Adventures with The Two Ingredient Dough

Unless you've been living under a rock, or you are a social media hater, you've heard of the two ingredient dough. The lure of the dough is lower calories and no fat as well as it's versatility. I've seen folks make everything from bagels to rolls to pizza dough to doughnuts. Because I am addicted to pizza, that's what I started with.

Pizza made at home with the 2 Ingredient Dough

I made this on a recent Friday night and both the hubby and I agreed that it tasted great. Working with this dough takes a little getting used to. It was very stiff and pretty sticky on my first go round making it. This is kind of a long blog post, but I know that lots of people are intimidated when working with dough, so I want to be as helpful as I can. I hope this helps you!

2 Ingredient Dough

1 3/4 cup Self Rising Flour
1 Cup Plain Non Fat Greek Yogurt

Now what you do with it is up to you. Here is my experience with the dough. I learned a little and it got easier to work with as I did. I hope this helps you have a better first experience with it than I did. 

Because all I had on hand was a generic Greek yogurt, I drained mine in a sieve lined with a coffee filter to remove the excess liquid. If you have a high quality name brand you may be able to skip this step. I mixed the dough in a bowl, using a little more than 1 2/3 cups of the flour and saving the rest to work into the dough while kneading it. As I said it's a little stiff and a little sticky. Here's how mine looked during prep.

The crumbly, pre-kneaded dough. 

 After mixing the dough in a bowl, I turned it out onto a well floured mat, using the remaining flour in the measuring cup. I kneaded it about 20 times, until it pulled together in a cohesive lump of dough and most of the rest of the flour was incorporated. I think now that I kneaded it a bit too much. 

After kneading, very stiff. Let it rest before trying to stretch it. 

Be sure to spray the pan of your choice very well with a non-stick cooking spray or wipe well with olive oil. After resting a few minutes, I was able to spread the dough to about 10 inches round. I added my own pizza sauce.

My Pizza Sauce
makes 2 pizzas

1 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. finely minced garlic
2 tsp. finely minced onions
1 cup canned tomato sauce
a pinch of Kosher Salt
a pinch of dried red pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano

In a small sauce pan, soften the garlic and onion over low to medium heat. Add the tomato sauce, turn up the heat and bring it to a bubble then add all the remaining ingredients. Lower the heat and let cook gently for about 5 minutes, stirring often.

Pizza prepped with sauce, don't over do the sauce. Ready for the toppings. Since I don't use a ton of cheese, I always add that first and put the other topping on top of the cheese. 

Next add one cup of your choice of cheese. I used part skim mozzarella. Top with your favorite toppings. Mine has banana peppers, roasted red peppers, turkey pepperoni, onion, mushrooms and black olives. Bake at 400 for about 20 -25 minutes. You may need to turn down the heat to 375 and let it bake a few more minutes until the dough is done in the center. You don't want to burn the crust. Lastly I added 1 T. of shredded Parmesan cheese. 


Next Up, Bagels! 

Hot out of the oven, Onion Bagels made with the 2 Ingredient Dough

After my experience with the stiff dough while making the pizza, I decided to begin with 1 1/2 cup self rising flour and 1 cup of plain non fat Greek Yogurt. I used the rest of the flour to dust the surface I used to shape the bagels. This time the dough was MUCH easier to work with, so from here on out, that is absolutely the way I will be making it. I added 2 tsp. granulated dried onion to the dough since I was making onion bagels. I shaped the dough into a round, divided it in half and then divided each half into 3 pieces. I rolled each piece into a 3 -4" rope and then shaped the rope into a circle. This is what I ended up with:

Bagels ready for the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If you are topping your bagels brush them with an egg wash -- 1 egg whisked with 1  T. of water -- using a small pastry brush. I topped mine with a mixture I made from toasted sesame seeds, poppy seeds and the same dried onions I put into the dough, along with a pinch of kosher salt and garlic powder. Bake them for 30 -35 minutes and then run them under the broiler, if desired, for a browner and crustier top. 

Ready for the oven! 

Aren't they cute? And they smelled so good while baking, like a fancy bakery you'd walk by in a big city. 

Fresh from the oven,
Onion Bagels! 

Here they are -all done and ready to eat. I like mine split and toasted with a little light cream cheese and glass of V8. 

Breakfast is served! 

White Bean Chicken Chili - Freestyle!

It's easy to make, it's delicious and it's ZERO points. Dump everything but the beans into a slow cooker and do what you need to do. 4 or 5 hours later, remove the chicken and shred it, and return to the pot along with the beans and one hour later dinner is ready... and lunch the next day and the next and the next....and that makes for easy meal planning.

To serve I like to add 2 crushed tortilla chips on top, a Tablespoon of low fat shredded cheddar, 2 black olives, a wedge of lime, a little cilantro and a big dollop of plain non-fat Greek yogurt. That makes my big bowl of chili 2 Freestyle Weight Watchers points. You do it the way you like it! Avocado would be good, if  you've got the points or some pickled jalapenos if you want it spicier.

