Lean & Green Shrimp Scampi
Tofu Shirataki noodlesare traditional Japanese noodles made of tofu and some kind of yam fiber. They look like noodles, feel like noodles, and have pretty much no flavor. They will be in the refrigerated section.
The key to good Shirataki noodles is in the pre-preparation of the noodles before you throw them into a recipe.
1) open the package and dump the contents into a colander/strainer over the sink.
2) Rinse with warm water. Drain. Stir. Rinse some more. Drain. Rinse and rinse. Repeat.
3) Toss the drained noodles into a pot of boiling water. Stir. Let them boil for 3 minutes.
4) Dump them back into the colander to drain.
5) rinse again with warm water, and drain very thoroughly.
Shrimp- I boiled the shrimp in water.
I added steamed zuchinni and summer squash. For the sauce I used Fat Free Chicken Broth with a little garlic and lemon. Mixed the noodles, shrimp, and sauce together adding in the vegetables. Topped it with some feta, cherry tomatoes, and green onion!
The noodles looked like ramen noodles and if you add enough flavor they aren’t that bad. Compared to the real deal (pasta) it saves so many calories. And since it isn’t that great, you eat less!
This isn’t one of my favorites but it was really good and will absolutely be included in therotation!
Cauliflower Pizza
Yes, you read that right. I made a pizza using cauliflower as the crust. You may have seen this on Pinterest or somewhere before but never thought to try it. Since I can’t have the real thing I figured this would be a great alternative. It was SO good. Hands down my new favorite thing.
Steam some fresh or frozen cauliflower first, just until tender but not mushy. Drain and let it cool completely. I then used a food processor to ‘chop’ the cauliflower- don’t puree because it needs a rougher texture.
Mix cauliflower with 1/4c Eggbeaters, 1/2 tsp oregano and 1/2c shredded low moisture part-skim mozzarella cheese. Spread this mixture on a cookie sheet that has been *generously* sprayed with Pam. Use a spatula and spread/pat it into a circle about 10″ or so around. Put this into a preheated 440 degree oven for 12-15 minutes, until it is very nicely browned. The edges should look almost burnt. (Ovens vary and mine took a lot longer to crisp)
Take the crust out of the oven. You can now add your favorite pizza toppings. I made a Taco Pizza and added ground chicken and taco sauce instead of marina. I sprinkled a little cheese and put it back in the over. Once it was done I added lettuce, tomato, and onion.
Enjoy!
Cauliflower Tater Tots
Making these bad boys is so easy but a little time consuming. They are so easy to throw on the side of any meal to add a vegetable serving.
1 recipe calls for 1 bag of frozen cauliflower. I made four!
1 12 ounce bag frozen cauliflower
1/3 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
salt, pepper, onion powder (to taste)
Cook cauliflower, covered, in microwave for 6 minutes. Pour off water and let stand until cool.
Process well in a food processor, (or rice using other means). I’ve found the smoother texture holds together better than the more coarse texture. As you form cauliflower into its shape, squeeze, working any excess water from the vegetable. Roll into approx. 1.5″ balls and drop into Parmesan. Form into tots by flattening the tops. If the mixture is still too moist and falls apart, work a little of the Parmesan into the tot, and then roll the formed tots into the Parm once again to coat.
Place tots on a greased cookie sheet and freeze for 30 minutes prior to baking to help tots hold their shape. At this point it’s good to note that you can freeze them longer or make these ahead of time. Simply place in a freezer bag after the initial chilling period and store for up to a month.
Below, you can see the uniform shape of the tots. (The ones to the far left were stuffed with American cheese inside, and only incredibly amazing. My kids swiped those. The whole world should be covered in cheese stuffed cauli tots.)
To bake: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating tots every five minutes or so for even browning.
Makes about 30 tots. One serving is 6 tots.
Nutritional Information per serving: Calories: 38, Carbohydrates: 5g, Fiber: 1g, Net Carbohydrates: 4g, Protein: 7 g, Fat: 4.5g.
They are sooo good.
Mixed Green Salad w. Scallops and Avocado
Pan seared scallops- It may have been beginners luck but they came out amazing!
You can easily find a recipe online on how to pan sear scallops. I browned each side but don’t think they need to be very dark because they’ll end up overcooked.
