Gina Homolka's Blog, page 164
January 14, 2019
Cheesy Rotisserie Chicken Enchilada Skillet
This Cheesy Rotisserie Chicken Enchilada Skillet dinner is about as fast as enchiladas can get, and that’s because it’s not really enchiladas—it’s a tortilla casserole made all in one cooking vessel.
I’m obsessed with Chicken Enchiladas, so I loved this easy skillet version! I used my homemade enchilada sauce which I usually double and keep in the freezer because it’s so dang good, but you can use jarred if you wish!
January 13, 2019
Classic Egg Salad
This classic egg salad recipe can be enjoyed for breakfast on toast, or for lunch in a wrap, over salad or in a sandwich. Sometimes I just eat it with a spoon right out of the container!
It’s funny how I have so many variations of egg salad recipes on my site, like this Chickpea Egg Salad and this Avocado Egg Salad, yet don’t have this classic, which I eat all the time. Problem solved! I make a batch of Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs and make this on the weekend to have for the week. You can easily double or triple this recipe.
January 12, 2019
Skinnytaste Meal Plan (January 14-January 20)
A free 7-day flexible weight loss meal plan including breakfast, lunch and dinner and a shopping list. All recipes include calories and Weight Watchers Freestyle™ SmartPoints®.
This week’s plan I am utilizing leftovers for an easy lunch. This Instant Pot Pork Carnitas makes enough for several meals. I serve them with tortillas but you can also serve them over brown rice or a big salad. I also wanted to share that I will be doing a cooking demo next Friday in Macy’s Chicago, you can find out more here.
If you’re new to my meal plans, I’ve been sharing these free, 7-day flexible healthy meal plans (you can see my previous meal plans here) that are meant as a guide, with plenty of wiggle room for you to add more food, coffee, beverages, fruits, snacks, dessert, wine, etc or swap recipes out for meals you prefer, you can search for recipes by course in the index. You should aim for around 1500 calories* per day.
There’s also a precise, organized grocery list that will make grocery shopping so much easier and much less stressful. Save you money and time. You’ll dine out less often, waste less food and you’ll have everything you need on hand to help keep you on track.
Lastly, if you’re on Facebook join my Skinnytaste Facebook Community where everyone’s sharing photos of recipes they are making, you can join here. I’m loving all the ideas everyone’s sharing!
Also, if you don’t have the Skinnytaste Meal Planner, now would be a great time to get one to get organized for 2019! There was a print error last year, but it’s perfect now! You can order it here!
THE DETAILS:
Breakfast and lunch Monday-Friday, are designed to serve 1 while dinners and all meals on Saturday and Sunday are designed to serve a family of 4. Some recipes make enough leftovers for two nights or lunch the next day. While we truly believe there is no one size fits all meal plan, we did our best to come up with something that appeals to a wide range of individuals. Everything is Weight Watchers friendly, I included the updated Weight Watcher Freestyle Points for your convenience, feel free to swap out any recipes you wish or just use this for inspiration!
The grocery list is comprehensive and includes everything you need to make all meals on the plan. I’ve even included brand recommendations of products I love and use often. Cross check your cabinets because many condiments you’ll notice I use often, so you may already have a lot of them.
And last, but certainly not least, this meal plan is flexible and realistic. There’s plenty of wiggle room for cocktails, healthy snacks, dessert and dinner out. And if necessary, you can move some things around to make it work with your schedule. Please let me know if you’re using these plans, this will help me decide if I should continue sharing them!
