Recipe: Cabbage Rolls - Whole 30 Style

I am now entering my 4th day of the Whole 30 program.  While I am still feeling a bit hungry and experiencing cravings, I am doing well over all.  I have really learned about what impulses got me to this weight to begin with, that is for sure!  So far, so good though.

When lunch time rolled around yesterday, I could not stand the thought of another spinach salad.  I just wanted something different from the norm.  So, I went to the fridge and assessed what I had on hand.  I noticed a pound of extra lean ground beef and a head of cabbage.  Cabbage rolls!!

I got to work and literally just threw this recipe together and it was yummy and very satisfying.

I was only making a single serving of this, so I pulled 3 large cabbage leaves from the head and put it in a pot with a shallow amount of water.  I brought the water to a boil, put a lid on the pot, and steamed the cabbage.

Traditionally, cabbage rolls have rice mixed in to the meat filling.  Since rice is a Whole 30 no-no, I decided to mix some extra veggies in with the meat.  I chose mushrooms, celery, carrots, and onion.  I diced them up pretty small.

I cooked 4 ounces of the lean ground beef in a pan along with the veggie mixture.  

When the meat is finished set aside and begin making your tomato sauce.  It isn't pictured, because I forgot to photograph that step.  Whoops!  All I did was take a half a cup of tomato puree and added in spices to my liking.  I chose to use garlic powder, chili powder, and a little cayenne pepper.  

By the time the sauce and meat are finished, the cabbage leaves should be nicely steamed.  Take out a leaf and fill it with one third of the meat filling.  I also put a little sauce on top.  Then, roll it up!

When all the cabbage rolls are...well...rolled, put them in a baking pan.  I put some sauce on the bottom of the pan before putting the rolls in, and then topped each roll with sauce.  Then, I popped it in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

This was my yummy result!  It was a nice change of pace for lunch and I loved it because I could easily make a single serving.  

Ingredients (for single serving):

• 3 large cabbage leaves
• 4 ounces of extra lean ground beef or turkey
• 1/2 cup tomato puree (I used organic). Tomato sauce would also work great here, but I only had the puree on hand. 
• veggies for filling -- You can use anything, but I used onion, mushroom, celery, and carrot.  I eyeballed the amount.
• spices for the sauce -- Again, use what you like.  I used garlic power, cayenne pepper, and chili powder.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Steam cabbage leaves in a pot with a small amount of water.  You want to steam -- not boil.
3. Cook your meat and diced veggies in pan until meat is browned.
4. Prepare sauce:  Mix the tomato puree with the seasoning of your choice.
5. Remove cabbage leaves from the pot.  Pat dry with paper towels.  
6. Prepare your baking dish by spreading some sauce on the bottom of the pan.
7. Fill cabbage leaves with meat filling and a little sauce and roll -- kind of like you are rolling up a burrito.
8. Place rolls in pan.
9. Top rolls with the rest of the sauce.
10. Bake for about 20-30 minutes

Calories: 283

Fat: 4 grams

Carbs: 34 grams

Today, I am linking this recipe up with Amy at The Diary of a Fat Mommy!

Chipotle Knock Off Success!

So, one of my very favorite fast food meals is a burrito bowl from Chipotle.  They are so damn good.  The calories are a bit scary though.  Because I love them so much, I really wanted to challenge myself to recreate this deliciousness at home, so I did. I got the idea for the marinade on Pinterest.  It turned out GREAT!  Thank you, Pinterest!!

First, I had to prep the marinade:

I put about a pound and a half of chicken tenders in a ziploc bag with 2 chopped up chipotle peppers in adobo, juice from half a lime, and a handful of chopped cilantro.

In a separate dish, I mixed one pouch of fajita mix in with 1/4 cup of olive oil.  (I just noticed the tiny fingers in this picture.  My daughter was helping with the food prep. ;)

I mixed this mixture in with the chicken and made sure each piece was completely covered.  I marinated it for about an hour.

Grill it up!

While the chicken was grilling a sauteed green peppers and red onions in a pan.

I chopped up the chicken and assembled my burrito bowl. I couldn't wait to try a bite.  It was awesome!

I layered my bowl with brown rice (the Steamfresh kind from the freezer section), corn kernels (I had left over corn on the cob), peppers and onions, pico de gallo, chicken, a sprinkle of cheese, and light sour cream.

It was really just so good!  I think I would omit the sour cream next time.  There is so much flavor, I really didn't need it.  May as well save on the calories!

