Granny's Chicken Spread, But Only 90 Calories!

This is a chicken spread that Granny made for us growing up during the summer, and I loved having on days spent at her house playing in pool. It is delicious and filling, but doesn't leave you feeling like a brick in the pool. I have made it and taken it to the school during my law school days when studying for finals so I'd have long lasting energy for studying, and to work for days where I knew I wouldn't be able to leave my desk. I've also served this at parties, and it has been a big hit as an hors d'oeuvre.  It is extremely easy to make and can be eaten on about anything. I decided to make it today, and found a way to make it really healthy without compromising the flavor.

Granny's Chicken Spread

Excuse the presentation in the Tupperware :)

Serving: 1/4 Cup (Recipe makes 8 servings)

Calories: 89.7

Fat: 1.5g

Ingredients: 

• 16 ounces fat free cream cheese
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins (you can substitute canned shredded chicken)
• 1 package of Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning     

1. Cook the chicken in a skillet and season with salt and pepper. This time I seasoned it with a bit of Old Bay Blackening

2. Shred chicken; then mix chicken with cream cheese and about 3/4 of the package of ranch seasoning until well blended.

3. Refrigerate for an hour, then serve (you don't necessarily have to refrigerate initially). This can be eaten on wheat thins, triscuits, crostini, baby carrots, celery, toasted sour dough, and so on...

Thanks to Granny for this delicious treat! I hope you enjoy it on a vehicle of choice!

Two Awesome, Healthy, and Easy Dinners

I'm sure many of you like me get home from work and are starving and exhausted and don't want to labor over a stove like you did over your computer all day. In my current "retired" state, I am still finding that by the end of the day, I have filled my day volunteering to save the children of the world, cleaning the house, playing with the girls, and many other random things that take a lot of energy and time; therefore, I am tired and don't feel like cooking an involved dinner. I also have the dilemma of craving something other than another lean cuisine and have the ambition to do my Insanity workout, but anything I would order would be a million calories, and I would  inevitably fall asleep immediately after eating.

Below are two recipes that feed my cravings without all of the calories. They also require only microwaving and stirring or mixing and baking, so it's a bit therapeutic and something you can do while watching a movie on the iPad or something on tv.

  

Red Wine Risotto with Vegetables and Truffle Salt

Serving: 1.25 cup • 272 calories • 9.75g fat • 23.75g carbohydrates

Based loosely on Eating Well 

Ingredients:

• 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups arborio rice
• 1 3/4 cups dry red wine (I used pinot noir)
• 6 teaspoons tomato paste
• Freshly ground pepper and truffle (or regular) salt, to taste
• 1 can mushrooms (in water, not oil)
• 1 can artichoke hearts (in water, not oil)
• 1 cup English peas (I used frozen peas)
• 1 can stewed tomatoes (no salt added)
• 4 ounces of ground sausage (I used Jimmy Dean spicy pork breakfast sausage)

1. Place broth in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat so the broth remains steaming, but is not simmering. 

2. Cook the sausage and set in a strainer to drain off the extra fat/oil.

3. Drain the water from the peas, mushrooms and artichokes, then microwave the mushrooms, peas, artichoke hearts, and stewed tomatoes, and set aside until the end.

4. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until the onion is very soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.   

5. Add rice in half cup increments and stir to coat. 

6. Stir 1/2 cup of the hot broth and about 1/4 cup of wine into the rice; reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook, stirring constantly, until the liquid has been absorbed. Add more broth, 1/2 cup at a time along with some wine, stirring after each addition until most of the liquid has been absorbed. 

7. After you've added 2 cups of broth, start adding 2 teaspoons of tomato paste with each 1/2 cup of broth. Continue to cook, adding broth and wine and stirring after each addition until most of the liquid is absorbed. Season with truffle salt and pepper.

8. The risotto is done when you’ve used all the broth and wine and the rice is creamy and just tender, which takes about 20-30 minutes. At this point, stir in the vegetables and sausage, and stir for another 3-5 minutes. When ready to eat, serve 1 1/4 cup of your creamy risotto and top with a bit of parmesan cheese.

You can easily substitute any number of vegetables and meat or no meat at all. I like how the vegetables add substance and flavor without killing the nutritional value. This makes a total of 8 servings, so you will have plenty left over.

Mexican Style Stuffed Peppers

I love Mexican food.  These stuffed peppers are a healthy way to fill that craving, and are packed with protein.

