1 quart homemade pork stock

about 2 cups chicken stock

3-4 stalks bok choy, chopped

2 scallions, sliced

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp fish sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 spoonful ginger paste

dash rice vinegar

about 8 frozen Asian dumplings (I used pork and leek dumplings)

Cook dumplings according to package directions.

Whisk together soy sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, ginger and rice vinegar into a small bowl.

Heat pork and chicken stock to a boil. Add soy sauce mixture and reduce to simmer. Taste broth and adjust seasoning if needed.

When you’re about ready to eat, stir scallions and bok choy into broth and cook until just tender. Add dumplings, heat through and serve.

Makes about 4 servings soup, at 4-5 points per serving.

I made something similar using shrimp chips -  I found the type you fry up in a little oil in NYC’s Chinatown, and have been dying to make them.

We had this with Vietnamese summer rolls and Shortcut Wonton Soup (recipe to follow).

2 cans chopped clams, drained

8 oz ground turkey breast

a bit of chicken boullion (optional – I thought this was a little weird, but it was a tip I found from a Vietnamese woman on Chowhound so decided to try it)

2-3 scallions, chopped

large handful cilantro, chopped

1 inch piece ginger, or some ginger paste, minced

dash fish sauce

dash soy sauce

1 tsp olive oil

handful crushed peanuts

shrimp chips or rice crackers, for serving

In a bowl, combine clams, scallions, ground turkey, ginger and boullion. Toss together. Add dash fish sauce and soy sauce.

Heat oil in pan. Sautee clam mixture until meat is cooked through. Taste and add additional soy sauce/fish sauce if needed.

Stir in cilantro and top with peanuts. Serve with chips for dipping and scooping up the mixture.

WW Points: About 2 per serving, not including chips (5 servings)

6 eggs, beaten with a splash of milk

1 tsp olive oil, plus cooking spray

some mushrooms, chopped

some cherry tomatoes, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

pinch fresh dill, chopped

handful cilantro, chopped

salt and pepper

1-2 oz feta cheese, crumbled

Heat oven to 400.

Heat oil in pan. Sautee tomatoes, mushrooms and garlic. Make sure they’re spread apart in pan. Spray pan with cooking spray.

Pour in egg mixture and scatter herbs, salt and pepper, and cheese over it. Cook until the bottom of your eggs are set.

Move pan to oven and cook 3-4 minutes, until top is set and slightly browned. Cut into wedges and serve.

1 whole chicken

1 tbsp honey

2 tbsp whiskey

2 tbsp flour

1 1/4 cups chicken stock

3 potatoes, cut into cubes

1 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2 stalks bok choy, whites only, or one stalk celery, chopped

1 tbsp oil, plus a little more

1 tsp dried thyme (optional)

8 tbsp steel cut oats or 4 tbsp regular oats

4 tbsp chicken stock

salt and pepper

Heat oil in pan. Sautee onions, bok choy and garlic until softened. Put in a bowl with oats, salt, pepper, 4 tbsp chicken stock and thyme.

Stuff chicken with oatmeal stuffing. Rub chicken with oil and season with salt and pepper.

Arrange chicken on a roasting rack with potatoes underneath chicken. Cook for about an hour.

Remove chicken and baste with 1 tbsp whiskey mixed with honey. Return to pan, and move potatoes so they’re no longer underneath chicken and can crisp up. Cook another 20 minutes or longer until chicken is done.

Set chicken aside, and remove potatoes from pan. If there’s enough fat left, add flour and bring to a bubble. If not, add 1-2 tbsp fat to pan and cook with flour. Whisk in 1 tbsp whiskey mixed with chicken broth. Bring to a boil and let sauce thicken.

Serve chicken with sauce, stuffing and potatoes (I added broccoli as well).

Mushroom Barley Stew

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 cup chopped carrots

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup uncooked pearl barley

1 cup dried mushrooms, broke into pieces (I used shitake)

salt and pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme

5 cups veggie broth

Heat oil in pan. Sautee onion, garlic and carrots until soft. Put in slow cooker.

Add barley, mushrooms, salt and pepper and thyme. Cook on low all day.

2/3 cup uncooked pearl barley

2.5 cups veggie or beef broth

1 package sliced mushrooms

1/2 tsp dried marjoram

1/2 pound ground beef or ground buffalo

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup minced green onion

salt and pepper

1/4 cup fat free half and half

Place barley, broth, mushrooms and marjoram in slow cooker. Cook on low all day.

