Yams and Apples

I got this quick-and-easy recipe from the "Curves Fitness and Weight Management Plan" book a couple of years ago. I make it several times a month.

This recipe is:

• delicious
• inexpensive
• EASY
• highly nutritious
• did I mention that it's EASY??

Ingredients:

1 29-oz can of yams

2 small or 1 large apple diced

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

1 1/2 Tablespoons butter

Directions:

Mash the canned yams in a casserole dish.
Add diced apples and cinnamon, stir.
Top with dollops of the butter.
Cover and cook in microwave on High for 5 minutes.

Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator.

Makes about 8 servings

I just can't say enough about this recipe. It provides all the sweet yumminess of candied yams without all the sugar. It is sooooo good!

So go write "big can of yams" on your shopping list right now, and make the recipe this week!

Chicken, Vegetable, and Orzo Soup

Mark and I both love this Weight Watchers recipe I tried out last week.

Chicken, Vegetable and Orzo Soup

(click on the title for the recipe)

One of the vegetables in the recipe is fennel. I haven't cooked with it much before, but I'm finding that I like it. A lot. It cooks up kind of like onion, has a mild flavor. Mmmmm....

Another little trick to the recipe is to add 1/4 cup of lemon juice to the soup just before serving. Gave the soup a lovely little tangy flavor.

I bought one of those little roasted chickens at the deli section - Mark helped me cut up the meat and we used that in the soup. It was really delicious.

I also added 2 cups of spinach leaves, cut up, just before adding the lemon juice. It added some nice greens, and I will definitely do that again.

This recipe makes 8 servings, which is quite a lot for just the two of us, but it kept well in the fridge all week and made for delicious, healthy "left-over" lunches.

I made a batch of my favorite bran muffins to go with this wonderful soup.

Easy Healthy Fruit & Yogurt Parfait

Katie featured her Easy Healthy Fruit & Yogurt Parfait over on The Red Kitchen blog this week.

It makes a delicious, filling, healthy, lo-cal breakfast to eat at home or on the go.

Thanks for a great idea, Katie!

Looking for a healthy new granola to try? Mark picked this one up in the health food section at Fred Meyers this evening. He likes it because it contains molasses instead of honey.

210 calories per 3/4 cup serving
6 Weight Watchers points