Recipes to go with Feb Menu #1

Vegetable Soup:

You can use any type of meat you would like.. Turkey, cubed beef, or chicken...

Personally we like beef & turkey.. If I use beef I buy stew meat & cut it up into smaller chunks & pan cook it with spices such as garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and pepper.

Start with beef or chicken broth (typically I use 1 can), 1 throw in a can of diced tomatoes (or you can cut up fresh tomatoes), I am a tomato eater so I also add some tomato juice..  Add diced potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, green beans, corn, whatever veggies you like.. Personally I am not a big celery eater so I skip that.. I also use frozen veggies rather than canned.. and I season with a little creole seasoning.. You can put this in the crockpot to simmer or cook on the stove for 20-30 minutes until all veggies are tender :-)

You can cook a pan of cornbread to go with this as well :-)

Shake N Bake Porkchops & Veggies:
Butterfly porkchops that are boneless
Shake N Bake for pork

Just shake your pork chops up in the shake n bake bag & follow the box instructions.. I also season with garlic powder, paprika, and onion powder once I coat with the shake n bake...

Our Veggie of choice will be Garlic Green Beans & baked okra:
Green beans: Buy fresh green beans, cut the ends off, put on a baking sheet with a little minced garlic, drizzle a little olive oil over it, a splash of lemon juice (optional) and sea salt.. Bake until tender

Same ooes for the okar except skip the lemon juice.. When okra isn't in season (like now) I use frozen bags :-)

Crockpot Chicken Tacos
I use bags of frozen chicken breast & usually use about 3 breast for this recipe.. Throw them in the crockpot.. Mix up taco seasoning with some water.. Cook on low all day.. I then shred the chicken... Serve however you would eat your tacos.. I use whole wheat 60 calorie (skip the sandwich) tortillas, diced tomatoe, lettuce, fat free sour cream, fat free cheese

Sausage, Corn, Potato, Shrimp Kabobs:

I buy the turkey sausage (the is shaped like a horseshoe) cut it up into cubes.. Boil corn & potatoes until they are fairly tender but not cooked all the way through (You can even boil in a cajun boil) put on kabob sticks with the sausage & shrimp.. season however you want & throw them on a grill for about 10 minutes. YUM!!!

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie:
2 (9 inch) deep dish frozen pie crust (thawed)
1 can mixed veggies (or you can use frozen)
2 cups cooked diced chicken breast  (Rotesserie chicken is really good for this)
1 can fat free cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk (I use 2% or 1% whatever I have at the time)

Preheat oven to 350.. In a bowl combine mixed veggies, chicken, cream of chicken soup, and milk. Pour mixture into 1 of the pie crust. Turn the other crust over & pop out of the tin onto the top of the filled pie crust. Seal the edges & poke holes in top crust. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until crust is golden brown.  I also season it with garlic powder or salt, onion powder, paprika, etc.. so it isn't bland (Are you seeing a trend with my spices yet? lol)


Hope you enjoy some of these recipes!

Feb Week #1 Menu

Last week I was a day late so this week I decided to be a day early!!! This is the 1st menu for Febuary... I hope January you were able to find some of the menu options tasty, healthy, and that they were able to work for your family!!

So as you know Sunday is Super Bowl Sunday!!  Woo hoo :-) This always means yummy appetizers and food!! I will not post a menu for Sunday because we do actually have plans other than sitting home alone this year! SCORE!!!  So I will be making homemade salsa & crack crackers to take to the Super Bowl Party :-)

So I will start with Monday this week:

Monday: Vegetable Soup (nice meal for the cold days we have had)

Tuesday: Shake N Bake Porkchops with garlic green beans & baked okra

Wednesday: Whole wheat crockpot chicken tacos & either black beans or refried beans

Thursday:  Turkey Sausage Kabobs made with corn, potatoes, shrimp & turkey sausage

Friday: Homemade healthy chicken pot pie


I will post the recipes for these soon :-)

I hope something sounds yummy to you & you enjoy!!!

