Slowcooker Pork Ragu

Slowcooker Pork Ragu 
Adapted from Real Simple
Makes 6 Servings

1 cup carrots, diced finely
1 medium onion, diced finely
1 tbsp minced garlic
 2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
kosher salt and black pepper
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
24 oz. (1.5 pounds) boneless pork butt, trimmed and cut in half
12 oz. fettuccine
6 tbsp parmesan

 In a slow cooker, combine carrot, onion, garlic, tomato paste, thyme, oregano, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Add tomatoes (and juices); add pork and turn to coat. Cover and cook until the pork is very tender, on on high for 5. Remove pork, shred it with two forks, and add it back to the slowcooker for 20 minutes. During this 20 minutes, cook fettuccine according to package directions; drain and return to the pot. Toss pasta with ragù and sprinkle with Parmesan.

Nutritional Information: 525 calories, 52 carbs, 20 fat grams and 31 protein grams.

Review: Excellent! Has lots of flavor, probably from the pork shoulder vs. a tenderloin or more lean meat. Loved the tomato taste and it made a nice broth for the noodles. We will definitely have this again – very simple. Make sure to buy the boneless pork butt if you can! (if you can’t, throw it bone-in to the slowcooker and let the meat fall off the bone – don’t waste time cutting it).

Classic Tomato Soup

Classic Tomato Soup Recipe 
Adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Café
Makes 6 Servings

2 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons light butter
1 onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup heavy cream

In a colander set over a large bowl, drain canned tomatoes, pressing lightly to release juices. Transfer tomato juice to a large measuring cup and add chicken broth. The mixture should measure 3 1/2 cups. Set liquid and tomatoes aside. In pot, melt butter in a 4-5-quart pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook until it is softened, 5 minutes. Add 2/3 of tomatoes, the bay leaf and brown sugar. Cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, the tomatoes are sizzling and fragrant. The mixture will be very thick. Stir in tomato paste and flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to darken, 1-2 minutes. Slowly stir in reserved tomato juice/broth mixture, the remaining tomatoes, baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until slightly thickened, 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat. Discard bay leaf. Puree soup in batches (in a blender) Stir in cream and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information: 203 calories, 23 carbs, 11 fat grams and 4 protein grams.

Review: LOVED - had so much flavor and tasted 'restaurant' to me. The cream probably did it. Very healthy servings, and with the calories being where they are you have room to add a 200-calorie grilled cheese to it. PERFECT cold-weather food or in my case, pregnant food - this baby loves some tomato soup! Great classic i'll be making again and again. I bet it freezes good, too - yum!

Tortellini Arugula Salad with Balsamic-Tomato Vinaigrette

Tortellini Arugula Salad with Balsamic-Tomato Vinaigrette

Recipe adapted from My Kitchen Café
Makes 4 Servings

9 ounce package refrigerated cheese tortellini
8 cups arugula, divided
¼ cup sun dried tomatoes
2 oz. crumbled fat-free feta cheese
¼ cup diced red onion
Dressing:
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp minced garlic, jarred
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp tomato paste
1/8 tsp salt and pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Cook tortellini in boiling water until al dente. Drain and let cool in colander. In a small bowl that has a lid, toss all the salad ingredients together. Shake until well blended (process in a blend if you prefer). Prepare 4 bowls; each with 2 cups arugula, 1 tbsp sundried tomatoes, 2 tbsp fat-free feta cheese and 1 tbsp red onion. Top each with 1-2 tbsp of dressing.

Nutritional Information: 377 calories, 36 carbs, 20 fat grams and 15 protein grams.

Review: WOW - this tasted like something I would order at a restaurant! I've never had tortellini in a salad but just love it, and the homemade dressing was AWESOME. I just truly believe that the feta, red onion, the tomatoes - it all just blended and went together perfectly. Note: the original recipe called for spinach as opposed to arugula  and a can of artichoke hearts but I went without that. And I think you could TOTALLY had chicken to this for more protein - yum!

