Weekly Menu Plan {Weight Watcher Friendly}

Green Onion + Red Pepper + Garlic

Tuscan Flavored Chicken served on top of a green salad, Garlic Toast

Moroccan Chicken Kebabs served over yellow rice, Corn on the Cob

One Pot Beefy Cabbage served over rice, Salad


BBQ Meatballs on Light buns, Chips

Herb Crusted Tilapia (cutting down on butter to reduce points; pick up this McCormick Seasoning Pack which includes all the seasonings you need for this recipe!), Roasted Potato Wedges, Salad


Leftovers


What's on your menu this week?



Click here for more of my weekly menus.

{Shared with Louisiana Bride's Meal Pinning Monday & Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.}

Weekly Menu Plan {Weight Watcher Friendly}

From my kitchen last week :: Philly Cheesesteak Pizza with Onions & Peppers

 
Chicken & Lentils (St. Lucian -style), Steamed Corn, Garden Salad

General Tso's Chicken, Stir Fry Vegetables

Ham & Cheese Sliders (I'm attempting to healthy-ify the recipe), Chips, Fruit

Skinny Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy, Skinny Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Steamed Corn

Out to Eat (Anniversary Celebration Dinner!)

Leftovers

Click here for more of my Weight Watcher friendly Menu plans!

{Shared with Louisiana Bride's Meal Pinning Monday & Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.}

Holy Skinny Guacamole, Batman! + Our Weekly {Weight Watcher Friendly} Menu Plan

We had such a busy week last week that I didn't get around to all of the dinners I had planned.  I did, however, get to try the slow cooker chicken enchilada casserole and was pleased with how it turned out. I had to modify the recipe a bit because I failed to add salsa verde to my grocery list (thinking I had some in the pantry.. oops!). I used a can of mild Ro-tel instead (which I know changed the flavors a bit), but we still really liked it. Next time I'll be sure to grab a jar of the salsa verde to compare notes. I tasted the casserole right after it finished cooking, but we ate it later in the evening. I thought it tasted better after having cooled and solidified for a little while. Just a little tip in case you try it!

This week's menu plan  includes...

*Sesame Shrimp Stir Fry  (leaving out sesame seeds and decreasing sesame oil by 1 Tablespoon makes this 8 WW PPV's per serving)
*Slow Cooker Pork, Sweet Potato, Veggies
*Pizza with Pork, Onions, and Peppers, big salad
*Chicken Fajitas (with my own version of salsa)
*Grilled Chicken, Corn on the Cob, Baked Potato
*Leftovers

Now for the recipe...

In case you haven't picked up on it yet, I'm a huge fan of Mexican food. Unfortunately, most recipes are loaded with fat and calories, which I'm NOT a huge fan of. So I've been trying to modify some of my favorite Mexican dishes to lower the calories while still keeping the amazing flavors. For instance, this yummy Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing is the perfect touch to a simple taco salad. 

But, let's be honest, it's not a true fiesta without the guac, right?!

Well, my latest recipe creation lightens up my beloved guacamole by incorporating low fat (and high protein) cottage cheese.  Yes, I said cottage cheese! I've never been a cottage cheese fan so I was a little hesitant at first, but I figured it was worth a shot. 

And I'm thankful I gave it a go. 

I was very pleased with this creamy and skinny guacamole.

Skinny Guacamole

adapted from Eat What You Love cookbook

Ingredients

1 ripe avocado, halved & pitted
1/3 cup cottage cheese, 2% fat
2 tablespoons lime juice (the juice of approximately one lime)
2 tablespoons red onion, chopped
1 small tomato, seeded & diced
salt, to taste
A few dashes of Tabasco sauce
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

Instructions

1. Scoop the pulp of the avocado into a food processor. Add the cottage cheese to the food processor. Process for 1 minute or until the mixture is smooth and creamy with no visible cottage cheese curds left.

