Almost everyone I know makes the New Year’s resolution of losing weight, only to be tempted to break it at the first party they attend.
Dieting and entertaining are not exclusive of each other.
At the request of many of my weight and health-conscious friends, family and clients, I went to work creating low-calorie elegant recipes that can be served at the most informal dinner or the most elegant celebration.
The following recipes allow you to treat yourself to delicious food, while at the same time denying your waistline of all those unwanted inches.
The following recipes are nutritionally balanced, low in calories, easy to prepare and, most importantly, delicious.
Set your table with your best silver, add candlelight and five dieting guests and you have the makings for a delectable evening.
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Serves 6
Tomato & Zucchini Soup
Garlic Veal
Carrots Culinary Architect
New Bliss Potatoes
Orange Souffle
Approximately 400 calories
per person
Tomato & Zucchini Soup
1 lb. ripe plum tomatoes,
peeled and cored
3 shallots
4 zucchini (approximately
20 oz.), scrubbed and
trimmed, not peeled
1/3 cup chopped Italian
parsley
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 cup water
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1. In a dutch oven, “saute” the shallot, in water, for 10 minutes.
2. Add tomatoes and zucchini and cook, covered, for 20 minutes.
3. Puree the mixture in a food processor or blender. Add seasonings.
4. To serve, place in soup plate and garnish with parsley.
Garlic Veal
3 garlic cloves, peeled and
chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tblsps. olive oil
6 veal steaks,trimmed
(4 oz. each)
3 tblsps. chopped chives
1. Mix garlic, oil and pepper together in a bowl that will comfortably fit the veal. Add the veal. Be sure each piece is coated with the marinade. Let the veal marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
2. Grill steaks on a preheated grill or broiler for 2 minutes on each side. (Do not over cook, veal maybe served “pink” inside.)
Carrots Culinary Architect
1 1/2 lbs. carrots, peeled and
cut into julienne
Freshly ground white pepper
and sweet paprika
Spray olive oil
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped basil
1. Toss carrots with pepper and paprika. In a skillet, spray oil and saute onion for 3 minutes or until soft. Add carrots and 2 tblsp. chopped basil. Saute for 2 more minutes. Add one cup of hot water, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
New Bliss Potatoes
12 oz. New Bliss potatoes
Freshly ground pink pepper
1. Boil potatoes in water until you can pierce them with a fork. Drain and sprinkle with pink pepper.
To Serve: Place the veal on the plate and sprinkle with chopped chives. Place 1/6 of the carrots on each plate and sprinkle with fresh basil. Place 1/6 of the potatoes on each plate.
Orange Souffle
6 large thick-skinned oranges
(I use navels.) With the tops
cut off and a sliver from the
bottom removed, carefully
remove all of the pulp.
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup Stevia
3 tblsps. corn starch
1 tblsp. Grand Marnier
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
3 egg whites at room
temperature
1. Squeeze the pulp, set the juice aside.
2. In the top of a double boiler, beat the egg yolks, Stevia and cornstarch together over a medium heat until the mixture thickens. Add orange juice and cook until thick.
3. 30 minutes before serving, whip the eggs and the cream of tartar until stiff. Add 1/4 of the whites into the egg mixture, then gently fold in remaining whites. Fill each orange. Then bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the tops are lightly browned.
4. To serve: Place one souffle on each plate and garnish with a fresh flower.
Alexandra Troy is owner of Culinary Architect Catering, a 32 year-old Greenvale-based company, specializing in private, corporate and promotional parties. She lives in Manhasset with her husband and son.
