Leftover Broccoli? Make (Low Carb!) Soup!

The chilly weather here is perfect for soup! Since I'm trying not to waste veggies as much as have been in the past, I decided to use the leftover broccoli that was sitting in the frig to make soup. It was much more interesting that eating it with melted cheese or a splash of red wine vinegar. It's a great soup whether you are a low carber or not.

Lately, there's times when I swear that I'm going to turn into a green vegetable. I have eaten so many of them in the past couple of months. It's a good thing that I really like them...right? Talk about suffering if I didn't.

This soup is quick and easy. Perfect for using up leftovers!

(Low Carb) Broccoli Cheese Soup
makes 1-2 servings

2 C. chicken broth
1 C. heavy cream
1 1/2 C. cooked broccoli, chopped into medium-sized pieces
1 C. shredded sharp cheddar cheese - jalapeno cheese would be great, too. 
1 - 2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 -2 tsp garlic powder
1 -2 tsp onion powder
pinch of salt and black pepper

Add 1 C. of chopped broccoli to a mini food processor. Process until smooth, no chunks left. Set aside.

Warm chicken broth in a medium-sized pot. Stir in heavy cream, warm through until hot.

Add cheese and stir until the cheese has melted. If necessary, add a little more chicken broth or cream to thin it out a bit. (I didn't need to add any more because I like thick soups).

Stir in the broccoli from the food processor, along with the seasonings. (Note: I like my food to be seasoned on the heavy side so I used 2 teaspoons of red peppers, garlic and onion powders. If you don't usually like as much seasoning, taste it with just one tsp of each and then add more if necessary.)  Continue cooking until hot.

Before serving, stir in remaining 1/2 C. of broccoli pieces.

Enjoy!

Low Carb Sloppy Joe Stuffed Pepper #2

I made this delicious sloppy joe casserole for dinner last night for my family. While they gobbled it, I was also enjoying my low carb version of a sloppy joe stuffed into a green pepper.

If you've been following my low carb recipes, you might realize that I already have a recipe for sloppy joe stuffed peppers posted on my blog. While they share the same name, the sloppy joe mix is different. I like both recipes but I favor this one a little more. I will keep both of them in the rotation, though, because I'm easily bored eating the same thing all of the time. You can see the original sloppy joe recipe here. Believe me, this recipe really is just as good in the low carb version as it is in the original recipe.

Low Carb Sloppy Joe Stuffed Pepper # 2
makes 1-2 servings

1 green bell pepper, cut in half
enough sloppy joe mix to fill both halves of the bell pepper (recipe below)
1/4 C. shredded cheddar cheese

Par boil green pepper halves until fork tender. Remove the peppers from the water and dry them off well with a paper towel. Fill the peppers with the sloppy joe meat mixture and place in an 8 x8 baking dish. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top of the peppers. Broil for 2-3 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.

Turkey Sloppy Joes - Low Carb version in bold below

olive oil

1/2c. celery, sliced (I omitted)

1/2c. onion, chopped

1/2c. red & green peppers,
chopped (I now use all green to
save $$)

2c. ground turkey, browned - I used 1 lb hamburger & 1 lb ground turkey because that's what I had here

1c. ketchup - I used low sugar Heinz Ketchup. It's sweetened with Sucralose and low carb
3 Tbs. white vinegar

1Tbs. brown sugar, packed - I used Splenda Brown Sugar Blend - check this, I thought that it was sweet enough with only 1 tsp of brown sugar. Sweeten to your liking

1/2 tsp dry mustard-this is needed
but I did use regular spicy brown
mustard in a pinch and it worked
fine - I've come to find that I like regular yellow mustard with this now

1/2 C. water

Sloppy Joe Pasta Bake

Years ago, I adapted a sloppy joe recipe that I found in a newspaper to work with ground turkey. Later on I  swapped some ingredients for the low carb versions. This has become my family's favorite recipe for sloppy joes.

Of course this dish isn't low carb with the pasta added to it. I ate the filling in a green pepper. (I'll post it a little later.)

Since I'm trying to use up what stock I have at home this week, I didn't want to run out to buy buns and then a side dish to go along with the sloppy joes. (sound like I'm being cheap, huh?) Instead, I put it together with rigatoni and created a pasta casserole. My family ate it up like crazy....even my picky daughter.

