Puff Pastry Parmesan Twists

Here’s an easy recipe for light puffy breadsticks: just throw some cheese and herbs on a sheet of puff pastry and bake! You can customize these with your favorite pizza/breadstick toppings.

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1 sheet puff pastry
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• to taste: garlic powder, parsley flakes, and/or oregano
• crushed red pepper flakes

WHAT YOU DO:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Lay the puff pastry flat on the parchment paper and sprinkle on the cheese. Add garlic powder, parsley flakes and/or oregano to taste.

Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut puff pastry in half (going the short direction). Then cut the long way into 1-inch strips.

Bake for 7-10 minutes or until golden brown.

Before serving, top with crushed red pepper flakes.

 

recipe adapted from 4 Ingredients by Kim McCosker & Rachael Bermingham

Cucumber Avocado Tomato Salad

daCucumber Avocado Tomato Salad Recipe 

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1 pint grape tomatoes, sliced into halves or quarters
• 2 cucumbers, sliced then cut in half
• ½ red onion, diced
• 3 avocados, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2-3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2-3 Tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 Tbs. chopped fresh dill
• sea salt and black pepper, to taste

WHAT YOU DO:

Place tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, avocados, garlic, and dill in a large bowl.

Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Toss gently to combine.

Just before serving, season with salt and pepper.

Herbed Mashed Potatoes

Herbed Mashed Potatoes Recipe

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 4 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• coarse salt
• 1 3/4 cups half-and-half
• 4 Tbs (1/2 stick) butter
• 2 Tbs chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
• 2 Tbs chopped fresh chives, plus more for garnish

WHAT YOU DO:

Place potatoes in a large pot; cover with cold water by 1 inch, and add 1 tsp salt.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until potatoes are tender, 15-18 minutes. Drain; return potatoes to pot.

Stir potatoes over medium heat until dry (a film of starch will form on bottom of pot), about 1 minute. Remove from heat.

In a small saucepan, combine half-and-half and butter; bring to a simmer over medium heat. Pour half of hot liquid over potatoes. Mash just until smooth, adding more liquid to reach desired consistency. Stir in parsley and chives; season with salt. Garnish with more herbs.

MAKE-AHEAD OPTION: Prepare mashed potatoes without herbs, up to 1 day ahead; and refrigerate. Reheat in a bowl set over a pot of simmering water, then stir in herbs.

recipe adapted from MarthaStewart.com

Buffalo Feta Deviled Eggs Recipe

Buffalo Feta Deviled Eggs Recipe – Now that Easter is over what do we do with all of these eggs?!? Ha. This year I tried a recipe with a twist on the usual deviled egg. This variation has feta cheese, buffalo sauce, and instead of mayo: Greek yogurt. There are just 44 calories per piece, or 1 WW+ point!

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 6 hard-boiled eggs (tip: use baking soda for easy to peel eggs)
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 2 Tablespoons Greek nonfat plain yogurt
• 1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, finely diced
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 Tablespoon Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon celery salt

WHAT YOU DO:

Peel eggs, and slice lengthwise. Remove yolks and place in a bowl. Set egg whites aside.

With a fork, mash together yolks, feta cheese, yogurt, half of the parsley, onion powder, Buffalo sauce, and celery salt. Place mixture in a zipper sandwich bag and seal. Cut off a tiny piece of a bottom corner and pipe filling into
reserved egg whites.

Garnish with remainder of parsley. Refrigerate until serving.

recipe inspired by sheknows.com

Estimated Nutrition Information (Recipe Makes 12 Pieces) Per 2 Pieces:

• 88 calories
• 6.1 grams fat
• 0.4 grams carbohydrates
• 0 fiber
• 7.5 grams protein

Mashed Cauliflower “Potatoes”

You say potato, I say cauliflower! Ha. This mashed cauliflower is a good alternative to mashed potatoes because it has a lot less carbs. Each serving has only 3 WW+Points!

Mashed Cauliflower “Potatoes”

WHAT YOU NEED:

6-7 cups raw cauliflower, trimmed and cut into small florets
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
sea salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
Optional: herbs and seasonings for topping (garlic, chives, dill, onion powder, etc)

WHAT YOU DO:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add cauliflower and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid, then drain well and transfer cauliflower to a food processor.

Add EVOO and reserved water, a spoonfull at a time, and purée until smooth. Or, mash with a potato masher.

Season with salt and pepper, add toppings, and serve.

recipe adapted from wholefoodsmarket.com

Makes 4 servings. Each serving has 3 WW PointsPlus.

Estimated Nutritional Info – Per Serving:

110 calories
9 g. fat
0 mg. cholesterol
8 g. carbohydrate
3 g. dietary fiber
3 g. protein

Stuffed Italian Deli Bread

Stuffed Italian Deli Bread

Hello cheesy, baked, stuffed bread goodness! This loaf contains everything you love from an Italian deli: delicious bread, salami, pepperoncinis, mozzarella, and provolone. I can’t wait to make this in the summer on the grill, and even better, with pepperoncinis from our garden. It was a pretty easy recipe too – you just mix up the spread, spread it on, stuff it, and bake it.

WHAT YOU NEED:
1 loaf Italian bread (I used poppy seed)
1 c. mayonnaise
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried parsley
4-5 basil leaves, chopped
1 tsp oregano
1/4 c. pepperoncini pepper slices
1 Tbs pepperoncini brine from the jar
1 pkg. sliced salami
1 pkg. sliced provolone
1 pkg. sliced mozzarella

WHAT YOU DO:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Slice the bread into the size of pieces you want, but don’t cut all the way through the bottom.

