Best French and Italian Food Recipe

With all the cooking I have been doing, I have so many left overs.  My husband and daughter do not like all the food that I do, so we do not always eat the same lunch.  Dinner is different.  However, I was looking to make something AMAZING out of the left overs and decided on this incredible dish.

I decided to make the Ranch Sauce out of some fat-free plain yogurt and Hidden Valley ranch mix.  It came out amazing, I liked it well enough to use on my regular salads actually.  35 calories for more than a 1/4 cup.  That is twice the serving I get in my Kraft Light Done Right Ranch bottle, for 1/4 of the calories.

The chicken I had grilled for so many dishes I made last week was calling to me, that tender white meat  and those tasty grill marks on the outside.  Fabulous grilled chicken.

Lastly, there is nothing wrong with a wrap.  It is the perfect carrying case for your food, use a low carb one and you are getting great fiber too!

I surprised myself with the powerful flavors, the deep tomato flavor, the hint of toasted nuts all over perfectly grilled chicken with crunchy romaine lettuce and creamy ranch sauce on top to provide a delicious tang to your wrap!  Oh delightful!

Sun-dried Tomato Grilled Chicken Wrap with Ranch Sauce
2 teaspoons sliced almonds
3 oz Grilled Chicken (cold left overs), sliced
4 Rosemary Basil Sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil, chopped
1/4 teaspoon olive oil (from sun-dried tomatoes jar)
1/2 cup romaine lettuce, chopped
2 low-carb tortilla (I prefer LaTortilla Factory)
2 Servings Yogurt Ranch Sauce

In a small pan, add almonds and toast lightly over medium heat, stirring frequently.  As soon as you can smell them, they are done.  Look for light golden brown color. Remove almonds from pan and transfer to a small bowl.


Return pan to heat, add olive oil and warm.  Once oil is warm, add grilled chicken and lightly brown on both sides.  Add tomatoes until warm.  Remove from pan.  Chop chicken into bite sized pieces as soon as they are cool enough to handle.


Lay your 2 tortillas on a cutting board, or clean work surface.  Add 1 tablespoon of Yogurt Ranch Sauce to each tortilla.


Divide chicken, almonds and tomatoes between two tortillas and scatter chopped chicken and warm tomatoes. 


Add lettuce and 1 tablespoon yogurt ranch sauce to tortillas.


Fold tortillas and serve.

 
Click here for a printable version of this recipe - The Slow Roasted Italian.com

1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt
2 teaspoons Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing and Dip Mix

Combine yogurt and dressing mix in a small bowl with a small whisk. Serve immediately.  

YIELD: 4 servings (2 tablespoons each)


Click here for a printable version of this recipe - The Slow Roasted Italian.com

With a lot of 93% lean ground beef in the fridge, left over from the Guilty Pleasure Pizza-With Less Guilt I made a few days ago, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to make for lunch today.  I was starving and Mr. W and Em were restless and impatient.  Taco's sound delicious!!!!  But, today I am eating healthy, so how about a Trim Taco Salad?  Even more fantastic!  Made over a bed of lettuce and Roma tomatoes with just enough dressing and tortillas to satisfy.  That is the perfect healthy lunch for us.

Now, if you have it in your budget I would recommend using 96% lean ground beef, the calories are lower and the fat is remarkably lower!

Trim Taco Salad
4 ounces 93% lean ground beef
1 teaspoon Mrs Dash SW Chipotle seasoning
3 cups romaine hearts, chopped (approximately 4 ounces)
3 Roma tomatoes, ripe-chopped (approximately 6 ounces)
2 tablespoons reduced fat ranch dressing (I used Kraft-Light Done Right Ranch)
1/2 ounce of tortillas (crushed with your hands)
1 tablespoon 2$ milk reduced fat Mexican four cheese blend (I used Lucerne from Safeway)

Preheat a small non stick skillet over medium high heat.  Lightly sprinkle with salt.  When hot, add the beef and seasoning mix.  Cook the beef, breaking into small-medium sized chunks as it cooks.  About 3-5 minutes.  Remove from heat.

 
Meanwhile, place your lettuce, tomatoes, chips and ranch in a bowl and toss well to coat.


Pour salad mixture onto a large serving plate, add beef mixture.  Garnish with a few reserved chip pieces and the cheese.  Serve immediately.

VARIATION FOR PICKY EATERS:  I served the beef mixture over Peppered Baked Brown Rice then added the crushed tortilla chip, sprinkled the cheese and added 1 tablespoon of hot sauce.  That was Mr. W's lunch and he was tickled pink!!

