Grilled Pizza with Sausage, Onions and Peppers

Oh man, you NEED to try this. I can't do whole wheat tortillas usually, but this way can't be beat. And it is super quick and easy. We were thinking it would make an awesome appetizer at a BBQ as well. Plus, the topping possibilities are endless.

Grilled Pizza with Sausage, Onions and Peppers (from WW website)
Serves 4

* 1 small red onion(s), cut into thin slivers
* 1 small yellow pepper(s), cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
* 1/2 cup pizza sauce, or tomato sauce
* 4 medium whole wheat tortilla(s)
* 1 tsp dried oregano
* 3/4 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
* 3 oz turkey Italian sausage

Preheat an outdoor grill to medium (or a grill pan over medium-high heat). Place sausage, onion and pepper on grill in a grill basket; cook, flipping once, until sausage is golden and vegetables start to brown, about 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from grill and set aside until ready to use.

To prepare pizzas, spread 2 tablespoons of sauce on each tortilla. Sprinkle each with 1/4 teaspoon of dried oregano and then top each with 1/4 of sausage-vegetable mixture; top each with 3 tablespoons of cheese.

Place pizzas on grill (or as many as will fit on grill pan at one time) and cook until edges begin to brown, about 3 to 5 minutes; rotate pizzas. Continue cooking until cheese is bubbly, about 2 to 4 minutes more. (If all 4 pizzas do not fit on grill pan at once, repeat with remaining ingredients.) Yields 1 pizza per serving.

Points per serving: 3

Smoked Turkey and White Bean Soup

Yummy yummy. The smokey flavor is this soup is hard to beat!

Smoked Turkey and White Bean Soup (from old WW cookbook)
Serves: 6

• 2 cup water
• 3/4 cup onion(s), chopped
• 3/4 cup carrot(s), chopped
• 1/4 cup celery, chopped
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 can fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 3 cans of 15.5 oz great northern beans
• 16 oz smoked turkey breast, chopped
• 2 tsp white wine vinegar

Combine all ingredients except vinegar in a Dutch oven. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 1 hour and 15 minutes. Stir in vinegar; discard bay leaf.

Points per serving: 4

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

I love me some enchiladas...mmm....
I tried this recipe a few nights ago. It was pretty good! I cooked the chicken breast meat in one of those steam bags, which also made this recipe really quick and easy. And I also normally do not like whole wheat flour tortillas, but if they are covered in cheesy enchilada goodness, you can't tell the difference. This is a little different from the original WW recipe as I did not put olives or cheddar cheese on it, and I added chillies. This gets a yummy 4 stars from me!

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas (adapted from WW website)
Serves: 6

• 8 oz Kraft Velveeta Light Reduced-Fat Pasteurized Processed Cheese Product
• 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
• 1/4 cup fat-free evaporated milk
• 1/4 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup scallion(s), green part only, minced
• 3 cup cooked chicken breast, chopped*
• 1 sprays cooking spray
• 6 medium whole wheat tortilla(s), 7-inches each
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 3 Tblsp chopped mild green chillies
  

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat a 9-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.
In a microwave-safe bowl, combine cheese product and sour cream; cover and microwave on high power until cheese melts, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Remove half of melted cheese to a small bowl and stir in evaporated milk; set aside. Add scallions, red pepper flakes, chillies and chicken to remaining cheese mixture; stir to coat.
Spoon about 2/3 cup of chicken mixture down center of each tortilla; fold in sides of tortilla to cover filling and place tortillas in a single layer in prepared dish; spoon remaining cheese sauce over top.
Bake until cheese topping is bubbly, about 20 to 25 minutes. Serve with salsa. Yields 1 enchilada per serving.

Pts per serving: 6

Chicken Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

I'm not sure why I was skeptical of this recipe, but it turned out a lot tastier than I thought. I've had it for lunch and dinner the last two days. Today, I ran out of hoagies, so I'm eating it on a tortilla with a little salsa and I'm omitting the cheese. It's a really yummy and versatile dish. I can easily add it to my favorites and give it 4 stars. I want to also mention that everything except the cheese and the bread in this recipe are core foods on the WW core plan. Score!

Philly Chicken Cheese Steaks
Serves: 4

1/8 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp table salt

1 tsp dried minced garlic (1 tsp fresh)

1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 medium sweet red pepper, thinly sliced

1 medium green pepper, thinly sliced

4 slice american cheese

2 uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded, cut into strips

4 steak rolls

olive oil cooking spray

In a medium nonstick skillet, spray with olive oil cooking spray and place over medium-high heat. Saute onion until browned and very soft, about 10 minutes. Add chicken, peppers and garlic and saute until chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about to 5 to 8 minutes; season to taste with salt and pepper.

