Monster Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
3 eggs
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon corn syrup
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup candy-coated milk chocolate
pieces

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a very large bowl, beat the eggs.
3. Add the remaining ingredients in order, mixing well.
4. Use an ice cream scoop to put on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

That's right there is no flour in these cookies, so that makes them healthy ;) They are awesome and you really do need to use an ice cream scoop to make them turn out right. 

Mini Skillet Meatloaves

A really quick and easy way to make meatloaf.


Ingredients
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 large egg
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 small onion, finely minced
2 cloves garlic, grated or finely minced
1 1/2 pounds meatloaf mix (ground beef, pork and/or veal)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup ketchup
1 to 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Directions
Mix the breadcrumbs, milk, parsley, egg, Worcestershire sauce, onion, chili powder and garlic in a large bowl. Add the meat, season with salt and pepper and mix with your hands until combined. Shape into six 3-to-4-inch oval loaves.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add the loaves and brown about 3 minutes per side.

Whisk the ketchup, sugar and vinegar in a bowl and brush a few tablespoonfuls over the meat. Add 1/2 cup water to the skillet, cover and simmer over low heat until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

Transfer the loaves to a plate. Add the remaining ketchup mixture to the skillet and cook over high heat, stirring, until thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve meatloaves with the hot glaze.

Per serving: Calories 380; Fat 24 g (Saturated 8 g); Cholesterol 111 mg; Sodium 800 mg; Carbohydrate 16 g; Fiber 1 g; Protein 23 g

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

Per Meghan's request here is the Green Chile Chicken Enchilada recipe that John uses with a few tweaks. They are seriously awesome.

Ingredients


5-6 cups boneless chicken thighs
4 cups shredded cheese (jack, colby mix or just jack)
6-8 diced Hatch green chiles
24 yellow corn tortillas
1 cup sour cream
1 - 15oz can Hatch Green Chili enchilada sauce
10.75oz can condensed cream of chicken soup


How to make it


de-skin chicken, season and bake until done (375deg for approx 1hr). dice chicken.


chop green chilis.


mix chicken, 3cups cheese and green chilis together in a large bowl.


combine sour cream, enchilada sauce and cream of chicken soup.  heat on low until barely simmering.


heat tortillas by running through warm cooking oil until tortillas firm up.


roll each tortilla with chicken mixture.


arrange side by side in 9x13 baking dish 


leftover chicken mix can be used to make more enchiladas or spread over the top of the prepared enchiladas.


cover enchiladas with sauce and the remaining cheese.


cook uncovered at 350deg for 30min or until bubbly hot. 

So are the tweaks: 

We usually use a whole chicken either already cooked from the store or if we have a raw one we throw it in the crock pot with garlic, chicken broth and rosemary. Then you just shred it up. 

John heats the tortillas by running them through warm chicken broth instead of oil

We don't roll the tortillas. We just layer them and make a casserole. 

Request for Enchilada Recipe :)

So, I made enchiladas the other day (chicken), and honestly, I really didn't like them. I have tried making them off and on using different online recipes and it seems like they are a no brainer, but I can never get them to taste REALLY good. Any secrets to making a good enchilada you know of?

Thanks :)

Mini Crustless Pumpkin Pies

These are yummy and low cal.
Makes 12 mini pies.
Ingredients:
2/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp pumpkin spice
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup milk
Directions:
Spray 12 baking cups with pam and put in muffin tin. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin spice. Set aside. In medium bowl combine pumpkin, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, and milk with whisk. Whisk in dry ingredients until combined. Divide batter into 12 muffin cups. Bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool in pan then transfer to fridge to chill before serving. Muffin tops will deflate as they cool. Add some redi whip or whatever you like on your pumpkin pie before serving if you want.
Note: When I made them I replaced half of the white sugar with granulated splenda. I also used 1% milk. Be sure to spray the side of the muffin cups. I didn't get the sides as well as the bottom so some of it stuck, but since it is so moist I just scraped it off with my fork (actually I used my teeth because I have no shame and they are so yummy). I squirted a little redi whip on mine, but you can use something else or nothing.
Nutritional Info (does not include any topping) for 1 mini pie:
Calories: 83
Total Fat: 0.9 g
Saturated Fat: 0.2 g
Cholesterol: 29.7 mg
Sodium: 106.6 mg
Carbs: 17.4 g
Fiber: 0.3 g
Sugar: 8.8 g
Protein: 2.7 g

