Chicken Tetrazinni

This is a favorite of mine. I got is from one of my long time college roommates, Rachel Boyce. It has such a fun flavor to it and it is SO easy to make.Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
8 oz. linguine, cooked and drained
1 small jar diced pimentos
1/2 c. mushrooms
4 T. butter- I used Safola margerine
1/4 c. flour
1-1/4 c. chicken broth
1 tsp. salt
1 c. sour cream- I used a fat free sour cream
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese- I will mix half Parmesan and half Romano though

Use the butter, flour, broth and salt to make a white sauce. Remove from heat and add sour cream. Mix the sauce in a bowl with chicken, linguine, pimentos, and mushrooms. Pour into a 9x13 pan and bake covered at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Remove foil cover and sprinkle cheese over the top and bake for another 5 minutes uncovered. Allow to sit for 8 minutes before serving.
Serves 6
Points: 8

Easy Chicken Enchiladas

I love Mexican food! While this recipe is by no means authentic, it is super easy to throw together in a pinch. I have several other more gourmet enchilada recipes that I'm sure that I will post down the road, but for today we are going with EASY. I forgot to take a picture...sorry.

Ingredients:
10 flour tortillas, soft taco size-I use flour because I don't care for corn tortillas, but you can always use corn.
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 can enchilada sauce
1 c. sour cream
1 can diced green chilies
1 can sliced olives
2 c. shredded cheese, separated-You can use any kind, I use a Mexican blend for some added flavor

Mix together the enchilada sauce, diced green chilies, and sour cream. Spread 1 cup of the enchilada sauce mix on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Take a flour tortillas and spoon in some sauce, 1/10 of the chicken and a 1/8 cup of cheese. Roll up and place in the baking dish. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas. Pour the remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle the remaining cup of cheese and the olives on top.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 5 minutes. Let sit for about 10 minutes before serving.
Yields 10
Points: 7 per enchilada

Lasagna

There are a million lasagna recipes out there and I have tried a lot of them. I use a lot of different recipes, this is one of my easier, lower calorie, healthier recipes. Since that has been one of the focuses of my cooking lately that is what you get.
Ingredients:
9 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
1 lb. lean ground beef (or substitute ground turkey)
2 cloves minced garlic
1-1/2 tsp. oregano
1 jar spaghetti sauce
2-1/2 c. mozzarella cheese
1 pint fat-free ricotta cheese
1 tomato, chopped
5 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 c. Romano cheese

Brown the ground beef in a large sauce pan with the minced garlic and oregano. Add spaghetti sauce and allow to simmer for 5 minutes.

*I use Classico brand spaghetti sauce. They have a sausage flavored sauce that works great. That way the lasagna still gets the sausage flavor without the fat and calories.

Remove the meat and sauce from heat and stir in the tomato.

In a 9x13 pan spread 1/2 c. sauce mix. Layer 3 noodles. Spread 1 c. ricotta cheese, then 1 c. mozzarella cheese, then spinach, and finally 1 c. sauce mix. Layer 3 more noodles, remaining 1 c. ricotta cheese, 1 c. mozzarella cheese, then 1 c. sauce mix. Layer last 3 noodles and remaining sauce.

Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove foil and sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese and Romano cheese. Bake for an additional 5 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
Serves: 9
Points: 7

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza

Yet another pizza favorite in our household. Like I said before we love to play around with new pizza ideas and this came from me just playing around in the kitchen.
Well, to begin let's star with a basic pizza dough recipe. This is an old family favorite and I have no idea where it came from.
Ingredients:
1 c. water, hot
1 T. yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 T. olive oil
2-1/2 c. flour

Dissolve yeast in water and let stand for a few minutes. Add remaining ingredients and let the mixer knead for about 5 minutes. This is enough dough for 2 pizzas.

*I have 2 methods, for a thinner, normal crust for my pizza I use a pizza stone. Or, for a deep dish crust I use a 12" cast iron skillet. I melt butter (Safola margarine for less fat) in the bottom before I add the dough.

Bake the dough for approximately 7 minutes. Remove from oven and add toppings and sauce.

