Classic Macaroni Salad

May 29, 2013 by

Classic Macaroni Salad

Is it totally weird that we had risotto for dinner on Memorial Day? I spent the day making recipes, photographing, doing some reading for work and then my husband made risotto for dinner. Totally not typical Memorial Day food, but oh well. I guess we are a little weird like that.

Let’s talk about a food you might actually eat at a summer BBQ- good ol’ classic macaroni salad. Macaroni salad that is typically drowning in mayo, that is. I think I have told you guys about a bazillion times now how I HATE when pasta and potato salads are drowning in mayonnaise. Seriously, I hate it. It makes me want to gag.

Classic Macaroni Salad

I wanted to give the classic macaroni salad a little makeover. Typically, aside from some chopped onion and diced peppers, you don’t see a lot of veggies in the classic macaroni salad, so I threw in some fresh chopped broccoli, grape tomatoes, and peas to change things up a bit. Not only does it make the dish a little more nutritious, it adds a nice pop of color! I reduced the mayo and used light mayo and mixed in some fat free Greek yogurt. This pasta salad is light, but it’s also nice and creamy at the same time!

Classic Macaroni Salad

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Macaroni Salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

Calories per serving: 165

Fat per serving: 3.6g

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb. elbow macaroni (any brand will do; I used whole grain pasta)
  • 3 tbs. fat free plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 cup light mayo (I used the kind made with olive oil)
  • 2 tbs. cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
  • 1 1/2 tsp. mustard powder
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 cups chopped fresh broccoli florets
  • 2 cups sliced grape tomatoes
  • 1 cup cooked green peas

Instructions

  1. Cook the pasta in a pot of salted boiling water according to the package directions. Drain and pour the pasta to a large bowl or container.
  2. In a bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, mayo, vinegar, mustard powder, garlic powder and some salt and pepper.
  3. Add the veggies to the pasta. Pour in the dressing and mix until the pasta and veggies are all coated with the dressing. Season with additional salt and pepper if necessary.

Notes

Feel free to add different veggies if desired - diced peppers and celery would also be great in this salad!

http://eat-drink-love.com/2013/05/classic-macaroni-salad/

Classic Macaroni Salad
Filed Under: Low-Fat, Pasta, Sides, Vegetarian/Vegan · Tagged With: , , , , , 10 Comments

Lemon Yogurt Cookies with Blueberry Frosting

March 22, 2013 by

Lemon Yogurt Cookies with Blueberry Frosting

It’s almost Easter. Where the heck did it come from and how is it almost April?!! Craziness I tell you. Usually my husband and I would go to my mom’s house in Florida, go to church, and make lots of homemade pasta. Now that we are in Arizona, it will just be the two of us. But homemade pasta will still be made. It just must.

Lemon Yogurt Cookies with Blueberry Frosting

Last week I received a ginormous package from the awesome folks at Chobani. When it comes to Greek yogurt, I always reach for Chobani. It’s my absolute favorite. They have such a wide variety of flavors! Greek yogurt is becoming a staple in my kitchen for cooking and baking. I use it for dips, chicken salad, and biscuits, you name it!

Lemon Yogurt Cookies with Blueberry Frosting

This time, I wanted to make cookies so I came up with lemon yogurt cookies with blueberry yogurt frosting! To be honest, my original plan was for these to be whoopie pies. But then after I mixed up the frosting, it was a little runny and pushing two of the cookie parts together just made a mess. I think this is due to the lower fat content, but it is still so tasty! Anyway, I decided that these might just be better as a cookie. The cookies have more of a cake-like texture, but I really like that about these. And seriously, how cute would these be for Easter?

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Lemon Yogurt Cookies with Blueberry Frosting

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Yield: About 16 cookies

Serving Size: 1 cookie

Calories per serving: 148

Fat per serving: 4g

Ingredients

    For the cookies:
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or do half wheat, half all-purpose)
  • 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 3 tbs. unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup. plain or lemon Chobani Greek Yogurt
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • lemon extract (optional; and can add to taste)
  • 1/2 cup non-fat buttermilk*
    • For the frosting:
  • 1/2 cup Chobani blueberry Greek yogurt
  • 3 ounces Neufchâtel cheese
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a baking sheet or line with a baking mat.
  2. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and the salt. Set aside.
  3. In a larger mixing bowl, beat together the Greek yogurt, butter, and the sugar until smooth. Stir in the egg, lemon juice and zest (and extract if using).
  4. Adding a little bit at at time, pour in the flour mixture and mix into the wet ingredients until well-combined. Stir in the buttermilk.
  5. Scoop about 2 tbs. of the batter at a time onto the baking sheet. Bake for about 10-13 minutes until the sides are lightly golden. Let cool completely before frosting.
    6. For the frosting:
  6. In a mixing bowl, beat together the blueberry yogurt and the Neufchâtel cheese. Sift the powdered sugar and mix in with the yogurt and Neufchâtel until well-combined. Spread some of the frosting on top of each cookie and serve.

