Vegetable Beef Soup


Vegetable Beef Soup

Makes 18 Servings

Blue – 1 cup, 2 points Purple – 1 cup, 1 point Green – 1 cup, 5 points

  • 1 soup bone
  • 1 lb beef cubes (stew meat, lean)
  • 1 large onion, cut in quarters
  • 2 stalks celery, cut into large pieces
  • 1 fresh pot herb ( can be found in the fresh herb section – it is a leek, chili pepper, parsley and thyme, tied together)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2/3 cup pearl barley
  • 1/2 large head of cabbage, chopped small (about 4-5 cups)
  • 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 32 oz frozen mixed veggies
  • 1 can white shoepeg corn, drained

  1. In a large pot, place soup bone, onion, celery, pot herb, meat and enough water to fill the pot about 3/4 full. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for 1 hour.

  2. Add cabbage, barley and crushed tomatoes. Bring back to a boil and then simmer for 30-40 minutes.

  3. Remove bone, pot herb, celery and any large pieces of remaining onion

  4. Add frozen mixed veggies, can of white corn and cook for about 30-40 more or until veggies are tender.

  5. ***Take care not to break open the chili pepper when stirring, adding ingredients or removing at the end…it will get hot!***

  6. I like to serve the soup with a tablespoon of ketchup stirred into each bowl – yes, I know, sounds crazy but it's DELISH and some nice crusty bread!




Macaroni Salad


Macaroni Salad

Very basic and simple, but it's what our family likes!

Makes 10 servings, I weighed out the entire bowl and divided by 10 to get the serving size! Blue, Green and Purple – 5 points

  • 8 oz elbow macaroni, uncooked
  • 1 cup light mayonaisse
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped small
  • 1/2 small onion, chopped small
  • salt and pepper to taste

  1. Cook macaroni according to directions. Let cool.

  2. In a large bowl, mix macaroni (may have to wet it with cool water while its in the strainer after it cools to "unstick" it) , 3/4 cup of mayo, celery, onion, salt and pepper. Reserve 1/4 cup of mayo to mix in right before serving.

  3. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. Mix in remaining 1/4 cup of mayo right before serving. Will keep in fridge for 5 days.




Sausage Souffle


Sausage Souffle

Serves 8

Blue – 4 points

Purple -4 points

Green – 6 points

  • 1 recipe homemade turkey sausage – found here: <a href="https://joanspointedplate.com/turkey-sausage/">https://joanspointedplate.com/turkey-sausage/</a><br /><br />
  • 6 eggs, beaten
  • 3 cups 1% milk
  • 8 slices 1 point bread, such as 647 Bread
  • 6 oz Cabot 75% cheese, grated
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp dry mustard

  1. Cook and crumble turkey sausage

  2. Cube bread

  3. Mix all ingredients together, add sausage, mix.

  4. Pour into a 9×13 pan that has been sprayed with non stick spray. Bake uncovered at 350 for 45-55 minutes or until eggs are set

  5. Can be made and refrigerated for up to 3 days ahead of baking




Amy’s Roast Chicken


Amy's Roast Chicken

The best roast chicken I have ever had. Here is Amy's recipe: https://amycommonsensesouthern.com/2019/03/14/easy-roasted-chicken/

If you eat the white breast meat only, the meat is 0 on blue and purple, and depending on how much you eat, count the points for green. I give the gravy 1 or 2 points depending on how much I use.

  • 3-5 pound whole chicken
  • 1/2 lemon
  • 3-5 cloves garlic
  • 1 med-large onion
  • salt and pepper or favorite herb blend, to taste
  • 2 1/2 Tbsp light butter

  1. Pre-heat your oven to 425F.

    Rinse the chicken and pat dry the outside skin thoroughly with paper towels. Add the lemon half and garlic cloves to the inside of the chicken and tie the legs together with a bit of cooking twine. Tuck the wing tips under the breast.