Serving:  1 pepper • 337 calories • 3.2g fat • 58g carbohydrates • 24g protien

Ingredients:

• 4 bell peppers
• 1 package Lightlife Ground Mexican (you can substitute this for their Ground Original, which is a bit easier to find at most stores or you could use lean ground beef, ground turkey, shredded chicken, etc.)
• 1 can black beans
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 cup corn (I used frozen)
• 10-15 grape tomatoes, halved (you can also dice a regular tomato if that's what you have on hand)
• 2 diced jalapenos
• 3/4 cup salsa
• 2-3 tablespoons cilantro
• Hot sauce, to taste (I used Valentina)
• Cayenne, chili powder, salt and pepper, to taste
• 75% Fat-free cheddar cheese, grated
• Fat-free sour cream

Note: you can easily leave out any of these ingredients or add others as you prefer and based on what is in your cabinet. I like my food spicy so I go heavy on the hot sauce, cayenne and chili powder. Also if you leave out the beans, it will significantly cut down on the carbs.

1. Add some salt pepper, cayenne, chili powder and hot sauce to the "meat" and microwave according to the instructions on the package. 

2. Dice the onion, jalapeno, tomatoes, and cilantro.

3. Mix all ingredients.

4. Cut top off of peppers and pull out seeds and core; then stuff with mixture. 

5. Bake for at least 30 minutes at 375 °F. I cooked these for an hour (because I was playing video games)

6. Cut in half and finish with a bit of grated cheese and sour cream.  -->

These are quite filling and excellent left over; the flavors continue to meld together.

Happy healthy eating!

This may be the best thing ever: virtually fat-free truffle lobster mac and cheese!

Mac and cheese is one of my favorite foods ever; one I think I probably could eat daily, and probably have for more days in a row than I should admit. The only way to make the creamy and cheesy deliciousness better is to add some truffle flavor and lobster. Unfortunately, it is normally a high calorie, high fat dish. I was recently found this recipe that makes virtually fat free mac and cheese, and was immediately intrigued and had to try it. (Brandon behind Kitchen Konfidence has a lot of cool recipes and ways to do some of the modern techniques without all of the expensive equipment.)

I've re-posted the recipe below with my adaptations. I was extremely pleased with the outcome despite my initial fear that it would not live up to my ideal of mac and cheese.

Virtually Fat-Free Truffle Lobster Mac and Cheese:

Ingredients

• 1 head of cauliflower, thinly sliced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3 cups grated Jack cheese
• 3 cups grated Gruyère cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 10 ounces dry macaroni (I used Mueller's Hidden Veggie Twisted Elbows)
• 2 lobster tails
• 1/2 tablespoon of butter

1. Thinly slice full head of cauliflower and set aside.

2. Place lobster tail in bag with 1/2 tablespoon of butter and salt and pepper. Cook sous vide in a 60°C bath for 45 minutes, then set aside in microwave to keep warm.

3.  Put all of the grated cheese in bag with 3 1/2 cups of water.  Vacuum seal the bag to best of your ability. (It's a bit difficult to vacuum seal the bag fully because of the water; as you can see below, there was a little bit of air left in mine, which is okay.) Cook sous vide in a 176°F bath for 30 minutes. 

4. While the cheese is cooking, boil the cauliflower, then drain and puree using a hand emulsion blender. Set aside.

5. Once cheese has finished cooking, strain the cheese and cheese water into a bowl, through a strainer using a cheese cloth (or paper towel as I did if you don't have a cheese cloth on hand-see below).

6. Cool the sous vide bath temperature back down to 60°F, and put lobster back into it to warm until the rest of the steps are done. 

7. Boil the macaroni noodles in the cheese water until they are al dente and have absorbed the cheese water.

8. Mix in the cauliflower puree, and season with truffle salt and pepper. 

9. Serve mac and cheese in a bowl and top with lobster tail and chives. 

Note and Thoughts on the Recipe: 

• If you do not have a sous vide, all of those steps can be done using a big pot and zip lock bags, as described on Kitchen Konfidence.
• The original recipe called for 2 1/4 cups of water to be added to the cheese, but that amount didn't fully cover the cheese, so I added more. I think 3.5 cups was the right amount to allow the noodles to fully cook.
• My only negative/sad thought from this recipe is that after straining the cheese water from the cheese, I was left with about 6 cups of flavorless cheese/lard, which seems a bit like a waste. I tried eating/using this lump of "cheese" in subsequent days, and came to the conclusion that it was basically flavorless fat, and threw it away. Maybe you are more inventive than I am and can find a use for the leftover cheese. 
• You could easily make the mac and cheese without the lobster, and either have it plain or add bacon. The possibilities are limitless and delicious!
• I cannot verify that this is entirely fat-free, because I lack in equipment and scientific training; however, the few science classes I took and general reasoning lead me to the fact that it seems to be at least mostly fat free, since you simply use the flavor from the cheese (similar to an extract, maybe?) and no butter or milk/cream.

This was an excellent choice to make on a rainy Friday night and enjoy with a buttery chardonnay, and be able to enjoy knowing you have cut out extra calories and fat!