2 point granola bars

Posted on July 26, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

This is a recipe that a coworker gave to me and the bars are absolutely delicious. I tweaked it just a bit and here is that version.

4 c Old-fashioned or steel cut oats (not Quick)
1 c wheat bran
1/4 c soy protein powder
1/2 c roasted peanuts coarsely chopped
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c light corn syrup
1/2 c sugar-free maple syrup
1 t vanilla
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Mix first four ingredients together in a large bowl. In a small saucepan mix 1/4 c maple syrup and 1/4 c corn syrup and bring to boil. Coat oat mixture with hot syrup mixture and spread into one very large or two 13 x 9” pans and toast for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Cool for a few minutes so the rest of the syrup doesn’t make it soggy.

Boil 1/4 brown sugar, 1/4 c maple syrup, and 1/4 c corn syrup for 2 minutes. Take off heat and add vanilla. Mix well with toasted oat mixture.

Allow to cool so chocolate chips won’t melt, then add chips and spread into 1 very large or 2 pans depending on the thickness you want. Let set at room temp or in the fridge and cut into 24 pieces.

tomato and rice salad with chicken

Posted on July 19, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

This is a recipe I got from my friend and yours, the Internet. However, I made a few adjustments, including adding chicken, to make the salad more of a meal than a side dish. You can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients:

3 c. cooked whole grain rice (read – brown)
2 medium ripe tomatoes, chopped, plus juices
1/4 c. finely chopped red onion
1/4 c. finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 tsp. olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb), cut into pieces
seasoning for chicken (I used a little cumin, garlic powder and salt)

Preparation:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Season chicken. Add olive oil to skillet. Add chicken and cook through…I wish I could tell you how long that takes, but I can’t…maybe 6 minutes. Just make sure it’s not pink inside so you don’t kill someone.

Combine rice, chopped tomatoes, onion, cilantro, lime juice and chicken in a medium bowl. Toss well.

Serves 6: 4 points per serving.

The original recipe recommends that you cover and refrigerate the salad until ready to serve. However, because I needed to taste it to make sure that it was good, (I hate trying a new recipe when other people are going to be eating it…but with my lunch group, there’s just no other way), I discovered that it is also delicious warm.

This one was a hit, for sure. One of the girls in my group said it was her favorite so far, although Dianne made a delicious chicken curry salad that I would put at the top. I’ll make that one in a few weeks and post the recipe with pictures. Delicious!

easy fruit salad…with a twist of lime

Posted on July 19, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

This is a really simple way to may a delicious, no fat, lots of flavor fruit salad. The inspiration comes from Giada De Laurentiis. She did something similar to this, with just berries. It’s very basic and you can definitely mix it up with different fruits, but I was a fan.

I used:

1 c. strawberries, sliced
1 yellow peach, cut into small pieces
1 c. green grapes
1/2 c. blueberries
1 orange, peel and pith removed, sliced horizontally
the juice of 1 lime
2 Tbsp. sugar
3 Tbsp. mint, finely chopped.

Put all of the fruit (not the lime juice) in a large bowl. Mix the lime juice, sugar and mint together in a small bowl. Pour juice mixture over fruit and toss…this is best done just before serving.

recipe update…a picture

Posted on July 17, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

Black Bean and Corn Salad – Check it out!

red bean salad with feta and peppers

Posted on July 11, 2007 by chloe elizabeth

So, Dianne and I were out running about a month ago (she’s the one who lit the running fire under my butt) and we were talking about food (yes, while running) and she mentioned how fun it might be to get a little salad group going at work. Get five of us and we would each have one day a week when we would be responsible for feeding the group. Well, she was off at the time (oh, to be on a ten month contract), so we didn’t get it started until this week.

Dianne started it off with a bang. She made this amazing Black Bean and Corn Salad. She even calculated the points out (a few of us at work, including Dianne, are on or have been on Weight Watcher’s) so that we wouldn’t have to do any math. I only wish that I had my camera with me on Monday because it was as pretty as it was delicious. Seriously!

Well, Wednesday is my day, so on Monday I got online to find some recipes (I love the internet) and found a couple of great websites with Weight Watcher’s recipes. But one particular recipe stood out to me…and I now know that it is delicious!

Red Bean Salad with Feta and Peppers

1 can (19 oz) kidney beans
1 sweet red pepper, chopped
2 c. cabbage, finely chopped (red or green…but I like the color with the green)
2 green onions, chopped (I used the entire onion…white to green)
4 oz feta cheese, cubed (roughly 1 cup)
1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped (I cut this in half and I used flat leaf or Italian parsley)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)

Drain kidney beans and rinse under cold water. In salad bowl, combine beans, red pepper, cabbage, onions, cheese, parsley, garlic, lemon juice and oil; toss to mix. Cover and refrigerate up to three days.