RECIPE: Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (9 Points+)

9 Points for the whole crust! Recipe yields 2 crusts.

Are you ready to make some Whole Wheat pizza dough? In the past, I have been known to shun wheat. I loved this crust! My wife did it up good, and I'm sure anyone that tries this recipe will not be disappointed. So...on with the show.

In a mixer bowl, dissolve yeast in warm (110 degree) water add brown sugar and let sit for 10 minutes.

 

Stir in the flour, oil and salt.  Knead dough for 8 to 10 minutes. Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover with a cloth.

  
Let rise until double, between 30-60 minutes depending on yeast. If baking on a pizza stone, preheat oven to 425 degrees with pizza stone in oven.  When dough is ready, divide in half and return half to bowl. Cover while you roll out the first crust.  On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to desired thickness. Sprinkle corn meal or semolina on a pizza paddle and pizza stone, and place dough on paddle.

 

Add desired toppings.

Add cheese.

Place on pizza stone and bake for 10-12 minutes.

 

Wait for it to crisp up, cut yourself a slice and enjoy!

 

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon active yeast
1/4 teaspoon brown sugar
3/4 cups warm water (110 degrees)
1 1/2 cups whole wheat white flour (or All-Purpose)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons olive oil

Directions:
In a mixer bowl, dissolve yeast in warm (110 degree) water add brown sugar and let sit for 10 minutes. Stir in the flour, oil and salt. Knead dough for 8 to 10 minutes.

Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover with a cloth. Let rise until double, between 30-60 minutes depending on yeast. If baking on a pizza stone, preheat oven to 425 degrees with pizza stone in oven.

When dough is ready, divide in half and return half to bowl. Cover while you roll out the first crust. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to desired thickness.

Sprinkle corn meal or semolina on a pizza paddle and pizza stone, and place dough on paddle. Add desired topping and cheese.

Place on pizza stone and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Enjoy. Yields 2 crusts.

PRODUCT: Trop50 Orange Juice Beverage (1 point+)

I'm a lover of orange juice with breakfast, but for a normal 8 oz glass it will cost me 3 points! Now I drink Trop50, and it's only 1 point for 8 ounces. Awesome. Allow me to give you the rundown of Trop50.

When I first tasted it, I did notice the difference from regular orange juice. Regular orange juice is thicker, but by the 2nd day of having Trop50 at breakfast, the difference didn't even cross my mind. It was simply delicious. If I had to give you an idea of exactly how Trop50 tastes, I would tell you to imagine a beverage that falls somewhere between "Sunny D" and Tropicana Premium Orange Juice. That makes complete sense, because Trop50 contains 42% Juice. Now you are probably assuming that, since it is not 100% juice, it must be lacking in Vitamins and Nutrients. Not so. It is high in Magnesium, Thiamin, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Vitamin C and Potassium. It does contain 10mg of sodium. Regular OJ has zero, but c'mon...it's 10mg.

With 58% less actual orange juice, Trop50 uses PureVia to match the sweetness of regular orange juice. Some people claim that Trop50 has an artificial sweetness aftertaste, but I believe they are delusional. PureVia is the highest quality natural sweetener available on the market.  It's not an artificial sweetener. Trop50 does not contain Aspartame. Everything in Trop50 is natural...from the Earth. It hasn't been chemically sweetened. I harp on this only because many websites discussing Trop50 mistakenly throw it under the bus because it has PureVia in it, calling PureVia an "artificial sweetener".

My wife and I both did a taste test, and we both enjoyed it. She's not a fan of beverages that have an overly-sweet aftertaste. She saves her sweet tooth for chocolate. With Trop50 she didn't have any complaints about too sweet of an aftertaste. She liked it. I drink it more often than she does because I get more points, but she does occasionally treat herself to a glass.

In conclusion, if you have been thinking about trying Trop50....give it a shot. It's a great way to cleanse your palette after every bite of your delicious breakfast, and your waist will thank you.....eventually. Feel free to leave us a comment once you try it, or if you already have tried it. Thank you, and have a great weigh!

Ingredients:
FILTERED WATER, NOT FROM CONCENTRATE PASTEURIZED ORANGE JUICE, MALIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVORS, CITRIC ACID AND REB A (PUREVIA BRAND), POTASSIUM CITRATE, ASCORBIC ACID (VITAMIN C), BETA-CAROTENE, TOCOPHEROL (VITAMIN E), MAGNESIUM PHOSPHATE, NIACINAMIDE (VITAMIN B3), THIAMIN HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B1), RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2) AND PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B6)

Trop 50 contains 6% of recommended Folic Acid intake.

