Lasagna Casserole

This is recipe that my mom has made since I can remember.  It's quick and easy and actually tastes pretty good.  I changed some of it a little bit to make it more Weight Watchers friendly.  I am mostly putting it on here so I don't have to refer to the WW website every time I make it for the amounts I figured out for the points.

9 oz cooked extra lean ground beef (5% fat or less)
1/2 large onion, diced
12 oz uncooked penne
4 oz low-fat mozzarella cheese
20 oz Heart Healthy Mushroom Prego Spaghetti sauce
20 oz 1% cottage cheese
1 1/2 cup steamed spinach

Brown ground beef with onion and drain.  Boil penne according to package instructions and steam the spinach for 5 minutes.  (If you don't steam it before you add it to the casserole, it will be chewy and not good.)
Mix ground beef, penne, sauce, cottage cheese, spinach in a casserole dish.  Top with mozzarella cheese.

Put in 400 degree oven and heat through until cheese is melted and bubbly.  Usually this takes about 20 minutes.  But, my oven is weird, so just keep an eye on it.

Makes 9 servings.

One serving is 8 points+.

:::Emily::

Pico de Gallo

I LOVE pico de gallo.  I could almost eat it by the spoonful!  

6 Roma tomatoes

2 jalapeno peppers (sliced, seeds removed and finely diced)

1 white onion

1 bunch cilantro

1 garlic clove

salt

juice of 1 lime

Chop all of the veggies, mince the garlic and toss together with salt and lime juice.

If you want it hotter, keep some seeds from the jalapeno. When removing seeds, either wear gloves or be very careful - they are hot. I've learned that lesson scratching my nose afterward, it was not fun! Salt to taste.

I used grape tomatoes and a red onion this time, because it's what I had on hand.  You can vary this recipe with your favorite type of onion, pepper, etc, add more of what you like and less of what you don't.

 You can serve this with tortilla chips, or on tacos or fajitas. 

 One serving is 0 points+.

:::Emily:::

Roasted Potatoes

These are so yummy, we loved them!

3 to 5 medium baking potatoes

olive oil

1 envelope dry onion soup mix

salt and pepper

garlic powder (optional)

Scrub potatoes well and cut into cubes. Place on a cookie sheet and generously drizzle olive oil over potatoes. Sprinkle onion soup mix, a little garlic powder and salt and pepper. Toss and bake at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally while cooking.

 4 ounces of potatoes is 5 points+.

:::Emily:::

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

This salad is amazingly delicious!  I loved it!  It was so easy to throw together and was surprisingly filling as well.

SALAD:

4 cups chopped Romaine Lettuce

2 cups chopped grilled chicken (we used the recipe for Taco Chicken)

1 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, washed

1 avocado, cubed

1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 8 3/4 oz. can corn, rinsed and drained
tortilla strips (optional)
shredded cheese (optional)

CHIPOTLE DRESSING:

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2/3 cup fat free sour cream
1 1/2 + tsp. adobo sauce from canned chipotle chilies
1 tsp. chili powder
4 tsp. fresh lime juice

¼ tsp. salt

  

Make sure all salad ingredients that need to be washed or rinsed have been.

Combine lettuce, chicken, beans, corn, onion, and tomatoes in a large bowl and gently mix with your hands.  

Mix dressing ingredients. I blended them together in the blender.

I made my own tortilla trips by stacking corn tortillas on top of each other and slicing into strips with a pizza cutter.  I fried them in canola oil for a few minutes until they were golden.  I then let them soak on a paper towel and sprinkled a little salt on top.

When you’re ready to serve, add avocado, tortilla strips, and dressing. Gently combine and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Each serving is 9 points+ without dressing or 10 points+ with 2 Tbsp dressing. (I didn't figure in the tortilla strips or the cheese with the points.)

:::Emily:::

Grilled Taco Chicken

This chicken is SO yummy!  I could eat it all by itself! 

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
A couple of juicy limes
A splash of red wine vinegar
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or coarsely chopped
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

Juice the limes and combine with a couple splashes of red wine vinegar. (I leave out the vinegar because, well, I can't stand the stuff.) Add garlic. Pour over chicken. This will not completely cover the chicken; just turn it occasionally as needed. Marinate for at least 4 hours, no longer than 8.

Heat an outdoor grill. Combine salt, chili powder, cumin, and black pepper in a small bowl. Remove chicken from marinade and rub the spices all over the chicken.

Grill about 10 minutes per side on low heat.

Remove from heat and allow to stand a few minutes so it doesn’t lose its juiciness. You can either eat the chicken as it is, maybe with Mexican rice and beans, or use slice it up and use it as you would taco meat.

3 ounces of chicken is 3 points+.

:::Emily:::

Chicken Shish Kebobs

I could seriously eat this all the time! I love grilled veggies! These are so super easy and they turn out perfect every time.

1 pound boneless, skinless, chicken, cut into cubes
2 bell peppers of your choice (my favorite is red)
1 large onion
1 fresh pineapple
(You could also use zucchini, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes)
salt
fresh ground pepper
olive oil

If you are using wooden skewers, be sure to soak them in water for at least 30 minutes so they don't start on fire while on the grill.

Cut vegetables into large chunks and put in a bowl. Toss with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper.

Cut chicken into large chunks and put in separate bowl from veggies. Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper.

Cut up pineapple into bit-sized chunks.

Put veggies, chicken and pineapple on skewers and grill until chicken is no longer pink.

Great over rice or with potatoes. I also LOVE eating these with fresh corn on the cob and watermelon, but they aren't really in season yet. Cannot wait!

Each shish kebob is 4 points+ with 3 ounces of chicken.

:::Emily:::

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I love crockpot recipes.  They are so easy and usually so good!  I love that I can throw a few ingredients in it in the morning and forget about it until dinner time.

2 lb boneless sirloin pork roast
1 can diet root beer
1 cup your favorite BBQ sauce (My favorite is K.C. Masterpiece Honey BBQ sauce.)
1 small onion, quartered
1 clove garlic, minced

In a crockot, combine pork, diet soda,1/2 cup of the BBQ sauce, quartered onion and clove of garlic. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.

Drain and discard the onion and garlic. Shred pork by pulling apart with two forks and remove the fat.  Return to crockpot and add the other 1/2 of BBQ sauce.  Mix and let cook for an additional 1 to 2 hours on warm. 

Serve on hamburger bun or roll.

3 ounces of BBQ Pork is 5 points+.

Points+ value of the sandwich as a whole will vary depending on what you serve it on.

:::Emily:::