Weight Watchers Chicken Cacciatore Recipe

A very good friend of mine joined Weight Watchers a few years ago, and over a a 2 year period of time lost over 80 pounds, an absolutely awesome achievement!! To this day, 3 years later, she still consciously watches her points values for everything she consumes, and to date has not added even 1 additional pound of weight, an even more phenomenal feat!!

As we love to get together frequently for dinners and such, it has been a real learning curve for us at the the Amateur to learn to cook low fat and low calorie dishes that taste great yet still adhere to the 'points value system' touted by Weight Watchers, therefore we were thrilled when we came across this light and tasty Weight Watchers Chicken Cacciatore Recipe.

If you are following a Weight Watchers diet, or simply want to control the amount of fat or calories you are taking in, then you really must try this delicious and easy chicken cacciatore recipe:

Weight Watchers Chicken Cacciatore Recipe:

Ingredients:
2 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup(s) onion(s), chopped
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1 medium green pepper(s), diced
1 cup(s) mushroom(s), sliced
1 pound(s) uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 tsp dried basil
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
28 oz canned diced tomatoes
1/4 cup(s) parsley, fresh, chopped
8 oz uncooked whole-wheat spaghetti

Instructions
Heat oil in a large saucepan or stock pot over medium-high heat; add onion, garlic, green pepper and mushrooms. Sauté until vegetables are tender and mushrooms release juice, about 4 minutes. Add chicken and sauté until golden brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add basil, curry powder, salt and black pepper; stir to coat.
Add tomatoes and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in parsley.
Meanwhile, cook spaghetti according to package directions.
Transfer spaghetti to four shallow bowls and spoon chicken mixture over top. Yields about 1 cup of chicken mixture and 1 cup of spaghetti per serving.

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Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

A slow cooker pork roast is a great time saving option for those busy nights when you just won't have time to make dinner, and this wonderful Orange-Barbeque Slow Cooker Pulled Pork is an updated and easy recipe that combines the convenience of slow cooking with the delicious taste of a tender and juicy slow cooker pulled pork.

Prepare everything in the morning before you leave for work, toss into your slow cooker and let the slow cooker do the work for you. When you arrive home in time for dinner, voila, your Orange-Barbeque Slow Cooker Pulled Pork dinner is ready and waiting for you!

The best thing is that it is easy to change your barbeque sauce and marinades for an easy and interesting variation on this recipe for slow cooker pulled pork.

Orange-Barbeque Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Ingredients:
1 cup barbeque sauce
1/4 cup pure orange marmalade
1 boneless pork shoulder (3 lb./1.35 kg)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
12 sandwich rolls, split, toasted

Directions:
MIX barbecue sauce and marmalade in small bowl. Place meat in slow cooker; top with barbecue sauce mixture. Cover with lid.

COOK on LOW for 8 to 10 hours (or on HIGH for 4 to 6 hours). Remove meat from slow cooker; cut into small pieces or shred with fork. Return meat to slow cooker; stir until meat is evenly coated with the barbecue sauce mixture.

SPREAD dressing onto cut sides of buns. Fill rolls evenly with meat mixture.

Tips:
Jazz It Up - For more orange flavour, stir 1 tsp. grated orange peel into meat mixture.

Recipe courtesy Kraft Kitchens.

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Matt's Stuffed Pork Tenderloin - Matt, This One's For You!!

A few years ago, we had the priviledge and immense pleasure of hosting our nephew, Matt, for 5 weeks while he was on a school work-placement program. While he was staying with us, we naturally used him to taste-test everything and anything we whipped up in the kitchen, always to rave reviews from Matt (other than our middle-eastern flop - but even then, Matt's sense of diplomacy kicked in!!)!

One of the recipes we tried, and perfected over the years based on Matt's positive critique, was this delicious recipe for stuffed pork tenderloin, which we have affectionately dubbed 'Matt's Stuffed Pork Tenderloin'. This delicious stuffed pork tenderloin is easy enough to make for an evening meal, yet works wonderfully as a gourmet meal for even the most discerning of guests.

Well, the days of Matt taste-testing our new creations may be long gone since Matt has moved on and moved out on his own and is now creating his own mouth-watering concoctions, but every time we want to relive the memory of those wonderful winter meals with Matt, we ananimously agree to a meal of Matt's Stuffed Pork Tenderloin!

