Annie's Enchiladas

Annie is always great for recipes and inspiration. I decided to make these enchiladas after seeing the amazing pictures and having a craving for Mexican food. As usual these were amazing. I made a few changes which I have reflected below but the majority of this recipe and write up are directly from Annie.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped fine - I omitted these
  
• 1 tsp. canola oil - no oil for me
  
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp. chili powder
• 2 tsp. cumin - I love cumin and added a tablespoon
  
• 1 tbsp. sugar - I left out the sugar
  
• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup water
• 1 tomato, seeded and chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese, divided - 1-2 ounces
  
• 1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese, divided - 1-2 ounces
  
• ½ cup minced fresh cilantro
• 12 (6-inch) soft corn tortillas - I used four because that is what I had on hand
  
• Cooking spray
• ZUCCHINI - I added shredded zucchini to up the veggies
  

Directions:
Combine the onion, jalapeno and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring often, until the onions and peppers have softened, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, cumin and sugar, and cook just until fragrant, less than 30 seconds. Mix in the tomato sauce, water, and chopped tomato. Bring the sauce to a simmer, lower the heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

Nestle the chicken into the sauce. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is completely cooked through (160˚ F on an instant-read thermometer), about 12-20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside to cool.

Strain the sauce through a large mesh strainer into a medium bowl, pressing down on the onions and tomatoes to extract as much liquid as possible. Transfer the reserved solids to a large bowl and set aside. Season the sauce with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Shred the chicken into bite size pieces and add to the bowl with the onion mixture. Add in ¼ cup of the enchilada sauce, ½ cup of each of the shredded cheeses, and the cilantro. Stir to combine.

Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Oil a 9 x 13″ baking dish with cooking spray. Stack the tortillas on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave for 40-60 seconds, until warm and pliable. Spoon 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture evenly down the center of a tortilla. Add shredded zucchini. Roll up the tortilla around the filling tightly, and place in the prepared baking dish, seam-side down. Repeat with the remaining filling and tortillas.

Lightly spray the tops of the enchiladas with cooking spray. Place in the oven, uncovered, for 7 minutes or until the tortillas start to brown slightly.

Reduce the oven temperature to 400˚ F. Remove the enchiladas from the oven and pour the sauce oven the top. Sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove the foil and bake for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is browned. Remove from the oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Mexican Lasagna

SCHOOLS OUT FOR SUMMER!!!!

Students left at noon but the kitchen made enchiladas for lunch anyway. Apparently they are making lunch all of teacher week but last year this was not the case. As this was totally unexpected the teachers had already ordered pizza. Not to let food go to waste I swiped some of the enchiladas for dinner.

Now these enchiladas didn't hold up to well and in my opinion could be part of a better meal if taken apart. So I took out the filling and made this mexican lasagna for dinner instead.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 1/2 onion diced
• 1/2 bell pepper diced
• 2 oz cheese
• 3 tortilla (I use la tortilla factory)
• Spinach
• enchilada filling (I used beef from school)
• 1/2 cup corn

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Put down a layer of beef as thin as possible. Top with tomatoes. Then place a tortilla on top. Layer with tomatoes and spinach and corn.
3. Place another tortilla on top. Now add a layer of beef then onions and peppers. Top with another tortilla.
4. Sprinkle cheese on top of the last tortilla. Cook for 15-20 min or until hot and cheese is melted.

Serves 3: Calories per serving 420 when low calorie options are used.

Pizza Two Ways

Miles and I love pizza. We have starting making it on these flat pita breads that are way fewer calories and they are super for making pizzas on. Miles likes his pizzas with pepperoni and olives but I have recently converted him to a greek style pizza. This time I also made a spinach and artichoke pizza that was good but needed chicken.

These pita pizzas could really be made with any toppings you wanted.

Ingredients:
Pizza 1:

• Pita bread
• Feta cheese (I use fat free)
• Onion
• Tomato
• Tomato sauce
• Chicken
• Mushrooms
  
• Mozzarella
• Fresh Basil

Pizza 2:

• Pita bread
• Pesto Alfredo
• Fat Free Feta
• Mozzarella
• Artichoke

Directions:

1. Cook Chicken
2. Dice and arrange all ingredients on the pita bread to your liking
3. Heat oven to 350 degrees
4. Cook for 8-10 min.

