Nacho Popcorn

This one is from my Weight Watchers pamphlet this past week. It's online as well.

12 cup(s) 94% Fat Free Butter Flavor Microwave Popcorn
1/4 cup(s) light butter
2 tsp reduced-sodium taco seasoning
3/4 cup(s) Reduced Fat Shredded Mexican-Style Cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 300°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Place popped popcorn in a large bowl; remove any unpopped kernels. In a small microwave-safe bowl, microwave butter until melted; stir in taco seasoning mix. Pour mixture over popcorn; toss until evenly coated. Spread popcorn on prepared baking sheet; sprinkle with cheese. Bake until cheese melts, about 6 to 8 minutes. Yields about 3 cups per serving.

*If desired, set out 1/4 cup each sliced jalapenos, sliced olives and diced tomatoes to be used as toppings for the popcorn. Serve with small bowls and spoons

(will increase POINTS value to 3 per serving).

Curt gave this 3 stars and that's what I said myself but I'm thinking about it not and would love to have it again so I'm going to give it a 4. It was definetely different because the popcorn was a bit soft from the cheese but I loved the taco seasoning on it. I enjoyed it just as much with the little extras too... a different spin on nachos but still just as good just not crunchy :(

Italian Chicken Roll-ups

I KNOW I found this recipe on the WW website.  I can't find it when I search for it now to give them proper credit.  I did find this on another website though, so thank you Wdbdee at grouprecipes.com for letting me borrow this.

WW Italian Chicken Roll-ups (serves 4, with 4 pts per serving)
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Italian seasonings (dried or fresh)
Salt 
Pepper
4 light Mozzarella string cheese sticks
1-2 cups tomato sauce with basil, oregano, and garlic
Cooking spray
1.Place chicken pieces between two sheets of plastic wrap. Pound until 1/4 inch thin.
2.Sprinkle with Italian seasonings, salt, and pepper.
3.Place mozzarella string cheese on each chicken piece. Roll up from short end.
4.Place in baking dish, seam side down.
5.Spray lightly with cooking spray.
6.Sprinkle with additional Italian seasonings.
7.(May refrigerate up to 8 hours at this point or continue with next step.)
8.Pour tomato sauce with herbs over chicken.
9.Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35 minutes until chicken is done and tomato sauce is heated.

Originally Brian was very leary about trying this.  However he ended up liking it more than I did.  I upped the heat at the end and let it cook a little longer, but the string cheese would not melt!  I was able to pull out the string cheese all together as I ate it.  Very disappointing in my opinion.  I gave it 3 stars (basically it was baked chicken w/spaghetti sauce), Brian gave it 4 stars though.  I would consider making this again, but next time would sprinkle mozzarella in the middle instead of using string cheese.  I want my cheese to melt!

Cheeseburger Mini Muffins

Tonight I decided to make dinner for tomorrow so I can see how this recipe reheats, since that is most likely how I would do it during the school year.  Well that was stupid because tomorrow is Friday and since it is still lent, I can't eat this tomorrow.  At least I was able to try it tonight though. 

Brian is mad that he still has to eat this tomorrow (which I won't make him), but I don't know if that's because he truly doesn't like it, or because it's slightly orange in color (from the Ketchup) and is called "Cheeseburger Mini Muffins" and HE DOES NOT EAT CHEESEBURGERS. I intended to hide the name from him.  I was going to tell him they were sort of like doughy mini meatloafs, but he saw the recipe so my cover was blown.  Whatever...big baby.  : ) (I hope he's reading this!)

Anyhow, Allison, Chloe and I liked these.  They are actually an appetizer, but I think with the right side dishes, this could very easily be a main meal.  You can taste more of the dough than you can the meat...but that's probably why I like them.  (And I haven't figured out the points yet though, so we'll see if it's worth it at the end).

Don't judge the picture...these are NOT burnt!  It looks like it in the picture, but they are not!!! And the white circles on the front ones, that's the ff mozzarella showing through. 

Cheeseburger Mini Muffins (I halved this recipe since I had 1/4 lb ground beef left over from the skillet ole)
Makes 5 dozen mini cheeseburgers
1/2 lb ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

3/4 c ketchup

3/4 c milk (I used skim)

1/2 c butter melted (I used I can't belive it's not butter light)
2 eggs

1 tsp prepared mustard

8 oz shredded cheddar cheese (since Brian will only knowingly eat mozzarella, I used ff mozzarella instead)

In a large skillet cook the beef and onion over medium heat until no longer pink.  Drain.

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  In another bowl combine the ketchup, milk, butter, eggs and mustard.  Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.  Fold in the beef mixture and cheese. 

Fill greased mini muffin cups 3/4 full.  Bake at 425 degrees for 15-18 min or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.  Refrigerate leftovers. 

So this came out to be 1 pt per mini muffin.  If you sit down and eat the whole pan, then that's a lot of points, but like I said before, if you served this with the right low point sides, this wouldn't be too bad. 

Skillet Ole

We liked this...but as you can tell from most of my other posts we 1. Eat a lot of mexican-based foods.  2.  Put chips on just about anything.  Well this recipe is no exception and is fullfilled by both conditions listed above. 

I got this recipe from my cookbook The ULTIMATE ground beef cookbook.  It is one of my favorites since we eat a ton of ground turkey in this house.  There's nothing special to this recipe.  I wouldn't serve it if I was having people over for dinner, but like most of my other recipes, it was easy, and I had all of the ingredients on hand.  This recipe called for 1/2 lb ground beef and 1/2 lb ground turkey, but to make it a little lower in points, I just used 3/4 lb ground turkey. 

