TOMATO BASIL CHICKEN

I came home late one night to a wonderful dinner my sweetheart had waiting for me!

Tomato Basil Chicken

4 Servings, 5 P+ per serving.

1 1/2 t. Olive Oil

1 t. Garlic Salt

1-2 Tomatoes, diced

2 C. Fresh Mushrooms

4 Wedges of Laughing Cow Tomato Basil

4 Pieces of Tyson Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

1 t. Italian Seasoning

2 Small Onions, chopped

Mrs. Dash Table Blend (to taste)

Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb (to taste)

First, saute the Onions, Mushrooms in the Olive Oil, Garlic Salt and Mrs. Dash's Seasonings.  Then set aside in a separate bowl and mix with fresh diced tomatoes and let stand.  Next, cook the chicken in a pan with the Italian Seasoning.  Put a little water in the bottom of the skillet and cover with a lid.  Turn over as necessary.  When the chicken is fully cooked, add the Tomatoes, Onions and Mushrooms mixture and pour over your chicken.  Cover with a lid and let steam for a couple minutes with your burner off.  When ready to serve, put 1 wedge of the Tomato Basil LC over the top of your chicken.....enjoy!     

RICOTTA DROP COOKIES

Ricotta Drop Cookies

1 C. Light Butter, softened
2 C. Granulated Sugar
1 (15 ounce) container of  Part-Skim Ricotta Cheese
3 t. Vanilla Extract
1 t. Salt
1 t. Baking Soda
4 C. All-Purpose Flour

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Mix all the ingredients well until the dough is very sticky and kinda forms a ball. Drop by teaspoonful's (I used a small pampered chef cookie scoop) on an un-greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until the bottoms turn golden brown. Let cool for 1 minute and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

You could do several things, eat them the way they are, dip them in a little aerosol whipped cream, add cinnamon or spices, or (add points accordingly) add a bag of some sort of chips (we used Andes peppermint baking chips) or ice them.....whatever you want, they are really versatile!  An orange marmalade glaze is yummy over them too!!

Made as is, they are:
1 cookie for 2 P+
2 cookies for 3 P+
3 cookies for 5 P+

Made with a bag of chips they are:
1 cookie for 2 P+
2 cookies for 4 P+
3 cookies for 6 P+

These are so quick and easy to throw in real quick and they are soft, almost cake-like.  And we think they are good points value wise.  Anyway, just wanted to share....my kiddos thought they were a great creation!  I am sure some of you have probably made them, but our family had never heard of anything like it.

MEXICAN SOUP

So last night.....after a day of my little sweethearts driving me absolutely INSANE...

I stood there in the kitchen trying to think of what to make for dinner!  Well, I opened my pantry and this is what I came up with:

Mexican Soup (That's what we called it)

• 15.25 oz Can of Black Beans
• 15 oz Can of Great Northern Beans
• (2) 15.5 oz Can of Pinto Beans
• 7 oz Can of Diced Green Chilies
• 28 oz Can of Diced Tomatoes
• 29 oz Can of Corn
• 1 t. Taco Seasoning
• 1 t. Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle
• 1 T. Garlic Salt

Just simply put all of the above ingredients in a pan and heat.  Then enjoy!

We did frozen corn instead of canned corn, we like the flavor better.  We just filled up the diced tomatoes can with corn.  You can put Sour Cream and Cheese on top, just add points accordingly.

Anyway, just wanted to share....we loved it and thought you might too  :)

Pumpkin Chili

Need an easy, hearty crockpot meal? Here's a great one to try. The pumpkin added a rich, creamy texture (not to mention nutrients!), but you can't taste it at all. This is probably the best chili that I have ever made and eaten. It was perfect.

Pumpkin Chili

1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 large onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 tbsp.garlic powder (or 3 cloves pressed garlic)
1 tbsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. seasoned salt
1 tsp. salt
Ground black pepper
2 - 4 oz. cans green chile peppers
1 can (15 oz) red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 cans (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can pumpkin puree (15 oz.)
2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained

Brown ground beef with onions and peppers. Add spices and cook for a few minutes. Put mixture in crock pot. Add beans, pumpkin, diced tomatoes, and green chiles to crock pot. I added about 1/2 c of water to this mixture & it made a nice, thick chili. Cook on low for 7 - 9 hours or high for 4 - 6 hours.

This recipe (as posted) makes 11 1 cup servings. According to the the recipe builder, 1 cup is 4 PP+ and 2 cups was 7 PP+.

VEGGIE FAJITA'S

Well....I was in the mood for lots of veggies and my sweetheart said.....I have just the thing!  He hit it right on the spot for me!  The flavoring was perfect, in my opinion!

