Corn & Jalapeno Mini Muffins

The combination of flavors in each one of these mini muffins really packs a punch!  It’s a delightful combo of sweetness from the honey, a bit of heat from the jalapeños and hearty cornmeal.  These are perfect side to serve with tacos or any Mexican dish.  Try pairing them with the Crockpot Chicken Tacos we featured on the blog last week!

Servings:  16 (recipe will make a total of 32 mini muffins)

Size:  2 mini corn muffins

Points Plus: 2pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time:  10-12 minutes

Rating: 5 stars – Excellent!

Ingredient List:

2/3 cup yellow cornmeal

¼ cup flour

¾ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. sugar

⅛ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

½ cup milk

¼ cup honey

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

2 large jalapeños, seeded and diced

½ cup shredded cheddar cheese, reduced-fat

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°. Lightly grease a mini muffin tin with cooking spray.  Combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium bowl.  In a separate, larger bowl combine the egg, milk, honey and melted butter with a whisk.  Add the dry ingredients to the large bowl and stir until well mixed.  Fold in the jalapeños and cheddar cheese with a spatula.  Fill each muffin tin about 2/3 full.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

Tip:

Serving these warm are a MUST!  Although you can save time and make these ahead of time, they really are best when they are just out of the oven.  Of course you can pop them back in oven to warm them up just before you are ready to sit down too!

XOXO Megan

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

Do you need a quick, go-to recipe for making chicken tacos??  Look no further!  This is a really easy version that using the crockpot to produce perfectly tender shredded chicken that is full of flavor.  My good friend Jessica gave me this recipe; I added in some additional onion and jalapeno.  I'm not sure I will ever go back to making chicken tacos any other way because these are so good!!!  You can customize with whatever your favorite taco toppings happen to be, but look below for my suggestions for this recipe.

Servings:  10

Size:  2 tacos

Points Plus: 6pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time:  4-5 hours

Rating: 5 stars – Excellent!

Ingredient List:
1 16 oz. jar salsa
1 packet of taco seasoning
¾ cup onion, chopped
¼ cup jalapeno, chopped
4 large chicken breasts
20 small flour tortillas

Optional Toppings (these are included in the pp value above):

1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese, reduced-fat

1 can (4 oz.) sliced black olives

½ cup white onion, chopped

Fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

Add the full jar of salsa and taco seasoning to the crockpot; stir until well mixed.  Add in the chopped onion and jalapeno.  Finally, add in the chicken breasts and stir to make sure the salsa mixture is covering the chicken.  Set the crockpot on high for the first 2 hours and then finish on low for the next 2 hours.  Depending on how your crockpot cooks, wait until the chicken is fully cooked before removing to shred with a fork.  Add the shredded chicken back into the crockpot and cook on low or warm for an additional hour.  Serve with your favorite taco fixings and tortillas!  For the tacos above, I used 1 Tbsp. cheese, about 1/4 cup of chicken and just a sprinkle of olives per taco.  You can add as much onion and cilantro as you like! 

Tip:

Frozen chicken breasts work great in the crockpot!  If you haven’t had time to fully thaw out your chicken, not a big deal.  Just toss everything in the crockpot and set to low if you will be gone all day at work.  You will come home to a delicious smelling kitchen!

XOXO Megan

Black Bean and Cheese Baked Quesadillas

Let’s face it, quesadillas are delicious!  This recipe is for a healthier, baked version.  Baking your quesadillas instead of frying is a great way to lighten up the traditional restaurant version.  These make for a quick and easy weeknight dinner too!

Servings:  2

Size:  2 quesadillas

Points Plus: 8pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time:  10 minutes

Rating: 3 stars – Good

 

Ingredient List:

8 corn tortillas

1 can (15 oz) black beans

½ cup onion, diced

4 oz. cheddar cheese, reduced-fat, shredded

Fresh cilantro, chopped

Cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°. In a skillet, combine the black beans and onion and sauté for a few minutes over medium heat. With cooking spray, coat one side of 4 corn tortillas and place the coated side face down on a large cookie sheet.  Divide the black bean/onion mixture evenly amongst the 4 quesadillas; top each one with 1 oz. of cheddar cheese. Place the 2^nd corn tortilla on top and press down firmly.  Finish by coating the top tortilla with cooking spray. Bake the quesadillas in the oven for about 10 minutes or until they begin to brown.  Slice into wedges and serve with a garnish of chopped fresh cilantro.

