Chicken, Bean, and Rice Burritos-to-go!

I've never been a huge fan of bean burritos, but these are so flavorful and easy to just unwrap and microwave for lunch or dinner, that I knew I had to make them. :)

Ingredients:
8 wheat tortillas (cals will vary - mine were 120 cals each from Winn Dixie)
2 cans, Bush's reduced sodium pinto beans - rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen corn
1 plum tomato, diced 
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 cup diced green onion
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 pack taco seasoning
16oz chicken breast, cooked and cubed 
1 cup COOKED brown rice  (I used a rice cooker, but just as long as it's cooked, that's ok)
1 1/2 cups water

Instructions:

1) Drain and rinse the beans, then put them in a pot with the cooked chicken, tomato, garlic, corn, tomato paste, taco seasoning, and water.


2) Turn on medium high heat until mix starts to boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 mins, stirring occasionally so the beans don't stick.


3) Remove from heat and add in green onions and rice, stirring well. Also press down with the back of your spoon while stiring, to help the beans "smoosh". :)


4) Lay one tortilla out flat, and fill with approx 5 oz of mixture. Fold the ends in, and wrap like a burrito. Wrap in tin foil if you're freezing them.


5) Repeat 7 more times. :)

The yummy filling!

Finished product!

I didn't use cheese, bc I normally don't miss it, and my hubby just throws some on top when he heats them up. :)


Calories - 287
Protein - 17
Fiber - 11
Carbs -  51

Sun-dried tomato, spinach, chicken, and mushroom alfredo rigatoni

What a GREAT way to get in a LOAD of veggies. Typically, I shy away from pasta bc of the high calorie count, but when you load it with all the other stuff, you really stretch it out!

I usually don't like frozen spinach because sometimes it's like eating dental floss, the way it stickes in your teeth, haha. However, Winn Dixie's CHOPPED frozen spinach is great! It's already cut up into bite size pieces! Combined with more veggies and a "light" alfredo sauce, it's a GREAT dinner option!

Ingredients:
1 lb rigatoni pasta
16 oz chicken breast, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces (I just boiled mine)
medium onion, diced
1 tsp minced garlic
2 cups frozen spinach
a package of sliced mushrooms
5 tbsp chopped sun-dried tomatoes (the dried kind, not packed in oil)
1 jar "light" alfredo sauce

Instructions:

1) Put the spinach in a bowl with some hot water to allow it to thaw.

2) Put a big pot of water on the stove to start the boiling process.

3) In the pot, add the garlic and tomatoes. When they start to boil, add the pasta.


4) Cook all until pasta is al dente, then drain and put in a large bowl. Pour the bottle of alfredo sauce in the bowl, and stir well. When combined, set this bowl to the side.


5) Sautee spinach, onion, and mushrooms until onions are tender. There's no need to add any oil or butter, just add a tbsp of water. Trust me...it does the same thing, but without all those calories.


6) When veggies are done, add them to the pasta. Add the chicken, stir well, and you're ready to eat!

Click for a larger view of the yummi-ness!

This recipe freezes well. I divided the pasta into 7 freezer bags (between 12-13 oz servings), and the calorie count is below.


Calories - 377
Protein - 21
Fiber - 4
Carbs - 57

Christmas Sausage Balls

Every year, if I make nothing else...I make sausage balls. My husband loves them, all my in-laws love them, and so do I! They're sooooo simple, but super yummy. And the recipe makes enough so that I can eat them for breakfast for DAYS after Christmas, lol.

Ingredients:
2 tubes (24 oz) Reduced Fat Jimmy Dean Sausage
shredded cheddar cheese - 1.5 packages (about 3 cups)
8 oz container fat free cream cheese
Heart Smart Bisquick - 3 cups



Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put bisquick in the bottom of a very large (but microwave-safe) bowl.



2) Put sausage in next, followed by shredded cheese, and cream cheese.

3) Microwave for approx 45 secs, or until cheese is slightly softened. This will make it easier to mix.

4) Dig in with your hand and mix, mix, mix. It will take a while to get all the bisquick incorporated. Once incorporated, mix another minute just to make sure!

 5) With a kitchen scale, measure out .7 oz portions. I think these make the best size, and it's what the calories/serving is based on.

6) Press each portion in your hands, then roll into balls and place on cookie sheets lined with aluminum foil and sprayed with cooking spray.

7) Bake for 22 mins, until golden brown.

Click here for a larger view of the yummi-ness!

