Dunkin Donuts Reese's Peanut Butter Square Donut

One day browsing through Facebook I stumbled upon a post from Reese's stating they had merged with Dunkin Donuts and created a Dunkin Donuts Reese's Peanut Butter Square Donut. Immediately, my mind was set on a mission. Truthfully ... I don't like Dunkin Donuts donuts (I prefer a few local smaller chain donut shops and a local grocery stores donuts - they're just tastier). But for Reese's I was inclined to give it a go.

I figured out the points for it and one afternoon I popped into the Dunkin Donuts near my work and picked one up. Do note these are pricier than the regular donuts available at DD's - these are $1.50/ea (which does help in only purchasing one). I brought my donut and iced coffee back to work to enjoy while I got back into the swing of things at my desk.

The first bite, I was like "okay..." but that's because it was just dough and the chocolate frosting on top - very reminiscent of your classic chocolate frosted. Now, the second bite is where all the magic happened. The second bite contained some of the pipped peanut butter filling. All I can say is: heaven. It's a heavenly experience. It's as if a chocolate frosted donut had a baby which was an airy peanut butter cream. Fantastic! It merges two perfect worlds (donuts and peanut butter cups) into one and it's done spectacularly.

As a Reese fan I can say this is reminiscent of Reese's but just in a completely different version of the classic - it's of course, in donut form. The peanut butter cream is light and airy, which also isn't adversely sweet. The combination is fabulous - almost so fabulous I need to forget how good it was since I live in an area where there is a Dunkin's on every corner!

Each donut is 370 calories or 10 points plus values.

Taco Bell Cantina Chicken Power Bowl

One afternoon en route to our destination, my boyfriend said he wanted Taco Bell.  Immediately I thought "darn..." because I truly wasn't in the mood for a taco because I wanted something that would be satisfying (i.e. I didn't want to be hungry a couple hours later). Glancing over their menu it dawned on me that they had power bowl menu's which I had believed to be lower in calories/points (I wasn't able to check at the time of drive-thru so I winged my order and got it how I thought I'd like it).

I ended up ordering the Taco Bell Cantina Chicken Power Bowl (the entree is also sold topped with steak, while it can also be purchased as a burrito). The good thing about these salads is that they're made to order. You can remove items from the meal or add them based on your likes or dislikes (one of those additions can be extra lettuce).

According to the website: "Experience how High Protein meets BIG Flavor! 100% marinated and fire-grilled white meat chicken, crisp romaine lettuce, guacamole made from real Hass avocados, pico de gallo prepared fresh daily, flavorful avocado ranch dressing, real cheddar cheese, and cool reduced-fat sour cream, all served on a bed of premium Latin rice and slow-simmered black beans. Also available in Steak or Veggie."

I personally found the power bowl to be quite satisfying. It was flavorful and far from boring. I enjoy taco salads at home but sometimes I don't think to put beans and rice in it - so it was definitely a delicious addition. Even though I ordered my salad without dressing the container was put into the bag. I did give it a little sample (dipped my fork into it) and it's quite delicious. Personally, for my taste buds it'd be a little too rich to drizzle over the bowl ... but I found just with everything combined there wasn't a need for the salad dressing.

Each bowl, as served is 490 calories or 13 points plus values.

Whereas, each bowl without sour cream, cheese and avocado ranch dressing (as I purchased it) is 380 calories or 10 points plus values.

You can calculate any of Taco Bells items to your liking by adding/subtracting toppings from any of their menu items using the following calculator: http://www.tacobell.com/nutrition/calculator

Wendy's Asian Cashew Chicken Salad

While out running errands, it was well past lunch time and I needed something in my belly. Not really sure what I wanted, I decided to head to Wendy's for lunch since I knew off the top of my head they had some "point friendly" items. Plus out of all the fast food burger joints they are one of my favorite.

 

Of course when I got there I wasn't sure what I wanted, so I whipped out my phone and looked up Wendy's foods on my Weight Watchers app. I decided to get one of their salads to give it a try. I opted for the half salad (it also comes in a full size) and ordered the Asian Cashew Chicken Salad.

