Mint, Cucumber and Bubbly Vodkas

This is a light, summery drink that is oh so good!  My friend Jessica made this as our signature cocktail for my bachelorette party last weekend.  I love any cocktail that involves a simple syrup and I especially love ones with champagne.  I LOVE champagne!! 

*This recipe came from the MN Monthly magazine.

Servings: 1

Size: 6 oz.

Points Plus: 5pp

Level of Difficulty: Medium (just because of the simple syrup) 

Prep Time: Syrup - 25 minutes; Cocktail - 2 minutes
Cook Time: n/a
Rating: 4 stars - Very Good

Ingredients:

Ingredients for 1 drink:

1 1/2 oz. Prairie Vodka

3 oz. honey-mint-cucumber simple syrup

2 oz. champagne

Simple Syrup:

1 cup honey

2 cup water

Handful of mint leaves

1 6-inch cucmber, grated
Pinch of sea salt

Directions:
Prepare the simply syrup by simmering the honey with water and mint leaves until reduced by half or about 20 minutes.  In a small bowl, grate the cucumber and add the pinch of sea salt; let stand.  When the syrup is reduced, pour over the grated cucumber.  Cool to room temperature, then strain into a jar and chill.
Note: The simple syrup will last you through multiple cocktails. The pp value above is for just one drink. 

To prepare one cocktail, add the drink ingredients into a chilled glass.  We chose to use stemless wine glasses.

Tip:
The lemon zester I mentioned in this post would work GREAT for grating the cucumber for the simple syrup - test it out when you make this summer drink!

XOXO Megan

Jerk Chicken Salad with Grilled Pineapple

This is an old Pampered Chef recipe for a good summery salad.  If you haven’t tried grilling pineapple before, it’s really fun!  You need a good grill pan to help get the caramelization of sugars from the pineapple.

Servings:  6

Size:  Main course salad

Points Plus:

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time:  10 minutes

Rating: 3 stars - Good

Ingredient List:

Salad:
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. Jamaican Jerk seasoning
1 pound chicken breast, cut into strips
1 medium pineapple, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
3 green onions
1 large head of chopped romaine
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
6 slices of turkey bacon

Dressing:
2 limes
1/3 cup mayo, reduced-fat
2 Tbsp. pineapple preserves

Directions:

Wash and chop up head of lettuce.  In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil and Jamaican Jerk seasoning.  Add the chicken pieces and mix well so the seasoning evenly coats the chicken similar to a marinade.  Cut the pineapple up into ¼ inch slices or wedges.  Using a grill pan over medium heat, grill the chicken strips cooking each side about 3-5 minutes.  Cut the chicken into smaller, bite-sized pieces for the salad.  After you are done cooking the chicken, add the pineapple to the pan.  Cook for 1 minute per side, flipping the pineapple wedges over once.  Wash and prep the bell pepper and green onions.  Drain and rinse the black beans.  Cook the turkey bacon according to the directions on the package.  Make the dressing in a small glass measuring cup.  Use the zest of one lime and the juice from both limes along with the mayo and pineapple preserves – whisk together to make the dressing.  Assemble the salad by layering the beans, bell pepper, chicken, pineapple, bacon and green onions and drizzle the dressing over the salad before serving.

Tip:

One of the first things I learned at WW when I joined 7+ years for the first time was a handy little tip to control how much salad dressing you use.  Instead of drizzling dressing over your salad, keep the dressing on the side and just dip you fork into the dressing before you take a bite.  This will really cut down on how much dressing you use and keep the pp value low for the dressing so you can spend more pp on other foods!

XOXO Megan

White Wine Spritzer

What could be better than double the drink for half the points plus?!  Introducing my favorite summer beverage...white wine spritzer! I first was introduced to this gem on a hot summer day about a year ago.  It is so easy and low in pp, it also takes a while to drink! So grab a bottle of white wine and drink up!

Servings: 1
Size: 10oz.
Points Plus: 4pp
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 1 minutes
Cook Time: n/a
Rating: 5 stars - Excellent

Photo from foodnetwork.com

Ingredient List: 
4 oz. white wine (I like dry)
6 oz. club soda
Ice

Directions: 
Fill glass with ice, add wine and soda, stir!

Tip:
You could also make this with red wine.  I LOVE adding ice and serving this drink in a wine glass to feel more fancy!

XOXO - Katie