Leftovers + Mr. Bento = Happy Fern

If you've been cooking up all these wonderful things for dinner, what do you do with the left overs? Well, my brother got me an awesome birthday present that solves this problem in style...

I am so excited to use my Mr. Bento lunch box tomorrow (dorky I know). I plan on including some cheesy potato chowder (not the healthiest thing on the planet). When I make this recipe, I make a ton and then freeze it in small portions. Supposedly the Mr. Bento can keep my soup hot for up to 6 hours, so I am going to reheat the soup tomorrow morning and test Mr. Bento's ability to keep my soup hot until lunchtime. I'll report back tomorrow....

Quick Stir Fry Veggies

I whipped this up one night when I was tired of salad but still had a lot of veggie servings to squeeze in. It's less labor intensive than a traditional stir fry, but was still yummy and definitely a nice change from salad.

Ingredients
2 TBS Olive Oil
3 TBS Low Sodium Soy Sauce
1 TBS minced garlic
1/4 cup water
1 cup broccoli crowns
1 cup baby carrots
1 cup green beans

Heat Oil and garlic in a pan (preferably a wok) til hot. Add carrots and 1 TBS soy sauce and toss. Saute 5 minutes, tossing frequently. Add broccoli crowns and 1 more TBS soy sauce and toss. Saute additional 5 minutes, tossing frequently. Add green beans and remaining soy sauce. Continue sauteing until veggies have reached desired tenderness. Add water in cooking/tossing process if additional liquid is needed to achieve desired tenderness.

Serves: 3 1 cup servings
WW Flex Points Per Serving: 3*

*Note: I use the oil because we need our oil (fatty acid) portion per day (according to WW) and I don't otherwise cook with oil. I use this as a way to get our serving in without affecting the flavor of what I'm cooking.

For a lower point, lower calorie version, use low sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth in place of oil. If broth is used instead of oil, the recipe is 0 points per serving, or 3 points to eat the whole batch. (Applying points to single servings does not always produce an exact fraction of points, which is why 1 cup is 0pts but 3 cups is 3pts.

Fern: I tagged this as Vegetarian. Am I correct in assuming is Vegetarian Friendly? If not, please correct! :)

Black Bean Salad

• 1 can black beans, thoroughly rinsed, and drained
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn, defrosted (or fresh corn, parboiled, drained and cooled)
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions or shallots
• 3 fresh plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2-1 teaspoon sugar (to taste)
• salt and pepper

1. In a large bowl, combine the beans, corn, onions, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, basil, lemon juice and olive oil. Add sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Chill before serving.

I usually serve this over couscous or brown rice for a simple dinner but it would also make a good side dish alongside a Mexican or Tex-Mex main dish. Makes 6-8 servings.

Per serving: 216 calories, 8 grams of fat, 0mg cholesterol, 8mg sodium, 628mg potassium, 31.2 grams carbohydrates, 10.2 grams dietary fiber, 8.8 grams of protein.

Crunchy Personal Sized BBQ Chicken "Pizza"

Per Person:
2 TBS BBQ Sauce
3-4 OZ Cooked, Shredded or Chunk Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast (optional cooking instructions below)
2 TBS Cilantro, Chopped
1/4 Cup 2% Cheese of your choice
2-3 TBS chopped red onion
1 Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Tortilla, 8.5" size

Spread 1-2 TBS BBQ sauce on Tortilla for "Pizza Sauce." Sprinkle Chopped Cilantro over sauce. Top with Cheese. (Covering the cilantro with the cheese helps protect it from wilting). Spread chicken and onion generously over top of cheese. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Optional Chicken Cooking Instructions:
Brush a piece of foil lightly with BBQ sauce and lightly pepper. Place chicken on top. Brush top side of chicken lightly with sauce and add additional pepper. Cover with foil and seal in a packet. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes, depending on how much chicken you're cooking.

Take out of oven and allow to cool. Shred or cube. Add 1-2 TBS of BBQ to chicken and stir to coat chicken. Proceed with Pizza as instructed above.

Serves 1
WW Points, with chicken prepared this way: 9.

Optional: Reduce Points by using a smaller tortilla (subtract 1 point for 6" or smaller tortilla), or Sugar Free BBQ Sauce (subtract 1 point). Chicken less than 3 ounces is 1 point per ounce so if you serve less chicken, deduct for that. (4 oz chicken is 3.5 pts)

Serve with a green salad and you have a filling lunch with relatively low points!

