Flank Steak with Black Bean salsa

I am finally back after a 2 month hiatus!  I just started a new job at the end of August and have been super busy, but with Hurricane Sandy hitting the east coast today, I figured it's the perfect day to add some new posts.  In the summer, my brother asked me to make a recipe that would be good for a grill.  That's when I found this Flank Steak and knew it would be perfect for the grill!  I live in an apartment and don't have access to a grill so I went out and bought Emeril's indoor griddle/grill.  It works perfectly! The steak turned out amazing and I will definitely be trying this again soon.  

Ingredients for the steak: 

• 1.5 lbs. flank steak 
• garlic powder
• cumin, salt, and pepper to taste

Ingredients for the salsa: 

• 1/2 red onion, minced
• 1 teaspoon olive oil 
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 2 tomatoes, diced and seeded
• 1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup corn kernels
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

1. Season the steak with the garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper on both sides.  Put in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes so that the flavors penetrate the meat.
2. While the steak is chilling in the fridge, combine the onion, olive oil, and lime juice in a bowl and let the flavors meld together for about 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, add the tomatoes, black beans, corn, salt and pepper and mix to combine.  Set aside while you cook the steak. 
3. Heat the grill on high and add steak.  

4. Grill the steak on each side for about 6 minutes each side for medium rare.  Once the steak is  finished, remove from the grill and let rest for about 5 minutes. 

5. After resting, slice the steak along the grain and serve with the salsa on top. 

Nutritional information (serves 6 -- 3 oz. flank steak, 2 tablespoons salsa): 296 calories, 10.2g fat, 62 mg cholesterol, 14.4g carbohydrates, 3.1g fiber, 35.7g protein

Weight Watchers Points Plus: 7 points plus per serving 

Macaroni and Cheese

The Laughing Cow cheese has become an instant favorite of mine!  I love the Garlic and Herb wedges and use that on my sandwiches now instead of sliced cheese.  I even got my mom hooked after I left the Queso one at her place.  She uses it in her omelets.  When I stumbled across this Hungry Girl recipe for macaroni and cheese, I knew I had to try it since it uses the Swiss Laughing Cow cheese.  This recipe is so creamy and cheesy.  And it's quick too!  Next time I will be adding some protein to this. 

Ingredients: 

• 20 oz. frozen Cauliflower and Cheese sauce (I used the Wegman's brand)
• 2 cups uncooked Ronzoni Smart Taste Penne
• 3 wedges The Laughing Cow Light Swiss
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

1. Cook the pasta al dente. Drain. 
2. While the pasta is cooking, place the cauliflower and cheese in a microwave safe bowl and cover with a paper towel.  Heat in the microwave for about 10 - 12 minutes.  
3. Add the cooked pasta to the bowl with the cauliflower and cheese and stir to coat. 
4. Heat the Swiss cheese wedges in the microwave for about 30 seconds until smooth.  Add the Swiss to the bowl with the pasta and stir to coat.  
5. Season with salt and pepper. 

Nutritional Information (serves 4 -- 1 cup each): 206 calories, 4.2 g fat, 40g carbohydrates, 6.5g fiber, 3.7g sugar, 7.5g protein

Weight Watchers points per serving (1 cup): 5 points plus

Turkey Chili

I plan out our dinner menu for the week so that way I know what groceries I need to get and it's just a lot easier when it comes to cooking dinner! A few months ago my mom bought us this Hamilton Beach crock pot that I have just been itching to use.

So when planning our menu for this week, I decided it was time to break out the crock pot! I found a Turkey Chili recipe from one of my Weight Watchers cookbooks that I wanted to try.  This was one of the easiest dinners I have ever made! If you are on the go and looking for something delicious, I would definitely try this.  It's not very spicy so next time I would probably add some jalapenos.  I also served it over rice.  This is definitely a dish that will be made in our apartment again.  I also can't wait to try more crock pot recipes!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. hot turkey sausage
• 1 (15 oz.) can pinto beans, with juices
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes with garlic and tomatoes, with juices
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes with chilies, with juices 
• 1 small onion, diced
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Remove the casings from the turkey sausage and add it to the crock pot.  Break the sausage up with a spoon. 
2. Add the pinto beans, both cans of tomatoes (all with their juices), and the onions to the crock pot.  
3. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. 
4. Season with salt and pepper and serve over rice. 

*Weight Watchers points per serving (6 servings - 1 cup each):  6 points plus

1 cup of rice - 5 Weight Watchers points plus

*If you only wanted to do 4 servings, it would be 1.5 cups and 8 Weight Watchers points plus

Crispy Tilapia with Roasted Tomatoes

This past weekend I was in Dewey Beach, DE celebrating my friend Jaime's bachelorette party, which was a blast!! I am still recovering.  My boyfriend decided to go to Atlantic City for a guy's night on Saturday, so I knew we needed something light for dinner last night to help us recover from all the fun.  I adapted  this recipe from Cooking Light.  I really love tilapia.  It's a such a light and flaky fish and doesn't have a strong fish flavor.  This type of fish really takes on the flavor of whatever it is paired with, in this case it is the tomatoes.  This recipe is just what we needed after a fun-filled weekend!

