Spring Pesto Pasta Salad

This weather could not be more perfect! The warm, the sunshine, the fresh veggies(my farmers market opens this weekend!), the promise of summer being right around the corner. For me, that means it's time to put away those heavy sauces and stir up some light and deliciously fresh tasting pasta salads. This is a springy derevation of my classic favorite, which I will have to share at some point, but while I am obsessing over the lovely asparagus in the markets right now, I have this bit of bright deliciousness for you to enjoy.

Spring Pesto Pasta Salad:
1/2 box of whole wheat pasta, twists or penne
1 1/2 cups of aspargus, about half a bunch
1 cup of mushrooms
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup of spinach
1/4 cup of Pesto sauce
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
A few fresh basil leaves
Salt and Pepper
Olive oil non-stick spray

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat with non-stick. Chop aspargus into bite size pieces, each stalk should be in about 4 pieces. Add to the pan, add mushrooms as well. Cook until asparagus begin to stick and crisp, then add vegetable stock, reduce heat to low and coninue cooking until asparagus are tender, about 5 minutes. Add halved cherry tomatoes and spinach, cook until spinach begins to wilt, about 1 minute. Add cooked pasta and pesto sauce. Remove from heat and toss until combined, stir in basil and cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with additional parmesan, warm or chilled.

Happy Eating.

Turkey Roulade

Do you ever just feel fancy? Like you need a truffle instead of a handful of chocolate chips? Like you want to get dressed up for no good reason and just be fancy? Well, I have the dinner for you. It's called a roulade, and it is the perfect way to take an every day fancy-free meat, and turn it into a show stopper. Basically, you pound it out, stuff it, and roll it up. It's easy to do and looks absolutely marvelous and oh so impressive. So next time your feeling the need to impress, grab your favorite meat mallet and check out this turkey roulade.

Turkey roulade:
1/4 cup of bulgur wheat
1 3/4 cup of chicken stock, divided
Olive oil for cooking
2 medium shallots
1 cup of shitakes
2 tbsp of sherry wine
2 cup of collard greens (or other greens)
1 split turkey breast boneless, with skin
2 tbsp of Parmesan cheese
Salt, pepper

Make the filling: Bring 3/4 cups of chicken stock to a boil in a small pot. Add bulgur and reduce to simmer, cook until liquid has absorbed and bulgur is tender, about 10-12 minutes. In the meantime, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat the bottom of a skillet in a thin layer of olive oil and heat over medium heat. Chop shallots and add to the pan when hot, cook until shallots begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Chop shitakes and add to the pan, cook until mushrooms soften and brown, about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sherry, and cook until liquid has absoarbed. Chop collard greens and add to the pan, stirring until the greens wilt. Mix in cooked bulgur.

Prep the turkey: Split breast open, removing the rib bone if there is one (after the rib is removed the breast will split naturally). Using a meat mallet pound turkey, on the non-skin side, until flattened and uniform. Season the non-skin side with salt and pepper. Spread the filling over the turkey breast and then sprinkle with cheese. Starting from the end that has less or no skin on the back (the skin is touching the cutting board) roll the turkey breast and the filling jelly roll style. Tie the turkey breast in the roulade shape with kitchen twine (I used 3 pieces to tie the roast).

Cook the turkey: Add a little more oil to the skillet and raise heat to medium high. Sear the turkey, begining with the seam (where the filling looks like it's coming out) side up, for about 2-3 minutes until skin goldens. Repeat on remaining 3 sides, until skin is mostly to all crispied. Fill a small baking dish with the remaining stock and put seared breast in the stock, seam side up. Bake at 350, until a meat thermomater registers 160 degrees in the center, about an hour, but varies depending on the size of the breast and how thick it's rolled. Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing. To serve, remove ties and cut thick slices.

Happy Eating.

