Changing Direction

Sometimes the direction we are going is perfect, heading down that golden paved road with nothing but sunshine and roses along the way.  We vow to stay on that path forever, then all of a sudden there's road construction and we have to take a detour!

The first detour (aka straying off the healthy eating) has finally ended after a couple weeks and I'm back on the golden road!  The second detour is going to be a little longer and involves three very beautiful blessings...  grandchildren!  As we were heading down that golden road towards empty nest and teaching the girls independence, our three grandchildren (ages 7, 5 and 2) have joined us!  Talk about detour (and chaotic road construction)!

So after a five day camping trip of wonderful dutch oven cooking and over-indulging in the snack department, here's the meal that got us all back on track!

Orange Herb Pork Tenderloin

2 tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 lb pork tenderloin

2 cups orange juice

1 cup chicken broth, fat free

1/4 cup white wine

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp oregano

Preheat the oven to 400F.  In a large zip lock bag, combine 1 tbsp of the olive oil with the garlic.  Add the pork, turning to coat completely, and refrigerate for one hour.  After marinating, remove the pork from the bag and season with salt and pepper.  In a medium oven proof skillet, heat the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the pork and cook until richly browned on all sides, about 10-15 minutes.  Add the orange juice, wine, broth and herbs and bring to a boil.  Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for about 35 minutes or until the center of the tenderloin reaches 145F.  Remove the pork from the skillet and strain the cooking liquid into a saucepan.  Boil the sauce until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 15 minutes.  If a thicker sauce is desired, mix 1 tbsp of cornstarch with 2 tbsp of orange juice and add to the sauce, simmering until thickened.  Slice the tenderloin evenly and top with sauce.

This was a perfect dinner over mashed potatoes (made with potatoes and cauliflower) to remind me how easy eating healthy is.  The sauce is rich with a ton of flavor that even the pickiest eaters will enjoy!  Each serving of pork and sauce is only 5 pointsplus leaving plenty of room for the mashed potatoes or even some rice.

Although we're still on a detour, we're going to do our best to enjoy the new scenery until the golden road is finished being reconstructed! 

Winning Is Everything

When cooking, why would we ever want to lose?  Winning is definitely the goal in mind!  The other options just don't seem to be quite as satisfying!  Now that's not to say that sometimes things don't turn out quite as planned and you end up with a whole different and new creation - those times are awesome.  I'm speaking merely of disasters...  inedibles...  black where black doesn't belong!  In those cases, winning is everything!

Last night I won!

Whenever I've attempted to make Chinese food it's always been referred to as Stir Fry.  Why?  We don't order Stir Fry from the Chinese shop menu do we?  Is it even an item on the menu?  Where did the term come from?  Maybe I should look that up before I post this?  Make it an educational post too!  Anyway, last night I didn't make stir fry, I made Chinese Food!  I finally got the taste AND texture of my favorite dish, I won!

Cashew Chicken

6 tbsp soy sauce, divided
2 tbsp sherry (or chicken stock)
1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 lb chicken breasts, cubed
3 tbsp cornstarch, divided
2/3 cup chicken broth, fat free
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp teriyaki sauce
1 tsp fresh ginger root, minced
1 tsp salt
2 tsp canola oil, divided
2 cups fresh snow peas
2 celery stalks, sliced

3 medium carrots, julienned
8 oz. can sliced water chestnuts
2/3 cup cashews
1 cup rice

2 cups chicken broth, fat free

~  In a large resealable plastic bag, combine 4 tbsp soy sauce, sherry, sesame oil and 1 tbsp cornstarch; add chicken.  Toss chicken to coat with the marinade.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
~  Cook rice as directed on the package, or rice cooker, using the chicken broth for the liquid.
~ In a small bowl, combine 2 tbsp cornstarch and 2/3 cup broth until smooth.  Stir in the sugar, vinegar, teriyaki sauce, ginger, salt and remaining soy sauce; set aside.
~ Drain the chicken, discarding the marinade.  Rinse the chicken lightly with cold water to remove excess cornstarch.  (The cornstarch is what gives the chicken the "Chinese Food" texture - ancient Chinese secret!)
~ In a large non-stick wok or skillet, stir fry the chicken in 1 tsp of oil until it is no longer pink.  Remove from pan and add the peas and carrots.  Fry until crisp tender, then add the water chestnuts.
~ Return the chicken to the pan and add the cashews.  Stir the sauce mixture and then add it to the chicken and vegetables.  Bring it to a boil and cook, stirring constantly, until it is thickened. Serve over rice.

