Triple Threat Stir Fry - YUM!!!

So...this will be an interesting kind of post.  I did take "inspiration" from a Hungry Girl recipe, but really didn't follow it to a tee - as a matter of fact, I made more changes than kept the same.  But still, her simple yet flavorful looking recipe led me to make something I have made in the past, so I will still give her credit, where credit is due. 

Her recipe is called the Tempting Teriyaki Trifecta - but because my spin on it is VERY different, I will post my recipe, and also call to your attention what her original directions were.  It is on page 330 of the "300 Under 300" cookbook...and definitely gave us an asian fix without the calories or carbs.

Ingredients:

6 oz lean fillet, sliced (we used actual filet mignon)
8 oz raw boneless skinless, lean chicken, sliced (hers called for less but we wanted more protein)
6 ounces raw shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails remained.
Hers called for a frozen vegetable medley - decided to use the real thing!:
Chopped broccoli florets
Sliced Onions
Matchstick Carrots
Sliced Celery
Chopped Green Onions
Sliced Water Chestnuts
Sliced Mushrooms
Teriyaki Sauce/Marinade
Wok Oil
Chow Mein Noodles

Start by getting the wok hot and using some wok oil in there.  Begin with the chicken as it will take the longest to cook.  Then the broccoli florets.  In order from there, sliced onions, filet, carrots, celery, green onions, shrimp and then water chestnuts.  Also toss in a bit of the teriyaki sauce and the low fat sesame/ginger dressing.  I know you see mushrooms, but bear with me as I have a non-mushroom loving family!

After a good 6-8 minutes, all of the vegetables were cooked with a nice crisp, and the proteins were cooked through without being tough or raw.  So I pulled that out of the wok and put it into a serving dish and into the oven to warm.

I had already started the water for the jasmine rice, so that was ready to roll.  Two more things that needed woking - first put the bean sprouts in with a dash of wok oil and once they were warmed through I gave them their own container to continue warming in the oven.  Last item - MUSHROOMS.  My favorite but my family does not like that.  Wok'ed them a bit and put them in a small container in the oven.

So by that time, the rice was done and all containers in the oven were warm and tasty looking.  I set my items on the counter and took some pics - rice, stir fry, bean sprouts, mushrooms, and chow mein noodles for a topping.

So here is the delicious plate I put together - lots of protein and low in carb and fats. 

 Delicious, tasty and filling!  Low in calories, fat and carbs.  Stay tuned tomorrow night for my version on her fantastic shrimp scampi with shiratuki noodles from Saturday night!

Thanks for the 1000+ views!  I feel like a million bucks :)

Home Run - "Pasta-Less" Three-Cheese Chicken Cannelloni

I was about to ask a question again that I posed last night, and then I got smart!  I was about to re-ask:  "Can I get in trouble for posting a recipe that is not online?"  And then I realized how long the recipe was in the cookbook and saw I would have to retype it.  Which motivated me to GOOGLE it and voila - you can find just about ANYTHING on the world wide web!  But if you can't, as long as you give the creator credit, is it okay???  I know - I'm a rule follower, and don't want to break any kind of blogging code!

Anyways, I have provided links below, and this is from page 236 of "300 Under 300" by Lisa Lillien.

Let me digress a moment.  Can you even believe how far we have come since we entered the .com age?  I mean seriously - back in the day, think of how old school we were compared to now.  And not only that, most folks get their world wide web on their PHONES nowadays!  Seriously - communication has come such a long way, and I have mentioned to a few friends how interesting it would be to  write a thesis on specifically how social media has impacted our society.  Who knows where we will be in another ten years or so, but I will simply enjoy the ability to find out information with a couple of clicks.

