New Year - New Lifestyle

It's almost a new year and for once I'm going into it already well on my way to good health! The week of Thanksgiving, hubby and I decided to take the leap and begin a Ketogenic lifestyle and we've been going strong ever since! Both of us now have more energy, less medical problems and are losing weight on a nice and steady pace.

Now it's time to return to the blog and try to keep track of some of the amazing dishes we are enjoying! 

So far, our favorite dinner has been White Chicken Chili! The flavor is amazing and since it's packed with chicken and cheese the lack of beans isn't even noticed. 

White Chicken Chili
1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, ground
2 cups chicken broth
4 tbsp butter, salted
4.5 oz can green chiles, diced
1 jalapeno, finely diced
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
6 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup Pepper Jack cheese, shredded

1) In a Dutch oven (or large pot), season the chicken with cumin, oregano, cayenne and salt and pepper to taste.  Sear both sides of the chicken over medium heat until golden on each side.

2) Add the chicken broth to the pot, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes. Adjust the cooking time depending on the thickness of the chicken to ensure it is fully cooked.

3) While the chicken is cooking, melt the butter in a medium skillet. Add the chiles, diced jalapeno and onion to the skillet and saute until the veggies softened a bit. Add the minced garlic and saute an additional 30 seconds and set aside.

4) Once the chicken is fully cooked, shred with a fork and return back to the pot. Add the sauteed veggies to the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.

5) In a medium bowl, soften the cream cheese in the microwave until you can stir it easily. Add the heavy whipping cream to the cream cheese and stir to combine.

6) Quickly whisk the heavy cream mixture into the pot with the chicken and veggies. Add 1/2 cup of the cheese to the pot and simmer for an additional 15 minutes.

7) Top each serving with the remaining cheese and an avocado slice if you have some on hand!

It's a quick and easy dinner that will fill you up and keep you that way for quite some time! Although only hubby and I are enjoying the Ketogenic lifestyle, this is a crowd pleaser in our family! 

Weekly Menu Change

Ever made something so good you want to have it at least once a week?  Something so warm and flavorful you know there's no way you could get tired of it?

If you answered no, then you haven't tried this recipe and I encourage you to head to the grocery store, or your freezer and pantry, and make this for dinner tonight!  I think I will!

Brazilian Shrimp Stew (Serves 6)
1 1/2 lbs raw shrimp, peeled & deveined
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup roasted red pepper, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 14oz can diced tomatoes, with chilis
1 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp Sriracha hot sauce
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
3 cups white rice, cooked

Heat olive oil in medium sauce pan.  Once oil is hot, saute onions until translucent; add garlic and peppers and cook an additional 3-4 minutes.  Add tomatoes, shrimp and cilantro and simmer until shrimp turns opaque.  Add coconut milk and hot sauce and cook until heated through, do not boil.  Add lime juice and season with salt and pepper.  Serve with 1/2 cup of prepared white rice on the side and garnish with fresh cilantro.  

The rich sweet and spicy flavor came as quite a surprise!  Each and every bite of this stew brings more flavor and discovery.  We like to add a spoonful of rice every couple of bites to absorb even more flavor and bring a new texture.  If not rice then I highly recommend bread sticks, you'll definitely want something to sop up any leftover broth in your bowl!

Here's the great part!  It's only 7 Weight Watcher points+ per serving (9 with rice) and it's also Paleo friendly!  How can something this good be THAT good?!

Enjoy!

Winter Warmth

There's nothing better on a cold winter night than a nice hot bowl of soup to take away the chill.  When that bowl of soup is Zuppa Toscana and it's Weight Watcher friendly you get warm all the way to your toes!

Don't let that whole "Weight Watcher" thing fool you!  This soup is loaded with flavor and is probably the best I've ever tasted.  Now granted, I haven't been to Italy yet, but it is definitely the best I've ever tasted in an American Italian restaurant!  Try it for yourself and let me know what you think!

Zuppa Toscana

16 oz. Isernio's Chicken Italian Sausage

1/2 large onion, diced

6 slices bacon, diced

3 gloves garlic, minced

4 medium potatoes, diced

2 cups kale, chopped

2/3 cup heavy cream

6 cups chicken broth, fat free

2 cups water

~  In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, cook sausage until no longer pink.  Set aside.

~  In the same skillet, over medium heat, cook onion and bacon until onions are clear.  Add minced garlic and cook until onions and garlic are soft and bacon has slightly crisped.