Pumpkin Bread

It's almost fall... and I love pumpkin! Plus, I had most of a can left from making the low cal cinnamon sugar bread.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups pumpkin
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 egg whites
2 Tbs oil
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
Directions:
Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in medium bowl. Set aside. Combine oil, egg whites, vanilla, and pumpkin in large bowl. Beat until thick. Mix in dry ingredients until combined. Do not over mix. Pour batter into greased 9x5 loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes at 350 degrees or until toothpick comes out clean.
Notes: I used 1/2 cup granulated splenda and 1/4 cup sugar instead of 3/4 cup sugar to save some calories.
I also had to make my own pumpkin pie spice. I doubled the following recipe to make 2 tsp.
For 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice:
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp nutmeg
Nutritional Info (1/12th loaf):
Calories: 91
Total Fat: 2.3 g
Saturated Fat: 0.1 g
Sodium: 164.4 g
Carbs: 17.4 g
Sugar: 2.9 g
Protein: 2.3 g

Hamburger Buns

An easy recipe for hamburger buns. I made 1/4 the recipe for 6 buns.
Makes 24 buns
Ingredients:
2 cups warm milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
2 (0.25 oz) packets instant yeast
2 tsp salt
6 cups flour (at most)
Directions:
Heat milk, water, butter, and sugar until warm (will be used to proof yeast). Add yeast and let sit 5 minutes. Add salt. Pour liquid into bigger bowl. Add flour until soft dough forms. Split into 24 rolls 2 to 3 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Let rise 20 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.
Notes: I used active dry yeast not instant so I knew it would take longer to rise. I let mine rise for about 1 1/2 hours. You can baste the top with egg if you want a browner top. Brad probably would have, but I am too lazy. I used only 1/8 cup less flour than what 1/4 recipe calls for.
Nutritional Info (1 bun):
Calories: 124
Total Fat: 1.5 g
Saturated Fat: 0.5 g
Sodium: 197.5 g
Carbs: 23 g
Sugar: 2.7 g
Protein: 2.9 g
They came out more like buns for sliders so if you want regular size buns I would make 2/3 as many as it says. For example, next time I will only make 4 instead of 6. Just multiply the nutrition by 1.5.

Cinnamon Sugar Quick Bread

Ingredients:
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cups flour
1 Tbs baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan.
Combine flour, baking powder, salt and 1 cup sugar in large bowl.  Add egg, milk, and oil to flour mixture.  Stir until just moistened.
Pour half of the batter into loaf pan.
Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture (1/3 cup sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon).  You can either put all of it on here or save a little bit for sprinkling on top before baking.
Cover with remaining batter. (Then sprinkle with remaining cinnamon sugar mixture if you saved some.)
Bake 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.
Let cool in pan for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.

Note: It is recommended that you wrap it in foil and let sit overnight before slicing, but you don't have to.  I just had it cool and wrapped for about an hour before everyone woke up and it cut just fine.  Some people even cut without wrapping it in foil at all.

When I made it I think I used a loaf pan smaller than a 9x5 (not sure what size it was) so it took the whole 50 minutes.  Be sure to check it at 45 just in case my loaf pan was smaller than yours.  I did reserve some for on top.  It looks a little ugly but tastes good.

When I make this again I am going to try using pumpkin (or applesauce) instead of oil and some sort of artificial sweetener to replace the sugar in the batter (not the sugar in the filling).  If it is good it will cut the calories pretty much in half.  It will obviously also majorly cut carbs, sugars, and fat.

WARNING: These are not healtified.  If you are worried about calories, do not look below. :)


Nutrition (1/12th loaf):
Calories: 219
Total Fat: 6.8 g
Saturated Fat: 0.9 g
Sodium: 194.4 mg
Total Carbs: 38.3 g
Sugars: 21.7 g
Protein: 3 g



UPDATE: I made it as described above to be healthier, and it is awesome.  I used 1 cup splenda in the batter and 1/3 cup pumpkin.  If you do this be sure to check the bread early.  I checked mine at 40 minutes, and it was done.

