Recipe: Butternut Squash Frittata

First of all, please let me apologize for my absence and for not letting you guys in on the news regarding my blog just yet. I will let the cat out of the bag as soon as I am able too and I really hope that those of you that are following my blog (if there are any of you left!) will follow me on my journey!

Second of all I am also apologizing for my lack of posts in 2014. Truth be told, I have had little time for blogging and even though I really miss it, other things in my life have taken a priority. However I really wanted to share this AWESOME recipe I tried last night. It is super good for you, easy to make, different than a "meat & potatoes" type meal and it's delicious! Perfect for a week night dinner for a family or you can adjust the measurements for a smaller portion. If you have never tried a Frittata before, it is simply eggs, potatoes, cheese and veggies. That's all! My Mom has made them for me many times but this was my first attempt and I can say it was super easy.

So here we go, how to make this Frittata....

Healthy Recipe: Butternut Squash, Spinach and Feta Frittata Ingredients 

• 1 package (10 oz./300 g) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained 
• 1½ cups cubed peeled potatoes (375 mL) ( substituted sweet potatoes as they are more nutritious)
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced red onion (175 mL ) 
• 8 eggs 1/2 cup 
• 1% milk (125 mL ) 
• Freshly ground black pepper 
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (250 mL) 
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (125 mL)
• 1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed (4 to 5 cups/1 to 1.25 L)  

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C) | 13- by 9-inch (33 by 23 cm) glass baking dish, lightly greased.
Place squash in a large microwave-safe bowl and cover with plastic wrap, leaving a corner open to vent. Microwave on High for about 5 minutes or until fork-tender. Drain off excess liquid. Place in the greased dish and gently stir in spinach, potatoes and red onion. 

In a bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Season to taste with pepper. Pour over vegeta-bles and stir gently to distribute. Sprinkle evenly with cheddar and feta.

Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until eggs are set. Makes 12 servings

Nutrients (per serving) 
Calories 151
Fat 8.0 g 
Carbohydrate 12 g 
Saturated Fat 4.1 g 
Protein 9 g 
Fiber 2 g (8% DV) 
Sodium 192 mg (8% DV) 
Calcium 177 mg

(16% DV)
 Iron 1.2 mg (9% DV)
Very high in: Vitamin A and vitamin B12. High in: Magnesium, folate and riboflavin. Diabetes Food Choice Values Per Serving: 1/2 Carbohydrates, 1 Meat & Alternatives, 1 Fat

Here's a shot of the finished product

This was very rich tasting for such a light meal. One thing I changed from the original recipe above (which I got from our Wellness Committee at work) is I roasted the sweet potato and squash in the oven. I placed on a baking sheet, drizzled on some EVOO, sprinkled with sea salt and backed in the oven at 400 F until tender. I did that to give the veggies some extra flavor through the roasting process. But if you are short on time or live for convenience you can easily microwave too.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and again I promise more new to come on the MelMac Blog Journey!




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Food Post: Apple Cider Pork Chops with Butternut Squash

With Fall being officially here comes the opportunity to make some of my favorite comfort food. Those meals that are warm and satisfying where all you want to do after you eat is curl up on the couch with a blankie blanket and watch a movie.

This past Sunday I was craving a Fall meal so I looked through my "Eat" Pinterest Board and found a recipe for Apple Cider Pork Chops that I thought would suit my needs. Apple Cider just screams Fall and to pair with this dish I chose Butternut Squash, which I absolutely love.... Perfect! This meal sounds fancy but it is really easy, just a matter of throwing everything in a couple of pans and the squash bakes in the oven while you are preparing the pork. 

*I made a few revisions to the original recipe that turned out really well.