MONDAY (1/14)
B: Overnight Oats in a Jar (5)
L: Chickpea Tuna Salad (0)
D: Veggie Lasagna Zucchini Boats (7)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP SP 12, Calories 816*
TUESDAY (1/15)
B: 4-Ingredient Flourless Banana-Nut Pancakes (4)
L: Chickpea Tuna Salad (0)
D: Instant Pot Pork Carnitas** (3) with 2 corn tortillas (3), 2 ounces avocado (3) and Quick and Delicioso Cuban Style Black Beans (1)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 14, Calories 1,071*
WEDNESDAY (1/16)
B: Open-Faced Omelet with Avocado and Pico de Gallo (1)
L: LEFTOVER Instant Pot Pork Carnitas (3) with 2 corn tortillas (3) and 2 ounces avocado (3)
D: One Skillet Chicken with Bacon and Green Beans (2) and ¾ cup brown rice (5)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 17, Calories 881*
THURSDAY (1/17)
B: 4-Ingredient Flourless Banana-Nut Pancakes (4)
L: LEFTOVER Instant Pot Pork Carnitas (3) over 2 cups shredded romaine (0) and 2 ounces avocado (3)
D: Chunky Beef, Cabbage and Tomato Soup** (3) with 2 ounces multigrain baguette (3)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 16, Calories 895*
FRIDAY (1/18)
B: Open-Faced Omelet with Avocado and Pico de Gallo (1)
L: LEFTOVER Chunky Beef, Cabbage and Tomato Soup (3) with an apple (0)
D: Shrimp Cakes (5) with Creamy Cauliflower Puree (1) and Roasted Broccoli with Smashed Garlic (2)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 12, Calories 867*
SATURDAY (1/19)
B: Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats (5)
L: 3-Bean Turkey Chili (0) with 2 tablespoons shredded cheddar (2) and 1 tablespoon light sour cream (1)
D: DINNER OUT!
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 8, Calories 543*
SUNDAY (1/20)
B: LEFTOVER Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats (5)
L: LEFTOVER 3-Bean Turkey Chili (0) with 2 tbsps shredded cheddar (2) and 1 tbsp light sour cream (1)
D: Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan (4) with 1 cup sautéed zoodles (0)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 12, Calories 811*
*This is just a guide, women should aim for around 1500 calories per day. Here’s a helpful calculator to estimate your calorie needs. I’ve left plenty of wiggle room for you to add more food such as coffee, beverages, fruits, snacks, dessert, wine, etc.
*Freeze any leftover you/your family won’t eat
January 10, 2019
Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan
This quick and easy Chicken Parmesan is the answer to your weeknight dreams!! And since it’s made in the Instant Pot, it’s ready in minutes!
Don’t get me wrong, my family LOVES my Baked Chicken Parmesan recipe, so I was skeptical. No breading, no frying – sign me up! And since we are cutting down on the carbs this month, this was a no-brainer! Of course, if your family wants their pasta, feel free to serve it on the side (I had mine with zucchini noodles).
January 8, 2019
Chicken and Avocado Soup
This Chicken and Avocado Soup with lime, scallions and cilantro is my go-to when I want comfort food with Latin flavors.
It’s also really easy to make, and comes together in less than 30 minutes! The avocado adds a creaminess and richness to the light broth and is naturally low-carb, keto and Whole30 friendly. If you wish, you can also add tortillas or serve it with rice on the side.
January 7, 2019
Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats
A warm and heart healthy breakfast, making Steel Cut Oats in the Instant Pot is so much faster than making them on the stove!
Made with blueberries, bananas and cinnamon and lightly sweetened with pure maple syrup or honey. The question I get asked most often when I share my overnight oats recipe, is can you use steel cut oats? The answer is no, as they need to be cooked, as seen in below in this steel cut oats recipe.
January 6, 2019
Kitchen and House Remodel Update
As most of you know from this post, we have been remodeling our new Long Island home for the past year, if not longer. We have gotten a lot done, and even as I share these photos there has already been a lot more progress, but we still have quite a bit of work to do before we move in. I know it will all be worth it in the end, I just can’t wait to start cooking in my new kitchen! Here are some photos of our progress.
First, I want to show a few photos of our kitchen before and during the remodel process. We went with an all white kitchen, as you can see from the photos we still need to install the hardware and pick out the backsplash. The floors also need to get stained and finished. We originally wanted dark wood floors but now the trend has gone to lighter floors so we are looking at lighter options. We also eliminated the dining room to expand the kitchen and create pantry.
Current Photos:
We went with a farm sink in the island, and all our appliances are Wolf. I was debating marble countertops, but we went with Quartzite Monte Blanc instead, which has less maintenance. I had opportunities to collaborate with many appliance brands, but we only wanted a Wolf range so I reached out them to see if they would be interested in collaborating and they said yes, we couldn’t be happier!
