On this week’s Cooking with the Moms podcast, we share our favorite last-minute dinners … which come together quickly with ingredients we tend to keep in our pantries.  We hope you’ll tune in, and we hope you’ll share your family’s no-recipe dinner favorites too. Here’s what’s cooking at our homes:

Liz’s go-to dinners

> Quesadillas made with leftover meat/shrimp/chicken, canned beans, all-natural barbecue sauce, thawed frozen corn kernels, sauteed red bell pepper, and reduced-fat shredded cheese. Arrange the mixture on one side of several flour tortillas, fold in half, and cook in a nonstick skillet with canola oil until crispy and brown on both sides.

> Latin black bean soup (from Trader Joe’s) topped with shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese and crushed tortilla chips and served with corn bread or guacamole and chips on the side.

> Omelette stuffed with sauteed mushrooms and low-fat cheese with a simple salad and whole wheat toast on the side.

> Boboli pizza topped with pasta sauce, sautéed red onion, mushrooms, and spinach, and part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese.

Janice’s go-to dinners

> Whole wheat blend pasta (Barilla Plus or Ronzoni Healthy Harvest) topped with chicken sausage (sliced into rounds and broiled), sauteed veggies (whatever is on hand), and pasta sauce.

> Black bean burgers cooked on the outdoor grill and served with a salad and sliced watermelon — or whatever else is in season.

> Cheesy egg sandwiches made with fried eggs, whole wheat English muffins, and slices of low-fat American cheese.

Liz’s boys finished school yesterday, so life feels like it’s finally slowed down … just a tad. But believe it or not, Janice’s daughter Leah, is still in school; she has another full week. Carolyn has officially graduated, and in case you haven’t heard, she’ll be entering Connecticut College in the fall. Go Carolyn! In fact, Janice is throwing her a graduation party this Saturday night, and is busy planning the menu of honey baked ham and Swiss cheese on finger rolls,  pasta salad, coleslaw, buffalo chicken calzones (Carolyn’s favorite) and a few other surprises!

If you have some no-recipe recipes you’d like to share, feel free to post them to the blog!

When we  invited Maryann to contribute a recipe and some mealtime tips for our monthly No Whine with Dinner post, she chose one of her kids’ favorites: Light Chicken Enchiladas … a dish her children happily eat.

Light Chicken Enchiladas

Makes 4 to 6 Servings

• 1 pound chicken tenders
• 8 ounces light cream cheese (1/3 less fat)
• One 10-ounce can enchilada sauce
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 5 to 6 large whole wheat flour tortillas (or smaller ones if you prefer)
• About 3/4 of a 15-ounce jar of taco sauce (mild, medium or hot — your preference), plus 1 tablespoon
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (reduced-fat, optional)
• One 15-ounce can black beans (use 2 if serving more than 4)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 large avocado (or 2 small ones)
• 1 tablespoon light sour cream

1. Spray a skillet or pan with canola cooking spray and place over medium to high heat.  Place chicken strips in skillet and keep turning over until the outsides turn white.  Take a fork and knife and shred the chicken allowing it to cook at the same time. Continue until meat is shredded and cooked through.

2. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Add chopped onion, cream cheese, and enchilada sauce and stir to combine.  When the mixture starts to boil, turn off the heat and set aside

3. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with canola cooking spray.  Fill tortillas with mixture and fold each side over and place on the pan.  I usually get 5 to 6 big enchiladas. Cover with taco sauce.  Top with shredded cheese.  Cover with foil and cook 20 minutes.  Remove foil and cook for an additional 10 (for a total of 30 minutes).

4. When enchiladas are almost done you’ll want to quickly prepare the beans.  Put olive oil in a small pan and add garlic until it sizzles.  Drain black beans and add to pan (leave some juice).  Add cumin and mix together.  Cook on medium heat until fully heated.  Set aside.

