Food Friday - It's Italian

by Tracey G

I guess it's kind of fitting, a Primavera-style dish on the first day of Spring! And as if to celebrate, I heard my first chipmunk talking outside today ;-) Yay! Warmer weather is coming...just a little more patience is needed and the spring peepers will be next - best sound ever!

Still on my quest to keep on eating more healthfully, this one is pretty good in keeping with that theme, especially when you use a chicken broth that is virtually fat free - the brand I used had a mere 5 calories per cup! That's a pretty good base for some lighter fare I think. ;-) I once again found this recipe in my Taste Of Home magazine, and the sheer simplicity of it first caught my attention, then the potential for it being a recipe that would fit into what I'm trying to accomplish in the healthy department. I did however  make a couple changes, (of course, lol, because I can't leave anything alone ;-) ) - I didn't add as much of the julienned carrots as it called for - and even what I did add, I still feel was too much. I added about 3/4 of what it called for, next time will just do half or less. I feel that it came out too "carroty" tasting, but that's an easy thing to fix by using less, lol. But hey, if you like a more carroty tasting broth, by all means stick with the original amounts! :-D The other thing I did was add a couple teaspoons of chicken bouillon powder to bolster the flavor up a bit and add a bit of salt without adding just salt - I remembered that's what Ina Garten does in her chicken pot pie recipe that I use, so I used that technique for this.

This recipe is so simple. It's going to be one of those I can see I'd turn to when I need something fast for dinner, as I usually have everything on hand between the cupboard and freezer - the only thing not usually on hand are the tortellini, but that can be something easy to keep around as well, they can be frozen for up to a month or so. And it's done in one pot - can't go wrong with that! I told Harry this is even something he could make since it's just open some packages and combine, lol.

Start with 8 cups of your brand of choice chicken broth (or homemade if you have it!), which for me was 2, 32oz. each, containers of broth.

Place in a large saucepan, and bring to a boil. 

I kind of deviated here from the directions and instead of adding the peas, carrots and tortellini all at once, I added the carrots first and let them cook for a bit because I knew if they were crisp-tender, Harry would turn up his nose at the "crisp" part. I let them cook for a bit, then tested them, checking for the point when they were just at the crisp-tender stage, THEN I added the peas.....

...and the tortellini and pepper. 

Once I got the tortellini and pepper in, I then let it cook until the tortellini were done. All that's left to do is serve! LOL I served it with a nice crusty Italian bread. 

I can see there's lots of possibilities for this as far as adding different vegetables or even some cooked chicken. The recipe also calls for some thinly sliced fresh basil leaves to garnish with, I didn't have any to use, but once there's decent basil available (mostly out of my garden!) I will be adding it ;-)

Here's the recipe, courtesy of Taste Of Home :

Tortellini Primavera Soup

2 cartons, 32 oz. each, chicken broth

1 package, 10 oz., julienned carrots

1 package, 9 oz., cheese tortellini

1 cup frozen peas, about 4 oz.

1/4 tsp pepper

Thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

In a large saucepan, bring broth to a boil. Add carrots, peas, tortellini and pepper; return to a boil. Cook, uncovered, 7-9 minutes or until pasta is tender. Top servings with basil.

You can also freeze the leftovers. To use partially thaw overnight in refrigerator. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally.

Happy eating all ;-)

Tracey 

xoxo 


by Kris B.

While many around the world are eating corned beef and cabbage or a little coddle and champ perhaps with a little Irish soda bread on the side in honor of St. Paddy’s Day, Tracey and I seemed to be in an Italian mood.  This week we were both trying to get back into the regular weekly routine , Tracey after being sick much of last week and me after spending my spring break in Delaware working on estate stuff.  In emails that crossed one another, we independently came up with this week’s Italian-themed recipes.  This was another of those odd little synchronicities that often occurs with us.

