Quinoa Doughnuts

Zucchini bites and pizza muffins are always a big hit in this household.  We apparently like little muffin/doughnut shaped food that is easily dip-able.  With that in mind I have been researching other "mini-muffin" foods.  There are broccoli bites - which I haven't perfected yet but they are close, hash brown cakes, rice balls... the list is never ending.
Today I decided to take a stab at quinoa bites.  Seeing I was also making zucchini tots (a current favorite here) I turned the quinoa bites into quinoa doughnuts.  Not sure if I am a fan.  I think I will have to keep tweaking here and there to get the perfect taste. They are a lot like the pizza bites in the sense that you can put whatever you want in them to create the taste you are craving.  Here is how I made them today, the * ingredients are those that create the "base" change around everything else to create your own masterpiece.

Quinoa Doughnuts

• 2 c Quinoa, cooked*
• 1 c Carrots, shredded*
• 2 Eggs*
• 2 T Flour*
• 1/4 - 1/2 c Cheese, Shredded (your preference)*
• Italian Seasoning
• Parsley
• Onion, diced
• 2 cloves of Garlic
• Season Salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease 2 doughnut pans (or 2 mini muffin tins, 2 regular muffin tins - it is really up to you).
2. Combine all the ingredients and divide between the tins.
3. Bake at 350 F for 25 - 30 minutes.  
4. ENJOY

See they are super simple to make!  I am just not sure I am a fan of the carrot base.  I was going to try zucchini, I will let you know how that works out.

If you give them a try let me know your thoughts!

Pizza Crescents

Brian's "Work from Home" lunch!

If you have perused all my recipes on here you have probably noticed a reoccurring theme:  pizza.  We like pizza in this house.  We are willing to try any incarnation if the title says "Pizza" and thus pizza crescents were born.

Today I was looking for something to make for lunch.  Brian was working from home and I figured a nice hot lunch is just what we could use.  Looking in the fridge made me drag my feet in making anything super involved.  I was originally thinking pizza muffins but they can be oily at times and I wasn't in the mood for all that pepperoni.  I then contemplated zucchini bites, but I wanted Brian to be happy about lunch so that was vetoed at well.  Finally I settled on something "new".  This is probably the easiest and least thought inducing menu item I have ever made.

Pizza Crescents

• 1 can Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls
• 16 slices of Pepperoni
• 4 Light String Cheese Sticks
• Italian Seasoning
• Parmesan Cheese for sprinkling

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. Unroll the crescent rolls and place 2 pepperoni slices and half a string cheese on each wedge. 
3. Roll the crescent rolls up like you normally would.  Be sure to pinch all the edges closed to keep the cheese from melting out.
4. Place the crescents on your baking dish.  Sprinkle them with italian seasoning and freshly grated parmesan cheese.
5. Bake until the crescents are golden brown.
6. Serve with pizza dipping sauce and veggies.  ENJOY!

Isn't that the simplest thing you have ever read?  They took NO TIME to make and were pretty yummy.  The only issue with these is that they aren't exactly calorie friendly if you have a BIG appetite.  I was content with eating 2 rolls and a bunch of cucumbers but if 2 rolls isn't going to do it for you then the calories count could add up!  Seeing there are eight crescent rolls in a pack, I decided that 2 rolls would be a serving size.  The pizza crescents come in at about 265 calories per serving (see what I mean about big appetites having a higher calorie count?!)  I can honestly say that my 2 rolls filled me up plenty though and they weren't oily or overly pepperoni flavored like the pizza muffins can be.

Baked French Toast

I hope the holidays have treated you (and your waistline) well.  This year we had my in-laws to our house on Christmas morning, in a new tradition of switching off every other.  As you should know by now, I couldn't let people come to the house and not have some sort of yummy dish to offer them!  I wanted something that would be "treat" like yet not TOO bad on the calories due to our overindulgence from the night before.  Brian and I threw around the idea of pancakes or waffles and then hit on french toast - we were thinking the cinnamon swirl french toast of course.

Being that it was Christmas, however, I didn't want to have to spend all that time flipping bread and not getting to eat with everyone or see all the presents.  So I researched.  My mother makes a french toast bake that people claim is pretty good, I have always avoided it cause it contains cream cheese and I am not the biggest cream cheese fan.  I compiled a bunch of recipes and started adding up the calories.  I could not believe just how calorie intensive most of those recipes were.  I would have spent 3/4 of my DAILY calorie intake on one serving of most of the recipes and the rest would have been well OVER my calorie intake.  I was floored.

By this time I had my heart set on a yummy french toast bake that would allow me enough calories, fat, and carbs to partake in clams casinos and a steak for dinner.  If I could find one I would have to make one - I took parts of recipes and cut back on the incredibly artery clogging ingredients and came up with something that was, in my opinion, reasonable.

Baked French Toast

• 1/2 c Margarine of Butter, melted
• 1/2 - 3/4 c Brown Sugar
• 12 Slices Texas Toast
• 4 Eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 c Milk (I used 1%)
• 1 t Vanilla
• 1 T Powdered Sugar
• Cinnamon and Sugar, mixed*
• Butter Spray*

1. Mix the melted butter and brown sugar well.  Spread the mixture onto the bottom of an 11 x 17 baking dish.  
2. Combine the eggs, milk, powdered sugar, and vanilla - mix well.
3. Lay 6 slices of texas toast on top of the butter sugar mix. 
4. Pour half the egg mixture evenly over the toast.
5. *Lightly sprinkle the soaked toast with cinnamon and sugar
6. Place the remaining 6 slices of texas toast on top and even pour the remaining egg mixture over those slices.
7. *Lightly sprinkle the tope with cinnamon and sugar and a light spray of butter.
8. Cover and place in the refrigerator over night.
9. The next morning, preheat the oven to 350 F.  Remove the bake from the fridge and set on the counter for about 10 minutes.
10. Bake, uncovered, for 40-50 minutes.
11. Sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar.
12. ENJOY

*These ingredients and steps are not needed - you can omit them, yet they do not add many calories and I think they enhance the final product.

I divided the recipe into 8 servings - which was a fairly good amount.  You could always divide it into 6, however I feel those would have been too much.  Most french toast bakes say to serve with warm syrup, I have to admit that I ate mine without any syrup though I did offer syrup and cool whip to those that would like it.   Without syrup or cool whip, divided into 8 servings the bake comes to about 360 calories per serving.  Not bad at all compared to 1000 - 1700 calories per serving that all the other ones were coming boasting.  (If you want larger servings and decide to go with 6, the calorie count rises to about 485 calories per serving - still much less than the others!!)

