Skinny Crockpot Balsamic Chicken

made another new recipe...this one found from the girls at Skinny Crockpot!  I loved this recipe for 2 reasons: 1- it was delicious and easy and 2- I had everything on hand.  Cannot beat that!  It had such a nice flavor and came in at a nice 4 ww pts per serving!  We served ours with a side of rice and fresh veggies.  I will be making this one again!

Ingredients

• 4-6 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts
• 2 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (I used one plain can and one can of Rotel b/c that's what was in the cupboard!)
• 1 medium onion thinly sliced (Not chopped)
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp each: dried oregano,basil, and rosemary (I had no rosemary so left that out)
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• ground black pepper and salt to taste

Directions

1. Pour the olive oil on bottom of crock pot place in chicken breasts, salt and pepper each breast put sliced onion on top of chicken then put in all the dried herbs and garlic cloves pour in vinegar and top with tomatoes.
2. Cook on high 4 hours, serve over angel hair pasta or alone with side of rice.

Crockpot Tortilla Soup

My sweet friend Amy has just put on bed rest for pregnancy related complications...and what's a friend to do to help...but cook!  One of the best things someone brought to me while I was on leave with Markey was tortilla soup!  Was a refreshing meal and so tasty!

The crockpot was a great way to make this.  Seriously just DUMPED everything in the pot, and let it cook!  I did save a serving for myself to try, but Amy said she had it for dinner and lunch and it was delish!

Ingredients:
2 frozen chicken breasts
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Rotel
3 TBSP tomato paste
1 c frozen corn
1 TBSP cumin
1 TBSP chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
1 box low sodium chicken broth

I think that was about it. I cooked mine on low for about 6 hours.  About an hour before I was finished, I opened the crock to shred up the chicken and then let it continue to cook.  I brought it to Amy with a bag of shredded cheese, a bag of tortilla chip strips and 2 avocados!  I am so glad she enjoyed it and I look forward to trying to myself tomorrow for lunch! :)

Crockpot Lemon Chicken

So simple...you won't even believe that's it!  And I had all the ingredients on hand, which is always a bonus!  Found this one via Plain Chicken.  I calculated the points in ww recipe builder and came out to be 7 points per chicken breast.

Here's all you need:
chicken breasts (I used frozen this time...had 3 in the freezer so that's all I used)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 pkg Italian seasoning
2 TBSP butter

Throw it in the crock pot and let it cook on low for 6-8 hours.  You could easily throw some mushrooms or other veggie in here if you wanted to bulk it up.  As Plain Chicken mentions, if you want saucier, add a little more broth to it.

It was really good and oh so simple!  Had the house smelling yum all day long!  Enjoy!

Mediterranean Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Today was the hubby's 35th birthday.  Since Esther dog got her own dog cake (I made her the peanut butter delight) yesterday, I figured it was only fitting that Mattie got a special meal too.  On the menu,

Mediterranean Stuffed Chicken Breasts and semi-homemade cupcakes.

Verdict?  Both were delicious!!

I found the chicken recipe via Pinterest the other night and hubs thought it sounded good so he decided that  would be his birthday meal.  No problem!  And the cupcakes, well, that was just a little extra goodie!

The recipe is super simple.  I altered it some though.  For one, I was making it just for Matt and I so I cut the chicken down to just 2 breasts.  Second, I bought the red pepper but didn't realize that I had to broil them first and didn't feel like doing that.   Happened to have sundried tomatoes in the pantry so I subbed those instead.  I calculated the points on ww online and came out to be 8 ppts per chicken.  Not too shabby and definitely tasted like a more elaborate meal than it was!

Mediterranean Stuffed Chicken Breasts-8ppts/serving

2 chicken breasts

Kalamata olives, chopped (I used about 8)

2 TBSP sundried tomatoes, chopped

1/4 cup reduced fat feta

2 TBSP fresh basil

salt & pepper

1) Preheat oven to 350.

2) Cut a pocket into the thickest part of the chicken.

3) Mix together all other ingredients.

4) Stuff the chicken with the olive mixture.  Close up chicken and hold together with tooth picks.

5) Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper a lightly drizzle with olive oil.

6) Bake at 350 for approximately 20 minutes or until juices tun clear.