~Krystal~

Recipes for week 3

Wraps:

It can't get much easier than this! Put whatever you want :-)  Here is what I like:
100% Turkey deli meat (no meats added)
60 calorie whole wheat wrap (Kroger has a skip the sandwich wrap that is great)
Dijon mustard
Tomatoes
Spinach leaves
A pinch of cheese
wrap it up and go

Carrot Fries:
Shredded carrots (matchstick carrots) tossed with a little olive oil, garlic powder, sea salt.. Bake until crispy.. YUM!

Fish Tacos:
Blacken whatever kind of fish you like serve in the whole wheat wraps.. I put pico (you can make or buy), spinach leaves, guacamole, and pinch of cheese on mine..  Serve with homemade black beans (dry beans)

Chimichangas:

Shredded chicken seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, salt, pepper (You could even cook in a crockpot with taco seasoning)
Mix with Pico or Rotel (Drained)
Add some cheese
Roll up in eggroll wrapper
Brown on each side in a tiny bit of oil

I make homemade salsa & chips to go with this:
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can rotel
Add cumin seeds, garlic salt, garlic powder, lime juice, and cilantro (all to your liking), I even add a little cajun seasoning, blend up to the consistancy you want in a blender

Homemade chips are just the wraps cut into 8 trianangle and baked at 350 for about 10 minutes

Baked Chicken Parmesan:

Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs raw ground chicken breast (if you have trouble finding ground chicken that is breast meat only, do what I do and throw the same weight of boneless, skinless chicken breasts into the food processor and run until ground)
1 large egg
1 egg whites
6 T dried breadcrumbs
¾ t dried basil
¾ t dried thyme
¾ t oregano
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ a small onion, chopped small or grated
¾ t salt
1/3 t black pepper
¾ cup Parmesan cheese
¾ cup pasta sauce
¾ cup 2% reduced fat shredded Mozzarella cheese
Optional: dried parsley, oregano or basil for garnish

Directions:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 350. Lightly mist a muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg, egg whites, breadcrumbs, basil, thyme, oregano, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese and lightly mix together. Do not over handle.
3. Form the meat mixture evenly into the 12 cups of your prepared muffin tin. Spread the pasta sauce evenly over the tops of each muffin. Bake for 20 minutes and remove from the oven. Top each muffin with about a tablespoon of shredded cheese and then return to the oven for 2-3 minutes until the cheese is melted. Garnish if desired.

Yields 12 muffins. WW P+: 4 per muffin or 7 P+ for 2 muffins (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)
Nutrition Information per muffin from myfitnesspal.com: 147 calories, 6 g carbs, 5 g fat, 18 g protein, 0 g fiber

Pesto Chicken Quesadillas:

3 cups cooked turkey, chopped

3/4 cup broccoli, coarsely chopped  (I can tell you I won't be putting this in mine!)

1/2 cup basil, finely chopped

1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped

1 + 1/2 cup low fat mozzarella cheese, shredded

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove, crushed

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

8 large whole wheat tortillas

 

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, mix all ingredients until combined.
2. Preheat large non-stick skillet on medium heat. Lay tortilla in a skillet and spread 3/4 cup of mixture on a half of it. Fold the other half covering the mixture, creating a half moon. Press evenly with spatula to help ingredients stick together. Fry for 4-5 minutes on each side or until golden brown and crispy.
3. Transfer to a cutting board and cut with a knife or pizza cutter into 3 wedges. Repeat the same steps until all mixture and tortillas are used. Serve warm.

Amount Per Serving = 1 wedge:Calories: 90.2
Total Fat: 2.5 g
Cholesterol: 9.4 mg
Sodium: 184.8 mg
Total Carbs: 10.2 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.7 g
Protein: 6.6 g
WW Points+: 2

 

Chicken & Veggie Casserole (I love this!)

 

Cube chicken and season however you prefer, cook on stove in a pan (I don't even use oil)

While the chicken is cooking make some brown rice (I use the minute rice for convenience)

Put the rice & chicken in a bowl & mix with 2 cans fat free cream of chicken soup, 1 can of rotel, and frozen mixed veggies.

 

Put in a glass dish, top with fat free shredded cheese... Bake 25-30 on  350 until hot throughout..

 

 I don't serve with anything just because it already has meat, carb, and veggies

 

Peanut Butter Cups

I got this recipe from a friend & it is sooooo good!!!  I actually double or even triple the recipe and I make them weekly...