The bottom of this bake produces a nice sugary/crunchy base and the toast is a perfect blend of moisture and crispness.  I love french toast - much preferred over pancakes or waffles - and this is a recipe I will definitely be making again.  It is super easy to whip up and very yummy to eat!  It was delicious on Christmas morning, served with ham for that brunch feel!!

Sorry about the lack of pictures - I completely spaced on taking any while I was preparing or eating.  I promise to take some the next time.

Southwestern Stuffed Peppers

I had been planning on making stuffed peppers for ages and then I find myself using all the peppers for fajitas, chourico, or other yumminess.  Yesterday I purposely bought extra peppers to ENSURE that stuffed peppers would be made.

I decided this morning to give our stuffed peppers a southwestern twist and to use quinoa instead of rice.  (I had an over abundance of quinoa and only a little bit of brown rice left - have to use what's in the house. :-D)  I was a little worried about the reception of these peppers for a variety of reasons: 1.  I have never made stuffed peppers for Brian before.  2.  I have never used quinoa in stuffed peppers before. Finally, 3. I don't think Brian has ever eaten quinoa.  -- Everyone says Stink's crazy pickiness comes from me, but getting Brian to eat new things can be just as difficult!--

Apparently I was worried for nothing.  Brian liked the peppers and didn't balk at the quinoa.  Now if I could only get Stinks to eat something other than crackers, cheese and pepperoni!

Southwestern Stuffed Peppers

Don't they look wonderful just as is?

• 1/2 lb Ground Beef (or chicken)*
• 1/2 c Dry Quinoa
• 1/2 c Mushrooms, chopped
• 6 Bell Peppers
• 1 - 1 1/2 c Salsa
• 1 Onion, chopped
• 1 c Corn
• 1 c Black Beans
• 1 c Cheddar Cheese, grated
• Taco Seasoning, per preference

1. Cook the quinoa as per the package instructions.  Set aside.  (I always rinse my quinoa prior to cooking and use the 1 : 2, quinoa to water ratio.  I also always seem to have some cooked hanging around.)  
2. Preheat oven to 350 F
3. While the quinoa is cooking, prep the peppers by cutting out the stem and removing the seeds.  Place the peppers in a shallow baking dish and pour water (about 3/4 - 1 c) into the base of the dish around the peppers.  Place peppers in the oven to steam for about 10 - 30 minutes depending on your preference.  (We like our peppers to still have a good crunch so I only steam ours for about 15 minutes.) Once the peppers are steamed to your preference remove from the oven and set aside to slightly cool.
4. While the peppers are steaming spray a fry pan with non-stick spray and add in the onions, mushrooms and beef.  Cook until the beef is browned through and the onions are translucent.  
5. Reduce heat and add in the taco seasoning, corn, beans, salsa and cooked quinoa.  Stir together.
6. Spoon the meat/quinoa mixture into each pepper and return the peppers to the oven for about 15-20 minutes.  (I always add about a teaspoon of water to each stuffed pepper prior to putting them back in the oven, but this isn't necessary.)
7. Just before the peppers are done, sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the tops and return to the oven until the cheese is melted.
8. ENJOY

Seeing there were only two of us eating the peppers, and I use peppers in a LOT of other foods, I only stuffed 4 peppers.  The recipe is for 6, however, so I either need to tone back my recipes or learn to like left over pepper stuffing :-D.  The calorie count is actually very impressive to say that it is chock full of quinoa! The peppers come in at 270 calories per pepper - whole pepper - all in all a nice respectable number.  (If you decide to use rice instead of quinoa expect to be looking at about 340 calories per  pepper.  If you have never tried quinoa I say go and get some.  I was turned onto it when I was pregnant and needed to try and keep something down - it is full of all sorts of good things and is very simple to cook.  I am not really a fan of "plain" quinoa, but in recipes such as this I love the texture and taste.  It also make one hell of a fried "rice".)

So there you have it.  Let me know if you try them - I do like feedback!

Zucchini and Mozzarella Chicken Roll Ups

YUM!  I don't think this needs any more description than that, but of course I am wordy so I will give it one. :-D

As I am sure you have noticed: I love zucchini, cheese and chicken.  Put all three of them together and I am thrilled.  Add a good dose of garlic and I am ecstatic!  This recipe is the perfect amount of everything wonderful.  Even Brian liked it.  Makes me want to make kiev - yet I am thinking the calorie count would go up with that butter.

The recipe is very simple - there are a few steps but they are easy - and of course it is made with all ingredients that are staples.  It is also one of those recipes that fills the house with such the best aroma while cooking that your mouth actually waters!

Zucchini and Mozzarella Chicken Roll Ups

• 12 oz boneless skinless Chicken Breast, flattened to uniform size
• 2 cloves Garlic
• 1 medium Zucchini, shredded
• 1/4 c Parmesan Cheese, shredded and divided
• 2-3 oz Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/4 c Bread Crumbs
• 1 T Oil
• 1/2 c Lemon Juice

1. Preheat the oven to 450F.  Lightly spray a shallow baking dish with non-stick spray and set aside.
2. In a fry pan sauté garlic with zucchini and half the parmesan cheese until heated through.  Set aside to cool slightly.
3. Wash and dry the chicken breasts ( I make 3-4 roll ups out of 12 oz but it all depends on how your breasts are cut.)  Season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Divide the mozzarella cheese between the flattened chicken breasts.  Top the cheese with the zucchini mixture and roll up the chicken.  
5. In a small bowl combine the oil and the lemon juice. 
6. Combine the bread crumbs with the remaining parmesan cheese. 
7. Dip the chicken rolls into the lemon juice mixture and roll them in the bread crumb mixture.  Place the rolls seam down in the prepared dish.
8. Bake for 25-35 minutes.
9. ENJOY

I know it seems like a lot of work but it really isn't!  Even if it was, the result is worth the effort.  I divide the dish into three servings.  The calorie count comes in at about 290 calories per serving (which is normally one roll up and a portion of another).  I ate mine with some peasant bread and cucumbers.  All in all a very filling and scrumptious meal!

Chicken Penne Pesto

Pasta, the bane of my journey existence.  I love it so, but it is really just not calorically friendly.  To get my fix I try to think of super yummy pasta dishes that will make the taste worth the calorie intake.  I think I hit right on that concept with this recipe.