Feel free to add a can of your favorite corn to the slow cooker if you like -- we just don't care for corn in chili.

And believe me when I say, it's hard to take a good picture of this chili, it's just not that pretty! This is the best I could do:

Zero Point White Bean Chicken Chili -
All Gussied Up for the photo op! 

Remember that zero points doesn't mean zero calories, but this is a pretty  healthy chili! Just don't over do it -- as in all things, moderation is the key. I'd say a portion is a cup to a cup and a half.

White Bean Chicken Chili
Serves 8

4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds, give or take)
1+ box Low Sodium Chicken Broth (I used Imagine Organic Free Range)
4 cans Progresso White Kidney Cannellini beans 
2 cans Old El Paso Chopped Mild Green Chilies
1 large jalapeno pepper, diced (leave in the seeds for more spice, I did0
1 T. minced garlic
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 T. chili powder
2 tsp. cumin
1 T. dried oregano
1 tsp. coriander
2 tsp. Kosher Salt
1 T. white vinegar

Drain 3 cans of the beans and rinse them. Place the 4th can in the blender with it's liquid and puree until smooth.

Put all ingredients except beans into your slow cooker. Cook on high 4 to 6 hours until the chicken is starting to fall apart. Remove the chicken and shred it and put it back into the pot with the beans along with any accumulated drippings from it. You may need to add a little more chicken broth if it's too thick for your preference. Taste the chili for seasoning at this point. You can add more  spice or salt to your liking.

Cook another hour or 2. Serve with your choice of toppings, just be sure to count the points if you are a Weight Watcher, like me!

Bare Naked White Bean Chicken Chili = 0 Points

Healthy Breakfast Frittatas

Healthy Breakfast Frittatas

I have been wanting to make some Breakfast Frittatas, or as we are more likely to call them in the south, Breakfast Muffins. I decided to name them Frittatas because many folks associate muffins with somethings sweet and these are definitely NOT sweet! They are savory and tasty, healthy, carb free and high in good for you protein. This recipe makes 12 individual frittatas. I ate 2 this morning, my husband ate one, but he had an English Muffin with his. I am trying to watch my carbs, my biggest healthy eating challenge, so any time I can get satisfied without eating bread, pasta or potatoes, I am happy!


These come together pretty quickly -- and the prep is relatively easy. I hear you can freeze these, but I have an idea ours will disappear within the work week, reheated easily in the microwave. Also, feel free to substitute the vegetables that you like. What I used here was what I had on hand on a Monday morning after a busy weekend, filled with friends, cooking and gardening. Next time I do this I think I'll try a mixture of spinach, onions and maybe a little feta cheese for something different. Broccoli, cheddar, onion and bacon would be good too. OH, and how about a Southwestern Style one, served with salsa? The possibilities are endless!  Stay tuned, I'll post what else I come up with!

And, Weight Watchers, these weigh in at only 2 Smart Points per piece! Win, win!! To keep the points at 2, don't alter the amount of cheese, eggs, milk, sausage and olive oil. The rest is "free" so you can play around with that to your hearts content! 


Healthy Breakfast Frittatas
makes 12 "muffins"

6 large eggs
1/4 cup 1% lowfat milk
8 ounces turkey breakfast sausage (I used Wegmans)
1/2 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. chopped roasted red pepper, packed in water
1 small can sliced mushrooms
2 ounces Cracker Barrel Extra Sharp 2% Cheese
1 tsp. olive oil
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked black pepper
Hot sauce to serve, if desired
Non-stick cooking spray (like Pam)

In a non-stick skillet over medium heat, cook the sausage, breaking it up and crumbling it as you cook until browned with no pink showing. Remove the sausage to a paper plate lined with a paper towel to remove any excess fat. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Drain excess fat from the sausage. 

Add the olive oil and onions to the skillet. While the onions begin to soften, beat together the eggs, milk, cheese, salt and pepper. Add the mushrooms and peppers to the onions in the skillet and saute' together for a few minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat. Spray your muffin tin thoroughly with non-stick cooking spray. Add the sausage, divided evenly to the the bottom of each muffin cup -- it's about a Tablespoon of sausage per cup. Add the veggies on top of the sausage, making sure there is a little of each vegetable in every cup. Lastly, gently pour the egg mixture over the sausage and veggies. I found it is about a scant 1/4 cup egg mixture to each muffin cup.

Bake for 22 minutes at 350 degrees. Let the "muffins" cool in the tin at least 5 minutes or they will break up. We liked ours served with a little hot sauce, but they were good without it too! Yummy!

Add a little hot sauce if you like a little heat! 

Healthy Breakfast Frittatas -- YUMMY! And only 2 WW SP per piece! 

