Cheeseburger Mini Muffins

Tonight I decided to make dinner for tomorrow so I can see how this recipe reheats, since that is most likely how I would do it during the school year.  Well that was stupid because tomorrow is Friday and since it is still lent, I can't eat this tomorrow.  At least I was able to try it tonight though. 

Brian is mad that he still has to eat this tomorrow (which I won't make him), but I don't know if that's because he truly doesn't like it, or because it's slightly orange in color (from the Ketchup) and is called "Cheeseburger Mini Muffins" and HE DOES NOT EAT CHEESEBURGERS. I intended to hide the name from him.  I was going to tell him they were sort of like doughy mini meatloafs, but he saw the recipe so my cover was blown.  Whatever...big baby.  : ) (I hope he's reading this!)

Anyhow, Allison, Chloe and I liked these.  They are actually an appetizer, but I think with the right side dishes, this could very easily be a main meal.  You can taste more of the dough than you can the meat...but that's probably why I like them.  (And I haven't figured out the points yet though, so we'll see if it's worth it at the end).

Don't judge the picture...these are NOT burnt!  It looks like it in the picture, but they are not!!! And the white circles on the front ones, that's the ff mozzarella showing through. 

Cheeseburger Mini Muffins (I halved this recipe since I had 1/4 lb ground beef left over from the skillet ole)
Makes 5 dozen mini cheeseburgers
1/2 lb ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

3/4 c ketchup

3/4 c milk (I used skim)

1/2 c butter melted (I used I can't belive it's not butter light)
2 eggs

1 tsp prepared mustard

8 oz shredded cheddar cheese (since Brian will only knowingly eat mozzarella, I used ff mozzarella instead)

In a large skillet cook the beef and onion over medium heat until no longer pink.  Drain.

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  In another bowl combine the ketchup, milk, butter, eggs and mustard.  Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.  Fold in the beef mixture and cheese. 

Fill greased mini muffin cups 3/4 full.  Bake at 425 degrees for 15-18 min or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.  Refrigerate leftovers. 

So this came out to be 1 pt per mini muffin.  If you sit down and eat the whole pan, then that's a lot of points, but like I said before, if you served this with the right low point sides, this wouldn't be too bad. 

Skillet Ole

We liked this...but as you can tell from most of my other posts we 1. Eat a lot of mexican-based foods.  2.  Put chips on just about anything.  Well this recipe is no exception and is fullfilled by both conditions listed above. 

I got this recipe from my cookbook The ULTIMATE ground beef cookbook.  It is one of my favorites since we eat a ton of ground turkey in this house.  There's nothing special to this recipe.  I wouldn't serve it if I was having people over for dinner, but like most of my other recipes, it was easy, and I had all of the ingredients on hand.  This recipe called for 1/2 lb ground beef and 1/2 lb ground turkey, but to make it a little lower in points, I just used 3/4 lb ground turkey. 

Skillet Ole (serves 4)
3/4 lb ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped (I used about 1/2)
1/4 c chopped green peppers (didn't use--my family would pick them all out)
8 oz tomato sauce (I used about 6 oz)
1 c cooked rice (I used brown rice)
1 - 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
3/4 c shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese (obviously I used fat free mozzarella, and only used about 1/2 c)

In order to sneak some things in, I also added:
1/4 c refried beans
1/4 c orange puree
1/4 c picante sauce
fresh chopped tomatoes
crushed tortilla chips

In a large skillet, cook beef/turkey, onion and green pepper over medium heat until no longer pink.  Drain.  Stir in refried beans, orange puree, picante sauce, tomato sauce, rice and chili powder.  Cook for 10 minutes (I only cooked for 5), sprinkle with cheese.  Cover and cook 2 more minutes or until cheese is melted (obviously by the picture I didn't do that!)

Brian gave this a 3.5, I gave it a 4, and the girls were split (Chloe liked it, Allison prefered just the rice...which is why I sneak stuff in to ALL of the foods I make!)

The original recipe is 6 pts per serving.  My recipe is 5 pts w/out the crushed chips on top, also with 4 servings.

Oven "Fried" Chicken

The recipe is called Oven Fried Chicken...I definitely would not call it that!  This tastes NOTHING like fried chicken.  It does however taste like baked chicken...which is exactly what this is.  Nothing special or fancy with this meal, but it's easy, cheap and quick.  I have no idea where I originally got this recipe, but it was clipped out of some magazine, or cooking cook book. 

We liked this!  Brian and I both gave this 4 stars and both of the girls ate it, so that's a huge plus in our house.  And don't let that picture fool you!  I served it with baked french fries, but I ate WAY more than what is shown in that picture. 

1 c dry breadcrumbs (I used italian seasoned)

2 1/2 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt

3/4 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Pepper (I used regular pepper)

1 c buttermilk (made my own w/skim milk and vinegar)

3 1/2 lbs chicken pieces (1 used 4 chicken breasts, and cut them into strips)

Pour butter milk into a dish and "soak" chicken pieces while you prepare the seasoning. 
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine breadcrumbs, seasoned salt and pepper.  Shake to combine. 