This is actually a lot thicker of a sauce than I was originally intending.  I might tweak it down the road to make the sauce thinner, but for right now I am perfectly content to eat this dish as is!!

Chicken Penne Pesto

• 12 oz Penne
• 2 Chicken Breasts, cubed
• 3/4 c Chicken Broth
• 3/4 c Milk
• 1 T Cornstarch
• 1/3 c Pesto
• 4 c Broccoli, chopped
• 2 cloves Garlic
• 1 T Butter
• 1/2 c Parmesan Cheese, divided

1. In a large pot cook your penne per package directions. 
2. While your penne is cooking, spray a large skillet with nonstick spray and melt the butter over medium high heat.  Add in the chicken and garlic and sauté till the chicken is cooked through.  
3. In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch, broth and milk.  Add the mixture to the skillet and reduce the heat to medium - low, stirring occasionally while the sauce thickens.
4. Once the sauce has thickened slightly add the pesto and half the cheese to the chicken and sauce. Cook over medium heat, mix well to combine.
5. Once the pesto is combine add the broccoli to the skillet and cook through.  
6. When the broccoli has reached the desired tenderness pour the contents of the skillet over the cooked and drained penne.  Toss to coat.  
7. Top with the remaining cheese and ENJOY!

The recipe makes about 12-13 cups of pasta.  I divided it into 6 servings of 2 cups.  Obviously, looking at the ingredients, you shouldn't be expecting a dish of 100 calories.  This comes in at about 435 calories per serving.  In my opinion it is completely worth every single one of them!  The dish is quick to make and has all things I love - pasta, broccoli, chicken, and pesto - what more could I want?

As you can see I cleaned my plate!

Give it a try and let me know what you think!!

Cheeseburger Pie

Tonight for dinner I wanted something simple, yummy, and that would produce leftovers for lunches.  Having a sick Stink's meant that I needed to make dinner with what I had on hand - and I hadn't been for groceries in a while so that meant essentials only.  I decided on throwing together a cheeseburger pie cause it was quick which meant I could spend lots of time cuddling with Stinks on the couch and less time by the oven!  

Cheeseburger Pie

• 3/4 lb Ground Beef
• 2 T Ketchup
• 1 t Mustard
• Minced Onion, to taste
• Garlic, to taste
• 2 T Milk
• 2 T flour
• 1/3 c Dill Hamburger Pickles, chopped
• 2 T Pickle Juice
• 1 c Shredded Cheese of your choice
• 1 can (8 rolls) Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls *

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. Spread 6 of the crescent rolls out on the bottom and sides of an 8-inch pie plate. Set the remaining two rolls aside along with the pie plate.
3. In a large fry pan brown the beef with the garlic and onion.  Stir in the ketchup, mustard, milk, pickles, pickle juice and flour.  Cook until slightly thickened.
4. Removed from heat and add 3/4 c of cheese to the meat.  Mix to combine.  
5. Pour the meat mixture into the prepared pie dish.  Top with the remaining cheese.  Top all of that with the remaining two rolls.
6. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until the edges of the rolls are browned.
7. Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving - this will set the meat.
8. ENJOY

As you can imagine this was a hit with the Hubby.  I have to say it was fairly good as well.  I divided the recipe into six servings.  The calorie count of each serving (using reduced fat cheddar cheese) was about 305 calories.  One slice and some broccoli/cauliflower mix was more than enough to fill me up, Brian on the other hand decided on having two slices.  

The only thing I can say about this recipe is that I would bake it for longer.  I prefer my crescent rolls to be flakey instead of gooey.  Brian prefers gooey to flakey.  I settled for something in the middle, but if I was going to call it perfect I would have gone for a flakier crust - which probably would have required me to bake the crust prior to filling.  I also think I would add freshly chopped onions instead of minced, but I am an onion fan.

*I do have a recipe for homemade crescent rolls however I have not perfected it so this was made with Pillsbury.  

Sorry about the photos, I was trying to use our little Nikon but it didn't like me so all the pictures are washed out.  I will have to crack out the good camera soon!

Let me know your thoughts!  

Turkey Day Favorites

I have at least three recipes that I want to share with you from Thanksgiving, but seeing they are all related I decided to do a "Thanksgiving Episode"!  We were fortunate enough to host this year for the Hubby's side of the family - there is no way my side would all fit in the house let alone have a sit down meal!  I was super excited!! Not only did I get to cook the turkey and ham, but I got to create some delicious side dishes and stage what I hope was a wonderful meal.  It seemed to go wonderfully so I am hoping to make our hosting into an every other year tradition!

Now for the recipes.

This year I decided to brine the turkey.  Now I have brined meats in the past with good success, but I have never brines a turkey.  Especially not for a main course holiday!  Of course I contemplated spending the $15/can on some Williams Sonoma brine but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.  I decided I could make my own based on my tastes and hope everyone else would enjoy it.

Turkey Brine

• 1/2 Gallon Water*
• 2 1/2 Tubs Veggie Stock* (*or enough bouillon/broth to make 1/2 gallon) 
• 1/2 c Salt
• 1/2 c Sugar
• 1 T Rosemary
• 1 T Sage
• 1 T Thyme
• 1/2 t Garlic 
• 1/2 Gallon Cold Water

1. Combine all ingredients save the 1/2 gallon of cold water in a stock pot.  Bring to a rolling boil and cook until sugar and salt are dissolved.  
2. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
3. While the brine is cooling prepare your turkey by removing the innards and giving it a good washing.  Pat the turkey dry and place it in a brining bag or large pail - I use a brining bag cause space is limited in my fridge.
4. Combine the cooled mixture with the 1/2 gallon of cold water, mix together and pour over the turkey.  
5. Seal up the bag or pail and place in the fridge for approximately 1 hour per pound of bird.  
6. Once the brining is complete be sure to RINSE YOUR BIRD THOROUGHLY or you will have a very salty tasting dinner.  
7. Stuff and/or cook your turkey as you normally would - keeping in mind that brined birds tend to cook a little faster than non-brined.
8. ENJOY

See, easy!  If you have a super large bird that the brine does not cover completely then you will have to flip it half way through the brining process (or simply double the recipe and use enough brine to cover the bird).  It produced a wonderfully tender and juice turkey with just the right hint of seasonings.  I was very pleased!  Forget spending $15 for a one time use can of brine mix - this will now be my go to for brining large birds!


