Easy White Chicken Chili

We love this recipe! It's easy, tasty, filling, and healthy! 1/2 c. only has 1 Weight Watchers point, so I can have a big bowl for really low points/cal/fat.

This is a lighter recipe, so I like to stir in a couple of TBS of fat-free sour cream (I only like the "Naturally Yours" brand...it looks like a cow pattern on the outside) to make it richer with hardly any added calories or fat. I also prefer mine without cheese (strange, since usually I love anything with cheese) and with a few baked tortilla chips crushed and stirred into it. I also usually substitute black beans for half of the white beans.

White Chicken Chili:

2 cans white beans, drained and rinsed

15 oz (one costco can, or equivalent amount) cooked white meat chicken

1 can diced tomatoes (the normal size...14 oz?)
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 can chopped green chilies
2 cloves garlic
1 can chicken broth
1 t. cumin
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1/4 - 1/2 t. chili powder
cilantro to taste...I always add probably at least 1/2 cup

Toppings:
additional chopped cilantro
low-fat sour cream
shredded cheese (low fat or, in moderation, full fat)

Saute onion, pepper, garlic, and green chilies until onions and peppers are soft (no need to use oil...the liquid from the chilies works just fine). DON'T let garlic burn...use medium heat.
Add all other ingredients and simmer 10 minutes. Top with sour cream, cheese, and cilantro.

Banana Bran Muffins

Okay, sorry I didn't post this last week, but life is crazy. I have more "healthy" recipes I'll try to post soon, and I'll try to find some 5 ingredient ones, but I always make things too complicated and honestly don't think I have anything with only 5 ingredients! :) In the meantime, here's a yummy muffin recipe that I found that is actually pretty good considering how healthy it is, and the kids love them! They're MUCH better the next day than they are right out of the oven...I know, seems backwards, but it's true! :)

Banana Bran Muffins

1/2 c. natural applesauce (sweetened with apple juice...I used cinnamon flavored)
1/4 c. packed light brown sugar
3 very ripe bananas
1/4 c. milk (I used 1%)
1 t. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour (we have a mill, so I ground my own...you could use the stuff from the store, though)
1/4 c. wheat germ ( I buy this in bulk at WinCo...TONS of fiber and filling)
1/4 c. crushed bran flakes ( I crushed it until it was all crumbs and then measured 1/4 c. crumbs)
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt

Preheat oven to 375 for regular muffins or to 400 for mini muffins ( I made mini muffins because they're a great size for my kids)
Grease muffin tins or spray with PAM or line with liners
Beat bananas, applesauce, and brown sugar until smooth. Add vanilla, milk, and eggs and mix well.
Mix dry ingredients together and add to wet ingredients, beat until smooth. Add nuts if desired (walnuts might be yummy).
Pour into prepared tins
For regular sized muffins, bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. For mini muffins, bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes.
Let cool on a rack and then place completely cooled muffins in a gallon sized ziploc bag overnight.

Hope you like them if you try them...I think they're pretty good, the kids love them, and Todd took one bite and spit it out! :)

Dari's Picante Chicken

So here is yet another one from the Biggest Loser Cookbook. It's one we like and it only has 4 ingredients!

1/3 + 1/2 c. salsa
4 medium boneless skinless chicken breast, trimmed of visible fat
6 Tbs. light cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. finely shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Spread 1/3 c. salsa in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Set aside.
Lay chicken breast on a cutting board. Use the flat side of a meat mallet to pound the chicken breast to a uniform thickness.
Spread the chicken evenly with the cream cheese. Lay the chicken, cream cheese up, in a single layer in the prepared baking dish. Spoon the remaining 1/2 c. salsa evenly over the breasts. cover the pan with tin foil.
Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the tin foil. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the breasts. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until no longer pink. Serve immediately.

Erin, UT

Crockpot Italian Chicken

This one is one our family favorites. I love it cause it is so easy, and my family loves the taste. I found it off the Spark People (a place to help you get started on a healthy life style. lots of cool resources) recipe page.


6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half (I always put my chicken in frozen so I don't cut them in half until they have been cooking for an hour or two)
1 can cream of chicken soup ( can use the healthy request reduce fat version)
1 8oz package of cream cheese cubed into 8 pieces ( can use reduced fat version)

1 package of good seasoning dressing ( found on the salad dressing isle, usually close to the ranch dip mixes. There are a few different flavors, the recipe calls for the Italian one but we have used the herb and garlic one and it so yummy)
4 cloves of garlic diced


Cut chicken in half, cover chicken with cubed cream cheese. Mix garlic, good seasoning mix, and soup. Pour over the chicken. Put in the crock pot on low for 6-8 hours.
Serve over brown rice or egg noodles!!

