Zucchini Risotto with Sun-Dried Tomatoes - WW

INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup tomato juice
1/2 cup white wine
6 shallots, finely chopped
4 medium zucchini, diced
2/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (I used fresh tomatoes from my garden)
1 1/3 cups arborio rice
1/2 cup chopped parsley
3 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
Combine the broth and tomato juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring it to a boil and then reduce heat. Keep at a simmer.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large pan. Add the shallots and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Add the zucchini and cook until heated through, 5 minutes.

Add the rice, wine, sun-dried tomatoes and parsley, and stir until wine is absorbed.

Add 1/2 cup of the heated broth/juice combo to the pot and stir constantly until the liquid is absorbed by the rice and veggies. When it is, add another 1/2 cup and repeat.

Keep adding liquid, a half cup at a time, until it is completely absorbed. You must stir it constantly so that it is absorbed and so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan. The stirring will also make the rice nice and creamy. You should be adding liquid and stirring for about 25-30 minutes.

Once all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is creamy, stir in the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 4 servings, (serving is 1 1/2 cup - 7 ww points)

Baked Zucchini Sticks with Homemade Marinara Sauce

Baked Zucchini Sticks

Servings: 3 servings • Total Time: 25 minutes • Points: 1.33 ww points (sauce extra pts)

• 3 medium zucchini sliced into 3" x 1/2" sticks
• 1 large egg white
• 1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs
• 2 tbsp grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• cooking spray
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  
• salt
• fresh pepper

1 Point Quick Marinara Sauce (1 cup)

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes (I used fresh diced tomatoes)
  
• 1 small bay leaf
  
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
• salt and fresh pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425°.

In a medium pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until golden, being careful not to burn. Add crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano, basil and bay leaf. Stir and reduce heat to low. Cover and let simmer about 20 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat egg whites and season with salt and pepper. In a ziplock bag, place breadcrumbs, garlic powder and cheese and shake well. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray and set aside.

Dip zucchini sticks into eggs then into bread crumb and cheese mixture, a few at a time and shake to coat. Place the breaded zucchini in a single layer and spray more cooking spray on top. Bake at 425° for about 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with 1/2 cup marinara sauce for dipping

Zucchini Lasagna

We are getting so many huge zucchini from our garden so I have a ton of new zucchini recipes that we have tried out and are awesome!!

Zucchini Lasagna

Servings: 6 • Time: 1.5 hour • Points: 8.5 ww points

• 1 lb lean beef
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 onion
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8" thick
• 1 15 oz fat free ricotta
• 16 oz Sargento reduced fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
  
• 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
• 1 egg

In a medium sauce pan, brown meat and season with salt. When cooked drain in colander to remove any fat. Add olive oil to the pan and saute garlic and onions about 2 minutes. Return the meat to the pan, add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Simmer on low for at least 30-40minutes, covered. Do not add extra water, the sauce should be thick.

Slice zucchini into 1/8" thick slices, add salt and set aside or 10 minutes. Zucchini has a lot of water when cooked, salting it takes out a lot of moisture. After 10 minutes, blot excess moisture with a paper towel.

In a medium bowl mix ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and egg. Stir well.
Preheat oven to 350°.

In a 9x12 casserole spread some sauce on the bottom and layer the zucchini to cover. Then place some of the ricotta cheese mixture, then top with the mozzarella cheese and repeat the process until all your ingredients are used up. Top with sauce and mozzarella and cover with foil.

Bake 45 minutes covered at 375°, then uncovered 15 minutes. Let stand about 5 - 10 minutes before serving.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO YUMMY!!! Enjoy!