Put chicken into the bag and shake to coat. 

Spray a cookie sheet w/non stick spray (I didn't do this since my pan is non stick and it was fine).   Arrange chicken pieces, skin side up (no need since I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts).  Bake uncovered in 400 degree oven until chicken is thoroughly cooked, about 1 hour.  NO WAY was mine going to take that long, so I baked mine at 375 degrees for about 25 min. 

Each chicken breast (or for 3 tenders) was 4 pts.

Did You See?!?!!?

We got a comment from someone that wasn't us?!?! Is it one of your friends? And Christine I LOVE that Bryan is a follower of the blog!

Jaime's Sour Cream Noodle Bake

So I made Jaime's sour cream noodle bake tonight for dinner.  I think we might have liked it more than her and Curt did.  Brian and I both gave this a low 4 stars (better than a 3.5 though!).  I did make a few changes to the original recipe (shocked??) and we both agreed we would totally eat this again, but I think I would change it a little more next time too.  It reminded both of us of the spaghetti pie, but that could be due to the changes I made. 

Here's what I did to it tonight:
I undercooked the noodles since Jaime thought they were too mushy.  We thought they were good, but next time I will probably under cook them even a little more.  I substituted ricotta for the cottage cheese because there was a ZERO percent chance that I'd get Brian to eat cottage cheese.  :)  I also used half of the amount of ground turkey, ricotta and sour cream.  I also added 1/4 c of orange puree (sweet potatoes and carrots) and about 2 tbsp Italian seasoning (both mixed with the tomato sauce).  And since Jaime suggested that it needed some "crunch" on top, the only thing I could think of that was along the lines of the Italian theme, I tried crushed croutons on mine.  It was good, but I don't think it needs that every time, but good for added texture. 

Here's what I'll do next time:
8 oz cooked noodles (undercooked!!)
1/2 lb cooked ground turkey
1/4 tsp garlic salt
pepper to taste
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1/4 c orange puree 
1/2 c light sour cream
1/2 c low fat ricotta
1 c low fat mozzarella
Prepare as directed...but I'll bake this in the oven instead. 

Thanks for sharing this one Jaime.  We'll definitely make this again!  And PS...Chloe LOVED this!! 

Taco Soup

Look at that!  That is one big bowl of soup; three ladel fulls in fact.  And that entire bowl was only 5 points.  No shock here, but it would be even better with sour cream, a little cheese, fresh diced tomatoes, and crushed chips on top.  : )

Taco Soup:
1 lb ground beef (I only used 1/2 lb of ground turkey to lower the points though)
1 medium onion, diced
3 cans beans, undrained (I only used 2 to cut down points, but 3 would be great!)
16 oz corn, undrained
15 oz tomato sauce (I totally forgot to add this!)
15 oz diced tomato
1 1/2 c water
1 package taco seasoning mix (I only used 3/4 since I cut down on the meat)
1 package ranch-style dressing mix (Again, I only used 3/4 since I cut down on the meat)

In a large pot, brown beef with onions.  Drain.  Stir in rest of the ingredients.  Simmer for 15 minutes.  (I let mine simmer for about 30)

With the added toppings that I suggested at the top, I would give this 5 stars.  I got 5 servings out of this pot of soup, each serving had 3 large ladel fulls of soup.  Yum!

Yep, another Mexican recipe (Enchiladas)

This is a recipe that I created myself.  Don't get excited, I just took taco meat and doctored it up a bit.  I came up with this one day when I was trying to sneak some extra things into the meat, and I figured if I served it as taco's they'd notice.  However, if I roll it up, and cover it in enchilada sauce, I could probably get away with it...and I did. 
I'll post the recipe as I would make it, but it is very versitile.  You don't have picante sauce, use salsa.  Prefer white rice over brown?  No problem. 

Tracy's Enchilada's (makes 12, or freeze 1/2 for two separate meals)
1 lb ground beef/turkey
1/2 small onion, diced
1 packet taco seasoning
1/2 c cooked brown rice (we add a little chili powder to ours)
1/2 c refried beans
1/2 c water
1/3 c picante sauce
1/4 c purple puree (mix of spinach and blueberries) optional
1 c shredded cheese (I've used cheddar, mozzarella, mexi-blend, whatever we have)
12 flour tortilla shells (corn shells break and don't hold up well)
1-2 cans enchilada sauce (we used mild red sauce)

In a skillet cook beef and onion until meat is no longer pink.  Break up pieces to crumble.  Add purple puree and taco seasoning and cook according to package directions.  When taco meat is ready add refried beans and a little water.  The water dilutes the refried beans so my family doesn't notice the texture or taste of them as much.  If you like refried beans, you might not need the water (or as much of it).
Add picante sauce, cooked brown rice and `/4 c cheese.  Stir and combine all ingredients.
Place tortilla shells in the microwave for 15-30 seconds to soften. 
Top each tortilla with 1/8 c cheese and meat mixture.  Roll up and place in an 8x8 pan (if making 6) or a 9x13 pan (if making 12).
If you are making these ahead of time, cover with foil and place in the fridge until ready to bake.
When ready to cook, cover with 1-2 cans of enchilada sauce (we prefer about 1 1/2 cans, but a lot of times I'll just use one) and additional cheese.
Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned.  (I often will broil for a minute to speed up this process).

