Dine and dash

It's not what you're thinking.  Here's the thing...I'm a woman on the go.  I constantly have things going on in my life- between being the primary provider, to fitness instructor, to runner, to housewife, to mom-in-training.  Sometimes I feel this pressure to put an amazing meal on the table all the time.  And it doesn't always happen.  Life is busy!  So, I decided that some of the best meals are ones you can type up without looking at a recipe card.  Although....I'm not very good at that.  But, here are some fool-proof recipes:

By the way--- I'm a huge fan of tin foil.  If I'm baking vegetables or chicken or salmon...I line it with tin foil.  Easy clean up and a lot of times I wrap the meat in tin foil so it stays moist.

Italian chicken & veggies  (makes 4 servings-- perfect for leftovers the next day!)             
     Chicken breasts (4- 4oz breasts)
     4 Red potatoes, diced
     1 head broccoli
      Any other veggies you desire
     Italian Dressing - 1/4 cup
     Parmesan cheese

Wrap your chicken in tin foil and drizzle some light italian dressing on top (my favorite is Ken's Lite Northern Italian Dressing).  Then cut up some fresh vegetables- potatoes, zucchini, broccoli, green/red peppers, tomatoes, snow peas, green beans...whatever you'd like.  Line a pan with tin foil, place veggies in tin foil and drizzle italian dressing on top & sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top.  Place in oven at 350 degrees until veggies are soft & chicken is cooked all the way through.   Typically takes 20-30 minutes.


Fiesta Lime Chicken (Applebees copycat, with much less fat & sodium & calories)    
       Chicken Breasts (4-4oz breasts)
       1 cup salsa or pico
       2 TBSP Ranch dressing
       1/4 cup shredded cheese
       optional:  1/4 lime for juice

Place chicken breasts on baking sheet.  Cook chicken until almost cooked through at 350 degrees for roughly 13 minutes.  Before chicken is completely cooked, top chicken breasts salsa and top each breast with 1/2 TBSP of Ranch dressing.  Put shredded cheese on the very top.  Cook chicken for another 13 minutes until chicken is cooked through.   Before serving drizzle a small amount of lime on top.   Serve with a side of baked potato (which suprisingly also tastes GREAT with salsa and lite sour cream) and salad.  Or broccoli and salad.

Lean Turkey Chili  (several servings-- I believe it makes 8 to 10 1-cup servings)
       1 lb ground turkey (93/7 lean)
       4 cans diced or stewed tomatoes
       1 can black beans
       1 can kidney or pinto beans
       1 can diced green chilies
       2 TBSP tomato paste
       1 can corn (I love corn, so I always double the corn)
       1 packet of McCormick chili seasoning  (I always only use 3/4 of the seasoning packet to reduce sodium)

Brown ground turkey.  Then add all ingredients to a large pot (or we've done the crockpot on low before) and let simmer on low for 30 minutes.  Stir occassionally.

      

Swiss Chicken  **This one is my husband's favorite!
        Chicken Breasts (4-4oz breasts)
        1 can cream of chicken soup or cream of celery soup
        2 TBSP dried minced onions
        1 tsp garlic powder
        1/4 plain greek yogurt (or light sour cream)
        1/4 low fat skim milk (or unsweetened almond milk)
        Swiss Cheese (mozzarella, pepperjack, or monterary jack work just fine!)
        1/4- 1/2 cup bread crumbs  (or you could use crushed up corn flakes, or saltines even!)
         salt and pepper to taste
Lay chicken breasts on tin foil.  In a mixing bowl mix cream of chicken soup, greek yogurt, milk, garlic powder, and salt & pepper.  Sprinkle minced onions on top of chicken breasts, add once slice of cheese to each chicken breast.  Spread chicken soup mixture on top of cheese.  Add more minced onions, if you desire with breadcrumbs lightly sprinkled on top.  Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees, or until chicken is cooked through.



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And...I'm not sure if I've ever shared this alfredo recipe before...but it's awesome and really low-fat compared to most alfredo recipes.  Plus, my husband thinks it's better than Olive Garden.  He just likes the flavors!  Best part?  I usually always have the ingredients on hand.  So after a long Saturday or Sunday at church I make this because I know I have everything already.  Enjoy! 
Chicken Alfredo  (makes 2 servings)   
       1 chicken breast, baked in oven
       4 oz whole wheat pasta
      
       2 TBSP whipped Land O Lakes Butter  (this kind has less calories/fat)
       2 TBSP flour
       1 cup skim milk
       2 TBSP grated parmesan cheese
       1/4 tsp garlic powder
       1/4 tsp salt
        1-2 TBSP parsley flakes

Cook chicken.  Cook noodles.  In a separate pot on stove, melt butter until liquid (not until boiling).  Add flour and mix quickly into a thick paste.  Slowly (very slowly) add milk, while constantly stirring....making a rue.  Basically it will keep getting thicker and thicker.  Use a whisk so that the mixture stays smooth.  Once really thick, add garlic powder & salt.  Remove from heat and add parmesan cheese.  Add parsley flakes.  Mix in chicken and top over pasta.