5. Make the guacamole last.  Scoop out avocado into a bowl.  Add sour cream and taco sauce (about 1/2 to 1 tablespoon).  Mash together and add salt to taste.  Serve with tortilla chips (for dinner we each get a handful of chips with the meal).

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Q: Where did you get the recipe?
A: This recipe was inspired by a Cooking Light recipe I found online years ago.  I can’t find the original recipe but I made several changes.  This is one of the first meals I made when I started cooking 10 years ago.

Q: What do you like about this recipe?
A: I like that it can be made earlier in the day only to be popped in the oven closer to meal time.  I enjoy making Mexican food because everyone in the family loves it and it always includes whole wheat tortillas, black beans (high fiber and nutritious) and avocados.  The variety of food on the table ensures that everyone will be satisfied.

Q: What do your kids think about this recipe?
A: I have a picky three-year old, but if you put Mexican food in front of her she attacks.  During this meal she’ll say, “I love beans, I love guacamole, I love enchiladas.”  This is a girl who won’t even eat spaghetti, so I think we found a goldmine here.  My son is in a stage where he’ll eat almost anything, but he does seem to love beans, cheese, and chicken

Q: Other than the fact that this recipe makes everyone in your family happy, do you have any other tips you’d like to share with fellow parents for taking the “whine” out of dinner:
A: Putting different food items on the table is key. At dinnertime I make sure there are at least two foods my daughter will eat.  So if she doesn’t love the main entree, she can have some carrots and bread.  When it’s a meal I know she likes, I’ll try some new sides or ones she usually doesn’t eat. She’s more likely to try new foods (and not complain) when familiar items are close by. I provide more tips on the following article: How to Make Family Dinners More Kid Friendly.

I do not make the meal about how much or what she is eating.  Even if she doesn’t want to eat, we ask her to join in the conversation and tell us about her day.  Keeping the dinner table enjoyable is the most important thing to me.  It makes her excited to come back night after night.

Q: Please provide a brief description of your blog:
A: As a dietitian, writer and mom, I felt compelled to develop a credible online resource for parents.  I provide simplified, research-based nutrition and feeding advice for busy parents who don’t have the time to research all the issues.  The articles and resources on my site  cover the three essential factors for raising healthy and happy eaters: providing children with good nutrition (the “what”) utilizing a positive feeding strategy (the “how”) and being a healthy role model (the example).  I share my own struggles and challenges raising healthy eaters.

Thanks Maryanne for a great guest post!

Using a website called, Random.org, we chose our winner: Christi C., a mom of two from Grand Rapids, MI. Congratulations! Here’s what she wrote on our Facebook wall: “Our favorite soup is just a simple chicken noodle. Start by sauteing your veggies (onion, carrots, and celery for us). Add stock, a bunch of spices (basil, oregano, thyme), add diced raw chicken, and boil until done. Make noodles (I’m now addicted to the Barilla plus rotini ones) separately and then add. Oh so good.” Christi adapted her recipe from Quick & Easy Chicken Noodle Soup on AllRecipes.com.

Reading through your comments made us hungry, and in the case of this post from Micaela from the blog, Striving Bean, made us laugh: “Check out one of my favorite jokes from the movie, Dumb & Dumber — Q: What’s the soup du jour? A: It’s the soup of the day.”

Here’s a few other favorites, along with website links, to round out your family’s soup repertoire:

Britta:  “I’ve been on a kale kick for the past couple of years, and thanks to the Meal Makeover Moms’ tips, I always try to add carrots or sweet potatoes to a dish for the beta carotene. It’s such an easy healthy habit!  The easiest way to share my kale soup recipe is to share the two epicurious recipes I’ve tried and played around with: Cannellini & Kale Ragout and Lentil, Kale & Sausage Soup. You can’t go wrong with any combo of these delicious ingredients!. Also, I suggest starting with fresh uncooked organic sausage that you crumble and brown (and drain fat) before adding everything else.”

