Category Archives: Dinner

Roast Turkey

January 28, 2011 admin Leave a comment

A turkey roasting in the oven makes me happy 🙂 Don’t save it just for holidays ! Roast a small turkey for dinner and there are tons of recipes you can make with the leftover meat. Roasting is easy and at only 153 calories for 4 ounces, it’s a great meal choice.

1 serving (4 ounces meat, no skin)
153 calories per serving

1 turkey
1 onion
1 t oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Clean turkey and salt and pepper the inside. Peel onion and place whole onion inside the bird. Place turkey in a roasting pan, preferably one with a bottom that keeps the turkey raised out of the cooking juices. Oil the top of the turkey and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place 1/2 c water in the bottom of the pan. Cover loosely with aluminum foil and roast approximately 20 pounds per pound. Baste with juices every hour, recover, and return to oven. During the last 15-25 minutes remove the cover to let the skin brown.

Remove from oven and let sit 20 minutes before carving.

One great recipe for leftover meat is Turkey Noodle Soup !

Crock pot, Dinner, Kid Friendly, Sides

Cheryl’s Crock Pot Sweet Potatoes

January 21, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Wherever the recipe came from, this is now “Cheryl’s Sweet Potatoes” to me since my friend Cheryl gave me this recipe 🙂 These are a bit on the high side for calories, so serve them with a nice light serving of fish or chicken. They are so satisfyingly good – just sweet enough without being too sweet ! You could skinny these up using less butter, Splenda brown sugar blend – – but why mess with perfection !?!?!

4 servings
289 calories per serving

2 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
1/4 c packed dark brown sugar
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/8 t salt
2 T butter, cut into pieces
1 t vanilla

Combine potatoes, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and place in the crock pot. Cook on low for 7 hours or high for 4 hours. Add butter and vanilla at the end, stir gently to blend.

Dinner, FiberGourmet, Italian, Pasta

Italian Veggies and Pasta

January 20, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Savory, cheesy, hot baked goodness ! This pasta and veggie dish has just enough spice and everything is right. The mixture of cheeses is awesome and when you add in all the veggies. This becomes a super nutritious, healthy meal.

4 servings
390 calories per serving

8 oz. uncooked FiberGourmet rotini (with regular pasta, add 80 calories per serving)
3 c diced, peeled eggplant
1 c thinly sliced zucchini
1 c chopped green pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ t garlic powder
½ t onion powder
½ t basil flakes
½ t oregano flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
8 oz. spicy tomato sauce
4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
2 oz. shredded gruyere cheese
2 T grated parmesan cheese
Pam

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, cover and keep warm. In a Dutch oven or large skillet combine eggplant, zucchini, pepper, garlic, seasonings, tomato sauce and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and cover and simmer 20 minutes. Spray a 9×13 pan with Pam and spoon in pasta then sprinkle with parm and pour over the veggie mix. Sprinkle with mozzarella and gruyere cheeses. Broil 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Dinner, Lunch, Soups, Turkey

Sausage and Lentil Soup

January 18, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Talk about a satisfying soup ! This one has meat, spice, veggies, cheese and 3 DIFFERENT CARBS! Lentils, rice and tortellini. Oh how good 🙂

13 servings
275 calories per serving

20 oz. turkey Italian sausage with casings removed
13 c water
1 c chopped carrots
2 c chopped celery
½ c diced green bell pepper
2 t onion powder
¾ t oregano flakes
1 t garlic powder
1 t basil flakes
2 t chicken boullion
½ t seasoned salt
¼ t pepper
2 c dried lentils, rinsed
½ c dry rice
22 oz. canned crushed tomatoes
2 ½ c cheese tortellini (refrigerated)
Salt and pepper to taste

Crumble the sausage and cook in a skillet until done (keep crumbling as you cook it). In a large soup pan mix water, vegetables and spices then add lentils and rice and bring to a boil then reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes or until lentils are tender. Stir in tomato sauce, bring to a boil again and add the tortellini and sausage and cook 4 minutes or until tortellini are done. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Chicken, Dinner, Turkey

Chicken and Sausage

January 16, 2011 admin Leave a comment

The flavors in this dish remind me of a chicken and sausage casserole that my Mom used to make in the winters. This is a very filling meal – real comfort food ! 🙂

4 servings
360 calories per serving

2 t oil
½ pound turkey sausage, casing removed and crumbled up
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (10 oz. total)
Kosher salt to taste
Pepper to taste
1 onion, diced
1 lb. potatoes, quartered
3 ribs celery cut into 1 inch pieces
1 c chicken broth
2 T red vinegar
1 T chopped parsley

In a Dutch oven or large soup pot, heat oil then add sausage and cook 5 minutes. Remove to plate. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to pan and cook until golden, about 6 minutes, flipping half way through. Move to plate. Add onion and celery and cook 5 minutes, then add potatoes and season with salt and pepper and cook 15 minutes. Add sausage back to pot and then chicken and broth. Bring to a boil them cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes or until potatoes are done. Take off the lid and bring back to a boil and cook until liquid equals only ½ c. Place chicken on a platter and add vinegar and parsley to pot and stir. Then add the rest to the platter with a slotted spoon.

