Meatloaf...GROSS!

Or at least that is how I used to feel.  I mean, come on, who would want to eat a gray loaf of meat smothered in ketchup.  And let's face it, who knows what is inside of that thing!!!  It could be loaded with onions or heaven forbid, green bell pepper!  Oh the horror!!!!  (remember the no vegetable thing??)  Anyway, as we have been trying many new and different recipes, we found a meatloaf recipe in a cookbook that we bought off of QVC!  It has been the best book.  Actually we bought two cookbooks and they are just great!  We have tried 4 things so far and have been very pleased.  I am trying a Chocolate Souffle right now, but I will blog about that later!  Here is the meatloaf recipe:

Chili Sauce Meatloaf
1/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp Chili Sauce (near the ketchup)
1 egg white
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup quick cooking oats
3/4 cup finely chopped onion ( I use 2 Tbsp of onion powder)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey or lean ground beef

In a large bowl combine 1/3 cup chili sauce, egg white, Worcestershire sauce, oats, onion, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper.  Crumble meat over mixture and mix well.

Shape into a 9in x 4in loaf and place in an 11in x 7in loaf pan coated with cooking spray.
Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.  Take remaining chili sauce and brush over the meatloaf.  (**I add a little barbeque sauce to mine!!!  yum)  Bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reaches 160 degrees.  Let stand before slicing.

For a little extra umph, I slice the meatloaf and place on a hot griddle to cook each side just a little.  I really like the edges so this helps all of it feel like an edge.  A serving is 2 slices at 244 calories.  For weight watchers it is 2 points a slice!  I like to serve this with a baked sweet potato.

So far, since January 2, I have lost 19 pounds!!!  And I was able to get off of some of my meds!  So far so good!  Hope you meatloaf haters out there will give this a chance!  If I like it, anyone should like it!

I assume this would be super to make ahead of time and put in the freezer!!!  Enjoy!

'Cause That's My Fun Day

Sundays at our house have always been about two things:  church and food.  I love getting up on Sunday mornings and preparing for church.  I believe that I have the best church in the world.  After services, we always come home to a big meal.  Something yummy.  Sometimes it would be a roast in the crockpot so when you walk into your home you are just bombarded with the smells of something delicious. Sometimes it would be a cheesy casserole.  We used to go out for lunch a lot after church.  Trying to eat better is hard on Sundays.  We really have to think and plan in advance for what we want to eat.  This Sunday, I did Oven Fried Chicken Tenders.  Here is the recipe:

1 1/2 pounds of chicken strips ( I use the Tyson frozen so that I can cook how many I want)
1/2 cup of lowfat buttermilk
2 cups of crushed corn flakes
1 cup of bread crumbs ( I use Italian seasoned)
2 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp paprika
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp thyme (you can use something else if you don't like thyme)
other seasonings of your choice - cayenne, sage, garlic  (whatever you like)

Place chicken in buttermilk to soak for 15 minutes.

In a ziploc bag add crushed corn flakes, bread crumbs and seasonings.  Shake well to blend.  Add chicken 2 to 3 strips at a time and shake well.  Place on a foil lined pan sprayed with cooking spray.  Cook at 400 degrees for 8 minutes.   Remove and turn chicken over.  Bake for an additional 8 minutes.

I serve this with mashed potatoes (made with light butter and fat free sour cream) and english peas. 

Hope you enjoy!

Not All Things Work for Good!

Don't let the title fool you.  Of course we know that with God, all things do work for good for those that love the Lord (Romans 8:28).  However, in our food adventures we have had a couple of failures.  My child feels as though we have failed her.  All of the good, yummy, rich...aka bad for you things...I don't really cook anymore.  She is sad!  But, we are getting better at learning what to use in place of the bad things without losing flavor.  Our first failure was Slow Cooked Sour Cream Paprika Chicken.  I am not even going to share the recipe because it really was just not good!  The chicken was dry and it had no flavor at all!  Our next experiment was not too bad for us.  But Callie cried.  We are potato eaters.  Any way, any kind...russet, irish, sweet.  You name it...we like potatoes.  So, my mashed potatoes are not that great for you.  Think buttery, creamy mashed potatoes!  I had read some recipes that used cauliflower with potatoes.  It cuts the bad stuff in half.  So, I went to the grocery to buy cauliflower.  Let me interject here that we don't really eat a lot of vegetables.  Ok, ok...I don't eat vegetables really at all.  So I felt super proud of myself for even trying something like this.  Here is the recipe:

Faux-tatoes

8 oz red potatoes
10 oz cauliflower
1/2 cup of fat free sour cream
4 tbsp of light butter
salt and pepper

Boil potatoes and cauliflower (separately of course!) until fork tender, about 15-20 minutes. I added some minced garlic to the cauliflower.  Be sure to take the cauliflower and drain it and dry it off.  You need to get most of the water out of it.  Put both in a bowl and blend with hand mixer.  Add butter and sour cream and salt and pepper to taste.

I have to admit that I made Mark try it first.  I cannot believe it.  IT TASTED JUST LIKE MASHED POTATOES!!!!  I kid you not.  The texture was a little different and the cauliflower smelled as it was cooking, but it was good.  My friend at school says that she roasts it in the oven instead of boiling.  Maybe that is better.  I have not done this again because Callie asked that she not have to sacrifice her mashed potatoes.  But it can be done!

I Love Food 1st blog ever!

So,  I love reading other folk's blogs!  In fact, I am a bit of a blog stalker!  I have always thought that my life is too boring to blog about.  I work, I come home, I spend time with my fam!  That's about it.  Who would want to read about that??  This January we decided that our eating habits needed to change.  So we have embarked on a journey of eating better.  Let me just tell you.  I. LOVE. FOOD.  No doubt about it, no questions asked.  I have heard that some folks are stress eaters or eat for comfort.  I just like to eat.  I like food.  I like the way it feels, tastes, smells...you get the picture.  I eat because I like it.  I don't have to be bored or depressed or worried.  So, we have made some changes.  I really miss food.  I miss snacking.  I miss sugar!  But, the benefits are outweighing my desire for food.  I hope to get off of some of my medication and lose some weight.  I hope to use this blog to just share some of our recipes and ideas for eating healthier.  I hope you find something that you may can use yourself.  Here is what we had for dinner tonight.

Tortilla Pie

3/4 lb of ground turkey
1/2 can of rotel (save the unused portion)
1/2 can enchilada sauce mild or hot
3/4 cup of fat free cream cheese
1/4 cup 2% shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup 2% shredded mexican blend cheese
chili powder
cumin
4 tortillas (96% fat free) 8 inch

Brown turkey in skillet and drain any grease.  Add rotel, enchilada sauce, chili powder and cumin (I just season to taste)  Let this mixture simmer.  In a separate bowl, soften cream cheese and add rest of rotel to this.  Mix well.  I did add some seasoning to this as well, chili pwd and cumin.  Place a tortilla in a 9 inch pie dish.  Add half of meat mixture on top of this.  Place another tortilla on top of meat.  Spread cream cheese mixture of top of this and sprinkle mozzarella on top.  Place another tortilla on and add the rest of the meat mixture.  Place the last tortilla on this and sprinkle the mexican blend cheese on top.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.  This recipe could easily be doubled for 2 pies.  (For anyone who is on weight watchers, this ended up being 4 points a serving if you cut it into 8 pieces)  Hope you have enjoyed my thoughts and this recipe!