Cannellini & Ham Soup

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This recipe is from Christine over at Chow. Follow the recipe here (with my additions and improvements in red).
Cannellini & Ham Soup  Serves 8
Ingredients:
1lb dried cannellini beans
3 1/2 quarts (14 cups) water, plus more for soaking the beans
1 meaty smoked ham bone or 2 ham hocks (about 1 pound)
3 fresh thyme springs or 1/2 tsp dried thyme (I used 1 tbsp dried and it could probably have used a little more than that).
2 medium carrots
2 medium celery stalks
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more as needed
1 1/2 cups medium-dice, fully cooked smoked ham (about 8 ozs)
Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions:
1) Place the beans in a large bowl and pick through them, removing and discarding any broken beans or stones. Cover them with at least 3 inches of cold water. Allow to soak uncovered and at room temperature at least 8 hours or overnight. Drain in a colander and set aside.
2) Place the measured water and ham bone or hocks in a Dutch oven or large, heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer uncovered for 1 hour. (I skipped cooking the water and the bone and hock by themselves. I moved on to step number 3 and cooked the bone and hock with the beans.)
3) Add the soaked beans and thyme, stir to combine (leave the bone and hocks in the pot), and return to a simmer, skimming the surface with a spoon as necessary to remove any scum. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the beans are almost completely tender but still a little underdone in the center, about 1 hour (the beans should not be completely cooked because they will cook more later).
4) Meanwhile, peel and cut the carrots into medium dice and place in a medium bowl. Cut the celery and onion into medium dice and add them to the bowl with the carrots. Add the diced vegetables and measured salt to the pot, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the beans and vegetables are tender and the meat is falling off the bone, about 40 minutes more. Turn off the heat.
5) Remove the ham bone or hocks to a cutting board and let sit until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones and set it aside (discard the skin and bones).
6) Using a potato masher, lightly mash half of the beans and vegetables, leaving the remaining half intact. Stir in the diced and reserved ham. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
Nutritional Information:

8 servings

Amount per serving:

Calories:          127          

Fat:                   2.9g  

Carbs:             16.5g      
Fiber                 3.5g        

Protein:             8.9g 
Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 3
Thoughts: This was good, but it could have been better. Next time I will increase the amount of thyme and add garlic to the recipe. I made this recipe and Creamy Potato & Ham Soup during the same week. My hubby much preferred the Creamy Potato & Ham Soup. So for those reasons, I give this recipe 3 pins.
If you just hopped over here from Pinterest, Welcome! Feel free to check out any of the other recipes I have reviewed. And come back for another visit sometime soon. - Lynn
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Creamy Ham and Potato Soup

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This recipe is from Christy over at The Girl Who Ate Everything. Follow the recipe here (with my additions and improvements in red).
Creamy Ham and Potato Soup - Serves 6
3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup carrot, diced (optional)
1 cup diced cooked ham (I ended up adding 2 cups. One cup seemed a little on the skimpy side.)
3 1/4 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
1 tsp ground white or black pepper, or to taste
5 tbsps butter
5 tbsps all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
Note: I added some carrots that I had and Becky said she adds a can of corn too which would be good.
Note: I thought the soup a little under seasoned. So I added 2 cloves of garlic, minced and 2 tsps of dried basil. My hubby LOVED the soup with the basil.)
Directions:
1) Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, carrot, ham and chicken broth (and garlic) in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in salt and pepper (and basil).
2) In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk so that lumps don't form and until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.
3) Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through.
4) Top with cheddar cheese, chives, and bacon if desired. Serve immediately.
Nutritional Information:

6 servings

Amount per serving:

Calories:         268.7           

Fat:                     14g  

Carbs:              26.6g      
Fiber                  2.4g        

Protein:              9.9g 
Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 7
Thoughts: This is a really good basic ham and potato soup recipe. I added in garlic and basil, and these made for a much more flavorful soup. But, oregano, thyme or even Italian seasoning could be experimented with as well. The only other thing I changed was to double the amount of ham. I just felt that one cup with that amount of liquid was a little on the sparse side. For all of these reasons, I give this soup recipe 4 hearty pins.
If you just hopped over here from Pinterest, Welcome! Feel free to check out any of the other recipes I have reviewed. And come back for another visit sometime soon. - Lynn
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No Bake Energy Bites

