Vegetable Filled Manicotti & Savory French Bread

12 to 16 uncooked manicotti shells
1 26-oz. jar spaghetti sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
One quarter cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 15-oz. container ricotta cheese
One half cup carrot, shredded
1 10-oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 egg
Pepper to taste
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

1. Cook manicotti shells al dente.
2. Pour half of the spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish and spread out evenly.
3. Combine garlic, Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, carrot, spinach, egg and pepper in a bowl and mix well.
4. Gently stuff each shell with cheese/vegetable mixture.
5. Place filled manicotti shells on top of spaghetti sauce.
6. Pour remaining half of spaghetti sauce over manicotti and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
7. Bake at 350 for about 20 - 25 minutes.

*The Skinny: You can substitute low fat cottage cheese for the ricotta and low fat mozzarella to cut down on some fat and calories.

Savory French Bread
1 package dry yeast (one quarter ounce)
One half cup warm water
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
One half tsp. garlic powder
One half cup cold water
2 Tbsp. sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour

1. Combine dry yeast and warm water and mix, set aside.
2. Meanwhile, combine olive oil, basil, oregano, and garlic powder in a saucepan and heat until warm.
3. Combine flour and sugar and mix with yeast mixture and olive oil mixture.
4. Stir well to create dough.
5. Place on lightly floured surface and knead for several minutes.
6. Allow to sit for 30 minutes to rise.
7. Place on a greased baking sheet, brush with olive oil and bake for 25 minutes at 375 degrees.

*Make sure that your yeast is not out of date or else you may not get the rise that you need.
The Skinny: Not much to do here.

Healthy Honey Banana Muffins

These muffins are the perfect part of a healthy breakfast or snack.

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. round nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
6 T. honey
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)

Ina large bowl combine the first 5 ingredients. Combine the eggs, banana, applesauce and honey; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in the raisins.

Coat muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray;fill two-thirds full with batter. Bake at 375 degrees F for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Egg in pancake (Egg in toast)

Tamme emailed me asking how to make "Egg in Pancakes" that is what Veronica has been calling it. We've made these after watching 'V for Vendetta'.

Heat a skillet with a little bit of butter. Take a slice of bread and cut a hole in the middle. I used one of the kids cups to make the hole, but you can also use a cookie cutter. Take the bread without the center and place it in the skillet. Crack an egg* in the center. Cook on both sides until the bread is golden brown on both sides. You can also cook the center piece of bread at the same time. TaDa! you have an egg in a pancake.

*You can scramble the egg before putting it in or not.

I like to top mine with some cheddar cheese and tomatoes.