NEW Kitchen

Please don't take my quietude (not really a word, but it should be) to mean that I've stopped cooking.

It's really just the opposite.  I've just not taken the time to blog about what I've been making.  Let me tell you what's been happening over the last 3 months.  Too much, really, I'll just sum up.

I've been planning a kitchen remodel!  I mean a whole Kitchen remodel.  Kitchen with a capital K.  Floor to  ceiling, appliances to cabinets and counters, too.  It's overwhelming to say the least.

But I've had help.  Not exactly from the Love of My Life (loml) (he does help when I can give him choices) but from my parents who came out to help me with just this endeavor and my "team" at Lowes.  They've been great!

This is the basic idea.  Not the cabinet style, but the color. I describe the color as whiskey.  It's not red, it's not honey, nor is it chocolate or ebony. It's really just brown. But it's a warm, comforting brown.  Maybe it "feels" like whiskey more than it looks like it.



Now the floor I love.  That's one tile you see here.  They interlock kind of Leggos do.  The grout will match the "grout" in the tile.  Thank you Dave (my project manager at Lowes) for anticipating that desire. I love this floor.  I mean LOVE it.  Right now my floor is too small white tiles with what started as light grout, but by now looks like the "grout" in this tile.  This will be a dream to clean (or at least keep clean looking!).

My appliances are all stainless.  There will be minimal paint and much backsplash.

Since a picture is worth thousand words, I'll be posing pictures as the project moves forward.  Right now there's not much to see.  I've started to clean out my cabinets. Not really picture worthy.

On that topic, however, if you need any odd or super specialized cooking gadgets, let me know.  I don't have enough stuff to have a garage sale, but I do have some good things that I used once and then never again.  So they're all in great condition!

That's all I have right now on this topic.

Ooooh!  The cabinet hardware should be arriving first.  Soon actually.  Here's a pic.

Date Night--Wednesday, March 5, 2014

I've been running around like the proverbial chicken---you know, the one with her head cut off---for the last several days.  Today, I'm trying to take it a little easier.  And I'm really looking forward to our DN meal.

I've made all of these elements beofe and posted about them too.  I can't be entirely original all the time and tonight I want familiar and comforting foods.

Here's tonight's lineup:

Appetizers

Bruschetta.  I bought these beautiful multi-colored grape and cherry tomatoes that are begging to be used as a topping for crostini.

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil

Ingredients:

• 6 or 7 ripe plum tomatoes, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 small red onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• olive oil spray
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 16 oz baguette or French bread
• 1-2 garlic cloves, peeled

Directions:

Combine tomatoes, chopped garlic, red onion, vinegar, oil, salt, pepper, and basil. Set aside.

Slice bread into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place on a tray and spray lightly with olive oil.Toast bread under broiler, until golden, watching closely not to let it burn. When bread is toasted, rub each piece with whole garlic clove.

Place bread on a platter and top with tomato mixture. Serve immediately or the bread will become soggy. Makes approximately 26 small slices.

Obviously, I will be making some changes.  I only have these little tomatoes.  Being that I'm only cooking for 2 the vinegar and oil will be reduced as well.

Cocktails

Manhattans.  Like I said, I've been running all week, and this is my "comfort" cocktail.

Dinner

Salisbury Steak

Ingredients

• 1lb extra lean ground beef (96% lean)
• 8 oz mushrooms, sliced
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1/3 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
• 1 packet dry onion soup mix
• 2 cups fat free beef broth
• 1/4 cup liquid egg substitute
• 2 tbsp ketchup
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions

1. In a medium sized bowl, combine ground beef, ½ of the onions, breadcrumbs, egg substitute, 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, onion soup mix and pepper.
2. Shape into 8 oval patties. Spray a large nonstick skillet with an olive oil mister or non-fat cooking spray and set over medium high heat. Brown both sides of patties, about 3-4 minutes each side.
3. Remove patties from pan, and then return pan to heat. Add in remaining onions and mushrooms, and 1 tbsp of the beef broth, and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Return the Salisbury steak patties to the pan.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together remaining beef broth, remaining Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, flour, and mustard powder.
5. Pour into skillet over the meat, turn heat down to medium-low, cover and cook for about 20 minutes.

I know, we've been down this road before.  But it's soooo good.  And I made meatloaf last night and made enough mashed for tonight too.  So now you know one of the side dishes.  We will also be having steamed broccoli.  No recipes needed for either  of these.