2. Place the avocado mixture into a bowl. Add the lime juice, onion, tomato, salt, Tabasco, and cilantro. Mix well. Taste and adjust salt as necessary.

3. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 6 servings. 

1/4 cup of guacamole is 2  Weight Watchers Points Plus Values per serving. 

My favorite alternatives for regular tortilla chips are Sensible Portions Veggie Chips and Original PopChips. Zero Weight Watchers Points Plus alternatives would be carrot sticks, cucumber slices, or pepper strips.

Enjoy!

 

 Shared with Louisiana Bride's Meal Pinning Monday, I'm An Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday, and Homegrown & Healthy's Mostly Homemade Monday. 

 

Weekly Menu Plan {Weight Watchers Syle} + Recipe for Zucchini & Mushroom Frittata

**Big news of the day:: My photo for Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing was accepted on Tastespotting!!  As an amateur foodie and photographer, this is a pretty big deal, especially with long list of submission guidelines. I couldn't be more excited! Thanks, Tastespotting!**

Zucchini & Mushroom Frittata {recipe below} A few bites in, I realized I had turned my frittata into the continent of Africa! Ha!

I'm trying two new recipes this week, but otherwise we're relying on old faithfuls. Here are our dinner selections for the week:

**White Beans and Rice (Cauliflower Rice for Me), Baked Tilapa, Green Beans
**Mushroom, Bacon, & Beef Sandwich {trying this tasty sandwich for the first time}, PopChips
**Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Casserole {trying this simple casserole for the first time}, Corn, Garden Salad
**Asian Chicken, Easy Fried Rice, Stir Fry Veggies
**Light Chicken Alfredo Pizza (using the Classico's Light Alfredo sauce, Mama Mary's Whole Wheat Pizza Crust, and rotisserie chicken), Garden Salad
**Broiled Tilapia, Roasted Veggies, Rainbow Rice {aka throw-in-as-many-veggies-as-you-can rice}
**Leftovers

Now for the recipe I promised...

A frittata is basically an open-faced omelet. I enjoy omelets, but I wanted to go a little fancier for our breakfast-for-dinner night. In my search for a tasty, Weight Watcher-friendly recipe, I learned that frittatas are VERY versatile. You can pretty much add in anything you want to satisfy your taste buds! I chose to go heavy on veggies to save some points, and I was very pleased with the outcome. This recipe makes 4 servings, and it's 4 weight watcher points plus values per serving.

Zucchini & Mushroom Frittata

adapted from from Eat What You Love cookbook

Ingredients

4 large eggs
4 large egg whites (I used All Whites liquid egg whites)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Olive Oil Spray
1 small onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 small zucchini, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

Preheat the broiler. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, egg whites, and salt. Place oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Spray skillet with olive oil spray (continue to use spray throughout recipe as needed). Add onion and garlic and cook until softened (2-3 minutes). Add zucchini and thyme and cook until zucchini begins to soften (3-4 minutes). Add mushrooms and cook just until mushrooms begin to soften (2-3 minutes). Reduce heat to low and pour in egg mixture. Push the cooked egg edges gently to the center, allowing the uncooked egg to flow down to the bottom of the skillet. Continue to cook over medium-low heat until the eggs are almost set (4-5 minutes). Sprinkle the parmesan cheese evenly over the eggs and place the skillet under the pre-heated broiler for about three minutes or until eggs are completely set and cheese is slightly brown. Remove the skillet from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Divide into four equal portions and enjoy!

Liam and I enjoyed our frittata on Sunday night while watching Winnie the Pooh. He loved it, and I loved the fact that I was getting zucchini and mushroom in him with every tasty bite!

Find more Weight Watchers-friendly menu plans here.

Shared with Louisiana Bride's Meal Pinning Monday, I'm an Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday, and Beauty and Bedlam's Tasty Tuesday.

