pork chops

March 1, 2010 at 7:24 pm (Uncategorized)
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Since starting WW I’m always in search of healthier low point recipies and I found this one somewhere. It’s yummy and only 5 pts. I paired it with brown rice and peas w/olive oil and garlic salt.

Pork Chops

Ingredients

1 lb pork chops
1/2 c. fat free chicken broth
1/8 c. honey
1/8 c. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. ketchup
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 Tbsp. minced garlic

1. preheat oven to 350
2. brown pork chops on both sides (I recommend using oil with this)
3. place in a casserole dish that’s been sprayed with pam
4. mix all other ingredients and pour over pork chops
5. bake at 350 for 45 min – 1 hr
Points: 5

Overall verdict: I loved them and topped with the rice and peas it was super yummy. I made 2 servings with this, but the sauce is definitely enough for more than just the 2 chops.

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updating

March 1, 2010 at 7:01 pm (Uncategorized)
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I’m sooo bad at Blogging. Part of it is because my life is not exciting and I really only cook about 3 days a week; which needs to change.

My birthday was Saturday and WW went out the window. My WIs last week was not good and I’m sure it will not be good this coming week. I had way too much cake and goodies this weekend. DH got me tickets to see Riverdance and I’m super excited. It’s been years since I’ve seen Riverdance and since I danced. I used to be an Irish dancer, did you know that? I danced for about 3 years before I quit in my junior year of high school. I left mostly b/c I wasn’t willing to give up my life for dancing. I had been a dancer for 9 other years in tap, jazz, ballet, and baton and I was doing it b/c I loved dancing not because I wanted to win worlds. My teacher wasn’t willing to accept that so I left. I’ve gone back as an adult. I did it for a few months then started my master’s degree and all went out the window. This time of year is always hard for me. I always miss dancing during the month of March. Maybe later this year (after St Patrick’s day) I will go back to those adult classes and get back into it. Irish dancing is an AWESOME workout. I wonder how many APs I get in a class. hmmm….

My bday was good otherwise; I’m 27 now. I don’t feel old, but I do at the same time. If that made any sense at all.

School is going ok. I can’t wait for the school year to end. I’m officially ready for summer vacation. Only 3.5 more months! :-)

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Chicken stir fry

January 26, 2010 at 9:01 pm (Uncategorized)
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I started Weight Watchers at the beginning of the year and I’ve been looking for point friendly recipes for dinner and this is an new spin on an old favorite. I will say I’ve lost 4.8lbs since being on WW!

I have this awesome recipe that my local grocery store published about 2 yrs ago. It’s for ginger beef and broccoli stir fry. Normally I make it as it and no changes; tonight I decided to try it with chicken and man was it yummy!!! Too bad DH worked OT last night and slept through dinner!

Gingered Chicken and Broccoli
Ingredients:

  • 1 lb stir fry chicken (if you can’t get stir fry chicken use chicken but cut in small bites)
  • veggies (I used broccoli, carrots, sugar snap peas, bock choy)
  • 1 clove garlic chopped
  • 2 tbsp EVOO
  • 1/2 cup stir fry sauce (it’s a garlic, ginger stir fry sauce)
  • 1/4 tsp ground ginger

1. blanche veggies in a pot of boiling water
2. put EVOO in a large frying pan and heat until almost smoking
3. put in chooped garlic and let cook for a few minutes
4. add chicken and cook all the way
5. Add stir fry sauce and ginger
6. Stir until mixed well
7. Add veggies and stir
8. cook for a few more minutes to let sauce thicken

I served with a cup of brown rice and 1 cup of stir fry. It made about 4-5 servings.

I gave myself 11 points for the whole meal including the rice which was 4 pts.

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update

January 16, 2010 at 11:17 pm (Uncategorized)
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I’m doing well on the new year’s resolution front. DH and I have been very good at saving money this year so far. We actually have over $400 in our savings account! YAY! We have goals that we are trying to save for:

  1. the living room floor: we need the floors re-done and/or new ones
  2. a trip for our anniversary in August
  3. my birthday next month (27 on the 27th oy)
  4. his bday
  5. a down payment for his new car
  6. christmas for next year!

As I said we are on a roll. We made a plan on how much we want to spend for each of these and how much we want to save each month and it’s been working so far.

I also made the first step and joined Weight Watchers. I want to change myself and I’ve tried online by myself and it hasn’t worked so I decided to go to a meeting this year. I went thursday and signed up. Iwant to lose 166 lbs. This week I have focused solely on tracking my foods. I’ve been doing ok with it; although I haven’t been eating very good this week! oops! I also decided to drink more water this week and that’s been working well too. When we go food shopping this weekend I want to buy some WW friendly foods. The hard part for me is going to be dinner! DH is so against these weight loss programs that it’s going to be hard to cook, we’ll see what happens! On Tuesday I WILL work out for 30 minutes after school. My first weigh in is on Thursday. I hope this gets easier!