Skillet Ole (serves 4)
3/4 lb ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped (I used about 1/2)
1/4 c chopped green peppers (didn't use--my family would pick them all out)
8 oz tomato sauce (I used about 6 oz)
1 c cooked rice (I used brown rice)
1 - 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
3/4 c shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese (obviously I used fat free mozzarella, and only used about 1/2 c)

In order to sneak some things in, I also added:
1/4 c refried beans
1/4 c orange puree
1/4 c picante sauce
fresh chopped tomatoes
crushed tortilla chips

In a large skillet, cook beef/turkey, onion and green pepper over medium heat until no longer pink.  Drain.  Stir in refried beans, orange puree, picante sauce, tomato sauce, rice and chili powder.  Cook for 10 minutes (I only cooked for 5), sprinkle with cheese.  Cover and cook 2 more minutes or until cheese is melted (obviously by the picture I didn't do that!)

Brian gave this a 3.5, I gave it a 4, and the girls were split (Chloe liked it, Allison prefered just the rice...which is why I sneak stuff in to ALL of the foods I make!)

The original recipe is 6 pts per serving.  My recipe is 5 pts w/out the crushed chips on top, also with 4 servings.

Oven "Fried" Chicken

The recipe is called Oven Fried Chicken...I definitely would not call it that!  This tastes NOTHING like fried chicken.  It does however taste like baked chicken...which is exactly what this is.  Nothing special or fancy with this meal, but it's easy, cheap and quick.  I have no idea where I originally got this recipe, but it was clipped out of some magazine, or cooking cook book. 

We liked this!  Brian and I both gave this 4 stars and both of the girls ate it, so that's a huge plus in our house.  And don't let that picture fool you!  I served it with baked french fries, but I ate WAY more than what is shown in that picture. 

1 c dry breadcrumbs (I used italian seasoned)

2 1/2 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt

3/4 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Pepper (I used regular pepper)

1 c buttermilk (made my own w/skim milk and vinegar)

3 1/2 lbs chicken pieces (1 used 4 chicken breasts, and cut them into strips)

Pour butter milk into a dish and "soak" chicken pieces while you prepare the seasoning. 
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine breadcrumbs, seasoned salt and pepper.  Shake to combine. 

Put chicken into the bag and shake to coat. 

Spray a cookie sheet w/non stick spray (I didn't do this since my pan is non stick and it was fine).   Arrange chicken pieces, skin side up (no need since I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts).  Bake uncovered in 400 degree oven until chicken is thoroughly cooked, about 1 hour.  NO WAY was mine going to take that long, so I baked mine at 375 degrees for about 25 min. 

Each chicken breast (or for 3 tenders) was 4 pts.

Did You See?!?!!?

We got a comment from someone that wasn't us?!?! Is it one of your friends? And Christine I LOVE that Bryan is a follower of the blog!

Jaime's Sour Cream Noodle Bake

So I made Jaime's sour cream noodle bake tonight for dinner.  I think we might have liked it more than her and Curt did.  Brian and I both gave this a low 4 stars (better than a 3.5 though!).  I did make a few changes to the original recipe (shocked??) and we both agreed we would totally eat this again, but I think I would change it a little more next time too.  It reminded both of us of the spaghetti pie, but that could be due to the changes I made. 

Here's what I did to it tonight:
I undercooked the noodles since Jaime thought they were too mushy.  We thought they were good, but next time I will probably under cook them even a little more.  I substituted ricotta for the cottage cheese because there was a ZERO percent chance that I'd get Brian to eat cottage cheese.  :)  I also used half of the amount of ground turkey, ricotta and sour cream.  I also added 1/4 c of orange puree (sweet potatoes and carrots) and about 2 tbsp Italian seasoning (both mixed with the tomato sauce).  And since Jaime suggested that it needed some "crunch" on top, the only thing I could think of that was along the lines of the Italian theme, I tried crushed croutons on mine.  It was good, but I don't think it needs that every time, but good for added texture. 

Here's what I'll do next time:
8 oz cooked noodles (undercooked!!)
1/2 lb cooked ground turkey
1/4 tsp garlic salt
pepper to taste
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1/4 c orange puree 
1/2 c light sour cream
1/2 c low fat ricotta
1 c low fat mozzarella
Prepare as directed...but I'll bake this in the oven instead. 

Thanks for sharing this one Jaime.  We'll definitely make this again!  And PS...Chloe LOVED this!! 

Taco Soup

Look at that!  That is one big bowl of soup; three ladel fulls in fact.  And that entire bowl was only 5 points.  No shock here, but it would be even better with sour cream, a little cheese, fresh diced tomatoes, and crushed chips on top.  : )

Taco Soup:
1 lb ground beef (I only used 1/2 lb of ground turkey to lower the points though)
1 medium onion, diced
3 cans beans, undrained (I only used 2 to cut down points, but 3 would be great!)
16 oz corn, undrained
15 oz tomato sauce (I totally forgot to add this!)
15 oz diced tomato
1 1/2 c water
1 package taco seasoning mix (I only used 3/4 since I cut down on the meat)
1 package ranch-style dressing mix (Again, I only used 3/4 since I cut down on the meat)

In a large pot, brown beef with onions.  Drain.  Stir in rest of the ingredients.  Simmer for 15 minutes.  (I let mine simmer for about 30)

With the added toppings that I suggested at the top, I would give this 5 stars.  I got 5 servings out of this pot of soup, each serving had 3 large ladel fulls of soup.  Yum!

