Food, Feminism, & life

Black Bean Taco “Cupcakes”

I had a serious crunchy food craving yesterday & decided to finally take a look through the Emily Bites main course cupcake recipes that everyone raves about. Her original Taco Cupcakes inspired my version. Mine is vegetarian because I didn’t feel like eating ground beef last night. Skipping the beef & loading them up with black beans saved 2 PP per Cupcake! I ate two right out of the oven & they were incredible. Thanks for the idea, Emily!

The secret ingredients that made these so delicious were Cheeze Whiz & Trader Joe’s corn salsa. I always have a jar of that salsa in my fridge & it really brightens up meals. It’s sweet with a slight kick to it & is perfect against spicy salsa. I suggest going out & getting a jar, but if you don’t have a Trader Joe’s near you just sub in sub frozen corn kernels.

Black Bean Taco “Cupcakes”

Servings: 4 ● Points Plus: 4

Ingredients:

• 16 wonton wrappers
• 1 can black beans with jalapenos, drained
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 packet of taco seasoning
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 onion, diced
• 8 TB fat free refried beans
• 8 TB shredded Weight Watchers Mexican cheese
• 8 tsp Cheeze Whiz (yummmmmmm)
• 8 TB Trader Joe’s corn salsa
• Your favorite salsa (about 8 TB) - I used Trader Joe’s

Directions:

1) Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a cupcake tin with non-stick spray & press a wonton wrapper into 8 cupcake holes.

2) Saute the onion in a pan. When soft add the black beans & garlic. Toss until the black beans are warm. Add 1/4 cup water and the taco seasoning, toss & turn off the heat.

3) In the cupcake tin, layer the following on top of the wonton wrapper:

• 1 TB refried beans
• 1 tsp Cheeze Whiz
• 1 TB corn salsa
• Second wonton wrapper (really push this down)
• 1.5 TB black bean mixture
• 1 TB regular salsa
• 1 TB shredded cheese

4) Bake at 375 degrees for 18 minutes. Let cool & remove cupcakes from tin. Top with your favorite taco toppings!

Homemade Kani Salad

Kani (crab) salad is one thing I always have to order when I’m in a sushi restaurant, but I imagine that it’s very high in points because of the real mayo.I’ve been craving it a lot lately so I decided to make my own version at home. It came out almost exactly like the salad you get a sushi restaurant! I didn’t get my slices of cucumber & crab as thin because I opted not to make a mess of my food processor, but they were close enough. This is perfect for a light lunch, especially in the summer time.

Kani Salad

Servings: 2 ★ Points Plus: 5

Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber
• 120 g imitation crab (about 2 pouches)
• 4 TB light mayonnaise
• 1 TB sweet chili sauce (I use Trader Joe’s brand)
• 1 tsp Sriracha hot sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp rice vinegar
• Sesame seeds
• Soy sauce

Directions:

1) Peel cucumber & slice into matchsticks. Cut up the imitation crab into the same size matchsticks as the cucumber. Place in a large mixing bowl.

2) In a small bowl, mix the mayonnaise, rice vinegar, sriracha, & sweet chili sauce. Pour over cucumber & crab mixture. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Toss all together & serve immediately with soy sauce on the side.

*If you want, serve this over a bed of lettuce.

Heirloom Grape Tomato, Chicken, & Mozzarella Pasta Salad

I’ve been craving tomatoes & mozzarella lately, so I whipped this up for lunch today. I let it sit in the fridge over night so that all of the flavors would blend. It’s a perfect light lunch. You can use any herbs you have lying around. I have rosemary growing on my windowsill so I used that & dried basil.

Heirloom  Grape Tomato, Chicken, & Mozzarella Salad

Servings: 2 Points Plus: 6

Ingredients:

• 4 oz chicken breast, raw
• 8 grape tomatoes (heirloom if you can find them), sliced in half
• 2 oz fresh mozzarella
• 1 cup cooked wheat pasta, any shape
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 3 TB balsamic vinegar (more to taste if you like)
• 1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• kosher salt & black pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Cut the mozzarella into small cubes & combine in a bowl with the tomatoes, olive oil, pasta, half of the herbs, and balsamic vinegar. Stir to combine & let the ingredients sit while you cook the chicken.

2) Dice the chicken into small cubes, spray with olive oil spray, & toss with the remaining herbs. Cook in a skillet over medium-high heat until cooked through. Add to the bowl with the mozzarella & tomatoes, divide pasta salad into two bowls & serve immediately.

Serve this with crusty bread to soak up the sauce that’s leftover (adds points)!