Here's what you will need:

• 4 bone-in pork loin chops
• 1–2 tablespoons fresh sage chopped, according to preference
• 1 pound apples, cored and sliced in ¼-inch slices (you can peel the apples if you wish but I like the skin on)
• *4 tablespoons butter
• *1 tsp ground nutmeg
• *1 tsp ground cloves
• *1 tsp dried sage
• *6-7 whole cloves
• *5-6 tablespoons brown sugar
• *4 cups cup apple cider (buy the real stuff)
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• salt and pepper, to taste
• Two packages of pre-chopped butternut squash (I am lazy but by all means, you can use 1 whole squash to de-seed and cut into chucks)
• 2-3 tablespoons Olive oil (EVOO works too)

What you'll do:

• I marinated my bone in pork chops in about 3 cups of apple cider with the whole cloves thrown in and a little ground pepper for about 3-4 hours before hand.
• Preheat your oven to 400 F. On a baking sheet spread out the chopped butternut squash and drizzle with Olive oil until coated. Give the squash a toss with your hands to make sure it is coated evenly. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and throw it in the oven for 30 mins. So easy!
• In a large sauté pan or cast iron skillet, melt 2 Tbsp of butter over medium heat until it begins to bubble. Add the nutmeg, ground cloves and dried sage to the bubbling butter. Pat the pork chops dry on both sides. Add the meat and cook for 3–5 minutes, or until browned. Turn and cook the other side until browned and the pork is ALMOST cooked through (you will cook it through later!). Turn off the heat remove the pork chops and let them rest on a plate covered.
• In another skillet melt the remaining 2 Tbsp butter over medium heat. Add 3 Tbsp brown sugar to the butter and cook for 1 minute, or until it begins to melt. Add the apples and sauté over medium heat until the apples are browned and tender. This should take about 10–15 minutes.
• Take the squash out of the oven and sprinkle with 2 Tbsp brown sugar. Place back in the oven for about 5 mins under broil.
• In the pan that the pork chops were cooked in, add the remaining apple cider and cook over medium heat until the liquid is reduced by about half. Add the cream, bring to a boil and allow it to bubble for a few minutes until the sauce is slightly thickened. Sprinkle with fresh sage and season with salt and pepper if desired. Add your almost cooked pork chops to the sauce (make sure you add in all those juices to the sauce, great flavor!) and allow them to cook for 1-2 more mins until done.
• By the time your Apple Cider Pork Chops are done, your squash should be ready. If serving immediately, spoon the caramelized apples on top of the pork in the pan. Alternatively, you can pass the apples separately at the table and portion them out directly on the dinner plates. Make sure you get some of the sauce that your pork cooked in on the plate as well. To. Die. For!

Now that I have typed out this recipe, it looks like it's a lot of work. But I didn't think so when making this meal. It's not the type of meal that you can step away from but really it is just frying ingredients in a pan, the oven does the work for you with the squash and then you just combine everything at the end so it's not as bad as it looks, I promise you!

It tasted rich and hearty, sweet and savory - everything that you would want in a Fall meal. I totally forgot how much I love sage too; such a unique tasting herb that compliments pork so beautifully. The ONLY thing that I would change next time is I wouldn't use bone in pork chops. I would use pork tenderloin cut into medallions. I just like it better for a pork dish, chops I find a little tough. My Roomies LOVED how this recipe turned out, they said it is what you would hope your meal tasted like when ordering from a restaurant.

I am so SO sad to say that the picture I took of the finished product turned out blurry! It didn't appear that way when I took it but that's iPhone photography for you!

Here are "stock" photos of the finished product that actually do look the way this dish turned out.

I hope you try this one out, you won't be sorry. Please ask any questions in the comments below.

Happy cooking!

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Neon and....Scallops?

Hi All! Kind of a weird Blog Title today but I didn't really know how else to summarize today's post :-)

So last night I made dinner for my Roomie and I wanted to share the recipe with you as it is tasty, received raved reviews and best of all, it's good for you!

This was originally a Weight Watcher's recipe that I tweaked a little but it is still Low-Cal so not to worry. If you like scallops you will love how these Pan Fried Spiced Scallops turn out.

