture and stir constantly. Be careful not to burn the flour, stirring constantly. Cook the flour mixture for about 2 minutes. Add water and milk. If the mixture becomes lumpy, use a whisk to smooth it out. Add in shredded cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the sauce mixture on top of the vegetables and pasta. Mix evenly. Sprinkle bread crumbles and paprika on top of the casserole. Bake at 350 °F for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Cherry Cake

I love a good Black Forest Cake but most of the time the ones they have at the diner or the Italian bakery near my house is pretty gross. I modified the recipe by putting cherry pie filling into a chocolate cake mix for an easy, quick and lower calorie twist. I'm using "light" cherry pie filling to reduce the calorie but regular cherry pie filling would do just fine. This recipe makes 20 servings, 131 calories each.

• 1 box Devil Foods Cake Mix
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups water
  
• 1 can 20 oz. Cherry Pie Filling
• Whipped cream

Preheat oven at 350 °F. Mix ingredients and pour the batter into a greased loaf pan or a cake pan. Bake for about 60 minutes. Cake is done when toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Serve with whipped cream.

Ray's Easy Pineapple Cake

I first made this cake when I threw a party and wanted to make a dessert but I'm short on time. So I mixed yellow cake mix with crushed pineapple to give a plain old yellow cake some flair. I am, and still are a huge fan of Rachel Ray so just like her I hate baking. This recipe is quite easy even for someone who hates baking like me. It's a fairly low calorie and moist cake. Makes 10 servings, each slice has 275 calories.

• 1 (18.25 oz.) box any yellow cake mix (I’m using French Vanilla)
• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple with pineapple juice (instead of heavy syrup)

Preheat oven to 325 ºF. Grease the sides and bottom of pan or bundt with nonstick spray. Dust a little flour on the sides and bottom as well.

Mix all of the ingredients except crushed pineapple in a large bowl for about 2 minutes. Add in the crushed pineapple and mix.

Pour batter in pan or bundt. Bake for about 55 minutes. Cake is done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool for about 20 minutes before you take the cake out of the pan or bundt. Make sure the cake is completely cooled. This is a really moist cake so no need for frosting or icing. Enjoy!