Zucchini- Cranberry Muffins and Greek Barley and Tofu Salad

Thanks for all the well wishes. I am feeling much better- I hope the flu never comes back! Now on to the food.

When Mary, The Food Librarian, left me a little note on her blog (she knew I had all the frozen cranberries) on her post about these Cranberry-Zucchini Muffins- I quickly wrote them into my schedule. They are so good! I made a couple of changes, like using half whole wheat flour and subbing unsweetened applesauce for the oil. And when I was searching in the freezer for my cranberries, I discovered another bag of them! Yeah! The recipe comes from Martha Stewart. Hopefully you have some frozen cranberries hiding in your freezer!

The Barley recipe came about when I was looking for a quick and healthy lunch that I could make with what I had on hand in the fridge and the pantry. I had never tried barley and tofu together, but I thought it sounded good, so I went ahead with my experiment.
I decided to saute the tofu with some Greek Seasoning (I love it!), to get a crunchy edge on the tofu. I took the other components and mixed the salad together and there you have it- a healthy, fast, lunch! It was really good and my little girls gobbled it up (even the tofu)!

Greek Barley and Tofu Salad by Mary Ann
1 cup instant barley

1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped

14 oz pkg. extra firm tofu, drained and cubed

1/2 cup roasted red peppers, chopped

1- 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Greek Seasoning

juice of 1 lemon

Cook the barley according to pkg directions. While the barley is cooking, heat 1 Tbls canola oil in an electric skillet. Add tofu to skillet and season with Greek Seasoning. Cook tofu until golden on all sides, 5-8 minutes. Remove tofu to a separate bowl.

When barley is cooked, transfer to a large bowl. Add cooked tofu, roasted red peppers, garbanzo

beans, and cucumber. Stir to combine. Add lemon juice and stir again.

Sprinkle with feta cheese and season to taste with more greek seasoning or salt and pepper.

Zucchini-Cranberry Muffins from Martha Stewart

Dry:

1 3/4 c flour (I used half whole wheat)

1/2 t baking powder

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t cinnamon

1/4 t salt

Wet:

2 eggs

1 c sugar

1/2 c vegetable oil (I used unsweetened applesauce)

1/2 t vanilla

1 c finely shredded zucchini

Combine dry and wet then add 1/2 cup whole cranberries. (The Food Librarian quartered her cranberries)

As with all muffins, don't overmix.

Bake them at 375 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.

Coming on Monday-Hummus