Yep, another Mexican recipe (Enchiladas)

This is a recipe that I created myself.  Don't get excited, I just took taco meat and doctored it up a bit.  I came up with this one day when I was trying to sneak some extra things into the meat, and I figured if I served it as taco's they'd notice.  However, if I roll it up, and cover it in enchilada sauce, I could probably get away with it...and I did. 
I'll post the recipe as I would make it, but it is very versitile.  You don't have picante sauce, use salsa.  Prefer white rice over brown?  No problem. 

Tracy's Enchilada's (makes 12, or freeze 1/2 for two separate meals)
1 lb ground beef/turkey
1/2 small onion, diced
1 packet taco seasoning
1/2 c cooked brown rice (we add a little chili powder to ours)
1/2 c refried beans
1/2 c water
1/3 c picante sauce
1/4 c purple puree (mix of spinach and blueberries) optional
1 c shredded cheese (I've used cheddar, mozzarella, mexi-blend, whatever we have)
12 flour tortilla shells (corn shells break and don't hold up well)
1-2 cans enchilada sauce (we used mild red sauce)

In a skillet cook beef and onion until meat is no longer pink.  Break up pieces to crumble.  Add purple puree and taco seasoning and cook according to package directions.  When taco meat is ready add refried beans and a little water.  The water dilutes the refried beans so my family doesn't notice the texture or taste of them as much.  If you like refried beans, you might not need the water (or as much of it).
Add picante sauce, cooked brown rice and `/4 c cheese.  Stir and combine all ingredients.
Place tortilla shells in the microwave for 15-30 seconds to soften. 
Top each tortilla with 1/8 c cheese and meat mixture.  Roll up and place in an 8x8 pan (if making 6) or a 9x13 pan (if making 12).
If you are making these ahead of time, cover with foil and place in the fridge until ready to bake.
When ready to cook, cover with 1-2 cans of enchilada sauce (we prefer about 1 1/2 cans, but a lot of times I'll just use one) and additional cheese.
Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned.  (I often will broil for a minute to speed up this process).

Brian eats these as is, I like to top mine with fresh tomatoes, sour cream and olives. 
We love these and both give it 4 stars.  I think this is too spicy for Allison, so we save some meat and just put in a shell for her.  She's kind of eating the same thing then. 

Points for this would really depend on your ingredients: for us it's 21 points total for the meat, onion, taco seasoning, brown rice, refried beans, purple puree and enchilada sauce.  Divide that by 12 and it's just under 2 points per serving.  I used ff cheese this time and our shells were 3 pts each so our dinner was 6.5 per enchilada.  A lot of times I only eat 1 1/2, which isn't too bad for a dinner.   

Chicken and Stuffing

Okay, so it's not very pretty.  Plain ole' chicken and stuffing.  Nothing special.  But it is ridiculously easy and tastes pretty good.  I'll sacrifice appearance for a no-effort dinner.  I got this recipe of the WW message boards a while back.  This is roughly 7 pts, but depends on your stuffing.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Stuffing (serves 4)

4 chicken breasts (mine were frozen, but you could thaw it first, cooking time will just go down)
1 box stuffing mix
1 can healthy request cream of soup (we've used chicken and celery before but you could use mushroom too)

3/4 c water
Spray crockpot with cooking spray OR LINE WITH THE LINERS!  Add chicken breasts.  Combine the remaining ingredients and spread over chicken.  If chicken is frozen, cook on low for 10 hours, if defrosted cook on low for 6 hours.
Brian and I both gave this 4 stars.  The edges of the stuffing were very crispy (not burnt though) so the liners were very handy in not having to scrape the crockpot afterwards.  We even had a little bit of chicken and stuffing left for Brian to take to work with him tomorrow. 

Deep Dish Pizza Casserole

Mmmmm....doesn't that look good?  I got this recipe from WW 5 ingredient 15 minute cookbook.  Of course as usual, I changed it just a little.  Can I leave any recipe as is???  I also made the meat mixture over the weekend, so I just had to unroll the dough top it with the meat and pop it into the oven when I got home from work. Dinner was ready in 20 minutes. 

Deep Dish Pizza Casserole
1 lb ground beef or turkey
15 oz can chunky Italian style tomato sauce
10 oz can refrigerated pizza crust dough (ours was 13 oz)
1 c preshredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (I used 1/2 c fat free and 1/2 c low fat)
17 pieces turkey pepperoni chopped into small pieces (so it incorporates into the whole thing)
1/4 c orange puree (optional)
Any other pizza toppings you like, olives, peppers, etc.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cook meat in a non-stick skillet until browned and crumbled.  Add tomato sauce, orange puree, and pepperoni.  Cook until heated through.
Coat a 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.  Unroll pizza dough and press into bottom and halfway up the sides of baking dish.  Top bottom of pizza crust with meat mixture.  Add cheese.
Bake uncovered at 425 degrees for 12 - 18 minutes or until crust is browned and cheese is melted.  Cook 5 minutes before serving. 

Brian and I both gave this 4 stars.  We cut this into 8 pieces and each piece is 5.5 points.  I personally thinks this is too much meat, but I'm not the best person to listen to regarding that!  Next time I will probably only use 3/4 lb meat, which would also drop the points just a bit. 

