Low Cal Chicken Salad Pita

Ingredients:

* 2 chicken breasts
* 1/2 cucumber
* 1/4 cup low fat plain yogurt
* 1 tbsp dill
* 1/2-1 tsp lemon juice
* 2 pita pockets (I use Pita Pocket Bread Wheat & Honey, but any will do)

Makes enough to fill 2 pita pockets.

Directions:

1. Boil chicken breasts for approximately 20 minutes or until cooked thoroughly.
2. Dice cucumbers & set aside.
3. Remove boiled chicken & shred by raking a fork over the meat. It should fall apart easily.
4. Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
5. Put 1/2 of mixture in each pita pocket. You can also line the pita pockets with lettuce before you put in the chicken salad, but pita pockets are thin & tear easily, so be careful not to overfill it.

Breakfast Flatbread

Ingredients:

* 1 flatbread; I use Flat Out Light Tomato Flatbread, but any will work
* Approx. 1/4 cup chopped spinach
* 2 eggs
* 3 pieces of thinly sliced turkey
* Approx. 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
* 2 slices of cucumber
* 2 tsp of tomato dill salsa
* Salt & pepper to taste

Makes 1 sandwich

Directions:

1. Warm chopped spinach in a small skillet for approximately 2 mins if fresh, up to 4 if frozen.
2. Place the flatbread in a separate, larger dry pan on low heat. Place turkey & cheese in the center of the flatbread.
3. Cut the cucumber slices into thin sticks & set aside.
4. Stir eggs into the skillet & scramble with the spinach. Add salt & pepper to taste.
5. Once eggs are done, remove from heat.
6. At about this time, the cheese & turkey should be warm & slightly melted. Put the cucumbers on top of the turkey & cheese. Let that warm for another couple of mins.
7. Add the scrambled eggs to the flatbread mixture. Then the salsa.
8. Slide the flatbread from the pan to a plate & fold it over on itself. Cut in 1/2 & serve.
9. You can make this into a roll-up by either using a larger, flour tortilla or by using the same flatbread & cutting the ingredients in 1/2. If making it into a roll-up, prepare the ingredients the same way, just tuck the ends in, then roll from 1 side to the other.

Sesame Chicken

Ingredients:

* 2 chicken breasts (approx. 4 oz. each)
* 3 tbsp lemon juice (approx. 1/2 lemon)
* 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
* 1 tsp honey
* 1 tbsp sesame seeds

Makes approximately 2 servings.

Directions:

1. Mix the lemon juice, soy sauce & honey together.
2. Set oven on broiler setting.
3. Marinate the chicken breasts (as either whole pieces or cut into chunks to later be placed on kabob sticks) in the mixture for at least 15 mins.
4. Take 1 piece of foil, fold it in half, then turn up all edges, forming a small boat to catch juices.
5. Place chicken into the foil boat & brush a little more of the marinade on top of the pieces.
6. Place foil boat in the oven & broil for approximately 8-10 minutes, until the marinade begins to slightly brown.
7. Sprinkle with sesame seeds & serve.

Tomato Dill Salsa

Ingredients:

* 2 tomatoes
* 1 clove of garlic
* 1/2 red onion
* 1/4 cup chopped dill
* 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
* 2 tbsp olive oil

Makes approximately 2 1/2 cups.

Directions:

1. Cut the tomatoes into quarters & remove seeds.
2. Cut the onion into quarters
3. Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender for just a few seconds until everything is finely chopped.
4. Serve over chicken, fish, or as a snack with thick crackers such as Triscuits, etc.

Creamy Asparagus with Walnuts

Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
* 1/2 yellow onion
* 12 stalks of asparagus
      * can substitute 2 zucchini
* 1 stalk of celery
* 4 oz.  reg. or fat free cream cheese
* 1/2 clove of garlic
* approx. 3 oz. of walnuts
* salt & pepper to taste

Makes approximately 4 servings.