Chicken Parm with Zoodles

Chicken Parmesan with Zoodles

Have you tried zoodles yet? Zoodles are "noodles" made from zucchini. Since they are made totally from a vegetable, there are no carbs and virtually no calories, so are totally diet friendly. I've been using them in combination with Dreamfields pasta to cut calories and still enjoy a full portion size of "pasta". I received a spiralizer from my son and his fiancee' for my birthday in September and that's made this process oh, so easy! Mine is super easy to use and it came from Amazon and looks like this:

Find it HERE

This is easy to assemble and to clean -- it's top rack dishwasher safe. So far I've done zucchini and cucumbers, but I am sure there are more veggie noodles in my future.

The most recent occasion to use this little gem was to make a lightened up version of Chicken Parmesan. I found the recipe on the Cooking Light website, but as I always do, I changed it up just a little bit, to make it all my own. This recipe is a little trouble to make, but nothing you wouldn't want to tackle on a lazy Sunday afternoon when you feel like puttering a little in the kitchen. The key part to the calorie cutting is that the chicken is not fried, it is baked on a rack in the oven with a crispy Panko bread crumb crust. The trick of mixing the parmesan cheese with yogurt makes it creamy with out extra fat. So, next time you want some classic Italian comfort food, without the frying and pesky calories, try my Chicken Parm with Zoodles. (PS if you are following Weight Watchers, this comes in at 9 points.)

Chicken Parmesan with Zoodles
serves 4

1 T. plus 1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. minced fresh thyme
6 garlic cloves, divided use
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 large can Cento San Marzano whole tomatoes (1 lb. 12 oz.)
1/3 c. dry white wine (I used Kendall Jackson Chardonnay)
1 tsp. Kosher Salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 T. non-fat Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano grated cheese
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets, lightly pounded to an even thickness
1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp. garlic powder
cooking spray
3 medium to large zucchini
2 oz. fresh, water packed mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
3 oz. Dreamfields Spaghetti

Heat 1 T. olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat and add the chopped onion. Saute' that for a few minutes, until it begins to soften. and add in all but 1 tsp. of the minced garlic. Cook for a few more minutes --- don't let the garlic start to brown-- and then add the tomatoes, breaking them up with a spoon or your hands as they go into the pot. Pour in the wine, salt and pepper and turn the heat up until the mixture begins to boil. Turn the pot down to simmer and let the sauce cook, uncovered about 30 minutes, allowing the liquid  to reduce and thicken. Turn off the heat, and add the fresh basil. Stir it into the hot sauce. Cover the pot to keep it warm.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place a cooking rack over a cookie sheet and spray it with cooking spray. Pound the cutlets with the smooth side of a meat mallet (or something else heavy and smooth, like a rolling pin) between 2 sheets of parchment paper so that they are of a uniform thickness, about 1/2"thick. In one small bowl, mix together the yogurt and the parmesan cheese. In a pie plate, mix together the garlic powder and the Panko breadcrumbs. Spread one side of each chicken breast with about a spoonful of the yogurt mixture and place the coated side down into the breadcrumbs. While they are sitting in the pie plate, spread the other side of the cutlets with the rest of the yogurt mixture and carefully turn them over, to coat the other side with the Panko mixture. Place them on the prepared oven rack, like this:

Bake cutlets in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and proceed with the recipe. While the cutlets are cooking is a good time to make your zoodles. Follow the directions on your spiralizer or peel the zucchini thinly with a vegetable slicer. Place the zoodles on a double thickness of paper towels to draw the moisture out of the zucchini. Meantime, also bring a pot of water to a boil and get ready to cook the spaghetti noodles.


After the cutlets have baked, put about 1 T. of the warm sauce  you made earlier carefully on top of each cutlet, spreading it almost to the edges. You don't want to put on so much that it drips over the edges and spills all over the bottom of the pan. Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water and cook according to the package directions.

Top each cutlet with 1/2 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese. Oven ready, your dish should look like this:

Preheat your oven to broil and position a rack close to the element as suggested by your manufacturer's instructions. Heat a large, non-stick skillet over medium high heat and add the remaining 1 tsp. of olive oil and garlic. Cook a minute or two and add the zucchini noodles to the skillet. Stir them around, coating them with the oil. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to them. When they begin to wilt, cover the pan and turn off the heat.

Zucchini Noodles in a non-stick skillet

 Drain the spaghetti in a colander, do not rinse with water! Place the chicken cutlets under the broiler and broil until the mozzarella is melted but not browned, about 5 minutes in my oven. Mix the spaghetti with the zucchini noodles in the skillet and divide among four plates. Top each mound of pasta with  a bit more of the red sauce and one cutlet. 

Enjoy with a glass of nice, dry chianti and pretend you are in Italy. Say things like Pronto and Buon Appetito! Have fun! Mangia! 

Easiest Dessert EVER!

