You Don't Have to Think Before You Eat This...

Thai Chicken and Vegetable Curry

4 Servings/5 pts. ea.
1 1/4C per serving

2 t. canola oil
1 med. red bell pepper, cut into 1-2 in. thin strips
1 med. onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. minced fresh ginger
1-2 t. red curry paste, to taste (can be very spicy, so start out small and add more later if needed)
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 in. cubes
1 C reduced sodium chicken broth
1 C lite coconut milk
1 T fish sauce or soy sauce
1 t. light brown sugar
1 1/2 C cauliflower florets
1 zucchini, chopped
1 T lime juice
Lime wedges

Heat oil in a large skillet over med/high heat. Add pepper and onion, and cook until it begins to soften. Next, add garlic, ginger and curry paste. Stir. Add chicken, cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 min. Add broth, coconut milk, fish(soy) sauce, and brown sugar and bring to a boil. Add cauliflower and reduce heat to med-low, simmer, stirring occasionally until chicken is cooked through and cauliflower is tender. (about 10 min) Halfway through (at 5 min left), add chopped zucchini and lime juice. Cook until chicken and veggies are done. Serve over rice and garnish with lime wedges.

THIS TURNED OUT AMAZING! Of course I forgot to take a picture, but I will definitely be making this again and will post one later...

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

Haven't posted a recipe for a while, so I finally made a good dinner, and remembered to photograph it! Am having a much better day than yesterday. I was so tired yesterday from jetlag, and was totally disfunctional. My eating was horrible too, and I had no self-control. I had nothing to say about Skinny Habits.

Today, I woke up and worked out immediately, before I could get distracted. Then we met up with a couple of friends at Disneyland, and walked around the park a ton. That had to be good. It was my night to cook in our dinner club, so I had to make something easy, and this recipe is perfect when you need to whip something yummy up fast.

8 Servings/6 Pts. ea.

1 cup chopped onion
16 oz. shredded cooked chicken breast
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
1 cup salsa
3 oz. 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
8 flour tortillas (Find ones that are 2 pts. each for this recipe)
1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce

Preheat oven to 350*F. Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat until hot. Add onion, and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, cheese, salsa, cream cheese, and cumin. Cook 3 minutes or until hot, stirring constantly. Separate 1/2 C of the shredded cheese and put aside. Dip each tortilla in enchilada sauce, coating. Shake off excess. Place about 1/2 cup of the chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla, and roll up. Place in a 9 x 13 inch baking dish which has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Pour any remaining enchilada sauce evenly over top, and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Cover and bake at 350*F for 30 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted.

Chinese Chicken Salad

I went to a baby shower a couple of months ago and they had the best Chinese Chicken Salad there. I asked my friend for the recipe, and saw that it had 2/3 C oil in it, which is like 40 points. So I took the challenge to lighten it up. First, I had to find an oil substitute. The baking substitutes like apple sauce and yogurt obviously wouldn't work in a salad dressing, so I did a little research. It was trickier than I thought it would be to find. Finally I read an article about pectin. You know, the stuff you use when making jam. It is made from fruit and has 0 calories. You mix 1 T pectin with 1/4 C of water to substitute for 1/4 C oil. So I tried it in this recipe. It worked like a champ! I also substituted Splenda for sugar, but you might try a natural substitute if you are not a Splenda fan. I'm sure honey or Stevia would work too, you just need to add the points.


Salad Ingredients (Makes 4 very large dinner-size servings)
Whole Salad is 30 pts.
Each Serving is 7 1/2 pts.

1 head green cabbage, shredded
10 oz cooked chicken breast - chopped into 1/2" pieces
2 green onions, chopped
1 1/2 C shelled edamame
4 T sliced almonds
2 sm. cans mandarin oranges, drained

Dressing:

Seasoning Packet from Ichibon Japanese Noodles (Japanese Top Ramen in Asian aisle)
1/2 C splenda
2 T + 2 t. canola oil
2 T pectin mixed into 1/2 C water
6 T seasoned rice vinegar
1/4 t. pepper
1 t. sesame oil

Shake or mix dressing ingredients together. Dressing is enough to toss 6 main dish salads. For this recipe size (4 main dish salads) use 6-7 oz. of dressing. (Whole recipe makes about 10 oz. dressing) Toss with all salad ingredients until oranges start to break up.

Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken Breasts

by Melanie J

Ingredients

2 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, no oil, minced (I soak them in water for a few minutes to make them easier to chop.)
2 oz. soft-type goat cheese
1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts, four 4 ounce pieces
1/8 tsp table salt or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste
1 tbsp all-purpose flour1 cup dry white wine
1 tbsp corn starch
1 cup fat-free chicken broth
1 tbsp canned tomato paste


Ingredients

In a small bowl, stir together sun-dried tomatoes, goat cheese and thyme. Using a sharp paring knife, cut a horizontal slit through the thickest part of each chicken breast, creating a pocket. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Place 1/4 of the mixture in each chicken breast.

Spray a large nonstick skillet with olive oil cooking spray and warm over high heat. Add chicken and brown well. Remove and set aside. Add white wine to pan and boil until almost all evaporated.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together cornstarch and 2 tablespoons chicken broth until smooth. Whisk cornstarch mixture, remaining chicken broth and tomato paste into white wine.

Return chicken breasts to pan. Bring to a summer, cover and cook over low heat until chicken is cooked through, about ten minutes. Baste occasionally with sauce

5 points a serving

I'll be posting here a couple of times a week whenever I make something that Jen really likes and thinks just HAS to be on here. And since I'm not a big fan of exercise, I'll post tips from time to time that help me get out the door anyway. I've lost ten pounds in the last two months and it's all about finding little tricks that work and support good eating habits. You can check out more of my personal blog where I ramble about everything, sometimes even skinny stuff, at Write Stuff.

Mexican Chicken

Had this for dinner tonight and was delicious as always. I have to thank my friend Holly for this recipe. This tasty Mexican chicken is so versatile. It can be the filling in tacos or burritos. It can top a salad. My favorite way to eat it is to make a rice bowl out of it. I make a copycat version of Chipotle's cilantro lime rice, top it with the chicken mixture and top that with shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, and either light shredded cheese, or light sour cream. It is really filling meal. Another great one for men, as it is a lot of food.

7 Servings/3 pts ea.
Each Serving is 1 C

4 lg. or 6 sm. frozen chicken breasts- (adjust cooking time if thawed or fresh)
1 Taco Seasoning Packet
1 jar Salsa
1 C Chicken Broth
1 can black beans(drained)
1 can corn(drained)

Place all ingredients in crock pot. Cook on high for about 4 hours (or 3 1/2 hours if using small breast fillets) or on low for about 8 hours. When chicken is done, pull out the chicken and shred. Put shredded chicken back in crock pot and mix.

Cilantro Lime Rice
Add chopped cilantro to pot of rice and water. When rice is cooked, squeeze the juice of one lime and mix.

Roasted Vegetable and Chicken Stew

This is a nice hearty stew that is also husband-approved. I serve it with Pillsbury biscuits from the blue can, they are each one point. If you like rosemary, this one's for you.

Servings Vary, 28 Pts total

4 C unpeeled, cubed red potatoes
2 C whole baby carrots
1 C chopped red onions
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 T olive oil
1 clove garlic - minced
1 1/2 T dried thyme
1 1/2 T dried rosemary
1 t dried tarragon
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 C sliced green beans
1 C sliced mushrooms
1/2 C dry white wine (can substitute 1/2 C broth with either 1 t white wine vinegar, or 1/2 C broth with 1 t lemon juice)
24 oz chicken breast, cubed (about 4 breasts, or 6 breast fillets)
3 C fat-free chicken broth
3 T flour

1. Spray a large roasting pan with non-stick spray. Add potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, onions, vinegar, oil, garlic, 1 t thyme, 1 t rosemary, tarragon, salt and pepper. Mix well. Roast, uncovered, at 425 for 30 mins. Stir once, halfway through the cooking time. Add green beans and roast for 10 more mins.
2. Pour wine or wine substitute into a large saucepan. Add remaining thyme and rosemary. Bring to a boil. Add chicken pieces and reduce heat to med. high. Cook, uncovered, until chicken is cooked through, about 12 mins. Add roasted vegetables to chicken and wine. Stir in 2 1/2 cups of broth.
3. In a small bowl, combine flour with remaining broth and stir until lump free. Add flour mixture to chicken and vegetables. Cook until stew is bubbly and has thickened, about 3 mins. Serve hot.

Recipe by: Crazy Plates by Janet & Greta Podleski