Weight Watchers Crusted Honey Mustard Chicken

Luke and I aren't in the habit of counting calories but I have to say that we have really enjoyed all of the Weight Watchers recipes we've tried. This recipe is from the Weight Watchers website and it's a great spin on fried chicken fingers. The crispy coating is made from crushed cornflakes and they are baked which cuts down the fat. They are also very simple- from start to finish they were done in under half an hour. I think next time I may try a ranch variation by substituting ranch dressing for the honey mustard just to try something new! 


Weight Watchers Crusted Honey Mustard Chicken

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cups lite honey mustard dressing   
• 1 pounds uncooked boneless skinless chicken tenders
• 1 cup cornflake crumbs  
• 1 medium uncooked scallions, finely sliced  
• 2 tsp dill, freshly chopped
• 1/8 tsp table salt   
• 1/8 tsp black pepper  

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat a shallow pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, combine honey mustard dressing, salt, pepper, dill and scallions.
Place cornflake crumbs in a shallow bowl. Dip chicken into dressing mixture and then cornflake crumbs; place in prepared pan.
Bake until chicken is golden and no longer pink in center, about 15 minutes.

Adapted from: http://www.weightwatchers.com/food/rcp/RecipePage.aspx?recipeid=57621

Panko Crusted Stuffed Chicken

It seems like I am always trying to find recipes that will use up left over perishables. This week I had spinach, tomatoes, and a variety of Italian cheeses. I remembered this recipe for stuffed chicken and knew that it would be perfect for getting rid of my excess ingredients! It is fast, fresh, and tasty! The original recipe only calls for Parmesan and ricotta cheese, but I had some Romano so I threw that in too. Make sure to rinse the chicken before you start so that way the Panko crumbs will stick a bit better. My chicken breast were huge so the filling filled two up nicely, but if you have some smaller ones I think it would make three. This is a great weeknight meal and it is on the healthier side. Score!

In other news, my dad left for Africa last Thursday. He and some other guys will be there for the next couple of weeks building wells and sharing their faith. I am excited to hear all about it when he gets back! In the mean time, please keep him and the rest of the crew in your prayers! 

Panko Crusted Stuffed Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 cup of low fat ricotta cheese
• Small handful of baby spinach, chopped
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced with seeds removed
• 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/4 cup Romano cheese, grated
• 1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste
• Dash of oregano
• 2 chicken breasts
• Italian seasoned panko crumbs
• 2 tsp olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Mix together the ricotta, spinach, tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, basil, garlic, sea salt, pepper, and oregano. 

Rinse the chicken breasts then cut a long horizontal slit along the center. Fill the cavity of the chicken breast with the ricotta mixture. Season each side of the chicken with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Carefully dip the chicken breasts in the panko crumbs until both sides are evenly covered. Close the slit together with toothpicks or halved kebab sticks. (sorry, I wish I had remembered to take a picture at this point, but sometimes I just get in the zone, haha!)

Heat the olive oil in an oven proof skillet on the stove over medium high heat. Once the pan is hot, place the chicken in the skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown, flip the chicken over and place the skillet into the oven. Cook for 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Let the meat rest for 5 minutes before slicing. 

Adapted from: http://www.fortheloveofcooking.net/2011/06/panko-crusted-chicken-stuffed-with-ricotta-spinach-tomatoes-and-basil.html

Chicken Tortilla Soup

This week has been a bit hectic with school and tests so I knew an easy crock pot meal would be a great help. This soup couldn't get any easier! You open some cans, slice an onion, throw in chicken breasts and spices, let it cook in the crock-pot for a while, and viola! A delicious homemade soup that is filling, healthy and delicious. Plus you have lots of leftovers for a quick lunch. The recipe calls for two chicken breasts, but if they are large I think one would be plenty. I have only cooked it on the low setting, but if you try the high setting, let me know how it goes!

Well I have to get back to the books! Happy almost Friday!


Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients

• 2 chicken boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 2 cans Ro-Tel
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can corn
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cans low-sodium chicken broth
• 1-2 cups of water
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1 Tbsp chile powder
• 1 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp dried cilantro
• tortilla chips
• shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese

Directions

Put chopped onion, cans of beans, rotel, corn, chicken broth, water, and spices in crock-pot and stir to mix. Put chicken breasts on top of mixture and make sure they're at least partly submerged in liquid.

Cook on high 6-7 hours or low 8-9 hours. Before serving remove the chicken breasts from soup and shred.
Return chicken to crock-pot, stir to combine.
Serve with shredded cheese and tortilla chips.

Adapted from: http://jonandjenmiller.blogspot.com/2010/09/crockpot-chicken-tortilla-soup.html

Tortellini Soup

I stumbled upon this recipe last fall on one of my favorite food blogs Annie's Eats. It looked so fresh and yummy, and who doesn't like a nice hot bowl of soup on a cold day? I made a few tweaks to the recipe to give it a bit more flavor and I am really pleased with the results! Luke liked it too, even though he's not a huge soup fan. It was very easy to make, perfect for a week night meal! Most of the ingredients I already had on hand, I just had to buy the fresh tortellini, which I found by the specialty cheeses in my grocery store. 

Tortellini Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• ½ cup onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes, with juices (I use the one with the Italian spices)
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth)
• 9 oz. fresh tortellini
• 3 cups fresh baby spinach, loosely packed
• Salt and pepper
• Grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the onions to the pan and cook until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.  Add in the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, just until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Mix in the oregano, cayenne pepper, and diced tomatoes.  Add the broth to the pot.  Bring the mixture to a boil.  Add the tortellini to the pot and cook according to the package directions.  One minute before the tortellini is fully cooked, stir in the spinach.  Remove from the heat.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve warm with grated Parmesan.

Adapted from: http://annies-eats.com/2011/02/15/tortellini-soup/