White Bean & Tuna Pasta

1 lb. whole wheat pasta
4 cloves finely chopped garlic
1/4 c. olive oil
3/4 c. skim milk
1 T. fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 T. fresh oregano leaves, chopped
1 can albacore tuna in water, drained and flaked
1 can canellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 grated parmesan cheese

Cook pasta and drain, keeping warm. Saute garlic in olive oil until garlic is golden brown. Stir in milk, basil, and oregano. Heat to boiling and stir one minute. Lower heat. Stir in tuna, beans, and cheese and stir one more minute. Pour over hot pasta. Sprinkle with additional cheese, if desired.

Curried Tofu and Avocado Dip with Rosemary Pita Chips

Top Chef Lee Anne Wong's recipe was a great hit at the party I attended last night. I got it from the latest issue of Food and Wine. This was a healthy AND yummy party dish. It includes several SuperFoods: tomatoes, soy, avocado, garlic, olive oil and yogurt.

4 whole wheat pitas, split
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
Salt
7 ounces soft or silken tofu, drained
1 Hass avocado—peeled, pitted and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup low-fat sour cream
1/4 cup Greek-style, fat-free yogurt
1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 garlic clove
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 tablespoons chopped mint
Freshly ground pepper
Grape tomatoes, cucumber slices and radishes for serving

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 325°. Stack the pita halves and cut them into 6 wedges; transfer to a bowl and add the olive oil and rosemary. Season with salt and toss. Spread the pita wedges on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake until crisp, about 25 minutes. Let cool.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, puree the tofu, avocado, sour cream, yogurt, lime zest, lime juice, garlic, honey, curry powder and mint until smooth. Season the dip with salt and pepper and refrigerate until chilled. Serve the dip with the pita chips, tomatoes, cucumbers and radishes.

Pesto Tilapia En Parchment

Parchment paper makes this all in one meal easy and quick.

Serves 4

4 large sheets of parchment paper
Cilantro Pesto

4 cups of packed baby spinach
4 pieces of tilapia fillets (about 6 ounces)
1 red bell pepper cut into thin strips
1 orange bell pepper cut into thin strips
1 green bell pepper cut into thin strips
16 stalks of asparagus, trimmed and sliced

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Mix 2 tablespoons of the Cilantro Pesto with all the peppers and asparagus into a bowl, set aside.

Take one serving of the fillets and cover each side with the pesto then place in center of the paper. Cover fish with one cup of spinach. On top of the spinach goes 1/4 of the pepper/asparagus mixture.

Move the package to a cookie sheet. Then carefully fold in the short ends then the long ends of the of each piece of parchment, securing by tucking the ends under the packet.

Bake for about 20 minutes. Fish is done when it flakes easily (you can snip a corner of the package to test).

Using a spatula, transfer the packets to each plate. Carefully cut open an end of the package to allow the steam to escape. Serve.

Cilantro Pesto

This is a great variation that uses walnuts. Wonderful on broiled fish and chicken and you get a serving of walnuts, garlic and olive oil.

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
1 bunch fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped (about 2 cups)
1 bunch fresh chives, coarsely chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1 tablespoon chopped seeded jalapeño chile
1 small garlic clove, peeled
1 teaspoon (scant) coarse kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Puree all ingredients except for the lime juice in blender until smooth. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Reblend before continuing.) Whisk in lime juice.