This Mama Cooks! On a Diet

Healthy freezer meals for busy dieters and their families

I recently attended a meal making cooking class with a group of friends. Basically, it was a Once a Month-Freezer Cooking session combined with a Prepare Your Own Meals store. Our hostess (this was in a private home with a very large kitchen) shopped for the food, chopped the veggies, browned the ground meat, and prepared the prep stations.

Our group made eight meals. There was one dish per station with two to four people working on putting together the meals. Using printed instructions, we measured out the ingredients, and put them into labeled freezer bags or aluminum casserole dishes. When then loaded our pre-made meals into coolers and placed them in the freezer when we got home.

For $95, I walked away with eight dishes. This may seem like a lot of money, but I only spent a couple of hours making them, and I didn't have to drive all over town to buy the ingredients. I didn't have to do the prep work or clean up. And I have healthy meals in the freezer for those nights when I'm too busy to cook or out of town. The time savings alone made it a bargain.

So now I'm trying to figure out how to do a similar party with friends and not do all the work as the hostess. I'm thinking that each person could shop and prepare the ingredients for one dish for X amount of people. Then we could get together, assemble the meals, and help each other with the clean up and cost.

My complete Thanksgiving meal (dieters beware)

I'm printing out all my recipes and making the final runs to the supermarket, cheese shop, and health food store. And yes, I'm off the diet bandwagon, so if you're trying to lose weight and not be tempted, you may want to skip this post even though I'm using several Weight Watchers recipes.

I'm going to make Alton Brown's Honey Brined Smoked Turkey and two Weight Watchers dishes - Cranberry-Cherry Compote and Weight Watchers Sausage, Apple and Cornbread Stuffing.

I'm also making a Cranberry Cocktail Sauce to go with the tail-on shrimp appetizers. (I love shrimp for the taste and because you can eat a lot even if you're on a diet.) Cranberries were being sold BOGO (buy one, get one) this year at my supermarket, so I needed a recipe to use up the other bag.

The November 2007 of Bon Appetit magazine was particularly inspirational. I will be making their recipes for Green Onion Gravy (gluten free since it uses cornstarch!), Brussels Sprout Hash with Caramelized Shallots, and Pumpkin Mascarpone Pie.

Oh, and I'm making a ham in the crockpot for Nathan who swears he hates turkey, and mashed potatoes.

TIP: This year I'm printing out everything and putting the recipes in plastic sheet protectors so my magazines won't get messed up from food stains and splatters. Afterwards, I'll put the recipes in my three-ring binder for next year's use.

Cranberry Cocktail Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
• 1⁄4 cup tomato ketchup
• 1⁄4 cup raspberry preserves
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons hot sauce, or to taste
• 1 (1⁄4-inch thick) slice of a large onion
• 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
• 2 tablespoons honey

Instructions:

Place all ingredients in a food processor; pulse until smooth, yet chunky. Pause several times to scrape down the sides of the processor. Makes 1 1⁄2 cups.

Recipe by Crescent Dragonwagon, Relish magazine November 2007. Picture by High Cotton Food Styling & Photography.

Green Onion Gravy

Ingredients:

• 2 cups (or more) Shortcut Turkey Stock (I'll be using plain old chicken stock out of a can. I'm a busy gal who believes in short cuts.)
• 2 tablespoons water
• 4 teaspoons cornstarch
• 3 green onions, white parts and green tops chopped separately
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley (we still have lots of fresh parsley left from our garden)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

Directions:

1. Scrape juices and browned bits from reserved roasting pan into large glass measuring cup. (Since we're smoking the turkey, I'll be grabbing the juices from the drippings in the smoker. I just need to figure out how to do that.)
2. Spoon off fat, reserving 2 tablespoons. Add enough stock to pan juices to measure 2 cups. Whisk together 2 tablespoons water and cornstarch in small bowl until smooth.
3. Heat 2 tablespoons reserved fat in large saucepan over medium heat. Add white parts of green onions. Sauté until beginning to color, about 6 minutes. Add degreased pan juices, 2 cups stock, and cream. Whisk in cornstarch mixture. Simmer until reduced to desired consistency, whisking occasionally, about 8 minutes. Stir in herbs and green onion tops. Season with salt and pepper.

Weight Wather's Curry-Apple Butternut Squash Salad

For some reason, I've been getting Weight Watcher's e-newsletter. I'm guessing it's because I used to be an online member and they want me back. How nice of them. (You can sign up for the newsletter here. They have great recipes for anyone trying to lose weight or eat healthy.)

I love making butternut squash and onion soup. But when I saw this recipe for Butternut Squash Salad with Curry-Appple Dressing, I had to try it - especially since it's only 4 Weight Watchers POINTS. I think this would go well with a roasted chicken breast or a pork chop. I'll be serving it with the grilled venison chops I found in the freezer this week. (Nice surprise as I thought we ate all the steaks this summer.)