Notice I snuck the secret in there!?  I learned that secret a long time ago and I can't believe what it does to the chicken!  You'll have to try it with thin sliced beef for Beef and Broccoli and let me know how it is!

So there you have it - my winning dish!  With 1/2 cup of rice and plenty of the chicken it's only 9 points plus!  That even leaves room for a little extra chicken without the rice - and trust me, you're going to want just a few extra bites!

Birthday Cake

Does everybody celebrate their birthday with cake? Is it okay to say you don't want cake?

I'm sure glad my friend told me no to the cake! Her birthday wish was that I cook dinner for her and make her a dessert "something like flan", she hinted. Well, it just so happened that my mom had told me the last time she had my flan that she would never order it in a restaurant again! So with my friend's wish and mom's praise dessert was going to be a breeze!

Yep, you guessed it, too easy! My challenge was going to be making it a little less calorie laden (I won't say healthy here). I always have fat free half and half on hand so I decided to use that and hope for the best! It worked beautifully!! Mom never guessed and after her third serving my friend hadn't a clue either - I was happy! Then, I got up this morning and while drinking my coffee decided to try again... even lower!

Upside Down Creme Brulee (Flan)
1/4 cup sugar (plus 2 tsp for caramelizing)
1 cup half and half, fat free
1/2 cup Egg Beaters
3/4 tsp vanillaPinch of salt

Sprinkle 1/2 tsp of sugar in the bottom of 4 ramekins. With a torch, moving the flame in slow spirals, caramelize the sugar in each ramekin until amber or dark amber beads form over the entire bottom surface. Set them aside to cool. Preheat the oven to 300F. In a small saucepan, combine 1/4 cup of sugar and the half and half. Stir while heating over medium-high heat until almost to the boiling point. Set aside to cool. In another bowl, briskly stir the egg beaters, vanilla and salt. Continue stirring while adding the cream mixture in a slow thin stream. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve and fill the ramekins, pouring gently. Place ramekins in a baking dish and then fill the baking dish with hot water until 1/2 way up the ramekins. Bake for 40 minutes (more or less depending on the depth of the ramekins) until the centers are softly set. They should jiggle slightly. Remove them from the oven and let them cool in the water for about 10 minutes. Remove them from the baking dish and cover with plastic wrap before placing in the refrigerator. (They are also great room temperature!) To unmold them, hold the bottom half of the ramekin in a bowl of hot tap water for a count of 20. Then, with a small paring knife, go around the edge of each custard. Turn the ramekin over in the center of a dessert plate. If the custard does not fall out, gently lift one edge of the custard with the paring knife to release the vacuum.

Wow, that's a lot of directions! Hopefully I got everything and they turn out perfectly like mine did!

This amazing tasting dessert is only 3 points plus per serving! Only 3!
Would that be considered healthy?

Happy Birthday!

Healthy Stuff

I was looking through my cookbook and then browsing my blog when I realized that it doesn't quite fully represent our new way of healthy eating. Although most of the family doesn't realize it, we've gotten to the point where there's very little fat, if any, in our meals. They just enjoy all the amazing flavors and beautiful plates they're getting.

They also don't realize they're getting a lot more seafood in their diet! For a family that doesn't care for seafood (one will go to McDonald's instead of Anthony's) I've been managing to "sneak" it into the menu once or twice a week! Today I realized there's none on my blog! How will I ever remember all the successful sneaks if I don't document?!

