Goulash Night

Weather is starting to turn cold here in Texas and I wanted to make something warm and filling for dinner (and something I could take to work the next day). So I turned to my trusty Pauly Deen cook book. The lady knows how to cook! I found this recipe for goulash and it was perfect. My DH couldn't stop raving about it at dinner. Definitely a remake this winter. ( I halved the recipe so we wouldn't have too many leftovers)

Bobby's Goulash
From: The Deen Bros. Cookbook

Ingredients
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 lbs ground beef (I used 1.5 lbs)
2 large onions, finely chopped (I omitted)
2 14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes (I used 1 can)
1 29 ounce can tomato sauce ( I used one 15 oz can)
3 Tablespoons soy sauce ( I used a little over 1 tblsp)
2 teaspoons dried basil ( I used 1 teaspoon)
2 teaspoons dried oregano ( I used 1 teaspoon)
3 cloves garlic, minced ( I used 2, I love garlic)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon salt ( I eyeballed it)
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ( I eyeballed it)
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni ( I used about 1 1/2 cup-love my pasta)

In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in the oil about 10minutes, breaking meat up with a fork as it cooks. Add the onion; cook and stir for 5 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients except the macaroni. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Stir in the macaroni; simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Let goulash stand for 20 minutes before serving.

I served it with some crusty bread and a little cheese on top.

** The original recipe makes 8-10 servings. By halving it, I estimated that it makes about 5 servings. The WW points per serving (for 5 servings) is about 5 points. **

Ravioli Night!

Pasta is one of my favorite things in life, so I am always on the look out for new and yummy recipes. I found this one and thought I would give it a try. It turned out great- rich,filling and easy to make. After dinner my DH informed that although he liked the dish, he wasn't a big fan of ravioli ( a bad childhood memory or something). I probably won't make it again since he is my leftover King, but I do highly recommend it. I also altered the ingredients a bit to make it more figure friendly. My changes are in red.

Ravioli Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

( I don't remember which blog I got this off of-Sorry)

Ingredients

1 lbs pre-packaged 4-cheese ravioli, cooked and drained (2 pkg Bertoli light 4 cheese Ravioli)

1 1/2 cups frozen broccoli florets, defrosted

1 pound of boiled skinless chicken strips, diced (Pkg of Tyson pre-cooked, diced chicken)

Alfredo sauce (a jarred light Alfredo sauce)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, divided

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.

Coat the bottom of an 8 ×8 glass baking dish with a thin layer of Alfredo sauce. In a medium bowl, mix the ravioli, broccoli, chicken, garlic, Alfredo sauce, 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese until combined. (Be careful not to mix too hard that you tear the ravioli.)

Place mixture into baking dish and top with the rest of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is hot and bubbly. Set to broil for additional 5 minutes if you want it more toasty!

Homemade Rolls... Yummy!

Bread is one of my major vices. If I were stranded on an island, I would only need bread and Dr. Pepper and I would be a happy camper. So when I found a new recipe for homemade dinner rolls I had to give them a try. Boy am I glad I did! These were so good my husband (and myself) kept going back for more!

Homemade Dinner Rolls

Picture and Recipe from: www.brook-cookiejar.blogspot.com

Ingredients

3 cups bread flour

3 tablespoons white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup dry milk powder

1 cup warm water

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

1 egg white

2 tablespoons water

Place the bread flour, sugar, salt, milk powder, water, butter, and yeast in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Set on Dough cycle; press Start.

Remove risen dough from the machine, deflate, and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into twelve equal pieces, and form into rounds ( I made mine a little smaller to make more rolls). Place the rounds on lightly greased baking sheets. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth, and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a small bowl, mix together the egg white and 2 tablespoons water; brush lightly onto the rolls. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown.

Bark-B-Q Biscuits

I have two wonderful yorkies, Macy and Mason, who are also known as my children. They have been out of treats for a few weeks, and have been bugging me to make some more. These are one of their favorites.

Bark-B-Q biscuits

Ingredients
2 Cups whole wheat flour
1/2 Cup oatmeal
1/4 Cup wheat germ
1/2 Cup tomato paste
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
3/4 Cup water
1 Tbsp honey

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Combine dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix oil, water, honey, & tomato paste. Add to dry ingredients.

Roll out dough to 1/4″ thick, cut with a cookie cutter & place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes 2 375 degrees.

** I made a little glaze with an egg white and a little barbeque sauce and brushed it over the tops before I put it in the oven.
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Crock Pot Chili

This is one of my tried and true recipes. My husband absolutely loves this chili and it is so easy to make! I work long 12 hour days, so it is perfect to just throw in the slow cooker and have a hearty meal ready when we get home. I am not sure if the recipe came from my mom or my sister, so I am going to give both of them credit (they are both awesome cooks).

Crock Pot Chili

Ingredients

1lb ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1 can pinto beans with juice

1 can Ranch Style beans with juice

1 can stewed tomatoes with juice

1 pkg taco seasoning

1 pkg dry Ranch dressing mix

1/2 cup water

1 can or frozen pkg corn (optional)

Brown meat; drain fat. Throw everything into a crock pot and let cook all day on LOW or at least 3 to 4 hours. Serve with crackers or cornbread.

Easy as pie and so delish!

Poem

I read this poem on a blog off the WW message boards and really liked it. So I thought I would post it on mine.

When you've eaten too much and you can't write it down,
And you feel like the biggest failure in town.
When you want to give up just because you gave in,
and forget all about being healthy and thin.
So What!
You went over your points a bit,
It's your next move that counts...
So don't you quit!
It's a moment of truth, it's an attitude change.
It's learning the skills to get back in your range.
It's telling yourself,
"You've done great up till now.You can take on this challenge and beat it somehow."
It's part of your journey toward reaching your goal.
You're still gonna make it, just stay in control.
To stumble and fall is not a disgrace,
if you summon the will to get back in the race.
But, often the struggler's, when loosing their grip,
Just throw in the towel and continue to slip.
And learn too late when the damage is done,
that the race wasn't over...they still could have won.
Lifestyle change can be awkward and slow,
but facing each challenge will help you grow.
Success is failure turned inside out,
the silver tint in a cloud of doubt.
When you're pushing to the brink, just refuse to submit,
If you bite it, you write it....But don't you quit!

- Author Unknown