Turkey Sausage & Pepperoni Pizza

I have recently starting making my own pizza.  It's been amazing, but I've been cheating with a Boboli pizza crust.  I decided it was time to concur my fear of yeast and give homemade pizza dough a try.  It was delicious, despite the thickness of it!

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the top, and let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy.
2. Stir the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture, then mix in the whole wheat flour and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour until dough starts to come together. Tip dough out onto a surface floured with the remaining all-purpose flour, and knead until all of the flour has been absorbed, and the ball of dough becomes smooth, about 10 minutes. Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover loosely with a towel, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.  
3. When the dough is doubled, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and divide into 2 pieces for 2 thin crust, or leave whole to make one thick crust. Form into a tight ball. Let rise for about 45 minutes, until doubled.
4. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Roll a ball of dough with a rolling pin until it will not stretch any further. Then, drape it over both of your fists, and gently pull the edges outward, while rotating the crust. When the circle has reached the desired size, place on a well oiled pizza pan. Top pizza with your favorite toppings, such as sauce, cheese, meats, or vegetables.
5. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes (depending on thickness) in the preheated oven, until the crust is crisp and golden at the edges, and cheese is melted on the top.

Notes:

·        I used a rapid rise yeast so it only had to sit over about 10 minutes with the towel over it. 

·        I had a hard time shaping it, so I left it as one large pizza crust.  It was very thick, like double dough.  Next time I will cut in half or just half the recipe to make enough for 1 thin crust.

·        Because I had a hard time forming it, when I finally got it, I placed it on a pizza board and covered it with a towel for a couple hours before I made it.

·        Once I was ready to make my pizza, I flipped it over and “folded” over a bit of the dough to form a crust.

·        Mine ended up cooking for closer to 25 minutes.

Topping your Pizza:

Ingredients:

• 2-4 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 link of hot turkey sausage, casing removed
• 8 oz of turkey pepperoni
• 1 pound of part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions:

• Brush olive oil along the crust of your dough.  I actually brush it over the entire dough.  Top with basil, oregano, crushed red pepper and garlic salt.
• Top with 4 oz of pizza sauce, spread evenly
• Add 1 layer of turkey pepperoni
• Top with ½ the cheese you are using
• Remove casing from sausage, break into small pieces and place on pizza
• Add remaining cheese and top with pepperoni

Notes:

• I don’t measure any of my ingredients, I just eye ball it.
• This pizza is moderately spicy.  To add more kick, add additional layer of crushed red pepper to the top of the pizza.  To lessen spice, use regular turkey sausage and omit crushed red pepper.

WEIGHT WATCHERS POINTS VALUE: I cut this into ~20 squares.  1 square = 3 points

Strawberry Shortcake... on a stick!

I find that foods on sticks always go over well with our group of friends.  We're all trying to eating healthier though so I knew I had to go healthy with my dessert choice.  I found this Weight Watchers recipe and gave it a try!

Strawberry Shortcake on a stick!
Adapted from Weight Watchers Cookbook

• 1 pound of fresh strawberries, halved
• 12 shortcakes, quarted
• 1/4 cup of chocolate chips
• 1 tsp butter 

Directions:

1. Alternate shortcake and strawberries on a skewer
2. Place on a wax paper lined baking sheet
3. Melt chocolate chips and butter in a double boiler or in the midcrowave
4. Drizzle chocolate over kabobs
5. Chill for 10 minutes or until ready to serve

1 Serving = 1 Kabob
1 serving = 2 points

Spinach Feta Dip

Another one from LaaLoosh!  It did not look very pretty, so I had to explain to people what it was so they were not scared.  It ended up being a huge hit!  I served this with a veggie platter, tortilla chips and crackers.

Spinach Feta Dip

Adapted from LaaLoosh

• 4 1/2 cups spinach ( fresh & chopped)
• ¼  cup green onions (chopped)
• ½ cup reduced fat cream cheese
• ½ cup fat-free sour cream
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1/3 cup crumbled fat free feta cheese ( didn’t really measure, I used about ½ container)
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• Sea salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions:

1.      In a medium skillet, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil.  Once hot, add spinach and toss for a few minutes or until the leaves just begin to wilt.

