These are delicious and fit well into my life. Obviously they may not be for everyone and definitely not at every stage of the WLS process, but I figured I'd post them because I took photos too. I don't know the nutritional info... only how many Weigh****chers points they total per serving, lol.

ZUCCHINI FRIES

Servings:  4 Preparation Time:  7 min Cooking Time:  12 min Level of Difficulty:  Easy

These fast-food fry knock-offs are not just tasty—they're good for you, too. Swap any summer squash for the zucchini and try different seasoning mixes.

Ingredients

	4 spray(s) olive oil cooking spray
	1 tsp Italian seasoning
	1 1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
	3/4 tsp table salt
	3/4 cup(s) dried bread crumbs, panko-variety suggested
	2 medium zucchini, about 7-inches each, cut into 4 chunks, then each chunk halved
	2 large egg white(s), whipped until frothy (almost soft peaks)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425ºF. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. In a small bowl, mix together Italian seasoning, flour and salt. Place bread crumbs in another small bowl.
   
• Dredge a zucchini fry in flour mixture and then dip into egg whites; dredge in bread crumbs. Place coated zucchini on prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining ingredients; liberally coat with cooking spray.
   
• Roast, turning once, until desired crispness, about 12 minutes. Yields about 8 fries per serving.

Notes

• Use this technique with any summer squash or eggplant. It also works great with thick-cut onion rings or even green tomatoes.
  
  For extra crispy fries, increase the oven temperature to 500ºF and knock 2 minutes off the cooking time.

Here's how mine turned out (YUM!!):




-------------------------------------------------------------------

GRILLED MEATBALL KABOBS

Servings:  4 Preparation Time:  20 min Cooking Time:  10 min Level of Difficulty:  Moderate

These kebabs are best made outdoors on a grill, but they can also be broiled for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

Ingredients

	1/2 cup(s) dried bread crumbs
	1/4 cup(s) 1% low-fat milk
	1 pound(s) raw lean ground beef
	3/4 oz romano cheese, grated (about 1/4 cup)
	2 large egg white(s)
	2 medium garlic clove(s), coarsely chopped
	2 tsp dried parsley
	2 tsp dried oregano
	1/2 tsp table salt
	1/2 tsp black pepper
	1 medium sweet red pepper(s), cut into sixteen chunks
	1 medium onion(s), cut into sixteen 1-inch pieces

Instructions

• Soak eight 10-inch skewers in water to prevent them from burning on grill.
   
• In small bowl, mix bread crumbs and milk; set aside 5 minutes. Heat grill.
   
• In food processor, combine beef, cheese, egg whites, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper. Strain bread crumbs and squeeze lightly to extract excess milk. Add to beef mixture and process just until blended.
   
• With moistened hands, shape mixture into 16 meatballs, about 2 inches in diameter. Holding two skewers at a time, alternately thread 4 chunks of red pepper, 4 chunks of onion and 4 meatballs onto parallel skewers, beginning with pepper. Repeat with remaining skewers.
   
• On lightly oiled grill, cook kebabs for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating about every 2 minutes to cook evenly. Meatballs should be just cooked through, but not overcooked.

Here's how my version turned out (I added tomatoes too).. I broiled them:






--------------------------------------------------

STUFFED RED PEPPERS

Ingredients:

• 4 large red bell peppers
• 1 cup uncooked rice
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 tablespoon butter substitute
• 3/4 cup water
• 1lb lean ground beef or turkey
• 8 ounces shredded fat-free mild Cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes or 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

Preparation:

Cut peppers lengthwise into halves and remove seeds and membranes. Place peppers in a large saucepan of boiling water; cook for about 5 minutes. Drain, reserve liquid. Cook rice according to package directions. In a skillet, cook onions in butter. Add water and cheese; stir until melted and blended. Stir in meat (brown in seperate skillet before). Stir in rice; season with salt and pepper to taste. Add parsley. Fill pepper halves. Put on a rack in skillet or large kettle with about 1 1/2 cups of cooking liquid in the bottom of the pan. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Oh my gosh that looks good.........  I am gonna try the fries today for daycare......the meatballs mmmmmmmm thats a good idea... Thanks for sharing I am always in search of new ideas!!!!!!!!!

Elena,

Those zuch strips looks FABULOUS!!! and I just bought 4 zuchini yesterday and since I'm in the process of my pre-op weight loss, I would use this for my actual meal today (I'm replacing 2 meals with shakes and having one with some kind of healthy real food).

THANKS for the suggestion!

Shannon

Elena.....those fries look soooooo awesome....I will be trying them soon.

I have done meatball kabobs...yours looked great.

Love peppers...but don't do rice or I would try them too.

Thanks for sharing!!

Hugs....connie d

Is this the girl that once upon a time didn't know how to cook?, these look fabuuuuuuuuuulous

Great ideas Elena. Thanks for the new receipes!