RECIPE: Vegetable Pad Thai (10 points+)

Vegetable Pad Thai for 1...or 2. This recipe is easily adaptable. Double it for two, triple it for three...you get the idea. Suggestions: Add chicken, beef or shrimp to pump up the protein.

Last year, we found a Vegetable Pad Thai recipe on Pinterest, and never went out for Pad Thai again!  My wife was able to make it Weight Watcher's friendly and still taste amazing!  The sauce is made with just brown sugar, lime juice, soy sauce and sriracha and it tastes soooo good! It's easier than you would think. The whole plate is only 10 points!

Instructions:

In a small bowl: combined juice of 1 1/2 limes (save other half for garnish), brown sugar, soy sauce and hot sauce (optional). Set aside.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add noodles, cook approximately 10 minutes. While noodles are cooking, continue with next step.

In a medium, nonstick pan: sauté garlic and white parts of the scallion in 1/2 tsp olive oil.

Add egg and cook just until set.

Place egg mixture in a plate and set aside.

Drain noodles and add them to the pan you cooked the egg mixture in.

Add carrots and tops of green onions. Pour lime juice mixture over noodles.

Stir to combined the noodles, carrots, onions and sauce.

Cook until sauce thickens, about  3-5 minutes.

Add egg mixture and mix with noodles.

Cook until heated through.

Plate, top with chopped peanuts and serve with lime wedges.

Ingredients you will need:

2 limes
2 tbsp soy sauce, low sodium
2-3 green onions, chopped (white and green parts separated)
1 tbsp packed light brown sugar
½ tbsp chopped peanuts
½ tsp olive oil
1 serving(s) thin rice noodles or pad thai noodles
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp sriracha (optional)
2 servings egg beaters


Instructions:

In a small bowl: combined juice of 1 1/2 limes (save other half for garnish), brown sugar, soy sauce and hot sauce (optional). Set aside.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add noodles,  cook approximately 10 minutes. While noodles are cooking, continue with next step.

In a medium, nonstick pan: sauté garlic and white parts of the scallion in 1/2 tsp olive oil. Add egg and cook just until set. Place egg mixture in a plate and set aside.

Drain noodles and add them to the pan you cooked the egg mixture in.  Add carrots and tops of green onions.

Pour lime juice mixture over noodles. Stir to combined the noodles and sauce. Cook until sauce thickens, about  3-5 minutes.

Add egg mixture and mix with noodles. Cook until heated through. Plate, top with chopped peanuts and serve with lime wedges.

Enjoy! Have a great weigh!

Recipe adapted from marthastewart.com

PRODUCT: "Carba-nada" Noodles (3 points+)

So you have a love/hate relationship with pasta? You love it, but hate the abundant amount of carbs it packs into one serving? Of course you do. That's why you're here.

As much as this is going to come off sounding like a commercial, I just can't help myself. These noodles are a great alternative to the full-fledged, point-heavy, calorie-packing pasta you've grown to cherish.  You may not be able to buy a pound of it for 99 cents, but it'll put less pounds on you. I know....I know...you're thinking "Where does this guy get a pound of pasta for 99 cents?". My wife shops. I just push the cart.

I've been hearing a lot of talk lately about Shirataki Noodles. Some claim they are good, as long as you rinse them for 3 1/2 hours, and stick a fabric softener up your nose. No thank you. I refuse to waste valuable time washing food, that in the end, is going to end up smelling like...for lack of a better word..."Shirataki".

With Carba-nada noodles, you cook them just like you would cook any other pasta. They come in four flavors: Basil fettuccine, Egg fettuccine, Roasted Garlic fettuccine, and Lemon Pepper fettuccine.

Carba-nada Basil Fettucine

The difference will be noticed by your waist-line. Not your mouth. It's tasty. One and a half cups of regular pasta comes out to 7 points. The same amount of Carba-nada noodles slinks in at 3 points. It's not rocket science. It even packs 3 times more fiber into a serving!

Carba-nada even has more Fiber and Protein!

Where can you find it? We buy ours at Meijer. If it's hard to find at your store, they sell it on Amazon. If you try it out, let us know what you thought about it. We love to talk food. Have a great weigh!