Meal # 21 ~ "Healthier" comfort foods!!

Sunday was the most perfect IL day; the weather was beautiful -- it was in the 70s, sunny, with a nice light breeze!! We decided that we would grill & eat on our porch. We decided on two "healthier" comfort foods. Ryan manned the grill & made bruschetta turkey burgers with avocado mayo & I made "skinny" broccoli mac & cheese! We couldn't decide which of the two we liked better!!

Skinny Broccoli Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:
12 oz high fiber pasta
2 T light butter
1/4 c minced onion
1/4 c flour
2 cups skim milk
1 cup fat free chicken broth
2 cups fat free shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
12 oz frozen broccoli florets
1/8 c grated parm cheese
1/4 c bread crumbs
cooking spray

 

1. Cook your pasta to 'al dente'. During the last 2 minutes, add the frozen broccoli to the pasta. Spray 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Drain pasta & broccoli and add to baking dish. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. While pasta is cooking, start your sauce. In a large skillet, melt butter and add onion. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes.

3. Add flour and cook another minute until flour is golden and well combined.

4. Add milk & chicken broth. Whisk while raising heat to medium/high until it comes to a boil. Cook about 5 min until sauce becomes thick. Season with salt and pepper.

5. Remove from heat and add cheese. Stir until melted and mixed well.

6. Pour on top of pasta and broccoli in casserole dish. Mix well. Top with grated cheese and bread crumbs. Spray top with cooking spray.

6. Bake for 15-20 min then broil for a few min to get breadcrumbs golden.

For dinner we had the bruschetta turkey burgers with avocado mayo & the broccoli mac & cheese.

The verdict: Like I mentioned earlier...we couldn't decide which we liked better. They were both really yummy. I will add the burger recipe at the end!

Link to Skinny Broccoli Mac & Cheese
Link to Bruschetta Turkey Burgers with Avocado Mayo *note -- I used plain Greek yogurt instead of mayo

Meal #20 ~ A family favorite!

I made this last week, but forgot to post it. I have some good recipes in the works for next week, so hopefully I'll get back on the bandwagon with posting my recipes!!

Corn Pudding
2 cans of cream style corn
2 eggs
12 oz can of evaporated milk
1/3 c cornstarch
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c melted butter

1. Spray an 8x8 casserole dish with cooking spray.
2. Mix the milk, eggs, and cornstarch. Mix well or else the dish can get lumpy.

3. In casserole dish, mix the milk mixture, sugar, butter, corn...and then stir. I usually cut back on the sugar and butter amounts. The original recipe from my Nana calls for 1 cup of sugar!!! It keeps getting cut back as it is passed down through generations!! Ha ha.

4. You can bake this, but I like to put it in the microwave. Microwave for about 10 min and you are done!  If you bake it, bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 min until top is browned a little bit.

For dinner we had spicy kale lasagna, corn pudding, & garlic bread. Ryan used to think it was weird that we would have this dish with Italian meals, but it is a good pairing! The lasagna was a recipe that I posted about a month ago and froze. It was really good and we will have it again. And, of course, the corn pudding is delish!! :) It is usually at all of our holiday celebrations too!

Meal #19 ~ Pasta with Chickpea Tomato Sauce

We are back home from PA, did a bunch of grocery shopping today, so we were in the kitchen cooking tonight!!:)

Pasta with Chickpea Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 t red pepper flakes
3 cups cooked chickpeas
Salt
28 oz crushed tomatoes
14.5 oz chicken broth
Dash of oregano (the recipe called for 1 sprig of fresh basil, but I had dried oregano in my pantry and decided to use that instead)
12 oz pasta
Parmesan cheese, for serving

1. In a medium saucepan, heat oil, garlic, & red pepper flakes over medium heat until fragrant (about 30 sec).

2. Add chickpeas & season with salt. Cook 5 min.

3. Add tomatoes and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook to reduce for 20 min. I also added my dried oregano at this point. If you are using the fresh basil, add it after the sauce has reduced, cook an additional 5 min, and then remove the basil. 

 4. While the sauce is simmering, cook the pasta. Once the pasta & sauce are both done, combine them. Serve with parm cheese!

For dinner, Ryan grilled chicken because it was so nice outside & we had the chickpea pasta and broccoli with cheese!

The verdict: Loved it!

Link to Pasta with Chickpea Tomato Sauce

A few homemade things...

A few months ago I posted a recipe for homemade dishwasher detergent. It is working great & we are still using the same double batch. The cheese cloth/rice is essential to keep the powder from getting hard (by the way).

We are in PA this week and my mom asked me to make her homemade fabric softener & laundry detergent. We are already using both of these items at home, but I didn't have a chance to post the recipes to share! Here they are...Sorry for no pictures, but it is pretty self explanatory!

Homemade Fabric Softener

Ingredients:
6 cups HOT water
3 cups white vinegar
2 cups Suave conditioner (I used ocean breeze for my mom)

1. Combine the hot water & conditioner until dissolved.
2. Add the vinegar & mix well.

That's it! You will use about 2 tablespoons per load.

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Ingredients:
1 cup Borax
1 cup washing soda
1 bar of Ivory soap

1. Combine the Borax & washing soda.
2. Grate the soap using a cheese grater. Add the soap to the powder mixture.
3. Combine well!

Another easy one! I recommend doubling this if you do a lot of laundry. You'll use about 1 tablespoon per load.