Roasted Green Beans with Mushrooms & Red Onion

Late last week I made a huge veggie haul at the grocery store. Vegetables are very low in calories, but also very filling, so it makes sense that they would make up a huge part of my diet. And, contrary to popular belief, they don't have to be boring!

Tonight I paired fresh green beans with mushrooms and red onion. I roasted them in the oven with a dressing of balsamic vinegar, and, let me tell you, the flavor combination did not disappoint! This recipe was extremely simple, and could easily serve 4 if you're serving it as a smaller side dish. But if you're like me and tend to go heavy on the veggies to save some calories, you will probably only get 2 servings out of this recipe. I ate half the pan tonight and plan on finishing it up tomorrow!
 
 

Quick Margarita Chicken Bowl

I'm a sucker for all foods Mexican. You say "cilantro," I say "bring it on!" My undying love for Hispanic herbs inspired me to create this Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing a while back, which is sure to rock your world. Most recently I was inspired by Hungry Girl's makeover of Chili's Margarita Chicken Fresh Mex Bowl. Yes, it's another recipe including lime and cilantro, but I can't ever get enough, y'all!

I think this would make a teriffic lunch, but tonight I made it for myself for dinner. My husband got his tonsils removed this week, so he's been on a steady diet of all things mushy. I passed on the ramen noodles, and I took the opportunity to experiment a little with Hungry Girl's recipe. I used chicken that was already grilled, which saved me a huge step. So instead of marinating the chicken as suggested in the recipe, I just used the marinade as a dressing! I ditched the brown rice and avocado to keep the calories low, and I tweaked the measurements slightly to make it easier to measure out and calculate for all you My Fitness Pal and Weight Watchers gals. 

I really enjoyed this meal. It was filling and satisfying. A word of caution though, the jalapenos give it quite a kick, so adjust those accordingly. I'll definitely be making this again! Click below to get the full recipe.

Light & Flavorful Weeknight Chili

One of my favorite fall meals is a warm, savory bowl of chili... usually topped sour cream, cheese, chives, and a few crumbled chips... sometimes ladled over a roasted hot dog. My mom's homemade chili was a staple in the home I grew up in, and I still find it very comforting to this day. After starting Weight Watchers, I searched the internet for a similar but lighter version of the chili I grew up eating, and I finally found one that I'm the whole family is happy with--even my picky eater. This meal family-friendly, quick, and easy. I hope you and your family enjoy it as much as we do.

Light and Flavorful Weeknight Chili

adapted slightly from weightwatchers.com

Ingredients:
1 lb. 93% lean ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
2 ribs of celery, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
2 Tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons of salt
 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar
28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
2 cups of beef broth
8 ounce can of tomato sauce
15 ounce can of kindey beans, drained and rinsed
Cooking Spray

Instructions:

Lightly coat a stock pot with cooking spray. Place ground beef, onion, celery, garlic, and jalapeno into a large stock pot and cook over medium heat until beef is browned. Add chili powder, cumin, oregano, bay leaves, salt, and sugar. Stir to coat beef and vegetables with spices. Add tomatoes, broth, tomato sauce, and kidney beans to the pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves before serving. Top with toppings of your choice (sour cream, cheese, chives, etc).

Makes approximately 7 heaping cups of chili at 5 Weight Watcher Points Plus per serving (1 heaping cup, not including toppings).

Enjoy!

6 {Weight Watcher Friendly} Hotel Room Snacks

Happy Monday, everyone! Normally I would be sitting at home creating my menu plan and shopping list for the week, but this week I'm enjoying a little R & R at the beach with my family! Silas remembers his last visit to the beach, but little Liam was only 4 months last time we hit the sands of the gulf shores. Needless to say, he is soaking it all in and loving every minute!

 
So, of course, no cooking for me this week! Instead, we're enjoying hot lukewarm hotel breakfasts, quick sandwiches for lunch, and fun dinners out. But just like at home, we need a few fillers in between to keep our tummies happy. We have two little guys, so we have our fair share of fruit snacks and pudding cups lying around, but we've also got a stash of healthy snacks to keep us full without breaking the calorie bank. Here's what you'd find if our hotel pantry chest of drawers if you stopped by...

