Roasted Vegetables...my version

Had someone told me that I was going to be loving eggplant, mushrooms, zucchini and squash this time last year, I would have laughed at them. But one of the advantages of being on WW's is that you learn to try new foods that you would have thumbed your nose at before. 

While shopping at one of my favorite health food stores, I decided to try something new, their Roasted Veggie Sandwich with Havarti. Being the good WWer that I am, I quizzed the lady at the counter about the contents of the sandwich. Mayo? No, Veginaise. How much? 1 teaspoon or less. Oil? A small amount of olive oil to roast the vegetables. How much cheese? one slice. All the while I'm calculating points in my head...Bread 3, Cheese 2-3, Veginaise 1, veggies 1. The sandwich was excellent! So much so, that the next time I was in the store I saw that they sell just the veggies all roasted up by the pound! I contemplated buying some until I saw the price $8/lb!! Wow! So, I decided that I would attempt making my own. This is what I came up with: Yummy!

Roasted Veggies

POINTS® Value:    1 Servings:  5 Preparation Time:  20 min Cooking Time:  60 min Level of Difficulty:  Easy Course: side dishes

Add and subtract vegetables based on your personal taste. The balsamic vinegar adds a sweet and tangy note to the roasted vegetables. A serving is about 1 cup.

Ingredients

	3 cup(s) cooked eggplant
	1 cup(s) cooked zucchini
	1 cup(s) cooked summer squash
	1 item(s) bell pepper(s), chopped
	1 cup(s) cooked onions
	1 Tbsp olive oil
	1 cup(s) cooked mushroom pieces
	1/3 cup(s) balsamic vinegar
	1 tsp table salt
	1 tsp black pepper
	1 cup(s) cooked chayote fruit

Instructions

toss all veggies in vinegar and oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Roast covered at 350 in a 9x13 pan for one hour or until veggies are fork tender and onions are fully cooked.
Serve hot or cold.
This can also be made into a sandwich on whole wheat bread and Havarti cheese.

WW's Grandma's Pumpkin Muffins

While shopping the other day, my little Butterbean found a little pumpkin in the produce department at our local grocery store. We have a rule that when we go to the grocery store she can pick out anything from the produce department to buy as long as she will eat it when we come home. She picked out a pumpkin!

So, I searched the Weight Watcher's website and found Grandma's Pumpkin Muffins recipe. We baked the pumpkin and then put it in the Magic Bullet to puree. We didn't have any eggs, so we mixed all the wet ingredients together in one bowl and all the dry ingredients in another bowl and waited for the chickens to lay. I used 2 whole eggs instead of the egg substitute. Normally, I would just measure out egg whites to equal the amount of required egg substitute, but I sold 4 dozen eggs yesterday and was short. I also didn't have any nutmeg, so I skipped it. Next time, I will make sure that I have the nutmeg and egg whites. I like things a little sweeter too, so I might add some Stevia to the batter. I might go a little wild and add some orange zest in too. Mom uses orange juice in her pumpkin pies and they are delicious! Over all, they were very moist and good. Daddy refused to even taste them, but Butterbean loved them! We are taking a couple to church tomorrow to share with some friends. Here's the recipe:

Grandma’s Pumpkin Muffins

POINTS® Value: 3 Servings:  12 Preparation Time:  18 min Cooking Time:  25 min Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Nothing says fall like the spice trinity of pumpkin, nutmeg and cloves.

Ingredients

	1 spray(s) cooking spray
	2 cup(s) all-purpose flour
	1 Tbsp baking powder
	1 tsp table salt
	1 tsp baking soda
	1/2 tsp ground cloves
	1 tsp ground cinnamon
	1 tsp ground nutmeg
	2/3 cup(s) unsweetened applesauce
	1 cup(s) canned pumpkin
	2/3 cup(s) sugar
	1/2 cup(s) fat-free egg substitute
	2/3 cup(s) fat-free skim milk

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat a 12-hole muffin tin with cooking spray. Line with cupcake wrappers if desired.
  
  
• Combine flour, baking powder, salt , baking soda, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl.
  
  
• Combine applesauce, pumpkin, sugar, egg substitute and milk in a medium bowl; mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
  
  
• Add applesauce mixture to flour mixture and mix until completely incorporated.
  
  
• Pour batter into muffin tins so each hole is about 2/3 full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Yields 1 muffin per serving.

Notes

• We use both cooking spray and muffin wrappers to prevent any batter from sticking to the top of the pan but you can use a nonstick pan instead, if you prefer.

Easy Chicken Parmesan

This is the recipe that everyone oooohhh's and aahhh's over. It is also one of the reason's that my husband married me. My husband and I love Semolina's International Pasta, so I looked at their Chicken Parmesan and made up a recipe based on what I thought it had in it. Recently, I have simplified this even further, but not using the bread crumb crust. I will write down both ways of doing it and let you decide what is best!

You will need for the traditional recipe:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 cup Italian bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus some extra for sprinkling on top

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup oil, your favorite kind...I use olive oil.

Adobe seasoning, found in the Latin foods isle of your local grocery, if not use garlic salt.

1 jar of your favorite tomato based red sauce, I like Ragu Robusto! Parmesan and Romano

1 container of your favorite alfredo sauce, I like to make my own and will post that recipe soon, but in a pinch I use Buitoni in the refrigerated section.

1/2 box of your favorite pasta, I like Ronzoni Smart Taste pasta because it has fiber and fills me up faster and longer.

Start your water to boiling and set out all your ingredients.

Pound your chicken breasts out to your desired thickness. I cut the chicken breasts in half to get 4 breasts, so I can stretch my grocery budget and keep from stretching my waistline. Sprinkle each one with a little Adobe.

Mix the cheese and bread crumbs.

Dredge the chicken breasts in the egg then the bread crumbs.

Fry the breaded chicken breast in the oil until completely cooked through.

While cooking the chicken breasts, I heat the two sauces in the microwave and cook the pasta. I'm also swinging my daughter in the swing that hangs in the dinning room doorway too, but that is totally optional for you. Yup, I can mulitask!

Drain the pasta. Drain the chicken on paper towels and prepare assembly.

Toss the pasta with the alfredo sauce. Make a mound of pasta on each plate. Top the pasta with a piece of chicken and then ladle some red sauce on top. Sprinkle with cheese and serve.

If you want to simplify this further, don't beat or bread the chicken and cut the oil down to just 2 tablespoons.

Yummy!!!