Archive | Italian Recipes RSS feed for this section

Tomato Basil Tortellini Soup

22 Mar

You could easily do this in the crockpot too. 5 hrs on low.

Ingredients:

– 2 cans of chicken broth
– 2 cans italian style diced tomatoes
– 3 cups fresh spinach
– 1/4 tsp or 1-2 packets of Splenda
– salt and pepper to taste
– 1 tsp dried basil
– 1 bag of frozen cheese tortellini
– 1 block of fat free cream cheese

Directions:

1. Cut cream cheese into blocks.

2. In a large pot, Mix broth, tomatoes, cream cheese, basil, salt and pepper, and Splenda and heat, stirring until cream cheese melts.

4. Add spinach and tortellini and heat on warm, stirring regularly.

5. Heat for 10-15 min.

Makes 6 (1 1/2 cup) servings= 280 calories per serving

Apps 7 weight watchers points plus

20140322-203735.jpg

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Rosemary chicken in cream sauce

13 Mar

This was really yummy. I served with mixed grains, and poured the sauce over the grains. Definite repeat.

Ingredients

– (3) 4 oz boneless chicken breasts
– 1/2 an onion, diced
– 1 tbsp minced garlic
– 4 tbsp flour
– 1/2 cup 1% milk
– 1/2 cup chicken broth
– 1 tsp rosemary
– salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Salt and pepper your chicken breasts, then sautéed them in a skillet, using butter flavored nonstick spray.

2. Remove chicken and place it in a baking pan (9×9 would work) sprayed with nonstick spray.

3. Spray same skillet again with spray and sautéed onions and garlic until softened. If you need to you can add 1-2 tbsp of water to keep onions from burning.

4. Stir four into onions and slowly add broth, stirring until smooth, then stir in milk slowly.

5. Bring to a simmer, and then cook on low heat about 2 minutes, stirring constantly until sauce thickens.

6. Pour sauce over chicken. Cover pan with foil and bake at 350 for 25-30 min.

Makes 3 servings= 175 calories per serving

Appx 5 weight watchers points plus

20140313-191407.jpg

20140313-191418.jpg

Tags: , , , , ,

Homemade Marinara Sauce

3 Mar

So, I love Italian Food, as you probably have noticed if you follow this blog. I also love to make my own sauce. Jarred sauce has so much sugar in it, it’s hard to find a good one that’s low calorie, plus I think the homemade stuff is so much better. Plus, it’s easy to make. Although, to get it right, you should let it simmer at least an hour or so. You can double, or triple, the batch and make it on low all day in a crock pot. The leftovers freeze well in a regular ziplock freezer bag.

Fun fact: this was originally going to be a post about turkey meatballs and marinara, but while I was multi-tasking, my dog ate my meatballs!

On a side note, if you’re going to opt for a jarred sauce, Prego “Smart Light” has almost half the calories of any other jar sauce I’ve seen, and it’s pretty good. That’s the only one I buy these days.

Ingredients:

– 29 oz can of crushed tomatoes
– 1/2 an onion, chopped
– 2 tbsp minced garlic
– 1 tbsp dried oregano
– 1 tsp dried basil
– 1 packet splenda no calorie sweetener
– 1/2 tsp salt
– 2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms (optional)

Directions:

1. Saute onion in a medium size pot, with non stick spray, until they begin to soften. Add garlic and stir over heat until well incorporated, but be careful not to burn garlic.

2. Add all other ingredients, and simmer on low for 1 hour or so, stirring occasionally.

3. Serve with meatballs, over spaghetti or other noodles, or with spaghetti squash. Delicious!

Makes 5 Servings, 1/2 cup each= 65 Calories per serving
1/2 cup= 1 weight watchers point plus

When served with 3 oz of Ronzoni Smart Taste Pasta, and 1/2 cup of sauce= 350 Calories (appx 9 weight watchers points plus)

IMG_5319[1]
IMG_5320[1]

Tags: , ,

Ham and cheese Stromboli

1 Mar

This one was a big hit with the husband. I’m excited to try it again with turkey pepperoni too.

Ingredients

– 1 roll of pillsbury French bread
– 1/4 lb sliced deli ham
– 1 cup shredded mozzarella
– 1/2 tbsp melted butter
– 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
– garlic powder to taste
– 1/4 cup flour

Directions

1. Sprinkle flour in a clean, flat surface.

2. Roll bread dough flat into a 12×16 rectangle. If you look carefully you can find a seam in the dough which will allow you to simply separate the layers to “unroll” inflat.

3. Sprinkle cheese evenly over dough. Top with Italian seasoning, and sprinkle with garlic powder.

4. Place a layer of ham on top of cheese.

5. Rolling longways, begin to roll the dough and ingredients into a tight roll.

6. Place roll seam side down on a baking sheet, which has ben coated with nonstick spray.

7. Brush melted butter generously over top of roll and sprinkle with garlic powder.

8. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes.