{1} Family Favorite :: Smartfood Popcorn (White Cheddar)

{2} Salty Fix :: Dry Roasted Edamame
  
{3} Fast & Fresh :: Assorted Fruit

{4} Hold Me Over :: Assorted Granola Bars

{5} Chocolate Fix :: Fiber One Brownies

{6} Mama's Must-Have :: Complimentary Coffee from the Hotel Lobby

Happy Snacking!

General Tso's Chicken

If I'm not munching on Mexican food it's likely that you'll find me savoring a delicious Asian dish. Last week I tried a new Weight Watchers recipe for one of my favorite Asian dishes--General Tso's Chicken. I had my doubts about how this recipe would turn out, but I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. It was super simple to prepare and the whole family loved it (well, except for my picky eater, of course). Sometimes when I try a new recipe, even though it turns out delicious, if it was too time-consuming or if it required hard-to-find ingredients, I don't put it on our regular dinner rotation. Neither was the case with this recipe. It was just my style--quick and easy-- and I will gladly add it to our regular dinner rotation!

General Tso's Chicken
 (adapted from weightwatchers.com)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup of chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoon olive oil
2 medium scallions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 pound uncooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 cups cooked white rice

Instructions:

In a bowl, whisk together broth, cornstarch, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and ginger. 

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add scallions, garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add chicken to skillet. Cook until chicken pieces are begin to brown, about 5 minutes.

Add sauce to the skillet and simmer until sauce thickens and chicken is cooked through.

Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

This recipe makes 4 serving. Enjoy about 1 cup of chicken with sauce and 1/2 cup of rice for 8 Weight Watchers points plus values. 

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade with NuStevia™

Nothing says summer like a tall glass of fresh, homemade lemonade. If you haven't made any yet this summer, now is the time to get on that! I haven't always been a fan of lemonade, but soon after I got married I discovered that my husband makes the perfect homemade lemonade. I was hooked.

We haven't always been so calorie conscious when it comes to our beverages, so for years we stirred cups of sugar into our homemade lemonade. I was hesitant to make the switch to a zero-calorie sweetener because I really don't like the taste of artificial sweeteners. Soon after I started Weight Watchers my Mom introduced me to a new zero-calorie sweetener that she had discovered at Whole Foods called NuStevia™, an all natural herbal sweetener. She told me it was the perfect addition to a glass of lemon water. She bought me a box, and I discovered that lemons and NuStevia™ are indeed a match made in heaven. We've since substituted NuStevia™ for sugar in our lemonade recipe. We also use it in our coffee, smoothies, oatmeal, and grapefruit-ade! Unlike other Stevia products, it's non-bitter and doesn't leave an unpleasant aftertaste in your mouth. We love it!

Now for the recipe...

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade with NuStevia™

Ingredients

4 Medium Lemons (about 3/4 cup of juice)
12 packets of NuStevia™
6 Cups cold water

Instructions

Juice the lemons. I use a simple manual juicer. Combine the lemon juice, NuStevia™, and water in a pitcher and stir. Serve over crushed ice or add 1-2 cups of crushed ice to the pitcher before serving.  

Optional: place a few lemon slices in the pitcher for a beautiful garnish and added lemon flavor.

Divided between 6 tall glasses, this lemonade is zero Weight Watcher points plus per glass.

iHerb.com is the cheapest place I've been able to get NuStevia™. It is also a wonderful place to pick up other quality herbal supplements and all natural products. They offer free 1-3 day shipping on all orders over $40, and, if you're a first time customer you can use the code NUJ843 and get $10 off your first order!! Browse through the health links page while you're there. There's a lot to learn! And don't forget to add some NuStevia™ to your cart so you can make some tasty, fresh-squeezed lemonade! You won't be disappointed!

P.S. Before starting any herbal supplements, it's always important to check with your physician!