Chicken Cordon Bleu

I was craving a rich meal, and this specifically after seeing it on a commercial. While at the gym I was thinking of it and had an epiphany --- I use cauliflower for pizza crust, why not broccoli for chicken breading. So for lunch I tried it. Amazingness!!!

I had 2 very this chicken breast pieces so I put 2 slices of cheese (I used jalapeño jack) and some deli ham slices. I dipped in egg and pressed onto about 1/2 cup ground broccoli (used a food processor with the raw broccoli). Put in a pan sprayed with olive oil Pam on medium heat. Cooks slow, about 5min on each side. I topped with a guacamole I made this weekend (avocado, jalapeño, and Greek yogurt). It was wonderful!!! It was enough for 2 meals, especially with some side dish.

Veggie Tuna Melt Mac N Cheese

Yes, You read that right! And you are welcome!!!
Watching Rachael Ray today (It's my "mommy show" and it gives me yummy ideas), she made a tuna melt mac n cheese that looked amazing, but the thought of how it would affect my eating habits these past weeks made me cringe. SOOOOO I altered it and did the math. You ready??

The ENTIRE casserole is 1437 calories. Broken in to 5 servings measuring right about 1cup, that comes out to only 287 calories per serving!!! That means you can have a small second helping, a yummy salad, a perfect lunch serving, or a small dinner before a workout! I am so excited!

So here you go:
I boiled to almost done about 2/3 a box of this:

A yummy treat! While it was boiling I mixed together:
1 cup raw broccoli
3 celery stalks
1/2 yellow squash
about 1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 can tuna
(I did the veggies in the food processor to make it easier for my kids)

I put the veggie and tuna mix in a casserole dish, topped with hot, drained noodles, and topped with some mac n cheese sauce:
Heat about 1 Tbsp butter in a pan. Once melted, stir in about 1Tbsp flour to soak up butter, then whisk in 1.5-2 cups milk. When it starts to warm up, you add in about 2 cups mexi mix or full cheddar cheese (or use white cheddar, swiss... whatever you like). I had grated, you can also chunk the cheese if you buy blocks.
Pour over the noodles and veggies and mix well. Rachael topped hers with bread crumbs and butter, but that was too much for me! I try to stay away from many carbs and gluten, so I sprinkled some almond slices on top and a little italian seasoning to give it some crunch and extra flavor.
Then place in 375 degree oven for 10-15 to heat through.

And, YES! It is just as good as it sounds/looks!!!
Enjoy!

Salads

I used to here "salad" and would picture some iceburg lettuce and ranch. But I have come to LOVE salads, and so have my family. There are so many variations and you can build your own to what you like.

I found a cool taco shell form at the Dollar Tree that I was so excited about! Then I saw this, and was even happier! I have mine for larger meals, like dinner, or for my husband, but its too big for lunch or for my kids... This is perfect! You can use smaller tortillas and make a great lunch, snack, or kid friendly shell at the same time.

Taco Salads: These are probably my favorite. With or without a shell! I like it will fritos, too, you just mix it in. I use our ground deer or get ground turkey and brown it with onions and garlic, then add half a packet of taco seasoning. Put with kale and spinach, tomatoes, avocado, corn kernels, black and or kidney beans (I like to put beans in with meat when its almost done to get some of the seasoning), etc. Add what you like. Sprinkle some cheese, sour cream or yogurt, and salsa on top. So yummy!

Chinese Chicken Salad: At a restaurant these run over 1000 calories, but making your own is simple and so much healthier. I sautee or bake chicken breast with a little sesame oil. Add some green onion and peppers. Lay on a bed of greens with snap peas, a sprinkle of those crunchy noodles, and top with a low cal or homemade tangy dressing.

Fajita Salad: This can be with raw or sauteed veggies. I like it with cold leftovers or with a fresh batch. Sautee bell peppers, onions, garlic, and your choice of meat (we love deer steaks -- can you tell I married a hunter?!). Put over a bed of greens with a few broken tortilla chips if you want, add some sour cream and salsa like you would a taco salad. I like it with oil and vinegar, my family likes ranch instead of sour cream.

Green Salad: This doesnt have to be boring! Get creative! Lay out a bed of greens and start topping! Peppers, snap peas, tomato, roasted garlic, avocado, cheese, roasted or fresh broccoli, steamed and chilled asparagus, artichoke hearts, apples chunks, almond slices, peacans, beans, quinoa, corn, peas, etc. There are so many varieties. Learn to make your own dressings too. Vinegarette is easy, but you can also make caesar or paresean dressings easy and healthier.

Quinoa Salad: I love quinoa! Its easy (cooks like rice) and you can use it to replace rice or pasta. I like to add it with some chicken and veggies with some vinegarette for a tastey "pasta salad", or just add a scoop to your ground meat for some added flavor and it will fill you up more.

Smoothy: I add this because I had an AMAZING smoothy this morning that was about 1/2 salad. Haha. I put 1 cup unsweetened almond milk with a large handful each of spinach and kale. Blended til smooth, then added 1/2 apple with skin, 1 banana, 1/2 c frozen mixed berries, and 2 Tbsp flax. It was wonderful, even if it looked strange. You could add broccoli, different fruits, etc. Mine was about 210 calories. Fast, healthy, and I was energized for the day after a bad night sleep. All the benefits of a morning smoothy WITH healthy greens.

PLEASE add your favorite salads, toppings, and or healthy dressings.