The next recipe I am going to share is my stuffing recipe.  Now I grew up in a Portuguese family, which means that stuffing contained chourico or linguica.  Now Portuguese sausage is wonderful, especially with peppers, onions and some cheese on a roll, but it can be an acquired taste and I was cooking for non-Portuguese people.  (I should point out that I am not a huge stuffing fan to begin with, if I want to eat bread I am going to eat bread.  It doesn't have to be mashed and flavored :-D)  To that end I wanted to create a stuffing that still had the same principle of the stuffing I grew up with, but without the extra kick linguica would give it.  I give you:

Chicken Sausage and Herb Stuffing

• 14 oz Wheat Bread (about 3/4 of a large loaf)
• 2 T Butter or Margarine
• 1 1/2 c Onion, diced
• 1 3/4 c Celery, diced
• 4-5 links Chicken Sausage (I used Italian flavored)
• 2 1/2 - 3 1/4 c Chicken Broth
• Sage, to taste
• Thyme, to taste
• Garlic, to taste
• Salt and Pepper, to taste 

1. Toast and shred the bread into a large bowl.  I have found this is the easiest way to dry out the bread, but you can also cube it and bake in the oven or leave out on the counter over night - though this method has been met with varying success.  Set the bowl aside.
2. Remove the casings from the sausage links and chop into small pieces to facilitate crumbling.
3. In a large fry pan combine the celery, onion, butter and sausage.  Cook on medium high heat until sausage is warmed through and celery is translucent.
4. Add the sausage mixture to the bread bowl and mix well.  
5. Mix in the spices to taste and slowly add the broth until the desired consistency is achieved.
6. Transfer the stuffing to a lightly greased casserole dish.  Now you can either bake this dish now, or refrigerate the stuffing until Just before your turkey is done cooking.
1. To cook the stuffing immediately you should preheat your oven to 375 F.  Cook the stuffing to 30 minutes, removed from the oven and mix gently.  Return to the oven and cook for another 20-30 minutes until golden brown.
2. To prep the stuffing for future cooking just place in the fridge.  Remove the stuffing about 10 minutes prior to cooking to allow it to acclimate.  Seeing the stuffing takes about 1 hour to cook I find it is best to throw it in the oven during the last 20 minutes of the turkey cooking.  That way the stuffing will cook while your turkey is "resting".
7. ENJOY

Again, easy!  Now stuffing is mostly bread so if you are thinking that it is a lower calorie food I am sorry to burst that bubble.  That being said this stuffing actually comes in not as high and one would have expected.  I divided the recipe into 9 equal servings - which for this limited stuffing eater was a BIG portion - and came up with about 175-180 calories per stuffing.  Not bad for chickeny bready goodness!


The final recipe I will leave you with is one I am sure you have all made at some point in your lives - I just have a different twist.  PUMPKIN PIE!  Now I am NOT a pie fan.  I am pretty sure it stems from my hatred of pie crust.  I have always loved pumpkin pie but I would only eat the filling growing up and leave a big empty pie crust shell on my plate.  A few years ago I discovered how to remedy the empty shell issue - GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST!  I love graham cracker crusts.  They are the perfect answer to my pie crust dilemma.

Pumpkin Pie with Graham Cracker Crust

• 2 c Pumpkin , mashed or puréed
• 3/4 c Sugar
• 1 t Cinnamon
• 1/2 t Ginger
• 1/4 t Cloves
• 2 Eggs
• 1 can Fat Free Evaporated Milk
• 1 1/4 c Graham Cracker Crumbs
• 1/3 c Butter or Margarine, melted
• 4 T Sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and 4T of sugar in a bowl.  Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a pie plate and bake for 5-10 minutes or until golden brown.  Set aside.
3. Increase oven temperature to 425F for 10 - 15 minutes or while you prepare the pumpkin filling.
4. Mix together all remaining ingredients save the evaporated milk.  Slowly pour the evaporated milk into the mixture and combine well.
5. Pour the pumpkin mixture onto the prepared graham cracker crust.  Reduce oven temperature to 350F and bake the pie for 40-50 minutes or until a knife in the center comes out clean.
6. Serve warm (or cool) with cool whip and ENJOY!

The best pumpkin pie ever all due to a graham cracker crust!  The calorie count of this pie reflects the lack of "classic" pie crust as well.  For 1/8th of the pie you are looking at 200 calories, where as with a regular pie crust you would be facing 285 calories per piece!

Honorable mention goes to my water pitcher.  I have never gone through so much water before.  Very simply I added some cranberries and sliced lemons to my water picture and filled it up - such a hit!


And there you have them folks.  My picks for Thanksgiving favorites.  I could have added in the zucchini bake, sweet potato casserole, molasses cookies, or even glazed ham; but this post is long enough as it is.  I leave you with this wonderful picture of us just starting to gather about the table for our feast! :-)

Zucchini Bites

Think pizza bites but greener :-D  These little tots are yummy - husband approved - and super easy to make.  I threw them together to have with our pizza tonight.  The best part is you can add or remove what you want from the recipe.  The only "grain" they contain is bread crumbs, so they aren't as "doughy" as the pizza bites.  Experiment and make them into what you want!

Zucchini Bites

• 1 c Zucchini, shredded and drained
• 1/4 c Cheese, shredded (I used a mix of Parmesan and Cheddar)
• 1/4 c Bread Crumbs
• 1/4 c Onion, diced
• 1 egg
• Seasonings of your choice - I used some Italian and Garlic (my go to spices)

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F.  (I was cooking a pizza at 450 and threw these in with it - worked fine.)  Prepare a mini muffin tin by coating it with non-stick spray.
2. Mix all the ingredients together and spoon into your mini muffin tin
3. Cook until golden brown and the edges are crispy (about 10 - 15 minutes).  
4. ENJOY

See, super easy!  My suggestions are simple 1. Be sure to squeeze the excess water from your zucchini!! You will have soggy bites if you don't.  2. If you like that crispy crust - once they reach a golden brown color pop the broiler on for a minute or two.  3.  Be sure to let them sit for a few minutes before you pop them in your mouth, burnt tongues are no fun :-D.

The recipe above makes 12 bites at 27 calories per bite - not bad for a nice snack.  They are super filling.  So I would say you could eat the whole batch for a mere 324 calories, but I don't think you would make it through the whole batch!

Try them out and let me know your variations!

Easy Homemade Noodles

I LOVE pasta.  I would say it comes in second to bread in my food loves.  I could easily eat it every day, but that wouldn't be all that good for my journey.  I have recently decided that if I have to limit my intake of favorite foods then I am DEFINITELY going to go all out and get the best tasting for the caloric intake.