Peanut Noodles and Veggies

I am always looking to try something new and now that I have the wonderful PB2 peanut butter I can have more peanut foods without all the calories. 2 tbs of PB2 amounts just 45 calories compared to 190 calories in Jif.

So I went looking for something peanuty for dinner and I found this gem. Now this recipe doesn't have any vegetables so I just added what I thought would be good. I also doubled the sauce to make enough for the noodles and the veggies.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons ginger
  
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons peanut butter
• 1-1/2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 pound Udon noodles
• 2 tablespoons chopped green onions
• 4 cups broccoli
• 1.5 cups snow peas
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup onions (sliced)
• 1 chicken breast

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook until tender according to package directions. Drain.
2. In a large skillet cook chicken. Remove from pan and cut into little pieces.
   
3. Into the large skillet combine the veggies and saute until just cooked. Add the chicken and cook for another minute.
   
4. Meanwhile, combine chicken broth, ginger, soy sauce, peanut butter, and garlic in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until peanut butter melts and is heated through. Add to veggies, add noodles, and toss to coat.

Chicken Ropa Vieja

Miles and I love Cuban and Cuban inspired food. While this recipe is normally made from beef, chicken makes it a lighter version of a classic. I have made this a couple times and every time it is great. Gina's weight loss blog is awesome for dishes that are full of flavor but that don't have the calories of the standard meal.

Ingredients:

• 3 chicken breast halves (10-12 ounces)
  
• 1 large red onion, sliced
  
• 1 tomato, quartered
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 tbsp chicken broth + about a cup extra
  
• 1 red or yellow bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1 tsp cumin, or more to taste (I like a lot)
• garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Grill chicken. Once cooked through place the chicken into a bowl and shred it into strips using a fork; set aside.
2. In a large deep skillet, heat chicken broth over medium heat. Add the garlic, onions, and red peppers. Cook about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in chicken, tomato sauce, white wine, and about 3/4 cup of chicken broth to create a nice sauce. Season with cumin, garlic powder salt, and pepper. Cover and simmer on low for about 10 minutes more adding more broth and seasoning if needed. Makes 4 cups.

Makes 2 large servings: calories per serving 315

Chicken Flautas

Easter Sunday just screams Mexican food doesn't it :). We were telling Elliott about our recent vacation to Cancun and it came up that I have flautas for the first time while were were there. About 6 months ago Elliott said that she would make us flautas but it never happened. So, I decided to try making them myself. I made the filling, the tortillas, everything.

To be honest I didn't roll out the tortillas enough so they were a little thick but they were still yummy. The flautas needed something. I am still not sure what but they were a little bland. I think next time I will use some taco seasoning so spice them up a little. All in all it was a good dinner but not great. Definitely something I will try again with some modifications.

Tortillas Ingredients: Allrecipes

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
  
• 3/4 cup water

Directions:

1. Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Mix in the oil with your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Add the water and mix until the dough comes together; place on a lightly floured surface and knead a few minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
2. Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a well-floured rolling pin to roll a dough ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the hot skillet, and cook until bubbly and golden; flip and continue cooking until golden on the other side. Place the cooked tortilla in a tortilla warmer; continue rolling and cooking the remaining dough.

Makes 12 small tortillas - calories per tortilla - 80

Ingredients for Flautas - allrecipes

• 1 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cooked and shredded
• 1/4 (8 ounce) jar picante sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 8 (6 inch) corn tortillas
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• cooking spray
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl combine the shredded chicken, picante sauce and ground cumin. Mix together.
3. Spray warm tortillas with cooking spray. Put 1 tablespoon of the chicken mixture in the center of a tortilla and sprinkle some cheese on top. Roll up tortilla and place on a seam side down. Repeat with all of the tortillas until chicken mixture is gone. If there is any cheese left over, sprinkle it over the rolled tortillas.
4. Lightly brush oil over the rolled tortillas. Spray with cooking spray.
   
5. Bake tortillas in the preheated oven for 15 to 25 minutes or until tortillas are a little crispy and golden brown. Check halfway to make sure they tortillas are not drying out too much. If needed add more oil or cooking spray.
   