** the sauce stays pretty thick if you like thinner sauce add a little water, or chicken broth to the soup mix**

Says it serves 12 we never get more then 6-8

Fat 7.2 g Carbs 4 g Calories 210.5 protien 29.5 ( it will be less if you you reduced fat soup and cream cheese)

Penne Macaroni with Peppers and Grilled Chicken

I got this recipe off of a Penne pasta box and my family has loved it. We have been trying to do more recipes with whole wheat and this one is a good one. I don't know about you, but when I hear whole wheat in a recipe I automatically think yuck, but I promise it is really good in this recipe. Give it a whirl!

Ingredients:
13.25 oz. Whole Wheat Penne
1/3 cut extra virgin olive oil
1 cup sweet onion, diced
4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 oz. fresh basil, chopped
1 cup(8oz.)chicken, grilled and sliced into strips
1 cup roasted red peppers, diced
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
Cook the Penne according to package directions. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat; add onions and garlic, cook until onions are transparent. Add basil, chicken(already grilled) and red peppers. Cook 2 more minutes. Add chicken broth and hot Penne to skillet and toss together until all the ingredients are evenly distributed. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately.

Serves: 4-6

Frozen Yogurt Pie

This is one of my favorite summer treats and I don't feel guilty eating an extra slice. I am not sure on the nutritional facts, but do you really want to know on yummy treats? :)

Ingredients:
1 tub of cool whip(fat free)
1 32 oz container of your favorite yogurt
1 graham cracker crust(I just buy it from the store, but you could make your own)
(Makes two pies)

Directions:
In a large bowl mix the cool whip and the yogurt together until it is mixed well. Pour into the crust and then put it into the freezer until it is frozen. It is super easy, but I love it. I hope you will enjoy this frozen treat!

New-Fashionsed Meat Loaf

This is another one from the Biggest Loser Cookbook (I think most people in my family have it, hence Cori and I both sharing from it).
Also I hope you guys aren't losing interest already we just started. Maybe the healthy recipes aren't ones we have a lot of. I hope to see the rest of the contributors back.
So here is the recipe

2/3 c. old fashioned oats
1/2 c. fat free milk
1 lbs. 96% lean ground beef
1/2 c. chopped fresh spinach leaves
1/4 c. minced onion
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1 Tbs. prepared horseradish (I usually leave this out because I don't like it)
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. mushrooms, finely chopped (this is something that isn't in the original recipe, and my kids have no clue they are eating them)
1/3 c. reduced-sugar or unsweetened ketchup (I usually use normal but that will affect the nutritional info)


Preheat oven to 350. Lightly spray a bread pan with cooking spray.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine oats and milk. Let stand for 3 minutes. Add the meat, spinach, onion, egg whites, horseradish, Italian seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, salt, and mushrooms. Mix well. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan. Press into the pan, patting the top flat. Spread the ketchup over the top.
Bake for 30 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the center registers 160 and the meat is no longer pink. Let sit for 10 minutes. Cut into 8 slices. Serve immediately.

224 calories, 29 g protein, 14 carbohydrates, 5 g fat (1 g saturated) 91 mg cholesterol, 2 g fiber, 552 mg sodium

Erin, Utah

Better Blueberry Pancakes

This recipe is one of my kids favorites, they love pancakes!! I got it from my Biggest Loser Cookbook. I ordered a huge box of frozen blueberries from my grocery store last September and those work great in this recipe.

1/2 cup reduced-fat buttermilk
1/2 whole grain oat flour
1 large egg white lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup fresh or frozen( not thawed) blueberries


In a small bowl combine the buttermilk, flour, egg white, baking soda, vanilla and salt. Whisk until just blended. Stir in the blueberries. Let stand fro 10 minutes. In the mean time heat your skillet, when the 10 minutes is up pour the batter in 1/8th cup dollops. Cook and top with your favorite pancake topping. If you are wanting to keep with the healthy theme serve with low cal, low sugar syrup, and use I cant believe it not butter spray. It is still so yummy!!!

** this recipe makes 8 pancakes. We always double for my family of 5!! **

1 serving = 4 pancakes
140 calories , 8 g protein, 20 g carbs, 3 g fat ( less then 1 g saturated) 3 g fiber.