Mexican lettuce wraps

Ingredients

• 3 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 medium tomato, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/4 cup finely chopped sweet red pepper
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 12 Bibb or Boston lettuce leaves

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the first 11 ingredients. Refrigerate until serving.
• Just before serving, stir in avocado. Place 1/2 cup chicken mixture on each lettuce leaf; top each with 2 teaspoons sour cream. Fold lettuce over filling. Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional Facts 2 wraps equals 259 calories, 8 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 61 mg cholesterol, 478 mg sodium, 19 g carbohydrate, 6 g fiber, 26 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 1 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 fat.

Southwestern Cole Slaw

Makes 8 (1-cup) servings
Vegetarian recipe
Timesaving recipe
 
Sprinkle this with crushed baked tortilla chips right before serving for a take on a crunchy, ramen noodle-style salad.  Or serve with sliced grilled chicken in a tortilla wrap.

1 package (14 ounces) coleslaw mix (cabbage and carrots)
1 cup canned black beans, rinsed, drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 medium tomato, seeded, diced
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 jalapeno, seeded, finely diced
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, diced
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
 
Place coleslaw mix, black beans, cilantro, tomato, red onion, jalapeno and avocado in large salad bowl.
Whisk together remaining ingredients in small bowl.  Pour over coleslaw and toss gently.
Serve immediately or refrigerate for a few hours until chilled through.

PER SERVING: 113 calories; 4 g protein; 13 g carbohydrates; 4 fiber; 5 g fat (1 g saturated); 0 cholesterol; 115 mg sodium

Stuffed bell peppers

Ingredients
Makes 8 servings, 2 stuffed pepper halves per serving
8 red, yellow, or orange bell peppers or a mixture of all (about 4 lbs)
2 tbsp canola or olive oil, divided
1 medium-sized yellow onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground cumin
16 oz fresh Italian turkey sausage, removed from casing or lean ground turkey (You can use pre-cooked turkey or slices of deli turkey cut into small pieces and use it in place of the turkey sausage, if desired.)
1 (16 oz) jar chunky salsa, mild or hot
2 cups fresh baby spinach, rinsed and chopped or 1 (10 oz) package chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove moisture
1 cup cooked quinoa (optional)
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 cup low-fat cheddar cheese
2 large avocados, peeled and pit removed, sliced
1/2 cup low-fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise, slicing from the stem to the bottoms, leaving the stems intact. Remove the white pithy ribs near stem and down length of inside. Remove the ribs and seeds and discard. Place the peppers in a shallow 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Drizzle the peppers with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Cover the dish with foil, and bake the peppers 15 to 20 minutes, until they start to soften.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, salt, black pepper, chili powder, and cumin; cook until the vegetables are softened, about 3 minutes. Add the sausage to the skillet. Cook, breaking it up with a slotted spoon or potato masher, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the salsa and the spinach, and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the cooked brown rice and quinoa (optional).

Carefully fill the pepper halves with the turkey mixture. Cover the dish with foil, and bake until the filling is hot and the peppers are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove foil, and sprinkle the cheese over the top of the peppers. Return to oven; bake, uncovered, until cheese has melted, about 7 to 10 minutes. Top the peppers with a heaping tablespoon of the yogurt.  Place slices of the avocado on top of each pepper.  Sprinkle with the basil.  Serve immediately.

I made this taco soup last Sunday night and loved it!  I found it on Allrecipes.com.  Have you tried that website yet?  People try the soup and then rate it.  This one had 4.5 stars out of 5.  The only thing I changed about this recipe was the omitting of the green peppers, I was making this for kids and wasn't sure what their response would be. Oh and instead of tomato juice I did a can of tomato paste, and that seemed to work fine.   I have been on the hunt for a good taco soup recipe,and I don't think I need to hunt any further! Oh and the picture is halfway through eating the meal, haha, so it doesn't win any price for presentation!  The recipe is below the picture.

Here's the link to the recipe on the website if you want to read reviews, or you can read the recipe below: http://onlineexpert.com/ole_v6/site_content/course_catalog.php

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
• 1 (1 ounce) package ranch dressing mix
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained
• 1 (15.5 ounce) can corn, undrained
• 1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, undrained
• 1 (15 ounce) can sliced black olives
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup tomato juice

Directions

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat; cook and stir beef until crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease. Transfer beef to a slow cooker and sprinkle with the taco seasoning mix and ranch dressing mix.
2. Add the diced tomatoes and green chiles, corn, and black beans, all with their liquid, to the slow cooker. Stir the black olives, onion, bell pepper, and tomato juice into the ground beef mixture. Cook on Low until the vegetables are completely tender, about 5 hours.

Gougeres

 

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 stick butter (cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
• 6 large eggs (at room temperature)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 3/4 cup grated Gruyere cheese
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
2. Combine the flour with the salt, black pepper, thyme, chili powder, and cayenne pepper in a large bowl.
3. Put the milk and butter in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. When the butter melts, turn heat to low. Add the seasoned flour all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the dough forms a ball. Remove from heat.
4. Separate the white and yolk from one egg, reserving the yolk for glazing.
5. Put the dough into a large mixer bowl. Mix together for a couple minutes. Then mix in one egg and the extra egg white. Mix until completely absorbed into the dough. Then add the remaining 4 eggs, one at a time, waiting each time until the previous egg is completely absorbed. After all 5 eggs (plus the one egg white) have been incorporated, the dough should be smooth and satiny.
6. Add the Parmesan and Gruyere cheeses, and pepperoni if you are using it. Incorporate thoroughly into the dough.
7. Use a pastry bag to pipe dough onto 2 ungreased baking sheets. You can also drop dough from a teaspoon. For tiny puffs, mounds should be about 1/2 inch in diameter. From small appetizers, mounds should be 1 inch in diameter. For puffs large enough for filling, mounds should be 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Keep the size of the puffs uniform so they bake properly. Space puffs about 1 inch apart.
8. Beat the remaining egg yolk with 2 tablespoons of milk to make a glaze. Lightly brush the tops of the puffs with glaze before baking. Sprinkle tops with your Parmesan cheese.
9. Bake in pre-heated oven for 10 minutes (5 minutes for tiny puffs). Reduce heat to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Bake 10 minutes more for tiny puffs; 15 to 20 minutes longer for medium or large puffs, or until puffs are golden brown. Test by removing a puff from the oven and breaking it open. The inside should be baked through. If it is still doughy or wet, bake another 5 minutes.
10. Remove pans from oven and leave puffs on pans until cool enough to serve.