Mommy is in Timeout

Aside from Mommy Knows Best and Crazy Mommy Monday, another series I have at my blog is to post a recipe each Sunday. Bon Appetit!

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Recipe: Stuffed Red Peppers Appetizer*

What You’ll Need:

3 Large Red Bell Peppers
1 Package of Cream Cheese
1 1/2 Cups Shredded Parmesan Cheese
1 Tube/Package of Bob Evans Sausage (uncooked)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350. Saute the sausage in a pan in a little bit of olive oil. As you are cooking the sausage, chop it up into smaller pieces. Once the sausage is cooked, remove from heat. Add in the package of cream cheese. Let it melt and then mix together with the sausage. Set aside. Wash & cut the red peppers. Stand them up and cut them in half first and remove the seeds & stem. Then, cut each half into thirds. Add 1 cup of the parmesan cheese into the sausage mixture and stir. On a cookie sheet, lay out all of the red peppers. Spoon even amounts of the mixture into the red peppers. Top with the rest of the parmesan cheese. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, checking regularly. Near the end, you can turn on the broiler for a crispy top. Serve & enjoy!

*Recipe credit to my friend, Jen, who made these stuffed peppers for a recent girls night in.

I’ve been working extremely hard to lose weight recently. I had an upcoming girls weekend and I was so worried about my willpower around snacks. I knew a night in with appetizers could be a recipe for disaster on the scale Monday morning.

I decided to try and use a recipe where I wouldn’t feel guilty the next morning. Well, that went out the window with the late night Taco Bell run. Nonetheless, at least I did well at one point.

Recipe: Chicken Lettuce Wraps (I also served edamame. I didn’t include the recipe for this since it’s rather easy. Boil or steam edamame, remove from pot and sprinkle with salt. Done!)

You will need:

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can of water chestnuts
1 package of fresh mushrooms
3 large fresh carrots
3 cloves fresh garlic
1 fresh ginger (you only need about 1 tablespoon)
1 bag of Romaine lettuce
1/2 small sweet onion
Soy sauce
Soy Vey marinade
Frank’s Red Hot
Srirachi sauce
Rice vinegar
1/4 to 1/2 tablespoon of brown sugar

Step #1: Marinate the chicken overnight (or at least for a couple of hours) in Soy VeyStep #2: Prepare all items for the stir fry portion.Dice the mushrooms & onions into very small pieces. Peel the carrots and shred them on a grater. Peel the garlic & ginger and shred on a microplane (dice with a knife or use a grater if you don’t have a microplane)Dice the chicken into very small pieces In a wok, start off with a little bit of oil in the bottom (I use a very small amount). Saute the garlic for just about 30 seconds. Add in the onions and cook until translucent. Add in the chicken and stir fry until it is almost cooked. Then add in the veggies and water chestnuts. Continue cooking. While it is cooking add in spices – soy sauce, red hot, srirachi, salt & pepper, rice vinegar, brown sugar & ginger – all to taste. Separate the lettuce then wash & pat dry.Once it is close to being ready – prepare your dipping sauce. Pour soy sauce into a bowl. Add in a few dashes of red hot and srirachi, then a pinch of brown sugar.Serve on a platter with lettuce leaves stacked, stir fry and sauce. Enjoy!