 

According to the website the dish is: "Topped with fire-roasted edamame, spicy roasted cashews, warm, grilled chicken and Marzetti Simply Dressed Light Spicy Asian Chili Vinaigrette for a salad that's anything but bland."

 

A full size salad is 380 calories or 10 points plus values (this includes the cashews, dressing, chicken, and bed of salad), or a half size (pictured above) is 240 calories and 6 points plus values (this includes the cashews, dressing, chicken, and bed of salad).

 

If you order the salad and skip on the cashews and dressing it brings the half size salad down to 3 points plus values. If you add the cashews back on, skipping the dressing, it'll add on 2 points plus values making it 5 points plus values.

Pinterest made me do it: Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas

I was browsing Pinterest one day and pinned a recipe for Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas. Better yet, it turned out I had pulled chicken in the refrigerator that I had needed to use up. So while at the grocery store I picked up some flour burrito tortillas, salsa verde and some shredded Mexican cheese blend. Yes! This only takes 4 ingredients!

I changed the recipe just a tad by adding in 2 tablespoons of chunky medium salsa to the chicken mixture simply because it was a little too dry. The combination of the chunky salsa and salsa verde was spectacular. It was such a simple, easy dish to put together but it was loaded with flavor, textures and deliciousness. After plating I served this to myself with a small side salad … all together a perfectly delicious meal!

The original recipe can be found here.

I cut the serving down to a single serving using 3 ounces shredded chicken breast, ¼ cup shredded 2% Mexican cheese blend, 3 tbsp salsa verde, 2 low carb flour tortillas, and I opted to use an additional 2 tbsp chunky mild salsa (optional but I used it).

I added a tablespoon of salsa verde to the bottom of a non-stick casserole dish, rolled up my individual enchiladas (I mixed the chicken, ½ the cheese and 1 tbsp salsa verde and 2 tbsp chunky salsa to a bowl, mixed and layered into 2 flour tortillas).  I topped with a tablespoon of salsa verde and the remaining shredded cheese. I baked in a 350 degree oven for roughly 10 minutes (just enough for the cheese to melt). My 2 enchiladas came out to be 10 points plus values.

DiGiorno Pizzeria! Italian Style Meat Trio Pizza

DiGiorno has been one of my favorite frozen pizza brands for along time. Although before they came out with their Pizzeria! line I hadn’t purchased their products in a while.  The nutrition information and serving size were a deterrent although the Pizzeria! line truly made having delicious frozen pizza a lot easier. DiGiorno Pizzeria! Italian Style Meat Trio Pizza is one of the last Pizzeria! edition pizzas that I hadn’t tried (outside of the cheese).

A couple weeks ago when my brother and sister-in-law were over and I needed a quick dinner option, so I popped this pizza in the oven.

The pizza itself has a classic mildly fluffy pizza crust which is a step below rising crust and a few steps above thin crust. It’s paired up against a delicious sauce- that is bold, flavorful and overall just a perfect pizza sauce. The pie is generously topped with a blend of sausage, pepperoni and genoa salami. It’s definitely a meat lover pizza fans ideal frozen pizza. This was a hit with all and will definitely be a choice I will repurchase in the future.

A serving is ¼ of the pizza, which is 380 calories or 10 points plus values.

Cracker Barrel Grilled Chicken Tenderloin Dinner

It has been years since I have been to Cracker Barrel. Truthfully when I hear the words “Cracker Barrel” I automatically think southern style comfort foods which are not the healthiest choices.  Considering I haven’t been to the restaurant in ages, I pulled up their menu online and I have to say I was surprised they had healthier options available.  The one downside is they do not offer nutrition information on their website.  Although, thankfully Weight Watchers has a handful of the restaurants foods listed on their website/app with the associated points plus values.

I decided to order the Grilled Chicken Tenderloin Dinner which comes with 6 marinated grilled chicken tenderloins along with your choice of 3 sides. After scanning over the available side dishes, I opted to go with a side garden salad with fat free honey mustard dressing, a baked sweet potato and steamed broccoli.

