Pancetta Two-Cheese Pizza

(single-serve thin crust whole grain here)

This pizza is such a refreshing change of pace around here for only 324 calories per serving!  My family, except for myself, could practically live on pizza.  I get terrible heartburn from the tomato sauce on pizza for some reason, and the good news is there is none of that on this pizza!  Pesto and balsamic vinegar actually replace the pizza sauce layer!

Of course, my youngest was worried about and focused on the goat cheese in this recipe, but he ate two servings!

Full disclosure here, I tweaked this recipe in a few ways.  I copped out on making the pizza dough recipe below from scratch with a 5-count pack of 100% Whole Grain thin crust personal pan size pizza crusts to save time!  I also went with the fresh, snipped oregano straight from the garden!  The recipe as written makes 6 servings with the homemade thin crust dough, and if you choose to make your dough from scratch, start way earlier in the day than dinner time to allow for the yeast to do its job!

You can tweak it with more flavorful cheeses as well!  You can get more flavor into more healthful dishes by way of cheese by choosing smaller amounts of types like herb-flavored, horseradish-flavored, or smoked cheeses!!

Pizza Dough Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour, divided

3/4 cup warm water, divided (105 to 115 degrees F)

1/2 tsp active dry yeast

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

Pizza Topping Ingredients:

6 oz lean ground pork

2 oz thinly sliced pancetta, chopped

1/2 cup chopped onion

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed

1 cup bottled roasted sweet peppers, drained and chopped

2 tsp snipped fresh oregano, rosemary, or thyme

2 Tbs basil pesto

1 Tbs balsamic vinegar

3/4 c shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (about 3 oz)

2 oz crumbled goat cheese

Pizza Dough Instructions:

In a medium bowl whisk together 1/4 cup warm water and 1/2 tsp active dry yeast until smooth.  Cover and let stand at room temperature for 2 to 6 hours. 

Gradually stir in the remaining 1/2 cup warm water, 1/2 tsp salt, and 3/4 cup whole wheat flour.   Stir in enough of the 1/2 to 3/4 cup all purpose flour to make a dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl but is still sticky.

On a lightly floured surface kneed in enough of the remaining all-purpose flour to make a soft dough that is smooth and elastic (3 to 5 minutes). 

Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl.  Cover and let rise once more in a warm place for about 30 minutes (good to work on the remaining recipe during this time!)

Grease two 12" pizza pans and set aside.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 

Gently remove pizza dough from the bowl and divide in half. 

On a lightly floured surface roll each dough half into a 12" circle (dough will be VERY thin). 

Transfer dough to prepared pans and pat to edges building up the edges just slightly.  Bake on two separate oven racks about 8 minutes or until just starting to brown.

Pizza Topping Instructions:

In a large skillet, cook ground pork, pancetta, and onion over med-high heat until pork is no longer pink breaking up the pork as it cooks.  Drain off the fat and pat with paper towel to absorb as much as you can. 

Add garlic and fennel seeds cooking for another minute.  Remove from heat and stir in the red peppers and oregano stirring a bit for a minute to distribute heat.  Set aside.

In a small bowl combine the pesto and the vinegar.  Brush this mixture evenly over crusts in pans leaving the edges plain.  Spread the pork and pancetta mixture evenly over the crusts.  Bake for 8 minutes.

Sprinkle each with the mozzarella and goat cheeses and return to the oven for about 3 to 4 more minutes to melt the cheese until the crust is golden brown.

If desired, sprinkle with snipped fresh oregano. 

Cut each pizza into six slices.

 

YIELDS:  6 servings

SERVING SIZE:  2 slices

Nutritional Information:  Calories 324, Fat 16 g (7 g sat), Cholesterol 39 mg, Sodium 457 mg, Carb 20 g, Sugars 2 g, Fiber 3 g, Protein 18 g

Kickin' Orzo Chicken Salad with Avocado-Lime Dressing

This cold chicken meal/pasta salad is such a refreshing twist on lunch and the homemade cilantro-lime dressing with a slight red pepper kick is definitely a keeper!  Save this one to put on more things for sure!

This salad is also really versatile!  You can change it up by using leftover pork tenderloin or grilled flank steak instead of the chicken and by using shelled edamame instead of the corn or red and yellow sweet peppers for the tomatoes!  I will share pics of the various tweaks I have tried in the future!

A time-saving tip is to utilize the breast portions from a rotisserie chicken removing the skin!

