Melt-in-Your-Mouth Chicken

Protein-packed sauce that makes a wonderful topping for melt-in-your-mouth chicken... Enjoy!

MELT-IN-YOUR-MOUTH CHICKEN

Servings: 5

Nutritional Information:

WW Points Plus: 1+/oz of chicken, 2+ for 1/5 serving of sauce/mixture

Note: Nutritional values below are for 1/5 serving of sauce/mixture (chicken not included)

Ingredients:

• 2-5 boneless/skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup Greek yogurt (I used FAGE 0%)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• Optional: 1/2 tsp seasoning salt, pepper to taste (see below)

Directions:

1. Combine Greek yogurt and Parmesan cheese, along with garlic powder.
2. Coat chicken throughly with mixture.
3. Bake at 375° F for about 45 minutes (watch to make sure chicken does not burn).
4. Enjoy!

Alfredo Chicken Lasagna Roll-Ups

I wanted to try something a little different than the Cheesy Lasagna Roll-Ups I made the last time, and ended up creating this confection.

Since I used more butter/cheese to make the sauce rather than simple tomato sauce, the points value got a little bigger. That being said, I enjoyed this version a bit more (probably because of the sauce, but especially because I used pulled chicken instead of ground turkey). Let me put it this way: it's worth it to just have one noodle this time around and pair it with some fresh zucchini or green beans. The creamier sauce will help fill you up a bit more than the tomato sauce, too.

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that it is a really good meal for those days when your family eats at different times. So if one person eats at 6 pm and the others eat at 9 pm, this meal can easily be set aside to be put in the oven when each family member is ready.

Also, this may sound strange, but to any of you out there who like the outer shells of crab rangoon... the bottom part of the noodles somehow really reminded me of them (minus the crab).

Enjoy!

ALFREDO CHICKEN LASAGNA ROLL-UPS

Servings: 1-2 noodle(s)/person

Nutritional Information:

WW Points Plus: 6+/noodle

Ingredients:

• For the Noodles/Filling:
• Lasagna noodles
• 1 large egg white, gently beaten
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 1-1.5 cups Low-fat ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup Weight Watchers Italian Blend cheese
• About 6-8 oz pulled chicken
• For the Cream Sauce:
• 3 TBSP skim milk
• 2 TBSP butter
• 2 TBSP Parmesan cheese
• 2 TBSP corn starch

Directions:

1. Cook noodles according to package directions.
2. In a small bowl, combine egg white, spices, and cheeses.
3. Chop/pull chicken into small pieces (if necessary).
4. In a small stovetop pan, heat butter and milk, gradually adding in Parmesan cheese and corn starch to help create a thicker consistency (you may need more or less).
5. When noodles have finished cooking, run under cool water and set aside.
6. Fill pasta with the cheese mixture and chicken, rolling each noodle.
7. After placing all of the rolls in a nonstick pan, pour a few spoonfuls of cream sauce on top of each noodle.
8. Bake for about 15-20 minutes (until cheese is melted) at 350° F.
9. Enjoy!

Italian Parmesan Chicken

Give it a go and tell me if you like it or not. My family LOVED it, I not so much (I am not one for zesty foods, and much more prefer my Parmesan Ranch Chicken... they are very similar recipes, though).

ITALIAN PARMESAN CHICKEN

Servings: About 4 (depends on amount of chicken)

Nutritional Information:

WW Points Plus: 1+/oz of chicken, about 1-2+ for spices (nutrition below was for 1/4 mixture)

 = about 6+

Ingredients:

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 TBSP egg beaters (or one egg white... can also omit this and use water to help moisten the chicken)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 cup Panko
• 1/2 packet Good Seasonings Zesty Italian mix
• 3/4 cup WW Italian blend cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F and coat a cooking pan with nonstick spray.
2. Note: I did not cut the chicken into strips as we had it frozen, although I would highly recommend that this dish be served in small pieces and not as a large chunk of meat, so slice chicken into small length-wise strips.
3. In a small bowl, combine Panko, garlic powder, Italian mix and some of the cheese.
4. Dip chicken into the egg and then coat in the spice mixture.
5. Place in the pan to bake for about 40-45 minutes at 350° F (if whole chicken, may need to lower cooking time/adjust for strips) or until center of meat is no longer pink.
6. Enjoy!

Seasoned Spaghetti Squash

You know, I really have no idea how this dish turned out. I had to head to a Zumba and Butts & Guts class that night, and I only was able to prepare the dish and stick it in the refrigerator covered in tin foil with a note written in permanent marker on top saying to bake it in the oven for about 20 min on 350° (or until the cheese melted). It looks like it turned out pretty well, though, and I didn't hear any "Yuck! Never make that again!" so I'm assuming it was alright.

If anything, it looks pretty good to me. Maybe I'll just have to make it again sometime so I can try it.

SEASONED SPAGHETTI SQUASH

Servings: More than you think. I'm not really sure on an exact count...

Nutritional Information:

WW Points Plus: 1-2+ (depending on what you add, because the squash is 0+!)

Ingredients:

• Medium spaghetti squash
• 1/2 tsp Garlic powder
• 1/3 c WW Italian blend cheese (Mozzarella/Parmesan/etc)
• 1 TBSP Margarine 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F and poke a few holes in the sides of the spaghetti squash.
2. Bake it for about 30 minutes or until the skin is soft enough to easily cut through (Note: I have also heard that you can microwave it for about 5-10 minutes... but that you should definitely pierce it first.)
3. Carefully remove it from the oven and cut the squash in half.
4. Remove all seeds and place them in a separate dish.
5. Place the squash back into the oven and allow it to cook for another 15-20 or so minutes.
6. Once again, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes (Note: If you skip this step because you think you will be late to your Zumba class, you will slightly burn your fingers).
7. When cool, use a fork to remove the spaghetti strands from the squash, scooping them into a separate bowl. They should pull apart loosely (if they do not, put it back in the oven to cook longer... shout-out to my aunt who gave me that tip).
8. When all strands have been removed, combine with butter/margarine, spices, and cheese (or whatever other flavorings you choose to use... could be anything from cinnamon/nutmeg to salsa to chicken...).
9. Add mixture to a pan and allow to cook for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese is slightly melted.
10. Enjoy!