Easy Peasy Beef Burritos

Now this is my kind of cooking! I had two ingredients and that's it...WOOHOO like the lady from the O.C. This smelled great as soon as I walked in the door. I honestly forgot about it while at school and then on the ride home...the what's for dinner conversation started in my head...then I remembered it was done and in the slow cooker! This recipe was taken from http://www.365daysofcrockpot.blogspot.com/

1 boneless beef chuck roast (2-3 pounds) Mine was only 1.78 pounds

1 can (28 oz) green enchilada sauce I used mild.

4-6 (8 inch) flour tortillas I used a high carb one for 1 pt each and Curt used hard shell.

Place roast in slow cooker. Cover with enchilada sauce. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or until beef begins to fall apart. Mine was closer to 9 hours and it was fun. Shred beef and serve in tortillas with lettuce, cilantro, tomato, cheese and sour cream, if desired. I so desired and did. These were great; 4 stars from me and 5 from Curt. That guy loves steak and tacos so this rocked his world! So 3 oz beef equals 4 pts. The enchilada sauce was 0 pts for 1/4 cup. The whole can was 5 but since it just soaked in this and I didn't use any on the meat I don't know what to count it as...any ideas??? So your burrito could be anywhere from 3 to ??? points depending on the goodies you put on.

Spaghetti Pie

I found this recipe which was posted by Risa here: http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977288874  You can go there to check out the original recipe that was posted.  

Below you will find my version (I made a few changes).  I added some pureed veggies from the Sneaky Chef.  You obviously can just omit that though if you don't have it.  It is very easy to make and I put it all together last night so I just had to pop it in the oven when I got home from work today.  I love meals like this!! 
Healthy Spaghetti Pie
3 oz pasta (I used Ronzoni...I know, big surprise!)
1/2 lb sweet italian turkey sausage (2 1/2 links), removed from casings
1 cup pasta sauce
1/2 c low fat ricotta cheese
1/4 c orange puree (mix of carrots and sweet potatoes) --optional
1/4 c white puree (zucchini and cauliflower) --optional
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3/4 c fat free grated mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Coat a 9 in ch pie pan w/cooking spray.
Cook pasta as directed until al dente.  Drain and set aside.
Cook italian sausage in a pan, break up to crumble. 
In a medium sized bowl combine the pasta sauce, ricotta cheese, and the orange and white purees if using.  Add salt and pepper.  Add the cooked italian sausage and cooked pasta.  Mix well until all of the pasta is coated. 
Spoon the mixture into the pie plate and smooth the top.  Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. 
Bake uncovered for 25-30 min or until the center is heated through. 
Serve with extra sauce on the side, if desired. 

We all enjoyed this meal.  Brian and I each gave it a 4+.   To quote Brian, "This serves 4 normal people, or the two of us with some left over for lunch."  This was 5.5 points per serving.

Chicken and Pasta Soup

sWell ladies, Christine is back. I know it has been a while since my last post, but I will tell you it was worth it! I got a winner here. I found the original recipe on About.com, but of course I changed it a bit to fit what I had in my fridge. You will need:

*3 cans chicken broth (10.5 oz each) I added a 4th can.

*1 cup water

*2 cups chopped, cooked chicken (I put 3 frozen chicken breasts right in my crock pot)

*1 can diced tomatoes with juice (14.5 oz)

*1 cup chopped onion

*1/2 cup dice celery (no celery in my fridge, so none in my soup)

*1/2 teaspoon dried basil (I used a full teaspoon)

*1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

*dash of garlic powder

*1/2 cup ditali pasta (I could not find it at the store, so I used wheels. Plus, I added a full cup.)

*1 cup frozen peas/carrots (I used a whole bag of mixed veggies).

Add chicken, broth, water, tomatoes, onions, celery, basil, parsley, and garlic powder to your Crock Pot. I also added a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes. Oh, and some cracked black pepper too. Cover and cook on low 5-7 hours. It was already 1:30 in the afternoon, so I cooked it on high for 4 hours. It was perfect timing. Then, cook the pasta as directed on the package. Add the cooked pasta and frozen veggies to the soup and cook in the Crock Pot for another 30 minutes or so. Bryan gave the soup 4 out of 5 stars. He said it needed a bit more flavor. I liked the soup as is and gave it 5 stars. Brad said 5 stars too, but he didn't really eat it. Sean LOVED it! My version of the soup serves 6 people. Each serving is about 2 cups. So, thats about 7 WW points. You could probably save a point or 2 by using whole wheat pasta, but Bryan does not like it so I didn't use it. Enjoy!

(Chicken Stew) I think I liked this...I might have ruined it!

Tonight I made Chicken Stew for lunch this week.  It was super easy.  I love the way this looks and smells.  I can't decide if I like the taste of the rosemary or not.  Is that a bad sign?  Now I probably should preface this by saying I didn't have 2 of the herbs so I substituted them with things that I had.  I might have ruined it by doing that.  I'm taking this to one of my teaching assistants tomorrow and making her eat it. : )  I'll post her reaction to it later.


Chicken Stew (from Taste of Home cookbook)
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts but into 1 inch cubes (I don't like big pieces of chicken so I shredded mine)
2 cans fat free chicken broth
3 cups cubed peeled potatoes
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1 tsp paprika (totally forgot to add this)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp rubbed sage (didn't have any so substituted rosemary)

1/2 tsp dried thyme (didn't have any so substituted oregano)
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
1/4 c cold water
3 tbsp cornstarch


In a 5 qt. slow cooker, combine the first 11 ingredients.  Cover and cook on high for 4 hours.  (This was NO where near long enough for the vegetables to cook.  I turned it down to low and cooked for another hour and a half)
I might have forgotten to do this last part.  ha ha  This was not my night.  Mix water and cornstarch until smooth.  Stir in stew.  Cook, covered 30 min more or until vegetables are tender. 


