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Super Simple Chicken Taco Soup

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How many times in my life, after a very indulgent food weekend, have I said the words, “I’m going to have eat nothing but baked chicken and broccoli all next week!”?  I’m sure that those who know me roll their eyes as they laugh, because it’s no secret that I am not a fan of self-deprivation. This girl gotta eat!  In fact, I often find that when I try to deprive myself of food that makes me feel satisfied, I end up eating more in the long run.  Just about the only thing that helps me get myself back on track after a few days of eating “all the things” is doing some serious food-prep leg work.  

If you’ve been following around here for long, you know that I am a big fan of soups and stews.  I’m one of those people who can eat a bowl of soup or chili in the middle of an August afternoon.  Soups and stews are super easy to make and can easily fit into my food planning and pre-prepping rotations.  They are also great to help me feel full without going full-tilt down a crazy eating path. This Super Simple Chicken Taco Soup is one of my favorite make ahead meals.  It’s my go-to lunch this week and is saving me after a weekend of eating out.  ~ Tracy 

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Ingredients:

4 medium sized chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

1 can black beans, drained (15.5 oz.)

1 can pinto beans, drained (15.5 oz.)

1 can tomato sauce (8 oz.)

1 can diced tomatoes and green chiles, such as Ro-Tel

1 c. frozen corn

½ c. finely chopped yellow onion

½ c. finely chopped red bell pepper

1 c. water

2 T. taco seasoning

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. chili powder

Add all ingredients together in a large stock pot or soup pan.  Bring to a low boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer on low heat for approximately 30 minutes.

Serve topped with your favorite shredded cheese or sour cream.

This soup makes approximately 7 cups and is zero points/cup on the WW Freestyle/Blue plan.

 

 

Thai Chicken Pizza

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My family loves pizza. What’s not to love?  But I get tired of the same, run-of-the-mill basics.  They are good, but come on.   I’ve got to have some variety, y’all!

When I was going to college, there was a little, local restaurant in Stillwater called the Thai Cafe, which I loved.  I miss it!  Now, I have to travel quite a ways to get Thai food.  So I came up with this jazzed up, easy to make, tasty pizza, combining some of my favorite flavors.

It is our new favorite!   ~Kathy

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Ingredients:

1 pizza crust (your favorite recipe or refrigerated — I used Pillsbury thin crust refrigerated dough; points figured with this dough selection)

3 to 4 T. Chili Garlic Sauce*

1 heaping c. chicken breast, cooked and sliced thin**

1 medium red bell pepper, sliced thin, seeds removed

1 small zucchini, sliced ¼ inch thick

Red onion, sliced thin (about 2 slices)

1 ½ c. shredded low moisture, part skim mozzarella cheese

½ c. shredded mild cheddar cheese (reduced fat, if following WW)

2 T. cilantro (for optional garnish)

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Instructions:

On a lightly greased baking sheet, roll pizza crust out into a rectangle, about 10 x 14 inches.

Spread sauce over crust, very thinly.

Spread remaining ingredients over pizza as desired, ending with cheeses.

Bake according to crust directions, until golden brown, cooked through and cheese is melted.

Garnish by sprinkling with cilantro once it’s cooled a little (optional).

Notes:

*Chili garlic sauce is found in the Asian food section (see photo).  It is full of flavor and some heat.  Use 3 Tablespoons if you like it mild/warm.   If you want it warmer, use up to 4 Tablespoons.  It doesn’t look like much on the crust, but it gives plenty of flavor!

**I used chicken breasts boiled with some onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Once drained and cooled, slice thin.   Rotisserie chicken breast would also be a good substitute.

Weight Watchers Info:  This makes 6 servings, 8 Freestyle SmartPoints per serving.

Shrimp & Peppers Cajun Skillet

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This shrimp & peppers Cajun skillet is great all by itself.  And it hit me after I’d made it a couple of times that it would make a mean shrimp fajita too, if thrown into a nice warm tortilla.  Barry flips every time I make this–definitely one of his favorites.  I make it a little too spicy for the kids so I make sure I’ve got some leftovers for them so I don’t have to be conservative with the jalapeños.

As an aside, we love this blackening seasoning so much that we’ve started making a double batch most of the time…that quantity fits really nicely into a regular sized spice container. For easy storage, I reuse another emptied spice container.

You could tone down the spices if needed – tips for doing that in the recipe below. I love the heat though. It tastes just like I imagined one of Justin Wilson’s dishes would have when I watched him with Pappaw as a kid.  Enjoy!  ~Robin

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Ingredients:

  • Four Sisters Dish blackening seasoning (see recipe below)
  • 12 oz. frozen container of deveined, peeled shrimp
  • 3 T. olive oil, extra virgin, Divided (EVOO)
  • 8 The Little Potato Company baby boomer fresh creamer potatoes, quartered
  • 1 white onion, cut into 1” wedges
  • 1 T. minced garlic (I use Spice World brand when I use jarred garlic – or fresh if it’s handy).
  • 1 jalapeño pepper (slice into rings, then half the rings*)
  • 1 bell pepper, green, cut into 1” chunks
  • 2 bell peppers, red, cut into 1” chunks
  • 1 tsp. garlic salt (sprinkle over veggies before add shrimp back to skillet)

Ingredients for Four Sisters Dish blackening seasoning: 

  • 1 3/4 tsp. light brown sugar
  • 1 ½ tsp. garlic salt
  • ½ to 1 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (1 ½ tsp. is VERY hot – most will want ½ tsp. — or 1 tsp. if you want to go pretty spicy.  I love spicy food but 1 1/2 was almost too hot for me – tissues needed nearby.)
  • 2 T. paprika (smoked paprika if making for lighter fish fillets; regular paprika for all other meats, shrimp included)

Instructions:

  1. Thaw shrimp; then pat to dry. Set aside.
  2. Mix up blackening seasoning (using regular paprika), stirring together all ingredients. Set aside.
  3. Begin heating a T. of EVOO in a skillet on medium heat.
  4. Coat a plate well with the Four Sisters Dish blackening seasoning. Place shrimp on the plate, then sprinkle the tops with the spice mixture as well so both sides are coated.
  5. Cook small shrimp on medium heat for 8 minutes (do not stir or they’ll lose the seasoning), turning to the other side halfway through cook time. When fully cooked, set aside.
  6. Do not wipe out the pan. The spices will help season your vegetables.
  7. Add remaining 2 T. of EVOO to the pan. Then add potatoes and onion; then lightly sprinkle them with blackening seasoning too (just to add a little flavor, not to coat them). Cook for 5 minutes.
  8. While the potatoes and onion cook, carefully remove the tails from your shrimp (be sure it’s cool enough before attempting).
  9. After potatoes and onions have cooked for five minutes, increase heat to medium-high and add jalapeño, bell peppers, & minced garlic. Sprinkle vegetables with 1 tsp. of garlic salt.  Cook for 9-11 minutes on medium-high heat until vegetables are seared and have picked up some of the spice flavors.  Be sure potatoes can be cut easily with a fork as well.
  10. Reduce heat to medium. Add shrimp back to pan, cooking another minute or just until shrimp is heated well.

Weight Watchers Info.: 4 SmartPoints (same on Freestyle plan) per serving; serves 5 (serving size: 1.5 cups).

*You could seed, then mince the jalapeño to make it less spicy.  However, if you don’t like things at all spicy, you could also use less than the whole pepper or none at all.