 

Weekly Menu Plan {Weight Watchers Style} + Recipe for Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

Quick & Healthy Taco Salad with Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing {Recipe Below}

After several months inconsistent menu planning, I jumped back on the bandwagon last week. We had our two nieces over for the week, and I was highly motivated by the fact that I didn't want to haul four kids to the grocery store on any given day. So in effort to save myself some frustration, I sat down Sunday night to  make a thorough menu plan for the week, including breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks. The girls were arriving on Monday so time was of the essence. I made an evening run to the grocery store to pick up my supplies. I'm happy to report that my plan was a complete success! I'm judging by the fact that (1) I haven't been to the grocery store in a week and (2) we haven't eaten out except for the one day that we actually planned to. So, it goes without saying that I'm at it again this week. The short time that it takes me to sit down and plan for the week saves me tons of time, money, calories, and frustration down the road. "So no more laziness in this area, Beth!!" (sorry, I yell at myself sometimes). 

Here's a sneak peek at our dinners for the week:

Dinners:

*Baked Tilapia, Yellow Rice, Green Beans

*Zucchini & Mushroom Frittata (This is a new Weight Watchers Recipe I'm trying this week. I'll report back soon.), Turkey Bacon, Toast

*Weight Watchers Slow Cooker Lasagna (except I'm using the over instead of the slow cooker), corn, garden salad

*Morningstar Spicy Black Bean Veggie Burgers (We don't eat many convenience meals, but on busy nights these are perfect. They are so delicious and only 3PP per burger!), Popchips

*Chili Dogs (chili courtesy of my Mom!)

*Leftovers

Now for the recipe I promised...

A couple of week ago, I had a delicious taco salad for lunch. I tried a new recipe for a Creamy Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing to pour over the taco salad. I'm a cilantro-lover so I thought it was the perfect touch to the salad. It's low-calorie, and only 1 Weight Watcher point plus for 1/4 of the recipe, which equals to a little under 1/4 cup per serving.

 

Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

 

 Ingredients:

1/3 cup light sour cream (not fat free!)

1/3 cup low fat plain yogurt (Fage 2% would be a good choice!)

1/2 cup chopped cilantro (curious how I chop my herbs?), loosely packed

2 tablespoons lime juice (about 1 lime)

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a blender and combine until smooth! Best served over taco salad.  Enjoy!

Shared with Louisiana Bride's Meal Pinning Monday, I'm an Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday, and Beauty and Bedlam's Tasty Tuesday. 

 

Weekly Menu Plan (A Day Late)

Last Year's Valentine's Day Breakfast: Cinnamon Roll Hearts

 It's been a while since I posted our weekly menu, mainly because I haven't been as dilligent in planning one. But this week I actually have a plan so I figured I'd share it in case you're looking for a little menu inspiration. 

DINNERS

Monday :: Kevin and I had an early Valentine's date at ZEA.

Tuesday :: Baked Ham, Baked Sweet Potatoes, and Green Beans (courtesy of my mother-in-law)

Wednesday :: White Beans & Rice, Bacon-Wrapped Green Bean Bundles

Thursday :: Crowd-Pleasing Italian Meat Sauce over Pasta, Salad

Friday :: Hamburgers, Baked Beans, Corn on the Cob

Saturday :: Baked Tilapia, Ranch Roasted Potatoes, Veggies (whatever needs to be used up before it goes bad)

Sunday ::  Hot Dogs & Chili with Extended Family

LUNCHES

Weight Watcher-friendly lunches for Kevin and I will include: 

Turkey & Cheese Pita Pockets
Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls
Quick BBQ Chicken Quesadillas
Pesto Chicken Pockets
Chicken Caesar Wraps
Very Veggie Hummus Wraps


SPECIAL COOKING PROJECTS:

• Homemade cinnamon rolls for the boys on Valentine's Day morning
• Big Batch of Slow Cooker Refried Beans to portion out and freeze
• Big Batch of Crowd Pleasing Italian Meat Sauce to portion out and freeze
• Big Batch of poached chicken breasts to use for wraps, quesadillas, and pockets during the week