Toast buns; spoon chicken mixture down center of each one. Place a slice of cheese in each bun and and close bun to help cheese melt slightly. Yields 1 cheese steak per serving.

Points per serving: 7

(Use low calorie bread or omit cheese to lower points)

Sloppy Joe's ala Houghtelling

I didn't have much time to whip up dinner last night and my grocery supplies were pretty depleted, so this is what I came up with. Jerod suggested the addition of the pinto beans, and I was very skeptical. But, I'll admit that it turned out pretty good. It was a nice way to fiber-up the dish. I give it a 4.

Sloppy Joe's ala Houghtelling
Serves: 6
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 beef bouillon cube
1 1/2 cup water
1 15 oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
1 packet sloppy joe seasoning.
6 oz tomato paste
6 slices Wonder Wheat bread

Dissolve beef bouillon in 1/2 water. Pour it over turkey as you crumble and brown it. After turkey is done, pour in the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve over bread (or toast) open-faced sandwich style.

Points per serving: 5

Adding shredded cheddar cheese on top might also be good if you can spare the points.

Turkey Noodle Casserole

Jerod came up with this recipe this week and asked me to add the ingredients to the shopping list. It sounded yummy to me and I'm always up for a casserole! I cooked a full turkey breast in advance and measured and weighed it out to get it ready for this recipe. That is definitely the healthier and cheaper route to go. You could also probably easily make the portion sizes smaller, but we have found that our lunches have been too small so we are STARVING by the time we get home, so we split the casserole into 4 servings rather than 6. For 6 servings, the points value per serving is only 5. I give it a solid 4 stars. It made awesome lunches this week.

Turkey Noodle Casserole (from Jerod's creative mind)
Serves 4
* 1/2 tsp table salt
* 6 oz roasted turkey breast
* 1 cup mushroom(s), chopped
* 1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
* 1 cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese
* 10 1/2 oz canned cream of mushroom soup
* 1 cup green peas
* 3 cup uncooked egg noodles
* 1 cup water, with chicken boullion cube dissolved

Cook noodles. Combine turkey cubes and noodles in 2 or 3 quart casserole dish. Saute mushrooms and onions until tender and then combine with remaing ingredients except bread crumbs and cheese. Pour over turkey noodle mixture. Just before cooking, sprinkle with bread crumbs and cheese. Base, uncovered in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Fast and easy, can do ahead and refrigerate up to a day.

Points per serving: 8

Chicken Parmigiana

I made this the other night for Jerod's birthday. This has always been one of my favorite recipes and it's totally easy. I use the plain bread crumbs and make my own spices by adding fress herbs, dried onions or garlic, or whatever I feel like. It makes me feel so chef-y. Yummy Yummy. It gets a 5 from me. You can add spaghetti, salad, bread, or whatever you want just because it's such a nice low-point main course.

Chicken Parmigiana (from ww website)
Serves: 4
1 sprays olive oil cooking spray
1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, thinly pounded (four 4-oz pieces)
2 large egg white(s), lightly beaten
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp table salt, or to taste
1 tsp olive oil
1 1/2 cup canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat an 8-inch square pan with cooking spray.
Place egg whites in a shallow bowl. Combine bread crumbs with Italian seasoning and salt; pour into another shallow bowl. Dip chicken in egg whites; turn to coat. Dip chicken in bread crumb mixture; turn to thoroughly coat.
Coat a large skillet with cooking spray and add oil; heat over medium-high heat. When hot, add chicken and cook until lightly browned and no longer pink in center, about 4 minutes per side.
Pour 1/2 cup of sauce into prepared baking dish; place chicken in dish and pour remaining sauce evenly over chicken. Sprinkle with cheeses and bake until chicken is cooked through and cheese is bubbly, about 25 minutes.

Points per serving: 5

Garlic Chicken Pizza

Garlic Chicken Pizza (from Cooking Light Magazine)
Serves: 8
1 1/2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
4 minced garlic clove(s)
1 cup mushroom(s), chopped
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
1 cup plum tomato(es), chopped
8 oz Chicken cooked breast, skinless, boneless, cubed
1 crust Boboli Original Pizza Crust, 12
1 oz crumbled low fat feta cheese
3 oz part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 oz grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400.
Combine first 3 ingredients, stirring well with a whisk. Place crust on a baking sheet; brush vinegar mixture over crust. Top with chicken, tomato, and mushrooms; sprinkle with cheeses and green onions.
Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or until cheeses melt and brown.

Points per serving: 5

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Chicken Cordon Bleu (adapted from the ww website)
Serves 4

• 4 sprays cooking spray, or enough to coat chicken
• 1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, butterflied into four 4-oz fillets
  
• 3 oz Boar's Head Smoked Ham, or other brand, four 3/4 oz slices
• 3 oz low-fat Swiss cheese, four 3/4-oz slices
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup honey mustard
• 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs, Italian-style

Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray.

