Roast Pork with Gravy {10 WW+ Dinner}

I purchased a pork tenderloin from Trader Joe's at the beginning of the week with the intentions of making pulled pork sandwiches. Well... I never got around to picking up some root beer so it never happened. So I finally decided to make something with it and a pork roast just sounded good. Gravy with that roast sounded even better! Now you can easily omit the gravy making part if you don't want some yummy deliciousness on top of your meat :) Or if you wanted to lessen the points value.

I, for one, thought that the points were totally worth it for this meal. The pork was just perfect and the gravy... YUM! That little splash of wine went a long way. I served this with a quinoa blend and steamed veggies (my favorite frozen Normandy blend from Costco). I think that rice or potatoes would work well with this also. You could even roast the potatoes and veggies with the meat in a separate dish so it all comes out at the same time.

(photo to come soon... my 2 year old got a hold of the memory card and now my computer won't read it :( )

Inspiration: Principia Gastronomica

Roast Pork with Gravy

• 1/4 cup each finely diced carrot, onion and celery
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1.5lbs boneless pork tenderloin
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 splash white wine

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Finely dice the carrots, onion and celery and set aside.

Heat a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Put your meat fat-side-down in the pan and sear it for 4-5 minutes or until the meat no longer sticks to the pan. Turn the meat over and sear the other side. 
Remove the pork from the dutch oven and place it on a plate. Add 1/4 cup chicken stock to the pan and de-glaze, making sure to scrape up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Add vegetables to the bottom of the dutch oven and put the bay leaves on top. Put the meat on top of the bay leaf and vegetables in the roasting tray. Sprinkle salt and pepper all around the outside of your meat.

Add about 1/4 of a cup of your chicken stock to the pan around the meat. Put the tray in the oven and roast  for about 30 minutes, until a meat thermometer stuck in the middle of the loin registers 145 degrees.

Take the tray out of the oven, then take the pork out of the tray and put it on a platter. Cover the pork loosely with foil and let it sit in a warm place while you make your gravy.

For the gravy, add 1 tablespoon of butter to the vegetables. Stir in 1 tablespoon of flour, then stir everything together. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes. Add another 3/4 to 1 cup of the chicken broth to the saucepan, along with a splash of white wine. Simmer until the gravy has thickened (5-10 minutes), then season to taste. You could strain out the vegetables if you want a smoother sauce, or you could puree them (after removing the bay leaf!) to get a thicker sauce. I used a slotted spoon to remove the vegetables. A few pieces stayed but were very good!

By the time your gravy is done, your pork will be ready to go. Carve it into medium-thick slices and serve it with the gravy and your favorite sides.

Serves 4 | 10 WW+ Points

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Tuna Melt {7 WW+ Lunch}

I'm always looking for a tasty meal for lunch. And not just a turkey wrap or a salad. Something that will taste as rich as the real thing. This tuna melt definitely does it for me. I eat it with a large salad and it fills me up until just before Joseph comes home. Cause I always snack right before dinner. Don't you?

Now you could go even further and reduce the points in this meal by using non-fat mayo and fat-free cheese but come on, what's the fun in that? I also have diced up some pickle and put that in as well but it's not necessary since you have the juice for flavor and the crunch of the celery. And that tiny bit of seasoning really goes a long way. Another great thing to use would be the Trader Joe's Parmesan Rosemary rolls. Now those things are tasty! Just split two in half and you and your lunch companion will be full in no time! Or you can just put 1/2 of the mix in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch...

Tuna Melt

• 1 can tuna in water, drained
• 2 tablespoons reduced-fat mayo
• 1 celery stalk, diced
• 1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash garlic & herb seasoning
• 1 tablespoon pickle juice
• salt & pepper to taste
• 2 slices of Trader Joe's whole grain bread
• 1 ounce reduced fat cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven (or toaster oven) to 450 degrees. Mix the tuna, mayo, celery, spices & pickle juice together until combined. Spread onto a piece of bread and top with cheese. Bake for 5 minutes or until cheese starts to bubble and bread is slightly toasted.

Serves 2 | 7 WW+ Points

Crock Pot 3 Bean Chili {5 WW+ Points Dinner}

I needed a good recipe for tonight's super bowl dinner and knew the perfect place to go would be to Gina's Skinny Recipes. I always see such great meals posted on her blog and knew this would be a perfect meal for after the game.

Since I only had ground beef on hand instead of ground turkey I made due with what I had. I also added a few more spices to it to make it my own. Next time I plan on adding a few more veggies as well. Some squash maybe. And I don't know about you but I LOVE chili over broccoli. Sooo good!

And I had to add that my husband changed the first ingredient to read "buffalo" when I left the computer so now I know to ALWAY double check the ingredients in my recipes in case he's made any changes to anything. He thinks he's so sly...

Inspiration: Gina's Skinny Recipes

Crock Pot 3 Bean Chili 

• 1 lb ground beef, extra lean
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 16 ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 4.5 ounce can chopped chilies, drained
• 1 15 ounce can chickpeas, undrained
• 1 15.5 ounce can pinto beans, undrained
• 1 15.5 ounce can kidney beans, undrained
• 1 tablelspoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons ranch dressing mix
• 1 teaspoon red cayenne pepper

Brown beef, bell pepper and onion in a medium skillet over medium high heat until cooked through. Sprinkle with seasonings as they are cooking.

Drain any fat remaining and transfer to crock pot. Add the beans, chilies, chickpeas, tomatoes & tomato sauce. Mix well. Salt and pepper to taste.

Cook on low 8-10 hours.

