Baked Chicken Nuggets

Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes 
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 1/4th of nuggets • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 4 pts
Calories: 164.9 • Fat: 4.6 g • Protein: 22.1 g • Carb: 7.7 g • Fiber: 0.9 g • Sugar: 0.1 g

• 16 oz (2 large) skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into even bit sized pieces
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 6 tbsp whole wheat Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp panko
• 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• olive oil spray (I used my Misto)

Preheat oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil spray. Put the olive oil in one bowl and the breadcrumbs, panko and parmesan cheese in another. Season chicken with salt and pepper, then put in the bowl with the olive oil and mix well so the olive oil evenly coats all of the chicken. Put a few chunks of chicken at a time into the breadcrumb mixture to coat, then on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the top with olive oil spray then bake 8 - 10 minutes. Turnover then cook another 4 - 5 minutes or until cooked though.

The Skinny Tuna Melt

Source

The Skinny Tuna MeltFrom Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes  
Servings: 2 • Serving Size: 1 opened face sandwich • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 231.1 • Fat: 6.3 g • Protein: 28.6 g • Carb: 14.7 g • Fiber: 3.5 g     

• 1 can tuna (in water) drained
• 1/4 cup carrots, shredded
• 1/4 cup diced celery
• 1 tbsp red onion,minced
• 1 tbsp light mayonnaise
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar
• salt and pepper
• 2 slices whole grain bread (I used Weight Watchers)
• 2 slices Kraft 2% cheese singles
• 2 slices tomato
• I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray

Combine tuna, celery, carrots, onion, mayonnaise, vinegar, salt and pepper.
Heat a large skillet over low heat. Spray butter spray on skillet (about 10 sprays), and place two slices of bread on top. Top bread with cheese, then tuna salad and tomato.Cook on low heat until cheese melts and bread gets toasty. Serve immediately.

Merry Christmas!

Italian Salad Bites

Source

Chopped cucumber, cherry tomato, black olives on a toothpick drizzled with Italian dressing. It doesn't get much easier than that. 

Freebie December Printable

December

Holiday Cocktail Party Ideas

Holiday Cocktail Party Ideas

I love this time of year, everything is sparkly, twinkling and festive. It is the perfect time to have a cocktail party and invite some friends over. It doesn't have to be stressful or over the top. The only things required are friends, food and drinks and let the laughter begin. Here are a few tips and ideas to help you out.

I like things to appear like they are very detailed and planned out. I want my guests to ooh and ahh. But I don't want to spend alot of time preparing food and drinks. I love specialty drinks, but I don't want to spend my night mixing drinks, I want to spend it enjoying my company. So I serve drinks already mixed. This year I will serve Appetizers and Cranberry Vodka Punch.

Cranberry Vodka Punch
from modified from bestbartenderever
Prepare the night before: mix 1/2 cranberry juice, 1/2 water into ice cube trays, place a couple cranberries in the squares and freeze.

2 qts chilled Cranberry Juice Cocktail
1 bottle (750ml) Vodka
2 cups chilled Ginger Ale
2 cups chilled Club Soda

In a large punch bowl, combine Cranberry Juice Cocktail and Vodka. Stir. Add prepared ice cubes. Pour in the Ginger Ale and the Club Soda. Garnish with slices of fresh fruit.

I love to serve appetizers. Something about bite sized food gets me at hello. Here is what I'll be serving this year.

Source

Mini Sausage Wreath
From Oriental Trading
Ingredients
Mini Sausages
Refrigerated Crescent Dough Rolls
Red Bell Pepper
Diced Rosemary
1/3 cup Butter
1/2 cup BBQ Sauce
1/2 cup Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to the temperature specified on the package of Refrigerated Crescent Dough
Rolls. Drain the liquid off of the mini sausages.
2. Unroll the crescent dough and separate at the perforations to create 4 rectangles. Press together
the remaining perforation in each rectangle. With a knife or pizza cutter, cut each rectangle lengthwise into 8 strips making a total of 32 strips.
3. Wrap one strip of dough around each mini sausage. Lay out the crescent-wrapped sausages with
their sides touching on an ungreased cookie sheet in a circle forming a wreath shape.
4. Bake for 11-15 minutes or until golden brown. Melt 1/3 cup of butter and brush the butter on top of
the crescent-wrapped sausages. Sprinkle the rosemary on top of the butter.
5. Cut a red bell pepper into a bow shape for garnish. Combine the BBQ sauce and cranberry sauce
in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until heated through. Serve with wreath for dipping.