Maple Cinnamon Sticky Buns

Passover ends tomorrow night, though truth be told I only kept it until Easter, it's such a multi-cultural world we live in. So I thought to myself what is the opposite of Passover baking? Well, bread, obviously, no matter how many baking "cheats" you have, there is really no way around that one. And what is the most decadant and over the top kind of bread? Delicious, gooey, messy, buttery sticky buns. Yum. Nothing is any better, unless you make them with maple syrup, which, in my opinion, makes most things better. So whether you are preparing to devour some bread for the first time is 8 days, or just need a buttery pick me up, these buns are abosutely and decadantly amazing.

Dough:
1 cup buttermilk
4 tbsp of butter
1 enevelope of active dry yeast
1/4 cup of warm water (105-120 degrees)
2 eggs
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp of salt
4 1/2 cups of flour, plus more for dusting

Filling:
1 stick of butter, softened
1 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of maple syrup
3 tbsp of cinnamon
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tbsp of milk

Heat the buttermilk and butter together, until butter has melted. Cool in the fridge until under 120 degrees. In the mean time, in a large bowl, mix the yeast into the warm water to activate. Let stand 5-10 minutes until foamy. Add the eggs and maple syrup to the yeast-water and mix with a wooden spoon. Slowly add in the milk, stirring until incorporated. Add the salt and 1 1/2 cups of flour, and mix until flour is incorporated. Add remaining flour in 2 additions and mix until the spoon will no longer work, then begin kneading in any remaining flour with your hand. Turn dough out onto a floured surface or transfer to food processor fitted with the dough blade. Knead/mix until the a smooth, soft and sticky dough forms, about 5 minutes in the processor. Clean the large bowl, and grease lightly. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise overnight in the fridge, or in a warm location until trippled in size about 2 hours.

To make the filling, mix all of the filling ingredients together in a medium bowl until cell combined and smooth. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a floured surface. Roll dough out into a large rectangle (about the size of a sheet pan). Spread the filling evenly. Starting at a long end, roll the dough up, as tightly as you can, jelly roll style, then pinch ends. Cut the roll into 12 pieces. Grease to baking dishes. Put 6 buns in each dish, space apart and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise for about an hour on the counter or overnight in the fridge.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 and position rack in the middle of the oven. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. In the meantime, make the icing by whisking the sugar and the milk until smooth. Let the buns cool slightly (just a few minutes), then invert the buns onto a plate/serving dish. Drizzle with the icing and serve warm. (Adapted from Cake Duchess)

Happy Eating.

Blueberry Coconut Pie

Usually when I think of Passover desserts I think of stuffing my face with fruit salad and my uncle's wonderful merainge cookies (they are seriously my favorite cookie ever) and avoiding all the other desserts for fear of the matzah-mealy taste. This year there was no reason too, in fact I barely had room on my plate for the cookies (the fruit didn't even cross my mind until I was too full to move). With all the improvements in gluten free baking, Passover simulataneously gets a boost. There were a ton of desserts this year and I would happily eat any of them any time of year (including the chocolate indulgence cookies). I would (and probably will) take this blueberry-coconut pie anywhere, anytime of year (assuming I can get fresh blueberries). It's not Passover good, it's just plain delicious.

Blueberry Coconut Pie:
Crust:
1 10 oz container of coconut macaroons (approx. 20 cookies)
1/2 stick (4 tbsp) of butter, melted
1/2 tsp of salt

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Pulse cookies in a food processor until smooth. Add salt and butter and pulse until incorporated. Press into a 10 inch pie pan to create crust. Bake until edges have lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

Filling:
6 cups of blueberries, divided
1 lemon, juiced and zested
2 tbsp + 1 tsp of minute tapioca
1/2 cup of water, divided
2/3 cups of sugar
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of cinnamon

In a large skillet, bring 2 cups of blueberries and 1/4 cup of water to a steady simmer. Add sugar and cook until berries break open and sugar dissolves. Mix tapioca with remaining 1/4 cup of water and add to the blueberries. Mash with a potato masher to break up tapioca and blueberries. Add lemon juice, zest, salt, cinnamon and 3 cups of blueberries. Simmer until the berries have started to break apart. Pour into prepared pie crust and top with remaining cup of fresh blueberries. Refridgerate until chilled or overnight.

Happy Eating.