Nutrition (1/12th loaf):
Calories: 108
Fat: 0.333 g
Saturated Fat: 0 g
Sodium: 190.7 g
Carbs: 24.8 g
Fiber: 0.3 g
Sugar: 2 g
Protein: 0.1 g

Healthy Strawberry Muffins

I got this idea from pinterest.  (The ones on pinterest look all cute and stuff, but don't judge me based on my lack of ability to make food look good... except the sandwiches I made two days ago.. and of course I didn't take a picture!)  Makes 12 muffins.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup plain nonfat greek yogurt
2 eggs
2 cups strawberries (diced and patted dry)
1/2 cup baking stevia or 1 cup artificial sweetener that measures 1:1 with sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp lemon juice (optional)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients except strawberries in blender or food processor until oats are smooth.  Pour mixture into bowl and mix in 1 1/2 cups diced strawberries.  Divide batter amongst 12 muffins and top muffins with remaining 1/2 cup strawberries.  Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Note: If you choose to use liners then you need to use either silicone liners or just foil liners.  Paper liners will stick like crazy because there isn't any actual flour in these muffins. I just sprayed my muffin pan and washed it after.

Our blender sucks so I didn't get to make the oats smooth.  I would reccommend actually making the oats smooth, otherwise it is difficult to "mix" in the strawberries.  I also only had stevia packets so I used 5 for 6 muffins.  I would probably use 6 for 6 muffins next time (or 12 for 12).  Apparently I am retarded and didn't read the directions because I did not pat my strawberries dry.. thus I had bubbles on the edges and super moist muffins that are a little soggy on spots.. oops.  Also, I used the lemon juice, but I think it set of the baking soda early or something because I heard it bubbling so I am not sure if this affected them rising?  Aside from all the dumb things I did they still taste yummy so if you make them the right way I am sure they are awesome!

Nutrition (1 muffin):
Calores: 95
Total Fat: 2.2 g
Saturated Fat: 0.4 g
Sodium: 112.3 mg
Total Carbs: 16.4 g
Fiber: 2 g
Sugars: 2.1 g
Protein: 5.3 g

Ground Beef Mummy Bread

I made these yummy sandwiches that somewhat resemble a philly cheese steak, but are made with ground beef and a homemade creamy italian dressing.  Yum. Yum.

Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef
1 medium green bell pepper, julienned and then halved
1 medium red bell pepper, julienned and then halved
1 small onion, cut into thin wedges
1/2 cup creamy italian dressing
4 kaiser rolls, or whatever hard roll you like
4 slices thinly sliced provolone cheese

Creamy Italian Dressing:
1 Tbs fat-free mayonnaise
2 tsp skim milk
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp parmesean cheese
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp basil
1/8 tsp italian seasoning
1 clove (1/2 tsp) minced garlic
1 tsp olive oil

Note: When I made this I didn't know how much it would make because it wasn't part of the original recipe for the sandwiches.  This recipe makes a little less than 1/4 cup dressing so I just put what I had in the beef mixture and wasn't able to put any extra on the bread.  Next time I would double it, put 1/4 cup in the beef mixture and use the rest to spread lightly on the bread before broiling.


1. Set oven control to broil. In 12-inch nonstick skillet, cook beef, bell peppers, and onion over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, until beef is thoroughly cooked, drain.  Stir in 1/4 cup of the dressing.

2. Spread remaning 1/4 cup dressing on cut rolls.  Place all halves of cut rolls on ungreased large cookie sheet.  Broil with tops 4 to 6 inches from heat 2 to 4 minutes or until lightly toasted.  Remove bread from broiler.  Spread beef mixture over the 4 sandwiches.  Top with cheese.

3. Return halves with beef mixture and cheese to broiler.  Broil 4 to 6 inches from heat 2 to 3 minues or until cheese is melted.  Remove from broiler and place top halves of rolls on sandwiches.

Note: The original recipe uses a loaf of french bread cut in half and makes open faced sandwiches (2 per half). I just went to the day old bread section and got what looked good.  Also, I used one large green bell pepper and half a large onion because that is what we had (plus Brad doesn't like red, yellow, or orange bell peppers).

I will put the nutrition for the beef mixture as I made it yesterday.  I only had low fat mayonnaise and 1 % milk, but that amount is so little I don't think it makes much difference.  Calories for cheese and bread will depend on what you pick.  I used the kaiser rolls (200-250 calories) and sargento ultra thin provolone (40 calories).