Zesty Chicken

Zesty Chicken
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or tenders
Several tablespoons of Red Robin Seasoning. You can buy it at RR restaurants for $3 or here is a copycat recipe to make your own I've never tried the copycat recipe.
1 TBS Olive Oil

Spray a piece of foil with non stick cooking spray. Sprinkle with RR Seasoning. Lay out chicken on greased side. Sprinkle Top with more seasoning. Drop a few drops of olive oil on to each piece of chicken. I use a baster to control distribution. Cover exposed side of chicken with another sheet of foil and seal up sides to make a packet. Place packet on cookie sheet and bake in oven at 350 for 1 hour.

Word of Caution: Don't over-season. The RR Seasoning is very salty if you have too much of it. I don't usually measure things so I haven't measured how much I use so just be careful. Be generous enough to flavor the chicken but not so generous as to kill it!

Servings: 4
Points per serving: 4

Optional Serving Methods

1. Tear up in a salad. Per person, serve 1.5 cups mixed greens, 1 TBS Cilantro, 1 TBS 2% cheese, 4 Crushed Tortilla Chips, 1/2 cup organic canned, cooked black beans, 1/4 cup cooked, cold baby corn kernels, 2 TBS light ranch
Points for measurements shown:
0 for Veggies
1 for Cheese
1 for black beans (1/4 cup to 1/2 cup is 1 point. 1/8 cup and under is 0 points)
1 for corn
2 for Light Ranch
1 for Chips

Total for salad as shown, with chicken: 10. It's high for a salad alone but as a whole meal, it's not too bad. And you can eliminate things you don't like. I don't like beans or corn so I shave off 2 points that way. I also don't need a full 2 TBS of dressing so I shave off another there so for me, the salad with chicken is 7 points.

2. Serve salad above rolled in a tortilla. Add 2 points for 1 medium flour tortilla.

Ranch Chicken

This one is a tweak of a recipe off the back of the Ranch Package. I've altered it to make it a little more moist.

Ranch Chicken
1 lb of boneless skinless chicken breast tenders
1 package of Hidden Valley Ranch Dip Mix
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1-2 TBS olive oil

Put all ingredients except in a bag or bowl and mix or shake until chicken is coated evenly. Spray a piece of foil with non stick cooking spray. Lay out chicken on greased side. Drop a few drops of olive oil on to each piece of chicken. I use a baster to control distribution. Cover exposed side of chicken with another sheet of foil and seal up sides to make a packet. Place packet on cookie sheet and bake in oven at 350 for 1 hour.

Variations. I take the top cover off of mine for the last 15 minutes and set the oven to a low broil setting to make the chicken crispy. If you only have one broil setting on your oven, you may need to experiment with how much time it takes.

Serves 4.
WW Flex Points Per Serving: 4

Optional Serving Methods: We've served this several ways:
1. Torn up and tossed with a salad and light ranch dressing.
Meal with Chicken, Salad and 2 TBS Light Ranch Dressing: 6 Points

2. Wrapped in tortillas with salad fixings
Meal with Chicken, Lettuce, Tomato and 1 Medium Flour Tortilla: 6 Points
Optional: Add 2 TBS 2% cheese. Add 1 Point
Optional: Lightly spread tortilla with light ranch. Add 1 point for 1 TBS

3. As an entree with High Fiber Rye Bread, Salad and Near East Long Grain Rice
Meal with Chicken, Salad, 2 TBS Light Ranch, 1 Slice High Fiber (3g or more per slice) Rye Bread, .5 Cup Prepared Near East Long Grain Rice: 9 points

Strawberry Pear Walnut Salad

I've been asked by a couple of folks now about this blog. Truthfully I haven't updated it in a year, largely Fern stopped participating and so I saw no need to keep a separate blog for recipes. I'll try to post there now too, though. I'll probably post them both places for now to decide what I like.

So without further ado, a salad. This is per salad. I don't usually make a whole bowl of it because there are just two of us so you'll need to tweak quantities if you want to prepare it to serve a whole family.

Strawberry Pear Walnut Salad

1.5 cups mixed baby greens
3-5 strawberries, washed sliced thinly
8-10 walnut halves
1/2 Pear, cleaned and sliced thinly
1 TBS Parmesan cheese

Toss greens together and top with fruits, nuts and cheese.

Optional I candy the walnuts first in a pan with a couple tablespoons of yogurt spread (like margarine but better) and a couple tablespoons sugar substitute. Heat spread and sugar together in a pan til melted, add walnuts, and heat 5-10 minutes on medium heat, stirring frequently to coat walnuts.

Optional This salad is also good with just strawberries or just pears. In truth, with both the pears and the strawberries, it almost has too many flavors and textures going on but I enjoy it because it's an enjoyable way for me to get my fruits and veggies in.

Optional Try it with apples instead of pears. Or try Pecans instead of Walnuts.

