Thursday, October 30, 2008

And the results are in!!!

Thank you to all who voted for the November CHOP recipes! We have some good looking food coming our way! The winners and cook/review dates are as follows:

WEEK 1: Sweet and Sour Chicken - review by 11/7
WEEK 2: Aggie's Tortellini Soup - review by 11/14
WEEK 3: Chicken with Paremsan, Garlic, and Herb Crust - review by 11/21
WEEK 4: Turkey Noodle Soup - review by 12/1

You can make all of the recipes in 1 week if your heart desires, but most of us will make 1 a week. I will post the week's recipe up for discussion on Monday mornings. We'll discuss on Fridays! The last recipe we'll discuss on Monday, 12/1 due to the holiday!

HAPPY COOKING!!!!!!!

Monday, October 27, 2008

We're baaaaaaaaaaaack!

Ok Choppers - get ready to cook! We're back after a little hiatus and a change in format. Here's the deal. You have 10 recipes to look at. Rank them 1-10 with 1 being your FAVORITE and #10 being least favorite. Post your vote in the comments section of this blog post or email Amy (oduamy at gmail.com). Vote by Wednesday 10/29.

We'll tally the scores and pick the top 4 winners. There are 4 weeks in November so we'll cook 1 recipe per week! The week will run Sunday-Saturday, so try to have the recipe cooked by Saturday! The recipe winners/schedule will be posted here on 10/30. Post your review of the recipe in the comments section. We'll also have an on-board discussion too on Fridays!

Here are the recipes. They are in website format so they're easier to read:
http://oduamy.com/chop.html

Here's a sneak preview of the list of recipes:
  • Aggie's Tortellini Soup
  • Banana French Toast
  • Cajun Shrimp & Rice
  • Capellini with Clams and Tomato-Feta Vinaigrette
  • Caramelized Onion Chicken
  • Chicken with Parmesan, Garlic, and Herb Crust
  • Mediterranean Chicken Stew
  • Mushroom Pork Chops
  • Sweet and Sour Chicken
  • Turkey Noodle Soup
PS: If anybody has recipe builder or some other recipe program and wants to run the points for the recipes w/o info, that would be appreciated!! Just email me and I'll add that info!

Monday, September 8, 2008

Recipes for Sept. 11th Vote

Here are the recipes for this week's vote. We will discuss the winning dish on Thursday, Sept. 18th.

Recipe #1 - Fresh Tomato and Basil Pasta with Feta

Prep Time:20 min
Total Time:32 min
Makes:6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

4 medium ripe tomatoes, chopped (about 3 cups)
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
8 oz. radiatore pasta (radiator-shaped pasta), uncooked
1 pkg. (4 oz.) ATHENOS Traditional Crumbled Feta Cheese

DIRECTIONS:

MIX tomatoes, basil, oil, garlic, salt and pepper.

COOK pasta as directed on package; drain.

TOSS hot pasta with tomato mixture and feta cheese. Serve immediately.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:
Calories - 250
Fat - 9
Fiber - 2

Recipe #2 - Slow Cooker Hearty Beef Chili

Prep Time:10 min
Total Time:6 hr 10 min
Makes:8 servings, about 1 cup each

INGREDIENTS:

1-1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 can (15 oz.) dark red kidney beans, drained, rinsed
1 can (15 oz.) light red kidney beans, drained, rinsed
1-1/2 cups TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Mild Salsa
1 can (16 oz.) no-salt added tomato sauce
2 Tbsp. chili powder
1 onion, chopped
1 cup frozen corn, thawed, drained
1 cup KRAFT Mexican Style Shredded Four Cheese

DIRECTIONS:

BROWN meat; drain. Add to slow cooker with remaining ingredients except cheese; stir. Cover with lid.

COOK on LOW for 5 to 6 hours (or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours).

STIR just before serving. Serve topped with the cheese

NUTRITIONAL INFO:
Calories - 350
Fat - 12
Fiber - 7

Monday, August 25, 2008

Recipes for vote

Here are this week's recipes. We will discuss the winner on Thursday, Sept. 4.

