Carolina Strawberry Muffins!

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." in the strawberry world, anyway. It's that time of year again where everyone buys 4 or 5 gallons of fresh, ripe strawberries and not enough recipes to use them in. Soon enough, everyone will be up to their eyeballs in frozen strawberries, jams, tarts, muffins, and SO much more. So, what do you do when your strawberries are past their prime? Use them any way you can. I think this recipe is a good recipe for muffins to take for breakfast, as they aren't too sweet, but still lend the sweet strawberry flavor that we all know and love. 


Carolina Strawberry Muffins
Yield: 12 muffins

1½ c. strawberries, chopped
½ c. granulated sugar, divided
¼ c. butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
1¾ c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
⅛ c. skim milk

In a small bowl, combine the half of the sugar with the strawberries and set aside for one hour. This will give the strawberries time to macerate and create syrupy goodness!

After one hour, separate the liquid from the strawberries and reserve for later use. 

Preheat oven to 425F and line a muffin tin with paper liners. In a medium bowl, cream together the softened butter and remaining sugar until light, fluffy, and well combined. 

Beat in the eggs one at a time until well combined.

 Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg in a separate bowl.

 Add half of the flour mixture, combine well. Next, add the strawberry juice and combine. Add the remainder of the flour, combine well, then add the milk. The mixture should be a bit thick, but still easy to stir. 

Fold in the strawberries gently.

 Spoon into the prepared muffin tin. Bake for 16-18 minutes. Allow to cool in the muffin tin on a wire rack. 

Chicken Divan, or should I say, DIVINE!

     Chicken Divan is a classic creamy dish that will please even the pickiest of eaters. It is so rich, creamy, and comforting, they'll be asking for more! This dish originally uses a mornay or hollandaise sauce, which we all know are packed with calories and fat. Chicken Divan originated in New York in a diner in the 1950's named Divan Parisienne. Once they created this masterpiece, they simply named the dish after the restaurant  Instead of using egg yolks or heavy cream, I actually used skim milk. I'm not sure why people think you can't achieve the creaminess of these dishes without using heavy cream and other super fattening ingredients.

Chicken Divan

Yields: 4 servings

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast (see note)

½ tsp. salt

3 tbsp. oil

2 tbsp. butter

5 tbsp. all-purpose flour

2 c. chicken stock, sodium free

1 c. skim milk

½ tsp. ground thyme

½ tsp. black pepper

½ tsp. garlic powder

1½ c. broccoli florets

1 c. shredded cheese (see note)

¼  c. mayonnaise

2 tsp. prepared mustard

Preheat oven to 375F. Coat an 8"x8" baking dish with cooking spray. Place the chicken breast in a medium skillet. Add enough water to cover (or almost cover) the chicken. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer gently until the chicken is fully cooked (internal temperature of 165F). This should take about 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and allow to rest for 5 minutes, then slice into bite-size pieces. 

Heat oil and butter in the same skillet, allowing it to melt. Once melted, stir in the flour and whisk, to cook the raw taste out of the flour. 

Once the roux has darkened just a bit (light golden) slowly whisk in the chicken broth, milk, and spices. Continue stirring until the liquid is brought to a simmer. At this point, the liquids should begin to seem a bit thicker. 

The sauce should be able to coat the back of a spoon without coming together when divided.

 Once simmering, add the broccoli and return to a simmer (1 to 2 minutes). 

Remove from the heat and stir in ¾  of the cheese, mayonnaise, and mustard. In the prepared baking dish, spread half of the broccoli mixture over the bottom. 

Next, add the chicken in an even layer.

 Top with the remaining broccoli mixture.

 Sprinkle over the remaining ¼ c. cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until bubbly; let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving!

I allowed it to cook for 17 minutes and then turned the broiler on to get nice brown cheese on top, about 3 minutes...SO delicious! I also prepared some egg noodles that were sprinkled with garlic powder and served this over them. 

NOTES*

This recipe is a great idea to use up any leftover chicken that you have in your refrigerator, but if you want to begin by cooking the chicken, this recipe explains how.