~  In a large soup pot or dutch oven, combine chicken broth, water, potatoes and onion mixture.  Simmer for 15-20 minutes until potatoes are slightly softened.

~  Add kale, sausage and heavy cream to pot.  Continue simmering until kale has wilted and potatoes are soft.

Not only is this soup is so warm and delicious, it's very fast and easy.  Of course you can add salt and pepper and maybe even some red chili flakes to the sausage while it's cooking but none of that is really necessary.  It's got great flavor from the sausage and your still able to taste the subtle flavor of the kale.

This pot will serve 8 and each serving is 1 1/2 cups.  The best part is that it's only 7 pts - amazing!  Add a bread stick for 3 points and you'll be completely satisfied!

Sense of Independence

The twins turned 18 which is said to be when children become adults.  Although that is yet to be seen, I'm taking that idea and running with it!  I now have a new found independence in my kitchen.  To heck with these little adults, from now on I'm going to cook what I want!  And I want seafood!

Shellfish Stew (serves 6)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes

2 cups chicken broth, fat free

1 cup red wine

1/4 cup tomato paste

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

18 littleneck clams

18 medium shrimp, tails on

6 large sea scallops

2 cooked Dungeness crab, legs and flesh

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot or skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion, fennel and scallops.  Cook, stirring the vegetables until they begin to soften, and turning the scallops, searing on each side.  Remove the scallops and set aside.  Add garlic, oregano, thyme and red pepper flakes.  Cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add the tomatoes, broth, wine and salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered for 30 minutes.  Add the clams, cover and cook until they open, about 5 minutes.  Add the shrimp, partially cover, and cook until just cooked through.  Add the crab legs, crab meat and scallops and continue to cook until thoroughly heated.  Discard any unopened clams before serving.

Have plenty of napkins available and of course a few crab crackers for those claws!  

This was a fully satisfying meal other than the desire for some nice hearty crusty bread to sop up the amazing sauce!  Since we're doing so well we kept this at the 8 WW points+ that it is and just imagined ourselves dipping the bread!

So get ready family (including you new adults), the sky's the limit and we'll be sampling some new and exciting things!

Party Food

I need to start dropping recipes on here like there's no tomorrow! I have so many and I'd like to have a place to go to review and find them all besides my jumbled up messy binder! This is a much better place and they're in neat little categories that I get to pick!

So here's one that's become a favorite of everybody's since Halloween. The Pirate party this year led to some creative and fun food that I'll get on this blog eventually!  This stew was exceptional though, I even took it with me for the Master Chef casting call. Guess it wasn't "fancy" enough for them but it sure is for us!

Salmagundi (Pirate Stew)

1 lb bottom round, cut into 1" chunks

1/2 lb hard salami, cut into 1" chunks

12 medium shrimp, raw

6 cups beef broth, fat free (approx.)

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

2 large carrots, roughly chopped

2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
2 parsnips, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup red wine
1/2 cup cream (optional)
1tbsp salt

In a large skillet, sear the meat in 1 tsp oil.  Place the meat in a stockpot when seared.  Add one cup of the broth to the skillet to deglaze.  Pour the broth into the stockpot with the meat, adding more broth if needed until the liquid is just below the surface of the meat.  Bring it to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, add 1 tsp of oil to the same skillet.  Add the vegetables and cook until the onions are completely translucent.  Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Season with salt.

After the meat has cooked one hour, add the vegetables to the stockpot, adding more broth to cover.  Simmer uncovered for another 45 minute until the meat is very tender and falls apart when prodded with a fork.  Add the salami, shrimp and wine.  Simmer another 10-15 minutes until the shrimp is cooked through.  Add additional salt if needed.  Optional:  add cream in the last 5-10 minutes of cooking.  This dish serves about ten 1 1/2 cup servings and provides 9 WW+ points.

Now of course pirates served this with Sea Biscuits (hard inedible pieces of dough) but we landlubbers prefer a nice soft buttermilk biscuit or sourdough bread to sop up all those wonderful juices.  And don't forget the orange slices to prevent scurvy!  Arrrrgggghhhh!!

While the judges at Master Chef weren't impressed with this creation, you will be!  The hard salami adds a depth of flavor that you don't find in any other stew.  Enjoy!

Taking Advantage

Tuesday nights have become a late dinner night because of a meeting that runs until 6:30 so we're eating at 7:00 instead of 5:30. Of course this makes everybody (mainly Barry) think they are starving to death! In order to stave off his hunger, I agreed to make some sort of appetizer or soup that could be served at 5:00. This seemed to make him and the rest of the family happy!