The salad was served first and was a classic mix of mixed greens. The salad dressing was of course the show stealer and was exceptionally delicious. When my entrée was served I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised at how good the grilled chicken tenderloin was! Typically I am very picky when it comes to getting chicken at restaurants – it’s either too rubbery, not cooked/seasoned to my liking, etc. But this was perfect. Aside from the few pieces of grizzle I found (only because I truly dissect my food when I eat), it was out of this world and the marinade that was used was fabulous. The sweet potato was delicious – cooked perfectly and the broccoli was steamed just right. The meal was flavorful, delicious and overall filling.

I actually enjoyed the meal so much that next time I go back to Cracker Barrel; it’ll be the exact meal I order.  The chicken tenderloin was 6 points plus, the salad dressing was 1 points plus, and I guestimated the sweet potato to be 3 points plus (it could have been 2, but I’d rather aim higher than lower).

Slow Cooker Sweet & Tangy Chicken Dinner

I was looking for something different to make for dinner, but I wanted something I could throw together in the crock pot because I had a busy day on my hands. After not being too impressed with the ideas I came up with I decided to check out Emily Bites blog. I know a lot of folks enjoy her recipes and I’ve looked but haven’t truly tried many of her dishes.

Looking over the dishes I opted to try out the Slow Cooker Sweet & Tangy Chicken (see recipe here) because I had all the ingredients on hand.

Like typical crock pot meals it was super simple to throw together.  Then before I knew it, the main dinner dish was ready. As the directions state, I removed the chicken from the sauce, transferred the sauce to a pot and thickened the sauce up on the stove. My sauce thickened up, perhaps a little too much – but nonetheless it was a great addition to place over the cooked shredded chicken.

I served this over white rice and paired it with fresh steamed green beans and some canned carrots.  Definitely a delicious diner!

A ½ cup serving of chicken with sauce is 209 calories or 5 points plus values.

The entire meal as pictured is 10 points plus values.

Dinner: Broccoli & Carrot Alfredo w/ Chicken Cutlet

This is a quick and easy dinner I whipped up the other night. I knew pasta was on the dinner menu, but I had no real other inclination as to what to do with it … until I saw a jar of Ragu Light Alfredo sauce. Alfredo pasta it shall be!

This was a rather quick, easy and filling meal I was able to whip up in less than 20 minutes.  I had some Tyson Lightly Breaded Chicken Strips that I popped into the oven to crisp up while I set a pot of water on to boil. I was boiling up some Al Dente Carba-Nada pasta for myself.  I popped a bag of fresh broccoli and carrots into the microwave and let them steam.  When the pasta was done, I drained it, added in some black pepper, tossed in the broccoli and carrots, then added in some Ragu Light Alfredo sauce. I actually made 2 servings, one serving for diner and another to have for lunch the following day.

Since pasta, without a protein is something I don’t eat; I weighed out 3 ounces of chicken and served that alongside my pasta dish.  It was delicious, filling and a perfectly different meal.  The entire plate was only 10 points plus values.

QUESTION:

Do you like alfredo pasta?

Dinner: Country style pork ribs, potato and salad

This is a delicious dinner I had this weekend. Yes, that’s a marvelous thing about Weight Watchers – I can eat homemade barbecue without guilt and it’s deliciously fabulous.

Country style pork ribs were on sale at a local grocery store, so I picked up a pack. Since I was going to be gone for the better half of the day, I asked my mother if she wouldn’t mind making some ribs (she makes the best ribs, BTW). She agreed, so she whipped up a batch – typically she boils them with vinegar, water and an onion and then bakes them off in the oven with some barbecue sauce. Usually it’s a homemade sauce, but she decided to use Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce.

I requested that she leave my ribs aside (after baking for a few minutes) for me to pull the meat off the bone, separate the fat and mix with barbecue sauce. I ended up getting two meals out of it.

What I had for dinner was 3 oz country style pork ribs (off the bone) w/ sweet baby rays bbq sauce (7 ppv), 5 oz potato (3ppv) & side salad w/ 1 tbsp light italian (0 ppv). It was a delicious 10 points plus and worth every point!

