A virtual recipe box of tested, tasty, and healthy meals and munchies that will not lead to guilt or regret. Enjoy!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Chinese-style Pork Ribs

This recipe was adapted from one I found on http://foodgloriousfoodimanxioustotryit.blogspot.com/ thanks to Pintrest!

Ingredients
1/4 c reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/3 c apricot preserves
3 tbsp Heinz Hot Ketchup
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 lbs country-style pork ribs

Directions
-Place a liner in slow cooker
-Mix all ingredients except for pork in a small bowl
-Place ribs in slow cooker
-Pour sauce over ribs
-Cook on low 6 hours, no longer

We served it over rice.

Nutritional Information:
This made 4 servings for us. Each serving had about 288 calories, 15 g fat, 26 g protein, and just a trace of fiber

Kale Chips

Oh Wow! Was I surprised by these! They taste like kettle chips but are much, much better for you!

Ingredients
4 cups prepared kale (prepared directions below)
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
parchment paper
seasonings (I used onion garlic pepper first. Next I am going to use sea salt.)

Directions
-preheat oven to 350 degrees
-place parchment paper on cookie sheet
-Prepare Kale (cut leaves away from rib on a bunch of kale; then cut into 2-3 in chunks of leafy goodness
-Put kale in a bowl. Sprinkle with evoo and seasoning. Toss until covered.
-Put kale on a single layer on the parchment paper
-Put in the oven for 10 minutes.
-Rotate pan from higher rack to lower rack and rotate direction.
-Cook an additional 5 minutes. Then check every minute or two until kale has reached your desired crispiness
-let cool and enjoy
-store in a large zip-top bag

Nutritional information:
This makes about 4 servings. Each serving has about 63 calories, 4 g of fat (mostly from the olive oil), 2.2 g protein, and 1.5 g fiber


Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Pork Chop Skillet Gone Hawaiian

I used to make this skillet quite often when I had a sweetness craving that needed to be tamed. I "skinnied" this one up a little from the last time I made it. Unfortunately, I don't remember the source for this one. I've been making it off and on for years. I am guessing it came from Kraft.com because of the dressing in the recipe, but I'm not entirely sure. This one only takes about 5 minutes of prep and 15 minutes of cooking. It's a quick, easy, and tasty weeknight meal.

Ingredients

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
2 medium bell peppers (you choose the colors) cut into chunks
2 cans of pineapple tidbits or chunks, drained
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 cup fat free Catalina dressing
1 1/2 cups instant rice (make sure it is instant; I didn't check that the first time I made it. Oops!)
1 lb boneless, lean pork chops (you could use bone-in, but that may change the nutritional information)
**If this looks too sweet, sprinkle in some red pepper flakes**

Directions
-heat oil in skillet at medium heat
-place chops in skillet and season to taste; cook each side until browned (4 min each side or so)
-add fruit, veggies, broth, dressing, ginger, and garlic powder. Mix well and bring to boil. Takes about 5 minutes
-stir in rice and cover
-reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes
-turn off heat and let sit for at least 5 minutes
-serve and enjoy!

Each serving is one chop and about a cup and a half of rice mixture

Nutritional Information
This makes four servings. Each serving has about420 calories, 4.9 grams of fat, 14.8 grams of fiber, and 33.7 grams protein

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Crunchy Cracker Parmesan Chicken

Came across this recipe in the latest Kraft Foods Magazine for Fall 2011. I made a couple changes and made it last night for dinner. It was pretty tasty. We paired it with sweet potato fries and steamed green beans to make for a rather colorful plate. Really tasty! But the crackers lost a bit of their crunch when I reheated it for lunch today.

Ingredients

1 1/2 boneless, skinless chicken breast; should be four pieces
1/4 cup fat-free mayonnaise
1 tbsp lemon juice
15-20 reduced-fat Ritz crackers, crushed
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried basil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

-Preheat oven to 400 degrees
-Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray
-In a shallow dish, combine the mayo and lemon juice. Stir or whisk until smooth. Let sit a few minutes.
- In another dish, combine crushed crackers, cheese, and seasoning.
- Dredge the first piece of chicken in the mayo mixture. Then roll it in the crumbs.
-Place chicken on the prepared baking sheet.
-Repeat for the other pieces of chicken
-Bake 20 minutes, or until cooked through
-Enjoy!

Nutritional Information
This makes 4 servings. Each serving has about 271 calories, 5.9 g fat, <.1 g fiber, and 38.7 g protein


Thursday, August 11, 2011

Jalapeno Poppers

I found this recipe on WeightWatchers.com and am super happy I did. I made these as an appetizer/side with dinner last night and was not disappointed. Good think my husband already removed his from the pan, or I would have been tempted to eat his too!