Notes

If you can't find non-fat buttermilk in your store, you can make your own! Pour skim milk into a cup and stir in about 1/2 tsp. of white distilled vinegar or lemon juice and let stand for about 5 minutes.

http://eat-drink-love.com/2013/03/lemon-yogurt-cookies-with-blueberry-frosting/

Lemon Yogurt Cookies with Blueberry Frosting

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Disclaimer: I received a package of yogurt from Chobani to use. As always, all opinions are my own.
Filed Under: Cookies, Desserts, Low-Fat · Tagged With: , , , , , , 20 Comments

Avocado Mango Chicken Salad

February 4, 2013 by

Avocado Mango Chicken Salad

I love chicken salad, but I am super picky about it and I have a couple of chicken salad rules. First, it can’t be drowning in mayonnaise. The second big rule is that I like for it to be chunky. I hate when the chicken is cut up or shredded so small that it is almost non-existent. This rule is especially important when coupled with Rule #1. I also like a little crunch or something to break up the chicken and mayo, whether it’s celery, onion, or in this case, mango!!

Given my craziness when it comes to chicken salad, I often just make my own. I have been on a huge mango kick lately. Putting it in salsas and smoothies. Why not put it in some chicken salad? So put it all together and you have some avocado mango chicken salad! And instead of mayo, I went for Greek yogurt. The Greek yogurt gives it that creamy texture and gives it a nice tang. I love the combo of the mango, chicken, and avocado. Of course there is avocado in this. Because you know I can’t be helped. This avocado mango chicken salad is creamy, it’s nice and chunky, and isn’t drowning in mayo. Yup, this meets all of my chicken salad requirements!

Avocado Mango Chicken Salad

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Avocado Mango Chicken Salad

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 cup cooked chicken, cut into bite-sized cubes
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 3/4 cup diced mango (fresh or frozen will work)
  • 3 tbs. diced red onion
  • 2/3 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt (can adjust depending on how creamy you want it to be)
  • 1/2 lime, juiced
  • 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
  • salt to taste

Instructions

  1. Mix together all of the ingredients in a bowl.
  2. Serve over greens, in a wrap, or on some bread or a croissant.
http://eat-drink-love.com/2013/02/avocado-mango-chicken-salad/

Avocado Mango Chicken Salad
Filed Under: Chicken, Low-Fat, Salads, Sandwiches · Tagged With: , , , , , 24 Comments

Cranberry Orange Scones

November 26, 2012 by

Raise your hand if you wish every week was only 3 days. If you are not raising your hand, then you must be on something.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, it’s time to shop for gifts. Raise your hand if you want to do my Christmas shopping for me. I will love you forever.

Raise your hand if stuffed yourself silly last week. It’s time to lighten up a little bit. You know, for at least a few days before all that holiday baking and parties start.

Cranberry and orange are one of my favorite flavor combos, especially this time of year. I usually just make a whole lot of cranberry orange bread, but I went for a scone this time. Greek yogurt helps to cut the fat and adds a nice tang to these scrumptious scones.

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Cranberry Orange Scones

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 8 scones

Serving Size: 1 scone

Calories per serving: 195

Fat per serving: 5.3 g

Ingredients

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • zest of one orange
  • 3 tbs. butter, diced into small cubes
  • 3/4 cup low fat, plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 2/3 cup fresh cranberries
  • raw sugar (for sprinkling on top)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and orange zest.
  3. Add in the diced butter and using two knives or a pastry blender, work the butter into the flour mixture.
  4. Make a well in the center.
  5. Add in the yogurt and orange juice. Stir until just combined.
  6. Stir in the cranberries, do not overmix.
  7. Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Knead together the dough and pat into an 8-inch circle. Cut the dough into 8 slices. Place the slices on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a baking mat. Sprinkle some raw sugar on top of each scone.
  8. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden.
http://eat-drink-love.com/2012/11/cranberry-orange-scones/
Filed Under: Breakfast, Low-Fat, Snacks · Tagged With: , , , , , 24 Comments

Greek Yogurt with Warm Berry Sauce

May 2, 2012 by

Greek Yogurt with Warm Berry Sauce

You know what I love?

Recipes that can be eaten for breakfast AND dessert.

I can’t even begin to tell you how wonderful this Greek yogurt with warm berry sauce is. It is super easy to prepare and does not contain very much sugar which makes it a great option for breakfast or dessert. I could just eat it with a spoon as is. Also, look how pretty it is!! It’s happiness in a bowl!

In fact, it’s very possible I did eat it with a spoon right out of the pan. It’s also possible that I burned the s*&# out of my tongue…I really have no patience whatsoever.

The sauce is just perfect to balance out the tanginess of the Greek yogurt. You could also serve this sauce over ice cream or even oatmeal. It would also be awesome over pancakes or waffles! It’s all good! But maybe take my advice and don’t eat it out of the pan when scalding hot…

Greek Yogurt with Warm Berry Sauce

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Greek Yogurt with Warm Berry Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Serving Size: 1/2 cup yogurt, 1/4 cup berry sauce

Calories per serving: 192

Fat per serving: 5.8g

Ingredients

  • 1 1/3 cups frozen mixed berries (or any blend of berries you prefer)
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 tbs. lemon juice
  • 1 tbs. butter
  • 2 cups plain reduced-fat Greek yogurt

Instructions

  1. Combine the berries, sugar, water, and lemon juice in a small sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to a gentle boil. Let the mixture boil for about 10 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken. Stir in the butter.
  2. Fill serving bowls with the yogurt. Spoon the sauce evenly over the yogurt.

Notes

Recipe lightly adapted from Cooking Light

http://eat-drink-love.com/2012/05/greek-yogurt-with-warm-berry-sauce/

Greek Yogurt with Warm Berry Sauce
Filed Under: Breakfast, Desserts, Low-Fat · Tagged With: , , , , , , 34 Comments