Peas with Romaine and Mint

My youngest son gave me a cookbook last week for my birthday..." Williams-Sonoma Essentials of French Cooking"   It is filled with spectacular recipes and fantastic photos.  One recipe that caught my eye, because the ingredients are so simple and was so different from any vegetable dish I have ever made, was the recipe for "Spring Peas with Romaine and Mint."  Since I don't have any fresh spring peas available to me, I substituted frozen ones and they worked just fine.

This side dish is definitely unique and easy to prepare.  It really livens up plain peas...which in my opinion, can be soooo boring.  I have never "sauted" romaine lettuce before, but it gives this dish a nice light crunch even once it's wilted. And what can I say about the addition of mint, except that peas and mint are natural partners and meant to be together!

If you don't have, or don't want to use shallots, you could certainly substitute onions.  I think the sweet onions that are at the market right now would work wonderfully. 

I am looking forward to trying more recipes out of this cookbook, especially the ones in the "les desserts and p`atisseries" section! 

Peas with Romaine and Mint

from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of French Cooking

Printable Recipe

Servings - 4   Serving Size - 1/4th recipe ( approx. a heaping cup per serving)   Points Plus per serving - 2 points+

Calories - 90.2   Total Fat - 3.2g,   Carb. - 11.6g,   Protein - 4.6g,   Fiber - 3.7g

Ingredients: 

1 ( 10 oz.) pkg. of frozen peas

3 cups of shredded romaine lettuce

1 TBS. unsalted butter

2 TBS. finely minced shallots

1/4 cup fat free, low sodium chicken broth

salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh mint

Directions: 

1.  In large nonstick skillet, melt butter over med heat.  Add the shallots and cook until translucent, about 1 minute.  Add peas ( frozen is fine), lettuce, and chicken broth.  Saute until peas are warmed through and lettuce is wilted.  

2.  Add salt and pepper, to taste.  Mix in the mint and serve immediately.  

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As I said, this is truly a unique way to serve peas.  I find vegetables as side dishes can tend to get extremely boring, although most nights I do opt to serve plain old veggies, so every now and then, it's nice to amp it up a bit with something different.  

Next on my list of " must try" from this cookbook is Ratatouille and Zucchini Fritters!

Do you get ever get bored with plain old vegetables?  

Looking for more great recipes featuring peas?  Try these:

Southern Style Peas from Aunt Bee's Recipes 

This post is being shared with:

Full Plate Thursday@ Miz Helen's Country Cottage
It's a Keeper @ Everyday Tastes
Real Food Wednesday @ Kelly the Kitchen Kop

Triple Chocolate Snack Cake

This cake is absolutely one of the best lower calorie chocolate cakes I have ever made.  It is very moist with a deep dark chocolate flavor.  It is a delicious and no one will ever guess it is a lightened up version!  It's another cake that starts with a box mix, but ends up tasting homemade!  This would be a great addition to your upcoming holiday weekend menu.

I made this cake in a 9" x 13"  glass baking dish, but you could also make this recipe into cupcakes or a bundt pan.  ( Nutritional info will vary with amount of yield for cupcakes and how many slices you cut  the bundt cake into)

My entire family loved this cake and you will too!

Triple Chocolate Snack Cake

adapted loosely from MKA recipe for White Chocolate Bundt Cake

Printable Recipe

Servings - 24 or 18 ( depending how you decide to cut it)   Serving size - 1 piece of cake   Points Plus per serving - yield 24 pcs = 4 points+ , yield 18 pcs = 5 points+

Yield 24 pcs:  Calories - 130,   Total Fat - 3.5g,   Carb. - 22.5g,   Protein - 2.1g,   Fiber - 0g

Yield 18 pcs:  Calories - 173,   Total Fat - 4.6g,   Carb. - 30g,   Protein - 2.8g,   Fiber - 0g

1 ( 18.25 oz) box of chocolate cake mix, any brand

1 (1.4 oz) pkg. of chocolate fudge instant pudding mix, sugar free, fat free

1 cup fat free sour cream

1 cup water

1 egg + 1 egg white

2 TBS. canola oil

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray 9" x 13" glass baking dish with cooking spray.  

2. In large bowl, combine all ingredients except chocolate chips.  Beat with an electric mixer at low speed until combined, then at med speed for about 2 minutes.  Batter will be thick.  Fold in chocolate chips with wooden spoon or silicon spatula.   Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly.  

3.  Bake for 25 - 35 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.  Remove and allow to cool to room temp on rack.  Cut into either 24 pcs or 18 pcs.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar just before serving. 

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I have to be honest with everyone, I haven't been going to my WW meetings for several months now.  The scale has slowly begun to creep up a bit, and this morning I took the plunge and started back up.  Its a fresh start for me.  I need to get back to being a great track master!!!  Luckily, I made this cake yesterday to help keep me on track.  Its a BIG punch of chocolate flavor for relatively little points!

If you are a chocoholic like me....make this cake....thank me later!  

