Fun Healthy Eating

Recentlyl, Ron and I decided to embark on a healthy eating life--quite different for us.  So, I count carbs and calories and try to go for a healthy balance  (I feel like a hospital cook, because I weigh and measure everything :))In the following recipes I will be showing you, when I refer to milk, sour cream cheese, cottage cheese, etc, it is always low fat.   Here are a few things we have tried and enjoyed.

I began by stealing Krissy's Light Meals cookbook from Taste of Home, and using my Fix it and Forget it Lightly crock pot cookbook.  Both are excellent sorces for healthy recipes.

for Chhili Mac Casserole, measure one cup of elbow macaronni or small shells, cook it and set it aside.

Brown 2 lb lean ground beef, onion and garlic.  Add 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 can kidney beans, drained; 1 small tomato sauce, 1 small can green chilis, 1 teas salt, 1 teas chili powder, 1/2 teas pepper.  Now add the cooked macaroni.  Transfer to a large pan or casserole dish, bake for 30 min, top with 2 cups low fat cheese and bake 5 min longer.  One 1 cup serving has 343 calories and it is delicious.   I served it with green salad with low fat dressing mixed in and a sugar-free orange jello with mandarin oranges and cool whil mixed in.

Take the left overs from the dish above, add chicken broth--1 or 2 cans, depending on how many leftovers, and it makes a great soup!!  I served it with a slice of fresh homemade whole wheat bread and 1/2 an apple.

This was very good if you like Chinese food.  I sautaed 1 cup celery, 1 cup sliced onion, 1 lb package of bean sprouts, 1 small can mushrooms, 2 handfulls of frozen mixed vegies untilk limp but still crisp in canola oil.  I then added 1 can chicken broth, mixed with 2 TBS corn starch while cold and 1 TBS soy sauce and 1TB honey.  I then added some left over roast pork--but y ou can use any leftover meat you want to, or canned meat or shrimp.   I served on 3/4 cup canned Chinese hard noodles.  I served it with sugar-free jello made with 1 small can no-sugar added fruit.  It was yummy!

Brown 1 lb hamburger, add 1 TBS flower and 1 cup milk, 1 cup of frozen vegies (I used mixed)  Serve as a gravy over 3/4 cup instant mashed potatoes.  Serve with no-sugar-added applesauce and coleslaw with tomatoes and a light mayonais dessing.

This is the leftovers from above, served on 3/4 cup spiral noodles, coleslaw and applesauce with cinnamon, 1 TBS chopped walnuts and 1/8 cup raisens

Start with 1 cup fat free sour cream, add 2 teas lemon pepper and 1 teas dill.  smear a little of the sour cream in the bottom of the crockpot, add 2 boneless-skinless chicken breasts and put the rest of the sour cream on top the chicken.  cook on high for 2 1/2 hours, serve with 1 cup winter squash and sf jello.  Even Ron liked this one, and he doesn't like sour cream!

This is 3 oz salmon fillet cooked in 1 teas canola or olive oil, 1 cup winter squash, 1 cup spinich and 1 purchased dessert cake topped with 1/2 cup splenda sweetened rasberries and a dolup of cool whip!

We have enjoyed other yummy things, like ginger beef served on rice noodles, vegetable beef soup, and a 4 oz steak served with a ww english muffin and green salad with 1 TBS thousand Island Dressing.,

Hope you have enjoyed these menus and had a glimpse into our new healthy-eating plan.   It's actually kind of fun!!