Quick and Easy Recipes

Last week I must say that I made some yummy healthy meals for my clients and they all came back with great feedback. One of them said to me "I have so much energy on your food plan; I am very lucky to have you." I thought that was so sweet and it made me realize why I love what I do both fitness wise and eating. So here is the recipes from last weeks menu, give them a try and let me know what you think. Low Fat Turkey Chilli Ingredients: 1TBSP Olive Oil 1 TBSP minced garlic 2 packs of ground turkey 6 peppers (mix of yellow, orange and red) 2 (15.5 oz) cans or red kidney beans drained ½ jar of tomato sauce 2 (14.5 oz) cans of low salt diced tomatoes Dash of chili powder Dash of black pepper Dash of crushed red pepper flakes Slightly coat the bottom of a pot with olive oil, turn heat on and saute garlic. Add turkey to the pot once your garlic starts to cook. Let the turkey cook all the way thru, and start cutting your peppers. When the turkey is done add the peppers, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce to the pot. Let it simmer until the peppers are tender, add the beans and spices. Let the pot simmer on low for about 30 minutes and serve. I mad this dish for Frank, he loves Chilli and I am not the biggest fan of the spices or oil. So I decided to try a healthier version without all the spice, oil and indigestion. He loved it and it can double as a meal if you add quinoa, rice, or whole grain noodles to it. Stuffed Peppers with Quinoa Ingredients: 1 lb Ground Turkey 3-4 Peppers (yellow; orange; red) 4 TBSP cooked Quinoa Palm full of Chopped baby Spinach Squirt of Pesto ¼ cup of Marinara sauce plus 3-4 TBSP 6 Chopped black olives 1 TBSP grated parmesan cheese Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Clean the seeds out of the peppers and place upside down on a sprayed baking sheet for 10 minutes and remove from oven. In a bowl combine all the rest of your ingredients and mix well. Take your mixture and place inside your cooled peppers. Place the filled peppers back on the baking dish, and add your additional 3-4 TBSP on top of all your peppers (each pepper should get about 1 TBSP of sauce). Bake in the oven again for 40 minutes so the stuffing is cooked through. Remove from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes and serve. This recipe was a staple in our house growing up. My dad loves stuffed peppers, only now I can't eat green peppers and the rice and chop meat combination is too heavy and caloric. So I decided to switch the pepper color, use turkey, NO rice; quinoa instead and to add extra nutrients I decided to add some more vegetable to the mixture. They are light and so good. I usually make this with a salad or another vegetable if the client prefers. Balsamic Chicken with Mushrooms, Tomatoes, Olives, Basil and Goat Cheese Ingredients: 1 Bag of Portion Controled Chicken Breast (Perdue) 4-6 in a bag 1 tsp Black Pepper Sprinkle Ms. Dash Tomato Basil Garlic Seasoning 1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar 1/2 container of chopped mushrooms 1/2 small Pint Cherry Tomato diced 2-3 TBSP sliced Olives 1 TBSP Basil 1 TBSP Crumbled Goat Cheese 1 TBSP Olive Oil or PAM Spray On a cutting board, season your chicken with the pepper and Ms. Dash. Heat a nonstick skillet with olive oil spray, place your chicken in the skillet and cook both sides. I a bowl place your chopped mushrooms, tomatoes and olives. Remove your chicken and set it to the side. Pour your balsamic into the skillet with all the chicken juices still in there. Add the chicken back in with your vegetables. If you find it needs more balsamic now is the time to add it. Turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the chicken onto a plate and add the balsamic sauce on top of the chicken. Sprinkle with the basil and goat cheese and serve. **if you don't like mushrooms use squash or green beans** This dish is a twist to the plain balsamic chicken they serve out. I needed one with vegetables and pizzaz so I came up with this, plus any excuse to eat mushrooms (luv them). Brown Rice Bake with Meatballs Ingredients: Baby Turkey Meatballs (already made; or bought in the health foods frozen section measured out) 3 is a normal serving double depending on family size 1 Bag Instant Brown Rice or Microwave Brown Rice 1/2 Cup Part Skim Mozzarella 2-3 TBSP Parmesan Cheese 1 (15 oz) can of Diced tomato (no salt) 1/4 cup of Tomato Basil Sauce (light) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl combine your cooked rice, mozzarella, tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Stir the whole mixture together and place it into a baking dish. Place your meatballs (cooked) on top and sprinkle with your parmesan cheese. Place in the oven for about 10-15 minutes and serve. This was a favorite of mine when I was a kid, my mom used to make this with ground meat and of course white rice. But I decided to make it with brown rice for grains, and instead of all the chop meat the turkey meatballs are portioned and taste amazing without all the density to it. This freezes really well and if you wanted to you can add frozen drained spinach to it as well.