Corn & Black Bean Salsa

I love, love, love Mexican Food!! I love the cheesy chicken enchiladas, empanadas and Quesadillas. And with Cinco de Mayo right around the corner, I challenged myself (and to appease my diet), to find something that was healthy and yummy. Try this Corn and Black Bean Salsa with home made tortilla chips!
2 cans corn
2 avocados
2 cans black beans
1 large tomato
¼ C cilantro if you prefer)
1 vidala or red onion
1 lime juiced
¼ cup of vinegar
salt and pepper to taste


1. In a large bowl: Cut the avocado into small chunks – juice the lime on top
2. Chop tomato into small chunks
3. Chop onion into small chunks
4. Add the rest of the ingredients.
Homemade tortilla chips
1 package of corn tortilla
non stick spray
salt
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut tortillas into triangles
3. Mist top of chips with non stick spray
4. Cook until lightly brown, about 5-7 minutes

Baked Toastado Nachos

This recipe is another one of my swappers. A spin-off of nachos served at a popular restaurant, just much better for the waistline!

Baked Tostado Nachos
4 corn tortillas
1 c refried beans, warmed
1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese
8 jalapeno rings

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut tortillas into quarters. Spray cookie sheet and the top of the tortilla with cooking spray. Cook for 5 minutes or until tortillas are crisp.

Top each tortilla with 1 tablespoon beans, 1 tablespoon cheese and a jalapeno ring. Return to oven until cheese melts.

Remove from oven. Serve with salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.

Serves 4 - (4 chips)
146 calories
5 g fat
363 g of sodium per serving!!!

Club Soda Pancakes

I know it sounds gross, but club soda makes light, fluffy and yummy pancakes!

This recipe came from my Mom. Weekends were pancake days and my mom bought some fresh raspberries. Armed with the Bisquick and raspberries, pan preheating, and no milk! She didn’t wanted to use water (too boring) – she found raspberry seltzer in the pantry! She added the seltzer to the bisquick and it started to bubble (kinda of like the volcano we made in grade school)!


Using the seltzer she made the most delicious raspberry pancakes ever! So here is the recipe:

2 cups Bisquick
1-1/2 cup club soda or seltzer
Preheat pan
Add 2 cups of Bisquick and seltzer/club soda in a large bowl
Mix until well blended (don’t over mix)
Pour 1/3 cup of batter to pan
Cook until small bubble form on top of the pancake
Flip
Cook a couple of minutes more, until done
Calories 210 (3 pancakes)
Fat 3.75 grams

Grilled Whole Wheat Pizza

Grilled Pizza

My friend Mary (a fellow golf widow) is a true Grill Master.  When we get together for dinner we try to think of healthy things we can cook on the grill.  At the last minute we decided to make pizzas on the grill.  I came home from work and made 2 whole wheat pizza crusts. And this is what I did:

In my Kitchen Maid mixer I dissolved

1 package of yeast (rapid rise)

1 packet of Splenda ( yeast LOVES sugar)

1-1/2 cup of warm water (100-110 degrees)

I waited for the yeast to start foaming (that means I didn’t accidentally kill it).

I added:
Flour a ½ cup at a time, and I alternate ½ of whole wheat flour and ½  cup of  white flour to the kitchen aid Not exceeding 3 cups of flour. I used the dough hook.

When the dough came together, I removed it from the bowl and kneeded  it a smooth ball and coated the bowl with olive oil.  We let it rise for an 1-1/2 hours. Meanwhile we assembled the toppings and preheated the grill to 400 degrees.

I rolled out the ½ dough – to a nice, thin crust. I laid it on the grill and cooked it for 3 minutes on one side and flipped it for another 3 minutes.  Then we put the sauce and toppings on, closed the lid, and after 5 minutes, we had a crispy crust and melted cheese.

So good and so worth it.

Creamy Pumpkin Tomato Soup

Price Chopper was having a sale on canned pumpkin. So, I bought a couple of cans. I read in the paper this summer that if you have a cat with a hairball problems you should mix some pumpkin in with their food. Yeah, that worked (completely sarcastic)... so I have lots of canned pumpkin. I was going to make a pumpkin pie wonton thing, but why kill myself for something only I will eat. So, I thought of a better way to "hide" pumpkin! Soup!

So this is what I did:

1 onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 30 oz can of pumpkin
1 28 oz can of tomato sauce
4 tablespoons of honey
8 cups of turkey (or chicken) stock
2 tablespoons of Italian seasoning
1 can evaporated fat free milk
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Spray a stock pot with non-stick spray. Add onions and garlic. Cook until translucent. De-glaze with white wine (I know - we had some Pinot Grigo left). Cook for 5 minutes. Add pumpkin, tomato sauce, turkey stock, honey, Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes. Add milk, red pepper flakes, adjust seasoning with some salt and pepper.

Enjoy!! 1-1/2 cup = 144 calories and 4.9 grams of fat

For an extra, special, holiday touch... serve with a tablespoon of crème fraiche in each bowl - it's like a thick and creamy sour cream. It's totally loaded with fat and calories, but, heck it's the holidays :)

Chocolate Coconut Cookies

I have a new iphone. I have a gazillion food applications. My favorite one is the Weight Watches app. I found these cookies! One point! So, I decide to make them! One of the ingredients is coconut oil. I KNOW Price Chopper does not carry coconut oil. So my sister and I go to the new Whole Foods in West Hartford (my new favorite store - you should see their ready to eat bar!). $10.00 later we are walking out with 12 oz of coconut oil. Now, I have to find what I can make with the 11.5 oz I have left :)!

Vegan Chocolate Coconut CookiesMakes 3 dozen cookies
Adapted from Weight Watchers

1½ cups all purpose flour2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder½ tsp baking soda½ tsp salt1 cup granulated sugar1/3 cup coconut oil1 tsp vanilla extract¾ cup hot water, divided1 cup dried, shredded sweetened coconut flakes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat sugar, oil and vanilla until blended. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the water and beat until smooth. Add the coconut, remaining water and flour mixture and continue beating until everything is combined. The dough will appear very sticky.

Using a cookie scoop, arrange the dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely on a wire rack before serving, eating, or storing in Tupperware.
Read more at http://takeabiteoutofboca.com/2013/12/vegan-chocolate-coconut-cookies-for-fbcookieswap.html#thK2hFTvGVKksZ7f.99

Strawberry French Toast

As I walk Sammy I always think about what would be good for breakfast. It's Sunday, I have time! Man, French Toast would be great, I will make that when we get back. Open the fridge, get out the eggs and bread, start looking for the milk... sugar! we have no milk! What other dairy product could I use instead... sour cream?? gross! Lite and Fit Strawberry Yogurt? yes! Separated the eggs (I only eat the whites) used a 1/2 of container of the yogurt, blended into the whites. And I had sweet and kinda crunchy (I used multi-grain bread) yummy French Toast!

Here is the recipe:
2 slices of multi grain bread
2 egg whites
1/2 container of Lite and Fit Strawberry Yogurt

Heat pan
Separate Eggs
Mix in yogurt
Spray pan with no-stick spray
Cook until golden