Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup

I threw this soup together for dinner last night and it turned out really well.  I've made on-the-fly chicken noodle soup in the past but this is the only recipe that I felt was worth sharing.  It tastes even better the next day for lunch!

Recipe
2 C. rotisserie chicken, white meat, no skin, cut into small bite-size pieces
2 C. cooked penne pasta (I used Trader Joe's high fiber penne)
3 C. chopped carrot, celery & onion (I used about 1 1/2 C. carrot, 1/2 C. onion and 1 C. celery to total 3 C.)
12 C. fat free chicken broth (I used Swanson's)
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
~1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (2-3 shakes of the container)
4-5 grinds of fresh black pepper

Add olive oil to dutch oven and heat over medium.  Add carrot, celery and onion and cook until onion is translucent and carrots/celery are slightly soft.  (Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil for the penne, and cook penne according to package directions).  Add garlic and cook for a minute or two.  Add chicken broth and spices and bring to a boil.  Turn heat down to low, add rotisserie chicken, and simmer for 15-20 minutes.  Add penne just before serving.

Comments
 - You could cook the penne right in the soup pot but I prefer to cook it separately so that it doesn't get too soggy, and so that the pasta starch doesn't cloud the broth.
 - In the past I've made chicken noodle soup that uses sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, etc. and I've found that those herbs can really overpower the soup.  This time I just added pepper which gave the broth a hint of spice.

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
4 (makes 6 servings)

Corned Beef & Cabbage Soup

Usually I make corned beef and cabbage in my crock pot every year for St. Patrick's Day, but this year I thought I'd try soup.

Recipe
Corned Beef & Cabbage Soup

Comments
 - The leeks caused this soup to be fairly sweet, so next time I might use one leek and one small onion instead of two leeks
 - I bought a ~2 lb corned beef brisket and cut off all of the visible fat before adding it to the soup
 - I didn't have any parsley on hand so I skipped it

Rating
3.5/5

WW PointsPlus
7

Homemade Baby Food (Part 2)

Anna is almost done with her Stage 1 foods and has honestly liked almost everything she has tried! Green beans and pumpkin were a challenge but I'll give them another try in a week or two.  She is eating solids twice a day, so she gets her "new" food at one meal and then I'm trying to do "old" food combinations at the other meal.  By "old" food I mean foods she has already tried.  I'm trying to do as many veggie+veggie and fruit+fruit combos as I can so that she doesn't get used to having a sweet fruit with her vegetables.  I've mixed avocado with both fruits and vegetables.

With the fruits I have found that a cocktail muddler (like this) is helpful when mashing avocados, bananas, etc.

Fruits
Apples (did not freeze, Target brand adult unsweetened applesauce thinned slightly with breastmilk)
Avocados (did not freeze, mashed with a bit of breastmilk)
Bananas (did not freeze, mashed with a bit of breastmilk)
Mango (made & froze, pureed in blender with some water)
Peaches (made & froze, bought frozen peach slices, thawed and pureed in blender with some water)
Pears (made & froze)
Plums (made & froze)
Pumpkin (did not freeze, used canned pumpkin)

Vegetables
Beets
Cauliflower
Summer Squash/Zucchini

Orecchiette, Cauliflower, Arugala & Proscuitto

I found this recipe on Pinterest recently and made it for dinner last night.  Mike and I both really liked it, despite the fact that I had to make quite a few adjustments.

Recipe
Orecchiette, Cauliflower & Proscuitto

Comments
 - Here are my swaps:
       Arugala --> Fresh baby spinach
       Proscuitto --> Thinly sliced deli ham
       Grape tomatoes --> Whole tomato, cut into pieces about the size of grape tomatoes
       Fresh sage --> Dried sage (about 1/2 tsp)
       Orecchiette --> 8 oz Dreamfield's rotini pasta
 - For the most part I think my swaps were fine but I think you'd definitely get a different flavor by using arugala and proscuitto instead of baby spinach and ham
 - Make sure to save some of the pasta water as the recipe says - I ended up using about 1/4 to 1/3 C

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
6 (makes 4 servings)

Ham & Navy Bean Soup

My grandma used to make a soup kind of like this, so I made up my own version this past weekend.

