Party Munchies ~ Perfect for New Year's Eve

For my last post of 2013, I've decided to go back and search the blog for some of my favorite appetizers from years past, some tasty goodies that would be right at home at a New Year's Eve party spread.  I just love a get-together with good munchies, especially when some of them are lower in fat, but still full of flavor.  Don't you?  ~~  Happy New Year 2014!!  ~~

1960's Cocktail Party Food ~ Look what's hot in the 60's world of Mad Men!  I made these for my Mad Men Cocktail Party post from back in 2012.  Check out all the hip recipes over on the AMC Mad Men site.

Sausage Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers ~ by baking the poppers & using low fat ingredients, these little gems can be enjoyed anytime!

Fabulous Fat-Free Green Chili Dip ~ gotta love a full flavored  & fat free dip!

Low Fat Cheesy Chili Bean Dip ~ pumpkin puree helps to give this tasty dip an extra boost of veggies, as well as standing in for some of the cheese.

 

Baked Jalapeno Poppers ~ filled with low or fat free cream cheese, wrapped in thin sliced ham, then baked.  They're perfect diet friendly party nibbles.  :)

Carrot Hummus ~ a lower calorie, veggie packed spin on the classic hummus.

Low Carb Bell Pepper 'Mock' Potato Skins & Pizza Bites ~ This is one of my most popular posts, sharing all the goodies I've made from one of the Hungry Girl cookbooks. 

Wishing Everyone a Happy 2014!

Traditional English Bread & Butter Pudding ~ Meatless Monday

Our friend, Dick, brought over a wonderful English treat for us ~ Traditional Bread & Butter Pudding.  It's a simple to make dessert/breakfast/comfort food that's a favorite of both English children and adults.  I make a bread pudding, but have never had a 'bread & butter' version.  What a treat!!  The two 'puddings' are similar, but making it with buttered bread really does give this version it's own personality.  Dick  made a few adjustments to the recipe, he ~ cut the crusts off the bread slices;  he sprinkled some sugar & cinnamon along with the nutmeg; he skipped the candied citrus peel, only including the lemon zest...and I thought it was perfect made this way. We enjoyed this simple delight with some fat free half & half poured on top.  So yummy!    Here's the link for the recipe ~ It's English 'childhood comfort food' at its very best!

 

Homemade Fat-Free Irish Cream Liqueur

One of my favorite liqueurs is Baileys Irish Cream.  I love the taste...but not the fat calories.  So, I decided to tinker with this copycat Baileys Irish Cream version that I posted about on the blog earlier in the year.  I changed up a few things then, and did a bit more tinkering with the recipe once again.  I was going for a fat-free version that was comparable in taste to the copy-cat recipe...and I'm pretty happy with the results.  Over ice or in my coffee, it's all good!

Homemade Fat-Free Irish Cream Liqueur

recipe can be halved

inspired by this recipe

Ingredients

• one 12 ounce can of  fat-free evaporated milk
• one 14 ounce can of fat-free sweetened condensed milk
• 1 2/3 cups of your favorite Irish whiskey
• 1 1/2 tsp instant coffee
• 3 Tbsp chocolate syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract (optional)

Directions

Throw all the ingredients into the blender & blend on high for 30 seconds.  Store in a tightly sealed container in the fridge & serve well chilled.  Some ways to enjoy this fat-free delight ~ straight-up over ice; as part of your favorite Irish Cream cocktail; with a little extra milk for a lighter Irish Cream flavor OR add it to your coffee for a special treat.  Make sure to shake well before pouring...or for a more 'whipped' taste, throw it into the blender for another quick spin to get it nice & frothy.  Enjoy!  :)

  

Christmas 2013

Christmas is just about over, the dishes are done and our friends have now gone home.  The food was good, the conversation stimulating, there were lots of tasty sweet treats to share...and we enjoyed it all.  :)  Merry Christmas!

Taking a second peek at some fun & tasty Christmas-y recipes...

I like the flavors of these recipes so much, I thought I'd share them one more time on the blog.  Just in case you missed them the first time around...  :)

Festive Christmas Eggs ~ using both red & green bell peppers rings makes for a 'Christmas colored' low cal & low carb way to eat my breakfast...

Our friend's old family recipe for ~ Cinnamon Red Hots Applesauce ~ makes an appearance on our Christmas table, every year.  It's sooo good!

Homemade Snowman Pizza ~ makes for a fun lunch or dinner!

Spiced Eggnog High Protein Smoothie ~ a nice way to start my day & full of the eggnog flavor that I love...

Gingerbread Cookie Smoothie ~ another smoothie that I like, full of the flavors of Christmas...

Merry Christmas!

Curry Pumpkin Soup ~ Meatless Monday

I like to tinker with canned pumpkin and this time I played around with it in a simple soup.  I combined a can of pureed pumpkin, veggie broth, curry spice mix, dried onion/garlic...then let it all simmer until the flavors combined.  To a layer of creaminess and body to the soup, I decided to swirl in some Greek yogurt, and added another dollop on top, right before serving.  I like experimenting with different ways to use canned veggies ~ how about you?  :) 

Super Easy White Bean & Kale Soup

Here is a super-easy-to-make soup that I'll throw together when I want something that looks/tastes like it took a bunch of time to make...but it really didn't.  When it's cold and snowy out, give me soup...and cans of beans to get it started!  This is a throw-as-you-go kind of soup ~ usually I'll use 2 cans of white beans with their juice, about a 1/2 bunch of chopped kale, a finely chopped onion, 4-6 cups of chicken broth, whatever spices I feel like tossing in the soup pot, a dash of liquid smoke, and a couple tablespoons of real bacon bits.  I let it all simmer together until the veggies are tender, and then it's time to eat.  Add a nice garnish, maybe some bread/butter or crackers and everybody's happy...especially me.  :)

