Pasta Fagoli soup sans pasta

So this recipe originated at Gina's Weight Watchers website. I didn't have any onions, so I substituted chives, I also didn't have oregano or parsley, but I had fresh basil.

Start with your ingredients -

Heat some olive oil in a deep pot ans saute you onion (or equivalent!) and garlic for a few minutes.

Next, blend one can of Cannelini beans with some water until smooth. Then add that mixture to the garlic and onions.

MMMMMMM....

Then add the celery, carrot, tomatoes, herbs and chicken broth. A little s & p to taste and let that simmer for about 30 minutes.

We randomly have 4 hot peppers sitting on the counter. They are not going to make it much longer, so I figured I would throw one in whole. I let it simmer with all the veggies. I think I can taste a very small bite of heat...

At this point, you would add 1 & 1/2 cups of pasta. I'm trying to go light with the carbs, so I just left it out. The soup is definitely not as thick or creamy, but it's still tasty! Try it tonight! It didn't take more than an hour to put the whole thing together. Yummy!

Parmesan Pea Risotto

Risotto is not hard, it's just time consuming, but well worth the time. Creamy and cheesy, it's perfect for a fall evening.

Start with Aborio rice - 1 cup. Don't mind the vinegar in the background - don't put that in your risotto!

Chop an onion, I used a whole one, you could get by with half, but I like onion. Saute the onion in about 2 teaspoons of olive oil and a teaspoon of butter. Just when you start to smell the onions, add the rice and stir and stir and stir for about 8 minutes.

In the meantime, with your 3rd arm.... heat up 4-5 cups of chicken stock, keep this close and at a simmer. You need to add hot broth to the rice or your risotto will not be cooked through.

When your rice has sauteed for 8 minutes, add 1/2 cup of white wine (red would be fine, too, the result will be red risotto!) and cook out. Then add one ladle of broth to your pan and stir in a figure 8 pattern. Stir and stir and stir. Stir until you can see the bottom of your pan...see below.

At this time, add another ladle of broth and repeat until the rice is cooked through and creamy. It will take at least 4 cups of broth, probably closer to 5. And it will take you at least 30 minutes, don't get anxious and add more broth! Just relax and drink some more wine.

When your rice is cooked, add as many frozen peas as you like. I really like peas....

Stir until the peas are hot. I also added some chopped basil and parsley because I had them on hand. Just before service add a couple of handfuls of Parmesan cheese, not the fake stuff, people, get the real thing. I promise you will not be disappointed. Weight Watchers calls for 4 Tablespoons of cheese, which is probably what I put in, not counting the extra I added to my dish before I ate it :)

I served roasted butternut squash along with my risotto (toss cubes of squash in olive oil and salt and pepper and roast in a 425 degree oven until browned) and a glass of homemade Pinot Grigio.

You could use vegetable stock and make this a vegetarian meal...

Weight Watchers Points - 7 for 1 & 1/2 cups

Enjoy!

Hawaii

After that last post, I figured you might want to see some pictures from our honeymoon!! Here is an (almost) wordless tour of Maui and Oahu.....Enjoy!

We drank a lot of champagne....

View from our balcony in Maui.

Beautiful sunset in Oahu.

They were filming Hawaii 5-0 at our hotel in Ohau!

Tan skin, red wine and I had a steak on my plate in front of me.... perfection!

MMMMMMMM.....

Shrimp truck!

Im back!! I think....

Hi! Remember me? I ran off and got married and went on a 2 week honeymoon and now I'm finally getting my life back together. After over a month now of being married, I'm loving life and trying to drop the couple of lbs I gained on my Hawaiian honeymoon!!

I successfully lost about 14 pounds before my wedding thanks to documenting my eats and exercise here everyday. I felt beautiful and had a wonderful time at my wedding!

But it's back to reality for me now and I'm trying to take off what I gained in Hawaii - who knew the food there would be so rich and delicious??? I guess starting off everyday with frozen tropical drinks will add some pounds pretty quickly :)

Anywho, I did work out while we were in Hawaii, there were gyms in both of the hotels we stayed in, so despite my indulgences, I did end up working out about 8 of the 14 days we were gone. Not too bad! However, I still gained about 9 pounds! A couple of those were fake pounds. (ie - they came off quickly after I got back to my normal routine)

So, now what to do? My blog is called The Fluffy Bride..... after some thought, I don't think I will resume documenting every recipe that make or every meal, but I will be making some fun new dishes that I will run through with pictures and descriptions. Hopefully you will enjoy it!

Should I change my blog name from the Fluffy Bride to the Fluffy Wife??? Hmmm, I'll have to think about that one.....