Stuffed shells

1 package large pasta shells
1 cup low fat Mozerella

Filling
2 pints fat free cottage cheese
1 package frozen spinach thawed and drained
1/2 cup shredded parmesean cheese
1 cup low fat mozzarella
3 egg whites
3/4 tsp Italian seasoning
salt to taste

Sauce:
1/2 cup diced onion
2 minced garlic cloves
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 cup water


Combine all sauce ingredients and simmer for 1 hour in a sauce pan. Pour 1/2 cup sauce into baking dish.
Cook shells al dente or half the cooking time suggested. Rinse in cool water and Drain. Combine filling ingredients and put into a quart size freezer bag. Snip off one corner. Squeeze mixture into shells. Cover with sauce. Sprinkle with the other 1 cup Mozerella. bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Chicken pillows

2 cans reduced fat crescent rolls
1 1/2 cups cooked chicken diced
1 8oz tub fat free cream cheese
3 celery stalks diced
1 small onion diced
2 cloves garlic
2 packets chicken gravy mix

Saute celery and onions in 1 tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Add them along with chicken to a bowl. Warm the cream cheese so it is workable. Mix all together. Roll out Crescent Rolls. Put two triangles together and pinch seam to make a rectangle. Place an ice cream scoop of filling in the middle. Bring up sides and pinch together. Place seam down on a sprayed cookie sheet. Bake according to roll package or golden brown. (usually 10 mins)
Meanwhile, make gravy according to package.

When done, place one pillow on a plate and pour gravy on top. YUMMMM!!!

Minestrone Soup

1 lb Extra Lean ground Beef or Turkey
1/4 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp onion salt
1 Bay leaf
1 whole onion diced
1 can beef broth (low sodium)
2 large carrots diced
1 can Kidney Beans
1 can white beans
1 soup can of water
1 package of whole wheat mini shells cooked and drained.

Brown meat with onions and carrots. Put all ingredients in a pot and simmer for 30-45 mins. Remove bay leaf and serve.

Simplify!!!

So I always thought I needed to make these elaborate meals to feed my family! It's not true! I love recipes that are SIMPLE and have very few ingredients. I like meals you can roll together like today's meatloaf is tomorrow's chili. Today's Grilled Chicken is tomorrows Fajitas. ETC. SO here is an outline for how to plan your menus.
Monday-meatless
Tuesday-Mexican
Wednesday-Italian
Thursday-crock-pot
Friday- Deli Style (soup, salad, sandwiches etc.)
Saturday-Pizza
Sunday- Sunday Dinners.

With a plan of the kinds of food you will be serving you just have to pick something from that category and go! Here is another option

Monday-Vegetarian
Tuesday-Chicken
Wednesday-Beans
Thursday-Pork
Friday-Beef
Saturday-Freezer Meal
Sunday-Soup/Salad Bar

SIMPLIFY!!!

I love make ahead meals. If you are already cooking/ assembling just make a few more and you have dinner in the freezer waiting!!! YA!!!

Not every meal needs to be fancy. Simplify! Main course, side, and veggies and/or Fruit.

Here is an example using the first list of options:

Monday-Grilled Cheese, Tomato Soup and Orange slices
Tuesday- Beef Quesadillas with Green beans
Wednesday-Stuffed Shells with green salad
Thursday- Minestrone Soup, Bread sticks and Apple Slices
Friday-Chicken Pesto Paninnis with baked sweet potato fries
Saturday-Pizza and green salad
Sunday-Chicken Pillows and Steamed Broccoli.

SIMPLE!!! (Yes I will add those Recipes to the blog....)

Get your favorite Recipes in order of category and then just go down the list when planning your menus. Hope this helps!!!

Buffalo/ BBQ Chicken Salad

I make this salad the same way for both Buffalo or BBQ Chicken salad. If you like HOT do the buffalo, if you like is sweet do the BBQ. Or get CRAZY and combine the sauces and get sweet-hot!!!