Cranberry Dressing
Dressing Recipe from Weight Watchers
1/2 cup canned cranberry sauce, whole-berry or jellied
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or to taste

In a medium bowl, whisk together cranberry sauce, vinegar, water, oil and mustard; season to taste with salt and pepper.

Note: We used white wine vinegar because I had no red wine vinegar and it worked just fine.

Review Todd liked the dressing, I thought it was a little too much. I liked the salad dry because the cheese, nuts and fruit added enough flavor. The dressing WAS good, I just didn't like it combined with the other elements. So maybe sample it before you toss your whole salad in it.

Orange, Avocado, and Apple Salad with Orange Vinaigrette Dressing

This is a great summertime first course, or could even be a main dish. If you're an evil meat eater, I bet a grilled chicken breast would be great on top.

Dressing:
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

Salad:
2 large navel oranges
8 cups mixed greens
1/2 apple thinly sliced
1 avocado diced
3 tablespoons almond slivers

Whisk dressing ingredients in small bowl to blend. Whisk in olive oil; season to taste with freshly ground pepper.

Using small knife, cut off peel and white pith from oranges. Working over large bowl, cut between membranes to release orange segments into bowl. Add greens and endive to bowl with oranges. Drizzle dressing over salad and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Chicken Stir Fry

I modified this from the American Diabetes Association. Their recipe called for honey and different veggies as well as cooking it differently. We haven't eaten it yet-we will as soon as Todd gets home. If it's nasty, I'll delete this ;)

So this is my version, with a sauce similiar to theirs.

2 tbs peanut oil
boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut up
2-3 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
3-4 cloves minced garlic
1 cup snow peas
1 cup brocolli crowns
1/2 cup cashews
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1 can bamboo shoots
3-4 green onions, diced
1 tbs corn starch
3/4 cup orange juice
3 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs ginger, grated

Place oil in wok and add chicken and garlic. Cook on high heat til chicken is white, stirring frequently. Add in brocolli, carrots and celery. Cover and steam 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently. In a bowl, mix OJ, soy sauce, ginger and cornstarch and stir to dissolve corn starch. Pour in to pan over chicken and veggies, and add snow peas, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, green onion and cashews. Cover and simmer on medium til sauce thickens, stirring occasionally. Serve. If you can have rice (I shouldn't) I'd serve it with that.

Garlic Rosemary Chicken

One of the things people should know about me is that I'm not *usually* a recipe cook. I either cook recipes that I know by heart from childhood, or I experiment. The behaviour of trying and following recipes (for cooking anyway--baking is a different story) is actually rather new for me.

So tonight was another Jen creation. I think it was pretty good.

Garlic Rosemary Chicken
Ingredients
4-6 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 chicken breasts, fileted and pounded with a meat tenderizer
1 tsp butter
pepper
1/4 chopped onion
3-4 sprigs fresh rosemary

1. Filet the chicken breasts and cut the 2 halves apart. Pound with a meat tenderizer.
2. Mix garlic and butter together and distribute evenly between the 4 chicken pieces.
3. Tear up rosemary and distribute over chicken breasts.
4. Sprinkle onion over top.
5. Top with pepper.
6. Roll up and skewer to hold together.
7. Place in baking pan with a couple tablespoons of water or chicken broth in the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle more pepper, rosemary, garlic and onion over top if you wish.
8. Cover and bake at 350 for half an hour. Remove cover, brush tops with butter to brown. Bake another half an hour. Remove and serve.

Pasta a la ???

I'm not sure what to call the dish I made tonight. My husband suggested Pasta a la Fern but I'm not that vain. I am thinking Red, Green and White Fusili? Suggestion for a name are welcome.

1 medium yellow onion, sliced into 1/8 inch thin slices
2 small red bell peppers, sliced into 1/8 inch thin slices
2 cups broccoli florets, roughly chopped into 1 inch pieces
2 Tbs. butter
1 cup sun dried tomato pesto
1 cup milk (anything other than non-fat)
2 Tbs. flour
8 oz whole wheat fusili pasta
Salt to taste

1. Saute onion in 1 Tablespoon butter over medium high heat until onions are soft and transparent (8 minutes). Add bell peppers and saute for 3 minutes. Set aside in seperate bowl.

2. While onions and bell peppers are sauteeing, steam broccoli for 3 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. Add broccoli to bowl with onions and bell peppers.

3. Using water from steaming broccoli, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking.

4. While pasta is cooking, in same pan used to sautee onions and bell peppers, melt 1 Tablespoon butter. When butter is completely melted, sprinkly flour evenly around pan. Whisk butter and flour to make a roux. Add milk to pan and stir constantly until boiling. Immediately reduce heat to medium-low. Whisk in sun dried tomato pesto. Add salt to taste.