As I write, a gentle spring rain is falling here in Texas.  It is definitely gray outside, but it is not the dark gray of winter.  It is starting to feel like spring, perhaps the gray feels less dreary because I noticed last evening that my first iris of the year has bloomed!

I just had to share this photo as a beacon of hope for all those who are still experiencing cold and snow.

Back to food…

I have been remarkably good with my quest to eat more intentionally, even in Delaware last week when we were forced to eat most of our meals out.  We had some nice meals, but we also ate a few in airports and on airplanes.  (I am a sucker for the soft pretzels in Terminal F at the Philadelphia airport…but, I planned for them into my WW daily points!)  My contribution to this week’s post, though it sounds somewhat healthy, is a killer to the point count!  That realization truly hurts my heart because pesto meatballs with couscous is one of my all-time favorite meals.  The pesto is what ups the fat, calories, and WW point value.  It is also the pesto that gives the meatballs the delicious flavor.  Dilemmas, dilemmas.

I consulted with my daughter who is a trained pastry chef and a fabulous cook.  Such a consultation turned out to be a big mistake on my part.  Pastry chefs love fat, there is no such thing as too much butter in their world.  My daughter is also a vegetarian so asking her anything about how to cook meat was me stupidly barking up the wrong tree; however, we did finally meet in the middle and seriously discuss the matter of my pesto problem.  

Brooke and I agreed that the pesto definitely added fat to the meatballs.  She asked me if I added fat when I made other kinds of meatballs or meatloaf.  I don’t.  We decided that I could just season the ground beef with basil, garlic, and a little parmesan cheese and cut the olive oil that is an integral ingredient of the pesto.  Next came a discussion about proportions.  After we’d figured out how much basil, garlic, and Parmesan cheese I should use with my pound and a half of lean ground beef, I asked the all important question, “So, do you think I should try the meatballs this way?”  her response without any hesitation, “No.  If you like them the way you’ve always made them then make them that way and enjoy the meal.”  Out of the mouth of babes…

So, you are getting the full calorie, and more importantly, full goodness of this recipe.  I plan to enjoy every bite of my meal without worrying or feeling guilty about the indulgence.  My rule of life, and I think that Tracey has said this as well, is “everything in moderation.”  The key to a healthy life, both physically and emotionally, is balance.  One somewhat indulgent meal a week is not going to upset that balance.

One of the reasons that I have always loved this recipe is that it is super simple to prepare, yet doesn't taste that way.  The ingredients are either pantry staples or packaged and easy to find at the grocery store.

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef   (I use the leanest that I can get.)

1/2 cup of crushed saltine crackers

1/2 cup of commercial pesto    (I make my own pesto over the summer and freeze it, but by         this time of year, that supply is depleted.  Either works just fine.)

1 egg

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

3/4 tsp black pepper

1 box commercially packaged couscous     (I usually use the Parmesan flavor)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brush baking sheets with olive oil.  I go fairly light on the olive oil and have had no problems with the meatballs sticking.

Combine the ground beef, pesto, cracker crumbs, egg, salt and pepper.  I have to say that this works best when you do it with your hands.

Form 12 meatballs and place on the cookie sheet.  Using a cookie scoop yields nicely shaped and uniformly sized meatballs.

Bake the meatballs for 25 minutes, turning once after about 15 minutes.

While the meatballs are baking, prepare the couscous according to the package directions.

To serve, spoon the couscous on the plate.  Top with three meatballs.  If you are feeling decadent, you can drizzle a little pesto over the meatballs and then top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.  Served with a side of freshly steamed broccoli or a green salad, this makes an easy weekday dinner or a great meal to serve guests.

One of my many weird quirks is that I love paper and pens and I thoroughly enjoy hand writing.  I would much rather sit with a pen and a yellow legal pad than in front of the computer.  I mention this because I copied this recipe by hand into my notebook of collected recipes.  I made the notation that the original recipe is from a Real Simple magazine, but I failed to indicate the issue or date of the exact publication.  

Happy Spring!!!