Veggie Stir Fry - My Zero Point Lunch

Currently, my favorite thing to fix for an easy, zero point lunch or even dinner is what I call a Veggie Stir Fry.  I can't give you exact measurements on this; I just use whatever I have on hand and throw it together.

I keep fresh or frozen (mostly frozen) vegetables on hand at all times.  The best thing about buying frozen, is that they will keep longer.  If you are going to buy frozen, just be sure there are no sauces added to them.

Now, all you need are some seasonings and a saute pan.

These are some of the seasonings I like to use: seasoned pepper, hot sauce, soy sauce, lime juice, sea salt, garlic, and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray.  I change it up sometimes and use a Cajun seasoning. You could use whatever seasonings are your favorite and any kind of cooking spray (most non-stick cooking sprays do not add any points).  In my opinion, the I Can't Believe It's Not Butter has the best flavor.

Coat a saute pan with cooking spray and start adding your veggies.  If I'm using onions and garlic, I like to add them first.  For this particular meal I used a mixture of garlic, onions, bell peppers, broccoli, and cauliflower.  As it starts to cook, add seasonings to taste and more cooking spray as needed.  Cook until veggies are as tender as you like.  I generally cook mine for about five minutes on medium heat.

This is a super easy meal and it is so delicious, for 0 points!  

Zero Point Cabbage Soup

I have to be honest with you, the first time I heard about the Weight Watchers zero point Cabbage Soup I was skeptical about whether I would like it or not.  So, I did some research and found a recipe that sounded pretty good. Of course, I had to tweak it a bit, but I have to say, it turned out very tasty.

So, here's is my version of the recipe.

Zero Point Cabbage Soup

Ingredients

• 3 cups nonfat beef broth
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 small sweet onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 2 cups chopped cabbage
• 1/2 cup green beans
• 1/2 cup chopped zucchini 
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• salt & pepper
• non-stick cooking spray (I used I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray)

Directions:

1. Spray pot with non-stick cooking spray.  Add onions, carrots and garlic and saute for 5 minutes.
2. Add broth, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, cabbage, green beans, zucchini, oregano, salt and pepper.
3. Simmer for about 15 minutes.  

Makes about 6-8 servings.  (1 Cup)

Chicken & Corn Chowder

This is another recipe I just threw together with ingredients I had on hand.  It turned out really yummy!  I plugged the ingredients into the recipe app on Fitness Pal and a one cup serving comes out to 219 calories and only 19 carbs.  I will definitely be making it again in the future.

Ingredients:

• 1 - 12 oz. Bag Frozen Sweet Corn
• 1 - 15 oz. Can Sweet White Corn
• 2 - 12.5 oz. Canned Chicken Breast, Drained
• 4 Cups Chicken Broth
• 1 Block Cream Cheese
• 1 Packet Taco Seasoning
• 1 Packet Dry Ranch Dip/Dressing Mix
• 1/2 tsp. Ground Red Pepper

Directions:

• Place all ingredients in crock pot on high.  Cook for at least 4 hours.  Stir occasionally to break up and blend cream cheese.

Pepperoni Pizza Spaghetti Squash

I came up with this recipe last night.  I had originally planned to make a spaghetti squash pizza crust from a recipe I found on Pinterest, but it was going to require more time than I had.

Ingredients:

• 1 spaghetti squash, cooked
• 1 jar pizza sauce
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• about 24 (more or less) pepperonis, quartered 

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Spray a 9 x 13 dish/pan with cooking spray.
• Remove the squash from it's skin and spread in the bottom of dish/pan.
• Sprinkle a handful of cheese over squash.
• Sprinkle on half the pepperonis.
• Pour pizza sauce over the pepperonis.
• Sprinkle the rest of the pepperonis over the pizza sauce.
• Top with the rest of the cheese.
• Place a few whole pepperonis on top to finish off.
• Cook for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and starts to brown a bit.

This received the seal of approval from my guys so  I guess it was a success!

Spaghetti Squash

Now that my family is eating healthier, I am trying to find ways to make our favorite dishes more figure friendly.  One of my guys menu favorites is spaghetti.  The problem is all those calories and carbohydrates in that pasta.  So this week I swapped out regular pasta noodles for spaghetti squash.

The first time I heard about replacing pasta with a spaghetti squash I thought it would be complicated.  I couldn't have been more wrong.  It is so simple to prepare and it tastes really good, even my son likes it.

I won't lie to you; it doesn't taste like pasta, but it really is good.  And it gives you that great base you need for your spaghetti sauce.

So, without further ado, here are the instructions for cooking perfect spaghetti squash.

• Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise.
• Place, face down in a microwave safe dish.
• Cook on high for 12 minutes.
• Let it cool just a bit, until you can handle it.
• Scoop out seeds and discard.
• Hold up by stem and scrap out the "noodles."
• Repeat with other half.
• Sprinkle with some season salt.

Does it really get any more simple than that?  You can serve any kind of sauce over your squash "noodles."  I usually just stir my "noodles" into my sauce.

As for servings:  There are three of us and my guys are pretty hearty eaters.  One medium to large spaghetti squash provides plenty and we usually have leftovers.  

One cup of spaghetti squash has 31 calories as compared to one cup of regular pasta spaghetti noodles, which contains 211 calories.

Chicken Taco Soup

My family really likes this soup and it is also low calorie.  Because I am trying to lose weight and get healthy; I will be posting some lighter, healthier recipes.

Chicken Taco Soup

Ingredients:
2 12.5 oz. cans chicken breast meat, drained
1 12 oz. bag frozen sweet corn
1 can Rotel
4 cups chicken broth
1 can white beans
1 can light red kidney beans
1 packet of ranch seasoning mix
1 packet of taco seasoning mix

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a crock pot and cook on high for 4 to 6 hours.

110 calories per 1 cup serving

Note:  You can serve this with tortilla chips and shredded cheese.  Of course, that will add calories.

Three Bean Chili

We love chili at our house.  So, needless to say, we have tried many recipes throughout the years.  I recently happened upon a new recipe on Pinterest for Three Bean Chili.  I did tweak it a bit, but it was so good it has earned a place on our recurring meals list.

So without further ado, here is the recipe, with my tweaks.

Three Bean Chili

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 small sweet onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (15 ounce) can light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup vegetable juice
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon cyan pepper
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• sea salt to taste
• 2 cups water

Directions:  In a large sauce pan, add ground beef and cook over medium heat, breaking up meat with a spoon.  Just when it starts to lose its pink color, add onion and garlic and cook until onions are tender.  Drain fat.

Add additional ingredients and bring to a boil.  Turn down to simmer and let cook for 1 hour.  

This recipe can also be done in the crock pot.  After browning meat, onions and garlic in a sauce pan place all ingredients in your crock pot and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Enjoy! :)