So on this Tuesday afternoon I decided to try my hand at flatbread! I envisioned these wonderful little panini appetizers with spinach, mango chutney and goat cheese. As the ripe mangoes sat before me I kneaded and rolled, rolled and kneaded. Then I baked and watched as these beautiful square flatbreads became golden and picture perfect! They came out of the oven smelling... like flatbread! They broke like crackers!! "Aha" I said, crackers and mango salsa!! So I threw together some salsa (mango, pineapple, red pepper, onion, cilantro and lime juice) and let that sit while I searched for something else to do with my final ripe mango.

And here's where taking advantage of the late dinner opportunity and a ripe mango rocked our world with flavor!

Curried Shrimp & Mango Stew
1 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
2 gloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp curry powder
1/8 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/2 Serrano chili, minced
2 cups chicken broth, fat free
1/3 cup white rice
7 oz. evaporated milk, fat free
1 ripe mango, diced
1/2 lb raw shrimp, peeled and diced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan, cook the onions in the oil over medium high heat for about 2 minutes, until softened. Add in the celery and garlic and cook another minute. Stir in the curry powder, allspice and diced chili and cook another minute. Add the chicken broth and rice and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and cover the saucepan. Cook for about 20 minutes until the rice is tender. Add in all remaining ingredients and cook about 5 minutes until the shrimp is opaque.

This stew can definitely be a meal, not just a snack or appetizer! The recipe makes six 1/2 cup servings at only 3 points plus per serving - you'd need to double it to actually make a meal of 1 cup servings. It has a nice warmth to it but not too much so even those that don't like spicy foods can completely enjoy it.

Let's see how the Curried Chicken & Vegetables turns out for dinner...

Creamy Goodness

This Pacific Northwest weather has us all going a little stir crazy doesn't it? It feels like fall, it looks like fall, we act like it's fall, I'm dressed like it's fall... so I figured let's eat like it's fall!

Nothing like a nice warm bowl of chowder with a hot buttery biscuit to warm you up on a dreary July day! Yep - it was raining at the time we sat down to dinner. And then my husband informed me he turned the heater on when he got up in the morning! AND... I read on Facebook that a friend did the same thing! It was July 1st... what's going on? Enough about that, here's the food!

Creamy Chicken Corn Chowder
2 tbsp butter (220 cal; 22g fat; 0g fiber)
1/4 cup onion, diced (14 cal; 0g fat; .5g fiber)
1/4 cup celery, thinly sliced (4 cal; 0g fat; .5g fiber)
1 Jalapeno pepper, diced (4 cal; 0g fat; 0g fiber)
2 tbsp all-purpose flour (50 cal; 0g fat; 0g fiber)
1 cup milk, fat free (90 cal; 0g fat; 0g fiber)
2 cups Half & Half, fat free (320 cal; 0g fat; 0g fiber)
1 lb chicken breast tenderloin, cooked and cubed
4 small corn-on-the-cob, kernals only (252 cal; 4g fat; 8g fiber)
1 can cream style corn (350 cal; 2g fat; 3.5g fiber)
1/4 tsp Thyme
1/2 tsp salt
Dash red pepper flakes

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery and jalapeno; cook for 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add the flour; cook for 1 minutes stirring constantly. Stir in the milk and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; cook until thick (about 5 minutes).
Serves: 6 Nutritional data per serving: 230 cal; 5g fat; 2g fiber

I tell ya, this stuff is awesome! It's so creamy and sweet you'll want to have way more than just one serving. Which is perfectly fine!! Check out the nutritional data for each serving... you can truly enjoy a whole bunch of this stuff!

Don't substitute the fresh corn for frozen - it WILL NOT work! The sweet crispy flavor and texture that the fresh corn adds to this recipe should not be messed with! Also, make sure you get the sweet corn with the light yellow or white kernels, you won't be sorry.

You can also modify it a bit to bring down the fat and calories by using all fat free milk instead of the half & half. I'll never do that - I love the creaminess too much. Having been on Adkins before I really miss all the cheesey creamy goodness so I take it where I can get it!

Of course, what is chowder without biscuits? The reduced fat Pillsbury Grands biscuits are perfect - the kids love making them and I love the mess!! Next time I'll include a low fat/low calorie cheddar biscuit recipe - this time, we had the canned variety!

Enjoy!