Tortellini Skewers

Source

From Caramel Potatoes
Ingredients:
Frozen or Fresh Cheese Tortellini, prepared according to package directions
Italian Salad Dressing
Cherry Tomatoes
Olives
Cheese Cubes
Skewers (6″ is a good size)

Prepare tortellini as directed, pour on salad dressing until it is generously coated and refrigerate overnight. You’ll need to add more dressing the next day because the pasta will soak it all up. Thread the tortellini on the skewers and mix in tomatoes, olives, or cheese cubes. You can use any type of olives or cheese that you like, but make plenty, they’ll go fast!

I'll be rounding this out with variety of nuts and candies, veggie tray, cheese ball, crackers and mini blueberry pies (new recipe I'm playing with - I'll post it after I create it).

Chili

WEIGHT WATCHERS CHILI
From Cooks.com

1 lb. ground turkey, browned
1 can low fat/cal tomato soup
1 can pinto beans
1 onion, diced
1/2 green pepper
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
1/2 tsp. Mrs. Dash
1/2 tsp. paprika
Chili powder and spices to taste
Combine all ingredients and let cook on medium for one hour then allow to simmer until ready to serve. Simmer at least one hour.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! 

I hope you are enjoying it with family and friends.

Chicken Crescent Roll Casserole

Chicken Crescent Roll Casserole
adapted from Recipezaar.com & plainchicken.com

2 (8 ounce) cans Reduced Fat Pillsbury Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can 98% fat free cream of chicken soup, undiluted
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese or swiss cheese (or any cheese of choice)
1/2 cup milk

Filling
4 ounces cream cheese (very soft) * I used 1/3 less fat cream cheese*
2 tablespoons butter (very soft but not melted)
1/2-1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tsp minced onion flakes
2 large cooked chicken breasts, finely chopped (or use about 2 cups, can use cooked turkey)
1/2-3/4 cup finely grated cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper (or to taste)
2 Tbsp. milk
1-2 cup grated cheddar cheese (for topping)

Set oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13 dish with cooking spray. Mix together milk, 3/4 cup cheese and undiluted chicken soup (can season with black pepper if desired).

For the filling --- (make certain that the cream cheese and butter are very soft) in a bowl, mix the soft cream cheese with butter until very smooth, then add in garlic powder. Add in the chopped chicken, onion and cheddar cheese; mix well until combined. Add in 2 tablespoons milk; mix to combine (add in a little more if the mixture seems too dry). Season with seasoned salt or white and black pepper to taste. Unroll the crescent rolls. Place 1 heaping tablespoon chicken mixture (or a little more) on top of each crescent triangle, then roll up starting at the thicker end. Drizzle a small amount of soup mixture on the bottom of the dish. Then place the crescent rolls seam-side down on top of the creamed mixture in the casserole.
Drizzle the remaining sauce on top (you don't have to use the full amount of cream sauce, just use as much as desired) and sprinkle with 1 cup (or more) grated cheese, or amount desired. Bake for about 30 minutes.

Have you been pinning?

I've been spending some time over at Pinterest! If you haven't checked it out, I will warn you, I went into it saying "I don't need another tool" and OMG was I wrong. LOVE IT! So what are you waiting for? Click below to be taken to my foodies folder where I've been bookmarking recipes and ideas.

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Source

Mexican Stuffed ShellsFrom The way to his heart

 Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef
1 package low-sodium taco seasoning
4 oz. cream cheese
14-16 jumbo pasta shells
1.5 cup salsa
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 cup monterey jack cheese
3 green onions
Sour cream

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions.  Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely.  While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.

Pour salsa on bottom of 9×13 baking dish.  Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9×13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce.  Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes, with the foil removed.  Top with any condiments you’d like (green onions, black olives, etc.) Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa.

Parmesan Crusted Chicken

PARMESAN CRUSTED CHICKEN

From Hellmann's

An outrageously juicy way to change your dinnertime chicken routine. 

WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT

SERVES: 4 PREP TIME: 10 Minutes COOK TIME: 20 Minutes

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1-1/4 lbs.)
4 tsp. Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 425°.
Combine Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise with cheese in medium bowl. Arrange chicken on baking sheet. Evenly top with mayonnaise mixture, then sprinkle with bread crumbs.
Bake 20 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
Also terrific with Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Light Mayonnaise or Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Canola Cholesterol Free Mayonnaise.

Cost per recipe*: $7.16 Cost per serving*: $1.79
*Based on average retail prices at national supermarkets

TIP: Omit Parmesan cheese and have Magically Moist Chicken on table in less then 30 minutes.