Beef and Onion Soup

As I made this delicious soup, and again writing this, I wonder if this will be my last slow cooker post for awhile. I tend not to use it when it gets warmer, because, it's hot and I am not craving the comforting stews and soups. It's sad because I love the slow cooker, but also extremely happy, because it's finally not warmer. This is a perfect way to say goodbye to the slow cooker for awhile it combines two of my favorite things, onion soup and short ribs. It takes a plain old bowl of onion soup and decadants it up (without the cheese, but feel free to add it for a truely wild treat). So I will enjoy one last bowl of warm delicious comfort and then I will say hello to the fresh deliciousness of Spring and Summer.

Beef and Onion Soup:
1 lb beef short ribs
1 tbsp of butter
5 medium onions
1 medium shallot
2 cloves of garlic
1 bottle of beer
3 cups of water or beef stock
2 tbsp of Worchestershire sauce
1 tbsp of sugar
1 tsp of dried oregano
salt, pepper

Melt the butter in a large pan over medium-high heat. Season the short ribs with salt and pepper and brown on all sides until carmelized, about 2 minutes per side. In the meantime rough chop the onions and add to the basin of a slow cooker. Dice the garlic and shallots and add to the slow cooker as well. Pour beer, water, and Worchestershire sauce. Stir in sugar and oregano, and season lightly with salt and pepper (you can always add more). Add seared short ribs and cover. Cook on high for 5-6 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. When finshed cooking, shred beef with two forks and adjust seasonings to taste. Serve with hearty bread.

Happy Eating.

Chocolate Indulgence Cookies

Passover baking can be tough. You want something to taste good, but their are a lot of restrictions. The highest compliment you can get is, you can't even tell these are for passover. These cookies aren't for passover, they are simply gluten free any time cookies with a little adjustment. So if you are not making them for passover, feel free to use regular powdered sugar and 1 tbsp of cornstarch instead of the tapioca. In making these cookies I learned a very valuable lessen, check ALL your ingredients before baking anything. I was so focused on finding a cornstartch replacement, the I neglicted to check and see what powdered sugar actually is. In case you don't know, it's sugar and cornstarch. Opps. Lucky for you, there is an easy fix to that problem (see below), unfortunetly for me, the cookies were already in the oven when I discovered this. Oh well, live and learn, either way, these cookies are insanely delicious, extremely chocolatey, and highly addictive. Enjoy! And Happy Passover!

Chocolate Indulgence Cookies:
1 1/2 cups of bittersweet chocolate chips, divided
3 large egg whites, room temperature
2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar (kosher for passover*), plus more for dusting cookies
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp + 1 tsp of minute tapioca
1/2 teaspoon salt

*There are a few brands that make this, but if you can't find it, it can be made by blending regular table sugar and either tapioca or potato startch. Blend 1 cup minus 1 tbsp of sugar, with 1 tbsp of potato starch or minute tapioca in a food processor until combined and powdery.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and positiona rack in the middle of the oven. Melt 1 cup of chocolate chips in a heat proof bowl, set asside to cool. In a large bowl beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in 1 cup of powdered sugar, mix on high spead until mixture is glossy and the texture of marshmallow cream. Reduce spead to low and mix in remaining sugar, cocoa, tapioca and salt. Using a wooden spoon fold in melted chocolate (should be luke warm). Stir in remaining chocolate chips, the dough will be very thick. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper and spray with non-stick spray. Put some additional powdered sugar in a bowl. Scoop dough by rounded tablespoon and roll into a ball, roll each ball in powdered sugar and place on the cookie. Space cookies about an inch apart. Bake until tops are cracked, about 10 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on the cookie sheet before removing. Let cool completely before serving (trust me, they taste better this way. Makes about 30 cookies. (adapted from Epicurious)

Happy Eating.

Daring Cooks Edible Containers

Blog-checking lines: Renata of Testado, Provado & Aprovado! was our Daring Cooks’ April 2011 hostess. Renata challenged us to think “outside the plate” and create our own edible containers! Prizes are being awarded to the most creative edible container and filling, so vote on your favorite from April 17th to May 16th at http://thedaringkitchen.com!