Bangin’ Shrimp

Another recipe inspiration from Skinny Taste. Gina never fails!

I’ve never been to Bonefish Grill, but I’ve had Bang Bang Shrimp at a local restaurant near me & I loveeeee them. I don’t know if they got the idea from Bonefish Grill, but it doesn’t matter. At this restaurant they have a bit more of a slight buffalo taste & come with blue cheese on the side. The recipe I made is much creamier & I used large shrimp. Lightly frying them in a wok gave the shrimp a slight smoky flavor that was perfect with this spicy & sweet sauce. Serve these over rice with some of the extra sauce & a handful of shredded lettuce on top. The crispy cold lettuce goes really well with the hot shrimp.

Bangin’ Shrimp

Servings: 4 ● Points Plus: 7

Ingredients:

• 1 lb shelled & de-veined large shrimp
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 2 TB canola oil

Ingredients for sauce:

• 5 TB light mayonnaise
• 3 TB sweet chili sauce
• 1 tsp Sriracha hot sauce

Directions:

1) Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a bowl, whisk together & set aside.

2) Remove tails from shrimp, rinse, & set aside in a large bowl.

3) Combine the panko, cornstarch, salt, & pepper in a bowl. Toss with the shrimp, making sure each shrimp is coated. Some panko won’t stick to the shrimp, but that’s ok. Don’t worry if not all of the cornstarch & panko mixture is used.

4) Heat a wok over high heat. Add the canola oil & toss in the shrimp once hot. Toss the shrimp a few times until coated with the oil. Let cook 2-3 minutes, flip shrimp & cook another 2-3 minutes.

5) When shrimp are cooked, remove from wok & place in large bowl. Pour sauce over the shrimp & toss to coat. Serve immediately!

Coconut Chicken with Apricot Ginger Vinaigrette

The inspiration for this recipe came from Skinny Taste. After seeing a picture of coconut chicken I decided that I needed to make it asap.

I have a love/hate relationship with coconut. I love it in certain things, & hate it in others. I think it’s a texture issue. Coconut is also very sweet, and since I have to limit my sugar, I only used enough in this recipe to give it flavor without overpowering the recipe. These cutlets come out crunchy & slightly sweet & the warm vinaigrette is a perfect light sauce for them. I served them on top of shredded lettuce with vegetable quinoa pilaf on the side. I definitely recommend these for a summer meal.

Coconut Chicken with Apricot Ginger Vinaigrette

Servings: 4 ● Points Plus: 6

Ingredients for Chicken:

• 4 thin cut chicken breast cutlets
• 1/3 cup sweetened coconut flakes (in the baking aisle at the grocery store)
• 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup egg whites
• 1/8 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• olive oil spray

Directions:

1) Pre-heat oven to 400 degree. Rinse each cutlet & pat dry.

2) Combine the coconut, panko, & spices in a bowl. Place eggs in a second bowl.

3) Either dip the cutlets into the egg whites, or brush egg white onto them, and then coat in the panko mixture. Place each cutlet on a lined & sprayed baking sheet as you coat them.

4) Spray coated cutlets with olive oil spray & bake about 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway through. Keep an eye on them to make sure coconut is not burning. I ended up flipping my every 8 minutes or so.

5) Broil the cutlets for 1-2 minutes when they are finished baking. This will make them extra crunchy right before serving.

*Note: I bake my cutlets on the bottom rack of my oven because this makes them more crispy. If you see that the coconut is browning too fast this way, then move them up to the middle rack. Broil on the top rack.

Ingredients for Vinaigrette:

Servings: 4 ● Points Plus: 2

Ingredients:

• 2 TB olive oil
• 2 TB apricot preserves
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 4 TB cider vinegar
• Pinch each of kosher salt & black pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Directions:

1) Microwave the apricot preserves & oil in a bowl for 30 seconds.

2) Combine all ingredients with the preserves, whisk & serve with the cutlets while still warm.

Wonton Soup

Out of all the things I’ve made, I think this might be my favorite so far. I had a horrible stomach ache all night & when I finally got my appetite back I wanted a hot bowl of wonton soup. I immediately thought to make my own version. After some Googling & recipe reading, I came up with this recipe. The wontons are a bit tedious, but the flavor & final product of this soup is so worth it. The only thing I would do differently is cut down a bit on the ginger next time. I brought my mom a quart of this & then froze the leftover wontons. They’re a great thing to keep in the freezer! You just have to boil them in some chicken broth when you’re ready to eat them.

