Quick Week-Night Fiesta

Elliott and I love Mexican food, but unfortunately our waist lines would disagree. It is probably my favorite cuisine, but how could it not be when it typically comes smothered in melty cheese and is full of spicy, delicious flavor? I keep many healthy variations of some Mexican favorites up my sleeve for a quick weeknight meal that will satisfy my cravings. Last night we had Smoky Lime-Chipotle Grilled Chicken Breasts served with some seriously addictive Baked Black Beans with Chorizo and the classic Mexican Rice. I try to follow one rule for my weeknight meals to keep my life as simple as possible – make two homemade items and if I need a third, take some help from the store and buy something that requires little to no effort. The Mexican rice is my easy third dish – we buy Vigo brand Mexican rice from Publix. I also suggest buying some of your favorite salsa and guacamole to serve as dippers with the chips or as toppings for your chicken and black beans. We buy the Wholly Guacamole brand 100-calorie packs and split one so we each end up with about 50 calories of guacamole each – it’s a great way to portion control delicious, but high in fat, guacamole. Give this meal a try next time you have a hankering for Mexican food – I guarantee it will satisfy your cravings and save you some calories too!

Smoky Lime-Chipotle Grilled Chicken

zest and juice of 2 limes

 3 garlic cloves, chopped

½ tsp smoked paprika

½ tsp chipotle chili pepper

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp ground red pepper

½ tsp hot red pepper sauce (I like Cholula or Valentina Mexican hot sauce)

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Combine first 10 ingredients and whisk together until incorporated. While whisking, stream in about a ½ cup of olive oil until combined. Pour marinade over chicken (use a ziplock bag for easy clean up) and let sit for about an hour in your refrigerator. Remove chicken from fridge about 5- 10 minutes before grilling. Taking the chill off the chicken will help keep it tender once it hits the grill.

Preheat the grill to medium-high heat. Grill chicken breasts 10-15 minutes, turning once, until cooked through. Remove chicken from grill and cover with aluminum foil. Let it sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes before serving – this will help ensure you have a juicy, tender chicken breast. Right before serving, squeeze juice from half a lime over the chicken breasts. Enjoy!

Baked Black Beans with Chorizo

This recipe was in the June issue of Cooking Light and let me tell you – it is a winner! I followed the directions almost exactly, but with a few tweaks. The recipe says to bake at 425 but I thought the high heat dried the black bean mixture out the first time I made it, so I tried baking them at 375 last night and they came out perfect – tender and almost creamy! I also squeeze in some fresh lime juice after its done baking and I omit the cheese since Elliott can’t eat it. I didn’t even miss the cheese – that’s how good these are! Serve these black beans as a side dish or as a dip with some health-conscious tortilla chips. We like Garden of Eatin Mini Yellow Corn Rounds.

½ cup diced chorizo

cooking spray

1 white onion, chopped

1 jalapeño pepper, diced

½ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon ground red pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

¾ cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup chopped seeded tomato

½ cup (2 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

¼ cup thinly sliced green onions

juice of 1 lime

salt and pepper

olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil, about a tablespoon. Add chorizo to pan and sauté for 3-4 minutes until it turns slightly golden brown. Remove chorizo from pan and let rest on a plate with a paper towel to soak up extra fat/oil. Add the onion, jalapeno and a little dash of salt and pepper to pan and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cumin, red pepper, and garlic and sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly so the garlic doesn’t burn. Stir in the chicken broth, black beans and another healthy dash of salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Cook for about 5 minutes and then mash the beans (with a potato masher or a fork) to desired consistency.

Spoon the bean mixture into a small baking dish (like an 8 inch square one or a 2-quart round one) coated with cooking spray. Top with chorizo, tomato and cheese. Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes until bubbly and lightly browned. Once it’s done, squeeze some fresh lime juice over the top and stir to combine. Taste for seasonings since black beans always tend to need a lot of salt. If it doesn’t taste super flavorful, add a big pinch of salt and that should do the trick. If you’ve got fresh cilantro on hand, definitely chop some up and sprinkle over the top. Enjoy!