Thanksgiving is coming and I love Green Bean Casserole!

This one looks like it could become a new favorite though!  I am now having two parties this weekend and the one on Saturday is a “bring a dish to pass” style, so you know how careful I am going to have to be for that one!  This might be mine!  I am quite the party animal it seems right now, and you know it is only gonna get worse as the holidays approach!  Anybody got any good strategies to keep my gluttonous soul pure?

Have a crowd to feed? Arm yourself with five easy ingredients, including Green Giant® veggies. A few minutes of prep, and you'll have a delicious veggie casserole in the oven. From www.eatbetteramerica.com

Company Broccoli Three-Cheese Bake

1 Points Plus (1 Point-old system)

14 Servings (1/2 Cup)

1/3 c French-fried onions (from 2.8-oz can)

2 bags (24 oz each) Green Giant® frozen broccoli & three cheese sauce

3 oz fat-free cream cheese, cut into cubes

1/4 c chopped red bell pepper, if desired

1/2 t red pepper sauce

Heat oven to 350°F.

In 5-quart Dutch oven, mix broccoli, cream cheese, bell pepper and red pepper sauce.

Cover; cook over medium-low heat about 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through cooking, until sauce chips are melted.

Transfer to ungreased 2- to 3-quart casserole.

Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Sprinkle onions around outer edge of casserole; bake 5 minutes longer.

Bacon and Cheese – sure feels like cheating!

But these little mini quiches seem like they would be great, and of course low in Point value! I will let you know, since they are on the menu for Friday night’s party!


Mini Bacon and Cheese Quiches
2 Points Plus (3 Points-old system)
18 Servings
Make a statement at your next party by serving these mini quiches. They'll rank high on both taste and eye appeal.

Ingredients

1 spray cooking spray
36 items wonton wrappers, 3 1/2-inches square each
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 c fat-free egg substitute
1 1/2 c fat-free evaporated milk
1/2 c low-fat shredded cheddar cheese
4 slices cooked crisp turkey bacon, crumbled

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat 36 miniature muffin cups with cooking spray.

Gently press 1 wonton wrapper into each muffin cup allowing ends to extend above cups. Spray edges of wrappers with cooking spray; set aside.

Meanwhile, in a small skillet, stir-fry onion over medium-high heat until tender, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together egg substitute, milk and cheese. Stir in bacon and onion until well combined. Fill each wonton wrapper with about 1 tablespoon of filling mixture.

Bake until quiche mixture is set and edges of wrappers are lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Yields 2 quiches per serving.


© 2010 Weight Watchers International, Inc. © 2010 WeightWatchers.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
WEIGHT WATCHERS and POINTS are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. and are used under license by WeightWatchers.com, Inc.

Two for Tuesday today! Both Cheesy of course!

I am having a Miche Bag party this Friday and was looking for some recipes to serve my guests that are Point friendly! By the way I can’t wait to get my new purse, I am so going to throw my old one out in the driveway and run it over with my Jeep!! Oh wait, I did tell my 8 year old she could have it…

This spicy dip is waistline-friendly. Serve it with baked tortilla chips or Jicama sticks. So, if you are anything like me, you have no earthly idea what Jicama is!!! So, Google girl that I am, here is what I found!

Jícama (pronounced HEE-kah-mah) is a large, bulbous root vegetable which you may have overlooked at the market. It has a thin, brown, fibrous skin and its flesh is white and crunchy, very similar to water chestnut. It has a sweet, almost nutty flavor. It is often referred to as a Mexican potato or Mexican turnip.

Jícama can be eaten raw or cooked. I probably use it more frequently raw than cooked. I like to julienne it and serve it in salads for added crunch or on a crudités platter for something different. Or you can shred it (a mandoline works great with the smallest julienne blade) and make a unique slaw.

A very common way to eat jícama is to slice it like fries, sprinkle it with chili powder and salt and squeeze with some fresh lime. Yum!

When cooked, it retains its crispness. Since it has such a mild flavor, it can add crunchiness to a variety of dishes. Try dicing it and adding to chili, stew or stir-fry. Or finely diced and added to a crab or fish cake. Its juicy crispness compliments spicy dishes well. It is a great addition to a spring roll.