 This recipe made 80 balls. Each ball:

Calories - 56

Protein -3

Fiber -0

Carbs - 3

White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn

I've never been one to bake or anything.... savory cooking is definitely more my thing, lol. But my husband wanted me to make peanut butter balls for Christmas (oh my god, WAY too sweet for me!), and I decided to make myself something sweet I'd seen on the Plain Chicken website. I knew I could make it lower cal by adjusting the ratios a bit, and it still turned out great. SOOOOO yummy!

Ingredients:

one bag of popped Jolly Time Healthy Pop 94% fat free popcorn (no butter)

9 Oreo cookies

1 1/4 bars (10 squares) Ghirardelli white chocolate baking bar

4 full size peppermint candy canes

Instructions:

1) Put popped bag of popcorn in a large bowl.

2) Put Oreos and candy canes in food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Pour mixture in the bowl with popcorn.

3) Melt white chocolate in a double boiler. Pour about 3/4 of the chocolate over the popcorn/oreo/candy cane mixture. Toss until well coated.

4) Pour the rest of the white chocolate over mixture, and toss again.

5) Spread out on wax paper until it sets completely, then portion into baggies.

Click here for a larger view of the yummi-ness!

This made 6 baggies of 2 oz portions. Ridiculously yummy.......

Each 2 oz portion:

Calories - 245

Protein - 2

Fiber - 1

Carbs - 37

Salsa Verde Chicken Tortilla Bake

This was really easy, and sooooo yummy. :) As I continue posting on this blog, you'll come to find out that I looooooooooove Mexican. It's a running theme in my meals, haha, but I decided to mix it up a little and use a salsa verde this time. That's green salsa, for those of you who don't know...LOL. My husband can't take the really, really spicy stuff, so most of what I make is mild, but keep in mind that you can always add a diced jalapeno to (literally) spice it up!

Ingredients:

1/4 c dry black beans, soaked and cooked (or 3/4 c canned)

3/4 c frozen corn

1 c diced onion

8 oz. package of sliced mushrooms

1 c diced green peppers

16 oz chicken breast, cooked and shredded (I used frozen, and just boiled and shredded it)

1 c. light sour cream

1 package (about 2 cups) shredded cheese (I used Winn Dixie 4 cheese mexican blend)

2 cups salsa verde (I used Guy Fieri's mild, and it was VERY good)

6 whole wheat tortillas

tin foil

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a rectangular casserole dish with cooking spray. The rectangular dish will work best for tortilla placement. :)

2) In a large bowl, combine all the veggies, all the chicken, all the sour cream, 1 cup of the salsa, and 1 cup of the cheese. Mix thoroughly. 

3) Pour 1/2 cup salsa in the bottom of dish and spread it evenly.

4) Place 2 tortillas in the dish, and cover with 1/2 the chicken/veggie mixture.

5) Place 2 more tortillas in the dish and cover with the remaining chicken/veggie mixture.

6) Place the remaining two tortillas on top, and cover with the remaining salsa in an even layer.

7) Cover with tin foil, and bake for 40 mins. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese, and then bake uncovered for an additional 5 mins.

8) Let cool for 5-10 mins to allow it to set, to allow for slicing of the casserole.

Click here for a larger view of the yummi-ness!

Each casserole makes 8 pretty good sized servings. For each serving:

Calories - 387

Protein -24

Fiber - 7

Carbs - 41 (You can lower this by omitting the beans, if you'd like.)

ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Smoked Sausage and Peppers Baked Rigatoni

This is super good when you're really craving Italian, and I was shocked at how low-cal it ended up being. :)

The recipe ends up making one BIG casserole, or two small ones....for the instructions below, I'm gonna go with the big one to simplify things. :)

Ingredients:

16 oz rigatoni pasta (I used Barilla because it was the lowest calories of all the pastas)

8 oz sliced mushrooms

1 cup thinly sliced onion

1.5 cup green peppers, sliced

14 oz turkey smoked sausage (I used Hillshire Farm)

3 cans - diced tomatoes (I used Hunt's no salt added, with basil, oregano, & garlic)

1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt substitute

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 400.

2) Slice sausage and brown in skillet, then set aside.

3) In sausage drippings, cook peppers, onions, and mushrooms until they are tender.

4) Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package and drain, but reserve 1/2 cup cooking water. Return pasta and reserved cooking water to the pot. Add sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms, and stir in the tomatoes, salt, and pepper.

5) Pour mixture into a casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray, and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

6) Bake for 25 minutes and let stand for 10 minutes.

Click for a larger view of the yummi-ness!

Makes 8 pretty large servings. Each serving:
Calories - 384
Protein - 20
Fiber - 6
Carbs - 58

P.S. If this gets "dry" in leftover form, add 2 tbsp sour cream (to each serving), mix well, and microwave for your own pasta and vodka sauce! :)

Lasagna Muffins

I won't lie.  