So...as I mentioned, this is the Hungry Girl experiment.  I did my research, tried to find some recipes with ingredients that could be "re-used", made a "playbook" and have been having SO much fun in the kitchen again.  I was excited about an Italian dish that did not include pasta.  Although of course, I did include pasta as a side dish, but used portion control :)

Here is where I found the recipe - again, another delicious main dish from Hungry Girl, aka, Lisa Lillien.  Another low calorie, low fat, low carb and HIGH protein dish.  She has certainly used her smartness to pad the meal with vegetables and make you NOT hungry...hmmm...do you sense a connection with her name now?  :)

And of course...you know me by now.  I have included my "changes" from her original recipe.  Not many, but a few that I have noted below and those were captured in a bold, blue font :)  All I can say is thank goodness I won't develop supreme carpal tunnel syndrome by not having to type out the whole wonderful recipe below!

I doubled all ingredients except for the chicken.  And then, I was able to get 6 chicken pieces with the filling instead of 4, and I must say, just eating ONE was truly filling and delicious! 

Three-Cheese Chicken Cannelloni
PER SERVING (1 stuffed cutlet, 1/2 of recipe): 274 calories, 3.5g fat, 647mg sodium, 12g carbs, 2g fiber, 6g sugars, 43g protein -- PointsPlus® value 6*

Pasta is passé (and starchy!). We like our cheesy filling rolled up in CHICKEN! And we know you will too.






Ingredients:

1/4 cup frozen chopped spinach (I used a full bag of fresh spinach and sauteed it - see below)1/4 cup finely chopped mushrooms
1/3 cup fat-free ricotta cheese
2 tsp. reduced-fat Parmesan-style grated topping
1 tsp. chopped garlic, divided
Dash nutmeg
Dash each salt and black pepper, or more to taste
Two 5-oz. raw boneless skinless lean chicken breast cutlets
3/4 cup canned crushed tomatoes
1 tsp. dried minced onion
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 stick light string cheese (I used a soy mozzarella cheese slice.  For next round, I may check out the calories in low fat shredded mozzarella cheese and if comparable, go with that.  Just a lot of work to shred cheese slices or sticks)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

*Changed from her original recipe.  Instead of:  "Place spinach and mushrooms in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute, until softened."  I used cooking spray and sauteed the fresh spinach and mushrooms.  I will say be SURE to do the blotting she mentions below, because after the first round of cooking, I had a layer of water in my pan!

Blot thoroughly, removing excess liquid. Add ricotta cheese, Parm-style topping, 1/2 tsp. garlic, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Mix well and set aside.

Place one chicken cutlet in a large sealable plastic bag and, removing as much air as possible, seal bag. Carefully pound chicken through the bag with a meat mallet or heavy can, until uniformly about 1/3-inch thick. Repeat with second cutlet.  (I did use think chicken cutlets already but did pound them a bit, being careful not to tear them)

Lay cutlets flat and spread evenly with veggie-cheese mixture. Starting with a longer side, roll up one cutlet (not too tightly or the filling will ooze!),   YES - this is true!!!  and secure with toothpicks - don't use colored ones - we had little circles of color!  Place in a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray. Repeat with second cutlet. Cover pan with foil.  Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine tomatoes, onion, Italian seasoning, and remaining 1/2 tsp. garlic. Mix well and set aside.   I actually decided to sautee this combination so the flavors could blend!

Break string cheese into thirds and place in a food processor or blender -- blend at high speed until cheese takes on a shredded or grated consistency. (Or just tear string cheese into pieces and roughly chop.) Set aside.  I used scissors to cut the slices of mozzarella into strips and then cubed them.  As I said above, I think I may check out the difference between regular shredded low-fat mozzarella.  Maybe I'm lazy?

Remove pan from the oven, and carefully remove foil. Spoon seasoned tomatoes equally over chicken, and sprinkle shredded/grated string cheese evenly over tomatoes. 

And this one is without mushrooms and without tomatoes for Miss Picky!




Some with mushrooms and some without



Return to the oven (uncovered) and bake for 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through and cheese on top has melted. Remove toothpicks and enjoy!

Finished product with mushrooms and without!





The one without mushrooms OR tomatoes!





MAKES 2 SERVINGS

One of the "tweaks" that I made as well was to sautee the mushrooms separately from the spinach.  I just happen to have a non-mushroom loving family.  So I "customized" the recipe...even to the point where mine had EVERYTHING, my hubby's had everything but the 'shrooms and Lil' J had no mushrooms and even didn't want the tomatoes on top!

