Ranch Chicken

I was so excited to try this Ranch Chicken recipe and it definitely did not let me down!  I tried to make it as healthy as possible but it still ended up a little higher in points that I would have wanted.  It's worth it though!  It was sooo easy to make and would be great for someone that hasn't used a Slow Cooker yet.

Ingredients:
2 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken
2 boxes Fat Free Cream Cheese
2 packets Ranch Dressing Mix
2 cans Fat Free Chicken Broth

All you need for this are four simple ingredients.

First place all of the chicken in the Slow Cooker.  In a bowl mix together the broth and ranch mix and then pour it over the chicken.  Next just cut the cream cheese into slices and cover the chicken with them.

I put this in the fridge overnight.  In the morning I set it on low for seven hours and then it stayed on warm for two and a half hours.  I came home and it smelled excellent but looked kind of weird.  It probably would have been really good if I cut up fresh broccolli and put it in the night before too.

I got home and cooked some broccolli and rice to go with it and dinner was served.  I made it into four servings but they were pretty big.  You can probably get six servings out of it if you are trying to cut back.

I saved all of the extra sauce to put over vegetables.  Does that make it less points for the meals? lol

Servings: 4
WW Points+: 10



Steel Oats with Applesauce and Craisins

Lately I have been having Quaker Oatmeal Variety Packs for breakfast.  I always feel like they are full of sugar and that they can't possibly be that healthy.  I heard some people talking about Steel Cut Oat in the Slow Cooker and I thought I would give them a try.  They are supposed to be less processed and higher in fiber than the basic rolled oats.  This was so easy to do and since I cooked them during the day I got home from work yesterday and my kitchen smelled amazing!  I divided the batch into 6 containers so I could grab them before work everyday and not have to worry about portioning them out.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c Steel Cut Oats
6 c Water
1 pint applesauce (we can our own)
3/4 c Craisins
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon All Spice

First gather all of your ingredients:

Mix everything together in the Slow Cooker.  This was so simple I actually did it before I left the house for work instead of the night before.

It wasn't really a recipe that takes a good picture before cooking.  I set it on low for nine hours and then it switched to warm for two and a half more hours.  When I first looked at it I thought it had turned out bad because it was still watery.

I stirred it and let it set for about 20 minutes and it started to look like normal Oatmeal!

I had it for breakfast this morning and I still feel pretty full! I may start doing this at the beginning of every week and just start adding different flavors to keep it interesting!

Servings: 6
5 Points Plus

I'm still not sure what kind of tool I can use to calculate the normal Nutritional Information.

Fajitas

Looking for a healthy Mexican meal? I made some healthy fajitas this week.

Ingredients:
7 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Halves
2 Onions - Sliced
2 Green Bell Peppers - Cut in strips
2 Red Bell Peppers - Cut in strips
4 Cloves of Garlic - Minced
2t Chili Powder
2t Ground Cumin
2t Ground Coriander
28oz Tomatoes - Canned
1/4c Water
8 Flour Tortillas



Slice the peppers and onions. I did this the night before and stored it in a ziplock. This sped up the morning preparation a lot.


Combine all of the ingredients in the crockpot.

Dinner is served. It was very juicy. You will need to make sure you use a slotted spoon to drain some of the juices.

You can serve the fajitas with many different toppings such as cheese and sour cream.

It is such a healthy meal when you use a whole grain wrap.

Nutrition: (8 servings)

375 calories

7g fat
6g fiber

28g protein

51g carbs

9 points

Mom's Chili

Today many of my family members came over to can applesauce. This morning, I decided to start some chili in the crockpot. It was ready for lunch after we were done canning. I used the recipe that my mom has always used. It's delicious!

FYI, this is a double recipe to feed all of us. I had to cook it in 2 slow cookers. You will most likely want to cut the ingredients in half.

Ingredients:
2 Quarts of Canned Tomatoes
2 Cans of Kidney Beans
2 Cans of Black Beans
2 Cans of Great Northern Beans
2lb Lean Ground Beef
1 Onion
1 Red Pepper
1 Green Pepper
1T Cumin
1T Chili Powder


Chop the onion and peppers. If you prefer spicier food, you could use a different type of pepper.

Brown the ground beef and peppers on the stove.

Mix all of the ingredients in the crockpot.