Nutrition (Beef mixture only made the way I said I did with 91% lean ground beef)::
Calories: 220
Total Fat: 12.1 g
Saturated Fat: 4.6 g
Sodium: 114.7 g
Total Carbs: 4.5 g
Fiber: 0.8 g
Sugars: 2.3 g
Protein: 23.7 g

The beef alone had 180 calories so between the veggies and the sauce it only had 40.  I'm pretty sure it's like 25 calories for the dressing as the recipe is stated so if you double it you won't be adding to much calories, but it will have a little more flavor in case you choose a large roll like I did.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I made this soup in the crockpot, but I will post the alternative way to make it as well.

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp olive oil (alternative cooking method only)
1/4 tsp ground cumin
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 T lemon juice
1 cup chunky salsa
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)

Toppings:
corn tortilla chip
shredded cheese

Directions:
1. Put all ingredients in a crock pot. You can even throw the chicken in frozen.  Cook on high for 3 hours.  Pull chicken out, shred it, and put in back in the crock pot.  Cook for 30 more minutes.
2. Put tortilla chips on the bottom of your bowl.  Pour soup over chips.  Garnish with shredded cheese.  Mix it all up together if you like.  (That's what I do!)

Alternative Method:
1. In a large pot over medium heat, cook and stir chicken (cubed) in the oil for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin and mix well. Then add the broth, corn, onion, chili powder, lemon juice, and salsa. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes.
2. Same as above.

Nutrition (1/4 of pot with only 9.4 ounces chicken):
Calories: 230
Fat: 1 g
Carbs: 30.9 g
Fiber: 2.7 g
Sugars: 7.2 g
Protein: 21.4 g

The nutrition does not include the chips or cheese.  I didn't list sodium because it will depend on a lot of the ingredients.  Also, I only had one large chicken breast so that is why I only had 9.4 ounces chicken.  I would reccommend using two chicken breasts (closer to about a pound).

Pepperoni Bread

This is a really yummy pepperoni bread recipe.  We let our dough sit out the full 7 hours since we were out and about. YUM!

Ingredients:
1 (1 pound) frozen bread dough, (thawed)
1 egg, beaten
4 ounces turkey pepperoni
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesean cheese (not the powder in a bottle)
italian seasoning (to taste)
garlic powder (to taste)

Directions:
1. Thaw bread dough and let rise according to package.
2. Roll bread dough into rectangle.  Mix garlic powder (to taste) with beaten egg in small bowl.  Brush dough with slightly more than 3/4 of the egg mixture.  Arrange pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, and parmesean cheese over the dough.  Sprinkle italian seasoning on (to taste).  Roll up dough like a jelly roll and pinch seam to seal; place seam side down on slightly greased baking sheet.
3. Brush remaining egg mixture onto outisde of roll.  Sprinkle additional italian seasoning onto outside of roll (to taste).
3. Bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes, or until golden.  Bake time will depend on how thin you roll out your dough.
4. Serve with pizza sauce for dipping.

Nutritional Information (1/4 roll):
Calories: 480
Total Fat: 15.7 g
Saturated Fat: 5.9 g
Cholesterol:108.2 mg
Sodium: 1419.5 mg
Carbs: 54.4 g
Sugars: 4.1 g
Protein: 25.8 g

Note: Some people have used a Pillsbury thin crust pizza or french loaf to make it quicker and probably less calories.  You just need to adjust your bake time accordingly.  However, Rhodes bread makes me think of eating mom's stromboli as a kid so I think it's worth it!

Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk, plus more if necessary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon artifical sweetner
1/2 cup blueberries

DIRECTIONS:

1. Sift together flour and baking powder, set aside. Beat together the egg, milk, salt and artifical sweetner in a bowl. Stir flour until moistened, add blueberries and stir.

2. Preheat griddle. Recipe calls for 1/4 cup on griddle but I use 1/2 cup just depends on the size you want your pancake to be.

Biscuits

Here is the recipe for the biscuits I used to make for chicken a la king or just to eat when I was at home for the summer after sophomore year at BYU.  I am still working on remembering the right temp and time so I may update this after another try.  I also have a suggestion for making them healthier, but I haven't actually made them the healthier way yet so I'm not sure if it will be good.  I made 12 biscuits, but we had already eaten 3 before I remembered a picture.