So...I paired it with some "bad for you" pasta (at least it was fresh and I just added in some spray butter, reduced fat parmesan cheese and parsley.

And some steamed vegetables...

It is just SO FUN to be back here again and I can't believe I am about to reach 1000 page hits!  I am quite international by now as well - so HELLO to all you countries who have popped in to say hi! 

Later, taters!

Breakfast and Lunch Options

As my sister will attest, I am NOT a breakfast eater.  I read all the hype - that it is the most important meal of the day.  That is revs up your metabolism.  That people who eat breakfast are the most successful at losing or maintaining weight.  Honestly, I'm just not really hungry until lunchtime or so.  But I have decided that I WILL eat breakfast, and I wanted some healthy and protein packed options. 

I discovered via Hungry Girl some "egg mug" options that are right up my alley.  Oatmeal options as well, but here was what I had for breakfast yesterday.  It was filling, low in calories and HIGH in protein.  The perfect "sweet and sour" combination!

All-American Egg Mug

PER SERVING (entire recipe): 173 calories, 3g fat, 770mg sodium, 9g carbs, 1g fiber, 2.5g sugars, 26g protein -- PointsPlus® value 4*





 
Ingredients:

1 Morningstar Farms veggie sausage patty (or another low-fat sausage patty with about 80 calories) - I like the Jimmy Dean turkey sausage patties - 60 calories each and TASTY!
1 tbsp. sugar-free pancake syrup
1/2 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original)
1 slice fat-free American cheese (I used soy cheddar)

Directions:

Lightly spray a large microwave-safe mug with nonstick spray. Add sausage patty and microwave for 45 seconds. Use a fork to break patty into pieces inside mug, until mostly crumbled. Add syrup and toss to coat. Add egg substitute and microwave for 1 minute.  Gently stir and microwave for 45 seconds. Tear cheese into pieces and add to the mug. Microwave for 15 seconds.

Lightly stir, let cool slightly, and then dig in!

MAKES 1 SERVING

Then for lunch, I am trying to do more cooking - using "real" ingredients and adding in veggies.  I found one of her recipes for a "pizza quesadilla" and it far exceeded my expectations.  It was filling and delicious!  My husband even asked if I could make one for him when he tried mine.  (Same with the egg mug!)

It's not on her website, but is in her cookbook.  Hopefully I won't get in trouble for posting it on here...I give her full credit for the recipe and it is on page 264 of her cookbook titled "300 Under 300" by Lisa Lillien.

Cheesy Pizza Quesadilla

Per Serving (Entire recipe)  252 calories; 7.25 grams fat; 979 mg sodium; 31 carbs; 5.5 g sugars; 18 grams protein

Ingredients:

1 stick light string cheese
1/4 cup canned tomatoes, plus more for optional dipping
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 medium large high fiber flour tortilla - about 110 calroies
1 wedge Laughing Cow light creamy swiss cheese
4 slices turkey pepperoni, chopped

Directions:

Tear string cheese into pieces and roughly chop.  Set aside.  In small bowl, combine tomatoes with Italian seasoning and set aside.

Bring medium large skillet (at least the size of the tortilla) sprayed with nonstick spray to medium high heat on the stove.  Add mushrooms and bell pepper and stirring occasionally, cook until softened, about 4 minutes.  Remove veggies and set aside.

Remove skillet from the heat, re-spray, and bring to medium heat again.  Spread one side of the tortilla evenly with the cheese wedge.  Lay tortilla flat in the skillet (cheese side up).  Evenly spread the tomatoes over one half of the upward facing side of the tortilla. 

Top the tomatoes with half of the shredded cheese, and follow with veggies and turkey pepperoni.  Top with the remaining shredded cheese and cook for 3 minutes or so.  Using a spatula, carefully fold the plain half of the tortilla over the filling and press down lightly to seal.  Flip and cook until both sides are crispy, about 3 minutes.

Once cool enough to handle, slice into wedges, and if you'd like, mix up some extra seasoned crushed tomatoes for dipping and enjoy!

