Food In Many Forms

Hungry Girl is a great resource for low-calorie recipes, but as with most things, it's all checking your nutrition labels and making the best choices at the grocery store. I learned that the hard way when I tried to make Hungry Girl's Chicken Flautas . The Hungry Girl (HG) wants fat-free cheeses, corn tortillas and plenty of spices. My little downtown grocery store has none of this.  Let me cut to the chase - this 188 calorie recipe became a 420 calorie recipe out of no where! Mostly, I blame the tortillas, only afterward did I realize that flour tortillas have more calories than corn tortillas. It is still a great recipe even with my inadequate groceries, and it makes me think I want to start an under-500 calories series . It is a bit overdone, but being informed is always a good thing! Ingredients: 1/4 cup salsa 1/4 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese 4 oz. cooked and finely chopped skinless lean chicken breast 3 tbsp. diced onion 1/8 tsp. cayenne

What better time to blog about  warm weather  and  picnics  than when it is rainy and cold outside! Last week, when it was warm and sunny, I rounded up some of my girlfriends and we set out for Patterson Park with  Tuna Sandwiches, Pasta Salad, Watermelon Slices and a Bottle of Wine . Sitting under a tree, watching baseball and eating refreshing food makes for an idealistic Sunday afternoon. I can't wait to do it again. I used bowtie pasta and added fresh basil. I just wish I had taken a picture of it, it looked even better than the picture on the website. A lot of pasta salad recipes use salad dressing, but I like that this  dressing  is relatively  natural  and  simple . INGREDIENTS Serving Size 6 servings (1-1/3 cups each) 12 ounces dry rotini pasta, uncooked (12 oz = 4-1/2 cups) 2 tablespoons Canola Oil 2 tablespoons Gulden's® Spicy Brown Mustard 1/2 pint grape tomatoes 1 large cucumber, sliced 1 can (2.25 oz each) ripe olives, drained 1 pkg (3.5 oz

It's my birthday this Saturday, but everyone wins when there are funfetti cupcakes! I've been  baking for the last three hours, and I'm bringing the extra into work tomorrow to celebrate my last day of trauma. Staff relief here I come! There are so many reasons to celebrate! Fluffy Vanilla Cupcakes Yield: 42 large cupcakes Ingredients: 10 large egg whites at room temperature 1 1/2 cup 1% milk, at room temperature 4 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 5 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted 3 1/2 cups sugar 2 tablespoon + 2 teaspoon baking powder 1 1/2 teaspoon salt 24 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into cubes 1 cup rainbow sprinkles Method 1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease cupcake pans or line with cupcake liners. 2. In a medium bowl or measuring cup, combine and stir the egg whites, 1/2 cup of milk, and the vanilla. Set aside. 3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the dry ingredients

When St. Patrick's Day comes along, I feel obligated to produce baked goods involving either green food, green food dye, or beer . This year, pinterest led me to this lovely recipe: http://squarebakery.blogspot.com/2009/03/this-ones-dedicated-to-shamrock-shake.html Green Food Dye it is!  A lot of reviewers complained of the intense minty flavor , and at first I wondered what they were talking about. Then I realized, I used peppermint extract, instead of peppermint oil.  The substitution is:  1/4 teaspoon oil = 1 teaspoon extract So basically, I only used a quarter of the amount of peppermint called for in the recipe. I'm sure I would have complained too, if I used that much peppermint! I used 3 teaspoons of peppermint extract , and I was happy with the results, but I'll post the original recipe below: Mint Meltaway Cookie Recipe  Makes 24 cookies You will need: 1 cup unsalted organic butter 1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar 2 teaspoons of

Don't let it's looks deceive you, this Turkey Noodle Casserole is pure delicious-ness. The peppers gave it a nice little kick without being overwhelming. Now if you like a little heat, you could probably use two or three chipotle peppers with no problem, but I liked it with just one. Doing the recipe analysis for this recipe, I was shocked how many calories 1 cup of cheese can have (about 400 calories for the brand I chose)! It's easy to forget at the grocery store that the cheese is all made with whole milk, unless it says otherwise. I feel especially silly for buying whole milk cheese, since I know 2% tastes exactly the same . Just making that simple switch could save you around 120 calories in this recipe and 12 g of fat ! Turkey Noodle Casserole (Serves 6) Ingredients 1/4 cup canola oil, plus more for preparing the pan 10 ounces rigatoni or other shaped pasta 1 medium onion, diced 3 large garlic cloves, minced 1 teaspoon taco seasoning 1 teaspoon drie