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup flour + 1/3 cup flour -1 Tbs flour (a little weird because you are supposed to use cake flour I think)
1 Tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 to 3/4 cup milk

Directions:
1. Combine flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in medium sized bowl. 
2. Work shortening into dry ingredients with you hands.
3. Add milk until dough sticks together into ball.  Dough should be somewhat wet/sticky.
4. Pinch off dough and drop onto stone.
5. Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes.  (This is where I need to do some experimenting.  when I used to make them, I could just wait until the tops slightly browned and pulled them.  However, at 375 they weren't browning so they ended up being in 20 minutes but are a tad dry.  That is why I suggest closer to 15 minutes at 375.  A higher temp for a shorter amount of time may also be the key.)

Nutrition (1/12th using 1% milk):
Calories: 156
Total Fat: 8.8 g
Saturated Fat: 0.2 g
Sodium: 282.9 g
Total Carbs: 16.3 g
Sugars: 0.6 g
Protein: 2.4 g

Note: The yogurt substitute will cut the calories down to closer to 120-125 and basically cut the fat in half.  I haven't made them yet so I don't have the exact nutrition on it.

Fruit Pizza

Here is a fruit pizza recipe.  You can either make little pizzas on individual cookies like Meghan did in the picture, or you can make one large pizza on a pizza stone or in a 9x13 or 10x15 pan.

For the crust:
Use the full (Almond) Sugar Cookie recipe I posted earlier, minus the almond.  You can choose the traditional recipe or the yogurt substitution.  Meghan made about 30 cookies instead of 48 because she used mom's cookie scoop (also will be easier to top if a little bigger).  If you do a large pizza you may want to try to bake it at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  I am not sure exactly how long it will take, but I assume as one large cookie it will take longer than the smaller so you may need the lower temp to avoid burning on the edges?

The filling:
4 oz cream cheese (softened)
4 oz cool whip
1/2 C. sugar
Mix and spread on cooled crust(s).

Add any fruit you want, cut up or whole and place on top.   Top with glaze:

1/4 C sugar
1 T. corn starch
3/8 cup OJ
1/8 cup lemon juce or pineapple juice
Bring to a boil, cool slightly, then pour over pizza.

Refrigerate pizza.

Here are some changes the Brad's sister Brittany made to make it healthier or for her flavor preference.

1) She uses whipped cream cheese (easier to work with)
2) She uses lite cool whip to reduce fat/calories (no change in taste)
3) She does 3/8 cup pineapple juice and 1/8 cup lemon juice or 1/8 cup orange juice (basically she adjusts the juices to the flavor she prefers).

I don't have nutrition facts as I have never made it and there are so many places it can be varied, so sorry but you'll have to do the work yourself! :)

(Almond) Butter Cream Frosting

Here is the recipe for Brad's butter cream frosting.  When we made this with the (almond) sugar cookies we added almond as well, but you can make it as white butter cream frosting just omit the almond.  I put the nutrition assuming 24 servings, but you would really have to weigh how much it makes and figure out how many grams you use vs how many grams in 1/24th if you want to get technical.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter softened, not melted
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract (optional)
1/8 cup milk (at most)

Directions:
Cream Butter. Beat in sugar and vanilla (and almond extract).  Add milk until desired consistency is reached.

Nutrition (assuming 24 servings):
Calories: 74
Total Fat: 3.6 g
Saturated Fat: 2.4 g
Sodium: 32 g
Total Carbs: 10 g
Sugars: 9.8 g
Protein: 0 g

(Almond) Sugar Cookies

Here is a yummy sugar cookie recipe that we have used.  We added almond as an optional addition since we love almond.

Ingredients (Makes 48 cookies):

2 3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp almond extract (optional)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda

Directions:
1. Combine flour, baking powder, and baking soda in small bowl and set aside.
2. Creamed butter and sugar.  Beat in egg and vanilla (and almond extract).
3. Gradually add in dry ingredients.
4. Roll dough into balls and drop onto ungreased cookie sheet.
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes.  Allow to cool for 2 minutes on pan before moving to cooling rack.