Grilled Flank Steak Soft Tacos with Avocado-Lime Salsa

From Cooking Light Magazine - June 2009

Yield

4 servings (serving size: 2 tacos)

Ingredients

Steak:

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons grated lime rind
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed
  
• Cooking spray

Salsa:

• 1 cup diced peeled avocado
• 3/4 cup finely chopped tomato
• 1/3 cup finely chopped Vidalia or other sweet onion
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lime rind
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)

Remaining ingredients:

• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas

Preparation

1. To prepare steak, combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Score a diamond pattern on both sides of steak. Rub chili powder mixture evenly over steak. Cover and chill 1 hour.

2. Prepare grill to medium-high heat.

3. Place steak on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 8 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes. Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices.

4. To prepare salsa, combine avocado and next 7 ingredients (through pepper sauce) in a medium bowl.

5. Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spoon steak mixture evenly over each of 8 tortillas. Top each taco with 1/4 cup salsa.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 353

Fat: 16g (sat 4.3g,mono 7.6g,poly 1.7g)

Protein: 27.9g

Carbohydrate: 27.7g

Fiber: 6.8g

Cholesterol: 40mg

Iron: 2.5mg

Sodium: 593mg

Calcium: 78mg

Dinner Menu

Monday - Pasta with zucchini and toasted almonds
Tuesday - Grilled flank steak soft tacos with avocado-lime salsa
Wednesday - Apricot-glazed grilled chicken with zucchini and coleslaw
Thursday - Going to San Jose
Friday - Russ's soccer game, will probably eat in SJ again
Saturday - Sesame-orange shrimp and chicken stir-fry
Sunday - Feta and green onion couscous cakes over tomato-olive salad

These are all new recipes from June's Cooking Light magazine.

Dinner Menu

Tuesday- I am going to dinner/happy hour with friends so Russ will be having Chicken Enchilada's with leftover rotisserie chicken

Wednesday- Garlic Lemon Chicken

Thursday- Stuffed Zucchini

Friday- Russ's soccer game then we will probably go out after

Saturday- Steaks and Roasted Garlic Barley Risotto

Sunday- Homemade pizza!

Dinner Menu - Busy week!

I didn't have to plan too much for this week since we have so much going on.

Sunday - Dinner at Mom's for Steph's Bday (Cheese Fondue, Cobb Salads, Chocolate Fondue)

Monday - Filet Mignon with a healthy version of creamed spinach.

Tuesday - SHARKS GAME! Going out to dinner with the family for Steph and Dad's birthdays.

Wednesday - Salsturkey Steaks

Thursday - SHARKS GAME! Last home game of the regular season! Going out to dinner again.

Friday - Russ's soccer game is at 5:20 so I'm sure we will be going out with friends afterwards.

Saturday - Stuffed Chicken

Sunday - Easter dinner at Mom's house.

Turkey Taco Meatloaf

Wednesday night I made Turkey Taco Meatloaf from the Hungry Girl cookbook! OMG it was soooo good! Enjoy!

CRAZY GOOD TURKEY TACO MEATLOAF

1lb. raw extra lean ground turkey
2 slices fat free cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded fat free cheddar cheese
1/2 cup canned sweet corn kernels
1/4 cup chopped green bell peppers
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 packet of taco seasoning mix, dry


Preheat oven to 375. cook peppers and onions for 3 min. over med. heat in a pan sprayed with nonstick spray. in a large bowl, combine onions, peppers, turkey, corn and seasoning. spread 1/2 of mixture on bottom of loaf pan sprayed with nonstick spray. layer 2 slices of chesse on top. top with remaining meat mixture. pour salsa over top. cook for 30 min. top loaf with shredded cheese. return to oven and cook another 15 minutes.

1/6 of loaf has 127 calories,1g. fat, 7carbs

Dinner Menu

This week:

Monday: Thai Ground Beef with Zucchini
Tuesday: Green Cuisine Fritata
Wednesday: Turkey Taco Meatloaf
Thursday: Chicken Parm
Friday: Russ's Soccer game so dinner out in San Jose
Saturday: We will be at Great America during the day so I'm not sure what's for dinner.

