12 CAJUN BEEF STEW

11 BEEF CARNITAS

This turned out really great, served on corn tortillas with salsa. It did not make a ton but then it is listed as an appetizer and I served it as a dinner.

BEEF CARNITAS RECIPE

1 lb Chuck Steak
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (I used realemon)
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp Montreal Steak Seasoning

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker, cover and cook 4-5 hrs on high or 8-10 hrs on low

10 BUFFALO CHICKEN BITES

These were a little tough because I think they cooked too long. Next time I will definitely cut down the cooking time. I also used chicken breasts instead of the recommended thighs, now that I think of it that is probably why they were a bit tough. The flavor was great and we ate them all.

BUFFALO CHICKEN BITES

1 tsp butter
1.5 lbs skinless boneless chicken thighs (I used breasts)
1/4 cup chili sauce
3 Tbsp Oyster sauce
1 tsp Hot pepper sauce
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Melt .5 tsp of butter in nonstick skillet, add half the chicken and cook until browned, about 4 min. Transfer to a slow cooker, repeat with remaining butter and chicken.

Combine all sauces and pour over the chicken, mix well. Cover and cook 2-3 hrs on high or 4-6 hrs on low

When cooked, Transfer chicken to a bowl. Pour sauce into a saucepan and bring to a boil, boil until reduced to about 1/3 cup, approx. 5 min. Add the sauce to the chicken and mix well

9 INDIAN RED LENTIL SOUP

I followed the recipe exactly as it is written except for the 1/4 tsp of saffron threads.

I cooked it for 4 hours on high and it was still crunchy, so I cooked it for another 2-3 hours.

It was ok. Very thick for a soup. I am going to use the leftovers kind of like refried beans on tortillas with cheese.

Not sure if I will make this again. The taste was good but consistancy and presentation were just not there.

Average rating: 5.5/10 (two people)

If anyone wants the recipe let me know and I will post it for you!

8 BROCCOLINI WITH ALMONDS

This was a great addition to the "All-American Pot Roast" meal.
It was quick and easy and a nice change to plain steamed broccoli.
We all enjoyed it and ate it all up!

Rating: 8/10 (6 people)

1 lb Broccoli (I used broccoli)
2 tsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp grated range zest (left this out - no oranges in the house!)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp sliced toasted amonds (I used Almond Accents instead)

Serving Size: 1 cup
WW Points Value: 2

1. Steam broccoli 6-7 minutes
2. Heat oil in non-stick skilet
3. Add garlic, stir until fragrant
4. Remove from heat, add zest, salt and pepper
5. Add broccoli and toss
6. Sprinkle with almonds

7 ALL-AMERICAN POT ROAST

This was very easy and quick to get into the slow cooker, it only took
me a few minutes. It was delicious. Everyone loved it, including Devi,
my 1 year old grand-daughter. The meat was melt in your mouth
tender and the vegetables were surprisingly good for frozen.

I served it with the sauce over the meat instead of in a separate bowl. Next time I will use fresh baby carrots and red potatoes, cut in half.

I served it with "Broccoli with Almonds" (also from SLOW GOOD)
I will definitely make this again.

Rating: 9.5/10 (6 people)

ALL-AMERICAN POT ROAST RECIPE
(from WW SLOW GOOD recipe book)

3 Tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 1/2 lb Eye-Round Roast
1 tsp olive oil
1 (24 oz) bag frozen stew vegetables
1 can cream of mushroom soup - low fat/low sodium
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard (I used spicy brown mustard)
1/2 tsp dried thyme

1. Mix flour, salt and pepper together
2. Rub 1 Tbsp of flour mixture onto the roast
3. Heat oil in non-stick skillet
4. Cook roast until browned, turning frequently, 6-8 min.
5. Mix vegetables and remaining flour in slow cooker
5. Place beef on top of vegetables
6. Combine soup, mustard and thyme, pour over beef
7. Cook until beef is fork tender, 5-6 hrs high/10-12 hrs low
8. Transfer beef to a cutting board and keep warm
9. Remove vegetables with a slotted spoon
10. Pour the sauce into a saucepan
11. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stir often
12. Cook until thick, 6-8 minutes
13. Cut beef into 16 slices, transfer to platter
14. Spoon veggies around the beef and serve with sauce


Serving Size: 2 slices beef, 1/2 cup veggies, 3 Tbsp sauce
WW Points Value: 6

6 KEY LIME CHEESECAKE

5 ANCHO CHICKEN CHILI

This did not turn out so well. I had made it two years ago and we rated it 8/10, but this time we could not quite pin-point what it was but none of us really cared for it too much.