    Slice the onion into rings and place in the bottom of a dutch oven or pan that can be used on top of the stove. Place the chicken on top of the onions. Brush with the melted butter and season with salt and pepper or dried herbs. Add a few tablespoons of water to the bottom of the pan to prevent the onions from burning.

    Place the pan UNCOVERED in the preheated oven for one hour. Remove the pan after one hour and check the onions. Add more water if the onions are getting too dark around the edges. Return to the oven for an additional 30 minutes. After the 30 minutes, remove the chicken from the oven and move it to a platter to cool.

    Carefully remove the lemon from the chicken and squeeze some of the juice and pulp into the pan juices and onion. Alternately, when removing chicken from the pan, make it a point to insert a fork into the lemon so that the juices will drain back into the pan. Place the pan of juices and onion on a stove burner set to medium and simmer the sauce until it has thickened slightly. Serve the pan sauce along with the chicken.

    If you prefer a thicker gravy, you can thicken with a cornstarch slurry!




Turkey Sausage


Turkey Sausage

Blue – 0 points

Purple – 0 points

Green – 2 points

  • 1 pound 99% fat free ground turkey
  • 1 tsp dried sage
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp white pepper (can use black pepper)
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • pinch marjoram
  • ***can substitute 1 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning for sage and marjoram**

  1. In a small bowl, mix all spices.

  2. In a larger bowl, place ground turkey. Sprinkle seasonings over turkey and mix VERY WELL with hands until all the seasonings are distributed throughout meat

  3. Next, you can form patties and fry them or use as ground turkey sausage in a recipe such as sausage gravy and biscuits or in a breakfast casserole.

  4. I use a small amount of oil and non stick spray when cooking the sausage to prevent it from sticking.




Crock Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup


Crock Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

recipe adapted from Dash of Herbs

Serves 8 – I will measure/weigh out the entire recipe and then divide by 8 to get accurate servings. I am estimating about 1 cup

Blue – 4 points

Purple – 2 points

Green – 4 points

  • 1/2 pound boneless and skinless chicken breast
  • 1/2 small bag shredded carrots chopped
  • 2 Tbsp garlic minced
  • 1/2 small onion chopped
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 tsp black pepper
  • 6 ounces wild rice
  • 2 Tbsp light butter
  • 2 1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup 1% milk
  • 1/2 cup fat free half and half
  • 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp dried parsley
  1. Spray your slow cooker with olive oil spray. Place the chicken breasts into the cooker and cover with salt and pepper. Add the chicken broth, wild rice, garlic, shredded carrots, onion and spices. Stir to combine and cook on high for 6 hours.
  2. Once the chicken is finished cooking, take the breasts out and shred them. Add them back to the soup.
  3. In a small sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour to combine. Add the milk and half and half. Add this mixture to the soup and mix to combine. Serve immediately.




Pork Chop, Potato and Asparagus Sheet Pan Bake


Pork Chop, Potato and Asparagus Sheet Pan Bake

Serves 4

  • 1 pound baby potatoes
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
  • 2 oz fresh grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 pound boneless porkchops (4 oz each) **SEE NOTE
  • 1 pound asparagus spears, trimmed

  1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray a sheet pan with non stick spray

  2. Clean and cut potatoes into halves or quarters, depending on the size. Place on baking sheet and toss with 2 teaspoons of olive oil. Mix around so all are coated. Put the potatoes down one side of the sheet pan.

  3. In a shallow pie plate, mix parmesan cheese, panko breadcrumbs, garlic powder and pepper. Stir to combine

  4. Place pork chops on sheet pan. Brush the tops with 2 tsp olive oil. Spoon half of the breadcrumb mixture over the pork chops, pressing down onto the chops to form a crust. Bake for 25 minutes

  5. Remove from oven and stir potatoes. Make room on try for asparagus.

  6. Add the asparagus to the tray and drizzle with remaining 2 tsp of olive oil. Make sure it is well coated (you can use a brush to spread it). Sprinkle the remaining bread crumb mixture evenly over the potatoes and asparagus. Cook everything for 20 minutes more.

