Counting Calories

. Now we’re going
to offer up some great recipes for you to create on your own
that will be diet-friendly and delicious too!
Breakfast
When you eat breakfast, you can always let yourself pig out
on all the fresh fruit you desire, but sometimes you find
yourself craving something more substantial. You CAN eat a
hearty breakfast while trying to lose weight. Consider some
of these great recipes!

Egg-White Omelet With Vegetable-Cheddar Filling
3 large egg whites
1 teaspoon water
2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill (optional)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup loosely packed thinly sliced fresh spinach
1 plum tomato, chopped
2 tablespoons shredded nonfat cheddar cheese
Vegetable cooking spray
1. Whisk egg whites, water, dill (if using), salt, and
pepper together in a medium bowl until soft peaks form.
Toss spinach, tomato, and cheddar together in a small bowl.
2. Lightly coat an omelet pan or small skillet with cooking
spray and heat over medium heat 1 minute. Pour egg
mixture into pan and cook until eggs begin to set on bottom.
3. Spread filling over half of omelet, leaving a 1/2-inch
border and reserving 1 tablespoon mixture for garnish. Lift
up omelet at edge nearest handle and fold in half, slightly
off-center, so filling peeks out. Cook 2 minutes. Slide omelet
onto a serving plate and garnish with reserved filling.
Serves: 1
Zesty Cheddar-Asparagus Quiche
1 tablespoon plain dry breadcrumbs
8 ounces small all-purpose potatoes, peeled and very thinly
sliced
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound asparagus, trimmed
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
3/4 cup shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese

3 scallions, sliced
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated fat-free milk
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1. Heat oven to 400°F. Coat a 9-inch pie plate with
vegetable cooking spray and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
Beginning in center, arrange potato slices in slightly
overlapping circles up to rim. Lightly brush with olive oil and
press down gently. Bake 10 minutes.
2. Set 8 to 12 asparagus spears aside. Cut remaining spears
into 1-inch pieces.
3. Sprinkle crust with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 cup
cheddar. Cover with asparagus pieces, then sprinkle with
scallions and another 1/4 cup cheese. Arrange whole
asparagus spears on top.
4. Beat evaporated milk, eggs, egg whites, butter, mustard,
pepper, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl.
Pour into pie plate and sprinkle with remaining cheddar.
Bake until a knife inserted in center comes out clean, about
35 minutes.
5. Divide into 6 slices. One serving equals 1 slice.
Quick French Toast
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 packet artificial sweetener
1 tablespoon skim milk

1 slice bread
1. Place all ingredients except bread in a blender; blend until
combined.
2. Pour egg mixture into a shallow bowl. Place bread in egg
mixture and soak, turning once.
3. Coat a nonstick skillet with vegetable cooking spray and
heat over medium heat. Place bread in skillet and pour any
remaining egg mixture over bread. Cook until browned on
bottom; then turn over to brown other side.
Golden Pancakes
1 c uncooked whole-grain oats
6 egg whites
1 c fat-free cottage cheese
¼ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 packets sugar substitute
½ c sugar-free maple syrup
¼ c mixed berries
1. Lightly coat a nonstick skillet or griddle with cooking
spray and place over medium heat
2. In a blender, combine oats, egg whites, cottage cheese,
vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar substitute. Blend on medium
speed about 1 minute until smooth.
3. Pour batter about ¼ c at a time onto hot skillet. Cook
pancake until bubbly on top and dry around the edges –
about 3 minutes. Turn and cook the other side until golden
brown – about 2 more minutes

4. While pancakes are cooking, microwave maple syrup
until warm – about 20 seconds
5. Place a portion of pancakes on 2 separate plates, top
with warm maple syrup and mixed berries.
Turkey Bacon Quiche
6 strips lean turkey bacon
3 eight-inch whole wheat tortillas
3 whole eggs
8 egg whites (or 1 c egg substitute)
½ c skim milk
½ c low-fat sour cream
¾ reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese
1 c broccoli florets
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cook turkey bacon according to package directions.
Set aside to cool.
3. Lightly coat a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
Overlap 2 tortillas and cut the third one in half to form
a crust
4. In a large mixing bowl, beat whole eggs and egg
whites with a fork or whisk until well blended. Mix
skim milk and sour cream into the eggs.
5. Chop cooked turkey bacon into bite size pieces
6. Add turkey, bacon, cheese, and broccoli to blended
egg mixture, combine thoroughly
7. Pour egg mixture into tortilla-lined pie plate and bake
for about 50 minutes. Tap the edge of the pie plate.
When the filling is set and moist but not liquidy, it is
done.
8. Cool for 10 minutes before slicing into portions.
Whole wheat toast or English muffins are also good choices
as are low-fat or no-fat yogurt. Just keep portion sizes to
what we’ve talked about before.