Butternut Squash Salad with Curry-Appple Dressing
I'm very intrigued on how Weight Watchers has you roast the squash. Usually you cut them lengthwise, as shown in the picture, remove the seeds, then roast them flesh side down.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 pound butternut squash

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 Tbsp apple juice

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 Tbsp red onion(s), chopped

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp table salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

1 Tbsp parsley, fresh, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil.
2. Cut squash in half crosswise where it starts to widen (where the round "bulb" meets the "neck"). .
3. Place both pieces of squash cut side down in prepared pan. Bake until bottom half of squash is just tender when pierced with a fork, about 20 to 25 minutes; remove bottom half from oven and set aside. Bake top half of squash until just tender, about 15 minutes more. Remove from oven and cool.
4. Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.
5. Peel and seed cooled squash; cut into 3/4–inch cubes. Place in a serving bowl and toss with dressing. Yields about 2/3 cup per serving.

If you're a fan of butternut squash soup, check out this recipe for Roasted Autumn Vegetable Soup - only 2 POINTS per serving. I bet you could get it even lower if you used veggie broth and skipped the evaporated milk. Really, root veggies are so yummy you don't need to add extra flavor or creaminess to enjoy them.

• Click here to see all my Weight Watchers posts and recipes.

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Smash the fat with Ratatouille

I wanted to post a still from Ratatouille of Thomas Keller's gorgeous Confit Byaldi that Rémy makes in the movie. But alas I couldn't find one. However, I did find a photo at the Huffington Post of Keller and Ratatouille Producer Brad Lewis making one. If you look hard - and have a big magnifying glass - you can see it.

Luckily, it's easier to find the recipe. Jeanne Brophy of Food on a Plate posts Keller's ratatouille/confit byaldi recipe along with her review of the movie.

But for all this fuss over Rémy's..I mean Keller's confit, remember it's restaurant critic Anton Ego's memory of his mother's traditional ratatouille that changes his mind about Gusteau's restaurant. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, go see the movie!)

There are many recipes for ratatouille, but basically it's onions, garlic, zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, and eggplant sautéed in olive oil and seasoned with herbes de Provence.

Here's a simple ratatoille that kids can make. And here's the Extreme Fat Smash version. Since I ate all the yellow summer squash and didn't have a zucchini, I doubled up on the eggplant and added a little more onion and tomato.

Ratatouille
Preparation time: 40 mins
Makes 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Fresh Eggplant-Cubes
• 1 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 Tbsp. Chopped Yellow Onion
• 1/2 cup Chopped Yellow Bell Peppers
• 1 Garlic Clove
• 1 cup Fresh Chopped Zucchini Squash with Skin
• 3 Fresh Italian/Plum Tomatoes
• 1 dash Ground Basil
• 1 dash Ground Black Pepper
• 1 dash Ground Parsley
• 1 dash Ground Oregano
• 1 dash Salt

Directions:

1. Gently saute the onions and peppers in olive oil in a large pan for 5 mins, or so.
2. Add the other vegetables except the tomatoes.
3. Stir, cover, and cook on a low heat for about ½ an hour until the vegetables are tender.
4. Add the tomatoes, herbs, and black pepper, and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Forgetting to turn the burner down resulted in roasted, carmelized eggplant, peppers and onions. I love roasted veggies, so no biggie.

An extreme diet and Yogurt Vegetable Salad

I'm starting the Extreme Fat Smash Diet by nutritionist Ian K. Smith of Celebrity Fit Club, and will be blogging about the experience at my new CFC diet blog, Watch This Mama Lose It!

Like the title says, it's pretty extreme, so no yummy recipes to share until I get to maintenance (the book has 45 of them and the website has more). But I'm still on the lookout for great, low fat, low calorie, healthy dishes from Weight Watchers and other sources. Here's one for USA Weekend:

Yogurt Vegetable Salad
This cool Mediterranean salad features yogurt, which helps suppress blood sugar spikes and provides immune boosters. The vegetables supply a variety of disease-fighting antioxidants.

• 2 cups non-fat plain yogurt
• 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded, finely chopped
• 3 Tbs. finely chopped fresh mint leaves, plus extra leaves for garnish
• Salt to taste
• 1 cup chickpeas, drained
• 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, stir yogurt, cucumber, mint and salt.
2. Add chickpeas and tomatoes.
3. Garnish with mint leaves.
4. Refrigerate until serving. Serves 4.

