Always Trust a Skinny Cook: 2012

Fat-Burning Chickpea muffins

Is stubborn belly fat one of your most bothersome body problems? I know it's mine!! Besides everywhere else - lol BUT.... there is hope for us fatty's yet! We can beat the bulge in just 7 days by adding one cup of beans to every meal!

Beans, like chickpeas, contain soluble fiber, which works to lower the inflammation that causes belly fat. Start your day off right with this belly fat-blasting breakfast muffin.

100 Healthy foods to put in your shopping cart

I am turning into a HUGE Dr. Oz fan and I absolutely LOVE this!

Click HERE for a printable version of this list

Check out these other helpful links from Dr. Oz

Source:

Skinny Slow Cooker Oats

Delicious and easy recipe for slow cooker oats that you can cook

overnight using steel cut oats.

Ingredients:

1 cup steel cut oats
4 cups water
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
Splenda or Brown Sugar Splenda to taste

Directions: Heavily coat slow cooker with cooking spray. Place oats in slow cooker and pour water over oats. Add in cinnamon and vanilla and stir to mix. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours overnight. Wake up and stir oats. Add Splenda and or Brown Sugar Splenda to taste. If the oats are too thick, simply add in skim milk or almond milk and stir to desired consistency.

Optional: Top with fresh blueberries, pecans, and milk.

Nutrition Info Per Serving: (serves 4) Calories: 150, Fat: 2.5g, Carbohydrate: 27g, Fiber: 4g, Protein: 5g, Sugars: 1g

Source

Savory Mac & Cheese "Muffins" with Spinach

O............M..............G!! LOOKEY WHAT I FOUND!

Oh, how I love homemade macaroni & cheese! Unfortunately, I love it so much that I rarely make it for fear that I will lose all portion control abilities and end up eating far more than I planned. And then comes....The Mac & Cheese Muffin!!

I'm so flippin excited right now - I can't pound my keyboard fast enough to get this out to you to share!!

These individual sized portions of creamy, cheesy pasta are the perfect solution to satiate your cravings without going overboard. Two of them for dinner with a side salad and you can be happily satisfied.

I think one would also make a perfect side dish to chicken, beef or pork. There’s even spinach in these so you can feel good about getting in some veggies! Real, full fat cheese are used in these (at still only 4 WW Points+ per muffin that seemed worth it to me) but if you want to lighten them up further you could use reduced fat cheeses. These are made with sharp white cheddar and Gruyere but feel free to get creative and use any of your favorite cheeses instead!

A great way to conquer your sweet tooth is with these super yummy and super soft cookies! Although there is no sugar added, they taste as if there is!

Ingredients:

3 mashed bananas (ripe)
1/3 cup unsweetend apple sauce
1/4 cup almond milk (used unsweetened)
2 cups oats
1/2 cup dried cranberries or raisins or both!
1 tsp vanilla for taste
1 tsp cinnamon

Mix together and drop on cookie sheet by the spoonful or make a double batch and put them in a cake pan for soft and chewy bars!

Throw them in the oven at 325°F for 20 minutes

Re-Vamped Taco Salad (Healthy Style)

MMMMmmm Did someone say Tacos??????? I love, love, love tacos and it's been really hard for me to cut them out of my life. But NOT ANYMORE - Taco's here I come!! I found a great re-vamped taco recipe from a facebook page! Not just any old facebook page but a great one called Fit Life - Happy Wife (super cute name) Check it out if you get the chance, she has some great ideas!

Anyhoo....Here is her recipe for Taco Salad (for one)

I love ranch, but it's so fattening!! Until now. This whole jar of ranch is only 1.75 grams of fat and 255 calories! 1 cup dannon oikos plain greek yogurt, 1 packet hidden valley ranch mix, 1/2 cup 1% milk. Whisk together, chill 1 hour before use. Perfect consistency and tastes better than bottled!

