1 whole grain pita
4 tsp natural nut butter
2 lg strawberries, sliced
Cut a slit in the edge of the pita and slice around to create two separate pieces. Lightly toast the two halves in an oven or toaster. Spread two tsp of nut butter on each pita half and top with sliced fruit. Enjoy open-faced.
1 serving 275 calories per serving
1/4 avocado, diced
1-2 tsp lime juice
pinch of kosher salt OR coarse sea salt
pinch of ground black pepper
1 slice reduced-calorie whole-grain bread (with no more than 50 calories per slice)
1 radish, thinly sliced
Mash the avocado with a fork until the texture is easily spreadable. Stir the lime juice, salt, and pepper into the avocado.
Toast the bread.
Spread the avocado mixture on the toast. Top with radish slices and enjoy.
1 serving 100 calories
“BUNS”
1/2 c whole-wheat flour
1/2 c all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt OR coarse sea salt
1 tbs cinnamon
3 egg whites
3/4 c canned 100% pumpkin puree
3/4 c nonfat plain yogurt
2 tbs brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla
ICING
4 oz light OR reduced-fat cream cheese at room temp
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 c pecans, toasted and roughly chopped (optional)
cinnamon (optional)
TO MAKE THE “BUNS”: Whisk together the flours, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a lg bowl until well combined. Set aside.
In a second lg mixing bowl, whip the egg whites until blended. Add the pumpkin, yogurt, brown sugar, and vanilla, and whisk until well combined.
Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined and smooth (no dry streaks should remain), taking care not to overmix. If time allows, let the batter rest for 10 minutes.
Liberally coat a lg skillet or griddle with nonstick oil spray and warm over med heat. When the pan is nice and hot, ladle about 1 tbs of batter onto the skillet to form a mini pancake, making a total of about 24 mini pancakes. The batter will be thick, so spread it out with the back of a spoon to make a circle. Cook until the bottom of each mini pancake is golden brown and bubbles start to form in the batter, about 2-3 minutes. Flip the pancakes and push down with the back of a spatula to flatten them out a little bit. This will help cook the middle. Cook until the other side is golden brown, another 2-3 minutes. Recoat the skillet with nonstick oil spray periodically to prevent the pancakes from sticking.
TO MAKE THE ICING: In a small food processor, blend together the cream cheese and maple syrup until smooth.
TO SERVE: Spread about 1 tsp icing on a mini pancake, and then top with another pancake. Spread 1 tsp of icing on top of the second pancake before adding a last pancake on top. Finally, spread about 2 tsp of icing on the top and garnish with 1 tsp chopped and toasted pecans and a sprinkling of cinnamon, if desired.
8 servings (3 mini pancakes with icing per serving) 150 calories per serving
1/2 c whole-grain flour
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 c sugar
2 tbs ground flaxseed
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 egg white
1 c skim milk
1 tbs canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c semisweet chocolate chips
1 dollop nonfat flavored yogurt (optional)
1 generous squirt whipped topping (optional)
dark chocolate shavings (optional)
Whisk together the flours, cocoa, sugar, flaxseed, baking powder, and salt in a lg bowl. Set aside.
In a med bowl, lightly beat the egg and egg white; then add the milk, oil, and vanilla, and whisk until well combined.
Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, and stir until the batter is just blended and no dry streaks remain.
Gently fold in the chocolate chips. Take care not to overmix, as this will cause the pancakes to be chewy. If time allows, let the batter rest for 10 minutes before cooking the pancakes.
Spray a griddle with nonstick oil spray and warm over med-high heat.
Ladle the batter onto the griddle to form about 12 medium pancakes (use 1/4 cup batter per pancake). Cook the pancakes until small bubbles form around the edges, 1-2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until the center is cooked, about 1 minutes. Recoat the skillet with nonstick oil spray between batches to prevent the pancakes from sticking.
Enjoy the pancakes plain, or add your desired toppings.
6 servings (2 pancakes per serving) 275 calories per serving
1 c quick-cooking oats
1/2 c fat-free cottage cheese
1 ripe banana
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
3 tbs unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/4 c pecan halves, toasted and roughly chopped
Combine all ingredients, except pecans, in a blender and process until smooth.
Spray a griddle with nonstick oil spray and warm over med-high heat.
Carefully ladle butter onto the griddle to form about twenty 3″ pancakes (about 2 tbs batter per pancake). Sprinkle a few pecan pieces onto each and cook until bubbles form throughout the pancakes, about 30 seconds. Flip and cook until golden brown.
