MIni Corndog Muffins

I found a recipe on Pinterest and then made it my own by changing a few things here and a few things there.  They are not GF but I did use Rice Milk to make them DF for Vanessa.  My husband loved them...a lot...

Ingredients:
3/4 c. Masa Flour
1 c. flour (i prefer whole wheat)
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1 c. Rice Milk (or milk of your choice)
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
6 hot dogs, cut into 5 pcs. each
1/3 c. shredded cheese (opt)

Directions:
1. Spray a mini muffin pan ( mine has 24 wells in it) with Pam spray.

2. Put all the dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.  Add milk, egg, and oil and mix well.  Add cheese and mix.
3. Pour rounded teaspoon full of batter into bottom of each well.  Press 1 piece of hot dog into each well.  Top with another rounded teaspoon full of batter to cover hot dog.
4. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Let sit for 10-15 minutes before removing them from tin and serving.


You can make different variations by adding cumin, taco seasoning, italian seasonings etc.  My family likes them plain.  You could probably use different meats like breakfast links and maybe some maple syrup to make more breakfast like.

Shoyu Chicken

Ingredients:
1 c. Soy Sauce
1 c. Brown Sugar
1c. Water
1 Tbsp. Granulated Garlic
1 Onion, diced
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. black pepper
1 Tbsp. dried Oregano
1 tsp. ground paprika
3 Chicken breasts, fileted in half

Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients except the chicken.
2. Add chicken coating evenly.
3. Marinate at least an hour.  Better if overnight.
4. Grill chicken on bbq.  Cook remaining sauce on stove or toss.  Do not use raw.

Apparently this is generally made with thighs.  I get breasts at a great value from Zaycon foods so usually have more of those on hand.  This is not my photo...had to borrow it until i get my own...hope thats ok...lol

Baked Chicken Strips

3 Chicken breast halves
1/4 cup. mayonnaise
1/4 cup mustard (1/3 honey mustard, brown spicy and reg prepared yellow mustard)
1/2 Tbsp. garlic
Salt and pepper
2 cups Italian style Panko breadcrumbs

Directions:
1. Rinse chicken and blot dry.  Cut into strips.  Pound out pieces between plastic wrap or wax paper for uniform thickness.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
2.  Mix Mayo, mustard and garlic in a small bowl and coat each piece of chicken with the mix.
3.  Coat with Panko and arrange on a greased cookie sheet.  ( I line with foil for ease of cleaning)
4.  Bake at 450°F for 10 min.  Rotate sheet and cook for 10-15 more minutes.

I found this recipe in the Family Fun magazine and of course tweaked it a lil bit.  This is actually about half the recipe but think that the full recipe would be better cuz they are good!  Everybody liked these and they weren't too difficult.  Key to a crispy crust is low moisture.  Gotta pat them dry after you rinse them.

Cabbage Lasagna-phase 1

5 c. Heathers Spaghetti Sauce
1 head cabbage, steamed to el dante
16 oz. Cottage cheese (i like lowfat)
1 egg
2 1/2c low-fat Mozzarella cheese
1/2 c low-fat Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. dried parsley

Directions:
1. Mix 1 1/4 c. Mozzarella cheese, 1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, cottage cheese, egg and parsley and set aside.
2. In a 13x9 cake pan, start with 1 c. Spaghetti Sauce.  Then layer with cabbage in a single layer covering large holes.  (I always have small holes)  Spread about 1/3 of cheese mix on top of cabbage. (it will not be possible to spread like butter so just do the best you can to make it even)  Add another cup of Spaghetti sauce and repeat process of layers, ending with last cup of spaghetti sauce.  Top with remaining Mozz and Parm cheeses.
3. Spray a piece of foil with Pam spray and cover lasagna.  Bake in preheated oven at 350° for 45 min.  Uncover and bake for 15 more minutes.  (Should have an internal temp of 160°.)  Let rest for 15 min before cutting and serving.

This was a big hit at a dinner we had at my aunts house and the recipe has been slow in coming.  I am going to have to make this again to get the ingredients for the Spaghetti Sauce right, so i will have the sauce on here as soon as possible...hopefully by tomorrow!