Butternut Squash Black Bean Burritos

Butternut Squash Black Bean Burritos
Recipe Inspired by One Heatlhy Apple and Dinners for a Year and Beyond
Makes 4 Servings

1/2 pound ground turkey
1 tsp olive oil
salt, pepper and paprika to taste
1 4 oz. can green chiles
2 oz. Cabot 75% reduced fat cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup cooked butternut squash
1/2 can black beans
1 batch homemade enchilada sauce (add 1 can tomato paste; ¾ cup water; 1 ½ tsp cumin, ¼ tsp chili powder to  a small sauce pan over medium heat; whisk together for 1 minute; Add in 1 14 oz. can vegetable stock and ½ tsp kosher salt; Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes)
4 large tortillas
Cilantro to garnish (optional)

Brown turkey in a skillet with olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika, and set to the side. Mix cooked turkey with chiles, shredded cheese, butternut squash and black beans in a bowl. Pour a layer of enchilada sauce at the bottom of your baking dish. Stuff each tortilla with 1/4 of the stuffing and roll up; repeat until finished. Pour remaining enchilada sauce on top and sprinkle with cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Nutritional Information: 397 calories, 56 carbs, 9 fat grams and 25 protein grams.

Review: I find these amazing. Not going to lie – the sauce absolutely makes them. Typically I’m not a big fan of ground turkey, so to be able to ‘mask’ it in this soft tortilla and yummy sauce is wonderful! The beans went really well with the squah, and like always, the squash made this super filling. It reheated very well, and is a winner with us. Definitely make this your own – try other squash or veggies, try chicken or beef – it’s easy to mix this one up and make it your favorite. Just make the sauce and you’ll be fine!

Peppery Pork in Creamy Tomato Sauce

Peppery Pork with Creamy Tomato Sauce
Makes 4 Servings
Recipe adapted from For the Love of Cooking

2 tsp olive oil
1 pound Pork cutlets
1 tbsp light butter
1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
8 oz of button mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp flour
1 tbsp paprika
1 cup of beef broth
1/4 cup fat-free sour cream
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
8 oz. Egg noodles, cooked per instructions
Handful of baby spinach

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Season both sides of the pork with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Cook pork for 2-3 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Set meat aside to rest under a tin foil tent. Add butter to the same skillet and add onions. Cook for 3 minutes or until slightly tender. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, flour and paprika. Stir well and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add beef broth and stir. Simmer until thickened, then add sour cream and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook egg noodles per package instructions while the sour cream sauce is cooking. Once noodles are done, drain water then toss noodles with fresh spinach. The hot noodles will cook the spinach just slightly. For each serving, place 2 pork cutlets on top of noodles and spinach, then top with the sauce.

Nutritional Information: 432 calories, 51 carbs, 8 fat grams and 38 protein grams.


Review: We've now made this one twice - it's just so good! I love the soft egg noodles and how well they go with the beefy/tomato/creamy sauce. The spinach and mushrooms boost up the veggie quotient (which I'm really trying to get better at!), and it came together quickly. I think it's a great, easy recipe that reheats well, and I'm happy to be finding more pork recipes that I enjoy. I had no idea how calorie-friendly pork cutlets are, or how quickly they cook up due to how thin they are - perfect! I highly recommend this one. And if you worry about the sour cream, don't! Austin made it without it one time and it was great - just a little less creamy and a little more tomatoey!

