Lip-Smakin' Mac 'n' Cheese

Start to Finish: 27 minutes

Ingredients:
2 cups rotini or elbow macaroni
1/4 cup chopped onion
6 ounces American cheese slices, torn into pieces
1/2 cup fat-free milk
Dash black pepper

Directions:
In a saucepan cook pasta and onion according to pasta package directions. Drain. Return mixture to saucepan. Stir in cheese, milk, and pepper. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until cheese is melted, stirring constantly.

Servings: 3

Notes: Pretty good. We used Swiss cheese. It had a more pure taste than cheddar mac and cheese. It did not taste powdery and was very smooth. My husband really liked the change in cheese.

Variations: You can use different cheese.

Estimated Price: $3.50

Cookbook: Better Homes and Gardens 500 Five Ingredient Recipes
Nutrition Facts per serving: 392 cal., 14 g total fat (10 g sat. fat), 42 mg chol., 791 mg sodium, 46 g carbo., 2 g fiber, 18 g pro. Daily Values: 15% vit. A, 3% vit. C, 40% calcium, 8% iron

Chicken Salad

Start to Finish: 45 minutes

Ingredients:
2 large eggs
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon chili powder, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
2 stalks celery, finely chopped (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup cauliflower puree
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1/2 cup green grapes, coarsely chopped

Directions:
1) Place the eggs in a small saucepan and add cold water to cover. Cover, set the saucepan over high heat, and bring to a boil, then remove from the heat and let stand, still covered, for exactly 15 minutes. Run the eggs under cold water to cool, then peel them. Separate the yolks from the whites. Chop the whites and discard the yolks (or refrigerate for another use).
2) Sprinkle the chicken with salt, chili powder, paprika, and garlic powder. Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set it over medium high heat. When the skillet is hot, add the oil and then the chicken. For cutlets, cook 4 to 5 minutes per side until lightly browned and no longer pink in the center. For chicken breast, cook 5 minutes per side, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 9 to 10 minutes longer. Let the chicken cool completely before cutting it into bite sized pieces.
3) In a large bowl, stir together the chicken, mayonnaise, celery, cauliflower puree, yogurt, grapes, and chopped egg whites. Serve warm or chilled.

Servings: 4

Notes: This is delicious! Creamy and had a great flavor. The yogurt added a lot of flavor. Also, it made a lot more than the 4 servings the book said it would make. Great leftovers as well.

Variations: We added lettuce to the sandwich and that was great. Also, we used Hoagie rolls, but the nutrition facts are based on whole wheat bread.

Estimated Price: $7.00

Cookbook: Deceptively Delicious
Nutrition Facts per serving: 339 cal., 15 g total fat (3 g sat. fat), 26 mg chol., 1311 mg sodium, 39 g carbo., 7 g fiber, 21 g pro. Daily Values: 6% vit. A, 2% vit. C, 17% calcium, 7% iron

Pizza Rolls

Start to Finish: 3-1/2 hours

Ingredients:
1 bag of frozen Rhodes rolls
1 jar spaghetti sauce
Mozzarella cheese
Cheddar cheese
Pizza toppings

Directions:
Follow the instructions on the package to make the rolls up to the part where you cook them. Take each rolls and shape it into a mini pizza. Spread spaghetti sauce over the top of the roll, cover with cheese, and add your toppings. Bake at the temperature marked on the bag of rolls for 10-14 minutes.

Servings: 36 (Yeah right, each roll is supposed to be a serving, but I can easily eat 6 of these in a sitting)

Notes: This is a fan favorite. We make it for dinner, snacks, and get togethers. Everyone loves and devours them, especially the kids! I think Rhodes rolls are the best, but you can really use any frozen rolls you want. You can easily put the rolls out after lunch and let them rise until it's time to make dinner. Also great to make on Sundays and to have the dough rise while you're at church.

Estimated Price: $10.00

Cookbook: High Family Cookbook (My sister Michelle put it together for Christmas one year)
Nutrition Facts per serving: 621 cal., 32.45 g total fat (16.08 g sat. fat), 88 mg chol., 2,034.5 mg sodium, 49.17 g carbo., 2 g fiber, 31.88 g pro. Daily Values: 42% vit. A, 13% vit. C, 64% calcium, 21% iron, 8% folic acid

Middle Eastern Pitas

Start to Finish: 10 minutes

Ingredients:
4 pita bread rounds, halved crosswise
12 ounces thinly sliced deli roast beef
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup chopped cucumber

Directions:
Place roast beef in pitas. In a small bowl stir together yogurt and cucumber, spoon over roast beef in pitas.

Servings: 4

Notes: This is really tasty on a hot day. A good variation on sandwiches. The plain yogurt and cucumber together with the roast beef is delicious. Make sure you eat the pitas fast or freeze them if you are not planning on making this meal for over two days, as the pitas go bad quickly!

Variations: This recipe in the book actually calls for 7 or 8 ounces of roasted garlic flavored hummus, but we're not big fans of hummus, even though I like garbanzo beans. So, if you want to make your own or buy hummus you can add it to the pitas, but we do it without.

Estimated Price: $10 (quadrupled recipe)

Cookbook: Better Homes and Gardens 500-Five Ingredient Recipes
Nutrition Facts per serving: 380 cal., 10 g total fat (3 g sat. fat), 82 mg chol., 427 mg sodium, 39 g carbo., 1 g fiber, 34 g pro. Daily Values: 2% vit. A, 12% vit. C, 3% calcium, 21% iron

Honey-Chicken Sandwiches

Start to Finish: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons snipped fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed

1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced (1/3 cup)

12 ounces thinly sliced cooked chicken, halved crosswise

4 purchased croissants, halved horizontally and toasted

Directions:

1. In a medium skillet combine honey, thyme, and red onion. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until warm (do not boil). Stir in chicken; heat through. Serve in croissants.

Servings: 4

Notes: The honey made this a sweet sandwhich, which tasted delicious. The onions were not overpowering and the chicken was very tender. Yummy!

Variations: I broiled and shredded chicken instead of using thinly sliced chicken. Also, I do not like red onions so I used yellow onions. Also, I actually am not fond of the texture of onions, but can handle chopped onions so I chopped the yellow onions instead of thinly slicing them.

Estimated Price: $5.00*

*If you make your own croissants, which I did. Otherwise, a 4 pack of croissants will cost you $3.49, unless you get them on a day old shelf at the bakery. So, then the cost would be around $8.50.

Cookbook: Better Homes and Gardens 500- Five Ingredient Recipes

Nutrition Facts per serving: 445 cal., 18 g total fat (8 g sat. fat), 118 mg chol., 498 mg sodium, 40 g carbo., 2 g fiber, 29 g pro. Daily Values: 7% vit. A, 2% vit. C, 4% calcium, 13% iron