This has got to be one of the easiest desserts EVER! It's not only yummy, but pretty diet friendly and healthy too! I bought an Angel Food Bar Cake from the grocery store, sliced it thinly and sprayed it with cooking spray.  I'd also bought a cored fresh pineapple and sliced it thickly, dried it a little and sprayed that with cooking spray. After we'd cooked our dinner, I wiped up a spot on the grill, turned the grill up to high and put the pineapple on the lower element of the grill. Once some nice grill marks appeared, I turned it over. I then put the angel food cake on the grill and let it start to brown. That goes pretty quickly, so watch it carefully. I turned both the cake and the pineapple over and made sure the fruit was tender by sticking it with a fork. I removed everything from the grill, turned it off, and layered the cake, pineapple, a scoop of low fat vanilla ice cream and dropped on a few blueberries. YUMMY! Quick, easy, healthy and DELISH!

Baja Fish Tacos

Baja Fish Tacos, made with Tilapia and a heavenly sauce! 

We love fish tacos! I've made them before, but this is a new recipe that adds a little crunch to the crust of the fish without adding significant fat or calories. (See my other recipe HERE )  I found a recipe on the Weight Watchers website, but as I tend to do, I changed it up a little bit. I added cilantro -- which you can certainly leave out if you hate it, as some folks do -- and altered their suggested salad addition to more of a slaw. I also used tilapia since the store was out of Red Snapper when we did our shopping. Substituting the Tilapia for the Red Snapper also brought the price down quite a bit. The sauce that goes with this meal is really, really good! It would be great on its own as a dip! The sauce recipe came pretty  much verbatim from the website except I used fat free Greek yogurt because that is what I keep at home, instead of the low fat the original recipe used.

This meal was a WINNER! Give it a try when you want some authentic street food flavor without all those pesky calories! I halved the recipe since there were only 2 of us at home. We served it with black beans and brown rice. It was muy delicioso!

Baja Fish Tacos
serves 4
7 Smart Points as written, per 2 corn tortillas and 1/4 lb. of fish

Corn or Soft Flour Tortillas for Serving. We prefer corn. 2 Tortillas per person.

For the fish:
1 lb. Tilapia filets
1/2 c. Masa (corn flour)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. chili powder
Cooking Spray such as Pam

For the slaw:
2 - 3 cups shredded red cabbage
1/3 c. chopped cilantro
2 - 3 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts
4 radishes, thinly sliced and cut into match sticks

For the Sauce;
2 c. plain fat free Greek Yogurt                                                        

3 T. fresh lime juice
2 pieces Chipotle en Adobo chilies, with a tsp. of juice

First, make the sauce. Puree all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. If you like "less spicy" only use one of the peppers. Set aside.

Make the slaw next. In a large bowl, combine all the vegetables, tossing to combine evenly. Add 1/2 cup of the Sauce and toss until well combined and sauce is evenly distributed. Chill the slaw and the sauce until ready to serve.

For the fish:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the filets into pieces like this:

Lay the filets out on a plate lined with a paper towel to drain any excess moisture.








In a large ziplock plastic bag, add masa and all the spices. Toss in the fish and shake to coat fish evenly. Place a rack over a cookie sheet and spray with cooking spray. Lay the fish on the rack, shaking before placing to get rid of any excess breading.

Spray the fish, turn them over and spray them again with the cooking spray. Turn the oven setting to broil and place an oven rack about 2 inches below the broiler element. Broil the fish for about 5 minutes, remove pan from oven and turn the fish over. Broil another few minutes to crisp up the other side, about 3 - 4 minutes. Remove from oven and build your tacos. Layer the fish, about 2 pieces per tortillas, the slaw and a little more of the sauce, especially if you like some heat! Enjoy!

Gingery Beef Lettuce Wraps

Gingery Beef Lettuce Wraps

Here's another Asian style recipe, quickly adapted from a Weight Watchers recipe that I made for dinner last night. Believe me when I say that eating this feels NOTHING like dieting -- these lettuce wraps are full of flavor, texture and have the elusive "umami" we all hear so much about. I changed the recipe slightly, adding ingredients that upped the flavor. I keep most of these things on hand, because I love cooking this way! (See some more takes on lettuce wraps HERE and also HERE)

Once you've purchased the needed spices and condiments, you can create so many healthy meals. This is not difficult cooking so please don't be intimidated by the  number of ingredients. They are mostly inexpensive and easy to find in a regular grocery store! So here we go -- the only ingredient I added that will add Smart Points to your total -- if you are "counting" -- is the Hoisin Sauce, which adds 1 point to the 3 specified by Weight Watchers. The Hoisin Sauce adds a richness and slight sweetness which interacts nicely with the salty soy sauce and the rice wine vinegar, which I added as well. I've also added Sriracha Hot Sauce, because we like things a little spicy, but leave it out if you don't. Use low sodium selections if you are sensitive to salt or have high blood pressure.

Gingery Beef Lettuce Wraps
4 servings

1 lb. 93% lean ground beef
1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
2 Tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger
1 Tablespoon minced fresh garlic
2 cups Bok Choy, thinly sliced
2 cups shiitake or white button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced, stems chopped
1 medium red pepper, thinly sliced
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons Hoisin Sauce
1 Tablespoon Rice Wine Vinegar
Sriracha Sauce (may be omitted if you don't like spicy)
Lime wedges, iceberg or butter lettuce, cucumber pieces and fresh cilantro for serving

Wash 6 - 8 large lettuce leaves and chill in the refrigerator. Dice half a cucumber and cut up a little cilantro to top lettuce wraps. If you don't care for cilantro, use either fresh basil or mint. You  only need a little, the fresh herbs add some extra special flavor on the wraps!

