Slow Cooker Cassoulet from 12Tomatoes

I like casseroles and crock pot meals for their simplicity.  When I made cassoulet (a french peasant dish) in a cooking class it was kind of a lot of work.  This version is much, much simpler and very tasty.  Since I've never had cassoulet in France, I can not attest to its authenticity, but it was really good none-the-less.



You can find the original recipe here on the 12Tomatoes website.

I copied it below with the changes I made (mostly adding more meat :) )

Slow Cooker Cassoulet

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 6 sweet Italian sausage links, skins pierced all over with a fork
• 1 pound lean boneless pork tenderloin roast, fat trimmed, cubed
• 2 (15 oz.) cans cannellini beans (or your choice white beans), drained
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook sausage until browned on all sides, then cut into small rounds and transfer to slow cooker.
2. Add chopped onion to skillet and sauté for 5 minutes, or until tender. Add garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes, or until toasted.
3. Transfer to slow cooker and season with salt, pepper. Add bay leaf, rosemary and thyme.
4. Place cubed pork in slow cooker and pour in tomatoes and beans.
5. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours.
6. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Transfer to serving bowls and garnish with parmesan cheese.
7. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information from MyFitnessPal

Calories: 433

Fat: 18

Carbs: 28 (net: 22)

Fiber: 6

Protein: 39

Healthy Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup from SkinnyTaste

Here is another great soup recipe from SkinnyTaste.com.  I've been really happy with everything I've tried from both the blog and Gina's cook book.

Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup

Doesn't that look good!


Give it a try.  Its pretty tasty:

Power Muffins

I joined a Challenge group through work.  Its an accountability group for diet &
exercise.  A friend of mine is coordinating it.  (Kate is a Beach Body coach so
if any of you are looking for someone to help you in your journey, I got
contacts ;) )

One of the ladies in the group loves to bake and she shared this original recipe
of hers with us.  Raina gave me permission to share it here.

These are incredibly delicious!  The only change I made was to use chocolate PB2
(powdered peanut butter).  I actually used the Hy-Vee brand in the Hy Vee health
market.  Its much lower calorie and fat than regular peanut butter but tastes
pretty darn good - especially the chocolate version:)

This recipe made regular sized 14 muffins.  Serving is 1 muffin.   

Power Muffins
 2c Hodgson Mill whole wheat insta-bake
1c vanilla almond milk 
1/2c stevia
1/2 c PB2 and 1/4 c water (or 1/2 c all natural peanut butter)
2 eggs
1/2tsp vanilla
1/4c chia seeds
1/4c ground flax seed
1/2c chopped nuts (I used pecans)
3/4c whole rolled oats
1/4 cup unsweetened dark chocolate chips.

Mix everything together.  Bake at 325 for between 12-15 minutes for mini muffins (~20 min for regular sized muffins).

SO GOOD!

Nutrition information from MyFitnessPal.com 
     (this is for the PB2 version.  For real PB, its showing 210 cal)
Amount Per Serving
calories 166
Total Fat 7 g
    Saturated Fat 2 g
    Monounsaturated Fat 2 g
    Polyunsaturated Fat 2 g
    Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 30 mg
Sodium 155 mg
Potassium 68 mg
Total Carbohydrate 23 g
    Dietary Fiber 6 g
    Sugars 3 g


Protein 6 g

Oatmeal Recipes from HungryGirl.com

Breakfast on Maintenance just keeps getting better and better ... today's awesomeness is brought to you from Lisa over at HungryGirl.com

A question was asked of The Hungry Girl of how to have a satisfying breakfast that won't kill you on calories (and isn't all egg whites and vegetables).  The answer was : oatmeal.  But Oatmeal made in a whole new way.

The ingredients include twice as much liquid as normally used and it is cooked for twice as long so it get super thick and super creamy.

There are 2 recipes on Lisa's blog : Carnival and Blueberry Muffin Oatmeal

Since the Carnival oatmeal involved caramel, peanuts and chocolate chips I thought I'd try that one first.