Tammy:  “Pasta e fagioli soup is our family’s favorite. Using a combination of diced tomatoes, beans, fresh veggies, ground turkey, and whole wheat pasta, this recipe is quick, easy, and healthful.  My seven and four year old daughters gobble this one up each time, and I will often put it in their thermos for lunches later in the week.”

• 1/2 pound ground turkey
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 large carrot, julienned
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Two 14-ounce cans diced tomatoes
• One 15-ounce can red kidney beans
• One 15-ounce can great northern beans
• One 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 can low-sodium tomato soup
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 pound whole wheat rotini pasta

Brown ground turkey over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, celery, and garlic and saute for 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except pasta and simmer for 1 hour. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Add to soup right before serving.

Janel from the blog, Eat Well with Janel, suggested we try her Mmmmmmmestrone Soup featuring Swiss chard, carrots, and lentils.  It looks delicious!

Thanks again for entering our giveaway and offering so many savory ideas. Visit our blog next week for news on a waffle iron giveaway!

Very Veggie Chili

Makes 6 Servings (1 generous cup per serving)

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 large carrot, cut into ¼-inch dice (about 1 cup)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 to 3 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
• One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• One 15-ounce can black eye peas, drained and rinsed (about 1 ¾ cups)
• 1 cup all-natural vegetable broth
• One 8-ounce package cubed super firm tofu (we like Nasoya), drained
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
• One 7-ounce package Veggie Shreds Cheddar Flavor (we like Galaxy)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 7 minutes.

2. Stir in the garlic, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper as desired and cook an additional 2 minutes.

3. Add the crushed tomatoes, beans, broth, tofu, and corn and stir to combine. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the carrots are tender, about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

4. Remove the cover, add 1 cup of the cheese, and stir until the cheese melts. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve in individual bowls and top with the remaining cheese.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 320 calories, 9g fat (0.5g saturated), 680mg sodium, 39g carbohydrate, 10g fiber, 21g protein, 130% vitamin A, 25% vitamin C, 40% calcium, 30% iron

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For our next recipe, no one has to know it’s made with tofu, unless, of course, you choose to divulge that information. Janice’s girls and Liz’s boys request this dessert all the time … and they are all fully aware there is tofu in the recipe.

As you can see, we call for a prepared pie crust for this luscious yet light dessert. There are a few brands we like including Wholly Wholesome and Arrowhead Mills, and we just heard about another crust made by Heartland that we’re itching to try. You can certainly make your pie crust from scratch. For a healthier version, check out the crust we created for our Double Strawberry Smoothie Pie.

Silky Chocolate Caramel Pie

Makes 10 Servings

• One package Dark Chocolate Silken Style Creations (we like Nasoya)
• One 8-ounce package 30%-reduced-fat cream cheese
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons caramel sauce
• One 9-inch prepared chocolate (or plain) Graham Cracker pie crust (look for an all-natural, trans fat-free brand)

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.

2. To make the filling, place the tofu, cream cheese, cornstarch, and caramel sauce in a large bowl, and use a hand mixer to combine until smooth and creamy (you can also use a food processor). Scrape down the sides as necessary.

3. Pour the tofu mixture into the pie crust. Bake for 1 hour until set. Remove from oven and cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Refrigerate for 2 hours, uncovered, until cooled completely. Slice and serve.

Tip: Serve with a small dollop of whipped cream, an extra drizzle of caramel sauce, and/or some fresh raspberries on top.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 210 calories, 8g fat, (4g saturated), 220mg sodium, 29g carbohydrate, 1g fiber, 4g protein

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If you have a favorite vegetarian or vegan recipe you’d like to share, or if you get a chance to try these new recipes, let us know what you think.

Having returned late the night before from a family ski trip to New Hampshire, I didn’t have too many ingredients to work with. Luckily, the simple recipe I created — inspired by my 11-year old’s plea for broccoli soup (he loves the Cheesy Broccoli Soup recipe from our cookbook on page 116) and a recipe from Eating Well magazine for Broccoli, Cannellini Bean & Cheddar Soup, our meal was on the table in a matter of minutes.

