Roasted Brussels Sprout with Bacon in Mustard Cream Sauce

This was amazing.  Seriously.  I cant believe it's so low in calories.  I ate this for dinner all of last week & found myself wanting to remake it for several weeks in a row.  This is definitely on the repeat list.

Recipe slightly adapted from Closet Cooking
Yields 4 servings
250 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS
1.5lbs brussels sprouts, trimmed & quartered
1 tbsp olive oil
4 strips turkey bacon, cut into 1in pieces
2 tbsp margarine
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 tbsp flour
1 c light cream
2 tbsp grainy mustard
1/2 c parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Toss brussels sprouts in olive oil, salt, & pepper.
Place in a baking dish & and roast for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a pan, cook the bacon.  Drain & set aside.

In the same pan, add margarine & let melt and bubble.
Add the onion & cook until tender.
Add garlic; cook until fragrant.
Mix in flour and let cook for another minute or two.
Mix in the bacon, cream, mustard, & parmesan.
Stir until thick.

Pour mustard mixture over brussels sprouts & toss to coat.

Ham & Pasta Salad

This is actually my lunch from last week.  This week's lunch is super close to something Ive made and posted already on this blog.  No need for repeats.  Every time last week that I ate this at my desk, I had someone comment on how amazing it smelled.  And it does -- tastes as good, too.

Recipe from BHG dot com
Yields 8 servings
175 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

1 c whole wheat rotini

2 c frozen peas & carrots

16 oz cooked ham, cubed

8 scallions, sliced

1 c plain lowfat yogurt

4 tbsp lowfat honey mustard dressing

2 medium tomatoes, diced

1 green pepper, sliced

DIRECTIONS

Cook pasta with peas, according to pasta box directions.

Rinse with cold water & place in a large bowl.

Add ham & green onions & mix.

In a seperate bowl, mix together yogurt & honey mustard.

Pour the yogurt mixture into the pasta & toss to coat.

Cover & chill for 4 hours.

Serve with peppers & tomotoes.

Breakfast Stuffed Peppers

Honestly, Ive never been a huge fan of stuffed peppers but, this seemed interesting so I had to try it out.  Obviously, Ive been missing out because these were amazing!  I think that bell peppers and morning time go hand and hand.  These are basically an omelette held by a pepper.  So delicious!

Recipe from The Skinny Fork
Yields 4 servings
117 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

2 green peppers, halved

1/2 green pepper, chopped

1/2 c onion, chopped

2 large eggs

4 egg whites

1/2 c lowfat cheddar cheese

salt & pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375.

Line a pan with aluminum foil.

Place pepper halves on baking sheet & set aside.

Place chopped pepper, onion, eggs, egg whites, & 1/4 cup of cheese in a large bowl & whisk.

Season with salt & pepper.

Pour egg mixture into pepper halves.

Bake for 45 minutes.

Remove peppers from oven & sprinkle with cheese.

Spinach & Artichoke Wonderpot

I told you guys that I was big into spinach last week.  And this was so super tasty.  I did make some alterations from the original recipe to bring the calorie count down but, nothing major.  I think that Ill top this with a little bit of feta next time I make it.  It was really super tasty without but, I think that it wouldve made it that much more amazing.

Recipe slightly adapted from Budget Bytes
Yields 6 huge servings
196 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

8 oz sliced mushrooms

14oz can artichoke hearts, drained & chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced 

1 medium yellow onion, diced

5 cups veggie broth

2 tbsp olive oil

12 oz whole wheat spaghetti

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp thyme

Cracked black pepper

4 oz frozen cut spinach (not thawed!)

DIRECTIONS

Place veggie broth, olive oil, mushrooms, artichoke, onions, & garlic in a large pot.

Break the spaghetti in half & add it to the pot along with oregano, thyme, & black pepper.

Push ingredients under the broth as much as possible.

Place a lid on the pot & bring it to a boil.

As soon as the pot reaches a boil, stir to evenly distribute ingredients.

Turn the heat down to low, replace the lid, & let simmer for 15 minutes.

Stir the pot every few minutes to prevent pasta from sticking.

Once the pasta is cooked through, turn off the heat, add the frozen spinach, replace the lid & allow the heat from the pasta mixture to thaw the spinach.

Serve hot.

The smells that came from my kitchen while this was cooking were AMAZING.  I still have some of this leftover from last week & Im going to gobble it up from lunch today.

Baked Penne Florentine

I dont know what it is about this week but, Im all about some spinach.  I think because Im doing a lot of work on my skin and leafy greens are so good for clearing up skin and adding glow.

Anyways, I made this for my lunch this week & it's super tasty!

Recipe from BHG dot com
Yields 6 servings
315 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

8 oz whole wheat penne

10 oz frozen spinach, thawed & drained

1/4 c vegetable broth

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 3/4 c water

15 oz canned navy beans, rinsed & drained

2 tsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp mustard

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1/2 c whole wheat bread crumbs

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375.

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain & return to pot.

Add spinach & toss to combine.

Spoon into baking dish & set aside.

In a saucepan, combine veggie broth, onion, & garlic.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, & simmer for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat & set aside.

Add half of the water, onion mixture, beans, lemon juice, mustard, salt, & pepper to a food processor.

Blend until smooth.

Transfer to a bowl & stir in remaining water.

Stir bean mixture into pasta mixture, sprinkle with breadcrumbs & bake for 30 minutes.

Spagehtti with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

I have a major food love affair with mushrooms.  They're tasty and filling and they dont really need much in the way of spicing.  All you have to do is saute them & you're good to go.

Recipe from Eating Well
Yields 6 servings
341 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

12 oz whole wheat spaghetti

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp chopped garlic (about 2 cloves)

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

1.5 lb sliced mushrooms

3 tbsp flour

1 c chicken broth

1/3 c light cream

DIRECTIONS

Cook pasta according to box directions.

Drain & set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.

Add garlic, salt, & pepper; saute for about a minute.

Add the mushrooms & cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated, about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle flour over the mushrooms and stir to coat.

Pour in broth & bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

Simmer, while stirring, until thick.

Remove from heat & stir in cream.

Stir mushroom mix into spaghetti and serve.

Mexican Skillet

You guys know that I love Mexican food.  Ive been having cravings for it lately, especially with my (future) father in law coming into town this past week.  We were talking about varying cuisines and our shared love for the deliciousness that is authentic Mexican food.  It made me have a sever craving.  Now, I will say that no matter how hard I try, anything Mexican inspired that I cook with probably never be as amazing as the real thing but, I do what I can.  Haha.

Recipe from BHG dot com

Yields 6 servings

230 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

12 oz chorizo

2 c whole kernal corn, frozen

14.5 oz can diced tomatoes

1 c uncooked instant brown rice

1/2 c water

2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

15 oz can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

3/4 c lowfat cheddar jack cheese

DIRECTIONS

Remove casings from chorizo & cook in a large skillet over medium heat until browned.

Drain & set aside.

Add corn, tomatoes, rice, water, chili powder, & cumin to the skillet.

Bring to a boil & then reduce heat.

Cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed & rice is tender.

Stir in beans & cooked sausage; heat through.

Sprinkle with cheese & let stand for a few minutes to melt the cheese.