A Chicken Dish and a Butterscotch Dessert

My youngest daughter is a busy stay-at-home mom who always finds time to get together with me on Fridays for lunch.  I try to make meals that are tasty, quick and easy, and reduced in fat and calories.  Here is the meal we had this week.

I brought out an old favorite today- Chicken with Spinach and Noodles. This was adapted from a recipe I found in 1998 on Weight Watchers Light & Tasty software.  It’s a very flavorful dish yet light on calories and fat.

CHICKEN WITH SPINACH AND NOODLES

• Servings: 4
• Print

• 3/4 cup dry egg noodles
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• 2 cups julienned spinach leaves
• 2 Tblsp. Balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 6 oz. skinless chicken breast, cooked & cut into cubes
• 1-1/2 oz. part-skim  mozzarella cheese, cut into small pieces
• 2 Tblsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling, salted water for 9-11 minutes until tender.  Drain and keep warm.

Meanwhile, in a large non-stick skillet, heat oil; add garlic to skillet and cook stirring frequently for 1-2 minutes.  Stir in bell pepper and cook until pepper pieces are tender.  Stir in tomatoes, spinach, vinegar, salt, pepper, and pepper flakes.  Cook until spinach is wilted and mixture is heated through.

Add cooked chicken and noodles; toss to mix well.  Add pieces of mozzarella, stirring until cheese is melted.

Spoon 1/4 of mixture onto each serving plate.  Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.  Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings 

Based on 4 servings, nutrition count per serving (DietPower software):  184 calories, 6.41 g fat, 48.9 mg cholesterol, 107 mg sodium, 699 mg potassium, 13.5 g carbohydrate, 3.52 g dietary fiber, 19.3 g protein

Weight Watchers:  3 points per serving

In my recipe binder there’s a note:  “First made on 3/29/1998.  Excellent.  Would be good with asparagus instead of spinach.”

For dessert, I tried using what I had on hand to make a chilled Butterscotch Pecan Dessert and we both enjoyed it very much.

BUTTERSCOTCH PECAN DESSERT

• Servings: 6
• Print

• One oz. box of sugar/fat free instant butterscotch pudding mix
• 1 cup light ricotta cheese
• 1 cup non-fat plain yogurt
• 1 cup Cool Whip Lite dessert topping, thawed
• 1/4 cup chopped toasted pecans
• 6 toasted pecan halves

In medium bowl, mix together the pudding mix, ricotta and yogurt.

Fold in the Cool Whip and 1/4 cup of chopped pecans.

Divide mixture between 6 dessert dishes.  Place one pecan half on top of each serving.

Chill until ready to serve.

Yield:  6 servings

Based on 6 servings, nutrition per serving (DietPower software):  136 calories, 6.99 g fat, 10.8 mg cholesterol, 213 mg sodium, 23.2 mg potassium, 11.1 g carbohydrate, 0.449 g dietary fiber, 3.79 g protein

Weight Watchers:  3 points per serving