Philly Chicken and Pasta

I will admit right now that there was a point at which the scale and I were friends.  After I got pregnant with my third baby, our relationship became somewhat strained. And now, as I visit every day, I usually leave in a bit of a huff.  I fondly remember our happy times together--the scale and me--and I am looking forward to having a great relationship once again.  Therefore, my current challenge, as it relates to this blog, is to find amazing low-fat, calorie-counter's-dream recipes.  And, I will admit, this task does seem a little on the big deal side of things.  (I would say big FAT deal, but that's what we're trying to get away from...)  So, it's with this new goal in mind that I created tonight's recipe.  I know that I'm not the first person to combine these ingredients in this manner.  But, since I made it up tonight, sans recipe, I'm going to call it an original.

(Now, imagine a great pic here.  OK--well, mediocre.  Oh wait--that's what WOULD have been here if my camera battery hadn't died yesterday.)

Philly Chicken and Pasta
Servings: 4

2 large bell peppers
1 large onion
1 tsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (or pressed)
1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast
4 oz. neufatchel cheese (lite cream cheese)
1 cp. chicken stock
salt and pepper
8 oz. whole wheat spaghetti, prepared according to package directions

Chop bell peppers into thin slices.  Cut onion in half, then into thin slices (half-moons).  Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in large skillet; add peppers and onions; saute until soft.  Add garlic; saute for about a minute.  Slice chicken into very thin bite-sized pieces and add to pepper mixture.  Cook until no pink is left on chicken.  Add cream cheese and about 1/4 cup of stock.  Stir for a minute.  Add stock, about 1/4 cup at a time and stir until cream cheese is completely melted and incorporated into stock.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  If a thinner sauce is desired, add more stock about 2 Tbls. at a time until desired consistenct is reached.  Serve over hot spaghetti.

NOTES: I used both a red and a yellow bell pepper.  I prefer their sweetness over the bitterness of the green.

In the end, I probably used a little over 1 cup of stock.  I wanted a little more sauce and figured it was a lower-calorie way to cut the cream cheese a little more.

Black Beans and Rice

What kind of lame food blog is this anyway?  Doesn't she know she's supposed to actually POST recipes?  Not just collect them.  Not just prepare them and never talk about it.  Ahh, well, we can't all be terrific food bloggers, right?

I can't believe it's been nearly two months since I last posted!  I guess that's what I get for involving myself in a musical and then starting to work with the Young Women at church.  But finally, FINALLY, life is slowing down a little.  And I'm hoping that will mean a little more posting.  I'm sure that most of what I post for the next few weeks will be something we tried out long, long ago.  And, therefore, I'll be able to offer a slightly tempered review of each recipe.  Is this a benefit?  Not sure.  As for pictures, some have them, most don't.  Oh well.  I'll take what I can get at this point.  Lucky for you, this one has a picture!

I love beans.  I believe I have said that before on this blog, and I'll probably say it again.  When I found this recipe on My Kitchen Cafe, I couldn't wait to give it a try!  And, Oh. Boy.  This recipe truly stands out in my mind.  Of the many I have in the queue, this one was definitely a favorite.  It was full of flavor and incredibly satisfying--but completely simple to make.  Thus, it has already gone into the "Favorites" folder.  Oh, and I should also mention that Mel at My Kitchen Cafe adapted it from the Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook.  So it's completely calorie friendly--which we all need around the holiday season!

Black Beans and Rice
Yield: 4-6 servings

4 tsp. olive oil
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
5-6 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 (16-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 cup water
2 Tbls. finely chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

In medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add bell pepper, onion, and garlic; saute, stirring often, until vegetables are soft and tender. Stir in beans, tomatoes, chicken broth, thyme, bay leaf, oregano and water; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens and vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes. If mixture becomes too thick, add 1-2 Tbls. hot water to thin to desired consistency.

Stir in cilantro and season with salt and pepper; discard bay leaf. Serve over hot rice.

