Tortilla Soup (Lightened Up)

With the barbecue pot roast and this soup, it has been a week for comfort food! Both Mr. Max and I have felt a little puny with fall allergies on top of being generally run down from a very hectic September. Experiencing a bit of real fall weather, we decided to make a big batch of our favorite soup for the week. Giada's Tortilla Soup has been our go-to the past few years, it is so easy to make and truly delicious, but this time I decided to change it up a bit.

I wanted to turn up the heat a bit to help clear some serious sniffles so cayenne pepper was included, I added black beans for additional protein, and used a low-sodium vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. 

Nutritional facts can be found here, calculated through SparkRecipes.com; one serving of soup is 3 WW points. 

Grocery List:
Recipe yields 7-8 servings

• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 12 oz. can of roasted tomatoes, diced
• 1 tbsp. canola oil
• 1 cup onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 poblano pepper, minced
• 1 tsp. cayenne
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 12 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups rotisserie chicken, shredded
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• 1 avocado, cubed
• Cheese for garnish

To start, combine the vegetable broth, diced tomatoes and peppers in a pot on medium-high heat. Add the cayenne, chili powder and oregano.

 

Take an immersion blender, or dump contents of pot into a blender, and blend the diced tomatoes and peppers until smooth and creamy. In a different pot, begin to saute the onions in canola oil over medium heat. Add more cayenne pepper and cumin. After cooking for about 10 minutes, add the garlic until fragrant.

 

Pour the soup mix into the pot with the onions, then add the black beans, shredded chicken and cilantro. Let simmer for about 30 minutes to allow the flavors to conjure, or until you are ready to serve.

 

Add the avocado to each individual bowl, garnish cheese and additional cilantro then ladel and enjoy!

Tastefully yours,

Party Favorites!

With the Super Bowl, Valentine's Day and the Academy Awards approaching, social gatherings are in full swing. I thought I would provide you with some of my party favorites, tried and true, from me to you!

1.) This Chicken Bruschetta  is perfect as a pre-meal dish for you and yours to snack on before a romantic main course, to set on a party platter for the big game, or gabbing with the girls watching the red carpet. Diced chicken, fresh tomato and julienne basil tossed with goat cheese toasted together on a slice of fresh baguette.

2.) For the dip lovers, add in some greens and try this Skinny Spinach Artichoke Dip. This was my first appetizer post, and one that has been a repeat contribution at parties. Serve with pita chips, wheat thins or tortilla chips.

3.) For the savory folk, I served these Chicken Caprese Sliders for an Academy Awards dinner last year. Creating a hearty spin-off on the typical caprese salad, these bite-sized buns are filled with a light pesto mayo, fresh tomato, mozzarella and a balsamic grilled chicken.

4.) Great for a group and easy to serve into multiple portions, here is a layered salad to take the place of an infamous layered dip that is a staple in a sporty spread. I affectionately refer to this as my Mexi-Texi Layer Salad with layers of crisp lettuce, a corn-black bean-bell pepper-cilantro mix, tomato-red onion combo, cucumber, avocado, shredded Mexican blend cheese and topped with your meat of choice! I used shrimp but either diced chicken or shredded beef would be a fabulous addition. Let your guests choose a salad dressing with options of a smokey-chipotle ranch or a cilantro-lime vinaigrette.

5.) Last but not least, a frothy treat you can feel good about consuming. Let the boys drink the brews, ladies this drink is for you! Taste the tropics in February with a low-cal Watermelon Margarita, made with fresh fruit.

Tastefully Yours,

 

Throwback Thursday: Black Bean Casserole in Enchilada form

As you may recall, my Throwback Thursdays are a new addition to 2011 blogging where I attempt to dedicate my Thursday night meals to a previous recipe post. It was a way to resurface old recipes but what I found was that it has become more of a way to reinvent them.

Initially, I had a meeting scheduled for this evening so I had not intended to cook dinner. Meeting fell through, so I needed a meal plan. I first looked at Gina's blog and found a Zucchini Enchilada recipe - it looked intriguing, so thought I'd try it out. Reading it though, I thought about the Black Bean Tortilla Casserole I made from Cara's Cravings blog and how much we loved that. From there, this recipe was born. I decided to take parts of that dish and make it into an enchilada version.

This is a fun one, but tailored more for the adventurous eaters. However, my advice to you - if you know you are feeding picky-ish palates, just don't tell them what you are serving. That's how my friend Julie got me to love the inspiration for this dish in the first place - she made the casserole for us and just served it, no questions asked until after a few bites. It was awesome and I had to know how she made it. Simply seeing it in a magazine somewhere, I don't think I would have gravitated to it on my own.You don't like bell pepper? No prob, can't tell it's in there. Hate onions? You would not know one bit. You kinda have to like squash, that one is a prominent bite.

Here's my reinvented dish for this Thursday's throwback edition, black bean zucchini enchiladas.