Tip:

You can also serve these with some fresh salsa too without adding to the pp value of your meal!

XOXO Megan

Pico de gallo + homemade refried beans

Welcome to TOMATO week!  Each day this week we will posting a recipe posting the summer fav - TOMATOES!

And to kick things off, what is more 'tomato-y' than fresh salsa! I had a bunch of fresh ingredients on hand to whip up this easy and flavorful salsa.  And the best part is all you need is a knife and cutting board to pull this together.  I have also been wanted to try to make home made re-fried beans and O.M.G. were those delish!  I will never eat canned again.  Anywoo - I whipped up some tacos with corn tortilla + re-fried beans + fresh salsa, enjoy!

Servings: 3 + leftover salsa
Serving size: 2 corn tortillas + 1/2 c. re-fried beans + salsa
Points Plus: 7pp
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 7-10 minutes
Rating: 5 - Excellent

Ingredients:
Salsa
3 large tomatoes, chopped small
1/2 red onion, chopped small
1 jalapeno, remove seeds and chop small
3 small red peppers, chopped
2 t. cumin
Salt + pepper to taste

Re-Fried Beans
1 T. olive oil
1 15 oz. can pinto beans
1/2 white onion, chopped
1 t. chili powder
2/3 c. chicken stock
Salt + pepper to taste

For tacos you will also need 6 corn tortillas

Directions:
To make salsa, combine all ingredients, stir and put in fridge!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  When oven is preheated, add tortillas to warm, about 3 minutes. To make beans - heat olive oil in a sauce pan or skillet. Add chopped onion and saute about 3 minutes. Add chili powder and stir, cook about 1 minute longer.  Rinse beans and add them to the pot.  Add chicken stock and bring to a boil until almost all liquid is gone, about 5 minutes.  At this point taste the beans, they may or may not need salt and pepper! Remove pot from heat and squash beans with the back of a wooden spoon until they are to the constancy that you desire!

To assemble - put 2 tortillas on a plate and top each with 1/4 cup re-fried beans and as much salsa as you want (because this salsa is FREE!!).  These tacos have so much flavor, they are delish!

Tip:
If you like re-fried beans that are totally smooth (like the canned type), try putting them into your food processor and give them a few pulses.  Also, add some iceberg lettuce to the top of these tacos for some additional crunch!

XOXO - Katie

Mini Pepper Chicken Nachos

Who doesn’t love nachos??  However, they can be high in points and unhealthy.  This recipe attempts to fix that!  Replace the chips (and carbs) with mini bell peppers instead and top with regular nacho ingredients and shredded chicken.  Delicious!!

I found this recipe on the Heat Oven to 350 blog

Servings:  4

Size:  1/4 of the nachos

Points Plus: 5pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time:  10 minutes

Rating: 4 stars – Very Good  

Ingredient List:

1 tsp. vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 green onions

1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 tsp. chili powder

1 cup salsa

Salt & pepper to taste

1 pound mini bell peppers

1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar-monterey jack blend, reduced-fat

1/4 cup black olives, sliced

1/2 large tomato, diced

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.  In a large skillet, heat oil and add garlic and green onions, cook for a few minutes.  Add in shredded chicken and chili powder; mix well until the chili powder evenly coats the chicken and onions – cook until the chicken is warmed through.  Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the salsa and season with salt & pepper to taste.  Prepare the pepper nacho chips by cutting off the tops of each pepper and slicing in half lengthwise to form chips.  Place the peppers on a large cookie sheet.  Scoop the chicken mixture onto each mini pepper and then top with shredded cheese and black olives.  Bake the chicken nachos in the oven for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.  Before serving, top the nachos with tomatoes and fresh cilantro.

Tip:

Make the chicken in your crock-pot the night before you want to serve this recipe!  Crock pots are a great tool in making prep for entertaining easy!