We served ours with a nice green salad and some garlic mashed potatoes!  Great birthday dinner or for any night! :)


And in case you are in the cupcake mood....I used this recipe I found over at Plain Chicken for her Best Birthday cake...just turned it into cupcakes!  Soo tasty!  Cupcakes were semi-homemade since they used a box but were moist and delish, and the chocolate frosting....yum yum.  Just smelling it I think I gained 2lbs!  All three of my men loved them.  Think I may have to send a dozen to work to get them out of my house! :)

Crockpot Chicken Sloppy Joes

Found this while pinning, was from a Better Home & Garden article.  Hubby thought it sounded like a great choice to eat while watching Cowboys football.  I liked it because it was extremely easy and fairly low in points.  Win win! (and the cowboys did win too!)

Here goes:
1lb ground chicken or turkey
14 oz can pizza sauce
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 bag frozen pepper medley with onions (thawed and chopped)

1) Brown the ground chicken or turkey
2) Dump all ingredients into the crock pot.
3) Stir and go!  6-8 hrs on low or 3-4 hrs on high.

I served ours on a low cal wheat bun for 3 points and a slice of lite provolone!  I put the meal (just the sloppy joe mixture, not the bun and cheese) into recipe builder and calculated it to be 6 servings for 4 ppts each!  YUM!  So, bun+cheese+joe=8ppts.

 I served with a side of baked sweet potato fries.  The ones in picture happen to be frozen ones...apparently the ones I had chopped up to make myself ended up either being cooked too high or too long and were burnt to a crisp when I got out from putting Mark to bed.  OOPS!

We have plenty left over too.  Am thinking it would be really good on a baked potato later in the week!

banana bread!

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup margarine
1 egg
1 1/2 mashed very ripe bananas (3 to 4 medium)
1/2 cup buttermilk (don't have any?  Make your own!)
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

1. Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pans will be in center of oven. Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease bottoms only of 2 loaf pans, 8 1/2x4 1/2x2 1/2 inches, or 1 loaf pan, 9x5x3 inches.
2. Mix sugar, applesauce and margarine in large bowl. Stir in egg product until well blended. Add bananas, buttermilk and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt just until moistened. Stir in nuts. Pour into pans.
3. Bake 8-inch loaves about 1 hour, 9-inch loaf about 1 1/4 hours, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pans and place top side up on wire rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour, before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days

Mine made one large loaf and I calculated points based on 12 slices....6ppts a slice!  It was delish!

Dijon Parmesan Chicken Breasts

This is another good one from Betty Crocker!  Really nice taste and easy to prepare!

Ingredients:

3/4

cup Fiber One® original bran cereal

2

tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1

teaspoon dried basil leaves

1/4

teaspoon garlic salt

1/4

teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1

egg white, beaten

2

tablespoons Dijon mustard

4

boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/4 lb)

1

tablespoon canola or vegetable oil

• 1Heat oven to 400°F. Spray 15x10x1-inch pan with cooking spray. Place cereal in resealable food-storage plastic bag; seal bag and finely crush with rolling pin or meat mallet (or finely crush in food processor).
• 2In shallow bowl, mix cereal, cheese, basil, garlic salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, mix egg white and mustard until blended.
• 3Dip chicken into egg white mixture, then coat well with cereal mixture; place in pan. Drizzle oil over chicken.
• 4Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F).

Mexican Meatloaf

You know how it goes....quick, easy, and VERY tasty!  Hubby loved it too, one of my best tests for knowing if it is good! :)  I make it into 4 servings and calculated it at 7pts/serving!

Mexican Meatloaf

1 lb lean ground beef
2 egg whites
2 oz cornbread stuffing dry mix, (about 1 cup)
1/2 medium onion(s), chopped  
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cumin
4 oz canned green chili peppers, diced

8 oz canned enchilada sauce Instructions: Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat a broiler pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix beef, turkey, egg whites, stuffing mix, onion, chili powder, cumin, chilies and half of enchilada sauce together. Shape into an oval with your hands and place on prepared broiler pan. Cook for 1 hour, top with remaining enchilada sauce and bake for 5 minutes more. Slice into 6 pieces and serve.

