Tag: healthy comfort food

Skinny Macaroni and Cheese Soup

Yet another Skinny Taste recipe, tested out by yours truly…

This turned out surprisingly delicious! Also, it is very inexpensive to make. I happened to have the broccoli and carrots in my farmshare, and all of the other ingredients in my pantry. This would be very kid-friendly as well. I plan on packing it this week for lunches. Here’s to hoping it reheats well!

You can check out the link above and check out Gina’s recipe. Of course, I had to make some updates to Katie-fy it. Aka remove ingredients I don’t have…

Skinny Macaroni and Cheese Soup

Ingredients:

4 oz Smart Taste Elbows
1 1/2 cups onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp light butter
2 tbsp flour
2 1/2 cups fat free low sodium chicken broth
1 cup almond milk – unsweetened
pinch nutmeg
1/2 tsp dry mustard
salt and fresh pepper to taste
2 cups fresh broccoli florets, chopped into small pieces
2 tbsp parmasean cheese
1-1/2 cups 2% shredded sharp cheddar

Directions:

Boil pasta in salted water according to package directions for al dente. Drain and set aside.

Chop carrot, onion, and garlic.

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, melt light butter. Add chopped vegetables and sauté on low heat until soft, about 5 minutes.

Add flour and fresh pepper to the pot and stir until smooth. Slowly add chicken broth, milk, nutmeg and dry mustard powder; whisking constantly. Set heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil. Cover and cook on low about 10-15 minutes.

Add broccoli florets and parmesean cheese. Stir well. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Cook uncovered until broccoli is cooked to your liking, about 5 – 10 minutes.

Add cheddar, mixing well until cheese melts and remove from heat. Add cooked elbows and mix well, adjust salt and pepper if needed.

Prepared per the Katie-fied recipe (serves 4)

296 calories, 37 g carbs, 12 g fat, 17 g protein, 5 g fiber, 733 g sodium

Breakfast for Dinner

This past week, I was on a serious breakfast for dinner kick. We have been getting fresh farm eggs in our farmshare each week, and since I don’t have time to fix eggs in the mornings during the week, I have been incorporating them in my dinner. We also have been getting a lot of sweet potatoes, which are something I have recently come to enjoy. A lot. I like them when prepared savory, not sweet.

Which led me to this: sweet potato hash topped with fried eggs and a side of veggie sausage

My friend Christine inspired me to make this sweet potato hash – she gets full recipe credit!

This is now one of my favorite meals to make. It’s quick, easy, satisfying, and most of all, it is nutritious!

To make the sweet potato hash, I shredded up a few sweet potatoes (1 large and 1 small, to be specific), squeezed out most of the water, and set them aside. I also diced up some onion. As much or as little as you would like. I sauteed the onion on medium-low in some cooking spray until it softens and semi-caramelizes. Then I added in 1 tablespoon of light butter and let it melt. Now you are ready to add the sweet potato shreds! Turn the heat up to medium high. Spread them around evenly and then don’t touch them for a few minutes! When shreds start to brown, it is time to turn them. Keep repeating this until the hash has reached your desired level of done-ness! I topped with some truffle salt (a new addition to my kitchen) for something a little extra – regular salt will do, of course and still be just as delicious.

Then I fried up two eggs (over easy/medium) and topped them with salt and pepper, and then put them on top of the hash! On the side, I served up two Morningstar veggie sausage patties. The perfect breakfast for dinner!

Christine recommends using a cast iron skillet for this meal, which I JUST purchased. I can’t wait to make this again this coming week with my cast iron!

This Friday night…

Friday nights are my favorite night of the week and I don’t mind the routine of it one bit. The promise of over 48 hours of freedom and not knowing what the rest of the weekend will bring excites me! I have become increasingly lame in my old age and just like to stay in on Friday nights. I love to relax, catch up on DVR, read magazines, and sleep. The best part is waking up not hungover on Saturday morning. It’s such an amazing feeling!

After yesterday’s sort-of mental breakdown, I picked myself up and was extremely productive. I was mostly well-rested at work today, I got cast iron skillets and Target popcorn on my lunch break, and left work early because I am working on Sunday afternoon. I went to the gym and spent a record amount of time on the treadmill (90 minutes). Pick your jaws up off the floor. Then I went to SuperTarget and saved 40% on a $100 bill! Pick your jaws back up off the floor.

After a day like today, a girl’s gotta eat. Tonight I made a Morningstar grillers burger on a sandwich thin with chipotle cheddar cheese (what?!?!) I know. I had the same reaction. Go buy it at Target. It said ‘limited time only’ on the package. Get some before I buy it all!

After going back and forth on what side I wanted to go with my burger, I settled on getting some veggies in today. I had been craving cauliflower for a while (weird.) and decided to make a cheese sauce for it. I think I finally perfected my ‘light’ cheese sauce tonight, which has made an appearance in mac and cheese before. This picture is about 1/3 of a head of cauliflower with the cheese sauce as prepared below.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon light butter
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk, but usually use skim)
1/4 cup 2% shredded cheese (I used mild cheddar but sharp gives it a stronger cheese flavor)

Recommended seasonings: salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash garlic and herb, garlic powder, dry mustard, and cayenne pepper. The list goes on…

Directions:

Start steaming the cauliflower in a vegetable steamer (or on the stove). While veggies are steaming, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pan on the stove over medium heat. Once melted, add the flour and blend. Cook the flour mixture for about three – five minutes. Now add the milk and stir until the flour mixture is blended. Bring this to a boil and then reduce the heat so that it is simmering. Add your desired seasonings, Continue to stir until the mixture is thickened. Add the cheese and stir until melted. Then add your main ingredient – in this case, cauliflower.

As prepared this cheese sauce has about 200 calories. You can pour this over pasta, cauliflower, eat it with a spoon…

Time to watch more TV and eat peanut butter Cheerios for dessert. Oh yeah, they make peanut butter Cheerios now. Happy Friday!