Spray a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray and add the beef over medium high heat. Using a wooden spoon, break the beef apart and crumble it. When it begins to brown add the onion and ginger. Sprinkle over 1 T. of the soy sauce. Cook a 4 - 5 minutes and add the garlic. Saute' briefly to incorporate garlic, then add the red pepper, mushrooms and bok choy. Cook the mixture until the bok choy begins to wilt.  Stir in the remaining soy sauce, Hoisin sauce and rice wine vinegar. Squeeze Sriracha sauce over the top, if using, about 1 - 2 T. Cover the pan, turn down the heat and let cook for 5 minutes.

Gingery beef stir fry mixture

Put a lettuce leaf or two on a plate and top with 1/3 - 1/2 cup of beef mixture. Top with cucumber, herbs and a squeeze of lime. Squeeze on extra Sriracha if you really like spicy -- my husband did! Enjoy!

Summertime Means Gazpacho!

Gazpacho, chilled and full of vegetables!
Delish! 

I am a lucky woman. I have a neighbor who gives me fresh vegetables from his garden. It seems like everything comes at once, especially tomatoes. I was the recipient of a huge bag full of tomatoes and green peppers just yesterday. I ate a big plate of sliced tomatoes with my dinner last night and today I made gazpacho. I've made gazpacho for years, it's super healthy and low calorie as well as very tasty.  I make mine like a salad -- lots of chopped veggies, a little vinegar and oil, and some salt and pepper. Try it topped with cold, cooked shrimp or sliced avocado. I like a few sliced green olives on mine, but you eat it the way you want to. Some folks like crispy croutons on top. For dinner tonite I made a little "gremolata" of diced olives, celery, green pepper and a few cherry tomatoes, and that's what's in the picture above.

As hot as it here in central VA it's great to make something that doesn't involve turning on the stove OR oven! Cold soup on a hot humid summer evening? Yes, please!

Gazpacho

Gazpacho Vegetable Mix

Makes about 6 cups

2 - 2 1/2 lb. vine ripe tomatoes, peeled
1 medium cucumber, peeled with seeds removed
1 small yellow onion, quartered
1/2 medium green pepper, cut into chunks**
2 cloves garlic, about 1 heaping tsp.
1 rib celery, sliced
1 small carrot or 3 baby carrots, scrubbed and sliced
1 1/2 cups V8 or tomato juice (I prefer V8)
1 T. olive oil
1 T. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. salt
a pinch of black pepper

Peel the tomatoes by cutting an X in the bottom and dropping them in boiling water for 10 seconds. Remove to your cutting board and let cool a minute or 2. The skin will slide off easily. Core them to remove any tough parts.
Peel the cucumber and halve it lengthwise. Score the middle with a paring knife and push the seeds out with a spoon or your finger. Chop it roughly to fit into your food processor or blender.
Put all the veggies into your chopper bowl or half into your blender. Blend until the mixture starts to get smooth but still has some texture. Remove to a large bowl and add tomato juice or V8, salt, pepper, vinegar and oil. Whisk to combine. Chill at least 2 hours.

Serve cold, topped with anything you like or just plain. Keeps for about 4 days in the refrigerator.

**Cooks note: If you want your gazpacho to be spicy, add a small to medium jalapeno pepper to your vegetable mixture. If you remove the seeds and membranes, it will tone it down a little. Leave them in for more heat.

Ginger-Garlic Shrimp and Chicken

I've continued working on my Asian cooking skills this week with another Weight Watchers recipe that I only tinkered with slightly. The original recipe called for chicken, but since I made it on a Saturday night I used shrimp, which made it seem a bit more special, or "date-night" worthy! (Is it still a date night if you've been married over 30 years? hhmmmm....) AND since I had some leftover grilled chicken, already conveniently cut into cubes, I threw in a few of those for the last minute of cooking. That upped the point total from 6 to 7, if you are a Weight Watchers member, but it was worth the extra point, believe me!

This dinner came together quickly and really was delicious. I subbed sriracha sauce for the sambal oelek chili paste that the original recipe called for, because that's what I had in the pantry. I also used slightly less teriyaki sauce, because I didn't have the lower sodium kind. I added some soy sauce, because I like it, but you can leave that out if salt is a problem for you. My choice for the sliced green onions in the original recipe was to use a plain yellow onion. I scattered a few pieces of green onion over the dish when I plated it. Served over brown rice, it was healthy and good -- good for you and good to eat! Like most stir fry dishes, the key is to get everything prepped and ready to cook. Once you begin to cook, things move really fast. I start my rice about an hour before I am ready to cook the stir fry.  I like to cook brown rice in some of the same low sodium, fat free chicken broth that I use in the stir fry. It's always a 2  to 1 ratio: 2 cups liquid to 1 cup rice. Bring the liquid to a boil, add the rice, cover and turn down to low. Leave it on low heat for about 30 minutes, turn it off and let sit until you are ready to eat.

