Skinny Soup

I have a delicious and nutritious one for you today!  My husband loves this soup.  It's a great one to help you get your daily vegetables in.  I found this recipe online and my husband changed it up quite a bit.  I really like the way he makes it.  It's loaded with fiber and all kinds of good stuff.  See health info below.

Skinny Soup



8 cups chicken broth

28 oz diced tomato (with juice)

2 tbs tomato paste

1 head of cabbage chopped 

1 large yellow onion diced

1 cup sliced carrots

1 can green beans (drained) 

2 large zucchini chopped 

1 green bell pepper chopped

4 celery ribs chopped

1 tbsp dried basil

1 tbsp dried oregano

1/2 tbsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp granulated garlic (or about 4 cloves)

salt and pepper to taste

pepper

1 tbsp Oil

Pour olive oil into a pot and saute onions garlic and carrots 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer on low for 1 hour.

Nutritional information

This makes 12 servings. 

Each serving is 79 calories

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 340 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 79

Calories from Fat 22

Totals with % daily value

Total Fat 2.4g   4%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 0mg                      0%

Sodium 546mg                       23%

Total Carbohydrates 10.1g     3%

Dietary Fiber 3.3g                  13%

Sugars 5.6g

Protein 5.3g

Vitamin A 55% • Vitamin C 65%

Calcium 5% • Iron 7%

Nutrition Grade A

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 340 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 79 Calories from Fat 22

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 2.4g 4%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 546mg 23%

Total Carbohydrates 10.1g 3%

Dietary Fiber 3.3g 13%

Sugars 5.6g

Protein 5.3g

Vitamin A 55% • Vitamin C 65% Calcium 5% • Iron 7%

Nutrition Grade A

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Good points

• No cholesterol
• High in dietary fiber
• High in manganese
• Very high in niacin
• High in phosphorus
• Very high in potassium
• Very high in vitamin A
• High in vitamin B6
• Very high in vitamin C

Bad points

• Very high in sodium
• High in sugar

Recipe adapted from Calorie Count

Nutritional information can be found at caloriecount.com and type in the recipe under recipe analysis.

(take out words like chopped, diced etc)

Sara's Chili

It's day one of the biggest loser contest that my husband and friends will be doing.  I wanted to post a nice protein packed dish for ya today. 

 My dear vegan friend Sara, shared this recipe with me a few years ago.  I created my own version of it that I posted a while back. Worlds Best Chili .  Her recipe is much healthier.  We figured out that this dish has about 375 calories per serving.(1 1/2 cups) It's a filling dish and is a great way to get loads of protein without eating all of the calories that red meat has to offer.  This dish would even be healthier if you soaked your own beans and didn't used the canned ones.  This is a quick and easy version for ya though. 

Sara's Chili

2 Cans Pinto Beans

2 Cans Diced Tomatoes

1 Can Black Beans

1 Can Dark Red Kidney Beans

1 Can Light Red Kidney Beans

1 Can Red Beans

1 Can Chili Beans

Crushed Red Pepper to taste (I did about 1/4 tsp)

Onion Powder to taste (I used 1 tsp)

Pour all ingredients into a crock pot. Do not drain. Cook 8-10 hours on low or 4-6 hours on high.

Serve with your favorite toppings

Make a double batch and freeze it for a rainy day!!



Sopapillas

If you are a "Poncho's" lover like our family, you'll love these Sopapillas. They are super easy, and will surely melt in your mouth!

My husband and a bunch of friends are doing a "Biggest Loser" Contest starting tomorrow.  So the next 8 weeks I'm going to try to add a little more healthiness to the blog.  I'm on the lookout for some super yummy, super healthy recipes to try.  I've never been one to care much about calories etc.  But I really want to quit adding temptation and learn a thing or two.  So if anyone has some recipes that you would like to share, please feel free to email them to me. My email address is on the home page. Also, if you would like to submit it with a picture and something clever about the recipe, feel free. You can be my guest post for the day!! 

Don't worry, I'll make up for things with some super holiday goodies for you all in a few months. 

Sopapillas

1 C flour

1½ t baking powder

Dash of salt

1 Tbsp. Shortening (you can also use butter or margarine)

1/3 C warm water

Shortening or cooking oil for frying

Combine flour, baking powder and dash of salt.  Cut in shortening till mixture looks like fine crumbs.  Gradually add warm water stirring with a fork (dough will be crumbly).  On a lightly floured surface knead dough for 3 to 5 minutes or till smooth.  Cover dough and let rest for 10 minutes.  Roll dough into a rectangle. (it needs to be very thin)  Cut into 2½ inch squares.  Fry 2 or 3 squares at a time in grease heated to 425 degrees for 30 seconds on each side.  Keep warm in a 300-degree oven while frying others.  (I don't do this part... they don't make it long enough to get cold!)

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cups

A few weeks ago I posted the recipe Death By Oreo Cupcakes. Not only were they a huge hit by many of you, but it threw me into a oreo frenzy!  I have been craving oreos/cookies and cream ever since. I found this recipe for a Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cupcakes. They were pretty good!  I like how pretty they look.  And the oreo in the bottom has become a fun adventure.  It's like 2 desserts in one!

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Cups

42 cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies, such as Oreos, 30 left whole and 12 coarsely chopped

2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

4 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten

1 cup sour cream

pinch or salt

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 whole cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine and scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream and salt.