Chicken Marinade Recipe:

1-1.5 pounds of chicken breasts or chicken tenders

1/2 a lime, juice

2 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped

handful of cilantro, chopped 

1 pouch of fajita seasoning

1/4 cup olive oil

- Put chicken in large ziploc bag

- Add in chopped cilantro and chipotle peppers

- Mix oil and fajita seasoning together in a bowl.  Pour over chicken.

- Coat chicken completely.

- Marinate for at least an hour.

- Grill up and serve!

Banana Blueberry Muffins

This recipe comes from the Master Your Metabolism Cookbook by Jillian Michaels.  It is by far my favorite recipe out of the entire book.  I think it is because these muffins make a great breakfast.  I especially like them when I am on the go.  During the school year, I have to have a breakfast that I can grab and eat in the car on the way to work.  These work great for that.  Oh, and they taste good too!

Ingredients:

• Olive oil spray for the tin
• 3/4 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 2)
• 3/4 cup nonfat plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 21/2 cups white whole-wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 generous cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted (optional)

Directions:

1. Place an oven rack in the center of the oven, then preheat the oven to 425°F. Lightly spray a 12- cup muffin tin with olive oil or line with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, place the bananas, yogurt, honey, olive oil, and vanilla. Stir together until well mixed.
3. In a separate bowl, sift together the fl our, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in the blueberries and the nuts, if using.
4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tin. Place the tin in the oven and reduce the heat to 400°F. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until tops spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in the tin for 10 to 15 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Serve warm.
5. For longer storage, let cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Nutritional information

• Calories: 216.0 kcal
• Fat: 6.8 g
• Protein: 4.5 g
• Carbohydrates: 37.1 g
• Sodium: 234.5 mg

These is the recipe how it appears in the cookbook.  Here are a couple minor things that I have had to do differently:

• I cannot find white, whole wheat flour to save my life.  Therefore, I just use the full on whole wheat flour.  Because of this, I only really need about 2 cups of flour instead of 2 1/2.  If the batter seems to thick, I will add just a little of water to thin it out slightly.  
• The directions say to bake 35 minutes.  I always check them at 25.  
• I store them in the refrigerator.  Typically, I will freeze half (they freeze really well) and but the rest in the fridge.  
• I always use the paper cupcake liners, but still will spray the inside of the liners with cooking spray.  They tend to really stick to the paper if I do not spray.

This is the batter.  It turned out pretty thick, so I did add water.

The muffin tins will end up really full, but they will not run over onto the pan.  These muffins are pretty dense.

All finished and yummy!  Don't let the dark color fool you.  The darker color of the wheat flour causes them to bake up a darker color.  Good to know, because the first time I made these I thought I had burned them.  Not the case! :)

Recipe: Lighter Eggplant Parmesan

Sooooo, I decided to try a new recipe.  When shopping for produce, I decided to challenge myself with buying and preparing a new veggie that I have never cooked with before.   The lucky winner this week was eggplant, so I decided to make some eggplant parm.   There is kind of a funny story behind the first time I ever tried eggplant parm.  Shall I digress?  Well, ok, then...

I was very pregnant with Darcy...ready to burst.   One Friday morning, I went into what I thought was labor.  I was having regular contractions and everything.  Then, all of a sudden it all stalled out and my hopes at not being pregnant anymore were shattered.   That weekend, Tim and I were trying all of the things that are supposed to encourage labor.  We took long walks. I ate spicy food.  I even bought this special tea.  I was so uncomfortable and ready. I am not normally this impatient.   While searching Google, (which is, of course, infallible medical advice) Tim came across an old wives tale that states that eggplant parmesan is supposed to help one go into labor.  Olive Garden for dinner, it was!!  I am not sure if I really thought this would work or if I wanted an excuse to got to Olive Garden....  ANYWAY, we went.  I ate eggplant parmesan, which I LOVED.  Nothing happened.   We ate at the OG on a Saturday evening.  My water broke the Tuesday after right after I coughed while standing at the kitchen sink.  All of that and all I had to do was cough, apparently... If you know Darcy, you know that is how she rolls.  Has kept mommy guessing from the very beginning.

Back to the recipe!!

Ingredients:   197 calories/2 pieces

• One large eggplant
• Milk
• 1/2 cup flour (I used wheat.)
• 1/3 cup bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 cup pasta sauce
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Instructions:

• Start by slicing the eggplant.  Then, soak in milk.  I heard that this cuts the bitterness of the eggplant. I suppose this step could be skipped, but I decided to take the advice I found online. Soak for about 20 minutes.