Place chicken breasts between two pieces of plastic wrap and pound to 1/4-inch thickness; remove plastic wrap. Arrange 1 slice of ham and 1 slice of cheese on each chicken breast.

Starting from shorter end of chicken, roll up breast into a tight pinwheel. Tuck in ends. Secure with toothpicks.

Place flour, honey mustard and bread crumbs in 3 separate shallow bowls. Add chicken to flour; turn to coat. Transfer chicken to honey mustard; turn to coat. Place chicken in bread crumbs; turn to coat.

Transfer chicken to prepared baking sheet and coat with cooking spray. Bake until chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about 40 minutes. Remove toothpicks and serve.

Points per serving: 7

Banana Pudding

Banana Pudding (from the noggin-de-moi)
Serves: 4

• 2 cup fat-free skim milk
• 2 medium banana(s), sliced
• 16 items reduced-fat vanilla wafer(s)
• 4 serving fat-free sugar-free instant vanilla pudding mix
• 8 Tbsp fat-free whipped topping, thawed

Mix pudding and milk.
Place one to one and a half vanilla wafers in bottom of 4 water goblets or other serving glasses. Arrange one-third of banana over cookies. Spoon one-third of pudding mixture over banana; repeat procedure with remaining cookies, banana and pudding, ending with pudding. Spoon whipped topping over pudding. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

(Reduce bananas or wafers to lower point value.)

Points per serving: 4

Light Cheeseburgers

I made real life cheeseburgers for lunch yesterday. With the real ground beef and everything! A cheeseburger has never tasted so good. It is a rather high point meal, but totally worth it. Plus, with all the extra stuff in the meat, it made my quarter pound of meat seem HUGE. To spoil myself more, I even heated up some leftover roasted mustard potatoes for my "fries". Heaven, let me tell ya. Hea. ven. BEST 13 points ever.

Deluxe Cheesburgers(adapted from WW website)
Serves: 2
8 oz extra lean ground beef
1 tbsp minced onions
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp dried parsley
1 eggwhite
3 tbsp dried bread crumbs
1/8 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 high fiber hamburger buns
desired veggie toppings

Mix first six ingredients together and form into two hamburger patties. Grill in skillet. Top with cheese and cover to let cheese melt. Serve on buns with desired veggie toppings.

Points per serving: 10ish(depending on your pt value of your hamburger buns.)

Chili Cheese Mac

Chili Cheese Mac (from the WW website)
Serves: 8
* 1 sprays cooking spray
* 2/3 pound raw extra lean ground beef
* 2 medium onion(s), chopped
* 29 oz canned stewed tomatoes, Mexican-style (undrained)
* 2 1/2 cup canned tomato juice
* 4 oz canned green chili peppers, diced, drained
* 2 tsp chili powder
* 1 1/2 cup uncooked macaroni, elbow
* 31 oz canned pinto beans, drained and rinsed
* 1/2 cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese

* Coat a large skillet with cooking spray. Cook ground beef and onion over medium-high heat until meat is browned, about 10 minutes; drain off fat.
* Stir in undrained stewed tomatoes including juice, tomato juice, chili peppers and chili powder; bring mixture to a boil.
* Stir in macaroni and beans; return to boiling. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until macaroni is tender, about 15 minutes. Spoon chili into bowls and sprinkle with cheese. Yields about 1 cup of chili and 1 tablespoon of cheese per serving.

Points per serving: 5

Dijon Dinner

Dude. I made the best lunch today.

Balsamic Chicken with Mushrooms
Serves: 4
2 tsp vegetable oil
3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 large garlic clove(s), crushed
1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, four 4-oz pieces
2 cup mushroom(s), small, halved
1/3 cup canned chicken broth
1/4 tsp dried thyme, crumbled

In a nonstick skillet, heat 1 teaspoon of oil.
In a medium bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of vinegar, the mustard and garlic. Add chicken and turn to coat.
Transfer chicken and marinade to skillet. Sauté chicken until cooked through, about 3minutes on each side. Transfer chicken to a platter and keep warm.
Heat remaining teaspoon of oil in skillet. Sauté mushrooms for 1 minute. Add broth, thyme and remaining tablespoon of vinegar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are deep brown, about 2 minutes longer.
Serve chicken topped with mushrooms.

