Breakfast Casserole

This is one of our family's staple breakfast recipes for gatherings (formerly known as Sausage Squares) and it's really been known for the sausage, hence the name. Until yesterday. I'm renaming it and revamping it! I hosted playgroup yesterday so I thought I'd try a more healthy take on this recipe and let me tell you, it was a hit! The old recipe just called for sausage, eggs, cheese, and crescent rolls so I decided to add some of my favorite veggies (you can really add any you like) and use some lower fat cheeses.

Breakfast Casserole

Makes about 16-20 squares depending on who's doing the cutting :-)

8 eggs, beaten

1 lb reduced fat sausage, cooked & drained

2 pkg crescent rolls (leave in fridge until you put them on or they are a pain to work with)

1 cup shredded low fat cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded low fat mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (I didn't have low fat but I'm going to look for it next time I go to the store)

1 zucchini shredded

3/4 lb asparagus chopped into about 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 onion

1/2 red pepper

1/2 yellow pepper

Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease 9x13 casserole dish (I used fat free Pam). Saute onion and peppers in a pan on medium heat until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Put mixture in pan and spread out evenly. Top with crescent rolls (this works best if you break the roll in half and then use the rectangle shapes instead of tearing them into triangles). Bake for 30 minutes covered and about 5-10 uncovered or until full browned and cooked through. Cut into squares and serve.

I hope your family enjoys this as much as mine has!

"Un-Fried" Chicken & Lighter Mac & Cheese

Let me tell you, and some of you I don't have to, I LOOOOOVE Paula Deen. That woman knows how to make a great meal and she never disappoints. I don't think I've ever made anything of hers that I didn't like. She's fabulous. I love to cook and she is almost always my go-to woman for recipes. The only problem is she's not exactly known for her low calorie meals. I am trying to lose the last 20 pounds of baby weight (OK, maybe the pre-baby weight) so I am trying to cut calories in addition to exercising like "they" tell you to do. Paula's son, Bobby Deen, has come up with some lower calorie takes on her recipes and so far they've been great!

Here's what we had for dinner last night:

"Un-Fried Chicken"

Adapted from Bobby Deen

Makes 2 servings (but you can double/triple/whatever the recipe)

2 8oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts trimmed of all fat and cut in half

1/2 tsp Paula Deen House Seasoning (see below)

1/4 cup light mayonnaise

Zest and juice of 1 lemon (I used 2 tbsp bottled and no zest... I know, tisk tisk, but it was fine!)

1 egg white

1/2 tsp hot sauce (I used Tabasco)

1 1/4 cup cornflake crumbs

Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease shallow baking pan (I used Pam and a 9x13 glass casserole dish).

Sprinkle chicken with House Seasoning. Combine mayo, lemon juice (and zest if using), egg white, and hot sauce in medium bowl.* Add the chicken, toss to coat.

Place cornflakes and a small shallow pan and crunch with your hands. Dip chicken in the crumbs and cover all sides. Place in baking pan and spray very lightly with nonstick spray (I used Pam).

Bake until chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about 30 minutes. Do not turn.

*This will give you much more than you will need for 2 chicken breasts but it's far easier than splitting an egg white, trust me, I found out the hard way.

Paula Deen House Seasoning

1 cup salt

1/4 cup ground black pepper

1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix to combine. Keep in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Lighter Mac & Cheese

Adapted from Bobby Deen

Makes about 4 servings

2 cups cooked multigrain elbow macaroni, drained

1 cup reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup fat free milk

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/8 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1/8 cup panko (or regular/seasoned/whatever) bread crumbs

1-2 tsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 8x8 casserole dish with nonstick spray.

Put boiled & drained macaroni into casserole dish and add cheese while still hot.

Combine milk, egg, sour cream, mustard salt and cayenne in small bowl. Add mixture to casserole dish and stir to combine.

Combine bread crumbs and olive oil in small bowl. Sprinkle crumb mixture over macaroni and lightly spray with nonstick spray.

Bake until macaroni is hot and topping is golden, about 20-30 minutes (just check it).

I promise, none of this even resembled healthy or diet food. It was SO good and I'm making it again Thursday!