Now I have made pasta before to mixed results. I am an impatient person - like you couldn't tell that - and due to my impatience waiting for pasta to dry before I can eat it doesn't always work out for me.  I enjoy recipes I can create and then enjoy!  This recipe is not only easy but gives you the option of cooking/eating right away or drying for later consumption.  Plus it is SUPER easy, even if you don't have a pasta cutter or roller.

Easy Homemade Noodles

• 2 1/4 c Flour
• 1/2 t Salt
• 1/3 c Water
• 2 Egg Yolks
• 1 Egg, whole
• 1 t Oil
• Extra flour for dusting

1. In a large bowl combine the flour and salt.  Create a well in the center of the mixture.
2. In a small bowl beat together the water, oil, egg yolks and egg.  Pour the mixture into the well and mix together until a dough is formed.
3. Now comes the elbow grease - knead the dough for a good 8-10 minutes until it is nice and elastic.  Cover the dough and set aside for 10 minutes.
4. After the 10 minutes, divide the dough into 4 pieces.  **If you don't want to make the full amount of noodles at this time you can wrap the dough in parchment and seal in an air tight container and freeze the dough.  I decided to freeze three of the sections for another time.**
5. Roll your pieces out on a lightly floured surface until it is about a 9 x 12 rectangle.  Lightly dust both sides of the dough and set aside for 20 minutes.
6. After the 20 minutes is up, loosely roll the dough lengthwise and cut the spiraled dough crosswise into 1/4 inch strips.  Unroll the strips and cut each length into 2-3 inch sections.
7. At this time you can either cook the noodles immediately or dry them for storing.  


1. If you are going to cook your noodles, place a pot of water to boil on the stove.  Once the water has reached a boil, slowly add the noodles a few at a time - to ensure the water continues to boil.  Stir occasionally.  Homemade noodles only take 2-3 minutes to cook in boiling water.  Be sure not to over cook or they may become mush.
2. If you are going to dry for storage place your noodles on a wire cooling rack and set aside. If you are planning on using the noodles in the next three days they can be stored in the fridge - dry them on the rack for about 2 hours and place in an air tight container in the refrigerator.  If you aren't planning on using the noodles in the next three days you should store them in the freezer - dry on the rack for about an hour and then transfer to an air tight container for the freezer.  
8. ENJOY!

Now for the nutrition facts.  One quarter of the dough - like I used - creates about 7-8 ounces of cooked noodles.  Seeing I was eating the noodles for lunch, I settled on a small bowl of 4oz to go with my meal - if I was eating it for dinner I would probably have eaten the entire 6-8 ounces.  That being said I decided to divide the recipe into 4 servings.  So 1/4 of the dough is roughly 300 calories.  For my lunch today I cut that in half and had 4 oz of cooked noodles for 150 calories.  (Barilla linguine comes in at about 200 calories for 2oz - just to give you a comparison.)

The good thing about these noodles is that they don't need to be soaked in butter, sauce or pesto to taste great.  For lunch I simply added a couple teaspoons of freshly grated parmesan cheese - WONDERFUL.

You can also use this recipe to make ravioli - try making chocolate ravioli, it is yummy!  Give it a try, I promise you will make it again and again.

Greek Yogurt Pizza Crust

Pinterest is a great time suck.  I mean that in the best possible way!  I, personally, love it - but it is a time suck.  The biggest problem with pinterest is determining if a recipe or craft is actually "doable" based on the information provided.  A greek yogurt pizza crust is just the type of recipe I am talking about.  Now I know that you can use greek yogurt in place oil in some recipes, but the possibility of adding yogurt to flour and creating a "yummy" pizza crust was something I couldn't wrap my head around.  I put it on the back burner.  

I recently started thinking about the pizza crust concept again when I had to purchase self rising flour for a different recipe.  I figured if the pizza crust was going to be anywhere near edible, self rising flour would be the one to use!  And so I set out to try and keep enough greek yogurt in the house to make a pizza crust!  (Between Brian eating it all, and only having mango or pineapple flavor that was an adventure in itself.)

Greek Yogurt Pizza Crust

• 1 c Plain Greek Yogurt
• 1 - 1 1/4 c Self Rising Flour

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F
2. Mix the flour into the greek yogurt.  Knead for 5 minutes.  If the dough is too sticky add a little more flour.
3. Roll out on a pizza stone, top with toppings of your choice and bake until crust is golden brown.  
4. Enjoy!

I have to admit I was very skeptical about the crust's taste.  All in all I am impressed.  The crust bubbled up nicely and lost that "bitter" taste from the greek yogurt.  I apologize for the pictures.  I sort of threw the dough together and in my skepticism I wasn't all that careful in preparation!  I also didn't add all the wonderful toppings we normally use on pizza - didn't want to waste the veggies in case it was a horrific disaster!  I have to say that with all the normal toppings this pizza will be all sorts of delicious.  

Calorie wise the crust isn't all that bad.  I cut the pizza into eight slices which would leave the calorie count at about 65-70 calories per slice (just for the crust).  As is in the picture, with sauce and cheese, the pizza came to about 80 calories per slice - not bad at ALL for pizza!!

  

Next time I will make sure to roll it out evenly!

Taco Pizza

Brian requested taco pizza for dinner.  I was all for it until I did the math for a homemade pizza dough taco pizza - 460+ calories for 2 slices?  Heck if I wanted that amount of calories used up I would have gone to Papa Gino's (my personal pizza guilty pleasure)!  That just wasn't going to work - I needed to find a way to reduce the calories.

Have I ever introduced you wonderful people to the amazing Top This! Pizza crusts?  They are wonderful!  I first found them at Dave's Marketplace, and have since discovered that our wonderful milk man will deliver them right to our door!  They are beautiful fire grilled pizza crusts that come in white and wheat.  (I have had both, yet in our house we prefer the white - plus it is less calories.)  The white pizza crust 1s 600 calories for the ENTIRE THING - compared to the 1000 calories for a homemade pizza dough I would say that is a significant reduction!  If you live in New England (or "Old New England" - read: Florida) check them out!  They are delicious and a wonderful alternative to a higher calorie pizza dough.

So I discovered a means to lower the calorie count and taco pizza was again feasible for dinner.  I would say it came out pretty good.  I only ended up having one piece, 1/8th of the pizza.  This was originally due to the fact that I wasted all my calories for the day on chocolate - it was one of those days.  After eating that once piece, and a salad, I am happy to say I was very full.  So I didn't actually miss out on anything!