From: http://prestochef.blogspot.com/2009/03/jicama-stick-mas.html

Chili Party Dip
1 Points Plus (1 Point-old system)
10 Servings
Ingredients

15 oz canned turkey chili without beans
8 oz fat-free cream cheese
4 oz canned jalapeno peppers
1 small onion(s), finely chopped
1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan.

Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until cheese melts, about 10 minutes. Yields about 1/4 cup per serving.

© 2010 Weight Watchers International, Inc. © 2010 WeightWatchers

What a find!

Two point slow cooker pasta sauce!  I haven’t tried this one yet, but I think it sounds fab!  Lots of homework tonight peeps so I gotta be brief (brief, another allusion to our future tiny selves!)  The best part about this one is that it can go for 12-18 hours on low!  I love my slow cooker but sometimes I just have a bunch of mush when I leave something in it all day while I am working, this one is designed for that!! BONUS!!

Italian Vegetable Pasta Sauce 

3 Points Plus (2 Points-old system)

8 Servings

Ingredients

3 T olive oil    

1 c parsley, fresh, chopped    

3 medium stalks celery, chopped    

1 medium onions, chopped    

2 cloves garlic, minced    

1/2 t dried rosemary, or, 2-inch sprig fresh rosemary    

1/2 t dried sage    

32 oz canned tomato sauce    

32 oz canned tomatoes, diced    

1 T cayenne pepper    

1/4 lb mushrooms, sliced, or 8 oz canned    

1 1/2 tsp table salt     

Instructions

Makes 2 quarts Sauce

Prep time: 25 minutes

Cooking time: 5-18 hours

Ideal slow-cooker size: 4-5-qt.

1. Heat oil in skillet. Add parsley, celery, onion, garlic, rosemary, and sage. Sauté until vegetables are tender. Place in slow cooker.

2. Add tomatoes, chili pepper, mushrooms, and salt.

3. Cover. Cook on Low 12-18 hours, or on High 5-6 hours.

Variation:

Add 1 lb. browned 90 % lean ground beef to olive oil and sautéed vegetables. (makes this 4 points a serving!) Continue with recipe.

Fix-It and Forget-It Big Cookbook, p. 495

Sherril Bieberly, Salina, KS

Tiny little yummy cupcakes!! FILLED WITH CHOCOLATE!!

In Michigan, for the first time in a long time, we have been blessed with unseasonably warm weather in November.  Last week it reached 70 degrees on several days, which is pretty much unheard of around here.  I have been snowed in on Thanksgiving before!  Well, needless to say…it isn’t lasting, it is biting cold and windy today with a chance of snow and I really just want to curl up in my warm bed with a good book or movie and do a whole lot of nuthin’!  How is everyone else out there in WW land?  Throw me some feedback on temps in your area, well unless you live in the sunny and warm south, then just lie to me please…

Chocolate-Filled Mini Vanilla Cupcakes 

2 Points Plus (1 Point-old system)

48 Servings

These mini cupcakes are the perfect portion-controlled sweet treat. 

Ingredients

18-1/4 oz unprepared white cake mix    

1 c water    

1/3 c unsweetened applesauce    

3 large eggs    

1 c dry chocolate pudding mix, prepared with 2% milk    

1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips    

1/2 c fat-free cream cheese    

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 48 mini muffin cups with paper liners.

To make cupcakes, beat together cake mix, water, applesauce and eggs at low speed for 30 seconds; beat on medium speed for 2 minutes more. Spoon batter into lined cupcake cups.

Bake cupcakes for 5 minutes. Drop a teaspoon of pudding into the center of each cupcake. Bake for 13 minutes more and cool for at least 30 minutes.

To make icing, create a double boiler: Boil water in a small saucepan and then reduce heat to simmer. Put chocolate chips in a small metal bowl and set bowl over simmering water; stir until chocolate melts. Remove from heat and stir in cream cheese; blend until smooth.

Top each cooled cupcake with 1 teaspoon of icing.

Yields 1 cupcake per serving.