QUESTION:

Do you like having barbecue for dinner?

Autumn Chicken Pasta

I was inspired by a Skinnytaste recipe but decided to throw a spin on it since I had chicken out to cook and not sausage and ground beef.  I was actually at Trader Joe’s when I spotted the brussel sprouts and pulled up the Skinnytaste recipe to have a peak since I had never looked at the regular recipe before then (I’d only seen the picture of it).

Deciding since it was later in the afternoon and I didn’t want to head to my regular grocery store, I’d make due with what I had on hand and what I could pick up at Trader Joe’s.  With that a lot of the ingredients I used are Trader Joe’s brand, but comparable products can be picked up at a regular grocery store.

This was a delicious meal. Quite interesting with the brussel sprouts in it, and the flavor category was fabulous. Packed with flavor, a heaping serving and the leftovers were able to marinate a little further while in the refrigerator overnight.

Serves 6. 1 ¾ cup serving. 10 Points Plus Values.

Ingredients:

• 3 tsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 1/8 lbs boneless, skinless chicken, cut into small chunks
• 28 oz. can of Trader Joe’s Trader Giotto’s Low Fat Tuscano Marinara Sauce (you can substitute with another variation of low-fat marinara sauce)
• 12 oz. spaghetti (I used Barilla White Fiber Spaghetti)
• 10 oz. shaved brussel sprouts
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 tbsp Trader Joe’s 21 Season Salute
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 3 tbsp water (optional)

Add raw chicken to a bowl, season with garlic powder a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper. Toss to combine, stabbing the chicken with a fork to get the flavor into the chicken pieces.

Fill a large pot with salted water. Once brought to a boil, add in your spaghetti and cook until (I recommend) al dente.

In a large non-stick skillet, add 1 ½ tsp olive oil to the bottom of the pan. Once hot add in garlic and let sauté for roughly 30 seconds before adding in the brussel sprouts - season with remaining salt and pepper.

Saute the brussel sprouts for 5-7 minutes until they begin to soften.  If they begin to stick to the pan add in 1 tablespoon of water at a time until cooked through. Remove brussel sprouts from the pan and set aside.

In the same non-stick skillet, add the remaining 1 ½ tsp of olive oil to the pan. Once hot, add in chicken and let brown and crisp up on both sides until cooked through. Try not to move the chicken much on each side to allow it to brown and get some color.

Once chicken is cooked, combine with brussel sprouts and toss. Pour in can of sauce and begin to add spaghetti, tossing to ensure the whole dish is combined and coated with sauce.

Remove from the flame and enjoy!

Roast Chicken Dinner

I typically don’t make whole chickens, but once in a blue moon I do.  I’m more of a white meat kind of girl – but since my boyfriend likes legs and wings the bird doesn’t go to waste.  We happened to be given a whole chicken, so I decided to whip together a dinner that could have been straight out of a Martha Steward magazine.

I cleaned out the chicken carcass, rinsed it down with water, and then put it into a basket which I had set inside of a casserole pan. This way the grease could drip from the meat and the air could evenly circulate around the bird crisping it all up … instead of crisping the top and leaving the rest a greasy, soggy mess.  I went into the cabinet and concocted a dry rub mixture, adding salt, black pepper, garlic powder, Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb seasoning, McCormick chicken seasoning, Trader Joe’s 21 seasoning salute, and oregano into a bowl. I mixed it together then evenly rubbed it over the skin (top and bottom), then separated the skin from the meat and rubbed the seasoning over the meat as well.  I stuffed a medium quartered onion into the cavity and popped it all into a 350 degree oven and baked it for roughly 1 ½ hours.

I cut some washed yellow skinned potatoes into chunks and put them into a pot of salted water.  When the chicken had 30 minutes left to cook I put my potatoes onto boil. I didn’t peel my potatoes because the skin is about as thick as red skinned potatoes. Plus I like my mashed potatoes with skin on them. I mashed them up with a teaspoon of margarine, some skim milk, salt and pepper.