Mexican Lasagna

Mexican Lasagna
Recipe from Mel’s Kitchen Café
Makes 6 servings

1 pound 96/4 ground beef
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 tsp minced garlic
1 small (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
dash of cayenne pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 8-oz. cans tomato sauce
1 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
2 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
8 no-boil lasagna noodles
3 oz. Cabot 75% reduced fat cheddar cheese
½ cup fat-free sour cream, light or regular
5 ounces fat-free cream cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch pan. In a large skillet, brown beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add minced garlic and tomato paste. Stir to combine well and cook for a minute. Stir in chili powder, cumin, cayenne, oregano and salt and pepper. Mix well. Add diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Stir to combine. Add black beans. Mix well and heat through, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat. Spread 1/2 cup beef mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan. Layer four noodles on top. Spread 1/2 of the remaining beef mixture over the noodles. Dollop 1/2 of the sour cream and 1/2 of the cream cheese (pinch off chunks) across the top. Repeat layers (4 noodles, remaining beef mixture, remaining cream cheese). Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Uncover, add all cabot cheese on top, and bake 12 minutes, until lasagna is hot and bubbly.

Nutritional Information: 421 calories, 56 carbs, 6 fat grams and 36 protein grams.

Review: We loved this! The little bits of cream cheese added a lot, and the sour cream added a lot, too. I was so glad to find a Mexican lasagna recipe that used lasagna noodles. It seemed like all of them used smaller pasta shapes, no layers, etc. This one was great, made a lot of food, hearty servings and had a lot of flavor. Note, the original recipe called for corn, but I just doubled the black beans and was glad I did -I loved that every bite had beans! This was a fairly simple recipe with common ingredients - I have no doubt we'll make it again!

Slow Cooker Coconut Chicken Curry

Slow Cooker Coconut Chicken Curry
Makes 4 Servings
Adapted from Salt & Paprika

½ cup onion
1 small green bell pepper, seeded & quartered
½ tbsp minced garlic
1 small can tomato paste
1 can light coconut milk
1 ½ tsp salt
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp Garam Masala
1 pounds chicken breasts, cut into big chunks
Salt & pepper
1 tbsp water
3/4 tbsp cornstarch
4 servings jasmine rice, cooked per package instructions

Place onion and bell pepper into a food processor. Process until finely chopped. Add in garlic cloves, tomato paste, coconut milk, salt, curry powder and garam masala, then process until smooth. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Combine with sauce and cook in a crockpot on low for 4 hours. After 4 hours, stir water and cornstarch together then add into the crockpot. Keep the lid cracked and cook on high for 10-15 minutes. Serve over a bed of rice.

Nutritional Information: 419 calories, 49 carbs, 9 fat grams and 31 protein grams.

Review: Okay, this is officially the best curry I've ever made. And probably one of the easiest too. Austin is a fan of thick curry, but that's still has a lot of sauce. A lot of curries are thick, but not saucy, or are saucy but thin. This one is PERFECT. And it has so much flavor - the garam masala with the curry powder adds a lot, and it's not too spicy (although you could make it spicier by slow cooking it with some dried red chiles.) It also had a nice creamy consistency; it tasted like it was cooked with whipping cream even though it wasn't. Next time I plan to double the recipe and freeze half of it - I have no doubt it will reheat fabulousness. If you want to try an Inidian recipe or a slow cooker one I strongly suggest this one - and yes, it's too bad it's not prettier in photos! :( **Edited to add: we froze half in a plastic container and a week later, just made rice and defrosted it - awesome!

Summer Vegetable Enchiladas

Summer Vegetable Enchiladas
Adapted from a Dinners for a Year and Beyond Recipe
Makes 6 Servings

1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 cup flour
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 14 – ounce can vegetable stock, reduced sodium
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp canola oil
1 yellow or red bell pepper, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 15-oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained
½ cup scallions, diced and divided
12 Mission small flour tortillas
2 oz. 75% reduced fat Cabot cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 400. In a small saucepan, combine cumin, chili powder, flour, tomato paste and ¾ cup water. Whisk to combine and cook for 1 minute. Add in stock and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes until sauce is slightly thickened. Remove from heat and set aside. Heat a pan to medium high heat and add oil. Add bell pepper and zucchini and sauté for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and place in a large bowl. Cool slightly. Add black beans, corn and half of the scallions and stir to combine. Spray a rectangular baking dish with cooking spray. Add enough sauce to cover the bottom (about ¼). Lay wax paper on the counter and top with 12 tortillas. Fill each with vegetable mixture. Then roll one at a time and place seam side down in baking dish. Pour remaining over the enchiladas, using the back of a spoon to spread, and top with cheese. Bake for 15 minutes until cheese is melted.