2.      Place spinach, green onions, cream cheese, garlic, sour cream, feta cheese, crushed red pepper, chives, lemon juice in a blender; puree. Taste dip and add salt and pepper to taste. Empty dip into a serving bow and dig in!

Entire recipe makes 8 servings
Serving size is 3 tbsp
Each serving = 1 Point Total

Buffalo Chicken Dip - WW Edition

I was so happy to find this blog with all of its glorious Weight Watchers recipes.  I made this dip for a jewelry party I hosted.  I served it with tortilla chips, crackers and veggies.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Adapted from LaaLoosh

Ingredients:
- 16 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 8-oz. fat-free cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup fat free sour cream (I added another tablespoon)
- 1/2 cup hot sauce (I use Valentino’s)
- 2 tbsp low calorie butter (I used country crock light spread)
- 1/2 packet of dry ranch dressing mix  

   Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2.   Rub chicken breasts with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Spray a skillet with non-fat cooking spray, and set on med/high heat. Put in chicken breasts, and cook until brown on both sides and meat is cooked through. Set aside. Once meat is cool, cut it up into bite sized shredded chunks.

3.      In a large bowl, stir cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add in chicken and other remaining ingredients, and mix until thoroughly combined.  Move to corningware.

4.      Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes, or until dip has heated all the way through.

Entire recipe makes 12 servings
Serving size is approx 1/2 cup
Each serving = 2 Point Total

Beer Battered Salmon Tacos with Zesty White Sauce

I had a salmon fillet at home with no plans on what to make with it. I came across Oishii's recipe  for beer battered salmon tacos with zesty white sauce. This sounds delicious, so I decided to give it a try.

It’s very easy and relatively fast (about 25 minutes) to make. It was pretty good, it would have been better if I liked Salmon. I’ve come to the conclusion I only liked smoked salmon, not salmon fillets. The sauce yielded quite a bit and not knowing what I could do with the leftovers, I just threw it out (something I hate to do.) So if you are interested in the sauce, I recommend cutting the recipe in half.

Here is my version of the recipe…

Beer Battered Salmon Tacos with Zesty White Sauce

For the White Sauce:

• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup mayo
• Handful of chopped cilantro
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano*
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin*
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder*
• freshly ground black pepper
* I did not measure

For the Beer-Batter:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup beer ( I used Coors Light)

Making the Tacos:

About 6 oz of salmon fillets, skinned and cut into your desired size pieces
6 whole wheat flour tortillas
Vegetable oil and/or olive oil for frying (I use olive oil to fry tortillas)

**Optional toppings: sour cream, guacamole, lime, Mexican shredded cheese blend**

Directions: 

• In a medium bowl, mix together yogurt and mayonnaise. Gradually stir in fresh lime juice until consistency thins. Season with oregano, cumin, chili powder, and black pepper. Add chopped cilantro, mix, set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. In another small bowl blend egg and then blend in beer. Quickly stir into the flour mixture (it’s okay if it’s a little lumpy).
• Heat oil in deep frying pan until hot.
• Dust salmon pieces lightly with flour. Dip into beer batter, and fry until crisp and golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
• Heat tortillas in a hot oiled pan, until slightly crispy on each side. Drain on paper towels.
• To serve, add salmon fillets, whatever toppings you please and drizzle with white sauce. Enjoy!

This made 6 servings. Another Weight Watchers Indulgence: 1 taco = 7 points

Creamy Taco Mac

So all of the ladies on my cooking forum always rave about this creamy taco mac.  I figured I would give it a whirl to see what the hoopla was all about.  It pretty much is a grown-up, no-box version of hamburger helper and it was pretty delicious!  Next time I will try it with fat free cream cheese and fat free sour cream though.