Broccoli, Bean & Cheddar Cheese Soup

Makes 6 Servings (6 cups total)

The beans add a “creamy” consistency to the soup … along with fiber and antioxidants!

• One 32-ounce container all-natural vegetable broth
• One 16-ounce bag frozen chopped broccoli
• One 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese (4 ounces)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Croutons, optional

1. Place the broth in a medium saucepan and bring it to a boil. Add the broccoli, beans, onion powder, garlic powder, and pepper, cover, and bring back to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until cooked, about 8 minutes.

2. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup or let cool slightly, transfer to a blender, and puree in batches (puree VERY WELL so there aren’t any lumps in the soup). Place the soup back in the saucepan over low heat. Add the cheese and stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and top with croutons as desired.

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If I make this soup again, which I probably will, I may toss in a shredded carrot for a hint of sweetness and some extra nutrition. But then again, with two veggies already — broccoli and beans — this soup is already packed with great nutrition. As for my boys’ reaction, they said they’d definitely eat it again (which I consider a mealtime success).

Nothing about that conversation was unusual until Liz’s cell phone rang an hour later.  On the other end was a fan of our cookbook who needed help.  After getting over the shock that she had actually gotten one of The Meal Makeover Moms on the phone, this mom of two shared how she just left her copy of The Moms’ Guide to Makeovers in her shopping cart after buying the ingredients for our Easy Enchilada Casserole. She needed us to fax or read her the recipe so she could make it for dinner! If that wasn’t strange enough, it turns out that she grew up in New Rochelle, NY … the same town where Liz grew up.  It’s a small world after all.

Since the Easy Enchilada Casserole recipe wasn’t on our website (not all of the recipes from the cookbook are on the site), we decided to add it under our Recipes section and to include it in this week’s Cooking with the Moms podcast on Brunch.  We really like this recipe because it’s perfect when you’re feeding a crowd, and it’s versatile — you can easily swap the meat-free crumbles for ground beef, chicken, or turkey. And it tastes great (if you don’t believe us, just ask Diane or our new friend from New York)!

Easy Enchilada Casserole
Makes 8 Servings

• One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• One 16-ounce bag frozen mixed bell pepper strips, thawed
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• One 12- or 16-ounce bag meat-free or soy crumbles
• One 15 1/2-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
• Twelve 6-inch corn tortillas
• 2 cups preshredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
• One 2 1/4-ounce can sliced olives, drained, optional
• 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1. Lightly oil or coat a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/4 cup of the crushed tomatoes evenly over the bottom of the pan and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, and salt and cook until the peppers are tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the remaining crushed tomatoes, the meat-free crumbles, and beans and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.

4. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

5. Arrange 6 tortillas on the bottom of the baking pan, allowing them to overlap. Top evenly with half the bean mixture and 1 cup of cheese. Arrange the remaining tortillas over the cheese. Top with the remaining bean mixture, cheese, and olives if desired.

6. Bake uncovered until the cheese melts and the casserole is heated through, about 20 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 320 calories, 8g fat (3g saturated), 560mg sodium, 43 carbohydrate, 10g fiber, 23g protein

The other recipe in the show is our Raspberry Breakfast Cake which we shared right here back in early September. It’s one of those recipes that everyone seems to love. In fact, we were first inspired to make it after reading the June issue of Gourmet magazine, and we noticed that we weren’t the only ones. Two Peas and Their Pod made a gorgeous version of this recipe with plums and nectarines, Smitten Kitchen also baked it up, and the photos alone will convince you it’s a must-make recipe, and Pinch My Salt posted a version made with a combo of half a cup each of blueberries and strawberries. We got a huge kick when we saw that Maris over at In Good Taste tried our healthy interpretation and posted the recipe to her blog.

This week’s show is filled with great brunch ideas and plenty of funny things to laugh about. We hope you’ll tune in. And if you like what you hear, please tell your friends about the show!