Veggie Fajita's 

1 1/4 Bell Peppers (we used all the different colors)

3 C. Broccoli

3 C. Sugar Snap Peas

1 Large Carrot, shredded

2-3 Tomatoes
1 Purple Onion
1 C. Fresh Mushrooms

1 1/2 T. Garlic Salt

2 T. Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime 

2 T. Olive Oil

All you do is cut up the peppers, broccoli, carrots, and tomatoes.  Then put your olive oil in the pan and saute all of the above ingredients, we added the tomatoes and broccoli towards the end.  

You can serve it on a whole wheat tortilla shell or on corn tortilla's.  We topped it off with a little bit of sour cream and cheese. 

Hope you enjoy....I really thought the Fiesta Lime flavoring was perfect on the veggies......really brought out all the flavors!

Nacho Pie

Photo From Mommy's Kitchen

I have made this yummy dinner several times now - it is so good! I originally found the recipe here, but have changed it quite a bit to make it healthier and less pointy. I usually serve this over a bed of chopped romaine lettuce, with a serving of tortilla chips on the side. I have also added salsa & guacamole, depending on the points I had to work with. No matter how you serve it, this savory pie is quick to make and totally delicious!

Nacho Pie

6 oz Lean Ground Beef, browned
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 - 8oz Can Tomato Sauce
¾ Cup Water
1 - Packet Taco Seasoning Mix
1 - Tube refridgerated Crescent Roll Dough (we used reduced fat)
3 Tbsp Sour Cream
3/4 Cup cheese (shredded or thinly sliced)
additional sour cream for garnish, diced tomatoes and sliced black olives.

Preheat oven to 350. In large skillet, brown beef and onion over medium heat. Add black beans, tomato sauce, water and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 - 10 minutes. Spray pie pan with PAM and separate crescent rolls into 8 triangles. Place dough in pan- face points of dough towards the middle. Press onto bottom and up sides of plate to form crust. Seal perforations - pan needs to be completely covered with the dough. Top with meat/bean mixture. Dab sour cream over meat. Sprinkle on(or lay, if using slices) the cheese. Bake 25-30 minutes (until cheese melts & the crust is golden brown). Cool 10 minutes before cutting.
Serves 6.

I ran this through the recipe builder and it came out to 7 PP+ per serving. FYI: it's 8 PP+ if you use a half pound of lean ground beef instead of 6 oz. I just happened to only have 6 oz last night!

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

I didn't make up this recipe but it makes an easy and delicious whole wheat pizza crust!

Ingredients:

1 or 2 c. white flour (enough to make a stiff dough)
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 pkg. or 1 tbsp. active dry yeast
3/4 tsp. salt
1 c. warm water
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. honey

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°F before baking. Pour flour into a large mixing bowl. Add yeast and salt. Mix well. Add water, oil and honey; mix well.

Knead dough for 6 minutes on a lightly floured surface, adding sufficient flour to make a stiff dough. Dough may be slightly sticky. Oil your hands with olive oil to keep from sticking while kneading.

Cover with a moist cloth and place in a warm spot for 30 minutes to rise. Punch down and press into a greased 14 inch pizza pan or a 10 inch pan for a thicker crust.

Spread sauce and other ingredients on pizza crust. Bake in a preheated 425°F for 15 to 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted.

Notes:When I put this recipe in the Recipe Builder I got 5 points for 1/8 of the crust and that is a very nice size piece of pizza.

Garlic, Sour Cream, & Chive Mashed Potatoes

I love mashed potatoes and was trying to come up with a less pointiful alternative to my normal (very) buttery ones and this is what happened:

Ingredients:

4 medium potatoes
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp salt (I use sea salt)
1 T butter (I use regular butter with salt)
1/4 C sour cream (I use regular)
1 T freeze-dried chives
1/2 tsp white pepper
2 tsp olive oil

Directions:

Clean and peel potatoes and cut into quarters. Peel garlic cloves and cut off stumpy end. Boil potatoes and cloves in water (enough to cover them) with olive oil until a fork easily pierces potatoes. Drain but reserve 1 C of the liquid.

Mash potatoes and garlic together (by hand works best). Continue mashing while adding sour cream, butter, and reserved liquid until at desired consistency. Add salt, pepper, and chives.