Weight Watchers Lasagna

Here goes:
1lb lean ground beef (I used 94/6)
1 small onion(s), chopped 
1 clove(s) (medium) garlic clove(s), minced
15 oz canned tomato sauce 
2 14.5 oz diced tomatoes (I used one plain and one Italian seasoned)
1 tsp table salt 
1 tsp dried oregano 
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 1/2 cup(s) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheeses, divided
1 c low-fat ricotta cheese
1 package frozen spinach (defrosted)
6 item(s) dry lasagna noodles, no-cook
1/2 cup(s) shredded parmesan cheese

*Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef, onion and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon as it cooks, about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes (I didn't have any so left them out); simmer 5 minutes to allow flavors to blend.
*Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, spinach and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
*Spoon 1/3 of beef mixture into a 13x9 dish. Lay 3 lasagna sheets over beef mixture; top with half of ricotta mixture. *Repeat with another layer and finish with remaining 1/3 of beef mixture.
*Cook at 350 for 50 minutes.
*In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese; sprinkle over beef mixture. Bake until cheese melts, about 10 minutes. Yields 1/6th of dish per serving=10 points

Caribbean Chicken with Pineapple Salsa

This recipe was DELISH.  It got a big thumbs up from Matteo and he said it reminded him of Cafe Red Onion!  Best part, only 7 Points Plus points!  We served it with black beans mixed with the cilantro lime Rotel and it really hit the spot.   It will definitely be going into the rotation!  Enjoy!

Chicken:
1 1/4 c Fiber One original bran cereal
2 tsp jerk seasonings (dry)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 c buttermilk (I just used plain milk)
2 tsp dijon mustard
1.2 tsp red pepper sauce

Pineapple Salsa:
1 can (8oz) crushed pineapple in juice, undrained
1/4c  chopped red bell pepper
1/4c chopped apricot
1/4c chopped cilantro
1 tsp sugar
1/2 lemon, squeezed

1.  Heat oven to 400F.  Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray.  Place cereal in bag and finely crush or chop in food processor.  Place cereal in shallow dish and mix with jerk seasoning.
2.  In large plastic bag, place chicken, milk, mustard, and pepper sauce.  Seal and shake well.  Remove chicken from bag; coat with cereal mixture.  Place on cookie sheet.
3.  Bake 15-20 minutes or until juice runs clear when center of thickest part is cut.  Meanwhile, in small bowl, mix salsa ingredients.  Cover, refrigerate until serving.  Serve chicken with salsa.

Courtesy of betty crocker.  Yum-o!

All about the crock

Going to post a couple of crock pot recipes that we have been enjoying as of late!

Mexican Crockpot Chicken
1 can black beans (Drained)
1 can corn(Drained)
1 can rotel
1 pkg taco seasonings
1 pkg chicken breastes
1 reduced fat cream cheese

Dump all ingredients except for cream cheese into the pot.  Set your timer for however many hours you want....8-10, etc.  About an hour before you are ready to eat, add a block of cream cheese.  That's it!  I love this one, it is so good and you dont even need a knife for the chicken.  If you have a fresh avacodo, top with a couple slices of that and serve with some spanish rice.  DELISH!

Kielbasa in the crock!

We had this at one of my PEO meetings and I loved it.  I am not a green bean or sausage kind of girl but this was good!  Hubby and the boys liked it too!

1 pkg kielbasa sausage
2 cans green beans
2 cans little potatoes (I am sure that's not the correct name but they are little white potatoes! new potatoes perhaps??)

Yep, that is it.  Throw it all in and cook for 8-10 hours.  If worried sausage may be too spicy for kiddos, throw a hot dog in there about 20 min before.  Seriously, this was good!

comfort crock pot

1 pkg chicken breast
cream of chicken soup
chicken broth
mixed veggies
potatoes
carrots
garlic, salt. 
YUM. 
sometimes I melt cheese on it too.


This is courtesy of my friend Sarah.  I haven't had a chance to try this one yet but my cousin Kelly did and they loved it.  It is next on the list!


I am telling you, you can put anything into the crock pot and it comes out yummy!

Crock Pot Chicken and Rice

Take 4 or 5 frozen chicken breasts and place them in the crock pot. Mix a medium size container of sour cream (ff or lite work fine!), can of cream of mushroom soup, and one package of onion soup dry mix. Pour over chicken and cook on high for about 5 hours then switch to warm or cook on low all day. YUMMY!


