Healthy Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:

Cauliflower cheese sauce
2 cups dry macaroni (I use carb healthy pasta, Dreamfields)
1 1/2 cups spinach
1 cup mozzarella cheese


Sauce:
4 cups cooked cauliflower
5-6 cloves of roasted garlic
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chicken broth or water


Directions:


Cut top off garlic bulb, cover with 2 tablespoons olive oil.  Wrap garlic in aluminum foil and place on baking sheet in oven at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes.


Cook cauliflower till tender.  Put cauliflower, garlic, parmesan cheese and broth in blender and blend until smooth.


Cook macaroni per box instructions, drain well.  Add spinach and sauce to macaroni.  Pour into 2 quart baking dish and cover with mozzarella cheese.  Bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.


Low carb, low calorie.

Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

Courtesy of www.tasteofhome.com

Ingredients:


Shortbread layer:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup butter, cubed


Filling:
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 Tbls milk
1 cup white chocolate baking chips, melted


Glaze:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 Tbls shortening


Directions:
In a small bowl, combine flour and confectioners sugar, cut in butter until crumbly.  Press into an ungreased 9-in square pan.  Bake at 375 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until browned.  Spread jam over warm crust.


In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and milk until smooth.  Add white chocolate, beat until smooth.  Spread carefully over jam layer.  Cool completely.  Refrigerate for 1 hour or until set.


For glaze, melt chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave (30 seconds, stir, repeat if necessary), stir until smooth.  Spread over filling.  Refrigerate for 10 minutes.  Cut into bars.  Chill 1 hour longer or until set.  Store in refrigerator.

Brownie Cookies

Another great recipe from Ree Drummond, "The Pioneer Woman."  Can always depend on her recipes being easy and delicious.  She calls these Brownie Cookies and as she describes they taste like brownies but are easier to eat like cookies. 

 

See her post at:  http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2015/03/brownie-cookies/

 

 

Ingredients

• 2 ounces, weight Baking Chocolate (unsweetened Or Bittersweet)
• 2 sticks Softened Butter
• 2 cups Sugar
• 3 whole Large Eggs
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
• 2-1/4 cups Flour
• 1/4 cup plus 1 TBL Cocoa Powder
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• Powdered Sugar, For Dusting (optional)

 

Preparation Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the chocolate in the microwave, stir, and let it cool.

Mix the butter and sugar together until totally combined. With the mixer on low, slowly drizzle in the cooled chocolate. Scrape the bowl and mix again. Mix in the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla. Scrape the bowl once more and mix.

Combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Stir it together, then add it in scoops to the mixing bowl with the mixer on low. Scrape the bowl once and mix one final time until all combined.

Scoop generous tablespoons onto a baking sheet lined with a baking mat or parchment, then bake them for 11 minutes until poufy and set. Remove them from the oven, let them sit on the pan for 1 to 2 minutes, then remove them to a baking rack to cool completely.

Once cool, sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.  I didn't bother with this, they are great with out it.

Hamburger Barley Soup

Easy to make and very delicious from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 onion, minced
4 carrots, sliced
3 celery ribs, thinly sliced
1/2 cup barley*
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 cups water
30-32 ounces beef broth
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed tomato soup
1 bay leaf
1 Tbls parsley
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Heat a large soup pot over medium-high heat, and crumble in the ground beef.  Cook and stir until the beef is evenly browned and no longer pink.  Drain and discard any excess grease.

Stir in the onion, carrots, celery and barley.  Pour in diced tomatoes, water, broth and tomato soup.  Season with bay leaf, parsley, garlic, thyme and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and cover; simmer for 2 hours, stirring frequently.  Remove bay leaf before serving.

*use "regular" barley if possible.  If using "quick cook" wait and add 1/2 hr before serving.

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

Searching for a good soup to warm a winter day, I went to my go to blogger Sally's Baking Addiction and it was excellent.  Taste as you go and adjust spices as desired.

For more tips and Sally's beautiful food photography, to go: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2015/01/07/lightened-creamy-chicken-noodle-soup/.

 

Ingredients:

• 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion (1/2 of a medium onion)
• 1 cup sliced carrots (1 and 1/2 large carrots)
• 1 cup sliced celery (2-3 stalks)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme*
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 7 cups chicken broth
• 1 medium potato, peeled and diced (around 1 and 1/2 cups)
• 2 cups shredded roasted chicken
• 1 cup half-and-half (can substitute milk)
• 4 cups uncooked wide egg noodles

Directions:

Heat the butter in a 4 quart or larger pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. Sauté for around 7 minutes as the veggies let off some juices and become soft. Add flour, oregano, pepper, thyme, and salt. Stir and cook for 3 minutes.

Next, add the broth and potato. Give everything a quick stir, then increase the heat to medium-high. Bring the soup to a boil, without stirring, and allow to boil for 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, partially cover the pot, and allow to simmer for 25 minutes or until the potatoes have softened.  Add the chicken, half-and-half, and noodles. Cook for 10 minutes until the noodles are tender and the soup has thickened.

*if not fresh, use 1/2 teaspoon dried.  I found this to make soup a little spicy, i would omit.

Texas Sheet Cake

Another DELICIOUS recipe from Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman

 

Ingredients:

FOR THE CAKE:

• 2 cups Flour
• 2 cups Sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
• 2 sticks Butter
• 1 cup Boiling Water
• 1/2 cup Buttermilk
• 2 whole Beaten Eggs
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla

FOR FROSTING:

• 1/2 cup Finely Chopped Pecans
• 1-3/4 stick Butter
• 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
• 6 Tablespoons Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar

 

Preparation Instructions:

 

 

Note: I use an 18x13 sheet cake pan.

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.

In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.

Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.

In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture.

Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.

While cake is baking, make the icing. Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.