Pineapple Bliss Cupcakes

I found this recipe for Pineapple Bliss Cupcakes last week and couldn't wait for a chance to try it out. The ingredients list is short and sweet: 

1 yellow cake mix

1 20 oz can of crushed pineapple

Click here for instructions.

We topped our pineapple cupcakes with simple cool whip, although the frosting recommended in the recipe looks wonderful!

The cupcakes are delicious. The only change I'll make next time is to try spraying my cupcake liners with baking spray. The cupcakes stuck to the liners, making them a bit difficult to remove. It didn't affect the taste however! Delish! 

Each cupcake (no topping) has 93.5 calories and less than 1 gram of fat. Can't beat that! 

A Simple Lunch

Sometimes I'm less than inspired to make a good, hot lunch for my kids. Today is one of those days! I kept it simple & quick, but it's still healthy. If your kids like those refrigerated cracker & cheese packages (like Lunchables), then this should be a hit!

Sliced cheese
Whole wheat crackers
Low fat sliced ham
Baby carrots
Ranch dressing
(also, not pictured but I gave them a bowl of grapes, so we hit all 4 food groups with this one)

Nacho Salad

This is one of my kids' favorite ways to enjoy lunch.  

On a plate, layer: 

tortilla chips

ground turkey, browned and seasoned with an envelope of taco seasoning

shredded cheese

shredded lettuce

reduced fat sour cream

salsa

You can also add any other toppings you enjoy on a taco salad: Olives, guacamole, onions, sliced tomatoes, corn, or black beans would all make a great addition. 

Kid Rating: 6 Thumbs Up! 

I didn't figure the calorie count on this one, but it's easy to control fat and calories in this by choosing low fat ground turkey and lower fat cheese and sour cream. 

Chicken & Veggie Pasta

Easy as Pie Chicken n' Veggie Pasta

There's really not much to explain here, but this is an easy to prepare lunch that's healthy to boot. 

Combine: 

1 box of cooked tri-color vegetable pasta (it has a full serving of veggies in each serving of pasta! 

some chopped, cooked chicken

half a jar of spaghetti sauce

And top with some shredded parmesan cheese. 

Snackin' Mix (the healthier version)

Combine in a large bowl: 

2 cups of mini-marshmallows

4 cups of pretzels

1 can of mixed, unsalted nuts

8 ounces reduced fat cheese crackers

6 ounce bag of dried cranberries

Stir gently or use your hands to mix the ingredients and that's it! This makes about 35 servings. I bagged pre-measured servings (approximately 1/3 of a cup) into ziplocs to make it easy for the kids to access (and to portion out properly).

This snack mix contains 123 calories and 5 grams of fat. I think it's a little healthier than my usual snack mix because the fats come primarily from nuts instead of canola oil. It's also a lot lower in sodium! The marshmallows are a real treat for the kids, but with only 5 or 6 mini-marshmallows in a bag, they aren't getting a ton of sugar.

Kid Rating: 6 Thumbs Up! Their favorite part: marshmallows, of course!

Turkey Sloppy Joes

The last couple of weeks have seemed a little disorganized. I'm not exactly sure why, but most days we've either been having leftovers or a simple sandwich for lunch. Nothing blog-worthy. I figured I'd share today, though. Gavin fixed lunch for us today--Sloppy Joes made with ground turkey.

Here's how to make them:

Brown a pound of ground turkey breast along with some chopped onion.  (Our grocery store sells two varieties of ground turkey with one containing about 19 grams of fat and the other containing less than 2 grams of fat. There's a price difference of close to $2 per pound, but the difference in fat count is definitely worth it!)

To the browned ground turkey add:

1/2 cup of ketchup
3 tablespoons of barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon of mustard
2 teaspoons of worcestershire sauce
pepper to taste

Simmer for a few minutes and then serve on wheat buns.

Enjoy!

Kid Rating: 6 Thumbs Up!

Mexican Chicken Wraps

Yesterday morning before church I put Mexican Chicken (aka Tex-Mex Chicken) in the slow cooker so we'd come home to a nice meal without a lot of work. This recipe makes a large batch of Mexican Chicken so we had enough left to make another meal today.

To your slow cooker add:
4 large chicken breasts
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 package taco seasoning
1 jar of salsa

Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. Just before serving shred chicken and add 1 cup of reduced fat sour cream to the slow cooker. Serve over rice.

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Today we used the leftover Mexican Chicken on some whole wheat, high fiber, tortillas. They were delicious! 

I know that rising grocery costs are probably a concern for most families right now, as they certainly are for us. But this dish was especially economical. 

$4.91 for Chicken Breasts (I used bone-in breasts because they were on sale at Kroger this week)

$0.69 for black beans

$0.79 for corn

$0.35 for taco seasoning

$1.99 for salsa

$0.99 for sour cream

Total Cost: $9.72 (not including the rice) and this meal fed my family of 5 for two meals and we still have leftovers for my husband to take to work for lunch one day this week. 

This meal also fits into a low calorie plan with ease. The Mexican Chicken has 196 calories per serving. 

Edited to Add:
Kid Rating: This one gets a 6 thumbs up! They liked it best on wraps, but it was great on rice as well.