75 Best Snacks Under 50 Calories

I swear...it seems like FOREVER to me between meals - yes....I really like to eat - I think it's the whole needing to chew on something - I haven't really pin-pointed that out yet and I really don't buy snack foods because snack foods to me are Ho-Ho's and Ding Dongs and Twinkies.......OH MY! So I went on a hunt for some low calorie snacks and compiled this list, because I'm sure I'm not the only one this happens to!

Quick & Easy Grilled Fruit

So last night I was stalking Foodie Facebook pages and came across quite a few really, really good ones! One of them was Pampered Chef Consultant - Carol's Corner where this awesome idea came from! I love me some fruit and have never had it grilled, but now that I've read this, I can't wait to go fruit shopping and bust out the grill and get busy! Doesn't this grilled peach look fantastic??

Grilling fruit intensifies its taste and caramelizes its natural sugars. Try grilled peaches on spinach and chicken salad, bacon and brie burgers with grilled apple, grilled watermelon and mango with shrimp or a grilled plum salad with gorgonzola cheese and pecans! Or transform it into simple, tasty, beautiful desserts with a little ice cream, fruit sorbet, whipped cream or a drizzle of balsamic!

Easily Freeze Individual Portions

I was surfing the wonderful world of food blogs tonight and came across this great tip from Lunch In a Box, that is totally worthy of my blog! LOL I've been doing this for years but it never occurred to me to actually write about it. DUH! (No one ever said I was the brightest crayon in the box!) Anyway, It comes in very handy for us single folk out there and if the family is busy out doing different things, it's a great way to just make one individual serving. There is nothing worse than buying in bulk, such as hamburger, and having to cook the whole thing at once and wasting food.

I DON'T WASTE - I LIKE TO EAT TOO MUCH!

The first thing you do is to put the food (meat or sauces or what ever) into a large freezer bag and smush it out as flat as possible, making sure to get rid of all the air pockets. (Making it thin speeds up defrost time due to the increased surface area, and pressing out excess air

guards against freezer burn.)

Use a long chopstick or ruler to create divisions within the food, forming individual portions. This way when you freeze the entire bag, you’ll be able to quickly break off just as much as you want to use, no more.

Because you’re touching the freezer bag and not the meat directly when flattening it out, your hands don’t get messy, and the food and work surface stay clean. You also reduce the waste that would be generated by individually wrapping each little serving in plastic wrap. This freezing technique isn’t limited to ground meat, though. Think thick pasta sauces, mashed or pureed fruit or vegetables, cooked meat soboro, rice, fried rice, cookie dough, etc.

GREAT SPACE SAVER TOO! You don't have to lay them flat either. You can fold it in 3rd or halves depending on your portion size.

How to Recondition & Re-Season your Cast Iron Cookware

First of all, I just wanna say that as much as I would like to take credit for this awesome post, I cannot. I saw this pic on Pinterest and thought that this would be a good post for my blog too - but, the full credit goes to I Believe I can Fry (cute name by the way)

I'm sure most of us have one, if not more of these rusty old things out in the garage or in the basement taking up space, so now is the time to go and grab them and put them to use!

I have always wanted to learn how to do this and I'm sure many of you have to so......Here ya go!

Tropical Treat! It's hot out. So, you really have no choice but to indulge in a frozen pineapple-coconut cocktail, right?! But rather than suck down a typical piña colada packed with crazy amounts of calories and fat, be a little creative and whip up one of ours. It's insanely creamy, super-delicious and we pretty much guarantee that you'll like it as much as any piña colada you've ever had. Don't believe me? Whip out that blender and give those blades a whirl! Don't drink alcohol? Try swapping the liquor in this recipe with an ounce of water and another 1/2 oz. of coconut syrup. You'll get a virgin version with about 55 calories!

Do you think just because you're dieting, you can't have cheesecake....well, take a look again because for a slice of this little piece of heaven is only 168 calories baby!! Add a delicious topping of blueberry goo, and it's irresistible!

Better Off Red! There's no reason to get sucked in by scarlet-hued shakes with scary-high calorie counts. Toss a few no-guilt ingredients in the blender, and voilà! Red velvety goodness...

I saw this on one of my Aunts Blogs and I had to share it with you. This is a great way to entertain your kids. I wish I knew about this easy methods ions ago!! Check out this video!

