Bar food, desserts, and blue cheese dressing! Sounds unhealthy right? Wrong! Healthy Chef Devin Alexander, of The Biggest Loser, has a way you can make your favorites and still stay slim. It’s just like the contestants on the hit show, but only in your own kitchen! Check out her low-calorie recipes:
Boneless Buffalo Strips with Blue Cheese Dressing
Makes four servings in under 30 minutes
Ingredients:
1/4 cup light mayonnaise
3 tablespoons fat-free sour cream
3 tablespoons low-fat buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
1/2 cup crumbled reduced-fat blue cheese
1 1/2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 chicken tenderloins (about 1 pound), trimmed of tendons
Olive oil spray
1 1/2 tablespoons hot sauce (a thick one like Frank’s), plus more to taste
2 tablespoons light butter (stick, not tub)
For Blue Cheese Dressing:
- Whisk the mayonnaise, sour cream, buttermilk, hot sauce, and vinegar in a medium re-sealable container until smooth and well combined.
- Stir in the blue cheese until well combined.
- Seal the container and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Blue Cheese Dressing Nutrition Information:
- Makes about 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon.
- Each tablespoon has 31 calories, 1 g protein, 1 g carbohydrates, 2 g fat, <1 g saturated fat, 4 mg cholesterol, <1 g fiber and 103 mg sodium.
- Traditional serving has 164 calories, 1 g protein, 2 g carbohydrates, 17 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 17 mg cholesterol, <1 fiber and 149 mg sodium.
- You save: 133 calories, 15 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 46 mg sodium.
For Boneless Buffalo Strips:
- It is suggested that you use chicken tenderloins, as opposed to chicken breasts, for this dish because it saves time. But if the tenderloins are significantly more expensive at your grocery store and you want to save money, you can use chicken breasts. You’ll need about four 4-ounce chicken breasts.
- Pound chicken to an even 1/4-inch thickness using the flat side of a meat mallet, and then cut each on a diagonal into four equal strips.
- Mix the flour, garlic powder, and salt in a medium shallow bowl until well combined.
- Dip one chicken strip at time into the flour mixture and turn it to coat completely.
- Then shake off any excess flour. Transfer the strip to a plate. Repeat with the remaining strips, placing them side by side on the plate until they are all coated.
- Place a large skillet over high heat. When the skillet is hot, lightly mist it with spray and add the chicken strips side by side, not touching, in a single layer (work in batches, if necessary).
- Cook until lightly browned on the outside and no longer pink inside, two to three minutes per side.
- Meanwhile, place a small, nonstick skillet over low heat and add the butter and hot sauce. Heat, stirring constantly, until the butter is just melted, being careful not to scorch it. Immediately remove from the heat, add the chicken strips, and toss to coat completely. Add more hot sauce, if desired. Let stand in the pan for 5 minutes, and then toss again (the sauce will stick better after resting) and serve immediately.
- When you’re cooking the chicken, it’s very important to use a large pan or work in batches. The strips should be cooked in a single layer, not touching. The pan should also be very hot. If cooked as described, the strips will be lightly golden on the outside and very tender on the inside. If not, the moisture released from the chicken will steam it, preventing the chicken from browning and cooking properly.
- To finish, spoon the dressing into a small dipping bowl. Arrange the Boneless Buffalo Strips on a plate with the celery, carrots, tomatoes, and dressing. Serve immediately.
Boneless Buffalo Strips Nutrition Information:
- Each of the chicken has 162 calories, 27 g protein, 3 g carbohydrates, 5 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 73 mg cholesterol, <1 g fiber and 427 mg sodium.
- Each serving of the whole dish has 293 calories, 32 g protein, 18 g carbohydrates, 10 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 83 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber and 782 mg sodium.
- Traditional serving has 595 calories, 31 g protein, 15 g carbohydrates, 48 g fat, 17 g saturated fat, 138 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber and 1,429 mg sodium.
- You save: 302 calories, 38 g fat, 13 g saturated fat.
Click here to watch Devin make this decadent dish!
Strawberry Waffle Cakes
Makes four servings in under five minutes
Ingredients:
4 low-fat, whole grain or whole wheat waffles
2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1⁄2 cup fat-free frozen whipped topping, thawed
Directions:
- Toast the waffles according to package directions.
- Place one waffle on each of 4 plates and mound 1⁄2 cup strawberries on top.
- Spoon 2 tablespoons whipped topping over each and serve.
Strawberry Waffle Cakes Nutrition Information:
- Each serving has 113 calories, 3 g protein, 23 g carbohydrates, 1 g fat (trace saturated), 0 mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber and 221 mg sodium.
Watch Devin whip up this delicious dessert!
For more recipes from Healthy Chef Devin Alexander check out her Web site at www.devinalexander.com. And for more nutrition advice, check out iMag’s Food Section.
The Boneless Buffalo Strips with Blue Cheese Dressing recipe was taken from the cookbook, “The Most Decadent Diet Ever!” by Chef Devin Alexander and published by Broadway Books.
The Strawberry Waffle Cakes recipe was reprinted from “The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook” by Chef Devin Alexander and the Biggest Loser Experts and Cast (c) 2009 by Universal Studios Licensing LLLP. The Biggest Loser (TM) and NBC Studios, Inc., and Reveille LLC. Permission granted by Rodale, Inc., Emmaus, PA 18098.Available wherever books are sold or directly from the publisher by calling (800) 848-4735.
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