Baked Chicken Nuggets

Chunks of all white meat chicken breasts coated in breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese then baked until golden. An easy chicken recipe your whole family will love. I thought they tasted just like chicken nuggets you would buy, only a lot healthier for you and super easy to make. Serve them with ketchup, bbq sauce or whatever you like to dip your nuggets into. Adults could also serve them over your favorite salad for a satisfying lunch. Double these for more or make half for less servings.

Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 1/4th of nuggets • Points+: 4 pts

Calories: 164.9 • Fat: 4.6 g • Protein: 22.1 g • Carb: 7.7 g •

Fiber: 0.9 g • Sugar: 0.1 g

Ingredients:

16 oz (2 large) skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into even bit sized pieces

salt and pepper to taste

2 tsp olive oil

6 tbsp whole wheat Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

2 tbsp panko

2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

olive oil spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil spray.

Put the olive oil in one bowl and the breadcrumbs, panko and parmesan cheese in another. Season chicken with salt and pepper, then put in the bowl with the olive oil and mix well so the olive oil evenly coats all of the chicken Put a few chunks of chicken at a time into the breadcrumb mixture to coat, then on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the top with olive oil spray then bake 8 - 10 minutes. Turn over then cook another 4 - 5 minutes or until cooked though.

Chicken and White Bean Enchiladas with Creamy Green Chile Sauce

White beans, shredded chicken, green chiles, sour cream and cheese. Need I say more? These have just the right amount of kick to them and hit the spot if you're craving Mexican food. Very tasty and filling!

Servings: 8 • Serving Size: 1 enchilada • Points: 5 • Calories: 230

Fat: 7.3 g • Protein: 20.4 g • Carb: 28.7 g • Fiber: 12.2 g 

Ingredients:

Chicken and White Bean Filling:

1 tsp olive oil

1/4 cup minced white onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chiles

15.5 oz can Navy beans (or Cannellini beans)

8 oz cooked shredded chicken breast

1/3 can water

1 chicken bullion

1 tsp cumin

Green Chile Enchilada Sauce:

1 tsp butter

1/2 cup chopped white onion

2 tbsp flour

1 cup fat free chicken broth

7 oz can chopped green chiles

2 jalapeños, chopped

salt

1/2 cup light sour cream

3/4 cup reduced fat Mexican cheese

8 medium low carb tortillas

chopped fresh cilantro or scallions (or both!)

Preheat oven to 375°.

For the Filling:

In a medium pan, heat olive oil on low. Add onions, garlic and saute until soft, about 2-3 minutes. Add green chiles, beans, water, bullion, and cumin. Mix well and cover. Simmer on low 15 minutes. Remove cover, add chicken and cook an additional 5 minutes, or until it thickens and liquid boils down. Set aside.

Green Chile Enchilada Sauce:

In a large nonstick pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens and starts to turn translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add flour and stir well. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth. Whisk until the sauce becomes smooth. Cook over medium heat until the sauce boils and thickens, about 4-5 minutes. Add green chiles, jalepeños, and salt to tatse. Cook another minute then remove from the heat. Stir in the sour cream.

Directions:

Spread about 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish. Fill each tortilla with 1/3 cup of the chicken/white bean filling. Roll the tortillas and place seam side down in the prepared baking dish. Continue filling remainder of the tortillas.

Pour the enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Top with cheese. Cover with aluminum and bake 20-30 minutes, until the enchiladas are hot and the cheese is melted. Remove from oven and top with fresh cilantro or scallions.

Skinny Sloppy Joes

This recipe was taken from Rachel Ray and tweaked by using lean beef and more veggies to make this low in fat. Serve it on crusty whole-wheat rolls or low point bread. Enjoy your sandwich and have plenty of napkins on hand! Our family loved it and I couldn’t believe how great it smelled and tasted.

Servings: 7 • Serving Size: 1/2 cup or 1/4 lb • Points+: 3 pts

Calories: 121.8 • Fat: 3.7 g • Protein: 13.7 g • Carb: 9.9 g • Fiber: 2.1 

Ingredients:

1.25 lbs 93% lean ground beef sirloin

1 tbsp steak seasoning or seasoned salt

1 carrot, minced

1 medium onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup red bell pepper, minced

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

15 oz tomato sauce

2 tbsp tomato paste

Directions:

Chop all the vegetables really fine, using a chopper or food processor.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the meat to the pan and break it up as it cooks. Season with steak seasoning and cook the meat until it browns, then add onion, garlic, carrots and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and add red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, cook 5 more minutes. Add tomato sauce and paste to pan, stir to combine. Cover and reduce heat to simmer and cook an additional 5 minutes. Using a measuring cup, pile 1/2 cup of sloppy meat onto toasted buns.

Skinny Low-Yolk Egg Salad

Make this easy guiltless egg salad made with mostly egg whites and scallions. Serve this on your favorite whole grain bread or enjoy on lettuce cups. I kept my egg salad simple, but you can add chopped celery, bell pepper or even pickles to yours. Made it the night before and was able to have a quick lunch on the table!

Servings: 2 • Serving Size: 1/2 of salad • Points+: 2 pts • Calories: 81.2 

Fat: 4.4 g • Protein: 9.3 g • Carb: 1.2 g • Fiber: 0.2 g • Sugar: 0.1 g

Ingredients:

4 hard boiled eggs, peeled

4 tsp Hellman's light mayonnaise

1/2 tsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp chopped green scallions or chives

salt and fresh pepper to taste

Directions:

Separate the yolks from the egg whites and discard 3 of the yolks. Chop eggs and combine with mayonnaise, dijon mustard, scallions, salt and pepper.

 

Lemon Garlic Chicken

This is a quick and easy way to bring a new taste to your chicken. This is a go-to recipe and everyone loves it at our house. If you want to stay healthy this new year add this to your recipes.

Servings: 4 • Size: 1 piece of chicken • Points+: 5 pts

Ingredients:

• PAM® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
• 1/2 cup Italian-style bread crumbs
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons Pure Wesson® Canola Oil
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (4 breasts = 1 lb)

Directions:

1.    Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray shallow baking pan with cooking spray. Combine bread crumbs, garlic salt and lemon pepper in recloseable food storage bag. Combine lemon juice and oil in another recloseable food storage bag.

2.    Add chicken to bag with lemon juice mixture; toss to coat. Place each breast in bag with crumb mixture; shake to coat. Place coated chicken in single layer in baking pan. Sprinkle any remaining crumbs over chicken, if desired.

3.    Spray tops of chicken with cooking spray. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in centers (165°F).