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Filet Mignon with Red Currant-Green Peppercorn Sauce+

7 points

Yield:  4 servings (serving size: 1 filet and 1 tablespoon sauce)

1 1/2 cups Merlot
1/4 cup finely chopped shallots
1/4 cup red currant jelly
1 tablespoon drained brine-packed green peppercorns, finely chopped
2 teaspoons butter
4 (4-ounce) beef tenderloin steaks, trimmed (1 inch thick)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Prepare grill to medium-high heat.

Combine wine and shallots in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil; cook until reduced to 1/4 cup (about 10 minutes). Strain through a sieve over a bowl; discard solids. Return wine to pan, and add jelly and green peppercorns. Cook over medium heat until jelly melts (about 2 minutes), stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in butter; keep warm.

Sprinkle steaks with salt and black pepper. Place beef on grill rack; cook 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Serve sauce with beef.

CALORIES 302 (39% from fat); FAT 13g (sat 5.5g,mono 4.9g,poly 0.5g); IRON 3.2mg; CHOLESTEROL 77mg; CALCIUM 23mg; CARBOHYDRATE 14.9g; SODIUM 294mg; PROTEIN 23.3g; FIBER 0.2g

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Sauteed Arctic Char and Arugula Salad with Tomato Vinaigrette*

8 points (technically – must be from the fish))
If you can’t find arctic char, substitute another sustainable option like Alaskan salmon. I used tuna.

Yield:  4 servings

4 (6-ounce) arctic char fillets
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
Cooking spray
4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons minced shallots
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
5 cups loosely packed arugula
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted (replaced with pepitas)
added: fresh tarragon – which was amazing, and fresh chopped chives

1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle fillets evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add fillets to pan; cook 3 minutes or until browned. Turn fillets over; cook 4 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Remove fish from pan; loosely cover, and keep warm. Wipe pan clean with paper towels.

2. While fish cooks, place vinegar in a medium bowl. Gradually add oil, stirring with a whisk. Stir in shallots.

3. Return pan to medium-high heat. Add tomatoes, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper; sauté for 3 minutes or until tomatoes soften. Add tomatoes and herbs to vinaigrette; toss to combine.

4. Arrange 1 1/4 cups arugula on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1 fillet. Spoon about 1/2 cup tomato mixture over each salad, and sprinkle with 1 1/2 teaspoons nuts.

CALORIES 342 ; FAT 20.5g (sat 3.7g,mono 10.4g,poly 4.8g); CHOLESTEROL 80mg; CALCIUM 72mg; CARBOHYDRATE 5.9g; SODIUM 522mg; PROTEIN 33.1g; FIBER 1.6g; IRON 1.5mg

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Sautéed Chicken Breasts with Creamy Walnut Sauce+

6 points

2  (1 1/2-ounce) slices day-old white bread
1  cup fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth
1/3  cup walnuts, toasted
1/4  cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
2  teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3/4  teaspoon salt, divided
1/2  teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1/8  teaspoon ground red pepper
2  garlic cloves, chopped
6  (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1  teaspoon olive oil
1  teaspoon butter
6  cups fresh baby spinach
2  tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Trim crusts from bread. Chop bread; combine bread and broth in a small bowl. Let stand 10 minutes. Combine bread mixture, walnuts, parsley leaves, juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, red pepper, and garlic in a food processor; process until smooth.

Sprinkle chicken with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.

Heat olive oil and butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 7 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Add chicken broth mixture to pan; cook until hot and slightly thickened, scraping pan to loosen browned bits.

To serve, place 1 cup spinach on each of 6 plates. Place 1 chicken breast half on each serving; top each with about 2 1/2 tablespoons sauce. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon chopped parsley over each serving.

Yield: 6 servings

  • Calories: 286
  • Fat: 7.6g
  • Fiber: 2.6g
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Janet’s Texas Caviar+

There are lots of variations to this: I use black beans, pinto or red beans and black eyed peas.  I skip the pimiento and use a red pepper instead of the yellow pepper.  Red onions are also zippier than green.  The original recipe called for 1 cup of oil – that seems excessive to me, so I use half that.

1 can pinto beans
1 can black-eyed peas (I used black beans)
1 can shoe-peg corn
1 c chopped yellow peppers
1 c chopped celery
1 c chopped green onions
1 jar chopped pimientos
1 small can diced jalapenos
½ c cider vinegar
½ c sugar
½ c oil

Combine last three ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Cool

Combine vegetables.  Pour cooled dressing over vegetables and marinate overnight (if possible).

