Avocado and Black Bean Salad

"Cooking for people is an enormously significant expression of generosity and soulfulness, and entertaining is a way to be both generous and creative. You're sharing your life with people. Of course, it's also an expression of your own need for approval and applause. Nothing wrong with that." - Ted Allen

Looking for an alternative to the standard side dishes or dips? Look no further. I found this recipe on Skinny Taste and made it for the Super Bowl Party we attended. The freshness of the lime paired perfectly with the creaminess of the avocado and the crunch of the cucumber. Some people ate this as a side salad, I liked it with tortilla or pretzel chips. No matter how you eat it the flavors and textures meld together extremely well.

Nutritional Information (calculated on myfitnesspal.com): 10 servings, 3 weight watchers points plus. 103 calories, 14g carbs, 5g fat, 4g protein

Ingredients:

• 2 Avocados, Diced
• 3 Roma Tomatoes, Diced
• 1 Seedless Cucumber, Peeled and Diced
• 15.5 oz can Black Beans, Drained and Rinsed
• 3 T Red Onion, Diced

Slow Cooker Greek Chicken

"I don't like food that's too carefully arranged; it makes me think that the chef is spending too much time arranging and not enough time cooking. If I wanted a picture I'd buy a painting." - Andy Rooney 

I had my parents over for dinner on Saturday night and adapted a recipe I found on Slender Kitchen. The flavors melded together perfectly to create this amazing dish.

Nutritional Information (calculated on myfitnesspal.com): 6 servings, 6 weight watchers points plus. 244 calories, 6g carbs, 9g fat, 37g protein.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs Chicken Breast
• 3 T Roasted Red Peppers, Chopped
• 1/4 c Sliced Black Olives
• 1.5 c Artichoke Hearts, Cut in Half
• 1/4 c Capers
• 6 oz Fat Free Feta
• 1.5 t Dried Oregano
• 1 t Garlic Powder
• 2 C Fat Free Chicken Stock
• Salt and Pepper, to Taste

Instructions:

1. Combine Red Peppers, Black Olives, Artichokes, Capers, Oregano and Garlic Powder in a bowl.
2. Place half of the mixture on the bottom of a slow cooker.
3. Top with Half of the Fat Free Feta.
4. Season Chicken with Salt and Pepper and place on top of the mixture in the crock pot.
5. Add Remaining Fat Free Feta.
6. Top with remaining mixture.
7. Pour Chicken Broth over the chicken.
8. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours until chicken is cooked through.
9. Serve with 1 chicken breast and 1/6 of the mixture.
10. Enjoy!

After adding 1st layer, Chicken and Feta

Ready to cook

Giuliana waited patiently for it to finish cooking.

Water Chestnuts and Bacon

“...no one is born a great cook, one learns by doing.” 

― Julia Child, My Life in France

I made this appetizer for our friends Super Bowl Party and it may have created more conversation that the absolutely horrible football game. Their is just something supremely satisfying about the saltiness of the bacon combined with the crunch of the water chestnut and the sweetness of the brown sugar glaze that just makes me want to eat the entire batch and make a second for everyone else. I procrastinated making this dish that I found on Emily Bites because for some reason I was intimidated by the entire process. Michelle and Kevin have been my testers many times so I thought their house would be a safe place to experiment. Now that I have made them, I will never be intimidate by them again because it was soooooo easy! For having bacon they are not as many points as I thought they would be.

Nutritional Information (calculated on myfitnesspal.com): 12 servings, 2 weight watchers points plus. 67 calories, 12g carbs, 1g fat, 2g protein

These did not last long!

Ingredients:

• 2 (8 oz) canned Sliced Water Chestnuts, Drained
• 12 Strips Center Cut Bacon, Regular Thickness
• 1/3 c Ketchup
• 1/3 c packed Brown Sugar
• 1.5 t Fat Free Yogurt (The recipe calls for plain but my store did not have plain so I used Apple Cinnamon.)
• 1/2 t Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/4 t Hot Sauce (I used Frank's Red Hot)
• 36 Toothpicks

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.