Makes enough filling for about 8 flautas - calories in filling total - 37s
Calories per flauta with homemade tortillas - 125

Chicken Marsala

I love chicken marsala and after being in Cancun for a week and gaining ten pounds I wanted something that was nice, light, and served with lots of veggies. I also read about this meal in a Men's Health magazine my husband got for the plane. I knew that because it was in the beloved Men's Health I would be able to convince Miles that it was a good idea for a meal.

Of course I decided to make this meal on a night when Miles had to get home from school late. I was starving by the time he finally made it home - damn traffic. I almost didn't get pictures because I was dying - literally -to eat. It turned out so great that I made it again 2 day later only in part because I wanted to use the Marsala wine.

Ingredients:

• 0.6 pounds chicken breast - pounded thin
• salt, pepper, paprika
• 2-4 tbsp flour
• Pam cooking spray
• 8-10 mushrooms - I used baby bellas - sliced
  
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup Marsala wine
• 1 garlic clove - minced
  

Directions:

1. Pound the chicken until they are about 1/8-1/4 inch thick
2. Salt, Pepper, and Paprika the chicken to your tastes. Sprinkle the flour onto both sides of the chicken, patting it to cover each breast.
3. Spray a heated skillet with Pam cooking spray and cook the chicken for about 1.5 minutes on both sides or until mostly cooked through. Remove chicken from skillet.
4. Add mushrooms and garlic to the skillet with a small amount of the chicken stock. Saute the mushrooms until cooked. Add remaining chicken stock and Marsala wine. Reduce by half and then half again. Add chicken and cook for simmer for another 5 minutes.
5. Serve and Enjoy

Serves 2 - calories per serving - 280-300

Chicken Gyros

Annie's Eats is a huge inspiration for me. Yesterday I was looking for a lemon recipe for a friend so I typed "Lemon" into Annie's search function and while I was looking for a dessert one of the links that popped up was this recipe for chicken gyros. I knew at that moment I had figured out what I was going to make for dinner the next day.

So the next day rolled around and sure enough I made these gyros. They were fantastic. I even made the homemade pita also from Annie's blog. I was a little disappointed that Annie's pitas have nice browning and mine did not but I know that Annie is a far better cook than I am so I am just going to have to accept this.
I chose not to make the tzatziki sauce as I don't own cheese cloth and there is a great store bought option available to me at the local grocery store. The rest of the text below is all taken from Annie's blog I just adapted it slightly based on the changes I made.

Ingredients:
For the tzatziki sauce:
16 oz. plain yogurt (not nonfat, if possible)
1/2 hothouse cucumber or 1 regular cucumber, peeled and seeded
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press (or finely minced)
1 tsp. white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil

For the chicken:
4 cloves garlic, smashed
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 heaping tbsp. plain yogurt
1 tbsp. dried oregano
Salt and pepper
1 1/4 lbs. chicken pieces (I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts)

To assemble:
Pita bread
Fresh tomatoes, seeded and diced
Red onion, sliced thin

Directions:
To make the tzatziki sauce, strain the yogurt using cheesecloth over a bowl. Let strain for several hours or overnight, if possible, to remove as much moisture as possible.

Shred the cucumber. Wrap in a towel a squeeze to remove as much water as possible. Mix together the strained yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Drizzle lightly with olive oil. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

To prepare the chicken, combine the garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, yogurt, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste in a medium bowl. Whisk together until mixed well. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and mix well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour.

Cook the chicken as desired. (I grilled mine on a stove top grill) Once the chicken is completely cooked through, transfer to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes. Cut into strips.

Heat pitas . Top with chicken, tzatziki sauce, diced tomatoes and sliced onions. Serve immediately. (I cut my pita in half and filled the inside with the chicken, veggies, etc.)

Makes 8-10 pitas. I cut the recipe in half and made 6 pitas - calories per pita (without extras) - 120

Everything Spaghetti Squash Pasta

I have been wanting to use spaghetti squash for awhile now but I wasn't brave enough to make it the base of a whole meal. With lots of leftovers in the fridge I decided to make a variation of a pasta Miles and I love because it is very filling while being about 550 calories a serving. This variation is lower in calories, has twice as much meat and makes even more food than the previous version.