Chicken and Black Bean Salad

Oh Man!!! I hit the jack pot!!! I was trying to find something yummy for dinner that Joel could take to work for lunch and eat cold. I found this recipe online and it sounded so yummy, and I had everything on hand, so I thought I would try it. I made some changes and wanted to share those, but check out the original recipe, too!

I wanted leftovers for a couple days, so I made a big batch (just a warning!).
5 chicken breast baked and diced
2 celery stalks chopped
1 red bell pepper chopped (no seeds)
2 broccoli crowns (I use my kitchen sheers to get super small pieces)
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can rotels with lime juice and cilantro

Mix together and top with dressing:
2 avocados put in food processor (no seeds or skin... just saying!)
4-5 slices jalepeno (optional)
about 1/3 cup milk, just to get a yogurty texture

Pour (or plop) mixture over salad and mix until all coated.
Serve immediately, or refridgerate.

The entire bowl is 2717 calories. I estimate about 8 1.5cup servings, so that would make it 339.6 calories a serving. Not too bad! The 1 c serving would be right below 300 calories!

I will be getting out some smaller tupperware and sectioning off about 1 cup servings for lunches, after we enjoy this for dinner tonight.

We are on our 7 day clean eating challenge and this sure fits right in! Yum!!!

Banana Pancakes (Gluten Free)

I love banana pancakes. I know others who make them, but they are fairly new to me, so I decided to share! They are simple, low calorie, and fast. My whole family loves them, which is a plus.

 

Mix:

~ 2 mashed bananas (they freeze well, so I do 2 bananas in the food processor and freeze in a sandwhich baggy for later use! Great for smoothies, too.)

~1/2 c oats (I have gluten free oats, but not necessary) -- optional

~1-2 tsp honey -- opt

~1 Tbsp cinnamon

~1 egg (or 1/4 c egg whites)

Mix together well. I use a 1/4 c measuring cup to scoop onto a greased or non-stick pan.

Makes about 7 with the measuring cup.

All this is 397 calories, or 57 calories a pancake... Changes by what kind of oats, or if you have the oats and honey. You can do just bananas and egg and its a great low cal breakfast. These are good cold, too, so I like to make several and put them in the fridge for later.



 

Then there is the added benefits of bananas!! Bananas are great for after a workout, too, especially if you did weight training. Oats are great for feeling fuller longer. Local honey has so many benefits, and cinnamon is one of those spices you just cant go wrong with! The egg is great protein. All in all, a very great meal or snack.

 



Habits

We all have them! We always have. The key, I am learning, is to figure out which are healthy, which are hurtful, and which are just habits!

My healthy habits: gym daily, early bedtime, brushing teeth, healthy breakfast, saying "I love you", etc.

My just habits: pushing in all chairs, stomping my toes when I think, etc.

My hurtful habits make a longer list... I am going to focus on the food related ones today!
"Is it TIME to eat?" This is something I never really thought of until I had kids. Why do we eat at 8, 12, and 5??? What if I am hungry at 2? We should be eating smaller meals every 3ish hours... when we are hungry! I noticed after 2 weeks of trying to eat something healthy and portioned every 3ish hours, after a breakfast within an hour of waking, I am not as hungry, I have more energy, and I have started losing weight more easily. Listen to your body, and dont stuff yourself because its time.

Dish up with your EYES: I never paid much attention to serving sizes, just to how hungry I was. Even if I tried to put more veggies and stuff on my plate I ended up with way too much. I now dish up everyones plates with a measureing cup. It's convenient and realistic. No matter what I make, I start with 1/3 or 1/2 measuring cup and go from there. Rices and pastas only need one, veggie mixes, healthy soups, chilis, stews can get 2-3. After a healthy serving size and plenty of water, I can go back for a second helping of the lean meats and veggies if I am still hungry.
I also serve food and leave the bigger dishes in the kitchen! If I am waiting for my slow 5 year old eater to finish I dont want to be tempted to sit and pick at something yummy just because its there.

Clean Your Plate: I dont know how many of you grew up with this, but I always felt that my plate needed to be clean, not just the peas. I am slowly learning to slow down my pace to not finish my plate, but to satisfy my bodys needs. If I eat slower and only eat 1/2 of what is on my plate and feel good, I will drink some water and wait a few minutes. If I still feel satisfied, I package it up for a snack later in the day or even the next day. I have also learned that throwing away 2 or 3 bites will not hurt anyone. If its not enough to keep, or the dog cant eat it, etc, it IS OK to toss it! Dont be unhealthy just to satisfy some crazy notions.

Snacks: Why are snacks so unhealthy? Fast snacks are usually prepackaged sugar and/or salt and chemically packed foods that we dont need! Find stuff you like, such as sliced apples, cutie oranges, bell peppers, snap peas, celery with pb and raisins.... The list is long! And package them! They have snack size ziplock that are perfect! You can do 2-5 days at a time depending on the snack and be ready to go. Pack your lunch the night before with lots of snacks and have a breakfast set up (shake or even oatmeal) that wont take you long. I like the smoothy because I can just grab and go if we are running late.

Please add to this, or just enjoy making fun of me. :)

7 Day Clean Eating Challenge

Joel and I have started our 7 day challenge. No processed foods for 7 days. Sounded easy until he realized no chips or sandwich bread for work, and we both realized no regular salad dressing or sauces. I make most stuff from scratch already, but we are being strict for 7 days to see what we are missing out on healthy food, snacks, etc. I will keep you posted on recipes and updates all week!