Creamy Chicken-and-Rice Casserole

Since I started coaching at night I've been trying to prepare a lot of dinners before I leave for practice, so I happen to be making a lot of casseroles. I found this one on CookingLight.com and its delicious and super easy. I made it the other night when Denis's parents were coming for dinner and I wanted to be able to spend time with them instead of cooking.

Creamy Chicken-and-Rice Casserole

CookingLight.com

Serves 6 (serving size: 1 1/3)

Ingredients

1 (6.9-ounce) package one-third-less-salt chicken-flavored rice-and-vermicelli mix with chicken broth and herbs ( I used Rice-A-Roni)

1 tablespoon margarine

2 1/4 cups hot water

Vegetable cooking spray

1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces

1 cup presliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 (10 3/4-ounce) can reduce-fat, reduced-sodium condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

1/4 cup crushed multigrain crackers (I used Wheat Thins, the recipe suggests to use 6 but I found it wasn't enough so I used about 15)

1 tablespoon margarine, melted

Directions

Cook rice mix in a large nonstick skillet according to package directions, using 1 tablespoon margarine and 2 1/4 cups hot water. Remove mixture from skillet; set aside. Wipe skillet with paper towel.

Coat the skillet with cooking spray, and place over high heat until hot. Add chicken, mushrooms, and garlic powder; saute 6 minutes or until chicken loses its pink color. Combine rice mixture, chicken mixture, sour cream, pepper, and soup in a bowl, stir well. Spoon mixture into into a 2-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Combine crackers crumbs and margarine; stir well, and sprinkle over chicken mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Make-Ahead Tips: You can assemble the casserole ahead of time, omitting the cracker-crumb mixture; cover and chill in the refrigerator or freeze (thaw frozen casserole overnight in refrigerator). Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes; top with the cracker crumb mixture, and bake as directed.

Cheesy Turkey Enchiladas with Tomatillo Salsa with Cilantro with Spanish Rice

I recently bought Rocco Dispirito's new cookbook Now Eat This! 150 of America's favorite comfort foods: All under 350 calories. We absolutely love it! I have made this recipe for Enchiladas twice and it is so yummy. I did leave off the cilantro garnish because I am not a fan. I have found that people either love it or hate it and I don't think it takes away much of the flavor for this great dish. As a side I made a really easy spanish rice from Cooking Light.

Cheesy Turkey Enchiladas with Tomatillo Salsa and Cilantro

Rocco Dispirito: Now Eat This!

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 12 oz ground turkey
• Four 9-inch low carb tortillas, such as La Tortilla Factory
• 2/3 cup fat-free spicy bean dip such as Desert Pepper Trading Company
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• One 12 ounce jar tomatillo salsa, such as Ortega
• 1 cup reduced fat Mexican cheese blend, such as Weight Watchers
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees
2. Heat a large nonstick saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the ground turkey and cook, stirring to break it up a little, until it is just cooked through, about 4 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, using flameproof tongs, char the tortillas lightly on each side over an open flame, or toast them under preheated broiler. (I toasted ours in the toaster oven broiler) Keep the tortillas warm by covering them with a clean kitchen towel as you go.
4. Stir the black bean dip into the turkey. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Lay the tortillas on a work surface, and divide the turkey mixture among them. Fold the sides of the tortillas in over the filling and roll the tortillas up tightly to encase the filling. Lay them side-by-side in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
6. Spoon the salsa over the tortillas, and sprinkle with the cheese. Bake until the cheese is bubbly and the enchiladas are hot throughout, 10 to 12 minutes
7. Sprinkle the cilantro over the enchiladas, and serve.

Low Fat Spanish Rice

Cooking Light

Serves 3

Ingredients

• Vegetable Cooking Spray
• 1 cup uncooked instant rice
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2/3 cup green bell pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon prepared mustard
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can of whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped. (If you use a pair of kitchen scissors to chop the tomatoes in the can it makes the process easier with half the mess.)
• 1 (5.5 ounce) can of tomato juice

Preparation

Coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot. Add rice, onion and bell pepper; saute 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients; simmer, for 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Note: I used brown rice for some extra fiber and it takes about 10 minutes to absorb all the liquid.