Since the prep time is kinda long I made it the night before and reheated it at work.  That way it can be used as a weekday breakfast.  It heated up really well.  And the portion size is HUGE!!

Here's my bowl ...

Now that I've tried this one I'm going to try the Blueberry Muffin version on the same blog post.

Here's the recipe for your reference.
Oversized Carnival Oatmeal

Serves 1

Ingredients:
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1 no-calorie sweetener packet
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
1 cup Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk
1/4 cup mashed extra-ripe banana (about 1/2 large banana)
1 1/2 tsp. fat-free, low-fat, or light caramel dip
1 tsp. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp. chopped peanuts

Directions:
In a nonstick pot, combine oats, sweetener, cinnamon, salt, and Almond Breeze. Mix in 1 cup water.

Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook and stir for 10 minutes.

Add banana and mix well. Cook and stir until thick and creamy, 2 - 5 minutes.

Transfer to a medium bowl and let slightly cool and thicken. Top with remaining ingredients, and enjoy!

MAKES 1 SERVING

Chocolate Mint muffins from BeachBody

Muffins are a wonderful food ... especially healthy muffins.  My BB coach, Kate, shared this recipe on Facebook and I thought "I have to make these"....you had me at chocolate!

Here is a link to the BeachBody.com recipe: chocolate mint muffins 

Now before you turn your nose up you should try these.  I have had other treats that used beans as a base (a delicious brownie torte comes to mind from Healthy Girl Bakery here in my town).  It was amazing!  While these are so much better than a regular muffin I still try to view them as a treat.  Because, well you know, chocolate.  And mint.  I could probably eat the whole batch if I didn't limit myself somehow.

Here is the recipe for reference

Ingredients:
1 (15-oz) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained, rinsed
3 large eggs
½ cup raw honey
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted
½ tsp. pure peppermint extract

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Prepare 12 muffin cups by lining with muffin papers or coating with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
3. Place chickpeas, eggs, honey, cocoa powder, baking soda, coconut oil, and extract in blender or food processor; cover. Blend until smooth.
4. Place batter in a medium bowl.
5. Divide batter among 12 prepared muffin cups.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
7. Cool completely and enjoy!

Nutrition Info from BeachBody.com (including portionology for some fitness programs)

Mini Pepper Chicken Nachos

I love nachos, especially all dripping with cheese.  Since I really trying to watch my carbs, the chips are not so good but the internet to the rescue!!!   I found this recipe for mini bell pepper chicken nachos  - it uses mini bell peppers instead of chips.  They are fantastic!!

I found the recipe on Facebook but am linking to the original poster of it.

Here is my pan of them hot from the oven

and my plateful.  You get about a quarter of the pan.  

To cut down on fat (or make it Phase 1 friendly) use GO Veggie soy cheese - cheddar or cheddar - pepper jack shreds.

Or use a mix of cheddar and Monterrey jack if you dare

Snacking just got a while lot better!

Minestrone Soup

During the winter I love soup.  I make a big batch and freeze half.  I'm so glad I did because this past week we got another batch of cold weather and I thawed out my minestrone and lunch was done for the week

Try it for yourself.

Minestrone Soup

Ingredients:

½ lb sweet Italian sausage

1 c. diced  Onion

1 cloved minced garlic

1 c. carrots, diced

1 tsp basil

¼ tsp oregano

2 small zucchinis, diced

1 – 1 lb can Italian tomatoes (diced or stewed)

20 oz beef  stock

1 – 1lb can red or white kidney beans

½ c. rice or barley

½ c. red wine

1 Tbsp oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Brown sausage in oil in a large kettle or stock pot over medium heat.  Add onion, garlic, carrot and basil.  Cook for 5 minutes.  Add zucchini, tomatoes, broth, and oregano.

Bring to boil then simmer for 1 hour. 

Add beans with liquid, rice/barley and wine.  Simmer another 20 minutes or until grain is cooked (note barley will take 30-40  minutes to cook to desired firmness)

Serve with grated parmesan.

Enjoy!