Healthy Tuna Cakes with Chipotle Mayo

First time cooking with tuna!!! Does it get any easier? I opened a can. I mean come on! Anyway, these are delicious and we loved them. They got nice and crispy and the chipotle mayo is perfect with them. This is yet another recipe from one of my faves: SkinnyMom.

I doubled the recipe below because I wanted leftovers. I got about 9-10 patties out of it.

3 — 3 oz pouches chunk light tuna (I bought 2 large 10 oz cans since I was doubling)
½ yellow onion, chopped
⅓ cup plain Panko breadcrumbs
½ tbsp Old Bay® Seasoning (I used Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning!)
⅛ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 egg whites

Chipotle Mayo:
¼ c light mayonnaise
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp lime juice

In a medium size bowl, fork out tuna from all 3 pouches (or cans). Combine remaining ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate tuna mixture for 1 hour before forming into patties (this helps the patties stick together better).

Form into 4 equal size patties, or however many you're planning on making. Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Cook tuna patties over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes on each side or until both sides are golden brown.
For Chipotle Mayo: In a small bowl, combine all ingredients and mix until smooth.

To serve, top tuna cakes with Chipotle Mayo.

Original recipe found here.

Skinny Eggs Benedict

I made this dish when my mom was in town in early March. Just now getting around to posting it. DELICIOUS - and Will loved it even though he claimed he doesn't like Eggs Benedict.

Ingredients for Eggs Benedict:

1 tsp vinegar

2 eggs

1 English muffin (whole wheat or multigrain), split

1 wedge Laughing Cow Light garlic and herb cheese or your favorite flavor

2 thin slices cooked ham

2 tomato slices

Ingredients for Skinny Hollandaise Sauce:

2 tbsp fat-free plain Greek yogurt

½ tbsp light mayo

2 tsp spicy brown mustard

1 tsp reduced-fat butter or Smart Balance light, melted in microwave for about 15 seconds (covered)

Pinch of salt and pepper, to taste

To Poach Eggs: Add enough water to the pot or pan to fill half full of water. Add vinegar. Bring to boiling; reduce heat to simmering (bubbles should begin to break the surface of the water). Break one egg at a time into a measuring cup. Holding the lip of the cup as close to the water as possible, carefully slip egg into simmering water. Repeat with additional egg. Leave some space between each. Simmer eggs, uncovered, for 3 minutes or until the whites are completely set and yolks begin to thicken a bit but are not hard. Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove eggs to a plate.

I actually have a pan for poaching eggs. I had never poached eggs before. Truth: My mom did it for me.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toast English muffin halves and set aside. Spread the cut side of each muffin half with ½ of the cheese wedge. Place muffin halves, cheese side up, in prepared dish. Top each with the ham pieces. Place tomato slice or slices on top. Add a cooked egg to each.

To Make Hollandaise Sauce:  In a small bowl, mix together yogurt, mayonnaise, mustard, butter and a little salt and pepper. Divide and spoon Hollandaise Sauce over eggs. Spread over top using the back of the spoon.

Cover pan with foil and bake for about 10-12 minutes until heated through.

Original recipe found here.

Honey Mustard Chicken

This chicken is so yummy! I usually don't post regular chicken breast recipes, but the sauce for this is so good I have to! Yum and yum.

The site with the original recipe grills the chicken. But our grill was out of propane. It also has some really pretty pictures too.

4 chicken breasts

1/2 c whole grain mustard (I used this)
1/2 c honey

juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Whisk all ingredients in a small bowl. Reserve about 1/4 c of marinade. Then marinade the chicken in a bag or bowl with the remaining marinade for at least 45 minutes.

If grilling: Preheat the grill on medium- medium high heat, grill chicken for about 6 to 7 minutes per side or until chicken is done.

Like I said, I didn't grill... I seared it in a pan with olive oil spray on both sides, then baked it in the oven until finished.

Pour the reserved 4 tablespoons of honey-mustard sauce over chicken and let rest under foil for about 5 minutes.

Original recipe found here.

Kale Pesto Stuffed Portobellos with Tomatoes

I'm really into making my own pesto these days. I can use a very small amount of oil and save a lot of calories... and I can use things like asparagus and spinach to make the pesto too!

portobello mushroom caps, stems removed/washed
1-2 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

For pesto:

a bunch of kale (half of one of those big bags)
fresh basil
1/3 c shredded Parmesan

1/4 c pine nuts

2 tsp minced garlic

salt/pepper

olive oil

To make pesto: In a food processor, add all ingredients except olive oil. Pulse and stir if necessary until smooth. Add in the olive oil slowly through the top of food processor while it's spinning. Use as much as you like. I try to keep mine to a minimum.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake mushrooms, cap down, for about 5 minutes. Then, stuff them with the kale pesto, lay the tomato slices on top, then sprinkle some mozzarella cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is browned.

Skinny Sloppy Joes

So one day, I asked Will what he wanted for dinner... Sloppy Joes. Well, of course I searched for a "skinny" recipe... and of course, I found one from SkinnyTaste! It was SO GOOD. Will even said the best sloppy joe he's ever had. Big deal, guys. I love that it uses so many minced up veggies!

1.25 lbs very lean ground beef
1 tbsp steak seasoning or seasoned salt
1 carrot, minced
1 medium onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup red bell pepper, minced
4 oz mushrooms, minced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cups tomato sauce
2 tbsp tomato paste

I minced all the veggies up in my Ninja.

Chop all the vegetables really fine, using a chopper or food processor. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the meat to the pan and break it up as it cooks. Season with steak seasoning and cook the meat until it browns, then add onion, garlic, carrots, mushrooms and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and add red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, cook 5 more minutes. Add tomato sauce and paste to pan, stir to combine. Cover and reduce heat to simmer and cook an additional 5 minutes. Using a measuring cup, pile 1/2 cup of sloppy meat onto toasted buns.

Original recipe found here.