Tag Archives: tomatoes

Chicken Salad with Artichokes

August 30, 2010 admin Leave a comment

Lunch salads don’t have to be the same boring thing day in and day out. This one has marinated grilled chicken and artichokes giving it a great Italian flavor.

2 servings
390 calories per serving

½ c lite Italian dressing
½ lb. boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 c torn arugula
2 c torn romaine leaves or other greens
14 oz. can quartered artichoke hearts
2 plum tomatoes, cut into wedges
½ c low fat shredded cheddar cheese
4 fresh basil leaves cut into strips

Pour ¼ c dressing over chicken and refrigerate ½ hour. Heat grill and cook chicken 6-8 minutes each side or until done then cut into strips. Combine arugula and lettuce and top with artichokes, chicken, tomatoes, cheese, basil and the rest of the dressing.

Chicken, Dinner, FiberGourmet, Pasta

Pesto Chicken and Pasta

August 5, 2010 admin Leave a comment

This dish is so packed with flavor, so satisfying, so easy to make and I am so going to make it again very soon !

4 servings
200 calories per serving

½ c prepared pesto sauce
1 c fat free chicken broth
9 oz. prepared sliced chicken (Perdue Shortcuts work great here)
8 oz. FiberGourmet Fettucine noodles (without FiberGourmet pasta, you have to add another 80 calories per serving to this)
Salt and pepper to taste
2 large tomatoes, chopped

Mix pesto and ¾ c broth in a skillet and add the chicken and mix well then cover and cook on medium for 5 minutes. Cook the pasta according to package directions and toss with ¼ c broth and season with salt and pepper then add chicken mix and mix well. Garnish with chopped tomatoes.

Lunch, MUFAs, Salads, Tex Mex, Vegetables

Southwest Spinach Salad

July 19, 2010 admin Leave a comment

What a symphony of flavors ! Your mouth doesn’t know what to be the happiest about – is it the pine nut accent? Or the spicy pepperjack cheese? Or the creamy avocados? Or the smoky chipotle dressing? This is one of THE BEST salads I’ve ever made.

4 servings
300 calories per serving

8 c fresh baby spinach
1/2 c corn with sweet peppers
1/3 c halved black pitted olives
2 T chopped fresh cilantro
2 oz. diced pepper jack cheese
2 plum tomatoes, cut into 8 wedges each
2 hard boiled eggs, quartered
1 ripe avocado cut into 16 slices
3 T lime juice
2 T oil
1 t chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1/8 t salt
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T toasted pine nuts
A few extra squirts of lime juice if you like your salad nice and ‘wet’

Combine spinach, corn, olives, cilantro and cheese. Place 2 c worth on each plate. Arrange tomato, egg and avocado slices atop the spinach. Combine lime juice, oil, chopped chipotle, salt and garlic. Whisk well and pour over salads. Sprinkle with pine nuts.

Chicken, Lunch, Sandwiches, Tex Mex

Southwest Chicken Panini

July 11, 2010 admin Leave a comment

Spicy hot and spicy good. You can tone this one down by using chili powder instead of chipotles, but it you like it hot, roll with it 🙂

4 servings
360 calories per serving

2 c finely chopped cooked chicken breasts (Perdue Shortcuts work great here)
1 ½ t diced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (available in the Mexican section of your grocery store)
2 T Miracle Whip lite
2 T light ranch dressing
8 slices Italian bread
8 slices tomato
4 fat free cheese slices
ICBINB Spray

Heat Panini grill. Mix chicken, chipotles and dressings and fill bread slices, then add tomatoes and cheese and spray outside of bread with I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter spray (about 5 squirts per slice of bread) and grill about 2 minutes per side or 4 minutes total in a Panini press.

Contests, Lunch, Mediterranean, Salads

Chickpea Salad with Feta Cheese

June 30, 2010 admin 5 Comments

I’m not a huge fan of plain salads. But when you add lots of fiber (chickpeas) and cheese, then they become special and they do fill you up. This one has both and has a great citrus dressing. Add a few squirts of fresh lime of orange juice to give it even more citrusy taste.

4 servings
178 calories per serving

1 15oz. can chickpeas, drained
2 scallions, sliced
1/2 c grape tomatoes, halved
3 T fresh parsley, chopped
3 C bagged salad mix (I like to use a mix of organic greens or mesclun mix)
2 oz. low fat feta cheese
1 t lemon zest
2 T lemon juice
1 t oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 t salt

Mix zest, juice, oil, garlic and salt. Add chickpeas, tomatoes, scallions, parsley and salad and toss well to coat. Sprinkle with feta and serve.

