Chicken and White Bean Stew

This is an easy and tasty one pot meal that takes about 20 minutes to prep and pop in the oven to bake. It has your healthy veggies, celery, onions, carrots, garlic, and tomatoes. Plus cannellini beans are low-fat, high in fiber and provide a high quality of magnesium and iron.


Ingredients:

6 boneless and skinless chicken thighs
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 1/2 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

In a large oven- proof skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken both sides with salt, pepper and thyme. Add chicken to skillet and cook until both sides are brown about 8 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside.
Reduce heat to medium, and add onion, celery and carrot to skillet. Cook, stirring often about 6 minutes. Stir in garlic, and cook 1 minute. Stir in broth, and scrape up any brown bits from bottom of skillet. Add diced tomatoes, beans, and parsley. Mix well. Add chicken.
Preheat oven 350 degrees F. Sprinkle bread crumbs and cheese over mixture. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Enjoy!

Chocolate-Cherry Heart Cookies

I wanted to make something that had chocolate and cherries in it for Valentines Day. So, I took my low-fat Valentine cookie recipe and added cocoa powder to make a chocolate sugar cookie sandwich with a dark chocolate and cherry jam filling. This cookie is so decadent and just sweet enough with the cherry jam. If you have children, this would be a fun recipe to make cut-out hearts and to mix-up the filling for the cookies and to put them together like little sandwiches. Have a Happy Valentines Day!


Ingredients for cookie dough:

5 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup confectioners sugar, sifted for work surface
2 ounces dark chocolate chips, very finely chopped (I used a food processor)
3 tablespoons cherry jam
1 egg white, beaten with 1/2 teaspoon water
Sugar for sprinkling
Equipment: 2 1/2-inch heart- shaped cookie cutter


Directions:

Using a mixer, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add egg and almond extract, mixing well.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Gradually add flour mixture into butter mixture until dough forms. The dough may seem a little crumbly at first, but it will come together. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and shape into a disk. Chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Stir the chopped chocolate and cherry jam together in a small bowl until combined.

Sprinkle work surface and rolling pin with confectioners sugar. Roll out dough to a 1/8-inch thickness. Use heart-shaped cookie cutter dipped in confectioners sugar to make 38 cut-outs. Gather scraps and re-roll until all the dough is used. Place half of the hearts at least 1-inch apart on cookie sheets.

Evenly spread about 1 level teaspoon of the chocolate/jam mixture over each heart, leaving a 1/4-inch border around the edges. Brush the outer edge of the hearts lightly with egg-white wash. Place another dough heart over the filling and gently press the edges to seal. Continue with remaining dough cut-outs. Lightly brush the surface of the cookies with egg-white wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake 12-14 minutes until set. Let cool on the pan slightly before transferring to a rack to cool completely. Enjoy!

Guest Post - Ginger Beef Stir-Fry

This is a guest post and photo from my good friend, Jan. She has been busy cooking and baking recipes, since she is now retired from the hustle and bustle of the corporate world. She has this beautiful gourmet kitchen that she can now enjoy and create new and mouthwatering meals.
This recipe is full of healthy vegetables like red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, and sugar snap peas. It is flavored with fresh ginger, garlic and onion. She uses lean steak which is a good source of protein and vitamin B12, selenium and zinc which is important part of a heart- healthy diet.
Thanks Jan, for this quick, easy and tasty recipe!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup less sodium beef broth
3 tablespoons less sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tablespoon garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 lb. beef round steak or any lean steak, cut in strips
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 each red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, cut in strips
2 cups sugar snap peas
1 small onion, thinly sliced


Directions:

In a small bowl, whisk cornstarch, and broth until smooth. Then stir in the soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic and pepper flakes. Set aside.
Heat a large pan over high heat, add 1 tablespoon of oil and stir fry steak strips until done. Remove and set aside.
In the same pan, add other 1 tablespoon of oil and stir fry the peppers, snap peas and onion until tender.
Stir in the broth mixture and bring to a boil. Stir and cook one minute or until thickened. Return beef to pan and combine.
Serve immediately plain or over brown rice. Enjoy!