What you'll need:

1 Bag of Scallops - Spend the money and buy the big fresh ones. For frozen, I think you can't beat Costco.
1/2 Tbsp Cumin
1 Tbsp Onion Powder
1/2 Tbsp Paprika
1 Tbsp Cajun Seasoning
1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
2 Tbsp Bread Crumbs (they can be Italian)
1/2 tsp Salt (sea salt is best but you don't need to use it)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp butter

What you'll do:

1) Take your defrosted scallops and pat them dry with a paper towel.
2) In a small bowl combine all of the spices and breadcrumbs, EXCEPT for the salt and place them on a small plate.
3) Take one of the scallops and gently roll it around in the spice/breadcrumb mixture until completely coated. Place coated scallop on a separate plate. Repeat this step with all of your remaining scallops.
4) On Med to Med-High heat, heat a non stick pan on your stove. Pour the Olive Oil and butter onto the pan and let the butter melt.
5) Place the scallops into the pan making sure not the crowd them. You may need to do two batches depending on how many scallops you have and the size of your pan.  If you place too many scallops in the pan they will not brown! Also do not touch the scallops once they are in the pan or that will cause them to steam rather than get crispy on the bottom.Check the heat and turn down if there's too much smoke.
6) After about 2 mins, peak at the bottom of your scallops, they should be golden brown. Flip all of the scallops in the pan to cook the other side for another minute or so.
7) Once the other sides are golden brown, remove scallops from the pan and place on a clean plate.
8) Sprinkle the salt over the scallops while they are steaming hot and enjoy!

We served the scallops with a favorite salad mixture called 7 Super Foods and a Wasabi Sour Cream sauce on the side. For the side sauce all you do is take about a 3/4 cup low fat or non-fat sour cream and mix in wasabi powder to taste -- add a little at a time and taste before you add more. If you dump a bunch of the powder in at once, WOOOOOOWWWEEEEE!

Here's the finished product! It's a light meal with BIG flavor; perfect for the Summer. You can also serve these golden little medallions of scallop heaven in a tortilla with the Wasabi Sour Cream sauce drizzled on top. With a nice glass of Pinot Grigio ....so YUM!

Here's a look at today's outfit and a Top that I picked up at...you guessed it, Wal-Mart!

 Top: American Apparel, shown here

Skirt: (New) Wal-Mart for $8 and they still have some in stock!

Flip-Flops: Fairweather, shown here

Look down from above

This is a top I picked up at Wal-Mart. I think it will look cute with some skinny jeans or a pencil skirt.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Love,

Melmac oxoxoxox

I am here to save you from boring Chicken!

My Roomie made this AMAZING Chicken dish last night that I MUST share with you all as it is easy, unique and best of all, tasty. Now I first must prelude the recipe by saying I have a strong love/hate relationship with chicken. More specially those boneless, skinless chicken breasts we all buy and are a staple in almost everyone's diet.

Why? Well....

I love that white meat chicken is super good for you; it is low in fat, high in protein and you can use it in a variety of ways and cooking techniques.

I hate that it is the "go-to" protein in almost every relatively health meal and I feel overloaded with it at times. If you don't want to eat red meat, the alternative is chicken, chicken, chicken every where you turn! It can be so blah and boring and I can get sick of eating it really quickly. I also find that the white meat breasts have a weird taste to me sometimes, it's too "chickeny" tasting (yes I am well aware of how weird this sounds, I have tried to explain this to my Roomie and she thinks I am nuts, LOL).

So armed with this knowledge of my struggles with this white meat, my Roomie when she cooks tries different ways of making chicken to try and make it tolerable for me, how sweet is that?

So without further ado, here is the chicken dish that she created that pleased even me!