I'm trying 3 new recipes this week so I hope they are good!

Roasted Garlic Barley Rosotto

Ingredients
1 tbsp Coconut Oil or Butter
1/2 Cup Onion (finely diced)
1/4 Cup Carrots (finely diced)
1/3 Cup Pearl or Pot Barley
1 Cup Vegetable Broth
1/2 Cup Water
1/4 tsp Thyme (dried)
1/4 tsp Ground Pepper
1/4 Cup Roasted Garlic Finley diced (Cut off top of 2 bulbs, add a little butter, and bake in oven for 30 minutes)
1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese (grated)

Instructions
Preheat a medium pan to medium-high heat and add the oil, onions, and carrots. Saute for 2 minutes and then add the barley. Saute for 2 minutes more, stirring frequently. Add the vegetable broth, water, thyme and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and reduce to low. Simmer for about 25-30 minutes until most of the water is absorbed. Now add the roasted garlic and cheese, stir until the cheese is melted. Serve and enjoy!

This recipe makes enough for 2 people

Nutritional Info
Calories(k/cal) 562.4
Fat(g) 21.8
Saturated 16.3
Monounsaturated 3.0
Polyunsaturated 0.9
omega-3 0.0
omega-6 0.2
Carbohydrates 72.7
fibers 13.1
sugars 6.6
Protein 18.9

Healthy Dinner - Texas Thin Crust Pizza

Our trainer recently let us borrow her Gourmet Nutrition Cook Book. We have been trying recipes from it here and there, and they are all pretty good!! Last week we made Texas Thin Crust Pizza and it turned out really good! It took about 20 minutes from start to time time we ate which was awesome! If you like pizza I would definitely try it!

Ingredients

Olive oil cooking spray

6 oz Ground sirloin or extra lean ground beef

¼ tsp Salt

¼ tsp Pepper

¼ Cup small yellow onion diced

¼ Cup red pepper diced

2 tsp Garlic minced

¼ Cup Tomato diced

2 tbsp BBQ Sauce

1 Whole Wheat tortilla

½ Cup White Cheddar grated

Directions

Preheat oven to 400. Preheat a non-stick frying pan on medium heat. Lightly coat with olive oil spray, and add the ground meat. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté the beef until lightly browned and cooked all the way through. Add the onions, pepper and garlic and sauté for 1 more minute. Add the tomatoes and BBQ sauce, stir until combined and remove from heat. Lightly coat a baking sheet with spray and place the tortilla on the tray. Spread the beef and vegetable mixture evenly, leaving the outside half inch for crust. Top with cheese and place in the oven. Bake until cheese is melted and tortilla is nicely toasted (about 10 minutes). Serves 1 large or 2 small

Nutritional Information

For a large

Calories (k/cal) 552

Fat(g) 28.5

Saturated(g) 15.9

Monounsaturated(g) 9.4

Polyunsaturated(g) 1.4

Omega-3(g) 0.3

Omega-6(g) 1.0

Carbohydrates(g) 21.4

Fiber(g) 2.6

Sugars(g) 13.2

Protein(g) 52.5

Menu This Week

Sunday - Leftover Carne Asada Quesadillas

Monday - Leftover Turkey Tortilla Casserole

Tuesday - Carne Asada Tacos (depending on how much we have left)

Wednesday - Chili

Thursday - Chicken Caesar Salads

Friday - TAHOE here we come, we will probably be eating out

Saturday - Chopped Beef Brisket Sandwiches, with homemade Mac & Cheese and Green Beans, and Snicker doodle Cupcake for dessert since its Valentine's Day and Tav's Birthday.

Sunday - Lasagna with garlic bread and Caesar salad

Monday we will be driving home from Tahoe so I'm we will be eating leftovers!

We are having a ton of Carne Asada since we had people over on Saturday and made way too much! Not to worry, its yummy so we dont mind!

