Greek Salad with Chicken Tenders

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. chicken tenders
• 1 tsp. Greek seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 1 (10 oz.) package cut-up romaine lettuce
• 6 pitted Kalamata olives, chopped or sliced
• 1 (8-9 oz.) package cooked beets, cut into wedges
• 1/4 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese

Makes 4 Servings (2 cups salad, 2/3 cup chicken, 1/3 cup beets, 1 tbsp. per serving)

1. Heat grill pan over medium-high heat until hot. Sprinkle chicken with Greek seasoning, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper; lightly spray with olive oil nonstick spray. Place chicken in pan and grill until cooked through, 5-6 minutes per side. Transfer to cutting board and let cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile, to make dressing, whisk together oil, vinegar, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in large serving bowl. Add romaine and olives; toss until coated evenly.
3. Cut the chicken into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Place on top of salad along with beets and feta.

WW POINTS VALUE: 4 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Family Meals Cookbook. This salad makes a great meal any time of the week for lunch or dinner. This salad is bursting with Greek flare and will quickly fill you up. If you don't have Greek seasoning on hand, use a combination of dill, parsley and oregano for an authentic Greek flare. Also, if you don't have beets available, use a diced tomato and the salad will still be delicious.

Lemon-Blueberry Pound Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp. lemon zest
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 6 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
• 1  1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup fat-free egg substitute
• 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream, at room temperature
• 1 cup fresh or frozen  blueberries

Makes 12 Servings (1/12 cake per serving)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray a 4 1/2 x 8 1/2-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray.
2. Whisk together the flour, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside. Whit an electric mixer on medium speed , beat the butter until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat until fluffy, about 4 minutes. Reduce the speed to low. Gradually beat in the egg substitute. Alternately add the flour mixture and sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture and beating just until blended. Gently fold in the blueberries.
3. Scrape the batter into the pan; spread evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour, 10 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a rack 10 minutes. Remove the cake from the pan and let cool completely on the rack.

WW POINTS VALUE: 5 pts.

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Best-Ever Desserts Cookbook. Homemade pound cake is delicious. This pound cake is like a moist muffin shaped like a pound cake. This cake has nice flavors to it and the blueberries literally melt in your mouth. Whenever you are baking, it's important to beat the butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. This process takes only 4 minutes, depending on your mixer, and the result should be light and fine-textured.

Bing Cherry-Brown Sugar Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 cups Bing or other sweet cherries (about 12 oz.), pitted
• 2 tbsp. packed light brown sugar
• 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
• pinch salt

Makes 1 1/2 cups (1/4 cup per serving)

 

Melt the butter ina medium skillet set over medium heat. Add the cherries and cook, stirring frequently, until they begin to release their juice, 3-5 minutes. Stir in the brown sugar, lemon juice and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the juices thicken slightly, about 4 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat; cool slightly to serve warm, or transfer to a covered container; refrigerate up to 2 days. Gently reheat to serve.

WW POINTS VALUE: 1 pt.

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Best-Ever Desserts Cookbook. This is what I call a fruity sauce. I love cherries and I really loved this sauce. This sauce has a smooth, silky texture to it bursting with flavor. This sauce goes great on top of ice cream, frozen yogurt, pancakes, waffles and slices of angel food cake.

Nectarine-Blueberry Gelatin Cups

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups cool water
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 envelopes  unflavored gelatin
• 3 small ripe nectarines, halved, pitted and chopped
• 1 pint blueberries

Makes 8 Servings

1. Combine the water, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan and set over high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved; stir in the lemon juice. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Pour 1 cup of the lemon mixture into a small bowl; sprinkle with the gelatin and let soften, about 5 minutes.
2. Heat the lemon mixture over medium heat just until hot; remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the gelatin mixture; stir in the gelatin is completely dissolved. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve set over medium bowl.
3. Divide the nectarines and blueberries among eight 6 to 8-ounce custard cups or ramekins. Ladle the gelatin mixture over the fruit, pressing on the fruit so it is submerged. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled and set, at least 3 hours or up to 2 days.
4. To unmold, run a thin knife around the edges of the cups to loosen the gelatin, then dip the cups into a bowl of hot water about 5 seconds. Invert the cups onto plates, shaking it gently to help free the gelatin; lift off the cups.