Well, I did have a lot of fun with this challenge, but I will say that I wasn't feeling very creative. I went with what I think is the most classic and delicious savory edible container, the parmesan cheese bowl. It's delicious and easy to make, plus it makes salad so much fun.

To Make the Bowl:
1/4-1/3 cup of parmesan cheese
1 small bowl
a little piece of partchment paper
non-stick spray
a spatula or flipper

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray the partchment paper with non stick and arrange cheese in a circle, larger than your bowl. Put in the oven, and let cheese melt and carmelize slightly, about 2-3 minutes. Flip the bowl upside down and spray with non-stick. Remove cheese from the oven and use spatula to remove from partchment and put on the outside of the bowl, use spatula or hands to shape the cheese around the bowl. Let cool before using.

This is my favorite, easy and light salad dressing, it makes enough for 2 generous appetizer salads.

Lemon Parmesan Dressing:
2 tbsp of fat free greek yogurt
1 lemon, juiced and zested
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp of parmesan cheese
salt, pepper

Whisk the yogurt, lemon juice and mustard until well combined. Stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Happy Eating.

Garlic Pesto

It's been raining a lot, but it's also warmer and even the rain (which reminds me flowers will be blooming) makes me want to scream Spring is here! And eat a bunch of fresh green things. Yum! As soon as I smelled this basil, I knew I had to eat it, and what better way to eat it than in a delicious pesto sauce. The amazing thing about homemade pesto (besides how delicious and easy it is) is how vibrant the color is, the jarred stuff is all dark and oily, but not this. This looks like all the beautiful and exceptionally appetizing light, bright green. If the smell doesn't make you want to dive in, the color definitely will. This makes enough for 3 or 4 batches of pasta, or you can make 1 batch of pasta and use the rest to marinate meats, make salad dressings, spread on sandwiches, etc. It also freezes well, if you would like to have it keep awhile longer, just freeze it in chunks, I have heard that usisng ice cube trays is a great way to freeze individual servings.

Garlic Pesto Sauce:
2 cups basil
1 cup parsley
1/2 cup pine nuts
3 garlic cloves
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup olive oil
1-3 tbsp of water
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 squeeze lime juice
Tortellini or other pasta for serving.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Toast the pine nuts in the oven until fragrent and slightly browned, careful not to burn, about 5 minutes. Add the basil, parsley, garlic, and pine nuts to a food processor and blend until chopped. Add in salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Turn the food processor on and stream in the olive oil until it's well incorporated. Stream in water, if the mixture is too thick. Add cheese and lime juice and blend until incorporated. Adjust seasoning as necessary. Stir a few spoonfulls into cooked pasta over low heat, adding a little at a time (you can always add more, you can't add less).

Happy Eating.

Brown Butter and Saffron Risotto

Happy Spring! It's finally starting to feel like Spring. Flowers are blooming, it's a bit warmer (and raining every other day), my herbs are growing, and there is a bounty of wonderful looking asparagus in the grocery store. Usually, I roast asparagus, but I had been dying to try something new, something fresh tasting. I played with how I cut it and cook it, to infuse maximum freshness and flavor into this delicious and obscenely creamy risotto. By adding the asparagus at the end of the risotto process, they taste incredibly fresh, like they are just barley steamed and the vibrant green color stays and screams Spring!

Brown Butter and Safron Risotto:
4 tbsp of butter
1 boneless pork chop
1 shallot
1 cup of arborio rice
4 cups of chicken stock, hot
1 tsp of saffron
1 bunch of asparagus
1/4 cup of parmesan cheese
Salt, Pepper