Calories 370, Calories From Fat 210, Saturated Fat 4g, Trans Fat 0g, Total Fat 23g, Cholesterol 100g, Sodium 390g, Total Carbohydrates 2g, Sugars 1g, Dietary Fiber 0g, Protein35g, Vitamin A 2%, Vitamin C 2%, Calcium 8%, Iron 6%

BBQ-Cheddar-Crusted Chicken

BBQ-CHEDDAR-CRUSTED CHICKEN

From Hellmann's

Big barbeque flavor infuses this delicious recipe 

SERVES: 4 PREP TIME: 10 Minutes COOK TIME: 20 Minutes
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (about 1 oz.)
2 Tbsp. barbecue sauce
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1-1/4 lbs.)
4 tsp. Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 425°.
Combine Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise, cheese and barbecue sauce in medium bowl. Arrange chicken on baking sheet. Evenly top with mayonnaise mixture, then sprinkle with bread crumbs.
Bake 20 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
Also terrific with Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Light or Canola Cholesterol Free Mayonnaise.

Crockpot Spaghetti and Meatballs

Source

Crockpot Spaghetti and Meatballs
from Make 5 Dinners in ONE hour


The ingredients-
1 lb frozen meatballs
12 oz dry spaghetti noodles
28 oz jar spaghetti sauce
1/2 jar (the sauce jar) of water


Break noodles in half and place in bottom of slow cooker. Pour in sauce and 1/2 a jar filled with water over noodles.  I added a tiny bit of olive oil to keep the noodles from sticking together. Top with frozen meatballs. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours.  Stir it 1/2 way through cooking.

Today is not about me...

Source

In remembrance of those that lost their lives on 9-11-01.

Cheeseburger Flatbread Melts

Cheeseburger Flatbread Melts

From Kevin & Amanda

1/2 lb lean ground beef, browned and drained
1/4 cup water
1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 pkg dry onion soup mix
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tbsp mustard
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
11 oz thin crust pizza dough
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Brown and drain ground beef. Add water, vinegar, onion soup mix, ketchup, mustard and garlic. Stir to combine and simmer over low heat. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp canola oil over medium heat in a large, heavy bottomed skillet. Divide the pizza dough into six equal portions and roll into a round, tortilla-like shape. Fry the dough for one minute on each side or until golden brown and bubbly. Remove to a paper towel to drain. Top with beef mixture and shredded cheese.

Makes 6 flatbread melts. Nutritional Information for this recipe can be found at CalorieCount.com.

(To double this recipe, double everything except the dry onion soup mix)

Cheesy Baked Potato Appetizer

Cheesy Baked Potato Appetizer
From Cleverly Inspired

Source

Cook baked potato (either by microwave, oven or crockpot). Slice into thin slices. Top with shredded cheeses, chives, salt and pepper. Broil until cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream.

Slow Cooked Beef Rolls

Slow Cooked Beef Rolls
From 5 Dinners in ONE hour

Source

2 lbs round steak
1/4 C. dijon mustard
5 slices of bacon sliced in 3rds
1 C. frozen chopped onion
For sauce:
1 can beef or chicken broth
1/3 C. flour
1/2 C. water
1 T parsley flakes
2 T worcestershire sauce
1 C. frozen chopped onion


Spread each steak with dijon mustard and lay a slice of bacon on top.  Roll up and place in large zipper bag. Mix sauce ingredients in a medium bowl with lid. Store in fridge until ready to cook.

Source

To cook:
Place steak rolls in slow cooker. Pour sauce over and cook on low for 6 hours.  The longer it cooks,  the better it gets.  The sauce can be used for a gravy.  It is not super thick but has good flavor.

Source

Lemon and Garlic Grilled Chicken

Lemon and Garlic Grilled Chicken

from melskitchencafe.com

Juice of 1 lemon, approximately 3 tablespoons

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic, about 2 medium cloves

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 pound chicken breasts (I usually cut really thick chicken breasts down to thin them out and make the pieces a little smaller so they absorb the marinade better)

Combine all marinade ingredients. Place chicken in a ziploc bag and pour marinade over chicken. Seal bag and place in fridge overnight. Grill (or cook in frying pan). Serve with sides of your choice or cut into bite sized pieces and add to desired recipe. Note: If you cut your chicken into smaller, bite-sized pieces and then marinate it, you can get away with only letting it marinate for 5 or 6 hours instead of overnight.

Often, I will double the marinade and chicken and grill it all up and freeze the extras to use later.