You have to try this! Filling the wontons took over an hour, but it was relaxing & perfect for a breezy spring afternoon. I put some music on & enjoyed the entire process. This recipe makes about 12 servings. Each serving is for 4 wontons, 1.5 cups of broth, and 1 tsp of sesame oil. If you use 5 wontons in your soup then the points go up to 7 per serving.

Wonton Soup

Servings: 12 ● Points Plus: 6

Ingredients:

For the Filling:

• 1 lb ground pork
• 3 green onions, minced
• 1/4 cup minced ginger root
• 1/2 cup minced bamboo shoots
• 7 shitake mushrooms, minced
• 3 TB soy sauce
• 2 TB sesame oil
• 2 TB cornstarch

Other Ingredients:

• Wonton wrappers (I like Nasoya brand - any brand of about 48 wrappers will do)
• Small bowl of water
• 18-20 cups chicken stock
• Scallions for garnish
• Sesame oil (1 tsp per bowl of soup)
• Pot of water

Directions:

1) Boil a large pot of water. Add 1 TB sesame oil & salt to water when it begins to boil.

2) Make the filling:

• You can either mince the onion, ginger, bamboo shoots, & mushrooms on your own, or you can place them one ingredient at a time in a food processor. I used the small bowl of my food processor for this. I honestly don’t know what people did before these things.
• In a large bowl, combine the minced ingredients with the pork, sesame oil, cornstarch, & soy sauce. Mix together until all ingredients are combined.

3) When water is beginning to boil, start making your wontons:

• Using either a cookie scoop or small spoon, scoop a little more than a tsp of filling into the center of a wonton wrapper.
• 
• Wet the edges of the wrapper & fold into a triangle. Pinch all of the edges together & try to get out any air bubbles as you do this.
• Wet the two points & fold them so that they cross at the corners.

(don’t they look like tough little warriors?)

4) When the water is boiling, add a few wontons at a time (I did about 6-7 per batch), and keep making other wontons as you go. By the time I made 6 more, the 6 I put in the water were ready to come out. You will know your wontons are cooked because they will float & bounce around in the water. They will sink when you first put them in.

This is what they look like when they’re cooked:

5) Keep making wontons & boiling them in batches. Make sure not to overcrowd your boiling water and keep the batches to about 6-8 wontons at a time.

6) Remove wontons from water & set aside. When ready to serve your soup, heat up the chicken broth & chop some scallions for garnish. Place 4 wontons in each bowl, top with 1.5 cups of chicken broth & 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Garnish with scallions & serve with soy sauce on the side. Enjoy!

*Note: These are very gingery. If you aren’t a huge fan of ginger then I would only use 1/8th of a cup.

Pasta with Chicken Sausage, Broccoli Rabe, & Fire Roasted Tomatoes

I get crazy vegetable cravings. This week it’s broccoli rabe. My mom once told my sister, dad, and I that we were each vegetables. I was an eggplant, my sister was a carrot, dad was a parsnip, and my mom was broccoli rabe. This is only funny to us, but it is one of our longest standing family jokes. My mom is very Italian and with her crazy curly hair & funny personality it totally suits that she would describe herself as “broccoli rabe,” or, “arook-i-dee-rahb” as we say it in my family.

This dish is a little spicy, very light, and full of flavor. I normally don’t like pasta without a lot of sauce on it, but this dish is changing my mind about that. For a vegetarian version, swap out the chicken sausage for cannelini beans & you’ll still get a nice serving of protein.

Pasta with Chicken Sausage, Broccoli Rabe, & Fire Roasted Tomatoes

Servings: 6 ● Points Plus: 6

Ingredients:

• 8 oz uncooked small shaped wheat pasta (rotini, shells etc)
• 2 chicken sausage links, any flavor you like (I recommend spinach & feta or sweet Italian)
• 15 oz can diced fire roasted tomatoes, drained of juices
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bunch broccoli rabe, trimmed of stems & cut into 2” pieces
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1/4 cup fat free chicken stock (you can omit this if you don’t have any)
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 4 lemon wedges
• 4 TB parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. In a large pot, boil water & cook pasta according to instructions. 4 minutes before the pasta is done, add the broccoli rabe to the pot.

2. Meanwhile, in a large sauce pan, heat the olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes.

3. Remove the sausage from its casing & crumble into pan. Cook until slightly browned. Once browned, add the tomatoes & simmer.

4. When pasta & broccoli rabe are finished, drain & add to the sauce pan. Toss with the sausage & tomatoes. Add the oregano, toss, and serve warm.

5. Garnish each serving with 1 TB parmesan cheese and a lemon wedge to be squeezed over the pasta. This will brighten up the dish.

*Note: This dish would also be great with fresh basil ribbons on top.