Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes

2 large sweet potatoes (1-1/2 lb.)
2 oz. Neufchatel Cheese
2 Tbsp. fat-free milk
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Cut potatoes lengthwise in half; place, cut-sides down, in foil-lined baking pan (I used a cookie sheet). Bake 30-35 minutes or until tender. Scoop out centers of potatoes into bowl, leaving 1/4 inch thick shells. Add Neufchatel cheese, milk, sugar and cinnamon to potatoes; mash until blended. Spoon potato mixture into shells. Bake 8 minutes or until potatoes are heated through.

servings: 4
points per serving: 2.75 points.


OK...So these were SOOOOOOO yummy!!! I made these for Thanksgiving and we want to make them again and again. I know this will be a regular dish on our Thanksgiving table! The original recipe called for pecans (sprinkled on top before the second bake) but I omitted them because of the extra points it added. I used regular brown sugar but I'm sure the Splenda brown sugar would be ok and would lower the points some. This dish was definitely a healthier choice than the regular sweet potato dish made with tons of butter and sugar. This recipe came from Kraft.com. Here's the link the their recipe.

Macaroni Salad with Tomatoes










**Servings: 7 **Size: 3/4 cup **Points: 2.5

6 oz uncooked elbows (I used a whole grain noodle)
2 tomatoes, diced
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup light Miracle Whip (she used light mayo)
1 Tbsp white vinegar
dash garlic powder
1 tsp oregano
2.5 oz sliced black olives (this was about 20 medium olives)
salt and pepper

Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water.

In a medium bowl, combine all the other ingredients (not the noodles yet) including any juice from the tomatoes). Mix well. Add elbow noodles and mix well.

This is a great salad to make for Potlucks. It is a healthier choice than some of the other VERY high fat salads that are brought to BBQ's and potlucks. The salad was even better after it had time to sit and let the flavors mix. Yummy!!! I found this recipe on a blog called Gina's Weight Watcher's Recipes (I linked her blog over on the left too). She has A LOT of good recipes on there that are healthy and they all include WW points values. Very helpful for finding good recipes. I'm going to be looking there for more dinner recipes.

Zucchini Fries

cooking spray
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1-1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp table salt
3/4 cup dried bread crumbs
2 medium zucchini, about 7 inches each, cut into 4 chunks, then each chunk halved
2 large egg whites, whipped until frothy (almost soft peaks)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. In a small bowl, mix together Italian seasoning, flour, and salt. Place bread crumbs in another small bowl.

Dredge a zucchini fry in flour mixture and then dip into egg whites; dredge in bread crumbs. Place coated zucchini on prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining ingredients; liberally coat with cooking spray.

Roast, turning once, until desired crispness, about 12 minutes. Yields about 8 fries per serving

2 points per serving (about 8 fries)

NOTES:
Use this technique with any summer squash or eggplant. It also works great with thick-cut onion rings or even green tomatoes.

For extra crispy fries, increase the oven temperature to 500 degrees and knock 2 minutes off the cooking time.

(recipe came from a Weight Watchers email newsletter)

We really enjoyed this yummy side dish; they bake up nice and crisp. I would like to try different seasonings to make different flavors to mix it up. I used a little ketchup for dipping but then I started eating them plain and I liked it better that way...I could really taste the zucchini!

Oat-Baked Onion Rings

cooking spray
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
2 large onions, yellow, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and separated into rings
5 packets, uncooked instant oatmeal, 1 oz. each (about 2 cups total)
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat 2 large baking sheets (I used cookie sheets) with cooking spray.

In a large shallow bowl or dish, whisk together egg whites and sour cream. Add onion rings and turn to coat. Transfer onion rings to a large bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Sprinkle mixture over onions and toss to coat. Spread onion out on prepared baking sheets and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Bake until tender and golden, about 40-45 minutes. Yields 1/4 of onion rings per serving.

points value: 3 per serving

We enjoyed these for dinner tonight. It is a recipe that can be played with and changed up to get different flavors. Kris liked them and said he would like to have them again. One change that I did make to this recipe is that I used regular rolled oat instead of the instant (it's just what I had on hand). I rolled over the oats with a rolling pin to break them up a little so they would spread farther over the onions. They are yummy and NOT full of grease! We dipped these in ketchup. I'm sure
any dipping sauce would be good (keep in mind some dipping sauces will add points). I have a recipe for zucchini fries that I want to try too. I'll post that recipe when I get around to making them. I got this recipe from WeightWatchers.com. They have free recipes that you can get off their site as well as in their free newsletters. I always like trying their recipes.