This recipe serves 1.  Double, triple, quadruple or whatever.  I made 2 pounds of the ground beef mixture.  Then served 3 ounces of the cooked meat for each person.


Click here for a printable version of this recipe - The Slow Roasted Italian.com

I ran out of my normal store-bought bread today and decided I was going to pull out a recipe I have been working on for a while and finish it.  Well, the results were so amazing that Chad, Munchkin and I ate about half of the loaf for dinner.

The recipe here is for a Milk and Honey Bread made with AP flour.  Milk and honey breads are very popular in the mid-west and incredibly flavorful.  This one is no different!

It has an wonderful texture, more dense than what you buy in the store, but soft and delicious.  The crust is slightly crisp and buttery.  Oh my, I get so excited just thinking about it!  You will be hooked once you try it.

I used honey that I just received as a gift and the honey element in the bread is absolutely divine.  I ate 3 pieces all on their own.  Chad and Munchkin enjoyed theirs with some fresh Strawberry Jam right off the stove.

Click here for Recipe»

Today we are taking a break from our super healthy eating and indulging in our guilty pleasure...  Pizza!  So, we are having a little treat to curb the cravings that I have been experiencing all week.  This way we do not get burnt out eating healthy.  I used a Boboli Wheat Pizza Crust to keep the calories low.  I have to say I was truly expecting a pizza crust that tasted like cardboard, but I was pleasantly surprised and so were my taste buds.  I also measured everything I put on the pizza to keep my self in check.  I love love love cheese and I surely would have went overboard if I was just 'eyeing' it..

Even when taking a break one day a week and splurging, there is no point in undoing all the great work that you accomplished over the first 6 days.

I made this pizza how I like it, and Chad did the same.  I made the meatballs and put them in a bowl, I also put all the measured ingredients in a bowl and laid it all out.  My goal was to splurge on the fat and carbs a bit while keeping the protein high and calories low.  Not to mention, the big goal was to have a flavorful pizza that would satisfy me AND Chad.   I have had so many 'diet' pizza's made on a low-carb tortilla shell.  YUCK!  That is thin cardboard for a pizza and certainly NOT a treat or splurge. 

When I was plating my pizza, I gave it a little sprinkle of garlic powder and 1 teaspoon of reduced fat grated Parmesan cheese.  Delicious!  The crust was full flavored and softer in the middle and crisp toward the edge.  The cheese perfectly melted (you would NEVER notice it was reduced fat).  The sauce was plentiful and seasoned well.  The toppings were hearty and PERFECT.  I love the onion on top that give a little contrast of texture and flavor.  All together a fantastically hearty  pizza!  Although Chad did say he loves my home made pizza crust better.  Of course he does!


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1 (10 ounce) Boboli-whole wheat pizza crust
2/3 cup pizza sauce (low fat)
1 recipe seasoned meat balls, recipe below
7 pepperoni, cut in half (if you choose to do half and half)
1 cup finely shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese (I recommend Lucerne - at Safeway)
12 large back olives, sliced
1/4 cup onion slices

Preheat oven to 450°.

On a pizza pan or baking sheet place pizza crust in the center. 


Cover the crust with the pizza sauce, all but the outer 1/2".  


Add seasoned meat balls even across the pizza.  


Add pepperoni halves across the left half of the pizza.  


Evenly cover the pizza with the mozzarella cheese.


Evenly cover the pizza with the olives.  


Cover the right half of the pizza with your onion slices.


Place in preheated oven and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and your cheese melts.



Remove from oven and allow to cool for 3-5 minutes.  Cut into 8 slices with pizza cutter.  Serve immediately.

You can absolutely substitute your favorite ingredients, but this was the perfect pizza for the 2 of us today!

Mr. W's pizza was delicious too.





Seasoned Meat Balls Recipe
8 ounces - 93% lean ground beef
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
pinch of salt

In a medium bowl mix ingredients well.  Form small amounts of meat into tiny balls.  Place 10" skillet over medium heat and lightly sprinkle with salt.  Place your meat balls in the pan and cook until done.


Remove from pan and place in small bowl for pizza making.


Click here for a printable version of this recipe - The Slow Roasted Italian.com

This is healthy and delicious side dish that I made to accompany the Rosemary Roasted Chicken.  The lemon give a tangy flavor and contrast to the pepper.  Fabulous!

juice of one medium lemon (approximately ¼ cup) and zest

This recipe is adapted from Alton Brown.