One last note...lunch today was AWESOME!  Had a veggie burger (love the Boca Burgers!) and topped it with some of the avocado coleslaw from yesterday and some chopped tomatoes.  As Rachael Ray would say, YUMMO!!!

Bon appetit and on the menu for tonight is Chicken Canneloni from the HG cookbook.  Interestingly enough, instead of using pasta to roll the chicken and filling, she uses the chicken as the outside, and that gets filled and baked.  Will update you later...after our 90 minute walk of course!!!

I'm Back! And Happy to Be Here :) And YUMMY Fish Tacos!

It's amazing that I let another 10 days go by...but we FINALLY got the fifth fridge part installed last Thursday so I scoured some recipe books over the weekend, did a huge grocery store run on Saturday and I am back in the saddle again!

When we last left our she-ra (that would be me!), I mentioned wanting to try some recipes from Hungry Girl.  I did take Michele's advice about watching out for processed food - and found enough items that appealed to me so that I can fix Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday (trivia night is Wednesday!).

I'll give some scoop on today's breakfast and lunch in another post, but the focus for today is on our DELICIOUS dinner tonight - see recipe below including some tweaks I made.  If you want the original, click on the link below.  I also incorporated some items from my friend Mary's fish taco recipe that she just shared with me!  Lastly, I doubled it b/c I was feeding a family of 3 - and we have leftovers! 

This got a two thumbs up from the hubby and a "this is really good Mom" from my 15 year old daughter!  Paired it with brown rice and ruby red grapefruit segments.  I only had one taco and it was very filling!  Perhaps because I was still relatively full from our awesome lunch (see next post)...though we also went for a fabulous 90 minute walk.  The air is cooling off with the arrival of fall, and even though the temps are still warm, the slight breeze helps to keep us cooler.

Grilled Go Fish! Soft Tacos
PER SERVING (2 tacos, 1/2 of recipe): 273 calories, 5.75g fat, 330mg sodium, 30g carbs, 5g fiber, 5g sugars, 27g protein -- PointsPlus® value 7*







Ingredients:
For Tacos
4 tbsp. lime juice
2  tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. salt
Four 4-oz. raw tilapia fillets (or other flaky white fish)
Eight 6-inch corn tortillas
For Avocado Coleslaw 
4 tbsp. mashed avocado
4 tbsp. fat-free sour cream
2 tbsp. low fat mayonnaise
Chopped cilantro
1 tsp. lime juice
Chopped red onion
Dash garlic powder, or more to taste
Dash salt, or more to taste
2 cups shredded cabbage or dry coleslaw mix
Optional
1/2 cup chopped tomato
Directions:

Combine lime juice and spices for the tacos in a large bowl, and mix well. Add fillets and evenly cover both sides of each with seasoned lime juice. If it's a little "limey", add some more of the garlic powder.  Let marinate in the fridge for at least 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for avocado coleslaw in a small bowl and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve.  I didn't feel like grilling, so I baked the fish instead,  It probably took a good 15-20 minutes total at 350 degrees.  Once it was fully cooked, I broke it into pieces and put in a warming oven.

Spray sautee pan with olive oil cooking spray and heat tortillas until warm and just slightly toasted, about 1 minute per side.  Be careful that they don't get crispy or they won't fold!

Plate and spread the tortilla evenly with avocado coleslaw. Divide fish evenly divide among tortillas. Top with chopped tomatoes;  fold and enjoy!

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

I cheated and used some "boil in a bag" brown rice (love that extra fiber!) and a jar of "fresh" ruby red grapefruit segments as side items.

Where did the Last Ten Days Go???

Holy cow - no idea of how that happened and how I went so long without a single post.  I guess part of it has to do with the fact that the primary reason for this blog was for food/cooking, and believe it or not, our fridge is STILL not working.  Our original service call was on August 6th - so that is almost a month and a half of dealing with all of our food CRAMMED into the garage fridge, using the inside fridge for waters and such.  I finally got to the point where I simply said I am not going to cook until it is fixed.  I don't even know what is IN the garage fridge - and it will probably be scary to find out when the time finally comes to move it all back into the kitchen fridge.