Dinner, Fish

Sauteed Shrimp with Arugula

June 21, 2010 admin Leave a comment

What an excellent meal ! The bitter arugula offset the sweet tomatoes and shrimp just perfectly. And at 144 calories per serving – – EAT UP 🙂

4 servings
144 calories per serving

1 T plus 1 t oil
1 c grape tomatoes
1 garlic clove, minced
1 lb. large shrimp, peeled and cleaned
4 oz. baby arugula (4 c)
Coarse salt and pepper
1 T lemon juice

Heat oil and add tomatoes and cook 2 minutes then add garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook until almost done, about 4 minutes. Add arugula, salt and pepper and toss until the arugula wilts some. Finally add lemon juice, toss, and serve.

Dinner, Italian, Pasta, Vegetables

No Bake Lasagna

June 14, 2010 admin Leave a comment

Even my non-lasagna-loving kid had to have seconds of this one. It is just cheesy enough without that part being overpowering. Much like the physical layers of the lasagna, there are great flavor layers here since the cheese mix, zucchini mix and tomato mix are all flavored independently. This was a really superb dish !

4 servings
376 calories per serving

½ c low fat ricotta cheese
3 T parmesan cheese
3 T plus 2 t oil
Coarse salt
Pepper
8 lasagna noodles broken in half
1 garlic clove, minced
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
½ t red pepper flakes
2 zucchini, thinly sliced
½ t garlic powder
1 T basil leaves, torn

Mix cheeses and 2 t oil. Add salt and pepper. Cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions and then drain. Heat 2 T oil in a skillet and cook garlic and tomatoes with some salt and pepper and the crushed red pepper about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and then add 1 T oil and zucchini to the skillet, season with garlic powder, and cook about 8 minutes then remove to a bowl and add basil. Place some tomatoes on plates and top with a noodle and a small spoonful of ricotta and a spoonful of zucchini and then some more tomatoes. Repeat layers twice and then top with the rest of the noodles and tomatoes and garnish with basil.

Italian, Lunch, Soups

Italian Bean Soup

May 23, 2010 admin Leave a comment

The broth in this soup tastes like it’s been simmered for hours – it has a great depth of flavor. But this soup takes just 20 minutes or so of simmering time. And with all the veggies and pasta, it ends up being quite a hearty, thick soup. Just add some water during the last 7 minutes cooking time if you like it a little thinner. But I like gruely soup 🙂

6 servings
190 calories per serving

1 t oil
½ c diced Canadian bacon
½ c chopped green bell pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced
28 oz. can peeled tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
14.5 oz. chicken broth
½ c orzo
15.5 oz. can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
8 oz. frozen cut green beans
¼ c chopped basil
Salt and pepper to taste
½ t garlic powder
½ t onion powder
¼ t celery salt

In a large pan heat oil on medium high heat. Add bacon, green pepper and garlic and cook 3-4 minutes. Add tomatoes, broth and pasta and bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer 12 minutes stirring occasionally. Stir in kidney beans, green beans, salt and pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, celery salt and basil and cook 7 minutes.

Beef, Dinner, FiberGourmet, Italian, Kid Friendly, Pasta

Beef and Tomatoes over Fettucine

May 19, 2010 admin Leave a comment

This was much like eating pepper steak over pasta. The flavors mingled together well and this was a very tasty twist on a beef stir fry.

4 servings
270 calories per serving

2 c uncooked FiberGourmet fettucine noodles
1 T oil
1 c frozen stir fry pepper and onions
1 lb. thinly sliced beef
14.5 oz. canned diced tomatoes, undrained
1 t garlic powder
¼ t pepper
½ t salt
Fresh basil leaves, chopped

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Heat oil and meat 5 minutes then stir in peppers and onions and cook 3-6 minutes, stirring frequently. Then mix in tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper and cook 2 minutes. Stir in pasta and cook 2 minutes to heat through. Garnish with basil.

Chicken, Lunch, Mexican

Chicken and Cheese Tostados

May 10, 2010 admin Leave a comment

I always find tostados a bit hard to eat – do you crack the tortilla and scoop? Do you pick it all up and eat it like a pizza? For this one, I folded the shell over like a taco 🙂 The flavors in this dish mix incredibly well and this is a GREAT lunch.

6 servings
280 calories per serving

6 6 inch flour tortillas
1 package (1.4 oz) taco seasoning
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts in bite sized pieces
½ c water
2 large tomatoes, chopped
7 oz. shredded non fat cheddar cheese
6 T low fat sour cream
¼ c chopped cilantro
Pam

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place tortillas on a cookie sheet and spray with Pam. Sprinkle with 1 t taco seasoning and bake 8 minutes or until tortillas are crisp and golden. Mix chicken with the rest of the seasoning mix and water and bring to a boil in a skillet then simmer 5 minutes or until chicken is done. Add 1 ½ c tomatoes and cook another 2-3 minutes them remove from heat and stir in 1 ¼ c cheese. Place the mix over the heated tortillas and then top with the rest of the tomatoes and cheese.