Crescent Roll Veggie "Pizza"

Here is a recipe that is good for parties, as a snack or a light lunch.  The veggies are not cooked, so it is a cold pizza, if you want to call it that.  It is very tasty, whatever it is!

You will need:

1 refrigerated tube of crescent rolls
4 oz reduced fat cream cheese
2 good size cloves of garlic
2.5 oz each chopped broccoli and carrots
1 cup shredded cheese

You'll want the cream cheese to be room temperature for easier mixing and spreading, so take it out well in advance of making this recipe.  The crescent rolls, on the other hand, need to be nice and cold right out of the fridge so they don't stretch and lose their shape. 

You might want to spray your baking sheet very lightly with cooking spray.  I used a piece of parchment paper to make sure the rolls didn't stick.

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375F.
2.  Open the tube of crescent rolls and don't tear apart the triangles.  Pull them apart at the half way line.  Then unroll the rolls carefully so they lay flat on the pan.  Pinch together the seams.  Unroll the other half and lay it next to the first half and pinch those seams, too, so that it makes a rectangle of flat dough on the pan.
3.  Bake for about 12-13 minutes or until it starts to turn golden.
4.  While that is baking, prepare the garlic.  If you have a garlic press, you are so lucky!  (I want one.)  I don't have one, so I had to mince my garlic and then mash it with a fork on a plate.  You'll want to mash the garlic really well so the oils are released.  That way it will add tons of flavor.
5.  Mix the mashed garlic into the cream cheese until smooth and well incorporated.
6.  When the dough is cooked and cooled, spread the cream cheese very carefully (the top will flake off a bit) over the dough.
7.  Either chop the vegetables with a knife, or, for easier preparation, put them in a food processor (like my most favorite tool ever, the Ninja Express Chop.) and chop it up really good. 
8.  Sprinkle a layer each of the carrots and then the broccoli over the cream cheese spread.
9.  Top with shredded cheese.
10.  Cut into 8 pieces (or smaller if you are serving at a party or something.)

Nutritional stats:
181.6 calories, 10.6g fat, 6g sat fat, 1g polyunsaturated fat, 2.5g monounsaturated fat, 17.5mg cholesterol, 359mg sodium, 196mg potassium, 14.4g carbs, .5g fiber and 7.3g protein.  I'm not sure, but I think that the carrots and broccoli are "free" foods in WW, so I calculated the Points Plus at 5.

It would also taste really good with some chopped green onions mixed into the cream cheese with the garlic.  (!  I have to try that next time!)  Two pieces would be a nice lunch.  One piece is a good snack.

Hope you enjoy your veggie pizza!

Lisa
happyfairylove@live.com

Crock Pot Beef with Broccoli and a Vegetarian Version

I sure have been using my crock pot a lot lately.  It's a pain in the butt to clean the huge, heavy ceramic pot that goes in it.  So worth the effort though.  Keeps the kitchen much cooler, the house smells wonderful all day long, its almost effortless, and the meat is always perfect.

I'd like to share this recipe with you that I found on dLife.  My husband thought it had a hint of an Asian taste to it, and he would be right because it has a little ginger in it.  It's not overwhelming...just a hint and a nice change up for a standard crock pot roast.

Here's what you need:

1 1/2 - 3 lb beef roast, lean, cut into a couple pieces
3/4 lb carrots, peeled and in pieces
2 medium onions, cut into wedges
1 Tbsp fresh ginger root, finely grated or minced
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/2 C water
2 Tbsp soy sauce (low sodium is better)
1 packet dry beef gravy mix (I actually used mushroom gravy)
4 C fresh broccoli florets

1.  Place carrots, onions, meat ginger and garlic in a large slow cooker.
2.  In a small bowl combine water, soy sauce and beef gravy mix.  Pour over meat.
3.  Cover and cook on low heat for 8-10 hours or on high heat for 4 to 5 hours (mine took about 6 hours to get really tender, so just check it.)
4.  Then put the cooker on high, put in broccoli.  Cover and cook for 15 more minutes until broccoli is crisp-tender.