In the meantime, I have been excited to find "Hungry Girl" - her recipes focus on lower calorie solutions but with flavor.  The healthy "Fettucine Alfredo" I made was one of her recipes - absolutely delicious but so low in calories and carbs!  So I have been scouring her site and can't WAIT until the fridge is in working order and can put together a grocery list for a week's worth of dinners!

I have continued to enjoy walking, outside with my husband when possible, which is an amazing workout with our hilly neighborhood!  On the days when he works, I walk on the treadmill, usually for 45 minutes or an hour with an incline, and we have gotten into a good routine of a 90 minute walk on his days off.  Methinks the running may not be in the cards.  Shin splints and an aching knee made me realize that you need to do whatever exercise works for you.  So I will keep it to walking and tennis for now and who knows what the future might hold.

So life is good, I'm staying busy and can't WAIT to come back and share some successful recipes! 

From Hot Tea and Honey to Homemade Comfort Food

So...I guess I was destined to get hit with an end of the summer cold, but I did not expect it to kick my ass quite this badly.  On Saturday, I felt GREAT.  On Sunday, I felt good, but had the twinges of a sore throat.  Hubby and I still went on a 90 minute walk so I was obviously feeling okay...but as the day wore on, I felt punier and punier.  And woke up on Monday morning feeling like absolute crippy crap.  Let's just say thank goodness for hot tea with honey, naps and Nyquil.  I was so thankful to have Labor Day off so that I could completely relax and attempt recuperation.

Today was more of the same, though it was a workday so naps were not part of the plan.  But I was lucky to have an easier workload than usual and by mid-day, I was starting to feel like I might be on the upswing.  Hubby brought home Campbell's soup for lunch (who doesn't love some Chicken Noodle??!!) and by 4 I decided that I needed to cook up the steak in the outside fridge so that it doesn't go bad.  Was gonna fry up the chicken, but it has a later expiration date and also needed to soak in buttermilk overnight, so I made a detour and went with a steak and potatoes comfort food menu.  I included some kale chips and SteamFresh green beans and had dinner on the table in about 30-45 minutes.  Do you like how big the servings of greens are?

I know you're tired of hearing it, but both the steak and mashed potato recipes came from Melissa D'Arabian.  Again, I seem to identify with her ingredients and style, but do have to giggle that even though I am copying from a FAMOUS chef who is PAID for what they do, I still end up making slight tweaks.  Please go to the links above (and below) for the original recipes, and my small revisions are shown below. 

French Cut Steak

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (1 pound) skirt steak, cut in half (I used flat iron steak cut into four pieces)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided (I used olive oil)
• 1/4 cup butter, divided
• 2 medium sweet onions, sliced (I only used 1)
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup beef stock or broth

Directions

In a small bowl, combine spices and salt and pepper. Liberally season the steak with the rub and let rest 15 minutes on the counter.  Meanwhile, in a saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter over low heat. Add onions, season and cook until soft and caramelized, about 20 minutes.

In a large saute pan, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil with 1 tablespoon butter over high heat. Place steaks in the pan and sear until nicely browned, about 3 minute per side for medium-rare.  I do like mine medium rare, so I pulled mine off to rest about this time.  I put the other ones into the oven in the skillet to continue cooking so it could be more of a medium/medium well doneness. 

Once to your desired temperature, let the meat rest for 10 minutes.  Place the saute pan (that you did the steak in) over high heat and deglaze with white wine and vinegar until reduced by 1/2. Add onions to the pan with beef broth and reduce by half. Salt and pepper, to taste. Remove from heat and whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. (I did not add the extra 2 tbsp of butter).  Slice steak and fan to serve. Top with sauce.  You can see that the medium/medium well is on the left with medium rare on the right.  VERY flavorful.  I put the steak over the onions in the serving dish, but when I plated it above, I put the onions and sauce over the steak. 

Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

• 3 large russet potatoes, peeled, halved, and cut into chunks (I used smaller potatoes - about 10.  I did not peel them, but for "prettiness", I would peel them next time)
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus extra for cooking water
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2/3 cup buttermilk, warmed
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Bacon bits (my optional add in)

Directions

Place the potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Add salt and bring to a boil, then cook until the potatoes fall off a fork when pierced, about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes, reserving about a 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

Place the potatoes in a bowl and mix in the butter, salt, buttermilk, and green onions and stir to blend. Add a tablespoon or 2 of cooking liquid if necessary to obtain desired consistency.  Add in bacon bits if you'd like.  Salt and pepper liberally and serve.

As I said above, I made some kale chips and simple Steam Fresh green beans to round out the menu, and it was a delicious and "comforting" meal.

Tomorrow night is Trivia night, and then Thursday will be my first attempt at frying chicken...yet another recipe from Melissa :)  Gonna get a good night's sleep tonight, so g'nite and perhaps I will say hello to everyone tomorrow!

Tasty Tilapia with Lentil Quinoa Salad!

Again, Melissa D'Arabian has provided a delicious recipe for an awesome grainy side dish!  I was a bit apprehensive as I have not had lentils in a LONG time, but it was delicious!  The tilapia was not *as* healthy as I usually cook, but still a lot better than fried food for sure!

Melissa's Lentil Quinoa Salad Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 1/4 cups water, plus 2 cups
• 1/2 cup lentils
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 lime, zested (I only used half of this)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

Put the quinoa in a sieve and rinse in cold water. In a large microwave-proof bowl with a cover, add the rinsed quinoa and 1 1/4 cups water. Cover and microwave on high for 9 minutes. Let it sit for 2 minutes then stir. Quinoa should be tender enough to eat, but with a little "pop" upon biting.

Put the lentils in a sieve and rinse in cold water. In a saucepan, simmer the lentils in 2 cups water until the lentils are tender, but not mushy, about 30 minutes. Drain and cool.
In a small bowl, whisk the mustard and vinegar together, and drizzle in the oil to make an emulsion. Add the garlic powder, lime zest, and salt, and pepper, to taste.  I also added in a tsp of sugar b/c the dressing tasted a bit better for me.

To assemble the salad: In a medium salad bowl, mix the quinoa, lentils, green onions, and chopped cilantro. Top the salad with the dressing, toss to coat and serve.

Tilapia was super easy.  I simply used some pre-made scampi sauce and sauteed the fish for 2-3 minutes on each side.  Again, I know there are healthier ways to make it, but I was just craving that buttery, garlicy richness and it definitely delivered!

Rounded out the meal with SteamFresh broccoli - as close to fresh as you can get :)  I have learned to only microwave it for 4 and 1/2 minutes so that it keeps its crunchiness; cooking it more seems to make it mushy.

Even though we were both a little under the weather today, hubby and I still ventured out on a walk - one that took about 90 minutes and was extremely hot and humid.  We were both feeling quite ready for the walk to end by the time we got home!  This was AFTER picking up my race packet, which included an AWESOME shirt and a number I know I will not be wearing.  Though part of me was sad, I also know for sure it is the right decision.  I already found a 5K in early October that is also super nearby so I would have a month to train and train well.  And then look for a 10K and move towards that!

Really glad tomorrow is another day to sleep in!  Just kinda feeling icky, so it will be an early night!  Glad my daughter comes back tomorrow!  Missing her bigtime but know she is having fun...

Melissa D'Arabians Shrimp Recipe and Tofu Shirataki Fettucine Alfredo!

Wow.  Do you ever have one of those days when you feel like you completely hit the nail on the head with a meal, and it is also healthy?  That was tonight - DELICIOUS!  Thank you Melissa D'Arabian for an AMAZING shrimp recipe tonight!  I paired it with a brand new endeavour using Tofu Shirataki Fettucine noodles...and when you can eat Fettucine Alfredo with no guilt, it makes it just better and better!  A simple side salad, and here was my delicious and healthy plate for the evening!

I am still learning how to take these pictures so that they look more inviting, but let's just say that Melissa's shrimp over this HEALTHY fettucine alfredo with a side salad was just DELISH.