Ingredients:

• 1 spaghetti squash
• 3 oz angel hair pasta
• 6 oz pesto chicken (from trader joes)
• 3-4 slices frozen turkey bacon
• 1 onion
• 2-3 handfuls cherry tomatoes
• 1/4-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 4 tbsp Alfredo sauce
• 1 cup frozen green beans
• Salt, pepper, and garlic to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cut squash in half and place cut side down on a baking sheet. Cook for 30-35 minutes or until a fork an be inserted easily. Allow to cool while following the next steps.
3. Place cherry tomatoes on the pan used to cook the squash. Add salt and pepper and cook until the skins burst.
4. Cut onion into slivers. Caramelize the onions in a large saute pan.
5. Grill chicken and cut into small pieces. Set aside.
6. Add green beans, salt, pepper, garlic, and turkey bacon to the saute pan. Toss in chicken and tomatoes. Cook pasta per the instructions on the box. When cooked drain and add to the saute pan.
7. Using a fork, scrape the inside of the squash to remove the flesh. Put the flesh of the squash into the saute pan with the rest of the ingredients (parm and alfredo). Mix well and serve.

Makes 2 servings - calories per serving - 500

Squash Gnocchi

Never having made my own pasta and not having a pasta maker I decided to try this gnocchi recipe from the Food Network. This recipe was very easy to follow but as I don't have a ricer I had to kind of fudge that step of the directions. My squash also took over an hour to cook instead of the 30-35 minutes I thought it would take.

I was very nervous about this creation but Miles gave it a big thumbs up so I guess it will be something I will have the opportunity to perfect. These didn't really taste like squash and as I enjoy squash I will probably make them with butternut squash rather than acorn squash next time. I also thought my gnocchi were to large so I will cut a smaller hole in the bag and pipe them more slowly into the boiling water next time I try this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pound acorn squash
• 1 1/2 cups flour (I actually ended up using more like 1 3/4 cup of flour to get a firmer consistency to my gnocchi)
  
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Cut the squash in half or thirds and place on aluminum foil in the oven. Bake until tender when stabbed with a fork, usually 30 to 35 minutes. - Mine took over an hour but I only cut it in half - Remove from the oven and, when it is cool enough to handle, scoop out and discard the seeds and membrane. Scoop the flesh into a strainer placed over a large bowl. Place in the refrigerator so that the squash cools and the liquid drains away. Leave for at least 6 hours or overnight. - very little water drained from my squash so I absorbed a little extra water using a paper towel -
   
3. Add the eggs and salt. Stir well and add the flour, a little at a time, stirring to amalgamate all the ingredients. Using a hand mixer make sure the ingredients are well combined. The result should be soft but not runny.
4. Put the gnocchi into a zip-lock bag or a piping bag. Bring a large pot of cold water to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and allow the water to return to a boil. Cut a hole in the corner of the bag so you can pipe the gnocchi batter into the boiling water. Pipe a small amount of the gnocchi into the water cutting off the dough every cm or so cooking the gnocchi in batches.
   
5. Cook the gnocchi in the boiling water and cook until they rise to the top of the pot. Remove gnocchi and also to drain while cooking the next batch.\

Makes 4 servings - calories per serving -265

Orzo Carbonara with Broccoli

So I know most people make their carbonara with spaghetti but I am not most people. I have been on an orzo kick recently (although for some reason I am always calling it polenta - I don't even like polenta). With the whole orzo kick going I decided to put a twist on this meal by changing out the pasta. I just find orzo to be so filling compared to many other pastas.

As usual this is also a lighter version of your normal carbonara. It is made with light sour cream, alfredo sauce, turkey bacon, and non-fat milk.

Ingredients:

• 4 oz orzo (2/3 cup)
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 7 strips turkey bacon (I used Jenny-O lean turkey bacon)
• 2 tbs alfredo sauce (I used Newman's Own)
• 2 tbs light sour cream
• 1/4 cup non-fat milk
• salt and pepper to taste
• Sprinkling of parmesan cheese
  

• Broccoli - baked

Directions:

1. Cook orzo as directed on the box.
2. Cut turkey bacon into 1 cm strips - cut along the length of the turkey bacon so you have short little strips
3. Cook turkey over medium heat in a skillet
4. Add diced onion and 1/2 tbs of water to the skillet. Cook onions until translucent.
5. Turn heat to low and allow to cool before adding the sour cream, alfredo, milk, salt and pepper. Once heated toss with drained orzo, toss with parmesan cheese, and serve with the baked broccoli or other desired vegetable.

Servings 2: Calories per serving 450 including the broccoli (420 without broccoli)