• 1 ¼ pound of ground turkey
• 1 can (14.25 oz) Italian style diced petit tomatoes
• 2 packets of sazon (or you can use 1 packet of taco seasoning)
• 3 oz of cream cheese
• 1./2 cup of sour cream
• 8 oz of whole grain shells
• 1 cup of reserved pasta water
• Salt & pepper
• Fat-free mild cheddar shredded cheese

1. In a medium pot, bring water to boil for pasta.  Cook to al dente
2. In at least a 10” skillet, brown ground turkey until no longer pink.  Add in tomatoes and sazon, mix well.  Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
3. Add in cream cheese, sour cream, cooked pasta and reserved pasta water.  Mix well until all cheeses (especially cream cheese) are melted.
4. Reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes or until it reaches your desired thickness.  Add salt and pepper to taste
5. Serve and top with shredded cheese.  Mix cheese well in your bowl.
6. Enjoy!

This makes about 6 servings. 

Weight Watchers Indulgence!  1 serving = 8 points

Fish Tacos

I like fish. A lot.  Though I have never in my life had a fish taco!  I guess I never really knew what they were exactly.  Maybe I thought it was some weird fish I wouldn’t like or… something.  Either way, I’ve never tried them.  So I decided to see what all of these were about and started looking at recipes to make some myself.  Tilapia is our fish of choice so I went from them and just kind of improvised a recipe. They were awesome!  Even the hubster said he was impressed (he’s never had them either.)  I think we have a winner.

Fish Tacos

4 tilapia fish filets

1 whole lemon

1 whole lime

Lemon Pepper Seasoning Salt

½ cup cilantro

Toppings:

Cheese

Sour cream

Salsa

1. Season fish with lemon pepper seasoning on both sides.  Place fish on a foil lined baking sheets.  Squeeze 1/3 the juice from lemon and ½ the juice from the lime onto filets. Bake thawed at 425 for 15 minutes.  Flip filets midway through baking, squeezing 1/3 of the lemon & lime juices on top of the filets.
2. In a bowl, tear apart cilantro and squeeze remaining 1/3 of the lime and lemon juices onto cilantro.
3. Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet and heat corn and/or flour tortillas.
4. Remove fish from oven and place in bowl with cilantro mix.  Mix together, breaking apart the fish into pieces (it should pretty much fall apart).
5. Create tacos topping with cheese, sour cream, salsa and/or anything else your heart desires 

You know I have to assign this Weight Watchers points.  So 3 corn tortillas with 4 oz of fish mix topped with a total of 1/8 cup of Mexican shredded cheese, 1 tbsp of sour cream and 3 tbsp of salsa = 6.5 points

Chicken with Creamy Artichoke Sauce

 
I had a hankering for artichokes yesterday and I already had taken chicken out for dinner so I went on the hunt for a new recipe.  This one comes from Living Insanity's Blog .  It was delicious but in the future, I will probably chop the artichokes up more and only use ½ - ¾ of the can instead of the full can.

·        3 skinless, boneless chicken breast (I used 1.5 lbs of chicken tenders)

·        1 teaspoon salt

·        1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

·        2 tablespoons butter

·        1/2 cup all-purpose flour

·        1/2 cup dry white wine

·        1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

·        1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained

·        4 oz. cream cheese

·        1 1/2 tablespoons flour

·        1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1.  Sprinkle chicken breasts evenly with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
2. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Place flour in a shallow dish. Dredge chicken in flour. Add chicken to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.
3. Add wine, broth, garlic and artichokes to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits; cook 2 minutes. Add cream cheese and stir until melted. If sauce needs to thicken, mix 2 tablespoons of broth with 1 1/2 tablespoons flour (mix together in a cup and then add) and add to sauce.
4. Remove from heat; stir in juice. Serve sauce over chicken & pasta






Weight Watchers indulgence!  1 serving = 9 points

Mmmmmmmmm pie!

So I had to try this.  It was pretty good.  It would have helped if my bananas weren't so mushy.  I also think some cinnamon in the crust mix wouldn't hurt anyone.

