Stir Fry: Jade Green Vegetables

Stir Fries are one of my favorite things to add to, or use as a meal. When done the right way and with just vegetables, you can have a delicious side dish added to your meal with minimal fat and calories additions. When tossed with chicken or meat, it makes a delicious meal paired with brown rice for some whole grain good measure. My old Weight Watchers leader send me an email full of different tasty stir fry recipes that will put a tasty spin on vegetables.


Jade Green Vegetables

Makes 6 servings
Yields 3 cups total

POINTS® value | 0 per serving

Ingredients

· 1/2 cup any type of broth, chicken recommended

· 1 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

· 1/2 Tbsp sugar

· 2 sprays cooking spray, canola-variety recommended

· 1 1/2 tsp peanut oil

· 1/2 tsp salt

· 3 thin slices of fresh ginger

· 1/2 lb uncooked string beans, trimmed, cut into bite-size pieces

· 1/2 lb asparagus, trimmed, cut into bite-size pieces

· 1 cup scallions, finely sliced

Instructions

· In a small bowl, combine broth, soy sauce and sugar; set aside.

· Generously coat a large nonstick skillet (or wok) with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Add oil, salt and ginger; stir to combine. Heat until oil begins to shimmer and ginger becomes fragrant, about 1 minute. Add string beans; stir-fry about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Add asparagus; stir-fry until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Add scallions and broth mixture; toss to coat. Heat through, about 30 seconds to 1 minute; serve immediately. Yields about 1/2 cup per serving.

Notes

· How to make it faster: Mix the sauce the night before, buy precut vegetables from a salad bar or buy bottled stir-fry sauce instead (could affect POINTS values).

Great over brown rice or served with steamed shrimp or shredded chicken.

Shmancy Spaghetti Dinner

This is a spaghetti dish that you can make that will make any Italian restaurant jealous. I found this from Self. It's a fresh, healthy pasta dish that was featured in their Eat Healthy All Week segment for November 2008.

Shrimp Scampi With Pasta, Spinach, Cherry Tomatoes and Olives

Serves 1

INGREDIENTS

• 2 oz whole-grain angel-hair pasta (of an 8 oz. box)
• 2 teaspoons extra light olive oil
• 3/4 pound medium shrimp, shelled (tails intact)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped black olives
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach
• 4 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon reduced-fat grated Parmesan

PREPARATION

1. For pasta

   Cook pasta 1 minute less than directed on package; set aside.

2. For shrimp

   Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with salt. Cook shrimp until pink, 5 to 6 minutes; transfer to a plate.

3. For vegetables

   Reduce heat to medium; add olives, parsley and garlic. Cook until garlic becomes fragrant but does not brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Add spinach, tomatoes, broth, wine and lemon juice. Cover and cook until tomatoes soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in half of shrimp and half of pasta; sprinkle with Parmesan. Serve. (Place remaining cooked shrimp and remaining cooked pasta in separate resealable bags and refrigerate until Monday's lunch and dinner, respectively.)

The skinny

468 calories per serving, 15.8 g fat (2.9 g saturated), 35.6 g carbs, 2.6 g fiber, 42.7 g protein