Pumpkin Pie

Ive been craving sweets all day, and although, I was good and ate healthy all day, I knew Id want something sweet after dinner.  Its difficult to feel to guilty with pumpkin pie.  Pumpkin is my all time fave health ingredient.   Aside from being a loaded with beta carotene and being a powerful  antioxidant, pumpkin is packed with important vitamins, A, E, K, and fiber.  It is low in cholesterol and sodium.

1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 eggs
1 can(12 oz) evaporated milk

mix sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl, beat eggs in separate bowl and pour in bowl with dry ingredients, add pumpkin puree and evaporated milk.  Mix well, pour into pie tin
preheat oven to 425,
Bake pie for 15 minutes, lower heat to 350 and bake 50 more minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean
let sit for atleast an hour
serve with frozen yogurt or whip cream

Pumpkin Gnocchi

Heres another recipe with pumpkin, and although it sounds very gourmet, it was super easy to make and super inexpensive.  As I have mentioned over and over, I love pumpkin, not just because of the super great flavor, creamy texture, and versatility, but because of the nutritional benefits.  Pumpkin is high in vitamins A, C and K, it is also provides large amounts of beta carotene which when consumed acts as a powerful antioxidant.  I was rushed today, so I made the gnocchi with a butter, cheese sauce, next time I am going to probably try it with a walnut, or pistaccio pesto to boost the flavor and the nutrition. 
ingredients
1 can pumpkin puree(2 cups)
1 egg white
1 1/2-2 cups flour
water if needed
combine pumpkin, egg and 1 1/2 cup flour, with your hands and begin mixing together, slowly kneeding dough so it all starts to come together, as it forms a ball, if it is too sticky, add more flour.  When the dough is mixed completely together and not sticky, no more flour is needed.  Flour a large surface, like a table or countertop.   To roll out, take a piece of dough, about the size of a table spoon and roll into a long tube and place on floured surface.  Continue doing this until all the dough is used rolled out.  Then with a knife, at an angle, cut into small 1/2 inch pieces.  This dough is more dense then regular potato gnocchi, so the pieces should be small.
When completely all cut, place gnocchi on trays and place in freezer.  Freeze atleast an hour.
To cook:
In a large pot, boil water and add tablespoon of salt
When water boiling, drop in gnocchi one at a time
When gnocchi rise, they are done
With a slotted spoon, remove cooked gnocchi and place in bowl
for sauce:
1/4 stick of butter
1/2 cup parm cheese
in large skillet melt butter
toss in gnocchi, sauté for 2 minutes until gnocchi coated in butter and slightly crispy
add salt and pepper
top with parm cheese

Corn Crab Cakes

1 cup corn
1./3 cup mayo

1 tsp taco seasoning
2 cans crabmeat
1 egg beaten
2 tablespoons water
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

Line sheets wax paper or coat with spray or cooking oil. 
In a bowl, combine corn, mayo, crabmeat and taco seasoning.
shape into 8 patties, place on cookie sheet and freeze for 15 minutes

Heat oven to 450 degrees
In another bowl stir in water and egg
Dip each patty in egg mixture, then dip in bread crumbs
Bake 15 minutes, turn patties and bake 1-0 more minutes

Creamy Pumpkin Pasta with Peas

1/2 cup cream cheese
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk

1 cup peas
2 tsp garlic powder
12 ounces of pasta
salt and pepper to taste

cook pasta to taste
In the meantime, in sauce pan heat butter on low, when melted add cream cheese,pumpkin, stir in milk and stir rigorously
add garlic powder, peas and salt and pepper to taste

Linguine Red Clam Sauce with Black Olives

This is the second or third time I made pasta with clam sauce, but I havent made the dish with tomatoes or black olives before, and it was good.  The tomatoes added ofcourse the lycopenes, which are the most powerful antioxidents out there.  Clams contain protein, iron, potassium vitamin A and folate, and olives contain vitamin E, iron, copper and dietary fiber. 

12 ounces linguine or spaghetti
1 can clams
1 can diced tomato

1 cup sliced black olives
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste

boil noodles according to instruction
heat oil in skillet on low.   Add diced tomatos and garlic powder, saute for 10 minutes. Add clams, black olives and salt and pepper to taste.
When pasta is ready, toss in skillet with clam sauce, saute another 2 minutes
devide in bowls, top with parsley

Sweet Potato Crisp

This is like a sweet potato pie, so it is sweet and savory.  Sweet potatoes are loaded with nutrients, vitamin A, niacin, folic acid and vitamin C.  Oats are high in fiber and aids in digestion.  Pecans contain oleic acid and is an excellent source of antioxidants, such as vitamin E and beta carotene. 

Preheat oven to 350

1 8 oz package cream cheese
1 can 40 oz sweet potatoes
3/4 brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup apples
2//3 cups cranberries
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/3 cups butter
1/4 cup chopped pecans


Beat cream cheese, sweet potatoes, 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon and top with apple and cranberries.  place in a 9" baking dish
in separate bowl, mix flour, oats, remaining sugar, and cut butter into 1 inch pieces
top sweet potatoes with crunch topping and bake for 35-45 minutes until the top is golden brown

Mandarin Tuna Salad Roll Ups

I was inspired by working lunch today at my sons school, when the fruit choices were: fresh pears, red apples, green apples, apple sauce and canned mandarin oranges, and half the children 4th through 8th grade chose mandarin oranges.  So I got to thinking, what could I add to mandarin oranges that would be healthy and children would enjoy. Tuna and/salmon came to mind.  Tuna provides powerful  omega 3's and protein, and their is vitamin E in almonds, which acts as a powerful antioxident.  Canned mandarin oranges contain vitamins A, C and E.

1 can tuna rinsed
1 cup mandarin orange
1/4 cup mayonaise
1/4 sliced almond

mix all ingredients together, serve alone, with whole wheat bread, roll ups.