What you'll need (these measurements are a bit of a guess as the Roomie kind of winged it so alter these as you see fit):

• 1 package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts (4 pack)
• 1/4 cup of Thai Seasoning (this link will take you to Club House but my Roomie found a great option at Bulk Barn that I wasn't able to find on their website so just use what you prefer)
• 1/2 cup of Panko Bread Crumbs
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Coconut (the shredded kind)
• 1/3 cup of mayonnaise (use your favorite brand)

What you'll do:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 F.
2. Take the chicken breasts and lightly coat them in the mayonnaise. You don't want them sopping wet with mayo, just coated enough to give the spices something to stick to.
3. Place the Thai Seasoning, the Panko Bread Crumbs and the Coconut into a large Zip Lock bag and shake that around to mix it all together.
4. Place 1 or 2 chicken breasts in the Zip Lock bag and shake, shake, shake! Repeat for all of the remaining chicken breasts.
5. Place the breasts on a baking sheet that is covered in tin foil (for easy clean up) and bake in the oven for 20-25 mins (check them at 20 and cook longer if needed, juices should run clear!). The crust should be golden brown and you should serve right away!

We paired these chicken breasts with a cucumber and tomato salad with Renee's Cucumber Dill dressing (a household fav) and it was SO DELICIOUS! To make this recipe a bit lower in fat I would try substituting Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise. This dish can be made more kid friendly if you cut the chicken into strips or use cutlets instead!

Here is a picture of my lunch leftovers that I turned into an equally tasty Coconut Chicken Salad!

How good does this look!?

So there you have it, I am converted to a Chicken Lover after eating it this way (for now, LOL). Let me know if anyone tries this recipe, would love to hear if you found it as delish as I did and if you had any interesting variations!

Artichoke Bruschetta

Good Day! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.
It was my God Daughter's 1st Birthday Party this Sunday and today is her actual Birthday! There were about 30 people at her Birthday Party so it was a busy weekend cleaning the house, getting the backyard ready and cooking tons of yummy food. Some may think it is strange to have such an extravagant event for a 1 year old, but I see it as a good reason to get together with the people you care about to eat, drink and be merry! I can't believe that one year has past since she has been born, time really does go by so quickly.

I was asked to make Artichoke Bruschetta as an appetizer as it is ALWAYS a crowd pleaser. So I wanted to share this dish with you to try at home or to bring to your next Pot-Luck. Everyone loves these hot, dreamy Bruschetta bites and they are really easy to prepare so let's get to it!

You will need:

• 1 (6 1/2 ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped ** If you live in Canada, get the Artichoke Hearts from Costco, they are the BEST**
• 1 medium tomato, seeds removed and diced
• 1/2 cup grated romano cheese or 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion or you can use a couple Shallots for a different flavour
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed ** I use more, I like these garlicky (sp?) **
• 5 tablespoons mayonnaise ** Hellman's is the best **
• 1 French baguette, cut into 1/3 inch thick slices * * Slice these diagonally **

Directions:

1) Preheat the broiler.
2) Place the bread slices on a baking sheet and toast lightly under the broiler.
3) In a medium bowl, mix marinated artichoke hearts, Romano or Parmesan cheese, red onion, crushed garlic, diced tomato and mayonnaise.
4) Top the lightly toasted French baguette slices with equal amounts of the artichoke heart mixture being careful to spread the mixture over the entire surface.
5) The edges of the bread will tend to burn if not covered by the artichoke mixture. * this is important*
6) Arrange slices in a single layer on the baking sheet.
7) Broil in the preheated oven 2 minutes, or until toppings are bubbly and lightly browned.

You can view the recipe from Food.com HERE

Here are the decadent little bundles of heaven..... Also I will post more pictures of the event soon!

Dress I wore to the party, sorry for the poor quality. I bought this in the Turks & Caicos. So glad that the weather is warmer so I can wear it!

Sleepy weekend

Hello and Happy Monday! I had previously posted about a little shopping spree I had in back in January; my first of 2013 and my first for a long time before that. I had purchased a couple of tops from Dynamite, a store that I can always find success at, and there was my Rag & Bone Jeggings from Aritzia. I promised that I would post a picture of me wearing these items and so here we are, taken Gorilla style in the Ladies washroom at work ;-)

You can see that the top is very drapey and quite see through so it requires a tank underneath

I kind of look surprised that I am taking my own picture :)

 Paired the jeggings with Nine West brown boots that I LOVE! I wear these all of the time. They are easy to walk in due to the block heel. 

