Skinny Minute Beans & Rice

1 tsp canola oil

8 oz smoked Andouill chicken sausage links, cut on the diagonal about ½ inch thick

2 can 15-16 oz red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups sweat potato, peeled and diced

1 cup green pepper, diced

1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

¾ cup celery, chopped

¾ cup onion, chopped

¾ cup water

¼ tomato paste (no salt added)

1 bay leaf 1 tsp dried thyme, crushed

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp allspice

Dash of paprika

Dash of ground cayenne pepper (to taste)

2 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

Sliced green onions for garnish

In a large skillet oven heat oil over med heat. Add sausage, cook until browned, stirring occasionally add remaining ingredients except rice and green onions. Cook covered 10 min. Uncover, simmer about 5 more minutes more until additional moisture has evaporated and sauce becomes slightly thickened. Discard bay leaf. Serve mixture over prepared hot brown rice. Top with green onions and sour cream if desired (add the extra calories)

Servings: 5 1 cup/bean mixture + 1/3 cup rice

Cal 272

Fat 6g

Protein 16g

Carbs 41g

Time saver tip, over the weekend I cooked the rice and bagged it. I sliced the sausage and bagged it. Then I chopped up all veggies and bagged it along with all the seasoning. So when I got home at 5:30 I heated the pan, microwaved the rice and followed the remaining directions. BAM dinner in 30

Each of these recipes are quick and easy!

Herbalife Pumpkin Spice Formula 1 shake mix (2 scoops) 1 banana and a dash of pumpkin pie spice. Add water or 1% milk and mix, so yummy!

I always have hard boiled eggs in the fridge so I quickly peeled a couple, added a handful of shredded carrots and a tbs of mayo. In my to-go container I put a handful of fresh baby spinach topped it with my ‘egg salad’ and then just because they were handy I tossed in a few grape tomatoes. This was a very satisfying lunch.

Totally forgot to take something out of the freezer… after a long work day I needed a ‘quicky’ dinner. Reached for the fresh spinach again, added a chopped apple and a high quality balsamic vinegar, a little s&p and bam! A quick, healthy and satisfying day. Give some of these a try next time you find yourself unprepared for the day.

Transforming your family’s favorite comfort food into a healthy version is risky business but I think I nailed it. Traditionally I would use at least 4 different kinds of cheese, minimum of 1 cup each which loaded my mac and cheese recipe with fat and calories. This version replaces much of the cheese with veggies. Get creative, use whatever veggies you have on hand. I used broccoli, green beans and carrots but cauliflower, corn and peas would work just as easily. I have tried using spinach and kale before but none of us liked the chewy texture. For a little brightness bell peppers and tomatoes would also be yummy. The kicker in this recipe is the mustard. It’s the thing that make you go “whoa” Hubby went back for seconds, his serving size was definitely over 1 cup, which is equal to success in my house.

Busygals… good for you Mac n Cheese:

1/4 c. panko bread crumbs

1/4 c. shredded Parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp paprika

8 oz whole grain, elbow macaroni  (about 2 cups)

1 c. sliced carrots

1 c. green beans (trimmed)

2 c. broccoli florets

1 tbs butter

2/3 c. finely chopped onion

1 3/4 c. fat free milk

3 tbs flour (all purpose or whole wheat)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

3 oz. reduced fat cream cheese (cut up in small cubes)

1 1/2 tsp dijon-style mustard *

8 oz  shredded reduced-fat Mexican style, four-cheese blend (about 2 c. )

1. Preheat broiler. In a bowl stir together panko, Parmesan cheese and paprika. set aside
2. In a large saucepan combine dried pasta, carrots and green beans. Cover with water and cook per pasta package directions. During last 4 min. add broccoli. Drain and return to pan, cover and keep warm.
3. Meanwhile, melt butter in medium sauce pan over medium heat. Saute onions until translucent. Add salt and pepper, milk, flour. Stir until well mixed, bubbly and thickened. Stir in cream cheese and mustard until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in shredded cheese mixture until melted.
4. Immediately pour cheese mixture over pasta-veggie mixture; toss gently to coat.
5. Lightly spray baking dish with non-stick spray. Transfer mixture to baking dish and top with panko mixture. Place under the broiler for 1-2 min. Watch carefully to avoid burning.

Makes 8 servings (1 c. each) per serving= 269 cal., 8g f., 34 carb., 4 g. fiber, 6 g. sugar, 6 g. pro.

So I had torn out a great recipe from the August 2015 issue of Realsimple magazine but it didn’t have the nutritional breakdown. At the time I didn’t really care because I was consuming 8000 cal. a day (probably not an exaggeration)

Since I’m now watching my calorie intake, I searched their website and found the recipe, it came in at a whopping 580 cal. Not even on my best day would I have enough calories left over at dinner time to afford this so I used myfitnesspal app, uploaded the recipe using the url and then made some adjustments. This was so much easier than I thought and I managed to bring it down to 190 calories.

The biggest change was the meat. It called for Rib-Eye steak. I am a huge fan of a good Rib-Eye but that might have something to do with why I’m 50 lbs over weight. I replaced it with a lean top round steak. I know… I know… sacrifices must be made. I also reduced the amount of potatoes and replaced the fingerling potatoes with small red potatoes. I can’t believe how fast this brought the total calorie count down.

Check out my reduced cal. recipe

Modified-STEAK WITH TOMATO VINAIGRETTE & SMASHED POTATOES
The original recipe can be found at realsimple.com Follow link for preparation directions.

· 1 lb., Top Round Steak
· 6 small red potatoes
· 1.00 grams (1/4 tsp), Coarse Kosher Salt
· 1 Tbsp. chopped, Chives, raw
· 1 Tbsp., Oil – Olive
· 1 Tbsp., Vinegar, Wine Red
· 1 cup, Cherry Tomatoes Raw
· 1 tsp, white sugar

Nutrition Facts
Servings 6.0
Amount Per Serving
calories 190
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 6 g 9 % ,Saturated Fat 2 g 8 % , Monounsaturated Fat 3 g , Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g, Trans Fat 0 g, Cholesterol 68 mg 23 %

* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

for the preparation direction use original recipe link