I had some French style frozen green beans from Trader Joe’s.  I took half the bag and defrosted them in the microwave, drained the water from them, then tossed them with minced garlic. I then popped the green beans onto a non-stick baking sheet, which was coated with non-stick cooking spray and roasted them off in the oven for about 10 minutes.

Since I had some fresh tomatoes and cucumbers from the garden, I decided to chop them up and make a childhood favorite – tomato, onion and cucumber salad. It’s simply pickling cucumbers, sliced, tomatoes sliced or quartered and scallions that are chopped. Before serving I simply toss it with 1 tablespoon of the dressing of my or my guests’ choice.

At dinner time I heated up some canned chicken gravy and opened a small can of jellied cranberry sauce. It was literally like Thanksgiving dinner … and what’s even better was it was delicious WITHOUT my beloved stuffing.

My whole plate for dinner was 10 points plus!

QUESTION:

Do you like Thanksgiving-esque dinners?

Stuffed Peppers

Growing up my mother made THE best stuffed peppers (she still does).  She makes them the way my grandmother made them which also means they’re a family favorite. I’ve since learned how to make them and since becoming a Weight Watcher I’ve changed the recipe up just a tad (really only changing the ground beef and the choice of sauce) to make it a bit more point friendly.  The flavor is still there, it’s still reminiscent of my mother’s stuffed peppers and better yet she has even given them the stamp of approval!

As I got older, I realized that stuffed peppers can and are made in a wide range of ways. Bake, boil, par-boil, etc. Ingredients are plentiful and widely different.  You name it, it’s done.  But I will say, I’ve tried stuffed pepper recipes which are baked and par-boiled … but this way has always stolen my heart and taste buds. Perhaps that’s just because of how I’m used to having them but they’re perfect.

These can be eaten plain, as they are … but I do enjoy them with a little bit of ketchup on them. Again, childhood thing and it’s something I’ve never outgrown.  Another great thing about these is you can increase or shrink the recipe to however many peppers you’re aiming to make.  I’ve made 6 which was dinner for 3 individuals back-to-back, and then I’ve made 12 because we were having dinner guests.

I will point out my favorite way to have the peppers is with a tried and true green bell pepper. I feel it brings out more of the meat flavor and holds up during the boiling process a bit better.  I’ve also switched out my choice of pasta sauce using either canned (when making a smaller batch) or jarred when making more than 6.

Serves 6. Serving size 1 stuffed pepper. 10 points plus values.

Ingredients:

-          6 Medium Bell Peppers (red or green – just try to keep them around the same size)

-          1 large onion, chopped

-          1 ½ lbs 93% lean ground beef, raw

-          1 ½ cups uncooked white rice (I prefer Goya Golden Canilla I find the rice keeps shape and doesn’t mush up but any white rice will do)

-          1 can Hunts Pasta Sauce – Chunky Vegetable

-          1 ½ tsp salt

-          1 1/2 tsp black pepper

-          Water

Wash peppers and cut to remove the stems and inner seeds. You can either take off the whole top, or cut a hole into it. Make sure to leave the pepper intact – like a bowl.

In a large bowl combine raw ground beef, rice, onion, salt and black pepper. Mix to combine (I use my hands).  Add in about ½ can of sauce and combine until well incorporated throughout the meat and rice mixture.

Stuff each pepper with equal amounts of meat. It’s okay if the peppers have a rounded top to them. Place the peppers into a deep pan that has a matching lid.

Fill the pan with water so the peppers are covered roughly ½ way up the sides.  Pour remaining sauce over the top of the peppers and into the water.

Place the pan over a medium flame until water begins a mild boil.  Cover, lower flame to medium-low.  Cook for approximately 40-45 minutes.  You can test if it’s done by making sure the rice granules are cooked through. If not done after 45 minutes, cook for 5-minutes longer.