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This recipe is from Ali over at Gimme Some Oven. Follow her recipe here (with my additions and improvements in red):
No-Bake Energy Bites - Makes 20 - 25 (My batch made 20)
Ingredients:
1 cup (dry) oatmeal (I used old-fashioned oats)
1 cup toasted coconut flakes
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter (I tried almond butter)
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/3 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1) Stir all ingredients together in a medium bowl until thoroughly mixed. Let chill in the refrigerator for half an hour.
2) Once chilled, roll into balls of whatever size you would like. (Mine were about 1" in diameter.) Store in an airtight container (They are slightly sticky, so I stored them individually-wrapped and then put in an airtight container) and keep refrigerated for up to 1 week.
Ali's Tips: Substitution ideas can abound for just about any of these ingredients! Feel free to substitute in your favorite nut butter (almond (This is what I originally made them with - yummy!), sunflower seed, etc) for the peanut butter. And you could also add in some wheat germ in place of some or all of the flaxseed. I would caution, though, against substituting agave nectar for the honey, as the honey's thickness helps hold things together. Some other fun substitutions for the chocolate chips (or an addition to them) could include: chopped dried fruit, dried berries, chopped nuts, other chips.
Enjoy! (I agree!)
Nutritional Information:
20 Servings
Amount per serving:
Calories               157
Fat                     10.2g
Carbs                 14.9g
Fiber                    1.9g
Protein                3.5 g
Fiber                    1.9g
Protein:                3.5g
Weight Watchers Points Plus Values: 4
Thoughts: These should really be called, "Crack No Bake Energy Bites," or "Don't Plan on Eating Just One, Even Though You Know How Many Calories They Are, Because You Know You Are Going to Eat Them All, So Do It and Just Get It Over With." Yeah, they are that good! I will definitely make these again. The next time, however, I will hide them in the refrigerator of a friends house, in the next state over. Therefore, these delightful little bites get 5 healthy pins!
If you just hopped over here from Pinterest, Welcome! Feel free to check out any of the other recipes I have reviewed. And come back for another visit sometime soon. - Lynn
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Guaranteed Crispy Sweet Potato Fries

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This recipe is from Karen over at The Art of Doing Stuff. Follow her recipe here (with my improvements and additions in red):
Guaranteed Crispy Sweet Potato Fries - Serves 6
Ingredients:
sweet potatoes (Karen doesn't state how many/pounds to use, so I went with 3 medium potatoes, because that's how many she showed in the picture.)
1 or 2 tbsps corn starch
2 tbsps olive oil
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp Sriracha sauce
1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper
Directions:
1) Cut your sweet potatoes until they're medium thickness. Not hugely thick cut and not shoestring.
2) Let potatoes soak in water for an hour - half the day. (not mandatory, but recommended) (I would also add 1 tsp of salt. The water draws out the starch content of the potatoes, but the salt draws out the water content. This is important because you don't want your oven to become a steam bath.)
3) Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
4) Throw cornstarch into a plastic bag.
5) Dump a handful of sweet potatoes into the bag with the cornstarch. Twist the top of the bag so it forms a balloon with some air inside and shake the fries around until they're lightly coated with the cornstarch.
6) Put your coated fries on a non-stick cookie sheet.
7) Drizzle olive oil over the fries.
8) Using your hands, make sure the fries are well coated.
9) Arrange them on the sheet again, so they have space between each fry. The less fries on the pan, the better they'll cook. (I wish Karen could have been a little more exact in this instruction.) Too many shoved together and they'll never get crispy. They'll just steam. Pop the fries into your preheated oven and cook for 15 minutes.
10) Meanwhile you can make the dipping sauce. Mix together the mayonnaise with the Sriracha sauce and Cayenne pepper. You can adjust the proportions to taste. 
11) Check the fries after 15 minutes, flip them over (you might have to use a spatula depending on how "non-stick" your pan is) and return to the oven if necessary for another 5 minutes.
Nutritional Information:

6 servings

Amount per serving:

Calories:          212          

Fat:                17.9g  

Carbs:               12g

Fiber                1.9g          

Protein:            1.3g 
Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 6
Thoughts: I'm afraid I can guarantee the guarantee in the title. They were not crispy, tasty, but not crispy. Karen ends this blog post by saying, "Please note: This recipe does have a bit of a learning curve. It may take a few attempts to get your proportions of corn starch and oil correct. It took me several years (seriously?) to figure out how to do this, but with these instructions it shouldn't take you more than a couple of tries - Karen." My feeling is that after years of trial and error, Karen could have come up with a more precise recipe. I was really looking forward to crispy fries, but it just did not happen. I will make this recipe again. And if I do achieve that perfect crisp to my fries, I will update you. For these reasons, this recipe gets 3 hearty pins.
If you just hopped over here from Pinterest, Welcome! Feel free to check out any of the other recipes I have reviewed. And come back for another visit sometime soon. - Lynn
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