Chicken Parm with Zoodles

Chicken Parmesan with Zoodles

Have you tried zoodles yet? Zoodles are "noodles" made from zucchini. Since they are made totally from a vegetable, there are no carbs and virtually no calories, so are totally diet friendly. I've been using them in combination with Dreamfields pasta to cut calories and still enjoy a full portion size of "pasta". I received a spiralizer from my son and his fiancee' for my birthday in September and that's made this process oh, so easy! Mine is super easy to use and it came from Amazon and looks like this:

Find it HERE

This is easy to assemble and to clean -- it's top rack dishwasher safe. So far I've done zucchini and cucumbers, but I am sure there are more veggie noodles in my future.

The most recent occasion to use this little gem was to make a lightened up version of Chicken Parmesan. I found the recipe on the Cooking Light website, but as I always do, I changed it up just a little bit, to make it all my own. This recipe is a little trouble to make, but nothing you wouldn't want to tackle on a lazy Sunday afternoon when you feel like puttering a little in the kitchen. The key part to the calorie cutting is that the chicken is not fried, it is baked on a rack in the oven with a crispy Panko bread crumb crust. The trick of mixing the parmesan cheese with yogurt makes it creamy with out extra fat. So, next time you want some classic Italian comfort food, without the frying and pesky calories, try my Chicken Parm with Zoodles. (PS if you are following Weight Watchers, this comes in at 9 points.)

Chicken Parmesan with Zoodles
serves 4

1 T. plus 1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. minced fresh thyme
6 garlic cloves, divided use
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 large can Cento San Marzano whole tomatoes (1 lb. 12 oz.)
1/3 c. dry white wine (I used Kendall Jackson Chardonnay)
1 tsp. Kosher Salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 T. non-fat Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano grated cheese
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets, lightly pounded to an even thickness
1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp. garlic powder
cooking spray
3 medium to large zucchini
2 oz. fresh, water packed mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
3 oz. Dreamfields Spaghetti

Heat 1 T. olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat and add the chopped onion. Saute' that for a few minutes, until it begins to soften. and add in all but 1 tsp. of the minced garlic. Cook for a few more minutes --- don't let the garlic start to brown-- and then add the tomatoes, breaking them up with a spoon or your hands as they go into the pot. Pour in the wine, salt and pepper and turn the heat up until the mixture begins to boil. Turn the pot down to simmer and let the sauce cook, uncovered about 30 minutes, allowing the liquid  to reduce and thicken. Turn off the heat, and add the fresh basil. Stir it into the hot sauce. Cover the pot to keep it warm.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place a cooking rack over a cookie sheet and spray it with cooking spray. Pound the cutlets with the smooth side of a meat mallet (or something else heavy and smooth, like a rolling pin) between 2 sheets of parchment paper so that they are of a uniform thickness, about 1/2"thick. In one small bowl, mix together the yogurt and the parmesan cheese. In a pie plate, mix together the garlic powder and the Panko breadcrumbs. Spread one side of each chicken breast with about a spoonful of the yogurt mixture and place the coated side down into the breadcrumbs. While they are sitting in the pie plate, spread the other side of the cutlets with the rest of the yogurt mixture and carefully turn them over, to coat the other side with the Panko mixture. Place them on the prepared oven rack, like this:

Bake cutlets in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and proceed with the recipe. While the cutlets are cooking is a good time to make your zoodles. Follow the directions on your spiralizer or peel the zucchini thinly with a vegetable slicer. Place the zoodles on a double thickness of paper towels to draw the moisture out of the zucchini. Meantime, also bring a pot of water to a boil and get ready to cook the spaghetti noodles.


After the cutlets have baked, put about 1 T. of the warm sauce  you made earlier carefully on top of each cutlet, spreading it almost to the edges. You don't want to put on so much that it drips over the edges and spills all over the bottom of the pan. Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water and cook according to the package directions.

Top each cutlet with 1/2 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese. Oven ready, your dish should look like this:

Preheat your oven to broil and position a rack close to the element as suggested by your manufacturer's instructions. Heat a large, non-stick skillet over medium high heat and add the remaining 1 tsp. of olive oil and garlic. Cook a minute or two and add the zucchini noodles to the skillet. Stir them around, coating them with the oil. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to them. When they begin to wilt, cover the pan and turn off the heat.

Zucchini Noodles in a non-stick skillet

 Drain the spaghetti in a colander, do not rinse with water! Place the chicken cutlets under the broiler and broil until the mozzarella is melted but not browned, about 5 minutes in my oven. Mix the spaghetti with the zucchini noodles in the skillet and divide among four plates. Top each mound of pasta with  a bit more of the red sauce and one cutlet. 