Recipe
6-8 C chicken broth
5 cans navy beans, drained and rinsed (leave 2 cans whole, then mash 3 cans)
1/2 lb cooked ham, cubed
1 C carrots, cut into half moons
1 C celery, diced
1 small onion, diced (~3/4 C)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil

Heat olive oil in stock pot over medium high heat.  Add carrots, celery and onion and cook until slightly soft.  Add garlic and saute for about one minute.  Add the beans, ham, bay leaf, pepper and 6 C of chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so.  After 30 minutes, add additional chicken broth until you reach your desired consistency.  If possible, refrigerate for at least 1/2 day before serving to let the flavors combine.

Comments
 - I ended up using almost all 8 C of chicken broth
 - If you'd rather not mash the beans by hand, you can just add them whole to the soup and use an immersion blender to puree the soup a little bit
 - I ended up refrigerating this for almost 24 hours before serving - well worth the wait!

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
9 (for 1 1/2 C serving)

Dark Chocolate Caramel Cookies

Thank you to Pinterest for this delicious recipe! I think these are way better than plain chocolate chip cookies.

Recipe
Dark Chocolate Caramel Cookies

Comments
 - Baking these on the tinfoil is key - I just slid the tinfoil off of the cookie sheets when the cookies were done to let them cool on the counter

Rating
4/5

Crock Pot Chicken Chili

Last weekend my brother-in-law Darrik texted me a photo of chicken chili that he was making, which inspired me to make some of my own in the crock pot this week.  This recipe is great because you can throw it together before work in about 5 minutes and then cook it on low all day.

Recipe
12 oz frozen chicken breasts
1 C frozen corn kernels
1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz can chili beans with sauce
1 15-oz can Rotel tomatoes with green chiles
1 28-oz can tomato sauce
1 packet McCormick's slow cooker chili seasoning

Add all ingredients except chicken to crock pot and stir to combine.  Add whole chicken breasts (I kind of submerged them about halfway in the sauce).  Cook on low for at least 6 hours.  About an hour before serving, remove the chicken breasts, shred with two forks, return to crock pot and stir to combine.  I topped my chili with reduced fat shredded colby jack cheese, fat free sour cream, and a few crushed multigrain tortilla chips.

I had to send a photo back to Darrik so here's the final presentation.  I couldn't rotate the photo properly but you get the idea!

Comments
 - Normally I prefer ground beef in a red chili, but this was really good and I definitely did not miss the ground beef
 - The McCormick's seasoning is fairly spicy so if you don't like a lot of spice I would nix the seasoning packet and just add a bit of chili powder to taste just before serving

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
6 (makes five 1.5 C servings, does not include toppings)

Banana, Oatmeal & Chocolate Chip Cookies

I had two ripe bananas to use and decided to try this new recipe from Skinnytaste.  It literally took 5 minutes to whip these up.  I thought they might be a good recipe to try with Anna when she's old enough to help me in the kitchen.

Recipe
Banana, Oatmeal & Chocolate Chip Cookies

Comments
 - The recipe calls for walnuts but I used mini chocolate chips instead since I was going for the dessert effect versus the snack effect
 - This made 20 cookies, using 1 flat Tbsp of "dough" per cookie.  I recalculated the WWPP and it came out to 4 points for 5 cookies

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
~1 per cookie

Salted Pretzel Marshmallow Bars

I've seen a few pretzel-based bar recipes on Pinterest lately and thought I'd give one a try (for Mike to take to work!).

Recipe
Salted Pretzel Marshmallow Bars

Comments
 - I didn't have peanut butter chips so I used regular creamy peanut butter
 - I ended up having to add about 1-2 Tbsp of oil to my chocolate chips to get them to the proper drizzling consistency
 - The flavor of these bars was good but between the peanut butter and the pretzels I ended up drinking like 4 glasses of water after I ate them
 - The drizzle looks nice in terms of presentation but the marshmallow pieces on top don't look very nice.  I might look for a bar recipe with the marshmallows baked into the bar next time.

Rating
3/5

Glazed Donut Muffins

I was in the baking mood last night so I made these muffins.

Recipe
Glazed Donut Muffins

Comments
 - This ended up making 16 muffins, not 12 (so the WWPP are calculated based on 16).  I only filled the cups about 2/3 full.
 - I didn't have nutmeg so I substituted the 3/4 tsp nutmeg for 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice.  Since there's cinnamon in the pumpkin pie spice I cut the cinnamon back from 3/4 tsp to 1/2 tsp.
 - Instead of dipping the muffins into the glaze I used a silicone basting brush to brush it on
 - I thought the 425° was a bit too hot for baking, so next time I'd probably reduce the heat to 375° or so and cook them a bit longer.  The bottoms cooked too quickly.

