Chicken Penne Pasta

Why is it kids don’t like vegetables? A good portion of all recipes I read that are geared toward families always say, “This recipe is a good way to get your kids to eat their vegetables.”

I guess we were lucky with our kids. I would not say they were perfect, but never caught either of them hiding their veggies in napkins, knocking them off the plate, so the dog could eat them, or run to the bathroom to spit it out. Once I did teach them, what their Auntie Angela used did when she was little. When my sister didn’t like a vegetable my mom served, my sister would stir it into her mashed potatoes to mask their taste. Whatever works right?

I like this recipe because it is full of color and taste, and the bonus is it uses wheat pasta, lean chicken breast and low sodium chicken broth.  This is a quick and easy meal, which usually there aren’t any leftovers because the kids gobble it down.

Chicken Penne Pasta

8 oz uncooked whole wheat penne pasta, cooked per package instructions minus the salt

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

½ cup low sodium chicken broth

1 cup broccoli florets

½ teaspoon salt (I usually omit)

Ground pepper to taste

2 Tablespoon olive oil

3 Tablespoon fresh basil, chopped

3 oz parmesan cheese

Directions:

Coat large skillet with cooking spray and heat on medium temp

Add chicken and cook 4 minutes on each side or until done

Remove chicken from pan, slice into strip, keep warm

Add onion garlic and red pepper to skillet and sauté 5-7minutes

Add chicken broth and broccoli, cover and cook for 3-5minutes, stir occasionally until broccoli is lightly steamed

In a large serving bowl, toss together pasta, vegetables and chicken

Season with salt, pepper, and olive oil, garnish each serving with basil and cheese

Low Fat Cran-Blueberry Muffins…

I love muffins from a coffee shop, but those muffins do not like us. They are usually high in fat and sugar. Just because you are watching your weight does not mean you have to do without, you have just have to make smarter choices. The muffin recipe today uses whole-wheat, orange juice, blueberries, apricots and cranberries. If you wanted to replace the white sugar, my choice would be clear agave syrup. This recipe was written by Annette Snoek, for Weight Watchers and yes, I did tinker with it a bit…

I read once that if you only did your grocery shopping on the outside rows you would have everything you need to sustain life. Fruits, veggies, dairy and meat, interesting concept, but it is true our bodies do not need any of the engineered processed foods. I thought about it and started a self-argument of I need the baking row for the spices… well I don’t since I can buy fresh herbs. So for those who need a challenge, try it out!

This should make 18 muffins.

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups whole-wheat flour

2/3 cup sugar

1½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

½ teaspoon cornstarch

1/3 cup cold margarine, diced

¾ nonfat plain yogurt

1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed

2 eggs

1 ½ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen

24 dried apricot halves, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F

Either spray muffin cups with cooking spray or insert paper liners.

In a medium bowl combine, yogurt, orange juice, and eggs.

In a large bowl combine, flour, sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, cut in margarine until flour mixture looks like crumbs.

Stir the yogurt mix into the large bowl, until just combined. Gently fold the fruit into the mixture.

Spoon batter into muffins cups, filling two-thirds full.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.