Well I have no new recipes to report. I’ve been in a cooking funk lately. But we are re-doing our powder room and that’s been going well. I’ll post some pics once I find the cord for my camera; I’m not too sure where it has disappeared to.

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Gingerbread Cookies

December 29, 2009 at 4:45 pm (Uncategorized)
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I made gingerbread cookies for Christmas this year and according to K they turned out great! :) I don’t like gingerbread cookies so I can’t comment, but they looked great.

Gingerbread cookies
source: My Kitchen Cafe
Yield: 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

3 cups (15 ounces) flour
¾ cup packed (5 ¼ ounces) dark brown sugar
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons butter softened to room temperature (but not warm!), cut into 12 pieces
¾ cup light or dark molasses
2 tablespoons milk

1. With an electric mixer, stir together the flour, brown sugar, soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt at low speed until combined, about 30 seconds.
2. Stop the mixer and add the butter pieces.
3. Mix at medium-low speed until the mixture is sandy and resembles fine meal, 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Reduce the speed to low and with the mixer running, gradually add the molasses and milk; mix until the dough is evenly moistened about 20 seconds.
5. Increase the speed to medium and mix until thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds.
6. I refrigerated the dough overnight.
7. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat liners.
8. Remove one dough sheet from the freezer and place on the counter. 
9. Gently cut the dough into 5-inch gingerbread people or 3-inch gingerbread cookies, transferring the shapes to the prepared baking sheets with a wide metal spatula and spacing them ¾ inch apart. Set the scraps aside. Repeat with the remaining dough until the baking sheets are full. Because flour is not added during rolling, dough scraps can be rolled and cut as many times as necessary. (I did all sorts of different cookies…not just gingerbread men)
9. Bake the cookies until set in the centers and the dough barely retains and imprint when touched very gently with fingertip, 8 to 9 minutes. Do not overbake!!
10. Cool the cookies on the sheets 2 minutes, then remove the cookies with a wide metal spatula to a wire rack; cool to room temperature.
11. Store soft gingerbread in a wide, shallow airtight container or tin with a sheet of parchment paper between the cookie layers. These cookies are best eaten within one week.

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New Year’s

December 29, 2009 at 4:32 pm (Uncategorized)
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I’ve been doing a lot of thinking the last day or so. I don’t usually make new year resolutions because I always break them in the first week. This year is going to be different. So I’m going to post my resolutions here to keep myself accountable.

Bri’s New Years Resolutions for 2010:

  1. to lose about 2 lbs a week (0/100 lost)
  2. to finish the house (0/8 rooms)
  3. to try at least 1 new recipe a week (0/52)
  4. to eat out 2 times a month or less (0/24)
  5. cut the diet pepsi habit
  6. to budget monthly (0/12)
  7. to save money (we want to go on vaca, to buy a tv, to finish the house, etc)
  8. to continue to have a happy and healthy relationship with my husband
  9. Use my Wii fit once a week (0/52)
  10. to finally apply for my Professional certification
  11. to pass my Spanish test for my cerrtification
  12. to apply for my Spanish certification
  13. to get a new job (preferrably in the community college sytem)
  14. to keep the above resolutions

I think that’s it for this year. K and I are getting things under control and 2010 is the year to really settle in to a routine and spend time making myself better!

Hopefully 2010 will be a good year! Happy New year everyone!!

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Christmas cookies

December 29, 2009 at 12:49 am (Uncategorized)
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I know I’m late with this, but here is my list of Christmas cookies…recipies to follow

1. sugar cookies
2. gingerbread cookies
3. peanut butter blossoms

I kept it short and sweet this year due to a lack of cooking time. Working right until Christmas eve put a damper on my cookie baking! :( I had plans to make more, but these will have to suffice.

To start:

pic from the brown-eyed baker

Peanut Butter Blossoms
Source: unknown
yield: 4 dozen

Ingredients:

hershey kisses (unwrapped, 1 per cookie)
1/2 c shortening
¾ c peanut butter
1/3 c granulated sugar
1/3 c packed light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ c flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
Sugar

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Remove wrappers from chocolates.
3. Beat shortening and peanut butter in a large bowl until well blended.
4. Add 1/3 cup sugar and brown sugar; beat until fluffy.
5. Add egg, milk and vanilla; beat well.
6. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into peanut butter mixture.
7. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in sugar; place on ungreased cookie sheet.
8. Bake 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned.
9. Immediately press a chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie; cookie will crack around edges. (A fellow cook suggested that I paint the center of the cookies, where the kiss goes, with egg white to keep my kisses from falling off as they tend to do)
10. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. **Very important that you let them cool completely or the kisses will melt!**

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back with a new recipe

December 29, 2009 at 12:31 am (Uncategorized)
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If I have any readers, I apoligize for my brief hiatus. I was super busy in December baking cookies (recipies to come) and enjoying the holidays. As a teacher in WNY we started our vacation after school on the 23rd so I did not have much time to cook or think, much less blog!