Notes:  I don't like feta cheese so in all recipes that call for feta, I substitute in creamy crumbled goat cheese.  A small avocado from those 4-count bags of avocados is sufficient for making the dressing!  And you may need more than one lime depending on the size and juiciness of the limes available to you. Lastly, while you can immediately eat this dish, allowing the flavors to combine overnight allow the flavors in the dressing to really blend well together so make ahead!

(dressing applied to bottom left salad)

Ingredients:

2/3 c. dried whole wheat or regular orzo pasta (3 oz)
1 c. fresh or frozen whole kernel corn
2 c. shredded or chopped cooked chicken breast
1 c. grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 c. crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese (I use goat cheese)
1 small avocado, pitted, peeled and cut up
1/2 tsp finely grated lime peel
1/4 c. lime juice
1/2 c. water
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Instructions:

In a medium saucepan, cook up the orzo according to package directions or to desired doneness.  Add the corn to the cooking orzo during the last minute of boiling.

Rinse the corn and orzo with cold water after draining and divide evenly between 4 single-serve storage containers or bowls.

Top each serving with chicken, tomatoes, and cilantro.  Top that with your crumbled cheese of choice. 

For the dressing, combine the avocado, water, finely grated lime peel, lime juice, garlic, crushed red pepper and salt in a blender or a food processor and give it a good whirl until all ingredients are well blended.  Store in condiment cups like I have or cover and store!

Cover and chill everything for at least 2 hours but up to 24 hours.

To serve just drizzle the dressing portions atop the salad portions.  Cover and shake to blend if in a portable container or toss to coat.  Voila.  That's it!

YIELDS:  4 Servings
SERVING SIZE:  About 1 cup salad and 1/4 c dressing

Nutritional Information:  Calories 321, Fat 10 g (3 g sat), Chol 65 mg, Sodium 439 mg, Carb 30 g, Sugars 3 g, Fiber 7 g, Protein 30 g

Pork and Veggie Stir Fry with Cashew Rice for 460 calories

Stir-frying is said to be one of the fastest and healthiest cooking methods.  Stir-frying uses high heat so the food is seared quickly, which preserves the natural juices in mere minutes, using very little oil.  The veggies also therefore retain their crispness, bright color, and nutritional value! 

This recipe can seem labor intensive and too involved, but not if you get your ingredients prepped beforehand and prior to diving into actually making it!  I promise, it is worth it!  It is a huge serving for 460 calories so halving it and subbing in some healthier, yet filling, low-cal options can work here too!

I would totally eat this dish weekly if only I could get my kids to try it.  They won’t even give it a go.  They can be such jerks sometimes.  I am not kidding when I tell you that things my oldest two refused to try here at home they now love, but it isn’t because they finally tried those same things that I made here; rather, it is because they ate it somewhere else or at someone else’s house and came home announcing now they love it!!!  See? Jerks. lol

Master Ingredients List:

¾ c. uncooked long-grain rice

1/3 c chopped green onions

¼ cup dry-roasted cashews, salted; coarsely chopped

½ tsp salt

2/3 c fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth

2 Tbs cornstarch (total will be divided)

3 Tbs lower-sodium soy sauce (total will be divided)

2 Tbs honey

1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed, cut into ½” cubes

1 Tbs canola oil (total will be divided)

2 c sliced mushrooms

1 c chopped onion

1 Tbs grated, peeled, fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 c sugar snap peas (about 6 oz trimmed)

1 c red pepper, coarsely chopped

Instructions:

You will first want to prep all of your ingredients. Chop your pork, onion, cashews, green onions, and red bell pepper. Mince your garlic cloves. Slice your mushrooms if not buying presliced.  Grate your ginger!

Instructions with ingredients for Cashew Rice:

¾ cup uncooked long-grain rice

1/3 cup chopped green onions

¼ cup dry-roasted cashews, salted, coarsely chopped

½ tsp salt

Cook the rice according to package directions BUT leave out salt and fat (butter, oils).  Stir in green onions, cashews and salt.  Set aside.

Instructions with ingredients for “sauce”:

2/3 c fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth

1 Tbs cornstarch

2 Tbs lower-sodium soy sauce

2 Tbs honey

Combine the broth, 1 Tbs cornstarch, 2 Tbs soy sauce, and the honey in a small bowl.  Whisk mixture if necessary.  Set aside.

