Healthier Chicken Cordon Bleu

A French-inspired meal that’s easy on the waist line without sacrificing flavor? Prove it!

My take on Cooking Light’s Chicken Cordon Bleu, adding spinach inside the rolls not only adds a vibrant color to the dish, but also provides an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, magnesium, folate, manganese, iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B2, potassium, and vitamin B6. It’s a very good source of protein, phosphorus, vitamin E, zinc,fiber, and copper. Plus, it’s a good source of selenium, niacin, and omega-three fatty acids (source).

Ingredients:

• chicken breast (I buy the “skinny” ones, they’ve already been pounded out)
• 1/2c. chicken broth
• 3T. melted butter
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2c. Italian breadcrumbs
• 1T. parmesan cheese
• 1t. paprika
• salt, pepper, Italian seasoning
• thin slices of ham
• spinach leaves
• mozzarella cheese

Prep:

1. combine chicken broth, melted butter, and garlic in a shallow dish.
2. mix breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, and paprika in a separate dish.
3. sprinkle each chicken breast with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
4. place 1-2 slices of ham on each chicken breast. sprinkle a generous amount of cheese on top of the ham (remember, you have to be able to roll them!). place a couple of spinach leaves on top of the cheese.
5. roll each chicken breast up. dip into the broth mixture (both sides). cover with the breadcrumb mixture.
6. please each roll seam side down on a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.
7. pour the remaining broth and breadcrumb mixture over the rolls.
8. bake at 35odegrees for ~27 minutes.

Serve with a side of sweet potato fries (2-3 sweet potatoes, cut into thin slices. olive oil, salt, and pepper. bake at 425degrees for ~25-40 minutes (depending on your oven)) and green beans for a delicious yet nutritious French-inspired dinner on the table in under 40 minutes!

 

 

Turkey Burgers with a Feta Surprise

Happy Friday!

Client, breakfast, work, client, POWER hour! I’m very excited about the workout today since I already know it’s Tabata intervals! I’m sure Charlotte has heart-pumping workout in store for us.

On Tuesday, I had lunch with a good friend who I haven’t seen in forever (Hi Jess!) and she mentioned she needs to be more open-minded when it comes to food and cooking. She came to the right person! I love and enjoy experimenting with new recipes, especially when I have someone to share them with. This recipe for Turkey burgers is extremely easy, it develops your palate with the addition of feta cheese (a tangy, salty Greek cheese) and can be stored in the freezer for later use*.

Ingredients:

• 1lb. lean ground turkey (the leaner=more expensive)
• 1/4c. chopped red onion
• 1T. dried Italian seasoning
• pepper
• 1t. lemon juice or balsamic vinegar (I ran out of lemon juice and tried them with balsamic=delish!)
• feta cheese

Prep:

1. combine ground turkey, onion, Italian seasoning, juice/vinegar in a bowl. form into 4 patties and carve a deep hole in the center of each patty.
2. stuff ~1 tablespoon of feta cheese in the center. cover with the edges of the patty.
3. grill ~4-5 minutes on each side.

Add a whole grain bun, tomato slices, spinach leaves, Tzatziki sauce, and/or humus and you’ve got a Greek-inspired burger in minutes!

FitBit*

Prepare these burgers (or any burger) ahead of time, wrap them in foil, and freeze them instead of eating the burgers consecutively throughout the week.

Mayo-less Chicken Salad

I despise mayonnaise. The look, smell, sound of mayonnaise makes me ill. BUT, everything that’s made with mayonnaise looks appetizing! I got to thinking, what can I substitute in the recipes that call for mayonnaise?

Greek yogurt! It’s texture is similar to mayonnaise, but much healthier and appealing :).

Mayo-less Chicken Salad

• 2c. shredded chicken breast (rotisserie chicken works wonders here!)
• 1c. plain low-fat yogurt
• 1T. Dijon mustard
• 1T. lemon juice
• 1T. balsamic vinegar (you can use white wine vinegar if you prefer)
• 1t. honey
• 1/2c. chopped celery
• 1/2c. sweetened cranberries
• 1/4c. slivered almonds
• salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate. Dig in!

FitBit*

When a recipe calls for mayonnaise, try subbing low-fat plain greek yogurt. You won’t even notice the difference, and the yogurt adds extra protein, healthy fat, and creaminess!

The Start of FitBits

If you’ve visited and pleaseliked my facebook page, you’re already in the know about my new approach to my blog. I’ve been asked by the NCSU recreation marketing department to include my blog in their newsletter! This is extremely exciting for me as I hope my blog will grow throughout the community :).

