Justin's Peppermint Hot Chocolate

My kids are Hot Chocoholics! They like it in just about any shape or variety. With whipped cream, marshmallows, chocolate chips, Andes Mints, candy canes, you name it! I think his love affair with hot chocolate started when he was three. I have a picture of him enjoying his very first cup of hot cocoa. It was after a chilly afternoon playing in the snow while his dad was shoveling the driveway. He came in, frozen to the core, runny nose and all, and a full head of sweaty "hat hair." I try to change it up a bit every now and then but this is Justin's favorite way to enjoy his hot chocolate. Not too chocolatey, with a bit of mint, and tons of marshmallows!

Justin's Peppermint Hot Chocolate
4 Weight Watchers Points with One Candy Cane, and No Marshmallows

1 cup milk
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp dark cocoa powder
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 mini candy canes
Lots of marshmallows!

1. In a microwave safe bowl, whisk together milk, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla.

2. Toss in two of the candy canes.

3. Microwave on high until chocolate is hot, and candy canes are melted.

4. Pour into a cup, top with marshmallows, and garnish with third candy cane.

Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich

This idea came from my sister Kim. She makes it for breakfast every day. One day when I was visiting her she made it for me. I'm not a huge egg person, and typically, I would not get up and make myself eggs for breakfast. This however, I make almost every day now. The kids love it too. It's your typical "McMuffin" style sandwich, but without the fat and calories. Today I made mine using a Pepperidge Farm Deli Sandwich Round, but typically I use a Thomas's Triple Health English Muffin. Low Cal. . .High Fiber. And here's another little side note: Kim has tried all the different brands of the Fat Free American cheese slices, and they all seem to have a weird texture, aftertaste, or tang to them. That is all but one brand. Borden. It's the only one I buy. It melts great, tastes great, and has no weird fat-free taste to it.

Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich
2 Weight Watchers Points without Bacon Pieces, 3 Points with Bacon Pieces

2 egg whites
1 Tbsp Oscar Mayer Real Bacon Pieces
1 English Muffin or Deli Sandwich Round
1 Slice of Fat Free Cheese
Salt and Pepper

1. Using non stick cooking spray, spray a frying pan and turn on heat to medium. Let pan get hot.

2. Pour egg whites into the pan and cook until bottom of eggs are set.
3. Sprinkle the bacon pieces, salt, and pepper over the egg whites.
4. Cook until whites are set.

5. Fold egg whites until they will fit on your sandwich.
6. Pop English muffin into the toaster and toast.

7. Put the eggs whites onto the muffin bottom, top with cheese, and top of English muffin.

California Burger

Easy. Healthy. Tasty. Doing Weight Watchers has me on the constant lookout for foods that are filling, and healthy, and taste great. It's easy to get stuck in the rut of eating the same meals day in and day out, but I'm always looking for alternative. This burger makes you feel like you're eating a lot, but without the calories.

California Burger
Only 5 Weight Watchers Points per burger!

1 Lean Turkey Burger (I buy the big thick ones from Costco. They come in a package of 12 for $9.00)
1 Pepperidge Farm 100 calorie Deli Sandwich Round
1 to two Tbsp. Avocado Sour Cream Spread
2 tomato slices
1 pickle slice
Several onion slices
Shredded lettuce

1. Cook Turkey Burger according to pkg. directions.

2. Layer bottom of the Deli Sandwich Round with burger, onion, tomato, pickle, lettuce, Avocado Sour Cream Spread and top of Deli Sandwich Round.

3. Indulge in a filling, healthy, and delicious meal!

Bruschetta Chicken Stuffing Bake

This recipe came straight from the back of the Stovetop Stuffing box! It's really good too! I mean seriously, can you go wrong with stuffing? I'm a HUGE fan of easy, one dish meals, and this is a keeper. The chicken always cooks up very tender and juicy, and you get just the right amount of crunch on top with the stuffing. I love the fresh taste the tomatoes give it, and calorie wise, you're not adding butter to the stuffing, so it's a pretty healthy meal! I usually like to give you a picture once we've dug in so you can see the layers of goodness. . .but we ate fast tonight! Trust me, there is chicken under there.

Bruschetta Chicken Stuffing Bake
4 Weight Watchers Points per 1 Cup

1 can (14 1/2 oz) of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 6oz pkg. Stovetop Stuffing Mix
1/2 cup water
3 cloves minced garlic
1 1/2lbs of boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
Dried Basil
Shredded Parmesan Cheese

1. Place chicken evenly in the bottom of a small casserole. (I used a 9" square stoneware dish.)

2. Mix together tomatoes, water, garlic, and stuffing.

3. Spoon stuffing over chicken.

4. Sprinkle with basil and cheese.

5. Bake at 350 for about 35 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Sausage and Pierogi Skillet

I actually found this recipe on the back of a package of pierogis. I don't remember what brand they were, but I found it years ago. If you've never had pierogis, this is a must try. The best way I can describe it is that it's a cross between pasta, and mashed potatoes. Simply said, very tasty! Made it once, and we all really liked it. It's pretty healthy and the pierogis make it very hearty as well. I always use the reduced fat Kielbasa, or Turkey Kielbasa to cut out a few more calories. And believe it or not, my kids LOVE the cabbage in this!

