Vegetable Pizza

yield: 8 slices

1 pizza crust
3 cups Ratatouille
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1. Preheat oven to 500° .
2. Spread Ratatouille evenly over the pizza dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border; top evenly with ricotta cheese. Sprinkle with salt. Bake at 500° for 16 minutes or until crust is golden.

Ratatouille

yield: 10 1/2-cup servings

2 Tbsp olive oil
3 cups chopped onion
5 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled eggplant (about 1 pound)
2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed zucchini (about 1/2 pound)
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic (about 7 cloves)
2 1/2 cups chopped seeded peeled tomato (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
1/2 tsp pepper

1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion to pan; cook 10 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in eggplant, zucchini, bell pepper, and garlic; cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in tomato, parsley, and thyme. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Uncover and simmer 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender and liquid evaporates. Stir in salt, paprika, and pepper; cook 1 minute.

Squash-Rice Casserole

yield: 8 1-cup servings

8 cups sliced zucchini (about 2 1/2 lbs)
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 cups cooked rice
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup fat-free sour cream
1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350° .
2. Combine zucchini, onion, and broth in a Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until tender. Drain; partially mash with a potato masher.
3. Combine zucchini mixture, rice, cheddar, sour cream, 2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, and breadcrumbs through eggs in a bowl; stir gently. Spoon mixture into a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining 2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
4. Preheat broiler. Broil 1 minute or until lightly browned.

Chocolate Cake

Fluffy, rich, and oh-so-chocolatey, this is the best chocolate cake I've had that's made from scratch. Thanks, Cooking Light, for the inspiration.

yield: 12 servings

Cake:
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 cup buttermilk

Icing:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp cocoa
2 Tbsp 1% milk
1 tsp butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350° .
2. To prepare cake, combine 1/2 cup cocoa and water in a small bowl; cool. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, stirring with a whisk. Place sugar, butter, and vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add egg and egg whites, beating well after each addition. Beat in cocoa/water mixture. Add four mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating well after each addition.
3. Pour batter into a 9x13 baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Cool in pan 10 minutes on wire rack.
4. To prepare icing, combine the powdered sugar and 3 Tbsp cocoa in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add milk, butter, and vanilla; stir with a whisk until smooth. Spread over cake.

Pasta Primavera

yield: 4 servings

1 1/2 cups sliced carrots
3 cups uncooked penne pasta
1 tsp olive oil
2 cups chopped zucchini, yellow squash, or pattypan squash
1 cup sugar snap peas
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh shredded Parmesan
3 Tbsp basil
3 Tbsp parsley

***If you cannot/don't want to/aren't allowed to use wine, substituting more whipping cream for the white wine works just fine***

1. Bring some water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add carrots and peas; cook 3-4 minutes. Remove from water. Add pasta and cook until tender; drain.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add squash; sauté 3 minutes. Add carrots, peas, salt, pepper, and garlic; saute 2 minutes. Stir in wine, scraping sides of pan. Stir in cream and juice; cook 1 minute. Add pasta, cheese, parsley and basil. Toss well to coat.

Summer Squash Pizza

Fresh and light, this dish makes the perfect accompaniment to a salad, or is great as an appetizer as well.

yield: 8 slices (4 servings)

1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 medium zucchini, sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices
1 medium yellow squash, sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices
1 pizza crust
2 plum or Roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/8-inch slices
1/4 cup (1 oz) finely grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
basil
oregano

1. Preheat oven to 400° .
2. Combine oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, zucchini, and squash. Toss to coat. Grill until tender. (I used our George Foreman. You could also grill them on a "real" grill, or sauté them if you don't have a grill).
3. Arrange zucchini and squash on the pizza crust. Arrange tomatoes over zucchini and squash. Sprinkle with cheese. Sprinkle with basil and oregano. Bake at 400° 20 minutes or until pizza crust is done.

Carrot Cake

yield: 16 servings

Cake:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 cup coconut
1/3 cup chopped pecans
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
3 Tbsp canola oil
2 eggs
2 cups grated carrot
1 1/2 cups canned crushed pineapple, drained

Frosting:
2 Tbsp butter, softened
1 (8 oz) block 1/3-the-fat cream cheese
3 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350° .
2. Combine flour through cinnamon in a large bowl; stir well. In a small bowl combine oil and eggs. Stir egg mixture, carrot, and pineapple into flour mixture. Pour batter into a 9x13 pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Cool completely.
3. To prepare frosting, beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Beat in powdered sugar and vanilla just until smooth. Spread over the top of the cake.