Spaghetti with Meatballs

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

So, pretty much everybody on the JC Forums have been raving about the new Spaghetti with Meatballs. With the great reviews I just had to try it and I was not disappointed. But of course, I had to volumize my spaghetti to make it even better and this is what I came up with.

Spaghetti with Meatballs
1 JC Spaghett with Meatballs dinner (defrosted)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced (you could substitute onions instead if you prefer)
crushed red pepper, optional
2 T tomato paste
2 portobellini mushrooms, diced
1 handfull of cherry tomatoes, halved
dash of red wine vinegar
4 large basil leaves, chopped
PAM

Heat a non-stick saute pan over medium heat and spray with PAM. Add garlic and shallots and saute until fragrant. Add the crushed red pepper flakes and saute an additional minute. Add tomato paste to a hot spot in the pan and cook about a minute then mix the garlic, shallot and crushed red pepper into the tomato paste. Add mushroom and tomatoes and stir well to combine. Cook until the mushrooms have browned and the tomatoes are tender. Add the Spaghetti with Meatballs dinner and mix all ingredients well. Add a dash of the vinegar, reduce heat to low and simmer about 2-3 minutes so the flavors combine and the meatballs heat through. Pour into a wide bowl and top with chopped basil. I added 2 T of freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano, that I saved from my menu at lunch.

Jenny's BBQ Chicken Pizza

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

On the Jenny Craig Forums a lot of people don't have very good luck with the JC pizzas and therefore end up not ordering them. I'd like to share my tips with you for making the JC pizzas and they end up pretty darn good!

First, I like to thaw my pizza on the counter a good 2-3 hours prior to cooking. This will help it cook better without getting soggy. Also, you can rearrange the topping easier. I've found that the toppings tend be heavy on one side of the pizza when you remove it from the package. Also if there are large chunks of chicken for instance, I'll tear them up and spread them about evenly.

Second, if you can, use a Pizza Stone! I keep one in my oven at all times. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees with the pizza stone inside.

Third, add extra toppings! I added more purple onions and a couple of sliced mushrooms to the top of my pizza. I also saved a fat for the day and added some extra reduced fat mozzarella cheese to the top, over the toppings I'd added.

Finally, when the oven is preheated, place the pizza on the pizza stone and cook for about 25 minutes. Look for the cheese to be browned on top as ovens may vary. The most important part is to let the pizza rest for about 5 minutes after you remove it from the oven. This will allow the crust to firm up and prevent the cheese and toppings from sliding off when you cut the pizza. Then just cut and serve.

I hope this helps others enjoy the JC pizzas as much as I have because this girl can't live without her pizza!

Double Chocolate Raspberry Cake

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I can't live without chocolate. I love it and could eat it every day. Obviously that is not an option if I want to lose weight and keep it off. I am so glad that Jenny Craig allows us to have things like chocolate cake, cheesecake and brownies in moderation and reasonable portion sizes. It's a great lesson that you can have your cake and eat it too! My favorite combination is chocolate and raspberries so when I got the Double Chocolate Cake on my menu the second time around, I also stopped at the grocery store for a container of fresh raspberries. This is also a great way to get in a fruit serving!

Double Chocolate Raspberry Cake
1 JC Double Chocolate Cake
1 container of raspberries
2 T sugar free cool whip (limited free)
zest of half a lemon
1 pkg of splenda or other sweetener
1 tsp water

Heat a small non stick pan over medium heat and add the raspberries (reserve about 6 raspberries for the cake), splenda and water. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the raspberries have broken down and you have a nice sauce. Add the lemon zest.

Meanwhile, slice the reserved raspberries in half. Slice the chocolate cake in half horizontally and spread 1 T of the cool whip on the bottom slice of cake then top with the sliced raspberries. Spread the other tablespoon of cool whip on the bottom of the the top slice of cake and place on top of the raspberries. Top the cake with the raspberry sauce and serve.