NOTES: I didn't use low-sodium chicken broth.  Just used less salt at the end.  And, I can't find anything but ground thyme anywhere, so I'm usually light-handed when I add the thyme.  Plus, I think ground thyme tastes a little like dust.  And no one likes the taste of dust in their food.

Recipe Roundup: 4th of July

We had a great 4th of July weekend!  We spent it at my inlaw's cottage on the coast.  The week before got away from me a bit--as you can tell from the lack of recipes from last week.  But I'm back.  At least for today.

As we left the house, we thought we were completely packed and ready to go.  Well, we were.  Except for one thing.  The camera.  So, no pics with these recipes, but they're pretty simple and easy to envision.  I thought about drawing a few pics to go with this post, but really, that wouldn't make it any more appetizing.  Moving on...

We were in charge of lunch on Saturday.  And, we had the added challenge of a couple of Weight Watchers joining us for that meal.  Here's the menu I came up with:

Kangaroo Pocket sandwiches

Fruit with fruit dip

Multigrain chips

Peppers and carrots

Hummus

Patriotic jello

I'll start with the Kangaroo Pockets.  Although I was aware of the idea for most of my life, this was something that really stuck when I married into my husband's family.  They are simple and easy to feed a crowd.  I made a large salad of lettuce and tomatoes, then added cubed ham and chicken breast.  I served cucumbers and shredded cheese on the side.  (My hubby doesn't like cucumbers and I wanted to let the WW decide whether to put cheese on.)  The salad was then served in pocket-style whole wheat pita bread, then topped with salad dressing.  My husband likes to mix his salad and dressing in a bowl and then put it into the pita.  Something about better distribution of dressing.  I figure it all just drips down and out the bottom anyway.  Either way, this is a light but filling lunch. 

On to the fruit dip.  Years and years and years ago, I was at a church youth function and tasted a fabulous and simple fruit dip.  From that time on, it has been my dip of choice when fruit is involved.  Are you ready for this?  Mix one small container of Cool Whip with one container of yogurt.  Voila!  Fruit dip.  This time, I used lite Cool Whip and lite mixed berry yogurt.  Again--a totally light, totally simple addition to the meal.  (By the way, although I didn't use them this time, my favorite flavors for this dip are lemon or vanilla.  Always great with fruit.  Or waffles.  Or cookies.  Or...)

Finally, the patriotic jello.  I found this recipe a few months ago on foodgawker--which led me to Brown Eyed Baker's post about stained glass jello.  I instantly knew I had to make it THIS YEAR.  It couldn't wait. I wish I had a pic of this--it looks so cool!  You'll just have to head over to Brown Eyed Baker and check out her pics.

Stained Glass Jello

1 box (6 oz.) cherry jello

1 box (6 oz) berry blue jello

2 envelopes Knox gelatin (unflavored)

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

Water for jello prep

Pour the jello powder into 2 separate bowls.  For each flavor, add 2 cups boiling water; stir until jello is dissolved.  Pour into 8x8 baking pan. Chill until firm. (Should be a few hours.)  Cut jello into small "blocks." 

In the mean time, bloom Knox gelatin in 1/2 cup cold water.  Add 1 1/2 cups boiling water; stir until dissolved.  Add sweetened condensed milk.  Set aside to cool.

Gently combine red and blue jello blocks in 9x13 pan.  Pour cooled Knox/milk mixture over cubes.  Chill in fridge until solid. 

NOTES: The original recipe called for 4 (3 oz.) boxes of jello.  Since I was only doing 2 colors, I used the larger boxes.  If you want to make more colors, just use 1 cup boiling water for every 3 oz. package of jello.

I didn't let my Knox/milk mixture cool enough before pouring it over the jello cubes.  As a result, my jello cubes melted just a little into the white--which made the colors just a bit less crisp than I would have liked.  Live and learn.

And, I didn't cut my final product into cute little stars or even boring cubes.  I just let people scoop it out of the glass cake pan with a spoon.  Hey--I was on vacation.

Hope you had a happy 4th of July celebration!