Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Ok... so I know these don't have a known point value but I really wanted them. I tried to follow the recipe but for me they turned out horrible. The recipe says the you should make 1" balls to put into your mini-cupcake tin. My cookies turned into monster cookies that were mostly full of air. I would recommend making the balls smaller. Also the dough is super sticky.



Original website: Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Ingredients:
36-48 miniature peanut butter cups
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup firmly-packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Method:

1. Place peanut butter cups in the freezer (there’s no need to unwrap them; just place the whole bag in the freezer) for 20 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flours, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
4. In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter. Add the sugars and beat until light and fluffy (about 2 – 3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract.
5. Add the flour mixture. Mix until a soft dough forms.
6. Shape into 1-inch balls. Press dough balls into ungreased mini muffin tins, making an indentation in the middle with your thumb.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 8-11 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press a miniature peanut butter cup in the center of each cookie.
8. Cool and remove from pan.

Skinny Enchilada

Ok, so I didn't have a lot of points left today so I wanted something filling that was low in points. I did some searching around and I found these awesome enchiladas. They are only 5-4points a piece (depending on the tortillas you use). The original recipe is here but I changed a few things.

Ingredients

Skinny Enchilada Filling
9 Tortillas (low Carb La Tortilla)
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast meat
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped red and green bell peppers
1/2 cup Non-Fat Greek Yogurt
1/2 cups Shredded Low-Fat 4 Cheese Mexican Cheese

Skinny Enchilada Sauce
3/4 cup Salsa
1/4 cup Non-Fat Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup Low-Fat Shredded Cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and Lightly spray a 9×13 inch-baking dish with non-stick spray.

2. Sautee onions and bell peppers in a small skillet using cooking spray till onions are lightly brown

3. Mix sautéed veggie's with non-fat greek yogurt, chicken, and cheese

4. Spread 1/4 cup chicken mixture in the middle
of each tortilla and roll into a small burrito. Place seam down into baking dish

5. Mix Salsa and greek yogurt in a small bowl and spread evenly onto of tortillas, Sprinkle Cheese throughout

6. Place foil over dish and bake Skinny Enchiladas for 15-20 minutes.

Notes:
I use red and green pepper for added taste and color.
The less chunky the Salsa the better the end product will look.

Nutrition 

Serves: 9 Points: 4
Calories: 148.4Total Fat: 5.1 Total Carbohydrate: 15.2 Fiber: 7.8 Protien: 17.5

Twice Baked Potatoes

So last night I really wanted some potatoes. Generally starches aren't good while dieting but I think its worse to torture yourself by not having any at all. I found these great potatoes for only 2 points!!! I would recommend adding salt and pepper though.

Ingredients

3 large baking potatoes
1/2 cup fat free, reduced sodium chicken broth
1 cup 2% shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
1/3 cup thin green onion slices
1/4 cup Light sour cream
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp paprika

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Pierce potatoes in several places with tip of sharp knife. Bake 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until tender. Immediately cut potatoes in half, lengthwise; scoop out centers, leaving 1/4 inch thick shells.

3. Beat potato pulp, broth, 1/2 cup of the cheese, onions, sour cream and mustard with mixer until well blended. Spoon into shells; top with remaining cheese and paprika.

4. Bake 20 minutes or until heated through.

Yield: 6 Servings 
Serving Size= 1 Potato Half

Weight Watchers Points Plus = 2

Nutrition Information: 
Calories 210, Carbs 17.3 g, Cholesterol 5 mg, Fat 1.1 g, Fiber 2.3 g, Protein 2.5 g

Sugar, The Bitter Truth

Ok so part of eating healthy is knowing what is bad for you. Here is a talk about sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Its pretty long but worth the knowledge.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z5X0i92OZQ

Also something to keep in mind if you are trying to lose weight, the more chemicals your liver has to work out of your body the less time it will work to get the fat out of your body. When you can go fresh!!! It's easier on your body, tastes better and better for you.

Chicken Fajitas

Last night I made Chicken Fajitas from skinnytaste.com but made a few taste bud changes. The recipe calls for green peppers but my family isn't too fond of them so I went with red, yellow and orange peppers. I also took out the chili because of the extra peppers. Here is the original recipe.

Chicken Fajitas 
 Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 4 servings • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 5 pts
Calories: 192.1 • Fat: 5.5 g • Carb: 16.7 g • Fiber: 8.3 g • Protein: 25.5 g  

• 16 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1 poblano chile, cut into strips
• 1 onion, cut into strips
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ancho chile powder or chipotle chili powder, to taste
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 4 low fat, low carb tortillas (La Tortilla Factory)

Marinate the chicken with lime juice, and season with chile powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cumin.

Season vegetables with salt and pepper and toss with olive oil.

Heat George Forman grill. Grill chicken until well browned, but not hard to the touch. Transfer to a plate when done. Cut into strips. Grill vegetables until tender (about 15 minutes). Once cooked, combine with chicken. Serve immediately with tortilla and toppings.

Optional 0 point toppings: Salsa, chopped serrano chiles, chopped fresh cilantro, sliced green onions.

Old-Fashioned Chicken Pot Pie

I got this recipe right from the Weight Watchers Site. It was filling, not difficult to make and we enjoyed eating it!

Old-Fashioned Chicken Pot Pie

		PointsPlus® value | 6 Servings |  6 Preparation Time |  20 min Cooking Time |  40 min Level of Difficulty |  Easy

Ingredients

·  2 spray(s) butter-flavour cooking spray

·  1 tsp salted butter

·  1 small uncooked onion(s), chopped

·  2 cup(s) fresh mushroom(s), sliced

·  1/4 tsp paprika

·  1/4 tsp dried thyme, crushed

·  1/2 tsp table salt, or more to taste

·  1/4 tsp black pepper

·  2 cup(s) frozen mixed vegetables

·  1 cup(s) canned chicken broth

·  3 cup(s) cooked skinless, boneless chicken breast(s), chopped

·  2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

·  1/2 cup(s) fat-free evaporated milk, divided

·  4 roll(s) reduced-fat crescent roll dough, unrolled

Instructions

·  Preheat oven to 375ºF. Coat a 10-inch round shallow baking dish with cooking spray.

·  Coat a large pot with cooking spray. Add butter and melt over medium heat. Add onion and mushrooms and cook, until tender, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Stir in paprika, thyme, salt and pepper. Add vegetables, broth and chicken. Cover and simmer 15 minutes.

·  In a small cup, combine flour and 1/4 cup of evaporated milk; stir into chicken mixture. Cook over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/4 cup of evaporated milk and cook until mixture is slightly thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes more.

·  Spoon chicken mixture into prepared baking dish. Unroll crescent rolls and arrange dough around inside edge of baking dish to form a border (there will be a hole in the middle). Bake until rolls are golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 15 minutes. Cut into 6 pieces and serve.

So I am making dinner for my family every night and our goal is to look and feel better by the end of the year. With any luck this goal will become a habit! We are doing Weight Watchers, my personal goal is to prove that you can have amazingly tasty meals that are also good for you! Here we go...