Serve with rice and a side of veggies...delicious and healthy comfort food!

Italian Crockpot chicken

1 pkg chicken breasts chopped into 1" strips
14.5 oz diced tomatoes, drained
jar of quartered artichoke hearts, drained
can of mushrooms, drained
2 Tbsp Dijon
1/4 c red wine (i used Cabernet)

Mix it all together and let it sit!  I put mine on a 1/2c rice and had steamed mixed veggies for the side!  So good!  Chicken in the crock is really tasty and shreds so easily, delish!!  It may not look pretty, but it tastes darn good!  Try it out...what do you think?

ww Spinach Enchiladas

This is a staple in our house. It is fast, it is easy, it is YUMMY, and it is ww friendly.

Ingredients:
1 pkg frozen spinach (I nuc mine in the microwave for about 5 min and then drain/squeeze out some of the liquid)
4 large tortillas (I use the low fat ones)
16 oz Ricotta cheese (I use either the low fat or part skim ones)
shredded mozzarella cheese
shredded cheddar cheese
salsa
onion powder
garlic salt
dried oregano
pepper

1) Preheat oven to 350.
2) Mix together the ricotta and a handful of mozzarella cheese...somewhere between 1/2c and 1c. Add in about 1tsp onion powder, 1/2tsp garlic salt and 1/4tsp pepper. Mix it all up!
3) Score the mixture into fourths. Top each tortilla with a 1/4 of your mixture and roll it up and fold the ends in.
4) Top with salsa and shredded cheddar. Hubby likes his HOT so I add jalapenos to his 2 enchiladas.
5) cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
6) Take foil off and bake for an additional 10 minutes or so until cheese is melted.

And that's it! These guys are big 2, so we serve ours with a side of black beans and each eat one enchilada and have 2 leftover for the next night! I think they come out to be about 7 pts per enchilada so not bad when you are only eating 1. Enjoy!

Easy Mexican Casserole

Easy Mexican Casserole

SingForYourSupperBlog.com
(Printable Recipe)

1 pound lean ground beef
1 can Ranch Style beans (I used the ones that already had some onion in them)
1 10-12 ounce bag tortilla chips, crushed (I just crushed enough for a thin layer)
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes drained
1/2 small onion, chopped
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided (I didnt use quite that much, just enough for good covering and i used 2%)
1 package taco seasoning
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup water
sour cream and salsa for serving (or fresh avocado like we did!)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large skillet, brown meat and drain off fat. Stir in beans, tomatoes, onion, taco seasoning, soup and water. Simmer over medium-low heat until everything is well combined and heated through.

Grease a 9×13 casserole dish (I actually used a square one, the layers looked to spread thin to me in the rectangle one). Put down a layer of crushed tortilla chips, followed by a layer of the meat/bean mixture, then half of the cheddar cheese. Repeat layers. Cover with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with sour cream and salsa.

Try it, you will like it! And check out this yummy blog too! :)

ww chicken parmesan

1 pkg chicken breasts
lite mayo
Italian bread crumbs
tomato
basil
mozarella
olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375.
Salt and pepper the chicken breasts
Lightly coat in mayo, just enough to get the crumbs to stick
dredge in bread crumbs
Top with basil leaves (if you don't have fresh, just sprinkle some dried basil on)
Top with thinly sliced tomatoes
Drizzle with olive oil lightly
sprinkle with mozzarella

Bake about 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked.  I sometimes have trouble with that and I have found that pounding the chicken thinner does in fact help!

Serve with a side salad....delish!

Roxy's Baked Ziti

We got this from my friend Roxanne and it quickly became one of our all time fav meals.  So delish and so easy! Here we go...

1 lb ground beef
1 box tube pasta *we always use wheat pasta and love it, can't even tell the difference.
1 jar spaghetti sauce
mozarella cheese
Lite cream cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Brown the beef.  Drain.  Add in spaghetti sauce and warm.
3.  Boil the pasta.  Drain.
4.  In a casserole dish, put a layer of pasta down.  Top with meat mixture.  Add in a few spoonfuls of cream cheese scattered around.  Sprinkle with Mozzarella.
5. Repeat!

Put in the oven for about 20-30 minutes until brown and bubbly.  We LOVE it every time and it tastes just as good the next day!!