Fit For You Mushroom Bleu Top Sirloin @ 99 Restaurant

My boyfriend and I decided we were going to go out to eat one night, so we opted for the 99 Restaurant – which is a local chain restaurant that can be found scattered around the East Coast.  The 99 happens to be one of my boyfriend’s favorite chains, so when we do go I tend to order off the “Fit For You” menu, which offers meals under a specific amount of calories.  The 99 does offer their nutrition information on their website, which is helpful in aiding me in deciding what I’m going to eat when we go there.  I have to admit, some of the dishes are completely shocking so I tend to go with what I’m craving that day.

On this particular night I really wanted a piece of steak so I ordered the Fit For You Mushroom Bleu Top Sirloin.  According to the menu the dish is 420 calories and is “a 6 oz. top sirloin steak is flame broiled and crowned with fresh sautéed mushrooms and a sprinkle of bleu cheese crumbles. Served with a grilled tomato and fresh broccoli.”

Seemed like it would be delicious and it was – although I believe next time I will order it with the bleu cheese on the side. The cheese gave the steak and mushrooms a nice kick, but I’m typically sensitive to salt and the natural saltiness in the cheese was more than enough to make me shiver. The sirloin was delicious, cooked perfectly and relatively lean.  The broccoli was perfect, as it always is and the grilled tomatoes were really a unique twist on a naturally cold side.

The whole dish was 10 points plus. Well worth it for a meal out on the go.

QUESTION:

What is your favorite dish to order while eating out?

Brinner: Cinnamon Raison French Toast, Scrambled Eggs, Hashbrowns & Bacon

Talk about a brinner (breakfast for dinner) for champions! This is the meal I whipped together after my Weight Watchers meeting. Breakfast is a meal I enjoy, but cooking a full course breakfast isn't something that happens often. So, since my boyfriend and I enjoy breakfast we typically have it for dinner. This way we get our favorites, or exactly what we're craving, without any time restrictions. The great thing about breakfast foods is they are relatively easy and quick -- so this dinner was done in under 20 minutes.

We had some Country Kitchen Light Raisin bread (you can see that post here) and since my boyfriend planted the french toast seed, I really wanted it. So I whipped up some regular french toast (using whole eggs) for him and my french toast using Eggbeaters. I dredged my bread in Eggbeaters - but I didn't season it this time since the bread is already flavorful. I ended up using a little more than 1/3 of a cup to dredge the four slices of bread. If you're interested in seeing how I make my french toast, you can see that recipe here.

I went the "easy way out" and cooked my bacon in the oven. This is quite possibly the easiest way to cook bacon ... the only part that takes effort is making sure not to burn it because it can go from good to horrible in a matter of unwatched minutes. While the bacon and french toast was going I added the shredded seasoned hashbrown potatoes to a non-stick skillet. I seasoned them additionally with some black pepper and a bit of garlic and let them cook. Then after cooking my french toast, I scrambled up my eggbeaters seasoning them with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Easy, peasy!

My whole meal, as pictured, was 10 points plus. That's 3 slices of Light Raisin bread (4 points plus), 1 1/2 tbsp sugar free maple syrup (0 points plus), 1 cup eggbeaters (3 points plus - note: I used a portion of this 1 cup to dredged my bread in and the remainder I used to scramble), 2 slices of turkey bacon (1 points plus), and 3 oz of hashbrowns (2 points plus).

QUESTION:
What is your favorite breakfast item?

Dinner: Grilled Chicken, Potato and Caesar Salad

This is a unique twist on a typical dinner. Normally, I don’t eat Caesar salad, but the kit was on sale at the grocery store and my boyfriend enjoys it – so Caesar salad it was! My personal request was the potato because for those of us Weight Watchers folks, we know potatoes are a power food.  Power foods mean I’m a lot more satisfied with my dinner and I’m not poking around the kitchen a few hours later looking for a snack.

This dinner was quite filling and delicious.  We cooked the chicken out on the grill and cooked the potatoes in the microwave – which really simplifies the process and leaves you with a firm but soft, ready to eat potato. The salad really threw a curve ball into the staple dinner, completely changing up the flavors. The entire plate pictured is 10 points plus.

4 ounces of grilled chicken

7 ounces of potato, seasoned with black pepper and spray butter

1 cup of light Caesar salad

QUESTION:

What are your favorite sides to have with grilled chicken?

