Low Calorie Mexican Quesadillas!

Mexican is by far, one of my favorite comfort foods. Cheese and salt – yes please! My friend and I have ladies night every Tuesday night. We  go for a walk, catch up, watch chick shows,  drink wine and cook dinner. We take turns cooking and tonight is my night. We are both on a path of living a healthier lifestyle so we always cook healthy meals. Last Tuesday, she cooked one of my favorites – Hungry Girl Mexican Chicken! This week we still have a craving for Mexican, so I figured who doesn’t love quesadillas? They’re filling and easy to make! The best part about quesadillas is that there are endless options, so feel free to be creative and have fun!

Ingredients:

•           4oz of chicken
•          1/3 cup of shredded taco blend cheese
•          2 white corn tortillas (I bought the smaller ones for lower calories)
•          ¼ cup of black beans
•           2 tablespoons of mild salsa
•           ¼ of a Vidalia onion
•          PAM or non-stick cooking spray

Directions:

Cook up the chicken according to instructions on package and cut it up into bite size pieces (I use a George Foreman Grill because it’s quick and easy.) Slice the onion to desired size and fry up in a medium frying pan with non-stick spray. Open the can of black beans and rinse them well. Now here comes the cool part. I have a Quesadilla maker which can be found at target for about $20. It makes it quick and easy with minimal clean up. If you do not have a quesadilla maker, use a large frying pan. Spray one of the tortillas with non-stick spray and place face down on your frying pan or quesadilla maker. Sprinkle your cheese, cut up chicken, beans, salsa and onion. Cover with the remaining tortilla and spray the top with non-stick spray. If you have the quesadilla maker, secure it shut at this point and let it cook until the edges are crispy and light brown. If you are using a frying pan, flip like a pancake once the bottom is light brown and the cheese is melty. Let the other side brown and get crispy and it’s finished. Cut it up like a pizza and serve! I like to garnish mine with light sour cream and guacamole – sometimes even salsa!

Nutrition Information – (This recipe makes 1 serving – does not include garnish of sour cream and guacamole)

Calories: 470

Carbs: 37

Fat: 14

Protein: 38

Sodium: 495

Fiber: 7

Super Easy Parmesan Crusted Chicken – 184 calories Per Serving!

My Parmesan Crusted Chicken with Steamed Brocolli & Brown Rice - 334 Calories & 9 grams of fat!

T.G.I. Friday's Parmesan Crusted Chicken, Tomato Salad & Tortellini - 790 Calories & 54 grams of fat!

I tried to make a copy-cat of the T.G.I.F’s Parmesan Crusted Chicken. I absolutely love theirs but looked up the calories and fat and almost fainted! I’d say it came pretty close to tasting like it, only I didn’t feel like I was in a food coma after eating it! I served mine with broccoli and brown rice and it was super filling and delicious!

Ingredients:

16oz of chicken breast (I like the ones that are cut thin – that way they don’t get chewy and dry when baking them)

-4 Tablespoons of light mayonnaise

-3 tablespoons of fresh grated Parmesan cheese

-2 tablespoons of Italian style or seasoned bread crumbs

- A sprinkle of Greek seasoning (or any other kind of mixed-spice to sprinkle on top)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. In a mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, cheese and bread crumbs and mix well. Lay out the chicken on a non-stick sprayed casserole dish. Cover the chicken in the mixture. Bake for about 25 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. Garnish with a sprinkle of Greek seasoning on top and serve with your favorite sides. Now how easy is that?!

Nutrition Information – (For (1) 4oz. serving, this recipe makes 4 servings.)

Calories : 184

Carbs: 2

Fat: 7

Protein: 29

Sodium: 350

Fiber: 0

Garlic Shrimp and Rice - 356 calories

This delicious  meal is quick and yummy!

Ingredients:

- 21 Jumbo shrimp (I used shrimp cocktail)
- 1 container of rice pilaf original - 3 cups (I use the Near East brand)
- 1 cup of raw mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon of minced fresh garlic
- 3 tablespoons of fresh Parmesan grated cheese

Directions:

Cook the rice pilaf as directed on the package. In a medium sized cooking pan, add the mushrooms and cook on medium. Once they are cooked through, add the minced garlic and tail shucked shrimp. Lower the heat to low. Once the rice is done cooking, measure out 1 cup of the rice and place it on your individual serving plate or bowl. Top with 1/3 of the shrimp mushroom and garlic mixture. Top with 1 tablespoon of Parmesan cheese and serve!

Nutrition Information - (This recipe makes 3 servings - the nutrition information is for 1 serving)

Calories - 356
Carbs - 44
Fat - 7
Protein - 26
Sodium - 1077
Fiber - 1

Thai Lettuce Wraps - 317 Calories

This is a favorite in my household. We make this at least every other week because its so delicious and so easy to make!

Ingredients:

- 1 Lb ground turkey
- 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter
- 1/2 cup of roasted peanuts (you can also substitute with cashews)
- 2 tablespoons of peanut sauce
- 1/2 cup of shredded carrots
- 1/4 cup of shredded chives
- 4 Large lettuce leaves for wrapping

Directions:

Cook up the ground beef until cooked through. Chop up the chives and carrots and mix together with the peanut butter, peanuts and peanut sauce. Once it is well mixed, add to the frying pan with the ground turkey. Stir well and cook on low for 1 minute. Distribute mixture evenly throughout the 4 lettuce wraps. And that's it! Easy huh?