Brian eats these as is, I like to top mine with fresh tomatoes, sour cream and olives. 
We love these and both give it 4 stars.  I think this is too spicy for Allison, so we save some meat and just put in a shell for her.  She's kind of eating the same thing then. 

Points for this would really depend on your ingredients: for us it's 21 points total for the meat, onion, taco seasoning, brown rice, refried beans, purple puree and enchilada sauce.  Divide that by 12 and it's just under 2 points per serving.  I used ff cheese this time and our shells were 3 pts each so our dinner was 6.5 per enchilada.  A lot of times I only eat 1 1/2, which isn't too bad for a dinner.   

Chicken and Stuffing

Okay, so it's not very pretty.  Plain ole' chicken and stuffing.  Nothing special.  But it is ridiculously easy and tastes pretty good.  I'll sacrifice appearance for a no-effort dinner.  I got this recipe of the WW message boards a while back.  This is roughly 7 pts, but depends on your stuffing.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Stuffing (serves 4)

4 chicken breasts (mine were frozen, but you could thaw it first, cooking time will just go down)
1 box stuffing mix
1 can healthy request cream of soup (we've used chicken and celery before but you could use mushroom too)

3/4 c water
Spray crockpot with cooking spray OR LINE WITH THE LINERS!  Add chicken breasts.  Combine the remaining ingredients and spread over chicken.  If chicken is frozen, cook on low for 10 hours, if defrosted cook on low for 6 hours.
Brian and I both gave this 4 stars.  The edges of the stuffing were very crispy (not burnt though) so the liners were very handy in not having to scrape the crockpot afterwards.  We even had a little bit of chicken and stuffing left for Brian to take to work with him tomorrow. 

Deep Dish Pizza Casserole

Mmmmm....doesn't that look good?  I got this recipe from WW 5 ingredient 15 minute cookbook.  Of course as usual, I changed it just a little.  Can I leave any recipe as is???  I also made the meat mixture over the weekend, so I just had to unroll the dough top it with the meat and pop it into the oven when I got home from work. Dinner was ready in 20 minutes. 

Deep Dish Pizza Casserole
1 lb ground beef or turkey
15 oz can chunky Italian style tomato sauce
10 oz can refrigerated pizza crust dough (ours was 13 oz)
1 c preshredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (I used 1/2 c fat free and 1/2 c low fat)
17 pieces turkey pepperoni chopped into small pieces (so it incorporates into the whole thing)
1/4 c orange puree (optional)
Any other pizza toppings you like, olives, peppers, etc.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cook meat in a non-stick skillet until browned and crumbled.  Add tomato sauce, orange puree, and pepperoni.  Cook until heated through.
Coat a 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.  Unroll pizza dough and press into bottom and halfway up the sides of baking dish.  Top bottom of pizza crust with meat mixture.  Add cheese.
Bake uncovered at 425 degrees for 12 - 18 minutes or until crust is browned and cheese is melted.  Cook 5 minutes before serving. 

Brian and I both gave this 4 stars.  We cut this into 8 pieces and each piece is 5.5 points.  I personally thinks this is too much meat, but I'm not the best person to listen to regarding that!  Next time I will probably only use 3/4 lb meat, which would also drop the points just a bit. 

Easy Peasy Beef Burritos

Now this is my kind of cooking! I had two ingredients and that's it...WOOHOO like the lady from the O.C. This smelled great as soon as I walked in the door. I honestly forgot about it while at school and then on the ride home...the what's for dinner conversation started in my head...then I remembered it was done and in the slow cooker! This recipe was taken from http://www.365daysofcrockpot.blogspot.com/

1 boneless beef chuck roast (2-3 pounds) Mine was only 1.78 pounds

1 can (28 oz) green enchilada sauce I used mild.

4-6 (8 inch) flour tortillas I used a high carb one for 1 pt each and Curt used hard shell.

Place roast in slow cooker. Cover with enchilada sauce. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or until beef begins to fall apart. Mine was closer to 9 hours and it was fun. Shred beef and serve in tortillas with lettuce, cilantro, tomato, cheese and sour cream, if desired. I so desired and did. These were great; 4 stars from me and 5 from Curt. That guy loves steak and tacos so this rocked his world! So 3 oz beef equals 4 pts. The enchilada sauce was 0 pts for 1/4 cup. The whole can was 5 but since it just soaked in this and I didn't use any on the meat I don't know what to count it as...any ideas??? So your burrito could be anywhere from 3 to ??? points depending on the goodies you put on.