BBQ Chicken Quesadilla

I am not sure why the idea of non-Mexican themed quesadillas has never entered my mind before.  But it's true! There are so many more options for this tasty sandwich than chicken, beans, Mexican cheese, salsa and sour cream (don't get me wrong, I love those too).  Switching the chicken up with a BBQ flavor was a suggestion of a friend, and I went from there.  There are many more quesadillas in my future, and your future, but start with these flavors for an easy week night dinner!

Servings: 1
Serving Size: 1 quesadilla cut into 4 pieces
Points Plus: 6
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients
2 corn tortillas
1/8 cup reduced cheddar cheese
2 T of your FAV BBQ sauce, divided
2 oz (1/2 cup) chicken (I used rotisserie)
2 T red onion, diced small
Cooking spray

Directions
In a small bowl mix your chicken with 1 T of BBQ sauce. Spray a non-stick pan with cooking spray.  Place your tortilla on the pan and layer on the chicken, onion and cheese.  Top with the second tortilla and cook about 3 minutes on each side, until crispy.

Tip
There is nothing easier than picking up a rotisserie chicken at the store and having it for dinner that night.  The hardest part of this easy meal is picking the chicken off the bones (a job reserved for husbands...am I right??) It is easiest to pick the meat off when the chicken is still hot, and the putting it into a Tupperware for other meals throughout the week.

XOXO - Katie

Chicken Sausage Italian Soup

This is a recipe makeover from the Italian Sausage Soup I posted about a year ago.  This is my go-to dinner if I am out of ideas because it it so quick and easy!  This is truly a 30-minute meal.  It's a hearty blend of Italian flavors and perfect for chilly weather.  I made it this week because of our April snowstorm here in Minnesota.  Yes, last week I was telling you about temps hitting 70 and now we are back to a winter wonderland outside, gotta love MN in the spring. :)

Anyways, I've adapted this recipe over time because I have made it so often I have some extra tips and tricks to make this soup even better than the original recipe.  I always make it with chicken sausage isntead of turkey sausage.  Also, I usually add a bit more pasta and I definitely add more chicken broth since the 2 cups it calls for never seems to be enough (espcially for leftovers).

Servings:  4

Size:  1 1/3 cups of soup + 1 Tbsp. cheese

Points Plus: 5 pts

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

8 oz. hot or sweet Italian chicken sausage

3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano

3/4 cup uncooked small shell pasta (or whatever shape you prefer)

Freshly ground pepper to taste

2 cups bagged baby spinach leaves

4 Tbsp. grated fresh parmesan cheese

Directions:

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat.  Slice the chicken sausage into coins and add to pan, cook about 5 minutes or until browned.  Add broth, tomatoes and pasta to a large stock pot.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Once the mixture comes to a boil add the sausage and freshly ground pepper.  Cover the pot and reduce the heat; simmer for 10 minutes or until the pasta is al dente.  Remove from heat; stir in spinach until wilted.  Sprinkle each serving with cheese and basil.

Note: If you won’t be eating all of the soup at one time I would recommend putting the spinach leaves in each serving bowl and pouring the soup serving over the top to wilt the spinach.  The wilted spinach in leftover soup can become limp - this way you have freshly wilted spinach for each serving!

Adapted from Cooking Light

Tip:

With leftovers, feel free to add extra chicken broth if needed to make more of a soup consistency.  3 cups should be enough, but you might need more!

XOXO Megan

Shrimp Cobb Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

A good cobb salad is one of my restaurant go-to meals.  I have never, however, seen it with shrimp!  I was curious to try this unique version, with a make-your-own cilantro lime vinaigrette.  I love an excuse to whip out my food processor! Suggestion - eat it when your shrimp are still warm!