I doubled the recipe, however I did not double the chili powder. I also left out the instant coffee. Everything else was exactly as it was printed.

My husband said to leave out the cashews next time as they just went soggy and had no taste. I felt like it would have been better with regular chili powder instead of the Ancho chili powder it called for.

I have been eating it for lunch, so it's not completely horrible but I probably will not make it again.

I am not posting the recipe, but if anyone wants to try it I will be happy to post it for you.

Average Rating: 5.5/10 (four people)

4 LEMON CHICKEN

This recipe called for a whole chicken but I chose to use chicken breast as my family prefer the white meat.

It turned out really good. I felt it was a touch dry but my husband loved it and gave it a 9.

He wanted me to note however, that he does enjoy his meat dryer than most. My daughter, Falon gave it a 6 because she would prefer to have the lemon flavor throughout the chicken rather than just on the outside. I tend to agree with her.

Average rating: 7.3/10 (three people)

LEMON CHICKEN RECIPE
(from WW SLOW GOOD cook book)

3 garlic cloves - minced
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1.5 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt (I left this out)
.25 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 (3lb) whole chicken (I used 2lbs skinless breasts)
.25 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon zest (I used 2 tsp)

1 Combine garlic, oil, oregano, salt and pepper
2 Rub half of above mixture on the meat under the skin
3 Rub remaining mixture in cavity of chicken (I rubbed it all over)
4 Spray skillet with PAM, add chicken, cook until brown, turn often
5 Transfer to slow-cooker
6 Add broth to skillet, boil, stirring to scrape bits off bottom of pan
7 Add 1 tbsp lemon juice to broth
8 Pour broth over the chicken
9 Cover and cook 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low
10 20 minutes before time is up, combine 2 Tbsp lemon juice and zest
11 Pour lemon mixture into cooker,
12 Cover and cook on high until fragrant (approx. 15 min.)

Serving Size: 4 ounces
WW Points Value: 4

3 BEEF CARBONNADE

This is a classic Belgian stew. It calls for beer but I used the Beef Broth that I made yesterday.

This was delicious. We had the missionaries from church for dinner and they said it was the best stew they have ever tasted. Jay (my husband) said it was really really good but a little sweet. However, the missionaries loved that it was a little sweet.

I am not a fan of stew, but if I am going to eat it this would definitely be the one that I would choose.

The recipe says it serves 6. There was plenty for the four of us and the three men had second helpings. I ended up with about 1.5 cups left.

I was completely full after one serving.I served some garlic sour dough bread and a sweet spinach salad with it. It was a good meal!

Average Rating: 9/10 (four people)

BEEF CARBONNADE RECIPE
(from WW SLOW GOOD cook book)

The small adjustments I made are in brackets:

1 lb boneless bottom round in 1" chunks (I increased to 1.5 lbs)
1/2 tsp salt/ 1/4 tsp pepper (light sprinkle of Montreal instead)
3 medium onions - sliced
1/2 cup reduced sodium beef broth (used home-made)
3/4 lb baby potatoes, halved (Used regular and peeled them)
3 garlic cloves
2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon packed brown sugar
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard (I used brown spicy)
1 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
2.5 cups reduced sodium beef broth (used home-made)
5 medium carrots - cut in 1/2" pieces
2 Tablespoons flour (Increased to 3 because of extra liquid)

1. Sprinkle beef with seasoning and heat on high in skillet until brown
2. Transfer beef to slow-cooker
3. Put onions in skillet and cook on medium until lightl brown
4. Stir in 1/2 cup broth, bring to a boil, stir constantly
5. Transfer onion mixture to slow-cooker
6. Add pototates, garlic, vinegar, sugar, mustard, thyme, bay leaves
7. Reserve 1/3 cup of broth into a small bowl and refrigerate
8. Pour the rest of the broth into slow-cooker
9. Push the potatoes down into the liquid
9. Top with a layer of carrots
10. Cover and cook until fork tender (I did low for 6 hours - perfect!)
11. Whisk the flour and reserved broth until smooth
12. Stir in 1/4 cup of hot liquid from slow cooker until blended
13. Stir flour mixture into slow cooker.
14. Cover and turn to high for 15 minutes, should be thickened
15. Discard bay leaves (I forgot and Elder Stephens ate one!!!!)

