Garden Vegetable Soup

I was on vacation last week. ~This will be my excuse for everything now ~

I ate waaaaay too much last week! ~I was on vacation remember~

I need to cleanse my body of all the inappropriate food consumption! ~I was on vacation remember~

My first step was making this soup. I love this soup. Not just for a good detox but for a great healthy option for dinner!

It is so full of veggies that you will think you are standing in the produce isle of your grocery store!

You literally throw everything in a pot and let it cook.

The most time consuming part of this soup is chopping the veggies.

It is fairly easy on the pocket book too! Most of this you probably already have in your fridge.

This is originally from Weight Watchers but I did change  it up a bit. I will add the original link to the recipe at the bottom if you prefer that version.

{My version - Printable Link}

To make this fab soup you will need:

• 2 cloves garlic, minced  
• 1 medium uncooked onion, diced  
• 2 medium uncooked carrots, diced  
• 1 medium roasted red pepper, diced  
• 1 small green bell pepper, diced
• 1 rib uncooked celery, diced  
• 2 small uncooked zucchini, diced  
• 2 small uncooked squash, diced
• 2 cups uncooked green cabbage, chopped  
• 2 cups uncooked broccoli, small florets  
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 2 tsp thyme, fresh, chopped  
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth  
• 2 Tbsp parsley, or chives, chopped  
• 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste  
• 1/4 tsp black pepper, or to taste  
• 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, optional

Directions:

1. Chop up all of your veggies that you want to throw in the pot.
2. Add your veggies, garlic, thyme, and broth to a large pot. Add a cup or so of water to make sure the juice covers the veggies if you need to. This is not necessary if your broth covers them.
3. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat.
4. Reduce heat and let it all simmer for about 10 minutes.
5. Stir in the parsley or chives, salt & pepper, and lemon juice.
6. Remove from heat, grab a bowl and a spoon! Enjoy!

Makes 6 servings – each serving is about 2 cups

Point factors

• If you are on weight watchers new point system, this is a 1 point meal.
• It is a zero points meal for me!

Pocket Price

• Around $3.50 a serving.

Original recipe found here.

Menu Mondays

Another week, another Monday.

Today was not especially fun but it wasn’t all together terrible.

You want to know what made it even better?

Having my meals planned out for me already and coming home to a meal that practically prepared itself.

Sunday afternoon I made dinner for Sunday and Monday.

The rest of the week might take a little more work.

Sunday – Shredded Lime Chicken Tacos with guacamole

Monday – Leftovers

Tuesday – Taco Stuffed Shells

Wednesday – Leftovers

Thursday – Grilled Chicken Bruschetta and Ranch potatoes (that I forgot to make last week)

Friday – Island Beach Chicken with Fiesta Lime rice or cucumber/tomato salad

Saturday – Either Skinny Buffalo Wings or Shrimp Po’Boy Sandwiches (I’m playing it by ear)

Hopefully as I cook I will get good pictures and can add the recipes as I make them because all of these are newbies for me!

Have a great week gang!

Grilled Chipotle Lime Chicken Sandwiches

This is my favorite go to grilled chicken sandwich.

One night I was looking for a change and came across this little piece of heaven.

It is so easy to prepare and who doesn’t love to start up the grill!

{Printable Link}

You will need:

• 4 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 4 Tbs olive oil
• 2 Tbs honey
• 1 tps chipotle chili powder
• 1 tps cumin
• Juice from one lime
• pinch of salt
• Guacamole (if you have it)
• Hamburger buns or your favorite bread rolls

Directions:

1. Add olive oil, honey, chipotle chili powder, cumin, lime juice and salt to a bowl and mix well.
2. In a large Ziploc bag, add the marinade mixture and the chicken breasts.
3. Mix well until all chicken breasts are covered in the marinade.
4. Refrigerate for 2-4 hours.
5. Prepare your grill and cook meat until it is done. 
6. Toast your buns in the oven =)
7. Top with cheddar or preferred cheese, tomatoes, onions, guacamole, mayo or anything else you wanna throw on there!

I made them along with my favorite oven onion potatoes! Have an awesome day!

Original recipe found here.

Menu Plan Mondays

If I could share one valuable secret to loosing weight, staying healthy and staying on a budget, it would be meal planning.

It is so easy to do and keeps you right on track.

When you meal plan, all is right with the world.

You really achieve two things at once.

You know what you are cooking for the week and it makes it easy to grocery shop!

I meal plan for two weeks at a time so that makes my grocery shopping even easier.

I mostly stock pile now which means I have extra money for meats and fresh produce!

Some weeks I stick to the plan and some weeks I change things around.

• Monday – Malibu Chicken with skinny potato salad and macaroni salad
• Tuesday – Frito Pie
• Wednesday – Leftovers
• Thursday – Shredded Lime Chicken Tacos
• Friday – Leftovers
• Saturday – Chipotle Lime Chicken Sandwiches with Ranch potatoes

I also try to not cook everyday because it saves me time in the evening and gives me a few nights with extra time.

Have a great week!