5 servings (4 pancakes per serving) 162 calories per serving
1/2 c quick-cooking oats
4 egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbs sugar OR sugar substitute
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
Generously coat a skillet with nonstick cooking spray and warm over med heat.
Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and stir until thoroughly mixed.
Pour the mixture onto the skillet to make either 1 jumbo pancake or 5 small pancakes. Cook until you see small bubbles forming, 2-3 minutes for the jumbo pancake or 1-2 minutes for the small pancakes. Then flip the pancake(s) over and cook until golden brown, 1-2 minutes.
makes 1 serving (270 calories)
REFILLABLE OIL MISTER – This allows you to saute veggies, lean protein, and other ingredients without adding many fat calories to recipes. Use the gadget to coat a skillet evenly with oil or to mist your veggies or a salad. Have a few misters and fill each one with a different healthy oil, as well as balsamic or other flavored vinegars. You can use this whenever a recipe calls for nonstick oil spray. Suggested oils to use are olive oil, canola oil, or grapeseed oil.
MEASURING CUPS AND SPOONS – These are essential for measuring spices, fats, flours, and other ingredients. I have quite a few sets of each in my kitchen!
BLENDER AND/OR FOOD PROCESSOR – You can literally chop minutes off food prep with either of these tools. It makes chopping, shredding, and mincing large quantities a cinch. For most people, one 4 cup to 7 cup processor does the trick, and it won’t take up too much counter or cabinet space.
IMMERSION (OR HANDHELD) BLENDER – This is great for making pureed soups or sauces because you can skip the step of transferring hot liquids to a blender in batches.
SLOW COOKER – This is a must-have for busy parents. Simply toss all of the ingredients into the slow cooker in the morning, and when dinnertime rolls around…VOILA! A delicious, wholesome meal is waiting for you. It can be used for soups, stews, and chilies.
ONION GOGGLES – Slicing an onion can be a real tearjerker. That is because the onion releases a sulfur compound that may irritate your eyes and cause them to water. (Just thinking about this is making my eyes burn and water!) A pair of onion goggles costs about $20.00 at most home-goods stores. (Budget-saving trick: if you have a pair of ski goggles lying around, they work just as well.)
CUPCAKE TINS (VARIOUS SIZES) – If you bake often, these are a great investment. Mini cupcake tins are great for bite-size treats – automatic portion control! Jumbo cupcake tins are great for large muffins and tasty frittatas. Don’t limit standard cupcake tins to just baked goods. I LOVE making mini meals in muffin tins and individually freezing them. Perfect for those (like me) who only have themselves to cook for.
SPIRAL SLICER – In several of my recipes, I use zucchini noodles (or “zoodles”) to take place of standard starchy pasta. I have also used carrot noodles and sweet potato noodles. To get perfect zoodles, I recommend a spiral slicer. There are various types at various price points. Choose one that suits your budget. And in a pinch, you can also always use a vegetable peeler to make julienned vegetable noodles.
2 c diced cooked chicken (about 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast halves)
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 c sour cream
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (optional)
1 tsp minced garlic (optional)
1 tbs lemon juice (optional)
2 c crushed ritz crackers
1 tbs poppy seeds
1/2 c (1 stick) butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9″x13″ baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
In a lg bowl, mix together chicken, soup, and sour cream. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, garlic, and lemon juice, if using. In another bowl, mix together crushed crackers, poppy seeds, and melted butter and stir until butter is completely incorporated.
Spread chicken mixture on the bottom of prepared pan and top with cracker mixture. Cover pan with foil and bake 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes.
serves 12
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 (10.75 oz) cans cream of chicken soup
2 tsp dried parsley
2/3 c milk
1 (6 oz) box chicken stove top stuffing, prepared according to pkg directions
paprika, to taste
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 9″x13″ baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Place chicken in prepared pan. In a small bowl, mix together soup, parsley, and milk. Pour on top of chicken. Spread stuffing on top of soup mix and chicken. Cover with foil. Bake 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 20-25 more minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle with paprika.
serves 6
1 lb ground sausage
1 green onion, chopped
2 c shredded cheddar cheese
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1 c water
1/2 c milk
1 (2.64 oz) packet country gravy mix
2 c frozen tater tots
6 slices bread, cubed
2 tbs butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9″x13″ pan.
Brown sausage in a lg skillet over med heat; drain off excess fat. Combine sausage and green onion, and transfer to prepared pan. Top with shredded cheese. In a med bowl, mix together eggs, water, milk, and gravy mix and pour evenly over the pan. Arrange tater tots and bread cubes on top and drizzle melted butter over everything. Bake 35-40 minutes.
Cool for 5 minutes, then cut and serve.
serves 9
