Category Archives: Dinner

Chicken Mole Stew

April 12, 2011 admin Leave a comment

I’ve made this with beef and I think I actually prefer it with chicken ! The chicken almost looks like beef since it has all the spicy goodness coating it and the flavor is mellow and deep like a good mole. This is not a REAL mole, but the flavor is definitely similar and once you taste this, you’ll find yourself craving it 🙂

6 servings
297 calories per serving

2 T unsweetened cocoa
2 T ground coriander
3 t garlic powder
3 t ground cumin
3 t ancho chile powder
3 t paprika
3 t oregano flakes
¼ t cinnamon
2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 c flour
1 T oil
½ c chopped onion
½ c chopped green bell pepper
½ c dry red wine
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 t salt
¼ t pepper

Combine the first 8 ingredients then stir in the chicken and mix well. Remove the chicken and then add flour to the rest of the spices and whisk well. Then add the chicken back and toss. Heat oil in a Dutch oven on medium high and add chicken pieces and sauté 5 minutes browning all sides then remove to a plate and keep warm. Add onion and pepper to the pan and cook 6 minutes then stir in the wine and tomatoes (with their liquid), add back in chicken, cover and set heat to low and simmer 1 hour stirring occasionally.

Dinner, Kid Friendly, Sides, Vegetables

Corn Salad

April 10, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Even my young teenage nephew liked this one ! So it’s kid approved 🙂 Lotsa flavor, lotsa veggies, and a great side to just about anything.

7 servings
140 calories per serving

Dressing:
¼ c oil
1 T chopped parsley
3 T rice vinegar
1 T soy sauce
½ t crushed red pepper

Salad:
1 lb. frozen corn
¼ c shredded carrots
¼ c sliced radishes
¼ c sliced green onions (green part only)

Combine all dressing ingredients and refrigerate. Bring a pan of water to a boil and cook corn 2 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water to cool then pat dry and add to all the rest of the ingredients. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours so flavors mix.

Dinner, Fish

Tuna Casserole

April 8, 2011 admin Leave a comment

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Everyone loves a good tuna casserole. This one tastes great and is way lower in the calorie department than my regular recipe. It gets skinnied up by using a slim milk and broth based sauce rather than a creamier version. The results are great !

6 servings
390 calories per serving

8 oz. whole wheat egg noodles
1 medium onion, chopped finely
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
½ c chicken broth
6 T flour
3 c skim milk
12 oz. can chunk light tuna in water, drained well
1 c frozen peas, thawed
1 c finely shredded parmesan cheese
½ c panko breadcrumbs
Pam

Cook noodles according to package directions. Preheat broiler.

Heat a skillet and spray with Pam. Then cook onions 5 minutes. If they start to dry out, add a tablespoon or so of hot water. Add mushrooms and cook another 3 minutes. Add wine and continue cooking until liquid is evaporated, about 4 minutes then add milk, salt and pepper. Sprinkle peas with flour and mix to coat. Add to mushroom mix with tuna and half of the parm. Stir in the noodles. Place in a baking dish and sprinkle with crumbs and the rest of the parm. Broil 3-4 minutes until bubbly and top is brown.

Sprinkle the casserole with breadcrumbs and the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Broil until bubbly and lightly browned on top, 3 to 4 minutes.

You can also prepare this ahead and then sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and cheese last minute, cover and bake at 350 degrees for an hour or so, taking off the cover the last 10 minutes to brown the top.

Dinner, Kid Friendly, Sides, Vegetables

Cheesy Green Bean Casserole

April 7, 2011 admin Leave a comment

I bet this gets your kids eating their green beans ! And maybe even asking for more 🙂 Cheese, sauce, stuffing – what’s not to like?!?!

14 servings
157 calories per serving

2 16 oz. packages frozen French cut green beans, thawed
1 can low fat cream of mushroom soup
8 oz. Velveeta, cut into ½ inch cubes
1 1/2 c hot water
1/4 c butter
8 oz. stuffing mix (I like Stove Top)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix beans and soup and place in a baking dish then top with cheese. Mix water and butter and melt butter all the way. Stir into stuffing and then spoon that over the casserole. Bake 40 minutes.

Dinner, Kid Friendly, Pork

Pork Chops and Apple Stuffing

April 4, 2011 admin Leave a comment

The apples added to the stuffing make all the difference in this meal – it is special and memorable ! Try serving with Buttery Carrots.

6 servings
290 calories per serving

6 boneless pork chops, about 1 1/2 lb.
1 medium onion, sliced thin
1 T oil
2 medium apples, thinly sliced
1 1/2 c water
6 oz. Stove Top stuffing

Heat oil in skillet and cook onion 3 minutes then add pork and cook 4 minutes per side or until done. Move meat to a plate and keep warm. Add apples and water and bring to a boil and then stir in stuffing and place on top. Cover and let stand 5 minutes.

Dinner, Sides

Spanish Rice

April 3, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Spice it up with some homemade Spanish rice. This recipe is easy to do and gives you a great side dish ! You could easily substitute the type of tomatoes and peppers to make this exactly how you like it.

