Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Shepard's Pie

Shepard's Pie, Lightened UpGina's Weight Watcher RecipesServings: 6 • Serving Size: 10.5 oz • Old Points: 6 pts • Points+: 7 ptsCalories: 290.5 • Fat: 11.1 g • Protein: 16.8 g • Carb: 31.5 g • Fiber: 4.9 g Potatoes:
1-1/2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, diced
3/4 cup fat free chicken broth
2 tbsp fat free sour cream
salt and pepper
paprika Filling:
1 lb 95% lean ground beef
1 tsp oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 cloves garlic, diced
8 oz mushrooms, diced
10 oz frozen mixed vegetables (carrots, corn, peas, green beans, baby lima beans)
2 tbsp flour
1 cup fat free beef broth
2 tsp tomato paste
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp freshly chopped rosemary leaves
1 tsp freshly chopped thyme leaves
salt and pepper Boil potatoes in water until cooked and soft. Drain and mash with chicken broth, sour cream, salt and pepper.Preheat oven to 400°.In a large saute pan brown meat. Season with salt and pepper. When cooked, set aside on a plate. Discard any fat in the pan, add oil, onion and garlic and sauté on medium heat about 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and celery and sauté another 3-4 minutes. Add flour, salt and pepper and mix well. Add frozen vegetables, beef broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, thyme, chopped meat and mix well. Simmer on low about 5-10 minutes.Spread the meat mixture on the bottom of a 11x7 glass baking dish. Top with mashed potatoes, using a fork to scrape the top to make ridges and sprinkle with paprika. Bake 20 minutes or until potatoes turn golden. Remove from oven and let it cool 10-15 minutes before serving

Thai Peanut Noodles

Thai Peanut NoodlesRecipe from: Our Best Bites
1/2 c. chicken broth
3 Tbsp. creamy peanut butter
1-2 tsp. Sriracha chili sauce (The bottle w/ the rooster on the front-- 1 is mild with a bite, 1.5 is medium, 2 is hot)
1 1/2 Tbsp. honey
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh minced ginger
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
8 oz. linguine noodles
2 chopped green onions- just the tops
Chopped cilantro
2 limes, cut into quarters
Chopped peanuts
Cook noodles in salted water. In the meantime, combine chicken broth, peanut butter, chili sauce, honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk until smooth and remove from heat. Toss cooked noodles with sauce and divide among 4 bowls.
Sprinkle with green onions, cilantro, chopped peanuts, and garnish each serving with 2 lime quarters.
Before eating, squeeze lime juice over noodles and stir to combine.*I think this is great as a vegetarian meal, but if desired, you can easily add very thinly-sliced chicken, which would be delicious too!

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Ruth's Diner Mac and Cheese

Ingredients
Recipe courtesy Erik Nelson, chef and owner at Ruth's Diner in Salt Lake City, UT
3 cups uncooked macaroni noodles
1 cup diced onion
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups grated Cheddar
2 1/2 cups grated Monterey jack
1 cup cottage cheese
For the topping:
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup bread crumbs
Directions
Cook macaroni, drain do not rinse.
In a large saute pan, saute the onions in butter. Add the flour to make a roux and cook for 1 minute. Add the milk, bay leaves, paprika, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, stirring often. Mix the 2 cheeses together in a small bowl. Once the mixture is at a simmer, add 3 cups of cheese mixture and the cottage cheese. Stir well, remove from heat, and remove bay leaves from mixture. Add macaroni noodles to milk mixture, mix well.
Pour 1/2 of macaroni mixture into a 2-quart baking dish, cover with 1/2 of the remaining grated cheese, add remaining macaroni mixture and cover with the remaining grated cheese mixture.
In small bowl mix together the topping ingredients and top the macaroni. Place into the oven and bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes.
* Restaurant Recipe
This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. Food Network Kitchens have not tested this recipe in the proportions indicated and therefore cannot make representation as to the results.