Rating
3/5

WW PointsPlus
6

Beef Barley Soup

Since I made Pot Roast today, I thought I'd use the leftovers to make my soup for the week.  The pot roast meat made for a delicious soup.  I scooped up some of the leftover mushrooms and onions from the pot roast and added them to the soup as well.

Recipe
Beef Barley Soup

Comments
 - Since I was using previously cooked meat, I cooked the carrots, onions, celery and garlic in the oil.  Then I added fat free beef broth instead of water and brought it to a boil.  I added the bay leaves and barley and cooked according to the directions, about 12 minutes.  I added the shredded pot roast at the very end and simmered for about 10 minutes.  

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
8 (for 1.5 C)

Pot Roast in the Crock Pot

With today's big snowstorm I thought a crock pot meal sounded good.

Recipe

Pot Roast

Comments

 - I used a 2.25 lb chuck roast and trimmed most of the visible fat

 - I didn't have cream of mushroom soup so I used cream of chicken.  Then I added one can of sliced mushrooms.

 - When there was about an hour of cooking time left, I cut up a few red potatoes into quarters and roasted them with some baby carrots at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.  In the past I've cooked the potatoes and carrots along with the pot roast but I really liked them this new way.  The roasted veggie flavor with the pot roast gravy was a great combination.

Rating

5/5

WW PointsPlus

8 (makes 6 servings)

Smoked Turkey Sausage & Potato Casserole

This was inspired by a recipe that I saw on Pinterest.  After cooking a lot of healthy meals recently, I wanted to make one that was more husband-friendly but still low in WW PointsPlus.

Recipe

1 14-oz package Jennie-O Fully Cooked Smoked Turkey Sausage

1/4 C. onion, diced

4 C. red potatoes with the skins on, cut into ~2" pieces

1 C. reduced fat colby jack cheese, shredded

2 Tbsp I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Melt ICBINBL in a 9x13 baking pan.  Add potatoes and onions, then toss to coat.  Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so to make sure the potatoes don't stick to the pan.  Add sliced turkey sausage and cook for another 30 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.  Check to see that the potatoes are cooked and soft, then top with the shredded cheese and bake for another 5 minutes until melted.  Season with salt and pepper.

Comments

 - The Pinterest version of this recipe recommended cooking for the 30 minute increments with foil covering the pan, thus eliminating the need to stir since you're really just steaming the potatoes.  I prefer potatoes with a crispier texture, so I chose to skip the foil and stir them more frequently.

Rating

3.5/5 (Mike gives it a 5/5)

WW PointsPlus

8 (makes 5 servings)

Nutella & Banana Wraps

Bananas and chocolate are one of my favorite combinations.

Recipe

1/2 medium banana

1 Tbsp Nutella

1 whole grain flatbread (I used Flatout Flatbreads Multi-Grain with Flax, 3 WW PP)

Spread Nutella evenly over flatbread.  Slice banana lengthwise and layer slices on 1/3 of the flatbread.  Roll it up, kind of like a flat burrito.  Spray a skillet with PAM and heat on medium.  Place wrap in the pan, seam side down, and cook for about 2 minutes or until slightly golden.  Flip and cook for another 2 minutes.

Comments

 - This is a really good tasting wrap but I didn't think it was that filling

Rating

4/5

WW PointsPlus

6

Chicken Enchilada Soup

This is a crockpot recipe but I made it on the stove instead.  By day 2 it thickened up nicely.

Recipe
Chicken Enchilada Soup

Comments
 - I didn't have fresh cilantro so I used fresh parsley instead
 - I used 2 garlic cloves instead of 3
 - Since I didn't go the crock pot route, I just poached my chicken and cut it up into small pieces
 - I just simmered everything on low for about 15 minutes after adding the chicken

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
7

Homemade Baby Food (Part 1)

I have been making homemade purees for Anna now that she has started solids.  It has been pretty simple - a food processor, ice cube trays, and a little bit of time in the kitchen!

I found a great website that has puree recipes, feeding tips, etc.: Wholesome Baby Food
So far I've made butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, peas and green beans.