Although the kitchen is pretty large, living on the water we didn’t want to block the view so that left us with less cabinet space. We were able to work with our kitchen designer to come up with a plan that would make the kitchen functional, and easy to cook and entertain. Pictured above we have a Wolf Drop Down Door Microwave on the island as well as a dishwasher which you can’t see near the sink.
We love the 48″ Wolf Sealed Burner Rangetop because it has dual-stacked sealed burners which have two tiers of flame to deliver both high heat and lower heat settings. The control is precise and it’s essentially like having two burners in one. I cannot WAIT to cook on this! Just below that we have cabinets for our pots and pans. To the right and left of those drawers we have the spice racks that pull out.
At the end of our island we are installing a butcher block which we are still waiting on. On the back wall, we have a Sub Zero Panel Ready Built-in Freezer on the left and Refrigerator on the right. Because I cook a lot, a separate freezer and refrigerator was a must for me, and I love that it’s not as deep as most refrigerators so things don’t get lost in the back. In between we have a Wolf double wall oven and just below that a Wolf Warming Drawer which will come in handy when I test recipes and want to keep them warm until dinner.
Just to the left of the refrigerator and double wall ovens we have a coffee/wine station with a Sub Zero Under Counter Wine Unit. This is where my coffee pot and wine will go, so I will be spending lots of time here : ) To the right of that sink we got a second panel ready Asko dishwasher, my husband does the dishes so he insisted on two.
Pictured below is the other end of the kitchen where we will have a kitchen table. We love the beach feel of the windows and sliders, which are Anderson and chose white on the inside and black on the outside. We also made them larger so you can have a better view of the back.
Here are some photos of the kitchen before. It was pretty, just a bit small and dated. As you can see we previously had baseboard heating which we removed and replaced with Warmboard radient heating.
My favorite decision in the house was adding the ship lap along the wall of the second floor, which you can see from the first floor because of it’s open concept. We still don’t have a banister so ignore the wood planks…
In the master bathroom, we are installing a roman shower rather than a bathtub because we know we would never use it. I love this hexagon marble tile in the shower area.
This was the master before, it was too large so we made it smaller and replaced it with a much needed walk-in closet.
We also started building an outdoor kitchen for the summer, which we hope to use a lot! In addition to a range, Tommy insisted on getting a pizza oven so I am sure there will be lots of pizza recipes in my future.
What we fell in love with most about our new house is the location. We can go crabbing right from our backyard and love the water views, especially the sunsets. I hope you enjoyed the kitchen progress and I will be sharing more photos as soon as the house is done, hoping sooner than later!
Disclosure: This post is created in partnership with Sub-Zero Wolf. All thoughts are my own.
January 5, 2019
Skinnytaste Meal Plan (January 7-January 13)
A free 7-day flexible weight loss meal plan including breakfast, lunch and dinner and a shopping list. All recipes include calories and Weight Watchers Freestyle™ SmartPoints®.
Happy 2019! This week’s meal plan I have created two dishes for you to make ahead for the week, the Bell Pepper and Potato Frittata for breakfast and the Turkey Taco Salad Meal Prep for lunch.
If you’re new to my meal plans, I’ve been sharing these free, 7-day flexible healthy meal plans (you can see my previous meal plans here) that are meant as a guide, with plenty of wiggle room for you to add more food, coffee, beverages, fruits, snacks, dessert, wine, etc or swap recipes out for meals you prefer, you can search for recipes by course in the index. You should aim for around 1500 calories* per day.
There’s also a precise, organized grocery list that will make grocery shopping so much easier and much less stressful. Save you money and time. You’ll dine out less often, waste less food and you’ll have everything you need on hand to help keep you on track.
Lastly, if you’re on Facebook join my Skinnytaste Facebook Community where everyone’s sharing photos of recipes they are making, you can join here. I’m loving all the ideas everyone’s sharing!
Also, if you don’t have the Skinnytaste Meal Planner, now would be a great time to get one to get organized for 2019! There was a print error last year, but it’s perfect now! You can order it here!
THE DETAILS:
Breakfast and lunch Monday-Friday, are designed to serve 1 while dinners and all meals on Saturday and Sunday are designed to serve a family of 4. Some recipes make enough leftovers for two nights or lunch the next day. While we truly believe there is no one size fits all meal plan, we did our best to come up with something that appeals to a wide range of individuals. Everything is Weight Watchers friendly, I included the updated Weight Watcher Freestyle Points for your convenience, feel free to swap out any recipes you wish or just use this for inspiration!