The recipes says serves 10, nope, try 5.  I'll let you know tomorrow or Tuesday what Judy thinks!!
Update: Judy and I both gave this 3 stars.  We don't think the rosemary was a good switch, as it's too over powering.  We both liked the shredded chicken better though.  There's promise to this recipe, but not quite there yet.  I have to try again and see if I can fix it! 

Sour Cream Noodle Bake

So Tracy, if you make this...you will need chips or crackers crumbled on top :) Because after my first few bites that's what I totally thought! Curt gave it 3 and I was feeling 3.5 because it was cheesy and I love my cheese! I think the problem I'm finding with my slow cooker is it makes the noodles too mushy...so it's too soft. Are you girls finding that?

8 oz SmartWise penne noodles, cooked and drained

1 lb ground turkey (extra lean), cooked and drained

1/4 tsp garlic salt

2 cans tomato sauce

pepper to taste

1 cup light sour cream

1 cup light cottage cheese

reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese to top for your liking

This was before it was all mixed up and cheese sprinkled on top.

(sorry for the blurry pic)

Combine meat, garlic salt, tomato sauce and pepper in a bowl. Combine sour cream and cottage cheese in a separate bowl. Layer half of noodles, sour cream mixture, and meat mixture in 3 quart slow cooker. Repeat. Cook on low for 3 hours. Sprinkle with cheese and serve.

1 cup = 6.5 points

There were about 6 cups all together in the pot.

A thumbs up and a thumbs down (sort of) from our family

Tonight we had Jaime's Philly Cheese Steaks and Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese.  I couldn't find flank steak so I used flat steak (I think!) instead.  I made a similar marinate to what Jaime used and let it marinate for about 6 hours, then we grilled our meat.  We both gave our sandwiches 4 stars, but felt that the meat was still a little too tough for our liking.  I've got to work on finding a different cut of meat, or prepare it differently next time.  They were good though!  And as you can tell from the picture I did not use light hot dog buns.  It was delicious on the french bread!  We agreed we will definitely make that again.  (I'll post the marinade below)

Unfortunately neither of us enjoyed the butternut squash mac and cheese, although I liked it more than Brian did, and Chloe loved it!!  (Don't worry Jaime, we're going to try again!)  No one knew it had squash in it.  (Shhh, don't tell Brian) I could only tell because I could see it in the cheese, but that's only because I knew it was there.  Had I not made it, I wouldn't have known.  Sadly Allison wouldn't eat it, and Brian and I both gave this 2 stars....however we are going to make it again with some adjustments.  First, I WAY over cooked the noodles.  That made a HUGE impact on the taste.  I didn't like the taste of the nutmeg, it  took away the authentic mac and cheese taste.  So next time I wil omit it.  Finally, I put some crushed saltine crackers on top to give it some crunch and texture, and they went soft.  That didn't add anything to it, that's for sure.  Next time I will add it to half of the pan (just in case, and so we can compare) and only add it at the very end of the cooking time. 

Here is the marinade I used (found it online, sorry I can't remember where):
1/3 c soy sauce
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp worchester sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 small onion, chopped fine (these pretty much cooked off because they were so small, Brian never knew they were there)

Another way to make meatloaf

Do you always fight over the end pieces of meat loaf like we do?  There's nothing better than the extra crispy edges!  If so, then this recipe is for you.  Meat Loaf Muffins are basically all edges, so you can stop rushing to the table to get the first piece.  And, you can totally adapt this to your family's personal preferences too! I think I got this recipe off of the ww message boards a couple of years ago...yes I have been a member that long, and no I have not lost the weight.  I'm hoping I'll lose it through osmosis of being a member.

Meat Loaf Muffins (1 lb serves 6, 2 muffins each)
1 lb ground beef, turkey, or chicken (I like chicken best, but it really doesn't make a difference)
1 box stuffing (any kind you want: chicken, turkey, cornbread, etc)
3 egg whites
1/2 c water

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl.  Just take off your rings and do it with your hands.  But don't over mix it either.

Now here comes the hard part...if making right away, spray 12 muffin tins w/non stick spray. 

If freezing for later don't use the spray.  After you freeze them raw, they will pop out so you can bag them up. However, if you have the silicone muffin tins like I do (and if you don't, you need to get them specifically for this recipe!  Love them!), you don't need to spray the tins.  Nothing sticks to those.

Moving on...with the meat mixture, make 12 evenly sized balls.  Mine are usually a little smaller than a baseball.  Usually I'm out of mixture by the last one and I have to start stealing a little off of each of the others.  The ones in the picture are a little bigger than normal.  I used 3/4 lb of meat for that batch and only made 6 since I didn't want to get another muffin pan dirty.  Lazy!

If you are saving these for another day, go ahead and freeze them.  When I'm ready to make them I let them thaw in the fridge over night.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about 25-30 min.  Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes or until browned.  Now those times are not exact.  I like my meatloaf BROWN and crispy so I usually let mine go 30 min, and then I cut one open to make sure it's fully cooked.  If so, then I uncover and keep cooking until they are nice and brown (as in the photo!)

Tonight we ate these with hash browns (those are NOT just a breakfast food you know!) but I usually serve it with mashed potatoes.  Brian, Allison and I all give this recipe a 4.  Typically these are 3 pts. per muffin, but you probably want to double check your stuffing to make sure. 