Serving Size: 1 cup
WW Points Value: 5

2 SLOW COOKER BEEF BROTH

It turned out great, I measured approx. 9 cups.

It has a wonderful taste and much better than store bought. But not really cost effective as it probably cost the same as if I bought the cans on sale.

I froze 6 cups and the other three cups I am using today in recipe #3 Beef Carbonnade

Rating: 9/10

SLOW COOKER BEEF BROTH RECIPE
(from WW SLOW GOOD cookbook)

5 lbs meaty beef shank bones (I used neck bones, much more meat)
32 oz can whole tomatoes drained (I didn't drain them)
4 celery stalks with leaves - quartered
3 carrots - quartered
2 onions - quartered
6 flat leaf parsley sprigs
2 fresh thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
1 tsp salt (I left this out)
10 whole black peppercorns
8 cups water

1 Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2 Place bones in roasting pan in oven for 20 minutes
3 Transfer bones to slow-cooker and add remaining ingredients
4 Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours
5 Strain broth through strainer, discard bones and vegetables
6 Let sit for 1 hour then cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours
7 Remove any fat from the surface of the broth
8 Use as a soup base or freeze

Serving Size: 1 cup
WW Points Value: 1

1 POLYNESIAN PORK

I tossed the meat in 2 Tbsp of cornstarch instead of 1.
I still used 1 Tbsp with the pineapple

I ended up checking it after 4 hours and it was totally done, the meat was melt in your mouth tender.

I tried it out on my husband Jay, daughters Brooke and Falon, son-in-law Chris and grand-daughter Devi. I served it on a healthy portion of brown rice. Everyone loved it.

All loved the overall taste, some loved the meat and one loved the pineapple the most. Jay felt there could have been more onion. I will definitely make this again, however I would probably double it so that I can serve more family members and I will use fresh onion next time!

Average Rating: 8.9/10 (five people)


POLYNESIAN PORK RECIPE
(from WW SlOW GOOD cookbook)

1 lb pork tenderloin cut into 1/2 inch chunks
2 Tbsp cornstarch2 tsp Asian sesame oil
15 oz can pineapple tidbits
1 onion chopped (I used 1 Tbsp granulated)
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup ketchup
3 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger (I used 1.5 Tbsp)

1. Combine pork and 1 Tbsp cornstarch and toss.
2. Heat oil, add pork until browned - 3-4 minutes.
3. Combine 1 Tbsp cornstarch along with remaining ingredients in slow cooker.
4. Stir in the pork, cover and cook until pork is fork tender(mine took 4 hours on low)

Serving Size: 1 cup
WW Points Value: 6

CHAPTER HEADINGS!!

Here are the chapter headings:

Chapter One FIRST BITES
Chapter Two SOUP'S ON
Chapter Three SENSATIONAL STEWS
Chapter Four CHILI MADNESS
Chapter Five EASY DOES IT
Chapter Six OUT OF THE POT
Chapter Seven SWEET'N'SLOW DESSERTS
Chapter Eight CORE PLAN RECIPES (they do post WW points)

HOW AM I GOING TO DO THIS?

The book has 8 chapters, obviously if I went through each chapter, my family would get sick of 2 weeks worth of appetizers then two weeks worth of soups etc. So I am going to start with the first recipe from chapter one then the first recipe from chapter two etc. When I have done the first recipe from each of the eight chapters then I will start with the second recipe from each chapter and so on...

My goal is to get through every recipe and have a comment on how it turned out and what I served with it and how my family enjoyed it. As of yet I do not have an ending date, but I am starting tomorrow with Polynesian Pork.

WHY WEIGHT WATCHERS?

I have been wanting to do this for a while ever since I heard about the Julia Child's blog.

I chose Weight Watchers because I truly believe in their eating plan.

I decided on the "SLOW GOOD super slow cooker cookbook" for 3 reasons:

1. The few recipes I have made from this book have been great
2. I think slow-cooking is the best for time, nutrition, cost and taste
3. Most of the recipes are from scratch