Baked Macaroni and Cheese

You have to have comfort food while dieting. So here is an easy recipe which is also very tasty. It is a lot of food, but you can always freeze it by the serving and just nuke it when you are ready to eat.

If you don't have mustard around you can add mustard powder instead. But be careful with the rest of the ingredients. If you change too much of it you are really playing the calorie content and can go over 300 calories per serving. I've calculated this dish as either a 6 or a 8 serving dish. So, after you prepare the dish you have the choice of deciding how many servings you want out of the dish and then calculate it per serving.

Enjoy:)

BAKED MACARONI AND CHEESE

Ingredients:
12 oz uncooked macaroni, elbow-type
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
12 oz fat-free evaporated milk
8 oz low-fat cheddar or colby cheese, shredded
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
2 Tbsp dried bread crumbs
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Cook pasta according to package directions without added fat or salt; drain and transfer to a large bowl. While pasta is still hot, stir in sour cream; set aside.

Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until tiny bubbles appear just around the edges (known as scalding). Reduce heat to low, add cheese and simmer until cheese melts, stirring constantly with a wire whisk, about 2 minutes; remove from heat and stir in mustard, salt, pepper and nutmeg.

Add cheese mixture to pasta; mix well. Transfer to a 3-quart casserole dish.

Combine bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese; sprinkle over pasta.

Bake until top is golden, about 30 minutes. Yields about 1 cup per serving

Number of Servings: 8
Per serving:
Calories:265
Fat: 4g
Carbohydrates: 40g
Protein: 17g

Number of Servings: 6
Per serving:
Calories:350
Fat: 5g
Carbohydrates: 55g
Protein: 23g

Cheese Omelet

I have to start from somewhere, but I couldn't decide if I should start with menus, or with recipes that are low in calories. So, at the end I decided to post some of the recipes so that I can maybe put menus together for a 1,200 calorie day.

So here is a basic scrambled egg recipe. I know everyone knows how to prepare it. But I'm just adding it for the numbers so I know how many calories I'm consuming.

If you were to prepare this recipe without cheese, you would be consuming around 90 calories.

I actually use 1/2 cup of egg substitutes instead of using an egg and an egg white which is around 60 calories. For me, it's easier to prepare, but I've used real eggs just in case you would prefer it.

If you were to use skim milk mozzarella instead of cheddar = 165 calories
feta cheese instead of cheddar = 165 calories
swiss cheese instead of cheddar = 200 calories
provolone cheese instead of cheddar = 190 calories

Feel free to add any herb that you like to spice up this basic egg dish. I like adding fresh basil just because I have it handy on my balcony:)

CHEESE OMELET

Ingredients:
1 whole egg
1 egg white
1 oz. cheddar cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
In a bowl, whisk eggs and salt just until blended; do not overbeat.

Heat an 8-inch nonstick frying pan with sloping sides over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Pour egg mixture into pan and swirl to spread it out to edges of pan.

As egg mixture sets on pan bottom, lift edge with a spatula and tilt pan to let uncooked egg flow underneath. Continue the process, working around pan sides, until no uncooked egg mixture flows underneath and top is still moist.

Sprinkle cheese in a strip down the center of the omelet, in line with the pan handle. With the spatula, fold one side over the strip of cheese.

Run spatula under omelet to loosen, and tip pan to slide omelet, folded edge first, onto a warm plate. Flip remaining edge over filling as omelet leaves pan.

Makes 1 Serving

Calories: 205
Fat: 14.5 g
Carbs: 1.5 g
Protein: 16.5 g