How to use a Pressure Cooker

Using a Pressure Cooker has got to be the BEST way to cook meat, in my opinion. My uncle used to cook the best ribs, carrots, and potatoes that I've ever had in a pressure cooker. I'm not a big cooked carrot fan but boy, when he made this, he knew to make extra because the juices of the meat infused with the potatoes and carrots making them SO sweet and delicious. He would use the yellow Yukon Gold potatoes and when they came out of the pressure cooker, they were so good that they didn't even need butter!! Imagine that...no butter on potatoes!! YUMMO!

How to make Really Good Hummus!

Hummus is pretty basic right? You have maybe 5 ingredients that you throw into a food processor and blend. Should be straight forward, but like making fresh mayo it ISN'T! Isn't a 1-2-3 in the bag dish that is. I've been wanting to make hummus for ages but only recently have I figured out how to do that! And thanks to this video I found on YouTube, now you can too!! Go grab a pen and paper and get ready to write down the ingredients!

So what's the key to making fabulous hummus? Two things; balance of flavors and consistency. The balance of acid, fat, heat and aromatics is the first part. The consistency part has to do with, how much tahini you add, how long you blend it, and the amount of water you add. The water helps to break down the beans while processing the hummus to give it a creamier consistency. He used to add olive oil instead of water because he thinks the oil gives it more texture. Really the oil has no effect on the texture and it didn't do anything for the consistency. In fact it may have worked against both. Water helps open up the pores of the ingredients allowing distribution of flavor and achieving the right texture. As you'll see in the video, he make it a tad more loose then some of you might, but trust in the fact that it will firm up in the fridge.

See what you think and let me know how your next batch turns out.

Hearty Vegetable Lasagna - YUM!

This Veggie lasagna is VERY, VERY, VERY good!! I was skeptical at first because I really like my meaty lasagna, but with the mushrooms and the veggies, I didn't even miss the meat! This is a super hearty version that I will definitely make again and again! If you add some spinach to the ricotta cheese, it makes it even better!

Many of us cooks, including me, has been frustrated by the seemingly simple and straightforward task of poaching an egg. Hopefully, you have already seen your mistake. Most egg poaching disasters can be averted by keeping the water below a simmer.

Bring 3 inches of water and a splash of vinegar to about 170 degrees, F.
Look carefully at the bottom of the pan. There should be small bubbles all over it, but they should not be rising to the top and breaking.
Crack an egg into a small cup.
Lower the egg—cup and all—into the water in the center of the pan.
Tip the cup to let the egg slide out gently. If any errant strings of white try to swirl away from the egg, gently push them back with a heat-resistant spatula or a spoon.
Let the egg gently poach for about 4-5 minutes, depending on how done you like your eggs.
“Jiggle” the egg with your spoon. The white should be fairly firm, but the yolk should still shimmy.
Remove the egg with a slotted spoon, and let it drain on some paper towels.
Serve on buttered toast, or get fancy and make Eggs Benedict. A lovely way to serve a poached egg at dinner is to make a salad with a fairly acidic dressing. Perch the warm poached egg atop the salad and break the yolk. The rich yolk will blend with and become part of the dressing. Wonderful!

How to Blanch Foods

If you watch cooking shows or are an avid cook, I'm sure you've heard the word Blanch numerous times, but what exactly is it you ask??? Well, Blanching is a two-step process in which foods are plunged into boiling water, usually for only a minute or two and then put into ice water to rapidly stop the cooking process. Blanching is one of those techniques that home cooks do not often employ, but it is a useful technique to know. It is easy to do, it doesn't take much time, and it can make life in the kitchen easier. Below I will give you a "how to" and "why" to blanch your foods.

White beans mashed with ripe avocado and blended with sharp Cheddar and onion makes an incredibly rich, flavorful filling for this wrap. The tangy, spicy slaw adds crunch. A pinch (or more) of ground chipotle pepper and an extra dash of cider vinegar can be used in place of the canned chipotles in adobo sauce. These would be great served with my Black Bean Salad and Homemade Tortilla chips.