2 heads of Romaine chopped and rinsed
2 Cups of Cooked diced chicken
1/4 Cup Buffalo Sauce or Franks Red Hot Sauce OR 1/2 cup BBQ Sauce (I like Stubbs)
1 Can Black Beans rinsed and drained
1 can on corn drained
1 avocado diced
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup shredded cheese
Ranch Dressing

Add your choice of sauce to your cooked chicken and warm in the Microwave.
Put 1-2 cups of lettuce in a big bowl or a plate. Top with 1/4 Chicken, 1/4c  Black beans, 1/4 c corn, 1/4 avocado, 1/4 c carrots, and sprinkle of cheese. Add ranch and Enjoy!
Makes 4 servings.

Fast food makeover!

So while I was in High School I worked at Heaven I mean Taco Time. To this day I still LOVE their food. I proved their food isn't the healthiest by gaining 60 pounds in a year and a half. Sneaking those mexi-fries will get you every time!!! Anyway since I still love their food, here are some of my favorites made over!!!

Veggie Burrito
1 can black beans or pinto pureed (no re-FRIED beans)
2-3 cups cooked short grain brown rice. (if you think you don't like brown rice try SHORT grain brown rice. I like it MUCH better)Cook in water and add Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime Seasoning.
Homemade Salsa (these are not nearly as good with the stuff from a jar)
Homemade Guacamole
Reduced Fat Mexi blend cheese (optional)
SUNFLOWER SEEDS (this is what MAKES IT!!!)
Shredded Romaine lettuce(optional)
Whole wheat tortilla wraps.

To assemble spread beans on tortilla. Top with sour cream, Then guacamole and Salsa, then 1/4-1/2 cup of brown rice. Sprinkle 1/2 TBSP of sunflower seeds and then top with cheese and lettuce. Roll and enjoy!!!

Homemade Salsa
1 can Rotel or diced Mexican tomatoes with green chili
1/4 cup tamed jarred jalapenos
1/2 onion
1/4 cup cilantro
2-4 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste.

I drain my tomatoes. I then place the other ingredients in my Magic Bullet and chop. Then I add the tomatoes to the blender and pulse it just enough to mix it together. SOOO GOOD!!!

Crispy Chicken Burritos
1 pound Chicken
1 can diced green chilies
Container of  fat free or reduced fat cream cheese. ( I like the whipped)
1 cup reduced fat cheddar cheese
1/2 cup diced onion
Salt and Pepper
1 tbsp Olive oil.
Whole Wheat Tortillas
Olive Oil cooking spray

In a pan saute onions and chicken until chicken is cooked through. Season with salt and pepper. (this is how they cook their chicken. I know because It was my job..:). Add cream cheese, chilies, cheese, and Chicken to a bowl and mix together. Place a spoon full or two in the middle of a tortilla and roll. Place on cookie sheet. When all the mixture is gone and the burritos are all rolled spray the burritos with olive oil spray and place seam down on cookie sheet. Cook for 15-20 minutes at 350 or until ends turn golden brown.

Serve with Fat free Sour cream, Homemade salsa and Guac.

Empanadas
Whole Wheat Tortillas
Pie filling
-apple
-pumpkin (my favorite)
-blueberry
-peach
Whatever you want!
Spray can Whipped Cream
Kernel Seasonings cinnamon sugar or kettle corn popcorn seasoning (buy where you find microwave popcorn.)
Spray Olive Oil

Put an ice cream scoop worth of filling in the middle of tortilla wrap ends in then roll. Place seam down on a cookie sheet. Spray with spray and Bake for 15-20 minutes on 350 until golden. Remove and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar blend and top with Whipped cream. YUMMY!!!

Ole!

Super Bowl Yummies!!!

If I were throwing a Super bowl party, THIS is what I would be serving.

