New Food Find: Banquet Cheesy Potato Bake

I just started buying this product.  I used to buy a similar meal made by Lean Cuisine (Cheddar Potatoes with Broccoli), but I haven't been able to find it anymore.  When I saw this in the Banquet section I figured I'd give it a try. It is very similar to the Lean Cuisine version and is much cheaper at $1.00! The iTrackBites scanner give a WW point value at 5 which is the same as the Lean Cuisine meal.  The nutritional content is somewhat different however...it has 2 g more fat  4 g less protein, 6 g less carbs, and 180 mg more sodium, with 10 less calories.

Overall I say .... Score!

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Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup for Weight Watchers

If you need a quick, low point lunch or dinner , try making this easy  chicken noodle soup.  It's tasty and the cream of chicken soup adds a satisfying creaminess to the broth. Sometimes I make it when I have leftover cooked spaghetti or noodles, or cooked chicken breast, which saves several steps:

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

Makes 8 - 1 cup servings
WW pts+ per serving: 3

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup frozen Peas and Carrots
• 1/2 cup uncooked celery, sliced
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 can low-fat cream of chicken soup
• 1 teas. garlic salt
• 1/8 teas. black pepper
• 1 cup sliced chicken breast
• 6 cups water
• 6 oz. noodles (1/2 of 12 oz box or 3 cups cooked)

Directions:

• Add large chicken breast or 4-5 chicken tenders to 2 cups water and simmer until tender.  
• Remove chicken from pan and cube.
• Add 4 additional cups of water  to broth in pot and bring to boil. (if using leftover chicken add 5 teaspoons chicken bouillon to water)
• Add noodles, soup, celery, onion, peas and carrots and cook 5 minutes.
• Return cubed, cooked chicken back to pot. 
• Add salt and pepper to taste and simmer on low for 15 - 20 minutes until veggies and noodles are done (not mushy).

Enjoy!

Ramen Noodle Cabbage Salad Light for Weight Watchers

Yesterday I went to a girls-only poolside party at a friend's home.  I was asked to bring a salad since she knew I was being diligent about my food choices.  I immediately thought of a favorite warm weather salad that I love - Ramen Noodle Cabbage Salad!  As soon as I thought of this side dish, I almost decided it was not a good choice because of the dressing and Ramen noodles. (Did you know that a bowl of packaged ramen noodles is 10 points?)

However, it sounded so good I moved forward. I have been determined to learn ways to eat the foods I love within the Weight Watcher's guidelines, so I found several recipes online and developed a "lighter" version of this tasty salad.  The changes I made involved less oil, sugar substitute and leaving out the seasonings from the package (which some recipes call for and adds 2 pts).  The best part is that it didn't taste any different to me and was a hit with my non-dieting BFFs.  Here's it is:

Ramen Noodle Cabbage Salad Light

Makes 6 large servings (approx 1 1/2 - 2 cups)
WW points+: 5

Ingredients:

• 1/2 head medium cabbage, shredded (or cole slaw mix)
• 1-2 tender celery stalks (pieces) sliced thinly
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated
• 4 green onions, sliced thinly
• 2 oz. sliced almonds
• 2-3 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1 uncooked package chicken Ramen noodle mix (without the seasonings), crumbled

Dressing:

• 2 T sesame oil
• 1/8 cup rice vinegar
• 5 teas. baking sugar substitute (such as Splenda)
• 1 teas. low sodium soy sodium

 Directions:

•  Mix cabbage, onions, carrots together in large bowl. 
• Make Dressing -  In separate small bowl mix oil, vinegar, soy sauce and sugar substitute. Stir and refrigerate.
• 1/2 hour before serving, add almonds, sesame seeds and crumbled dry Ramen noodles (without the seasoning packet) to salad and mix thoroughly.  Pour dressing mixture over salad and stir again. 
• Refrigerate 1/2 to 1 hour and serve

Note: The Ramen noodles will soften after a few hours, so leftovers won't have the crunch like the salad did when fresh, however, that doesn't stop anyone from finishing them off!  :)

Food Discovery: Sara Lee 45 Calories and Delightful Bread

Even though I don't eat a lot of bread, I made a terrific discovery on my last grocery shopping trip:  Sara Lee has a bread that tastes great and is only 2 points for 2 slices of bread!

Sara Lee offers their "45 Calories and Delightful" brand in white, wheat, whole wheat and multi-grain.  Be sure to run the calculations because I found that a serving of whole wheat came out to 2 points (2 slices) while the multi-grain was 3 points.  Either way, it is quite the point bargain for 2 slices of bread!

Now I can make my big fat turkey sandwich (2 slices of bread, 3 ounces of turkey breast, low-fat mayo, low fat cheese, green pepper slices, tomato and lettuce for 5 points!

Sara Lee's 45 Calories and Delightful bread is very light and fluffy in texture, and tastes great too. Score!

Sara Lee Pita Pockets

If you haven't figured it out yet, Pita Pockets are a great sandwich option for Weight Watchers.

I buy Sara Lee's Mr. Pita Bread which has 12 pita pockets (1/2 of each "Loaf" in the bag).  Each pocket is only 2 pts, and can be filled with tuna salad, chicken salad, grilled chicken or skirt steak, ground beef.  Top each pocket off with lettuce, cucumbers, shredded radish or jicima. I just ate a fat, yummy tuna salad pita pocket that had a total of only 4 points!

I've also stuffed a pocket with 1/4 cup of low fat cheese (such as Sargento's 4 cheese Mexican blend) and grilled it......  It tasted somewhere between a grilled cheese and cheese crisp. (4 pts)

I'm sure there are other options for Pita Pockets....like as a pizza crust...what are your ideas? Do you have any recipes to share?