Sausage and Pierogi Skillet
5 Weight Watchers Points for 1 cup cabbage/Sausage mix and 3 Pierogies.

1 round of Kielbasa sausage, sliced and quartered
1 bag of coleslaw
1 chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper
Pierogis

1. In a large pan, saute sausage until browned and heated through. Set aside and keep warm.
2. In that same pan, mix together coleslaw, onion, and garlic. Saute until cabbage is tender.

3. Add in chicken broth and cook for just a few minutes until slightly reduced.

4. Mix sausage back in with cabbage/coleslaw mixture. Keep warm.

5. In another pan, cook Pierogis as directed on package. You can boil, or saute them in butter. To cut calories I boiled mine, and saute'd them in a little bit of non stick cooking spray to get them slightly browned. (I made enough for each of us to have three.)

6. Heap the cabbage and sausage mixture onto your plate, and top with Pierogis.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I came across this recipe a few years ago. I don't even remember where I saw it, I just know that when I saw it, it looked delicious! Then when I went from the picture to the recipe, I couldn't believe how easy it was to make! At first glance, the words "Baked Potato" had me thinking this soup would take hours to make. Boy was I wrong! It doesn't get any faster or easier than frozen hashbrowns. After making it many times I changed up the recipe a bit to suit the taste of my family. The original recipe calls for sour cream, but I subbed Top the Tater for the sour cream once and we were hooked. It's a hit for us, and a definite winter weather staple in our dinner menu. I've given this recipe to my mom, who makes it often, and she's given it to my sisters. It's a recipe that everyone will ask for, and no one will believe it takes 30 minutes to make! There's nothing better than a warm bowl of soup on cold winter day, unless it's a warm bowl of soup that you didn't have to spend hours in the kitchen for!

Loaded Baked Potato Soup
5 Weight Watchers Points per Cup of Soup

1 chopped onion
1 2lb bag of frozen hash browns (shredded or cubed, depends on how chunky you'd like your soup.)
6 cups chicken broth (or 6 cups water, 6 chicken bouillion cubes.)
2 cans reduced fat cream of celery soup
1 small container of Light Top the Tater (or two cups of sour cream.)
6 oz of 2% Velveeta cheese, cubed
Top with: Cheese, Sour Cream, Green Onions, Bacon Pieces

1. In a large pot, mix together onion, hash browns, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Continue Boiling until potatoes are tender.

2. Reduce heat to low, and add in cream of celery soup, Top the Tater, and Velveeta. Stir until cheese is melted and soup is heated through.

3. Pour into bowls, and top with shredded cheddar, bacon, sour cream, and green onions.

Oatmeal Craisin Cookies

I'm not the hugest fan of Oatmeal cookies, but these are amazing. My husband, on the other hand, loves them. They are hands down, his favorite cookie. He literally CANNOT eat just one of them. One of my favorite things about baking these cookies, is the smell they leave in the house. Yum. It just smells like cinnamon deliciousness. I left a plate on the counter last night, 14 cookies. Woke up this morning, they were gone. I had one. . .which means he had. . .more than one!

Oatmeal Craisin Cookies
3 Weight Watchers Points for Two Small Cookies

4 Tbsp butter
4 Tbsp oil
2 egg whites
1/2 cup cinnamon applesauce
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour
3 cups oatmeal
1 cup craisins
1 cup Sun Maid Yogurt Covered Raisins

1. Cream together butter, oil, egg whites, and applesauce.

2. Add in sugar and brown sugar.

3. Mix in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Continue mixing until combined. Then add in the oatmeal, and mix again.

4. Stir in Craisins and yogurt covered raisins.

5. Scoop by Tbsp onto cookie sheet.

6. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Cucumber Pita Triangles

My mom used to make these a lot for get togethers when I was younger. She didn't use pita bread, however, she used the mini snack size rye bread. You can make it either way. I love both!

Cucumber Pita Triangles
1 Weight Watchers Point for Two Cucumber Pita Triangles

2 Pita pocket rounds, cut into triangles, and separated.
1 8oz brick of reduced fat cream cheees
1 pkg. of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing and dip mix
1 to 2 Fresh cucumbers, sliced

1. Mix together cream cheese and ranch seasoning.

2. Spread a little of the cream cheese mixture onto the pita bread.

3. Top each triangle with a cucumber.