Cook on high for 6-8 hours.

I served the chili with sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped onions, and club crackers on the side.

I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine did.

Nutritional Info:
317 calories
5g fat
12g fiber
28g protein

Meatloaf and Potatoes

I've been seeing people post about making Meatloaf in their Slow Cookers and I was kind of skeptical so I decided to try it.  I looked up a healthier recipe than what I was used to having.  It turned out quite watery and fell apart.  It did taste great though!  I'm going to have to tweak it next time to get it to stay together more.  I also added a bag of frozen veggies which made it a bigger serving without adding the calories.  Next time I think I will buy fresh Mushrooms, Broccolli and Cauliflower and chop them in the food processor to give it a better texture.

Ingredients:
2 lb Lean Ground Beef
4 Slices Light Bread
1 Medium Onion
1 Bag Frozen Veggies
1 Can Tomato Sauce
1 Tablespoon Parsley
1 Tablespoon Splenda
2 Teaspoons Mustard

Mix the ground beef, shredded bread, chopped onion and veggies, mustard and half of the can of tomato sauce together in a bowl.

Form a ball / loaf out of the mixture and place it into the Slow Cooker.  Next mix together the rest of the Tomato Sauce, Splenda and Parsley and pour it over the meatloaf.

I decided I wanted to try potatoes with it too.  So I wrapped four potatoes in foil and placed them on top to see what would happen.  I put this in the fridge overnight so I could start it as I was walking out the door in the morning.

I cooked this on low for 9.5 hours and then let it sit on warm for an hour.  The house smelled pretty amazing when I got home and all I had to do was warm up some veggies to go with it! :) That's my kind of dinner!

It didn't really keep the shape of a meatloaf.  I think this is because the recipe didn't call for an egg.  It also pretty much crumbled when I cut it up.

This made 8 Servings.. The potatoes turned out yellow but they were really good after cooking for long.  It made them taste kind of sweet.

Ground Beef "Hash"

This hash recipe is super easy to make. You just need a little bit of time to brown the beef while you are chopping the onions and carrots. I was in a rush that morning and threw the onions and carrots in a food processor for a few seconds. It worked out just fine. :)

Ingredients:
3/4c lb Lean Ground Beef
1c Onions, chopped
1c Carrots, chopped
2c Canned Tomatoes with Juice
2c Tomato Juice
6oz White Rice
2tsp Chili Powder
1/4tsp Black Pepper

Brown ground beef

Combine all ingredients in the slower cooker.

Cook on high for 3 hours

When I got home, the "hash" was just right.

It wasn't like the corned beef hash I have in the past. It was more like a Spanish rice. But it was a tasty healthy dinner.

Nutrition: (serves 6)
250 calories
5g fat
4g fiber
14g protein

Chicken and Dumplings

I have always loved Chicken and Dumplings! So when I found out that it could be made in my Crock I got really excited! I made this the other night and it has become one of my new favorites!

Ingredients:
1lb Boneless Skinless Chicken, Cubed
1 Medium Onion, Chopped
1 can Cream of Chicken (Reduced Fat)
1 can Cream of Mushroom (Healthy Request)
1 can Whole Kernal Corn
1 can Green Beans
2 cans Refrigerated Low Fat Biscuits
2 tablespoons Butter

I decided to add the corn and green beans after I had all of this in the Slow Cooker.

When I made it I just placed the frozen Chicken into the Crock Pot.  Next time I would cut the Chicken into cubes so that it is easier to divide up the portions.  Then I spread the butter on top of the chicken.  Covered that with the two cans of soup and then spread the Onion, Green Beans and Corn out on top of this.

I made this the night before so all I had to do in the morning was throw it in the Slow Cooker on low for 9 hours.  I added some extra time since the chicken was raw and it was refrigerated overnight. 

I got home and realized I bought cresent rolls instead of the regular biscuits but I made them work. 

I turned it on high and placed the dough into the Crock Pot for about 35 minutes.

This made eight servings that kept us full all night!

It was soooo good!

Serves 8
Weight Watchers Points Plus: 9

Sorry for our posting delay...

My new camera should be arriving in the mail today and Jessica should be back from her business trip... Sorry we had to take a week off from posting on the blog but we will be back with lots of great recipes next week! I have been doing lots of research... :D