Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Okay, so anyone who knows me knows that I HATE broccoli.  In any and all forms.  I am not someone you can hide broccoli from because I can always taste it.  It is hideous and I do not understand why anyone would voluntarily put it in their mouths.

Apparently this baby has a different opinion on broccoli, though.

Back in December my work gave a holiday luncheon with assorted yummy hot food.  Every time I walked by the creamy broccoli chicken dish, my mouth would water.  I finally decided to try it, just knowing that once I took a bite I would probably spit it out and stop thinking about it.  Nope.  I ate two whole bowls of creamy broccoli chicken.  I ate so much of it that I didn't eat dinner that night.

I've been meaning to try broccoli again since then to see if it was a fluke, but I have been scared.  My hatred of broccoli is so ingrained, I was afraid that I would either pay money for or spend a lot of time making a broccoli dish that would then go completely to waste.

But last week at the grocery store, it happened again.  As we shopped in the produce section I kept asking my husband what that delicious smell was.  I finally tracked it down: broccoli cheddar soup.  I almost bought some, then chickened out again. 

But the smell was enough to get me to try some broccoli cheddar soup on Wednesday, when I was not allowed to have meat.  It was soooooo good! 

Here is my take on broccoli cheddar soup:

1/2 small onion, chopped
1/4 c. butter or margarine (I used salted butter)
1/4 c. flour
1 c. chicken broth
2 1/2 c. milk (I used skim because that's what we have at my house)
2 c. cooked broccoli (I used the frozen kind that you steam in the bag)
2 c. sharp cheddar, shredded

Saute the onion in the butter over medium heat.  When tender, but not brown, add in flour and stir to create a smooth consistency.  Add broth and milk and stir to combine.  Bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and add broccoli.  I used my immersion blender (I highly recommend getting one!) to puree the broccoli into the soup, but if you do not have one, you could (carefully!) pour the soup into a food processor for this step.  Or you can just leave the broccoli as chunks in the soup if you like that.  Finally, melt the cheddar cheese into the soup.  Taste and add salt as needed.  Enjoy!

A bad picture of a delicious soup!

Sticky Mustard Kielbasa

Mmmmm.  So this recipe was an attempt to get my child to eat real food for once, and eventually it worked.  This is one of the few meat dishes that my son will actually eat and (occasionally) ask for more!  The mustard and the brown sugar make a honey-mustard type of flavor (even though there is absolutely no honey in the recipe).

Ingredients:

Mustard

Brown Sugar

Kielbasa

(You have to love a recipe with only 3 ingredients!)

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350, then line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!  The sticky part of this recipe is a pain to try to get off of baking sheets.
If you can find them, I recommend using kielbasa links, it just makes it easier.  If you are using a kielbasa rope (shaped like a horseshoe) you need to cut it into 5 even sized chunks.  Then cut the chunks (or your links) in half lengthwise and place on your cookie sheet cut side up.  Squirt mustard on the cut side of your kielbasa (how much or how little is up to you and how much you like mustard).

 Sprinkle with brown sugar (for how much, see note about mustard). 

Bake in the oven until mustard and brown sugar become a sticky coating on top of kielbasa.  The time for this recipe is really flexible.  I have cooked it only 20 minutes (I was too hungry to wait longer) and I have cooked it as much as 45 (the hubby was late getting home that night).  I think somewhere in the middle is best, so shoot for half an hour.

(Okay, so it won't win any beauty awards.  But it sure is tasty!)

And that is it.  So easy.  Enjoy some yummy, sweet, sticky kielbasa. 

Slow Cooker Vegetable Meatball Soup

One of the best recipes for me.  This soup is a great way for me to get veggies into my family since it is delicious, but it is also so simple to make.  My hubby likes it and the last time I made it even the toddler ate some, which is nothing short of amazing since he usually only likes to eat fruits or things shaped like animals (Goldfish, Teddie grahams, etc).

I start this in the slow cooker before going to work.  When I get home, I make the pasta add it in and dinner is served! :-)

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups beef broth
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 can (14.5 ounce size) stewed tomatoes
12 frozen fully cooked meatballs, thawed

1 cup spiral pasta, cooked and drained

DIRECTIONS:

Combine first 4 ingredients in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours (these ingredients are already cooked, so it could be a lot less than that, say 4 hours.  I just put 8 because on average that is how long I am gone at work).
Just before serving, stir in pasta; heat through.

I don't find that this needs any extra salt, because the broth and meatballs are already seasoned.

Makes 4 servings.  4 points plus per serving.

What's for breakfast?

Chocolate Cherry Refrigerator Oatmeal

 Ingredients

• 1/4 cup uncooked old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1/4 cup vanilla low-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon milk chocolate chips
• ¼ cup chopped cherries (I got mine frozen)
  

 Directions

In a half pint (1 cup) jar, add oats, milk, yogurt,and sugar. Put lid on jar and shake until well combined. Remove lid, add chocolate chips and cherries and stir until mixed throughout. Return lid to jar and refrigerate overnight or up to 3 days. Eat chilled.