For this post, we feature Mandy’s 50-Yard Fiesta Dip. We chose this recipe because football season is back in full swing, and we thought her super-yummy tailgate snack would be an easy (and healthy) one for everyone to make.

It’s clear Mandy’s three children, Big C, Little C, and Little H (their blog aliases), love to cook, and this recipe was easy enough for these pint-size chefs to get involved. Read on to learn more about the dish as well as Mandy’s oh-so-clever ideas for getting kids of all ages excited about food.

50-Yard Fiesta Dip
Makes 8 Servings

• 1 can (15 oz) Black Beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (15 oz) Great Northern Beans or Navy Beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (15 oz) corn, drained
• 3/4 cup red salsa, any kind
• 2 cups shredded cheese (I used Kraft Mexican Blend)
• 1 jar (16 oz) Pace Tequila Lime Salsa (or salsa verde if you can’t find it)
• 1 package (8 oz) reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup light sour cream
• Whole wheat flour tortillas
• Sea salt, optional (these are for the “football crisps,” or you can just use chips)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Mix Black Beans, Great Northern Beans, corn, red salsa, and shredded cheese in a large bowl. Spread the mixture in a 9 x 13 pan sprayed with cooking spray.

3. Bake for 15 minutes until warm and bubbly. Remove from oven and let set for 5 minutes.

4. While the dip is baking, place a stack of tortillas on a cutting board and cut into football shapes. Spread on a greased cookie sheet and spray tops with cooking spray. Sprinkle sea salt on top. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 5 minutes until crispy.

5. After the dip has cooled for 5 minutes and set a little bit, gently spread Pace Tequila Lime Salsa over the top. Stir together the cream cheese and sour cream and place in one-gallon Ziploc freezer baggie. Snip an end off the bag and pipe on yard lines and hash marks. If the mixture is too thick to pipe out, add a little more sour cream.  Serve with Football Crisps.

Q: Where did you get the recipe?
A: I created it myself.  A friend told me about how she used beans and cheese to make a yummy hot dip and it inspired me.

Q: What do you like about this recipe?
A: I like the nutritional value, and everyone loves it.  It’s great for a football munchie, and it’s healthier than most other “football food.”

Q: What do your kids think about this recipe?
A: My girls go crazy over this dish. When Big C tried it, she said, ”I am going to gobble this up!” Little C wanted to know if we were going to play football and Little H gave it two thumbs up and said, “I wike it!”

Q: Other than the fact that this recipe makes everyone in your family happy, do you have any other “Mandy” tips you’d like to share with fellow parents for taking the “whine” out of dinner?
A: Take an extra 60 seconds to turn the food into something “different.”  For example, recently, I took some hot rice, molded it into a little “bowl,” filled it with the chopped chicken and vegetables we cooked for dinner, and told my 2-year old it was, “Puppy Chow.”  She devoured a dish that she probably would have balked at.

I believe if you get the kids involved in the cooking process, they will be more likely to eat what you prepared.  Everyone can help, even if it’s just taking things to the recycle bin. It can even be as easy as calling a dish a different name.  “Princess Soup with Magic Wands” sounds more appetizing than “Vegetable Soup and Breadsticks.”

Another tip I have is to sit down AT THE TABLE all together and talk while you eat.  Ask questions like, “If you could turn into an animal, what would you be?”  Have everyone take a bite before they answer.  Even if you have already eaten or are not eating that dinner, find something to eat or drink and sit down with your family.

Finally, don’t stress if your kids won’t eat something the first (or 5^th) time you introduce it.  If you keep introducing new foods, they eventually will try it.  Otherwise, it becomes a power game and you have lost the fun and magic of mealtime.  Kids are finicky by nature. My 2 year old will devour sushi and hot curry dishes one day and will balk at chicken nuggets another day.

Q: Can you tell us about your blog?
A: I am passionate about “taking back dinnertime” and bringing the family together around the table.  In my house, we make all kinds of fun and whimsical food that is great for all ages.  Hopefully my site will inspire you to get into the kitchen with your kids and make some fun memories.

