Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken

This recipe came from Gina's Weight Watchers Recipe Blog. I modified it to use the fat-free cheddar cheese I had in my fridge. I had a little trouble slicing each chicken breast into 3 cutlets, but I think it will be easier with practice. Also, I would recommend pounding out the chicken for it to be a little thinner. I didn't do this and it was hard to roll up some of the breast pieces. You could also play around with this idea. For example, Gina also has a recipe for Chicken Cordon Bleu using this idea where she put swiss cheese and sliced ham inside the chicken before rolling it up.

Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Makes: 9 pieces • Time: 40 minutes • Points: 3.25 ww points each

3 chicken breast halves
1 egg
2 tsp water
3/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
2 cups broccoli floret, cooked, chopped small
5 slices reduced fat Swiss cheese (I used shredded fat free cheddar cheese)
salt
spray oil
toothpicks

Preheat oven to 350°. In a small bowl, combine egg, water and a little salt. Beat with a fork to make an egg wash. Set aside. Fill a second bowl with breadcrumbs.

Slice chicken breast halves into thin cutlets. I usually get 3 thin cutlets out of one breast half. Pound them to make them thinner if you wish. This helps when you wrap the cutlets.

Cut each slice of cheese in half. Place a 1/2 slice cheese in the center of the chicken and top with a little broccoli. Wrap chicken around to completely cover cheese, using toothpicks to secure. Season with a little salt.

Dip chicken into egg wash, then breadcrumbs. Spray cookie sheet with oil and place chicken on cookie sheet. Lightly spray chicken with oil and bake about 25 minutes, until cooked.

Teriyaki Pork Marinade

I got this recipe from Ellie Krieger, the health food guru from the Food Network. The original recipe is titled "Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin," but where pork tenderloin is a spendy piece of meat, I used thin cut pork chops and it was delicious. I served it with garlic mashed potatoes and peas.

Teriyaki Pork Marinade

2 Tbl soy sauce

1 Tbl canola oil (I used vegetable oil)

1 Tbl brown sugar

1 Tbl dry sherry (I left this out as I don't cook with alcohol)

1 Tbl rice vinegar

1 garlic clove, minced (I used 1/4 tsp garlic powder)

1/2 tsp finely grated fresh ginger (I used 1/4 tsp ground ginger)

pinch of red pepper flakes

1 pound of pork

Combine ingredients in plastic bag and marinate at least 30 minutes (up to 8 hours) (I marinated for an hour and it was great!). Cook until pork is cooked thoroughly (the original directions said to broil the meat, but I cooked mine at 350*F until done).

Borscht

Borscht is a traditional Russian soup, which means it's cheap! It also means it's made with three things: potatoes, sour cream, and beets.

You may be thinking "Beets?! EW!" But I promise, even if you don't like beets, you'll probably like borscht. And the warranty? It costs almost nothing to make, so you don't feel rotten if you really don't like it. (But you will.)

I just made this up as I went along, but THIS TIME I WROTE DOWN THE STEPS! I know, it's a miracle.

3 medium potatoes (I prefer red), chopped

1/2 c. chicken broth

1/4 c. onion, chopped

1 medium carrot, sliced

1 or 2 celery ribs, sliced

about 1/3 of a small head of cabbage (you might need a bit more), shredded

about 2/3 of a can of beets canned in water (not pickled), sliced.

2 chicken thighs, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

garlic powder (or a diced version of the real thing, if you're lucky enough to have it), to taste

1/2 T. vinegar

1. Put the potatoes in first, with enough broth and water to cover them. Add the rest of the ingredients, making sure chicken and vinegar go last. Add water when needed so it stays just level with the top of the ingredients.

2. Let simmer until the chicken is cooked through.

3. Serve with sour cream and make sure you have plenty of bread to dip.

You could also put a bay leaf in it, I just never have them on hand. I know, I know. I have them now, I just don't usually have them.

Zesty Black Bean Soup

I know it has been almost a month since I last posted, and I'm sorry. Well not too sorry because I've been spending the time with my newborn son. His name is Caleb and he was born on December 29 and was 6 pounds 14 ounces and 19 inches long. Everything went well with delivery and we are both healthy. That being said, I don't know how often I'll be able to post for the next little while. My goal is still once a week, and I'm hoping since I've officially started my post-baby diet that I will have lots of new and healthy recipes to share. Ok, ok, and still the occasional treat! I am still a chocolate addict afterall!

I tried this for dinner the other night with cornbread and it was yummy! I even liked eating it for lunch the next day! If you don't like spicy things, you could always substitute a can of regular diced tomatoes for the Rotel tomatoes. However, I thing the Rotel chiles add just enough spice to keep the soup from being boring. The original recipe I used came from $5 Dinners, but I also found this version for the crockpot. This is definitely something I will be making again as it is super cheap, but very healthy! You could make it even healthier by adding more vegetables, such as bell peppers, carrots, celery or even zucchini.

Zesty Black Bean Soup

2 cups dried black beans (or you could use 2 cans of drained and rinsed black beans)
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed (I used 1/4 tsp garlic powder)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups of chicken stock (I used reconstituted boullion)
1 10 oz. can of Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies, undrained
2 Tbsp cornstarch (**edited 2-18-10: I leave this out with good results)

1. Soak black beans overnight in a bowl full of water. If you forget to soak, as I often do, then add the beans to boiling water, remove from heat and let soak for 2 hours. Once soaked, drain and rinse.

2. Add the soaked and rinsed beans to large saucepan and cover with 2 inches of water. Add the chopped onion, crushed garlic, cumin, lemon juice, and salt in with the beans. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cover. Cook for about an hour.

3. After an hour, add the homemade chicken stock and the undrained can of Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies. Let the soup simmer for another 30 minutes, or until the beans have softened.

4. Then add the cornstarch. (A note from Erin on how to best add the cornstarch: Sift and whisk at the same time to keep from getting clumpy in the soup!)

**Edited 2-18-10: I prefer to make this in the crockpot by cooking my dried beans until tender then covering them by an inch in my crockpot. I then add the rest of the ingredients (except the cornstarch, I do not use it anymore) and cook on high for about 4 hours. You could probably use canned beans with this method, however, they might be a little on the mushy side. Maybe cooking it on low would help?**