When we made these we halved the recipe (except the egg, we just still used one egg) and made 24 cookies. You could chill the dough if you want, but you don't have to before you scoop it out. We also frosted them with the (almond) butter cream frosting I am posting after this.

Nutrition (per cookie):
Calories: 82
Total Fat: 3.9 g
Saturated Fat: 2.4 g
Sodium: 63.9 mg
Total Carbs: 11.1 g
Sugars: 6.2 g
Protein: 0.2 g

UPDATE: I found another version of the recipe that is a little healthier, but I haven't actually tried it yet.  When making the entire recipe (48 cookies) replace 1/2 cup of the butter with 1/4 cup nonfat plain yogurt.  All directions are the same.  This reduces the calories per cookie to about 70 or a little less (I haven't actually tried it, so I haven't put it in myfitness pal to find out).  Let me know if you try it!

Barbeque Chicken Pizza

This is something I found/adjusted from the dinner spinner app.  We used mom's recipe for dough and just multiplied everything by 1/3 to only make one pizza.

Mom's Dough Recipe:

2 Tbs. yeast
7 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 cups warm water

Mix yeast, 1/2 flour, salt and water at low speed for 1 minute. Then high speed for 3 minutes. Add rest of flour. Let rise 1 hour. Punch down. Makes 3 pizzas. I usually only add 3 cups of flour after mixning. You have to use a mixer with a dough hook. Make sure the water isn't too hot. It will kill the yeast.

After rolling out the dough onto a pizza stone, I prebaked it at 450 degrees for 5 minutes.  Then I added the toppings.

1/2 cup kraft light bbq sauce
2 cups shredded chicken (I used an 11 oz frozen chicken breast and it was a good amount shredded.)
1/2 yellow onion, juliened
1 green bell pepper, juliened
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups reduced fat mozerella cheese

Spread bbq sauce on the prebaked crust.  Then lay shredded chicken, then onion and bell pepper, then cheese.  Bake at 450 degrees for 13-14 minutes. (Everyone's oven will be a little different/preference on cheese color/dough crispiness, etc.)

I like the crust crispy so that is how I cooked mine.  It has a crispy crust and a nice light, fresh flavor.  Brad likes more sauce so he just dipped his pizza in bbq sauce, but you could add more to your pizza if you like it that way.  Nothing too novel, but very yummy and pretty healthy.  Plus, we needed mom's dough recipe on here anyway. :)

Nutritional Info (1/4 of the pizza):
Calories: 435
Fat: 7.3 g
Saturated Fat: 3.2 g
Cholesterol: 53.5 mg
Sodium: 941 mg
Carbs: 57.4 g
Fiber: 2.6 g
Sugars: 6.9 g
Protein: 35.1 g

Peanut Butter Bars

These are just like the ones the school used to make, but with chocolate icing instead of peanut butter. If you find a good peanut butter icing recipe and try it with that let me know, I'd love to make it that way sometime but I don't know how to make peanut butter icing. Here's a picture, just for fun.

 

We usually half the recipe and make it in a 9x13 pan but we have made the whole thing on a jelly roll pan as well.

Peanut Butter Bars
1 1/2 c. shortening
1 1/2 c. peanut butter (creamy or chunky)
1 1/2 c. white sugar
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
3 eggs
3/4 t. salt
1 1/2 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. vanilla
2 1/3 c. flour
3 c. oats (regular or quick)

Cream the shortening, peanut butter, sugars and eggs together until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until incorporated. Spread into a greased cookie sheet (jelly roll size) until even on all sides (batter will be thick, you may need to use a fork to press down). Bake at 325 for 13 minutes (bar will seem under done, but will firm up as it sits). This recipe makes a large batch, it can be halved and put in a 9x13 pan if you would prefer.
Chocolate Frosting
1 stick butter
1 t. vanilla
Dash of salt
1/2 c. cocoa powder
3 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/3 c. milk

Beat the butter, cocoa powder, and milk together until smooth and soft. Add the powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla and continue to beat until fluffy and smooth. Spread a thin layer or frosting over the cooled peanut butter bars.

Buffalo Sloppy Joes

We love this recipe. Way lighter and better tasting than normal sloppy joes, especially from the kind with the sauce from a can. It's also spicy, too, which we love. You can make it as mild or spicy as you like, very easy to adjust. It's also a great way to use ground turkey or chicken, which I also love.  Hope you like it!