We’d like to thank Mandy for her creative recipe and helpful mealtime tips.  Stay tuned for our next installment of No Whine with Dinner coming next month. If you’re a football fan and plan to make this dip for your next tailgate party, pleae let us know by posting a comment to the blog. Go Pats!!

Susan’s bars are made with 4 sticks of butter, so you can bet your bottom dollar each bite is sure to be voluptuous (and then some). While dessert recipes appear frequently on the blog, there are plenty of other recipe categories — things like seafood, pasta, casseroles, and beans. One recipe that caught our eye was Susan’s Pasta e Fagioli, her grandmother’s favorite “go to” dish.  In the post, she says it can either be a thick, stewy dish or more like a soup. Her grandmother preferred the former.

This stick-to-your ribs dish takes minutes to make. It’s kid friendly (all four of our kids gobbled it up happily) and nutritious thanks to the fiber-rich beans. For all of those reasons, Susan’s Pasta e Fagioli is the official winner of this month’s Healthy Meal with Kid Appeal Award.

Pasta e Fagioli (from Sticky Gooey Creamy Chewy)

• 1 pound dried ditalini pasta
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups marinara sauce (fresh is best, but any good quality jar sauce will be fine)
• 1 cup water
• 2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• Grated Parmesan cheese
• Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

1. Put a large pot of water on the stove to boil.  When boiling, cook the ditalini until al dente, about 10-11 minutes. Drain.

2. Meanwhile, in another large pot, heat olive oil and saute onion over medium heat until soft. Add garlic and saute a few minutes more.

3. Add marinara sauce and water and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add beans and continue to simmer until heated through.

4. Add pasta and mix well. If the sauce is too thick, add a little of the pasta water to thin it out a little, if desired.  Serve in a large bowl with grated cheese and parsley sprinkled on top.

Here are a few additional cooking notes from The Meal Makeover Moms’ Kitchen:

> When we drained the pasta, we reserved some of the pasta water. We then added some to thin the sauce a bit.
> The next time we make this, we’ll probably sauté a finely diced large carrot with the onion.
> If you don’t have cannellini beans, you could also use Great Northern beans.
> You could serve this dish with fresh basil if you think your kids would prefer it over parsley.

We hope your family enjoys this recipe as much as ours did.  Thanks Susan for sharing it!

The gluten-free diet is the topic of this week’s Cooking with the Moms podcast.  Our motivation for recording the show was sparked by the release of Elizabeth Hasselbeck’s book, The G-Free Diet and an interesting blog post on Nutrition Unplugged suggesting that the book makes giving up gluten appear trendy. Hasselbeck, co-host of The View, suffers from celiac disease so it makes sense that she wrote the book, but according to the post, some of the information presented is misleading and inaccurate.  For an in-depth review of the book, we suggest you head on over to Nutrition Unplugged.

For most of the show, however, we dished about two fabulous gluten-free recipes — Fudgy Black Bean Brownies (which we posted to the blog back in July) and Garden Minestrone Soup. We also talked about some of our favorite books and websites and news of our gluten-free giveaway extravaganza (read on for details)!

Garden Minestrone Soup
Makes 8 Servings

• 6 ounces dried gluten-free elbow pasta (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 2 tablespoons olive or canola oil, divided
• 2 large carrots, finely diced (about 2 cups)
• 1 small onion, finely diced (about ¾ cup)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 2 medium zucchini (1 pound), cut into ¼-inch dice (about 4 cups)
• One 32-ounce carton gluten-free chicken broth
• One 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• One 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• Grated Parmesan cheese, optional

1. Cook the pasta according to package directions.  While the pasta is cooking, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Add the carrots, onion, garlic, and Italian seasoning and cook, stirring occasionally, until the carrots start to soften, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the remaining oil and the zucchini and continue to cook until the zucchini, carrots, and onion are tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

3. When the pasta is done, drain and add to the vegetable mixture with the broth, tomato sauce, and beans.

4. Bring the soup to a boil, remove from the heat, and serve in individual bowls.  Top each bowl with a tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese as desired.