Boots tucked into skinny jeans or jeggings is one of my favourite looks. I probably sport this look a little too often and should change it up but it's because I love it so much!

This weekend I rested and really didn't do much of anything. But I did make a batch of a super healthy soup to eat throughout the week. It has quinoa, chicken thighs (for more flavor), butternut squash, olives (for a briny goodness) and kale. I got the recipe from Pinterest and have loved it every time I make it. Kale is my own addition but you don't have to use it for this soup to still be yummy and healthy.

I am telling ya, I don't know what I would do with out soup! It's so easy to make and so good for you. Best of all, it's filling and for those of us trying to watch what we eat, soup is a MUST!

Bayshore & Meatballs

Hi all! Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend. I had a low key weekend with no social obligations but still managed to keep pretty busy. My Roomie and I headed to Bayshore Shopping Center in Ottawa for some retail therapy as we had some gift cards from Xmas burning holes in our pockets. So we braved the traffic and construction for a huge expansion currently going on at the Bayshore Mall and browsed what the Bay had to offer. We scored some skinny jeans by Jessica Simpson which I have never ever tried before but was really impressed with the fit and style for this line. The jeans are definitely cut to fit a woman with some curves (i.e. room for actual hips and a bit of booty) and the jeans still fit nicely in the leg. Often what fits by butt and hips is too loose in the leg. I also picked up a cute spring/summer top from Dynamite (a fav store of mine). 

 Jessica Simpson Forever Skinny jeans in White

Dynamite Peasant Blouse

When the weather is suited for wearing this outfit I will post a picture of me sporting this very springy look! I am going to pair this with some beige heels and wear this look for work. I will definitely wear the top with some regular blue jeans or a jean skirt as well in the summer. What do you think of these pieces?

On Sunday we ran some errands and I took the initiative to make meatball subs with homemade meatballs from scratch. Oh yeah baby! Go big or go home I say....I also say if you are going to have a cheat meal, while on Weight Watchers, do it right so you can appreciate every mouthful :)

I found this recipe on Pinterest and thought it looked super easy and tasty so I gave it a whirl. You basically cook some onion, garlic and spices with spinach, combine with your meat of choosing (I did pork and beef, wanted veal but the store was out) and bake the meatballs in the oven. When done, throw the meatballs in some ready made jarred tomato sauce and heat through. I had the meatballs simmering in the sauce for a couple of hours so I think that made a difference in the taste but that isn't a necessity if you don't have the time.You then line up your rolls on a baking sheet lined with tin foil and load the meatballs, sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese and pop them in the oven at 400 F until the cheese is bubbly (about 5-7 mins). I broiled the subs for a couple of those minutes to get a bit of browning on the cheese.

Here are the little beauties before they went in the oven. They even look tasty like this!

Here is the finished product. Sorry for the poor quality of the picture but I think you can still see how amazing these look.

Now I wouldn't say that making the meatballs is "easy" as far as time goes. It's a bit time consuming so you can make this recipe even more convenient by using frozen meatballs of your preference. The meal was very well received and my Roomies loved that it was kind of like a special meal that you would have been crazy excited to see as a kid. A couple of things I would change next time I make this dish; I would add some Parmesan cheese to the meatballs to give them a bit more flavor  I would also make sure that the cheese is completely covering the bread when baking. As you can probably tell some of the bread got a little burnt in the oven. But other then that, I LOVED this sandwich! I paired it with some red wine to make it an official Italian experience.

If you aren't following me on Pinterest, you are seriously missing out! I have some great recipes on my "Eat" board and you can check out some other "Eat here before you die" restaurants from around the world!

Muy Caliente!!!!!

