Jennifer Barley

Fresh Pico de Gallo

I have been having a hard time finding a salsa that I just love.  So, I have been making my own Pico de Gallo to go with my amazing brown rice tortilla chips.

Here is a simple tried and true recipe:

1- 1/2 pounds plum tomatoes, cored, halved and seeded
3/4 cup finely chopped white onions
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves, fresh
Juice from a fresh lime
1/2 jalapeno, minced
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Mix all together -- and let sit for an hour.  Yummmm!!!!  Zero points for the pico de gallo.  And it honors my commitment to eat less processed foods.

Amazing Curried Red Lentil Soup

The weather has been chilly this July so I have been making some soup.  This is another fabulous recipe from Jenny Brewer of Nourishing Nutrition. It is completely cleansed approved and amazing!

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 gloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon garam masala (I didn't add this)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 - 28 oz. can chopped tomatoes
1 cup red lentils (I soaked them overnight)
1-1/2 cups vegetable stock or water
1 - 15 oz can coconut milk (I used light)
2 teaspoons lemon or line juice
3 cups baby spinach
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in large saucepan  Add onion and garlic and saute for 3-4 minutes.  Add spices and cook for one minute.  Add tomatoes, lentils, stock or water and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes until lentils are tender.  Add in spinach.  Before serving, stir in coconut milk, lemon juice and add salt and pepper to taste.

I think this soup taste even better the next day.

For those counting points -- it would be 20 points for the whole recipe -- and if there were 6 servings, it would be 3 points. (I know that doesn't mathematically add up - -but that is what recipe builder says)

Enjoy!

Tahini-Miso Salad Dressing

I love, love, love this salad dressing.  It is one of the amazing recipes that are part of the 21-day cleanse.  I have made two batches already and have used it for salad dressing as well as on top of baked chicken.

This recipe is from Jennifer Brewer -- who is a nutritionist and a natural food chef.  Her website is:  www.nourishingnutrition.com

Ingredients:

3 tablespoon non-soy miso
3 tablespoons tahini
1 teaspoon mustard
1 teaspoon brown rice vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, mined
1/4 cup of water
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced

Puree all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until creamy.

Off the charts!

(I know that I am not counting points during this --- but I know alot of you who read this blog want to know.  The entire batch is 12 points. Perhaps there is 4 servings per batch.)

The Perfect 2 Point Breakfast

This is the easiest breakfast ever!  And so good.

Spray pan with Pam.  Add in 1/2 cup of egg whites.  Let whites cook in the pan until almost cooked through.  (No need to do anything.)

Sprinkle on fat free feta cheese, green onions and fresh spinach.

Loosen the side of the omelet with tip of spatula -- flip over 1/2 -- into  the shape of an omelet. Cook.

Flip omelet over. Cook.

Serve with 1/2 cup of mix fruit!

Only 2 points.  Love it!

Jenn's Quinoa and Corn Stuffed Peppers

I am have been spending more time in the kitchen and I love a great crock-pot recipe.  I am looking for fresh, easy, and delish!  I haven't had a lot of exposure to stuffed peppers in my life -- so I thought I would give it a whirl and they came out really, really good.

This was adapted from the Weight Watcher's Slow Cook It cookbook available at WW centers in most areas.

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Quinoa
1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups coarsely chopped kale
1 cup fresh or thawed frozen corn
1/2 cup reduced fat feta cheese
2 green onions, chopped
1 - 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
1 (14- 1/2 ounces) can of diced tomatoes with jalapenos
1/2 cup + 4 tablespoons fat-free green salsa
4 large red, or yellow or orange bell peppers

Wrappin' Jenn's - Low Point Turkey Wraps

This week I got a beautiful head of butter lettuce and immediately thought about making some turkey wraps -- I searched for recipes but then decided to do my own thing.  It was amazing!

 Ingredients:

1 onion
2 carrots
2 stalks of celery
1 red pepper
1 can of water chestnuts
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
some kale
4 ounces extra lean ground turkey
3 Tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
Ginger
Butter Lettuce or any kind

Sauce:
soy sauce
tapatio
Chinese mustard

1.  Wash and rinse lettuce.  Pat dry and put plate and set aside.
2.  Put all veggies and water chestnuts in food processor -- or chopped up to desired size.

3.  Place pan on stove over medium high heat  --  heat up sesame oil.
4.  Place chopped veggies and turkey in pan and saute, breaking up turkey with a spoon.  Add 3 tablespoons of soy sauce and ginger.  Cook until done. (I actually saved 1/3 of veggie mixture for another day -- since it made so much.)
5.  Place 1/2 mixture on lettuce for one person -- 1/2 on lettuce for another person.

 Then make the sauce -- I love PF Changs -- so I tried to copy their sauce.

In a small bowl, blend soy sauce, chinese mustard and Tapatio. 

Make it as spicy as you want -- then drizzle on top of turkey mixture.

So, so, so good.

Here is the breakdown -- for the whole recipe (even the 1/3 that I saved for another use) there are 450 calories, 15.7 grams of fiber and 6.1 grams of fat.

