Happy Monday all! I have to say this weekend has been fantastic for checking things off my to-do list and whipping up some tasty new recipes (like the Mini Quiches, Chili Glazed Shrimp, Breakfast Nachos and Slow Cooker Buffalo Lasagna) for us to try. Although, I have to admit, I am pretty sad my 3 days off are coming to an end…the silver lining I suppose is that there are only 4 workdays this week lol!
This morning’s breakfast has been something I have been wanting ever since I saw Biz make her Breakfast Nachos. I mean, I LOVE those extra thin yellow corn tortillas for my Healthy Egg Rolls and Healthy Nachos….who says you can’t combine the two and have Nachos for Breakfast!
I cut 4 tortillas into 8 squares each, placed them on a baking sheet, sprayed with nonstick spray and a sprinkle of coarse sea salt. Then, baked for 7 minutes to make these fantastically crunchy chips for 4 points+ (SF + 4 WPA).
I used the food processor to whip up a quick pico de gallo. It definitely looks better when you hand chop it.
I scrambled an egg and “fried” up 2 oz. of my homemade Spicy Turkey Sausage. You could use any of the homemade simply filling sausages I’ve shown you all or better yet, crisp up a couple slices of Trader Joe’s Turkey Bacon!
Topped with 1 oz. low-fat sharp cheddar cheese.
Added my toppers ~ I’ll be honest, I totally scooped a lot more pico on my chips after the picture and all. My entire plate is (SF + 4 WPA) or 10 points+
Crunchy, cheesy, spicy, good ~ Nachos should definitely be a breakfast food!
I am totally addicted to blueberries right now and these are perfectly snappy and sweet.
I spent the morning and some of the afternoon finishing up some tax work. I didn’t think about diving into lunch until 6 hours later (love that breakfast kept me going that long).
Lunch was a repeat of yesterday’s Chili Glazed Shrimp with Fried Rice
(SF + 1 WPA) 10 points+
Dessert ~ A super crunchy nectarine.
I have been wanting to make this Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Recipe ever since I first saw it on Pinterest. I modified their recipe to fit into Simply Filling.
I think this would be great using leftover chicken ~ only I didn’t have any. So, I boiled 1 lb. of organic chicken tenders and shredded them.
I bulked up my chicken mix with a little carrot, celery, onion and garlic (buffalo wing sides…sort of). I sprinkled the mix with a little sea salt and black pepper.
Diced a yellow & orange bell pepper because it is what I had on hand (versus the green peppers).
I actually picked one Fat Free Cheese to use ~ Trader Joe’s Fat Free Ricotta.
I do not think you can really tell with ricotta when it’s fat free and the ingredient list is totally recognizable.
To balance it out, I used 10 oz. part skim mozzarella with 2 oz. low-fat sharp cheddar. I skipped the stinky cheese because I do not like Blue moldy cheese
The Secret Sauces ~ Trader Joe’s Arrabiata & Frank’s Red Hot.
Trader Joe’s Arrabiata is made up of pretty much Simply Filling (real) ingredients.
I also picked up Ronzoni Healthy Harvest to swap in Whole Wheat Lasagna noodles.
I think you all know I love hot foods, but, when, I first read 1 cup of Frank’s Red Hot, I thought WOW that is going to be H-O-T. So, I started by adding a 1/2 cup, then, tasting and ended up deciding it wouldn’t be too spicy with a whole cup.
Grab your biggest slow cooker because this recipe makes 5 quarts! I sprayed mine with nonstick spray for good measure although you may not need.
Layer it up beginning with a big scoop of sauce on the bottom.
I broke 3 1/2 noodles into shapes to fit into the circle.
Smear 1/3 of the ricotta cheese.
Sprinkle with 1/3 of the peppers.
Plus 1/4 of the cheese.
Repeat until you end with your last layer of sauce. Add 1/4 water to the pasta sauce jar, shake and pour over the mix.
Finish with the remaining cheese and cook on low for 4 hours or high for 2.5 – 3 hours. Much more and your noodles will get soggy.
Let stand for about 20 minutes before slicing into 10 servings and carefully slopping it on a plate to serve. Yep, it’s totally the classy way to serve dinner to your husband.
It doesn’t really look pretty, but, I have to say, this was so tasty. It’s a little sweet from the peppers, but, you get hit with the spice of the franks right as you bite into the cheesy, noodley, chicken goodness. I definitely think this will be better the next day as the flavors blend together. I can’t wait for leftovers because we have a lot!
100% Simply Filling or 9 points+
The Husband made up our salads topped with 1 Tbsp. Newman’s Lite Lime Vinaigrette.
(SF + 1 WPA) – 1 points+
Here are my stats today:
- Simple Filling (SF): 6 WPA (Weekly Points Allowance) used, 35 WPA remaining
- 30 Daily Points+ 4 WPA used, 45 WPA remaining
- My FitBit Dashboard:
Night all!
Can’t wait to try this lasagna! I’ve been hooked on crock pot lasagna ever since I’ve tried the WW recipe on their web-site…who knew it would be so easy and delicious!! And those nachos…I can see them on the menu for next Sunday’s brunch 🙂 Lots of good stuff this week!!
Danica …what the oven temp when cooking the nacho chips (thin tortilla)?
I’m making nachos tonight!
Hooray for breakfast nachos! I could literally eat those every morning and never get sick of them – and I find them super filling too – I normally don’t eat lunch until 2 in the afternoon when I have those for breakfast. 😀 Thanks for the shout out! 😀
Ha! As soon as I saw the breakfast nachos I was like, my twin sister Biz makes those all the time :0). Yours look great Danica! I still haven’t made them yet.
how do you burn so many calories in a day with not many steps taken?
thank you so much for your posts and recipes. So inspiring and motivating. I pin them most every day! I only wish that I could pin each recipe/ dish separately since I have trouble finding the recipes that listing in the heading when I go back to Pinterest to search for them. The pictures help find them too. I have started adding the other recipes to the description though. Thanks again.
This sounds like a interesting change from regular lasagna! Will try!
I made your steet cut oats with blueberries and peaches for breakfast, I love that stuff!
I am here to shout about the breakfast nachos. Breakfast is my favorite meal for
some reason. Well not on go to work mornings—but Sunday lay around brunch mornings. I love blueberries. I add them and strawberries in all kinds of unexpected
dishes. I love the surprise of them in dish where they are not expected.