Lunch
Traditionally, lunch is the middle meal of the day when we
eat three squares. Since you’re trying to lose weight
without starving yourself, experts recommend that you eat
several smaller meals, so consider lunches, your daytime
meals.
Obviously, you can have sandwiches – on whole wheat
bread, of course! Be sure anything you put between those
two pieces of bread is lean and diet-friendly. Tuna is a great
and filling sandwich, but lean roast beef, no-fat cheese, and
chicken salad is also a good sandwich.
You can also opt for the traditional salad. Make sure you
don’t top it with anything that will sabotage your weight loss
efforts. That means no cheese (unless it’s non-fat or lowfat),
bacon bits, croutons, or garbanzo beans - and no
dressing unless it’s light. Try some lemon juice instead. It’s
refreshing and delicious!
But there are other meals you can have during the day that
are much more substantial meals you can have. Try some
of these recipes!
Cool Taco Salad
½ lean ground beef
1 tbsp water
2 tsp. taco seasoning mix, divided
2 whole wheat pitas
2 tbsp reduced-fat cream cheese, room temp
2 tbsp fat-free sour cream
2 tbsp salsa
1 c shredded lettuce
1 diced tomato
¼ c reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. In medium skillet, brown ground beef over medium
heat until done. Drain off any fat. Add water and 1 tsp
taco seasoning and simmer for 3 minutes. Removed
from heat and set aside to cool slightly
3. Cut each pita into 8 wedges and place on baking sheet.
Bake for 7 minutes or until lightly browned
4. While the beef is cooling, combine the remaining taco
seasoning, cream cheese, sour cream, and salsa in a
small bowl. Mix well. Divide and spread this mixture
evenly onto 2 small plates
5. Spoon a portion of the beef over the sour cream
mixture and top each with half the lettuce, tomato, and
cheese
6. Place 8 baked pita wedges on each plate
2 servings
Chicken Pita Pizza
1 whole wheat pita
¼ c low fat pizza sauce
1 portion cooked chicken breast sliced
¼ red bell pepper sliced
¼ yellow bell pepper sliced
¼ small zucchini, sliced
¼ reduced-fat shredded mozzarella cheese
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Place the pita on a baking sheet. Spoon pizza sauce
evenly over the pita. Top with sliced chicken,
peppers, zucchini and cheese
3. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted
and the pizza is heated through
4. Slice and eat!

Egg Salad Sandwich
4 hard boiled eggs
1 tbsp fat free salad dressing (Miracle Whip)
1 tbsp mustard
½ stalk sliced celery
¼ chopping red bell pepper
1 tsp pickle relish
1 tbsp fresh parsley
1 slice whole grain bread
1 lettuce leaf
¼ sliced avocado
1. Chop 1 whole egg and discard the yolks from the other
3 eggs and chop the whites
2. In a small mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except
the bread, lettuce leaf, and avocado
3. Toast the bread and place on a small plate. Top with
lettuce, egg salad and avocado slice
1 serving
Oriental Chicken Salad
4 portions cooked chicken (about 1 lb.) in bite size pieces
1 bag coleslaw mix
4 chopped green onions
2 tbsp light sesame oil
1/3 c rice vinegar
¼ c lite soy sauce
½ tsp ground ginger
1 c crisp chow mein noodles
1. In large mixing bowl, combine cooked chicken,
coleslaw mix, and green onions
2. In small bowl, combine sesame oil, rice vinegar, soy
sauce, and ginger. Drizzle over chicken mixture and
toss to coat.