Do not use “thin sliced” pork chops – use ones that are about 1/2 inch thick. If you use thin they will be dry and tough.




Chai French Toast Casserole


Chai French Toast Casserole

Serves 6

Blue – 4 points

Purple – 4 points

Green – 8 points

  • 12 slices 1 point bread (647 Bread, Sara Lee 45 Calorie), cubed
  • 2 cups 1% milk
  • 8 eggs
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp ground cardamom
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground gloves
  • 2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup zero calorie sugar substitute that measures like sugar (Lakanto Monkfruit, Swerve)
  • 2 Tbsp light butter

  1. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with non stick spray. Sprinkle bread evenly over the bottom of the dish.

  2. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add milk, sugar substitute, vanilla, and spices. Whisk until all ingredients are combined.

  3. Pour egg mixture over the bread. Dot with butter.

  4. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour. You can prepare this the night before and refrigerate all night.

  5. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375. Bake for 35-40 minutes.




Horseradish-Mustard Salmon


Horseradish-Mustard Salmon

Serves 4

Blue – 1 point

Purple – 1 point

Green – 7 points

  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 2 Tbsp dijon mustard
  • 2 Tbsp prepared horseradish
  • 2 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice, plus 4 lemon slices for garnish (garnish optional)
  • 1 tsp dried tarragon
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 24 oz salmon fillets (4 – 6 oz fillets)

  1. In a small bowl, stir together mustard, horseradish, lemon juice, tarragon, salt and pepper until well blended.

  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon, skin side up; cook 5 to 6 minutes or until golden brown on bottom. Turn salmon and cook 4 to 5 minutes or until internal temperature reaches about 145 degrees. Spread some horseradish-mustard mixture over salmon pieces during the last 3 minutes of cooking.

  3. Slide spatula between skin and salmon to remove skin. Serve salmon over rice if desired and drizzle with horseradish-mustard sauce; garnish with lemon slices if desired.




Creamy Shrimp Pasta and Mushrooms


Creamy Shrimp Pasta and Mushrooms

Serves 4

Blue – 10 points

Purple – 6 Points

Green – 11 Points

  • 8 oz linguine pasta **see note below
  • 1/2 cup pasta water
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 lb shrimp
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 tsp dried basil
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 8 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup fat free half and half
  • 2 oz fresh block parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1/2 cup part skim mozzarella

  1. Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving at least 1/2 cup pasta water

  2. Heat a large skillet until hot – add olive oil and immediately add garlic and shrimp.

  3. Cook on one side for about 1 minute until pink (medium high heat)

  4. Flip t.he shrimp to the other side. Sprinkle the top of the cooked shrimp with bqsil, paprika, crusted red pepper flakes and salt. Cook another 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until shrimp is pink on both sides.

  5. Remove the shrimp from the skillet. If it is a bit under cooked, it's fine, it will continue to cook in the sauce.

  6. To the same skillet, add sliced mushrooms. Add a bit more oil if necessary.

  7. Cook on medium high for about 2 minutes, occasionally stirring until mushrooms before soft and release juices. Sprinkle with a small about of salt midway through

  8. To the skillet with the mushrooms, add cooked shrimp. Immediately add half and half. Bring to a boil.

  9. Add half the cheeses. Bring to a basil and immediately reduce to medium-simmer. Cook, constantly stirring, until the cheese melts

  10. Gradually start adding remaining cheese while stirring. Do not add all of remaining cheese at once. Add just enough for the sauce to get creamy without getting too thick. You might not use all of the remaining cheese.

  11. Remove from heat. Taste and adjust seasonings.

  12. Add cooked nd drained pasta from step 1 to the skillet with the shrimp and mushroom and cream sauce. Heat through on medium heat. Stir well

  13. If the sauce is too thick, you can add the reserved pasta water a bit at a time until you reach the desired consistency

  14. Season with more salt and add more crushed red pepper flakes and basil, if desired.

NOTE:  On purple plan, use whole wheat pasta.  On green or blue, use Ronzoi 150 or Barilla Protein Plus.