Directions:

1. Dice the onion & mince the garlic. Cut asparagus & celery into smaller sections & then cut celery pieces vertically into small sticks.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan.
3. Add the onion & garlic to the pan & cook for approx. 5 mins.
4. Add the asparagus & celery to the pan & cook for approx. 5 mins.
5. Add the cream cheese & cook for approximately 3 mins.
6. Add salt, pepper & walnuts to the mixture & serve immediately.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Ingredients:

* 2 chicken breasts
* 1 bottle of blue cheese dressing
* 1 bottle of Frank's Hot Sauce
* 1 package cream cheese (8 oz)

Directions:
* Boil chicken breasts for approximately 30 minutes or until thoroughly cooked
* Once cooked, shred chicken by taking a fork & gently raking against the chicken breast. It should fall apart easily after being boiled.
* Place shredded chicken in a medium to large skillet & add in about 1/2 - entire bottle of Franks, depending on how hot you want it
* Stir in softened cream cheese & bottle of blue cheese
* Transfer mixture to 2 qt bowl and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes
* If extra Franks floats to the top after baking, simply tip the container over the sink and the extra will easily drain off
* Serve with celery, cucumber, tortilla scoops, bread, etc.

Shrimp Dip

Ingredients:

* Approximately 2 tbsp. butter
* 1 diced red pepper
* 1 lb raw shrimp (cut into small pieces)
* 2 diced green onions
* 1 cup sour cream
* 1/2 cup mayonaise
* 1 cup shredded Parmesan 
* 1 cup shredded Mozzarella


Directions:


* In medium to large skillet melt butter, add pepper & cook for about 3 minutes
* Add raw shrimp and green onions to skillet & cook for another 3 minutes or until shrimp is pink
* Drain any remaining butter from skillet
* Stir in all other ingredients in skillet
* Move mixture into a 2 qt dish & bake at 350 for approximately 30 minutes
* If you didn't drain enough butter from the skillet earlier, it will rise to the top of the dip after it is done baking. Just tip the dish a bit over the sink & the extra butter will easily drain off.
* Serve with bread, crackers, etc.

Ranch Potato Skins

Ingredients:

* 4 potatoes
* 1/2 cup sour cream
* 1 packet Ranch Salad Dressing/Seasoning Mix
* Cheddar, green onions, bacon, black olives to taste


Directions:

* Bake potatoes at 425 for about 45 minutes
* Cut potatoes in half & scoop out the middle
* Mix the potato taken from the middle, Ranch seasoning & sour cream in a small bowl (mixing with a fork is fine)
*  Spoon the mixture backs into the potato shells
* Top with cheese and bacon
* If you prefer a crispier potato shell, you can brush the outside of the potato jackets with melted butter or oil
* Bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes
* Top with black olives, green onions & any additional toppings desired

Peanut Butter Honey Dip

Ingredients:

*1/3 cup smooth peanut butter
*2 tbsp milk
*2 tbsp honey
*1 tbsp water
*1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Put peanut butter in a small dish
2. Gradually stir in milk and honey until well blended.
3. Add in water and cinnamon & continue to stir until mixture is smooth.
4. Cut up apples, melons, grapes, etc. & serve.

Spinach & Artichoke Dip

Ingredients:

*1/2 small box of chopped, frozen spinach
*1 envelope Lipton Onion Soup mix
*14 oz. artichoke hearts (canned, jarred, whatever)
*1 cup mayonaise
*8 oz. sour cream
*1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Swiss cheese

*sprinkle of Parmesan cheese

Makes approximately 3 cups of dip.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Cut artichoke hearts into small pieces.
3. Cook frozen spinach in a small skillet with a dash of olive oil until soft & separated.
4. Mix all ingredients in a 1 1/2 qt or larger bowl; Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.
5. Bake uncovered for approximately 30 minutes.
6. Serve with cut french bread, tortilla scoops, etc.

Pizza Dip

Ingredients:

*1 envelope Lipton Savory Herb with Garlic soup mix

*16 oz. sour cream

*8 oz. Ricotta cheese
*4 oz. Mozzarella cheese

*entire package of pepperoni

Makes the perfect amount of dip to take to a party! About 2 qts.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Chop up pepperoni into bite sized pieces.