Taco Pizza

• 1 Top This! Pizza Crust
• 1 c Refried Beans (I used fat free)
• 1/2 lb Ground Beef
• 2 T Taco Seasoning
• 1 c Corn (I used frozen)
• 1 Bell Pepper, diced
• 1/2 Onion, diced
• 1/4 c Black Olives, sliced
• ~10 Grape Tomatoes, chopped
• 1/3 c Mexican Cheese

Check out those layers!!  YUM

1. Brown the ground beef in a pan and season with the taco seasoning.  
2. Mix the corn into the ground beef and set aside to cool.
3. Preheat the oven to 425 F and place your pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven while preheating.
4. While the oven is preheating put the refried beans in a microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 1-2 minutes.  When done spread the beans out in and even layer on the pizza crust.
5. Top the refried beans with the meat/corn mixture.  
6. Top the meat/corn mixture with the peppers, onions, olives, and tomatoes.
7. Finally sprinkle the cheese on top of everything.
8. Slide the prepared pizza onto the preheated pizza stone or baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and the crust has reached your personal crispiness.  
9. Remove from oven, cut into 8 slices and ENJOY!

Brian topped his pizza with salsa.  You can also add avocado slices, sour cream, or even lettuce.  The pizza is thick and messy, but let's be honest - all the best types of pizza are!

Sorry for the crappy pictures - I really need to start using an
actual camera instead of my phone for these posts!

Now for the calories:  For one slice of pizza (1/8th of the pizza) the calorie count comes to 180.  But let's be honest, who actually east ONE slice of pizza (unless you accompany it with a SUPER LARGE salad).  So for 1/4 of the pizza the calorie count is 360.  Simple math I know, but I wanted to put it out there so you could SEE that it came in a whole 100 calorie less than the homemade pizza dough.

Hawaiian Chicken

Blue Pool on Maui, the ocean side - most beautiful place I
have ever been in my life!!

Hawaii, how I love you!  Brian and I spent our honeymoon on Maui and fell in love with the island.  Not only is it a beautiful place, but the general atmosphere is food for the soul.  Between the gorgeous views everywhere you look to the wonderful foods, Maui is a wonderful place to be.

Now, how a trip to Florida is never complete without an orange, a trip to Hawaii isn't complete without a pineapple. Therefore, when I decided on making Hawaiian chicken I new it was going to need pineapple to go along as well.  I remember the luau's having all this wonderful food - purple taro bread, macadamia nuts in all variations, kalua pua (roasted pork straight from an imu), or nice purple sweet potatoes.  Everything, to me, had a rich sweet taste - and that is what I was trying to recreate.

This recipe definitely has a sweet taste.  Brian enjoyed it, but I thought it needed to be dialed back a bit.  Even though, every bite reminded me of being on that beautiful island!! - a three year old can handle a 12 hour flight right?!

Hawaiian Chicken

• 12-16 oz Chicken Breast, boneless/skinless and cut into tenders
• 1/2-3/4 c BBQ Sauce (I used Smokehouse Sweet and Tangy)
• 1 c Pineapple Chunks
• 1/2 c Pineapple Juice (from the can of chunks if you used canned)
• 15-20 Maraschino Cherries, de-stemmed
• 1 T Cornstarch 

1. Spray your crock pot with non-stick spray and lay the chicken tenders on the bottom.  
2. In a bowl, combine the BBQ sauce and pineapple juice.  Pour the mixture over the chicken.
3. Add the pineapple chunks and cherries on top and cover.
4. Cook on high for 1.5 - 2.5 hours or low for 3-4 hours.  (I almost always cook on low and check them at the 3 hour mark.)
5. Remove the chicken from the crockpot and set aside to cut into pieces. 
6. Add the cornstarch into the watery BBQ sauce mix and mix well until all the cornstarch is dissolved.  Turn the crockpot back on high for 10 minutes.
7. While the sauce is thickening cut the chicken into pieces.  
8. Once the sauce has thickened - about ten minutes - add the chicken back in and stir to coat the pieces evenly.  Serve right away or leave your crockpot on warm until ready to serve.
9. Enjoy!

As I said earlier, I think the sweetness in this is a little overpowering.  I think the next time I will try "making my own" BBQ like consistency.  If you try it let me know your thoughts!

Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

I am unable to cook meatloaf.  I feel like it is a staple that I am somehow fundamentally unable to recreate.  I have no problem making meatballs.  Whom, in my opinion, are just mini-meatloaves.  Yet the meatloaf itself is always just beyond my reach.  Now I am not saying that what I create is inedible.  Normally my "loaves" have a perfectly fine meatloaf taste.  They sometimes stay in loaf formation and other times form a nice "breadcrumb" consistency.  It is a flaw, inability to cook a good meatloaf.  I always wonder if my issue with meatloaf stems from the fact that I didn't even eat ground beef until I was in my 20's.  Whatever the cause, I am still looking for that "to die for" meatloaf recipe that will fix my quandary.

This recipe doesn't solve my problem :-D  The loaf came out fine and it tasted as it should, but I was not blown away and therefore still consider this a meatloaf failure.  Which, given the response to dinner, is anything but.  Seconds were requested and devoured.  It just didn't strike my fancy - it was good but not mouthwatering, willing-to-do-an-extra-mile-on-the-treadmill-for-another-piece good.   Give it a whirl and let me know your opinion.

Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

• 1 lb Ground Beef
• 1 Onion, diced
• 1 Celery Stalk, Diced
• 4-8 oz Mushrooms, Diced
• 1 Zucchini, shredded
• 1/2 c Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
• 1/4 c Breadcrumbs
• 1 Egg
• 4 T Bacon Crumbles *
• 3 slices Wheat Bread, chunked
• 1/4 c Milk
• 4 T Ketchup
• 1 t Mustard

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.  Foil and grease a roasting pan and set aside.
2. Place the bread chunks in a large bowl and pour the milk over them.  Set the bowl aside.
3. In a non-stick skillet sauté the onion, celery, and mushrooms until soft and slightly transparent.  
4. Add the shredded zucchini and toss until warmed through.  Remove from heat and set aside to slightly cool. 
5. Add the beef, bacon, breadcrumbs, egg and cheese to the bread and milk mixture.  Mix/combine well.
6. Once the vegetables have cooled sufficiently, add them to the bowl as well.
7. In a small bowl combine the ketchup and mustard.  Pour 1/4 of the mix into the meat/veggie bowl and mix well.
8. Transfer the mixture to the roasting pan and form a loaf.
9. Spread the remaining ketchup mixture on top of the loaf and bake for about 60 minutes, or until cooked through.
10. Enjoy

I know that it seems like a lot of instructions, but it really is a simple process. I am not sure if you NEED to sauté the veggies prior to adding them, but I do know that it gives the loaf a nice robust flavor.  I should also point out that you don't really taste the bacon over the other flavors in this loaf, so if that is your aim you might want to increase the amount of bacon used.