Recipe #1: Beef, Cheese, and Noodle Bake


INGREDIENTS:
1 (8-ounce) package small elbow macaroni
Cooking spray
1 cup prechopped onion
1 cup preshredded carrot
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1 pound lean ground sirloin
1 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup fat-free milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) 2% reduced-fat shredded sharp cheddar cheese (such as Cracker Barrel), divided

INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Lightly coat pasta with cooking spray.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and carrot, and sauté 4 minutes. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add ground beef; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add tomato sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes or until most of liquid evaporates.

Add pasta to beef mixture in pan, stirring to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Place milk, flour, nutmeg, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan; stir with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat 2 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly with a whisk. Add 1 cup cheese, stirring until smooth. Pour cheese mixture over pasta mixture; stir. Top evenly with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

NUTRITIONAL INFO:Healthy Units: 6 per servingCALORIES 283 (24% from fat); FAT 7.7g (sat 4.2g,mono 2.4g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 22.3g; CHOLESTEROL 46mg; CALCIUM 209mg; SODIUM 622mg; FIBER 2.1g; IRON 3.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 30.1g

Recipe #2: Provolone Chicken on Portobello Caps

INGREDIENTS:
2 (5- to 6-inch-wide) portobello mushrooms, stems removed and chopped
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, minced
2 slices provolone cheese
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons dry vermouth or lower-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons chopped fresh chives

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease medium baking dish; place mushroom caps in dish, gill-side down.

2. Place chicken in shallow dish. Combine soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of the oil and garlic in small bowl. Brush half of the mixture over both sides of mushroom caps. Pour remaining mixture over chicken, turning to coat all sides.

3. Bake mushroom caps 15 to 20 minutes or until tender but not limp, turning once.

4. Halfway through baking mushrooms, remove chicken from marinade; reserve marinade. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Cook chicken 4 minutes or until browned on one side. Turn; add mushroom stems to skillet. Top each breast with 1 cheese slice; sprinkle with pepper. Pour vermouth and reserved chicken marinade into pan; partially cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook 3 to 4 minutes or until cheese melts and chicken is no longer pink in center.

5. Place mushroom caps gill-side up on plates; top with chicken mixture. Drizzle with pan juices. (If juices are very thin, increase heat and cook until reduced). Sprinkle with chives

I forgot to announce last week's winner....

It's the stuffed peppers. We will discuss on Thursday 8/28.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Vote for discussion on 8/28

Here are the recipes up for vote this week. Voting will end Thursday 8/21 when we discuss last week's winner.

Recipe #1 - Saucy Pork Medallions

Prep Time:5 min
Total Time:20 min
Makes:6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

1 large pork tenderloin (1-1/2 lb.)
2 tsp. oil
3 cups frozen peas
1 can (10 oz.) turkey gravy
1/4 cup KRAFT Zesty Italian Dressing
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken, prepared as directed on package

DIRECTIONS:

CUT pork crosswise into 3/4-inch-thick slices.

HEAT oil in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat; add pork. Brown 5 min., turning once. Stir in peas, gravy and dressing; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Spoon prepared stuffing around edge of skillet; cover.

SIMMER 10 min. or until stuffing is heated through and pork is cooked through.

NUTRITION: CALORIES - 430, FAT - 18g, FIBER - 4g


Recipe #2 - Tri color Stuffed Peppers

Prep Time:15 min
Total Time:55 min
Makes:6 servings, one stuffed pepper half each

INGREDIENTS:

2 pouches (1 cup each) frozen BOCA Ground Crumbles
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen whole kernel corn
1-1/2 cups TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa
1-1/2 cups cooked instant brown rice
1 cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Reduced Fat Colby & Monterey Jack Cheese, divided
1 each: large red, yellow and green bell pepper, cut lengthwise in half, seeds removed
1/2 cup water

DIRECTIONS:

PREHEAT oven to 400°F . Mix crumbles, corn and salsa in large nonstick skillet; cook on medium heat 5 min. or until heated through, stirring frequently. Remove from heat. Add rice and 1/2 cup of the cheese; mix well.

SPOON burger mixture evenly into pepper halves; place in 13x9-inch baking dish. Pour water into dish; cover with foil.

BAKE 30 min. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake an additional 10 min. or until burger mixture is heated through and cheese is melted

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Winner for Discussion on 8/21

Recipe #1 -- Cheddar Chicken