Spicy Peanut-Almond Tofu Planks with Steamed Kale & Cranberries ~ Meatless Monday

How do I like to eat my tofu?  Well, sometimes I like to cook thin sliced planks of extra firm tofu in a hot skillet ~ I really like how it helps to 'crisp' up the outside of the tofu.  Usually,  I'll sprinkle one of my favorite hot spice mixes (which kind depends on what cuisine I'm craving at the moment) on the tofu, heat up a little oil in the skillet, drizzle a little Braggs and away I go.  :)   For this particular meal, I included a schmear of peanut butter and some toasted slivered almonds to my spicy tofu planks.  A simple side of steamed kale with dried cranberries, and I was good to go.  One of my favorite, easy Meatless Monday meals.  What's yours?

Quick & Easy Tamale Pie

I make a Quick & Easy Tamale Pie casserole that I thought I'd share on the blog.  It's a simple dish that makes use of items I almost always have hanging around in my pantry.  It's so easy to throw together, it makes an excellent last minute meal...and it tastes great.  (well, we all think so :)  I like to make it when I'm craving something with a Mexican flair...or when I need to get dinner on the table, but I don't really feel like cooking.  Since I use canned chili, chili beans and a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix, it comes together pretty quick ~ I like that.  I also like to use low fat versions of the chili, cheese and Greek yogurt/sour cream to keep it lower fat, but you still get all the flavor.  (cut those fat grams where you can :)  While the tamale pie is baking, I'll usually make a garden salad and slice some fruit to round out the meal.  Hope you like it as much as we do ~ Enjoy!

Quick & Easy Tamale Pie
serves 4~6

Ingredients

• 1  15oz can turkey chili without beans (or your favorite kind)
• 1  15oz can chili beans in chili sauce
• 1  cup diced white onion
• 1  cup frozen corn, thawed
• 1/2  cup diced bell pepper (optional)
• 1  box Jiffy corn muffin mix ~ prepared according to box instructions
• 1  cup shredded low fat cheddar cheese
• dried cilantro & paprika for garnish (optional)
• fat free Greek yogurt or sour cream (optional)

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.   Prepare corn muffin mix according to box instructions, set aside.  Saute onions & bell pepper in a non-stick skillet, with a little water or oil, over medium heat until they become soft, about 3-5 minutes.  When veggies are tender, add the thawed corn & the cans of turkey chili & chili beans.  Stir until well combined and heated through.  Pour the hot chili mixture into a large greased casserole dish.  Spoon the corn bread batter over the top of the chili mixture; smoothing it to the edges.  Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the corn muffin batter.  Finally, sprinkle some dried cilantro & paprika all over the top of it all, if using.  Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until the corn muffin batter is done & golden brown.  Serve with a dollop of fat free Greek yogurt (or sour cream) if desired.

 

Grilled Cheese-Potato Chip Sandwich ~ Meatless Monday

My son is really into the Disney cable show ~ Pair of Kings.  So much so, that he asked me to make one of the meals that was served one night to the teenaged, King Boomer.  It was a grilled cheese sandwich that had potato chips nestled inside.  OK.  Simple enough to do and it made my kid excited to eat his meatless dinner ~ Nice!

This really needs no recipe ~ just make a grilled cheese sandwich like you normally do, but before you put the two slices of bread together...slip some of your favorite potato chips into the middle.  J likes a thicker ruffle potato chip, I'm partial to a thinner, Lay's classic potato chip.  Anyway you make it, expect a meal fit for a kid king...or a pair of them.   :) 

3-2-1 Red Potato Soup ~ low fat & creamy tasting!

For our lunch today, I made a really satisfying, delicious, creamy and low fat potato and veggie soup.  I'm calling it my ~ 3-2-1 Red Potato Soup.  (because it has 3/2/1 amounts of veggies & seasonings :)   My inspirations for creating this soup came from ~ 1/2 bag of red potatoes that needed using up; a hungry/sick kid that didn't go to school today; a husband who was cold from clearing snow; and a gal (me) who was surfing the 'net, looking for a way to tame her craving for something warm and comforting to make for her family's lunch. All those things collided in my big, blue pot...and what a yummy lunch it was.  Hope you like this low fat soup as much as we did.  Real time cooking in my kitchen today ~ Enjoy!!

3-2-1 Red Potato Soup

inspired by this recipe...

serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 3 cups red potatoes, medium chop ~ with skins on (or off, your call)
• 2 cups white onion, small chop (about 1 large onion)
• 1 cup carrots, small chop (about 2 medium carrots)
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 Tbsp real bacon bits
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 5 cups of your favorite chicken broth (canned/or from bouillon)
• 1 12oz can fat free evaporated milk, divided
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp liquid smoke (or more, to taste)
• 1 tsp Frank's RedHot Pepper Sauce (more/less, to taste)
• salt/pepper, to taste
• shredded low fat cheddar cheese for garnish (optional)

Directions

Combine the potatoes, onion, carrots, parsley, broth, bacon bits, garlic and dried basil, in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.  Combine cornstarch and 1/4 cup evaporated milk in a separate cup, until smooth.  Stir completely into soup mixture.  Add the remaining evaporated milk, liquid smoke and hot sauce.  Bring soup back up to a boil.  Stir constantly for 2 minutes, or until thickened.  Taste, add salt/pepper, as desired.  Serve as is, or garnish with some shredded low fat cheddar cheese.