 

1/2 cup oats processed to half the size of the normal oat

Add 2 tbsp of peanut butter or PB2 (I used PB2 for calories)

1 Tbsp of honey

1-2 Tbsp coconut oil (melted)

 

Line a muffin pan with cupcake tins.. Scoop mixture into 6 portions and smooth it out

 

In a seperate bowl (Or you can wash the 1 you already used) combine 2 tbsp of coconut oil melted, 1 tbsp of unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 tbsp of honey.. Mix & spoon over each cup.

 

Put in freezer for hour to set... I keep them in the freezer until they are gone.. I keep them in an air tight container so all I have to do is grab it & go :-)

 

Hope you enjoy these recipes!!!!

 

 

 

Menu #3

Hello fellow bloggers!! I am sorry I didn't get this posted yesterday. We have a big surprise at the Miller house that I was working on during lunch so I didn't get to post.. I apologize!!

Well here is the menu for next week.. Hope you enjoy!! 

Wraps & Carrot Fries (these carrot fries are YUMMY and so simple)

Fish Tacos, pico, black beans

Chimichangas

Backed Chicken Parmesan

Veggie Chicken & Rice casserole 

Pesto Chicken quesadillas

And my favorite snack has been Peanut Butter Oat cups... Actually I should only be eating 1, 2 at the most a day... Well 1 secret I have been keeping is yesterday I ate 4 ate 1 time! Yes you heard me 4.. I don't recommend doing this as I my stomach hurt for a while after!

I will get the recipes for you every soon for these recipes :-)

I would love to hear some feedback on this blog. Is this helping anyone with meal planning, etc? Anyone have any ideas they want to share? Anyone have any health recipes they would like to share?

Grocery List for menu #2

Below you will find the grocery list for menu #2 that was posted earlier.

After taking a photo I realized I left off the rice vinegar from my list. (Egg roll recipe)

The items marked through were items I knew for sure I had in my pantry. I will do a final mark through when I get home.. I have found this is where I tend to save the most money.

I don't have the neatest handwriting so if you can't read something just let me know. Or if you have any questions I will be happy to answer :-)

Sorry not sure why it keeps loading upside down!

 

 

For those of you who don't think you can do menu planning, etc.. because it takes too much time.. During my lunch today I typed out the menu (Which I did have pre made), did the recipes for each of them, and made out a grocery list all in my 1 hour!!! YOU CAN DO THIS if you really want to :-)

Recipes for Menu #2

*Chicken Italiano (Crock pot meal, can we say easy?!)
This isn't the most clean but it is still healthy :-)

Ingredients:

• Chicken Breast
• 2 cans of 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup
• 1 can rotel
• 1 envelope of dry italian dressing mix
• 1 box fat free cream cheese
• splash of cooking wine (optional)
• Spices of your choice: I use garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper

Put 3-4 chicken breast in your crockpot (I use the frozen chicken breast for ease)

Soften the cream cheese in a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients to the cream cheese & put on top of the chicken. I cook on low 5-6 hours (you can use high for a shorter cook time)

Serve over whole wheat pasta noodles.


*Taco Soup (you can also use your crockpot)  SUPER EASY recipe!

Ingredients:

• Lean Ground Turkey (I like to use deer when I have it or you can use hamburger)
• 1 can corn
• Black Beans (I cook dry beans you can use canned); I use about 2-3 cups
• 1 Can light kidney beans
• 1 can dark kidney beans
• can of chili beans
• 1 can of rotel
• 1 envelope of dry ranch dressing mix
• 1 envelope of taco seasoning
• 1 diced onion
• Spices of your choice: Again I use garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt & pepper

Cook meat & onion together. Throw all other ingredients in pan & allow to simmer until hot throughout.

*Blackended Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:

• Chicken breast (2-3)
• 1 Jar of Pesto (you can make your own but I never have time)
• Spinach Leaves
• Roma Tomatoes (2-3)
• Feta Cheese
• Whole wheat pizza crust (You can even make your own)

Season chicken with seasonings of your choice: I use blackening seasoning, garlic powder, paprika. Grill chicken on grill or George Foreman, then cut into chunks.