Chili sauce and sesame oil add lively flavor to this easy stir-fry dish. It's a perfect solution for nights when there's no time to cook.

These wonderful and beautiful snack is not gonna last long at your next BBQ!
Fresh flour tortillas are quick to cook up in a pan and produce unbelievably flaky chips when baked. This exquisitely flavored Italian cream cheese is worth the money. Slather it on cinnamon-sugar, baked flour tortilla chips. Then top with fresh fruit and white chocolate shavings for a snack or dessert that will start a celebration in your mouth. If you can’t find Mascarpone, substitute softened and sweetened cream cheese, or whipped cream cheese. For us calorie watchers we can use yogurt cheese or a low-fat Swiss cheese.

This is a low-calorie dressing with nonfat Greek yogurt as the base. Light on fat, heavy on flavor.Sweet and sour is a good description for the honey/balsamic combination with subtle flavor notes from the soy sauce and Dijon mustard. Yogurt smooths out the flavors. It’s excellent with any kind of lettuce/fruit and/or nut combination. I love it with chicken and sliced oranges, or dried cranberries and almonds or dried blueberries and toasted pecans.

This easy, colorful meal is roasted in a parchment-paper-lined pan to avoid the need for added oil. You can garnish the finished dish with cilantro and pine nuts, but a combination of basil and almonds or walnuts and parsley would be delicious as well. I have recently found that I LOVE the roasted Edaname (which is roasted soy beans) better than the pine nuts! Check out the health benefits of Quino HERE

'Tis almost the season for TOMATOES!! yayyyyyy - I can't wait!! Unfortunately, I didn't grow a garden this year and that really stinks...BUT...I am going to enjoy the Farmers Market this year to support my local growers. And one of the easiest ways to preserve that great unique flavor of your summer veggies from the market or your own garden, is to make a basic, roasted tomato sauce that can be adapted later on when we have that craving for summer tastes in the winter time. Roasted sauce requires very little effort and roasting the tomatoes brings out a layer of richness in taste that fresh tomatoes do not have. Make a huge batch and freeze it for later on for all your pasta recipes, Mexican recipes or slap it on a fresh crust of Italian bread. OH!! I can't forget about the eggplant dishes!! Great, speaking of Eggplant, now I want that!! Roma Tomatoes are the best for roasting because out of the tomato varieties, they have the least seeds.

Great for spicing up a vegetarian dinner or weekend brunch! This fast and easy recipe is full of zest, satisfying and nutritious. Ground cumin and a dose of chili powder combine with AllWhites® in a baked tortilla cup.

Fishing season is here!! Send your man out to catch dinner while you get ready to bathe these walleye in Parmesan cheese and fresh basil! It creates the perfect crust for this favorite freshwater fish.

Reap the benefits of both dairy and blueberries with these 3-ingredient, low-

calorie frozen pops. Yogurt and milk offer calcium and vitamin D while blueberries are high in antioxidants.

Have a lot on your plate? Paring down your portions is the easiest secret to staying slim. Weight loss is a balancing act between calories in to calories out. If you are putting more calories in than your body needs for energy, then it will store the energy and gain weight. If you are putting less calories in than your body needs, then you will lose weight. If the calories you put in equal the calories you put out, then you will stay in balance. The equation is a simple concept, but actually solving the equation in real life isn’t so easy!

Shredded Chicken is used in a TON of recipes and it is VERY easy to do - So let's get you shredding like a pro!

The first step is obviously to buy a whole chicken or chicken pieces. lol The best shredded chicken comes from a whole chicken. You can buy chicken pieces, but you may end up with too much white meat or too much dark meat. You can also purchase a chicken known as a "fryer.

Remove all wrappings and paper from the chicken. Hold the whole chicken or chicken pieces under running cold water and wash well. Remove any feathers that may still be attached. If you are cooking a whole chicken, you may have to remove the bag of extra parts that has been placed inside.