Grocery List:

• 1 onion, diced
• 1 bell pepper, diced (I chose yellow this time because it is summery and sweet!)
• 1 zucchini squash, chopped (I tried to make small bitesize bits that would fit well in an enchilada bite)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• Cumin
• Chili powder 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (I used 3/4 can for the enchiladas and the 1/4 of the can for my salad)
• 1 can diced tomatoes and chipotle peppers (tomatoes with green chilies work too - I only used 1/2 can for this and saved the other 1/2 for the enchilada sauce creation)
• 2 oz. cream cheese
• Whole wheat tortillas
• 1 cup tomato sauce (I used Hunts from a can)
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 tsp. adobo sauce (to turn up the heat just a bit)
• Low fat Mexican Cheese blend

Start by heating your oven to 400 degrees and a skillet on medium-high. Add the onions to begin sauteing, followed by the yellow bell pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes until veggies are softened.

Add the zucchini and garlic. Cover and let cook to soften the zucchini, but frequently stir to prevent garlic and onion from burning.

Start shaking it to your hearts content - the cumin and chili powder that is. Grind a little salt and pepper for good measure. Stir it all together to coat the veggies the best you can to really pack in the punch of flavor.

Now add 1/2 the can of tomatoes/peppers and 3/4 can of the black beans. Nom, nom, nom.

I cut up 3 cubes of low fat cream cheese, let the heat melt it and mix it together to form a creamy consistency. I then added two more small slices because I wanted too.

Creamy....perfect enchilada filling

As I waited for the cream cheese to soften and stir in, I went ahead and started my red enchilada sauce. In a medium sauce pan, add the other 1/2 can of the diced tomatoes/peppers with 1 cup tomato sauce. Let simmer on medium heat. Next add 1 tsp. of adobo sauce (from a chili peppers in adobo can), 1/4 cup cilantro and another small chunk of cream cheese to assist with the creamy texture. (If you are measuring your chunks right, you will have now used 2 oz. of cream cheese, roughly 1/4 of the bar)

Line your casserole dish with the sauce - if you feel that you need more sauce for the size of your dish, add the additional tomato sauce to the pot, mix with the rest and you're set.

Grabbing a wheat tortilla, add about 3-4 spoonfuls, roll and place seam-side down in your baking dish.

Top the enchiladas with the remainder of your sauce...

And smother it in a mexi-blend cheese with some fresh cilantro. Pop it in the oven for about 10-12 minutes.

As the enchiladas were becoming perfect in the oven, I whipped up a simple Mexi-Texi Salad using romaine lettuce, diced bits of a Roma tomato (my preference), the remainder of my black beans, sweet yellow corn, diced chunks from 1 avocado and tossed it all together in a fat-free smoky chipotle ranch. Yum.

When the timer dings, check your 'ladas. I tried to make that word work. I don't think it did... yet I don't delete. Remove from the oven and inhale, yummm and exhale sigh out.

Dish it out and serve it up. Your taste buds will be singing, it is just packed with flavor, your tummy will be full and happy. Happy dining, friends!

Throwback Thursday: Chicken Lettuce Wraps...revised

I  had planned to make this one exactly the way we did before - there just wasn't anything I wanted to change, we loved this recipe the way it was and planned to love it again tonight. But, we just aren't in control of everything now are we!

In our grocery excursion on Sunday, I did not pick up the butter lettuce needed for the "lettuce wrap" part of the chicken lettuce wraps. When I realized this, I asked Mr. Max to please pick it up on his way over tonight. As he was grabbing that last piece, I'm making the chicken mix just as the recipe said....

Well, grocery store didn't have the package of perfectly stacked butter lettuce, so the clerk gave him a head of it instead. Max said he was kinda skeptical about it, the leaves looked a little dingy, but the clerk said they were really fresh. He arrives, we are getting ready to dish it out, but as I'm breaking apart the lettuce leaves to wash, I come across something that caused me to change up the way dinner was planned for tonight. Meet our little friend, the Curtis the Caterpillar:

For whatever reason, he looks black in this picture but in real-life, he was very green.

That's right, I named him. Super fresh indeed Mr. Clerk Man, so fresh that the insects are still inhabiting the food we just bought to consume. Now, I'm sure caterpillars are as clean as they are... ahem, cute... but I am not about to serve up leaves that I saw bugs in. No sir, no way. So, we improvised!

Say hello to tonight's Throwback Thursday rendition of Chicken Lettuce Wraps... Stir Fry: The Remix (insert the wah-ah-wah-ah noise that DJ's make with their turntable things). We remove the lettuce wrap aspect and added some fresh steamed broccoli with the rice and chicken to still get the greens in. It was a delicious replacement and fun variation furthering my belief that everything happens for a reason! (Hi, nice to meet you, I plug corny anecdotes in wherever possible)

I also give you a delicious wine pairing for this meal! Little story for you, I recently enrolled in a wine club. While I do love wine, the reason for this was not to expand my palette, though a perk, but because American Airlines Advantage Program told me that I would receive 2,000 miles for enrolling if I spent $48 on my first month in this wine club. Because I am a sucker for bargain deals, I thought to myself "self, you should do this." So I did and by doing so, I'd receive 6 wines - either mixed, all whites or all reds - and a 9 piece wine opener set. Merry Christmas in April. 