Servings: 4
Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe + 2 T dressing
Points Plus: 10 pp
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients
Salad
1 pound medium shrimp, thawed, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon Emeril's Essence Creole Seasoning
2 slices turkey bacon, diced
2 large eggs, hard boiled
4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and diced
2 oz cup crumbled goat cheese

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette
1 cup loosely packed cilantro, stems removed
Juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeño, optional
2 cloves garlic
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Instructions
To make the cilantro lime vinaigrette, combine cilantro, lime juice, jalapeño and garlic in the bowl of a food processor; season with salt and pepper, to taste. With the motor running, add olive oil and vinegar in a slow stream until emulsified; set aside. If using a food processor without an opening on top (like I did), simply add all ingredients and turn on.  You may need to scrap the sides a few times to get all ingredients to combine.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or give a quick spritz with cooking spray.  Put shrimp in a bowl, add Emeril's Essence and gently toss.  Place shrimp on your baking sheet in a single layer and back for 4-7 minutes, until shrimp are pink and cooked through.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add turkey bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; set aside.

To assemble the salad, place romaine lettuce in a large bowl; top with arranged rows of shrimp, turkey bacon, eggs, avocado, and goat cheese.

Serve immediately with 2 T cilantro lime vinaigrette per salad.

Adapted from Damn Delicious

Tip
I change my lettuce preference a LOT! Currently, I love romaine.  But buying it precut reminds me of my college cafeteria days.  I love buying the hearts, chopping off the end and then cutting it in thin strips (julienned).  After it is all cut give it a rinse and then put it into a large zip lock back.  You will have fresh crisp lettuce all week long!

XOXO - Katie

Lemon Blueberry Trifle

I love trifles!  They are really easy to make, but the end result resembles more of a fancy dessert.  This would be perfect to serve at an Easter brunch this weekend!  Lemon and blueberry is a great flavor combination too – this dessert is full of spring flavors and colors.  Enjoy!

Servings:  8
Size:  1/8 of the trifle
Points Plus: 5pp
Level of Difficulty:  Easy
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: n/a

Ingredient List:
1 Angel food cake (store-bought already baked version)
2 lemons (used for zest and juice)
1 ½ cups skim milk
1 container Greek fat free yogurt, plain
1 8 oz. container fat-free frozen whipped topping, thawed
2 packages lemon instant pudding mix, sugar-free
1 pint fresh blueberries

Directions:
Wash and pat dry the blueberries. Zest the two lemons and set aside the lemon zest.  Using a serrated bread knife, cut the angel food cake into 1 inch cubes. Squeeze fresh lemon juice from one of the lemons on top of the angel food cake.  In a large bowl, mix together with a whisk the milk, Greek yogurt, ½ the frozen whipped topping and lemon zest until smooth.  Add in the packages of pudding mixture and continue to whisk until the mixture begins to thicken and resemble pudding.  In the bottom of your trifle bowl, start layering beginning with 1/3 of the angel food cake pieces.  Next, use 1/3 of the pudding mixture, drop spoonfuls on top of the cake layer.  Finally, sprinkle in 1/3 of the blueberries on top.  Repeat this process twice more to make 3 layers each of the cake, pudding and berry layers.  Use the remaining frozen whipped topping (cool whip) to pipe decorative stars on top of the finished trifle.  Make sure the top layer has a lot of blueberries to have a good pop of color! Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

Tip:

I used plain Greek yogurt for the pudding mixture, but you could easily sub in lemon flavored Greek yogurt if you want to really amp up the lemon flavor!

XOXO Megan

Beef & Peppers Stir Fry

I saw The Pioneer Women aka Ree Drummond aka my obsession make this on her TV show a few weeks ago and knew I had to make it ASAP.  I love dishes that morally go on top of a car (ie: rice) over lettuce.  It for sure lightens it up and adds an extra crunch!

Servings: 4
Serving Size: 1 cup
Points Plus: 5pp
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:
1 pound steak cut into thin strips, I used filet
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/2 T packed brown sugar
1/2 T cornstarch
1/2 T minced fresh ginger
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Red Chile Paste
1 t olive oil
1 onion, Sliced
2 Red Bell Peppers, cut into rings (I used a bag of assorted colored mini peppers)
1 T jalapeño, diced
1 cup sliced carrots
Red pepper flakes, to taste
Cilantro leaves, removed from stem
Lettuce

Directions:
Wisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, cornstarch, ginger, garlic, and chili paste (or chili oil.) Place sliced beef in the mixture and toss to coat. Set aside. 

