Chicken with Leeks

This is a variant of something I saw in one of Martha Stewart's magazines recently. She used a lot of butter and proscuitto (a fatty, but yummy, Italian ham) - so I tailored it my needs and everyone really liked it. I mixed this in with some whole wheat pasta, but I imagine it can be served with anything.

2 lbs boneless chicken breast - grilled and broken into pieces
2 or 3 leeks - the white to light green parts only
box of frozen peas
juice of one lemon
extra virgin olive oil

Trim away the roots and dark green parts of the leeks, cut the remaining pieces down the middle and soak in cold water for 15 minutes to clean. Once clean, slice the leeks into 2" long pieces and slice into thin slivers. Pour a little olive oil in a pan and sautee the leeks with a little salt and pepper until soft (about 3 minutes or so). Add lemon juice, peas and chicken and toss together, heating until everything is warmed through.





WW Points Values: 4 pts. per serving

Pineapple Chicken

OK - so what do you do with the juice you drained from the can of pineapple rings? You use it to marinade your chicken.


Juice drained off of 20 oz can of pineapple rings
2lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 Tbs groud ginger
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
1 Tbs Bell's seasoning (or poultry seasoning)
1 tsp ground cloves
salt and pepper to taste


In a 1 gallon plastic bag (or bowl or whatever you use for marinading meat), mix the pineapple juice, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, seasoning, salt and pepper together until well blended. Then place your chicken in the marinade for as long as desired.

Grill you chicken and serve with the grilled pineapple slices, a nice salad and brown rice.




+ 1 point for the pineapple juice

WW Points Values: 5 pts. per serving

Grilled Pineapple

What's so special about this? Try it sometime and you'll see.

1 20oz can of pineapple slices or spears in their own juice, drained
1 lemon or lime


Place the pineapples in a bowl and squeeze the juice of the lemon or lime over them and let it marinate for a few minutes. Gently place the slices on your grill for a minute, turn them once and then remove and serve.

The juice from the lemon/lime will really make the flavor explode in your mouth and balance the sweetness of the pineapple.






WW Points Values: 1 pt. for 2 slices

Chicken with Dried Peaches

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup Extra virgin olive oil
8 oz dried peach(es)
6 clove garlic clove(s)
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp table salt
4 serving(s) madeira
Instructions

Mix together the vinegar, oil, thyme (or substitute herbs de provence), crushed garlic, cumin, ginger salt and madeira wine and whisk together in a bowl.

Place chicken breast and peaches in bottom of the crockpot and pour the contents of the bowl over the chicken.

Cook on low for 8-12 hours or high for 4-6 hours.



+ 1 point for the peaches

WW Points Values: 7 pts. per serving

Grilled Salmon

1 lb Salmon
1 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 Tbs. Teriyaki Sauce
2 medium lemons or limes or 1 medium orange - sliced thin
pea pods, brocoli, bell pepper, onion, garlic, mushrooms or whatever veggies you have in the drawer - chopped
1 tsp lemon pepper


Lay two long pieces of foil, crossing each other, down. In the middle, pile all the veggies and toss them in a tablespoon or so of olive oil and a couple of tablespoons of teriyaki sauce. Sprinkle with lemon pepper, salt, pepper to taste and form a mound. Lay the fish, skin side down, on top of the veggies. Brush with another tablespoon or so of teriyaki sauce and lay the rest of the citrus slices on top. Seal the foil to form a packet - but leave some room for the steam to circulate.

To grill indoors, heat up a grill pan... or even a regular frying pan big enough to hold the packet and cook over medium heat. To grill outdoors, just place over a spot that is slightly indirect/medium heat. Cook for about 15-20 minutes - until a meat thermometer registers 125* and then take off the heat and close the foil up. Let it rest for about 10 minutes before serving.



+ 1 point for the peaches

WW Points Values: 7 pts. per serving

Turkey Chili

Makes 8 servings

2 lbs ground turkey
1 medium onion - diced
1 bell pepper - diced
6 cloves garlic - chopped fine or run through a press
1 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 jar salsa
1 pkg chili spices

In a pot over medium heat, sautee the onion, pepper and garlic until the onion is transparent. Add turkey and break up into bits while stirring as it browns. When the turkey is browned, add tomatoes, salsa and spices, stir until thoroughly mixed and place a lid on the pot and simmer until cooked through.

NOTE: I made this a mild chili because the kids don't like spicy. To spice it up, add some red pepper flakes, diced chili peppers or habaneros to taste.


WW Points Values: 5 pts. per serving

Grilled Steak Tips

Tonight's dinner was a surf & turf of grilled steak tips and shrimp over brown rice; however, the marinade was a little heavy for the shrimp, so I would say keep to the steak tips.

Marinade:

3 tablespoons Soy
3 tablespoons Dijon Mustard
3 tablespoons Honey
1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
6 cloves of Garlic - run through a press or diced well

Whisk all the ingredients together and pour into a ziplock bag with 2 lbs of steak tips and marinate for an hour or so.

I grilled these on my indoor grill/griddle pan and the tips just melted in my mouth. What a delight! I served it on a bed of brown rice with a salad on the side and it was a wonderful, filling meal.

For my Weight Watcher buddies - throw in a point for the marinade since there's honey in there, otherwise it's all CORE.

Italian Stir Fry

What started as a stir fry turned Italian quickly and isn't really a sauce but sort of is.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30-45 minutes

1 lb Italian Sweet Sausage (removed from casings)
2 tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 1/2 Red Bell Peppers - diced
1 Sweet Onion - diced
6 cloves Garlic - run through a press or diced
2/3 lb Mushrooms - sliced
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup white wine
Handful of fresh Basil - julienned
Palmful of Italian Seasoning
2 tsps. Bell's seasoning

In a frying pan, pour in the olive oil and sautee peppers, onions, garlic and mushrooms until soft. Add wine, tomatoes, basil and seasonings - simmer.

In a separate pan, fry sausage - constantly stirring and breaking it up until browned and crumbly. Drain meat on a paper towel and add to veggies, mixing well.

Serve over pasta.

Makes 8 servings

WW Points Values: 7 pts. per serving

Crockpot Salsa Chicken with Brown Fiesta Rice

Chicken

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 4-6 hours on high; 8-10 on low

5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts halves
1 jar salsa
1 can low-fat, low sodium chicken broth

Place chicken in crockpot. Pour in the Salsa, pour in the broth - cover it up and turn the pot on.


WW Points Values: 3 pts. per serving




Brown Fiesta Rice

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: approx. 45 minutes

In a 2qt (or larger) sauce pan, pour in a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil - about a tablespoon. Then, pour in 1 cup brown rice and toast it a little over medium heat. Add 1 cup of liquid from the crockpot and 1 cup water, cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.


WW Points Values: 2 pts. per 1/2 cup serving


Serve the chicken over rice with vegetable and/or salad.