My shipment came today, as did the reality. Mental note reminder to cancel tomorrow - I got my miles and the enrollment deal, now I cancel before next month and the price more than doubles beginning in month two! I do love wine, but not that much, nor do I drink it enough to justify an additional 6 bottles per month, Lordy. Anyway, the point is, I received the shipment today and went with the mixed blend because spring/summer is upon us and white wine in warmer climates is favorable. Each wine came with an informative pairing card, the Clark Road Vintners Viognier (2010) said it was best paired with barbeque chicken or stir fry, so I decided we had a winner and this was a perfect excuse to open one. I'd never tried Viognier before but I have to say I recommend this one - both the recipe rendition and the wine!

 We just started and are hooked on the AMC series, Breaking Bad - no pun intended given the content and premise of the series. Tonight's dinner was a coffee-table-classic, as we watched our show!

Grocery list is all the same, minus the lettuce and adding the broccoli florets, same as the recipe process. So help yourself to this for the original but for tonight's version, all you do is add in broccoli to the chicken mix, increase the Tamari and sweet chili sauce to your personal preferences, create a bed with the rice, then serve!

Throwback Thursday: New and Improved Chicken Florentine

Last June I took two recipes that I found in the America's Test Kitchen Light and Healthy 2010 magazine: Chicken Florentine and Mediterranean Chicken, creating Mediterranean Chicken Florentine. The final product was a little bland and a watery due to the moisture from the spinach as it cooked, it depleted the rest of the flavor of the dish. The former recipe used flour, cream, lemon juice and chicken stock to create a sauce - I decided to bypass the sauce and instead bulk up the taste of the spinach to get the "umph" I was looking for.

I came across a sauteed spinach recipe in America's Test Kitchen Light and Healthy 2011 magazine that I just picked up. This spinach recipe uses a little bit of olive oil, shallot, red wine vinegar, pecans and feta. I decided to make this spinach and bake it with the chicken for a revived Chicken Florentine. We loved this version, I only wish I had thought to make a rice with it. An angel hair pasta bed would have gone well too, but for me, not until after Easter!

The nutrition facts for this version of the spinach are 190 calories, 7g fat, 31g carbs, 5g protein, 8g fiber per serving.

Grocery List:

• 2 chicken cutlets, cut in half for 4 small, thin chicken breasts
• 2 bags of baby spinach
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large shallot, minced (about 1/2 cup)
• Garlic salt to taste
• 2 teaspoons of red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta
• Parmesan
• 1/4 cup halved cherry tomatoes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the spinach and water in a large microwavable bowl. Heat in the microwave on high for 4 minutes until the spinach is wilted and decreased by half. America's Test Kitchen says that the reason they microwave it in this version is because tender young baby spinach releases a lot of liquid when it hits a hot pan, so adding a large amount at one time leaves a waterlogged, mushy mess. It is better to microwave/steam it in batches then squeeze dry. 

 Fill the bowl...

Put it in the microwave and let it wilt by half

Empty that batch into a collander and drain, using paper towels to help soak up the extra moisture. Repeat this process at least twice more.

In a skillet, heat the olive oil on medium-high heat and add the minced shallot for 3-5 minutes until golden brown.

Once the spinach is all drained, add it to the skillet, drizzle with a little more olive oil and toss with the tongs.

Add the vinegar, walnuts and feta.

 

Season with garlic salt and add the tomatoes. 

Set the chicken in an oven safe dish and top with the sauteed spinach mixture, last sprinkle on a little Parmesan cheese.

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Remove from the oven and serve!

Throwback Thursday: Asparagus and Gouda Stuffed Chicken

I chose this dish as my first Throwback Thursday recipe because at the time I first conceived it into the blog world, I didn't have a camera at my disposal. I wanted to re-do it because while it was quite tasty, more importantly, now I can make it complete with my step-by-step as I like to do. You can go here for the initial post with ingredients.

This time, I used chicken cutlets, which are already much thinner pieces of chicken rather than pounding down a chicken breast. I prefer to use organic cutlets whenever I make chicken because it contains less meat so you don't over eat!

Start by pre-heating your oven to 400 degrees. Combine the mayo, dijon, lemon juice, lemon zest, tarragon, salt and pepper in a bowl.

Whisk well...

Using a pastry brush, lightly spread a little of your mayo concoction on one side of your chicken. Add slices of the cheese, followed by 4-6 spears of asparagus.

I did each chicken breast differently. The first one, I rolled tight and secured with toothpicks. This second one (Mr. Max's) I stuffed with more and folded the chicken cutlet over, securing with toothpicks.

Using you handy pastry brush again, slather that top with the mayo mixture. Get it good.

Sprinkle and press lightly to adhere the panko breadcrumbs on top.

Spray an oven-safe dish with cooking spray and add your stuffed chicken. Pop in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes, until cooked through. The breadcrumbs will be nice and browned.

Cheeeeeeesy, gooooooooey goodness.

Slice in half to see your pretty asparagus and Gouda chicken! Served with a mixed green salad and a roasted garlic pearl couscous (box version).