Black Bean & Goat Cheese Tostadas

Ingredients:

• 4 (8-inch) whole-wheat tortillas
• 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 (15 oz.) can black soybeans, rinsed and drained
• 4 ounces reduced-fat goat cheese, crumbled (3/4 cup)
• 1/2 (1-pound) head romaine lettuce, chopped (4 cups)
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 lime, quartered
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Makes 4 Servings

1. Heat oven to 400 F.
2. Lightly spray tortillas with cooking spray and place, slightly overlapping, on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly puffed and browned, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
3. While tortillas are toasting, heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Stir in beans and heat until warmed through. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
4. With tortillas still on the baking sheet, top with beans and cheese; bake until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with lettuce, tomatoes and scallions. Squeeze lime ovver top and serve hot.

WW POINTS VALUE: 6 pts

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Quick & Easy Cookbook. I wanted a light dinner with out any meat and I came across this recipe and it looked to good to pass up. My mother and I loved these tasty Mexican treats. All the veggies in these tostadas make them colorful and quickly fill you up. The goat cheese makes these tosadas even creamier. I also loved how the tortillas puffed up in the oven and took their own bowl shape when they came out of the oven and cooled. I would totally serve these Mexican vegetarian delights at your next fiesta. Vegetarians and meat lovers will loves these totadas and eat them up. Celebrity chefs Bobby Flay, Jose Garces and Aron Sanchez would be very impressed with these treats as well. Iron Chef Flay, I'm still waiting to challenge you to an Iron Chef Throwdown!

 



Almond-Star Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole almonds
• 1 cup whole-grain pastry flour
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup granular sugar substitute
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup tras-fat-free margarine, cut into small pieces and refrigerated
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp almond extract

Makes 4 Dozen (2-inch) stars or 3 Dozen (3-inch) stars

1. Heat oven to 275 F. Spread almonds on a baking sheet and toast until fragrant and lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven, transfer to e plate, and cool completely.
2. Pulse almonds, whole-grain and all-purpose flours, sugar substitue and a pinch of salt in food processor until nutsare finely ground. Add margarine and and pulse until margarine is incorporated. Add zest, vanilla and almond extract; pulse until dough just begins to come together.
3. Remove dough from processor to a work surface. Knead once or twice, divide in half, and form into 2 flat disks. WRap disks and freexe for 1 hour or refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
4. Heat oven to 325 F. Lightly coat2 baking sheets with cooking spray.
5. Roll out 1 dish of dough between 2 sheets of wax paper to 1/8-inch thick. Cut as  many stars as possible, carefully transferring them to the baking sheets as you go. Use a beutter knife or small spatula to making transferring cut cookie dough from wax paper to baking sheets easier.) Reroll and cut the scraps. (If the dough becomes too soft wihle cutting, wrap and chill again until firm.) Repeat with the second disk.
6. Bake cookies until lightly golden on edges and bottoms, rotating sheets once halfway through, 16-18 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 2-3 minutes before transferring with a spatula to wire racks to cool completely.
    

WW POINTS VALUE: 2  pts per 2-or-3-inch cookie

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook. I was really excited about making these cookies but they turned out to be a disappointment. I really love the flavor of almonds but these cookies tastes like almonds and grainy flour in cooked in a doughy substance. The key to a successful baking outcome is NOT TUBBED butter or margarine but butter or margarine sticks because they are more solid in texture. Also, these cookies did not have any eggs in them and eggs are also the key to making cookies chewy. This is one South Beach recipe I will not be cooking again.



Autumn Veggie Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 cup frozen shelled edamame beans
• 2 ounce baby spinach (2 cups)
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Makes 4 (1 1/2-cup) Servings

1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, reduce heat to medium-low. and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Do not brown.
2. Add broth, increase heat to high, and bring to a boil. Add sweet potato and edamame, reduce ot a simmer, and cook until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in spinach and heat until wilted. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

WW POINTS VALUE: 3 pts

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Quick & Easy Cookbook. I was craving something warm and comforting and this soup hit the spot for me tonight. Autumn is officially here and what better way to celebrate autumn than a cup of warm vegetable soup. Forget the canned vegetable soup you buy at the store; this soup tastes just as good and is more colorful. I didn't have any spinach on hand so I used broccoli instead and the soup was still delicious. The edamame and sweet potato made the soup very filling and I added a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes to give the soup and extra kick of heat and it worked. This soup is great for lunch or dinner and perfect for vegetarians. Parents, listen up: if you want your kids to eat more vegetables, this is the soup that will do it.