In a small bowl, combine mayo, onion powder, garlic powder, parsley, basil, oregano, and pepperoncini brine. Mix until combined. Spread the mixture in between the sliced parts of bread.

Alternating provolone and mozzarella cheeses, insert a slice of cheese into each cut. Add salami into the slices, then pepperoncinis.

Wrap the entire loaf tightly with foil. Place on a baking sheet and bake 25-30 mins, or until the outside is crispy and cheese has melted.

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recipe adapted from baconbuttercheesegarlic.blogspot.com

 

Skinny Buffalo Shrimp Dip

I love love love anything buffalo. Here’s a non-fat buffalo shrimp dip I made, lightened up with Greek yogurt. It has only 4 ingredients so it’s super quick and easy. You can serve it with crackers, wasa flatbreads, in lettuce wraps, or even just eat it straight out of the bowl ha. The entire bowl is just 5 WW+ points (or 2 “old” WW points).

• Servings: 1-2
• Time: 5mins
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 5 oz. frozen, cooked, salad shrimp; thawed according to pkg directions
• 1/4 c. Greek nonfat yogurt (I used vanilla since that’s what we had – it sounded kinda weird but I couldn’t tell a difference than from when I use plain)
• 1 Tbs. Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce
• sprinkle of garlic powder

WHAT YOU DO:

1. In a bowl, mix all ingredients.
2. Serve.

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Estimated Nutrition Information – for the entire bowl:

Calories: 130 cal

Fat: 0 grams

Fiber: 2 grams

Carbohydrates: 6 grams

Protein: 45 grams

 

Sriracha Lime Garlic Roasted Chickpeas

Sriracha Lime Garlic Roasted Chickpeas – just 5 ingredients but tons of deliciousness. Perfect for a healthy snack (just 3 WW+ points; or 2 “old” WW points). I split them up into little ziplock bags for 100 calorie portions. Just grab ’em and go.

• Servings: 4
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas (garbanzo beans); rinsed, drained and patted dry
• 1 1/2 Tbsp sriracha hot sauce
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/4 tsp Kosher salt

WHAT YOU DO:

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk sriracha and lime juice together.
3. Add chickpeas to a bowl, tossing gently to coat. Add garlic and salt, and combine.
4. Spread chickpeas on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for 45-50 mins stirring/shaking pan every 15 mins or so.
5. Remove from oven once chickpeas reach your desired texture.

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Estimated Nutrition Information: recipe makes 4 servings — per serving:

• Calories: 110
• Fat: 2 g
• Fiber: 4 g
• Carbs: 18 g
• Protein: 7 g

recipe adapted from kidtestedfirefighterapproved.com

. . . . .

Lovin’ the chickpeas? Here’s a recipe for homemade ranch hummus!

Make “noodles” out of zucchinis: lemon garlic shrimp & zoodles.

Try a crostini with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil: Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil Crostini.

Enjoy a fresh lunch with a Whole Wheat Noodle Bowl and Fresh Veggies.

Use Greek yogurt to make Creamy Tomato Basil Soup – only 125 calories a bowl!

Slow Cooker CHEESY BACON HASHBROWNS

Gotta love Crock Pot recipes! Here’s one for CHEESY BACON HASHBROWNS. It’s basically the best. EVER. You just mix everything in your slow cooker and let it do its thing.

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1 pkg, partially thawed, frozen shredded hashbrowns (usually they come in bags of approx. 1 lbs. or 2-ish lbs.)
• 16 oz sour cream
• 1 can cream of chicken soup (don’t add water)
• 8 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese + extra if you want any for a topping
• 1/4 c milk
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• 1/2 stick butter, softened
• 1/8 tsp garlic salt
• 3 oz cooked bacon bits + extra if you want any for a topping

WHAT YOU DO:

Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray, or line with a crock pot liner. After making this for Thanksgiving yesterday, I would recommend splurging on the liner. We sprayed the crock pot with Pam but still ended up with a crusty mess. 😉

Add all ingredients to the slow cooker, then mix everything together.

Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Optional: before serving sprinkle with additional cheese and/or bacon bits.

recipe adapted from thefrugalgirls

Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil CROSTINI

One of my favorite summer recipes is a mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, basil and olive oil salad. We recently had some leftover crusty garlic bread (I don’t know why, but I hate the word “crusty”) so I made a crostini with fresh mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, basil, and the bread. It was basically the mozzarella and tomato salad on top of garlic-y toasted goodness. Here’s how it turned out:

 

Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil Crostini

WHAT YOU NEED:

• French bread, cut into thin slices (however many slices you need)
• A few Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/4 tsp. minced garlic
• 10-20 cherry tomatoes (depending on how many slices of bread you have), chopped
• Fresh basil leaves
• Sliced fresh mozzarella cheese (I used one slice per crostini)

WHAT YOU DO:

• Brush bread slices with EVOO and sprinkle with garlic. Place on a baking sheet. Broil in the oven for 3-5 mins until toasted.
• In a bowl, mix tomatoes, a drizzle of EVOO, and salt and pepper to taste.
• After bread is toasted, place slices on a serving platter. Top with a slice of mozzarella, then tomato mixture. Garnish with fresh basil.

 

Also check out these meatless options:

Stuffed Baby Bellas

Fresh Pesto

Homemade Ranch Hummus

Wasabi Sesame Soy Cucumber Salad

Feta, Avocado & Tomato Pita “Nachos”

Mango Salsa

Zucchini Pizza Bites

Whole Wheat Noodles with Fresh Veggies

Lemony Smashed Dill Mustard Potatoes

Skinny Creamy Tomato Basil Soup (no cream – Greek yogurt!)