Guest Post: Stuffed Pepper Soup

Mimi (my mom) came to visit yesterday and brought me some stuffed pepper soup.  I had it for lunch today and it was really good!  I'd definitely give it 4 stars.


1 packet (8.8 oz) rice (the microwaveable kind)
1 lb ground beef or turkey
2 c chopped green pepper
1 cup chopped onion
1 jar (26 oz chunky tomato pasta sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) italian diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 oz) beef broth


Prepare rice according to package.  Meanwhile, microwave peppers for a few minutes until tender.  In a pot saute onions and add ground beef to brown.  Drain grease and add peppers.  Stir in pasta sauce, tomatoes, broth and rice.  Heat.


This recipe serves 6 (2 pts for every 1/2 cup)


Personally, the next time I make this I would add more peppers (colored peppers too), another can of diced tomatoes to beef up the veggies, and a bit more broth.  The serving I had was not very "soupy" or liquidy.  I will definitely make this again.  Thanks mom!

It would be better with chips : )

I found this recipe on one of the WW message boards. I served this to Brian and my mom (who was visiting) and we all gave this 3 stars.  It's something we would eat again but not make on a regular basis.  However, Brian and I would give this 4 stars if we crushed some tortilla chips and added it on top.  Can you tell we like crushed chips on our food?  Yes, we do that often!  Chloe loved it though..well at least the part that didn't fall in her lap and she actually ate!
Texas trail beef macaroni (serves 8, yeah right!  Try 5!)

1 lb lean ground hamburger (I used ground turkey)
1/2 c chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 qt beef stock (4 cups)
15 oz canned tomato sauce
1/2 c water, as needed (I didn't need it!)
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried basil
3 c whole-wheat macaroni, uncooked (I used ronzoni spiral noodles)
FF sour cream, for topping
FF cheese, for topping

In a large skillet, brown beef with onions. Add all remaining ingredients (except toppings). Bring to a boil; cover, and cook 10 minutes, until macaroni is tender. Top with sour cream and/or cheddar.
For the ingredients I used, this was 6 points for 5 servings. 
Brian says this reheats well though.

Saucy Italian Roast

Tonight I made another roast in the crockpot.  I found the recipe on TOH (http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Saucy-Italian-Roast) and it got 5 stars.  Brian gave it a 4, I gave it a 3.5.  I'd make it again, it was super easy, took no real effort, and I always have the ingredients on hand. 

1 beef rump roast or bottom round roast (3 to 3-1/2 pounds) (I used boneless chuck roast)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 jar (4-1/2 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained (we omitted)
1 medium onion, diced (I just cut into quarters)
1 jar (14 ounces) spaghetti sauce
1/4 to 1/2 cup red wine or beef broth
Hot cooked pasta

Cut the roast in half. (I didn't do this!  I didn't care!)
Combine the salt, garlic powder and pepper; rub over roast. (Also didn't take the time to rub it over the roast.  I just sprinkled on)
Place in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Top with mushrooms and onion. Combine the spaghetti sauce and wine or broth; pour over meat and vegetables. (I dumped a little of the sauce into the crockpot, then added the broth to the jar and shook it to mix.  I'm lazy...or don't care!)
Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or until meat is tender. (I cooked for 10 hours)
Slice roast; serve over pasta with pan juices. Yield: 10 servings.  (Try 3!)

We figured this is 5 pts for 5 oz.  (Minus the pasta)
Nutrition Facts: 1/3 pound (calculated without pasta) equals 218 calories, 8 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 1 g fiber

Easy Chicken Bake

Curt found this recipe on the back of a StoveTop Stuffing Box so we gave it a try.

Recipe
1 pkg (6 oz) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken (We used the low sodium version)
1-1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup (We used Healthy Request version)
1/3 cup Breakstone’s or Knudsen Sour Cream (We used the low-fat version of Daisy)
1 bag (16 oz) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed, drained

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Prepare stuffing mix as directed on package; set aside.
Mix chicken, soup, sour cream and vegetables in 13x9-inch baking dish; top with the stuffing.
Bake 30 min or until chicken is cooked through.

Curt gave it 4 stars and I give it 3.5 or so. I liked it but really just wanted more mac n cheese.

This would serve 6 as well and I came up with 8.5 points for that serving.

There was quite a bit and the chicken was very tender.

You see the stuffing looks a little crispy on top...that's because I turned the stove off mid-way...not sure why and not sure when. So when I went to check on it the chicken was no where being done but the stuffing was. The chicken needed more time so the stuffing got a little crispy but not burnt tasting so all was well. I would make this again if Curt wanted it but it's not going to be one that I'll crave after.

A very yummy lunch...and multiple recipes included

My in-laws came over for a visit today, so I cooked lunch for us all.  Brian says I didn't have to impress them.  I'm not trying to impress them, I'm just like cooking for people!!  So I made Sesame Chicken, rosemary potatoes, and a salad.  I could have tried to make healthier versions of each but I was going to flavor so I went with the original recipes.  Next time I make each of these I'll try lighening them up a bit. 

My father-in-law let me borrow his plate so I could get a picture of it all...then the camera died.  So this is the best (and only) shot I could get. 

Simple Sesame Chicken (original recipe can be found at http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Simple-Sesame-Chicken)

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1-2/3 cups Caesar salad croutons, crushed (I used ceaser and seasoned--what we had at home)

1/4 cup sesame seeds

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch strips

2 teaspoons butter
2 teaspoons canola oil

In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, combine crushed croutons and sesame seeds. Place eggs in a third shallow bowl. Coat chicken with flour mixture, then dip in eggs and coat with crouton mixture.

