Flour-less Peanut Butter Cookies

Peanut butter cookies aren't normally my favorite but I was very pleased with these guys! I wouldn't put them in my Weight Watchers friendly category (but I did make some adjustments to the original recipe to make them a little better)...every now and then we just need to indulge. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 cup reduced fat peanut butter

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease cookie sheet with cooking spray.

2. Mix peanut butter and sugar until smooth. Add remaining ingredients.

3. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place them on cookie sheet. They will spread out while cooking.

4. Press down with the back of the fork making a criss cross pattern.

5. Bake 8-10 minutes and then cool.

I also added some chocolate chips to some of the cookies and they were delicious.

SUNDAY SLOW COOKER: Berry Cobbler

Wow this smelled amazing while it was cooking away! I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into these sweet little berries. Next time....vanilla ice cream will be used atop.

Source: Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly

Ingredients: serves 8

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour (divided)

2 Tbs sugar, plus 1 cup sugar (divided)

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/4 cup skim milk

2 Tbs canola oil

1/8 tsp salt

2 cups unsweetened raspberries, fresh or thawed if frozen and drained

2 cups unsweetened blueberries, fresh or thawed if frozen and drained

1. In a mixing bowl, combine 1 cup flour, 2 Tbs sugar, baking powder and cinnamon.

2. In a separate bowl, combine egg, milk and oil. Stir into dry ingredients until moistened. Batter will be thick.

3. Spray slow cooker with cooking spray. Spread batter evenly on bottom of slow cooker.

4. In another bowl, combine salt, remaining flour, remaining sugar and berries. Toss to coat berries.

5. Spread berries over batter.

6. Cook on high 2-2 1/2 hours or until a toothpick inserted in cobbler comes out clean.

Note: I didn't have any raspberries so I used strawberries. If substituting a sweeter fruit for the raspberries, I would suggest using less sugar.

Honey Chicken Stir-Fry

Just a few simple ingredients and this meal comes together in a matter of minutes!

Source: adapted from Taste of Home, Diet Comfort Food Cookbook

Ingredients: for 2 servings
1-8oz boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch pieces (this cooks down to about 6 oz which is 2 servings)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp olive oil
1 Tbl honey
1 Tbl reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/8 tsp salt, opt
1/8 tsp pepper, opt
¾ pkg of frozen broccoli stir-fry vegetable blend (or any frozen stir-fry you prefer)

Hot cooked rice

1. In a large non-stick skillet, stir-fry chicken and garlic in 1 tsp oil. Add honey, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until chicken is lightly browned and juices run clear. Remove and keep warm.
2. In same pan (don’t worry about washing it), stir-fry vegetables in remaining oil for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Return chicken to pan and stir to coat.

The chicken and vegetable portion of this is 4 points plus. Remember to adjust if you're serving with rice.

SATURDAY SUGGESTIONS: Menu to stay on track

These are just some ideas...feel free to throw in some variations, but I handle the weekends best with a plan.

Breakfast:
Omelet and fruit (2 points plus)

Snack:
Apple, 1/2 cup cottage cheese and Special K cracker chips (5 points plus)

Lunch:
Turkey sandwich with low cal bread, sliced low fat cheese, lettuce, tomato and pickle (3 points plus)
Weight Watchers Yogurt (2 points plus)
Carrots and laughing cow cheese (1 points plus)

Snack:
98% Fat free popcorn, snack bag (3 points plus)

Dinner:
Honey Dijon pork chop (4 points plus)
Asparagus and 3 oz baked potato with f.f. sour cream and sliced green onion (2 points plus)

Extras:
A glass of milk or adult beverage

Wahoo! Made it through the day and still have room for a little bit of dessert!

Asparagus and Mushrooms

Anytime I find something with a few simple no cal ingredients I jump on the chance to make it. Asparagus and mushrooms…with a little ethnic flare….delicious!

Source: Taste of Home, Diet Comfort Food Cookbook
Ingredients: Serves 4

1 lb fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 tsp ground ginger
2 Tbl canola oil
3 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp pepper

In a large skillet, sauté asparagus and ginger in oil for 2-3 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender. Add the mushrooms, salt, sugar and pepper. Cook and stir 2-3 minutes longer or until mushrooms are tender.

*I used: fresh ginger, a “bunch” of asparagus that you buy in the store, one container of sliced mushrooms and only 2 tsp canola oil.
*Next time: I might try sesame oil to bump the ethnic flavor.

Great!!!

Orzo and Broccoli Risotto

Ingredients: Serves 2
1 can reduced sodium vegetable broth (or chicken)
1 cup water
1 tsp olive oil
¼ cup coarsely shredded carrot
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 cup orzo
½ (10 oz) package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and patted dry
2 Tbl fat free half and half
3 Tbl freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Bring the broth and water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce the heat and keep at a simmer.

2. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the carrot and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, until the carrot is bright orange and garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the orzo and cook, stirring until it is lightly toasted, about 2 minutes.

3. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add ½ cup of the broth mixture and stir until absorbed. Continue to add the broth mixture, ½ cup at a time, stirring until it is absorbed before adding more. Cook until the pasta is just slightly firm, adding the broccoli when you add the last addition of broth.

4. Stir in the half-and-half; heat 1 minute. Stir in the cheese. Spoon into shallow bowls and serve at once.

*The first time I made this, the last of the liquid, I thought was never going to absorb so I didn’t use it all. It kind of turned out hard. So the second time I made it, I didn’t rush it and added all of the liquid to the orzo and it turned out much better. Enjoy!

SUNDAY SLOWCOOKER: Baked Potatoes

The slow cooker/crock pot has to be one of the most versatile cooking utensils. I put this thing to work at least once a week and it continues to amaze me. I had NEVER thought of putting potatoes in the crock pot to turn them into baked potatoes....but one food day discussion at work, it was decided we would try it.

So the night before our food day, I packed my crock pot full of potatoes wrapped in foil. No butter needed.....just a little washing and some sea salt. Turned them on before I went to bed and let them cook on low all night. I kept them on low for about 10 hours and then to warm until it was lunch time.

The result: the softest baked potato ever! No hard spots in some places...no constant squeezing to make sure they're done....the easiest baked potato I've ever prepared.

Honey-Mustard Pork Chops

Every once in a while, it’s good to vary protein choices and get out of the chicken rut. Pork chops are a good alternative and this recipe is a quick and easy one and the majority of the ingredients will probably be in your pantry already!

Source: Weight Watchers Jan/Feb 2011 Magazine

Ingredients: serves 4, 4 points plus
¼ c Dijon mustard
4 tsp honey
1 tsp apple-cider or white-wine vinegar
¼ tsp black pepper
4 (5 oz) bone-in loin pork chops, about 1 inch thick

1. To make marinade, whisk mustard, honey, vinegar and pepper in a cup.
2. Transfer marinade to a large zip-close plastic bag; add pork. Squeeze out air and seal. Turn to coat and chill at least 4 hours or overnight.
3. Spray broiler rack with nonstick spray. Preheat broiler.
4. Remove chops from bag and discard marinade. Place chops on broiler rack and broil 5 inches from heat until browned and cooked through, about 6 minutes per side.

Serve alongside a nice steamed vegetable or side salad and maybe add a small baked potato or some wild rice.

*As you can see, I did not use bone in chops and mine weren’t an inch thick either…feel free to use what you have. Still turned out great and required less cooking time. And next time (when the weather warms up) I will probably throw these on the grill for those pretty grill marks.

*If you don’t have either one of these vinegars, I would suggest buying apple-cider. I think is it used more often than white-wine.

Leftover morning omelet

I always seem to find myself left with a ¼ of an onion….a handful of mushrooms….maybe some sort of greens (spinach or collard)…and if I’m lucky some ham or turkey. When it’s time to clean out the fridge, I turn all of these ingredients into a wonderful satisfying and healthy breakfast omelet. So take your leftovers, whatever they may be, and make your own concoction! Serve some fruit alongside and you’ll be set deep into the morning hours.

Ingredients:
Let your fridge do the talking!!

But I used:
Chopped onion
Sliced mushrooms
3 slices of Canadian bacon
Handful of collard greens
½ cup egg beaters

Sauté all the ingredients except the egg beaters. When they have reached your desired doneness, add the egg beaters. Freshly grated white sharp cheese would be a nice addition but my fridge didn’t have any of that.

My healthy breakfast turned out to be only two points plus!

Other things you might not think of throwing in there…. Tomatoes, asparagus, broccoli, sliced turkey…just think of an omelet bar at a hotel.
Delicious!

Lemon-Blueberry Oat Muffins

I think it’s funny how my eyes are always drawn to a recipe including blueberries….but yet, here I find myself cooking another one!

Source: Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook
Ingredients:
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
3 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 egg
1 egg white
1 cup fat-free milk
2 Tbl butter, melted
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Topping:
½ cup quick-cooking oats
2 Tbl brown sugar
1 Tbl butter, softened

1. In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. In another bowl, combine the egg, egg white, milk, butter, lemon peel and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in berries.
2. Coat muffin cups with cooking spray or use paper liners; fill two-thirds full. Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle over batter.
3. Bake at 400 for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the muffin comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 1 dozen