3. Mix all ingredients, except 1/2 the Mozzarella, into a 2 qt. dish.

4. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 of Mozzarella on top of mixture.
5. Bake uncovered until thorougly heated (approximately 30 minutes).
6. Serve with French Bread slices, tortilla scoops, etc.

Artichoke Fritatta

Ingredients:

*14 oz artichoke hearts (canned, jarred, whatever)
*1 tbsp olive oil; Can use a little more if you're using a bigger skillet or if yours isn't as 'non-stick' as the sales ads led you to believe
*1/2 cup minced green onions (about 3 green onions)
*5 eggs
*1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese; Feel free to add more cheese, as it makes everything better!
*2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
*salt & pepper to taste

Makes approximately 8 wedges of the size shown

Directions:

1. Chop artichoke hearts.
2. Heat 1/2 oil in a small to medium size skillet over medium heat; Add green onions & cook until tender; Remove onions from skillet.
3. Heat the remaining oil in the same skillet over medium heat.
4. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl (approx. 2 qt). No mixer is necessary, fork works perfectly.
5. Pour mixture into heated skillet. Leave it alone! No pushing around with spatula to see if it's cooking, etc. It's not supposed to be scrambled ;)
6. Cook for about 5-8 minutes (depending on skillet size ) until bottom is lightly browned.
7. Place a large plate over skillet & flip skillet over to invert fritatta onto plate. I swear it's easier than it sounds.
8. Let fritatta slide off plate (uncooked side down) back into skillet. Cook another 5-8 minutes.
9. Repeat the plate inversion to take the fritatta out of the skillet. It's too big/heavy to lift with a spatula.
10. Top with another tiny dash of Parmesan cheese, cut into wedges & serve.

Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients:

*1 cup dry rice (your choice as to whether specialty or just plain white rice), 2 cups cooked

*1 tbsp olive oil

*8 oz portabella mushrooms (for a less powerful mushroom flavor, use less portabellas or substitute white mushrooms)

*1 can (10 3/4 oz) Golden Mushroom Soup

*3/4 cup water

*1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

*1 1/2 cups french fried onions
*2 tbsp chopped parsley


Makes approximately 8 servings.

Directions:
1. Cook rice according to package directions (best to cook in a skillet & not a sauce pan/pot).
2. Heat oil in medium skillet. Add mushrooms & cook until they brown up a bit.
3. Add cooked rice, soup, water, cheese & 1/2 the french fried onions into the skillet containing the mushrooms.
4. Cook until heated thoroughly (15 minutes or so); stir often.
5. Sprinkle with remaining french friend onions, a little more Parmesan cheese & parsley & serve.

Ham, Cheese & Potato Fritatta

Ingredients:

*5 eggs
*2 tsp olive oil; Can use a little more if you're using a bigger skillet or if yours isn't as 'non-stick' as the sales ads led you to believe
*3 green onions
 *1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese; Feel free to add more cheese, as it makes everything better! *1 tbsp parsley
*1 small potato
*1 package of Canadian Bacon or other ham steak; I like ham, so the more the better but include less or more according to taste
*salt & pepper to taste; Because of the potato, I recommend more salt than what you'd normally include

Makes approximately 8 wedges of the size shown

Directions:
1. Cut potato into very thin coins & boil for about 20 minutes or until very tender. Strain & set aside.
2. Heat half the olive oil in a small to medium skillet over medium heat. Add chopped green onions & cook until tender. Remove onions from skillet.
3. Heat the other half of the olive oil in the same skillet over medium heat.
4. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl (approx. 2 qt bowl). No mixer is necessary, fork works perfectly. 5. Pour mixture into heated skillet. Leave it alone! No pushing around with spatula to see if it's cooking, etc. It's not supposed to be scrambled ;)
6. Cook for about 5-8 minutes (depending on skillet size ) until bottom is lightly browned.
7. Place a large plate over skillet & flip skillet over to invert fritatta onto plate. I swear it's easier than it sounds.
8. Let fritatta slide off plate (uncooked side down) back into skillet. Cook another 5-8 minutes.
9. Repeat the plate inversion to take the fritatta out of the skillet. It's too big/heavy to lift with a spatula.
10. Cut into wedges & serve.