Comfort Food - Without Guilt

Ahhhh....comfort food - you know, potatoes, mac & cheese, soup/stews, etc. They are wonderful when it's frigid & snowing outside - but spring will be here before you know it, and it'll be time to put those sweaters away - no more hiding! So, to make the most of the last of winter, I'm trying to make some low fat comfort food recipes, that will (hopefully) taste just as good. So far...so good. I made some BBQ mini meatloaves, baked potato & roasted broccoli - I didn't follow any particular recipe - I just used ingredients that I enjoy, while trying to keep it light. All of the dishes were cooked at 375 degrees.

BBQ Baby Meatloaves

1 lb extra lean ground beef (I'm sure turkey would be good too, I've just never tried it)

1 egg

1/3 cup finely diced red bell pepper

2/3 cup unseasoned bread crumbs

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp onion powder

1 tsp fresh parsley

4 oz plus 2 tablespoons of BBQ sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray's), divided

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Preheat the oven for 375 and coat a muffin tin with olive oil cooking spray(or whatever you have).

Mix all ingredients except for the 4 oz of BBQ sauce in a large bowl and form into 8 equal portioned balls. Press into the muffin tin, and bake for 25-30 minutes. Spread the remaining 4 oz BBQ sauce on meatloaves and bake for another 5-8 minutes.

*If you wanted to freeze unused portions, omit the last step, and put BBQ sauce when reheating.

Garlic Roasted Broccoli

1 crown of broccoli, washed, stems trimmed

1/2 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

2 cloves of garlic thinly sliced

In a bowl, toss all ingredients togther and spread on a foil lined, olive oil sprayed baking sheet (I used the same one as the potatoes) Spread out in a single layer and bake for approx. 20 minutes, and turn once.

Baked Potato

Russet potato

garlic salt & pepper to taste

olive oil

Scrub potato & dry. Pierce potato all over with fork, rub with some olive oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Bake on baking sheet for 45-55 minutes. Remove and serve with salsa, fat free sour cream, chopped chives or heart smart butter spread if desired.