Super Scramble

I've been away for awhile and I hope you all haven't missed me too much. Between illnesses, injuries, and one of the busiest (and most successful) couple of months of tournaments I have barely had time to breathe. Cooking fell to the wayside and I have eaten out more times then I can count. If this was a restaurant review blog, I would have tons of material :o)

However, when I have been cooking at home, it's been simple and easy (but relatively healthy) dishes like the one I am about to share with you!

The Super Scramble is one of the quickest and most filling meals I know. The ingredients sometimes change, but the general idea is the same. Start by cooking some chopped onions and garlic in olive oil. Add some Great Northern beans to the mix. What's the difference between a Great Northern bean versus a Cannellini bean versus a Navy bean? Check out this great article on CookThink to learn all about your legumes! Really I love all legumes but the Great Northerns were on sale. And who can resist a fiber filled savings?

Add some chili powder, fresh ground pepper, and a sprinkle of salt to the mix. Reduce the heat and add some eggs or egg whites. I like to include a whole egg because of all of the fabulous nutrients the yolks have. Scramble the eggs into the mix and cook, but don't wait too long to do the next part or you will overcook your egg.

The next step is to cover the entire pan with fresh spinach. You can buy bags of organic spinach for a relatively low price usually. I love how the heat steams the spinach. As it begins to wilt, mix it into the scramble. Once your spinach has wilted, spoon the scramble into a couple of bowls. Serve with cheese melted over the top if you want.

It is easy, delicious, chock full of nutrients, and it reheats well. The nutritional data will change based on the ingredients and amounts you use but trust me when I say you get a lot of bang for your caloric buck. Enjoy!

Spicy Veggie Blue Cheese Polenta Casserole

You can change up the vegetables in the scramble based on what you like and is available. You could also make your own polenta if you are feeling ambitious!

1 tube Sundried Tomato Polenta (I find mine in the produce section, 1 serving is 1 point)
1 white onion, diced
8 oz Cremini mushrooms, sliced (I buy mine presliced)
1 TBSP olive oil
3 small zucchini, diced
5 oz grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups fresh spinach
2-4 TBSP dried crushed red pepper
1-3 tsp garlic salt
1-3 tsp black pepper
2 oz reduced fat crumbled blue cheese

Slice polenta tube into 8 slices. Pan fry in a pan sprayed with cooking spray until both sides are browned. Lay in one layer in casserole dish.

Heat olive oil in pan. Cook onions until almost translucent and add zucchini. Add spices and cook until zucchini starts to soften. Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms start to soften. Add tomatoes and spinach and toss in pan until spinach is starting to wilt. At this point you will have a sauce in the bottom of the pan. If you are making this dish ahead of time, you want to used a slotted spoon for the next step. If you are serving immeadiately, you might want to keep the gravy.

Spoon vegetable scramble in an even layer over polenta. Sprinkle blue cheese over dish immeadiately.

This dish makes 4 servings at 3 points each.

Protein "Scramble"

It doesn't have eggs, but rather is called a scramble because I scramble around the house throwing a bunch of healthy ingredients into a fry pan!

2 tsp olive oil
2 small onions, diced
1 small head garlic, diced
1.25lbs extra lean ground turkey
Spices of your choice (I describe my choices below)
1 can kidney beans
1 can green beans
1 lb fresh spinach

Heat up 2 tsp of olive oil, add 2 small diced onions and a small head (not clove) of diced garlic. Cook until the onions start to soften. Add in 1.25lbs of ground turkey breast (the extra lean ground turkey packs). Around this time you add in whatever spices you like. I use a bunch of Mrs. Dash Hot and Spicy as well as tobasco sauce but you can go milder. When turkey is almost done cooking, add a can of washed kidney beans and a can of green beans. When turkey is done, pile on a half to a lb of spinach and mix in. When spinach is wilted, you are done!

When I calculated the kidney beans, oil and turkey I got 2 pts for 1/8 of the mix which is pretty filling.

Anyways, this is my super meal staple when I need a lot of filling meals for under $10 (well less then that if you get things on sale).

Cheesey Spinach Pasta

1 recipe of the Cheesey Heirloom Tomato Sauce
1 2oz ball mozarella (on top of the one in the sauce)
1 pt worth of reduced fat parm cheese
1 cup chopped onions
1 lb of fresh spinach
6 oz whole wheat pasta
garlic salt (to taste)
additional seasonings you can play with: italian seasoning, pepper, mrs. dash

I happened to freeze a bunch of chopped onions and a batch of sauce before I left for a recent work trip. I got home from the airport tonight and was craving veggies and carbs and cheese... so this turned out really well and I wanted to remember it!

Cook pasta, set aside. Cook onions until they start to brown. Add sauce and any additional seasonings you want to play with. Add spinach and cook down. Add pasta and toss. Finally add additional mozzarella and parm cheese to make this an extra cheesey dish!

4 servings at 5 points each. FABULOUS!