It was really delicious.  The meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender, the vegetables were perfectly cooked.  My roast today was not very lean, and the crock pot completely filled with fat/juice when it was done cooking.  So I'm thinking that if it was a very lean piece of meat the gravy sauce would be thicker.

I'm a little unsure of the nutritional stats because I think it all depends on your specific cut of meat.  For a 4 oz serving of meat with carrots and broccoli, it will be approximately 300 calories, 700mg potassium, 600mg sodium, 20g carbs and 35g protein.

Also, whenever I made anything like a beef roast before my vegetarian daughter was completely out of luck because I did not have any suitable vegetarian products that I could convert the recipe to.  Until now.  I found a new product that I am totally excited about.  It's been around for a while, but it is really hard to find.  I found just a couple different items at Safeway.  You can go to Gardein's website and look at there store finder, although I will warn you, it was not accurate for me.  They listed several stores that did not carry it.  You'll just have to look around.  I found these "beefless tips":

It was enough to make 2 single serving meals, and it was under $4.  Such a bargain.  Sami is so excited now that she can have pot roast again.  Here's what hers looked like:

I steamed the vegetables, mixed them in with gravy, heated up the "meat" and then stirred it all together.  So easy, and she was in Heaven.

Hope you enjoy your Beef with Broccoli stew!
Lisa
PS Hover over the black bar on the right side of the screen to pull out more menu options for my blog, such as the one to follow my blog, the blog archives and also the search form.
happyfairylove@live.com

Mouth-Watering Crock Pot Beef & Barley Stew

I'm going to tell you right from the get-go.  This was an INCREDIBLE dinner!!!  It was so melt-in-your-mouth good I can't even wait to have some leftovers.  I don't make beef very often.  First, I never seem to cook it right and it ends up being tough.  Second, it's very expensive.  Since I cooked it in the crock pot, though, it was pretty fool-proof.  As for the cost, yes, a beef roast is pretty pricey.  But if you wait for your grocery store to have a sale on them you can get really good deals.  This roast cost $19.53 (yikes!!!) BUT it was a "buy one get one free" sale.  So, for two 3+ lb boneless beef roasts it cost me $9.77 and THAT is a GREAT deal.  Keep your eye on the weekly grocery store sale papers!

I originally found this recipe on dLife, but I made changes to it, as usual.  Here's what you need:

3 lb boneless sirloin tip roast
32 oz low sodium, low fat beef broth
14 1/2 oz canned diced tomatoes (not drained)
1 lb sliced carrots
2 medium onions, cut into wedges
1 C pearled barley
1 bay leaf
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
A little salt, maybe 1/2 tsp

As for the barley, I found mine in the bulk bins at Sprouts (farmer's market) and it was very inexpensive.  Here's what it looks like raw. 

I cut my roast into 3 pieces.  Then I just added everything to the crock pot, and I put the bay leaf on top so it would be easy to find and take out before serving...remember, you can't eat bay leaves.  The directions for the original recipe said to cook on low heat for 9 or 10 hours or on high heat for 4 1/2-5 1/2 hours.  I put mine on the low heat setting and it was fall apart tender in just 7 hours.  I guess maybe different crock pots cook differently.

This is what it looks like when you first put it in the pot.

When it was done cooking I took out the 3 pieces of beef, put it on a cutting board and shredded it up.  Then I put it back in the crock pot and stirred it all up.  I tell you, I couldn't even cut the meat; it was too soft.  It literally just feel apart under my fork.  Scrumptious!!!  I served it with a slice of sour dough bread, but you can omit that to save calories and carbs.

