Commissioned low-calorie recipes

Recently I had a friend ask me to find some low-fat or, even better, no-fat recipes for her. From time to time I have people request this type of recipe, so I pulled out a book from my cookbook shelves and started looking. Lorene Wood from the Senior Center had given me the Low-Fat No-Fat Recipes book for Christmas in 2006, and I have used it many times for various recipes. Today I will share a few of those with you and for my friend that made the original request.

Brunch Casserole

2 cups cholesterol-free egg substitute

1 can reduced-fat cream of celery soup, undiluted

1 cup fat-free milk

1 (4-ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained

1/4 cup sliced green onions

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt, optional

1/4 teaspoon pepper

6 slices reduced-fat white bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

4 links reduced-fat precooked breakfast sausage, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 2-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. Combine egg substitute, soup, milk, mushrooms, green onions, mustard, salt and pepper in medium bowl. Mix well. Combine bread cubes, sausage and egg mixture in prepared baking dish. Toss to coat. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until set. Garnish as desired.

Serving size is 1 cup; 2 g fat per serving.

Spicy Orange Chicken Kebabs

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 8 ounces

1 small red or green bell pepper

24 small fresh button mushrooms

1/2 cup orange juice

2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder

1/2 teaspoon Chinese five-spice blend powder

Cut chicken and pepper each into 24 (3/4-inch) square pieces. Place chicken, pepper and mushrooms in large resealable plastic bag. Combine orange juice, soy sauce, oil, onion powder and five-spice powder in small bowl. Pour over chicken mixture. Close bag securely, turn to coat. Marinate in refrigerator 4 to 24 hours, turning frequently. Soak 24 small wooden skewers in water 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat broiler. Coat broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray. Drain chicken, pepper and mushrooms, reserving marinade. Thread 1 piece chicken, 1 piece pepper and 1 mushroom onto each skewer. Place on prepared pan, Brush with marinade; discard any remaining marinade. Broil 4 inches from heat source 5 to 6 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center. Serve immediately. Serving size is 2 kebabs; 1 g fat per serving.

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

1/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 teaspoons low-sodium instant chicken bouillon

1/4 teaspoon dried onion flakes

1/4 teaspoon dried basil leaves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed

1/8 teaspoon ground pepper

4 cups low sodium chicken broth, divided

1/2 cup sliced celery

1/2 cup sliced carrots

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 cups cooked wild rice

1 cup cooked cubed chicken breasts

In small bowl, combine dry milk, cornstarch, bouillon, onion flakes, basil, thyme and pepper. Stir in small amount of chicken broth. Set aside. In large saucepan, combine remaining broth, celery, carrots and onion. Cook until vegetables are crisp but tender. Gradually add dry milk mixture. Stir in wild rice and chicken. Simmer 5 to 10 minutes. Serving size is 1 bowl as 1/8 of total recipe; 1 g fat per serving.

Jerk Turkey Salad

6 ounces turkey breast tenderloin

1 1/2 teaspoons Caribbean jerk seasoning

4 cups packaged mixed salad greens

3/4 cup sliced peeled cucumber

2/3 cup chopped fresh pineapple

2/3 cup quartered fresh strawberries or whole raspberries

1/2 cup slivered peeled jicama or sliced celery

1 green onion, sliced

1/4 cup lime juice

3 tablespoons honey

Prepare grill for direct grilling. Rub turkey with jerk seasoning. Grill turkey over medium coals 15 to 20 minutes or until turkey is no longer pink in center and juices run clear, turning once. Remove from grill and cool. Cut turkey into bite-size pieces. Combine greens, turkey, cucumber, pineapple, strawberries, jicama and green onion. Combine lime juice and honey. Drizzle over salad; toss to coat. Serve immediately. Serving size is 1/2 of total recipe; 2 g fat per serving.

Mandarin Pork Stir-Fry

1 1/2 cups pineapple orange juice, or pineapple juice, divided

Vegetable cooking spray

12 ounces lean pork tenderloin, chicken breast or turkey tenderloin, cut into thin strips

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

2 cups shredded carrots

1/2 cup chopped pitted prunes or chopped dates

4 green onions, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon cornstarch

Heat 2 tablespoons juice over medium-high heat in large nonstick skillet sprayed with vegetable cooking spray until juices bubble. Add pork and ginger. Cook and stir 3 minutes or until pork is no longer pink. Remove pork from skillet. Heat 3 more tablespoons juice in skillet. Add carrots, prunes and green onions. Cook and stir 3 minutes. Stir soy sauce and cornstarch into remaining juice. Add to carrot mixture. Stir in pork. Cover and cook 2 minutes until heated through. Makes 4 servings; 3 g fat per serving.

Blackberry Glazed Pork Medallions

1/3 cup no-sugar-added seedless blackberry spread

4 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Nonstick cooking spray

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

1/4 teaspoon salt, divided

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, divided

Whisk blackberry spread, vinegar, sugar and red pepper flakes in small bowl until blended. Set aside. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Coat skillet with cooking spray, add oil and tilt skillet to coat bottom. Add half of pork slices. Sprinkle with half of salt and half of thyme. Cook 2 minutes, turn and cook 1 minute on other side. Remove pork from skillet. Set aside. Repeat with remaining pork, salt and thyme. Add blackberry mixture to skillet. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add reserved pork slices, discarding any juices. Cook about 4 minutes, turning constantly, until pork is richly glazed. Makes 4 servings; 5 g fat per serving.

I hope these recipes find their way to your favorite recipes file. As always, if you have a recipe you would like to share with other recipe collectors, please send it in, and I will include it here in this column.

All out of room, so have a great week, and until next time, happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by Southeast Missourian staff.\,