What should I make for a potluck?!
What should I make for a potluck?
I am having a potluck at my house tomorrow--a few of the 'gals' are coming over. Four of us are eating healthy (read dieting) and I would like to make something healthier for lunch. Any ideas? Someone is already bringing a veggie tray.
Answers:
A pack of Marlboro Lights.
They're made from tobacco, a plant so it's vegetarian. It's low carb. No sugar. No salt. No fat. No animals were killed making them.
Chicken salad and tuna salad made with light mayo? It's nice to scoop up on celery sticks.
Sugar free jello, in those silly kids molds? A light hearted diet dessert, maybe have some fruit to go with it as well.
Sparkling waters in various flavors, those are always acceptable on any diet.
What about a Caesar salad with chicken?
Chicken Taco Salad... should be pretty easy to make and healty with the fresh veggies.
Use chicken breast sauteed and seasoned with those package taco mix.
The rest is shredded lettuce, grated cheese, chopped tomatoes, salsa, olives, sour cream, gaucamole, refried beans and chopped onions.
You can also layer all of the ingredients like a 7 layer dip ahead of time. When it's time, people can spoon the salad onto their tortilla chips.
I'd use tortilla chips as the base instead of a tortilla bowl. Mainly becuase making the bowls require a lot more work and they're deep fried. With tortilla chips it's easy to control the portion size since you're all on a diet.
The end result is like a taco salad fresh nacho chip with chicken breast dish.
Chocolate covered strawberries. Just one or 2 of these will satisfy a craving for something sweet... no fat, no carbs.
Just melt some semi-sweet chocolate morsels in the microwave. Dip in clean, DRY strawberries. Let set for a few min. to harden. Store in fridge (if there are any leftovers).
Yummy!
Lots of salad vegetables and fresh cut multi grain bread. Then make sandwiches. The trick to this is that no one who is dieting can be accused of pigging out on healthy food, whilst at the same time no one who is in a group of fellow dieters can afford to be seen loading up a BIG sandwich either.
How is Your will power?
Well, salads are usually girl diet stuff, but I'm thinking about something a bit more substantial. How about a nice soup, such as Chicken Tortilla? It's reasonably low-fat, very filling, and tastes great!
3 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
1 large can diced or plum tomatoes
1 container organic chicken broth (99% fat free)
1 onion, chopped
1 can diced green chili
1 T dice jalepeno peppers (optional)
3 - 6 T cumin powder
Kosher Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Fat free or light shredded cheddar cheese
Corn tortillas
Avocados, sliced (optional)
Light or non fat Sour cream
Spray a non-stick pan with Pam, or use 1 T olive oil and heat. Season chicken with salt, pepper, garlice powder, and place in skillet. Add diced onion and cook until chicken is browned and onions are translucent. In saucepan, combine chicken broth and tomatoes, chili's. Add Cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Add chicken and simmer for 1 hour. Add jalepenos toward the end of the simmering cycle if you are going to use them so that they don't make the soup too hot. Slice tortillas into strips and saute in non-stick pan until crunchy. Place tortillas, sour cream, and cheese in small bowls for your guests to help themselves. If you are serving, then place some of the strips in the bottom of each bowl, add cheese and then the soup. Top soup with sour cream and avocado and enjoy.
Definitely Cheesy Bean Dip!!! You should try it.
It would be great for a pot luck.
You can make this in a crockpot to stay warm all day. Let guests add their own toppings (lowfat sour cream, lowfat shredded cheese, guac, onions, jalapenos) as they wish.
Chicken Tortilla Soup, like Claim Jumper’s
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large cans diced tomatoes
6 cups chicken stock or broth
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
2 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. chopped garlic
1 (15 oz.) can enchilada sauce
1 Tablespoon chopped cilantro
2 teaspoon chopped green chilies
1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 cup corn tortilla, cut in thin strips
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Saute onions in a large saucepan in oil until transparent. Add tomatoes and cook, stirring often. Add rest of ingredients, except tortilla strips and cheese. Simmer, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Add tortilla strips and heat about ten minutes.
