Poached Pears with Red Wine & Star Anise

Ingredients:

• 2 cups boiling water
• 3 red zinger or Raspberry tea bags
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 1/2 cup granular sugar
• 3 (3-inch) orange zest strips, removed with vegetable peeler
• 2 cardamom pods
• 1 star anise
• 4 (1/2 lb.) firm-ripe Bosc pears, peeled, halved, & cored
• 1/2 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp. coarsely chopped pistachios

Makes 8 Servings ( 1 pear half, 1 1/2 tbsp. syrup, 1 tbsp. yogurt, & scant 1 tsp. pistachios)

1. Pour boiling water into glass measuring cup or bowl; add tea bags and let steep 4 minutes. Remove tea bags and discard; pour tea bags into large saucepan. Add wine, sugar, orange zest, cardamom pods, and star anise; bring to boil over medium heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved.
2. Reduce heat to simmer and add pears; place sheet of wax papers on top of pears to keep them submerged. Cook, covered, until pears are just tender when pierced with a small knife, 30-35 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat; uncover and let pears cool in wine mixture.
3. When pears are cool, with slotted spoon, transfer to large bowl; set aside.
4. Bring wine mixture to boil over high heat. Boil until reduced to about 2/3 cup, 10-15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and let syrup cool to room temperature. Discard orange zest, cardamom, and star anise.
5. To serve, place 1 pear half, cut side up, in each of 8 serving dishes or dessert plates. Spoon syrup evenly over pears. Spoon yogurt evenly on top of or alongside pears and sprinkle with pistachios.

WW POINTS VALUE: 5 pts.

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Family Meals Cookbook. This is what I call an elegant dessert and it's perfect for foodies. Pears cooked in wine is absolutely delicious. The combination of orange, spices, tea and wine is heavenly delicious. The pears and the flavors of the wine syrup will melt in your mouth. You can use almonds, walnuts, or even dark chocolate chips as a garnish in this recipe. If you don't have raspberry tea bags on hand, use any fruit-infused tea bags and a handful of fresh raspberries when cooking and they will work just as well.

Flank Steak with Middle Eastern Spice Marinade

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. beef flank steak, cut in half, lengthwise
• 1 tbsp. garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp. chile flakes
• 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Makes 4 Servings

1. Season steak with salt and pepper. Let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Combine remaining ingredients.
3. Spread spice mix evenly over both sides of the steak; rub in with you fingers. Place steak in a shallow dish. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 1-24 hours.
4.  For a charcoal grill, place meat on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals. Grill for 17-21 minutes or until medium doneness (160 F), turning once halfway thought grilling. For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Place meat on grill rack over heat. cover and grill as above.
5. Transfer grilled meat to a cutting board. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. To serve, slice very thinly across the grain.

WW POINTS  VALUE: 4 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the New Sonoma Cookbook. Here's another quick and easy way to enjoy your steak without having to go out to the restaurant. If you enjoy Mexican food or any other spicy food, you'll love this dish. The key to the heat in this spicy is the combination of cumin and cardamom. You can enjoy this steak on it's own with a side of sautéed vegetables, serve it in a salad or serve as a sandwich in a pita with a sauce. You can also use this Middle Eastern marinade on chicken, turkey, pork, lamb, and if you dare, fish and your protein will still be delicious. 

Mango Lassi

Ingredients:

• 1 medium mango, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 1/2 cups low-fat or nonfat plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup chilled water
• 1 tbsp granular sugar substitute
• Pinch ground cardamom
• Ice cubes

Makes 4 (3/4-cup) Servings

In a blender, combine mango, yogurt, water, sugar substitute and cardamom, if using; puree until smooth. Fill 4 (8 oz.) glasses with ice cubes. Pour Mango Lassi over ice and serve.

WW POINTS VALUE: 2 pts

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Taste of Summer Cookbook. It is officially the first day of Spring and the weather will be getting warmer and it's a good reason to fire up the grill and make some cool, refreshing drinks. A Lassi is a frothy and refreshing yogurt drink and what is considered the official drink of India. A Lassi is often made with fresh fruit. You can use any kind of fruit with this recipe and it will still be delicious. Don't add too much cardamom because cardamom has a strong flavor to it and a little bit of it goes a long way. This drink is perfect for a morning or afternoon snack and a savior during a heat wave.

 

Bombay Style Sole or Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fat-free plain yogurt
• 1 tsp ground curry
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 1 tsp ground paprika
• 1 tsp dried cilantro
• 1 1/2 lbs. fillet of sole or boneless skinless chicken breasts
• salt
• freshly ground pepper

Makes 4 Servings

1.  In a blender or food processor, combine the yogurt, curry powder, cardamom, paprika and cilantro. Process to blend.
2. Place the sole or chicken in a rectangular baking dish. Cover with the yogurt mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours, turning the fillets  about every 30 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Cook the sole for 10 minutes, or until it flakes easily. Season with the salt and pepper. If you're cooking with chicken, increase the cooking time to 20 minutes and then season the chicken with salt and pepper.

WW POINTS VALUE: 3 pts

 

Note: This recipe appear in the South Beach Diet Cookbook. I have tried this recipe with both sole and Chicken and both recipes were quite hot and spicy. Indian food is known to be spicy and can clear your sinuses and it's quite tasty. I didn't like sole because it was to thin but I did like the Bombay flavors with the chicken. I wouldn't cook this recipe on a regular basis because the flavors are hot.

Indian Spiced Chilled Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 (28 oz.) can whole peeled tomatoes, with juices
• 1 1/3 cups low-fat or nonfat plain yogurt
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice

Makes 4 (1 1/2-cup) servings

1. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over a medium-high heat. Add cardamom, cumin and cayenne; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in onion, garlic and salt; reduce the heat to medium and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.
2. Add tomatoes and their juices, bring to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Cool briefly and then stir in the yogurt and lime juice.
3. Transfer half of the tomato mixture to a blender and puree until smooth; pour into a large bowl. Repeat with the remaining tomato mixture; pour into the bowl. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. Serve chilled.

WW POINTS VALUE: 3pts per serving

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Taste of Summer Cookbook. Summertime is approaching and who says you can't have soup in the summer? Tomato soup comes in many varieties and can be enjoyed anytime of the year.This soup is very creamy, rich and delicious. Indian food is spicy in it's own unique way. Indian spices include curry, cardamom, corriander, salt, pepper and sometimes cilantro; so it's not hot and spicy like Southwestern, Mexican or Caribbean. Indian flavor is very aromatic and this soup will be enjoyed during the hot summer months.