• Preheat your oven to 425.
• Drizzle canola oil evenly over a cookie sheet.
• Coat eggplant in flour/bread crumb mixture

• Place eggplant slices on cookie sheet
• Bake for 10 minutes, turn slices, and then bake another 10 minutes

• Top each slice with a spoonful of pasta sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• I served with a cup of whole wheat spaghetti.  It was really good!

The only change I would make is that I would either use white flour or no flour at all and just stick with the breadcrumbs as a coating.  I may also go with panko bread crumbs to change it up.  I just did not care for the whole wheat flour as a coating, but that is just me.  I will it for my whole wheat banana blueberry muffins! Hmmm...will have to post that one eventually too!

Recipe Time: Chicken Tortilla Casserole

One of my issues with lunch time during the work week is that I need something substantial in order to keep me full.  I find that many times I do not get enough protein in.  I am not sure if this will do the trick or not, but Mexican type food sounded good this week, so I decided to develop a concoction that is a taco-like casserole.  One of my favorite fast-food places is Chipotle.  I LOVE me a nice burrito bowl.  I tried to incorporate some of my favorite elements into this casserole.

So, here it is.

Chicken Tortilla Casserole

Ingredients:

• 12 corn tortillas (I actually used 10 because I was running low, but 12 would have been ideal.)
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast.
• 2 cups of your favorite jarred salsa - I used the organic Meijer brand.
• 1/2 cup of canned, black beans (I do not like a ton of beans, so add more if you like)
• Corn (I had fresh corn on the cob.  I cut the corn off 3 medium-sized ears.)
• 1/2 cup of your favorite canned enchilada sauce
• 1 1/4 cup shredded colby jack cheese
• Chopped cilantro

Preparation:

1. In the morning, I put one pound of boneless, skinless chicken breast in my crockpot with a couple cups of salsa.  I cooked it slow and then later shredded the chicken with a couple forks, for a nice chicken filling.  If you don't have the time to cook the chicken in the crockpot, you could probably speed up the process by cooking on the stove.  I always use the slow cooker though.
2. Once the chicken is finished, start shredding prepping your casserole.
3. Prehead oven to 350.
4. Line the bottom of the pan with a light layer of enchilada sauce.
5. Layer half of the tortillas on top.
6. Add half of your ingredients: chicken, corn, beans.
7. Sprinkle on some cilantro and 1/2 cup of cheese.
8. Repeat the layers only adding the rest of the cheese as the final layer.  
9. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

So, listen.  I am not a professional chef.  This is something I literally made up as I went along.  I measured because I wanted to keep track of my calories.   I made this based solely on my personal tastes.  Feel free to adjust according to what you like and add/subtract calories accordingly.

I plan to serve with a romaine lettuce salad.  If I am really hungry and have the calories, I will definitely add in a small serving of brown rice also.

Servings: 6
Weight Watchers Points/Serving: 9
Calories per serving: 379

Skinny Chicken Pot Pie -- Yummy!

Tonight I tried a recipe for Skinny Chicken Pot Pie.  I adapted it slightly from Mama Laughlin's version of this recipe.  There is nothing at all wrong with her recipe.  I was just in a hurry and wanted more veggies.

The modifications I made were:

1. Instead of boiling raw carrots, onions, and celery, I prepared a package of Steamfresh mixed vegetables in the microwave.  I added these veggies and some fresh chopped onion to the broth mixture for the filling.
2. Instead of using the 2 cups of liquid from the boiled vegetables (I did not have any cause I steamed my veggies), I just added two additional cups of chicken broth

The verdict?  It turned out to be delicious!  It didn't feel like I was eating a skinny version of anything! If you are interested in trying the recipe, click here for Mama Laughlin's recipe.  

Oven Fried Chicken -- Family Pleasing Dinner Success!!

Tried a new recipe tonight and it was so good! It was also super duper easy. Basically just dredge some boneless,skinless chicken breast through honey mustard salad dressing and coat in Corn Flake crumbs. Bake at 425 for about 25 minutes (turn the chicken at the 15 minute mark). It was moist and crunchy! Tim is not a fan of honey mustard, so I ran a few pieces through A.1. marinade instead. He had seconds,so it must have been good! I have not run the exact calorie count yet, but it is a Weight Watchers recipe. The points count is at 7. Served it with veggies and instant mashed potatoes (my family prefers the flakes) made with skim milk.

This one was a keeper! Yummy!!