Enjoy with a glass of nice, dry chianti and pretend you are in Italy. Say things like Pronto and Buon Appetito! Have fun! Mangia! 

Slow Cooker Tex-Mex Chicken 7 Ways

Taco Salad Made with Slow Cooker Tex-Mex Chicken

OK, here's the thing about this dish: I don't really know what to call it. It's hardly a recipe, because you don't need to chop anything and all you do is to dump a bunch of stuff into your slow cooker. It's not only a soup, but can also be made into a delicious variety of dishes, which I've listed at the bottom of the post. Don't you LOVE options? If you can think of a good name for this, let me know in the comments below, please! In the meantime, don't worry too much about what it's called and just make it. You'll get a good dinner and lots of delish leftovers. AND you won't get bored with the leftovers because it's so versatile. I got the original recipe from someone at work, but of course, had to fix it up a bit! I just can't help myself...
My husband loves this and it was so easy! He's already taken it to work 2X this week, after eating it on Saturday night. It was also fairly inexpensive. I buy my chicken breasts frozen in the bags from the big box store, and they aren't too big, so I used 4. Score one for weeknight cooking! Let me also say that while this was very tasty, it was not what I would call SPICY. It has a little heat, but nothing that will burn you up or make kids reject it. Of course, if you like it spicy, add more hot sauce! I added the amount I put in the recipe.

We love Jack's Salsa! 

Keep Rotel on hand! 

Dark Red Hanover Kidney Bean

 Here are the pantry ready ingredients that you'll need to make this dish. You'll also need 1 lb. of thawed, boneless skinless chicken breasts, some cheese and some spices.

Slow Cooker Mexican Chicken
Makes at least 6 Servings, various ways
~1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
(3 to 4 breasts, depending on size)
2 cans Bush's Black Beans, undrained
1 can Hanover Dark Red Kidney Beans
1 cup Jack's Medium Salsa (or your fave)
1 14 oz. can Hunts Tomato Sauce
1 4 oz. can chopped green chilies
2 cans Original Rotel Tomatoes and Green Chilies
1.5 tsp. ground cumin
1 T. Texas Pete Hot Sauce (optional)
1 c. shredded Pepper Jack Cheese or plain Monterey Jack cheese if you want it very mild

Place the (thawed) chicken in the bottom of your slow cooker. Top with the un-drained black beans, the drained kidney beans, salsa, tomato sauce, green chilies, Rotel Tomatoes, cumin and hot sauce. Give the mixture a good stir to combine the ingredients. Cook on low heat for at least 6 hours. 
Carefully remove your chicken and shred it, if it has not already fallen apart. Put it back into the slow cooker and add the shredded Jack cheese. Cook for an additional 30 minutes or until the cheese melts completely.  (PS You could totally add frozen or canned corn to this, but I was trying to keep the carbs a little on the lower side and we aren't in love with corn in chili type dishes.)

TO SERVE: 
1. Ladle into bowls and top with crushed corn chips and a dollop of sour cream. 
2. Or put the chips on the bottom for a softer texture. Very much like chicken tortilla soup. 
3. OR chop a variety of lettuces, peppers and tomatoes and top with the Tex-Mex Chicken. Add a little shredded cheese (sharp or jack), some crushed tortilla chips and a dollop of sour cream for a taco salad. 
4. OR use a slotted spoon to drain off some of the liquid and roll into soft flour tortillas. Top with cheese, a little sour cream and salsa. Very kid friendly. Use whatever you like in your tacos! 
5. OR spray a corn tortilla with cooking spray on both sides and heat in oven until crispy. (You could fry it if you like) Top with the Tex-Mex chicken, shredded cheese, chopped lettuce and sour cream for a tasty tostada. Squeeze a lime over the top. 
6. OR make a Spanish Omelet: Heat a non-skillet over medium heat while you beat 3 eggs with 2 tsp. milk. Melt 1 tsp. of butter in the pan and then pour the eggs into the skillet. Sprinkle with a little salt. As the eggs begin to set, use a wooden spoon or a plastic spatula to gently pull the edges to the center, swirling the pan to fill in the gaps with the uncooked egg mixture. Be patient. Sprinkle the eggs with a scant 1/4 c. finely shredded cheddar cheese. When the omelet looks like it's almost dry and set, fold it over carefully and slide onto a plate. Top with the Tex-Mex Chicken. Could serve 2 for a lunch or a hearty dinner for 1. If the omelet doesn't work out, call it Mexican Scrambled Eggs...
7. Last but not least, make some nachos, chips, chicken, cheese, baked until bubbly. YUM!