I didn't set out to make Anna's food in an attempt to save money - it was really just about giving her food now that she will eat as she gets older.  Mike and I eat a lot of fresh vegetables, as well as some frozen vegetables, and I want Anna to do the same.  However, I'm not delusional and do realize that she will need to eat jarred baby food at times when we're in a pinch - traveling or something - so I've been giving her jarred to try in addition to homemade.  I have to say though...the smell of the jarred food is not exactly pleasant.  I'm not sure why since the ingredients say "squash, water" or "peas, water" - it makes me suspicious of what is really in there! Homemade purees smell like normal cooked vegetables (shocker, right?).  I just freeze the purees in ice cube trays, then pop them out and store them in labeled ziplock bags in our deep freezer.

Out of curiosity I started to keep track of the costs for jarred versus homemade since I've read that the savings can really add up if you make your own food.  At this point I've found that the cost per serving is about 3x more for jarred...but we're talking pennies here so you're not going to fund some lavish European vacation with the money you save from making baby food! Plus, I'm not factoring in my own time, energy costs for using the stove/oven, etc.    

More to come as we try other vegetables and fruits!

Escarole Soup with Turkey Meatballs

I tried this Skinnytaste version of Italian Wedding Soup last night and have decided that I like my mom's version of Italian Wedding Soup a lot better.  However, there are a few tips that I can take from this recipe to apply to my mom's recipe.

Recipe
Escarole Soup with Turkey Meatballs

Comments
 - I used Kitchen Basics brand chicken broth (yellow carton) but I really prefer the taste of Pacific chicken broth
 - Using a tablespoon as a scoop for the meatballs worked really well, so I'll use this tip again in the future with other meatball recipes
 - The ground turkey breast is low in fat but doesn't have a lot of flavor, so next time I would either use 96% lean ground beef or 93% lean ground turkey
 - Dropping the raw meatballs right into the boiling broth was another great tip from this recipe (and saves having to wash a cookie sheet)
 - I used fresh baby spinach instead of escarole

Rating
3/5

WW PointsPlus
5

Greek Yogurt Pancakes

These pancakes are really easy and very good! I made them for dinner last night and my traditional-pancake-loving husband approved.

Recipe
Greek Yogurt Pancakes

Comments
 - I used plain Fage 0% Greek yogurt and then added 1 packet of Splenda and some frozen wild blueberries
 - The batter will be really thick (I know it says this in the recipe, but trust me, it's really thick) so make sure the pancakes are fairly small and flattened out in the pan, otherwise they won't cook through
 - I used egg whites in place of a whole egg as the recipe suggests

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
2

Butternut Squash Soup

I made some homemade baby food for Anna this past weekend and had some leftover butternut squash, so I decided to make this low point soup.

Recipe
Butternut Squash Soup

Comments
 - I didn't have fresh sage so I used a pinch of dried sage
 - I only used one garlic clove
 - I added 1/3 C. diced red bell pepper to help cut the sweetness of the squash
 - Since I was using my amazing Cuisinart Food Processor this weekend for the baby food, I just pureed the soup with this using my 12 Cup prep bowl.  I simmered the veggies in the broth until they were tender, pureed the squash with the milk, and then added a cup at a time of the veggie/broth mixture to the squash.
 - I gave this a lower rating because I really don't care for squash...I was kind of forced into making this since I didn't want to throw away my leftover squash.

Rating
3/5

WW PointsPlus
1

Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

I made a half recipe these the other night to go along with Chicken Pot Pie Soup.

Recipe
Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

Comments
 - I used I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light (1 WWPP for 1 Tbsp) instead of butter
 - My half recipe made 8 biscuits instead of 7 (full recipe makes 14)
 - Based on these two adjustments the Points value might be more like 2 but I didn't adjust it

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
3

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

Here's a hearty, filling soup recipe from Skinnytaste.

Recipe
Chicken Pot Pie Soup

Comments
 - No changes, I make this soup right to the recipe every time

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
6 (for 1 1/2 C serving)

Pizzadillas

I saw this idea on Pinterest and decided to make my own healthy version.

Recipe
2 small whole wheat, low carb tortillas
2 Tbsp pizza sauce
1/4 C. shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
9 slices turkey pepperoni
1/2 C. diced veggies (onions, red/green bell peppers, black olives, mushrooms, etc.)

Spray a frying pan with PAM and turn heat to medium.  Assemble your quesadilla and place it in the pan with the lid on.  Cook for about 2-3 minutes, then flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes.  I find that the lid helps with melting the cheese, but the tortillas will still crisp up nicely.

Comments
 - I used 8" whole wheat flour tortillas.  I can't recall the brand name but they say "Carb Control" on the package.

