What's A BLFGT??

What is a BLFGT?? Thought you'd never ask! ;) It's a Bacon, Lettuce, and FRIED GREEN TOMATO sandwich.  A twist on the oldie but goodie BLT sandwich... My husband and I discovered these last summer and finally made them again today! YUMMM!! If you have never tried a Fried Green tomato you need to do yourself a favor and give her a try ;) you won't be disappointed !Take yourself down to your local produce farm and get a nice green tomato- ripen it for a day maybe 2 in a brown bag and viola it's ready to tickle your tastebuds! IF you're lucky they will have a tomato ready to go - it should be mostly green but starting to turn a little orange - if you find one like this scoop it up and get to cookin'! 

Here's what you'll need to make these tasty sandwiches: 

1 large tomato (see above for description) 

1/2 cup corn meal ( we like the white corn meal - Indian head brand) 

salt and pepper to taste

6 slices of cooked bacon

1 egg beaten

veg. oil for frying (just enough to coat the pan)

mayo. 

4 slices of toasted bread of your choice

Lettuce of your choice

Directions: 

Slice the tomato (should give you around 5 slices) 

prep. one egg for dipping the tomato

prep. the corn meal in a small plastic bag for easy clean up

salt and pepper your tomato and dip in the egg then toss into the cornmeal bag. Shake it around and then gently place each tomato in the hot oil. Fry them for around 5 minutes over med. heat or until golden brown. Remove and sit on a paper towel lined plate to drain grease. Toast the bread and build your sandwich! Spread bread with mayo and layer the lettuce , tomato and bacon and DIG IN and enjoy!

Skinny Chicken Chimichangas

SKINNY Chicken Chimichangas

I adapted this from a WW recipe in an old cookbook. My husband in particular loves them!!  Hope you will enjoy them too! The best part is you don't have to feel guilty for eating them ;)

Ingredients: (serves 4)

4 burrito size tortillas
4 boneless chicken breasts
1 T chili powder, 2 tsp. Adobo seasoning, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. oregano, salt and pepper to taste
chopped green chilies (small can)
8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 Cup shredded red. fat cheese + 1/2 cup for topping

Saute the chicken and seasonings in a pan sprayed with cooking spray until cooked through.
Remove chicken and hand chop or use a food processor (much easier!!) until somewhat finely chopped.
Add chicken back to the pan and add a little more seasoning if needed
Add tomato sauce, cheese and green chilies
let boil for around 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens
Spoon around 1/2 cup of the chicken mix. into the tortillas and fold burrito style.
Place the rolled tortillas on a greased baking pan and then lightly spray them with cooking spray.
Bake in a preheated oven at  375 for  20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Sprinkle the  Chimichangas with the reserved 1/2 cup of cheese 
Serve with your favorite Mexican condiments (Salsa, guacamole, sour cream, cilantro... )
Enjoy!

Non- traditional taco salads with BAKED shell

These are sooo good and not bad for you either so even better right? ;)  I have been making these for years and never thought of putting them on here until now. :) I hope you will love them as much as my family and I do. The dressing on these is a light or fat free thousand island dressing- sounds strange I know  BUT .... give it a try! It's actually a surprisingly tasty addition and makes it "non- traditional".

Serves 4

Ingredients-

4 flour tortillas (I use burrito size)
cooking spray
1 1/2 lb. LEAN gd. beef or gd. turkey
1 Tbls. chili powder, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. red pepper, salt and pepper to taste
1 can of drained and rinsed kidney beans
2 tomatoes (diced)
1 avocado (diced)
1 chopped white or purple onion
1 head of iceburg lettuce (chopped)
1 Cup reduced- fat shredded cheddar cheese
Light or fat free thousand island dressing  ( I use just 2 Tbls. or so)
Optional- salsa, black olives, sour cream

To make shells-
Make a ball with around an 8x10 sheet of aluminum foil ( no need to measure LOL just an estimate ;) )
Spray tortilla on both sides with cooking spray and lay the tortilla on top of the foil
Bake at 350 for around 7 minutes  (as they bake the tortilla will form around the foil ball to make a "bowl" .

