Skinny

Skinny Banana Bread

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

Skinny-Banana-Bread

It’s been more than four months since my last blog post. Well, my blog has really been put on the back burner because I’ve been juggling work, travel and trying to drop a few pounds (26 pounds to be exact). And with losing weight for me, comes a disinterest in food overall. Imagine! As much as I enjoy cooking for those I love, they’ve been starving while I’ve been keeping my calorie intake to a minimum. I can’t give cutting back on eating all the credit. Believe it or not, I started running — yes on a treadmill, and yes at a pace faster than speed #3. The treadmill terrified me until I got to know a spunky girl with a big heart and a whole lot of attitude that made running on the treadmill look like fun. For those who know me personally, I would have never have used the words “treadmill” and “fun” in the same sentence. That combined with her constant pushing me to go to the gym after work really paid off. Just because I’ve lost a few pounds, doesn’t mean I won’t be enjoying my fries and sweets. I’ll just have to get smart about consumption and quantity. (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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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…)

Skinny Corn Chowder

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

 

It’s Ramadan, that month on the lunar calendar when you can’t have food, water, or gum from sunrise to sunset. It’s also a month when you’re supposed to concentrate on other things besides food, being a better person, getting closer to your faith, etc. While all that’s true, I find more and more that Ramadan is really All About the Food. We’ve received numerous dinner invites, even a few weeks before Ramadan even started. With the long days (16 hours, give or take), all I can think about is food. What happens, is that although I’ve been eying the sweets in the fridge, or thinking about burgers, dinner time rolls around and I can’t down more than soup and salad. Go figure. All those cravings for nothing. It makes sense, you’re stomach contracts when you’re fasting so you can’t stuff it like you usually do. Unless you’re one of those people that doesn’t mind the uncomfortable feeling of being so full you need to unbutton the top button on your jeans and lay down until you fall asleep. (more…)

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Pizza Cups

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

 

Healthy Pizza – yes, it’s been done…. in my kitchen. Only 35 calories per cup, these pizza cups are the perfect snack, or even finger food. The best part? Prep to finish in less than 20 minutes.

Pizza Cups Recipe

Ingredients

24 Wonton Wrappers
1 can Tomato Paste
1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
1 cup Shredded Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese
24 slices Turkey Pepperoni
 

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Carefully place the wonton wrapper in a muffin tin (one wrapper per cup)
Mix together Italian Seasoning, tomato paste and a little bit of water (to loosen it up a bit).
Put a small amount of tomato sauce in each cup.
Cut the turkey pepperoni into fours, then arrange four cut up slices of pepperoni in each cup, top with mozzarella cheese.
Bake for 10 minutes.
 

 

Serving size: 1 cup

Nutrition Information: Cals 35. Carbs 4g. Fat 1g. Protein 2g. Sodium 74mg.

 

 

Oven Fries

categories: Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

 

I’ll be the first to raise my hand and tell everyone that I love junk food. Whether it’s chips, chocolate, fries … I love them all. Unfortunately, my scale doesn’t love me back when I eat said junk food. A few days ago, I shared with you all how you can make skinny onion rings to satisfy your onion ring cravings without packing on pounds or artery-clogging fat.

Who says you can’t do the same with fries! The best part of a burger is having those fries to dunk in ketchup (or in my case mustard). When I made these the first time, I was a bit nervous that they wouldn’t taste as good as the deep fried ones. But I was so wrong. these are even better. Other than the health factor, another benefit of these oven-baked fries is that it doesn’t stink up your house. Oh how I hate how the smell of fried foods take over our whole house! It’s awful. Well, here’s my solution and I’m loving it (unintentional McDonald’s reference).

Oven Fries Recipe

 Ingredients

1 large Russet Potato, peeled or skin on (your preference)
Cooking spray (I use olive oil spray)
 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Cut the potato into long slices
Place the slices in a single layer on a large baking sheet.
Spray liberally with cooking spray or olive oil
Bake for 30 minutes
Then broil for 10 minutes to brown.

Note: 1 potato is one serving.

Nutrition Information – Servings: 1. Calories per serving: 292. Carbs 67g. Fat 0g. Protein 8g. sodium 18g. Sugar 2g.

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