Heat 1 t oil in a large skillet. When it is very hot, throw in the onions and cook for about a minute. Add bell peppers, jalapeno and carrots. Cook for a minute, tossing, until peppers have brown/black bits but are still firm.

Add your meat mixture, evenly distributing over the surface of the skillet. Allow to sit for 20 to 30 seconds, then turn with tongs. Cook until meat is cooked through.

Reduce heat to low and cook until sauce has thickened.

Serve on top of lettuce and top with cilantro leaves. Serve immediately. 

Tip:The sauce in this recipe is really tasty, you could use it as a stir fry sauce with any meat or even just veggies!
Adapted from The Pioneer Women

XOXO - Katie

Butter Chicken

Butter chicken!  Sounds delish and full of butter right? WRONG!  Butter chicken is similar to the Indian fcurry favorite Chicken Marsala.  Next time you are craving takeout - make this instead! It's creamy and full of fun spices, and you can even get crazy with your spice self (I added pumpkin pie spice to mine, it was crazy)!  Serve with a side of naan and you have dinner in under 30 minutes!

Servings: 4
Serving Size: 1 cup
Points Plus: 6pp
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:
1 t olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup onion, diced

1 (13.5-ounce) can light coconut milk

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 tablespoons flour

2 teaspoons garam masala (more to taste)

1 teaspoon curry powder (more to taste)

1/2 teaspoon chili powder (more to taste)

Pumpkin pie spice (optional)

Cloves (optional)

Cinnamon (optional)

Kosher salt + freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces

Directions:

Heat oil in your Dutch oven and add and onions.  Cook about 2-3 minutes, until onions are soft. Wisk in flour and let it heat for about a minute. Wisk in coconut milk and tomato paste and bring to a boil.  Add spices.  Here is where things get FUN!  Start with the amounts of spices listed above, stir them in, and then taste your sauce.  Add from there depending on what you like! You might think adding sweet spices like cinnamon and cloves will make the dish really sweet, but it doesn't at all.  It just makes the dish more flavorful.  Don't forget to add salt, I used about 1 t total of kosher salt. 

Tip:

You could add any veggies you like to this flavorful chicken. I think crunchy peas and fresh spinach would be delish!

XOXO - Katie

Cauliflower Chowder

I have said it before but I will say it again! It is SO easy to make healthy home made soup.  In many cases, when we are talking veggie soup, your steps are no more than adding a veggie to stock and letting it simmer, adding some spices and DONE!  Ok, ok, maybe there are a few more steps but really it is easy, and very tasty.  This soup is rich and creamy, and next time I will for sure be making a double batch.  You can add any toppings you want (it would be fun to add toppings you would add to baked potato soup) and the leftovers are even better the next day!

Servings: 4
Serving Size: 2 cups
Points Plus: 4pp
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15-20 minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients
4 slices of raw bacon
1 t olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup skim milk
1 head cauliflower, roughly chopped
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Possible additional toppings: sour cream, scallions, cheddar cheese (adjust pp)

Instructions
Get out a non-stick pan and cook your bacon until crispy. I got my bacon from the butcher, so it was sort of thick, and I feel like it took FOREVER to get crispy.  So just be patient and let it cook up! When the bacon IS crisped up, remove it from the pan and cut into tiny pieces. (a NS pan works better for frying bacon for me than my Dutch oven)

In your Dutch oven heat 1 t of olive oil. Add garlic, onion, celery and carrots and let cook until veggies are soft, about 3-4 minutes.  Wisk in your flour and incorporate into veggies.  Let heat, about 1 minute.  Stir in your broth and milk and bring the soup to a boil.  Add in your cauliflower and bay leaf and let simmer for about 15 minutes, until cauliflower is cooked through.

When soup is done check it for flavor and add salt + pepper depending on your taste.  I added about 1/8 t of kosher salt and a ton of pepper.  Because the stock I use is salty that was plenty of extra flavoring for me!

Tip
Ummm, how come I have never used pre-shredded carrots in soup before?  Buying the little bag of pre-shredded is perfect for soups and salads!

Recipe adapted from Damn Delicious.

XOXO - Katie