Nutrition Information - This recipe makes 4 servings, nutrition information is for 1 serving

Calories - 317
Carbs - 9
Fat - 20
Protein - 27
Sodium - 287
Fiber - 2

Taco Chicken Salad - 227 Calories!

I am finally back! Since graduating I haven't been able to find the time to update my blog, but I have been doing a lot of cooking so there are lots of recipes to be added! I made this meal as a post workout meal and it was delicious!

Ingredients:

- 3/4 cup of chopped fresh tomatoes
- 1/4 cup of canned corn (rinsed)
- 1/4 cup of black beans (rinsed)
- 1/2 cup of shredded lettuce
- 3 slices of avocado
- 2 teaspoons of low sodium taco seasoning
- 2 tablespoons of light mayonnaise
- (2) 4oz chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup of fat free shredded cheese for topping

Directions:

Cook up the chicken and chop up into bite sized pieces. In a small mixing bowl, mix the mayonnaise and taco seasoning until smooth. In a larger mixing bowl, add the chicken, tomatoes, corn, beans and mayonnaise mixture and mix well. ***If you are making this and will be eating it right away, add the lettuce and avocado and sprinkle the cheese on top. ***If you are making this for the future, hold off on adding the lettuce avocado and cheese and don't add until you are ready to eat it.

Nutrition Facts - (This makes 2 servings. Nutrition information is for 1/2 of the recipe - 1 serving)

Calories - 227
Carbs - 11
Fat - 9
Protein - 27
Sodium - 579
Fiber - 4

Healthy Eggplant Parm! - 371 Calories per serving!

Who doesn't love a nice filling Italian meal? Well I know that the scale doesn't! I created a roasted and baked Eggplant Parm recipe that will feed your craving for Italian food, but won’t leave you feeling guilty after! Feel free to add other veggies to make it more filling!

Ingredients:

2 Eggplants

2 cups of sauce (I used Bertoli Olive oil and garlic)

1 cup of panko breadcrumbs

2 eggs

1 cup of low fat shredded mozzarella

2 Tablespoons of EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

1 teaspoon of sea salt

Directions:

*Before you begin, first note that the size of the eggplants determines how much egg and panko mix you will need. This is based off of 2 regular sized eggplants. If you use 2 larger eggplants, you may need more egg and breadcrumbs.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the eggplants horizontally, about ½ inch in thickness (you can either peel off the skin or leave it on, I leave it on for a little crunch.) Once all of your eggplant is sliced, lay them out on a casserole dish that is sprayed with non-stick spray. Drizzle EVOO and sprinkle the sea salt over the eggplant. Place in the oven and flip after 10 minutes. After 20 minutes or until roasted, take them out of the oven and let them cool. Lower the oven to 350. Whisk together your 2 eggs in a bowl and place the 1 cup of panko break crumbs in another bowl. Drench each slice of eggplant in the egg mix, and then coat in the panko breadcrumbs. Do this for all of the slices and place on a non-stick sprayed casserole dish when complete. Sprinkle ½ of your shredded cheese on top. Place in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until crispy. Serve on top of sauce (you can also pour the sauce over the eggplant if you want.) Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and serve. To get fancy, you can use asparagus to garnish like I did!

Nutrition Information for 1 serving (this recipe makes 4 servings)

Calories: 371

Carbs : 53

Fat: 12

Protein: 17

Sodium: 1262

Fiber: 11

Cheeseburger Soup - 194 Calories a serving!

I found a new healthy addiction: Cheeseburger Soup. Cheeseburgers are one of the things that I crave most on this diet... or "lifestyle change." Since they are pretty much terrible for you and so high in calories, I absolutely had to find an alternative. This soup is awesome, and even better the next day! This recipe makes 12 servings and will last all week... if you don't eat it all on the first night that is!

Ingredients: 

- 8oz Block of Kraft Velveta Cheese (cut into cubes)
- 1 lb of ground hamburg
- 1 white onion
- 1 stalk of celery
- 1 cup of carrots
- 1 can of Campbell's cheddar cheese soup
- 1 can of Campbell's 98% fat free cream of chicken soup
- 2 tablespoons of low fat sour cream
- 1.5 cups of skim milk
- 2 tablespoons of light butter (I used smart balance)
- 3 cups of water

Directions:

In a medium sized frying pan, add the hamburg. Cook on medium heat until there is no more red. Put aside. While the meat is cooking, chop up the onion, celery and carrots to desired size. Add the chopped up vegetables and 2 tablespoons of butter to another medium sized frying pan on medium heat. Cook until the onions are transparent. Chop up the Velveta cheese into small cubes.Once the vegetables are cooked, combine in a large sized pot with the cooked hamburg, cubed Velveta, both cans of soup, sour cream, milk and water. Stir well and place on medium heat, stirring occasionally. Continue to let this cook until it starts to bubble. All done :) Yummmm!

Nutrition Facts (for 1 cup. This recipe should make 12 servings.)

Calories - 194
Carbs - 11
Fat - 9
Protein - 17
Sodium - 568
Fiber - 1