Instructions with Ingredients for pork:

1 (1-lb) pork tenderloin, trimmed, cut into ½” cubes

2 tsp canola oil

2 c sliced mushrooms

Heat 2 tsp canola oil in a pan and get hot enough for stir-frying.  Combine pork remaining 1 Tbs cornstarch and remaining 1 Tbs soy sauce in a bowl.  Toss well to coat.   Add pork to hot oil in pan and sauté about 4 minutes or until browned.  If pan is not hot enough, the cornstarch mixture will stick to the pan.   Remove pork from pan and set aside.

Instructions for vegetable stir fry:

1 c chopped onion

1 Tbs grated pelled fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 c sugar snap peas, trimmed

1 c chopped red bell pepper

This stage moves quickly due to the “stir-fry” process.  Add remaining 1 tsp oil to pan and add mushrooms and onions sautéing about 2 minutes.  Now stir in the ginger and garlic and sauté another 30 seconds or so.  Now add peas and bell pepper to the pan and sauté for another minute.  Stir in the coated pork sautéing another minute.  Add the sauce mixture and bring to a boil.  Cook about another minute or until the sauce thickens slightly while stirring constantly (if you get it too thick, there won’t be enough sauce to blend in with your rice). 

YIELDS: 4 servings

SERVING SIZE:  1-1/2 c pork-veggie mixture and ½ c cashew rice

Nutritional Information:  Calories 460; Fat 11.8 g (sat 2.5 g, mono 6.2 g, poly, 2.3 g); Protein 31.8 g, Carb 55.9 g, Fiber 3.6 g, Cholesterol 74 mg, Iron 4.6 mg, Sodium 787 mg, Calcium 73 mg

Winner Winner Hoisin Pork Dinner!

Oh Em Gee.  This is delicious.  If you're looking for a new way to prepare pork tenderloin, this is it, and for only 7 Weight Watchers Winning Points. I chose to use brown rice instead of the long-grain rice as listed.

Pictured with it is also a recipe for Cracked Pepper Linguine that I'll share in another post.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Tbs dark sesame oil
1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, cut crosswise into 1/2"-thick slices

6 Tbs water
1/3 c. dry sherry
3 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
3 Tbs hoisin sauce

2 c. hot cooked long-grain rice, cooked without salt or fat
1/4 c sliced green onions

cilantro sprigs (optional)


INSTRUCTIONS:

Coat a nonstick skillet with cooking spray, add oil, and place over medium-high heat until hot.  Add the pepper and garlic and saute 1 minute.

Add pork and cook 4 minutes per side or until browned.  Remove pork from skillet and wipe skillet clean with a paper towel.

Combine the water, sherry, cilantro, and hoisin sauce in skillet and cook over medium heat for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Return pork to the sauce-skillet, turning to coat well.

Place rice on a platter. Place pork atop the rice and spoon the hoisin sauce from pan over top of pork medallions.  Sprinkle with green onions and garnish with cilantro sprigs if desired.

YIELDS: 4 servings (serving size 3 ounces of pork and 1/2 cup rice)

POINTS: 7 points

Per Serving:  303 calories (23% from fat); 27.1g protein; 7.9g fat (sat 1.9g);  29.1g carb; 1g fiber; 79mg cholesterol; 2.6mg iron; 195mg sodium; 34mg calcium

Pork Chops with Mustard Cream Sauce for 4 Points

This is what we had for dinner tonight.  I think I might try adding a little more seasoning to the meat/sauce part.  Wasn't very Flavorful but was still good.  The pineapple-basil salad, however, is now one of my Favorites at only 1 Weight Watcher point, and I'll be making that more Frequently.  You can find the recipe for the zucchini chips here. 

Ingredients: 

4 (4-oz.) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (1/2-inch thick)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Cooking spray
1/2 cup fat-free less-sodium chicken broth
2/3 cup fat-free half-and-half
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Instructions:

Sprinkle both sides of chops with salt and pepper.  Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork and cook 4 to 5 minutes on each side until done. Transfer to a plate and keep warm.

Add broth to pan, scraping pan to loosen brown bits. Stir in half-and-half, mustard, and lemon juice.  Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 6 minutes or until slightly thick. Spoon sauce over pork. Sprinkle with parsley if desired.

Yields: 4 servings (1 4-oz. chop with 2 Tbsp. sauce)
Points: 4 points

193 calories, 6.4 g fat, 24.3 g protein, 5.2 carb, 0 fiber, 65 mg cholesterol, 539 mg sodium, 52 mg calcium