Crock pot, Dinner, Kid Friendly, Pork

Barbecue Pork Chops (Crock Pot)

January 15, 2011 admin Leave a comment

How nice to place some ingredients in a slow cooker/crock pot and come back 4 hours later to a perfectly cooked meal ! Serve with a small side of mashed potatoes for a great meal.

4 servings
237 calories

8 5-ounce boneless pork chops
Salt and pepper to taste
Pam
1/2 c BBQ sauce
14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes
10 oz. frozen vegetables

Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper. Spray a warm skillet with Pam and return to heat. Add chops and cook until brown on both sides. Pam a crock pot and place the chops in the crock. Mix the sauce, tomatoes and vegetables. Stir well and pour over the chops. Cook on high 4 hours.

The BBQ sauce is what really makes the dish – make sure to choose one of your favorites and to embellish it with extra garlic, lemon, vinegar….whatever makes it good to you !

Dinner, FiberGourmet, Italian, Pasta

Tri Color Pepper Pasta

January 13, 2011 admin Leave a comment

This has some of the best flavor you will find in a pasta dish ! The sauteed peppers and onions (much like you add to sausage and peppers) quickly impart their tremendous flavor top the pasta and you end up with a dish that completely satisfies your taste buds.

4 servings
320 calories per serving

8 oz. FiberGourmet Penne, Spaghetti, or Fettuccine (without FiberGourmet pasta, you have to add another 80 calories per serving to this)
1 T oil
1 medium onion in thin slices
1 medium orange bell pepper in bite sized strips
1 medium yellow bell pepper in bite sized strips
1 medium green bell pepper in bite sized strips
1/3 c prepared pesto
Salt and pepper to taste
1 t onion powder
½ t garlic powder
1 t crushed red pepper flakes
¼ c shredded parmesan cheese

Cook penne according to package directions. Heat oil and cook onion 2 minutes then add peppers and spices and cook 10-15 minutes or until they are very tender. Add pasta and then remove from heat and stir in pesto. Add salt and pepper and sprinkle with cheese.

Dinner, Fish, Lunch, Soups

Garlic Seafood Soup

January 11, 2011 admin Leave a comment

This recipe gives you a simple seafood soup that has such a deep flavor ! Using all the shells in the broth preparation makes such a difference. You will love this one !

6 servings
301 calories per serving

8 oz. medium shrimp, shells on
Pam
2 c onion, chopped
12 cloves garlic, minced
½ green bell pepper, halved
1/4 c chicken broth
6 c water
1 T butter
2 T flour
3/4 c heavy cream
1 t salt
1 lb. red snapper fillets, cut into bite size pieces
3 T chopped cilantro leaves

Peel and clean the shrimp. Reserve the shells. Heat a soup pan on medium high and spray with Pam. Add shells, onion, garlic, and pepper and saute 5 minutes. Add broth and cook 3 minutes. Add water and bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer 40 minutes or until liquid equals about 3 cups. Strain liquid into a bowl and discard all the solid pieces. Clean the pot and heat to medium high again. Melt butter and stir in flour. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Slowly add shrimp broth whisking constantly. Stir in rest of the broth and salt and bring back to a boil. Cook 5 minutes and then drop in shrimp and fish and cream. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes or until fish is done. Promptly remove from heat. Top each bowlful with cilantro.

Beef, Dinner, Kid Friendly

Beef Stroganoff Casserole

January 9, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Another in my search for the perfect ‘homemade hamburger helper’ recipe. This one is definitely a contender ! It is very flavorful and sometimes you just gotta have beef (many of my others use ground turkey). It’s 404 calories – so just do a few jumping jacks before dinner and you’ll burn off those extra 4 🙂

6 servings
404 calories per serving

1 lb. lean ground beef
¼ t salt
¼ t pepper
1 t oil
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
¼ c white cooking wine
1 can low fat cream of mushroom soup
½ c light sour cream
1 T Dijon mustard
4 c cooked egg noodles
Pam

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 13×9 pan with Pam. Cook meat in a skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until no longer pink, separating the pieces as it cooks. Drain liquid and fat from meat and set meat aside. In same skillet add mushrooms, onion and garlic and cook 3 minutes. Add wine and reduce heat and cook another 3-4 minutes then remove from heat and stir in soup, sour cream and mustard. Return beef to pan and mix well. Put noodles in the baking dish and then pour beef over the noodles. Mix well. Bake uncovered 30 minutes.

Dinner, Kid Friendly, Sides

Simply Roasted Potatoes with Garlic Sauce

January 5, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Simple and elegant – potatoes and garlic are just meant to go together !

Simply Roasted Potatoes with Garlic Sauce

4 servings
200 calories per serving

1.5 lb. new potatoes, quartered
2 T oil
10 cloves garlic
1 t oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put potatoes in a baking dish and drizzle with 2 T oil. Toss well and roast 10 minutes. Place whole garlic cloves in a small baking dish or ramekin and drizzle with 1 t oil then cover with foil and place in the oven after the potatoes have cooked for 10 minutes. Roast the potatoes and garlic for ½ hour them remove from oven. Mash garlic with salt and pepper and then toss with the potatoes. Add extra salt and pepper to taste.