Broccoli Rice Cups

Ingredients:

1 10 – ounce thawed broccoli
1 cup chicken stock (low sodium)
1 cup white rice (I would use brown rice to make it lower carb)
1/4 cup Ranch Dressing (low fat/low sodium)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup grated cheese (any of your favorite light cheese)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt and pepper

Directions:

Boil rice according to package instructions.
Once done, transfer cooked rice to a medium bowl and allow to cool for a minute.
Mix together all the ingredients, but only using 1/2 of the cheese.
Grease a 12 cup muffin tray and fill tray.
Top with the remaining cheese.
Bake in oven for 25 minutes at 350 degrees or until golden and crispy.

Turkey Lasagna Cups

Ingredients:

6 egg roll wrappers
12 tablespoons canned Muir Glen® organic fire roasted crushed tomatoes or tomato puree
6 tablespoons chopped cooked turkey
12 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese (3 oz)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 6 regular-size muffin cups with cooking spray.

Line each muffin cup with 1 egg roll wrapper. In each wrapper, place 1 tablespoon each tomatoes, turkey and cheese. Fold excess egg roll wrapper over (like you would wrap a package). Top each with 1 tablespoon tomatoes and 1 tablespoon cheese.

Kale Cups

Ingredients:

1 bunch kale, ribs removed and roughly chopped (8 to 10 cups)

1/2 cup reduced fat ricotta cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 shallot, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon miso, preferably white or yellow (optional)

1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme

1 teaspoon lemon zest 

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon dried red chili flakes (optional)

3 tablespoons sesame seeds

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a food processor, pulse kale until finely chopped. You’ll probably need to do this in two batches. Add kale to a large bowl along with ricotta, Parmesan, eggs, shallot, garlic, miso, thyme, lemon zest, nutmeg and chili flakes. Mix well until all the ricotta has blended in with the kale. Divide among 10 medium-sized muffin cups and bake 20 minutes. Let cool several minutes before unmolding.

Meanwhile, heat a skillet over medium heat and toast sesame seeds until golden, about 3 minutes. Serve kale cups with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds on top.

Switch Hits:

• Replace ricotta cheese with cottage cheese
• Use spinach or Swiss chard instead of kale
• Try using hemp seeds as a garnish