Italian

It’s no secret… I LOVE Italian food, and I’m a HUGE fan of pasta.

I always order the Jenny pasta dishes, and it’s pretty frequent that I’m trying new Italian dishes here at the house. It’s such comfort food and such a treat, I love finding healthy alternatives to some of the calorie-rich treats of the past. This dish was UNBELIEVABLE, and the perfect sauce to have in the crockpot on a snowy day.

The recipe itself comes from Gina over at Skinnytaste. I’ve looked at this recipe SO MANY TIMES, but I’ve never had the pancetta on hand to make it. The night before the snow rolled in, I made it a point to pick up pancetta and extra lean ground beef. I’m so glad that I did!

Somewhere between a bacon and a ham…. this stuff rocks!

Note: My version of this sauce yielded a different amount of servings than Gina’s, and yours may come out slightly different as well. Always measure out your sauce to be sure you’re eating the calories you’re expecting. I made half of the recipe Gina posted originally and adjusted the nutritional information based upon what my version created.

Crockpot Bolognese Sauce

From Skinnytaste

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

2 oz pancetta, chopped (or center cut bacon)

1/2 large white onion, minced

1 celery stalks (about 3/4 cup), minced

1 carrots (about 3/4 cup), minced

1 lb 95% lean ground beef

2 Tbsp. white wine

1 – 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes

1 1/2 bay leaves

salt and fresh pepper

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup half & half cream, fat-free

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a large deep saute pan sprayed with cooking spray, sauté pancetta on low heat until the fat melts, about 4-5 minutes.

2. Add onions, celery and carrots and cook on medium-low heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Note: To mince the celery, onion, and carrots, I used my food processor to create that finely chopped effect!

3. In a separate pan sprayed with cooking spray, add meat, season with salt and pepper and sauté until browned. Once meat is browned, drain and rinse. Place in a food processor and grind to a fine texture.

4. Add beef to the vegetable mixture. Add wine; cook until it reduces down, about 3-4 minutes.

5. Add meat mixture to crock pot. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, salt and pepper; cover and set slow cooker to LOW 6 hours.

6. After the 6 hours, adjust salt and pepper to taste.

7. Add half and half and parsley.

8. Stir and serve over 2 ox. of your favorite pasta or spaghetti squash.

Per 1/2 cup serving (sauce only):

CAL 183; CARB 12g; FAT 7g; PROT 20g; FIB 2g; WW Points Plus: 5

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

A Snow Day with My Crockpot

Red Velvet Pumpkin Muffins

There’s a few blogs out there that I follow religiously, and I’ve been lucky enough to connect with a few of the bloggers via Facebook, Twitter, and email. Hilary from The Big Weight is one of my favorites.

(Source)

She is a nursing student, a newlywed (who just had an amazing wedding in Jamaica) and she is on a Weight Watchers weight loss journey. The one thing I love about Hil’s blog is that she keeps it real. She shares her recipes and food stories. She shares when she’s struggling. There’s no sugar-coating on TBW or on NTTC… that’s just not how we roll. She was even my inspiration for my very first vlog (video blog) that I posted last week.

Here’s something else that’s TOTALLY cool: I get to meet Hilary in about two weeks at Fitbloggin’! Both fairly new bloggers, we’re taking the plunge and attending our first blogger conference together. I’m so excited to meet her and to have a partner in crime at Fitbloggin (since I’m a little nervous about the whole experience!)

So… if you haven’t stopped by The Big Weight, now is the time. You’re going to definitely want to check her out after you see this recipe I’m featuring today. This is one that Hilary shared… and it is REDONKULOUSLY good!

This recipe is one your man will go crazy for: It has three kinds of meat (seriously!) This was also one of those dishes that I made and when I tasted it… I felt like a super-chef. The flavors come together SO deliciously… it’s a little bite of heaven on your fork.

Cowboy Spaghetti

From The Big Weight

INGREDIENTS

3 slices center-cut bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 lb. lean ground turkey
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. hot sauce (like Tabasco)
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 (14 oz) can fire-roasted chopped tomatoes
2 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce
3/4 cup (3 oz) reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Start by cooking your pasta of choice according to the package directions while preparing the sauce. Set aside when done.

2. Add the bacon to a large saute pan over medium-high heat and cook 5-6 minutes, or until slightly crispy. Note: Raw bacon is very weird to cut. I actually used kitchen shears to chop it and it was MUCH easier than trying to use a knife.

BACON!!!

3. Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic and oregano and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until veggies are slightly softened.

Adding the veggies

I didn’t have a green pepper, so I substituted a yellow one.

4. Next, mix in the ground beef and turkey. Break apart the meat as it cooks for 5-7 minutes, or until browned

As usual, I made half the recipe so I weighed out my meat

Check out all those colors coming together…

5. Add the black pepper, hot sauce, Worcestershire, chopped tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Stir and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

The fire-roasted tomatoes were so pretty in the can… had to take a pic!

Upon first combining…

After simmering for 10 minutes, it thickens up quite a bit.

6. Plate 1/2 cup of hot pasta topped and 1/2 cup of the cowboy sauce. Top with shredded cheese. Note: I used a slice of Kraft 2% Sharp Cheddar Cheese Singles instead. Just an easy way to add the cheese. I placed the cheese on top and microwaved the whole dish for 20 seconds.