Several of them are Weight Watcher recipes, courtesy of my friend, Kayla Mansour, who is an amazing WW leader. Though I’ve never been a huge fan of sloppy joes, nor of ground turkey, I have to say – this dish had me at hello.

It smelled just that good.

It tasted even better.

But don’t take my word for it. Try it! You’ll be glad you did.

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground lean turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup Catsup 
12 oz diet Coke

Brown the ground turkey and onions together in a skillet sprayed with non-stick spray. Be sure the turkey is well browned.

Add the catsup and diet Coke. Simmer uncovered on medium heat until the cola and catsup cook down to a rich, thick sauce. Serve on whole-wheat burger buns.

DELISH!

Makes 10 sandwiches @ 5 Pts each (including the bun)
Use Sandwich thins and they are 2 Pts. each!

Recipe courtesy of: Kayla Mansour, Weight Watcher Leader

Ingredients

	2 tsp vegetable oil, divided
	1 tsp sesame oil, divided
	1 1/2 Tbsp ginger root, finely chopped
	3 small garlic clove(s), finely chopped
	1 pound(s) uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
	1 large sweet red pepper(s), cut into 1-inch pieces
	2 cup(s) broccoli, florets
	2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
	20 item(s) cashews, roasted, unsalted, roughly chopped

Instructions

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil, 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil, ginger and garlic; cook 15 seconds. Add chicken and stir-fry until starting to brown, about 3 to 4 minutes; remove to a plate.

Add remaining teaspoon of vegetable oil, pepper and broccoli to same skillet; stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add chicken back to skillet, pour in soy sauce and cook, stirring, until chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes more; toss with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil. Sprinkle on cashews and serve. Yields about 1 3/4 cup per serving.

**  A Weight Watcher recipe – 5 points

- 1 cup orange juice
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1 banana
- 2 cups assorted frozen fruit (a mix of mangos, raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries is perfect)
- 1/2 cup tofu (silken works best, but anything will work)
- 1/4 cup milled flax seed

Directions:

Blend all ingrendients in blender, pulsing until thoroughly mixed. Frozen fruit is definitely key for a good smoothie.  It means you don’t have to add any ice at all.  We just buy the mixed berry frozen fruit packages and use those so the smoothies have a little bit of everything.  

Makes 2 large smoothies.

Enjoy!

Now – ordinarily – he has me at “hey baby look,” spoken in that deep, husky voice that I love so much. Ordinarily I would melt immediately and be his love slave for the remainder of the day.

But no. My man had to go and add “I’m wearing my skinny jeans,” which produced a totally different effect on me. A fit of giggles.

Images of Rachel Zoe and fashion mags danced through my head and, even though I am certainly no expert on skinny jeans since I own none, I’m fairly confident that MJ’s aren’t the ones that are currently trending.

However…

I must say that the man is definitely rocking his version these days!

Like everything else in his life, he decides what he wants, goes for it with gusto, and almost always succeeds. MJ decided about four months ago to get healthy and began to implement small changes. Small changes that have begun to reap large rewards.

Changes like this one. And counting points. And eating healthy meals that his most diligent wife prepares for him.

MJ had a physical two weeks ago. These small changes?

Paid HUGE dividends.

In four short months, his blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides (which had all been high before) are now all within the normal, acceptable, praised-by-your-doctor range. To celebrate, he’s planning on running a 5K with me next month!

So my guy wants to rock his skinny jeans, huh?

I think he’s earned the right. Rock on, Baby!

Easy Bavarian Cream

Fold 3 stiffly beaten, pasteurized egg whites into a bowl of prepared, cooled instant sugar-free/fat-free vanilla, butterscotch, white chocolate, banana or chocolate pudding. Chill for 2 hours in individual custard cups or one large serving bowl. Now you’re on the way to the elegant dishes below.

To make a trifle: Layer the Easy Bavarian Cream in a 2-quart glass bowl with 24 purchased lady fingers and 3 cups fresh berries or sliced fruit.

To make a Bavarian cream parfait: Spoon alternating layers of fruit and Easy Bavarian Cream into clear wine glasses. Here are some flavor combinations we enjoy:

• Vanilla Bavarian cream with orange sections
• White Chocolate Bavarian cream and raspberries
• Butterscotch Bavarian cream and sliced bananas
• Chocolate Bavarian cream with strawberries
• Banana Bavarian cream with kiwi fruit slices

Creamy Chocolate Mousse

Prepare a cook-and-serve sugar-free/fat-free chocolate pudding mix according to the package directions. Transfer the hot pudding to a bowl and place a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill 1 hour or until cool. Fold 1 1/2 cups fat-free, non-dairy whipped topping into the cooled pudding. Chill 2 hours in individual custard cups or in a large serving bowl, or make one of these tasty desserts.