These were terribly time-consuming (about 1.5 hours start to finish), but it was worth it. I made them on a lazy Sunday, and got 24 muffins out of the recipe. Since I eat two of them at a time and my husband eats three (both with salad on the side), that made Sunday night's meal, lunch for Monday, and THREE more meals! There's still one night of lasagna muffins in the freezer. :)

Ingredients:

12 oz. ground turkey

4 oz mushrooms

1/2 medium onion

3.25 cup part-skim ricotta cheese

1 large egg white

1 tsp dried oregano

1 bag (about 2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese

3 cups pasta sauce (your preference, I used Winn Dixie Garden Combination Pasta Sauce)

3/4 package Kraft Parmesan Seasoning Blends - Cracked Black Pepper and Toasted Onion

48 wonton wrappers

Instructions:

1) Brown the ground turkey. Add the onion and mushrooms to the pan and cook until they are soft. Drain the mixture. Put it in a bowl and add the pasta sauce. Mix well.

2) In another bowl mix together ricotta, oregano, parmesan, & egg white. Put the bag of mozzarella cheese in another bowl for easy access.

3) Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and line the bottom of each pan with a wonton wrapper. 

(If you have a normal muffin tin, you'll be making 12 muffins here, which is half the recipe...so don't fret if you have extra ingredients, you should only be using half of everything here, lol!)

4) Layer a spoonful of the meat/veggie mix, a layer of the ricotta mix, then just a sprinkle of the mozzarella cheese.

5) Add another wonton wrapper (you should be about halfway up the muffin cup), then add another layer of meat/veggies and ricotta mix.

6) Fold over the edges of the remaining wonton wrapper that's sticking up, making it look like a little package. Then sprinkle more mozzarella cheese on top. 

7) Bake for 20-25 mins, then ALLOW TO REST for 5 minutes. This is important - it allows them to set! Then run your knife around the edge, and they'll pop right out! Repeat process to get the rest of your muffins!

Click for a larger view of the yummi-ness!

For each muffin:
Calories - 183
Protein - 11
Fiber - 1
Carbs - 15

P.S. - These freeze REALLY well. Just bake them like normal, let them cool, throw them in a freezer bag and freeze. To thaw, leave in refrigerator all day, then just pop them in the microwave for one or two minutes! Delicious, and they taste freshly made. :)

Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Mushroom Casserole

Might as well start with what I made tonight...

Cheesy Broccoli, Chicken, Mushroom and Rice Casserole!

It was so easy that I almost feel guilty at the "yummmmmmmmm" I got from my husband. ;-)

Ingredients:

6 oz. chicken breast

1 c. diced onion

8 oz. mushrooms

20 oz. frozen broccoli

4 oz. Velveeta cheese

2 tbsp light margarine

10 oz can reduced sodium cream of mushroom soup

1 cup instant brown rice
1 tsp Mrs. Dash onion and herb (or whatever flavor you have)
1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put the frozen broccoli in a big bowl of hot water to thaw.

2) Dice chicken breast. I totally took the easy way out and just measured 6 oz of Tyson Grilled and Ready Chicken Breast. 

3) Slice 8 oz of fresh mushrooms (or just buy them pre-sliced). I'm a little picky and like them thinner, so I slice my own.

4) Diced one cup of onion. I used red bc I like the color, haha.

5) Dice 4 oz (about 1/4 a small package) of Velveeta cheese. I just had the Great Value kind (Walmart).

6) Drain broccoli and put back in big bowl. Add onion, mushrooms, chicken, cheese, 2 tbsp melted margarine, the can of soup, Mrs. Dash, pepper, and the dry rice.

7) Fill the soup can up halfway with water, add that also, and stir until fully combined. 

8) Pour into a casserole dish that's sprayed with cooking oil, and bake for 30 mins.

9) Sprinkle with cheese and bake another 5 mins. I used Winn Dixie's 4-cheese mexican blend bc it's what I had on hand.

Click to see a larger pic of the yummi-ness!

I had so much casserole that I ended up splitting it into two dishes, and each dish had two servings. So the whole recipe above is 4 servings, and for each (big) serving:

Calories - 451

Protein - 30

Fiber - 7

Carbs - 39

Recipes!

Well, I'm one of those who's constantly posting pictures of the food I've made, lol....and people ALWAYS ask me "What's in that?" or "How do you make that?"

SO! I figured I'd start a blog to keep up with them all! Feel free to browse! :)

Future Skinny Bitches UNITE!!!!