I love Mexican food, especially overfilled burritos, but they can be full of hidden calories.  I created this recipe for chicken burritos replacing things like flower tortillas with brown rice tortillas and sour cream with Greek yogurt to make a healthy alternative to a traditional Mexican favorite. This is a quick and easy dish that could be made for a weeknight meal or for a fun filled Mexican night!

Ingredients

1 lb white meat chicken breast cut into strips

3-4 large red, green, orange and or yellow pepper strips

Medium onion cut into strips (or ½ tsp onion powder)

2-3 cloves garlic diced (or ½ tsp garlic powder)  

2 Tbs olive oil

1 can black or kidney beans (drained and rinsed)

1 Tbs chili powder

To add spice -a dash or more of cayenne pepper and or a jalapeno diced (seeds = extra spice)

6 brow rice tortillas (in the gluten free freezer section) prepared as directed

Toppings- diced avocado, homemade or (100% natural fresh salsa from the produce section) 2% all natural shredded cheese, Non- fat plain Greek yogurt, shredded lettuce, your favorite hot sauce

Directions

In a non- stick pan sauté onions with 1 Tbs olive oil over a medium-low heat until almost tender.  Then add in the garlic and all peppers including the jalapeno if you are using them.  Cook pepper until tender stirring frequently then remove from the pan.  Sauté the chicken over medium until cooked with the remaining olive oil and then add the pepper mixture back into the pan, with the beans and any dried spices.  Turn the heat to low and cover to keep warm.    Prepare tortillas as well as the toppings.  Fill the tortillas with the chicken, beans and pepper mixture as well as your favorite toppings.  

I absolutely love pasta, but it is considered a forbidden food to most “dieters”. Since I refuse to give up my beloved pasta, I have created this healthy alternative to traditional pasta dishes. Remember, no matter how healthy a dish is it's important to stick to the serving size.

 We will be breaking one of the cardinal rules when it comes to pasta, by slathering the pasta with a veggie filled, protein packed sauce to add bulk to the dish. So for the foodies out there, feel free to call this dish “Sauce with Pasta!” We will also make another tweak to up the health ante: we’re going to substitute conventional pasta with healthier brown rice pasta. I actually find brown rice pasta  tastes pretty close to semolina pasta so you get a healthy alternative without sacrificing flavor.

Cooking is about creativity, so  as long as you stick to the items on the food list posted to dawnsbodyshop.com, you can tweak the ingredients as you see fit. Today I am using a combination of zucchini, carrots, onions, and mushrooms with ground bison, (which is a lean meat). Feel free to pick your own favorites!  Sometimes I use spinach and mushrooms with ground turkey. I have also used eggplant with diced tomatoes and an all-natural chicken sausage. If I don’t feel like adding meat, I add Shaklee unflavored soy protein instead. 

Ingredients-
2 cups baby carrots
1 small zucchini
2 cups mushrooms
1 medium onion
2-4 garlic cloves
1lb ground bison
4 table spoons extra virgin olive oil
1, 30oz can low sodium crushed tomatoes (or use fresh tomatoes**)
1, 30 can low sodium dice tomatoes drained (or use fresh tomatoes**)
1 sprig Fresh parsley 
1 sprig Fresh basil
1 teaspoon ground black pepper 
1 cup freshly grated cheese

Recipe-
Chop your desired veggies to bite-size, or smaller pieces. Feel free to use a food processor to make this easier. In a medium size pot, add 1 chopped onion with a small pinch of sea salt to about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over a medium heat and sauté for about 5-7 minutes, or until they start to become translucent. Add the other veggies except for the garlic and sauté about 5-7 minutes longer or until the veggies start to become tender. Add the garlic at the last 1-2 minutes so it doesn’t burn. Meanwhile pull about a sprig of fresh parsley and about 5-8 fresh basil leaves from the stem, chop lightly and place in a large bowl. Remove the veggies and any liquid from the pot and add to the large bowl with the parsley and basil. 

Add in the ground bison meat to the pot with about a tablespoon of olive oil and sauté until cooked through. Add veggies and herbs to the cooked bison. Top with tomatoes. Add a pinch of fresh ground pepper to taste. Simmer on low until small bubbles start to appear, stirring occasionally. Once the sauce is ready, cook the brown rice pasta according to the directions. Drain the pasta and put the pasta back in its pot with the freshly grated cheese and enough sauce to coat the pasta mix and cook for about 60 seconds over low heat stirring occasionally. Serve 1 cup or about 1 fist size of pasta with about 1-2 cups of the sauce on top. To add spice, add a dash of red pepper flakes.   

Note-
Unused sauce can be frozen for later use.

** Homemade tomato sauce – clean and de-stem about 15-20 medium size tomatoes piercing the bottom end and place in a large bowl. (I prefer romana tomatoes). Cover with boiling water and let sit about 2 minutes. Run cold water into the bowl until the water and the tomatoes are cool to touch. The skin of the tomatoes should peel of easily. Once peeled cut into quarters from top to bottom and remove the seed (it doesn’t have to be perfect), crush the remaining tomato meat with your hands or dice with a knife. Use to replace canned tomatoes in your favorite tomato sauce recipe.

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Make it Your Way Oatmeal Protein
Cookie 
 
Dry
Ingredients
2 cups oat flower (made with rolled oats in a food processor)
1 teaspoons baking soda
¼ cup brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup plane non-gmo soy protein or  hemp protein
 
Wet Ingredients
2 mashed bananas, 1 cup unsweetened apple sauce, or 1 cup pumpkin 
½ cup milk of any kind 
½ cup Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons fresh ginger grated  
1 tablespoon molasses, honey or maple syrup
½ teaspoon vanilla

Fun add-ins 
Ground nuts or nut butter
Raisins
Goji
berries
Cacao
Chia
Shredded coconut
Coconut oil  (to grease cookie sheet)

Directions 
Mix wet and dry ingredients separately and then together (mix and match options and up to 1/2 cup of the fun add-ins to taste)
Preheat oven to 350*, Grease 2 cookie sheets with coconut oil, scoop batter with a tablespoon onto cookie, sheet press down and shape into the diameter of a silver dollar to make about a dozen cookies, Cook for about 15-20 minutes just until firm rotating cookie sheets on the racks half way through


Note: Since they don't have eggs in them, you can eat the dough raw!  
  
With just the base ingredients there are only about 132 calories, 23g carbohydrates, 2g fat, 8g protein, 250mg sodium, 8g sugar per a cookie. Have one cookie as a healthy snack or two for a quick and easy meal.