To make a frozen chocolate mousse pie: Pour the mousse into a baked low-fat pie shell and freeze.

For a frozen chocolate mint mousse cake: Add 1/2 teaspoon mint extract to the pudding with the whipped topping. Coat an 8-inch springform pan with cooking spray. Crush 16 low-fat chocolate wafer cookies and sprinkle them on the sides, pressing if necessary to make them stick, and on the bottom of the inside of the pan. Pour the mousse over the crumbs and freeze for 4 hours.

For individual frozen chocolate mousse desserts: Line 6 muffin tins with paper muffin cups and fill with the chocolate mousse mixture. Freeze until firm, then serve with a spoon.

Other Pudding Dessert Ideas

• To make a pudding jelly roll, bake a packaged angel food cake mix as directed by the box. When it’s cool, spread the roll with prepared sugar-free/fat-free pudding (any flavor and either instant or cook-and-serve) and roll up as directed.
• To make pudding ice cream, prepare any flavor sugar-free/fat-free instant pudding as directed on the package. Pour immediately into a pre-chilled ice cream machine and churn until frozen. Serve immediately.
• To make frozen fudge pops, prepare instant sugar-free/fat-free chocolate pudding as directed. Pour into small paper cups and freeze 1 hour or until a popsicle stick will stand up when inserted. Insert one popsicle stick into the center of each; freeze until hard.

Weight Watcher recipe – healthy & light!

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

1. Toast almonds in a dry skillet over medium high heat until barely brown. Cool.
2. Combine greens, fruit, and nuts.
3. Combine dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
4. Drizzle dressing over salad and enjoy!

8 oz whole wheat short tube-shaped pasta

Preheat broiler. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Rinse pasta with cold water; drain again and set aside.

Meanwhile, place the bell peppers cut-side down on a foil-lined broiler pan and broil until charred, 7 – 8 minutes. Transfer peppers to a bowl, cover and set aside about 5 minutes until cool enough to handle.

Marinate shrimp in 1 tbsp olive oil, 3/4 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1/8 cup water, and 1/2 tsp. desired herbs & garlic.  Place all in zip-lock bag, massage well, and then chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Peel the roasted peppers and slice into strips; transfer to a large bowl.  Chop mozarella into bite size pieces. Mix the pepper strips with the mozarella, basil, pasta, 1 tsp salt, and pepper to taste; toss.

In a small bowl, prepare salad dressing by mixing together oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt, black pepper and garlic. 

Pour dressing over pasta and vegetables and toss thoroughly to coat. Add marinated shrimp. Cover and chill about 2 hours.

Yields about 1 cup per serving.

Light, healthy, delicious!!!

Wilder Homemade Chicken Pot Pies

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 leeks, bottom 4 inches only, washed well and chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 medium potatoes cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups low-fat milk
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 3 sheets frozen phyllo dough thawed (we used rolled-out Crescent dough)
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 4 individual-sized baking dishes with cooking spray.

Season the chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few turns of pepper. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil over a medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pan and cook for 5 minutes, turning once. Transfer the chicken to a plate.

Add 2 more teaspoons of the oil, the leeks, and the celery to the pan and cook until vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the potatoes, green beans, garlic, and remaining salt and pepper and cook for 2 more minutes.

Add the milk to the pan. Stir the flour into the chicken broth until dissolved and add to the pan. Cook, stirring, until the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Stir in the reserved chicken, peas, parsley, and thyme. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dishes.

Put the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil into a small bowl. Unroll the phyllo dough and cut it into quarters. Place a quarter sheet on top of each baking dish and brush with olive oil. Repeat with remaining 3 baking dishes. Tuck the edges of the phyllo into the dish rim. Top each pie with Parmesan.

Place on a baking sheet and bake until the filling is bubbling, about 30 minutes.

SO good!

A year ago this week, I began running. Looking back, it makes me laugh to think that I could scarcely run sixty seconds straight without running out of breath and out of steam.

These days I continue to run a steady and consistent 3-4 miles several times a week. Running has given me so much: better health, better mental clarity, and…has bonded me in a special way with Braxton!

This is a picture of Braxton with his proud parents, Brian and Stefanie (my cousin.) On Friday, Braxton ran in his regional track finals and I went to watch.  Braxton ran a 6:20 mile and I couldn’t have been more proud if he’d been my own son!

Way to go, Braxton!