Chicken Enchiladas with Green Sauce

2 cans green enchilada sauce
1 small can green chilies
3-4 chicken breasts, shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 8oz cream cheese (softened)
7-8 large flour tortillas
2 cups of Cheese (I used Monterey Jack)

Cook and shred chicken
Mix Chicken, chilies and cream cheese together in a bowl
In another bowl mix sauce and chicken soup
Add 4 spoonfuls of sauce mixture to chicken mixture and blend
Spread a thin layer of sauce on bottom of pan
Fill tortillas with 1-2 spoonfuls of chicken mixture.  Roll up and place in pan.
Pour sauce over the filled tortillas
Sprinkle cheese over the top
Cover with foil and bake at 350 for an hour.

Fettuccine Alfredo- LOWER FAT!!!

I love the creaminess and richness of a good alfredo sauce- but my waistline does not. In a search for healthier recipes, I bought the book by Rocco Dispirito titiled "Now eat this!" (author of "Eat This, Not That".) When I saw an alfredo recipe, I was excited but skeptical- the fat in alfredo is what makes it yummy! But, I gave it a try and it was so so so good! Just as creamy and flavorful as the full fat original- surprisingly! I will never make the high fat version again! Here is the recipe!

8 oz whole-wheat fettuccine
1 TBSP butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. cornstarch
pinch of ground nutmeg
3/4 cup low fat, low sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
(I just used the shaker can of Parmesan)
3/4 cup plain Greek Yogurt
black pepper

Prepare Fettuccine as directed on box

While pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large nonstick saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant- just a minute or two.

Meanwhile, combine the cornstarch and nutmeg in a small bowl. Whisk in the chicken broth until smooth. Pour the mixture into the saute pan with the butter and garlic. Raise the heat and bring the sauce to a simmer, whisking occasionally until thickened slightly. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the cheese until melted. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the yogurt until the sauce is smooth. Season as desired with pepper.

**Note- I added a touch of skim milk at this point to thin it a bit because it was very thick and creamy! You may or may not need to- depends on your preference.

Serve over fettuccine. I also included strips of grilled chicken and broccoli! Yum! Even one of my 3-year-olds who NEVER eats pasta of any kind (except mac and cheese) gobbled it up!

Enjoy!

Nutrition info:

336 calories and 10.4 grams of fat (compared to the high fat restaurant version, according to the author, is 1,220 calories and 75 grams of fat! Ouch!)

Candied Almond Salad

This salad is DELISH.  You know its good when your sisters boyfriend (who is a trained Chef) wants the recipe!  Enjoy!!

 Candied Almond Salad

 Salad:
 2 1/2 cups shredded chicken (I just got precooked chicken from Costco)
 3/4 cup crumbled bacon
 1 cup candied almonds
 1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack Cheese
 4 cups romaine
 2 cups iceburg lettuce

Poppy seed dressing:
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons powdered mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons toasted poppy seeds

Directions:
In medium size pan, melt ½ cup sugar and 2 tsp butter, then add 1 cup of sliced almonds and stir.  Spread out on foil until they are completely cooled, then separate.

Poppy seed dressing: In a food processor or blender pulverize sugar.
add the mustard, salt, and vinegar. Blend until the sugar is
dissolved. With the machine slowly running, gradually add oil to the
sugar mixture. Remove mixture from the machine and stir in the poppy
seeds. Chill for at least 20 minutes.

Toss salad and dressing together and serve.

Bakerella's Easy Cupcake Bites

photo from Bakerella

Have you seen these cupcake bites from Bakerella?  So stinkin cute and DELISH!!!  I made  them for a dual babyshower a few weeks back.  I topped them with Pink and Blue instead of the purple and I used a white cake inside.  They were a hit!!!!

Easy Cupcake Bites
1 box cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 X 9 cake)
1 can cream cheese frosting (16 oz.)
1 package chocolate bark  (for cupcake bottom)
Colored Candy Melts (for cupcake top)
Candy Cup mold
Sprinkles and m&ms for decoration

1. After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl. (The texture should be fine/fluffy)
2. Using the back of a large spoon, mix thoroughly with 1 can cream cheese frosting. (It may be easier to use fingers to mix together, but be warned it will get messy.)
3. Roll mixture into quarter size balls (make sure they are smaller in diameter than that of your candy mold) and lay on wax paper covered cookie sheet.
4. Chill in the freezer for a few minutes, until they are slightly firm, not frozen.
5. Melt chocolate bark and candy melts in microwave per directions on package.
6. Using a spoon or squeeze bottle, fill each mold cavity with a small amount of chocolate. Sorry, I didn’t think to measure how much. But as soon as you fill the cavity, go ahead and place one of your rolled balls into it. Carefully push it down until the force causes the chocolate to push up and fill in around the sides of the ball. You may have to experiment with a couple to get the right amount. Stop pushing once the chocolate reaches the top edge.
7. Place the mold tray filled with cupcakes in the freezer for just a few minutes to let the chocolate set. Remove and then gently pull up on the cake ball top to release from candy mold.
8. Now, holding the bottom of the cupcake, dip the top in another color of melted chocolate.
9. Decorate.