Mushroom & Swiss Patty Melt with Cheese

This sounds a bit decadent and it looks that way as well. There is a lot going on so you can skip the bun, without missing it.
I found this recipe on Whole Food's web site. ( modified it since the original was just for a single serving )

Mushroom & Swiss Patty Melt with Cheese

1 pound ground turkey, formed into 4 patties
Salt and ground black pepper to taste 
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 
1/2 med onion, sliced 
1 8oz pkg white mushrooms, sliced 
1 cup frozen green peas 
4 slices of Swiss Cheese 

Lightly season patty with salt and pepper.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add patty and cook until golden brown on the first side, about 3 to 4 minutes. Flip patty, move to one side of skillet.

Add onions, mushrooms, salt and pepper to cleared side of skillet and cook until softened and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add peas and cook for 1 minute more, checking to ensure patty is cooked through.

Sprinkle patty with cheese and transfer to a plate. Spoon hot mushroom mixture on top and serve.

Serving Size: makes 4 servings

Spicy Pork with Asparagus and Chile

What a yummy combination. Asparagus & Pork... This recipe was found @ Bon Appetit's web site. The recipe comes together pretty quickly so it's best to prep everything before you start so once you start, you can just work right through it.

Spicy Pork with Asparagus and Chile 

3 tablespoons soy sauce, divided

1 tablespoon Shaoxing Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry

12 ounces ground pork (preferably coarsely ground; sometimes labeled chili-grind)

3 teaspoons Asian sesame oil, divided

12 ounces thin to medium asparagus spears, trimmed, cut on extreme diagonal into 1/2- to 3/4-inch pieces

1 red jalapeño chile, minced with seeds

1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger

2 tablespoons oyster sauce

1 teaspoon honey

2 green onions, thinly sliced on diagonal

Fine sea salt

Whisk 1 tablespoon soy sauce, & rice wine in medium bowl. Add pork; toss to blend. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in heavy large wok or deep skillet over high heat. Add asparagus, chile, and ginger. Toss until asparagus is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer asparagus mixture to plate. 

Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to wok. Add pork mixture and stir-fry until browned, using spoon to break up pork into small pieces, 2 to 3 minutes. 

Return asparagus mixture to wok. Add remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, oyster sauce, and honey; stir-fry until pork is cooked through, adding water by tablespoonfuls if dry, about 2 minutes. Add green onions; toss to incorporate. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Serving Size: makes 4 servings

Spicy Thai Beef and Jasmine Rice

This is a great recipe that I found on found on Gina's site. I love her website and have gotten tons of great meal ideas from her. They always taste good enough so that Cancy doesn't ask if it's low fat, low calorie. :)

Spicy Thai Beef and Jasmine Rice

3/4 lb 95% lean ground beef

1/2 onion, chopped

6 green onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

3 carrots thinly sliced

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1 cup Jasmine Rice

2 tbsp soy sauce (plus more to taste)

1 tsp Asian fish sauce

1/3 cup fresh chopped cilantro

Heat a heavy medium pot over high heat. Add beef and saute until browned. Add onion, scallions, garlic, crushed red pepper and 1 tbsp soy sauce. Saute another 2 minutes. Add carrots, red pepper, rice, 2 cups water, fish sauce and remaining soy sauce. Reduce to low heat, when the water is almost evaporated, cover. Simmer on low about 20 minutes. Add cilantro and mix well and keep covered for 10 more minutes.

Serving Size: Makes 4 large servings

Creamy Mediterranean Style Pasta Salad

I found this Ronzoni/Classico recipe featured in our Sunday paper and it looked fantastic. I modified it a bit to cut calories and up the nutrients.

Creamy Mediterranean Style Pasta Salad

1 Cup dried Ronzoni Garden Delight Penne

1 Cup Classico Light Creamy Alfredo

1/4 tsp Red Wine Vinegar

2 tsp Italian Seasoning blend

2 Cups fresh baby spinach, torn into bite size pieces.

1 Cup Grape Tomatoes, halved

1 medium Yellow Bell Pepper, chopped

1/2 Cup black olives, halved

about 2 ounces of Reduced Fat Feta

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain, & rinse with cold water

In a large bowl, whisk together Alfredo sauce, vinegar, and seasoning blend. Season with salt & pepper to taste

Add cooked pasta, veggies, and feta

Cover & refrigerate for 30-60 minutes. serve chilled.

Serving Size: Makes 4 larger servings

Cerveza Marinated Chicken Skewers

This one is right out of the Thin Kitchen Cookbook from BeachBody. We did slightly larger portions since it was our main meal, not an appetizer. The marinade is awesome. It's something my husband loved too which is important.

Cerveza Marinated Chicken Skewers

1 pound of chicken tenders, cut into 1 inch chunks
1 Cup beer
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp sea salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste


Combine the beer, lemon juice, oil, paprika, oregano, salt, and pepper in a zip-lock bag; add the chicken. Squeeze out the air and seal the bag; shake lightly and turn to coat the chicken. Refrigerate 1 hour, turning the bag occasionally.

Transfer the marinade from the bag to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer 5 minutes.

If using wooden skewers, soak them in hot water 30 minutes (to prevent them from burning).

Spray the broiler or grill rack (I made them on the grill) with nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray; preheat; or alternatively-spray a nonstick ridged grill pan with nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray and set over high heat.

Divide the chicken among 12 8-inch skewers. Grill or broil the skewers 4 inches from the heat until lightly browned, about 3 minutes; turn and brush with reduced marinade. Cook until the chicken is thoroughly done, about 2 more minutes. 


