Category: In the Kitchen

Recipes and edible ideas from my kitchen. All these yummies are tested before being posted.

Oven-Baked Onion Rings

Oven-Baked Onion Rings

onion rings

Summer living is in full swing here at The Three-Acre Wood and I’m all about some easy delicious meals that won’t blow up my Weight Watchers progress. After I lost over a pound last week, I gained almost half an l-b back this week. *grrr*

So last night I decided to dip into my WW bag of tricks and cook up some yummy good stuff that wouldn’t sabotage my weight loss progress. I thawed out some homemade barbeque pulled chicken, but sauces are pretty high in points; so I went searching for a complementary side that wouldn’t blow the day. That’s when I remembered these oven-baked onion rings that are so quick and easy to make that they wouldn’t interfere with some good ol’ treehouse building and T-ball playing (it was a busy evening).

Now who doesn’t love a good onion ring with some barbeque? I can really relish a deep-fried, bread crumb coated onion ring as much as the next gal, but those restaurant-style rings are not exactly low cal or even slightly healthy. Oh wait, onions are a vegetable. . .  Can we count those as a serving?

onion rings

Okay, so let’s stop kidding ourselves and get down to business. I found this recipe in a Weight Watchers cookbook that I borrowed from a friend and was really surprised the first time I cooked up this tasty treat (with a few changes), because they actually do taste like real onion rings! They are also super easy to make (my seven-year-old son helped me in the kitchen last night) and only one SmartPoint for six rings. It really does feel like cheating! I just gotta say that these things are so tasty I would use this recipe even if I wasn’t watching my weight. Yeah, they are that good!

Oven-Baked Onion Rings
Serves 3
A tasty oven-baked alternative to a traditional deep-friend treat. Six rings are only 1 SmartPoint (108 calories) for folks watching their weight.
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
17 min
Total Time
30 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
17 min
Total Time
30 min
Ingredients
  1. 1/2 c all-purpose flour
  2. 1/2 tsp salt
  3. 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  4. 3 large eggs
  5. 1/2 c plain dried bread crumbs
  6. 1 large white onion
  7. Nonstick spray (I use Aldi's SimplyNature Extra Virgin Olive Oil spray.)
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray.
  3. Mix together flour, salt and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl.
  4. Beat eggs in a different bowl.
  5. Pour bread crumbs in a third shallow bowl.
  6. Cut onion into 1/4 inch rounds and separate rings.
  7. While rings are still moist from cutting, coat rings with flour, dip in eggs, and then coat with bread crumbs.
  8. Place onion rings on prepared baking sheet.
  9. Bake until browned on one side, about 10 minutes. Turn rings over and bake until browned on second side, about 6-8 minutes.
  10. Serve warm.
Notes
  1. Six rings are only 1 Weight Watchers SmartPoint or 108 calories.
Adapted from Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook
Adapted from Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook
https://www.smalltalkmama.com/
Mother’s Day Breakfast Casserole Full of Weight Watchers Love

Mother’s Day Breakfast Casserole Full of Weight Watchers Love

WW breakfast casserole

It’s a beautiful spring day here at The Three-Acre Wood, and I’ve been spending all of it with my sick little boy who is missing out on field day at school. The poor thing came home with Strep yesterday and now he’s stuck at home with his mama instead of his friends. I venture to say it hasn’t been all bad. We did play a game of Scrabble Jr., he watched Captain Underpants and we just polished off banana popsicles on the back deck. What more can we ask for?

sick day popsicle

I know I promised you a breakfast casserole recipe earlier this week, so I finally squirreled away long enough to pass it along while my son plays math games on the iPad. I’m sure I only have a few minutes before I’m summoned by the young one, so I will try to make this as quick as possible.

My husband found this Weight Watchers loving recipe online and prepared it for Mother’s Day (he’s kind of mushy and thoughtful like that), but he made several adjustments according to the ingredients he found in the house (also a good trait. . . most of the time). I’m going to share the version he created because it was really good, but you can also find the original at Slap Dash Mom. The Slap Dash Mom registers her recipe at one Smartpoint for a quarter of the dish while my husband’s version came in at three, but it all depends on the type of turkey sausage you use. This really is a very tasty breakfast casserole, so I hope you will give it a try (even if you aren’t watching your weight).

Turkey Sausage Breakfast Casserole - 3 WW Smartpoints
Serves 4
A delicious breakfast casserole that registers 3 Weight Watchers Smartpoints per serving.
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Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
55 min
Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
55 min
Ingredients
  1. 6 eggs
  2. 1/4 c fat-free cheddar cheese
  3. 1 c cooked fresh turkey sausage
  4. 1/3 c uncooked onion
  5. 1/2 c sliced fresh mushrooms
  6. 1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro
  7. 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  8. 1/4 tsp garlic salt
  9. 1 or 2 pinches of red pepper flakes
  10. Aldi brand spray olive oil (zero Smartpoints)
Instructions
  1. Scramble the eggs in a bowl.
  2. Add all other ingredients to eggs and stir together.
  3. Spray an 8x8 casserole dish with olive oil.
  4. Pour mixture into dish.
  5. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for approximately 35 minutes (until eggs are done).
  6. Serve warm.
Notes
  1. You can prep this dish the night before and store covered in the refrigerator, but if you use a glass casserole dish be sure to warm it with the oven or it might crack during baking.
Adapted from Slap Dash Mom
Adapted from Slap Dash Mom
https://www.smalltalkmama.com/
Auntie E’s Cool Pea Salad

Auntie E’s Cool Pea Salad

pea salad

It feels like fall is in the air, and I can hardly wait for this favorite time of year. I love the cooler temps, the changing leaves, the clothes, football and pumpkin spice. But before I put summer completely in the books, I wanted to share one last warm-weather recipe courtesy of my Aunt Eyvon in Blue Jay Hollow.

While we were visiting Arkansas this summer, my Auntie E brought over a cool pea salad that was completely addictive and insanely easy to make. Last week while I was grocery shopping I suddenly had a hankerin’ for the yummy green stuff so I gave her a call in the middle of the aisle and asked her to hand over the recipe right then and there (yup, as easy as I remember). Needless to say, I whipped up a batch of this tasty pea salad as soon as I put away my groceries and I didn’t share a single bite with my boys (they don’t like peas), so it was a win-win for me, baby!

So here’s the recipe for this tasty cold salad; and although it seems like a summer dish, don’t think for a minute that I won’t be making another batch well into October.

Auntie E's Cool Pea Salad
Serves 4
A delicious and easy-to-make cold pea salad.
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Prep Time
10 min
Total Time
10 min
Prep Time
10 min
Total Time
10 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 small bag of frozen peas
  2. 1/4 c. of mayo
  3. 1/4 c. chopped white onion
  4. 1/2 bag of prepared bacon pieces (or equivalent crumbled cooked bacon slices)
  5. 2 dashes of salt
  6. 6-10 dashes of black pepper, according to taste
Instructions
  1. Thaw the peas and pour into a mixing bowl.
  2. Add the mayo, chopped onion, bacon pieces, salt and pepper to the peas.
  3. Stir gently but thoroughly until everything is coated.
  4. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
  1. Warning: this dish is highly addictive. 🙂
Adapted from Aunt Eyvon
Adapted from Aunt Eyvon
https://www.smalltalkmama.com/
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