Notes:

When I put this in my recipe builder for 4 servings I came up with 5 points per serving (and the servings are a nice size). If that is too many you might try using lighter sour cream or butter. Enjoy! I'd love any comments once you've tried this! :-D

Cinnamon Apple Crisp

I made this a few weeks ago for my family and oh wow was it good! I'm honestly not usually a fan of baked fruit, but I was loving this dish. The picture does not do it justice (I am so not a food photographer...yet)This is one of Gina's many amazing recipes. I adapted it slightly based on what we had & also to suit our family's tastes. The original recipe (and a better picture!) can be found here.

Cinnamon Apple Crisp

5 medium apples, peeled and diced
1.5 oz golden raisins
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 lemon juice
3 tsp cornstarch
1/4 cup brown rice syrup (it's what I had on hand)

Topping:
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar (not packed)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup (half stick) butter, melted

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine apples, raisins, cinnamon, brown rice syrup and lemon juice in large bowl. Sprinkle with cornstarch. Toss until fruit is coated. Place fruit in an ungreased baking dish. Mix remaining ingredients. Sprinkle over fruit. Bake about 40 minutes or until topping is golden brown and fruit is tender. Serves 8

I did not personally run this throught the recipe builder, but according to Gina, this recipe is 4.5 pp+ per serving.

GUACAMOLE SALSA

Guacamole Salsa

I got this from silverspoon65 on the 200+ Board 

Ingredients:

• 1 can black beans
• 1 large tomato 
• 1 small onion 
• 1 medium avocado 
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 
• 1/8 tsp cumin 
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1-2 cloves garlic 
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro 
• 1 tsp salt 
• dash of hot sauce 

Chop everything up and mix together.  It has a guacamole sort of taste but a salsa consistency and it is great on chicken, tacos, as a dip, or anything you can think of.

BANANA MUFFINS

Banana Muffins

This recipe is from Melissa (melbernai)

Makes 14 Muffins at 2 p+ each!!!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 C. Whole Wheat Flour
• 3/4 C. All-Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 3 large bananas, mashed
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 Tablespoon of Oil (EVOO, Canola, etc.)

Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl and set aside.

Mash bananas well so that there are no chunks (I do this in a large ziploc bag, then cut the tip off and squeeze it into the bowl that way.)  Mix bananas, applesauce, egg and sugar together, and then slowly blend into the dry ingredients.  Do not over mix.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

If you add 1/3 C. of Chocolate Chips OR 1/3 C. of Walnuts, that only brings the PointsPlus value to 3 a piece!!  If you add both to the recipe that brings it to 4 a piece! Add points accordingly if you add nuts or chocolate chips to your muffins!

BARLEY WATER

I just wanted to share with you all something that we do in case you have never heard of it.

We make BARLEY WATER!  
 
We do not count it and still lose just fine, but if you feel you must, it is only 2 p+ for the whole thing.

All you do is take about a 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup (depending on your preference of flavor) of barley and toast it on top of the stove until it is a toasted brown color.  Use a Cast Iron Skillet if you have one (I do), or a Stainless Steel Skillet.  Not aluminum though!  

Then after it is cooked, put it in about 1/2 gallon of cold water on the stove.  Bring it to a boil and then turn down to where it just simmers for bout 2 or 3 hours or so.  The longer it simmers the stronger it will be.

After it is done, strain off the water and enjoy it!  We drink it just as it is, but you may add anything to it for flavor (we do sometimes put some honey or cream in it for our little ones or for a special treat for us).

As for the Barley, you can eat the left over barley as a warm or cold cereal.  You can bake it.  You can put it in soup.  You can add sour cream and some onion powder and salt and sprinkle some cheese on top for a casserole, or you can toss it to the birds! :)


Anyway, I just wanted to share our Barley Water with you all because you get so many good things from it!  Hope you like it.  We also double ours for our family or more depending on the day.  

Chicken & Spinach Soup with Pesto

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. plus 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup carrot, diced
• 8 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 to 3 large cloves garlic, minced (depending on taste)
  
• 5 cups reduce-sodium, fat-free chicken broth
• 1-1/2 tsp. dried marjoram
• 3 cups (packed) baby spinach, coarsely chopped
• 2 (15 oz.) cans cannellini beans, rinsed
• 1 (3.5 oz) jar pesto
• freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat 2 tsp. olive oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add carrot and chicken; cook, turning the chicken and stirring frequently until chicken begins to brown. Add garlic and cook, stirring for 1 more minute. Stir in broth and marjoram; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken is cooked all the way through, about 10 minutes.
2. Remove chicken and put on a clean cutting board to cool. Add spinach and beans to the pot and bring to a gentle boil. Cook 5 minutes to blend flavors.
3. Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Add the chicken and the pesto back into the pot and stir. Season with pepper. Heat until hot.
   