The grocery list is comprehensive and includes everything you need to make all meals on the plan. I’ve even included brand recommendations of products I love and use often. Cross check your cabinets because many condiments you’ll notice I use often, so you may already have a lot of them.
And last, but certainly not least, this meal plan is flexible and realistic. There’s plenty of wiggle room for cocktails, healthy snacks, dessert and dinner out. And if necessary, you can move some things around to make it work with your schedule. Please let me know if you’re using these plans, this will help me decide if I should continue sharing them!
MONDAY (1/7)
B: Bell Pepper and Potato Frittata (1) with 1 ounce avocado (1) and a pear (0)
L: Taco Salad Meal Prep* (7)
D: Dad’s Creamy Cauliflower Soup (2) and 2 Easy Garlic Knots (4)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 15, Calories 851**
TUESDAY (1/8)
B: Bell Pepper and Potato Frittata (1) with 1 ounce avocado (1) and a pear (0)
L: Taco Salad Meal Prep* (7)
D: Turkey Enchilada Stuffed Poblanos Rellenos (6) with Cilantro Lime Cauliflower “Rice” (1)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 16, Calories 891**
WEDNESDAY (1/9)
B: Bell Pepper and Potato Frittata (1) with 1 ounce avocado (1) and a pear (0)
L: Taco Salad Meal Prep* (7)
D: Cauliflower Rice Chicken Biryani (1)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 10, Calories 818**
THURSDAY (1/10)
B: Bell Pepper and Potato Frittata (1) with 1 ounce avocado (1) and a pear (0)
L: Taco Salad Meal Prep* (7)
D: Cheddar Corn Chowder with Bacon (7)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 16, Calories 906**
FRIDAY (1/11)
B: Greek Yogurt with Berries Nuts and Honey (5)
L: LEFTOVER Cheddar Corn Chowder with Bacon (7)
D: Sheet Pan Teriyaki Salmon and Vegetables (4) (Recipe x 2)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 16, Calories 886**
SATURDAY (1/12)
B: Spinach Ricotta Quiche (5)
L: Chicken and Shrimp Laap (4)
D: DINNER OUT!
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 9, Calories 445**
SUNDAY (1/13)
B: LEFTOVER Spinach Ricotta Quiche (5)
L: Tuna Lettuce Wrap with Avocado Dressing (2) (Recipe x2) with an apple (0)
D: Chicken Cacciatore (3) with 1 ½ cups Roasted Spaghetti Squash (0) and a green salad** (0) with 2 tablespoons light balsamic vinaigrette (2)
Totals: Freestyle™ SP 12, Calories 800**
*Prep Sunday night for Mon-Thurs lunch, if desired.
**This is just a guide, women should aim for around 1500 calories per day. Here’s a helpful calculator to estimate your calorie needs. I’ve left plenty of wiggle room for you to add more food such as coffee, beverages, fruits, snacks, dessert, wine, etc.
***Green salad includes 6 cups mixed greens, ½ can chickpeas, 2 scallions and ½ cup: tomatoes, carrots and cucumber.
January 4, 2019
Cauliflower Rice Chicken Biryani
This quick and easy Indian-inspired skillet dish, is a low-carb take on Chicken Biryani, made with riced cauliflower in place of rice. It’s also Keto, gluten-free and Whole30 compliant.
If you have been following me for a while, then you know how much I love Indian and Persian food! Some favorites are this Chicken Tikka Masala and this Chicken Curry with Coconut Milk. (more…)
January 3, 2019
Cheddar Corn Chowder with Bacon
This thick and cheesy chowder with potatoes, corn, cauliflower, and bacon is perfect for cold and cozy winter nights. Stove top and Instant Pot directions provided.
It’s soup season, if you’re looking for a new easy soup recipe to add to your dinner rotation, I think you will love this chowder! You can also browse all my soup recipes from the archives. A few favorites are the Potato Leek Soup, Dad’s Cauliflower Soup and of course, Classic Chicken Noodle Soup!
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