Recipe Girl's Brown Butter Rice

This is what I served along side of the turkey meatloaf I made tonight.  Oh my god, it's the best rice Ive EVER eaten.  And at only 83 calories per serving, Ill be making this OFTEN.

Recipe from Recipe Girl
Yields 8 servings
83 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

4 c low-sodium chicken broth

2 c brown rice

1/2 c margarine

Black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

Place chicken broth & rice in a large pot.

Bring to a boil, reduce to low heat, cover & simmer for 15 minutes.

Add margarine & black pepper to rice & let simmer for 5 more minutes.

Recipe Girl's Turkey Meatloaf

Ive just recently discovered Recipe Girl.  Not all of her recipes that she blogs about are healthy or low calorie but there's a few benefits to this.  Firstly, Ive been able to use my knowledge of nutrition & substitution to alter these recipes to make them a little more healthful.  Secondly, it lets me get a little creative with things.  It's almost like a game.

Anyways, my brother came over for a late dinner this evening & I thought that meatloaf would be ideal.  He's very much a meat & potatoes kind of guy.  I served this with steamed broccoli over another Recipe Girl dish -- brown buttered rice.  Such a delicious combination!

Recipe from Recipe Girl dot com.
Yields 6 servings
246 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

1 onion, finely chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

3/4 lb mushrooms, trimmed & finely chopped

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1.5 tsp worcestershire sauce

1/4 c parsley

1/4 c barbeque sauce

1 c breadcrumbs

1/3 c skim milk

1 large egg

1 1/4 lbs learn ground turkey

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400.

Cook onion and garlic in a large pan over medium heat.

Stir regularly until onion is softened -- about 2 minutes.

Add mushrooms, salt, & black pepper.

Stir occasionally & cook until the very tender, about 10 or 15 minutes.

Stir in worcestershire sauce, parsley, & barbeque sauce.

Transfer veggies to a large bowl to cool.

Stir breadcrumbs and milk in a bowl and let stand for 5 minutes.

Stir in egg & add to the veggies.

Add turkey & mix well with your hands.

Form a loaf onto a baking sheet & bake for an hour.

Roasted Garlic Twice Baked Potatoes

Ive made about a thousand variations of twice-baked potatoes.  I stumbled across this one and while it's not super original, it sounded delicious.  Although, it was a bit time consuming.  I wouldnt make this on a weeknight because of that but, the outcome seemed totally worth it.

Recipe from Velveeta
Yields 8 servings
300 calories per serving

INGREDIENTS

1 head garlic

1 tsp olive oil

4 large baking potatoes

8 oz part skim Velveeta

1/4 c parmesan cheese, shredded

4 slices turkey bacon

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the top off the head of garlic.

Place garlic on a sheet of foil & drizzle olive oil on top.

Roast garlic for 1 hour.

Poke potatoes with a fork and place in the microwave, two at a time, in the microwave on the potato setting.

When cool enough to handle slice potatoes horizontally.

Scoop out the center, leaving a 1/8 inch edge, & place guts in a large bowl; mash.

Add sour cream, Velveeta, parmesan, bacon, & squeeze in garlic.

Mix well & scoop into each of the shells.

Place shells on a baking sheet & bake for 30 minutes.

Garlic Parmesan Kale Pasta

Ive broken the Mexican food obsession (for lunch, at least).  This was simple and inexpensive to make and from one of my favorite food blogs, Budget Bytes.  Her recipes arent always the most healthy but, they always look delicious.  The ones that have fit in with my calorie limits are so freakin' tasty.

Recipe from Budget Bytes.
Yields 4 servings.
195 calories per serving.

INGREDIENTS

1 large bunch of kale

8 oz whole wheat spaghetti

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp margarine

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt & black pepper

1/4 c grated parmesan

DIRECTIONS

Tear kale from stems & chop.

Bring a large pot of water to boil, break the pasta in half, add to the water, & cook for 6 minutes.

Drain and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking add oil, margarine, & minced garlic to a large pan.

Cook over medium heat until margarine has melted & garlic is fragrant.

Add kale and continue cooking until kale is wilted & dark green.

Turn off the heat.

Add pasta to kale & toss together.

Season with salt & pepper & top off with parmesan.

