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! 

What's cooking? Broccoli Cheese Soup

I am compelled to cook. I've just gotta' do it! But, what's a healthy eater wanna' be to do? Cook healthy, obviously! Here is my attempt to do that today: Warm, comforting broccoli cheese soup, based on an old recipe I got years ago at a weight watchers meeting. This recipe is ONLY 3 Smart Points per serving if you are following Weight Watchers.


Broccoli Cheese Soup 
serves 4

3 cups fat free, low sodium chicken broth or stock (from a box) or vegetable stock 
10 oz. frozen broccoli florets 
1 garlic clove, minced 
1/4 small onion (about 2 T.) minced 

6 oz. lite velveeta cheese 
1/4 c. 1% lowfat milk 
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the stock in a soup pot and add the broccoli, garlic and onion. Bring it to a boil, turn it down and let cook at least 15 minutes on a simmer until the broccoli is completely cooked. Take your potato masher and mash the broccoli up to thicken the broth. Add the velveeta cheese and milk and let the cheese melt slowly over low heat. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. (you don't need much salt, as the cheese has some in it) 

For a spicy tex-mex flavor, add one can of Rotel Original Tomatoes w/green chilies. More flavor no extra calories! NOTE: You must use processed cheese for this recipe, as it is made for cooking and melts more evenly. Look for the kind made with 2% LF milk, which has 1/2 the fat.

Italian Vegetable Soup Recipe

When I am actively trying to loose weight, it helps me to fill up on things that taste good and are not bad for me. A no brainer, right? Oftentimes, though, that is easier said than done. Here is my version of a soup that I got from Weight Watchers. Their version was a little bland. My version is tasty and good enough to serve your family and friends. It is non fat, high fiber and has no added starches or carbs.

As we used to say, "Try it, you'll like it!"



Italian Vegetable Soup



32 oz. Low Sodium, Low Fat Chicken Broth (that's a big box)

1 c. V8

1/3 c. shredded carrot

1 small can (app. 15 oz.) diced tomatoes

1/2 small onion, chopped

1/4 c. minced celery

2 lg. cloves garlic, minced (about 1 T.)

1/4 c. minced green pepper

1 med. zucchini squash, halved and thinly sliced

1 med. yellow squash, halved and thinly sliced

1 c. frozen baby broccoli florets

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. dried basil, or 2 T. fresh basil "chiffonade"

Put all of the ingredients into a medium to large, heavy soup pot. Bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and let cook 30 - 60 minutes on low. The veg. should be cooked through. Turn it off, Take your potato masher and "mash" the soup to thicken it. (You may use an immersion blender if you have one, or cool soup and blend it in the blender, but don't puree completely.)

Then, add:

1 big handful of chopped fresh baby spinach

1/2 c. chopped roasted red pepper (buy it in a jar either on the international isle or near the pickles)

1 tsp. of salt, or to taste

a few grindings of fresh black pepper

Bring the soup back up to boil, turn it down and let simmer 15 more minutes. Garnish with a little fresh basil if you have it. Sprinkle your bowl with a T. of parmesan cheese if you can afford the extra calories!

Let me say that I KNOW this is a lot of ingredients for one recipe, but here is how I look at it: You can eat on this all week, and it will keep you from overeating at meal times. Eat a cup before lunch and or dinner. It's very healthy and full of natural fiber.

If you want to use this for a main course, add a can of drained and rinsed kidney or cannelini beans or a cup of cooked, small pasta, like seashells or elbows. Just be sure to add that to your totals for the day.