*We cut the recipe in half. Jared's cousin shared it with us and she has 5 kids so she cooks bigger batches than we need.*

Buffalo Sloppy Sliders
2 T. olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 lbs. lean ground turkey or ground chicken (I used 1 lb. of each)
Dice the celery, onions and green bell pepper into small pieces. Place vegetables in a large saute pan with the olive oil and cook until the vegetables are slightly tender. Add to the vegetables the ground turkey or chicken and brown the meat until it is broken up and browned. Once the meat is cooked, drain the excess juices from the pan. Add the following ingredients to the meat and vegetable mixture:
1 c. Franks Hot Sauce (if you don't like your sliders so spicy, use more tomato sauce and less hot sauce)
1/2 c. tomato sauce
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 T. ketchup
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. red wine vinegar
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1/2 t. garlic powder (or 2 cloves freshly minced garlic)
Simmer meat mixture until the flavors have combined and you are ready to serve the sliders.

If you half the recipe and use ground turkey and garlic powder (not minced garlic) you get:

752 calories total

assuming you get 6 servings (I think you get at least 6, maybe even 8) that makes:
125 calories per serving (not including hamburger buns, which we eat it with)

Peanut Butter Coconut Bars

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups rice krispies
2 cups oats
1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1 Tbs honey
2/3 cup natural creamy peanut butter
1 Tbs vanilla

Steps

1. Combine cereal, oats, and coconut in large bowl.
2. In a sauce pan, combine brown sugar, water, and honey with a whisk. Cook on medium heat until just boiling. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth.
3. Pour wet ingredients over dry and mix thoroughly.
4. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan and flatten with back of spoon. Allow to cool and cut into squares.

Nutritional Info (1/20th of pan):
Calories: 127
Fat: 5.6 g
Saturated Fat: 1.8 g
Sodium: 59.7 mg
Carbs: 17 g
Fiber: 1.5 g
Sugar: 7.9 g
Protein: 3g

Oat and Honey Muffins

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups oats
1 cup flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 egg
2/3 cup + 1 Tbs milk
1/3 cup pumpkin (or applesauce)
1/4 cup honey

Directions:
Mix oats, flour, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, nutmeg, and cinnamon in large bowl.  In separate bowl, mix egg, milk, pumpkin, and honey.  Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and mix just until moistened.  (Let sit for a few minutes if you want bigger muffin tops.)  Makes 12 muffins (We just already ate half before I got the picture!).  Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes. (My perfect bake time is about 16 minutes using paper baking cups.)  Let sit 5 minutes in pan on cooling rack before removing muffins from pan.

Nutritional Info (with pumpkin, 1% milk, and large egg):
Calories: 126
Total Fat: 1.2 g
Saturated Fat: 0.2 g
Cholesterol: 18.5 mg
Sodium: 222 mg
Potassium: 78.4 mg
Carbs: 28.6 g
Fiber: 0.3 g
Sugars: 10.4 g
Protein: 3.4 g

Only 5.3 g of sugar are from the brown sugar.  The rest is from the honey and pumpkin which is all natural so dig in!

Chili (normal)

Veggie Chili - South Beach Diet
*mom sometimes leaves out the soy meat, we sometimes add ground beef


Ingredients
2 bell peppers (red, yellow, or green), diced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
12 ounces soy/meat alternative crumbles
1 tablespoon chili powder (or more to taste)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 4-ounce can chopped green chilies, drained
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained
1 15-ounce can kidney beans, drained
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
Instructions
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the peppers, onion, and garlic and heat until they soften. Add remaining ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Makes 8 (1-cup) servings

209 calories per serving using ground soy meat
327 calories per serving using ground beef

Family Recipe Blog

This blog will hopefully be helpful as well all try to eat healthy and/or delicious food. I figure we can post recipes we frequently use and frequently forget (I think I call mom monthly for the chicken chili recipe) and also post recipes we have recently tried and think are really good.

Feel free to post the recipe, any changes you made or you think you might make the next time you try the recipe, the calories and servings, etc. If you tag your post with keywords (use the labels tab on the right) then it will be easier to search for that recipe in the future. There is a search box up top so that you can search the whole blog as well for what you are looking for.