Slutty Low-Carb “Pasta”

Slutty Low-Carb “Pasta”

 

I have been seeing recipes all over Pinterest that require the use of a tool that cuts veggies into spiral noodles. I gave in and bought one months ago, yet it sits in my kitchen in the original packaging begging to be used. Well…until tonight that is! I was inspired by a recipe I pinned on my Lighter Fare board. I went to the grocery store with my weekly menu in hand and when I came home, I couldn’t wait to get started on my creation.

 

This is a low carb, sugar free, delicious meal that combines delicious veggies, ground turkey and a little bit of heat. The outcome ….. I can’t even tell you how good this was.  The name for this recipe is pulled from the inspiration recipe on pinterest. Spaghetti alla Puttanesca is an old school Italian recipe that translates into “spaghetti a la whore”. The name works and it’s catchy so I decided to keep it.

 

So let’s get started. This was enough for me to have dinner and lunch the next day.

2 ripe zucchini’s

97% fat free ground turkey (I used ½ pound)

Olive Oil

½ cup diced red bell pepper

¼ cup diced yellow onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tablespoon capers

Pine nuts

Lemon juice

15oz can of fire roasted tomatoes, diced (not drained)

Seasonings

 

To start, brown your ground turkey in a pan (add a touch of olive oil if the meat sticks to your pan). Season with sea salt, pepper, dehydrated onion and garlic powder. Add in red bell pepper and onions and cook until turkey is cooked through and veggies are translucent. Toss in a handful of pine nuts and cook for a few minutes to sort of toast them. Add in garlic and capers, cook for a few more minutes.  Add the can of tomatoes and turn up the heat to medium high. Once the skillet is pretty hot, squirt some fresh lemon juice around the inside edge of the pan and stir. I love adding lemon to tomato sauces/mixtures because it really brightens up the flavor of the veggies. Turn down to medium and let simmer while you cut the zucchini noodles.

 

Use your spiral veggie cutter to cut 2 zucchinis (wash and dry them first). Once the sauce is hot and bubbly, I add just a pinch of red pepper flakes and toss. Put your “noodles” in a bowl, top with a few ladles full of the tomato sauce and garnish with parmesan cheese.

 

You could add other veggies as you see fit. Mushrooms would be delightful, other bell peppers, asparagus even. The possibilities are endless. Then you could change up the spices to make the flavor completely different.

 

 

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Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

I owe all the credit in the world to This Blog for this recipe. I have never added any liquid fruit to a frosting before but now's as good a time as any, right?!

I paired this with a lemon cake and it was REALLY good.

I did tweak her original recipe just a bit and am definitely keeping this recipe in my back pocket.

Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

1/2 c. unsalted butter

12 oz bag of frozen raspberries (you can use fresh also)

1/2 c plus 2 T fresh squeezed lemon juice

Lemon Zest

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

3 - 4 c. powdered sugar

pinch of salt

1 to 2 T. whole milk or cream, as needed

To make a raspberry sauce: In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the raspberries until they are broken down and turn into liquid (for the most part). Line a mesh strainer with cheesecloth  and place in a smaller saucepan. Pour the cooked raspberries into the cheesecloth and allow it to strain into the smaller pan. I used a plastic spoon and squished the raspberries to remove all the juices I could. Place back on to burner, add just a bit of lemon zest and cook until the sauce reduces. It will become a rich red color. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Affix the paddle attachment to your mixer and cream the butter until it is light colored and fluffy. Add in powdered sugar (I start with about 2 cups), 2/3 cups of the raspberry sauce, lemon juice, vanilla and salt and mix until it is really smooth. Add in additional powdered sugar to firm it up. You can add in milk/cream if you like a thinner consistency.

This buttercream was the perfect compliment to a lemon cake (I did not use her recipe for the lemon cake) but would also be quite delightful on a chocolate cake or maybe use the sauce as a base to create a filling!!! It is also good just off the spoon.....

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Lemon Poppyseed Surprise Center Cupcakes with Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting

I wish that I could take credit for this recipe but I can't.  I pinned this recipe a few weeks ago while I was on a mission to find a few spring/summer inspired cupcake recipes. I then got an order for a Military Women's Gala and thought this would be a wonderful flavor combination. I would say the hardest part about these cupcakes was finding the freeze dried blueberries. I literally called 17 stores in my area and no one had them. I just happened to remember of a high-end market that concentrates on organic and healthy food option. So I took a slight detour on my way home and voila!!! They had them!!!! They can be found online but I didn't want to pay for shipping if I didn't have to. Once I had all the ingredients, I decided to whip up a batch of these to see if they were as delicious as the original authors photos were.

This recipe does not disappoint in the least. All of the flavors work wonderfully together and are an explosion of spring and summer on your taste buds. The tangy lemon dances on your tongue and the blueberry frosting provides a nice sublte lady like curtsy to round it off.  Anyway, I didn't make any alterations to the recipe to so I'll re-type the recipe as is but all the credit goes to Eva.

The only thing I will change is how it is presented. Her recipe was a lot of back and forth the way it was written but it didn't effect the cupcake, just the ease of use. So here it is!! You should definitely try these! They are worth the effort in finding the freeze dried blueberries.

Lemon Poppyseed Surprise Center Cupcakes with Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Cake1 Stick of butter, softened
1 1/4 c. granulated sugar

2 Eggs

3 T fresh grated lemon zest

1/3 c. plus 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/3 c. Daisy light sour cream

2 T. milk

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 c. all purpose flours

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

1 T poppy seeds

1) Preheat oven to 350 Degrees Farenheit. Line cupcake pan with liners. (Eva says that this makes 12 standard cupcakes but i got 13 standard and 9 mini)
2) In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar then add the eggs, one at a time, mixin well between each.

3) Add grated lemon zest.

4) In a small bowl, combine ingredients in green above and set aside.

5) In a medium bowl, combine the ingredients in blue above and set aside.

6) Once you've added the lemon zest to the sugar/butter mixture, slowly alternate adding the flour mixture and the lemon juice mixture to the mixing bowl. Start and end with the dry flour mixture. Once combined, stir in the poppy seeds.

7) I filled cupcake liners 2/3 full and baked for about 25 minutes (your oven may vary so check on them after 18 minutes to make sure you don't overcook them.

While the cupcakes are baking, you can make the lemon curd!

Lemon Curd

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1/4 c. plus 2T  granulated sugar

3 T fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 T butter, melted

1 1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest

1) Whisk together all ingredients in the top of a double boiler. Make sure the water does not touch the bottom of the top pan in the double boiler.

2) Allow the lemon curd to cook for 15 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes until it thickens.

3) Remove from heat, transfer to a small bowl and let cool to room temperature.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 c. butter, room temperature

1.2 oz package of freeze dried blueberries

1 c. powdered sugar

1) Pour freeze dried blueberries into a blender. Blend until they turn into a fine powder (Eva used a magic bullet)

2) Cream together the butter and cream cheese until smooth

3) Add in the powdered sugar and powdered blueberry (you may add more powdered sugar 1 tablespoon at a time to reach desired consistency).

Once the cupcakes and lemon curd are cooled, scoop a small amount of cupcake out of the center of each cake and fill the holes with the lemon curd. Then, fit a frosting bag with desired tip (she used 9mm star) and fill the bag with the frosting. Pipe frosting and top with a sprinkle of poppy seed on each cupcake.

Just look at these photos!!! Again, all gorgeous photos from the original poster, Eva

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