Dessert

Lemon Bars

Ingredients:
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 5 tbsp packed light brown sugar
- 8 tbsp unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp lemon zest

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
To make crust, mix flour and light brown sugar using a food processor until fully incorporated. Toss butter into flour mixture and pulse to combine using short bursts of power until butter is cut into tiny pea-sized pieces and dough appears lumpy. Sprinkle crust mixture onto an ungreased 13 X 9 X 2-inch baking pan as evenly as possible; press down with a spatula to create a packed surface. Place crust in middle of oven and bake until golden, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, to make lemon topping, beat eggs in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until well blended. Add vanilla extract and 3/4 cup of powdered sugar; mix well. Add lemon juice and remaining powdered sugar; mix until powdered sugar is completely dissolved and then add zest.
As soon as crust is finished, remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 300°F. Immediately pour lemon mixture over hot crust. Bake completely, about 30 minutes; cool, and cut into 24 bars. Yields 1 bar per serving.

Now I know I've posted this recipe before.  And I make it a lot.  They are just that good. 'Nuf said.

happy cooking

Almond Apricot Oatmeal Cookie

I have exciting news to share.  My mom is coming to see me for a whole week in May and my dad for a fat weekend!  I am totally psyched about this.  I'm not sure that my parents have ever come to see me for this long (maybe when I was in the hospital...but I don't really remember a lot of that.)

When I saw my mom in SC in February, she tasked with modifying an oatmeal cookie recipe using Splenda and apricots.  I did a passable job then...she seemed to like them.

But I had other ideas.  Things I wanted to try. So I wrote a recipe yesterday.  I've modified recipes before, but I think I can take credit entirely for this one:

Almond Apricot Cookies

Ingredients 4 Tbsp regular butter    1 item(s) egg(s)    1 cup(s) unsweetened applesauce    1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg    1/4 tsp baking soda    1 cup(s) all-purpose flour    1 Tbsp almond extract    1/2 cup(s) dried apricot halves, minced    4 oz Splenda Brown Sugar Blend    1 cup Quaker Quick Cooking Oats    1/2 cup Bobs Red Mill Almond Meal/Flour, Finely Ground Instructions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream brown sugar and butter. Add next 4 ingredients (egg through baking soda) and almond extract. Mix in flour until combined. Now stir in the almond meal/flour and the minced apricots. Drop cookies by 1 tsp measure on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 12-15 minutes until cookies are golden brown. Cool 1 minute on pan and then completely on cooling racks. Mom remembers a similar cookie she had in California.  Apricots and almonds intrigued me.  In February, I just did a simple swap--chopped apricots for raisins, nutmeg for cinnamon, almond extract for vanilla.  Yesterday, I ground some almonds.  I thought that might amp up the almond flavor (I think it did) and added unsweetened apple sauce.  That just made for a very flavorful, moist/chewy cookie. All in all, I'm pleased with the results.  Problem is, I can't eat just one.  Three seems to do the trick though. happy cooking

Date Night--Monday, February 25, 2014--Home Again, Home Again

Firstly, I had a nice visit with my family last week.  I can't say it was exactly relaxing...I did the same amount of cooking that I do at home, and for a whole crowd of people.  But we don't have to get into that now.

Highlights?  I made my Chicken Parm Meatballs and 4 little boys all under 8 ate them up and came back for more.  My Brownie Bites were a big hit with the little boys and the big ones, too.  And, finally, I "created" an oatmeal cookie recipe for my mom.  She remembered eating an apricot almond oatmeal cookie and I was able to successfully modify a  recipe (using Splenda) that met Mom's memory.

But now I'm home and I'm cooking for the person I love most in the world.  Here is my meal plan for this evening:

Appetizer

Crudite Shooters.  I've taken some bar ware and filled with cut up veggies.  I'll add our favorite dipping sauces before serving them.

Crudite "Shooter"

Cocktails

Martinis.  You can't get more classic than that.

Dinner

Baked Chicken Parmesan



Ingredients

• 4 (about 8 oz each) chicken breast, fat trimmed, sliced in half to make 8
• 3/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs (I used whole wheat)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp butter, melted (or olive oil)
• 3/4 cup reduced fat mozzarella cheese (I used Polly-o)
• 1 cup marinara or Filetto di Pomodoro
• cooking spray

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 450°. Spray a large baking sheet lightly with spray.

Combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese in a bowl. Melt the butter in another bowl. Lightly brush the butter onto the chicken, then dip into breadcrumb mixture.  Place on baking sheet and repeat with the remaining chicken.

Lightly spray a little more oil on top and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Turn chicken over, bake another 5 minutes.  

Remove from oven, spoon 1 tbsp sauce over each piece of chicken and top each with 1 1/2 tbsp of shredded mozzarella cheese. 

Bake 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted.