3. Divide into 4 portions and top with chow mein noodles.
4 servings
Mile High Baked Potato
1 medium russet potato
2 tsp fat-free chicken broth
¼ c low fat cottage cheese
¼ c chopped cooked chicken
¼ c cooked broccoli
¼ c salsa
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
1. Pierce potato several times with fork. Place in
microwave and cook on high 5-8 minutes until tender.
Let stand 1 minute.
2. Use knife to cut an “X” in the top of the cooked potato.
Press ends slightly to open potato and pour chicken
broth into opening
3. Top potato with cottage cheese, chicken, broccoli, and
salsa. Place filled potato in microwave and cook on
high for 30 more seconds.
4. Sprinkle top with fresh cilantro.
Dinners
Many people feel that dinner is the most important meal of
the day. And many of them are right. Dinner is a time for
families to connect, talk about their days, and bond together
as a unit.
Just because you’re trying to lose weight doesn’t mean you
have to sacrifice taste at dinner time. In fact, we’re willing
to be that some of these recipes will be big hits with your
family and they won’t even know that they fit into your diet!

Spaghetti and Meatballs
1 ½ lb. lean ground turkey
2 egg whites
½ c dry breadcrumbs
¼ water
½ finely chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
¼ c parsley
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp ground black pepper
3 c low-fat marinara pasta sauce
12 oz. spaghetti
¼ c reduced-fat Parmesan cheese
1. Preheat oven broiler
2. In large mixing bowl, combine turkey, egg white,
breadcrumbs, water, onion, garlic, parsley, basil and
black pepper. Mix thoroughly and shape into 1 ½”
diameter meatballs
3. Arrange meatballs on a baking sheet and place under
broiler for 10-12 minutes turning occasionally until
they are browned on all sides
4. In a large saucepan, combine sauce and meatballs.
Simmer on low for about 20 minutes.
5. While the sauce is simmering, prepare spaghetti
according to package directions.
6. Plate and top with Parmesan cheese
6 servings
Homestyle Meat Loaf
1 ½ lbs. lean ground turkey
1 chopped onion
4 egg whites
1 c salsa
¾ oats, uncooked

1 pkg. dry vegetable soup mix
¼ tsp ground black pepper
½ c ketchup
6 portions red potatoes
2 lbs. green beans
¾ c skim milk
2 tbsp Butter Buds
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. In large mixing bowl, combine turkey, onion, egg
whites, salsa, oats, soup mix, and pepper. Press
mixture into 9” x 5” loaf pan and spread ketchup over
top. Bake in oven until no longer pink in the center –
about 60 minutes
3. About 25 minutes after putting the meatloaf in the
oven, cut potatoes into 1” chunks. Place in large
saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil over
high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until
tender – about 20 minutes
4. Cut stems off green beans and place in a large
saucepan with 1” of water. Heat to boiling over high
heat. Then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 6-8
minutes until crisp-tender. Drain
5. Remove meatloaf from oven and let sit 5 minutes
before slicing.
6. Drain potatoes and return to pan. Mash while adding
skim milk a little at a time. Add butter buds and mash
vigorously until light and fluffy.
Chicken Veggie Stir Fry
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced scallions
1 pound boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, sliced into
strips

1 cup broccoli spears
1 cup julienne carrots
1/2 pound green beans, chopped
1/2 cup julienne red pepper
1 cup quartered button mushrooms
3 heads baby bok choy, chopped
Low sodium teriyaki sauce
1. Heat the oil in a wok over high heat.
2. Add the garlic, ginger, and scallions. Cook until
aromatic, about 2 minutes.
3. Add the chicken. Sauté until the edges are brown,
about 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Add the broccoli, carrots, and green beans to the wok.
Cook approximately 5 to 8 minutes, until the
vegetables begin to become tender.
5. Add the red pepper, mushrooms, bok choy, and teriyaki
sauce to the wok, cook approximately 5 to 8 minutes
more, or until chicken is cooked through and
vegetables are done to your likeness.
6. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve immediately.
Chicken Fried Rice With Veggies
2 cups of cooked brown rice
1 16oz bag of mixed veggies (any kind)
1 pack of chicken breast cut up
3 table spoons soy sauce
2 eggs (1 whole, 1 egg white beaten)
Cooking spray
1. Cook brown rice according to package and set aside.
2. Cook cut up chicken breast until done and set aside.
3. Cook beaten eggs (scrambled style) and set aside.
4. Cook mixed veggies according to package.