Nutrition Information per Serving:  220 calories, 5g fat (0.5g saturated), 570mg sodium, 36g carbohydrate, 5g fiber, 8g protein, 80%vitamin A, 45% vitamin C, 10% iron

Now for the cool news on our giveaway.  For one week only, we are giving away five prizes to five lucky winners. Here’s what we have in the lineup:

> Tell Me What to Eat if I Have Celiac Disease: Nutrition You Can Live With (Career Press, May 2009) by Kim Tessmer, RD

> Gluten-Free Diet: A Comprehensive Resource Guide (Case Nutrition Consulting, October 2008) by Shelley Case, RD

> Gluten-Free Hassle Free (Demos Health, October 2009) by Marlisa Brown, MS, RD

> A sampler basket of baked gluten-free breads, cookies and Grab-n-Go Energy Bars from the Little Aussie Bakery in San Antonio, TX compliments of Letty Holmbo, RD

> A box of assorted gluten-free, lactose-free cheeses from Cabot valued at $75.00.

To enter our giveaway, all you have to do is post a comment to the blog telling us about your favorite gluten-free website, recipe, resource or something interesting you learned listening to our podcast. We’ll pick our five winners using Random.org next Wednesday, August 26 at noon.

On a final note, here are some great sites you may want to visit:
Celiac Disease Foundation, Kitchen Therapy, Karina’s Kitchen, Gluten Free 101, Delete the Wheat, Healthy Villi, and Gluten-Free Diet.

Lucky for us, after reading our post, Mindy, a mom of 8-year-old twins from the suburbs of Chicago, sent us her family’s favorite Black Bean Brownie recipe from All Recipes.com. Mindy told us her kids gobble them up and ask for seconds and thirds. “I don’t feel bad about my kids eating seconds of these brownies because I know they are getting fiber and protein in every bite.” That, plus the fact that Mindy’s sister-in-law is a pastry chef in Phoenix and makes theme all the time for her family, convinced us to give the recipe a try.

Mindy’s recipe called for a can of black beans, a small amount of vegetable oil, sugar, and half a cup of chocolate chips.  Given our inability to leave well enough alone, we tweaked the recipe a tiny bit and came up with brownies so good, you simply won’t believe they’re made with black beans (nor will your kids).

Fudgy Black Bean Brownies
Makes 16 Servings

• One 15 ½-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed very well
• 3 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract, optional
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch salt
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips, divided

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray an 8 X 8-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

2. Place the black beans in the bowl of a food processor; process until smooth and creamy.  Add the eggs, oil, sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, peppermint extract, baking powder, and salt and process until smooth.  Add ¼ cup of the chips and pulse a few times until the chips are broken up a bit.

3. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the top with the remaining ¼ cup chocolate chips.

4. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until the edges start to pull away from the sides and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan before slicing.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 120 calories, 5g fat (1.5g saturated, 0.3g omega-3), 95mg sodium, 18g carbohydrate, 2g fiber, 3g protein

A few things worth noting about this recipe:
> A recent University of Tennessee study found that draining and rinsing canned beans washes away 41% of the sodium.
> If you like nuts, you could add half a cup of walnuts or pecans, chopped.
> The original recipe called for topping the brownies with all the chips. We decided to add half to the batter and half on top.
> Also, the original didn’t call for any baking powder. We added ½ teaspoon per Mindy’s suggestion because the first time she made the recipe, the brownies came out flat.

Since Josh and Simon are still at sleep-away camp and Carolyn was at work when we tested the recipe, Leah became our lucky taste tester. Like Mindy’s kids she really loved the brownies.

If you have a black bean brownie recipe that you’d like to share — or any dessert recipe using beans, for that matter — feel free to post a comment.