XOXO Megan

Veggie Stuffed Tortillas

My mom told me about this recipe that she found in this summer’s Penzey’s spice recipe book.  It was a good light, vegetarian dinner recipe I made on Monday night.  I had a weekend full of eating, so this dinner was a good way to get back on track – the beans help to make for a satisfying meal that will keep you full and its relatively low in points!
 

Servings:  8

Size:  2 stuffed tortillas

Points Plus: 6pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time:  5-10 minutes

Rating: 4 stars – Very Good

 

Ingredient List:

2 Tbsp. EVOO

½ tsp. minced garlic

1 large onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 medium zucchini or squash, sliced and quartered

½ cup chicken broth

1 15 oz. can corn, drained and rinsed

1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. black pepper

1 ½ tsp. Arizona Dreaming (this is a specific spice blend from Penzey’s)

3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped

1 cup shredded cheese, reduced-fat

Salsa

16 corn tortillas

Directions:

In a large skillet, heat up 1 Tbsp. olive oil over medium heat.  Add garlic, onion, pepper, zucchini and ¼ cup of chicken broth to the pan.  Sauté the veggies until they are tender.  Add the drained and rinsed corn and beans to the pan and the remaining ¼ cup chicken broth (the liquid will cook down).  Next add in the spices – cumin, Arizona Dreaming and salt and pepper.  Make sure to stir well so the spices are mixed throughout the veggies.  Stir in fresh cilantro.  Total cooking time for the tortilla stuffing is about 10-12 minutes.  In a small skillet, heat up the remaining olive oil.  Place one tortilla in the pan and cook until the bottom is lightly browned.  Sprinkle some shredded cheese on one ½ of the tortilla and then scoop about ¼ cup of the vegetable filling onto the tortilla.  Fold the tortilla in half and press down with a spatula so it resembles the look of a quesadilla.  Heat the tortilla for about a minute before moving on to the next stuffed tortilla.  Serve with salsa and additional cheese on top if you prefer!

Tip:

The first one or two tortillas might be difficult to get perefectly browned or to fold in half easily - keep at it and you should be able to get it right.  Try adjusting the heat either up or down too to achieve lightly browned tortillas.

XOXO Megan

Mexican Caviar

This is a family favorite recipe and a fun new take on the traditional chips and salsa.  You can find some healthier baked chip options to serve with this to make sure you don’t spend too many pp values when snacking.  I made this for a 4^th of July barbeque I hosted last week.  I chose to serve it with blue corn chips which was a tasty choice!

Servings:  12

Size:  1/12 of the recipe

Points Plus: 4pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time:  n/a

Rating: 5 stars – Excellent

Ingredient List:

1 can shoepeg corn

1 can black eyed peas

1 can black beans

1 tomato, diced

1 avocado, diced

¼ cup red onion, chopped

½ red pepper, chopped

¼ cup fresh cilantro

Dressing:

¼ cup red wine vinegar

¼ cup olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. cumin

Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

Drain and rinse the peas, beans and corn; add to a large bowl.  Add in chopped tomato, onion, red pepper and cilantro.  Mix the dressing together with a whisk in a small glass measuring cup.  Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well.  Refrigerate if you aren’t serving immediately.  Add in the diced avocado just before you plan on serving to avoid browning. 

Tip:

It might be difficult to find a can of black-eyed peas.  I looked at a few different stores and was unsuccessful.  A good substitute is pinto beans! 

XOXO Megan

Broiled Cod with Chipotle Creme

After a weekend of eating out, eating unhealthy, and eating pretty much whatever we wanted, I decided to take it down a notch and make a light Memorial Day dinner. I have wanted to try making fish tacos forever, and landed on cod, a light flaky white fish.  After some internet research (my fav!) I came up with a good spice mixture and sauce for this Mexican inspired meal. In an effort to lighten things up a little more I opted to skip the tortillas and just serve the fish baked with a side of cilantro lime rice. You could also top with traditional fish taco fixings, red onion, tomato, cabbage, shredded radishes, exc!

