Strawberry Kiwi Pavlovas

With Valentine's day around the corner, these sweet desserts are perfect to enjoy with that special someone in your life, or any time of the year. Pavlovas are elegant yet light, made with whipped egg whites and sugar, then topped with cream and fresh fruit. The perfect light dessert!

Use any combination of fresh fruit on top, mixed berries are a great choice. You can make the shells ahead of time and store them in an air tight container, or even freeze them. 

Meringues can be tricky to make, the key to success when making meringues is to start with clean, metal mixing bowls and whisks. They should be free of all traces of grease. Egg whites should be room temperature and they say it's best to avoid making these on a rainy day. I played around with a few different meringue recipes to get the perfect shell. So many, in fact that I forgot where I found this recipe to give the proper credit. These meringues have a tint of brown due to the dark vanilla extract I used, but if you use white vanilla extract, yours should come out looking like a soft billowy cloud.

Strawberry Kiwi Pavlovas
Servings: 6 • Size: 1 pavlova • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 5 pts
Calories: 221.3 • Fat: 0.4 g • Protein: 3.5 g • Carb: 51.2 g • Fiber: 2.9 g   

• 4 large egg whites, room temperature
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced
• 3 kiwis, sliced
• 1-1/2 cups fat free whipped cream

Preheat oven to 350°.


Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Draw 6 (4-inch) circles on paper, I used a plastic lid as my guide. Turn paper over; secure with masking tape.


Beat egg whites, cornstarch, and salt at high speed of a mixer until foamy. Slowly add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until thick and glossy. Add vanilla, beating well.


Divide egg white mixture evenly among the 6 drawn circles.Shape meringues into nests with 1-inch sides using the back of a spoon. Place meringues in oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 300°; bake 1 hour. Turn oven off; cool meringues in closed oven at least 4 hours or until completely dry. (Meringues are done when the surface is dry and meringues can be removed from paper without sticking to fingers.) Carefully remove meringue nests from paper.

Assemble the pavlovas by topping with 1/4 cup whipped cream in each nest, then arrange fresh fruit on top.

The meringue shells can be kept frozen for up to two months. Remove them from freezer before you assemble the pavlovas, no reheating required. 

Enjoy!!

Chicken Shiitake and Wild Rice Soup

 Looking for more cold weather comfort food? This thick and creamy wild rice soup is a perfect one pot meal.

Chicken, wild rice, and mushrooms are combined in this rich and hearty soup with a touch of light sour cream. 

This was a recipe make-over requested from a reader in Minnesota who asked me to lighten up her original recipe, which was loaded with butter and heavy cream. I was eager to tackle this make-over, but I couldn't imagine just how good it would be. Even tested this on friends and family and all would agree, this soup is a winner. My one year old loved it too.

One thing to note is the rice expands the longer it sits, so you may need to add more water to adjust the correct thickness. This reheats fine the next day with a little added water.

For the wild rice combo I used Carolina rice, it comes in a seasoned package. If you can't find that brand, you could use Rice a Roni Long Grain and Wild Rice.

Chicken, Shiitake and Wild Rice Soup
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 6 • Size: 1-1/2 cups • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 237.6 • Fat: 4.3 g • Protein: 14 g • Carb: 35.4 g • Fiber: 1.7 g

1 tbsp butter
1 small onion
1 tbsp flour
8 cups (64 oz) fat free low sodium chicken broth
1 cups water
2 chopped carrots
3 garlic cloves
2 celery stalks
4 skinless chicken thighs
4.5 oz long grain rice and wild rice combo (I used Carolina)
1/2 cup long grain white rice
4 oz. shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp light sour cream (vegans can use vegan sour cream or leave it out)
salt and fresh pepper

Melt butter in a large pot on medium heat, add onion and saute until soft nut not browned, about 3-4 minutes. Add flour and saute another minute.