Dinner: Carba-Nada Pasta with Trader Joe’s Turkey Meatballs

It’s been a while since we had pasta and I really had a hankering for it.  Since we were having pasta, I decided to try out two Trader Joe’s products I had picked up for a pasta night – turkey meatballs and garlic marinara sauce.

I’ve grown into quite a loving fan of Carba-Nada pasta. 1 ½ cups of pasta is only 3 points plus which is quite a bang for my buck, points wise.  Not only am I getting a bigger serving of pasta, but I’m getting it all for almost half the points of regular pasta.  I made myself two servings of pasta – one to have for dinner and the other to have as leftovers the following day. Of course, we made regular Barilla pasta for my boyfriend to have with his serving of pasta.

I had some red peppers on the countertop that I had picked up at the grocery store. I typically like to boost up my pasta with extra flavors, so I sliced up a whole red pepper, a medium onion and put it into the oven to roast.  When the pasta and onions were done, I simply tossed them into my cooked pasta dishes.

I tossed the pasta with servings (1/2 cup) of Trader Joe’s Garlic Marinara Sauce.  The sauce is thick and sticks to the pasta.  Each ½ cup serving is 2 points plus. The sauce is incredibly flavorful and adheres to the pasta nicely.  Nothing is worse than runny sauce on pasta that just makes a soupy mess.

 

As a side to our pasta, I cooked the Trader Joe’s Fully Cooked Turkey Meatballs in the oven. I let the outside brown until heated throughout and then garnished the pasta dishes with the meatballs on the side.  A serving size is 2 meatballs which calculate out to 3 points plus values. I decided to have a double serving for 5 points plus values.  The meatballs are totally delicious – my boyfriend quite enjoyed them and they were a hit. So much of a hit, I repurchased a bag on my last Trader Joe’s trip. They don’t have that “frozen meatball” flavor that I find frozen meatballs typically have.

The whole dish shown was only 10 points plus values! Quite a steal for a boatload of delicious food!

QUESTION:

What is your favorite way to have pasta?

Carba-Nada Pasta with Sauce & Turkey Meatballs

Who says dinner cannot be on the table in 20 minutes or less? Certainly not this girl!  That’s even with making TWO different types of pasta (Carba-nada for myself and regular Barilla pasta for the boyfriend).

We didn’t quite have dinner plans in place.  Trying to refrain from ordering take out I scanned the cabinets and decided pasta with turkey meatballs would suffice.  Quick, easy, filling and it would allow me to use up the leftover roasted peppers and onions from dinner the night before.

Putting two separate pans of water on to boil, we retrieved the turkey meatballs from the freezer, spritzed a little non-stick cooking spray into the pan, tossed in the meatballs and into the oven they went.  I had purchased these Lean Turkey Meatballs from Target a while back (Market Pantry brand) while they were on clearance.  I paid under $4 for the bag and I have to say they are pretty good tasting meatballs!  I’m not a big fan of frozen meatballs (I love homemade – nothing beats a homemade meatball) but these are delicious.  I’ve served these up alongside some homemade sauce (because I didn’t want to eat sausage) and my family all tried some (since I cooked extras) and everyone thought they were good.

Once my water was boiled, I added in my last remaining 1 ½ cup serving of Carba-nada Roasted Garlic noodles into the water, tossed ½ a  box of pasta in the other pan and let them cook until done.  When the noodles were done, I added in the roasted peppers and onions into each pot and simply measured out a ½ cup serving of Francesco Rinaldi Tomato, Garlic & Onion pasta sauce into my dish. The noodles are 3 points, the sauce was 2 – making the whole plate of pasta only 5 points plus!  Amazing, right?

Once the turkey meatballs were done, we took them out of the oven.  A serving (6 meatballs) is 4 points plus, but after calculating 1 ½ servings, I found it was only 1 point more … so since I was quite hungry, I decided to have 5 points plus worth of meatballs.  Delicious and only 10 points plus!

QUESTION:

What is your “go to” quick and easy meal when dinner plans weren’t quite thought through?