So -- if you served two -- it would be 4 points per serving.  Not too shabby!  Love it!

(Bring extra napkins - can be messy!)

Crock Pot Chicken Thighs with Chili and Corn - 4 points

I made the best soup yesterday!  I am not sure it if was meant to be a soup -- but that is what I turned it in to.

Recipe defined Ingredients:

Cooking Spray
1 - 1/2 medium leeks, white parts only, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/4 tsp paprika, sweet variety
6 thighs, boneless, skinless chicken thighs, halved
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 medium corn on the cob, kernels removed with knife
1 average serrano chile, or jalapeno pepper, cored, seeded and finely chopped
1 cup canned chicken broth

Jenn's modifications made to recipe:

I cut up more than a cup of leeks. I used canned corn instead of the cob, I used a total of 2 cans of chicken broth, Curtis kicked it up a notch with Tapico and Mexican Seasonings since I didn't have the serrano chili or jalapeno. Oh, I had some green beans and I threw a bunch of them in as well.

1.  Coat a large skillet with cooking spray.  Add leek and mushrooms and saute over high heat until leek is tender, about 3 minutes.  Put the leek and mushrooms in the slow cooker.

2.  Place chicken in a resealable plastic bag.  Add flour, paprika, salt and pepper and shake well to coat chicken.

3. Re-coat skillet with cooking spray and add chicken.  Brown chicken over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes per side and place in the crock-pot.  Shake any remaining flour mixture from bag over chicken and top with corn and chili.

 

Chicken on top of leeks and mushrooms.

Jenn's Lovin' Lasagna

I found a recipe for Lasagna in a magazine that was printed on an ad for Campbell's soup that looked pretty good.  I modified it in a few places to help reduce the number of calories as well as make it healthier.  I have made it twice in 2 weeks -- it is, well, mmm...mmm....good.

Here it is:

Ingredients:

• 1 can (10-3/4 ounces) Campbell's Healthy Request Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3/4 ground turkey - Jenni-O - Italian Seasoned, lean
• 1 chopped onion
• 2 cups chopped portabella mushrooms
• 1 Jar of red pasta sauce (that has 70 calories or less per 1/2 cup serving -- with 5 serving to a jar, I use a Classico Cabernet sauce.)
• 4 ounces of whole wheat lasagna noodles (which is 5 noodles)
• 1 cup shredded fat free mozzarella or cheddar cheese

Cooked whole wheat lasagna noodles according to package.

Heat the over to 400 degrees.

Stir the soup and milk in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth.

Cook the turkey , onions and mushrooms in 1 10 inch skillet over medium high heat until it is browned, breaking up meat with spoon.

 Stir in pasta sauce.

 

Jenn's Kickin' Chili

We made a wonderful turkey for Christmas -- a 12 pounder.  And for two people, that is a lot of turkey.

I decided to use some of the leftovers and make a batch of Jenn's Kickin' Chili.  In the words of my husband, it is excellent.

Here it is:

• 1 onion chopped
• 1 bag of Frozen pepper strips
• 1 can of tomato sauce (the 14 ounce size)
• 1 package of Chili Seasoning
• 1 package of Taco seasoning (just felt it needed to kick it up one more notch)
• 1 can of corn
• 1 can of black beans rinsed and drained
• 1 can chicken broth (fat free)
• 3 cups of cooked turkey

I did saute the onion up in a pan on the stove -- and then combine all the rest in a slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

Makes 10 - 1 cup servings.

178.3 calories per serving.

Pair it with 5 crumbled up Saltine Crackers (50 calories) and a side salad (125 calories) -- and you have a great lunch for 353.3 calories.

Excellent.

Crispy Asian Slaw with Blender Peanut Sauce

I made this wonderful asian slaw today.  It was super easy and it really low in points.

My goal is to find low point (1 or 2 points max) to have as snacks or side dishes.

Here are the ingredients:

3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons reduced-fat creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
5 cups cabbage mix or thinly sliced cabbage
1 red pepper, chopped
1 cup packaged matchstick-cut carrots
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 scallions, thinly sliced

1.  To make the dressing combine the vinegar, soy-sauce, peanut butter, ginger and brown sugar in a blender and puree.

This is a view from the top of my blender.  I did toss in the green onions as well -- next time I won't -- it turned the dressing too green for my taste (although it was really good)

2. Toss together the remaining ingredients in a serving bowl.

3.  Drizzle with the dressing and toss to coat evenly.

The finished result is excellent -- even better after it is chilled.

1-1/4 cups for 2 points.

Per serving: 117 cal., 3 grams fat, 5 grams fiber.

Super Easy -- Super Good!

    +     + 

Looking for a great meal that requires minimal effort?  Here is what you need:

• Crock Pot
• 1 jar of salsa
• skinless, boneless chicken breast

Merge.  Cook until done.  Shred chicken with a fork.  Use on tacos, or top a salad, or top a potato.

Have leftovers?  Turn it in to soup.

• all leftover salsa
• all leftover chicken
• 1 can of black beans
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 large can chicken broth

Merge.  Cook on stove top on low of a long time.