My whole family just completely loved this.  Sami, my vegetarian, missed out though.  I have some left overs, and I can't wait to dig it into it.  And, if you remember, I got 2 roasts for the price of 1, so I still have another roast in the freezer that I can make this again with.  This is going to be soooo good on a cold winter day.  So thick, hearty and filling.  It's stick-to-your-ribs good.  And I'm not exaggerating. 

This pot will serve about 12 with 1 C servings.  286 calories, 8g fat, 2.8g saturated fat, 66mg cholesterol, 314.6mg sodium, 297.5mg potassium, 22.5g carbs, 4.5g fiber, 30g protein. (7 Points Plus) This is really great on calories, carbs and protein.

This dish will be a crowd-pleaser, for sure.  Again, watch the sales in your grocer's meat department, and when you find a good deal on a boneless beef roast, pick one (or two) up.

Hearty Eating!
Lisa
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Confetti Tuna (Recipe, pics) and an Appliance Review

I got a new toy yesterday, and I'm so happy about it because it made today's lunch a breeze.  I have been doing a lot of searching for a good mini food processor.  I wanted a 3 cup size, and also one that chopped well without turning things to mush or leaving part big chunks and part chopped up stuff.  There was a Black & Decker that I was looking at, but no stores carry it in stock.  You have to order it online, and I just don't have that kind of patience.  It also got mixed reviews, so I was a little hesitant.  But the one I found (and it was the last one on the shelf) at Target was this super cool little Ninja Express Chop NJ100.

A handy small applicance that actually works...and it's PURPLE!!! :)

One thing I really like about it is that the blades are at 4 different levels, so you get evenly chopped food throughout.

Can you see the blades?  They're at different levels for evenly chopped food.

The blades are razor sharp!  You press down on the top to give it a pulse (it chops when pressed, stops when released), and just a couple quick pulses and your food is chopped to perfection.  I read a lot of reviews of a lot of choppers and one thing it seems hard to find is a chopper that will chop, without automatically pureeing, the softest foods (like tomatoes) and still chop the hard stuff (like carrots).  This little gadget does it all.  If you are in the market for an awesome chopper, I highly recommend this one.  And it comes in cool colors.  And it's just at only about $20 at Target.  Great buy!!!

I have to admit, ashamedly, that I have gotten a little off track the past few weeks.  I am bipolar and I take meds for mood swings and also depression.  This past month I have been forgetting to take my meds a lot, and it has been adversely affecting my mood.  So, I've been doing a lot of emotional eating, mindlessly eating crackers and other high carb things, (even some *gasp* oreos).  I've been eating way less vegetables and protein, too.  Fortunately, I've only gained about 1/2 lb so it's not to crisis mode, but if I don't get things back under control it could quickly slip into something terrible.

On to today's recipe!  I had veggies and protein on my mind, so when I saw this recipe on dLife I knew it was the perfect thing to get me back on track.  It's called Confetti Tuna.

Here's what you need:

Look at what an amazing job my Ninja Express Chop did on these vegetables!

1 5oz can tuna, packed in water, flaked with a fork
1/2 C shredded red cabbage
1/2 C chopped carrots
1/4 C shredded zucchini
1/4 C chopped onions
3 Tbsp reduced fat cream cheese
2 Tbsp low fat PLAIN yogurt
1/2 tsp dried, crushed basil
pinch salt and pepper

Mix everything together.  The recipe said to fill a celery stalk with it.  I used it to top cucumbers.  Would be great on pita chips or maybe even rolled up in a tortilla as a salad wrap.

Doesn't it look colorful and delicious?  It is!  I want more, and since it's so healthy it will be ok for me to indulge.  Here are the nutritional numbers for a 1/4C serving:  55 calories, 2.9g fat, 1.1g saturated fat, 16.4mg cholesterol, 128.4mg sodium, 155.5mg potassium, 3.3g carbs, .5g fiber, 5.2g protein. (2 Points Plus)

Healthy Munching!
Lisa
PS Hover over the black bar on the right to pull out more menu options for my blog.
happyfairylove@live.com