Dinner June 27 to July 3

Don't ever be afraid to change recipes.  You can substitute Mrs. Dash for salt.  If a recipe calls for canned goods, look for ones that are low sodium or have no salt added.  Another thing I use is light canola butter instead of regular butter.  Other switch outs can be ground turkey for ground beef, whole wheat pasta instead of regular pasta, it's a lot easier than you think.

Saturday: Mustard Maple Salmon, coleslaw, broccoli. I wanted to try a new salmon recipe.  And I came across this one: http://www.fitnessrepublic.com/nutrition/healthy_eating/4-healthy-dinners-in-30-minutes.html I was kinda skeptical at first but the mustard maple glaze is delicious!

Mustard Maple Salmon

4 5-oz skinless salmon filets
2 tbsp. dijon mustard
1 tbsp. light mayonnaise
2 tsp. pure maple syrup
sea salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 400.  Cover baking sheet with foil.  Mix mustard, mayo, and syrup in a small bowl.  Add filets to baking sheet, and season with salt and pepper.  Spread mixture evenly over filets.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until cooked thoroughly.  Serve.

The recipe for coleslaw is 1 1/2 cups of tricolor coleslaw mix, with 1 tbsp. Kraft Creamy Poppy Seed dressing and the juice of one lemon or lime wedge.

The green beans are the frozen ones.  You just steam them right in the bag.  Once they are done I pour them into a mixing bowl, add the juice of 2 lemon wedges, pepper, Mrs. Dash, crushed red pepper, and 1 tsp. of light canola butter. 
 

Sunday:  Out of town.  We took a trip to Denver City, Texas to see my nephew get his sacrament of First Holy Communion.  After church we met back at my brother's house where they had a huge spread of yummy food.  They had all the fixings for tacos or burritos.  I opted for a burrito.  I filled it with beans, brisket, taco meat.  And then smothered it with salsa, queso, and sour cream.  And Doritos on the side.  I haven't had Doritos in a long time!  The food was delicious and company was awesome.  We always have so much fun with my brother, my sister in law, and their three adorable boys!

Monday:  Moo shu, brown rice, and Asian style vegetables. This is one of my favorite ways to make stir fry!  I actually found this recipe in my daughter's Disney Princess Cook book.  I was pleasantly surprised at how easy and delicious it was. And seeing as how it was in her cook book it's also a recipe you can do with your kids.  That way you get them into the kitchen and helping to make dinner.  Usually I bake spring rolls to go with Moo shu but today I opted for veggies.

Pork Moo Shu

1 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp ground ginger

5 cups broccoli slaw

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

1/2 tbsp less sodium soy sauce

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups baked tenderloin pork, diced

Heat oil in a large, nonstick frying pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add ginger powder and stir for 1 minute.  Add the broccoli slaw to the pan, and turn up the heat a little. Stir-fry the vegetables for 4 to 5 minutes. Cook them long enough to darken in color without losing their crunchiness.  Turn the heat down to medium, and stir in the pork, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, red pepper flakes and cashews. Continue cooking moo shu for another 2 minutes to heat through. Serve over rice.

Brown rice is a boil in the bag kind.  Just make it according to package directions.  I like to toss a cube of chicken broth into the water to flavor the rice.  When it's done, I season the rice with Mrs. Dash, a splash of less sodium soy sauce, and 1/2 tsp. Land O'Lakes Light Butter with Canola.

The vegetable mix is an Asian stir fry style and is the frozen kind.  They are not the kind steam them in the bag.  I just followed the directions on the bag on how to microwave them.   Once they are done I pour them into a mixing bowl, add 1/2 tbsp. sriracha, 1/2 tbsp. less sodium soy sauce, and 1 tsp. light canola butter.  Stir well to combine and serve.
  

Tuesday:  Burrito Night, but I had chicken tostadas. My husband loves burrito night, but I LOVE chicken tostadas.  For the tostadas I also use my toaster oven.  Preheat it to 375.  Line the baking pan with foil, and spray it with Pam.  Warm up two corn tortillas in the microwave.  Place them flat on the baking sheet and then spray the tops with Pam.  Bake for about 10 minutes turning once until light brown and toasty.  Keep on eye on them because they will go from being perfect to burnt in a blink of an eye.  I know, it's happened to me.  Once they are done.  I split one wedge of Laughing Cow cheese between the two corn tostadas.  Then spread black beans, divide 6 ounces of diced warmed chicken and pile it on top, add salsa, sour cream, and devour.  You can add any kind of salsa and guacamole as well.  For my husband's burritos, I cook lean ground beef.  Then for his toppings he like olives, onions, tomatoes, and cheese. 