Mu Shu Pork

Mu Shu Pork

1 large tree mushroom
¼ cup tiger lily buds
½ lbs pork cut into 1 ½ inch strips

MARINADE
1 tsp soy sauce
¼ tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp vegetable oil

12 Mandarin Pancakes
½ cup vegetable oil
3 eggs slightly beaten
½ cup shredded bamboo shoots
½ head cabbage, shredded
2 green onions, cut into 1 inch sections

SEASONINGS
2 tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp white pepper

Dash sesame oil
4 tbsp Hoisin sauce
½ tsp sesame oil


Directions

Soak mushroom and tiger lily in warm water for 20 minutes, drain. Remove steam from mushroom.
Combine pork with MARINADE ingredients in the order listed, mix well and set aside.
To steam, separate pancakes and fold them in half. Arrange inside a cloth napkin. Place napkin on rack in steamer (or double boiler) and steam for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and keep warm and moist in steamer.
To stir-fry, heat wok over high heat for 1 minute until hot. Add oil, swirling to coat sides. When oil is smoking hot pour in eggs and scramble until golden; remove and drain. Add pork, stir vigorously to separate and cook until well done. Remove and drain.
Remove all but 3 tbsp of oil. Return pork to wok an add mushrooms, lily buds, and bamboo shoots. Stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add cabbage, green onion, eggs and seasoning. Mix well and add a dash of sesame oil. Transfer to platter.
To serve, place green onion slivers on a small place. Combine Hoisin sauce and sesame oil; place on another small plate. Open wrapper, spread center lightly with sauce mixture and a few slivers of green onion. Spoon about 2 tbsp of pork mixture into the wrapper.

Mongolian Beef

Another really yummy dinner!

Ingredients

6 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons ginger, minced

3 tablespoons garlic, chopped

1 1/2 cups soy sauce

1 1/2 cups water

2 1/4 cups dark brown sugar

vegetable oil, for frying (about 1 cup)

3 lbs flank steaks

3/4 cup cornstarch

6 large green onions

Directions

Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over med/low heat.

Don't get the oil too hot. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, and then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat.

Slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4" thick bite-size slices. Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts. Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.

As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil). Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking.

Add the beef to the oil and sauté for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges.

You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet. Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, and then add all the green onions. Cook for one more minute, and then remove the beef and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate. Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan.

Hot and Sour Soup

SOOOO sooo yummy!!!

12 pieces tiger lily buds

1 dried tree mushroom

MARINADE

1 tsp soy sauce

¼ tsp cornstarch

½ tsp vegetable oil

¼ lbs pork cut into 1 ½ inch strips

2 quarts Chicken broth

2 tbsp shredded bamboo shoots

½ carton (16 oz) firm tofu cut into squares

1 tbsp dry sherry

Salt to taste

Cornstarch paste

2 eggs, beaten

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp vegetable oil

6 tbsp red rice vinegar

1 ½ tsp white pepper

Chopped green onion

Directions

Soak tiger lily and tree mushroom in warm water for 20 minutes. Cut tiger lily in half; shred tree mushroom.

Combine MARINADE ingredients with pork in the order listed; mix well and set aside.

To cook, bring the chicken broth to a boil. Add pork, tiger lily, mushroom, and bamboo shoots. Return to a boil. Add tofu, sherry and salt. Stir in 3 to 4 tbsp cornstarch paste and continue cooking until reaching the consistency of creamed soup. Slowly drizzle eggs into broth in a thin stream; gently fold in soy sauce and oil. (If you wish you may set aside at this point)

To serve, mix rice vinegar and pepper in a large soup bowl. Pour in soup and stir. Sprinkle with chopped onion and serve immediately.

Jeff's Birthday Dinner

We headed down to San Jose to have dinner at my mom's house to celebrate Jeff's birthday!

We had great food! Hot and Sour Soup, Fried Rice, Mongolian Beef, Mu Shu Pork and Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting for dessert! (recipes coming soon in another post)