In a medium pot, heat the butter over low heat. When the butter is foamy, skim the solids off the top, so you are left with mostly clear butter. Raise heat to medium, and allow to bubble and cook until lightly browned, stirring occasionally to prevent burning, about 5 minutes. Reserve half of the butter for later. Stir the saffron into 2 cups of stock and set asside to let steap. Season the pork chop with salt and pepper, and put in the pot. Brown on each side for about 2 minutes. Remove pork chop and set asside. Dice the shallot and add to the pot, cook 1 minute. Add the rice and toast until opaque, about 3-4 minutes. Add about 1 cup of safron infused chicken stock, and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring frequently until the the liquid is almost all absoarbed. Add an additional cup of safroned stock, and repeat. Add 1 cup of regular chicken stock, and repeat. While the risotto is absoarbing, cut the ends off the asparagus and wash. Cut the tops off the aspargus (top 1/4 of the stalks), chop the bottom portion of the asparagus, or run them through the food processor slicing blade. Cut the browned pork chop into bite sized pieces. Add the final cup of stock to the rice and bring to a boil. Allow the liquid to begin absoarbing, and when it's about half gone, add stir in the asparagus (chopped ends and tips) and pork. Continue cooking until the remaining liquid is absoarbed. Remove from heat and stir in the reserved brown butter, and cheese. Serve with additional parmesan cheese.

Happy Eating.

Shrimp Tacos

Two simple and delicious dips now get to become a delicious and fun dinner, with some super easy shrimp tacos! Up the easy factor by making the dips the night before (and then just try to save at least a little to have with dinner). This fresh feast takes about 10 minutes to make (if the dips are done, slightly longer if not) and is tastier and healthier (not to mention with way less salt) than what you'll find at the average taco/fajita serving restaurant. I am calling these tacos, because I used the really little tortillas, and I am usually a hard shell taco kind of girl, but with the peppers and onions they are probably more in the fajita camp, either way they are delicious.

Shrimp Tacos:
1 tbsp of olive oil
2 bell peppers, your choice of color
1 large yellow onion
1 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp of pepper
1/2 tsp of chili powder
1/2 lemon, juiced
8 small flour tortillas
Queso Fresco, Sour Cream, Guacamole, and Salsa Verde for serving

Pre-heat the oven to 400. Heat half the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Slice the onion and peppers into thin strips, add the the pan and season with 1/2 tsp of pepper, and 1/4 tsp of salt. Cook until peppers and onions are soft but with a little bite, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent total burning (a little char is delcicious). Remove peppers and onions from pan and set asside. Add remaining olive oil. Season shrimp with chili powder, 1/2 tsp of pepper, and 1/4 tsp of salt. Toss them in the juice. Add to the pan and sautee until pink and curled. Use the oven to warm the tortillas. I like mine a little crispy, but if you don't watch them carefully, they heat fast. Serve tacos a la cart style with queso, sour cream, guacamole, and salsa verde. Enjoy!

Happy Eating.

Guacamole and Salsa Verde

Today my love affair with spicy foods and the delicious jalapeno pepper has lead me to feast on some delicious Tex-Mex dips. I made enough to last through some delicious snacking, a lunch wrap and some delicious tacos that are coming soon. I wish I had been sitting on a beach eating this, but I'll take the slight warming of the days and the increased produce selection in the tore. Enjoy!

Guacamole:
2 avacados
1/2 red onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 jalapeno
1 lime
2 tbsp of Queso Fresco
1 tbsp of chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of pepper

Peel the avocados and put in a large bowl. Dice the red onion, garlic and jalapeno and add to the avacado. You might want to use a food processor for the garlic and jalapeno, so the peices are very small and you don't get a big chunk in one bite. You can also remove the seeds of the jalapeno if you don't like spicy (or use 2 if you do). Using two knives cut the mixture to break up the avacoda and mix in the onions, garlic, and pepper. Add the lime juice and continue cutting until incorporated. Add the cheese, cilantro, salt and pepper and mix all together. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Roast Poblano Salsa Verde:
10 tomatillos
1 poblano pepper
1 jalapeno
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 red onion
1/2 of a lime
Salt, pepper

Pre-heat the broiler. Peel and chop the tomatillos. Put them in a small pot over high heat and cover until the liquids release and come to a boil. Give the onion and garlic a rough chop and add to the pot. Cook covered for about 5 minutes. In the mean time, roast the poblano under the broiler until skin is browned and bubbly, about 3 minutes each side. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Add the tomatillo mixture to a food processor or blender. Remove the burnt skin from the roasted poblano (it should peel off easy) and cut off the stem and add to the food processor. Add the jalapeno and blend until smooth. Add the lime juice and salt and pepper to taste. Let cool before serving or refridgerate overnight for best results. Adjust seasonings as necessary when salsa is cooled.