I'll be serving the chicken with pasta for my baby and roasted  broccoli with garlic and red paper flakes for both of us.  I will drink white wine.  Possibly this one:

It's hard to say whether we'll open this  tonight...there's an open bottle in the fridge, but I'd like to.  Josh has his choice of white or red.

Dessert

Lemon Cheesecake Yogurt Cups

Lemon  Cheesecake Yogurt Cups

Ingredients: 

• 12 reduced fat vanilla wafers
• 8 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 6 oz fat-free vanilla Greek yogurt (I used Chobani)
• 2 large egg whites
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 1 tbsp all purpose flour
• 24 blackberries

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°.

Line cupcake tin with liners. Place a vanilla wafer at the bottom of each liner.

Gently beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth using an electric mixer. Gradually beat in fat free yogurt, egg whites, lemon juice, lemon zest and flour. Do not over beat. Pour into cupcake liners filling half way.

Bake 25 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool to room temperature. Chill a few hours in the refrigerator. 

Top with fresh berries and powdered sugar if desired

The original recipe was topped with blackberries, but these strawberries were begging to come home with me.  So the jumped in my cart, my car, and eventually my mouth.  YUMMMM!

So this is my plan for tonight.  How 'bout you?

happy cooking

Bonus!

I found this recipe last month (or maybe 2 months ago) and finally made it on Friday.

Josh declared it "the best soup" I've ever made.  We will finish it tonight.  Gotta love a no cook Monday, right?

So here's the recipe:

Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

Source: my Mom, adapted from 365 Days of Slow Cooking

Ingredients:

2 cups water

4 cups (32 oz) less sodium fat free chicken broth

1 lb raw boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 (6 oz) box of Long Grain & Wild Rice (I used Uncle Ben’s) – not the quick cooking kind, do not prepare

1 cup sliced or diced carrots

1 cup sliced celery

½ cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon black pepper

1 stick (8 tablespoons) light butter 

2 cups fat free half and half

Directions:

1. Bring the water and chicken broth to a boil in a large pot or dutch oven. Add the chicken, rice (with seasoning packet), carrots and celery and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover the pot and simmer for 25-30 minutes until chicken is cooked through and easy to shred. Remove the cooked chicken breasts to a plate and shred with two forks. Replace the lid and continue to simmer the rest.

2. Mix together the flour, salt and pepper in a bowl until combined. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in flour a spoonful at a time to make a roux. Pour the half and half in a little at a time, stirring continuously with a whisk to allow the roux to combine with the cream. Continue whisking and adding half and half until the mixture is smooth and creamy. 

3. Add the shredded chicken and the cream mixture back into the soup pot and stir to combine. Bring back to a simmer and simmer for 5-10 minutes to allow soup to thicken and flavors to combine. 

Yields 10 (1 cup) servings. WW P+: 6 per serving (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)

Nutrition Information per serving from myfitnesspal.com: 212 calories, 19 g carbs, 6 g fat, 15 g protein, 1 g fiber

Check out the actual blog for pics.  I was unable to copy them this time. 

As to Josh's rave reviews, I haven't made that many soups and this is his favorite kind of soup.  He adds lemon to his. (I think that might be a Polish thing to do...it's definitely not Italian.)

Date Night, Wednesday February 4, 2014

There are a number of reasons I've been quiet the last two months.  It's not that we haven't had our dates...we have. I've just not been sharing them.   That's really all I'm going to say about that.  I'm here now, and hope to be regular again.

So tonight.  I'm going kind of Asian.  That is until dessert, but I'll get there when I get there.

Happy Hour

Martinis.  A nice crisp cocktail, garnished with a twist of lemon.  You really can't beat that.  And with our martinis we'll be having Vegetable Egg Rolls.  This recipe is a straight up WW recipe

Ingredients

	1 head(s) uncooked Chinese cabbage, outer leaves removed, shredded
	2 medium uncooked carrot(s), peeled and shredded
	2 clove(s) (medium) garlic clove(s), minced
	2 medium uncooked scallion(s), white and green parts, chopped
	1 Tbsp ginger root, fresh, minced or 1/2 tsp dried
	1 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
	2 tsp cornstarch
	1 tsp sesame oil
	8 item(s) egg roll wrapper(s), about 1/2 oz each
	4 spray(s) olive oil cooking spray, or enough to coat egg rolls

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Place cabbage in a microwavable dish and cover. Microwave on high until wilted, about 4 minutes; drain and transfer to a large bowl. Add carrots, garlic, scallions, ginger, soy sauce, cornstarch and oil; mix well.
• Arrange egg roll wrappers on a clean, dry surface. Spoon cabbage mixture diagonally onto each wrapper. Fold over one corner to cover filling. Fold up both corners. Moisten edges of remaining flap with water and roll up wrapper jellyroll style until sealed. Transfer egg rolls to prepared baking sheet and coat with cooking spray. 
• 
  
• Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes.  Serve hot.