Per serving: 141 calories, 11g protein, 22g carbohydrates, 1g fat (0.2g saturated), 3mg cholesterol, 3g fiber, 273mg sodium

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Butternut squash soup

Butternut squash, how I love thee! This recipe came from Chef Rossi at Bust magazine. I've made it twice and it's fantastic. And according to Weight Watchers, it only has 2 Points per cup.

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

• four onions - either white or yellow
• three med/large butternut squash
• seasonings: salt, pepper, cumin, corriander, curry, ginger, etc. to taste
• veggie or chicken broth - enough to cover

Directions:

1. Chop up onions and sautee in olive oil until soft over medium high heat. This recipe makes a lot of soup, so use a large stock pot.
2. Peel butternut squash (a carrot peeler works best).
3. Cut in half and remove seeds. Cut into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces
4. Add squash to onions.
5. Add seasonings to taste. I really liked using 1 teaspoon curry, 1 teaspoon corriander, 1 teaspoon cumin, and fresh ginger slices. (I removed the ginger slices before adding the broth.)
6. Sautee until soft over medium high heat. Putting the lid on the stock pot helps cook the squash more quickly. Be careful not to burn the veggies.
7. Once the squash is soft, pour in enough broth to cover. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Heat up until boiling, and turn down the heat to simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.
9. Use an immersion hand blender to puree soup. Don't have one? Then transfer to a food processor or blender to puree.
10. Serve soup hot or cold.

Picture courtesy of University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture. 

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Cholesterol Down with some four mushroom barley soup

Yes, I'm still on my soup kick. After coming down with what my doctor thought was whooping cough for a month, it was so comforting to have soup to eat. It helped my recovery and at one point I was making two or three batches at a time.

This recipe comes from Cholesterol Down: Ten Simple Steps to Lower Your Cholesterol in Four Weeks--Without Prescription Drugs by Janet Bond Brill, Ph.D., R.D., LDN. Since the recipes are all about using antioxidants and high-fiber whole grains to lower cholesterol many of her recipes could be used those eating to lose weight.

And you Weight Watchers folks? Only 3 points for 1½ cups - boy I love soup!

Four-Mushroom Barley Soup
Warm and comforting, this soup is just the thing for a cold winter’s day.
Yield: 10 servings

Ingredients:

• 9 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• ½ ounce dried porcini mushrooms
• ½ ounce dried shiitake mushrooms
• ¼ cup canola oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 medium shallots, finely chopped
• 8-ounce package baby bella or cremini mushrooms, stemmed, cleaned, and diced
• 12-ounce package white button mushrooms, stemmed, cleaned, and quartered
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped into small pieces
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup whole-grain barley
• 1 bay leaf
• ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
• Shredded soy or regular part-skim mozzarella cheese, optional

Directions:

1. Heat 1½ cups chicken broth. Add porcini and shiitake mushrooms to broth and soak, covered, until soft, about 30 minutes. Remove mushrooms from broth and chop into small pieces; set aside. Strain soaking liquid and set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add onions and shallots and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the baby bella and button mushrooms and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are tender, about 10 minutes.
4. Add carrots and garlic, stir, and cook an additional minute.
5. Add remaining chicken broth, porcini and shiitake soaking liquid, porcini and shiitake mushrooms, barley, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring to a boil, stir, and cover; reduce heat and simmer about 1 hour.
6. Remove and discard bay leaf before serving. Sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese before serving, if desired.

Nutritional information per serving (1⁄10 of recipe, 351 grams or approximately 1½ cups soup): Calories: 157, Fat: 6 g, Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 744 mg, Carbohydrate: 20 g, Dietary Fiber: 5 g, Sugars: 2 g, Protein: 7 g

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Sunset's Soup Social - herbed carrot soup

Vegetable soups are powerful food this time of year. Not only do they warm you up on cold winter days, but they provide nutritional wallop - a great defense against viruses. And if you do get a cold or flu? Soup will always make you feel better. Make a double batch and keep half in the freezer just in case you or someone in your family gets ill or feels a cold coming on. (It's a great way to get rid of those old carrots in the vegetable bin, too.)

And not to worry - it's only four Weight Watchers Point per cup.

Herbed Carrot Soup
Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes.
Yield: Makes about 3 1/2 qts.

Rather than stirring the herbs into the soup, try setting out bowls of dill and tarragon--along with some crème fraîche or sour cream for dolloping--and let guests do the garnishing themselves.

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 3 pounds carrots, peeled and sliced into
• 1/4-in.-thick rounds
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/3 cup long-grain rice (any variety)
• 2 to 3 tsp. coarse kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 8 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup crème fraîche or sour cream
• 1 cup fresh dill, chopped
• 1 cup fresh tarragon, chopped

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large pot (at least 5 qts.) over medium-high heat, then add onions. Cook until onions are translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic, carrots, bay leaf, rice, 2 tsp. salt, pepper, and chicken broth.
2. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce to medium-high and cook, uncovered, until carrots are tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool 10 minutes.
3. Remove bay leaf and purée soup in batches in a blender. Return soup to pot and set over low heat. Add whipping cream and 2 cups water (if soup looks too thick, add a little more water) and cook until warmed through. Season to taste with additional salt. 4. Serve soup hot, with crème fraîche or sour cream, dill, and tarragon.