Appetizers

One Minute Salsa

The Sisters Cafe

*Note: This recipe works great halved--just use 1 14oz can tomatoes

1/2 small red onion, peeled and quartered

1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves

1/4 cup drained jarred pickled jalapenos

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained

In the bowl of a food processor (or a blender), pulse the onion, cilantro, jalapenos, lime juice, garlic and salt until coarsely chopped.

Add the drained tomatoes and pulse until combined. Don't over process in this step if you want your salsa to remain chunky - just give it a few good 1-second pulses until everything is mixed. Place the salsa in a fine mesh strainer or sieve and drain briefly. Transfer to a bowl and serve.

Makes 3 cups.

Healthy Baked Tortilla Chips or I like FOOD SHOULD TASTE GOOD brand.

4 corn tortillas cut into 8 triangular pieces with a pizza cutter (just like you were cutting a pizza)

Cooking spray

Kosher salt

Spread the triangular pieces of corn tortillas on a baking sheet. I use my Pampered Chef Stoneware bar pan. Spray corn tortilla triangles with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake in preheated 350 oven for 10+ minutes. Check often and stir once halfway thru if needed. Just watch them and take out when golden brown.

*The corn tortillas I use are only 100 calories, 8 grams of fiber and 1 gram of fat. So for 32 chips and fresh salsa I only use 2 points on Weight Watchers! Cool!

Farmer’s Market SalsaSister's Cafe

8-10 large vine ripe Roma tomatoes, diced
1 small Walla Walla sweet onion, diced
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded, diced
1 banana pepper seeded (long pale yellow), chopped
1 small green bell pepper, seeded, diced
Juice of two limes
Chopped fresh cilantro to taste (or dried, to taste)
1 tsp of sugar
Kosher Salt to taste
Ground pepper to taste

For a variation try:
1 chopped, peeled ripe avocado or 1 chopped, peeled ripe nectarine, peach or mango

Low Fat Mock-a-Mole

bethenny.com

More fiber and less fat in this mock-a-mole. Impress your party guests — it’s this easy…

Makes about 1 ½ cups

·         1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and mashed

·         1 cup cooked green peas

·         1/4 cup chopped fresh tomato

·         2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro plus more for garnish

·         1 tablespoon chopped red onion

·         1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

·         2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

·         1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

·         1 teaspoon garlic salt

·         1/2 teaspoon black pepper

·         3/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

·         Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and blend with an immersion blender until smooth. Garnish with cilantro. Serve with tortilla chips, whole grain crackers, and raw vegetables.

Guilt-Free Artichoke and Spinach Dip

from Bethenny.com

Spinach artichoke dip is so good, but so incredibly rich that it’s normally not a great investment at a party. This version, however, cuts the fat way down so you can indulge and still feel great.

Makes 6 Servings

·         1 box or bag frozen artichokes (about 9 ounces), defrosted and well drained

·         1 box or bag frozen spinach (about 9 ounces), defrosted and liquid drained (using paper towel)

·         ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (grate it yourself)

·         ¼ cup Monterrey jack cheese shredded (I Used Sargento Reduced fat)

·         ¼ part skim ricotta cheese

·         ½ container (8 ounces) reduced fat cream cheese

·         2 tablespoons low fat mayonnaise (olive oil)

·         ½ tablespoon lemon juice

·         1 clove garlic, minced

·         ¾ teaspoon salt

·         ½ teaspoon pepper

·         2 dashes of Tabasco sauce

Don’t worry about exact amounts for this recipe. If you can only find artichokes or spinach in slightly smaller or larger amounts, that’s fine. In this recipe, frozen is actually better than fresh because the softer texture works better for dip, so take the easy way.

Defrost the vegetables in the refrigerator overnight, then drain them a colander in the sink or over a bowl. You can drain them together in the same colander because they’ll get mixed together anyway, and that makes fewer things to wash. After they are drained, press on them with paper towels to get rid of any extra moisture that would dilute the dip’s flavor.

