TMK Recipe #2: Chicken, Black Bean & Zucchini Quesadilla

I got the base for this recipe from a fitness magazine and knew right away I needed to add meat if the boys were gonna eat it (without chicken this meal still boasts 21.2g of protein – so if you’re not a chicken fan just skip it). The initial recipe’s sodium count was a bit horrendous and wouldn’t have made the grade for the Trainer Meets Kitchen prereq’s, so I made sure to use La Tortilla Factory’s low-carb whole-wheat tortillas (lower in sodium). As a reminder of the criteria, see the 1st recipe below this posting.

Chicken, Black Bean & Zucchini Quesadilla

Chef “Trainer Girl”

The criteria low-down:

Rating: 2 The only reason this recipe did not score a 1 for easy-as-teeth-brushing is because of the toasting of the tortillas, which is CRUCIAL to this recipe, otherwise the La Factory Low-Carb Whole-Wheat Tortillas just taste like wet cardboard. Plus, if you add the chicken like I did you must first cook it you’re favorite way (I personally like to stew the chicken in chicken or vegetable broth – just stick frozen chicken tenders in a skillet, cover with the stock, bring to a light boil and cover. Stew until chicken is no longer pink in the middle. I find this method great because the stock keeps the chicken juicy. I hate dry chicken!!)

Ingredient Search: Half of the stuff you may have in your kitchen already, which makes this recipe super approachable and great for lazy cooks. Yippee!

Vitals: (With Chicken) Calories per serving (recipe makes 1 serving) = 479; Fat = 15g; Sodium = 858mg; Protein = 32g; Carbs = 38.4g; Fiber = 16.9g

Taste: I wasn’t sure I was going to like this so I wasn’t expecting much. Thankfully I was pleasantly surprised! The salsa (I used homemade) was a great touch and I liked the cumin flavor in the quesadilla for that extra Mexican-style kick. I did add Frank’s Hot Sauce on top after I plated it because I loooooove Frank’s Hot Sauce! It adds maybe 5 calories….maybe. Tapatio would work great too if you’re into spicy things!

Ingredients:

2 frozen chicken breast tenderloins (a serving size was 3 according to the package I bought, however personal experience has taught me that I only have room in my belly for 2)

1 cup chopped zucchini

1/2 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 teaspoon cumin

2 La Tortilla Factory Low-Carb Whole-Wheat tortillas

1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 Tablespoons salsa

Prepare:

Cook the chicken however you like yours prepared (for details on how I made mine, see the first part of this post).

Saute the next 4 ingredients for 5 minutes. Place mixture on tortillas, sprinkle with cheese. Fold in half and cook in pan until cheese melts and tortilla is toasted. Top with salsa.

Consume!

Trainer Meets Kitchen: Recipe #1, Penne w/ Pesto alla Trapanese

This first recipe comes from professional chef Lidia Bastianich (as in: Lidia’s Italy), who I adore but found it surprising that she and her sweet accent even knew how to cook a dish under 500 calories and 20 grams of fat. So when I stumbled upon this recipe that claimed it was just that (and under 650 mg of sodium – golf claps!), I gave it a whirl.

My criteria for Trainer Meets Kitchen recipes is this:

1. Recipe must be fairly quick and easy to prepare (I don’t have lots of time, you don’t have lots of time, I know, I know, I know). I’ll rate it on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being as easy as brushing teeth (your own, not your children’s), and 5 being the equivalent of writing a 20-page thesis on nuclear engineering practices (kudos to my cousin’s hubby who could actually do that in his sleep).

2. Ingredients must be easy to find (If I have to go to 3 different speciality stores I am not a happy consumer).

3. Calorie, fat, protein, and sodium content must not be astronomical and preferrably each main dish will be under 500 calories, side dishes under 250, breakfasts under 400, and snacks under 200. Attention will be made to the quality of fat (unsaturated = good).

4. It MUST TASTE GOOD (perhaps this should really move up the scale to #1).

Drum roll…..

Penne with Pesto alla Trapanese

Chef Lidia Bastianich

The criteria low-down:

Rating: 3 (If you can’t cook pasta, you’re doomed (and you’re mother should be ashamed of herself). But this recipe does ask you to pour olive oil into a running blender …which some people may struggle with more than you think…and you may need to toast almonds if you can’t find them already done for you. No biggie. Start to finish for this recipe took me about 20 minutes (I also did a load of laundry in there somewhere).

Ingredient search: A no-brainer. Less than7 minutes in Fred Meyer!

Vitals: Calories per serving (makes 4) = 495; Fat = 9g (only 3g saturated); Sodium = 232 mg (very good!); Protein = 15g; Carbs = 67g; Fiber = 4g

Taste: Let’s see, it’s got whole-wheat pasta, tomatoes, parmesan cheese, and basil? YUM!! Loved it, would and will make again – in fact it’s officially voted in as one of my fall-backs for dinner!