For this pizza I use the following:
1/4 c. Ranch dressing
1/2 chicken breast, sliced
3 mushrooms, sliced
1 medium tomato, sliced
2 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1-1/2 c. Mozzarella cheese, divided

Spread the dressing around the crust and top with 1 cup of the cheese. Spread the remaining pizza toppings and sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top. Back for another 7-10 minutes, or until the cheese bubbles and the crust is golden.
Serves 6
Points: 7

California Club Sandwich

So many of my favorite things all combined into one great sandwich! This is higher in calories and points from what I usually make, but it is fun to splurge from time to time.Ingredients:
1 grilled chicken breast, sliced
6 strips of bacon
1 medium avocado, sliced
1 medium tomato, sliced
1/4 c. ranch dressing
4 slices sourdough bread, toasted

Pretty simple, spread the ranch on the bread, layer chicken, bacon, avocado, and tomato on top and top with the other piece of bread.
Serves 2
Points: 14

Broccoli Chicken Lasagna

I love pasta and I love cheese, let's be honest, who doesn't! I saw this recipe and I knew that I had to make it. This one was also found in a Taste of Home magazine. Lasagna is always good, but this variation is just fantastic, not to mention a little bit better for you. The picture below does not do it justice.
Ingredients:
1/2 lb. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 onion chopped
1/4 c. butter
1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 can (14-1/2 oz) chicken broth
1-3/4 c. milk
2/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese (I always prefer fresh grated Parmesan cheese, it is so much better than the dried stuff in the jar and it makes such a big difference)
1 pkg. (16 oz) frozen broccoli cuts, thawed
9 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
1-1/3 c. julienned fully cooked ham (I used a very lean ham, but you can also use a turkey ham to keep the fat and calories down)
2 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2 c. cubed cooked chicken

In a large skillet saute the mushrooms and onions in butter until tender. Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Gradually add the broth and milk. Bring to a boil, and cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in broccoli and Parmesan cheese until heated through.

In a 9x13 pan spread 1/2 broccoli mix on the bottom. Layer 3 noodles, 1/3 remaining broccoli mixture, 1 c. ham and 1 c. Monterey Jack cheese. Layer 3 more noodles, 1/2 remaining broccoli mixture, all the the chicken and 1/2 c. Monterey Jack cheese. Top with the remaining 3 noodles, the rest of the broccoli mixture and ham.

Bake covered for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Top with the remaining cheese and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.
Serves 12
Points: 9

Chicken Pesto Pizza

I love pizza, but I get bored with pepperoni, Hawaiian, etc. so I find myself trying new toppings and sauces all the time. I was flipping through one of my many cookbooks (Taste of Home) last week looking for some new ides when I landed on this recipe.
Ingredients:
1 tube refrigerated pizza dough (now, I can't stand to use that stuff so I make my own dough. I'll post that recipe soon)
1/2 c. water
3 T. olive oil
1 envelope pesto sauce mix
1 pkg. (10oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1/2 c. ricotta cheese (I used the fat free ricotta)
1/4 c. chopped onion
2 c. shredded cooked chicken
1 jar sliced mushrooms, drained
1 roma tomatoes, sliced
1 c. shredded Swiss cheese
1/4 c. grated Romano cheese

The recipe says to unroll the pizza crust onto a jellyroll pan, however I prefer to use a pizza stone. Prick the dough with a fork and bake at 425 degrees for about 7 minutes.

In a small sauce pan combine the water, oil and pesto mix and warm through, don't boil. Add the spinach, ricotta and onion and mix well.
*The recipe says to use this entire amount on the pizza, but when I made it I felt that it was just too much, so I saved half of it and put it in the freezer to use when I make this pizza again. Spread the spinach pesto mix over the crust.

Top with mushrooms, chicken, tomatoes and both Swiss and Romano cheese. Bake at the same 425 degrees for another 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden.
Serves 8
Points: 7 per slice

Grilled Glazed Drummies

In the summer I love to grill so I am always on the look out for new grilling recipes. I found this recipe out of a Taste of Home magazine and then played with it a bit. This is a great, very basic marinade. It tastes great on drumsticks, but it would be great with plain boneless, skinless breasts if you would like.
Ingredients:
1 c. ketchup
1/3 c. soy sauce
4 tsp. honey
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. garlic powder (though I prefer 1 tsp. fresh minced garlic)
3 lbs. chicken drumsticks (or drumettes if you are making this as an appetizer)

Combine ketchup, soy sauce, honey, ginger, and garlic in a bowl and save out 1/2 cup of marinade. Pour the remaining marinade into a ziploc bag. Add chicken and seal. allow to marinade for 4 hours or longer in the fridge.
Grill on medium heat for 5 minutes, turn and baste with the reserved marinade. Grill for another 10-15 minutes turning and basting from time to time.
Yields 16 drumsticks or 2 dozen drumettes.
Serves 8
Points: 3 per serving