Besides fish tacos, here's one of the favorites:

Herb Crusted Cod
2 lbs cod fillets
3 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp dried basil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt and pepper
16 crackers, fat free, crushed

Preheat the oven to 375F. Line a large baking pan with parchment paper. Lay cod fillets on parchment with a small amount of spacing just so they don't stick together. In a medium bowl whisk together the melted butter, mustard, lemon juice, parsley, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the cracker crumbs and combine. If the mixture seems to dry, spray lightly with cooking spray and mix well. Divide the crumbs between the fish and use your fingers to pat it evenly over the top. Bake for 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets. When fish is cooked through turn oven to broil. Check every 20-30 seconds and remove when tops of crust are a light golden brown. Serve with additional lemon if desired.

This recipe is so simple! And yet everybody will have seconds without realizing I just snuck more seafood into their diet! Will I ever get them to give up the red meat? That makes me chuckle just thinking about it...

During my chuckle I almost forgot to mention, this is only 6 points plus per serving leaving plenty of room for some Parslied Potatoes (coming soon)!

Recognition

Everybody needs a little recognition don't they? Those of us that love being in the kitchen and putting forth beautiful plates and bowls of food love that recognition - at least I do! I'm so excited to get that through my blog for the first time! A friend of mine read my last blog about my Mother's Day brunch and asked for one of the recipes I included in the list of menu items! Somebody besides my husband read my blog!! How exciting!

So here it is, the requested recipe!

Lemon Panini French Toast
12 slices of French Bread
1/2 cup egg beaters
1/4 cup evaporated milk, fat free
1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups of mixed berries (fresh or frozen)
3 tbsp sugar
Squeeze of fresh lemon

Lemon Curd
1 oz butter
1/2 cup lemon juice (2 lemons)
Zest of 2 lemons
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup egg beaters

Lemon Curd (can be made ahead of time): in a microwave safe bowl, combine the butter, sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cook on high about 2 minutes, stirring halfway through. The butter should be melted and the sugar dissolved. Whisk in the egg beaters and microwave 30 seconds. The curd should be thickened, if not, microwave an additional 15 seconds. (There will be leftover lemon curd for another use).

Preheat the oven to 200F. Place a baking sheet in the oven. Mix the cream cheese and 1/2 cup of the lemon curd. Divide between half of the slices of bread and spread to the edges. Top with the remaining slices of bread. Whisk the egg beaters, evaporated milk, sugar and vanilla extract. Coat the bottom and top of the panini grill with cooking spray. Working in batches, dip each sandwich in the egg mixture to coat both sides. Cook until golden brown. Do not press down on the grill! Transfer the grilled French toast to the warmed backing sheet and keep warm in the low oven. In a small saucepan, combine the berries, sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer and cook for about 10 minutes until thickened. Serve over French toast.

Although they may appear sweet, these are light and not nearly as sweet as we expected. I guess that's what made them so perfect! The cream cheese combined with the lemon curd is the perfect texture and combines well with the fruit topping. Put the syrup away - you definitely won't need any!

As for Weight Watchers and counting my points, well, what can I say except that it was Mother's Day!! I did calculate though and each full French Toast with the fruit topping was 8 points plus. That's not too bad if that's all I ate for breakfast!

Thank you for reading my blog, it makes me smile!

Doing What We Love

I love Mother's Day! Not only do I get to celebrate my mother, and celebrate with her, I get to be celebrated as well! For many, this means you don't have to go anywhere near your kitchen! For me, it means I get the opportunity to STAY in my kitchen, undisturbed, creating, playing and doing exactly what I love to do!

This year I was able to share some extraordinary delights with my mother and family, including my very dear friend Jackie! I created a brunch that had a little bit of everything for everybody and the menu went something like this....

Lemon Curd French Toast Panini ~ Sausage Gravy ~ Potato Roast ~ Tuscan Baked Eggs
Strawberry Strata ~ Son-In-Law Eggs ~ Crescent Rolls

For this post, I'm going to highlight the strangest and newest creation because it gave me the greatest pleasure to create and sample. A popular street fare in Thailand is now a treat at home!