Blueberry-Melon Smoothies

Ingredients:

• 1 (3-pound) cantaloupe, seeded and cubed (3 cups)
• 3 cups frozen blueberries
• 3 cups nonfat or low-fat sugar-free vanilla yogurt
• Ice cubes

Makes 8 (1-cup) Servings

 

Puree 1 1/2 cups of the canteloupe and 1 1/2 cups of the blueberries in a blender until just combined, about 1 minute. Add 1 1/2 cups of the yogurt and several ice cubes and blend until ice cubes are processed, 1-2 minutes. Pour smoothie into 4 glasses. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

 

WW POINTS VALUE: 1 pt per drink

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Parties & Holidays Cookbook. this is a wonderful drink that is cold, refreshing and delicious and compliments any meal or just  to have as a light snack or dessert. The flavors of blueberry and canteloups go very well together in this drink. If you don't have vanilla flavored yogurt, you can use plain yogurt instead and add a touch of vanilla if you'd like.

Buckwheat Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 cup water
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Makes 12 pancakes

1. In a medium bowl, thoroughly combine the buckwheat flour, whole wheat flour, egg and baking powder, mixing until evenly blended. Add the water, applesauce and vanilla extract, and stir until only small lumps remain.
2. Heat a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Working in batches, pour the batter into the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the bottom is browned. Turn and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until golden brown. Removed to a plate and keep warm. Repeatto make a total of 12 pancakes.

WW POINTS VALUE:  1 pt (per pancake)

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Cookbook. Sometimes breakfast for dinner is what you need. I have cooked different variations of pancakes and these pancakes were delicious. The texture was perfect because of the 2 wheat flours and the applesauce. These pancakes are a blank canvass but you  can put any topping on these pancakes such as maple syrup, butter or even cooked fruit of your choice and they will be delicious but the toppings cut affect the point value. I highly recommend making these pancakes for a company brunch along with a buffet of fruit toppings because these pancakes are so chewy and moist people will be talking about them for days. Plus, they won't know those pancakes were healthy for them.



Apple-Cinnamon Wontons a la Mode

Ingredients:

• Butter-flavor cooking spray
• 2 medium apples, peeled, cored and minced
• 1 tbsp packed light brown sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 24  wonton wrappers
• 1 1/2 tbsp powdered sugar
• 3 cups light vanilla ice cream

Makes 6 Serving

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl, combine apples, brown sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon; toss to coat apples.
3. Place wonton wrappers on a flat surface. Drop apple mixture by teaspoonfuls onto center of each wrapper. Moisten edges of wrapper with wet fingers, fold over one corner to make a triangle and press sides together to seal. Transfer filled wrappers to prepared baking sheet and coat surfaces with cooking spray.
4. Bake until wontons are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Place wontons on individual plates and sift powdered sugar on top. Serve with ice cream on the side.
   
   

WW POINTS VALUE: 6 pts (4 wontons, 1 teaspoon of powdered sugar and 1/2 cup of ice cream per serving)

 

Note: This recipe appears on www.weightwatchers.com. Fall is here, apples are in season and it's time to turn on your oven and make your kitchen and house smell heavenly delicious. Wontons are usually thought of in Asian cuisine and the apple filling is like an Apple pie filling so this is an East-meets-West dish. Basically, this dessert puts a new twist on the traditional apple pie dessert. If you don't have ice cream, you can use plain yogurt or sour cream but it may affect the point value. These wontons can even be enjoyed without the ice cream as well. I also highly recommend adding nutmeg and cloves along with the cinnamon to add more flavors to the wontons.




Asian Turkey Meatballs in Lettuce Cups

Ingredients:

Dressing:

• 1 tbsp Asian fish sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil
• Pinch of red peppers flakes

Meatballs:

• 1 lb. ground turkey breast
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 2 tsp rice vinegar
• 2 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 12 large Boston lettuce leaves
• 1 small cucumber, cut into matchsticks
• 1 cup mint leaves

Makes 4 (6-meatballs) Servings

1. For the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together fish sauce, vinegar, sesame oil and pepper flakes; set aside at room temperature.
2. For the meatballs: In a large bowl, stir together turkey, garlic, ginger, sesame oil, vinegar and soy sauce. Form mixture into 24 (2-inch) meatballs.
3. Lightly coat a large skillet with cooking spray and heat to medium-high. Add meat balls in 2 batches and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, 5-7 minutes for each batch.
4. Lay 3 lettuce leaves on each of the 4 plates. Place 2 meatballs on top of each leaf. Top meatballs with cucumber and mint leaves, drizzle with dressing, and serve.

WW POINTS VALUE: 4 pts

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Taste of Summer Cookbook. Who doesn't love  a hearty meatball once in a while? Just because summer is over it doesn't mean you can't enjoy these tasty little treats. I have come to really love Asian food since I started cooking 4 years ago. When you think of meatballs, you normally think of Italian food served with some kind of pasta. Meatballs can be enjoyed in any kind of ethnic palate of any meat. These meatballs are on Phase 1 because there are no breadcrumbs in these meatballs. I really loved these meatballs because they they were spicy, sweet and hot with a cool and refreshing aftertaste from the mint and cucumber. These treats are great for a light lunch, after a workout or even for a dinner party. Forget going out to that local Asian restaurant or order takeout. Cook these Asian treats at home in 30 minutes or less and you'll be happy.