Ingredients
1 to 1 1/4 pounds dry sea scallops, approximately 16
2 teaspoons olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Remove the small side muscle from the scallops, rinse with cold water and thoroughly pat dry.
Add the oil to a 12 to 14-inch saute pan on high heat. Salt and pepper the scallops. Once the oil begins to smoke, gently add the scallops, making sure they are not touching each other. Sear the scallops for 1 1/2 minutes on each side. The scallops should have a 1/4-inch golden crust on each side while still being translucent in the center. Serve immediately.
I put it over 2 1/2 cups of spring mix and added 1/2 an avocado…voila!
Grilled Chicken Salad w. Cauliflower Tater Tots
7 oz. Grilled chicken (Marinate with a seasoning in a bag of fat free chicken broth)
Tomato, cucumber, 1/2 an avocado
1 cup Zuchinni w. homemade almond pesto
Cauliflower Tater Tots with a southwest dipping sauce.
Buffalo Shrimp Salad
Recipe:
2 cups lettuce
1/4 cup tomato
1/4 cup cucumber
1 tbsp guacamole ranch dressing
2 tbsp Ken’s Buffalo wing sauce (I cook the shrimp in this)
7 oz Shrimp (10 shrimp total)
1/2 avocado which is roughly 1.5 oz and considered 1 condiment
So good!
Cod w. Spring Mix and Vegetables
Recipe:
7 oz. fresh Cod
1/2 cup zuchinni
1/2 summer squash
1 cup spring mix
1 tbsp. FF Balsamic dressing
I preheated the over to 450 degrees. For the fish I used oregano, salt, pepper, cajun spice, lemon. I cooked the fish for about 7 minutes then cut it into 4 smaller sections to make sure the inside got some attention. The cajun gave it a kick so that is certainly optional. Came out really good!!!
Homemade Meatballs: Ground Chicken
Recipe:
1 container 98% lean ground chicken (feel free to use turkey, or beef)
2 tbsp parmesan cheese
1 tsp basil leaves
1/4 cup egg beaters
1 tbsp parsley flakes
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper
I mixed together all of the ingredients in a bowl and used an ice cream scooper to portion out the balls.
I baked the meatballs at 350 degrees for 20 minutes then browned them up in a frying pan.
By using 98% lean ground chicken I am allowed 7 oz. of protein, vs 5 oz. had I used ground beef.
7 oz of cooked meatballs was about 1/2 the recipe so I divided them into two containers and will use for a lean and green protein!
Buffalo Ranch Chicken w. Spring Mix & Zuchinni/ Summer Squash
Recipe:
6 oz Chicken Breast
1 tbsp. Buffalo Ranch Dressing HF
1 cup Spring Mix
1/2 cup Zuchini
1/2 cup Summer Squash
1 tbsp. Fat Free Balsamic
Bake chicken uncovered at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes (I cooked two pieces at once)
Spray frying pan with cooking spray and sprinkle zuchinni and summer squash with salt and pepper. Flip to crisp each side.
Spring mix- just add dressing!
This meal was so filling and I felt healthy eating it.
Lean & Green approved.
Spinach & Tomato Omelette
2 cups spinach
1/2 cup tomato
2 whole eggs
4 egg whites
TACO & AVOCADO SALAD
Recipe:
2 Cups Iceberg Lettuce
7 oz Ground Chicken Purdue 98% lean w. Taco Seasoning
1/4 Cup Cucumber
1/4 Tomato
1 1/2 Avocado (with a sprinkle of salt)
This was so good. With the tomatoes and avocado I didn’t even need a dressing!
Lean & Green approved.
SHRIMP & AVOCADO SALAD
Recipe:
2 Cups Iceberg Lettuce
10 Shrimp
1/4 Cup Cucumber
1/4 Tomato
11/2 Avocado (with a sprinkle of salt)
2 Tbsp. Romano Basil Dressing
I cooked the shrimp in a pan with Fat Free Chicken Broth and sprinkled some Cajun powder to give the shrimp a little kick. The rest of the ingredients are pretty self explanatory.
This is a recipe I created following the guidelines of the program for my Lean & Green meal.
Enjoy! (It was so good and I can’t believe I actually made this at home)