Makes 4 servings- 293 calories per serving

Appx 8 weight watchers points plus per serving

20140301-181421.jpg

20140301-181428.jpg

Tags: , , ,

Baked Italian Penne with Sausage

2 Feb

Here’s another good way to hide a bunch of spinach in your kid’s dinner 🙂 Enjoy.

Ingredients:

– 1 box of Ronzoni Penne Pasta
– 12 oz turkey Italian sausage
– 1 jar of Prego “health smart” pasta sauce
– 8 oz reduced fat ricotta cheese
– 1 tsp oregano
– 1 tsp garlic powder
– 1 cup reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Cook turkey sausage and drain fat.

2. Boil noodles until al dente.

3. Mix drained noodles, sausage, ricotta, garlic, oregano, and all but 1/2 cup of sauce.

4. Pour into an oven-safe pan. A 9×9 would probably work. I used a smaller, deep, oval pan.

5. Pour remaining 1/2 cup of sauce over top of pasta. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella evenly over top.

6. Bake at 350 for 30 min.

7. Allow pasta to sit for 5-10 min before serving.

5 Servings= 477 Calories per serving

IMG_5065[1]

Parmesan Tilapia

10 Jan

Ingredients:
– 4 tilapia fillets (3-4 oz each)
– 1/3 cup Shredded parmesan cheese*
– 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese*
– 1 tsp itlalian herbs
– 1/2 tsp black pepper
– 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
– salt to taste

* I chose to use a mix of both parmesan cheeses (the shredded kind and the powdery kind) because I have them both on hand, and I like the combination of textures in this. You could sub 2/3 of a cup of whatever you have on hand, if you don’t want to purchase both types.

Directions:

1. Mix cheeses, Italian herbs, salt, pepper, and red peppers in a shallow dish.
2. Lightly press each fillet into the mixture, on both sides. Press just hard enough to make it stick to the fish, which should be slightly wet.
3. Line your fillets in a 9×13 pan, sprayed with nonstick spray.
4. Bake at 425 for 12-15 minutes, until done.

Cooks Confession: I hate the smell of fresh fish cooking in my house. I just can’t do it. So, I prefer to use frozen tilapia fillets, which I believe turned out pretty awesome, and were much less expensive. If you go this route, thaw the fillets before cooking. I also regularly use frozen mahi mahi fillets, which are also good. check out my blackened mahi recipe here.

4 Servings. 1 Serving= 150 Calories

IMG_4803[1]IMG_4804[1]

Tags: , , , , ,

Tiramisu

10 Dec

So, like so many other days of my life, I found myself in a hotel conference room having a staring contest with a piece of tiramisu last week. It’s one of my favorite desserts… a real treat… but I felt guilty not knowing how bad it was for me…so I walked away eating only half, and already formulating this recipe in my head. I came home and gave it a “test drive” just 2 nights later and I have to say I was VERY happy with the results. This is similar to standard tiramisu in that it’s delicious… it’s different than standard tiramisu in 2 significant ways. 1. It’s EASY to make… and 2. It’s LOW in calories! As I’m sure you’ll notice, this is based on a “poke cake” recipe I’ve used before… but it just seemed like the easiest way to get coffee Into your cake without having an overwhelming coffee flavor. yum.

Ingredients:

– 1 box yellow cake mix
– 3 egg whites
– 12 oz diet sprite (or diet 7 up, or 7 up 10, or any clear diet soda)
– 1 cup of strong brewed coffee
– 1 .3 oz envelope of unflavored gelatin
– 1 4 serving box of sugar free, instant cheesecake flavored pudding
– 1 cup cold 1% milk
– 1 tub of coolwhip lite
– Cocoa powder (about 1/2 cup total)

Directions:

1. Mix cake mix, egg whites and soda together and pour into a 9×13 pan which has been sprayed with nonstick spray.

2. Bake cake according to directions on package.

3. Once the cake is finished, allow it to cool about 5 minutes.

4. Mix hot coffee with gelatin, and mix until fully dissolved.

5. Use a 2 prong fork to poke holes throughout the cake, about 1 inch apart…which should leave you with a small hole appx every 1 inch. Poke hard enough to touch the bottom of the pan with the fork.

6. Pour coffee mixture evenly over the entire cake.

7. Refrigerate for about 2-3 hours (or overnight) before moving on to frosting.

8. When the cake has set, it’s ready to frost.

9. Place milk into a bowl, and whisk in pudding mix until it begins to thicken.

10. Once pudding has begun to thicken, gently fold in cool whip until blended, but don’t overdo it.

11. Spread mixture over cake. Sift Cocoa powder over top of cake. Cover and refrigerate at least a few hours before serving.

16 Servings= 152 Calories Per Serving!
IMG_4440[1]IMG_4452[1]

Tags: ,

Lasagna Roll Ups

21 Nov

I’ve seen some version of this recipe on many different sites. I love to make lasagna, but I don’t do it often, so I thought this version might shave some time off the very time consuming process of making a full lasagna. It did, and it’s a healthy, delicious version. Freezes well too. Great leftovers.