Here's my original sloppy joe recipe, along with my low carb changes in bold.

Sloppy Joe Pasta Bake

olive oil

1/2c. celery, sliced (I omitted)

1/2c. onion, chopped

1/2c. red & green peppers,
chopped (I now use all green to
save $$)

2c. ground turkey, browned - I used 1 lb hamburger & 1 lb ground turkey because that's what I had here

1c. ketchup - I used low sugar Heinz Ketchup. It's sweetened with Sucralose and low carb
3 Tbs. white vinegar

1Tbs. brown sugar, packed - I used Splenda Brown Sugar Blend - check this, I thought that it was sweet enough with only 1 tsp of brown sugar. Sweeten to your liking

1/2 tsp dry mustard-this is needed
but I did use regular spicy brown
mustard in a pinch and it worked
fine - I've come to find that I like regular yellow mustard with this now

1/2 C. water

8 hamburger buns - I subbed one pound of cooked rigatoni this time

2 C. shredded cheddar cheese


Cook rigatoni. Rinse and keep warm.

Brown the hamburger, turkey, onions & peppers; drain very well. Return the mixture to the frying pan. Stir in ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar and mustard. Cook for 5 minutes to blend flavors. Add water, then heat through.

Pour rigatoni into a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Sprinkle 1 C. of cheddar cheese on top of the rigatoni. Pour the sloppy joe mixture into the casserole dish. Mix thoroughly. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Broil in oven long enough to lightly brown the cheese.

Pan Roasted Brussels Sprouts - Low Carb

There's been a lot of chatter lately in the low carb world about roasted Brussels sprouts. The pictures and recipes that I've seen look delicious. Until now, I've never cooked raw Brussels sprouts, only frozen ones. I decided to give it a try to pan roast some for my dinner last week. The results were heavenly -- yes, I said that about the "dreaded little cabbage heads" that most people won't touch! You don't know what you're missing.

My Mom would cook Brussels sprouts when I was a child and I would be the only one in the family to eat them with her. My sister wouldn't touch them with a ten ft. pole. hahaha! I still like them today--and once again, I'm the only one in my family who will eat them. That's ok...they're low carb so I can enjoy them all to myself.

Pan Roasted Brussels Sprouts
1 lb of raw Brussels Sprouts, trim ends & remove any wilted leaves
butter
minced garlic

Add sprouts to a pot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, cooking for 5 minutes or until fork tender. Drain well.

Melt 2 TBSP butter in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Stir in 1 tsp minced garlic. Slice the sprouts in half lengthwise and add flat side down into the pan. Fry for 1-2 minutes and then gently turn to coat in the butter. Fry until the tops are nicely browned. Flip over to the flat sides once again and continue cooking until the sprouts are nicely browned, too. Keep a close eye on them while they are cooking so that they do not burn.

Serve immediately.

I like to splash on a bit of red wine vinegar right before eating them.

Easy Chicken & Dumplings

On a dreary, rainy day, there's nothing better to warm you up from the inside out than a big bowl of my chicken & dumplings. The house fills with the wonder smell of this dish while it's cooking. One of the best things about this recipe is that you don't have to slave over a hot stove all day to get that "cooked all day" taste. With a few simple ingredients, you can have this on the table in under 1 hour.

 Tami's Easy Chicken & Dumplings
 64 oz chicken broth
3 boneless chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
8 oz sliced button mushrooms
3 TBSP poultry seasoning
2 tsp. thyme
2 tsp. black pepper
1 box Anne's Flat Dumplings
Warm the chicken broth in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken breast and poach until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate and allow to cool until it can be easily handled to shred.

Stir both cans of cream of chicken soup into the chicken broth, along with the mushrooms, poultry seasoning, thyme and black pepper. Cover and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.

Uncover the broth. Break the flat dumplings into pieces (I usually break each strip into 3 pieces) and drop into the broth. Stir frequently to prevent the dumplings from sticking together. Continue cooking until the noodles are tender. (approx 10 minutes)

Remove from heat and allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving - the broth will continue to thicken a little bit while it is cooling.

Serve with warm bread.

Save any leftovers to reheat the next day. My husband says that it's just as good, if not better, the next day.