Calorie-wise this is a pleasing meal.  The loaf, cut into 6 slices, comes to about 250 calories per slice.  Now those are BIG slices so I guess it all depends on what you will be serving with your meatloaf.  For dinner tonight I accompanied mine with oven roasted potatoes (a hubby favorite) and a large salad.

*Bacon Crumbles - I can't believe I have never shared this little find on my blog before: Hormel Real Bacon Crumbles.  I am sure there are those of you that already know of this wonderful food, however for those that don't I felt the need to share.  I buy a bag of Hormel Real Bacon Crumbles from BJ's or Sam's Club.  The bag is the equivalent of approximately 5 pounds of uncooked bacon.  I think it is $6-7, though don't quote me on that.  I use these crumbles in EVERYTHING that requires bacon.  It goes on Brian's pizza, in the Corn Chowder, and in the twice-baked cauliflower - heck I use it in a LOT of recipes.  Brian likes bacon - show me a man that doesn't - and this is an easy way to bring that bacon taste into my recipes.  Not only is it convenient, but one tablespoon of these crumbles is only 25 calories - and let me tell you a tablespoon goes a LONG way.  I have found that a lot of "low cal" recipes call for canadian bacon, something that I like though am not a fan of mixed with things.  I have substituted the caloric equivalent of these crumbles in those recipes many a time.  OK I will stop with the product plug now, I just wanted to share one of our enjoyable finds.

I wasn't planning on posting the meatloaf here so I didn't take any pictures.  (The hubby convinced me that it was good and I should share.)  Seeing it seems to be a hit I am sure I will be making it again and will post pictures at that time.

Baked Pizza Egg Rolls

I woke up this morning wanting to cook.  I love being in my kitchen, making a mess, creating something yummy.  Today I knew I wanted to cook but I couldn't figure out just what it was I wanted to create.  I spent a good deal of time this morning trying to define what I was after.  It never did come to me.  I knew I wanted to "cook" as opposed to "bake" so most of my stand-by's were out.  I contemplated whipping up pot pie soup, but Brian is more of a fan of "Tastes Like Lasagna" (which apparently I have never shared here so be prepared for that post in the very near future).  Then I thought  pizza casserole sounded good, but I wasn't in the mood for pasta (yes I took my temperature to make sure I wasn't running a super high fever causing delusion).

So no pasta, but the pizza idea seemed to stick.  These were supposed to be wonton bites; however I didn't have any wonton wrappers in my house and I was too lazy to cut the egg roll wrappers down to size.  Hey, don't judge my laziness, I at least made something!

Baked Pizza Egg Rolls

• 12 Egg Roll Wrappers
• 1/2 c Mozzarella Cheese*, shredded
• 2 T Pizza Sauce (I used Contadina - yum - but any tomato sauce will do)
• 4 T (heaping) Diced Tomatoes
• 1 T Mushroom, diced
• 1 T Minced Onion
• 1 oz Pepperoni, chopped
• Garlic, to taste
• Italian Seasoning, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.  Foil line a baking sheet and place a cooling rack on the sheet.  Spray the rack with non-stick spray.
2. Mix all the ingredients, save the wrappers, together.
3. Spoon about one heaping tablespoon onto each wrapper and roll.  (To get the wrappers to stick brush the edges with water or a beaten egg.)
4. place the prepared egg rolls on the rack, be sure to leave space so they are not touching, and spray the tops of the egg rolls lightly with oil.  
5. Bake  in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
6. ENJOY

By placing the rolls on a rack in the pan it allows them to
crisp on both sides without having to worry about flipping.  

Now being me, I garnished the egg rolls with a little fresh grated parmesan cheese (cause who doesn't like parmesan cheese?).  They are actually pretty good.  I always have to stress this when making baked egg rolls - THEY ARE BAKED.  If you are going into this thinking you will get that oily crunch out of your egg roll wrappers then you will be disappointed.  There is a crunch, but it is a different kind of crunch.  That being said, you can definitely deep fry these if you so desire - I just try to avoid high temperature vats of oil!

The egg rolls come in at around 90 calories a piece.  Not that bad in my opinion.  The recipe makes 12, we had them for lunch with some cucumbers (obviously) and avocado (another obvious choice).  I also supplied extra dipping pizza sauce - you never know when the need to dip will strike.  I ended up eating three for lunch.  I probably could have gotten away with just two, but I ate a skimpy breakfast this morning.  So for 270 calories I had three good sized pizza egg rolls and I am feeling plenty full!

This is another one of those recipes, like the muffin bites that you can do pretty much anything with!  Keep them pizza-like yet add different ingredients (i.e. peppers, bacon, zucchini) or completely change them into buffalo chicken egg rolls.  Slap on your chef hat and decide what you feel like that day!

Give them a shot if you are so inclined - and don't forget to let me know your thoughts!

*I am a HUGE fan of FRESH mozzarella.  I know many of you will think I am jumping on some sort of bandwagon (cause I am sure there is a "fresh cheese" bandwagon out there somewhere).  Whatever you think, try it.  I promise you, once you use fresh mozzarella in your recipes you will never go back to those pre-shredded bags hanging in refrigerated section at the grocery store.  I feel so strongly about this that I am currently buying the materials to make my own mozzarella.  That being said - use whatever cheese you like, the egg rolls are for you to eat and therefore should be made with ingredients you prefer.

Parmesan Crusted Chicken

One of my absolute FAVORITE ways to prepare and eat chicken.  This is a standard recipe in every house I am sure, but I love it so much that it needed it's own blog post.  Add the chicken to pasta with pesto or just a salad and you have a wonderful meal!

YUM - not only did we have crusted chicken, but avocado as well
Tonight's dinner was all about ME!