Wednesday:  Dined out.  Tonight one of the outside water pipes going to my mom's house had a leak so she asked my husband and my uncle to fix it for her.  My husband's brother ended up helping out as well.  More hands make for light work.  So as a thank you for them fixing her leaky pipe she took all of us out to dinner.  We decided to go to Bienvendos for dinner and of course I ordered my most favorite dish from there.  The Capitan Burger.  I LOVE it!  It's a super duper delicious juicy cheesy burger with a spicy green chili, yummy yummy yummy!

Thursday:  Skinny Taco Chicken Chili and cilantro lime rice.  I am always looking to find new slow cooker recipes and this one caught my eye. And again instead of using prepackaged taco seasoning I used my own.  I served the chili with some corn chips, rice, mozzarella cheese, and topped with sour cream. 

Skinny Taco Chicken Chili

1 (15.25 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (15.5 oz) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce

1 (10.8 oz) bag frozen corn

3 (10 oz) cans diced tomatoes & green chilies

1 (1.25 oz) pkg. 40% less sodium taco seasoning mix (or you can make your own)

1 tbsp chili powder

1 cup low sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast

Combine all ingredients (EXCEPT chicken) in a slow cooker and mix well. Place chicken breasts on the top, and press them down slightly.  Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. 30 minutes before serving, remove chicken and shred.   Return shredded chicken to slow cooker, and mix everything together. If desired top with cilantro before serving.

Taco Seasoning

1 tbsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. onion powder

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. paprika

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

Mix everything together and then store in an airtight container.

Cilantro Rice

2 cups of instant brown rice

1 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth

1/2 tsp. Mrs. Dash

juice and zest of 1 lime

chopped fresh cilantro

Follow the directions for cooking the rice on the stove top.  Using the chicken broth in place of the water.  Once the broth is boiling add the juice and zest of the lime.  When it's done add Mrs. Dash, and lots of cilantro.  There is no set amount just use as much or as little as your taste buds desire.  If you want to make the rice extra limey, you can add the juice of a second lime when you add the cilantro.  It's really good with the extra lime juice!

Friday:  Beef Pot Pie, black beans, and squash. I love beef pot pie, but it's always loaded with calories. This one is from the Hungry Girl website so you know it's gonna slash the calories and be just as delicious. http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/show/low-calorie-beef-pot-pie

Big Beef Pot Pie

1 lb. 93/7 lean ground beef

1 (32 oz) bag mixed vegetables, thawed

1/8 tsp. Mrs. Dash

1/8 tsp black pepper

2 (10.5) cans 98% fat free condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c. water

1 (8 oz) tube Pillsbury reduced fat crescent rolls

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 13X9 inch baking pan with Pam.  Spray a large skillet with Pam and heat to medium high. Add beef and season with Mrs. Dash and pepper. Cook and stir until cooked through.  Add the thawed vegetables, soup, 1/2 cup water, and mix well. Evenly transfer to the baking pan. Bake until hot and bubbly, about 15 minutes.  Firmly pinch the edges of the crescent dough to make one seamless sheet. Place dough over the meat mixture and carefully stretch to cover.  Bake until dough is fully cooked and golden brown, about 18 minutes.

I also take a day to prep black beans.  I buy a can of No Salt Added whole black beans, not the refried ones.  Rinse them in a colander.  I take a medium size skillet add about 1/4 cup of water.  Heat over medium, and once the water is hot I add the beans.  Then I season them with garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, pepper, crushed red pepper, cumin, hot sauce, and 25% less sodium seasoned salt.  Stir it all up and then mash them.  You can add more water if you want them to be bit more runny.  And all the seasonings are to taste.  Just depends on your taste buds.  I cook them for about 5-7 minutes on low.  This is actually one of the foods that I prep on Sundays.  And then after they have cooled down I keep them in the fridge for tostadas, burritos, or just as a side.

One of my friends gave me some squash.  I decided just keep it simple.  I cut them into slices and the bigger slices I cut in half.  I sprayed a pan with Pam and added just a little bit of light canola butter.  Then I seasoned the squash with a little bit of salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash, onion powder, and garlic powder.  Then I sauteed the squash for a few minutes until it was done.  It came out really good.  Hopefully she can give me more one of these days.