Grilled Chicken Caprese
Give your chicken a makeover with this simple to follow recipe. In three simple steps you’ll have a delicious protein serving that goes well with your choice of carbohydrates. This chicken recipe goes well with corn or rice, and a slow carb vegetable like broccoli or black beans.
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breast, boneless, skinless, thinly sliced
- 2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp garlic salt
- ½ tsp oregano
- ½ tsp basil
- 5 slices mozzarella cheese
- 2 plum tomatoes, medium, sliced
- ¼ cup fresh basil, finely chopped
Method
- Brush chicken pieces and tomato slices generously with oil. Sprinkle with garlic salt, oregano, and basil.
- Grill chicken and tomato slices over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes per side or until cooked through.
- Top chicken with cheese, grilled tomatoes and basil. Grill with lid closed 1 to 2 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.
Serves: 4
APPROXIMATE NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS: (Per serving)
279 calories, 32 grams of protein, 4 grams of carbohydrates, 16 grams of fat, and 1 gram of fiber.
Filet Mignon with Fresh Herb and Garlic Rub
Delicious to the taste and friendly on the waist. This lean protein source makes it easy to build a meal. Serve with slow carb vegetables of your choice to optimize digestion and energy.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 ½ tsp basil, minced, fresh
- 1 ½ tsp rosemary, minced, fresh
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 4 steak tenderloins (5 ounces each)
- Cooking spray
Method
- Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl; rub evenly over steaks.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add steaks to the pan, and cook for 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.
Serves: 4
APPROXIMATE NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS: (Per serving)
301 calories, 43 grams of protein, 0 grams of carbohydrates, 13 grams of fat, and 0 grams of fiber.
Italian Chicken & Vegetable Skillet
This protein rich recipe will have others thinking you graduated culinary school. To optimize the fat burning combination of this dish, serve with slow carb vegetables (i.e., broccoli, bell peppers, mushrooms) of your choice.
Ingredients
- 2 TBSP peanut, safflower, avocado or sunflower oil
- 1 ¼ LB chicken tenders (chicken cut into strips)
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 cup tomatoes, (cherry or grape)
1 cup green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces - 1 cup yellow squash, sliced
- ½ cup bell pepper, sliced into strips
- ½ cup onion, sliced
Method
- Heat oil in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook and stir 5 to 6 minutes or until golden brown.
- Stir in vegetables and Italian seasoning. Cook and stir 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender-crisp. Add tomatoes; cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes or until tomatoes are slightly softened and chicken is cooked through.
Serves: 3
APPROXIMATE NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS: (Per serving)
400 calories, 58 grams of protein, 14 grams of carbohydrates, 16 grams of fat, and 4 grams of fiber.
Tomato-Basil Lasagna with Prosciutto
This recipe makes for a complete fat burning meal by itself. However, it does go well with a side salad, which can make this delicious dish heart healthy, diabetic friendly and satisfying in flavor and filling.
Ingredients
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1 (16-ounce) carton 1% low-fat cottage cheese
- ½ cup (4 ounces) cream cheese, fat-free, block style
- ½ cup (1 ounce) Romano cheese, grated, fresh
- 2 ½ tsp basil, dried
- ½ tsp red pepper, crushed
- 1 egg, large
- 1 (26-ounce) pasta sauce, tomato basil, fat-free
- Cooking spray
- 14 cooked lasagna noodles, (whole wheat preferably)
- 3 cups (8 ounces) prosciutto or ham, chopped
- 2 cup (4 ounces) mozzarella cheese, part-skim, shredded
Method
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Drop garlic through food chute with food processor on, and process until minced. Add cottage cheese; process 2 minutes or until smooth. Add cream cheese, 2 tablespoons Romano, basil, pepper, and egg; process until well-blended.
- Spread ½ cup pasta sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 noodles over the pasta sauce; top with 1 cup cheese mixture, 1/3 cup prosciutto, and ¾ cup pasta sauce. Repeat the layers two times, ending with noodles. Spread remaining pasta sauce over noodles. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons Romano and mozzarella.
Serves: 9
APPROXIMATE NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS: (Per serving)
419 calories, 33 grams of protein, 41 grams of carbohydrates, 13 grams of fat, and 5 grams of fiber.
Triple Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Fat-burning snacks are made easy with this muffin recipe. One muffin can satiate you and keep your body in fat burning mode. Bake it and benefit from the bump in fiber, protein and energy it provides.
Ingredients
- 1 (6-ounce) container light lemon yogurt
- ½ cup low-fat milk
- 3 TBSP butter, melted
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- ½ tsp lemon extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- ½ cup evaporated cane juice
- 2 tsp evaporated cane juice or no-calorie sweetener of choice
- 1 TBSP baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 cup blueberries, fresh
Method
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray 12 muffin cups with non stick cooking spray (or line with paper or foil liners.)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the first seven ingredients (yogurt through lemon extract). Set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together the next five ingredients (flour through baking soda using 2 tablespoons of sugar). Add blueberries and stir lightly to coat with flour. Make a well in the center and add the yogurt mixture. Using a large spoon, stir until dry ingredients are just moistened.
- Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared muffin tins, filling each cup two-thirds full. Evenly sprinkle the 2 remaining teaspoons of sugar over the muffins.
- Bake for 17 to 20 minutes or until center springs back when lightly touched. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack.
Serves: 12
APPROXIMATE NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS: (Per serving)
149 calories, 4 grams of protein, 29 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of fat, and 2 grams of fiber.
All recipes provided by Robert Ferguson’s Diet Free Life, which you can learn more at www.dietfreelife.com.