Drain before serving.

Serve with Scoop Fritos (2 bags for this amount).

Makes lots.

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Black Bean Tomato Soup with Cilantro Lime Cream+

2 points

It is worth the points to make the cilantro cream!

  • 2 center-cut bacon slices, chopped
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion (about 1 small)
  • 1/2 cup chopped celery
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 (15-ounce) can cumin-spiced black beans, undrained
  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added organic diced tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 (14-ounce) can fat-free chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
  • 1/4 tsp cumin
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Cook bacon in a large saucepan over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings in pan; set bacon aside. Add onion and celery to pan; cook 5 minutes or until celery is tender. Stir in 3/4 teaspoon cumin, chile powder, and garlic; cook 1 minute. Stir in bacon, pepper, beans, tomatoes, and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Place half of bean mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl. Repeat procedure with remaining bean mixture; process until smooth. Keep warm.

Combine sour cream, cumin, cilantro, and lime juice in a small bowl. Drizzle cream over soup.

Yield:  4 servings (serving size: 1 cup soup and 1 1/2 tablespoons cream)

  • CALORIES 123
  • FAT 4.3g
  • FIBER 5.1g
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Filet Mignon with Mushroom Wine Sauce+

7 points

Yield:  2 servings (serving size: 1 steak and 1/4 cup sauce)

1/2 cup less-sodium beef broth
1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Cooking spray
2 (4-ounce) beef tenderloin steaks
1 cup presliced mushrooms
1/2 cup sweet Marsala

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat.

Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl.

Coat pan with cooking spray. Add steaks to pan; cook 5 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove steaks from pan. Add mushrooms to pan, and cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove mushrooms from pan. Remove pan from heat; add Marsala, scraping the pan to loosen browned bits. Reduce heat to medium. Return pan to heat. Add broth mixture to pan; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in mushrooms.

CALORIES 318 (31% from fat); FAT 11.1g (sat 4.2g,mono 4.5g,poly 0.6g); IRON 2.3mg; CHOLESTEROL 78mg; CALCIUM 32mg; CARBOHYDRATE 11.9g; SODIUM 410mg; PROTEIN 26.3g; FIBER 0.6g

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Malaysian Chicken Pizza+

6 points – 6 pieces per pizza

  • 3/4       cup rice vinegar
  • 1/4       cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1/4       cup low sodium soy sauce
  • 3          Tbsp water
  • 1          Tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 2          Tbsp chunky peanut butter
  • 1/2       tsp crushed red pepper
  • 4          garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2       lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
  • 1/2       cup shredded Swiss cheese
  • 1/4       cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1          Pillsbury pizza crust
  • 1/4       cup chopped green onions

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Combine first 8 ingredients in a bowl, stir well with a whisk.

Heat a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat.  Add chicken, and saute 2 minutes.  Remove chicken from pan.

Pour rice vinegar mixture into pan, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Cook mixture 6 minutes or until slightly thickened.  Return chicken to pan, cook 1 minute or until chicken is done.  (mixture will be consistency of thick syrup)

Sprinkle cheese over prepared crust, leaving a 1/2 inch border, and top with chicken mixture.  Bake at 500 for 12 minutes on low rack in oven.  Sprinkle with green onions.  Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

(I actually spread this out to cover 2 pizza crusts)

  • Calories: 293
  • Fat: 7.3g
  • Fiber: 1.8g
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Honey Ginger Chicken Bites+

4 points (calculated using thighs instead of breasts)

2/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons sesame seeds, toasted (optional)

Combine first 9 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag; seal and shake well. Add chicken; seal and toss to coat. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight, turning occasionally.

Preheat oven to 425°

Remove chicken from bag, reserving marinade. Arrange chicken in a single layer on the rack of a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Bake at 425° for 20 minutes, stirring once

While chicken is cooking, strain marinade through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Place marinade in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook 3 minutes; skim solids from surface. Combine cornstarch and water in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Add cornstarch mixture to pan, stirring with a whisk; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat; pour glaze into a large bowl

Preheat broiler.

Add chicken to glaze; toss well to coat. Place chicken mixture on a jelly roll pan; broil 5 minutes or until browned, stirring twice. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if desired.

Yield:  12 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 ounces)

  • CALORIES 179
  • FAT 4.4g
  • FIBER 0.1g