Sausage, Mushroom, & Spinach Lasagna

I wanted to make something a little different for my roommate and I's lunch this week.  I realized that Id never made lasagna from scratch before so I figured Id make the attempt (hungover or not -- haha!).  This was a bit time consuming but the end result was so worth it.

Recipe from Eating Well.
Yields 10 servings.
333 calories per serving.

INGREDIENTS

8 oz lasagna noodles

1 lb lean Italian turkey sausage, casings removed

10 oz sliced mushrooms

1/4 c water

1 lb frozen spinach, thawed

28 oz crushed tomatoes

1/4 tsp salt

1 dash black pepper

2 c part-skim ricotta cheese

2 c part-skim mozzarella, shredded

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350.

Coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil & cook noodles until not quite tender -- 2 minutes less than package directions.

Drain, return noodles to the pot, cover with cool water, & set aside.

Coat a large non-stick pan with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat.

Add sausage & cook for 8 - 10 minutes, crumbling with a wooden spoon until browned.

Add mushrooms & water; cook for 8 - 10 minutes until mushrooms are tender & water has evaporated.

Squeeze spinach to remove excess water, stir into pan, & remove pan from heat.

Mix tomatoes, basil, salt, & pepper in a medium bowl.

To assemble lasagna:

Spread 1/2 c of tomatoes in the bottom of the prepared baking dish.

Arrange a layer of noodles on top; even dollop half of the ricotta on top.

Top with half of the sausage mixture, 1/3 of remaining tomatoes, & 1/3 of mozzarella.

Continue with another layer of noodles, remaining ricotta, remaining sausage,  half of the tomatoes, & half the remaining mozzarella.

Top with the rest of the noodles, tomatoes & cheese.

Cover with foil & bake for an hour and 10 minutes.

Chicken Taco Casserole

As you guys can see, Im still on my Mexican food kick.  My roommate and I wanted something reasonably easy to make and inexpensively before we watched the fights last night.  This seemed to fit so we went for it.  I have to say that this is one of the tastier things Ive made lately.  The mixture of onions & spinach was delicious.  It's not a typical combination for Mexican food but, Im finding that it's all in the spices.

Recipe from BHG dot com.
Yields 6 servings.
196 calories per serving.

INGREDIENTS

12 oz chicken, cut into strips

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp chili powder

2 tsp canola oil

1 medium onion, halved & thinly sliced

3/4 c green pepper, chopped

10 oz frozen spinach, thawed & squeezed dry

1.5 c salsa

4 6 inch corn tortillas, torn coarsely

3 oz reduced fat Monteray Jack cheese

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350.

Coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray.

Preheat skillet over medium-high heat.

In a medium bowl, toss together chicken, garlic, & chili powder.

Add to skillet and cook 4 to 6 minutes until chicken is no longer pink; stir frequently.

Remove from skillet and set aside.

Add canola oil to skillet.

Add onion & pepper and cook over medium heat until tender, about 5 minutes.

Stir in spinach.

Coat a 2 quart baking pan with cooking spray.

Spread half of the salsa on the bottom of the pan.

Top with half of the tortilla pieces, half the chicken mixture, and half the veggies.

Repeat with salsa, chicken, and vegetables.

Top with half of the cheese, the rest of the tortillas and top with the remaining cheese.

Bake covered for 30 minutes.

Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

South of the Border Mac & Cheese

Hey guys. I know it's been a while since Ive updated you on my food adventures but, I have a good reason. I was getting ready to go see my fella in Arizona, then was out of town, & then had a really tough week last week.  BUT, I am back!  My vacation was fantastic and my man showed me a wonderful birthday.  Im lucky.  :]

Anyways, after having some amazing Mexican food out west, Ive been on a really hard Mexican food kick.  My cooking will NEVER match what I ate but, it's the same flavor family so we'll go with it.  Haha!

I actually altered this recipe to make it a little more diet friendly so the calorie count per serving may be less but, this is still pretty low cal so Im going to blog it as is.

Recipe from RoTel
Yields 10 servings.
308 calories per serving            

INGREDIENTS

2 packages of 2% milk Velveeta Mac & Cheese

1 lb ground turkey

2 cans diced tomatoes & chilies

DIRECTIONS

Prepare mac & cheese in a large saucepan as directed on box.

Meanwhile, cook and stir turkey in a large skillet over medium high heat until no longer pink.

Stir in undrained tomatoes.

Reduce heat to low & simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add beef mixture to pasta mixture & stir.