Kitchie Coo

I have finally made it back to my pre-Claire weight (although all my clothes don't fit yet, hmm...), and I must thank Weight Watchers (and to be honest here, breastfeeding) for this occasion.  And recipes like this one.  I have an old Weight Watchers cookbook that contains 20 minute or less recipes...and they actually are!  These recipes are delicious, super-quick and have made it almost effortless to lose the baby weight.  Plus, since I don't have a ton of time to spend in the kitchen these days, these quickie meals have been a savior in our household recently.

This recipe called for turkey originally but I substituted deli chicken sliced about a half inch thick, and it was delicious.  This could also easily be made vegetarian by omitting the chicken and swapping the chicken broth for veggie broth.  Make sure to get fire-roasted tomatoes which add a little bit of a smoky flavor.  I amped up the smoky flavor by adding a little smoke paprika...divine!

Mace isn't always excited when I make soup for dinner, but he slurped this one up and had seconds.  As my friend Hope would say, this one is a Weekday Winner!


Tomato Basil Soup with Chicken

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
4 cups chicken broth
28 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
1/2 pound deli chicken sliced 1/2" thick, cubed
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium-high.  Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about five minutes. Add the broth, tomatoes, sugar, salt, pepper and paprika if using.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook for five minutes.

Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth.  Add the chicken and milk and simmer an additional 3 minutes, or until heated through.  Stir in the basil and then...

EAT IT!

And because I know the nutrition facts via the cookbook, and like to know them when possible, here they are. You're welcome!

Serving Size: 2 cups
Calories: 200
Fat: 4g
Carbohydrates: 21g
Dietary Fiber: 3g
Protein: 20g

Children, without a doubt, model their parent's behaviors, both good and bad.  Therefore, I firmly believe that if I take care of myself, my children are bound to follow.  We generally eat pretty healthy in our house, but I have been making an effort to kick it up a notch post-baby to get my body back in shape and keep my energy level up.  Two things I have done recently is joining the YMCA and cooking quick, healthy meals every night that both satisfy and taste delicious.

With these small changes, the baby weight is starting to shed itself and my energy level is back to a place that doesn't make the demands of a toddler and newborn unbearable. (It also helps that Claire, has been a pretty good sleeper.  So, the sleep deprivation is minimal compared to my first newborn experience...which was sleep deprivation hell!)

This cous cous salad has quickly become a new staple in our household.  It literally comes together in 15 minutes and it is crazy delicious and packed with nutrition.  I serve it warm the first night I make it, but is great cold out of the fridge the next day too.


Curried Cous Cous Salad with Chicken & Apple
Adapted from Weight Watchers

Serves 6

1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain cous cous
1 (15 1/2 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 red apple, unpeeled, cored and diced
1 cup chicken breast, chopped, from a rotisserie chicken
2 green onions, sliced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 ounces spinach

Bring the water, 1 teaspoon curry powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the cous cous, cover and remove from the heat.  Allow to stand for 5 minutes, until all the water is absorbed and then fluff the cous cous with a fork.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the chickpeas, apple, chicken, green onions, lemon juice, olive oil, remaining 1/2 teaspoon curry and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Add the cous cous and stir to mix.  Divide the spinach among 6 bowls and top with the cous cous mixture.  Then hurry up and...

EAT IT!!

This weekend was a busy, crazy blur.  A very very fun blur, but blurring can be exhausting!  So, Sunday night the last thing I wanted to do was be on my feet cooking for another hour.  Yes, sometimes even I don't feel like hitting the pots!  So, I went looking for quick inspiration, and found a recipe in Cooking Light that I loosely based this recipe on.



I love recipes that are versatile and quick*. And healthy! Its fairly low in fat and calories and gets a huge flavor boost from a hit of Swiss cheese on top. Scrumptious! Oh, and this is a ton 'o food.  It made enough for me to have leftovers for 3 days.  No offense chickie casserole, you were delicious and very good to me, but its time for something new tomorrow.  Ta ta!

*disclaimer: this is quick to assemble, but it does need to bake for 45 minutes. So, you know, quick and then not quick.


Chickie Casserole

PRINT THIS RECIPE!

Ingredients

1 lb ground chicken
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
6 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
4 Yukon gold potatoes, chopped into 1" cubes
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 400F.  Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, add ground chicken and spices.  Cook, stirring occasionally, about 7 minutes, or until browned and cooked through.  Remove chicken from pan.

Add olive oil and then onions to pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.  Add mushrooms and cook an additional 5 minutes or until mushrooms start to become tender.  Add potatoes and salt and cook until potatoes begin to brown, about 6 minutes.  Add chicken and broth to pan and remove from heat.

Pour mixture into a lightly oiled casserole dish and then top with Swiss cheese.  Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then remove the cover and bake an additional 15 minutes or until potatoes are cooked through and cheese begins to brown.

Eat it!

MAKE AHEAD: After pouring chicken & potato mixture into casserole dish, cover and put in fridge until ready to bake.  Grate cheese over the top just before putting in the oven.  Bake as directed above, adding additional minutes as necessary until cooked through.