Buffalo Chicken Quesadillas

Quesadillas. K-suh-dillas. Love them. They are so easy to make, so many ways to make them, and they're so filling. Today I simply googled "chicken quesadillas" for a new idea, and I came across this recipe. I bookmarked their site to dig deeper into it at a later date too. I took my Buffalo Chicken Skewers recipe and made some dang quesadillas for dinner!

5 chicken cutlets
1/4 cup Franks Buffalo Wing Sauce
Low carb Tortillas
avocado
fat free shredded cheddar cheese
turkey bacon, cooked crisp
olive oil spray

Cut chicken breasts into strips. Marinate in 1/4 cup of Franks Buffalo Wing Sauce for about 30 mins. Broil chicken strips for about 15 minutes, turning over halfway through cooking.

Heat pan over medium heat. Spray with olive oil spray. Lay 1 tortilla in pan. Add toppings; chicken, cheese, avocado & bacon.




Fold tortilla in half, letting the cheese act like a glue. Flip and brown on other side. Serve immediately.

Pizza Burgers

I hate buying packages of hamburger buns because I tend to use 3 and throw the rest out once they get stale. Which is what was about to happen after I made the Cheddar Stuffed Burgers I saw in Weight Watchers magazine last week. (damn, I didn't post that on my blog, next time. . ) But instead I had the brilliant idea to make Pizza Burgers, also getting use out of the leftover fresh mozzarella I had.

I defrosted 1lb of ground beef, sprinkled in some garlic powder, oregano & basil. Formed 4 burgers & grilled them in my grill pan. I opened a small can of tomato sauce, sprinkled some spices in it & topped the burger with a hefty tablespoon full of sauce and 1oz of fresh mozzarella. I stuck them under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese was melted. yum. *NI does not include bun/english muffin*



*disclaimer* I took this picture with my Blackberry before turning over the new leaf of sprucing up my blog. ;)

Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 270.4
Total Fat: 13.1 g
Cholesterol: 85.0 mg
Sodium: 155.7 mg
Total Carbs: 2.3 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.7 g
Protein: 29.5 g

Blog Stalking. . .

I spend a lot of time looking at other cooking blogs and I am so envious of their dedication to posting daily & sharing so many pictures of their creations. I take 1 picture of my finished product with my blackberry. Truly the definition of "half-assed". So I will try to commit to at least 4 posts a week, with better pictures. I can't guarantee a step-by-step slideshow type of post but I will take pictures with my real camera & make an effort to spruce up my blog.

Here are a few blogs I found today that I bookmarked & will investigate more throughly.

eatliverun

bunsinmyoven

Picky palate

I've already written out 2 recipe cards from picky-palate's site. I look forward to testing them out & sharing them with you.

Shepard's Pie

This is one of those recipes I see over & over again but for some reason was so afraid of. My girlfriend was making it for her family & I finally decided to make it last month & it was delicious!! We all enjoyed it so much. And it's very satisfying.

1lb ground beef
1 can 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup
1 envelope onion soup mix
3 cups mashed potatoes
1 cup fat free shredded cheddar cheese
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables

Brown meat until no longer pink. Add cream of mushroom soup & onion soup mix. Mix well. Add veggies. Pour into pie dish. Top with cheddar cheese & then mashed potatoes. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

Italian Spinach Meatballs

Yet another recipes from Gina's site. I am always looking for new recipes & find myself spending hours on her site & writing up at least 5 new recipe cards. Here's the latest one that I tried and boy did it go over well!!! yum, yum, yum!!


1lb ground beef
1 Tbsp olive oil
10oz frozen spinach, thawed & drained
2 slices low point bread *I used both sides of a sandwich thin, it's what I had on hand
1 egg
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp parsley
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
s & p to taste

Wet bread & mash it up with your hands. Combine with beef, spinach, egg, garlic, parsley, grated cheese & s&p. Mix well. Using 1/4 cup measuring cup, measure meat & divide into 2 1/8 cup meatballs. Roll into ball.

Heat the oil in a pan on low. When hot, add meatballs & cook on low, turning often. When fully cooked blot on paper towel covered plate.

I then threw the meatballs into a small pot of sauce that I had simmering. When Brad text me he was on his way I cut up some italian bread, threw 5 meatballs on it, sprinkled it with fat free mozzarella cheese & baked it in the oven for 6 minutes. The awesomest meatball parm hero I've ever made. So good I'm wanting it again right now.


Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 260.3
Total Fat: 14.4 g
Cholesterol: 222.0 mg
Sodium: 317.2 mg
Total Carbs: 6.7 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.1 g
Protein: 26.6 g

**NI does NOT include: italian bread, sauce or mozzarella cheese**

Ooey Gooey Pasta

My little girl likes to take cookbooks out at the library. . how cute is that? This is a recipe from one of those cookbooks. Kid friendly to make & delicious to eat. Can't beat it. I adjusted the recipe to make it enough for us to all have.



1lb pasta *I always use Smart Taste
1 jar of sauce *depending on how much sauce you like. I used 1 1/2 16oz cans
1/2lb ground beef
8oz mushrooms
1 package frozen broccoli florets
1 1/2 cups shredded fat free mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350.
Cook pasta according to directions. I add in my bag of frozen broccoli with the pasta. Drain.
Brown meat. Add mushrooms & cook until tender.
Combine meat, mushrooms, pasta & broccoli in a bowl. Stir in sauce. & half the mozzarella cheese. Pour into 9x13 pan. Top with rest of mozzarella cheese & sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake 30 mins.

Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 393.1
Total Fat: 6.2 g
Cholesterol: 33.2 mg
Sodium: 854.9 mg
Total Carbs: 61.0 g
Dietary Fiber: 11.1 g
Protein: 30.2 g

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

Surprisingly the weather in Louisiana this week has been what we consider "cold" so it's been the perfect time to make some hearty soups. I came across this one on Gina's site and knew I had to give it a try.

1/4 cup flour
2 cups water
4 cups fat free milk
1 cup celery, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
8oz mushrooms, chopped
2 chicken bouillons
10 oz frozen mixed veggies (carrots, corn, peas etc)
2 potatoes, peeled & cubed
16 oz cooked chicken, cubed
1 tsp thyme
salt & pepper to taste

Mix flour with 1/2 cup of cold water to create a slurry. I had to google "slurry" basically it's a thickener. Set the flour mixture aside.

Add the rest of the water plus the milk to a pot. Bring to a boil. Add celery, mushrooms, onion, bouillons, thyme & mixed vegetables, return to a boil. Partially cover the pot & let the soup simmer for 20 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Add potatoes. Turn heat up a little & cook until potatoes are soft. Add chicken. Slowly stir in slurry. Mix well. Cook until soup has thickened.

Emily was raving over this & all the ingredients in it. I served it with salad & crescent rolls. Delish.




Makes 9 servings.

Calories: 169.2 Fat: 1.2 g Protein: 18.5 g Carbs: 21.2 g Fiber: 2.3 g

Roasted Herb Potatoes

While intending to track "roasted potatoes" on my itouch, I came across this recipe & saw I had all the ingredients on hand so I figured I'd try it! Came out delicious. Will definitely make it again in the future!



2 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp olive oil
1 Tbsp oregano
1 Tbsp parsley
1 Tbsp rosemary
salt & pepper to taste
1lb new potatoes - I cut up several red potatoes into cubes

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Add potatoes & mix to coat. Bake at 425 for 25-30 minutes, turning occasionally.

It's a New Year. . .

It is now 2011 and like most people my New Years resolution was to get healthier. Yes, I'd like to lose 30lbs and I'd like to have the body of Jennifer Aniston but I know that isn't reality. But what I can commit to is cooking & eating healthier for me. I don't want the diabetic gene in my family to creep up on me in 10-15 years.

Weight Watchers has launched a new Points Plus plan and so far I am loving it. How can you not when a banana is no longer 2 points & now is 0!!

Here's a recipe I got at my meeting last week for Taco Soup. So easy, so delicious & so filling:



1lb ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 package taco seasoning
1 package Hidden Valley ranch dip mix
1 can corn, undrained
1 can black beans, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can pinto beans *i didn't use these
1 can diced tomatoes *I used real tomatoes, didn't have canned
1 can rotel (tomatoes with chilis)
1 can tomato sauce
1 cup water . . . I used less. . depending on how thick or thin you want your soup

Brown meat, drain fat. Stir in onions, cook until translucent. Add taco seasoning, stir. Add all other ingredients & simmer for an hour or more.

I topped my 1 cup bowl with a pinch of fat free shredded cheddar. Was delicious! You can also stir in some fat free sour cream to thicken the soup up.

I calculated this as 10 1cup servings for 4 points plus.