Spinach and Feta Stuffed Portabella Caps

Spinach and feta is an amazing combination in omelets, on pizza, in pasta, and now stuffed in portabella mushroom caps! I'm a big fan of stuffing vegetables with more vegetables- it's healthy, hearty and extremely satisfying. These make a great alternative to salad.

Adapted from this recipe, mine consists of...
- portabella mushrooms
- spinach
- onion
- red pepper 
- Italian dressing
- feta cheese
- parmesan cheese
- chicken broth
- chili flakes

How to make it:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Break off the portabella mushroom stems and scrape out the gills with a spoon.
2. In a bowl, combine a handful of spinach for each mushroom cap, some chopped onion, chopped red peppers, feta and parmesan cheeses, a pinch of chili flakes and Italian dressing to taste.
3. Place portabella caps in a baking dish, and fill with spinach mixture. Top with a sprinkling of feta and parmesan cheeses.
4. Pour a little bit of chicken broth into the baking dish so that the mushroom caps are just sitting in some liquid. Put in the oven for about 45 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Lauren's West Coast Chop

This salad was inspired by Original Joe's West Coast Chop. I had it recently during a visit home and thought it was one of the best and most unique salads I've had in a while. The secret: BAKED chickpeas! They're nice and crunchy so they're almost like croutons, but tastier AND a great source of protein (not to mention gluten-free)!

Original Joe's version can be found here, but my own version consists of...
- spinach
- chickpeas
- olive oil
- seasoning salt
- cucumber
- avocado 
- craisins
- almond slivers
- goat cheese
- honey dijon vinaigrette

How to make it:
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Drain your chickpeas, drizzle with some olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning salt (or your own combination of spices) and bake in the oven for about 45 minutes.
2. Cut up some cucumber julienne, slice up some avocado and throw it in a bowl with some spinach, craisins, almond slivers, and baked chickpeas when ready.
3. Finish off with some goat cheese and your favorite honey dijon vinaigrette dressing (I used a homemade one).

A Variation:
This salad could easily be made into a meal by adding some grilled chicken!

Spinach and Parmesan Souffles

After another absence I figured I needed a really good and healthy recipe, and I definitely think this one delivers! This one also comes to us from the "Great Weeknight Cookbook", and while slightly ambitious the effort does yield great results.

The nice thing about this recipe is that it doesn't require a ton of ingredients, although you will need a set of ramekins. This souffle consists of...
- butter/margerine
- spinach
- bread
- sour cream
- eggs
- grated parmesan cheese
- nutmeg

The original recipe was for 4 souffles, but I have modified it for 2.

How to make it:
1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cook about 250g of spinach in a large dry pot over low heat until spinach is wilted. Leave to drain until needed.
2. Tear half a slice of bread into small pieces and put in a food processor to make into fine crumbs.
3. Squeeze as much liquid as possible out of the spinach, and blend it with 1/3 cup of sour cream until just combined in a course puree.
4. Separate 2 eggs. Add the yolks and 3 tbsp of grated parmesan to the food processor. Season with plenty of nutmeg and blend into a smooth puree.
5. Whisk the egg whites until stiff. Pour the mixture into the bowl of egg whites and fold together with a large metal spoon.
6. Lightly butter (or margerine) the insides of your ramekins and sprinkle in some parmesan. Spoon the mixture into the ramekins, top with a sprinkling of more parmesan and bake in the oven until puffed and golden brown (approximately 15-20 mins).  DO NOT AT ANY POINT WHILE BAKING OPEN THE OVEN!

Tips for how to serve: The book recommended to "serve with new potatoes and steamed baby vegetables", but I served it with mashed sweet potatoes!