Garnish with your favorite chili toppings and enjoy! I personally prefer some low-fat cheddar. YUM!

Serves 12 | 5 WW+ Points

Berry Muffin Revisited {3 WW+ Points Breakfast}

My son woke up this morning and requested muffins for breakfast. Since we were out of our staple Trader Joe's blueberry fiber muffins we had to make some from scratch. I used a recipe I had used in the past but had to make a few adjustments with what we had on hand since Daddy used some of the last of our baking ingredients last night for chocolate chip cookies (totally not WW friendly!).

These were pretty good. Definitely hit the spot and satisfied my muffin craving! And my son enjoyed them too. I think he loved helping make them more than eating them though. Cracking eggs are probably his favorite thing to do these days. Good thing Mommy and Daddy love to bake!

Inspiration: Adapted from Here

Healthy Berry Muffins

• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup raw sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• 1/4 cup Unsweetened Apple Sauce
• 2/3 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 375 and lightly grease a muffin tin.
In a medium bowl, sift together the whole wheat and all purpose flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a second bowl, beat the egg with the sugar until smooth. Mix in the vanilla, oil, zest, applesauce and buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Fold the berries into the mixture. Don't overmix the batter. Your muffins could become tough and the batter may start turning colors from overworking the batter.

Spoon the mixture into the muffin tin and bake for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

12 servings | 3 WW+ Points

Spinach & Mushroom Egg Scramble {5 WW+ Points Breakfast}

When I have the time to make breakfast in the morning (remember those two kiddos under the age of 2?) this is my go-to meal. Its something I can make and know I can forget about being hungry until lunchtime. It satisfies my craving for something hearty without adding fatty foods like bacon and full-fat cheese.

I love that adding mushrooms adds that hearty feel and the cheese still makes me feel like I get that goey, delicious part of a good egg scramble. Plus this recipe is so versatile! Sometimes I saute some onions and peppers as well to add to it. This just increases my daily intake of veggies which is really what my goal is most days (in other words, how do I hide all of these veggies so I don't know I'm eating them!).

I also add a piece of toast and 1/2 a tablespoon of butter for a bit of indulgence. Haha... bread and butter an indulgence. Never thought I'd say that :) But this way I don't think I'm gypping myself. I still get to eat what I normally would eat only I added a bit more "healthy" to it.

Spinach & Mushroom Egg Scramble

• 1 egg
• 3 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon Mrs Dash Garlic & Herb
• 2 tablespoons 1% milk
• 1 cup spinach
• 1 cup mushrooms
• 1 ounce Trader Joe's Lite Shredded Mozzarella cheese
• cooking spray

Spray pan with cooking spray and saute diced mushrooms & spinach until cooked down/wilted. Whisk together the egg, egg whites, seasoning & milk while mushrooms and spinach cook. Pour egg mixture over vegetables and scramble until done to your liking. You can add an extra spray of cooking spray to the pan before adding the eggs if you aren't using a non-stick pan.

Servings 1 | 5 WW+ points

Mushroom & Spinach Lasagna {7 WW+ Points Dinner}

So I apologize in advance for a. not blogging and b. not snagging a picture of this wonderful meal. I find it so sad when winter comes (or has been here a while) because I have absolutely no good light in my kitchen once the sun heads down. The lights we have are just too harsh and I just don't like the way my pictures turn out so I don't want to post them. But then I'm in a dilemma. Do I not post a picture or do I wait till the next day and post a picture of leftovers? Sometimes I do the later... and I don't tell. Oh well. Do what you gotta do.

But seriously. Take my word for it and make this lasagna. Pretty darn good and I'm proud of it. I've made a few lasagnas in the past. As well as lasagna rolls and even though this lasagna was lacking in the "tons of cheese" factor it made up for it in flavor. I was full from my one slice, large salad & piece of garlic bread. And if I had enough points left I would have went for another one (see how I chose the garlic bread?). I'll definitely be making this one again!

Next lasagna recipe I want to try: Gina's Spinach Lasagna Rolls

Picture to come soon!

Mushroom & Spinach Lasagna

• 3 teaspoons canola oil, divided
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup portobello mushrooms, diced
• 2 cups spinach, cut
• 1 pound extra lean ground beef, 15% fat   
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano  
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley 
• 10 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese 
• 1 egg  
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg          
• 1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper  
• 1 cup zucchini, shredded
• 1 jar of Trader Joe's Tomato & Basil Marinara (if using another sauce re-calculate points)
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil, ribboned (or use 1 teaspoon dry)
• 1 cup tomato, diced (two small tomatoes)
• 9 no-boil lasagna noodles   
• 10oz Trader Joe's Lite Shredded Mozzarella Cheese  
• 2 cups Parmesan cheese, shredded and divided in 1/2

Saute mushrooms, garlic & spinach in 2 teaspoons of canola oil and set aside to cool. Brown meat and add oregano & parsley along with some salt and pepper if needed. While meat is browning mix together ricotta, 1 cup parmesan, egg, nutmeg & pepper and set aside. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a sauce pan and add shredded zucchini. Saute until soft. Add marinara sauce to the pan along with tomatoes, basil and drained meat.

In a 9x13 pan put 1/4-1/2 cup of sauce on the bottom of the pan. Layer 3 noodles on the bottom side by side and cover with sauce. Add cheese mixture to the top of the sauce. Put three more noodles on the cheese mixture and repeat twice until you cover the last of your noodles with the remainder of the sauce. Cover sauce with remaining parmesan and the mozzarella.

Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until top is golden brown and bubbly. Let sit for 10 minutes so that the noodles absorb the sauce.

Serves 12 | 7 WW+ points per serving