For the cheese, I used a blend of four Italian cheeses; but you may use any cheese that you prefer!

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 4
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 375.3

• Total Fat: 30.2 g
• Cholesterol: 28.1 mg
• Sodium: 597.3 mg
• Total Carbs: 17.0 g
• Dietary Fiber: 2.3 g
• Protein: 11.3 g

Oh my, chocolate pie!

     This is a DELICIOUS version of chocolate cream pie. Not only is it for those who prefer dark chocolate, but it's also a lighter version. It's still just as creamy as the regular pie, but hardly the same amount of calories. You can of course, change the milk you use, or combine two different milkfat percentages. Either way, you can't go wrong with chocolate.  I had no real reason to make a pie, but I hadn't had one in quite sometime. I remembered that March 14 was "pi" day (3.14), but didn't get around to making a pie. I hopped on the wagon and have made a pie, like most others did...just a few days later! I can't believe how much this tastes like the richer version which uses heavy cream, as opposed to milk! 


Light Chocolate Cream Pie
Yield: 8 servings

FILLING:
1/4 C. cornstarch
3 tbsp. cocoa powder, unsweetened
1/3 C. granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. sea salt
3 C. skim milk
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
CRUST:
5 tbsp butter, melted
12 oz. animal crackers, crushed

TOPPING (IF DESIRED):
1 C. heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp. granulated sugar

CRUST: 

Crush crackers and combine with butter until all crumbs are moist. Press into a 9" pie plate.

FILLING:

In a 2-quart heavy saucepan, combine cornstarch, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, and sea salt. Place over medium heat and slowly whisk in the milk. Continue whisking until the mixture reaches the boil. Whisk constantly for 2 minutes (mixture will become thick) then remove from heat. Stir in chocolate and vanilla until smooth and pour into prepared filling.
  

TOPPING (IF DESIRED):

In a medium sized clean bowl, beat the whipping cream and sugar on a low speed for about 1 minute. Slowly increase the speed until the cream is light and fluffy (about 2 minutes).

Nutritional Info (Amounts given reflect no whipped topping)

• Servings Per Recipe: 8
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 292.9

• Total Fat: 6.6 g
• Cholesterol: 5.8 mg
• Sodium: 488.6 mg
• Total Carbs: 56.1 g
• Dietary Fiber: 1.7 g
• Protein: 7.0 g

Fettuccine Alfredo

Michael's favorite dish at Olive Garden is the chicken fettuccine alfredo. Have you ever taken the time to on Olive Garden's website to look at the nutrition facts for that dish?! If you enjoy it and care about what you eat, don't eat it. After Thanksgiving, I had some heavy whipping cream left over from Michael's pumpkin pie and from my mashed potatoes. While we were at the grocery store, Michael asked if we had enough heavy cream to make an alfredo sauce for dinner one night. When we got home, I checked and we only had about ½ cup remaining. Heavy cream wouldn't be an optimal choice to make a sauce when considering low-fat. The recipe I have today for you is much healthier and tastes JUST as good. I actually think it tastes better because it isn't as rich and doesn't overpower the palate.

Light Alfredo Sauce
Yields: 2 servings

½ medium onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1 c. skim milk
½ c. chicken broth
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
½ tbsp. salt
½ tbsp. pepper
¼ c. parmesan cheese, grated


In a small sauté pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for about 4-5 minutes or until slightly golden brown and soft. In a medium saucepan, stir together the milk, chicken broth, flour, salt, and pepper over low heat until smooth and thick. Add the sautéed garlic and onions to the saucepan and stir constantly until the sauce has thickened. Stir in parmesan cheese until well blended.

Serve over fettuccine noodles or any other type of noodle you prefer (or have on hand)!

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 3
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 114.5

• Total Fat: 4.3 g
• Cholesterol: 9.1 mg
• Sodium: 350.7 mg
• Total Carbs: 11.9 g
• Dietary Fiber: 0.8 g
• Protein: 7.4 g