Serve immediately. 4 servings

Florentine Turkey Meat Loaf

On the weekends, it's always to nice to cook something that you can take your time with, makes the house smell delicious, and is a tasty meal. This definitely is all of the above. Cancy loves meatloaf. I like eating healthy. So why not make a meat loaf with ground turkey and something healthy hidden in the middle. :)

Florentine Turkey Meatloaf

1 pound ground turkey 

1 cup spaghetti sauce, divided 

1/2 cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs 

1/2 cup finely chopped onion 

2 eggs, slightly beaten 

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese  

1 package (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained 

3/4 cup low-fat shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Line an 8- or 9- inch loaf pan with foil with dull side toward food.

Combine ground turkey, 1/4 cup spaghetti sauce, bread crumbs, onion, eggs, & Parmesan cheese in a medium bowl.

Press half of turkey mixture into foil-lined pan. Press a 1-inch indentation down center of mixture, leaving 1-inch thickness on all sides.

Toss spinach and mozzarella cheese together; spoon into indentation, mounding in center. Press remaining turkey mixture evenly over top, sealing edges.

Bake 45 to 50 minutes. Spoon remaining spaghetti sauce over meat loaf. Bake 15 minutes longer. Let stand 10 minutes.

Serving Size: makes 4 servings

Fajita Chicken Fiesta

So tonight, we were both starving so I wanted to make a big plate of food and keep the calories under control. This recipe turned out great. We were perfectly full after finishing dinner. At only 273 calories per serving ( 1/2 of the recipe ) we were still able to have some rice and beans to round it out. Enjoy!

Fajita Chicken Fiesta

1 onion, sliced 

2 jalapenos, sliced 

1 green pepper, sliced 

4 sweet mini peppers ( i used 2 yellow and 2 red )  

1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces 

1 can of Ro*tel hot 

fajita seasoning or goya adobo seasoning

Combine everything in a large ziploc bag.
Shake to combine and get the seasoning on everything.

Pour mixture into a large baking dish.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Serving Size: makes 2 large servings

What better for a first post than.... Mahi Mahi Tacos. Yum!

Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos

4 oz mahi mahi fillet 

taco seasoning  

2 low cal/carb tortillas (I used corn tortillas that came in at 50 calories each)  

4oz prepared pico de gallo 

1/4 C of reduced fat, shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Sprinkle taco seasoning on mahi mahi and refrigerate for an hour.

Grill, skin side down, until mahi is done.

Cut into 1 inch pieces and divide between 2 soft low carb tortillas, top with pico and monterey jack.

Serving Size: makes 2 tacos ( for one person ) 

Cilantro-Lime Chicken & Potatoes

I love chicken & Cancy loves potatoes. We both like a little heat in our food.

This recipe from “My Baking Heart” turned out to be a hit in our house. The salsa is super easy to make. We’ve made the salsa several times since just to have on hand. J

Cilantro-Lime Chicken & Potatoes


 1-1/2 lbs Idaho potatoes, peeled and cubed


3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted


4 (6 oz) skinless, boneless chicken breasts, rinsed and pat dry


1 tbsp fresh lime juice


1-1/2 c reduced fat or regular Mexican blend cheese, shredded


1/2 c salsa (recipe below)


1/4 c fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Spray a 13×9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Add potatoes and spoon 1 tablespoon of the butter over all and toss gently to coat potatoes. Arrange in a single layer. Bake 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and spoon the potatoes to one side of the baking pan. Arrange the chicken pieces on the other side of the potatoes in the pan. Combine the remaining butter with the limejuice and spoon evenly over the chicken.

Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center.

In a small bowl, combine the cheese, salsa, and cilantro. Spoon evenly over the chicken and potatoes.

Bake 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted. If desired, serve with additional lime wedges.

C’s Salsa

2 cans diced tomatoes, with liquid


1-1/2 md onions, chopped


3 to 4 Serrano peppers, sliced


1/2 c fresh cilantro leaves, chopped


2 to 3 cloves fresh garlic, chopped


Cumin, to taste


Pepper, to taste


Kosher salt, to taste

Add all ingredients to a food processor and pulse until desired consistency is reached. We like a thin salsa, but you can leave it chunky, as well.

Thai Basil Chicken

I love Joelen’s food blog. This girl can cook. When I came across this recipe on her site, I knew it was a must-try. I really like ground chicken so I was glad to be able to use it in a really tasty dish.  Cancy & I both really liked this.

 Thai Basil Chicken

2 cups basil leaves, packed (Thai preferred)

3 cloves garlic

1/2 teaspoon chili garlic sauce

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tsp white vinegar

1 1/2 lbs ground chicken

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

Place garlic, 1-cup fresh basil leaves and the chili garlic sauce in a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped, scraping bowl one time. Transfer 1 tablespoon of this mixture to a small bowl with the 1-tablespoon fish sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar. Stir and set aside.

Place the remaining garlic/basil mixture into a cold 12" skillet and set aside.

Place the ground chicken in a bowl with the remaining 1-tablespoon fish sauce and refrigerate for 5-10 minutes.

In the cold skillet with the garlic/basil mixture, add 2 tablespoons olive oil and onions to the pan. Sauté over medium low heat and allow herbs and onion to soften.

Once onion is softened, add the chilled ground chicken, and stirring constantly, brake chicken up as it cooks. Continue stirring until chicken is no longer pink.

Add garlic/basil sauce mixture that you made previously. Cook about 1 min.

Meanwhile, chiffonade the remaining cup of basil leaves and add to the pan to cook 1 additional minute or so, until the basil wilts. Serve over rice.