Coleslaw with a side of Fish 'N Chips

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

I LOVE Fish and Chips and nothing goes better with it than a nice portion of cole slaw. I heat my Fish and Chips from Jenny in the oven according to the package directions after spraying the fish and chips with some PAM and sprinkling my chips with some Emeril's seasoning (seasoned fries, anyone?). Here is my recipe for coleslaw. Make this well in advance and allow it to rest in the fridge until dinner time.

Coleslaw
1/2 bag of coleslaw mix
1/2 carrot, grated
1 small radish, grated
1 small jalapeno, ribs and seeds removed, and diced (optional)
1 small bunch of cilantro, chopped
1 T FF mayo
1-2 T apple cider vinegar
dash of salt and pepper
dash of celery seeds

Combine the coleslaw mix, carrot, radish, jalapeno and cilantro in a bowl. In a separate small bowl combine the mayo, vinegar (add a little at a time, salt, pepper, and celery seeds. Whisk mixture to combine and add more vinegar, tasting as you go until you reach the desired acidity. Add mixture to the coleslaw mix and combine well. Cover and place in the refrigerator for a few hours to allow the flavors to combine. Serve with JC Fish and Chips.

Peperonata

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

I found a beautiful recipe for peperonata in the Williams Sonoma catalog. It looked so good but it called for 1/4 Cup of olive oil so I decided to modify the recipe to serve alongside my Jenny Craig meals. Well it turned out so good that I eat this several times a week and I've even topped my chicken sandwich with it. It is delicious! So good, even my husband takes a plateful when I make it.

Peperonata:
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 yellow onion, sliced thinly
1 tsp red pepper flakes, optional
2 peppers (I like to use red and orange), remove the seeds and ribs and slice into thin strips
3 roma tomatoes, seeded and roughly chopped
1 tsp capers, optional
2-3 T red wine vinegar
salt and pepper
1 T basil, cut into strips
PAM

Heat a large saute pan over medium heat and spray with PAM. Add the onions and saute until they start to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute and additional 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the peppers, tomatoes, capers, red wine vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan and reduce the heat to low and simmmer about 30 minutes. Garnish with basil and serve.

This tastes so good you would not believe there isn't any oil in it. The flavors really pop and I could eat this by the bowlful!

Kraft Light Balsamic Vinaigrette

I found a great dressing that I wanted to share with all of you. I was cruising the aisles at my local Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market and found this in the dressing aisle:

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

This package of 8, 1 oz dressings was $2.99. Each packet has only 25 calories, compared to 50 calories in the Jenny's Dressing packets! They also only have 3 g of carbs compared to 5 g of carbs in the Jenny's Dressing. I really enjoy the flavor too and its even better knowing I'm saving 25 calories.

I did find some information on the Kraft website here about halfway down the page. It says they have a Zesty Italian. I purchased the Balsamic and my store had Ranch as well.

What great products have you found to use on your Jenny program?

Chicken Carbonara with Zucchini and Mushrooms

From Jenny Craig Gourmet

I really enjoy the pasta dishes on JC and I love to volumize them as much as I can. I like one dish meals and this one turned out exceptionally well as well as leaving me full and satisfied.

Chicken Carbonara:
1 Chicken Carbonara dinner (slightly defrosted)
1 zucchini, sliced into half moons
1 portobellini mushroom, diced
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
pinch of red pepper flakes, optional
2 Tablespoons NF milk
freshly ground pepper
PAM

Heat a medium saute pan over medium heat and spray with PAM. Add zucchini and saute about 3-4 minutes then add the mushrooms. Add the Chicken Carbonara along with the seasonings. Stir well and cook several minutes until chicken carbonara is heated through and then add milk. The milk will make the dish a little creamier. Mix the milk in well and reduce heat to medium low so the milk reduces and then thickens the sauce. Pour into a dish and add freshly ground pepper. A garnish of freshly chopped basil would make this even better!