Clean Eating Chicken Enchiladas

I have a serious love of Mexican food, but I don't love the extra fat or calories in most traditional Mexican food.  So, I typically only enjoy a burrito or enchilada as a treat meal (although I really loved the Southwestern Veggie Tacos on the Ultimate Reset, and have re-calibrated my thoughts about corn tortillas, since they are pretty healthy as long as they are not fried).

My mouth is watering just writing this post, these low-fat Chicken Enchiladas are beyond delicious.  

Low-fat Chicken Enchiladas

Servings: 8 • Serving Size: 1 enchilada Calories: 159.5 • Fat: 5.9 g • Protein: 16.2 g • Carb: 17.8 g • Fiber: 8.3 g 

The hardest part of cooking for me is recipe prep, and making sure I have all the ingredients, and have planned the side dishes to complete the meal.  Once I had them all assembled, I was ready to go!

Ingredients:

For the sauce:

• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-2 tbsp chipotle chilis in adobo sauce
• 1-1/2 cups tomato sauce
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 3/4 cup fat free chicken broth
• kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste

For the chicken: 

• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• 8.5 oz (2 breast halves) cooked shredded chicken breast
• 1 cup diced onion
• 2 large clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• kosher salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce

• 8 (7-inch) reduced carb whole wheat flour tortillas (La Tortilla Factory) 
• 1 cup shredded low fat Mexican cheese
• non-stick cooking spray
• 1/2 cup chopped scallions or cilantro for topping

I whipped up some plain chicken breasts and shredded them up, since there are so many spices and strong flavors, I just left them plain with a touch of black pepper.  Once they go into the pan with all the other ingredients, it smells delicious! The first time I served this dish to my family, they found it to be too spicy, so I only used 1 1/2 tablespoons of the chipotle chilis in adobe sauce, but it still smelled pretty fragrant aka spicy! 

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, spray oil and sauté garlic. Add chipotle chilis, chili powder, cumin, chicken broth, tomato sauce, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes. Set aside until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onions and garlic on low until soft, about 2 minutes. Add chicken, salt, cilantro, cumin, oregano, chili powder, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and cook 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Spray a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish with non-stick spray. Put 1/3 cup chicken mixture into each tortilla and roll it.  Place on baking dish seam side down, top with sauce…  Then top with cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes.Top with low fat sour cream or scallions if you wish. Makes 8 enchiladas.

The package has 10 tortillas, and I may have used a little more chicken (didn't measure it), so the recipe actually makes 10 enchiladas.  I served mine with some homemade guacamole (with the famous Tucker avocados), salsa, and mock-sour cream (fat free greek yogurt).

Excuse me now while I go devour a couple of these! 

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A crowd pleaser: Quinoa Omelet Breakfast Cups

On my last project, I would bring a huge batch of these into work on Monday morning, and they would be gone by noon.  Those who flew in later missed out, and I got requests to bring more each week.  I adapted this recipe from a Vegan recipe I found on the internet at DAMY Health:  quinoa-omelette-breakfast-cups.

Quinoa Omelette Breakfast Cups

Prep time: 10 Minutes – Cook time: 40 Minutes – Total time: 50 Minutes.
Yield: 24 Mini Cups or 12 Regular Cups (+ 1 Ramekin)

I use Quinoa in 2-3 recipes each week, so I like to cook a large batch of it in the rice cooker at the start of the week.

I quickly assemble the other ingredients which I have altered over time to just the perfect combination of deliciousness, and toss them all into a bowl together!

Once I have the quinoa, diced assorted bell peppers, red onions, egg whites whipped with 2 eggs, pancetta, salt and pepper combined, I stir it well and spoon into the muffin pan.