Herbed New Potatoes

Healthy Vegetable Fried Rice

Chicken Sausage and Tortellini Soup

I know I have been complaining A LOT about the weather lately.....so with it being so rainy and cold, I decided to make soup!  This Chicken Sausage and Tortellini Soup really hit the spot.  Warm, satisfying, flavorful and delicious!  The original recipe can be found at Allrecipes.com.  

Erica's Choco-Oat Bars

These bars are a delicious, wholesome combination of flavors with a unique soft texture!  This recipe was created by Erica from Itzy's Kitchen.  You can find her original recipe HERE.

They are a great snack for 5 points+ per bar!  The kids all gave this recipe a thumbs up too!

It is a very easy recipe....basically you dump all the ingredients in one bowl and then spread into a baking dish or baking sheet.  Very easy.  I used a quarter baking sheet ( 8 1/2" x 12") to make my bars...but you could use an 8" x 8" baking dish or pan as well...they will just come out a bit thicker.  Thank you Erica for such a great recipe!!

Erica's Choco-Oat Bars

from Erica @ Itzy's Kitchen

Printable Recipe

Servings - 16   Serving Size - 1/16th of recipe   Points Plus per serving - 5 points+

Calories - 162.3,   Total Fat - 7.3g,   Carb. - 30.9g,   Protein - 3.2g,   Fiber - 2.8g

2 cups old fashion oats

1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, raw

1/4 cup sliced almonds

1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup eggbeaters or 2 egg whites

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line an 8" x 8" baking pan with nonstick foil or parchment and allow 2 sides to hang over sides of pan ( to serve as "handles" to remove bars from pan to cut once cooled) .  Lightly spray nonstick foil or parchment with cooking spray.  

2. In large bowl, combine all dry ingredients.  Combine oil, eggbeaters and applesauce.  Mix into dry ingredients to coat.  Press mixture into prepared pan and bake for 25 - 30 minutes.  

3.  Allow to cool, then lift out of pan with handles.  Cut into 16 bars. 

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I have to say, I am not a huge fan of granola type bars, but I did enjoy these.  My nephew said they were much better than the store bought kind.  I was surprised to see they were so soft.  I was expecting a chewy or a crunchy texture, but I liked the soft cookie like texture.  There is still a bit of a bite from the seeds, nuts and the oats. 

Still busy, but the weather...OMG...I can't even talk about how much our weather has taken a turn for the worse!  It's been in the 40's for the past two days and rainy and gloomy.  So hard to get motivated to do exercise when it gets like this!  They are saying better weather is coming by week's end...I sure hope they are right!!  If you aren't in this yuck...I hope you are enjoying a nice spring and if you are...stay warm!  lol  I seriously think I need to relocate!  If only I could!......lol

This post is being shared with:
Melt in Your Mouth Monday @ Make Ahead Meals for the Busy Mom

Oven Roasted Green Beans w/ Garlic

A side dish that is as easy as can be and compliments anything grilled or BBQ perfectly!

I love almost any kind of vegetable that has been oven roasted.  There was a time a few years back, I would make a huge batch of oven roasted veggies and have them almost everyday for lunch!

Roasting brings out the natural sugars in the vegetables and kicks them up a notch in the flavor department.  Some important rules for oven roasting are to make sure whatever you are roasting is DRY...if there is moisture, you will end up steaming instead of roasting and DO NOT over crowd the pan!   Try to get everything in a single layer with a bit of space between. Another great tip to insure perfect roasting is to make sure you allow your oven to get up to temperature before you put whatever you are roasting inside. 

Oven Roasted Green Beans w/ Garlic

from the kitchen of MKA

Printable Recipe

Servings - 4   Serving Size - 1/4th of recipe ( approx. 1 cup)   Points Plus per svg - 2 points+

Calories - 66.2,   Total Fat - 3.5g,   Carb. - 8.3g,   Protein - 2.1g,   Fiber - 3.8g

4 cups fresh green beans ( I used Haricot Vert)

1 TBS. extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper, to taste

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Spray large baking sheet with cooking spray.  

2.  Combine the beans, oil, garlic and salt and pepper.  Arrange on the baking sheet in a single layer.  

3. Bake for 20 - 25 min, or until crisp tender, mixing half way through cook time. 

Enjoy! :)

This post is being shared with
Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage

Greek-Style Lamb Burgers

There is a local restaurant, called the Grille, that serves the BEST lamb burgers.   I am not a huge fan of lamb.  The strong taste often turns me off,  but after trying lamb burgers at the Grille, I became an instant fan of these burgers and couldn't stop thinking about how tasty they were.  Like a gyro on a bun....but better.  I knew I wanted to recreate them at home....but had never bought nor cooked with ground lamb before. 

When I stumbled across some lean ground lamb on sale at the grocery store last week, I knew exactly what I would make with it.  I did a recipe search on WW online, and found a recipe that I loosely followed.  You can find the original recipe HERE. 