Let me post her shrimp recipe first.  The ONLY thing I would have changed would have been to use 2 tbsp instead of one of the pesto mixture when stirring in the shrimp b/c it would give it more of a crispy sear with the delicious elements it included.  But it was super delicious as is!  Here are the ingredients, minus the pecans because I accidentally left them off my grocery list so sweet hubby was at the store buying them.

I did want to share a "trick" when you are peeling and deveining the shrimp to save on extra plates etc.  I kept the peeled shrimp in the middle of the white paper it came on.  I then did the peeling and put those parts to the right of the shrimp, and put the peeled shrimp to the left.  Once complete, I could take the peeled shrimp off and do any deveining needed.  And just simply roll up the white paper with the shells and put in the plastic bag it came in so that it won't stink up your garbage can!  Just a tip :)

Ingredients

Pesto:

• 1 lime
• 1 1/2 cups fresh cilantro leaves (I used about a cup to make sure it wasn't too overpowering)
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons toasted chopped pecans
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Shrimp:

• 3/4 pound raw medium-size shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt

Directions

Pesto: Grate 1 teaspoon zest from the lime and juice the entire lime for about 2 tablespoons of juice. (P.S.  go ahead and zest the whole lime so that you will have 1-2 tsp of zest for future!  Just set it aside in a separate container.)  Combine the zest and juice with the cilantro, green onions, chopped pecans, chopped garlic, sugar, vegetable oil, and extra-virgin olive oil in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse the mixture until well-combined, but still slightly chunky. Season the pesto with salt, and pepper, to taste.

Shrimp: In a bowl, toss the shrimp with 1 tablespoon of the pesto. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the shrimp until just opaque and pink, about 3 minutes. Put a generous spoonful of pesto into a serving bowl. Add the shrimp and toss to coat. Serve the remaining pesto on the side or freeze for another use.

I have decided that Melissa must be my long lost sister.  Her choice of ingredients is SO similar to mine and I feel lucky to use her as a base and make teeny tiny adjustments.

Fettucine Alfredo Using Tofu Shirataki Fettucine Noodles

My sister and niece had told me about these during their recent visit.  Okay - who doesn't LOVE pasta?  But who hates the carbs and calories that come with them?  For an 8 oz package of these beauties, there are 40 calories total with .5 grams of fat and 3 carbs, although there are 2 grams of fiber, so basically that's 1 net carb.  NO sugar and 1 gram of protein with a few trace vitamins.  I was doubtful until I made the recipe on the bag which is from Hungry Girl - I have to go check out her site b/c this was seriously rock star!

HG's Tofu Shirataki Fettucine Alfredo

1 package of the noodles
2 tbsp fat free cream cheese (okay - ours was low fat)
2 tsp reduced fat Parmesan grated topping
1 tsp fat free sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Drain and rinse the Tofu noodles thoroughly.  Parboil for 2-3 minutes, then dry very well.  Add cream cheese, parmesan and sour cream.   Mix well.  Microwave for 1 additional minute and then mix again.  Add salt and pepper. 

This recipe is approximately 95 calories with 2 grams of fat for the whole thing!  Hubby and I split it so b/c my Parmesan was not reduced fat and cream cheese was low fat (not fat free) I would guesstimate that total was maybe 180 calories - so that is 90 calories a piece!!! 

I definitely had my doubts - but no longer!  It is much more expensive than regular pasta, but if you like your carbs like we do, it is SO worth it so enjoy it without the guilt!

Paired it all with a side salad

and the meal was filling, healthy and if I had to guesstimate calorie wise, less than 500 calories!

For those who are following my fitness journey, I had an AWESOME walk on the treadmill at 4 mph with incline between 4 and 6.  At times, my calves and shin splints were a little mega sore, so I went back and forth.  Burned 540 calories and felt GREAT! 

Tomorrow we get to SLEEP in as late as we want!!!  We plan on taking a nice long walk in our hilly neighborhood and get some much needed Vitamin D.

Thanks again Sue and Sarah for the turn on to the noodles!  Will definitely be playing around with those quite a bit in the near future!!!  Not gonna even tell Julia of the substitution!!!