Baked Manicotti Bundles

Courtesy of Clean Eating Magazine March 2011

I already took out my two to eat... so you could see the inside of the manicotti... riiiight...

Ingredients

olive oil or cooking spray
3 to 4 green onions
10 whole wheat lasagna noodles
1 carrot peeled
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
12 oz tilapia filets
4 oz light cream cheese (I used light ricotta instead)
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp dried dill (I think I used about 2 tbsps!)
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 oz. reduced fat mozzarella (I used pepper jack for the sauce... I was out of mozzarella, so I ran to the store while it was in the oven and then sprinkled the top with the mozzarella... that's why it's not browned on top... that and I had to leave sooner than I thought)
fresh dill for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a glass pan with olive oil cooking spray and set aside.

2. Rinse onions well trim off white tops and discard. Carefully score the connected layers so that you have strands, set aside.

3. Prepare lasagna noodles according to instructions, rinse, set aside. During the last 90 seconds of cooking, add strands of onions to soften then set aside.

4. Grade carrot, set aside.

5. In a large non stick pan, over medium heat, add oil, heat and add tilapia. Shake pan so fish does not stick. Cover and cook for 3 minutes then flip and cook for a minute more or until fish is no longer opaque. Remove from heat.

6. Mix cream cheese, together with milk, dill and salt (I forgot! No wonder it felt like it was lacking!) in a medium saucepan. Whisk constantly until mixture is melted and creamy. Add half of mozzarella in. Stir in carrots and tilapia and remove from heat.

7. Lay lasagna noodles out on a cutting board, place 2 tbsp of the mixture at the bottom of the noodle and roll away from you. Make a bundle that stays together without squeezing out the filling. Tie each bundle with an onion layer and place in the pan.

8. Place remaining mozzarella over bundles and top with dill and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Serves: 4


The Verdict: Tasty. It needed salt, but then I realized I didn't put it in. Haha. I would make this again with a few changes. More dill, for sure. :-)

Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Quesadillas

I know! Two posts in one day! CRAZY!

Well, here's another recipe from Clean Eating Magazine, June 2011!

Again, my plating skills stink... haha.

Ingredients:
Tomatillo Sauce:

- olive oil cooking spray
- 1/2 pound fresh tomatillos, husked, cleaned and halved
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
- juice from 1 lime or lemon
- 1 tsp minced jalapeno pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- pinch salt

Quesadillas:

- 1 tbdp ground cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- Pinch sea salt
- 1 red onion, sliced into thin rings
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
- 1 zucchini, washed and sliced into thin rounds
- 1 6 (or 8) oz boneless, skinless chicken breast
- colby jack or mexican blend cheese (or cheddar if you run out of both!)
- Whole wheat tortillas

Directions:
For the tomatillo sauce:
1. Preheat grill to high and coat with cooking spray.
2. Place tomatillos cut side down and grill 10-12 minutes or until softened. This seemed long... which is evidenced by the color of my tomatillo sauce. I would cut in half almost.
3. Remove from grill and pulse in food processor with cilantro and lime until pureed. Season with salt and garlic powder and set aside.

For the quesadillas...
4. Combine cumin, chili powder, and salt  in a small bowl.
5. Toss in a bowl with prepared vegetables to coat completely.
6. Arrange vegetables in a single layer on the grill and cook until softened, 10-15 minutes.
7. Grill the chickn until cooked through and grill marks appear, 10-15 minutes.
8. Assemble quesadillas by layering cheese, vegetables, and cheese on one half of the tortilla.
9. Place on grill and grill until cheese melts, flip over and grill until browned and cheese melts
10. Cut in quarters and serve with the yummy tomatillo sauce.

Serves 4.

The verdict: Delish! I accidentally burned the bottom of my quesadillas. I thought my panini press would brown the tops, but it didn't. Oh well. I loved the tomatillo sauce, even though mine turned out a different color. Haha. Definitely will make again!
One of my favourite blogs, Branny Boils Over, did this recipe a few days ago, but sans chicken. You can check it out here.

Wow! 101 posts!

My last post was my 100th post! How cool (and appropriate that it was about Disney)!

I apologize for the lack in posts lately. DH's car gave us a LOT of trouble last week and $1250 later, it is almost all better. Sigh.

We've had some good eats lately, I tell you what.

