Whatcha Eatin' Wednesday

Good morning, ladies!!!  You've made it to day 10!!! Wahoo!!! 

Sooo, share w/ us what you've been eating! Be specific so we can all get great ideas on things to eat, whether they're store-bought treats or home made meals. 

I made this fav of mine on Sunday night and have been enjoying the leftovers for lunch at work this week.  (I tried it first at Christmas, but I love it so much I use it as a side dish for other meals, too).  It's from Fitness Magazine.

Sweet Potato and Apple Casserole

Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients

2 medium sweet potatoes

1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch rings

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the sweet potatoes on a piece of aluminum foil and roast until they can be easily pierced with a fork, about 1 hour. Let cool slightly.
2. Trim the ends and pull off the peels; slice into 1/2-inch rounds.
3. Butter a small (3-1/2-quart) casserole dish with half the butter. In a bowl, stir together the cinnamon, ginger, and allspice. Arrange half the apple rings and sweet-potato rounds in alternating layers in the dish; sprinkle with half the spice mixture and half the maple syrup. Layer in the rest of the apples and sweet potatoes, ending with the apples. Sprinkle with the remaining spices, drizzle with the remaining syrup; dot with the rest of the butter.
4. Cover and bake until the apples are very tender, about 45 minutes.

Nutrition facts per serving: 111 calories, 1g protein, 22g carbohydrate, 3g fat (1.9g saturated), 2g fiber


Here's another good one that I haven't made in a long time but plan on making tonight.  I got it off an Uncle Ben's rice box.  We don't do the rice at all in this recipe, though.  So the calories are going to be less than listed here.  We just do the chicken & snow peas. 

Polynesian Chicken

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1 cup UNCLE BEN’S® ORIGINAL CONVERTED® Brand Rice

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 8 oz. can pineapple chunks in juice

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

2 Tbsp. peanut oil

1 cup apricot or pineapple marmalade (I couldn't find this so I used apricot preserves)

Instructions:
1. Prepare rice according to package directions.
2. Heat oil in large skillet. Add chicken breast and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Add juice from pineapple to chicken in skillet just before chicken has finished cooking.
3. Mix pineapple chunks, marmalade and soy sauce. After pineapple juice has evaporated from skillet, add marmalade mixture to chicken. Cook until sauce is a glaze. Remove from heat and serve with rice.

Nutrition Facts per Serving: 469 calories, 36g protein, 66g carbs, 2g fat
 
I've shared this one before, too, but it's another big favorite of mine, also from Fitness Magazine (recipe from Natalie Coughlin, the Olympic swimmer).  Made this for lunch on Sunday.  THIS time I had actually gone out and bought an iron skillet so I could do it properly and not explode my Pryex pie dish all over the kitchen :) 
 
Asparagus Frittata 
 
Serves 4
 

Ingredients:
6 eggs
salt & pepper to taste
2 T grated parmesean cheese, plus extra for garnish
1 T olive oil
1 T butter
1 large leek, washed, thinly sliced (looks like a giant green onion for those who don't know what it looks like, usually by the green onions at the grocery store, tastes like a really mild green onion- maybe a little sweet)
1 fresh bunch of asparagus, washed, chopped into bite size pieces
2 cups baby spinach, washed
 
Directions:
1. Preheat broiler and set rack 6" from heat.
2. Crack eggs into bowl, salt & pepper, and parmesean. Mix & set aside.
3. In iron skillet on stove top, heat the oil & butter. 
4. Add the leek, saute for 1 min stirring occasionally.
5.  Add the asparagus, saute for 3 minutes or until almost fully cooked.
6. Add the spinach, season w/ salt & pepper if you want.  When spinach is almost fully wilted, spread this veggie mixture evenly across the bottom of the skillet. 
7.  Pour the egg mixture over the top and tilt the pan so the veggies are all covered.  Cook until the edges of the eggs start to come away from the side of the pan. 
8.  Put the pan in the oven to broil for about 5 minutes, until the frittata is lightly golden and the eggs are fully set.
9.  Immediately turn the frittata out upside down onto a plate.  Garnish w/ the extra parmesean if you want.  Cut into 4 slices & serve.
 
Nutritional Facts per Serving: 208 calories, 12g protein, 8g carb, 15g fat, 2g fiber
 
Here's another yummy that the hubby made for me a few months ago that I just remembered, also from Fitness Magazine:
 
Stuffed French Toast
 

Makes: 4 servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup fat-free cream cheese

2 tablespoons plus 1/2 cup strawberry jam

8 1-inch slices French bread (we used wheat bread slices we had on hand, Sara Lee 45 Cal multi-grain)

2 egg whites

1 egg, slightly beaten

3/4 cup fat-free milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon apple pie spice (we used pumpkin pie spice b/c we didn't have this on hand)
Nonstick cooking spray

Directions:
Combine the cream cheese and 2 tablespoons jam. Make a slit in each slice of French bread to form a pocket; fill each with about 1 tablespoon of the cream-cheese mixture.  (Since we were using thin already sliced bread, we used two pieces of the wheat bread and put the cream cheese mixture between it like a sandwich)
In a small bowl, combine egg whites, egg, milk, vanilla, and apple pie spice. Lightly coat a nonstick griddle with cooking spray; heat over medium heat.
Dip the bread into the egg mixture, coating both sides. Place slices on the hot griddle. Cook about 3 minutes or until golden brown, turning once.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat the 1/2 cup of jam until melted, stirring frequently. Pour over French toast.

Nutrition facts per serving (2 slices): 300 calories, 14g protein, 30g carbohydrate, 2g fat (0g saturated), 0g fiber

As far as snacks, I haven't been too creative lately.  Just enjoying my daily late morning snack of a Pacific Rose apple sliced w/ 2 T crunchy all natural PB.  I've also been enjoying Marin's dressed up cereal idea for breakfasts as an alternative to eggs.  This morning (short on time mornings :) ) I had 1 cup of special K strawberry w/ a sliced up banana and half cup of skim milk. I still like my protein shakes & protein bars in the afternoons, too. I found a protein bar that I'm pretty satisfied w/ after trying pretty much every one out- Clif Builder's.  Still has a little soy and I'd like just whey, but for 20g protein, it's mostly all-natural ingredients, as opposed to the really sugary & processed alternatives out there.   Some greek honey-flavored yogurt is a good post-dinner dessert. 

So excited to hear all your great ideas & recipes!