Points per serving: 3

Mustard Roasted Potatoes
Serves: 10
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 clove garlic clove(s)
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 sprays cooking spray
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp lemon zest
3 pound potato, red, white, 1- to 1 1/2-inch-diameter mixed unpeeled red-skinn

Position 1 rack in top third of oven and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 425F. Spray 2 large rimmed baking sheets with nonstick spray. Whisk mustard, olive oil, butter, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, lemon peel, and salt in large bowl to blend. Add potatoes; sprinkle generously with freshly ground black pepper and toss to coat. Divide potatoes between prepared baking sheets, leaving any excess mustard mixture behind in bowl. Spread potatoes in single layer. Roast potatoes 20 minutes. Reverse baking sheets and roast until potatoes are crusty outside and tender inside, turning occasionally, about 25 minutes longer. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2hours ahead. Let stand on baking sheets at room temperature. Rewarm potatoes in 425F oven 10 minutes.
Transfer potatoes to serving bowl.

Points per serving: 3

I served these with some green beans and it was an awesome 6 point meal. I also halved the potato recipe because I didn't really want to be stuck with 3 lbs of potatoes, in case the recipe was gross. I think I will always half it though since reheating potatoes really are never as good. I give both recipes an A+!

Light Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes

This recipe is from the WW website, but I had to edit it a little, just because of the supplies I had on hand. For example, the original recipe calls for 12 oz of turkey and 8 of beef, but I had to switch that around because of what I had thawed in my fridge. But, thanks to WW genius recipe builder feature, it was simple to switch around and still make it easy to calculate points. The original recipe also has 6 points, compared to my edited version, which has 8. Oh, and I have to mention....I mixed the meatloaf up last night so that I could pop it in the oven right away when I got home from work tonight, and it can EASILY be split into 8 servings rather than just 6. It's quite large.

Meatloaf with Chive Mashed Potatoes
Serves 6

• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 large egg white(s), beaten slightly
• 1/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 1/4 cup fat-free skim milk
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp table salt
• 1 Tbsp hot pepper sauce
• 1 Tbsp chives, minced
• 1 medium onion(s), chopped
• 4 large potato(es)
• 8 oz canned tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup uncooked old fashioned oats
• 8 oz lean ground turkey
• 12 oz lean ground beef

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray loaf pan with cooking spray. Combine beef, turkey, onion and oats in a large bowl. Mix together tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, egg whites, salt and pepper. Add to meat mixture and mix well with hands. Press into pan and bake for 60 to 70 minutes. (Note: Add an extra egg white if meatloaf does not hold together properly.)
Peel potatoes and cut into large chunks. Cover with salted water and bring to the boil. Cook until tender when pierced by a knife. Remove from heat and drain.
Mash potatoes. Combine with milk, yogurt, sour cream and chives. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Do not overbeat or potatoes will become gummy.
Serve potatoes with meatloaf.

Points per serving: 8

Dressed Up Potato Skins

We had this as a side dish tonight. I've been craving potatoes lately, so this was perfect. It was a fun dish to make it and it far out-shined the main dish.

Pepperoni Pizza Potato Skins (from Weight Watchers website)
Serves 4
1 sprays cooking spray
2 large potato(es), baked, cooled completely, quartered lengthwise*
1/3 cup pizza sauce
2 oz pepperoni, finely chopped
1/3 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/8 tsp dried oregano, red pepper flakes or garlic, or to taste

1. Preheat oven to 425ºF. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Slice top half or two thirds of potato flesh off each potato quarter. (Reserve potato flesh for soup or mashed potatoes, if desired). Spoon about 2 teaspoons of pizza sauce over each potato wedge; sprinkle wedges with pepperoni and then with cheese.
3. Carefully place potato skins on prepared baking sheet. Bake until cheese melts and potatoes are hot, about 6 to 8 minutes. Season to taste with oregano, red pepper flakes or garlic. Yields 2 potato skins per serving.

*Make sure the potatoes are cooled completely before slicing and scooping out the flesh or you may have a hard time forming the skins.

Points per serving: 4

Turkey Taco Soup

Turkey Taco Soup (From Recipezarr)
Serves 6
1 1/4 lbs ground turkey
1 medium onion
1 (30ish ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can Rotel tomatoes & chilies
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, undrained
1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, undrained
1 cup frozen corn
1 (1 1/4 ounce) package taco seasoning
1 (1 1/4 ounce) package dry ranch dressing mix

1. Brown the turkey and onion.
2. Add to a pot with the remaining ingredients.
3. Cook over medium low heat for 30 minutes.
4. Serve with shredded lettuce, cheese, corn chips, olives, tomatoes and sour cream on top.

(I put minimal cheese(1/2 ounce) on mine, fat free sour cream(1 tblspn), lettuce and a few chips. I skipped the olives because that's wasted calories in my opinion. I LOVE this recipe. It is so tasty and it's like having a big fat fiber-filled taco salad.)
Points per serving: 8