Happy Monday!!!! I love to support local businesses when I can and I am super thrilled to share this yummy find with you. I was able to catch the Ottawa Home & Garden Show this weekend at the Ernst & Young Convention Center and tour some of the booths selling all manner of home improvement wares. After walking the floor for about an hour, we came across a booth that I was really excited to see..... of course it had to do with FOOD! The booth was for Island Spiced sauces and marinades made locally and with all fresh, natural ingredients by Chef Carlton. We sampled several sauces with pita bread and corn chips and after many tastes we decided on 3 sauces to take home for $20 Cnd (not a bad deal at all). The sauces are Caribbean inspired and range from mild to HOT (think Jerk hot). We took home the Coconut Curry, Beer Spiced BBQ Sauce and the Rum BBQ Sauce. They can be used as a marinade, a cooking sauce, an accent flavor or used to baste your favorite meat dishes.

We tried the Coconut Curry sauce and made this AMAZING dish! Here is what you do:

Take chicken legs (skin & bone in) and marinade in some of the Coconut Curry sauce for a couple of hours. Place the chicken in an oven safe dish and pour the remaining marinade on top. Place in a preheated oven at 350 F for an hour. Use some more of the Coconut Curry sauce to baste the chicken about every 10 mins. The fat from the chicken will bake off into the dish and can be used to baste as well (it makes it crispy). For the last 10 mins we turned up the temperature to a Low Broil and basted with the juices in the dish. Oh my..... this was the result:

 These are the super juicy, flavorful chicken legs. The meat fell off the bone! 

So yummy! If you like Coconut Curry, this is a MUST try!

Sorry for the poor picture quality, they were taken with an iPhone but I think you can still tell how succulent and golden brown these chicken legs turned out. And the flavour; OMG! I love this type of Island dish and it was a mild spice with real flavour, not just heat. Since we were eating dark meat with skin, we served these legs with just some steamed kale to up the healthy quotient and keep the calorie count reasonable. But these legs would have gone really well with any kind of rice.

If you enjoy island inspired flavors and want to add some excitement into your every day cooking, I highly recommend you support a local business and check these sauces out. You can find them at another favorite establishment of mine, Farm Boy.

The BEST recipe you will ever make!

Ok, I can't even believe that I am sharing this recipe because it is my go-to, crowd pleasing, oohhhing and ahhhhhing masterpiece. Anytime I have made this, I have been praised and even kissed because it is THAT good. Is this dish good for you? Hells no! It is meant as a special occasion side dish so save up those calories when you make it.

I have given this recipe to those I love countless times so I am sharing it with you as a way to show my appreciation for those that have been reading my blog. If you make this, I warn you, you may be required to make it at any dinner event for years to come (as I have)!

The Love Gnocchi

Ingredients

4-5 Shallots roughly chopped

3-5 Cloves of garlic roughly chopped

4 Tbsp butter, add more if needed

½ jar of sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil (get the kind that are chopped already)

1 cup of heavy whipping cream (get the pint sized in case you need to add more cream if your sauce gets too thick)

1 package of Fontina cheese diced

½ package of pine nuts

1 package of Gnocchi potato pasta

Salt and pepper

Directions

1) Heat the butter in a large non stick pan over medium-low heat; add about a tablespoon of the oil from the sundried tomato jar (or add your own oil) to raise the burn temp of the butter. 
2) Once the butter is melted and just bubbling, add the shallots and cook for 5-7 mins until soft. Meanwhile, start a pot of water to boil as per the directions on the Gnocchi package.  
3) Add the garlic and cook for another 2 mins. 
4) Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes and cook for another 5 mins until everything is well combined and the shallots are golden brown.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

5) Add the cheese and a small pour of the cream (a couple of Tablespoons should do it); stir frequently. You may raise the heat a little on the stove to help the cheese melt but make sure that nothing is burning. 
6) By now your pot of water should be boiling; cook the gnocchi following the directions on the package. The pasta takes only about 5 mins to cook; it is ready when the gnocchi floats to the surface. 
7) As your gnocchi is boiling into little puffs of heaven, in the pan add the rest of the cream and cook on MED heat until all of cheese is melted and the sauce has thickened (about 7 mins). Keep stirring to help the sauce combine. Add more cream if your sauce gets too thick. It shouldn't be runny but it shouldn't be goopy either!

