Lightened Up Curry Chicken Salad
Original recipe courtesy of Cooking Light revamped and lightened even more by me with inspiration from Whole Foods amazing deli counter version

Last year, a coworker made me a believer in the deliciousness of Whole Foods Market and although I do love the huge variety of products I’m not a fan of the high prices and perceived health factor associated with many notsohealthy options simply because they are organic, natural, etc. For example the, albeit amazing, surely high calorie Curry Chicken Salad sold at their deli counter. So when I found a Cooking Light version I could tweak to make even closer to the Whole Foods salad I’ve been shooing off cravings for I was no doubt going to make it happen.

• 1/4 c. Smart Beat or low-fat mayo
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp water
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 12.5oz can chicken, drained
• 2 stalks celery
• 9 dried apricots (40 g)

Stir together Smart Beat, curry powder, water, and lemon juice until thoroughly combined.

Coarsely chop celery and apricots.

Add chicken, celery, and apricots to dressing mixture and stir to combine.

Refrigerate to set.

Enjoy! (Preferably with these chips :D)

Makes 2 heaping servings: 190 calories/serving

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites
From Pincookie

When I saw these on Pinterest I thought they must be too good to be true, but these come out legitimately as tasty as they look. They are also pretty nutritionally dense which makes them 100% acceptable as a breakfast item or pre-workout snack.

• 1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 3/4 c. PB2 or other peanut butter
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 Splenda or Honey
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat over to 350 degrees.

Combine all ingredients but chocolate chips in food processor and process until very smooth.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Wet hands with warm water and roll into 1 1/2” balls. Place on cookie sheet.

Lightly press down on each ball to flatten slightly.

Bake for approximately 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Makes 6 servings, 2 bites per serving: (with PB2 and Splenda) 155 calories, 6.5 g protein, 4.5 g fiber

*Bites are best served warm, leftovers can be reheated in the microwave for 15-30 seconds

Baked Whole Wheat Pita Chips
Recipe by Desiree Roughton

Pita chips are delicious but a bit overpriced and not as healthy as these babies, especially for such a hefty serving. I have no idea why it took me so long to do this…

• 1 large whole wheat pita (130 cal)
• Garlic powder (or any other seasoning, be creative!)
• Olive oil spray

Preheat over to 350 degrees.

Cut pita into 8 wedges.

Open wedges and rip at the seam, creating 16 chips.

Spread evenly on a non-stick cooking sheet.

Lightly spray with cooking spray and sprinkle with garlic powder.

Bake 5 min or until crispy (watch these guys as they will burn quickly!), no need to flip.

Enjoy!

Makes 1 serving: 130 calories/serving

Carino’s is one of my favorite places to eat back home. A delicious wedge salad, amazing bread, and what I consider to be hands down one of the best appetizers on the planet. Pasta chips, chicken, sausage, alfredo sauce, cheese, and pepperocinis all baked together into what they humbly refer to as Italian nachos.

Here’s my homemade version that was not only DELICIOUS, it’s also low cal and pretty healthy. I’m sure you veggie loving people can think of even more things to load this up with, but for me it’s perfection.

Carino’s Italian Nachos
Recipe by Desiree Roughton, adapted from Carino’s delicious appetizer

• 10 won ton skins
• 2 oz. turkey or chicken Italian sausage, cooked and crumbled
• 1/4 c. light alfredo sauce
• 1/4 c. low cal tomato sauce
• 1-2 pieces lowfat string cheese (Personally, I think the extra 70 calories are way worth it on this one)
• Pepperocinis, jalapenos, any other low cal goodies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut each won ton wrapper in half horizontally and arrange on a non-stick cookie sheet, spray lightly with cooking spray.

Bake for 5-6 minutes, flipping halfway through (these go from done to burnt very quickly so watch out!)

Combine alfredo and tomato sauce in a bowl and set aside.

Finely grate the string cheese and thinly slice a few pepperocinis.

Arrange won ton chips on a foil lined baking sheet or microwave safe plate.

Drizzle with sauce, top with crumbled sausage, pepperocinis, and jalapenos.

Put under broiler or microwave until cheese is melted and sauce is heated through, once again being careful here not to burn your chips.

Enjoy!

Makes 1 serving: 530 calories

*Save 160 calories by using a 90 calorie chicken sausage and using only 1 piece of string cheese to make for a HUGELY satisfying serving for 370

This is how it went down. I have a sick obsession with Fresh&Easy (more on that in a later post) and also a sick obsession with Italian Turkey Sausage (que taunting/innuendos) so when good ol’ F&E stopped carrying my staple meat product I didn’t know what to do. Which one to give up? Answer: Neither, because I am the girl resourceful enough to have it all. So I decided to venture out to save a trip to a second grocery store (and some money) and make my own delicious Italian sausage. The results were better than expected.

Homemade Italian Turkey Sausage
Recipe courtesy of AllRecipes.com

• 1 pound lean ground turkey
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seed, crushed*
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1-2 packets crushed red pepper (that you stole from the pizza guy)

*You can buy this for SUPER cheap at anywhere that sells bulk spice items (i.e. Whole Food’s, Henry’s, etc)

In a bowl, combine the turkey, garlic powder, fennel seed, sugar, salt, oregano and pepper.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight. Crumble and brown turkey in a nonstick skillet. Or make into patties and cook through.
Enjoy.

I’m serious when I say this stuff is REALLY REALLY good.

I’m not a band wagoner or a sports fan really, but I am a loyalist, and for me this year has been good. The team I arbitrarily chose as mine back when my age was still single digits made it to (and won!) the superbowl and now my alma mater (sidenote: is that weird to say or what?) has made it to the Sweet 16. This is especially good for me so that I only need to care about sports for one year and then I can go back to being more intrigued by things like this Top Seeded Recipes blog post than actual sporting events. Honestly though, how cute is this?

Go Aztecs! S-D-S-U!

Butter and Parm Squished Potatoes
Recipe courtesy of Rachel Ray

• 1 pounds baby red (my pick) or Yukon gold potatoes
• 2 or so cups chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Put the potatoes in a medium pot in a single layer.
Pour in enough stock to come 1/4-inch up the sides of potatoes, and add the extra-virgin olive oil.
Cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and steam for 10 minutes.
Remove the lid, raise the heat and reduce the stock.
When the stock evaporates, squish potatoes to flatten them a bit with a solid flat surface (like the bottom of a mug or small plate).
Crisp the potatoes a few minutes on each side.
Stir in the butter and cheese and toss.
Enjoy.

So, I’m the first person to admit we all need a little eating in AND a little eating out and since I’m a bit of a (self-proclaimed) foodie there was no chance I’d get too many posts in without a recipe or restaurant review. With that said, one is just the beginning…

Easy and Meaty Sausage and Mozzarella Meatballs
Recipe courtesy of Rachel Ray and revamped to fit me :)

• 1 pounds Italian turkey sausage, bulk if available
• 6 bocconicina balls (bite size fresh mozzarella in water)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Remove 6 pieces of bite sized mozzarella from the water and set on work surface. Remove sausages from casings, if bulk not available, and place in a bowl.
Combine the meat into a single mound then score it into 2 sections. Each section will yield 3 large sausage meatballs.
To form each ball, take a handful of meat and wrap it around a piece of mozzarella. Roll 12 balls.
Coat balls with a drizzle of olive oil.
Bake 18 to 20 minutes until cooked through and evenly browned.
Serve with your favorite sauce (ya know? Fresh and Easy tomato alfredo, ya that one).
Enjoy.

Bonus: side dish coming tomorrow