Banana Cream Pie
Adapted from Weight Watchers Cookbook

•  24 low-fat honey graham crackers, made into crumbs (6 full sheets)
•  2 tablespoons butter ( I think this would work best melted.  I did not and it took a while to mix in)
•  2 teaspoons water
•  3 large bananas  (thinly sliced on the diagonal)
•   2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 whole lime)
•   1 packet (2 oz) unflavored gelatin
•   1/2 cup cold water
•   1/3 cup sugar
•   1 1/2 cups plain, fat-free yogurt
•   1 tablespoon vanilla extract
•   grated lime zest (from used lime, optional)

1.   Preheat the oven to 350 degrees; spray a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick spray.
2.  In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, butter and water with a fork.
3.  Press into the bottom  of the pie plate. Bake until firm, 5-10 minutes; cool.
4. In another medium bowl, toss the bananas with the lime juice ( I did this loosely with a spatula to avoid breaking the bananas); reserve 1 cup. Arrange the remaining bananas over the crust. (It is best to place them one by one)
5. In a small saucepan, sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water; let stand 2 minutes. Add the sugar; cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture boils and the gelatin and sugar dissolve, 2-3 minutes.
6. Remove from the heat; whisk in the yogurt and vanilla.Pour into the pie plate. 
7. Arrange the reserved bananas over the pie (again, it is best to do this one by one); sprinkle with lime zest.
8. Refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, until chilled, 2-3 hours.

I take for granted how nice it is to cook for 2

My cousin's husband has basically been living with us Monday-Friday for the last 3 weeks while he works on our patio.  Having perfected cooking for just us two, it threw a wrench in my operation to now cook for 3 every night. Well, he went home this weekend so it was just us for dinner last night.  I'm doing Weight Watchers and Frank is just on a quest to eat healthy, so I have been cooking as healthy as I can.  I made this recipe up last night:

Shrimp Kabobs

• 1 bag of medium sized shrimp (approx. 28 shrimp)
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut into quarters 
• 1 large green bell pepper, cut into quarters 
• 1 whole lemon
• 1 whole lime
• 1 packet of sazon

1.  Soak your skewers, for a few hours prior to cooking, in a bowl full of water
2.  Assemble skewers.  Alternate green pepper, shrimp, red pepper, shrimp, green pepper, etc.  You should have 4 shrimp and 5 peppers.
3. Squeeze lemon and lime over skewers.  Sprinkle with sazon.
4.  Grill for approx 4 minutes on each side.

Disassemble skewers, remove tails and serve over a bed of brown rice.

3 skewers over 2/3 cup of brown rice = 5.5 points

Italian Sausage & Pepper Pasta

I am on my 3rd week of Weight Watchers and I have to say I am really enjoying it.  I was doing the South Beach Diet for a couple of months and hit a plateau.  I needed more flexibility with my menu now that summer is here and social engagements make it hard to say no to so many glorious food and drinks.  Frank is on a quest to get healthy so he has agreed to eat all of the same meals with me for dinner.  Last night, I made my first WW recipe.
 
Italian Sausage & Pepper Pasta
Adapted from Weight Watchers Website

- 1 pound raw Italian sausage, casings removed  
- 2 tsp olive oil, extra-virgin  
- 2 medium yellow pepper(s), cut into 2-inch long thin strips  (I only used one and it definitely needed 2)
- 1/2 cup(s) red wine  
- 1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic  
- 28 oz canned diced tomatoes
- 8 oz tomato paste
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or less to taste  
- 1/4 tsp table salt  
- 1 package of whole wheat or multi grain fuscilli
- 1 package of rigatoni (frank does not like WW or MG pastas)

1. Boil water for pasta in a large pot
2.  Meanwhile, in a skillet, brown sausage while breaking apart with a spoon.  Remove from skillet and put aside
3.  In the same skillet, add olive oil and peppers.  Cook until tender
4.  Add in garlic & wine.  Cook for a couple minutes until it is nearly evaporated.
5.  Add in diced tomatoes, crushed red pepper, salt and browned sausage.  Stir and then add in tomato paste until well mixed.
6.  Bring to boil, reduce heat, cover & simmer for about 10 minutes.
7.  Cook pasta to al dente, drain and rinse with cold water.  Return to pot.
8. Pour sauce over pasta and mix until well blended.

This makes about 4 servings for each type of pasta.  1 serving = 5 points.