Servings: 4

Size: 4oz fish

Points Plus: 4pp

Level of Difficulty: Medium

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 7 minutes

Rating: 4 stars - Very Good

Ingredient List: 

1 lb Atlantic cod

1 T. olive oil

1 t. kosher salt

1/4 t. black pepper

1/8 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. paprika

1/4 t. chili powder
1 lime

1/2 c. light sour cream

1-2 t. chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (sauce only)

Cilantro for garnish

Directions:

Turn oven to broil and place oven rack a few inches from the flame. Line a cookie sheet with tin foil and lay cod on foil. Pour olive oil over cod and brush to cover evenly. Mix salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika and chili powder. Sprinkle spice mixture evenly over fish. I ended up only using about half of the spice mixture, so feel free to do the same depending on how spicy/salty you would like it. Squeese the juice from one lime over fish. Place cod under the broiler and cook until flaky, for me this was about four minutes. While fish is cooking mix sour cream and chipotle pepper sauce.  When fish is cooked remove from oven and top with 2 T. chipotle cream mixture.  Garnish with cilantro.

Tip: 

With summer on it's way you could easily grill this fish outside.  

Roasted Vegetable & Refried Bean Tostadas

As I was going through old magazines, I came across this easy recipe from Real Simple.  This is a great meatless meal that is full of ingredients and will definitely leave you feeling full.

Servings:  4

Size:  2 tostadas

Points Plus: 7 pp

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time:  35 minutes

Rating: 4 stars – Very Good

Ingredient List:

10 oz. button mushrooms, trimmed and quartered

2 zucchini, thinly sliced

1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1 ½ inch pieces

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Kosher salt

Black pepper

8 corn tortillas

1 15 oz. can refried beans

4 oz. cheddar cheese, reduced-fat, shredded

Optional (these are not calculated into pp value):

Fresh cilantro, chopped

Light sour cream

Hot sauce

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°.  On a large, rimmed baking sheet, toss the mushrooms, zucchini and peppers with 1 Tbsp. olive oil.  Generously season the veggies with salt and pepper.  Roast the veggies, tossing once hallway through, until they are tender (about 20-25 minutes).  Place the tortillas on baking sheets.  Lightly brush each tortilla with olive oil, then spread with a generous layer of refried beans.  Top each tortilla with ½ ounce of cheddar cheese.  Bake the tostadas until the cheese is melted, about 5-7 minutes.  Top each tostada with roasted veggies, dividing evenly among all 8 tostadas.  Serve with sour cream, fresh cilantro or hot sauce if want.

Tip:

A really handy tool that works great for spreading the refried beans is Pampered Chef’s small spreader.  I love Pampered Chef products!  All of their products are great quality and they make such a variety of useful kitchen tools.  Check them out!

XOXO Megan

Sausage & Yellow Pepper Breakfast Tacos

These breakfast tacos are not only tasty, but after I made them I realized they have almost EVERY color of the rainbow in them.  They are so pretty!  You can put whatever you have on hand in breakfast tacos (or regular tacos for that matter). For these I choose to use some yellow pepper, mixed greens, spicy sausage and queso fresco and chipotle laughing cow cheese.

Servings: 2

Size: Two tacos

Points Plus: 7pp

Level of Difficulty: Easy

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Rating: 4 starts - Very Good

Ingredient List:

4 eggs

4 corn tortillas

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 yellow pepper

1 scallion

1 garlic clove

1 spicy turkey sausage

1 wedge queso fresco and chipotle laughing cow cheese

1 squirt Sriracha

1 splash of milk

Mixed greens

Salsa

Salt & pepper to taste
Cooking spray OR MISTO of EVOO

Directions:

The timing of this recipe is a little tricky and you have to do stuff fast.  Cutting and prepping everything before you start will make this recipe stress free! Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Chop pepper, scallion and garlic clove. Heat oil in skillet and add chopped veggies, cooking on low heat. (is garlic a veggie??).  Chop turkey sausage into small pieces and add to veggie mixture after about five minutes.  In the meantime, beat four eggs, add a splash of milk, a squirt of Sriracha and salt and pepper to taste.  Spray a second skillet and add eggs, cooking them on very low heat. When your oven is preheated, throw in the tortillas for a few minutes to warm.