WW POINTS VALUE: 2 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Best-Ever Desserts Cookbook. These are probably the most elegantly looking desserts I've ever made. If you remember Jell-O molds, these desserts are like mini Jell-O molds. They look colorful and they taste sweet and fruity. The total preparation and cook time for these sweet treats is 20 minutes. Don't be intimidated by these desserts. They are easy to make and they look elegant when they are presented in the right way. I highly recommend serving this dessert to family and friends on a hot summer day because it will fill them up and cool them off.

 

Sour Cherry Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 (24 oz.) jar pitted tart cherries
• 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
• pinch salt
• 1 cup lime sorbet

Makes 4 Servings (1/2 cup soup, 2 tablespoons cherries, and 1/4 cup sorbet per serving)

1. Put the cherries in a sieve set over a medic bowl. Remove 1/2 cup of the cherries and set aside; reserve the juice. Put the remaining cherries in a food processor and puree until smooth. Pour the cherry puree through a sieve set over the same bowl, pressing hard on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Stir in the reserved cherry juice, the lemon juice, and salt.
2. Refrigerate, covered, until the soup is thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. Ladle 1/2 cup soup into each of 4 shallow soup bowls. Garnish each serving with 2 tablespoons of the reserved cherries and 1/4-cup scoop of the sorbet. Serve at once.

WW POINTS VALUE: 3 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Best-Ever Desserts Cookbook. This is a great dessert to enjoy during the summer when fresh produce is in season, it's hot outside and you want to cool off. If you enjoyed cherry limeade during the summer, you'll love this sweet treat. There is also no added sugar in this treat too. The flavors of cherry and lime really compliment each other and the treat taste delicious.

Strawberries with Strawberry-Orange Sabayon

Ingredients:

• 2 (1 lb.) containers strawberries, hulled
• 1/2 cup dry white wine or white grape juice
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 (3-inch) strip orange zest, removed with a vegetable peeler
• 3 egg yolks

Makes 4 Servings (1 1/4 cups sabayon & 1 cup strawberries per serving)

1. Chop enough strawberries to equal 1 cup; set aside. Quarter the remaining strawberries and divide evenly among 4 wine glasses or goblets; set aside.
2. Combine the chopped strawberries, wine or grape juice, orange juice, sugar, and orange zest in a medium saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Reduce the heat and simmer until the strawberries are very soft, about 5 minutes. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve set over a small bowl. pressing hard on the solids to extract  as much liquid  as possible; discard the solids.
3. Meanwhile, fill a medium saucepan with 1 1 /2 inches of water and bring almost to a simmer over medium heat. With a hand mixer on medium-high speed, beat the egg yolks in deep bowl until frothy, about 1 minute. Slowly beat in the warm strawberry mixture. Set the bowl over the saucepan and beat until the mixture is tripled in volume and very thick, about 10 minutes. Remove the bowl from the saucepan. Spoon the sabayon over the strawberries, dividing  it evenly. Serve at once.

WW POINTS VALUE: 3 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the WW Best-Ever Desserts Cookbook. A Sabayon is an Italian dessert that is made with egg yolks, granulated sugar and white wine. The dessert version is a light custard that is whipped to incorporate a large amount of air. Since the 1960s, in restaurants in areas of the United States with large Italian populations, zabaione is usually served with strawberries, blueberries, peaches in a champagne In France, it is called sabayon, while its Italian name is zabaione. You can enjoy this elegant European treat for dessert, breakfast or even as a snack. Fruit tastes so good with white wine. You can use any summer fruit in this recipe and the dish will still be delicious.

Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup fat-free sour cream
• 3 scallions, chopped
• 1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 3 cups cooked shredded chicken breast
• 8 large lettuce leaves

Makes 4 Servings

 

In a medium bowl, combine the sour cream, scallions, parsley, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Toss well to blend. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Serve on a bed of lettuce leaves.

 

WW POINTS VALUE: 6 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Cookbook. This is what I call, quick, easy and tasty. This salad is simple to make and it tastes delicious. When you do cook the chicken, be sure to season the chicken with salt, freshly ground black pepper and minced garlic for a flavorful chicken. Nobody wants to eat a bland chicken. I also highly recommend adding some minced celery for an extra crunch to the chicken salad. Celery always adds a flavorful crunch to almost anything.