Ginger-Garlic Shrimp and Chicken
4 servings
1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 lb. cooked, cubed white breast meat chicken
2 T. Teriyaki sauce
1 T. soy sauce
2 tsp. canola or vegetable oil
2 cups small broccoli florets
1 red or green pepper, quartered and thinly sliced
1 large carrot, cut into matchsticks
1 cup water chestnuts, drained and roughly chopped
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
4 scallions, green part only, thinly sliced, for garnish.
1/2 cup low sodium, fat free chicken broth
1 T. finely chopped fresh ginger root
1 T. minced garlic
1 T. Sriracha sauce (optional, or use less if you don't like spicy)
2 c. cooked brown rice

Place the shrimp, teriyaki sauce and soy sauce in a small bowl, stir to combine. In a large, non-stick frying pan, heat 1 tsp. of the oil. Add the shrimp, which you've fished out of the marinade. Cook them over high heat for about 3 minutes.

Searing shrimp.

Remove the shrimp to a clean bowl and add the other tsp. of oil. Add the green pepper, broccoli and carrots to the hot pan. Stir fry for one minute.

Stir frying the vegetables

Add the onions and stir in. Pour the remaining marinade over the vegetables. Stir for a minute, put a top on the pan and let steam for about 2 minutes, until the veggies are just crisp tender. Add the garlic, ginger and sriracha sauce to the mixture and stir them in. Lastly, add the water chestnuts, chicken broth, reserved shrimp and cubed chicken. Cover to heat through, about 2-3 minutes. Serve over rice, scatter a few green onions over the top. Makes 4 servings, 1/2 cup rice per serving.

Ready to put over the rice. Doesn't that look good? 

Pork Chile Verde

Chile Verde Soft Tacos with Jalapeno Slaw

Can you take another Mexican-style slow cooker recipe? I feel like I can never have too many of them. Not only are they generally easy to make and very budget friendly, they are also pretty healthy and taste delicious! I spotted some good looking tomatillos in the grocery store this week, and had some leftover pork roast, and this is what I came up with: Chile Verde.  For those of you who've read my blog and know that I like to cook and experiment around the kitchen, let me say right up front, THIS DISH IS A WINNER! The flavors were so darn good, it was hard to believe it started out with leftovers! Give this I try, I promise you WON'T be disappointed!

I got the original recipe from a cousin and made it once, as she suggested, with beef chuck roast. I served it at one of my Halloween chili nights, but honestly, I felt like it needed something. I loved the shredded meat texture, and so did all the folks at the chili fest. I thought,  "Next time, I'll try it with pork and change it up a little."  The best addition was, I believe, "Chipotle en Adobo" chilies. They are readily available in cans, you shouldn't have any problem finding them, If you are not familiar with them, they are smoked jalapenos in a spicy tomato sauce. Freeze the remaining peppers and sauce for later, they are great in chili, any spicy dish or sauce. Also, I think I skimped on the fresh cilantro the first time around. I was a little hesitant to add quite so much, but not this time. The cilantro made the dish really special!

First, I started with a pork roast. Here's how I make mine. Make sure to buy one big enough so that you'll have approximately 2 lbs. of pork leftover. I made my roast on Monday and threw the leftovers into the slow cooker on Friday. Here's my leftover piece of roast so you can judge the size you'll need:

Leftover pork roast, about 2 lbs. 

If you've never purchased a tomatillo, here's what you are looking for -- they look like tomatoes, but with a papery hull on the outside. They feel a little sticky when you remove the outer layer and stem, so wash them well. They should be firm, but not rock hard.

Tomatillos - 2 with hulls still on, 2 with hulls removed

Now, on the to the recipe!

Slow Cooker Pork Chile Verde

2 lb.s cooked pork, cut into chunks                                                           

Vegetable prep, onion, chilies and garlic

1 small can chopped green chilies

2 chipotle en adobo chilies, chopped and 2 tsp. of the sauce from the can

1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

6 tomatillos, papery hull removed, washed and chopped ( I used my food processor)

1 heaping Tablespoon dry oregano

2 tsp. cumin

2 Tablespoons chili powder

1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/4 c. packed chopped fresh cilantro 

2 tsp. kosher salt 

For Serving:

Spicy Jalapeno Slaw (recipe here )

Shredded Cheddar or Jack Cheese

Soft Flour or Corn Tortillas

a few fresh cilantro leaves for topping the tacos

Chop everything up and throw it into your slow cooker. No need to mince it all carefully, the slow cooker does the work for you. You can see I left my onions kind of big. Didn't matter, the texture was great. I set my slow cooker on auto-shift, which means it started out on high and then switched over to lower heat. 

