RECIPE: Spinach Dip

Spinach Dip

(Makes approximately 6 cups)

Ingredients:

• 1 (16 ounce) container cottage cheese (gluten free if needed)
• 10 ounce container frozen spinach, thawed
• 8 ounce can water chestnuts, chopped fine
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Using a blender, blend the cottage cheese until it is smooth and creamy.
2. Put the cottage cheese in a large mixing bowl, and add all other ingredients. Stir well.

Nutritional Content:
(Data is for 1/2 cup)
Calories: 64
Total Fat: 1 gm
Saturated Fats: 1 gm
Trans Fats: 0 gm
Cholesterol: 3 mg
Sodium: 151 mg
Carbohydrates: 7 gm
Dietary fiber: 1 gm
Sugars: 1 gm
Protein: 6 gm
Estimated Glycemic Load: 4

http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-spinach-dip/  

RECIPE: Tomato Bacon Soup

Tomato Bacon Soup

 Yield: 8-10 servings

 

Ingredients

• 4 slices turkey bacon (look for the kind without nitrates and preservatives)
• 1 large (32oz) can of crushed tomatoes (I recommend the Hunts All Natural kind with basil added. If you can't find that, regular crushed tomatoes are fine too)
• 1 can Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 Fresno (red) chile pepper, finely chopped (remove most of the ribs and seeds- while this is more of a mild/medium heat level, you don’t want the spice to overpower the soup. You just want the flavor the pepper gives because in my opinion it really makes the dish!)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• ½ quart chicken stock (all natural, organic, low sodium is best)
• ¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil and parsley (best with both, but either or works best too)
• Bay leaves (i just use a sprinkle of dried, but you can add a whole fresh bay leaf if you prefer)

Directions

1. In a dutch oven, brown the bacon. Remove from pan. Finely chop.
2. Add the chopped onion, garlic, and Fresno to the same pan and saute until tender (you cook it in the pan drippings, but you might need to add a little EVOO depending on how much grease your bacon yielded. Alternatively, if there's more than 1-2 tbsp of bacon grease, I would remove some before sauteing the veggies, so the soup isn’t overly greasy… just depends on your bacon that day). Season with salt, pepper, and bay leaves.
3. Combine all ingredients in a Crockpot and cook until heated through and beans are tender- I usually give it at least 3-4 hours on low, but it can cook all day too!
   NOTE: If anyone does the nutritional information on recipes I post on the blog, I would edit the post here to add them if you will send it to me....
   **Original recipe was Rachel Ray, this is altered and found on the internet.

 

Wednesday Words of Wisdom

It takes a commitment from you,

to you,

that you’re going to reach your goals.

WORDS OF WISDOM

Success is the sum of small
efforts repeated day
in and day out.

.