Unfried Chicken & Idaho Oven Fries

My parents got a hold of my May/June issue of Weight Watchers magazine and saw these recipes. They were really excited about trying them. I was really proud of them because they usually stick to fad dieting and they don't typically care for altering recipes to make them healthy. The stepdad acted like he didn't care for it but I think he really did. The chicken could have used a little more seasoning, but it still tasted good. Nice and crunchy, and still juicy. Both my mom, my husband, and I liked it.

Unfried Chicken

1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 large egg whites
1 1/3 cup corn flake crumbs (It took almost a whole box of flakes to make 1 1/3 cups of crumbs!)
4 chicken drumsticks, skinned (about 1 lb)
4 chicken thighs, skinned (about 1 lb)
1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
1/4 cup fat free buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large shallow baking pan with foil. Place a wire rack on the pan and spray with cooking spray.

Put the flour on a plate. Lightly beat the egg whites in a shallow dish. Put the crumbs on a separate plate. Mix the chicken, salt, and pepper in a bowl; stir in the buttermilk. Dip the chicken, 1 piece at a time, in the the flour, then the eggs, then the crumbs.

Put the chicken on the rack and lightly spray with cooking spray. Bake until golden brown and cook through, about 45 minutes. Do not turn.

1 serving = 1 leg or thigh @ 7 points.

331 calories, 9 g fat, 29 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 33 g protein

Idaho Oven Fries

4 Idaho potatoes, scrubbed
1 Tbsp canola oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup ketchup

Place a rack in the lowest position in the oven. Preheat to 450 degrees F.

Cut each potato lengthwise into 8 wedges. Toss the potatoes with the oil on a heavy rimmed baking sheet and arrange each one, flat side down, in a single layer.

Bake without turning until the bottoms are deep golden and crisp, about 20 minutes; flip the potatoes onto the other flat side. Bake until crisp, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, serve with ketchup.

1 serving = 8 fries + 2 Tbsp ketchup @ 3 points

166 cals, 4 g fat, 32 g carbs, 3 g fiber, 3 g protein

Corn & Potato Chowder

Soup is very filling. I can eat one bowl of soup and feel super stuffed. I think that it is the effect of the hot liquid. And this soup is loaded with veggies and dairy.

The husband liked his a lot, even though I didn't get around to adding some chicken to his like I planned. He also ate one bowl and was full.

The recipe is from Cooking Light (via myrecipes.com):

Corn and Potato Chowder

Cooking spray
1 1/2 cups prechopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped green onions, divided (about 1 bunch)
2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 1/4 cups water
1 teaspoon seafood seasoning (such as Old Bay)
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 pound baking potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese

Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add bell pepper and 3/4 cup green onions, and sauté 4 minutes or until lightly browned.

Increase heat to high; add corn, water, seafood seasoning, thyme, red pepper, and potatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat, and stir in half-and-half, chopped parsley, and salt. Place about 1 1/2 cups soup in each of 4 bowls; sprinkle each with 2 tablespoons cheese and 1 tablespoon green onions.

Yield: 4 servings @ 7 WW Points each

CALORIES 343 (27% from fat); FAT 10.2g (sat 6.4g,mono 3.1g,poly 0.5g); IRON 2.5mg; CHOLESTEROL 41mg; CALCIUM 219mg; CARBOHYDRATE 53.3g; SODIUM 654mg; PROTEIN 11.5g; FIBER 7g

Cooking Light, JANUARY 2006

Au Gratin Potatoes

I liked this a lot and so did the husband. It is supposed to be a side dish, but I ate it as an entree with a side of spinach. The husband ate a smaller portion as a side (along with some spinach) to his meatloaf. I used less cheese (only 3/4 cup) since he isn't a fan of it and he said it was fine. I also tasted the sauce before baking and it really needed something else (it was pretty bland) so I added some nutmeg. That made it delicious! Also, the recipe says to use a 2 qt. casserole dish. I used a 2.5 liter dish, which is about 2.6 quarts and it was almost full. Go with a bigger dish.

Recipe from Weight Watchers:

Au Gratin Potatoes

Serves 8 @ 3 Points
Serves 4 @ 7 Points

Ingredients:
2 lbs yukon gold potatoes, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
1 medium onion, sliced thin
1 Tbsp butter
2 cups skim milk
2 Tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 2 qt casserole dish with cooking spray.

Melt butter in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onions and cook until brown. Sprinkle in flour and then slowly add milk, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Add potatoes, salt, and pepper. Stir to coat. Bring to a boil. Stir in 3/4 c. cheese. Pour into casserole dish.

Bake uncovered for 1 hour. Put lid on dish and bake until potatoes are fork tender, 10-20 minutes more. Remove from oven and sprinkle remaining 1/4 c. cheese on top and place under broiler for 5 minutes.

Let set for 5 minutes, slice into servings, serve.

An English Disaster!!

So I'm back from a long hiatus due to just not really cooking. And what else would happen when I finally plan a dinner....Disaster!

I planned on making fish 'n chips. I figured folks might like a review of a lightened up version since it is Lent and all. Well people, either help me figure out how to fix this up or just skip it. It was not delicious and it was indeed a disaster. Well the fish part, the chips are salvageable.

When I was mixing up the batter, it was the consistency of wet sand. I had a bad feeling from the beginning but I figured I'd stick with it. I finished the preparation and threw the food in the oven. Flipped everything halfway and I was impressed that the "batter" actually stayed on the fish.

Of course the batter stuck on the fish, it is the edible equivalent of GLUE! It also didn't taste like anything. Bland and chewy is not good for what is supposed to be a delicious dinner of fish 'n chips.

The chips weren't so bad though. I like the vinegar taste, but I could have used more just because I really like vinegar. Do you think if I soaked the potatoes in the vinegar for longer it would make a difference? Just a thought.

Any suggestions on how to fix this batter? I'm not really keen on trying this again though.

Recipe from Weight Watchers:

Cornmeal-Battered Fish and Chips

POINTS® Value: 8

Servings: 4

Preparation Time: 18 min

Cooking Time: 35 min

Level of Difficulty: Easy

A crunchy, cornmeal-herb batter (made light with fat-free milk) puts this English specialty back on the menu. Together with fries coated in vinegar, salt and pepper...brilliant!

Ingredients
1 spray(s) cooking spray
1 1/2 cup(s) uncooked yellow cornmeal, for coating
1 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 1/4 pound(s) uncooked cod, or haddock fillets (four 5 oz pieces)
2 tbsp uncooked yellow cornmeal, for dusting fish
2 large potato(es), Idaho, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges
2 tbsp white vinegar, or red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground

Instructions
Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a shallow dish, combine 1 1/2 cups of cornmeal, milk, zest, basil and oregano; mix well to make a thick batter. Dust fish with additional 2 tablespoons of cornmeal; add fish to batter and turn to coat both sides. Place fish on prepared baking sheet and spoon over any remaining batter, making an even coating.

Place potatoes in a large bowl and add vinegar, salt and pepper; toss to coat. Arrange potatoes next to fish on baking sheet.

Bake, carefully flipping fish once, until potatoes and fish are fork-tender and cornmeal batter just starts to crack, about 30 to 35 minutes. Yields 1 fish fillet and 1/2 potato per serving.