Chicken Dumpling Soup

3/4 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. olive oil
1/4 cup AP flour
4 cups chicken broth, divided
1 cup water
2 cups frozen French-cut green beans
1 1/2 cups sliced onions
1 cup coarsely shredded carrots
1/4 tsp. dried marjoram
2/3 cup reduced-fat biscuit/baking mix
1/3 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/3 cup milk

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. In a nonstick skillet, saute chicken in oil until browned and juices run clear.

In a large saucepan, combine flour and 1/2 cup broth until smooth. Stir in water and remaining broth. Add the beans, onions, carrots, marjoram and chicken. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile in a small bowl, combine the biscuit mix, cornmeal and cheese. Stir in milk until just moistened. Drop batter in 12 mounds onto simmering soup. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in a dumpling comes out clean (do not lift the cover while simmering).

Grilled Marinated Pork Chops

from Light & Tasty

INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup tomato juice
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
4 boneless pork loin chops (3/4 inch thick and 4 ounces each)


DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, combine the first 15 ingredients. Pour 1/2 cup marinade into a large resealable plastic bag; add pork chops. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade for basting.

If grilling the pork, coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray before starting the grill. Drain and discard marinade. Grill pork, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 in. from the heat for 4-6 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 160°, basting frequently with reserved marinade.

Yield: 4 servings.

Garlic Lime Chicken

1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. thyme
6 bonelss skinless chicken breasts
2 T. butter
1/2 cup chicken broth
4 T. lime juice

In a bowl, mix together first 7 ingredients. Evenly sprinkle mixture on both sides of chicken breasts.

In a skillet heat butter and olive oil together over medium high heat. Saute chicken until golden brown on each side, about 5 minutes on either side.

Remove chicken and add lime juice and chicken broth to the pan, whisking up the browned bits off the bottom fo the pan. Keep cooking until sauce has reduced slightly. Add chicken back to the pan to thoroughly coat and serve.

Mexicalli Pie

Serves 8

16 ounces ground 90% lean turkey or beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green and/or red bell peppers
1 1/2 cups frozen whole kernel corn
1 cup chunky salsa
3/4 (3 ounces) Kraft shredded reduced-fat Cheddar Cheese
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup (3 ounces) crushed corn chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet sprayed with olive-oil-flavored cooking spray, brown meat, onions, and green pepper. Add corn, salsa, Cheddar Cheese, and black pepper.

Spray a 10-inch pie plate with olive-oil-flavored cooking spray. Place meat mixture in pie plate. Top with crushed corn chips.

Bake 30 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving.


Each serving equals:HE: 2 Protein, 3/4 Bread, 1/2 Vegetable, 1/4 slider, 10 optional calories204 calories, 10 gm fat, 15 gm protein, 14 gm carbohydrate, 324 mg sodium, 2 gm fiberDIABETIC: 2 MEAT, 1 STARCH

Crockpot 40 Clove Garlic Chicken

-1 large broiler/fryer whole chicken (as big as your crock will fit)
-thyme
- rosemary
- sage
- parsley
-salt
-fresh ground pepper
-40 cloves UNPEELED garlic
-baguette or french bread slices, toasted

Season the chicken in and out with salt, pepper, and generously with the herbs. Place in the crockpot. Place the cloves all around and on top of the chicken.

Cover and cook on low 8 hours.

Remove chicken to serving platter.

Remove garlic to small bowl.

We actually did try the 40-Clove Garlic Chicken recipe last week and... it was great!! The chicken was so moist and tender with a nice flavor. I even liked squeezing out the whole cloves onto some buttered bread, though the chicken was by far my favorite part. DH loved it too and gave it five stars. The best part was that it was so easy to make, being in the crockpot and all. I usually don't care for the texture or flavor of chicken in the crockpot, but was pleasantly surprised by this recipe and will definitely be making it again.

Herbed Pot Roast

(from Taste of Home)

1 boneless beef rump or chuck roast (3 to 3-1/2 pounds)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 can (10-1/2 ounces) condensed beef broth
8 carrots, cut into thirds
8 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 large onion, quartered
1 cup water

In a Dutch oven, brown roast in oil over medium heat. Combine the seasonings; sprinkle over meat. Add broth and bring to a boil.

Cover and bake at 325° for 2 hours, basting occasionally. Add carrots, potatoes, onion and water.

Cover and bake for 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Thicken pan juices for gravy if desired. Yield: 8 servings.

Triple-Mushroom Stroganoff

5 1/2 cups uncooked egg noodles
1/2 lb. fresh button mushrooms, halved
2 2/3 cups sliced baby portabello mushrooms
1 pkg. sliced fresh shiitake mushrooms
3 shallots, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 T. butter
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth, divided
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 T. flour
1 cup sour cream
1 T. minced fresh parsley

Cook noodles accoding to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook the mushrooms, shallots and garlic in butter for 6-8 minutes or until tender. Stir in 1 1/4 cups broth, mustard, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Combine flour with remaining broth until smooth; gradually stir into mushroom mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickenend and bubbly. Reduce heat to low; gradually stir in sour cream (do not boil). Drain noodles; serve with mushroom sauce. Sprinkle with parsley.

Dave's rating: ***** 5 Stars! We both loved that it was meatless and super-flavorful! Even the kids liked the sauce, though they wouldn't eat the chunks of mushrooms. *Sigh* The calories versus portion size was a big plus on this recipe as well.