Ingredients:
– 8 lasagna noodles
– 1 jar of Prego “light smart” traditional sauce
(or click here to make my easy, homemade marinara)
– 16 oz of low fat ricotta cheese
– 2 tbsp. parmesan cheese
– 1 box of frozen spinach
– 1 egg
– 1 tsp garlic powder
– 1 tsp oregano
– 1 cup shredded, reduced fat mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Boil noodles in salted water until soft and flexible.

2. While noodles cook: Place frozen spinach in a colander and run under hot water until thawed. Use a paper towel to press all water out of the spinach (by smooshing it into the bottom of the colander). It’s important that you remove as much liquid as possible from the spinach.

3. In a medium sized bowl, Mix ricotta, parmesan, spinach, egg, garlic, and oregano together.

4. Open Spaghetti sauce and pour about 1/4 of the jar into the bottom of a baking pan, coated in non stick spray.

5. Place a row of paper towels flat on the counter, long enough to accommodate all your noodles, and about 3 or 4 towels tall. Remove noodles and lie them each flat on the paper towel. Use additional paper towel to pat excess water from the top of the noodles. It’s important that the noodles are dry.

6. Spread Ricotta mixture evenly across each noodle (a little less than 1/3 cup per noodle) using all of the mix.

7. Roll each noodle up, and place it seam down in the pan.

8. Cover all rolls with remaining sauce and top with mozzarella cheese.

9. Cover pan with foil and bake on 400 for 25 min.

10. Remove foil and continue baking 5-10 min longer (until cheese reaches desired color and texture).

Makes 4 Servings= 460 Calories per serving

IMG_4238[1]IMG_4239[1]IMG_4240[1]IMG_4243[1]

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Tuscan White Bean Soup

17 Nov

I made this today, and it was delicious! It’s not a traditional, country bean soup. It’s really a lot like a minestrone without noodles. However, My Kentucky roots being what they are, I decided to serve this with cornbread. And, I’m glad I did 🙂

Ingredients:
– 1 can of cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
– 1 can of navy beans (Drained and rinsed)
– 1 Can of petite diced tomatoes
– 1 can of rotel
– 1 can of Chicken stock
– about 20 baby carrots, chopped
– 1 medium onion, chopped
– 2 bay leaves
– 3 tbsp. minced garlic
– 2 tsp dried thyme
– 1 box of frozen spinach
– salt and pepper to taste

VF: Replace Chicken Stock with Veggie Stock to make this vegetarian friendly!

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients except for spinach in a crockpot. Mix well.
2. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3. 30 min before serving, add spinach, stirring periodically.

Makes 9 (1 cup) servings. 1 cup = 123 Calories

Note: I was in a hurry the first time I made this, so I tried 3 hours on high. No dice. The veggies weren’t soft. So I added about 1 1/2 cups of water and put it in my pressure cooker to finish the job. It came out WONDERFUL. I really enjoyed this soup.

IMG_4203[1]

Tags: , , , , ,

Chicken Marsala

16 Sep

Ingredients:
-4 (4 0z) chicken cutlets
-1 1/2 tablespoons EVOO
– 2 tablespoons flour (+ 1 tbsp. flour separated, 3 tbsp. total)
– 1 tsp Italian seasoning
– 1/2 tsp paprika
– 1/2 tsp garlic powder
– 1/2 tsp black pepper
– salt (to taste)
– 2 cups raw, sliced mushrooms
– 1/2 can of 98% ff chicken broth
– 1/2 cup marsala wine
– 2 tbsp. water

Directions:
1. use a meat mallot to pound out each chicken breast, into about 1/4 inch thick slices.

2. Sprinkle Salt onto chicken breasts.

3. Mix flour, Italian seasoning, paprika, garlic powder, and pepper together. Sprinkle mixture evenly over both sides of all 4 breasts.

4. Preheat oven to 350.

5. Heat EVOO in a large skillet to med-high temp (6-7 on my stove)

6. Place chicken breasts into oil and cook until golden brown crust forms on both sides.

7. Remove chicken and place in an oven safe dish. Keep in 350 degree oven to keep chicken warm.

8. Slowly pour wine and broth into skillet, and use a spatula to scrape drippings off pan, into broth.

9. Add mushrooms, and cook until about 1/2 of liquid has cooked off.

10. in a small cup, mix remaining 1 tbsp. flour with 1 tbps water. Stir to make a thick paste with no significant lumps. Add additional 1 tbsp. of water and mix until smooth. This makes a “slurry”.

11. Slowly add “slurry” mixture to broth and cooked mushrooms, stirring to incorporate.

12. Keep stirring until sauce reaches desired consistency.

13. Remove chicken breasts and place on a plate, with 1/4 of sauce mixture.

Make 4 generous servings= 235 Calories per serving.

IMG_3688[1]IMG_3689[1]

Tags: , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →