Spinach and Artichoke Dip

If you have a tailgating party, or just a sunday night football gathering this dish has to be invited! When I served this at my last tailgating party I waited for guests to have a bite before I told them it was low fat. They were all splendidly surprised. 

I served this with homemade baked tortilla chips. To make those all you do is take corn tortillas and cut them into wedges. Place them in a single layer on a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray and bake them for 6-7 minutes at 450' until they are crispy, but not brown. (If you want a little bit more flavor sprinkle the pre-baked chips with salt and pepper. Or if you want to go a little spicy, maybe some chili powder.)

It is best to serve this dip warm, but really it can be eaten at any temperature. If you have to transport this as I did, put it all together the night before and bake it right before you have to leave. 

Please forgive my forgetfulness in taking pictures. I was making three different recipes at one time and the taking of pictures before I put it all together was somehow forgotten. 

Spinach and Artichoke Dip (printer friendly version)

Cooking Light Complete Cookbook

Ingredients:

2 cups (8oz) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

1/4 cup (1 oz) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided

1/4 teaspoon pepper

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 (8 oz) block 1/3 less-fat cream cheese, softened

1 (8 oz) block fat-free cream cheese, softened

1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeeze dry

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350'.
2. Combine 1 1/2 cups mozzarella, sour cream, 2 tablespoons Parmesan, pepper and remaining 5 ingredients in a large bowl, and stir until well blended. Spoon mixture into a 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle 1/2 cup mozzarella and 2 tablespoon Parmesan. Bake at 350' for 30 minutes or until bubbly and brown. Serve with baked tortilla chips or crackers.

Makes 4 1/2 cups
Nutrition: (serving size: 1/4 cup) Calories 99; Fat 5.5g; Protein 8.1g; Carb 4.3g; Fiber 0.5g; Cholesterol 19mg

Jalapeno Corn Bread

I love anything spicy. Anything that says jalapeno I want to make it. When I was visiting my soldier a few weekends ago, he surprised me with a new cookbook and I found this delicious corn bread. I have been house sitting for the past week so I had to find a recipe that I could easily do in the foreign kitchen. I was very happy when I found out this recipe would work!

One of my new favorites :) Someone knows the cookbooks I like!

I happened to buy a can of Light Santa Fe style soup a few days before and the cornbread molded perfectly! It was a delicious spicy meal.

Jalapeno Cornbread (Printer Friendly Version)

tasteofhome Guilt Free Cooking


Ingredients:
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup cream-style corn
1/4 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1/4 cup fat-free milk
2 tablespoons chopped green onion
1 tablespoon butter, melted
2 teaspoon chopped seeded jalapeno pepper

Direction:

1. In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Combine the corn, egg substitute, cheddar cheese, milk, green onion, butter and jalapeno. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. 
2. Pour into a 8-in. square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425' for 12-14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares; serve warm.

Makes 9 servings

Nutrition: (per square) Calories 94; Fat 2g; Cholesterol 5mg; Sodium 261mg; Carbs 15g; Fiber 1g; Protein 4g

Peanut Butter-Crisp Rice Bars

If you don't want to open your oven or turn on that stove; this is the recipe for you! No baking and super quick. These delicious krispie bars are really a great snack for just about anything. Even though it only asks for peanut butter topping, you are free to add anything else you may want. I have a special someone that loves peanut butter and chocolate so I added a bit of dark chocolate drizzle for him. For myself, I left half of the recipe with just peanut butter. Don't ask me why, but when peanut butter and chocolate come together I get ill. Which makes me sad, because I think Reese's are tasty. Whenever I tell people this depressing fact, they are greatly surprised. I always have to reassure them it's not me, it's my stomach. Of course, there are times when I live through the headache to have those little Reese's Pieces. :)

If you have read previous posts, you have seen that I always want to spend little money when it comes to buying ingredients. I will admit, I can be cheap. At times, it is good to by the name brands, but this recipe does not need those. If the store brand was cheaper, I definitely put that in my basket. Surprisingly, when I went to buy the peanut butter chips, I couldn't find them! The bag you see below is a mix of peanut butter and chocolate. After standing there for about three minutes I found a bag of Reese's peanut butter chips, but they were two dollars more than the combination bag. So I took the extra time to separate the chips, then spend the extra money when really it's just the brand. If you take your time at the store, you can save a lot of money here and there. It all adds up in the end!

This post was a bit delayed because of a little trip I took to visit my soldier over labor day. I knew the weekend would be a fantastic one, but I had no idea it would be one that I would remember till the day I die! Don't worry, I said yes! ;)

**Here is my little tip for you before you begin melting things... Pre-measure! I was so excited to make these (and I can get a little impatient when waiting) I lost track of my measurements and it was a big sticky mess! So, to avoid what I had to go through, take the few minutes ahead of time to pre-measure your cereal and chips, set them aside while you start the peanut butter mixture and everything will go smoothly.

Coat your hands with cooking spray when pressing the mixture into the pan, it gets very sticky!

Who doesn't want to just eat these as they are? Wish I had some vanilla ice cream to garnish :)

Peanut Butter-Crisp Rice Bars (Printer Friendly Version)
Cooking Light Complete Cookbook


Ingredients:
1/3 creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon butter
1 (10 1/2 oz) bag miniature marshmallows
6 cups oven-toasted rice cereal (such as Rice Krispies)
Cooking Spray
3/4 cup peanut butter chips

Directions:

1. Combine peanut butter and butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH 30 to 45 seconds or until mixture melts. Add marshmallows; microwave at HIGH 1 minute or until smooth, stirring every 30 seconds. Add cereal to peanut butter mixture; toss until well combined. Press cereal mixture into a 13x9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. (Tip: mixture will be very sticky, so coat your hands with cooking spray before pressing it into the pan.)
2. Place peanut butter chips in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH 20 to 30 seconds or until chips melt. Spoon melted chips into a small heavy-duty zip-tip bag; seal. Snip a tiny hole in 1 corner of the bag; drizzle melted chips over cereal mixture. Cool slightly; cut into 24 bars. 

Makes 2 dozen.

Nutrition: (per bar) Calories 118; Fat 3.9g; Protein 2.6g; Carb 19g; Fiber 0.7g; Sodium 93mg