Place chicken in a large pot and cover the chicken completely with water. Cover the pot with a lid. Add salt and pepper to your taste. (Check to see if more salt is added later when you use the chicken in a recipe.) Bring the chicken to a boil for about an hour and then reduce the heat to medium low and allow the chicken to cook. You will know the chicken is done when it is fork tender and coming loose from the bone. Your chicken can be cooked in a crock pot and then shredded.

Remove the chicken from the broth with a slatted spoon. Place it in a shallow pan to cool. Pull meat from the chicken bones with your hands to remove all skin and pieces of bone. Shred the chicken with your fingers as you pick it off the bone. You can shred it even more by using 2 forks held back to back. Run the forks through the chicken to shred it into fine pieces.

Now you can either use it right away or place shredded chicken in freezer bags or boxes and place in the freezer until needed. Defrost the chicken when you are ready to use it in a recipe. BTW, every 8 ounces of raw chicken will yield about 6 ounces of cooked and shredded chicken. So now you know!

Triple-Cheesy Pepperoni Pizza Poppers

Fill your wrappers with pizza toppings, bake, and chew -- you'll never go back to those frozen things from Totino's...

Mexican finger food at its finest -- crunchy, perfectly sized, and with an ideal calorie count at only 202 calories for 4 of these bad boys!! So good and SO easy to make!

This super-creamy salad is lighter in labor AND lower in fat than traditional deviled eggs... Weeee!

Mmmmm... Curried Chicken...Need I say more??

Ingredients:

1/4 cup fat-free plain Greek yogurt (like the kind by Fage or Chobani)
1/4 cup fat-free mayonnaise
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. curry powder
1/4 tsp. salt
8 oz. cooked and roughly chopped skinless chicken breast
1 cup halved red grapes
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
Optional seasoning: cayenne pepper

Directions: In a large bowl, thoroughly mix yogurt, mayo, lemon juice, and seasonings. Add remaining ingredients and toss to coat. Chill before chewing, or just gobble it up! MAKES 4 SERVINGS

Nutritional Info: 1/4th of recipe (about 1 cup): 147 calories, 4.5g fat, 378mg sodium, 11.5g carbs, 1.5g fiber, 7g sugars, 17.5g protein -- PointsPlus® value 4

Source: Hungry Girl

Bacon Egg White Salad

Pair the decadence of bacon with the virtuousness of egg whites, and BOOM! This recipe rocks hard...

You asked for tips and ideas -- you got 'em! First, the tips. Since it's only the whites you're after, you don't really need to be concerned with exact cooking time or worry about overcooking the eggs. In fact, the more solid the yolks become, the easier it is to separate them from the whites. So, place the eggs in a pot and cover completely with water. The pot should be large enough that there are still a few inches of the pot's inner edge above the water line -- this way, the water won't boil over. Bring it to a boil, and then continue to cook for about 10 minutes. After that, carefully drain the water, and cover the eggs in the pot with very cold water. (Got ice? Add it.)

Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, crack 'em and the shells should peel off easily. Run a knife along the circumference of each peeled egg to separate the white into halves -- like cutting around the pit of an avocado. (It's easier to remove the yolk if you don't slice it in half.) Discard the yolks; and if the whites have any bits of yolk stuck to them, just rinse them in warm water. Tada!

Now, the snack ideas. I like to eat egg whites all by themselves -- they're delicious and have only about 20 calories each! But sometimes I put a little Dijonnaise on them... or even a combo of Dijonnaise and Laughing Cow Light cheese -- SO GOOD! You can also try filling the whites with a little salsa, refried beans, or low-calorie dip, if you're feeling adventurous. Happy egg chewing!!!

BBQ Veggie Pasta Salad

Grilled veggies, spirally noodles, crumbly feta cheese, and a BBQ ranch sauce!?! It's all true, people...it's under 300 calories!! yipeeeeee

Hot sauce + jalapeños + creamy tuna salad... It just works. Add a bunch of veggies, and get ready to chow down!

How to prepare and store Mangoes

This easy and fun way of preparing mangoes is sometimes called making mango porcupines. First you use a sharp knife to fillet each side of the mango, cutting off the ‘cheek’, and getting as close to the mango pip as you can.