Put your jar of pesto on the pizza crust (You don't have to use the whole jar use however much you personally like just make sure the crust is covered), cover with spinach leaves, and sliced roma tomatoes, top with chicken & feta cheese.. Bake per crust instructions

We love this so much I typically make 2 at a time :-)

*Egg Rolls:

Nutriential Breakdown

12	Egg Rolls
115	Calories Each
1 g	Fat
17 g	Carbohydrate
2 g	Fiber
1 g	Sugar
9.5 g	Protein
3	WWP+*

Posted under Clean Eating / Dinners / Kid Friendly / Lunches / Sides

Ingredients

12 oz (or 1 1/2 cup)	Chicken breasts, cooked & shredded or finely diced
1 (16 oz) bag	Coleslaw mix
1 medium	Red bell pepper, finely chopped
2	Green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup	Carrots, shredded
2 cups	Bean sprouts
1/4 cup	Low sodium soy sauce
2 tbs	Rice vinegar
1 tsp	Garlic, minced or 1/2 tsp garlic powder
12	Egg roll wrappers (may need more if using extra veggie option)
1	Egg white, beaten
Optional:	1-2 Stevia (or 1 tsp sweetner of choice)
Optional Additions:
1 cup	Mushrooms, sliced (or veggie of choice)

Method

The estimated total time to make this recipe is 15-20 minutes.

1

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking pan with a wire rack, and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

2

Heat a large skillet & spray with cooking spray. Add all the vegetables and 1 cup water to the skillet, stirring constantly.

3

Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and seasoning just as the cabbage starts to wilt. Cook veggies until just cooked, and liquid in the pan is evaporated.

4

Place cooked veggies in large bowl and mix in chicken. Let mixture cool slightly before rolling.

5

Lay out a wrapper, brush egg mixture on two adjacent edges, spoon about 1/3-1/2 cup of the mixture onto the center of a wrapper.

6

Fold ends of egg roll wrappers in.

7

Tuck and roll egg roll wrappers over the filling.

8

Continue to roll until almost to the corner edge.

9

To seal them shut, place your finger in the egg white, (water also works), and trace two of the corners with the egg white (or water).

10

Place egg rolls on prepared baking rack.

11

Spray each egg roll with non-stick cooking spray. Place egg rolls on baking pan, bake 15-20 minutes. (If not using cooling rack, turn egg rolls half way through baking. This ensures that both sides a golden brown color.) Remove from oven, and cool. Enjoy with soy or teriyaki sauce for dipping if desired!

*Skinny Enchiladas (This is a crockpot meal)
 

 Ingredients:4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (16 oz) jar salsa
1 tablespoon homemade taco seasoning (or a packet of reduced-sodium taco seasoning)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
8 whole wheat tortillas (I found some 60 calorie ones called skip the sandwich I love!)
1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce
1 cup reduced-fat cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:
Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Place chicken in slow cooker, top with salsa, taco seasoning, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or HIGH for 2-3 hours.
When finished cooking, shred chicken with 2 forks.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 1/2 -3/4 cup of chicken mixture on tortilla, roll up, and place in 9x13" baking pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Repeat with remaining tortillas until chicken is gone. Top enchiladas with enchilada sauce and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Top with your favorite enchilada toppings (lettuce, tomato, avocado, onion, olives, fat-free sour cream, etc. Topping your enchilada with lots of vegetables is a great way to get more vegetables in your diet!).




I will be getting a grocery list together soon :-) Thanks for following my blog. I hope each of you reading this is getting some helpful hints, recipes, etc...

 

 

Week #2 Menu

Well it is Wednesday which means it is time to get my Menu for next week completed... Well lucky for me 1 day at lunch I was bored & was able to get it done for a month :-) So here is the menu for week #2.. I will get recipes posted & the grocery shopping list as well. I will try to get it today if possible but I only have well 52 minutes left on lunch :-)

• Chicken Italiano with whole wheat spaghetti noodles
• Shake & Bake Chicken (no recipe needed) with veggies
• Taco Soup
• Blacked Chicken pizza (my favorite on the menu this week!)
• Omlets (no recipe needed) I will pack mine full of mushrooms, peppers, etc...
• Skinny Enchiladas & Black beans (Dry)
• Egg Rolls

Keep an eye out for the recipes if any of this sounds yummy to you!!!  Please remember we are doing a clean healthy diet :-)