My new approach to blogging will consist of everything I blog about now (exercises/workouts, tips/trends, recipes, etc.) but in a condensed format and much more often! So instead of posting 1 long post sporadically, I’ll post more short and to-the-point “fitbits” (as they will be called) throughout the week. I’m excited about the opportunity!

My *first* fitbit:

Make Sunday your “get things done” day. Sunday’s are supposed to be relaxing, football-filled, and spent with family. Try to have a routine-here’s an example of my Sunday’s:

• wake-up
• gym/run or walk/rest day
• starbucks for my latte & homework
• grocery store
• prep my meals for the week
• lunch & football ALL afternoon/night & homework
• dinner & more football & desperate housewives (new and final season!)
• go to bed early!

It’s a great way to start your week off with a clean and stress-free slate. Plus, if you’re a planner-preparing your weeknight meals ahead of time saves you your sanity when life gets in the way throughout the week. Sunday is the perfect way to ensure you have healthy and clean meals to fall back on.

How do you enjoy your Sunday’s?

Roasted Acorn Squash

Have I mentioned I LOVE FALL? If I haven’t..I LOVE FALL! The crisp weather, UGG boots and colorful scarves, hockey and football games, pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks, sitting by a fire place, fall foods..I could go on for hours.. :).

I bought my first of many squashes of the season and it was delicious! I’ve never made acorn squash like this before and it will definitely be a staple in my fall recipe file.

Ingredients:

• acorn squash-halved and seeds removed
• thinly sliced white onion
• 1T. butter
• 1/2t. cumin
• 1/4t. cinnamon
• 1/4t. salt

Preparation

• preheat oven to 425degrees. place squash-skin side down-on a baking sheet (with sides)-drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper-fill baking sheet with water (about halfway up the squash). bake ~55 minutes.
• melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. add onions and saute ~10 minutes. add cumin, cinnamon, and salt-stir.
• when squash is roasted, using a fork, scrape the flesh out and add it to the onion mixture.
• stir to combine and serve the mixture in the squash skin for a pretty presentation! (sorry no pictures)

I LOVE FALL 😛

Dark Chocolate Cherry Brownies

Hello! It’s been too long since I’ve posted ANYTHING! Blame school. Nothing says a B-E-A-Utiful, sunny, football-filled day than dark chocolate cherry brownies 🙂 Plus, you cannot beat the smell of your apartment while anything chocolatey bakes 🙂

Ingredients:

• 3/4c. flour
• 1c. sugar
• 3/4c. cocoa powder
• 1t. baking powder
• 3/4t. salt
• 1/3c. cherry preserves
• 1/3c. water
• 5T. butter
• 1 egg & 1 egg white
• 1/3c. chocolate chips (or more-no judging)

Prep:

1. mix the first 5 ingredients together-set aside.
2. combine in a saucepan cherry preserves, water, and butter-bring to a boil.
3. add preserve mixture to flour mixture & stir.
4. add egg and egg white-stir.
5. add chocolate chips.

Bake at 350degrees for ~25 minutes. And….:D.

Sun-dried Tomato & Feta Stuffed Chicken

Flavorful sun-dried tomatoes combined with tangy feta cheese, basil, and Italian seasoning make this stuffed chicken dish delectable!

This recipe makes 4 servings, but if you’re like me, I only cook for 1 so I prepare the chicken breasts and freeze them for another time. I do this with a lot of recipes; it’s a great tip when you’re cooking for 1 and doesn’t force you to eat the same thing for days!

Ingredients:

• 1/2c. sun-dried tomatoes*(*bring water to a boil-add tomatoes-turn off heat, cover for 5 mins-drain)
• 1/2c. feta cheese (I like sun-dried tomato and basil flavored)
• 2t. chopped basil (fresh or dry)
• 1t. Italian seasoning
• 1t. minced garlic
• black pepper
• 4 chicken breasts
• salt
• 2T. butter
• 1/4c. chicken broth

Prep:

• combine tomatoes, feta, basil, seasoning, and garlic in a bowl.
• make a horizontal split in chicken breasts (be careful not to slice all the way through!).
• stuff ~1/4c. of mixture into each chicken breast-sprinkle with salt.
• take 4 sheets of aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. place 1 stuffed breast on each piece, lay 1/2t. butter on top, and drizzle with chicken broth.
• fold ends of foil tightly and place in the oven at 425degrees for 20 minutes.

Easy to prepare (and clean-up), flavorful, and healthy! I served this with a side of Trader Joe’s 5-grain medley and roasted asparagus.DeLiSh :-}