Bon Appetit: Strawberry Glazed Pie

Mmmmm, mmmmmmm, mmmmm!  Get ready for summer with this super easy and delicious strawberry pie!!!  This pie was easy, cheap, quick to make (takes awhile to set) and will send you straight to summer while you're eating it.

Okay, let's get down to it...
Here's what you need:
*6 cups of hulled and cut strawberries (I used 1 quart and quartered them)
*2/3 cups of white sugar
*1 cup of water
*4 tablespoons of strawberry flavored gelatin
*4 tablespoons of corn starch
*1 (9 in) graham cracker prepared pie crust

Here's what you do:
1. Mix together the sugar, water, gelatin and cornstarch in a medium-large saucepan.  Boil for 1 minute and remove from heat.

2. Fold in the sliced strawberries and toss until the strawberries are well coated.  Pour into the graham cracker crust.

3. Chill until well set (I gave it at least 3 hours).

4. Serve with whipped cream.

If you're doing the old Weight Watchers, each piece is 6 points!  YUM!

I hijacked this recipe from here.

Bon Appetit: Quinoa Chili Over Spaghetti Squash

One of my friends/coworkers brought to lunch one day a wonderful dish one day.  Everyone in the office had a little bite and we all LOVED it.  She was sweet enough to share the recipe and on Tuesday night, after Stephen had had one of those kind-of days, I made it for the first time.  Let me tell you, it was DELICIOUS and easy...a little time consuming (involves a lot of chopping up veggies), but totally worth it!

Cast of Characters:

*1 tbsp olive oil

*small white/yellow onion, diced

*2-3 stalks of celery, chopped (Stephen loves celery - I used 5)

*2 cloves garlic

*green pepper, diced

*red pepper, diced

*hot cherry peppers, chopped with juice (we don't do "hot" - I omitted these)

*can of red kidney beans

*can of chicken or vegetable broth

*can of tomato sauce

*can of diced tomatoes with juice

*1 cup of quinoa (red or white)

*1 medium spaghetti squash

 *Mexican shredded cheese (Mozzarella was all I had, so that's what I used)

Cumin

Chili Powder

Coriander

Salt 

Pepper

What next?

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Pierce the spaghetti squash with a metal skewer or knife; you want to get all the way through the skin to the center of the squash so that it does not explode.  Cook the squash for at least 60 minutes turning every 15 to 30 minutes.

 

2. Heat olive oil in a deep pot and add onion, celery and garlic and cook on low heat until transparent without burning.  

3. Add the peppers (*I had hot cherry peppers in the fridge, but you can use any hot pepper to add spice, or omit them if you don't like your chili spicy), and cook for a few minutes.  

4. Add broth, sauce, diced tomatoes, spices, salt and pepper to taste.  Bring to a boil, then add quinoa.  Cook for about 30 minutes or until the outer layer of the seeds have separated from the body of the seeds.  

5. Remove squash from oven and let cool (at least 10 minutes).  Cut it in half and scrape out the "noodles" with a fork. 

6. Distribute evenly and top with the chili.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Garnish with avocado, green onion or cilantro (optional).  Enjoy with cornbread!
(With the entire chili having been made of vegetables, I'm guessing that there's no more than 4 WW points for a bowl of this Quinoa Chili)

Let me know what you think!

Bon Appetit: Orzo With Garlic-Ginger Vegetables

I've been practicing the Weight Watchers diet for the past month and a half which led me to crack open my WW cookbook.  This recipe was a winner among Stephen and myself so I thought I'd share it with you.  Not only is it scrumptious, but it's incredibly easy and good for you (and colorful!)...enjoy!

Okay, so here's what you need:

* 1 T olive Oil

*2 T minced peeled fresh ginger (yeah right, I don't do that, I just used the ginger that was on my spice rack)

*3 garlic cloves, crushed (again, I used minced garlic)

*2 cups of sliced baby carrots

*2 cups of sliced baby zucchini (I just used 1 big zucchini)

*1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

*1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped

*3/4 cup of low-sodium chicken broth

*2 1/2 cups of cooked orzo

*1/4 t salt

*1/8 t freshly ground pepper

The process:

1. Cut up your vegetables

2. Measure out your orzo (1 1/4 cups of uncooked orzo makes 2 cups of cooked orzo) and cook according to the box.

3. In a wok or large skillet over low heat, heat the oil.

4. Saute the ginger and garlic until golden (until it becomes fragrant...not long)

5. Increase the heat to medium-high; add the carrots and stir-fry for 1 minute.

6. Add the rest of the vegetables and the chicken broth and cook until the vegetables are tender-crisp (3 minutes)

7. Add the orzo, salt and pepper; toss to combine and serve immediately.

This side dish a great compliment to baked or grilled chicken - YUM!  And better yet, it's only 3 WW points for a cup of it (which will fill you up!).

I hope this can be added to one of your weekend meals!

I've linked up to:

Simply Sweet Home; Fireflies and Jellybeans; Remodelaholic