Serve with additional crispy tortilla chips and cheese.
This salad recipe is a smash hit at every pot luck I bring it to, it never fails me to get at least 2 requests for the recipe:
1 bag pre-mixed salad greens (I like Romain &/or Spinach)
1 pkg fresh Strawberries sliced or halved
1 ripe Mango diced
1 Red onion, sliced in rings
1 sm pkg sliced Almonds, roasted
1 bottle Knotts Berry Farm Honey Poppy Seed Salad Dressing
(you can add diced roasted chicken but I rarely do)
Place the Almonds in a fry pan and brown them with a little butter.....That's it, mix it all together!
a casserole. casseroles can be made with anyhting and you can include any ingerident you want. or if u want to be different from your friends bring a healthy fruit sald with yogurt dipping and ice cream. casseroles would be the best idea though.
Try making a fruit salad or a casserole.
what about a fruit salad with marshmallows...or grilled chicken shish-kabobs with veggies.
Cheese Ball
OK this sounds weird but its delicious! This is a wonderful cheese ball. It is very easy to make and simply delicious. Whenever I make it for gatherings or work it always gets great reviews. Serve with an assortment of crackers.
INGREDIENTS
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
3 1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 (1 ounce) package Ranch-style dressing mix
2 cups chopped pecans
4 pecan halves
DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, Cheddar cheese, and dressing mix. Form into one large ball or two smaller balls. Roll in chopped pecans to coat surface. Decorate the top with pecan halves. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
BROCCOLI POTATO CHEDDAR SOUP
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Hands-on time: 35 minutes
Time to table: 90 minutes
Makes 9 cups
6 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion (about 1 1/2 cups), diced
2 red peppers, diced
1 tablespoon garlic (from a jar!)
2 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dry mustard
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound broccoli, trimmed aggressively (see ALANNA's TIPS), stems diced, florets reserved (I think frozen broccoli would work great, too)
1 pound potatoes, skins on, diced (tonight, Yukon gold)
4 ounces cheddar cheese, grated (about 1 cup)
Bring the broth to a boil in the microwave. (This is a time-saving tip and can be skipped if there's no rush.)
Melt the butter over MEDIUM HIGH in a Dutch oven. Add the onion and peppers as they're prepped, then the garlic. Cook until soft, about 10 minutes.
While the onion/pepper cooks:
Gather together the flour/spice mixtures in a small bowl (this is a keep-moving technique that can be skipped if there's no rush).
Trim the broccoli and dice the potato -- SET ASIDE the broccoli florets
Grate the cheese
Stir the flour/spice mixture into the onions/peppers until well combined, let cook about 1 minute (this lets the flour cook just a bit, removing a floury texture/flavor). A bit at a time, add the broth, incorporating well each time. (If you do this too fast, you'll end up with floury lumps, yuck.) Add the potatoes and broccoli stems (still reserving the top-bit florets). Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to MEDIUM. Cover and cook for about 45 minutes. (If you're cooking ahead, stop here and refrigerate til ready to serve. Return to a boil before continuing.)
Add the broccoli florets and cheddar and let cook for 10 minutes or until the broccoli is cooked but not mushy. Serve immediately.
NUTRITION ESTIMATE
Without cheddar, per cup: 116 Cal (22% from Fat, 17% from Protein, 60% from Carb); 5 g Protein; 3 g Tot Fat; 2 g Sat Fat; 19 g Carb; 3 g Fiber; 45 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 926 mg Sodium; 7 mg Cholesterol, Weight Watchers 2 points
Per Serving: 167 Cal (37% from Fat, 19% from Protein, 43% from Carb); 8 g Protein; 7 g Tot Fat; 4 g Sat Fat; 19 g Carb; 3 g Fiber; 136 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 1005 mg Sodium; 20 mg Cholesterol,
Weight Watchers 3 points