Zuppa Toscana

I was craving Zuppa Toscana from Olive Garden last week. It's like a sausage/potato/kale soup. So I decided to try to make it at home. I looked around at some recipes online and took ideas from a few different ones, then tried doing it with a lot less fat. Success! Here's the recipe:

1 pound hot Italian chicken sausage
1/2 - 1 tsp. red pepper flakes (to taste)
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 onion, minced
5 cans OR 2 cartons reduced sodium, fat free chicken broth
7 small potatoes, sliced thin
1 can fat free evaporated milk
10 oz. box frozen spinach, thawed and drained

I got the sausage at Sunflower Market for a really good price. I'd never had chicken sausage before, and if you can't find it I'm sure turkey would be just as good.

Remove the casings on the sausage and brown it in a soup pot. Remove the sausage from the pot and set aside. Cook the onions, garlic, and red pepper flakes in the sausage grease. My sausage was so lean it didn't have any grease, so I added a little bit of olive oil. Add the chicken broth. Boil the potatoes in the broth for about 20 minutes. I wished I had a mandolin to slice the potatoes, but I just used a really sharp knife and got them really thin. I didn't even bother to peel them and I liked the added texture. After the potatoes are cooked, add in the evaporated milk, sausage, and spinach and let them heat through. Serve and ENJOY!!

This was really so yummy and easy to make. The only points are the potatoes and sausage. So I'm thinking it made about 6 large servings of 4-5 points each. I liked it better than Olive Garden. I used a little more than a tsp of red pepper so it was super spicy. I liked the spice, but it was definitely too hot for Brooklyn. I just poured some milk into hers and she ate two small bowls full!

Fun Link

I found this list of a bunch of diet-friendly products found at a bunch of stores. I'm excited to try some things. Just thought I'd share.

Desperate Measures

I was REALLY craving chocolate last night. That's usually not a problem since I almost always have a stash of Hershey's kisses on hand. However, I'm running low on groceries and I was out. I just happened to find a can of triple chocolate frosting in the cupboard - generally reserved for birthdays, potlucks, etc. I gave in. It wasn't as bad as I thought, though. I used two graham cracker halves and 2 tsp. of frosting to make a little sandwich. I figured it up and it was only 2 points! Well whaddayaknow?

Yummy Hot Chocolate

This time of year, we really like to curl up with a mug of flavored hot chocolate. However, that is a very calorie-ridden habit. This is our solution:

1 envelope Swiss Miss diet hot chocolate (prepared as package directs)
1 tbsp fat-free coffee creamer, any flavor
2 tbsp whipped cream on top!

This is only 65 calories for the whole mug. There are a bunch of different flavors of the coffee creamer. Right now we have Caramel Vanilla - yum! The perfect 1-point winter treat.

Easy, Cheesy Broccoli Soup

I'm nervous about it getting colder. I always gain weight this time of year. It's a combination of wearing lots of layers, wanting to eat warm and filling meals, and lots of holiday treats. I did find this recipe the other day and it ended up being very yummy. Be forewarned that it is NOT creamy; it has a broth base. However, it is easy, yummy, healthy, and warm. A great winter soup!

6 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 pound broccoli
1 pound cauliflower
10 oz Velveeta 2% (the light kind)

Boil the broccoli and cauliflower florets in the chicken broth. While the veggies are boiling, cut the Velveeta into cubes. When they are soft, squish up the veggies with a potato masher right in the broth. Add the Velveeta cubes and continue cooking at medium heat until the cheese is melted, stirring occasionally. Serve immediately.

And the best part of this soup? Only 1 point per cup! Makes 8 servings.

P.S. I'm not usually a big Velveeta fan, so this didn't appeal to me at first, but I thought it was worth a try for only 1 point per cup. It adds a cheesy flavor without adding too many calories, which is great! Tip: the Velveeta was MUCH cheaper at Wal-Mart than anywhere else I looked.

Sometimes Ya Gotta Bake

We have a General Conference tradition... Muffins!! Each General Conference Sunday, we make a batch. Since we're trying to cut back on the indulgences lately, the thought of making muffins seemed a little too extravagant. Then, I found this mix. Fiber One muffins! If you make them like it says on the back of the box, they are 3 points each (as opposed to 5 or 6 for other muffins). If you make them like it says on the SIDE of the box, they are 2 points each. They were quite yummy if I say so myself.

Turtle Chex Mix Bars

Another tasty-treat discovery! The Turtle variety are only 2 points. Surprisingly, they have 4 grams of fiber in them! And just 130 calories! I ate one for breakfast this morning, and I felt like I was cheating. I mean, seriously! It's corn Chex, wheat Chex, peanuts, pretzels, and chocolate candies covered in caramel. And it's the same amount of points as those Curves granola bars, which are supposed to be a diet food. And the Chex bars are bigger. Stay clear of the chocolate chunk ones though. They have more calories and less fiber so they're actually 3 points.