The only change that I make to this is that I buy prepackage slaw mix.  It has the cabbage, carrot, and a little bit of broccoli to boot.  I'll add the ginger, garlic, and scallions.

Dinner

This is actually the impetus for this meal. I saw this on my weekly recipe hunt and husband love Love LOVES orange chicken.  We'll see if this meets his requirements.  This recipe comes from LaaLoosh.com.

Ingredients

• 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1/4 cup fat free chicken broth
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
• 3 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp orange zest
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Spray a large, nonstick skillet with an olive oil mister or non-fat cooking spray, and set over medium high heat.
2. Generously season chicken with salt and pepper, and place in skillet. Brown chicken evenly on both sides, adding the broth, tbsp by tbsp to keep the chicken from sticking to the pan. Cook until chicken is browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients, and pour over the chicken. Bring sauce to a boil, and then let simmer for another minute or two until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and serve.

I have a Birds Eye Steamfresh Brown and Wild Rice with broccoli and carrots that I will add some soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, green onion, garlic and ginger to.  (Not an idea completely out of my head.  It was on the back of the bag.



Additionally, we'll have broccoli.  If Josh actually reads this post, he may have noticed that broccoli shows up quite a bit.    We like broccoli and I like the way it plays with orange.

Dessert

I offered Josh the choice of 2 WW treats that I've been making lately.  Turns out his choice meant nothing because I made them both.  

This one was Josh's choice:  Skinny Dark Chocolate Brownie Bites (skinnykitchen.com_)

Ingredients

¼ cup regular brewed coffee or decaf, cooled, see prep tip

¼ cup canola oil

¼ cup unsweetened applesauce

1 large egg, I love using Egg-land’s Best eggs

1 (20 oz) box Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat 3 mini muffin trays with cooking spray, with flour in it, see shopping tip.

2. *Do not use the recipe on the back of the box. Follow my recipe. In a large bowl or electric mixer, mix together the cooled coffee, canola oil, applesauce and egg.  Stir in the brownie mix and mix until smooth.

3. Fill muffin cups about 1 tablespoon each, with batter. Bake for about 16 to 18 minutes or until toothpick inserted in edge of brownie bites comes out clean.  Do not over-bake. They should still be fudgy inside. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan.

4. Serve for a party or freeze them. When in the mood for just a small treat, zap in the microwave for about 20 seconds to defrost.

Makes 36 brownie bites

One of these bites is 2 WW points.

My choice comes from LaaLoosh again. Weight Watchers Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

Pin It

weight watchers chocolate chip cookies recipe

Ingredients:
– 2 tbsp light butter, softened (I like Brummel and Brown Spread)
- 2 tsp canola oil
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, dark-variety
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp table salt
- 1 large egg white
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 3 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips, about 1/2 cup

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375ºF.
In a medium bowl, cream together butter, oil and sugar. Add vanilla, salt and egg white; mix thoroughly to combine.
In a small bowl, mix together flour and baking soda; stir into batter. Add chocolate chips to batter; stir to distribute evenly throughout.
Drop rounded half-teaspoons of dough onto one or two large nonstick baking sheets, leaving a small amount of space between each cookie. Bake cookies until golden around edges, about 4 to 6 minutes; cool on a wire rack. Makes 24 servings.

Serving size is 2 cookies
Each serving = 1 Weight Watchers Point

I've made this recipe twice and my cookies don't look anything like her picture. Maybe because I use mini chips.  But they taste really good. And for 2 points I can have 4 of these babies!


So this is the meal plan for this evening.  Weather made hubby late to work, so he'll be late getting home.  That may be okay...traffic will have eased up and I'll have plenty of time make myself pretty for my baby and still get a jump on dinner.

happy cooking

Date Night--November 5, 2013

Now that's Italian!

That's how I would like hubby to respond this evening.  Emily Bites really came through for me on this one.  All portions of the meal were found on her website (emilybites.com).

Cocktails:  
The jury is still out on this one.  It could be Manhattans.  Or it could be Martinis/Gibsons (a martini with an onion garnish instead of an olive). Or assuming I have the necessary ingredients, I could make Josh a Negroni, in which case I would have some sparkly water.