Ingredients

Non-stick cooking spray
1/2 cup low-fat shredded cheese (You choose. The recipe said cheddar, but I only had
mozzarella and a fiesta blend in the fridge, so I used half of each).
1/4 cup low fat cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese
1 tbsp fat-free mayonnaise
8 small jalapeno peppers or 4 medium to large ones
1/4 cup fat-free egg substitute (or if you don't have any, one egg mixed with a couple splashes
of water. This will change the nutritional info though)
7 tbsp cornflake crumbs (cornflakes crushed)


Directions

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Coat baking sheet with cooking spray
-In a medium bowl, combine shredded cheese, cream cheese, and mayo. Mix well and set aside.
-Cut peppers in half length wise. Remove seeds and membranes. Leave some if you want more heat. DO NOT TOUCH YOUR EYES. If you are afraid you will absentmindedly, you may want to wear gloves.
-Fill peppers with cheese mixture.
-Place egg in shallow dish and cornflakes in another shallow dish.
-Dip peppers in egg, both sides, and then roll the pepper in corn flakes. Place completed pepper on baking sheet.
-Bake for about 30 minutes, until filling begins to brown and/or bubble over.

Nutritional Information
This is for 8 servings, regardless of pepper size. Each serving has about 55 calories, 3 g fat, .4 g fiber, 3.2 g protein


Creamy Apple Cinnamon Bowl

Last week I came across a recipe similar to this one in an email from Hungry Girl. I looked at the ingredients and decided I HAD to have it for breakfast that morning. I just looked too yummy! I made just a couple changes based on what I had in my cupboard.

Hungry Girl has some awesome and healthy recipes on her website www.hungrygirl.com as well as a collection of rockin' cook books. If you haven't discovered her yet, what are you waiting for?

Ingredients

1/2 cup low-fat small curd cottage cheese
1 tsp cinnamon sugar mixture (really it's 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon and 1/2 tsp granulated
sugar. I have a dish of this pre-made for a variety of recipes, or to sprinkle on toast
occasionally)
1/4-1/2 tsp vanilla extract based on taste preference
1 crisp apple cored and cut into chunks


Directions

-Put cottage cheese, cinnamon sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. Mix together.
-Top with apples
-Eat!

Optional: Add raisins, dried cranberries, walnuts, or any other dried fruits, nuts, or granola to mix it up. Just make sure you factor in the extra calories.

Nutritional Information
This makes one serving. This serving has about 195 calories, .5 g fat, 430 mg sodium, 33 g carbs, 5 g fiber, and 13.5 g protein.


Thursday, August 4, 2011

Ginger-Lime Pinwheel Cookies

These cookies are amazing! They have a ton of flavor, are surprisingly easy to make as along as you have some patience, and even won me a blue ribbon at the county fair! I made a few changes from a recipe with a similar name in the Cooking Light Magazine from December 2009.

Ingredients

Ginger dough
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 large egg yolk (save the egg white)
6 oz (measure it out) all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp ground ginger
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
dash of ground allspice

Lime dough
5 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg white
2 tsp fresh lime zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
6 oz (measure it out) all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

Directions

-To prepare Ginger dough, place 1/4 cup butter and brown sugar in a med bowl and beat until combine (about 3 min). Add molasses and egg yolk. Beat until well blended.
-In a separate bowl combine flour, ginger and next four ingredients. Whisk together. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating at a low speed until combine.
-Roll dough into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30-40 minutes.

-To prepare Lime dough, place butter and granulated sugar in a medium bowl and beat until blended, about 3 minutes. Add egg white and beat until blended. Beat in zest and vanilla, too.
-In a small bowl, combine flour and salt. Slowly add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating at a low speed until combined.
-Roll dough into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30-40 minutes.

-Unwrap ginger dough. Roll it between two sheets of plastic wrap into a rectangle about 13x18 inches. Place back in fridge and chill for 10 minutes or so. Do the same for the lime dough.

-Carefully unwrap each dough. Place plastic wrap on counter, top with ginger dough, and top that with lime dough. Darting with the long side without a clear border, slowly roll doughs, jelly roll style. This will create the pinwheel. Seal edges. Cover log with plastic wrap and freeze 30 minutes.

-Preheat oven 350 degrees.

-Unwrap dough. Cut with a sharp knife about 40 slices, about 1/4 inch thick. Place about 1 inch apart on a baking sheet (either air-bake or lined with parchment). Make 1 batch at a time for 8-9 minutes each. Cookies will look set. Cool on racks and enjoy.

Nutritional Information is for a 40 cookie batch. Each cookie will have about 81 calories, 2.8 g fat, .3 g fiber, and 1.1 g protein.