Vegetarian Chik'n Tikka Pizzas

I found the original recipe for this leafing through a Cooking Light magazine during our recent trip to my bf's parents' lake home in Minnesota. One of bf's favorite things to eat is pizza and mine is Indian food so it seemed like the perfect thing to satisfy both of our needs - and of course I took my own steps to reduce the calories in it. The result was an extremely happy boy and girl. This can be made vegetarian or not, take your pick!

Vegetarian Chik'n Tikka Pizzas

Serves: 2 hungry people

Ingredients

• 2 Joseph's multi-grain flatbread* or 4 whole wheat pitas
• 1 12 oz. package Quorn Chik'n Tenders [12 oz. diced chicken breast can also be used**]
• 1/4 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt
• 3 tsp garam masala***, divided
• Cooking spray
• 1 tsp finely minced fresh, peeled ginger
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp ground red pepper
• 2 10-oz. cans Rotel diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/4 cup fat free sour cream
• 3/4 to 1 cup shredded reduced fat mozzarella cheese [We also sprinkled crumbled gorgonzola cheese on top]
• 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
• 2 Tbsp roughly chopped fresh cilantro

[Indian] Homemade Paneer

Whenever I ordered a paneer dish at an Indian restaurant (that tofu-like cheese curd) I always imagined it was made by some mysterious complicated process. That was until I asked my Indian coworker who exclaimed that it was in fact one of the easiest things to make. She explained it to me like this: boil milk, add lemon juice, allow to curdle and press in a cheese cloth. Now doesn't that sound easy?

Ingredients:

• Half gallon milk (whole or 2% reduced fat will give the best flavor)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• Dried spices of your choice (you can get creative here, I used parsley)
• Cheesecloth & strainer

[Indian] Vegetarian Tikka Masala

After a disappointing attempt at tikka masala a few weeks ago, I decided to try again this time pulling from numerous recipes. This adaptation came out so well I swear I could eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a week straight. This can be made with any kind of protein or meat substitute you prefer, even paneer which is extremely easy to make at home (I will post a recipe soon).

Tikka masala with homemade naan bread

Vegetarian Tikka Masala

Marinade

• 1 package Quorn Naked Chik'n Cutlets (cut into bite sized cubes), or 1 bag Quorn Chik'n Pieces, thawed [sub real chicken breast for a non-vegetarian dish]
• 2 Tbsp plain, nonfat greek yogurt
• 2 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground red cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp fresh minced ginger

[Indian] Potato & Seitan Curry with Peas and Carrots

Indian food really is not the most attractive to look at but this recipe turned out surprisingly pretty. I took a lot of liberties with the original recipe trying to find the right flavor while stripping it down into a lower calorie meal.

 Mis en Place: to "put in place." Probably the most important lesson I've learned about cooking.

Potato & Seitan Curry

Yield: 6 servings

• Non-stick cooking spray
• 1 package seitan chunks, cut into bite sized pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, minced  
• 2 large onions, chopped 
  
• 8 oz. carrots, thinly sliced  
• 2 medium potatoes, cut into 1" chunks  (leave skin on for added nutrients)
  
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1" chunks
• 1 1/4 cups frozen peas  
• 1 1/2 Tbsp curry powder 
• 1-2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper  
  
• 1 tsp ground coriander  
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger  
• 1/4 tsp garam masala *not required, but I thought it added a nice, more complete flavor
• 1 14-oz. can coconut milk  (used Iberia brand - 300 cals per can)
• 1 cup (or more as needed) water