500 Calories or Less

Garlic Almond Green Beans

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Garlic Almond Green Beans

 

Because I’m always on a diet (or so it seems), I’m constantly trying to find ways to make veggie sides more interesting. Sure, I could steam broccoli and asparagus, and sauté spinach until is comes out of my ears. But in reality, how appealing do steamed veggies sound? That’s what I thought. I’ve recently starting grilling veggies. Yes, it’s winter and it’s too cold to be outside using a grill. That’s where my stovetop grill comes in handy. I’m telling you, I’ve becoming a grilling fanatic, minus the smell of food that lingers in the house long after we’ve devoured dinner. (more…)

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Skinny Chicken Salad

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Chicken, Posts, Recipes, Salads

Skinny Chicken Salad_3

 

In general, I don’t go out of my way to make lunch unless I’m home around lunchtime on the weekend, or a three-day weekend. That’s because during the week in my morning rush,  I grab something on my way out the door or simply pick up lunch at work.

The nice thing about lunch is that it’s easy. Throw together a salad, or a sandwich and ta-da! Lunch is served. This weekend, I wanted to take a stab at making some better for your chicken salad. You can trade off some of the additions, but stick with the light mayo. Mine only has 20 calories per tablespoon, without compromising taste. A nice combination could be one tablespoon each of chopped walnuts and dried cranberries. Test it out, try it out and see what works for you. I like the crunch of celery and carrots but it’s your prerogative. (more…)

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Cheesy White Bean Nachos

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Appetizers, Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

Cheesy white bean nachos_2  

 

Cheesy nachos at any Mexican restaurant can put a serious dent in your daily calorie count… if you’re counting. Step away from the cheesy nachos and look for something better. Before you start freaking out and guilt-tripping yourself out of cheesy nachos for life, try making your own. Oh the horror! Not having someone prepare it and serve it to you on a silver platter. Before you go complaining about how everything that tastes good isn’t good for you, try these cheesy white bean nachos. I promise, you won’t be slaving away in your kitchen for these. They’re easy for snacks or for an addition to Mexican night. (more…)

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Skinny Mac and Cheese

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Pasta, Posts, Recipes

Skinny Mac and Cheese_3

 

Mac and cheese, the ultimate comfort food, right? I’m a total sucker for Velveeta, too. At our house, as a kid we used to have macaroni & cheese and hot dogs. Healthy. Unfortunately, comfort food equals an unsightly amount of calories. Calories we, quite frankly, can’t afford to be consuming. Not if we want to fit into our super cute, bought it a little-too-tight because I know I can lose weight before the event dress, for example. I can’t tell you how many of those I own.

Total sucker for comfort food. Yes, I’m the one in the Kenmore Fridge ad – the one who grazes. Regularly. That’s why I try to keep my fridge as snack-free as possible. But not all mac and cheese is bad for you. Honestly. (more…)

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Tomato Basil Soup

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Posts, Recipes, Soups

Tomato Basil Soup_2

 

Let me just say that I’m a Northern Virginian, born and raised and I went to grad school at Syracuse. Did I mention the Northern VA part? For those of you who don’t know, it’s distinct enough from the rest of Virginia to require a prefix (but that’s a discussion for another day). What you do need to know is that NoVa and cold precipitation are not a good mix. Blame it on the location – an in-between zone where we don’t quite get fluffy snow and when it rains in 30 degree weather it usually comes down on us in a nice “wintery mix.” Snow, not for me. My favorite winters are the ones where we don’t get any snow. In Syracuse, I wasn’t so lucky. I didn’t understand the concept of Lake Effect Snow until I saw it in action… that is constant snow from October through April. (more…)

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Skinny Burgers

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Beef, Posts, Recipes

Skinny Burger_3

 

Sometimes a girl just craves a burger. Not a turkey burger, or a veggie burger, or even a black bean burger. I’m talking all-beef deliciousness. But we’ve heard (or dare I say seen on our scales the next morning) how bad burgers are for you. Well yea! When you go to BGR or Shake Shack and you’re not sure the type of ground beef (fat percentage) and the buns are practically drowning in oil. But what about burgers at home? If done right, you can cut hundreds, yes hundreds of calories without sacrificing flavor. (more…)