Taco salad-
1.Brown gd beef with chili powder, garlic powder, red pepper, and salt and pepper in pan coated with cooking spray.
2. Add kidney beans and cook around 5 minutes longer. set aside
3. In separate bowl, mix all vegetables, (except avocado) and cheese
4. In tortilla bowl add the ground beef mix, then salad mix on top and finally, top with avocado and drizzle with dressing and any optional toppings.
5. Enjoy! :)

Better for you Chick- fil-a Banana pudding milkshake :)

1 1/2 cups of slow churned light vanilla ice cream (Edy's or Giant brand)
1/4 cup fat free milk
1/2 small banana or 1/4 small banana
3 crushed reduced fat Nilla wafers
1/8 tsp. banana extract
whipped cream on top (optional) 

Blend all ingredients together except for the Nilla wafers until desired thickness. Stir in the crushed cookies. Add whipped cream on top if you'd like. Enjoy! :)

This is a small sized milkshake and the calories added up to around 380-400 cals. The Chick-fil-A version is a whopping 780 cals for a SMALL!! So while this isn't something to have every night , it is a nice special treat to have once in a while for around half the cals! :)

Chocolate chip cookie "cheesecake" bars

This is delish!! The best thing about it is how fast and EASY it is to make! I have made this a few times and it is almost embarrassing to give the recipe bc there is so little effort involved. ;) 

Chocolate- Chip Cookie "Cheesecake" Bars

You will need:
1 large cookie dough roll (the really big one) ;) - or- 2 reg. sized rolls will work too
1 8 oz. pkg of red fat cream cheese
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup sugar or spenda blend :)

1. Cut the cookie dough roll in half while still in the package.
2. In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, egg, vanilla and sugar.
3. In a 13x9 dish press one half of the cookie dough all over the bottom of the dish (you can slice into cookie sized circles and lay all over the pan and press to spread/cover the pan)
4. Pour the cream cheese mix on top of the cookie.
5. Do the same thing with the other half of the cookie. This time you might want to cut into discs and lay all over the top bc you won't be able to press. It will bake together if you have spaces so no worries! :)
6. Bake in a preheated 35o degree oven for  around 40 minutes.
7. Let cool in pan for around 30 minutes. Then cut into squares. Store in the refrigerator.

Spicy Red Curry with Chicken

This is so good! My friend Jen told me about this recipe and I am hooked! :)  You can add or delete items you don't prefer. It has a little kick to it but not too much. It's a great weeknight meal because it comes together in around 15 minutes! 

You will need...

1. 1 can of coconut milk (NOT the lite kind)
2. 1 small can of red curry (found in your asian section)
3. 1 red pepper (cut into long thin strips)
4. 1 yellow pepper (cut into strips)
5. boneless, skinless chicken cut into bite sized pieces (1 lb.)
6. cilantro (around 1/4 cup chopped)
7.1/ 2 bag (around 2 1/2 cups)  Frozen green beans ( I used Trader Joe's) 
8. sliced green onions


1. Heat a skillet with a little EVOO.
2. Then, add the chicken and cook with a little salt and pepper until done (remove from pan)
3. In the same pan saute the peppers  and onions until slightly tender but still crisp!
4. In a separate bowl, combine the coconut milk (shake the can first) and the red curry until combined.
5. Pour the red curry and coconut milk mix. into the pan with the peppers and onions.
6. Cook, stirring occasionally until a little thicker (maybe 5 minutes or so)
7. Add chicken- stir to combine and then sprinkle with cilantro
8. Serve over Basmati white or brown rice ! :)

Good for you creamy tortellini and prosciutto

Tortellini with Prosciutto and peas (WW recipe)

1 package whole wheat cheese tortellini (1/2 lb)
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 lb chopped thinly sliced prosciutto (from the deli)
1 Cup  fat - free Milk
 chopped mushrooms (opt)


2 T all purpose flour
1/2 cup grated parm cheese
1 /2 t pepper

1. Boil pasta according to package directions
2. Add peas during last 3 minutes of boiling
3. In separate pan cook the prosciutto until slightly browned
4. Remove from pan.
5.dissolve the flour into the milk by whisking together in a small bowl
6. add to the same pan that the proscuitto was in- stir constantly until thickened (around 5 minutes or less)
7. Remove from heat and add parm cheese and pepper. Add the prosciutto and the pasta and peas- toss to coat. Add mushrooms here if you'd like.  Enjoy ! :)