Cajun Jambalaya, Clean Eating Magazine

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb raw shrimp, 26/30 size, peeled and deveined, tail on
• 4 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into 1 inch pieces
• 1 all natural low sodium turkey sausage (I used two Jennie O's links), sliced
• 1/2 medium white onion, diced
• 1 med green bell pepper, stem and seeds removed and discarded, diced
• 1 rib celery, diced
• 1 1/2 medium vine-ripe tomatoes, cored and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tbsp salt-free Cajun seasoning
• 1 cup all-natural instant brown rice
• 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• Sea Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• Olive Oil cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400* F
2. In a large mixing bowl, toss together all ingredients except cooking spray, mixing well until combined.
3. Prepare 2 foil pouches. Spray each piece of foil with cooking spray. Divide mixture evenly between both pieces of foil and seal.
4. Place pouches on a baking tray and slide onto middle rack of preheated oven for 25 minutes or until rice and proteins are fully cooked.
5. Carefully open pouch and pour mixture into a large bowl to serve immediately.

Modifications: I don't actually own Cajun seasoning, so I made my own. I also added some red pepper flakes and used rice that was already cooked in my rice maker. My shrimp were not peeled, because unpeeled shrimp are cheaper.

The Verdict: I loved this dish! I thought it was delicious! I think DH enjoyed it too.


Sweet and Sour Chicken, Clean Eating Magazine

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tbsp raw honey
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (or more...)
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice (I added)
• 1 1/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
• 1/2 fresh pineapple, cut into 1 inch cubes (I omitted)
• 12 sprigs fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine the first 6 ingredients. Place the chicken in a large shallow dish. Pour mixture over chicken, tossing gently. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet (or wok) over medium-high heat. Add chicken and marinade and saute for 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Add bell peppers and onion and cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are slightly tender. Add pineapple (if using) and cook for 2 more minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve immediately over rice for a complete meal, if desired.

Verdict: I LOVED THIS DISH. DH was okay with it. He wanted more sweet taste and a little more spice. When I make it again, I will add more spice for sure. I'll also experiment with other veggies, like broccoli, water chestnuts, et cetera.

I made another dish from Clean Eating Magazine this week, but it was a fail. Big time. It ranked in the bottom three meals ever. The worst was moussaka, next is the Tuna Nicoise Stovetop Casserole. I made cabbage wraps. The filling was good, which is why I'm glad I reserved some of that for lunches this week, because it made a good little burrito today; especially when paired with my homemade baked tortilla chips and Tom Leonard's FIRE salsa (I love the spice!).

In other news: I've been running TWICE since the last post!

Last Thursday I did four five minute runs broken up by 2 minute walk breaks. It went pretty well. Today I did a five minute run, two eight minute runs, and another five minute run broken up with 2 minute walk breaks. I did 2.75 miles in 32 minutes, which is pretty decent.I haven't had any knee pain yet, which is really nice, but I have been having pain around my rib cage where the shelf bra and sports bra end. Perhaps they are too tight, but it really hurts after a while. We'll see what happens. I hope everyone's having a lovely day and that you enjoy these recipes!!

I love me some Tuesday...

Good evening, blog readers! I have been MIA from my blog for the weekend, but I am back, never fear!

I have two meals from Clean Eating Magazine for you, so look forward to that! :-) I officially started P90x for reals last night, now that I have all the DVDs. I'm excited about transforming my body... haha, that sounds super cheesy! Today, I subbed in 1st grade and tomorrow I have my health assessment at DH's work for insurance purposes. I have a feeling I'll get another 100%!

My meals for the day...

B: Mini Wheats (yes... the frosted kind... I couldn't get into my regular breakfast of...

Trader Joe's Natural Creamy Peanut Butter, Honey we got on vacay in SC, Whole Wheat toast! 

L: Leftover Chicken Pomodoro
D: Salmon Patties with Zucchini and Squash
S: Banana with PB
S: Dark Chocolate
Things I shouldn't have eaten: 1/4 of a small DQ blizzard (leftovers from Thursday), Two packages of smarties

And now... I'll give you the photos for my lunch today and dinner tonight.

Chicken Pomodoro Angel Hair Pasta

I made my own sauce for the first time and bought FRESH feta from Tom Leonard's... YUM

and...

Salmon Patties with Sauteed Squash and Zucchini

The patties were more like... crumbles... but still tasty. Also... I bought the wrong kind (and size) of canned salmon. There was a spine. In my can. Ew. I don't think we ate too many pin bones. ;-)

Well, I'd better get to the dishes... yay. Then P90x Day 2: Plyometrics!