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
5 (if you use tortillas that are 1 WW Point each)

Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

Since I love anything with buffalo sauce, I tried these as a healthy alternative to wings.

Recipe
Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

Comments
 - The easiest way to coat the cauliflower in the batter is to use a large bowl and salad tongs.  I tried dipping each piece individually but that took way too long and resulted in some pieces that had too much coating.
 - The cauliflower was a bit soft for my taste, so next time I might only bake them for 15 minutes instead of 20

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
3

Braised Balsamic Chicken

I really like the flavor of vinegar (red wine, balsamic, white balsamic) so this recipe sounded right up my alley.

Recipe
Braised Balsamic Chicken

Comments
 - After starting the recipe I realized that I only had about 1/4 C. of balsamic vinegar on hand, so I ended up using 1/4 C. balsamic and 1/4 C. white balsamic
 - Before pouring the tomatoes, vinegar and spices over the chicken, I combined them thoroughly in a small bowl first

Rating
4/5

Zucchini Tots

These are good for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Recipe
Zucchini Tots

Comments
 - I don't have a mini muffin tin so I just made this into 6 regular sized muffins

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
3 (3 servings)

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Skinnytaste again! This was one of the top 25 recipes from 2012.

Recipe
Cajun Chicken Pasta

Comments
 - I think I cooked my veggies a bit too long because the tomatoes started to break down which added a lot of liquid to the dish.  I only used 2/3 C. chicken stock but that was still too much.  I tried to reduce the sauce a bit before serving.  Next time I will not cook the tomatoes as long, and will also cut back on the broth.
 - I used fat free cream cheese and about 2/3 the amount of chicken that she calls for

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
8 (5 servings)

Asian Turkey Meatballs with Sesame Lime Dipping Sauce

Another great recipe from Skinnytaste!

Recipe
Asian Turkey Meatballs

Comments
 - I didn't have scallions so I used red onion instead and just reduced the amount slightly

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
7 (makes 4 servings)

Homemade Fruit Snacks

This was the first recipe I ever pinned and I finally gave it a try a few weeks ago.

Recipe

Homemade Fruit Snacks

Comments

 - I used frozen wild blueberries (from Costco)
 - I used Knox gelatin.  A single box of gelatin wasn't enough so if you're going to make this buy two boxes.
 - I added the recommended amount of honey but didn't think it was sweet enough.  The lemon juice makes these quite sour.  Next time I might throw in a packet of Splenda to add some sweetness.

Rating

3/5

Lasagna Soup

I pinned this recipe recently and decided to make it today to use for this week's lunches.

Update 2/17/2013: I made this again today and made a few changes, essentially making 1.5x the recipe.  I used 1 lb. 96% lean ground beef, added 2 C water + 2 beef bouillon cubes, added 1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, and used 12 oz of Dreamfield's penne pasta.  This made 12 C of soup, which came to 4 WWPP without the cheese blend topping.  Using ground beef gave it a much better flavor.

Recipe
Lasagna Soup

Comments
 - The recipe says it makes 4 servings but I ended up splitting it into 5 servings, each about 1 1/2 C of soup with 1/5 of the cheese topping
 - The 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper definitely gives this soup a kick, so if you don't have a high spice tolerance, I'd recommend cutting this in half
 - I only used one clove of garlic
 - I used MorningStar Farms Meal Starters Grillers Burger Style Recipe Crumbles

Rating
5/5

WW PointsPlus
9

Chicken with Fire Roasted Tomato Sauce

This was inspired by a few different recipes that I found on my Spark Recipes app.

Recipe
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (4 oz each)
1 can Hunt's Fire Roasted Tomatoes
1 medium carrot, sliced
1/4 large onion, diced
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
garlic salt
1/4 lb angel hair pasta

Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in skillet.  Season chicken breasts with garlic salt and brown them slightly in the pan, about 2 minutes per side.  Remove from skillet and set aside.  Add 1/2 Tbsp olive oil to skillet, then add carrot and onion.  Saute until slightly tender.  Add garlic and saute with the vegetables for 1-2 minutes.  Add the entire can of fire roasted tomatoes.  Put the chicken breasts back in the pan and immerse them in the sauce.  Simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes, until chicken breasts are cooked through.  Serve over cooked angel hair pasta.

Comments
 - I served these with Italian Green Beans.
 - This would be good by itself without the pasta as well - maybe with a side of risotto instead

Rating
4/5

WW PointsPlus
10 (could cut back on the EVOO to lower the Points value)