One Minute Salsa

Source

One Minute Salsa

from My Kitchen Cafe

*Note: This salsa is unbelievably good with a couple diced avocados mixed in just before serving. 

*Makes about 3 cups

1/2 small red onion, peeled and quartered
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup drained jarred pickled jalapenos
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained

In the bowl of a food processor (or a blender), pulse the onion, cilantro, jalapenos, lime juice, garlic and salt until coarsely chopped. 

Add the drained tomatoes and pulse until combined. Don't overprocess in this step if you want your salsa to remain chunky - just give it a few good 1-second pulses until everything is mixed. Place the salsa in a fine mesh strainer or sieve and drain briefly. Transfer to a bowl and serve. (The salsa can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days.)

Pesto Pasta Salad

Pesto Pasta Salad

1 lb bowtie pasta
3/4 c pesto
1 pint of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2 TB lemon juice
4 TB olive oil
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 c light mayo
Salt and Pepper

Cook the pasta until tender, drain and run under cold water to cool. Toss pasta into bowl with olive oil.  Set aside, be sure to toss the noodles every once in awhile to coat and prevent them from sticking.

In a separate bowl, mix pesto, mayo, parm cheese, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix well.

Gently mix the pesto mixture with the pasta. Add tomatoes while mixing. Serve.

Patriotic Special Round 2

The Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays. I love summer parades, hometown spirit, picnics and fireworks. I can't help myself. And how can I resist red, white and blue decorations. ah....
So, in light of the upcoming holiday season, I present to you:

Patriotic Special Round 2

Red, White, and Blue Trifle

From Food Network

Source

Ingredients

• 1 box red velvet cake mix, about 18 ounces (if you can't find red velvet cake use 1 box chocolate cake plus a bottle of red food coloring)
• 1 (16-ounce) tub whipped topping
• 2 pints blueberries
• 1 pint strawberries, tops removed

Directions

Bake the red velvet cake mix according to package directions and allow to cool. Using a serrated knife cut the red velvet cake into 1 inch square pieces and line the bottom of the trifle bowl with half of the cake squares. Using a spatula, spread about a 2-inch layer of whipped topping on top of the cake squares. Layer about 1 1/2 pints of the blueberries on top of whipped topping. Layer the remaining cake pieces on top of the blueberries forming a second layer of cake. Using a spatula, spread remaining whipped topping over the cakes pieces. Decorate the perimeter with the strawberries; placing the strawberries cut side down. Sprinkle the remaining blueberries on top of the trifle inside the strawberry perimeter.

Grand Old Flag Cheese Spread

Source

From Kraft Foods
what you need
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup KRAFT Mexican Style Finely Shredded Cheddar Jack Cheese
2 Tbsp. sliced pitted black olives
1/4 cup TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa
RITZ Crackers
make it

PLACE cream cheese between two sheets of waxed paper. Roll out to 6x4-inch rectangle with rolling pin. Remove top sheet of waxed paper; coat top and sides of cream cheese with shredded cheese. Invert onto serving plate. Remove waxed paper.
ARRANGE three rows of olives in top left corner of cream cheese rectangle for the "stars" of the "flag." Make four 1/4-inch-deep rows, using rounded end of 1/4-tsp. measuring spoon for the "flag's stripes," leaving a 1/4-inch-wide space between the rows. Fill rows with salsa. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
SERVE as a spread with crackers.

FOURTH OF JULY JELL-O

Source

From 24/7 Moms

This recipe is Simple and festive for the 4th of July celebration.

SERVINGS: 6-8
TIME: Prep: 15 min. + chilling

Ingredients:

• 1 package (3 ounces) berry blue gelatin
• 2 cups boiling water, divided
• 1/2 cup cold water, divided
• 1 package (3 ounces) strawberry gelatin
• 1 can (15 ounces) pear halves, drained and cubed

Directions:

In a large bowl, dissolve the berry gelatin in 1 cup boiling water. Stir in 1/4 cup cold water. Pour into an ungreased 9-in. x 5-in. loaf pan. Refrigerate until firm. Repeat with strawberry gelatin and remaining boiling and cold water.
When gelatin is set, cut into cubes. Just before serving, gently combine gelatin cubes and pears in a large glass bowl or individual dishes. Yield: 6-8 servings.


LINKS:
Click here for round 1 from last year
Fun bbq theme party ideas
Patriotic Drink Pinwheels
Patriotic Theme Party Decor (free printables)
Patriotic Drink Parsols (free printable)