Santa Fe Chicken Bake

Recipe Taken From:
Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 cups instant white rice, uncooked
* 1 (19 ounce) can black beans, rinsed
* 1 yellow pepper, chopped
* 1 (10 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
* 1 (10 ounce) can water
* 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
* 4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts
* 1/2 cup salsa
* 1 cup Shredded Cheese

Preparations:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Combine rice, beans and peppers in 13x9-inch baking dish. Mix soup, water and cilantro; pour over rice mixture.
3. Top with chicken and salsa.
4. Bake 35 minutes or until chicken is done (170 degree F). Top with cheese; bake 10 minutes or until melted.

Notes & Tips:
If you don't have fresh cilantro, use 1 teaspoon ground coriander instead. I really enjoyed this recipe. I think next time I will add a can of corn to make it a little more "Santa Fe"ish.

Nutrition Facts:
Amount Per Serving Calories: 559 | Total Fat: 16.3g | Cholesterol: 92mg

Sausage and Tortellini Soup

Recipe Taken from:
Quincy Hillery

Ingredients:

• 8 cups water
• 8 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1 package mild Italian sausage
• 1 bag frozen green beans
• 1 package tortellini
  

Preparation:
Bake Italian sausage in 375 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. Boil water with bouillon. When sausage is finished cooking, cut up into bite size pieces, add to boiling water. Add bag of frozen green beans. Boil for 20 minutes. Add tortellini, boil for 9-11 minutes, or according to package directions. Serve with crusty bread.

Notes & Tips:
This is seriously one of the best soups I've ever had. So super easy and tastes great. I love big crusty slices of bread with it.

Asian Beef and Snow Peas

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound beef, cubed
• 1 1/2 cup snow peas
• 2 Tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1 tsp sesame seeds
  
• Rice to serve
  

Preparation:
Heat the oil in a large skillet/wok, add beef to skillet, let it get brown for about 3 minutes. When that is getting brown add the snow peas, ginger and garlic salt. Stir around and turn down heat. Let cook for about 10-15 minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve with rice.

Notes & Tips:
I just buy the already cut beef stew meat. So easy, so good! I served this with couscous b/c it cooks in 5 minutes. Quick and easy.

Low Maintenance Risotto

Recipe Taken From:
Real Simple Magazine October 2010

Ingredients:

* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 1 medium onion, finely chopped
* kosher salt and black pepper
* 1 cup Arborio rice
* 1/2 cup dry white wine
* 3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, plus more if needed
* 1/2 cup grated Parmesan (2 ounces), plus more for serving
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Preparation:

1. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Add the onion, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 6 to 8 minutes.
3. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until absorbed.
4. Add half the broth (1 ¾ cups) and simmer, stirring once, until absorbed, 8 to 10 minutes.
5. Add the remaining broth and simmer, stirring once, until the rice is tender and creamy, 8 to 10 minutes. (If the rice is not cooked through and the mixture is dry, add more broth and continue to cook until tender.)
6. Stir in the Parmesan and the remaining tablespoon of butter. Sprinkle with the parsley and additional Parmesan, if desired.

Notes & Tips:
I had to decrease the amount of broth required. I cut it back in the second addition I only put in about 1 cup of the broth.

Nutrition Facts:
Serves 4
217 Calories, 13g Fat, 13g Carbs, 11g Protein

Creamy Fettuccine with Scallops and Spinach

Recipe taken from:
Weight Watchers Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound fettuccine
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 cups low-fat (1%) milk
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 3/4 pound sea scallops, patted dry and muscle tabs removed
• 6 ounces portobello mushrooms, sliced (about 2 cups)
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 2 pounds spinach, cleaned and coarsely chopped
  

Preparation:
1. Cook the fettuccine according to the package directions. Drain; keep warm.
2. Combine the flour, salt, and nutmeg in a medium nonstick saucepan. Gradually whisk in the milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce boils and thickens, about 8 minutes. Remove the white sauce from the heat; set aside.
3. Meanwhile, heat 1 teaspoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet, then add the scallops. Cook over medium-high heat until lightly browned on the outside and just opaque in the center, about 2 minutes on each side. Transfer the scallops to a plate. Wipe the skillet clean.
4. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the same skillet, then add the mushrooms, shallot, and soy sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender and browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the fettuccine, white sauce, scallops, and spinach, tossing to coat well. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture is heated through and the spinach just wilts, about 4 minutes.

Notes & Tips:
Make sure you pat the scallops dry before you put them on to cook. It will help them get that golden brown color. I think if I made this recipe again I'd probably splurge and use the cream b/c using Skim Milk made it a little to light for me.

Nutrition Facts:
Per serving (1 1/2 cups): 431 calories, 8 g total fat, 2 g saturated fat, 81 mg cholesterol, 870 mg sodium, 57 g total carbohydrates, 7 g dietary fiber, 36 g protein, 436 mg calcium Points per serving: 8

Mexican Chicken Salad

Recipe Taken From:
Weight Watchers Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 3/4 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, poached and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 tomato, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced
• 2 scallions, minced (white and light-green parts only)
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
• 2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
  

Preparation:
1. To make the dressing, put the lime juice in a small bowl. Drizzle in the oil, whisking constantly. Press in the garlic with a garlic press and add the chili powder; whisk thoroughly.
2. In a large bowl combine the chicken, tomato, avocado, scallions, and cilantro. Pour the dressing over and toss to coat. Refrigerate, covered, until the flavors are blended, at least 2 hours.
3. Divide the lettuce among 4 plates and mound the chicken salad on top.

Notes & Tips:
I made this WAY too spicy. It's def. clear your sinus cavities spicy. I used chipotle chili seasoning. Also, I served this with soft taco shells.

Nutrition Facts:
(1/2 cup lettuce and about 3/4 cup chicken salad), 243 Calories, 14 g Fat, 2 g Saturated Fat, 49 mg Cholesterol, 77 mg Sodium, 9 g Carbohydrates, 5 g Fiber, 22 g Protein, 60 mg Calcium.

Monster Cookies

Recipe Taken From:
www.thepioneerwoman.com

Ingredients:

* 2 sticks (1/2 Pound) Butter (salted) Softened
* ½ cups White Sugar
* 1-½ cup Brown Sugar, Packed
* 2 whole Large Eggs
* 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
* 1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
* ½ teaspoons Baking Soda
* 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
* 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
* 1-½ cup Oats (either Quick Or Regular)
* ½ cups M & M's (more To Taste)
* ½ cups Pecans, Chopped (more To Taste)
* ¾ cups Chocolate Chips (milk Or Semi-sweet)
* ½ cups Peanut Butter Chips
* 2-¼ cups Rice Krispies

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream butter with sugars until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat.

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt. Add to mixing bowl and mix till combined. After that, add in remaining ingredients in whatever quantity you prefer. Add more nuts if you’d like, or more M & M’s, more peanut butter chips or chocolate chips.

Add Rice Krispies at the very end, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix!

Use a cookie scoop to scoop balls of dough onto a cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown, then allow to cool on a rack.

Serve with glasses of cold milk.

Notes & Tips:
These are sooo yummy. I was a little disappointed that they weren't as fluffy as I wanted them to be.