Parmesan Crusted Chicken

• 1/2 c Flour
• 1 Egg + 1 T Water, beaten
• 1/2 c Freshly Shredded Parmesan Cheese
• 12 oz Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, flattened
• 2 T Butter or Oil

1. Place butter or oil in a large nonstick fry pan over medium/high heat.
2. Be sure you flattened your chicken to roughly the same thickness to ensure even cooking.
3. Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour till coated.  Then dip the floured breasts into the egg and press into parmesan cheese.  
4. Transfer the prepared breasts to the heated fry pan and cook, flipping once to ensure cook through.  
5. Remove from pan and ENJOY!

See nothing to it!  if you haven't made this recipe before, and are a fan of chicken, I implore you to try it.  You won't be let down!  I would say in our house this chicken makes it's way into the menu every couple of weeks, in some incarnation or another.  It is quick, easy, and I always have the ingredients on hand.  Not to mention that I seem to crave it every couple of weeks.  You can pretty much make this with any hard cheese, as exampled by Cheesecake Factory's Romano Crusted Chicken dinner :-D.

As prepared, cooked in margarine instead of oil, I divide this recipe into three servings of 4 oz of chicken each.  Each serving comes in at about 250 calories - an all in all very respectable number for such a yummy dish!

Pizza Muffin Bites

Tonight was a scramble for dinner.  I didn't have a plan - not that I normally plan out all my meals, but I do normally at least have the start of an idea throughout the day.  Today I had NOTHING.  Brian is not normally a help in this area, his standard response is "it doesn't matter".  So while thinking about dinner during a lull this afternoon I volleyed out the thought of pizza to Brian.  It was returned positively and I was set - I would make a Top This! when I got home and we would have a wonderfully yummy pizza for dinner.  Fast forward to me arriving home and going to prep the Top This! - AHHH there is no pizza crust!

The scramble ensues.  I was thinking I could make a pizza casserole - we had that a couple weeks ago and I wasn't in the mood for a casserole.  I could try that "greek yogurt and self rising flour" crust - would that even work if the only greek yogurt I have is vanilla flavored?  I could scrape the pizza idea all together and start in a new direction - but now I really had my heart set on a pizza-like dinner!!  Time to search my "to do" recipe pile for something pizza-like.  Enter the pizza muffin bites.  Originally I passed these by thinking they were going to be very high calorie for a few little muffin bites.  Yet after contemplating crescent roll pepperoni wraps and pushing dinner way back to allow for dough rising, I decided to revisit the muffin bites in the hopes of having dinner ready in the 30 minutes I had before Brian got home.  

They did not disappoint!  Not only does the the recipe come together quickly and easily, but they are fairly low calorie for what they are.  They are also quite yummy and versatile!

Pizza Muffin Bites

• 3/4 c Flour
• 3/4 t Baking Powder
• 1 T Italian Seasoning
• 3/4 c Milk (I used whole - thought I don't see why it wouldn't work with low fat)
• 1 Egg
• 1 c Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
• 1/2 c Parmesan Cheese, shredded (If you use the canned grated I would cut back to 1/4 c)
• 1 c Pepperoni, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. Prepare mini-muffin tins by spraying with non-stick spray, set aside.
3. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  
4. Set the bowl aside and let sit for 10 minutes.
5. Stir the batter and spoon into mini-muffin tins.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes (I baked for about 25 minutes and they were still soft in the middle, I prefer crunchier so I will probably cook them longer in the future.)
7. ENJOY!!

See?  Super easy and very yummy!  Start to finish they took about 40 minutes and satisfied my pizza craving.  Now the fun part - they are 37 calories a piece!  I originally divided the recipe in two, giving each person a serving size of 12 mini muffins.  That turned out being too much, in my opinion, and too little in Brian's.  I ended up eating about 9 of them and feeling very full - I probably should have stopped at 7.  

Another great thing about this recipe is that you can mix it up.  Want to make it vegetarian - remove the pepperoni and add some veggies (not so sure if you can/would want to take the cheese out).  Not feeling pepperoni - add some real bacon bits instead.  Mix up the cheeses.  Make TACO muffin bites.  Oh the possibilities!!  Not only does it have a multitude of possibilities, but they bake up so quickly and are so easily transportable that I am envisioning a new party food!

Anyone have any other ideas? 

Adapted from Rachael Ray - Pizza Puffs

Mexican Hash-brown Casserole (Crockpot)

I have said it before, this is a family that enjoys Mexican dishes.  While perusing Pinterest the other night I stumbled upon this gem and decided to give it a whirl for dinner tonight.  Though I am normally not a fan of "cook first then add" crockpot meals, this recipe isn't hard by any means.  The original effort is worth the outcome if you ask me. Plus anything with potatoes and seasonings is a-ok in my book!

Mexican Hash-brown Casserole

• 3/4 lb Ground Beef
• 1 Onion, chopped and divided
• 1 can Whole Kernel Corn, divided
• 1 Red Pepper, chopped and divided
• 1 can Diced Tomatoes
• 1 4oz can Green Chilies
• 4 T Taco Seasoning *
• 4 oz Cream Cheese (I use the 1/3 less fat)
• 1 lb Potatoes, shredded (I used frozen hash brown shreds)
• 2 c Mexican Cheese, shredded and divided

1. Mix the potatoes, 1 c cheese, half the pepper, half the corn, and half the onion in a bowl.  Add in one tablespoon of taco seasoning and mix to incorporate.  Set aside.
2. Brown the ground beef with the remaining onion, corn, and pepper.
3. Add the remaining taco seasoning (don't have taco seasoning? Make your own) and continue to cook until meat is cooked through and vegetables are soft.
4. Add the cream cheese to the meat mixture and blend until cream cheese is melted.
5. Spray the crockpot with nonstick spray.
6. Layer half the potatoes on the bottom of the crock pot bowl.  Top with half the meat mixture and follow that with 1/2 cup of the remaining shredded cheese.  Layer again with the remaining ingredients.
7. Set the crock pot to low and cook for 4-6 hours.
8. Enjoy

See what I mean about cooking prior to throwing in the crock pot?  I am one that normally likes to only cook once, but I was willing to give this a shot.  It makes a LOT.  I settled on dividing the entire recipe into 6 servings (as we were eating it for dinner) however they are very large servings.  Boy is this recipe FILLING and yummy!   If you decide to use 6 servings the calorie count comes in around 400 calories a serving**.  If you divide it into 8 servings it is about 300 calories per serving**.  Top with your favorite Mexican compliments : avocado slices, salsa, sour cream.

** Please keep in mind that the calorie count does not include your accompaniments.

Excuse the not so pretty picture... I was trying to show
how much it makes!

If you try it let me know your thoughts!

Adapted from The Kitchen Witch