Stir in chopped cookies by hand. Divide batter evenly among cookie-filled cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate (in tins) at least 4 hours (or up to overnight). Remove from tins just before serving.



Recipe Comes from Food Snots

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

We love ice cream in this house.  I have been wanting an ice cream maker for such a long time. We finally bought one from a friend, and really enjoyed our first batch.  The kids really enjoyed being able to help make it. 

We decided to make strawberry ice cream tonight. I found a recipe online but didn't have all of the extra stuff, so I created my own from it.  I'm pretty impressed with how it turned out.  I would add a little more sugar next time, but all in all... it was fabulous.  This one is a super creamy, delightful treat!

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

2 ½ cups Heavy whipping cream 

½ cup milk

1 cup sugar (I would add about ¼ cup more next time)

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups chopped (fresh or frozen) strawberries

Pour ingredients (except strawberries) into a large bowl or into the ice cream canister.  Stir well until sugar is dissolved. Chop berries in a food processer  Freeze in ice cream maker according to the manufacturers instructions

Homemade Creamy Mac and Cheese

We have a winner!!! No you didn't miss a giveaway. Don't worry. I have been searching for the perfect mac and cheese recipe for a couple of years now.  My kids love the stuff, and It's not as cheap as it used to be.  I remember buying it for 15 cents a box back in the day. Not that its so expensive now, but hey...

Anyway, I love me some good ol homemade comfort food. And you can't get much better than this.  I had a friend ask me for a good freezer meal mac and cheese recipe the other day.  All of a sudden I remembered, this recipe has been right under my nose the whole time.  Years ago, a friend of ours was making some for our family.  I remember watching her pour the cream around the edge and thinking, yeah that's going to be Delicious!!!  So I decided to email her for the recipe and she sent it right back to me. 

All of the other ones that I have tried, have peen too pasty or grainy. The cheese never really melted right.  Ahhh, this one is creamier than ever.  Trust me, you will love it! 

 Homemade Creamy Mac and Cheese

1 bag  Large elbow macaroni

2-3 cans of Campbell's cheddar cheese soup ( I used 2)

2-3 (8 oz) bags of casserole mix shredded cheese (I used cheddar)

1 can of regular milk

1-1/2 cups Heavy whipping cream divided

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp White pepper (I just used black)

Boil pasta to al dente. Drain and leave in the colander.

Heat the Cheddar cheese soup with 1 can of milk in microwave bowl,

In a large pot (the same one you boiled the pasta in), pour the heated cheese in first then add the pasta slowly so you don't run out of creaminess. Add 1 cup of heavy whipping cream, 1 of the bags of shredded cheese, 1tsp salt and 1/2 tsp white pepper. Stir it up make sure its very creamy because otherwise it can dry out when baking.

Stir well until cheese is melted.  Pour into a 9x13 pan (this fills the pan, so you could stretch it and do about 3 9x9 pans and freeze them)

If it's not super duper creamy then pour more heavy whipping cream all along the inside edges of the pan (I used about a half cup more) Sprinkle the other bag(s) of shredded cheese all over the top Broil on high for about 3 minutes. Don't let it burn. You want it to be pretty golden brown. Turn the oven onto bake at 400 for another 30 minutes.

Tip:  you will want it to be extra creamy so that when it bakes, it won't dry out.

Freezing:  I haven't frozen this yet, but I would just do everything up until the baking process.  Wrap it with foil (make sure you are using an aluminum pan.) Then wrap it with plastic wrap.  Store up to 3 months. 

To thaw, allow it to sit on the counter for a few hours.  You can also thaw it in the fridge over night.  Then proceed with the baking instructions.



Green Chile Burritos

I've enjoyed taking a couple of days off the past few days.  I've been recovering from last weeks class! Wow what a success!!!  I've also been focusing on potty training my little one.

I've been working on my iron levels to get them back up to par again, so I don't get so wiped out.  I have been so blessed to be able to do so much more than ever this pregnancy.  I've really been enjoying all of the fun things I've been able to do.  My kids have never been happier, and I have never been happier. 

Our freezer meal class this past week was a burrito extravaganza.  We had a great turn out!  We made Green Chile Burritos, Chile lime Chicken Burritos, Breakfast Burritos and Bean and Cheese Burritos.  Each person walked away with at least 32 burritos to store for a rainy day.  Boy oh boy was it fun!  The downer to my little story is that I forgot to take pictures of the different burritos!!!  So if anyone has any pictures, please feel free to send them my way.  This one is one I took a while ago before I perfected my recipe. But you get the general idea.

All 4 of these burritos freeze really well and will last up to 3 months or more in the freezer.

Green Chile Burritos

1 Large pork shoulder roast

1 large Can of Green Enchilada Sauce (I use Las Palmas)

1 bottle of Salsa Verde (make sure the main ingredient is tomatillos)

1 large can (or 2 small) diced tomatoes (with green Chiles is preferred)drained

4 cans diced green chiles (drained)

Cook the meat in the crock pot on low for about 8 hours (4 on high) or until the meet is shredable. Drain juices from the meat and then shred the meat. Add all other ingredients. Scoop into burrito size tortillas, roll and serve. To freeze, roll each burrito in plastic wrap or foil.  Makes about 2 dozen burritos.  

To re-heat, cook on high (make sure to remove foil FIRST) in the microwave for about 4 minutes from frozen, until cooked through. 

Tip: You can use any type of cut for this.  The butcher told me shoulder is best for shredding, but all work. You can also use beef too. (pictured above)