To assemble:
Remove tortillas from oven and spread each with a quarter wedge of cheese. Equally distribute eggs and veggie mixture onto each, then top with salsa and lettuce.  Enjoy!

Tip:
Cooking eggs at low heat makes them more fluffy.  Give it a whirl!

XOXO Katie

Roasted Chicken Salsa Verde Tostada

Hola! In my opinion, corn tortillas do not taste good. at. all. BUT they are many fewer points than the flour alternative.  I have been experimenting with corn totillas and the broiler a lot lately, and have found that it is possible to create a whole new flavor AND texture that is a crunchy, salty, delicious mix.  I made these tostadas with store bought rotisserie chicken which was a real time saver and will be great for leftovers!

Servings: 2
Size: Two tostadas
Points Plus: 9pp
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 20 minutes (including removing the meat from the bones)
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Rating: 4 stars - Very Good

Ingredient List: 
4 corn tortillas
10 oz. rotisserie chicken
1/2 tomato, diced
1/2 cup shredded, reduced fat cheddar
2 Tbsp. light sour cream
4 Tbsp. salsa verde (I like the Target brand)
Chopped chives
Salsa (it is free, go wild!)

Directions: 
Clean your rotisserie chicken. Measure out 10 oz. and put the rest in your fridge. Set your oven to broil, and broil corn tortillas for four minutes with the rack set closest to the top of the oven. At this point they should be slightly crispy. Remove from the oven and top with chicken, tomato, salsa verde and shredded cheddar, splitting evenly among the four tostadas.  Move oven shelf down one level and broil for an additional 2 minutes.  Watch your tostadas so they don't burn!!!!!!  When they are cooked to your desired crispness. Remove from oven and add 1/2 Tbsp. sour cream to each. Add some chopped chives and salsa!

Tip:
I have a food scale and LOVE it!  I don't use it often, but it really comes in handy when trying to get accurate measurements for things that are hard to measure (ie: soup). It worked very well for this recipe.

XOXO Katie

Salsa Verde Enchiladas

In honor of Cinco de Mayo yesterday we thought a Mexican recipe was appropriate.  If you like authentic Mexican food, this is a recipe you have to check out!  Paul, my fiance, LOVES Mexican and suggested one weekend that we try out a true, authentic recipe.  He found this one online and we have to say we were impressed - definite authenticity.  We served our salsa verde enchiladas with a side of cooked black beans with onions and cilantro.  Yum!

Servings:  4

Size:  3 enchiladas

Points Plus: 10 pp

Level of Difficulty:  Medium

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Cook Time:  35 minutes

Rating: 5 stars – Excellent
*Recipe from: allrecipes.com

Ingredient List:

2 bone-in chicken breast halves

2 cups chicken broth

White onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp. salt

1 pound of fresh tomatillos, husks removed

5 Serrano peppers*

12 corn tortillas

1/8 cup olive oil

½ cup crumbled queso fresco

Fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine chicken breasts with chicken broth, ¼ of the onion, 1 clove of garlic and 2 tsp. salt.  Bring to a boil and then boil for 20 minutes.  Reserve broth, set aside chicken to cool and discard the onion and garlic.  When chicken has cooled, shred the chicken with 2 forks.

Place tomatillos and Serrano peppers in a pot with water, enough to cover them (some of the tomatillos will float a bit).  Bring to a boil, continue boiling until the tomatillos turn a different shade of green (they will start out as a bright green and turn to a dull, army green).  Strain tomatillos and peppers, place in a blender with another ¼ of the onion, 1 clove of garlic and a pinch of salt.  Pour in enough of the reserved chicken broth so the liquid covers the vegetables by about an inch in the blender.  Blend all ingredients until they are completely pureed.  Pour salsa into a medium saucepan and bring to a low boil.

Pour oil into a small frying pan; allow it to get very hot.  Slightly fry the tortillas one by one in the oil, setting each on a paper towel to absorb some oil after frying.  Finally dip the tortillas into the warmed salsa verde in the saucepan.  Place on plates, 3 tortillas per serving.  Assemble each enchilada by filling the tortillas with shredded chicken, some extra salsa verde sauce and rolling up. On top, add chopped onion, cilantro and crumbled queso fresco.