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups Cooked and Cooled Quinoa
• 1 Cup Egg Whites
• 2 Whole Eggs
• 1 Cup Mixed Bell Peppers
• 1 Cup Diced Onions
• 1 Cup Diced Pancetta (I love to buy the diced Pancetta from Trader Joe's)
1/2 Cup Reduced fat Mexican Cheese Blend
• 1/4 Tsp Garlic Salt or Himalayan Sea Salt
• Pepper 

Directions:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 350 F.
2. Place eggs and egg whites in a bowl and whisk until blended.
3. Stir in veggies, meat, spices, cheese and quinoa (all other ingredients).
4. Spray your muffin tin with a healthy, non-stick cooking spray.
5. Scoop quinoa omelette mixture evenly into muffin tins.
6. Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes.
7. I had left-over mixture so I took a ramekin, filled it up with the rest and baked it alongside the muffins. It was the perfect breakfast to reheat for the next day.
8. Remove from oven and let completely cool in muffin tin.
9. Using a knife release the edges of the omelette cups and remove.
10. Serve and enjoy!

Breakfast Cups in my mini scone pan

I find the edges turn out a bit cripsier in a traditional muffin pan, which I enjoy, but the triangle shapes from the mini scone pan are rather pleasing to the eye.

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Are you looking for your body's reset button?

Cleanses and juicing seems to be all the rage these days.  Everywhere I go, I see cleanse packages and juice bundles, and I've heard of people spending at least $200 a month on juices.  Everyone is hopping on the juicing and cleansing bandwagon.  

This Shape Magazine article outlines the key components of a healthy non-juice reset:  your-non-juice-detox

•        Make a clean break
•          Eat only whole foods
•          Keep meals simple
•          Eat slower
•          Eat on a regular schedule
•          Listen to your body
•          Have 3 clean-eating meals and 1 snack each day

I agree with these basics, and the Beachbody Ultimate Reset takes these concepts to the next level, by introducing the perfect supplements to balance the body’s chemistry, remove toxins and reset digestion, and rejuvenate your health, in a 3 phase approach (3 week period).  It also includes the entire meal plan and recipes and shopping lists to take the guess work out of it. For more info on the Ultimate Reset, visit my page MyUltimateReset  or contact me at KAREN for more information!

I was getting great results with my workout programs and Shakeology, but couldn’t lose that last tiny bit of stubborn stomach bulge, so after talking to friends who had completed the reset with awesome results, I decided to give it a try.   What I found was: amazing new recipes, a new love of cooking, and a healthier and skinnier me than I had never known before!

Because a picture is worth a thousand words, I’ll share my ultimate reset story in photos. 

Homemade Miso Soup

 In week one I discovered I could cook! I made Miso soup for the first time, and also fell in love with making homemade salad dressings, and toasting my own pumpkin seeds for salads.  So easy and so delicious, and all natural ingredients.

The Southwest Veggie Taco was delicious

Nori Rolls - look I made Sushi!

 I was beyond thrilled with myself when I made Nori rolls, and not only did they turn out well, they were delicious.  I have since inspired other friends to make their own sushi rolls at home.

I enjoyed delicious Stir Fried veggies

I didn't have to give up my healthiest meal of the day during the reset either, as Vegan Shakeology is one of the foods on the reset.

Yummy Root Vegetable Medley

I didn't love every new food that I tried on the reset, it's clear that beets will never be a staple in my kitchen, but I stuck to the meal plan and didn't cheat or substitute foods, so that I could expand my palette and get the full benefit of the reset and the recipes. 

Week 2 Meals

Week 2 introduced one of my favorite recipes from the entire reset, the sweet potato and roasted red pepper soup.  I adore that soup! I even served it to friends who would come over for dinner, yes my friends got to eat like they were on the reset too, except they got a cocktail with dinner.    The reset does not include alcohol, and I gave it up for the full 21 days, even during my sister's Birthday weekend.  I was the gal at the bar chugging her mineralized water! 

the Zucchini Cashew soup from week 1 was another favorite, and I amazed myself at how domestic I was, whipping up healthy and delicious soups and salad dressings like nobody's business!

Completing the Ultimate Reset was satisfying on many levels, and my results of losing 8 pounds, when I was already at my goal weight, only goes to show that sometimes you do need to Push The Reset Button! 

In 21 days, through clean eating and a natural cleanse, I went from 122.2 pounds to 114.6 pounds, and had never felt better!

Post Reset - Feeling my best ever!

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