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons capers
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes (mine were pretty big so I quartered them)
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup sliced basil
• 1 cup panko
• 1 tablespoon parsley (I used the dried shaker kind, but you can use fresh)
• 4 (6 ounce) tilapia fillets
• non-fat cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a foil lined baking sheet with non-fat cooking spray. 
2. In a small bowl, combine the capers, tomatoes, and 1 tablespoon olive oil with some salt and pepper.  Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. 
3. While the vegetables are roasting, place the panko and parsley in a shallow dish with salt and pepper.  
4. Spray each fillet with non-fat cooking spray and dredge both sides in the panko, once fillet at a time. 
5. Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add 1 tablespoons olive oil to the pan.  Add two fillets to the pan and cook on each side for 3 minutes a side.  Repeat with the remaining olive oil and fillets. 
6. Once the vegetables are finished, remove from the oven and top with basil.  Put 1/3 cup tomato mixture over each tilapia fillet. 

Nutritional Information (serves 4): 317 calories, 13g fat, 82mg cholesterol, 13.5g carbohydrates, 1.7g fiber, 35g protein

Weight Watchers points per serving (1 fillet plus 1/3 cup tomato mixture): 8 points plus 

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

When it comes to chicken, I am always looking for new recipes to spice things up.  A grilled chicken breast is great for dinner, but it gets boring after a while.  The other night I decided to try this Chicken and Broccoli casserole from Cooking Light.  I love making casseroles because they are so quick and easy to make.  This recipe was delicious!  It was so creamy!  I changed the way I cooked the chicken from the recipe because I don't really like boiling chicken.  This recipe is great because it can be made ahead of time and then put in the oven when you are ready to eat it.  I will definitely be making this again!

Ingredients:

• 6 oz. frozen broccoli
• 2 (6 oz.) chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• 6 oz. fat free evaporated milk
• 2 tablespoon flour
• 1/2 cup fat free mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup fat free sour cream
• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 
• 1/2 cup 99% fat free cream of Mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray an 8x8 pan with non-fat cooking spray and set aside. 
2. Steam the broccoli for about 5 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender but still a little bit crisp.  Set aside in a medium bowl. 
3. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat and saute the chicken breast until the chicken is no longer pink. Be careful not to overcook as it will continue to cook in the oven. 
4. While the chicken is cooking, combine the milk and flour.  Season with salt and pepper.  Once combined, bring to a boil over medium-high heat and whisk constantly.  This will create a roux. Once the mixture thickens, remove from heat and add the mayo, sour cream, sherry, Worcestershire sauce, cream of mushroom, and 1/4 cup Parmesan. 
5. After those ingredients are combined and the chicken has finished cooking, add the chicken and sour cream mixture to the broccoli.  Stir the ingredients so that they are they are mixed well together.  
6. Spoon the mixture into the baking dish and top with the remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan. Bake for about 35-40 minutes, until the top is a little brown. 

Nutritional Information (serves 4): 276 calories, 7.8g fat, 66mg cholesterol, 18.9g carbohydrates, 2.1g fiber, 31.1g protein

Weight Watchers points per serving: 7 points plus 

Shrimp Scampi

As you can probably tell by now, I really enjoy pasta!  I have another pasta dish to share with you that is my boyfriend's dad's shrimp scampi recipe.  It is so delicious!  It has a little kick to it so if you like spicy, this recipe is definitely the way to go.  I've only ever had their "full fat" version, so the other night, I thought I would try to lighten it up.  This turned out just as flavorful as the original version, even my boyfriend agreed!

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. Ronzoni Smart Taste Spaghetti
• 1/4 cup Light I Can't Believe it's Not Butter
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 lb. shrimp (Mine came to 12 shrimp)
• 1/2 cup 99% fat free chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon A-1 Steak Sauce
• 1 teaspoon Frank's Red Hot
• 1 teaspoon tarragon 
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

1. Cook the pasta al dente. 
2. While the pasta is cooking, heat a large pan over medium heat.  Add margarine to the pan and then add the onions.  Saute the onions until they are semi-soft. 

3. Next add the shrimp to the pan and season with salt and pepper.  

4. Once the shrimp start to turn pink, add chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, A-1, Frank's red hot, and tarragon.  Simmer over medium heat until the shrimp are cooked through, careful not to over cook them. 

5. By this point, the pasta should be finished.  Drain the pasta and add the pasta to shrimp mixture.  Serve immediately. 

Nutritional information (serves 4): 284 calories, 6.1g fat, 111mg cholesterol, 43.5g carbohydrates, 7.0g fiber, 1.9g sugar, 17.8g protein

Weight Watchers Points per serving: 7 points plus

Easy Appetizer

I just got back from a wonderful vacation in Fort Lauderdale.  We were visiting my boyfriend's sister and her boyfriend and it was so great to see them! The weather was perfect so we got 3 nice beach days.  Now, unfortunately, it's back to reality!

For this next post, I wanted to share an easy appetizer with you that I came up with recently.  I am a huge fan of goat cheese and when that is mixed with onions, it's the best!  For those of you that haven't tried goat cheese, it's very similar to a cream cheese.  This appetizer is quick and easy and can be ready in about 15 minutes.  Your guests will love it!

Ingredients:

• 1 baguette, cut into 34 pieces
• 1 red onion, sliced into thin pieces
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 4 oz. goat cheese
• olive oil

Directions:

1. Once the baguettes are cut into pieces, brush a little bit of olive oil on each one and place under the broiler for about 3 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. With the onions, saute them with non-fat cooking spray until they are soft.  Add the sugar and stir, allowing them to carmelize.
3. Top each slice of baguette with a thin layer of goat cheese and top with some of the onion.  Place back under the broiler for about 2-3 minutes.
4. Serve warm.