Son-In-Law Eggs
1 can coconut milk
1 tbsp Thai red curry paste
1 tsp chopped lemon grass
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 lime, juiced
6 eggs, soft boiled
2 tbsp peanuts, chopped
1 green onion, sliced

In a small saucepan over medium high heat, reduce half of the can of coconut milk until it splits into oil. Add the curry paste and the lemongrass to the oil and cook for about 1 minute. Reduce the heat and add the rest of the coconut milk, fish sauce, brown sugar and lime juice. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the sauce is a creamy consistency. Keep sauce warm.
Heat a couple of inches of oil in a small saucepan over high heat. Once heated carefully add two eggs at a time to the oil and fry until the outer white turns golden brown and expands int a crisp honeycomb texture. Placed fried eggs on a paper towel prior to placing in a small serving dish. Spoon on prepared sauce, sprinkle with chopped peanuts and green onion.

I tell people about these eggs and they look at me like I was crazy for deep frying the egg - I thought I was too! Who ever heard of such a thing? Not to mention deep frying anything is pretty much never mentioned in this house!

It being Mother's Day and all - yes, I used every extra point I had and probably points leftover from last week and the week before! This one tasty, delightful morsel alone is 8 points plus per warm, comfortable egg!

Note: This is a bit spicy! Okay, it's a lot spicy! Use less curry paste to tone down the heat but I wouldn't omit it completely.

Taking A Chance

There have been times that I've prepared a meal for guests, family and potlucks without trying it first. If my memory serves me right, it's been an epic failure every time! I'm not sure how I can cook meal after meal for the six of us every night and have the majority turn out tasty but then pick something to try for a potluck and have it be dry and tasteless? With every failure, I vow that I will prepare something tried and true, that I will no longer experiment on innocent bystanders!

Then here I went again!

Last night it was my turn to cook dinner for our groups monthly meeting. There's anywhere from 10-20 people that attend and 90% of them are men. Since it was only me providing the entire meal I tried to make something that would appeal to everybody, something well known, easy to recognize and with minimal unique ingredients. Perfect time to refrain from trying something new!

Nope, not me! Refrain? Not usually! And boy am I glad I took the chance!
Check this out...
It's amazingly wonderful...

Creamy Chicken Spaghetti
2 cups chicken breast, cooked and cubed
1/2 cup butter
16 oz fresh mushrooms
1/4 cup white wine
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup flour
2 cups chicken broth, fat free
1 1/2 cups milk, 2%
1/4 cup (additional) white wine
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 cup black olives, chopped
1 pound thin spaghetti

Bring the broth to a boil. Break the spaghetti into thirds and add to the boiling broth. Boil for 5-8 minutes until tender. Drain spaghetti, reserving the liquid. Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a large skillet. Add the mushrooms, 1/4 cup of wine and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until the liquid has completely evaporated, stirring occasionally. Remove the mushrooms and set aside. Lower heat of skillet to medium low and add 6 tbsp of butter. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter, whisk to combine and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add 2 cups of broth (from the spaghetti pot) and whisk to combine. Pour in the milk, and the additional 1/4 cup of wine. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, tasting after each sprinkle. Continue simmering until thick. Turn off the heat and stir in the Parmesan. Add the mushrooms, chicken and olives and stir to combine. Check the seasoning level again and add salt and pepper as needed. Turn into a 9x13 casserole pan and bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes.

And that my friends is a comfort food dish you will want to make over and over!

The way it's written above it will feed about 8 people and is only 11 points plus per serving. Next time I'm going to try and use less butter, or light butter, and see if that works. I've also seen low fat Parmesan that would help lower it even further. Oh, and not to forget, I bought a pasta extruder that will make thin spaghetti! It's much easier to control the fat and calories when you know exactly what's going in it! I'll post the difference when and if I try the changes - after all, 11 points isn't bad for dinner!

Sometimes you just gotta take that chance!