Sweet n Spicy Chicken and Veggies-phase 1

1 chicken breast, diced
1 zucchini, sliced
2 Tbsp. dehydrated red and green peppers (or fresh, need more if fresh)
1/2 small onion, diced
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 crown broccoli, bite size
1/2 head cauliflower, bite size
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 Tbsp. Franks Red Hot Sauce
1/2 Tbsp. Mae Ploy Sweet Chili Sauce
1/2 Tbsp. Lime Juice
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. Cook chicken in large skillet until just done.
2. Add all the vegetables until done.  Remove from heat.
3. Add sauces, lime juice and fresh cilantro.  Toss and serve.

You can use any vegetables you have on hand.  I had a bag of broccoli slaw and cole slaw mix that I added to my original version.  It has quickly become a favorite with friends and family!

Phad Thai-phase 4

1/2 lb. dried rice noodles, 1/8 in wide-ish
warm water
1-2 chicken breast, boneless, skinless and diced or slivered
2 Tbsp. fish sauce
1/4c. + 2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/4 c + 2 Tbsp Distilled Vinegar
1 tsp. paprika
4 green onion, slivered
1/2 c. oil
2 eggs
3/4 lb. bean sprouts
3/4 c. roasted peanuts (chopped fine)
lime wedges

Directions:
1. Soak noodles in warm water until they bend and soften slightly, about 30 min. Drain.
2. Mix sugar, vinegar, paprika and fish sauce in small bowl and set aside.
3. Heat wok or large frying pan and fry meat then add noodles.  Add garlic and sauce.
4. Make a hole in the middle and fry eggs in that hole using a lil oil if you need more.
5. Add sprouts and garnish with nuts, onions and lime.  Serve.

This is not a recipe from my diet but it is the best Phad Thai recipe I have found.  I love Thai food and can usually tell a good Thai restaurant by their Phad Thai.  This is the closest recipe I have found to my favorite!

Turkey Meatloaf-phase 1

2 lbs. Ground Turkey
1/2 red pepper
1/2 yellow pepper
1/2 orange pepper
1 sm. onion
2 eggs
1 c. riced cauliflower
1 c. mozzarella cheese
1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
1 can diced tomato

Directions:
1. In chopper or small processor, chop peppers and onion to fine
2. Mix all ingredients.
3. Form into "loaf".  I pressed mine into the bottom of the bowl and then just pushed it out onto my hand using the natural curve of the bowl to slide it out.  It fit perfectly into my electric pressure cooker and I used my wire rack that goes inside it.
4. Pour can of tomato onto the top of the loaf then I used the can and filled it half way with water and poured that in too.
5. I pressure cooked mine on high for 35 min and used Natural Release.


I got this idea from my aunt who doesn't like to cook but she sure comes up with some good ideas and recipes...I think a bit of Italian Seasoning would be good in there, or something...I am sure you could bake this in the oven but I was short on time so just threw it together and let my pressure cooker do the work.  I love how it made the texture and will probably do it that way again.  The leftover juice would make an awesome soup base, but that will have to be for another post.

Stuffed Portabello -phase 1

1 lb. lean ground turkey
2 egg whites or 2 Tbsp dehydrated egg with 4 Tbsp. water
2 Tbsp. dried bell peppers
1/2 onion, diced
1 celery stalked, diced
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp granulated garlic
3 Portabello mushroom caps, cleaned out and stem removed
3 Tbsp. grated fat free or low fat Parmesan cheese


Directions:
1. Mix everything except mushrooms together.
2. Stuff mushroom caps with turkey mix.
3. Bake at 400° for 45 min.
4. Sprinkle tops with Parmesan cheese and bake for another 15 min or until internal temp reaches 160°.


I got the idea for this recipe while surfing the web.  I had to change some of the ingredients to work with the first phase of the 17 day diet and found it worked beautifully!  I can see this becoming a personal fave.  It's very easy and most ingredients are kept on-hand.  I cannot find Fat-free Parmesan so I just used the parm that comes from Costco in a 5 lb. bag.