Stir fry ground meat, celery, green onion in pan. Season with salt and pepper.

Add meat mixture and half and half to crock pot. Cook on high 15-20 minutes. Check seasonings and serve.

WW Points: 5 for a one cup serving

1 egg

splash whole milk

pinch fresh dill, chopped

salt and pepper

two slices turkey bacon

cooking spray

Cook turkey bacon. While it’s in progress, beat milk and egg. Spray pan with cooking spray. Scramble eggs with a spatula while cooking. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve eggs with turkey bacon.

WW Points: Only 3, surprisingly!

I haven’t bought cooked shrimp in years, but decided to do so for this recipe, and it ended up being a nice time-saving shortcut here.  The recipe makes a lot more than it seems to indicate, though I also added a bit more shrimp and veggies than called for.

Dressing:

6 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp fish sauce

salt and pepper

1.5 tbsp sugar

For the salad:

8 oz cooked shrimp

1 oz quinoa, rinsed

1 red pepper, chopped into small pieces

3 small carrots, peeled and chopped

1 cucumber, seeded and sliced

3 scallions, sliced

handful cilantro, chopped

salt and pepper

Bring quinoa, dash of salt and 1 2/3 cups water to a boil. Reduce heat and cook 15 minutes. Cool down (I rinsed it with more cold water to speed this up, and dried it out).

While quinoa is cooking, combine shrimp with dressing and chill.

Toss quinoa with shrimp, dressing and veggies. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.

WW Points:  5 per serving (makes about 6 1 cup servings)

Mix dressing ingredients

1 small eggplant, sliced

10 oz brown jasmine rice, or basmati rice

2 parsnips, peeled and cored

3 onions

2 garlic cloves

1 inch piece ginger, grated

2-2.5 tbsp vegetable oil

4 oz cashews

1/4 cup golden raisins

1 red bell pepper, cut into strips

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1.5 cups veggie stock

2 tbsp butter

2 hard boiled eggs, quartered

handful cilantro, chopped

Sprinkle the eggplant with salt and set aside for 30 minutes. Cut into bite sized pieces after drying.

Soak rice in cold water for 40 minutes. Process 1 onion, garlic and ginger in food processor with a couple tbsp water to make a paste.

Slice 2 onions thin. Heat 1.5 tbsp oil in dutch oven and sautee for 15 minutes. Set aside.

Add cashews to Dutch oven and cook for two minutes. Add raisins and let them swell up. Set aside.

Spray pan with cooking spray. Add peppers and eggplants and cook for 4-5 minutes. Repeat with parsnips and set all aside.

Add another 0.5 to 1 tbsp oil to pan. cook onion paste for 4-5 minutes, to brown. Add spices and toast  a minute or two. Stir in yogurt.

Bring mixture to a boil. Add stock, parsnips, eggplant and bell pepper to pan – season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 300.

In another saucepan, bring 1 and 1/4 cups salted water to a boil. Add rice and cook 5 -6 minutes and drain. Note: if you’re using brown rice, you may want to double the cooking time here. I ended up just cooking the casserole for longer, but I think I could have saved time by doing this here.

Drain rice. Add on top of layer of parsnips in Dutch oven. Sprinkle onions, cashews and raisins on top of biryani. Cover with little dots of butter.

Using a wooden spoon, make a hole in the middle of the rice mixture. Cover with two layers of foil, then lid. Bake for 40 minutes and check. My rice took another 35 or so, on account of it being brown rice.

Garnish with eggs and cilantro and serve.

These meatballs, from Oyster Evangelist Joy Manning, were terrific. It also marked my first time using the meat grinder attachment for the Kitchen Aid, which honestly, is kind of a pain and isn’t something I see myself digging out on a regular basis (luckily, next time, I’ll just use the food processor for these).

Served with angel hair and homemade tomato sauce.

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes

8 ounces (1 cup) ricotta cheese

1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) dried bread crumbs

1/2 cup minced onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Arrange the chicken cubes on a large sheet pan and chill in the freezer for 15 minutes. Feed the chilled chicken cubes through a meat grinder or pulse in a food processor until minced.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken, ricotta cheese, bread crumbs, onion, garlic, egg, salt and pepper. Using your hands, mix gently until well combined.

Form into meatballs the size of ping pong balls (about 30 grams) and arrange on a silcone mat or parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, turning after about 15 minutes, until golden brown in spots. Transfer to a pot of tomato sauce, and serve with cooked spaghetti.