Add chicken broth, water, carrots, garlic, celery, and chicken thighs, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Add wild rice mix along with it's seasoning, long grain rice, mushrooms, salt and pepper to taste and simmer on low, covered 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove chicken from pot and shred with two forks, return to pot, add sour cream and more water if too thick, adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Beef, Potato and Quinoa Soup

For the meat and potato lover, this soup is for you. Hearty soups like this are exactly what I love about South American cuisine. A nourishing one pot meal, typically served with aji and avocado on the side.

This soup uses cooked quinoa, which is a South American seed which has become very popular in North America lately. Quinoa is very high in protein, and contains all 9 essential amino acids, lysine, phosphorous, copper, iron and magnesium. It's gluten-free and you can find it at any healthy food store, Amazon, Trader Joe's and even at your local supermarket.

The key to making a good beef soup is letting the beef simmer until it gets soft, the longer the better so the meat is tender. If you have a pressure cooker, this will cook in half the time and the meat will be incredibly soft.  I recommend buying a pressure cooker, it's great for making stews and beans in half the time, and the flavors really get into the food. I own a 6-quart Presto which is perfect for making a pot of beans.

Beef, Potato and Quinoa Soup

Adapted from Laylita's Recipes

Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes

Servings: 4 • Size: 1-1/2 cups • Old Points: 7 pts • Points+: 8 pts

Calories: 307.9 • Fat: 13.8 g • Protein: 15.7 g • Carb: 31.3 g • Fiber: 4.6 g   

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 6-7 scallions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp Badia Sazon with Annato
• 1/2 lb beef, cubed into small bite size pieces (I used beef tenderloin)
• 5 cups water
• beef bullion
• 1 carrot, peeled and sliced
• 2 tbsp yellow bell pepper, diced
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup cooked quinoa 
• 6 tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
• salt and pepper to taste

Saute oil in a large pot, add scallions and garlic and sauté until soft over medium heat, about 3 minutes. Add tomato, cumin, sazon with achiote, 1/4 cup cilantro and cook another 2 minutes. Add beef, water, bullion, carrot, bell pepper, salt and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer on low about 1-1/2 hours, until meat is tender.

Add potato and cooked quinoa and cook an additional 25 minutes. Add remaining chopped cilantro and serve.

Easy prepared - Warm Cinnamon Apple

As most of you might have already know, apple has been the most common fruit eaten anywhere in the world. Basically, apples are a great source of fiber in the form of pectin, as well as a great source of antioxidants. The fiber encourages good digestive heath. Apples are also believed to help lower your bad cholesterol, detoxify the body, reduce the risk of cancer and infections, improve our skin and slow down our aging by lessening the effects of stress, diabetes, and heart disease, and help prevent hair loss. 

It is is important to buy apples that are organic, unbruised & firm-skinned (as well as to avoid ones that were picked before they were ripe, which means they haven't developed as much nutritional value).

The one and only issue with apples from my point of view has always been that they've never really filled me up when I've eaten them as a snack (despite all the water and fiber they have in them). A friend of mine suggested that I try cooking them in the microwave, which sounded intriguing. So, I sliced up an apple into many thin slices, put them into a bowl, sprinkled some cinnamon over them, and then put the mixture in the microwave for 45 seconds. After it came out I added a dollop of low calorie whipped topping (sometimes I cook it with the whipped topping as well depending on my mood).

What resulted from cooking the apple with cinnamon was a dessert/snack that tastes just like apple pie. I'm not kidding! It is delicious (way more than I expected) as well as super filling, so I've started eating it for dessert instead of low calorie ice cream. I've played around with adding sugar, brown sugar, and some low calorie butter, although I like it best just with the apple, cinnamon, and whipped cream.

Enjoy!

Vegetarian Tofu with Peanut Ginger Sauce Recipe

I recently came across this Eating Well Recipe for Tofu with Peanut Ginger Sauce, that was re-posted to Yahoo Food with a few really good reviews. I'm a big fan of peanut sauce, but I don't get to eat it very often since it is so high in calories and fat (I steer clear of it at restaurants), so I was excited to try this recipe to see if it was any good. The results were fantastic -- the dish was really easy to make, was super yummy, and I plan to make it many more times in the future! The peanut sauce is fairly thick, really tasty (and not too high calorie), and complements the tofu and spinach really well.

