Zuppa Toscana

Bryan and I LOVE to go to Olive Garden for soup, salad and bread sticks. Our favorite soup there is Zuppa Toscana so when I saw this recipe I immediately bookmarked it and knew we had to try it! In keeping to my lighter style, I subbed ground lean turkey for the sausage and seasoned it with additional red pepper flakes for flavor. I also used fat free evaporated milk instead of heavy cream. This soup definitely hit the spot and was a GREAT copy cat recipe to Olive Garden’s version.

Adapted from Annie’s Eats

Ingredients
1 lb 93% lean ground turkey
Red pepper flakes to taste
1 large onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine to deglaze the pan
1/2 t red pepper flakes
2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch chunks
2 cups fresh kale, chopped
3 cups chicken broth
2 1/2 cups water
1 cup fat free evaporated milk
Salt and pepper

Directions
1. Place a large stockpot or Dutch oven on the stove over medium heat. Add ground turkey to the pot and season with red pepper flakes to your taste. Cook until well browned.

2. Remove the cooked turkey from the pot with a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl; set aside.

3. Add the chopped onion to the pan and sauté until tender, about 5-7 minutes.

4. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes to the pan and cook for a minute more, just until fragrant.

5. Add the wine to the pot and stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any browned bits.

6. Add the potatoes, kale, chicken broth and water to the pot. Return the sausage to the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high, bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer on medium-low. Cover and let simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender and cooked through.

7. Stir in the evaporated milk and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

The Facts
4 servings
Calories 376.7
Total Fat 8.0 g
Fiber 2.8 g
WW Points 8

Menu Plans 11-30-09

Monday - Jack Daniel's Chicken Tacos, Jasmine Rice, Salad
Tuesday - Filet on the Grill, Baked Sweet Potato Fries, Broccoli
Wednesday - Shrimp Fettuchini Alfredo, Broccoli
Thursday - Chicken Gyros, Cucumbers and Tzatziki
Friday - Out to Dinner
Saturday - Gators play for the SEC Championship! Grilled Chicken Thighs, Spicy Red Pepper Hummus, Cheesecake Brownies

Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce

This was a quick and easy week night meal. I added some chopped onion at Bryan’s request. I also reduced the olive oil, omitted the parmesan cheese and increased the pasta from 4 oz to 6 oz. The additional pasta made for a nice lunch for work the next day. A quite tasty meal that I look forward to making again!

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients
6 oz uncooked medium whole wheat egg noodles
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 T all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 t salt, divided
1/4 t black pepper, divided
2 t olive oil, divided
3-4 garlic cloves, mince
1/2 t dried basil
1/2 - 1 cup chopped onion
1 (8 oz) package presliced mushrooms
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Directions
1. Cook noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and keep warm.

2. Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Place chicken breast halves in a shallow dish. Combine 1 tablespoon flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper, stirring well with a whisk. Sprinkle flour mixture over chicken; toss to coat.

3. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until browned. Remove chicken from pan.

4. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to pan. Add garlic, tarragon, and onions to pan; sauté for 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and sauté for an additional 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates and mushrooms darken.

5. Add white wine to pan; cook 1 minute. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring frequently.

6. Return chicken to the pan. Cover and simmer 2 minutes. Uncover; cook 1 minute or until chicken is done. Stir in noodles; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Serve!

The Facts
4 servings
Calories 328.2
Total Fat 4.2 g
Fiber 6.7 g
WW Points 6

Menu Plans 11-23-09

Monday - Chicken and Mushrooms in Garlic White Wine Sauce
Tuesday - Whole Wheat Pizza with Turkey Pepperoni and lots of veggies
Wednesday - Zuppa Toscana
Thursday - Thanksgiving!
Cornbread
Honey Buttermilk Rolls
Green Bean Casserole
Sweet Potato Casserole with Mixed Toppings
Chocolate Cheesecake
Pumpkin Pie
Spinach Artichoke Dip
Friday - Leftovers

Szechuan Shrimp

Yum! This was a delicious, quick and easy meal. Perfect to make during the work week. Bryan and I enjoyed this with some jasmine rice and a salad. I omitted the green onions from the original recipe as I did not have any on hand and skipped the grocery store this week. I also used raw shrimp instead of cooked shrimp and just cooked them in the oil with the garlic.

Adapted from Stephanie Cooks

Ingredients
1 lb shrimp, 21-24 count
4 T water
2 T ketchup
1 T soy sauce, reduced sodium
2 t cornstarch
1 t honey
1/2 t crushed red pepper
1/4 t ground ginger
2 t vegetable oil
4 garlic cloves, minced

Directions
1. In a small bowl mix together water, ketchup, soy sauce, cornstarch, honey, crushed red pepper flakes and ginger.

2. Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add garlic and shrimp. Stir fry until shrimp are cooked through.

3. Pour in sauce. Heat while sitting until sauce is thick and bubbly.

The Facts
4 servings
Calories 115.5
Total Fat 2.5 g
Fiber 0.1 g
WW Points 3

The Beginning

Oh, another blog! Hmm, so I decided to start a blog. Exciting, eh? Yea, we'll see about that. So my short term plan for this blog is more or less a recipe file. Long term, who knows?

I've recently become more interested in cooking. I enjoy browsing other food blogs and websites for good recipes to try. I usually print the recipe, make the dish, and then stash the paper in a 'junk drawer.' I'm sure if and when I wanted to cook that special meal again, I would have no idea where the recipe went! Thus, the point of this blog.


This is what I'm dealing with! Just look at all those recipes I pulled out of the drawer.

A little background on me. My name is Erin and I was recently married to my husband, Bryan on June 13, 2009. We currently live in Orlando with our two labs, Brady and Kaylee. We are both engineer graduates from the University of Florida (GO GATORS!) and avid sports fans. We love watching Gator games and are also big New England Patriot and Boston Red Sox fans. Well, he is, I am by default. :)

In July, we were looking to start a healthier life style and decided to join Weight Watchers. I'm happy to say that we've stayed on plan for the past four months with great results! I think the fact that we're both doing it together has been very beneficial.

That brings me to the cooking part. One of the main reasons I've taken an interest in cooking is to provide my husband and I with delicious and healthy meals that fit our WW plans. You'll notice after most of my recipes, I'll post nutrition information as well as the WW points as calculated on eTools for each serving. I calculate all nutrition data based directly off the labels of the ingredients I use (with the exception of fresh produce and spices/seasonings), so please be advised that your nutrition data could vary slightly.

That's all I have now, wish me luck on my kitchen and cooking journey!