Chile Verde in the crock pot. It already smelled and looked yummy! 

I cooked the chile verde for 6 hours, stirred it vigorously to break up any large chunks of meat and then let it heat through again and served it. We ate ours like soft tacos, draining off a little of the juice and putting the mixture into soft flour tortillas. We topped it with some shredded cheddar cheese and spicy jalapeno slaw (recipe in this post ). It would be great served over corn chips or you could add 2 cans of beans and make it into more of a chili type stew. The flavor was SO darn good, you're going to want to make it again, I promise! Hhhmmmm....next time, I think I'll add those beans AND serve it over chips.......

Cajun Pasta --Quick, Light and Delicious

Cajun Pasta, oh so good! 

I began my exploration of creating this dish by browsing a new cookbook, "Eat More of What You Love" by Marlene Koch. (Find it here) I like to read cook books like I read novels, front to back, re-reading parts that I love over and over again. So far, I am finding this book to be a great starting place for new recipes. Her philosophy, I LOVE. She believes, as do I, that you can eat whatever you want but you've got to be smart about it, in order to manage your health. I've written before about my struggle with my weight, and I am always searching out ways to make my struggle easier. I love to cook, I love to eat and I love to entertain my friends by cooking for them. For a middle aged, height challenged lady, with grown sons who love to eat, that is a lethal combination. Fortunately, I don't have any heath issues (so far, Praise God!) but I need to shed a few pounds. SO, I purchased this cookbook to get myself inspired to cut back, cut WAY back.

This is only the second recipe that I've adapted from the book, and I knew from the first one that they need some tweaking to suit our palates. I have not added any additional carbs, sugar or fat, but I have added in more flavor, with herbs, veggies and spices. I eliminated the butter she recommended using, but since I amped up the flavors, we didn't miss it. Her recipes are also extremely low sodium, so I did add just a pinch of kosher salt. I hope you like my recipe and my alterations. I think you will! While it looks like a lot of pasta in the picture, it's only 6 ounces, divided 4 ways. We ate it for dinner and again for lunch. Perfect.

This pasta dish is packed with flavor, vegetables, lean protein and is low in fat. While there is a little bit of chopping, it's worth the effort. I put this together in only 30 minutes, start to finish. The flavor is spicy, but not overwhelming. If you like things only mildly spicy, don't add the hot sauce and cut the cajun seasoning back by a teaspoon. We loved this and can't wait to eat it again! I would absolutely serve this to company as well as using it as a quick, healthy family dinner on a weeknight.

Cajun Pasta 
Serves 4
6 oz linguine
8 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 T.  + 2 tsp. McCormick Cajun Seasoning (divided use)
2 T, Texas Pete Hot Sauce (optional) 
2 tsp. olive oil
1 medium red pepper, cut in strips
1 medium green pepper, cut in strips
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 c. thinly sliced celery 
8 oz. peeled, raw shrimp
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 14.5 can organic diced tomatoes, with juice
1/4 c. low sodium chicken broth
2 T. seafood stock
a pinch of kosher salt
Start the water for your pasta in a large pot. Preheat a large, non-stick skillet and add 2 tsp. olive oil. Toss the chicken cubes with 1 T. cajun seasoning and add to the oil. Stir fry that for 2 minutes and then add the garlic and onions. Stir well to combine and let cook for 2 minutes. Add the peppers and celery, and continue to cook until the peppers start to soften. Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, a pinch of kosher salt, the additional cajun seasoning and hot sauce (optional if you like things very mildly spicy). Cover. Bring the mixture to a full boil, turn it down and let it cook.  Cook pasta according to package directions until just al dente. Drain well. While the pasta is draining, add the shrimp to the skillet and set the timer for 5 minutes. When the timer goes off, combine the pasta and the sauce together in one of the pans. Cover and let steam for 5 more minutes, over lowest heat. Serve in a bowl. 
Approx 325 cal for 1 1/2 c. 

Cedar Plank Salmon with Soy Glaze



 Last time I blogged, I wrote about being in a chicken breast rut, but we were in a salmon rut too. Salmon is another one of those things I buy every month. Now that there are usually just 2 of us for dinner, I buy a big piece from a big box store and cut it into 2 pieces. I usually oven poach it (Here's my post about how to do that ) or cook it with a lemony herb mixture on top (here's that method ). Anytime I have any leftovers, I make salmon spread, a wonderful appetizer or sandwich spread ( recipe here ). Obviously WE LIKE SALMON but it was time to try something new! After browsing some recipes on my favorite spots, here's what I came up with. It was delicious and it was definitely DIFFERENT. While it took a little time to reduce the glaze, it was not hard to do. If you don't have a cedar cooking plank, they are easy to find -- anyplace that has a good kitchen supply department will have them. You need to soak it for an hour or 2  in plain old tap water before using, but that's pretty simple. I actually had  everything in my pantry for this dinner except the fresh ginger. Give this a try next time you fix salmon and you want to step it up a bit!