4. Serve while hot. Garnish with a few croutons if desired.

*8 servings
*Serving size: 1 cup
*Point value per serving: 4

Comments: I just made this one tonight and it was really good. FULL of flavor. It is also filling due to the chicken and beans. I used 3 cloves of garlic but I really like garlic.

Pumpkin Pasta With Bacon

I know this recipe sounds rather strange, but I promise it is very good. I served this with a few handfuls of fresh spinach (steamed for just a few minutes until it wilted at tiny bit) and even the baby gobbled it up. The pumpkin adds a creamy, almost cheesy quality to the pasta. And seriously who doesn't love bacon? I think the sour cream could easily be halved to lower the points value - I plan on using less next time I make this dish. I also might try sneaking in a few more veggies. I found the original recipe here - and I encourage you to check out her site - she has a ton of amazing and delicious recipes. Now here's how I made it :)

Pumpkin Pasta With Bacon

6 Slices turkey bacon
1 large onion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
4 Tbsp minced garlic (or to taste)
14 oz. pasta (I used Rotini Barilla Plus)
1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin
1 cup of sour cream, light

Cook pasta. Drain and set aside.Spray pan with cooking spray & cook bacon until desired crispness. Add onion to the same pan and cook for 6 - 7 minutes. Add salt, pepper and garlic and saute for about 2 minutes. Add pasta to onions. Add pasta and sour cream, stir until combined. (You can add a little water at this point, I skipped this step as I liked the consistency) Chop or crumble bacon & sprinkle over the pasta.

I ran this through the recipe builder & found that 6 servings = 9 points plus each. Divided into 6, this makes HUGE servings, so you can also switch to 8 servings, which them works out to 7 points plus per serving. Either way, it's super yummy...so try it!

PS: Next time I will be sure to take pictures :)

BAKED BANANA

Got this from BIGS&TRIS on the WW Community 200+ Board.

Cut the Banana's in chunks and put in a microwave safe dish. 

Sprinkle with a little nutmeg and cinnamon.

Add a tablespoon or two of water. 

Nuke for 3 minutes.

Eat warm or cold. 

It's decadently sweet and rich.

TASTY FISH DINNER!

We had the best low point dinner I think I have ever had!  We actually have this dinner quite often at our house! 

Our Tasty Fish

• 1 Fillet of Fish (we had Tilapia tonight)
• 1/3 C. Tomatoes
• 1 T. Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
• Season with Garlic Salt and Mrs. Dash
• Olive Oil Spray

PointsPlus......3

I also add 1 tsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil to each Fillet at the table.......1 P+

Our Everything Salad (I don't even want to use dressing on it, which is amazing to me!)

• 1 Bell Pepper, diced
• 1 Large Carrot, shredded
• 1 C. Mushrooms
• 5 Radishes, sliced
• 1/2 C. Green Onions, chopped
• 1/2 C. Cranberries, finely chopped
• 1 C. Grape Tomatoes
• 1 Zucchini
• 1 Cucumber
• 1 C. Broccoli, chopped
• 1 C. Sugar Snap Peas
• 1 Head of Romaine Lettuce
• 1 Apple, diced
• 3 Clementines
• Mrs. Dash Original
• Mrs. Dash Tomato & Basil
• I also add 1 hard boiled Egg to my bowl!

Points Plus......2  (for the egg)

So This WHOLE dinner was only 10 PointsPlus for 2 Fillets with yumminess on them, a wonderful salad and my GHG's!!

HOMINY CHICKEN "ENCHILADA'S"

Hominy Chicken "Enchilada's"

• 36 oz. Can of White Hominy
• 13 oz. Can of Chicken Breast, shredded into fine pieces
• 26 oz. Can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 4 oz. Can of Diced Green Chilies
• 1 Cup of Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• Mrs. Dash Table Blend
• Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb Blend
• Mrs. Dash Onion & Herb Blend
• Fresh Tomato, diced

All you do is mix the Hominy, Chicken, CofM Soup, Green Chilies, and Mrs. Dash (I used quite a bit)  in a big pot.  Simmer for 30-45 minutes.  Then add the Cheese and stir in until melted.  Let cool for about 5-10 minutes to firm up a little.  Then put some diced Tomato's on top (and we drizzled the "juice" from the tomato on it too and it was yummy)  To us, this tasted just like enchilada's that we have had so many times before, just without some other ingredients that are normally in it. 

I am sure you could also make different "sizes" of pots or pans, but we have a decent size family so we like leftovers if possible.  Also, you could also bake it with the Cheese on top instead of mixed in, but either way works!

We also had Alexia's Chipotle Sweet Potato Fries and a plate of Veggies that we all shared.