Linguine with Red Clam Sauce and Bruschetta

Yes, yes I do realize it's been a good while since my last post...so in the spirit of re-energizing your cooking prowess with a show stopper, I bring you Linguine with Red Clam Sauce and Bruschetta! This fantastic meal comes from WW Online and serves up great flavor with gourmet flair for only 5pts! For those of you that are reluctant about cooking with clams let me assure you that it is super simple and easy to do; the combination of savory clams alongside spicy red pepper flakes, rich wine and tons of fresh herbs make this Italian staple a sure crowd pleaser for your next get together. The bruschetta I served alongside added to the decadence of the meal with tangy balsamic, fresh basil and garlic and fantastic rosemary and olive bread for only 1 additional point. This is a must try sensation: Linguine with Red Clam Sauce and Bruschetta

Peanut-Butter French Toast

Crossing fingers that the stomach bug has left the building! Hopefully our home will resume an normal cooking and more importantly eating schedule this week...feeling a hankering for something sweet I opted to make breakfast for dinner! This recipe comes from "Pure Comfort" and provides a fresh twist on the french toast classic by stuffing peanut butter in between layers of bread before dipping in the familiar vanilla egg french toast batter. The original recipe calls for the toast to be browned in butter but by replacing with cooking spray the total pts drop from 6pts per serving to 5pts! I served alongside scrambled eggs with cheese for an additional 2pts making an all around great breakfast/dinnertime meal! Do try: Peanut-Butter French Toast

Note: Wojtek caught me walking to the dining table and insisted on my posing in apron for this dish! I'm including the foodshot as well for those wanting the close-up!

Lemon Blueberry Muffins

Yesterday on a whim I decided to use some of our fresh blueberries stock in something sweet and found a great recipe for muffins in the, "WW New Complete Cookbook". The cookbook lists a recipe for basic muffins that is very concise and simple to follow and then adds variation recipes to the basic form...I chose to combine the Lemon Muffin and Berry Muffin takes for a lovely muffin hybrid. The resulting muffin hybrid has the sweetness of lemon bread with the unique flavor injection that only blueberries can provide. Super simple to make and at only 2pts per muffin a great snack to have around! Happy Cooking! Lemon Blueberry Muffins

Asian-Infused Stuffed Acorn Squash

Not gonna lie...we have been sick as dogs this past week! All vacation weight is history and then some...not the way you want to lose pounds. However, since eating has been a delicate issue the highlights of our palate have consisted of plain toast, mashed potatoes and one crazy night, applesauce! To maintain some sense of faithfulness for my Fantastic Followers...I decided to post something I made before vacation but never got the chance to post. The day I made this I looked online through various acorn squash recipes until I found one I could adapt from "Taste of Home". This meal is an innovative dish that combines the nutty flavor of pecans with the sweetness of raisins, honey, ginger and balsamic all together in Basmati rice stuffed against the rich flesh of acorn squash. This dish stands alone or could be paired nicely with a brothy soup. For only 6pts, gotta try: Asian-Infused Stuffed Acorn Squash

Meatball and Barley Soup

I failed to mention that along with gaining a few pounds on the trip we also acquired colds...so despite the 110F heat index yesterday, nothing treats a cold quite like soup! After the greatness of the Cheesy Tortilla Casserole, I picked another recipe to try from my new "Pure Comfort" cookbook. The recipe is easy to make but tedious in the sense that everything must be done in stages; however it is well worth the effort! The rich taste of leeks, barley and carrots marinating in a seasoned broth would be quite enough...but add in the hearty/basil-y meatballs and you have a soup that not only tastes great but is super filling at only 4pts for a 1-1/2 cup serving (4 meatballs per serving). This will definitely be a fall staple, if we get a fall in Texas that is! Happy Cooking! Meatball and Barley Soup

Cheesy Tortilla Casserole

Last night I tried out the first recipe from a new cookbook, "WW Pure Comfort 150 All-Time Feel-Good Favorites". The cheesy tortilla casserole is so good, so delicious and so easy to make that I feel a weekly repeater on the rise! The layers of crisp corn tortillas with smokey cumin seasoned onions and red peppers along with the corn, parsley/oregano, cayenne pepper and cheese mixture when stacked with eggs make for a divinely cheesy and filling Mexican treat! The original recipe weighs in at 5pts per serving but by replacing eggs with substitutes and using fat free cheese over reduced fat I've knocked it down to 4pts for a very generous serving. For a first night cooking after many nights of decadent eating I have to say this one made me feel as though I was still on vacation! Be sure to try: Cheesy Tortilla Casserole

Home, Sweet Home!

 And we're back from the most amazing and exhausting summer trip yet! We spent ten days with family going all over from Savannah and Jykell Island, GA to Grand Cayman, Cozumel and Playa del Carmen, Mexico! We were able to experience once in a lifetime feats...swimming with stingrays, holding baby sea turtles, caving/spelunking through an underground river and lighthouse climbing just to name a few. All of this daily activity, including the endless stair climbing aboard ship, made me appreciate even more how much my body has changed in the past six months. I am not saying that I would not have done these things before; more that I realized whereas before the physicality of the trip would have left me drained each day now my body was filled with energy enough to still work out aboard ship. Do not get me wrong however I did not adhere to the WW doctrine while on board; rather I decided that vacation is a break entirely from the norm and if I don't allow myself to enjoy life's joys (be it food or otherwise) at least on special occaison then I would be robbing myself of the good stuff. So suffice to say that yes I gained, but it's not the end of the world...I'm looking at it as a souvenir from late night fancy dress dinners with my family, slices of cheesecake shared with my love in the middle of the day overlooking the ocean, and as a few drinks that led to dancing my butt off and laughing even harder. This week I will resume my cooking schedule with ease, I really missed cooking surprisingly, and will be patient as the pounds I regained disappear again.