Pumpkin Chili

I know.....I know.....you're thinking 'ick', right?  Well get that thought out of your head.....this stuff is good! The pumpkin gives it such a nice flavor. Seriously.....try this. Or make your own version of chili and add a can of pumpkin.

PUMPKIN CHILI

Makes 8 Servings

1 Serving = 1 Cup = 4 PointsPlus™

1 lb lean ground beef
1 can (15 oz) dark red kidney beans
1 can (15 oz) light red kidney beans
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
1 cup beef or vegetable broth
1 medium onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 (or 2) garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried cilantro
1 tsp dried oregano

Add beef, salt & pepper to a soup pot or Dutch oven. Brown meat.

Add onion, green pepper & garlic. Cook until 'tender'.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

 

Stir well. Bring to a boil and then simmer for at least 1 hour, stirring from the bottom every 10 – 15 minutes.

 

MY SPIN: You can add more onion, pepper, garlic and spices to you own taste.

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!

Jan

Brownie Cupcakes

I've been holding onto this recipe for a while.....and I just don't know why! But today I decided to tweak it and make it. When I first looked at it, I thought something was just not right......only 3/4 cup flour? Yup! I tried one and thought it was good. I asked my husband (who normally doesn't eat any of the baked stuff I make) to try one and he said "Hmmmmm." I asked if that was a good Hmmmm or a bad Hmmm.....and he said they have alot of flavor. YAY!!!!!  These are so easy to make......and you probably have all the ingredients in your pantry & fridge. So go make them!!!

BROWNIE CUPCAKES

Makes 12 Brownie Cupcakes

1 Brownie Cupcake = 2 PointsPlus™

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup PLUS 1 TBSP firmly packed brown sugar
3 TBSP unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 tsp cider vinegar
1 1/2 TBSP light butter, melted
1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray muffin pan.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, cocoa, baking soda & salt.

In a smaller bowl, mix together the water, applesauce, vinegar, butter & vanilla.

Pour wet mixture over dry mixture and stir until smooth.

 

Pour into muffin pan, filling each @1/2 full.

Bake 18 – 20 minutes or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean.

Let stand in pan 5 minutes and then remove to cooling rack.

MY SPIN: This originally called for less butter. I 'accidentally' put more in and it is delicious! Mine only made 11.

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!
Jan

Cinnamon Pumpkin 'Custard'

I hunted......I searched.....I looked all over this area & up the mountain for a 9" quiche dish because of this recipe. Was it worth the wait? I think so! This is kind of like a pumpkin pie without the crust with a little spice to it. This is supposed to have a caramelized sugar topping......

CINNAMON PUMPKIN 'CUSTARD'

Makes 6 Servings WITH Caramelized Sugar = 4 PointsPlus™ OR

Makes 6 Servings WITHOUT Caramelized Sugar = 3 PointsPlus™ OR

Makes 8 Servings WITH Caramelized Sugar = 3 PointsPlus™ OR

Makes 8 Servings WITHOUT Caramelized Sugar = 2 PointsPlus™

1 cup pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling)

1/2 cup fat-free egg substitute
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp allspice
1 (12 oz.) can fat-free evaporated milk
1/4 cup sugar (for caramelized sugar topping); optional

Preheat oven to 300º.

In a medium bowl, combine the pumpkin, egg substitute, brown sugar, cinnamon and allspice.

 

 

Stir in the evaporated milk.

 

 

Pour into a 9” quiche dish.

This is the 9" quiche dish I looked for forever!!

Bake for 58 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Cover and chill at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.

Before serving, let the custard stand at room temperature for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, for the caramelized sugar, in a heavy 8” skillet, heat the sugar over medium-high heat until the sugar begins to melt, shaking the skillet occasionally to heat the sugar evenly. Do NOT stir!!! Once the sugar starts to melt, reduce the heat to low; cook @5 minutes more or until all of the sugar is melted and golden; stirring as needed with a wooden spoon. Quickly drizzle the caramelized sugar over the custard. Serve immediately.

MY SPIN: For me, caramelized sugar just isn't worth a PointsPlus™ so I opted to NOT make it. I do, however, think it would be really good with a dollop of fat-free whipped topping which wouldn't add any PointsPlus™. And, if you know me, you know I love cinnamon so I probably used a full teaspoonful.....kind of rounded.

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!
Jan

Turkey Scaloppine with Asparagus

I've told many people that I don't "do" Weight Watchers recipes......that's too easy. Well, I'm here to eat my words.....or at least the finished product of my words! This recipe comes from the "What to Eat Now" cookbook which is exclusive to the Ultimate Weight Watchers 360º Kit. Even if you're not a WWer you will love this recipe.

TURKEY SCALOPPINE WITH ASPARAGUS

Makes 4 Servings

1 Serving = 6 PointsPlus™

1 pound asparagus, trimmed
1 1/4 pounds thin-sliced turkey breast cutlet, cut into 4 pieces
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp black pepper
(1/4 tsp salt)
3 tsp light butter
1/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP drained capers

Forgot to put the butter in this pic. Ugh!