Nutritional information:
Per cup

CALORIES 184 (54% from fat); FAT 11g (sat 7g); PROTEIN 4.3g; CHOLESTEROL 29mg; SODIUM 821mg; FIBER 3.3g; CARBOHYDRATE 17g

Sunset, JANUARY 2007

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Sunset's Soup Social - Chinese Hot-and-Sour Soup

The wonderful thing about soup is how good it makes you feel on winter days. It's a wonderful dish if you're sick or just tired and cold from shoveling the driveway. And it's terrific for entertaining, too.

In their January 2007 issue, Sunset magazine did a feature on the Soup Social. You can make the soups ahead of time and reheat the night of the party. Just serve soup buffet style straight from pots on the stove. Have bread baskets, salads and condiments on a counter or on the dining room table. How easy is that?

I love the recipe for hot and sour soup. It's only 6 Weight Watcher Points per cup. You could probably make that even less if you used low-fat chicken broth, used 2 eggs and 2 egg whites, and substituted chicken for pork loin.

Chinese Hot-and-Sour Soup
Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Yield: Makes about 4 1/2 qts.
Serving size: 1 cup

Notes: The heat from the black pepper in this soup intensifies as it sits. If you plan to make the soup ahead of time or want a milder flavor, use 2 tsp. during cooking; then taste the soup before serving and add more pepper if you like.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds pork top loin, cut crosswise into 1/8-in.-thick strips
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons grated peeled fresh ginger
• 3/4 cup rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup peanut oil
• 1 can (8 oz.) sliced bamboo shoots, drained and rinsed
• 12 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 pound shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 12 ounces firm tofu, drained and cubed
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• About 1 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper (see Notes)
  Chopped fresh cilantro and sliced green onions (pale green and white parts)

Directions:

1. In a bowl, toss pork with 1/4 cup soy sauce and ginger. Marinate 20 minutes. In another bowl, stir together remaining 2 tbsp. soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornstarch, sugar, and salt; set aside.
2. Heat peanut oil in a large pot (at least 5 qts.) over medium-high heat, then add pork and marinade. Cook, stirring constantly, until pork loses its pink color, about 4 minutes. Stir in bamboo shoots and cook 1 minute.
3. Increase heat to high, add broth, and bring to a boil. Add mushrooms, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook about 20 minutes. Add tofu and simmer 5 minutes. Add soy-vinegar mixture and simmer 5 minutes more; the liquid will thicken.
4. In a small bowl, beat eggs with sesame oil. Slowly pour eggs into soup in a thin stream while stirring soup very slowly in one direction. Add pepper, stir briefly, then simmer 5 minutes. Serve with cilantro and green onions.

Nutrional Information:
Serving size: 1 cup

CALORIES 244 (66% from fat); FAT 18g (sat 5.7g); PROTEIN 15g; CHOLESTEROL 80mg; SODIUM 890mg; FIBER 0.7g; CARBOHYDRATE 18g

Sunset, JANUARY 2007

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Cooking Light's Chunky Red Dal Soup

Here's another inspired vegetarian soup from the January 2007 issue of Cooking Light magazine. Since the soup is very low in fat and high in fiber, it's only 4 Weight Watchers Points per serving! Try it with a whole wheat pita and a carton of plain yogurt.

I found red dal at a local Asian market in their extensive Indian food section. The lentils are more orange than red, and were very reasonably priced. I'll be using the leftover dried beans in other lentil recipes instead of or combined with the normal brown lentils from the market.

Chunky Red Dal Soup
From Cooking Light
Yield: 5 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

This savory, Moroccan-spiced soup gets a flavor kick from harissa, a hot condiment made by preserving chiles in salt. Look for it in Middle Eastern markets, or substitute any chile paste.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
• 3/4 teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup dried red lentils, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon harissa
• Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook 6 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in ginger, paprika, salt, cumin, and pepper; cook 1 minute. Add 3 cups water, lentils, chickpeas, and tomatoes; bring to a boil.
2. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until the lentils are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in lemon juice and harissa. Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro, if desired.

Nutritional Information:

CALORIES 224 (8% from fat); FAT 2g (sat 0.3g,mono 1.1g,poly 0.4g); PROTEIN 12.9g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 54mg; SODIUM 496mg; FIBER 5.8g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 38.9g

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