Raspberry Chipotle Chicken Tacos

Anybody besides me love sweet & spicy together?  I love it!  In fact, my favorite candy is Hot Tamales.  This meal is the epitome of a harmonious sweet and spicy marriage.

This morning, I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner tonight.  This is a rarity for me because I almost always plan my menu before I ever go grocery shopping, but I am trying to use up what is in my pantry and freezers this week.  I remembered some boneless skinless chicken breast that I bought a couple of weeks ago on sale (it was buy one get one!).  What could I do with chicken....   I also remembered the raspberry chipotle salsa that was in the fridge.  Thus, the raspberry chipotle chicken taco was born!

I bought the salsa at a Le Gourmet shop.  You can also order it here: 

Ingredients:

2 T. oil (I used canola)
1 1/2 chicken breasts, diced
1 onion, chopped
1/2 bag of frozen mixed pepper strips

1 jar raspberry chipotle salsa
1/2 t. chipotle chili powder (if you don't have this, regular chili powder would work)
1/2 t. cumin
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder
salt to taste
tortillas

Procedure:

Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add chicken and cook until outside is browned.  Add onion and cook until translucent.  Add pepper strips.  Add a couple of tablespoons of the salsa.  Add all of the spices and stir to make sure evenly distributed.  Add the rest of the salsa.  Simmer for about 10 minutes.
Heat tortillas according to package directions.  Serve chicken mixture inside of tortillas.  I also put cheddar cheese and rice inside of my tortillas.  So yummy!

Arancini casserole

Arancini casserole

Last night I made this wonderful casserole.  It is based on arancini, a fried, stuffed, Italian rice ball.  It was so delicious!  The sausage adds a spiciness that is mellowed by the rice.  The peas add a sweet little pop to each bite...yum!

I made two casseroles out of this recipe.  Each casserole is 4 servings.  If you need more servings, you could use a 9 X13 pan and make one big casserole, just adjust the cooking time to 20 min with the foil and 10 without.

• 3 bags rice
• 1/2 lb (8 oz) Italian bulk sausage
• 1/2 lb (8 oz) 90% lean ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped 
• salt and fresh pepper
• 4 oz frozen peas (1/2 container)
• 16 oz tomato sauce (I used Classico Roasted Garlic sauce)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup shredded parmigiano cheese
• cooking spray
• 4 T breadcrumbs
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella

Cook rice in water according to package directions. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, sauté sausage meat; cook until brown breaking up into pieces with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Add ground beef and onion and cook until browned, breaking up as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then add peas and 8 oz tomato sauce and simmer on low, covered, about 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°. In a large bowl combine rice, parmigiano, egg, and4 oz tomato sauce and mix well. Rice should be a bit sticky.

Spray 2 9X9 casserole dishes with cooking spray, making sure to spray sides too.

Take 1/4 of the rice mixture and cover the bottom of one of the casserole dishes,  pressing to form bottom layer.  Repeat in second dish.

Pour half of the meat and peas mixture in one dish and half in the other.

Sprinkle 1/2 c. of the mozzarella on top of each.  Take half of what is left of the rice mixture and spread it on top of meat mixture on one casserole, repeating with the second casserole.  Top with remaining 4 oz of tomato sauce (2 oz each), mozzarella (1/2 c. each), and breadcrumbs (2 T. each).

Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes.  REmove foil and bake 5 minutes more.

Enjoy!

Salisbury Steak with Onion Gravy

Ingredients:

 For the steaks:
          1 lb 93% lean ground beef
          1 yellow onion, finely chopped
          1/2 c. breadcrumbs
          1 egg

           1 T. canola oil

     For the gravy:
          1 15 oz can low sodium beef broth (Low sodium is important!  When we make                                                                       the gravy, the broth will reduce with the                                                                       soup mix and it can become too salty!)
          2 T flour
          1 packet Lipton onion soup mix

In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the "steaks."  Divide into 6 patties.  They can be cooked right away, but the flavor will be better if you let them sit for about a half an hour (yes, they can be at room temperature).

In a large skillet or saucier, heat the oil on medium heat.  Add the patties and brown for about 5 minutes on each side.  Remove to a plate.

In a small container (I used a custard cup) add just enough beef broth to the flour so that it is fully dissolved.  Add the remaining beef broth to the hot pan and use a spatula to scrape the brown bits the meat has left behind off of the bottom of the pan.  Add the soup mix and stir to combine.  Add your slurry of broth and flour to the mix and allow it to boil just until it begins to thicken.

Add your patties back to the sauce.  Cover and cook for 10 minutes longer on each side.  I recommend serving with mashed potatoes.

Each salisbury steak is 5 WW points+.