Tip:

*Note on the Serrano peppers.  The originally recipe calls for 5 peppers.  Unless you REALLY love spicy food, I would recommend scaling back on this. These are HOT enchiladas (I mean the recipe can’t say it’s authentic if it doesn’t have some heat to it!).  We have made this recipe twice, and used 3 peppers both times.  These peppers definitely have some kick!

XOXO Megan

Mexican Quiche

Quiches are one of those dishes that are SUPER impressive and SUPER easy.  I think they are impressive because of their unique name and easy because you basically add some ingredients to a pie crust, pour a few beaten eggs over them and bake. This recipe contains re-fried beans which help to keep the custard mixture from soaking into the bottom crust.  Degree of spiciness is controlled by the amount of hot sauce used. This Mexican inspired quiche is a veggie recipe and great for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner or snack time (whenevs)!  There are a ton of flavors and textures going on with this dish. I served this for a small casual dinner party with two side salads, a two bite appetizer and mini cheesecakes! (and wine)

Servings: 8
Size: 1/8 of pie tin
Points Plus: 7pp
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Rating: 5 stars - Excellent 

Ingredients:

1 Pillsbury pie crust (9 inch), unbaked

1/2 package (4 ounces) 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened

1 cup fat free re-fried beans

1 t. oil

1 medium green bell pepper, chopped

6 ounces mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 small onion, diced

1/8 tsp ground cumin

1/8 tsp chili powder

Few drops of hot sauce (optional)

3 eggs

1 cup milk

1 cup (4 ounces) low fat grated cheddar cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and remove your Pillsbury pie crust from the freezer. Once you are easily able to unroll your crust use your rolling pin to even out the sides and make it a  'perfect' circle. Place in pie plate and make it look pretty, making sure to press down the bottom so that it is flush with the bottom and side of the dish. (I am sure you can do a drastically better job at this than my quick version above). Spread cream softened cream cheese over bottom of pie crust, then spread beans over that layer.

Combine eggs and milk, beat slightly and add cheese. Set aside. 

Add one teaspoon vegetable oil to a skillet, and saute green pepper, mushrooms and onions until tender (not too soft). Add cumin, chili powder and hot sauce with measurements above or more to taste. Pour veggie mixture over beans. 

Pour egg and cheese mixture over veggie layer. Make sure it doesn't overflow. Bake for 40 minutes, until top is browned and eggs are set.  Let quiche stand for 10 minutes with a piece of tin fol loosely placed on top.

Tip: 
Practice makes perfect in the case of making a nice looking pie crust edge.  Start by making sure you are placing the rolled out crust in the very center of your pie plate. This will make the 'make it look pretty' part a LOT easier.  Feel free to cut off excess 'side crust' or fold it over to hid it.  

XOXO Katie

Taco Pizza

You may not know it, but pizza can be healthy! I like to make all kinds of combos, but just recently, when craving Doritos, I had the idea to make taco pizza.  Sub re-fried beans for pizza sauce, and top with your taco toppings.  This recipe is pretty basic, but the possibilities are endless!

Servings:  4

Size:  2 pieces, 1/4 of pizza

Points Plus: 8 pts

Level of Difficulty:  Easy

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time:  10-15 minutes

Rating: 3 stars - Good

Looks Better in Person!

Ingredient List:

1 whole wheat Boboli pizza crust

1 cup fat free re-fried beans

1 cup lettuce, chopped 

1 tomato, cubed

1 cup low-fat shredded cheddar

1 cup raw onion, any kind

1 cup jalapenos

9 Doritos, nacho cheese, crushed

Toppings (optional but calculated into Points Plus)

8 Tbsp reduced-fat sour cream

Salsa!

Directions:

Preheat oven to package directions. Open pizza crust and smear on beans until evenly covered.  Add lettuce, tomatoes, onion, cheese, jalapenos and crushed Doritos. Put on pizza stone and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked to desired crispness. Top with sour cream and salsa!

Tip:

When making home made pizza it is easy to get carried away on toppings and overload your pie causing it to be soggy and limp.  Err (had to look up the spelling of that!) on the light side so you can enjoy a crispy crust!

XOXO - Katie