In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook chicken in butter and oil in batches over medium heat for 4-6 minutes on each side or until no longer pink. Yield: 6 servings.
(6 pts per serving) Nutrition Facts: 1 serving equals 255 calories, 11 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 1 g fiber
Brian and I both gave these 4 1/2 stars.  Allison gave them a 5!  (Actually she gave them a 2, 3, 4 and 5.  We'll go with the 5).  Next time I will try to omit the butter and just use the oil.  I may try to dip in egg whites only too.  We'll see how they turn out!

Crash Hot Potatoes (thank you Pioneer Woman for making this recipe a part of my life.  LOVE them!!!  http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/crash-hot-potatoes/)

12 whole New Potatoes (or Other Small Round Potatoes)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Kosher Salt To Taste
Black Pepper To Taste
Rosemary (or Other Herbs Of Choice) To Taste

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add in as many potatoes as you wish to make and cook them until they are fork-tender.
On a sheet pan, generously drizzle olive oil. Place tender potatoes on the cookie sheet leaving plenty of room between each potato.
With a potato masher, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes, rotate the potato masher 90 degrees and mash again. Brush the tops of each crushed potato generously with more olive oil.
Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and fresh chopped rosemary (or chives or thyme or whatever herb you have available.)
Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.
I don't know the points of these, but next time I'll lighten this up and repost the points.  Brian gives this a 4, I definitely give these a 4 1/2!  PS...freeze your left over rosemary for next time.  MMMMM

Really Good Salad (yes that's the real name.  Thanks TOH for another great recipe!  http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/That-Good-Salad)
EVERYTIME I bring this recipe somewhere I get compliments!  Delish!
3/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 bunches (1 pound each) romaine, torn
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Swiss cheese
2/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted, optional
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
8 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
1 cup Caesar salad croutons

In a jar with tight-fitting lid, combine the oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper; cover and shake well. Chill.
In a large serving bowl, toss the romaine, tomatoes, Swiss cheese, almonds if desired, parmesan cheese and bacon.
Shake dressing; pour over salad and toss. Add croutons and serve immediately. Yield: 14 servings.
As is, this is 5 pts for 1 cup.  WAY too much in my opinion.  But you could easily cut down the points by substituting less or different ingredients!  Brian won't eat this.  I give it 5 stars!

Butternut Macaroni and Cheese

This recipe I found on someone else's blog. http://www.escapefromobesity.blogspot.com/ I have had it bookmarked to make since this summer but our little effort on our own blog finally got me to make it. It was actually pretty easy but you'll need two hours for this one because of baking the squash. Mostly her words, not mine.

1 real big butternut squash, cut in half. Rub the cut sides with a bit of olive oil and roast at 400 degrees on a cookie sheet for 60-75 minutes, until very soft when poked with a fork. Scoop out and discard the seeds. Scoop out all the flesh from one half and put it in a BIG bowl. Break it up into smallish, bite sized chunks. It's fine if some of it ends up mashed. Save the other half for a different recipe.

8 oz macaroni. Cook this according to package directions in salted water. While it is cooking, make the sauce. Drain the pasta and put it in the bowl with the squash. Fold it together with a spatula, gently, until well combined.

Sauce:

1.5 T. butter

1 small onion, chopped small

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. white pepper (black is fine, white is prettier)

1/4 tsp. dry mustard

1.5 T. flour

1 c. skim milk

12 oz. cheddar cheese

Melt the butter on medium heat in a saucepan. Add the onion and saute til soft. Add nutmeg and white pepper. Add the flour, stir it up good, and then add the milk S-L-O-W-L-Y. I mean, add a little splash and stir it in, then a bit more, stirring each time, until it is all incorporated. Heat almost to the boiling point, stirring often. I used a whisk to keep it smooth. It will thicken a bit. Don't let it boil, or it might not stay smooth, but it will still taste fine. Take it off the heat and add the grated cheese. Stir until melted. Taste and add some salt if you like. (I personally do think this recipe needs a bit of salt, but you decide).Now, pour the sauce over the macaroni and squash. Stir it in gently with a spatula so it is well combined.

Put this mixture into a 9 by 13 baking pan sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until hot and bubbly.

My words: So I skipped the onion; it seemed weird to me that it would be in macaroni and cheese. I also didn't have dry mustard; so I skipped that and I used black pepper. The cheese I used is the reduced fat mild cheddar shredded cheese. Afterwards, I thought of the reduced fat velveeta out there. The points for this for a sixth which is one cup equaled 8.5 points. This also was with 14 oz of noodles not 8 like the recipe said so yours would be lower in points for sure.

I loved this and would give it a 5, it reminded me of traditional mac and cheese.

Curt gave it 3.5 stars and he didn't know about the squash because he would have never tried it! I did tell him after he gave me his rating and he would have never known!

Josie loved, loved, loved, loved this!

Jaime/Jodi's Stuffed Peppers

We tried Jamie/Jodi's stuffed peppers tonight for dinner.  I knew I was the only one who would eat the peppers so I went with red, yellow and orange peppers because I enjoy them a lot more than green. 

I have some secrets/confessions though:

1.  I swear if anyone repeats this to my mom I will deny it...but they are delicious...and better than my mom's.  Shhh...don't tell her!! 

2.  I also added some "orange puree" (thank you Sneaky Chef, I love you!) But Brian, if you are reading this, I did not put any orange puree in yours.  : )

I only put in half the amout of steak sauce and corn, added a little more brown rice and also added more tomato sauce.  Let me just say, mmmmm!  Stuffed peppers and mashed potatoes, delicious!  Brian gave this recipe a 3, I gave it a 4!  Brian said he'd give it a 4 if he could put some tortilla chips w/it...can you tell me like mexican food??  I will definitely make this again. 