Nutritional Information (for 2 enchiladas): 396 calories, 67 carbs, 7 fat grams and 15 protein grams.

Review: Okay, so I’m going to make my own enchilada sauce from now on – AMAZING. Seriously. So flavorful and thick – it really made this dish. Especially combined with the flour tortillas. Normally I use corn tortillas for enchiladas, but the flour really made it thick, almost like a burrito, and the vegetables just popped. Talk about another meatless dish where I didn’t miss the meat at ALL. I didn’t even need any toppings like sour cream or salsa – perfect as is! This has now knocked off one of the lasagnas to be in the top two for meatless recipes – filling, flavorful and will be made again – very soon! Seriously, I don't even know that the pictures do it justice!

whole pan - YUM

Spicy Shrimp Linguine

Spicy Shrimp Linguine
Recipe from Cooking Light
Makes 4 servings

8 ounces uncooked fettuccine
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 tsp garlic cloves, minced
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups chopped tomato (about 2 medium slicers)
2 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup freshly reduced-fat Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain. Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add red pepper and garlic to pan; sauté 1 minute. Add shrimp; sauté 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes and next 4 ingredients (through salt); bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in pasta; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Divide mixture into four bowls and top each with 1 tbsp parmesan cheese.

Nutritional Information: 411 calories, 50 carbs, 9 fat grams and 33 protein grams.

Review: It was pretty fabulous! Also, SUPER filling and, if I do say so myself, like restaurant quality. It seemed creamy and fattening. Hehe It’s a keeper FOR SURE!

Shrimp Arrabbiata

Shrimp Arrabbiata
Cookinglight.com
Makes 2 Servings

4 oz. linguine
1 tbsp olive oil, divided
6 oz. shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/8 tsp salt
¼ cup onion, chopped
1 tsp bottled minced garlic
¼ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsp tomato paste
½ (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 tbsp fresh parsley

Cook pasta according to package (10 minutes), and drain and keep warm. Heat 2 tsp olive oil in nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with salt and add to pan, cooking for 2 minutes on each side until shrimp are done. Transfer to plate. Heat remaining tsp of olive oil. Add onion, garlic, basil and red pepper; sauté for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and tomatoes; bring to boil. Cook for 3 minutes until sauce thickens. Return shrimp to pan and mix with tomato mixture for 1 minute until heated. Add parsley to pan, stir well, then serve over pasta.

Nutritional Information: 392 calories, 54 carbs, 9 fat grams and 25 protein grams.

Review: We REALLY liked it – those red pepper flakes made such a difference as did the fresh parsley. I was definitely a fan – it was SO filling. I'm all for a filling recipe and find it hard to get shrimp/seafood to a filling point!

Baked Pasta with Sausage, Tomato and Cheese

Baked Pasta with Sausage, Tomato and Cheese
Adapted from Cooking Light
Makes 8 servings

12 oz. uncooked ziti
5 light Italian Turkey sausage links
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp tomato paste
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
2 14.5-ounce cans petite-diced tomatoes, undrained
½ cup chopped fresh basil
Cooking spray
100 grams shredded fresh mozzarella cheese
4 tbsp parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350°.Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain pasta, and set aside. Cook sausage, onion, and garlic in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Add tomato paste, salt, pepper and tomatoes, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Combine cooked pasta, sausage mixture and basil. Place pasta mixture in a 4-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Top with Parmesan, and then mozzarella. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until bubbly.

Nutritional Information: 450 calories, 55 carbs, 13 fat grams and 27 protein grams.

Review: LOVED it! The sausage was so flavorful and while the portions looked a bit smaller than my usual portions, it was more than enough food and very filling. I loved all of the flavors and the fact that this recipe had real mozzarella - nice! I will definitely make this again.