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine all the ingredients except 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese into a large bowl or into a food processor. Blend or pulse until mostly smooth but leave some artichoke chunks for texture.

Pour the mixture into an oven-proof dish or casserole. Sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until heated through and just starting to bubble.

Remove from the oven and let it cool for at least 10 minutes. Serve hot or warm with thin slices of baguette, raw vegetables, baked tortilla chips, or crackers.

A Veggie Platter with these dips

Healthy Ranch Dressing

Dress up salads and veggies with this healthy ranch dressing.

·         1 tsp. vinegar

·         1 tsp. garlic salt

·         ½ tsp. salt

·         1 tsp. fresh pepper

·         1 tsp. lemon juice

·         1 cup Greek yogurt

·         ½ tsp. mayonnaise (olive Oil kind)

·         1 tsp. fresh parsley

·         2 tbsp. grated Parmesan

·         1 tsp. water

·         ½ tsp. lemon zest

·         ½ tsp. Dijon mustard

Combine all ingredients and chill before serving.

Sundried Tomato Hummus

2 Tbsp olive oil

3 15 ounce cans Chickpeas (also called Garbanzo beans), drained--reserve 6-8 Tbsp of liquid

1 Tbsp kosher salt

4 Tbsp tahini

Juice of 2 lemons

4 cloves garlic-chopped (I used 1 TB pre chopped)

5 whole sundried tomatoes in oil

Blend all ingredients together until smooth, adding liquid to reach the right consistency. When smooth add sundried tomatoes and pulse to incorporate.

Serve with fresh veggies, hunks of bread, multi grain crackers or pita chips I love FOOD SHOULD TASTE GOOD brand.

Toothpick Goodies

Stuffed Mushrooms

from sisters cafe

1-2 packages mushrooms

1 package crumbled turkey sausage

1 box cream cheese

green onions

garlic salt

butter

Clean mushrooms and remove stems. Saute stems in butter. Saute sausage, season with garlic salt. Add cream cheese, a handful of chopped green onions, and cooked stems. Spoon into mushrooms. Place in a buttered casserole dish, and bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes.

Saucy Meatballs

1/2 bag Italian Style Meatballs from Costco (or 3 lbs~approx. 70 meatballs) Or Make your own

12 oz of cocktail sauce

1 can whole cranberry sauce

1/2 c honey or Agave

1 c water

Combine ingredients (minus meatballs) in a pan and bring to a boil. Pour sauce over meatballs in a crock pot or large pot. Heat to boiling and simmer for 1-2 hours. Simmer longer if meatballs are frozen. Serve with toothpicks and enjoy!

Crock-pot-dippers

Turkey kielbasa cut into 1 inch slices

put into crock pot and cover with Stubbs BBQ sauce. YUM!

Green Chile Rolls

1 large can whole green chilies

Fat free cream cheese

green onions

reduced fat Mexican blend cheese

Hormel Natural Ham  deli meat slices

Pull chilies apart and lay flat on paper towel to dry out a bit.

Dice green onions

Mix cream cheese, onions, cheese in a bowl

Assemble by putting 1/2 slice of deli ham on top of the green chili. Put a dollop of Cream Cheese in the middle Roll and secure with a toothpick.

Bake for 15-20 mins at 350.

Main Dish I would make Pork or Chicken Honey Lime Taco Bar.

For the meat:

1.5 lbs pork or chicken, cooked and shredded (just cook in crock pot with 1 can broth and 1 packet onion soup mix and drain & shred)

Sauce:

1/3 c honey

1/4 c lime juice

1 Tb chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Combine Sauce and put both sauce and meat in the crock pot to keep warm.

Serve on Whole Wheat Fajita size tortillas or Steamed Corn Tortillas. Top with Mango Salsa From Pace or The Costco kind and shredded romaine, and guacamole.!

ENJOY!!!