Cedar Plank Salmon with Soy Glaze

Put your plank in water to soak, according to the directions on the package. I soaked mine about 90 minutes.

For the glaze:

1/3 c. brown sugar

1/3 c. soy sauce

2 T. hoisin sauce

1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 tsp.)

1 2" piece of ginger, peeled and grated

Place all ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Turn down the heat to low and let the sauce reduce until about 1/2 in volume.

Preheat your grill to hot cooking temperature.

You will need about 1 - 1.25 lbs of salmon, cut to fit onto the plank. Lay the salmon on the plank and brush it with the glaze.



Salmon on Grill

Place the plank onto the grill and close the lid. Let it cook over medium heat for about 6 minutes. Brush on a little more glaze after 3 - 4 minutes.  Don't worry about the smoke or the slight charring on the edge of the plank -- that's where the good smoke flavor comes from. I left mine on for 8 minutes and it was almost too dry. It cooks pretty quickly, but it will depend on how thick the salmon is. Salmon is cooked when it flakes easily with a fork or knife tip inserted into the thickest part.

I served my glazed salmon with some Pot Stickers from Trader Joe/s and stir fried veggies. Cut a lime and squeeze that over the salmon right before you eat it -- yummy! I prepped the pot stickers and vegetables before I began cooking the fish, so that when it went on the grill, everything was ready to eat when it was done. I also reheated the leftover glaze and we used it to drizzle on the salmon and the potstickers. The glaze recipe is a KEEPER! (Probably be good with chicken or pork too!)

Glazed Salmon, Pot Stickers and Stir Fried Vegetables for dinner!

Here's how I did the veggies:

Stir Fried Vegetables

1 tsp. peanut oil

1 small onion, sliced

2 cloves minced garlic

2 ribs celery, trimmed and sliced

1 c. shredded cabbage

6 button mushroom, sliced

16 snow peas, washed and threads removed

1 tsp. peeled ginger, grated

1 T. soy sauce

a little salt to taste

In a medium to large non-stick skillet, heat the peanut oil until it starts to shimmer (hot). Add the onion, garlic and celery. Stir that around for 2 - 3 minutes until the veggies begin to soften. Add the soy sauce and ginger to the pan and then add the cabbage and cook for another 2 -3  minutes, stirring periodically. Don't let them brown. Lastly, add the mushrooms and snow peas. Sprinkle the pan with 2 T. water, turn down the heat to medium, cover it and let the mixture steam about 5 minutes. Any combination of vegetables your family likes will work, but this is what I had on hand.

Stir Fried Vegetables

In a chicken breast rut?

Do you buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts from the big box stores, frozen in a big bag? I do and have done so for years. It's an economical way to stock your freezer and they are pretty healthy, as meat goes. The easiest way to deal with them is simply to marinate them in Wishbone Lite Italian dressing and grill them. When my children were little, we cooked that alot, once prompting my husband to declare, "If I see another grilled, boneless, skinless chicken breast, I am going to puke!" I believe that was in the "grilling them to leather stage", his own fault, as he would not listen to me about length of cooking time, etc. Fortunately, he's gotten over it, now pays attention to the amount of time you should cook them, and we get much better results!

Speaking of MUCH better results, here's a delicious take on those ubiquitous breasts, pan fried and simmered briefly with a herb infused mushroom wine sauce that is a great dinner for two or more! I combined several recipes I looked up -- don't you just love epicurious.com? I didn't have EVERYTHING for any one of the recipes I liked, so I "winged" it. Don't you love it when your kitchen experiments work out deliciously? We'll definitely be having this again!

Chicken breasts with Mushrooms and Wine

Chicken Breasts with Mushrooms and Wine

Serves 2

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thawed if frozen
1/4 c. all purpose flour, mixed with 1/2 tsp. kosher salt and a pinch of black pepper
1 T. olive oil
1 T. butter
8 oz. creminini "baby bella" mushrooms, sliced
1/4 c. Vidalia or other sweet onion, or shallots
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. chopped fresh rosemary
2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 c. dry white wine (I used pinot grigio)
1/2 c. low sodium chicken broth or stock
In a large, non-stick pan, melt the butter with the olive oil, over medium-high heat. Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour mixture, and place them in the pan. Cook the breasts for 4 minutes on each side. They should be lightly browned. Remove and set them aside. Add the mushrooms, onions, garlic and herbs to the pan (if you need to, you may add another tsp. of olive oil).

Mushrooms, onion, garlic and herbs

Cook the vegetables and herbs briefly, 3-4 minutes, stirring them around. Add the wine and broth to the pan. Bring this to a boil. Turn it down a little and let the mixture reduce for 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as needed (how much depends on your broth). Put the chicken back into the pan and cover it.



Chicken breasts simmering in wine and mushroom sauce



Cook for 8 more minutes and voila', perfectly cooked chicken and mushrooms. Serve with brown rice and steamed broccoli with little cheese grated over it.



Chicken and Rice and Everything Nice!