Appetizer:
Pizza Cups
 

Pizza Cups

Source: Emily Bites Original

Ingredients:

2.5 oz fresh white mushrooms, diced

20 slices turkey pepperoni, chopped

½ cup pizza sauce (I used Classico Traditional Pizza Sauce and it was awesome)

1 (11 oz) can Pillsbury Crusty French Loaf refrigerated dough

1/3 c shredded 2% reduced fat Mozzarella cheese

¼ - 1/3 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning

Directions:

1.    Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly mist 8 cups in a standard muffin tin with cooking spray.

2. Lightly mist a small skillet with cooking spray and bring over medium heat. Add diced mushrooms and cook for a few minutes until wilted/browned. Place the mushrooms in a medium bowl and add the chopped pepperoni slices and pizza sauce. Stir to combine and set aside. 

3.    Open the package of French bread dough and lay the log of dough on a clean, dry surface. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 8 equal rounds. Using your hands or a rolling pin, press the dough pieces into 3-4” flat rounds. Press each round into a prepared cup in the muffin tin, forming the dough into a bowl shape and pressing it up the sides. 

4. Evenly distribute the pepperoni/mushroom mixture into each dough cup with a spoon. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over the top of each cup and follow with a pinch of Italian seasoning on each cup to taste.

5.    Bake for 16-18 minutes until bread cups start to brown on the edges and are crusty to the touch. Let cool 3-5 minutes before serving.

Yields 8 cups. Weight Watchers Points Plus: 3 per cup (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)

Nutrition Information per bread bowl from myfitnesspal.com: 124 calories, 20 g carbs, 3 g fat, 6 g protein, 1 g fiber

My plan is to make four pizza cups and one mini loaf of french bread.  We'll see how that works for me.

Dinner:
Chicken Parmesan Casserole--Josh loves his chicken parm.  I love the idea of a one pot meal.  Sorry, Babe, no pasta side.

Chicken Parmesan Casserole
Source: adapted from Food.com

Ingredients:
2 lbs raw boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ t crushed red pepper flakes (or more to taste if you want it hot)
¼ cup fresh basil, finely chopped
2 cups marinara/pasta sauce (I used Wegmans Tomato Basil)
1 ½ cups 2% reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 oz Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (I used the smallest holed side of my box grater), divided
3.5 oz garlic croutons, roughly crushed, leaving some larger pieces (I used New York Texas Toast brand Garlic & Butter)

Directions:
1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray.
2.    Spread the cubed pieces of chicken across the bottom of the baking dish in a single layer. Sprinkle the minced garlic, red pepper flakes and basil evenly over the chicken. Spread the sauce evenly across the top. On top of the sauce layer, sprinkle ¾ cup of the Mozzarella and one ounce of the Parmesan evenly across the dish. Sprinkle the crushed croutons across the top and follow with the remaining cheese.
3.    Bake for 40-45 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Yields 8 servings. WW P+: 8 per serving (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)
Nutrition Information per serving from myfitnesspal.com: 303 calories, 15 g carbs, 11 g fat, 37 g protein, 1 g fiber
Vegetable:
Salad.  Dressing choices are available.  Maybe Caesar for my man and blue cheese for me.  I might have to boil some eggs.  Good thing I'm writing this blog now.

Dessert:
Chocolate Chip Cannoli Cups.  I've made these before and they are Oh-So-Good.  I will make the whole recipe of filling but only thaw 5 shells (2 for me and 3 for he who loves me).  This way I'll have more filling for more nights this week.

Chocolate Chip Cannoli Cups
Source: inspired by Gimme Some Oven

Ingredients:
15 Frozen Mini Phyllo Shells (I used Athens brand)
2 oz Marscapone cheese (I used BelGioso brand)
2/3 cup fat free Ricotta cheese
3 T powdered sugar
¼ t vanilla
A pinch of cinnamon (a little goes a long way!)
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips, divided

Directions:
1.    Place phyllo shells* on the counter to thaw for at least 10-15 minutes.
2.    In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the marscapone, ricotta, powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon and stir together until thoroughly mixed. Reserve a small pile of the chocolate chips for topping and stir the remainder into the cheese mixture.
3.    Spoon the filling evenly between all the phyllo shells. Sprinkle reserved chocolate chips over the tops and serve. *I recommend you only defrost/fill as many as you plan to eat at once so that the shells stay crispy.

Yields 15 cups. WW P+: 2 per cup (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)
Nutrition Information per cup from myfitnesspal.com: 63 calories, 7 g carbs, 3 g fat, 2 g protein, 0 g fiber
That brings me to the end of my date night dinner plans.  I do realize it's Tuesday.  WW bonus points reset tomorrow and I have to take into account a weekend of eating/drinking in SC with my family.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore

happy cooking