Since my family doesn't like peppers, next time I'm going to make everyone else's in a ramekin instead of a pepper.  I made one like that tonight w/some left over meat and Brian enjoyed it.  Thanks for the recipe girls!!

We Got A 5 On Our Hands....From Curt!!!

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwhiches

Do these not look amazing...I am so proud :)

1 spray(s) olive oil cooking spray
1 medium onion(s), thinly sliced
1 pound(s) raw lean flank steak, cut into 8 thin slices
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 roll(s) reduced-calorie hot dog bun(s)
1/4 cup(s) low-fat shredded cheddar cheese

We chose to skip the onions because we don't care for grilled onions. Instead I added sliced peppers (remember I need more veggies). Also, I used low-fat mozzarella because I like that on steak better. Curt used steak sauce on his but I thought the flavoring was awesome.

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; set pan over medium-high heat. When pan is hot, add onion and sauté until tender and golden brown, about 10 minutes. Remove onion from pan; set aside. Add steak to skillet and sauté until browned and cooked through, about 1 to 2 minutes per side. Add Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper; cook until liquid is absorbed.
Divide steak evenly between buns and top with onion and cheese. Wrap in foil, transfer to oven and bake until cheese melts, about 5 to 7 minutes. Yields 1 sandwich per serving=6 pts.

Curt gave it 5 stars after one bite and then went on to eat 2 and a half sandwhiches.

My dad gave it 4 stars as well as myself. The flank is very lean meat so I felt it was a little tough but if I could figure out how to make the meat in the slow cooker during the day, I'm sure it would be way more tender. If anyone knows how to do that...let me know. This one is a keeper!

More Veggies Please! (2 recipes included)

So I totally struggle with getting enough vegetables every day; I can eat four fruits in a day but am challenged to get just one vegetable. And now that Josie is eating table food exclusively, I need to make sure to get the vegetables made. So tonight was all about the veggies.

Vegetables Con Queso (from http://www.365daysofcrockpot.blogspot.com/)

Serves 8

2 lbs frozen mixed veggies (corn, beans, peas, carrots)

2 tbsp butter, cubed

1 medium red pepper, diced

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp black pepper

3 oz cream cheese, cubed (I used a fat free version)

1 cup (4 oz) shredded mild Cheddar cheese

(I used reduced fat because I don't care for the fat free)

Add all ingredients besides cream cheese and cheddar to slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Add cheeses; stir to blend. Cover and cook for 15 minutes more or until cheese melts.

I was short on time so I nuked the veggies in the microwave, put them in the slow cooker for an hour still on high and added the cheeses as directed. Curt was 3 1/2 stars, my dad 1 star, and me 2 stars. I think I would have prefered my veggies plain.

Mashed Potatoes Cauliflower

8 cups of cauliflower (fresh or frozen)

2 wedges of Laughing Cow Garlic and Herb, one inch cubes

skim milk for desired consistency

Steam the cauliflowers or in my case by the Steamfresh brand and throw them in the microwave. Then i mixed in the laughing cow pieces and a bit of milk as I tried mixing it.

I did not get a mashed potatoe consistency...they weren't whipped enough.

I really enjoyed these those espescially considering I can't stand raw cauliflower!

I would give them a 4 and my dad a 3. Curt refused to try them. Josie liked them.

Can you turn on the crockpot? Then you can make this meal!!

Yep, that's right, ANYONE can make this meal.  It is beyond easy and takes no time at all!  It's called "So you forgot to defrost!"  and I got this recipe out of my Fix-it and Forget it Cookbook.  All credits go to Mary Seielstad who submitted the recipe.  Thanks Mary!

Brian gave it 4 stars (he says unless he's eating dessert for dinner it probably won't get a 5), I gave it 3 1/2-4.  I thoroughly enjoyed it, but isn't something I'd plan to make weekly.  I served it with brown rice, mixed veggies and applesauce.  No hard work in the kitchen today!! 

Now if you're like me, it looks nice to start with but I cut up everything and mix it into one gigantic pile...delicious!!  Even sick-with-an-ear-infection, toothless Chloe enjoyed it.  And Allison told me I was a good cook...pat on the back, mini bow!

Here's the recipe:
6 boneless, skinless frozen chicken breast halves (I used 3 and I didn't half anything.  Open package, dump in!)
2 10 3/4 oz can cream of chicken soup (I used 2 cans of healthy request)
4 oz cans sliced mushrooms (we omitted)
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Place frozen chicken in slow cooker.  Mix together soups, mushrooms, salt and pepper.  Pour over chicken.  Cover and cook on low 10-12 hours.  Serve over rice. Now this is where you also use the slow cook liners that I told you about...clean up in non-existent!!!

For my dinner (just the chicken and rice) the ww points are as follows:  3/4 c brown rice (3 pts), 1 market day chicken breast (2 pts), 1/4 c healthy request cream of chicken soup (1 point).  That's right, dinner was 6 points.

Jaime's Take on Tracy's Mexican

I loved it and gave it a 4; mine was topped with lots of tomatoes to get an extra veggie in. I also added more corn than Tracy to get in my veggies. Josie loved it as well and gave it a thumbs up. Curt didn't put any toppings on and gave it a 3. A cup equalled 6 pts; I used a different noodle. Thanks for the recipe Tracy!