Chicken Quesadillas

Another one for the WW gals! Break out your Forman grill or panini press for this one.

non-stick cooking spray
2 chicken tenderloins, diced into small pieces
3 Tbsp chunky fat-free salsa
1 whole wheat pita (or something "light"
1/2 cup fat-free shredded cheddar cheese

Spray a small saute pan with non-stick cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until it starts to brown on the outside. Add salsa and stir. Turn heat down to medium-low and let simmer.

Meanwhile, get your panini press or Forman grill all warmed up. Cut pita in half to form 2 pockets. Spray each side with a light spray of cooking spray. Remove chicken and salsa from heat and spoon mixtures into the pita pockets, dividing equally between the two. Add in cheese, dividing equally between the 2 pockets.

Place flat on grill and press for about 2 minutes, or until cheese is melted and pitas have nice golden brown grill marks on them.

Serve with fat-free sour cream and guacamole (see recipe below).

WW info:
CORE - free plus 1 flex point for pita (includes 2 Tbsp of fat-free sour cream and 3 Tbsp of guacamole)
FLEX- 8 points (includes 2 Tbsp of fat-free sour cream and 3 Tbsp of guacamole)

Turkey Meatballs & Sauce

I like to make meatball subs with these. Use a light multi-grain hamburger bun to keep it light. Also great over pasta. (Obviously! They are meatballs!)

Sauce
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 (6 oz) can of tomato paste
1/3 cup fat-free, low sodium chicken broth
1 (28 oz) can of crushed tomatoes
pinch of sugar
garlic powder, dried pregano, dried basil, salt, ground pepper (to taste)

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 5 minutes. Add garlic until soft, but be careful not to brown onions and garlic. Add paste and broth and mix well. Add crushed tomatoes and pinch of sugar. Stir well. Season to taste and bring to boil. Allow to simmer for at least one hour.

Meatballs
1 egg
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs (If following Weight Watchers Core plan, substitute with 1/4 cup oatmeal, ground in food processor)
garlic powder, dried pregano, dried basil, salt, ground pepper (to taste)
1 pound 93% lean ground turkey
non-stick cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Beat egg in a large bowl. Add in breadcrumbs, garlic, and seasonings and mix. Add ground turkey and fold into seasoned egg mixture. Don't over mix or meatballs will be tough.

Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Form balls about 1" in diameter and place on the cookie sheet. You should be able to get 20-25 meatballs out of this batch. Bake for about 15 minutes, until outside surface of meatballs is firm.

Add to sauce and bring to boil. Turn heat down to low and simmer for one hour.

Yields 5 servings of 4-5 meatballs with sauce. Serve over pasta or on a bun for meatball sub.
WW info (without pasta or bun):
FLEX: 5 points per serving
CORE: all included (no extra points need to be taken)

Aaaahhh...I have a blog!

I was so inspired by my fellow nesties and all their food blogs that I had to start one of of my own. I'm such a follower. I've titled my blog "The Foodie Fashionista" because I love food and fashion equally.

I grew up as a very healthy eater. My parents were all into tofu and fruit vs. fast food and cookies. A typical lunch for me in elementary school was a brown paper bag with a PBJ sandwich, an apple, and a granola bar. Sugary cereal was something you only saw at your friends' houses. Every meal in our home was balanced....always a lean protein, a green, and a starch. And salad was on the table every night. I feel lucky to have been raised to understand the value of a balanced meal and lotsa veggies. God I love vegetables.

My mom is a great cook. She is my go-to person when I have cooking questions. "How should this smell?" "How should I cook _____?" "Where do I get chicken fat from?"

So anywho, on with the show. Oh yeah, I'm on Weight Watchers, so when possible, I will list nutritional info and points as best as I can figure them out. (Of course, any point values I post are my own calculations and are not endorsed by WW. I'm sure I have to say something like that, right?"

Tonight I made homemade sauce and turkey meatballs for tomorrow night dinner. Something like that really needs to sit overnight and "mesh." Will post recipe ASAP.