Freezer Meal: Pita Pizza

A few weeks ago, I had posted about the day I spent cooking up a months worth of meals.  As you also know, I am dieting (Weight Watchers baby!).  Convenience and diet friendly don't always go hand in hand, so making a lunch for me that was delicious, easy, and diet friendly was a challenge I was willing to accept.  But in fact, it wasn't hard at all.  One of the lunches I chose was the frozen pita pizzas.

Here's how I made them:

I took one whole wheat pita bread (low in fat and carbs, but high in fiber), topped it with one serving (2 tbsp) of pizza sauce (you can make your own if you can't find one low in fat), one serving of low fat cheese, and then any veggies you like!  For me, I wanted tomatoes.  Bake you pizza on 350 degrees for 5 minutes just until the cheese is melted.  Once cooled, wrap and freeze!  

When I felt like pizza, I'd pull my frozen pizza out of the freezer, pop it in the microwave for 1 1/2-2 minutes until nice and hot.

I love dipping my pizza in wing sauce and ranch.  So to complete my lunch, I used my ranch "dip" and a little splash of hot sauce.  My ranch dip is one tub of fat free/low fat sour cream and one packet of dry ranch mix.

Now, for all of you Weight Watchers fans....the Points Plus value of the pizza alone.....2!  Adding my ranch "dip" added 1 extra point.  3 points for lunch!  Good deal!

Enjoy!

Crock Pot Tacos

If you follow me on Facebook, then you have most likely heard about my freezer meals I have been preparing lately.  (What's a freezer meal...I'll give it to you in a nutshell....)  I buy my fresh ingredients (I buy large quantities of ingredients that will go into almost any dish) and gallon size freezer bags.  I mix my sauce/wet ingredients and spices up in the bags, then I add the meat, then the veggies (or fruit).  I push all of the air out, label and date, then freeze them flat (as you can see, I'm down to my last two meals, eeek!).  When you're ready to enjoy, defrost a bit, then toss into your slow cooker.  That's it!

Just by using chicken, onions, and peppers, you can mix and match any spices, herbs, or sauces you have on hand to make multiple freezer meals!

Now....the real reason for the post.....the Mexican chicken (this is what I labeled it when I prepped it).  I used it this time for Crock Pot Tacos!  (Yum!)  Before I get into the recipe and prep, I want to share, that if I would have added a can of chicken broth/stock and 1/8 cup of lime juice to my crock pot.....I would of been enjoying some delicious Tortilla Soup!  You could use this for tacos, soup, enchiladas, you name it!  The leftovers are also great when making homemade pizza!  Just toss on top like you would pepperoni! 

Ok, now for the recipe:

Prepared in a gallon size freezer bag:

one can of corn, one can of diced tomatoes, one small can of green chiles, and a pack of taco (or fajita) seasoning.  Mix well. 

Add the chicken (I used 3 chicken breasts per bag).  Slice onions and add on top of the chicken. 

If you played your cards right, you should have a full bag now!  Press, seal, label, and freeze!  It's that simple!

To cook:

Defrost.  Empty contents of bag into crock pot.  Cook for 8 hours on low (you want the chicken to fall apart and shred).  After your food is cooked, serve as you like!  For the tacos, I served on flour tortillas and garnished with cilantro, green onions, and lime!

One bag fed our family of four and left us with leftovers for my lunch!

ENJOY!

(Crock Pot Tacos)

 

 

Yahoo post on Crock Pot Tacos

Kid Friendly Truffles

During the holiday season, I try to do lots of baking with my kids.  My daughter is 7 this year, so she can start doing a lot more.  This recipe is super easy and cheap to make!  It's so easy that my 7 year old could roll these truffles out herself.

Brownie Truffles
1 box of brownie mix
1/4 cup of water
2 tbs. corn syrup
Your choice of toppings (I like toffee bits and powdered sugar)

-Mix together your brownie mix, water, and corn syrup. This will be a thick, dry looking mixture.
-Pour your toppings into separate bowls.
-Scoop about 1 tbs. of the mixture. Make sure your hands are damp because this will get sticky! Start rolling the scoops into balls then roll the balls into your topping of choice.
-Chill in the refrigerator. Place them on parchment paper to prevent sticking!

Happy Birthday!

Yesterday we celebrated my son's 1st birthday!  It seems just like yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.  Now he's a little terror!  The past year has brought so much joy and excitement!  I can't wait to see what next year will bring!  I'm hoping we skip the terrible 2's!

Here is my little man Austin at 2 days old!  

Now my big man destroying whatever you put in his path!

Easy Strawberry Cupcake Recipe:

1 package yellow cake mix

1 package (3-oz.) strawberry gelatin

1 cup thawed frozen strawberries (with juice) 

3/4 cup milk

3/4 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fareheit.  Line your cupcake pan with liners.

Combine the cake mix, gelatin, strawberries and juice, milk, oil and eggs in a large mixing bowl.  Blend with a mixer at low speed.  Make sure to scrap any excess batter of the sides of the bowl.  Beat for 3 minutes until batter is mixed well.

Bake until cupcakes are lightly golden and spring back when pressed gently with a finger, 20 to 25 minutes.

Make sure to cool your cupcaks properly before decorating!

Makes 24 cupcakes.