Slim Italian....

Last night's dinner was a winner all around!  Delicious, cheesy, summer-y AND Healthy!!!  I made "healthier" chicken parm & a 'non spaghetti' side dish... ;)

For the chicken parm, I started by heating about 6 cloves of chopped garlic (what??  Is that so wrong?? :)  in a pan with a little olive oil.  In the pan, I added a pint of halved cherry tomatoes and let them cook until they broke it down...broke it down to Chinatown....;)

I added about a half a cup of chopped basil to the tomatoes JUST as they were about done.

Meanwhile, I trimmed and pounded 2 chicken breasts, seasoned them with a little salt & pepper and threw them on the grill until they were cooked through.  Next I topped each chicken with a little of the tomato/basil "gravy"....

And then I added the chicken to the rest of the tomatoes and added a slice of the LOVELY smoked mozzarella to each piece.  I turned the heat on low and covered the pan with aluminum foil....

And about 5 minutes later...cheesy deliciousness!! :)

Perfection!  The only vice in this whole dish is the one slice of cheese (you could always use low-fat, fat free or even no cheese at all if you wanted to REALLY "non-guilt" this baby up), but the good quality cheese just made the dish.  Chicken parm with fresh flavors rather than the hundreds of extra calories from breading & frying = win/win! :)

And I was looking for a 'slim Italian side,' so I reached for my favorite "Skinny Italian" NJ housewife's new book and made the Zucchini Spaghetti Salad.  I STILL can't even believe this actually worked! 

First I julienned 2 zucchini into thin 'spaghetti slices' with a mandolin....

And mixed the 'spaghetti' with a little olive oil & lemon juice, salt & pepper and the KEY ingredient: FRESH CHOPPED BASIL  (DO NOT SKIP IT!...Like the cheese, this MADE the dish!)  Let it sit in the fridge to chill and soak up the flavors and ...That's it!  I never even knew you could eat zucchini raw...but this was a perfect summer 'spaghetti' side:)

Ok, ok...I doubt my Grandmom would eat "zucchini spaghetti,' but it's not a bad healthy substitute for a random weeknight!  We loved  it!

Can you believe it's Thursday already?  This week is FLYING by!  They all need to be like this;)

Blueberry Buckle

This is actually a Weight Watchers recipe...but you would never ever guess that it was lite in a ZILLION years...

BLUEBERRY BUCKLE

From Weight Watchers Best-Ever Desserts

Filling:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 cups blueberries (about 1 pint)

Topping:

• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray a 1 1/2-quart baking dish with nonstick spray.
2. To make the filling, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt in a large bowl.  Whisk together the buttermilk, sugar, egg, oil and butter in a small bowl until blended.  Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture, stirring just until moistened.  With a rubber spatula, gently fold in the blueberries.  Spoon into the baking dish.
3. To make the topping, stir together ingredients in a small bowl; sprinkle evenly over the filing.  Bake until browned and bubbly, about 45 minutes.  Let cook on a rack about 20 minutes.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Per Serving (1/8 of buckle): 236 Calories, 9g Fat, 3g Sat Fat, 0g Trans Fat, 35mg Chol, 160mg Sod, 36g Carbs, 2g Fiber, 4g Prot, 63mg Calc.  Points value: 5

Goat Cheese-Part 4...

My little cheese trifecta really came in handy!!  Last night I took another ounce from the Garlic & Herb cheese to make this DELICIOUS Spring Salad with Pecan Crusted Goat Cheese...

I just could not WAIT for a dinner that wasn't A BURGER, and this perfect light & refreshing salad HIT THE SPOT!  Especially on the hot & steamy night that is our weather now...welcome to summer, I guess!:P

But this was a PERFECT mix between the tangy/salty cheese, sweet grapes, herb-y basil & chive dressing, tart craisins and crunchy pecans!  A veritable flavor EXPLOSION, if you will;)  A total WINNER all around!

Frozen Strawberry Pie

I found this recipe in Prevention magazine, but as I was making it I ended up making quite a few adjustments to add both volume & more berries to the pie...and I think it turned out pretty AWESSSOME. So here's my revised recipe...

FROZEN STRAWBERRY PIE

Crust:

• 6 1/2 oz. vanilla wafers (about 3 cups) (...I used the ones from Trader Joe's, and they were superb!)
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted
• 2 Tbsp. canola oil

Filling & Topping:

• 3/4 pint strawberries, hulled & diced
• 8 oz. low-fat cream cheese
• 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
• 3/4 tub of Cool Whip (Fat/Sugar Free)
• 1 Small box Cheesecake pudding (Fat/Sugar Free)   (I happened to find this in the cabinet and it was perfect!  But I'm sure vanilla would be good too:)
• 1 Tbsp. sugar

1. Make Crust: Crush wafers to fine crumbs in the food processor. Mix crumbs, butter and oil together until combined.  Pack crumbs on the sides and bottom of a 9" pie plate. Chill crust at least 20 minutes or up to a week.  Heat oven to 325. Bake crust until golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely.
2. Prepare filling: Beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add confectioners' sugar and pudding mix at low speed. Beat thoroughly at medium speed to combine.  Fold in cool whip.
3. Puree half of the strawberries in the blender until almost smooth. Fold puree into cream cheese filling and pour into crust.
4. Freeze pie until just firm, about 1 1/2 hours.
5. Make topping: Toss remaining berries with 1 Tbsp. sugar in a medium bowl. Let stand at least 5 minutes. Serve strawberries over pie.

Serves 8.