Matt, this one's for you!!! Enjoy!!!

Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin, trimmed & butterflied
2-3 tblsp butter
1 chopped onion
2-3 slices white bread, cubed
1 apple, peeled, cored & cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 tsp sage
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup chicken broth
freshly ground black pepper to taste
Aluminium foil

Directions:
Melt butter in small pot. Add onions and cook 2 minutes on medium heat.
Add apple cubes, sage, cinnamon and freshly ground pepper and cook another 2-3 minutes.
Add 1/4 cup chicken broth & bread cubes and mix until bread is moist and has absorbed the chicken broth.
Cool 5-10 minutes.
Fill tenderloin with stuffing, tie with cotton twine or thread and wrap in aluminium foil.
Bake at 325 for 1 hour.
Loosen and fold back foil and bake an additonal 15 minutes or until meat is browned and tender.

Enjoy!!!

Tip:
To butterfly pork tenderloin: Using a sharp knife, cut lengthwise through the middle of the tenderloin, making certain not to cut all the way through (should be approximately 1/4-1/2 inch of meat remaining to keep the 2 sides joined) and spread flat.

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Weight Watchers Turkey Meatloaf

Now that the holiday season is behind us and the rich calorie-laden meals are a distant memory, it is time to get the New Year off to a healthy start and shed those unwanted pounds with this lean and hearty Weight Watchers Turkey Meatloaf.

This delicous Weight Watchers Turkey Meatloaf is perfect as is, but if you want to add a bit of zip to the basic Weight Watchers turkey meatloaf recipe, add a dash or two of hot pepper to taste.

As with most basic meatloaf recipes, this Weight Watchers turkey meatloaf version freezes well. If freezing meatloaf, bake weight watchers turkey meatloaf for 60 minutes only. Cool, remove from pan, wrap in foil and freeze. When ready to eat, thaw in refrigerator and reheat in oven at 350°F for 30 minutes. Top with 1/2 cup of tomato sauce and bake for 5 minutes more.

Weight Watchers Turkey Meatloaf

12 oz lean ground turkey
8 oz raw lean ground beef
1 medium onion(s), chopped
1/2 cup(s) uncooked old fashioned oats
8 oz canned tomato sauce
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp hot pepper sauce
2 large egg white(s), beaten slightly
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 large uncooked potato(es)
1/4 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
1/4 cup(s) plain fat-free yogurt
1/4 cup(s) light sour cream
1 Tbsp chives, minced
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray loaf pan with cooking spray. Combine beef, turkey, onion and oats in a large bowl. Mix together tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, egg whites, salt and pepper. Add to meat mixture and mix well with hands. Press into pan and bake for 60 to 70 minutes.
Peel potatoes and cut into large chunks. Cover with salted water and bring to the boil. Cook until tender when pierced by a knife. Remove from heat and drain.
Mash potatoes. Combine with milk, yogurt, sour cream and chives. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Do not overbeat or potatoes will become gummy.
Serve potatoes with meatloaf.

Recipe courtesy Weight Watchers.

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Famous Sloppy Joes Recipes

With the Christmas and New Year's feasts behind us and everyone looking for a change from turkey and roast beef, now is the time to cook up a hearty and healthy winter meal with one of our famous Sloppy Joes recipes from Kraft Kitchens.

The original and now famous sloppy joes recipes were invented at Sloppy Joe's Bar in Key West and consisted of ground beef in a sweet rich tomato sauce with onions, peppers and spices.

This easy to make rendition of the original recipe for homemade sloppy joes is quick to prepare and can be doubled or tripled if you are making sloppy joes for a crowd.

Famous Sloppy Joes Recipes

Ingredients:
1 lb. (450 g) extra lean ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onions
1 red pepper, chopped
2 carrots, shredded
1/4 cup BarBQ Sauce
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 whole wheat hamburger buns, split, toasted

Directions:

BROWN meat with onions, peppers and carrots in large nonstick skillet on medium heat, stirring frequently.

ADD barbecue sauce; cook 5 min. or until mixture is heated through and peppers are tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in cheese.

SPOON evenly into buns.

Substitute ground turkey for the ground beef.

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