Pasta Primavera- 7 points

This is a family favorite of my husband's side. It works best with no long pastas, such as penne or shells. 
Serves 4, 7 points per serving.

• 1/2 box of pasta
• 1/2 lb of ground beef
• 1/2 chopped onion (optional)
• 1 jar of pasta sauce
• 1 large bag of frozen California mixed Veggies (broccoli, carrots and cauliflower)
• 1/4 c parm cheese

It can be made 2 ways no difference in points.

Stove and Oven: Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook up the ground beef and the chopped onion. Suggestion to use the Italian Sausage Seasoning mix to give your meat more flavor. Cook up pasta to almost done -still a bit hard. Defrost bag of veggies in the microwave. Mix pasta, meat, and veggies in a oven baking dish. Pour the pasta sauce over it and cook in oven for 15 minutes. You can sprinkle Parm on before or after putting it in the oven. 

Stovetop: Cook up ground beef and onions (suggested Italian Sausage Seasoning Mix) and then pasta in a separate dish. When pasta is ready drain off water and mix in the cooked ground beef. Mix in thawed veggies. Pour in Pasta sauce, mix and let sizzle. Serve hot off stove with parm sprinkled on it.

ideas for lowering points:

Double recipe, serve 8 but still only use 1/2 lb of ground beef. It would take each serving down to 5 points. To make up the difference and fill it more, add more veggies- specially more broccoli and cauliflower. Maybe us one mixed bag and one bag of all broccoli or cauliflower. If you did it just pasta and veggies it takes the serving to 4 points per serving. 

Thanks for stopping by.

Baked Salmon

This was the first time I had ever made fish. I'm not a big fan of eating fish, but my husband loves it. Since its expensive to buy good fish (and impossible to buy it really fresh) in Arizona, I use that as an excuse not to make it for my husband. But with Lent ongoing, fish is a more reasonable price. I decided to try my hand at it.

Baked Salmon

2 serving, 8 points

4 servings, 4 points

1 lbs Salmon (salmon is about a point per oz)

1 tbs spray butter

1 tbs lemon juice

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Place a sheet of tin foil onto a baking sheet. Place the salmon scale side down on the tin foil. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the fish. Drizzle spray butter on the salmon, and drizzle the lemon juice. Let it sit out for 5 minutes before putting it into the oven. Broil fish or bake it on a high heat. Watch carefully, do not over cook. Remove from heat once fish meat because flaky. I didn't understand what this ment until it got to this point, you can take your fork and run it over it and it will break apart in the flaky fish cooked texture. Remove from oven and serve. I actually enjoy eating fish in small amounts and when it hasn't been in the freezer yet. Fish is tastier the closer in time since they left their home in the water. 

Sorry no picture. They are on the computer that is on the fritz.