Monday, March 18, 2013

Healthy Blueberry Baked Oatmeal



Ever since I made the baked apples I have been wanting to do a full on baked oatmeal. After lots of research, I finally wanted to try my own. The result was super tasty...and perfect for a cold winter morning or a burst of energy snack in the afternoon :) I was even more impressed with myself and I threw this bad boy in the oven while I did my nightly work out... yahooo!

Recipe:

3 cups oats (I used quick but since it cooks for awhile you could pry use any)
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup greek yogurt (I used plain but a flavored may be fun)
1-2 tablespoons of cinnamon (pending how much you prefer)
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1 egg
1 cup skim milk
1 cap full of vanilla
1 tablespoon baking powder

Garnish Ideas: drizzle of honey, greek yogurt, milk... the options are endless

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray (I used a casserole dish). In a mixer, combine the above ingredients until mixed and do not over beat. Bake covered for 20 minutes and then uncovered for 25 minutes or until the crust/top is golden brown. Serve. Devour. Enjoy :) 

This lil joy of goodness makes enough for 10 servings at 150 calories and 2 gram of fat.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Roasted Brussel Sprouts Appetizer




In my journey to health I have felt it necessary to try and branch out a bit on my food selection. Growing up, I was a crazy picky eater! No salad dressing, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, watermelon, green beans, olives, pickles peaches... the list goes on an on. Today I will happily eat all of those with exception to most watermelon and for sure NO pickles and olives :) Today was brussel sprouts and o man were they tasty!!!

Recipe:

1lb fresh brussel sprouts, quartered
1 table spoon olive oil
1 strip of bacon, cubed
1 teaspoon garlic powder
pepper to taste

Dipping Sauce:
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons lemon juice


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a baking sheet, place brussel sprouts, oil, bacon and seasoning. Toss until sprouts are evenly coated. Bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until they are brown and toasted. While the sprouts are toasting, mix the items for the dipping sauce and set aside to let the flavors merry. When the cooking time is complete it is time to enjoy!


These lil tasty treats work great with the dipping sauce but would be lovely on their own as a side dish. An addition of raisins or dried cranberries would also make a great pop of flavor!

The brussel sprouts above makes a healthy four servings at 79 calories!

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Portobello Mini Pizzas

Despite the weather, what a great weekend it has been! After a wonderful day of shopping with my girlfriends and scoring huge on the clearance racks I came home to a hubs who wanted to go out for dinner. After much debate of where to go we decided to go to one of his favorite steak places. This place only has one size of steak per cut so the portions are HUGE! I made plans immediately to do something with the left overs. Much of the leftover steak went into a chicken/steak chili. The rest went into a lil treat for myself of portobello mini pizzas! YUM!

Recipe:
Portobello mushrooms (stem and inside scooped out)
Pizza Sauce of choice
Cheese
Various Toppings

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roast mushrooms (as many as you are wanting to cook) for 7-9 minutes. You will know when to take them out when you start to smell them :) Take them out of the oven and top just like a pizza. Today I started with some pizza sauce, red peppers, cheese and left over steak. After you are done dressing your mushrooms pop them back in the oven and cook 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is brown and bubbly. 

The result is super tasty and super healthy! I had two of these for around 350 calories.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Light Chicken "Carbonara"



I would like to take this moment and spread my pure love and passion for greek yogurt!!! WOW what a versatile food. I put it in smoothies, swap out for sour cream, sauce for gyros and now... a pasta cream sauce!!! The result was a healthy pasta that is rich, creamy and full of flavor :) 

Recipe:

2 chicken breasts, cubed
1 slice bacon, chopped
1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
2 tablespoons garlic powder
3/4 cup chicken stock
12 oz. (2 small containers) plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp. red chilli flakes
pepper to taste
1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1/4 cup water, mixed (optional)
4 cups noodles, cooked.

In a small pot, bring water to a boil and add in noodles of your choice and cook until al dente. In a large skillet, brown chicken breasts and bacon with Italian seasoning, pepper, and 1/2 tablespoon of garlic powder. Deglaze pan with chicken stock. Stir in greek yogurt, chili flakes, remaining garlic powder and cheese until mixed well. Add in noodles and fully coat. Let simmer until cheese starts to melt into sauce. If your sauce is too runny you may add the cornstarch mixture to thicken. Enjoy!

This recipe will serve 6 and comes in at 290 calories and 3 grams of fat!!! Compare that to 1,140 calories and 88 grams of fat at some local chain restaurants and this recipe is a MUST!!!