Mac &Cheese with Cauliflower

1 (14.5 oz) box Ronzoni Smart Taste elbow macaroni
1/2 head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into florets
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
4 Tbsp reduced-fat grated Parmesan cheese
8 oz. grated sharp cheddar
4 oz. fat-free cream cheese
1/2 cup fat-free half-and-half
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 Tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped


Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add macaroni and cauliflower.  Reserve a 1/2 cup of the water then drain macaroni and cauliflower.  In a separate bowl, combine Italian breadcrumbs, 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan cheese and the chopped parsley together and set aside.


Place cheddar, cream cheese, 3 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese, half-and-half, salt and pepper in the already heated pot you just used and mix in the macaroni and cauliflower.  Stir until well-combined and cheese is completely melted.  Add reserved water.


Place in 8 greased ramekins (or a 9x13 baking dish) and top with bread crumb mixture.  Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes, or until bubbling and the crumbs are browned.  Enjoy!

What I did different: I put it in a 9x13 and there was too much bread crumb. So next time I'll use less.

CP Chicken Fajitas

1 yellow onion, sliced
3 sweet peppers, sliced
1 ½ pounds boneless chicken breast or thighs
1/4 to ½ cup chicken broth, depending on preference
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cumin
1 ½ tablespoons chili powder
Squirt of lime juice
Tortillas
Fajita fixings

Combine sliced onion and peppers in the bottom of a greased crockpot. Lay chicken on top of veggies. Pour chicken broth over top. Sprinkle everything with cumin, salt, and chili powder. Give a nice quirt of lime juice over the top. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours (or on High for 4-6 hours). When meat is done, shred with two forks and stir back into juices. Serve meat mixture with slotted spoon on tortillas with your choice of fixings.
What I did different: I didn't use the full 2 tablespoons of cumin and I added a little extra chicken broth.

Berry Smoothie

6-8 Strawberries2 spoon fulls of Frozen Raspberries
2 spoon fulls of Frozen Blueberries
2 spoon fulls of Greek Plain Yogurt
1-2 spoon fulls of sugar
1-2 cups of milk
5 ice cubes

Put all in blender and mix well.

Scramby Eggs with Peppers

Chopped red, green, and yellow pepper (as much as you like)Chopped red onion
2 eggs
Splash of milk

Directions: Mix all together and cook. You can even turn it into an omelet and top with a little bit of cheese. Or use less peppers and onion and add salsa and turn into a burrito.

I just made this one up this morning and it was yummy. You could cook the peppers before if you don't like the crunch. I just cooked them with the egg so they were a bit crunchy still and it was nice to have a little bit of texture difference.

Skinny Green Monster Smoothie

1 small frozen ripe banana, peeled 2 cups baby spinach
1 tbsp Better n Peanut Butter
3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/2 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt (I used Chobani)

Directions:

Place all the ingredients into the blender, add ice (optional) and blend until smooth.

What I did different: I didn't have the vanilla almond milk, so I used 1% milk and added a little bit of almond extract. And my banana wasn't frozen so I added 5 ice cubes.


Servings: 1 • Serving Size: about 2 cups • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 253.4 • Fat: 4.0 g • Carb: 38.6 g • Fiber: 5.5 g • Protein: 17.5 g • Sugar: 18.4 g
Sodium: 236.7 mg

Tuna Cakes

2 cans (6oz each) light tuna in water, drained 1 pkg stove top stuffing mix for chicken
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
¾ cup water
1 carrot shredded
1/3 cup mayo

Mix all ingredients and refrigerate for 10 min. Nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Use ice cream scoop to add 1/3 cup tuna mixture, in batches. Flatten with spatula to make patties. Cook 6 min flip over after 3min or until golden brown on both sides.

What I did different: I used a 12oz can because it's what I had and it's just the same. I'm not sure how many patties it makes because I added a second 12oz can, used 1 cup water instead of 3/4 and 1 full cup of mayo. It made about 10 good sized patties.

Banana Bread

1cup sugar
1/2cup butter or margarine
2 eggs beaten
3 mashed bananas (works with 2)
3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
2 cups flour
2 cups nuts (optional-I skip the nut and put about a handful of chocolate chips in stead).

Cream sugar and shortening. Add eggs, bananas, milk, vanilla. Add baking powder, flour, salt. Mix well. Add nuts or chocolate chips. Pour batter into greased loaf pans. Bake for one hour at 325 or until toothpick comes out clean.

What I did different: I put it into 2 loaf pans to make sure the center cooked. They come out really small but still taste good!