Since it’s Christmas Vacation K and I have been doing a lot of home remodeling! :) The kitchen was our summer project and now we have moved on to our powder room. I’m excited since I feel as if we are still not moved into the house and we’ve owned it and lived in it for a year and a half now! Soon….

Tonight, at K’s request, I tried a recipe that I found in our local paper. Our grocery store actually prints recipies in their sunday ad so I cut that one out a few weeks ago and decided to try it. The best part of this recipe is that it uses the crock pot! :)

wegmans.com

Asian Barbeque Beef and Noodles
Source: Wegmans
Yield: 4-6

Ingredients:
1 (2 1/2 – 3 lbs) Boneless Beef Chuck Roast
Wegmans Pan Searing Flour
2 Tbsp Wegmans Pure Olive Oil
1 bottle (20 oz) Asian-Style BBQ Sauce
2 cups Thai Culinary Stock
2 pkgs (8 oz each) Cleaned & Cut Baby Corn, sliced in 1/2-inch rounds
1 pkg (16 oz) Food Broccoli Cuts (Frozen Dept), thawed
2 pkgs (16 oz each) Asian Classics Udon Noodles (Frozen Dept), thawed per pkg directions (We used rice tonight)

Directions:
1.Dust meat with pan-searing flour; pat off excess. Heat oil in large braising pan on MEDIUM-HIGH, until oil faintly smokes. Add meat. Brown, turning to brown all sides, 3-4 min per side. Transfer meat to slow cooker. Stir in BBQ sauce and stock.

2. Cook meat in slow-cooker 4-5 hours on HIGH or 7-9 hours on LOW. Remove just the meat from slow-cooker; transfer to clean platter.

3. Add corn, broccoli, and noodles to slow-cooker on HIGH; stir to combine. Cover; cook 5-15 min, or until vegetables are thoroughly heated. Stir before transferring to serving platter and topping with meat. (NOTE: I served over rice and not the noodles)

The verdict: It was yummy, but too spicy for us. We are not fans of super spicy food and this had a kick to it! But it will remain in my recipe box for future usage!

Bon appetit!

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Yummy Almost perfect cheesecake

November 25, 2009 at 7:09 pm (Uncategorized)
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I LOOOVE cheesecake! :) It’s my FAVORITE dessert of all time! I made one to take to my grandma’s for Thanksgiving dessert tomorrow. I can NEVER get it to look perfect, but this recipe that I found on Food network is the closest I’ve come!

Mixed Berry Cheesecake

Source: Ina Garten

Ingredients

For the crust:

  • 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (10 crackers)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

  • 2 1/2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 5 whole extra-large eggs, at room temperature
  • 2 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the topping:

  • 1 cup red jelly (not jam) such as currant, raspberry, or strawberry
  • 1/2 pint sliced strawberries
  • 1/2 pint fresh raspberries
  • 1/2 pint fresh blueberries

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the crust, combine the graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter until moistened. Pour into a 9-inch springform pan. With your hands, press the crumbs into the bottom of the pan and about 1-inch up the sides. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees F.

To make the filling, cream the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce the speed of the mixer to medium and add the eggs and egg yolks, 2 at a time, mixing well. Scrape down the bowl and beater, as necessary. With the mixer on low, add the sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Mix thoroughly and pour into the cooled crust.

Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the oven temperature down to 225 degrees and bake for another 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn the oven off and open the door wide. The cake will not be completely set in the center. Allow the cake to sit in the oven with the door open for 30 minutes. Take the cake out of the oven and allow it to sit at room temperature for another 2 to 3 hours, until completely cooled. Wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the cake from the springform pan by carefully running a hot knife around the outside of the cake. Leave the cake on the bottom of the springform pan for serving.

To make the topping, melt the jelly in a small pan over low heat. In a bowl, toss berries and the warm jelly gently until well mixed. Arrange the berries on top of the cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

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Mashed potatoes

November 25, 2009 at 7:00 pm (Uncategorized)
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As I stated in my last post I was recruited last minute to make the mashed potatoes. Well, my in-laws, the kings of last minute changes just decided that we don’t need them. Oh well…

I decided to give you the recipe anyway. This a a great make ahead of time recipe. Put it all together, refrigerate, and then bake when ready!

Anne Marie’s mashed potatoes

Source: my aunt

Yield: 1 13×9 pan

  • 8-10 red potatoes — don’t peel, boil!
  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 16 oz sour cream
  • 1/2 c parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper to tase
  • garlic powder
  • fresh basil
  1. preheat oven to 350
  2. boil potatoes, do not peel,
  3. drain and mash after boiled
  4. add cream chees
  5. add sour cream, parmesan, salt and pepper, garlic powder, and basil
  6. put in a 9×13 pan and bake at 350 for 45 minutes

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