I added some vegetables to the recipe (which already contains spinach, scallions, and mushrooms), including broccoli, celery, and carrots, to make it more like a stir-fry. I also sprinkled a few soy nuts on top, which gave the dish some added crunch. All in all, it felt like I was eating a really yummy, but smart meal.

Now, for the calories. It is a bit tricky since the original recipe on Eating Well, says that 1 generous serving is 225 calories, or 5 WW points. The re-posted version on Yahoo! Food says that 1 serving is 242 calories, or 6 WW points. Since the Yahoo! posting is newer, I err on the side of trusting it (and counting 6 points), over the original. However, it really depends on exactly what ingredients you use (like how many calories are in your particular peanut butter, etc.), so use your own discretion.

Also, make sure you count any calories or points from added vegetables, or a small side of whole wheat rice if you choose to add anything. In the end, you can have this recipe as a low calorie dinner, with a few additions, for a very filling 7-8 WW points or for around 350-400 calories. Or, you can just eat the Tofu with Peanut Sauce on its own for a really filling 5-6 WW point low calorie lunch.

By the way, for those of you that aren't vegetarians, or that don't like Tofu, you could consider substituting chicken into the recipe instead of Tofu.

Enjoy!

Lightened Up Creme Brulee French Toast

A make-ahead baked French toast casserole with a sweet sugar-coated bottom, perfect for a Christmas morning breakfast.

Ingredients & Recipe:

Servings: 6 • Serving Size: 1/6th • Old Points: 7 pts • Points+: 9 pts

Calories: 310.9 • Fat: 5.6 g • Carb: 59.9 g • Fiber: 0.2 g • Protein: 13.1 g 

• 1 cup unpacked brown sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• cooking spray
• 10 oz Challah bread, sliced 1 inch thick
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup egg substitute
• 1-1/2 cups 1% milk
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp Meyers rum (optional)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp powdered sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon

In a small heavy saucepan melt brown sugar and water over moderate-low heat, stirring, until smooth and melted, about 1 minute, then pour into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. 

Arrange bread slices in one layer in baking dish, squeezing them slightly to fit.

In a large bowl whisk together eggs, egg substitute, milk, vanilla, rum, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, and salt until combined well and pour evenly over bread. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350° F. and bring bread to room temperature.

Bake uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed and edges are pale golden, 40 to 50 minutes.

Top with cinnamon and powdered sugar.

Recipe was modified from Gourmet's Crème Brûlée French Toast

Low Calorie "Betta Banana Cake"

 I have been craving for banana cake this few days after i try some that i bought from the supermarket. However, as you might have already know, white bread are high in carbohydrate content that can be an enemy to all the healthy practicer out there. Thus i try to research on how to make a healthy banana cake when i come to across a blog posted by Jenn. Here is the ingredients and recipe to make them:


TIP: Make sure to always use ripe bananas (the spottier, the better) when making banana bread. It provides the extra moisture and sweetness that makes this bread such a sweet treat!

Ingredients (makes 16 small slices):

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 cup liquid egg whites
3 tbsp. Promise Light Buttery Spread
1/4 cup applesauce
2 medium mashed bananas (200g)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Jenn left her batter a little lumpy because she wanted to be able to see some banana chunks in the bread. She poured it into a greased springform pan and baked it at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes (depending on the oven). The bread should be a golden brown color and cooked around the edges.

Nutrition Information (per slice - 1 weight watchers point):

60 calories
1g fat
11g carbohydrates
1g fiber
2g protein

There are many ways to eat this banana bread. I've come up with a few options during the taste testing and experimenting that you may enjoy just as much as I have:

- Eat a slice plain
- Eat a slice topped with butter, jam or nut butter
- Eat a slice with some low calorie almond milk
- Crumble a slice over low calorie oatmeal or cereal as a deliciously sweet topping
- Crumble a slice over low-fat yogurt, or fage yogurt

If any readers try the recipe, please don't be shy and let me know what you think! You can leave a comment on one of my posts or send me an email: eatingbender@gmail.com

Happy baking!