Then on each cheek make cuts in the mango about 2cm (1/2 in) apart in a criss-cross pattern, but don’t cut through the skin. Now if you push the skin from underneath it will pop the inside out, and the squares become mango cubes that are easy to spoon off or schloop up with your tongue. Then you can go back to peel and eat the small amount of mango left around the pip.

Cut chunks from the skin to serve. (The skin can cause irritation, so it should not be eaten.)

To store your mangoes, keep unripe mangoes at room temperature to ripen, which may take up to 1 week. A paper bag might help them ripen sooner, but they will not ripen at temperatures below 55 degrees F. Ripe mangoes can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or they can be frozen, dried, cooked in syrup or puréed.

Check out these 10 Healthy Benefits from Mangoes HERE

10 Health Benefits of Mangoes

The delicious and juicy mango has long been one of the world's most popular fruits. The fruit's flavor is often described as an exotic mix of pineapple and peach. Mangoes are available from April to September, but June and July usually offer the best pick and prices. Mangoes taste so good that people forget they are also healthy! Discover how the “king of fruits” can help your health by reading these 10 health benefits.

If you are trying to boost your intake of omega-3s, try this simple favorite. It is a great way to use convenient canned (or leftover) salmon. The tangy dill sauce is fantastic!!

With these few ingredients, you can create a mouthwatering creamy dill sauce - great for fish or try adding this to your potato or macaroni salad!! Try it with my Easy Salmon Cakes!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
1/4 cup nonfat plain yogurt
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill, or parsley
Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions: Combine mayonnaise, yogurt, scallions, lemon juice, dill (or parsley) and pepper in a small bowl and mix well.

Baked Mac & Cheese

Mac & cheese can be a true comfort on a gloomy day, and Eating Well's healthy update takes advantage of extra-sharp Cheddar balanced with creamy low-fat cottage cheese and tucks a layer of spinach into the middle, which may help picky eaters down their vegetables. Whole-wheat pasta adds robust flavor and extra fiber. With this recipe they Cut calories by 43%.... Cut total fat by 66%.... Cut saturated fat by 68% and added folate and fiber by adding spinach to increase nutrients. Low-fat milk replaces whole milk to cut down on fat and calories. Use whole-wheat pasta instead of refined white pasta to boost fiber. Replace some of the regular (full-fat) cheese with low-fat cottage cheese, which has great creamy texture. Most recipes can be altered like this without losing flavor and adding calories! If you are sensative to wheat, you can also use Brown rice pasta :)

This lightly dressed pasta salad gets lots of flavor from kalamata olives and basil. A colorful mix of diced bell pepper, shredded carrot and tomatoes adds vitamins and minerals. Serve on a crisp bed of greens. You can toss in canned chunk light tuna, cooked chicken or flavored baked tofu to add protein and make it more substantial. The dressing is real creamy and very well balanced so for those of you who are turned off by peppers in your salads (like me), don't fret, it's mixed very well! If you're not a fan of creamy dressings, try using a vinagarette like Simply Dressing Light Raspberry with Acai..it's soooo good!

Pasta salad is one of my favorite summertime meals. The versatility is never ending so it's always new, but always easy. Add a loaf of crusty bread and fresh lemonade or iced tea and you have a terrific beat-the-heat dinner. Making pasta salad is so simple and this formula will help you on your way to being a pasta salad expert.

Greetings From Sandwich Illinois!!

I just wanted to say thank you and welcome you to my blog. As you can tell, I'm from Sandwich, Illinois and if your from a town named after food..Ya know ya gotta LOVE to cook, or at least eat!

I'm not one of those fancy schmancy cooks. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't pass up a plate of something gourmet, but I'm more of an amateur wanna-be cook who likes simple, but healthy and above all recipes full of flavor!

I'm not a big fan of those recipes where you have to search the entire state for some crazy ingredients that you've never heard of let alone can't find, so most of the recipes on my blog are made from ingredients that most people already have in their fridge or their cupboards. These recipes have lots of fresh veggies and beans and yummy goodness in them! HAPPY COOKING!!

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