4. Combine all ingredients in pan used to cook pasta and toss well. Serve.

Serves 4.

Barbequed Tri Tip

This is one our favorite things to enjoy.

1 small onion, chopped
7 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons Dijon-style prepared mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 (2 pound) tri-tip steak

1. Place onion, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, soy sauce, rosemary, mustard, salt, and pepper into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Place steak in a large resealable plastic bag. Pour marinade over steaks, seal, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (I usually marinate it for about 24 hours).

2. Preheat the grill for high heat.

3. Brush grill grate with oil. Discard marinade, and place steak on the prepared grill. Cook for 7 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.

Lowfat Refried Black Beans

Here is a divinely tasting side dish that is a great compliment to Mexican main courses.

4 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/2 tablespoon canola oil
1 (18-oz) can black beans, including liquid
Pinch of cayenne and cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook garlic in oil in a skillet over medium heat, stirring, until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add beans with their liquid and mash with the back of a wooden spoon. Add cayenne and cumin

2. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is correct consistency (5-7 minutes). Stir in enough of water to thin to a creamy consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve warm, sprinkled with shredded cheese.

Serves 4.

Vegetarian Black Bean Chili

I usually make this on Shabbat because I can put the ingredients in the crock pot and forget about it. It is very fulfilling and if you leave off the cheese and sour cream (or use low fat versions) pretty good for you too.

2 onions, chopped (half inch pieces)
2 red bell peppers, chopped (half inch pieces)
6 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons italian seasoning
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
3 16-ounce cans black beans, drained, 1 can's liquid reserved
1 16-ounce can tomato sauce
Sour cream
Grated Monterey Jack cheese

1. Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and bell peppers; sauté until onions soften, about 10 minutes. Add garlic; stir until fragrant (about one minute).

2. Add beans, tomato sauce, reserved liquid and spices to crockpot and stir. Mix in onions and bell peppers. Turn on crockpot and set it to low heat. Cook for 2-4 hours. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Ladle chili into bowls. Top with grated cheese and sour cream.

Serves 4.

Lasagna Spirals

This is one of my favorite recipes even though it's been awhile since I last made it. One thing I particularly like is that you can can control how many servings you make. With a regular lasagna, you have to make a whole baking dish's worth. But because this recipe calls for rolling up the lasagna noodles instead of layering them, you can make exactly the right amount, which is great for when you are only cooking for two people or for a picky eater who wants his meal prepared differently.

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
10 oz baby spinach
1 lb ricotta (preferably fresh)
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
1/2 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1 oz)
8 dried lasagne noodles (not no-boil; 8 oz)
1 jar tomato sauce

1. Set oven temperature to 350°F.

2. While sauce is simmering, cook spinach in a 3- to 4-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, 1 minute, then drain in a colander. When cool enough to handle, squeeze any excess water from spinach and coarsely chop. Stir together garlic, ricotta, yolk, spinach, parmesan, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until combined well.

4. Cook lasagne noodles in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water , stirring occasionally, until tender. Drain noodles in a colander and rinse under cold running water.

5. Spoon 2 cups tomato sauce into a 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish (or other 3-quart shallow baking dish). Lay out 4 lasagne noodles on a work surface, then spread 1/3 cup filling evenly over each noodle. Roll up each and arrange spirals, seam sides down and without touching, over sauce in dish, then make 4 more rolls and arrange in dish. Brush noodles with water, then spoon some sauce down middle of rolls and cover dish tightly with foil.

6. Bake in middle of oven until heated through, about 20 minutes. Heat remaining tomato sauce and serve on the side.

Serves 4.

Chinese Chicken Salad

This is one our favorite summer time meals.

Salad Dressing:
2tbs hoisin sauce (available in the asian foods aisle)
1 tbs sesame oil
2tbs oil (I use grapseed because it's light)
1 tbs sugar
2 tbs plum sauce
3 tbs rice vinegar
lots of fresh minced garlic
lots of fresh ginger, grated

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl or bottle and mix well. If you've never worked with ginger before, you need to slice off the brown skin and then you can either grate the meaty part (you don't want the threads though) or if you've a strong grip, you can push it through a garlic press.

If you need to store the sauce, make sure you cover it so that its flavors don't mix with anything else and nothing mixes with it. This dressing is best served cold.

Salad:
Green Leaf Lettuce
Cilantro
Green Onions
Carrots
Bean Sprouts
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
chicken breasts-boiled or grilled and shredded
rice noodles.

Toss veggies together. Serve up salad and top with chicken, oranges dressing and noodles.