8) Drain the pasta and transfer to an oven safe casserole dish. Pour the sauce over the gnocchi and lightly toss. 
9) Sprinkle the pine nuts over the top of this pasta until covered and heat under to the broiler in your oven until golden brown and bubbling and don’t take your eyes off it (about 2-3 mins).

This is the final product! 

This pairs beautifully with a nice Filet steak and any robust red wine (like a Shiraz). The sauce is gooey and rich and the gnocchi are like fluffy decadent bobbles that melt in your mouth. I hope you enjoy my special Love Gnocchi. If you have any questions, please leave a comment and I will get back to you!

Soup from a Professed Soup Nazi!

Here's the deal....I LOVE SOUP! It is the only redeeming aspect of this season called Winter and it is a filling, healthy meal that warms the cockles of your soul. There are so many varieties and possibilities for soup and that drives me to spend countless hours on Pinterest looking a new, taste-bud pleasing soup to try. I also love MAKING soup! The relaxing chopping of veggies, the add-a-little-this-add-a-little-that approach, the stirring, the smells that drift through the air. Seriously, have you ever walked into a home where a big pot of soup is on the stove and heard someone say: 

"Ewwww! What the f*%$ is that smell!? Throw that crap out!"? Hopefully never!

The only exception to that is when my Mom prepared homemade chicken stock. The boiling of a chicken carcass in your kitchen would probably make me blurt the above statement out. But the product of that yucky process is still, delicious SOUP!

Here is a recipe that I am sharing for a Low Fat Shrimp Chowder. It is very easy to make, perfect for a weekday meal for a family or if you are a free wheeling single. Best of all it tastes great and leaves you FULL and SATISFIED.

What you'll need:

1 onion finely chopped

2-3 garlic cloves chopped

1 Bag of frozen baby Shrimp

2 cups of milk (use whatever you like, 2%, 1%, or skim)

1 small jar of Salsa (I like spicy but choose any heat level to suit your taste)

1 can of cream corn

1 can of Cream of Celery, Cream of Mushroom or Cream of Broccoli condensed soup

1 package of light cream cheese, chopped up in to 1 inch cubes.

1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped (optional or you can toss the seeds to reduce the heat)

1 Tbsp Olive oil (use any kind or brand you like, EVOO is great too)

What you'll do:

1) In a pot, heat the olive oil under medium heat. Add the onions and the garlic. Cook for about 5 mins until the onions start to soften. Add the jalapeno here if you are using.

2) Add the cubes of cream cheese and a little bit of the milk to incorporate the cream cheese. *Reduce the heat if you think the milk could scald*. Use a whisk to blend the cream cheese, it will melt into the milk as it heats through. This is what will give your soup a creamy, velvety texture with out the fat! I use this method for making creamy pasta sauce too.

3) Once the cream cheese is melted through, add the rest of  the milk, the jar of Salsa, the cream corn, the can of cream of *whatever* soup. Stir with a spoon or use the whisk until the soup is bubbling (approx. 7-8 mins).

4) Now add the bag of shrimp and cook for another 5 mins until the shrimp are heated through.

Now serve it up with crackers, some chopped scallions or with some Sriracha Sauce squirted on top. Enjoy! I will post a picture of the final product later as I made this soup this week. I have been eating it everyday and I am not sick of it yet.

And to close out this post and  in reference to the title, here are a couple of fun Seinfeld facts:

The Soup Nazi is based on the actual owner of a take-out soup business in Manhattan on West 55th Street between Broadway and 8th Avenue. 

As Kramer became more popular, his entrance applause grew so prolonged that the cast complained it was ruining the pacing of their scenes. Directors subsequently asked the audience not to applaud so much when Kramer entered. 

Julia Louis-Dreyfus did not appear in the series' pilot episode. In fact, she was unaware that the episode existed until it was released as part of the DVD box set in 2004.

Source: IMDB