I didn't make the sauce to go with them, because I had already had on hand, one of my very favorite store bought tatziki in the fridge ( see pic below) .  I get it at Costco.  It is delicious, and only 1 p+ per 1 oz. serving.  I also used Rosemary Herb rolls I purchased from Costco as well.   The rosemary went perfect with the burgers, but pita halves would work just as well here too!  You can also top your burgers with feta cheese, sliced red onion, and roasted red pepper if you desire.  ( toppings and buns NOT included in nutrition information)
 

I will definitely be making these burgers again.  I was all set to grill them outside...but then, wouldn't you know it, thunderstorms came!  lol  So I ended up making them in my grill pan on the stove.  But next time, I am going to grill them outdoors!  I served them up with some roasted red potatoes and roasted veggies.  YUM!

Greek-Style Lamb Burgers

loosely adapted from a WW Online Recipe

Printable Recipe

Servings - 4   Serving size - one burger ( 3 - 4 oz. cooked weight)   Points Plus per serving - 7 points+

( *Please note, the nutritional information may change with the leaness of the ground lamb you use.  My package stated there was approx. 14g of total fat per 4 oz. meat and that is what I based my calculations off of, if you find a leaner ground lamb, it may be less points+)   Calories - 277.5,   Total Fat - 14.8g,   Carb. - 1.6g,   Protein - 30.9g,   Fiber - 0.2g

1 lb. of lean ground lamb*

1/4 cup sweet onion ( such as vidalia), finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 TBS. lemon zest

2 TBS. fresh oregano, finely chopped

2 TBS. fresh parsley, finely chopped

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

1/8 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

1/4 cup egg beaters OR 1 egg white

1.  In large bowl, combine all ingredients.  Form into 4 patties.  

2.  Cook on med-high heat on grill or on stove top in grill pan until done ( about 3 - 5 minutes per side) or internal temperature reaches 145 - 160 degrees F.  

3.  Serve on pita halves or buns and top with fresh tomato slices, feta cheese, red onion slices, tatziki, and/or roasted red peppers.  ( Toppings and buns NOT included in nutritional information)

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Yes, I was all set to finally do some grilling, and then it began to thunder.  It never really poured rain, and I could have probably gotten my grilling done...but I didn't want to chance having to stand out in the pouring rain cooking.  

As I have mentioned, these burgers were really delicious.  My son asked for seconds, but since this was the first time I was attempting cooking with ground lamb, I only made enough for each of us to have one.  Next time I will make more.  :)   How about you?  Are you a fan of lamb?  Have you ever had a lamb burger? 

Lightened Up Macaroni Salad

If given a choice between macaroni salad and potato salad, my husband will choose macaroni salad every time.  Me...I am more of a potato salad kind of gal...

But to keep my man happy, I most often make macaroni salad.  Macaroni salad and potato salad are THE salads of summer....and go perfectly with anything cooked up on the grill.  This is my husbands favorite macaroni salad recipe....lightened up, but still strong on flavor. 

This side dish makes a frequent appearance at our table during the warm months. I love the crunch from the red peppers as well as the color they give to the salad.  If you like banana peppers, be sure to put them in...they really give the salad an extra punch of flavor!

Lightened Up Macaroni Salad

from the kitchen of MKA

Printable Recipe

Servings - 10    Serving size - 1/10th of recipe   Points Plus per serving - 4 points+

Calories - 153.6,   Total Fat - 3.5g,   Carb. - 26g,   Protein - 4.4g,   Fiber - 1.5g

Ingredients: 

12 oz. any shaped dry pasta ( I like to use small shells or elbows)

2 TBS. red wine vinegar or cider vinegar

2 TBS. reduced fat mayonnaise ( such as Hellman's)

1 TBS. extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp. dried tarragon

salt and pepper, to taste

1 hard boiled egg, finely chopped

2 medium stalks of celery, finely diced

1/4 cup red onion, finely diced

1/4 cup sweet red pepper, finely diced

2 TBS mild banana peppers, finely diced ( optional but adds a lot of flavor) 

Directions:

1.  Cook pasta to al dente, according to package directions and rinse well with cold water to cool.  

2.  In large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mayo, olive oil, and tarragon to combine into a vinaigrette.  Add in the celery, onion, red pepper, banana pepper, egg and cooked pasta.  Stir to combine.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cover and let sit in refrigerator for at least a half and hour to let flavors mingle.  Stir again before serving. 

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Again, I am apologizing for the lack of recent posts lately.  Life is just keeping me too busy to sit much at the computer this month....and cooking has not been as frequent around this house as usual because of it.  

The weather is finally, finally cooperating a bit this week, with warmer temperatures and less rain and I am itching to grill this week.  I hope you all are doing well and getting to enjoy more seasonable weather around your neck of the woods as well.

I also want to give a huge shout out to Denise@ The Bread Fairy for awarding me with yet another Versatile Blogger Award!!!   Wow!  I am going to have to give this some more thought to come up with more facts about myself and a list of new blogs, since I received one not that long ago....check out her incredible blog full of delicious breads!  Thank you Denise!

Looking for more pasta inspired side dishes?  Try these!
Garlic and Parmesan Orzo with Fresh Veggies from Life Tastes Good

Strawberries and Cream French Toast Bake