Be “MY Italian” Wedding Soup!

Happy Friday Eve all!! Yesterday I told you all my pre-workout breakfast would be something different because I was out of eggs.  I NEVER said it would be a pretty picture though LOL.  This was me being super tired at 5 AM and not caring how the picture turned out ~ oops.  It was tasty even though it may not look like it.

Banana plus Trader Joe’s Sweet Maple Chicken Apple Sausage (3 points+)

Today I decided to do a Weights Workout.  When I do strength training I always like to make sure I don’t’ have any DOWN time.  For example, I will work my biceps, then, while my arms rest, I work my legs.  Today’s workout went a little like this:

* 5 minute warm up on the treadmill followed with a little stretching

Then, I did 3 sets of 10-12 on each of the following always in constant motion

* Leg Press and Chest Press

* Calf Raises and Bicep Curls

* Hamstring Curls and Static Tricep Press

* Lat Pull Downs and Crunches (regular, oblique’s and leg raises)

* Seated Row and Sumo Squats

* 5 minutes of deep static stretching

It’s funny how I am actually HUNGRIER after a strength training session than I am after cardio.  I couldn’t wait to bust into my Egg-Wich (5 points+)

I FINALLY ate the lunch today that I had planned on eating all week and it was AWESOME.  I was originally planning on making this Caribbean Citrus and Beet Salad.  However, I never got around to making the chicken.

CITRUS AND BEET SALAD

* 2 cups Organic Mixed Greens

* 1 cup roasted beets

* 1 orange, sectioned

* 2 Tbsp Pistachios (I used the BBQ ones I got at the Farmer’s Market)

* 1 Tbsp Shaved Parmesan

* 1 Tbsp Newman’s Lite Lime Vinaigrette

Start with the mixed greens and layer all on the toppings finishing with the dressing.

Makes 1 HUGE salad for 4 points+

I think the textures and flavors really make this salad phenomenal.  The sweet beets are complimented by the citrus in the dressing and oranges with hints of saltiness from the parmesan and the nuts.  The pistachios give another layer of flavor and crunch.

For my “bread”, I had 1/2 a Lentil Bolani toasted and topped with Sweet Jalapeno Sauce…..LOVE!!! (3 points+)

Mid afternoon I snacked on the last of our watermelon.

The CRAZIEST thing happened on my way home tonight. When I left work and hopped on the train it was a sunny day.  On the ride home, I was actually pondering a nap when the conductor said that had to stop the train because they needed to clear the snow from the track.  I thought maybe I just didn’t understand her because I was so tired.

The only thing was when I got off the train it was SNOWING!!!  I can say as long as I have lived where I do it has snowed only one time in my life.

Luckily I decided on tennis shoes for my train ride today versus the flip flops I have been wearing all week.  So crazy, but, so cool too…well, not the getting drenched in snow/rain and having no umbrella part

I was planning on grilling These Maple Turkey Burgers outside on the grill, but, since lightning was striking everywhere, I thought that may not be a good idea.

I snacked on some Low-Fat Sharp Cheddar (2 points+)

I decided that since it was SNOWING IN CALIFORNIA where it’s not supposed to snow that soup was in order.  I have wanted to make TJ’s Italian Wedding Soup ever since she shared the recipe over at Friends for Weight Loss.

The only thing is I am bad about sticking to recipes so here is my spin on her recipe.

ITALIAN WEDDING SOUP

INGREDIENTS

Meatballs

• 1 pound lean ground turkey
• 1/2 pound Italian Turkey sausage(removed from casings)
• 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
• 2 egg whites
• 2 Tbsps. grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Soup

• 2 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 2 medium zucchini, quartered and diced
• 2 cups sliced mushrooms
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup diced sun dried tomatoes, not in oil
• 4 cup chicken broth
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Mix ground turkey through 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes. Roll into 1/2 inch meatballs.  I used my cookie scooper to make sure they were all the same size.  I made 60 meatballs.

3.  Place on cookie sheet & bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

4.  Heat olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat and add onion through 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes.  Cook 4-5 minutes, until softened.

5.  Add sun dried tomatoes, broth and all of the meatballs.  Cook for 10 minutes (it really flavors the broth).  Remove from heat and wilt in spinach.

Makes 6 servings with 10 meatballs, 7 Points+ each

Nutritional information per serving

STEP-BY-STEP

Mix together all the ingredients to make the meatballs in a large bowl.

Form into 1/2 inch meatballs….TJ, sorry, but, my balls must be bigger than yours….I made 60, not 99. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the “soup”.  Saute the veggies.

Add in the Italian seasoning….

Roughly chopped sun dried tomatoes (this was the rest of my bag leftover from the Chicken Rollatini)

Add in broth….

Then the cooked meatballs and cook for 10 minutes.  The meatballs really flavor the broth.

Remove from heat and wilt in spinach.

Scoop out 10 meatballs and all the broth/veggies you want.  I actually have never even had a REAL DEAL Italian Wedding Soup so I can’t say if I made it taste like that.  The meatballs are packed with flavor and make this soup fantastic.

We both LOVED this…The Husband had 3 servings ~ 30 meatballs LOL!

I really wanted something bread like with it but I wasn’t going to get poured on in the rain/snow again to go out to the garage freezer to get the garlic bread.  I settled for an Orowheat Double Fiber English Muffin topped with 1 Tbsp whipped butter (5 points+)

The END ~ DOVE LOVE (4 points+)

NEW AT FRIENDS FOR WEIGHT LOSS

* Shannon shares her recipe for 2 Points+ Maple Cinnamon Mini Donuts!!!

Q’s

Given the Choice would you pick SOUP OR SALAD?

I am a total salad girl and will pick it over soup any day.  However, give me homemade soup on a rainy day and I will definitely skip the salad.

Night all!