Sun-Dried Tomato Shrimp Salad

I just have to admit up front ... I can claim absolutely NO credit for this recipe. It is from the TSFL Lean & Green Cookbook. But it was so yummy that I just had to pass it along. If you are following this program and don't have this recipe book yet, you really should get it. So worth every penny!!


Ingredients
1 lb (16 oz) raw shrimp, peeled and de-veined OR 14 oz fully cooked frozen shrimp, thawed
2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped or shredded
1 cup (2 medium) tomatoes, diced
1 cup cucumber, sliced
8 Tbsp Sun-Dried Tomato dressing, divided (recipe specified Newman's Own, but I couldn't find it at my local store, so I used the Kraft equivalent)


Preparation
Marinate shrimp in 6 Tbsp of dressing for 1-2 hours (I was only able to marinate it for about 30-45 minutes, and it still absorbed the flavor well). Prepare salad by washing vegetables and cutting them as indicated above; set aside. After shrimp has sufficiently marinated, pour entire contents (shrimp and marinade) into a skillet and cook over medium heat until shrimp are cooked through (or turn opaque in color), about 3-5 minutes. Place shrimp on top of salad and drizzle remaining dressing over.


Each serving counts as:  1 "Leanest" Protein Serving, 2 Healthy Fat Servings, 3 Vegetable Servings
Serves 2


Total cost of this meal was about $4-5. So, leaning towards the more expensive side, it cost about $2.50 per person. It was light, refreshing and super tasty. And as easy as it sounds. We will definitely be having this one again!

Cabbage casserole

So, this is a little late, but figured I'd post my new St. Patrick's Day cabbage recipe. We really enjoyed this, and there are so many variations you could do to make it fit your lifestyle. As usual, I changed it up from the recipe I originally stumbled across, mainly in an effort to get it to fit fully within our "lean and green" meal requirements. But also to fit with what was actually in my pantry! I have never, ever wanted anything to do with cooked cabbage ... but I  have changed my tune since eating this meal! Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.


Ingredients
1 lb lean ground beef (I got a GREAT deal on the 97% lean ground beef straight from the butcher's block - but you could also use the super lean ground turkey for an even leaner meat)
1 tsp olive oil
1-2 tsp onion powder
2 cups mushrooms, chopped
1 tsp salt (or salt substitute)
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 cup brown minute rice (this part was not within our current lean & green, but we splurged, because the recipe really needed something to help absorb the wet ingredients)
2 10-oz cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes
3 cups coarsely chopped cabbage (I had the pre-bagged dry coleslaw mix on hand that I'd gotten for 49 cents a package, so I just used 1-1.5 bags of it)


Preparation
In a large frying pan, stir and break up the ground beef in oil for 1-2 minutes (I actually just substituted olive-oil flavored cooking spray to cut back on the fat). Add onion powder, salt, pepper, mushrooms and rice. Mix well and continue sweating for 2-3 minutes. Add tomatoes and stir well. Put cabbage into bottom of a greased baking dish. Pour meat mixture over raw cabbage and bake covered at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.


Extra bonus tip: You can easily double the recipe and store in tupperware containers and freeze for up to a couple months. Have an easy meal to pull out of the freezer on a day when you don't have time for the extra effort!


Meal prepared as listed above cost me about $6 to make, or $3 a serving.

Spanish Crockpot Chicken

I am all about making my life as easy as possible. And any meal I can make in the crockpot qualifies as just that! I adapted this recipe slightly from getskinnybehappy.com. The recipe as I found it only called for enough veggies for 1 person, but there was enough chicken to feed 3 or 4 people. So I added more veggies. And it was amazing! My hubby was practically licking the remains off his plate, and my 2 year old ate 2 full platefuls! Took all of 5 minutes to prepare, and the total cost for the entire recipe was about $4.50.


Ingredients
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper
1 large onion, diced
1 can of no-salt-added green beans
4-8 oz sliced mushrooms
1/2 tsp tarragon
1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash chicken seasoning
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 (16 oz) can of diced tomatoes (I used Italian-style with basil)
1 large green bell pepper, diced


Arrange chicken in bottom of crockpot. Add remaining ingredients on top. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Serve and enjoy!