Ingredients:

3/4 lb whole-wheat penne rigate pasta (she doesn’t specify whole-wheat, but I do)

1/2 lb (about 4) Roma tomatoes, very ripe and sweet

8 large, fresh basil leaves (trainer tip: fresh is much better in this case)

2 Tbsp unsalted roasted almonds (I roasted them myself for about 5 – 8 minutes at 400 degrees- but if you’ve got the time to search for them, press on)

1 large garlic clove, crushed and peeled (you’ll get used to the fact that I ALWAYS add more garlic than a recipe calls for)

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp coarse sea salt or kosher salt

1/4 c extra-virgin olive oil (yes, the extra-virgin part is important)

1/4 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese (Lidia specifies Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano, I say just find a good parmesan wedge and go for gold)

Prepare:

Cook pasta according to package instructions until al dente. This Trainer Girl’s tip: Cook it until you think it tastes good.

While pasta cooks, rinse the tomatoes and basil and pat dry. Cut tomatoes into large chunks.

Place the tomatoes in a blender or food processor, followed by the basil, almonds, garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt. Blend for a minute or more to a fine puree; scrape down the bowl and blend again if any large pices are left.

With the machine still running, add the olive oil in a steady stream; it will emulsify the puree into a thick pesto. Woohoo, pesto!

Scrape the pesto into a big bowl. Drop drained pasta onto the pesto. Toss quickly to coat the pasta, sprinkle on cheese, and toss again. Serve immediately in bowls.

EAT!

What’d ya think? Let me know!

Up next: Black Bean & Zucchini Quesadillas (Trainer Girl’s Creation)

Workout Fuel – Make Your Own!

After trying sports drink after sports drink and finding few that make me feel energized AND don’t wreak havoc on my digestive system, I came across this DIY concotion from an old Women’s Health mag. The verdict: It contains no fake sugars, has a light taste and kept my fuel tank full throughout a 45-minute strength workout. The best part? It didn’t make my stomach do somersaults! I’ll try quenching my thirst with it on my run tomorrow, too!

Try it:

Pre-Workout Punch

This juice has just enough carbs to keep you fueled, and the water-sodium combo enhances hydration.

1/4 c sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 c hot water

In the bottom of a pitcher, dissolve sugar and salt in the hot water.

Add the following:

1/4 c orange juice (not concentrate)

2 Tbsp lemon juice

3 1/2 c cold water

Chill for 30 minutes.

Chug!

Makes 4 servings. Per 8 oz serving: 50 cal, 12g carbs, 110mg sodium

Pre-Workout Punch

A Day Off?

Today I took a day off from running. And it wasn’t a “scheduled” day off, which I do have now and again. I was actually supposed to get up and log 9 miles today, which I had full intent on doing because really at this point in my marathon training, 9 miles is chump change. That’s an easy run! So why didn’t I do it? Well that’s the thing. I don’t know!!!

Maybe it was the raging thunder and lightning storm outside (I run outside only…I’m not a treadmill girl and I’m certainly not attempting 9 miles on one); Maybe it was that I ran 16 miles last Sunday, did a full-body workout Monday, ran 5 miles with speedwork on Tuesday, another full-body workout Wednesday…so today my body is just tired. Or perhaps I’m just coming up with excuses to not run, which is really hard for me to admit because normally a workout is my top priority. Which would explain the guilt I’m having RIGHT. THIS. MOMENT.

So I ask you – fellow marathon runners and trainees – is it OK to skip a run? The trainer in me says my body needs a rest day now and again. The runner in me thinks I’m a wuss right about now. What do YOU think?

The one source of comfort I do have going for me is knowing I’ve got an 18-miler in store for myself this weekend. So, um, I’m just gonna take that justification and run with it!

Trainer Meets Kitchen: A Journey Through 200 Healthy Recipes

I reallllly wanna see that new movie Julie & Julia…mostly because I love the whole concept that she works her way through a cookbook in one year and writes about it. Genius! And FUN! I wanna do it too! Soooo, I am. Only my experience will be just as the blog title states – I’m going to work my way through 200 Healthy Recipes and hopefully do so within a year or less.

Some of them may start off as healthy recipes, others I will adapt to make healthy (such as sinful desserts that need an excuse to eat more often), and I will write about it all – yes, even if I think it tastes like junk - for YOU! I’ll also post the entire recipe so you don’t have to go searching for a bajillion cook books at Barnes & Noble. Hey, I’m all for stimulating the economy…but I like to share…information, anyway.

I have many recipes already stacked up on my desk just waiting to be tested, and even more lurking in the creative depths of my brain that I’m pretty sure I made up. However if you have any requests please leave a comment or email me at crystalthomas@poisefitness.net. Now if you’ll excuse me I have a kitchen to mess up…