Asparagus: Place trimmed asparagus in a vegetable steamer and steam according to the steamer's directions.

 

(If you don't have a Vegetable Steamer of any kind, I highly recomment this one. Just get one!!)



Meanwhile, sprinkle turkey pieces with paprika and pepper (and salt if you choose to use it).

 

 

 

Melt 1 tsp butter in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add turkey and cook until lightly browned. Add broth, wine, lemon juice and capers; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, turning turkey once, until cooked through (about 3 minutes).

Remove the skillet from the heat and swirl in the remaining 2 tsp butter.

Spoon sauce & capers over turkey on a plate. Plate asparagus.

MY SPIN: See the salt in parenthesis? I opted to NOT use it, but you might. I used the Holland House white cooking wine.....if you don't want to use wine, use more chicken broth. If you don't particularly care for turkey breast cutlets, I'm sure this would be good using chicken or even pork; if you don't particulary care for asparagus you can substitute any other vegetable, keeping in mind if it's a starchy veggie it will ADD PointsPlus™ value to the recipe.

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!
Jan

Banana Blueberry Muffins

Again, I'm making up for not doing much Kitchen Therapy.  A local grocery store had blueberries on sale......even tho I still have some in the freezer, the thought of fresh blueberries made me happy. I had a couple of very ripe bananas that I wanted to use....so this is what I came up with.  I spread a little Brummel & Brown on one and it was delicious!!!

BANANA BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

Makes 12 muffins

1 muffin = 2 PointsPlus™

2 medium very ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup fat-free egg substitute
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray muffin pan; set aside.

Beat together the mashed bananas and egg substitute until creamy.

Add milk and applesauce; beat well.

Add flour, baking soda and baking powder; beat well.

Gently fold in the blueberries.

Spoon into muffin pan.

 

 

 

Bake 23 minutes or until lightly browned.

 

 

 

Cool on rack.

MY SPIN: This doesn't call for cinnamon, but I sprinkled some in the batter. The next time I make this I will put a generous 1 teaspoon in for flavor......I just think they need cinnamon. Also, I put more than 1 cup of blueberries in these muffins......1 cup just didn't seem like enough. When you add more blueberries, these become a very generous muffin for a mere 2 PointsPlus™!

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!
Jan

Beef Barley Soup

It was mighty cold here on January 17th.....and windy and sleety and some folks even got snow.  Before the weather got really bad, I got the idea that I wanted some Beef Barley Soup and had to run to the store before the weather got nasty. So glad I did because this soup is good!

BEEF BARLEY SOUP

Makes 6 Servings

1 Serving = @1 cup = 5 PointsPlus™

 

1 tsp olive oil
2 pounds lean stew meat, cut into small, bite-size pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cups chopped carrots
1 cup chopped celery
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp salt
2 bay leaves
2/3 cup dry barley
fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 (32 oz.) 100% fat-free beef broth
1 Knorr beef Homestyle Stock
4 cups of water

Heat a dutch oven or soup pot; add oil, beef, salt & pepper; brown beef.

Add carrots, celery & onion; stir.

Add beef broth, stock and water. Add bay leaves. Stir. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to low, cover & simmer 1 1/2 – 2 hours.

Add barley and more pepper (to taste). Simmer @30 minutes more.

Enjoy!!!

MY SPIN: I didn't have any garlic cloves so I just used powdered garlic to taste. You can add more of the veggies since they're 'free'.

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!

Jan

2 Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake

I'm making up for lost Kitchen Therapy time! I couldn't get pictures to load and it really irritated me. But I have an alternative figured out so here we go!  This is a combination of 2 things I love....cream cheese and pumpkin. This is so easy to make and would 'impress' your family and friends.

2 LAYER PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

Makes 8 Servings

1 Serving = 3 PointsPlus™

1 pkg (8 oz.) Neufchatel cream cheese
1 pkg (8 oz.) fat-free cream cheese
1/2 cup Splenda granulated
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup fat-free egg substitute
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (NOT pie filling)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
dash nutmeg
1/2 cup low fat graham cracker crumbs
fat-free whipped topping

Preheat oven to 350º.

Beat cream cheeses, Splenda granulated & vanilla with a mixer until blended.

Beat in fat-free egg substitute just until blended. Remove 1 cup; set aside.

Stir in pumpkin and spices.

Spray a 9” pie plate; sprinkle bottom with the graham cracker crumbs. Top crumbs with the plain cream cheese mixture and top that with the pumpkin mixture.

Bake 40 minutes or until the center is almost set. Cool completely and then refrigerate 3 hours before serving. Top with a dollop of fat-free whipped topping or eat plain.

MY SPIN: The next time I make this I'm going to put a 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp of nutmet to give it a little more 'kick'.

Now for the 'legal mumbo-jumbo' to keep me out of court!! *** The PointsPlus™ value for this recipe was calculated by me (Jan Gomes) and is not an endorsement or approval of this recipe by Weight Watchers International, Inc., the owner of the PointsPlus™ registered trademark. ***

Later!

Loving Life(time)!
Jan