Happy Eating.

Stuffed French Toast

A few weeks ago I was in DC having a girls weekend, when the topic of breakfast came up. After about 30 minutes later, an idea was born for a stuffed French Toast that was still healthy. I am usually a French Toast snob, meaning only Challah or Brioche will do, I felt French Toast should not be a reasonable meal, but a decadent bordering on dessert treat. However, I couldn't get this delicious idea out of my mind. So after seeing something similar in this month's Self magazine, I had had enough and I needed to try it. I was wrong about French Toast, and this is absolutely my new favorite breakfast (I ate it twice this weekend). So other French Toast snobs be warned, this is amazing enough and light enough to convert you into an everyday French toaster.

PB&J French Toast:
1 egg white
1/4 cup of milk
1 tsp of maple syrup
2 slices of wheat bread
1 tbsp of peanut butter
1/2 banana
1 tbsp of Jam
Cinnamon

Whisk together the milk, egg white, and maple syrup until combined. Soften the peanut butter slightly and spread on both slices of bread. Slice the banana and arrange slices on one side. Close the sandwich and gently pinch the crusts together to seal. Put the sandwich in the egg mixture and let sit a few minutes, then flip and let sit a few minutes more. Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat and spray with non-stick spray. Sprinkle the sandwich with cinnamon and put in the skillet cinnamon side down, sprinkle the other side with cinnamon and pour any remaining egg mixture over the sandwich. Cook until golden brown and then flip and cook the other side, about 3-4 minutes each side. Top with jam, heated if desired. This makes 1 serving, obviously you can increase it to please a crowd.

Happy Eating.

Tamale Pie

APRIL FOOLS. Desptite it being the first of April, it's snowing. The weather is playing a huge prank on us all. So I need some hot comfort now, preferibly, some hot comfort that won't derail my beach body preperations. So here is a Tex-Mexy cassarole that packs a delicious flavor punch, gives you that warm fuzzy feeling that only comes from a hot meal on a cold day, and won't stand in the way of you (or me) from rocking that bikini this summer.

Tamale Pie:
1 1/4 cups of yellow cornmeal
1 tsp of salt
5 1/2 cups of water, divided
1 tbsp of butter
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, boiled and shredded - 6.7 oz cooked
1 medium shallot
2 bell peppers
1 poblano pepper
1 jalapeno pepper
1 cup chard
2 cloves of garlic
1 29 oz cups canned plum tomatoes in juices
1/2 cup of chicken broth
1 1/3 cups of frozen whole kernal corn
1 1 /2 tsp of cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp of salt
1 cup of 2% shredded cheddar cheese
Red onion, avocado, sour cream/greek yogurt for serving (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium pot bring 4 cups of water, lightly salted, to a boil. In a small bowl mix the corn meal with remaining 1 1/2 cups of water until smooth. Whisk the corn meal into boiling water, until smooth. Reduce heat to low and cook stirring frequently for 15 minutes, stir in butter. In the meantime, Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dice peppers and shallot and add to the oil. Cook, stirring often until peppers soften and brown slightly, about 8 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and juices, broth, seasoning, and corn and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and cook until most of the liquid has absoarbed, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste. Grease or spray with non-stick a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Spread about 1/3 of the cooked corn meal onto the bottom of the pan, sprinkle the shredded chicken on top, then pour the tomato mixture over the chicken. Top with the remaining cornmeal, spreading the cornmeal evenly over the casserole. If you have issues spreading the cornmeal use a wet spatula, it really helps. Sprinkle with the cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted and golden, about 35 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Nutrition Info (calculated from MyFitnessPal):
For 1/6 of casserole
Calories: 302
Carbs: 37 g
Fat: 11 g
Protein: 17 g
Fiber: 5 g
Sugar: 6 g

Happy Eating.