5. Spray large skillet with cooking spray, add chicken,
eggs, and veggies. Stir and cook until heated through
well.
6. Add the 3 tablespoons of soy sauce (or according to
taste) to mixture in skillet. Cook for about 10 minutes
to make sure it is heated through.
Beef Stroganoff
1+ pounds of top bottom roast (or sirloin)
1 8oz container of fat free sour cream
1-2 tbsp(s) of beef granules or powder
1 tbsp of flour
Whole wheat pasta
Veggies are optional. Recommended: Mushrooms, broccoli
1. Cut your beef into cubes or strips (if you use the round
bottom roast, it is best to tenderize it).
2. Place the beef into a pan that is sprayed with cooking
spray. Cook until the beef is slightly brown (10-15
mins).
3. While your beef is browning, combine 8oz of sour
cream, a tbsp of flour and 1-2 tbsp(s) of beef granules
or powder. Mix them together (will look light brown)
4. After beef is slightly brown, pour the sour cream mix
over it. Stir and let it cook for about 8-10 mins.
5. While this is cooking, boil water and cook pasta.
6. When finished place one serving of pasta on a plate and
cover with meat and sauce.
Jambalaya
1/2 cup chopped Celery
1/2 cup diced Onion
1/2 cup diced Green Pepper
1.5 cups of diced Fat-Free Ham
1.5 cups of diced cooked boneless/skinless Chicken Breast
1/2 cup Chicken Broth

1 14 oz can of Diced Tomatoes (not drained) or 2 medium
fresh diced tomatoes
1 tbsp Hot Sauce
1-2 tsp Cajun Seasoning
1-2 tsp Dried Jalapeño Pepper
1/2 cup Brown Rice (uncooked)
1. In a non-stick pot, or one sprayed with cooking spray,
sauté Celery, Onion, and Green Pepper until Onion is
tender.
2. Add Broth, Tomatoes, meat, and seasonings.
3. Bring to a boil for 5 minutes stirring frequently.
4. Add rice and simmer for 15 minutes stirring frequently
until rice is cooked and consistency is as desired.
Chicken Noodle Soup
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 chopped onion
4 carrots peeled and chopped
4 chopped celery stalks
4 bay leaves
½ tsp ground black pepper
12 c fat-free chicken broth
2 c water
2 lb. chicken breast cut into bite-size pieces
1 lb. whole wheat or no yolk noodles
2 tbsp chopped dill
1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add
chopped onion and sauté for about 4 min.
2. Add carrots, celery, bay leaves, black pepper, chicken
broth and water. Bring to a boil over high heat
3. Add chicken and bring back to coil
4. Add noodles and simmer until tender – about 8
minutes. Reduce heat to low

5. Remove bay leaves and stir in parsley and dill
8 servings
Chicken Enchiladas
1 lb. cooked and shredded chicken breast
4 sliced green onions
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 minced jalapeno
3 cans green enchilada sauce
8 corn tortillas
1 c reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese
½ c salsa
½ c light sour cream
1 diced tomato
¼ c sliced black olives
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9” x 13”
baking dish with cooking spray
2. Lightly coat a large skillet with cooking spray and
place over a medium-high heat. Add green onion,
cilantro, and jalapeno. Sauté for 2 min. Add chicken
and 1 can of enchilada sauce. Cook, stirring
occasionally until heated through – about 5 minutes
3. Pour the other 2 cans of enchilada sauce in a medium
bowl and microwave until warm – about 2 minutes.
Dip each tortilla in the heated sauce and fill with 1/8 of
the chicken mixture. Roll up and place seam-side
down in the baking dish
4. Pour remaining heated sauce over enchiladas and
sprinkle with cheese. Bake until heated through and
cheese is melted – about 15 minutes.
5. Divide lettuce onto four plates and place a portion of
enchiladas on top. Top with a spoonful of salsa and a
dollop of sour cream, tomatoes, and olives.