6 servings
144 calories per serving

½ c finely chopped shallots
½ c chopped bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T oil
1 t chili powder
28 oz. can diced tomatoes and their juice
¾ c long grain rice
4 oz. can diced green chilies
Hot pepper sauce to taste
1 c water
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil and cook shallots, pepper and garlic until tender. Add chili powder and cook 1 minute then add tomatoes, rice, chilies, hot pepper sauce, water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil them reduce heat, cover and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Dinner, Sides, Vegetables

Buttery Carrots

April 2, 2011 admin 1 Comment

The honey, orange and vanilla make a great glaze – just sweet enough without being too sweet. Serve these next to any dish for a colorful and fun carrot recipe.

4 servings
81 calories per serving

2 c diagonally cut carrots
½ c water
2 T honey
1 T light butter
1 t grated orange zest
¼ t vanilla
1/8 t salt

Place carrots and water in a pan and bring to a boil over medium high heat then reduce heat and simmer 8 minutes. Drain and return to pan and add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Cook 1-2 minutes or until the liquid has reduced to a glaze.

Asian, Dinner, Fish, Kid Friendly

Ginger Shrimp and Broccoli

March 29, 2011 admin Leave a comment

This recipe calls for cashews, but that raises the calorie count quite a bit, so depending on what I am serving on the side, sometimes I just leave off the nuts. Try serving next to a side of brown rice or some Homemade Flat Beads. Your family will love the fantastic authentic Asian flavors !

6 servings
270 calories per serving

1 lb. raw, cleaned, peeled medium shrimp
1 T minced peeled ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ c light teriyaki sauce
¼ c chicken broth
¼ t crushed red pepper
¼ t garlic powder
2 t oil
4 c broccoli florets
2 carrots, thinly sliced
1 c cashew halves
Pam

Mix shrimp with ginger and garlic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Cook veggies in oil with red pepper and garlic powder. Stir fry for 5 minutes them remove from pan and keep warm. Combine teriyaki and broth. Spray skillet with Pam and cook shrimp 5 minutes or until they turn pink. Add in the teriyaki mix and the reserved veggies. Cook 2-3 minutes. Just before serving, mix in nuts.

Crock pot, Dinner, Kid Friendly

Crock Pot Beef Stew

March 28, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Nothing is better in winter than a pot of beef stew. And when you make it in the crock pot, the meat is so super tender. This one is a little more work than your typical crock pot recipe since different things have to happen at different times. But it is well worth it – the meat is super tender and the flavor is just great.

8 servings
240 calories per serving

1 ½ lb. boneless chuck roast (trim off any fat)
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
½ t pepper
6 c water
2 c red potatoes, cubed
8 carrots, cut into chunks
1 c frozen peas, thawed
1 c frozen corn, thawed
5 T cornstarch
6 T water

Put beef in crock and sprinkle with soup mix and pepper. Pour water around meat and cover. Cook on high 5 hours. Remove meat and cut into cubes. Return to crock with veggies and cook on low 2 hours or until veggies are soft. Combine cornstarch and cold water and then stir into crock. Cover and cook on low one more hour. If the gravy does not thicken up enough, you can take a bunch of the liquid and add another cornstarch mix, bring to a boil and then simmer 2 minutes. That will get it nice and thick. Then just add back to the stew pot and serve immediately.

Chicken, Dinner

Empanapita from the Keep the Beat ™ cookbook from the National Institutes for Health We Can! (Ways to Enhance Children’s Activity & Nutrition) Campaign

March 24, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Check out the online cookbook, Keep the Beat ™ (available in pdf format) for some great ideas for healthful food that kids will eat and they will enjoy preparing with you. Kids learn by example – show them how good healthy food can be !!!

This is a great combination of an empanada and a pita – the recipe is fun to make and is a great healthy alternative to traditionally fried empanadas. You can easily change this up and use leftover pork or turkey instead. And you can even make it a bit more authentic by adding some sofrito to the mix. This was a great meal !

4 servings
373 calories per serving

2 6½-inch whole wheat pitas
1 c Tangy Salsa (see recipe below – or you can sub a store bought salsa)

For filling:
2 c canned low-sodium black beans, rinsed
2 c frozen broccoli, corn, and pepper vegetable mix, thawed
2 c grilled boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced (Perdue Shortcuts work great here !)
½ c shredded low-moisture part-skim mozzarella cheese
¼ c sofrito tomato cooking base (in the Goya section of your market) – optional
1 T fresh cilantro, chopped
2 T scallions, sliced
Salt and pepper to taste

For Tangy Salsa (22 calories per serving):
½ c jarred roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry
½ c no-salt-added diced tomatoes (or substitute 1 medium tomato, chopped)
1 small lime, peeled and cut into small chunks
¼ t ground black pepper
¼ t ground cumin
1 T fresh cilantro, rinsed and chopped

Preheat oven to 400 ºF. Combine beans, vegetables, chicken, cheese, sofrito and seasonings. Mix well.
Cut pitas in half, and open the pockets. Divide filling evenly between the four and place on a nonstick baking sheet, and bake for about 10 minutes until the filling is hot, cheese melts, and chicken is reheated. You can make these a bit ahead of time and heat when ready – this makes it a great recipe for when you are having guests.

For salsa, combine all ingredients and toss well (it is best if you make this ahead and let sit an hour or 20 so let the flavors mingle). Serve each empanapita with ¼ cup of Tangy Salsa.

Don’t skimp on the salsa – it really makes the meal ! I added ¼ c lime juice, 1 T sliced scallions, salt and pepper and omitted the roasted red peppers. The lime pieces add such a nice fresh flavor !!