Weight Watchers Cookbook Haul

I've said it time and time again ... I'm a sucker for new Weight Watchers cookbooks. Case in point: the whole reason behind this post.  I popped into my weekly meeting a few weeks ago for my routine Thursday meeting. Upon walking in I noticed they had a few new cookbooks out on the display shelf. After gathering my items to weigh in I asked the receptionist if the cookbooks were new and was advised they were and they were on sale.

 

Just happened to be it was buy 1 get one 50% off. I initially was going to just get one, but since I've been realizing I'm eating the same things and tend to get into a food rut I decided to just get both. So this way I have an idea of how to incorporate more power foods into my meals than just the normal everyday ones I tend to use.

So I picked up the Love It, Cook It, Eat It! cookbook and the Master Your Meals cookbook. I haven't tried any of the recipes in the books as of yet ... but from what I've glanced over some are quite intriguing. I have just about all the ingredients needed to make one of the dishes so I'll probably bust out my chefs hat and roll up my sleeves soon and give a few of them a try.

Haul: Skinnytaste Cookbook

Once I started cooking for myself, I wasn't much of a cook ... so I looked up recipes online that were Weight Watchers friendly that I could make at home without having to think about it. One of the websites that I frequented and tried many recipes and dessert recipes from was Skinnytaste. The great thing about the website was that it offered healthy flavorful (which was most important to me because I do NOT like bland food) recipes that were lighter in calories and "do able" regarding points plus values.

 

It was stated many moons ago that a Skinnytaste cookbook was in the works, which was exciting. A few months back there was a voting on the Skinnytaste Facebook page to vote for the cookbook cover. The cover I voted for didn't make the cut - but that's besides the point.

 

I received the cookbook in the mail the other day (pre-ordered from Amazon) and I'm pretty excited to give some of the recipes a shot. I find I'm pretty comfortable in the kitchen but there are times where I look for inspiration elsewhere. So this shall become a useful tool soon!

 

From what I have seen from the cookbook it's very much in-line with the recipes (or more notably the newer recipes -- within the last year that have been showcased on the website). Many gear towards a variety of eating: gluten free, vegetarian, paleo, etc.

Homemade Pulled Pork (Crock pot)

One kitchen device I have grown to love is undoubtedly my Crock pot!  It simplifies life, makes meals all on its own (well, with a little assistance from myself) and I can come home from work or running errands all day and dinner will be ready.  I’ve changed up this recipe using chicken and pork tenderloin – both of which are fabulous. I love BBQ meals and pulled pork (and pulled chicken) are two of my favorites.  Growing up my mother spoiled us making homemade pulled pork that she’d roast overnight and because of that it made me very picky going out to eat to get pulled pork.  This of course doesn’t trump my mothers, but its Weight Watchers Points Plus friendly, simple, filling AND it’s delicious.

Serves 10-15.  Serving size: 3 ounces.  4 Points Plus Values.

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds lean pork loin (extra fat removed)
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 pack Crockery Gourmet Barbecue Seasoning Mix (if you cannot find this, McCormick sells a barbecue ribs packet)
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• Water (use the amount on the Barbecue Seasoning mix packet)

Trim the fat off your pork loins and set them into the bottom of the crock pot.

Cover pork loins with sliced onions and minced garlic.

In a bowl mix together the Crockery Gourmet Barbecue Seasoning Mix, tomato paste and water.  Stir until combined and pour the sauce over the top of the onions and pork loins.

Cover with a lid and cook for 6-8 hours on low or 4-5 on high.

Before serving, remove the pork loins from the crock pot and shred with two forks. Place shredded meat back into the barbecue sauce and stir to coat all meat.

This recipe goes great with homemade garlic bread and homemade coleslaw (see here: http://shannonslifestyle.blogspot.com/2013/05/coleslaw.html)

Deconstructed Pierogi Pasta

A number of weeks back I was really in the mood for pierogi’s.  My mother and aunt make homemade pierogi’s from scratch usually every Christmas – but this year they didn’t make them.  I could have just thrown a box of frozen in some boiling water and called it a day but I was feeling adventurous and while grocery shopping I spotted egg noodles and decided to try out a new recipe.

I boiled some water seasoned with a little bit of salt and when boiling I added in the egg noodles to cook through to al dente.  In a separate pan I added 2 tablespoons of margarine and added in 2 sliced up medium onions.  I let those start to cook and brown together before adding in a splash of water (to keep it from sticking) and added in my squeezed canned sauerkraut.  Since I LOVE sauerkraut I used two cans (which you want to make sure you ring pretty ‘dry’) the two cans was just enough for the whole bag of egg noodles.  I seasoned the sauerkraut and onion mixture with a pinch of black pepper and a pinch of salt.

I boiled the turkey kielbasa in water just to heat it through (you can even throw it in the same pot as the boiling pasta if you’d like since it’s already cooked).  When the noodles were done I drained and added into the pan of sauerkraut and mixed until combined.

I had 1/6^th of the pan of pasta and it was 7 points plus values and I paired it with 2 ounces of Jennie-O turkey kielbasa – along side a helping of spicy brown mustard.  Delicious meal!

QUESTION:

Have you ever had deconstructed pierogi pasta before?