Recipe Tuesday - Dinner in a Bag

Here we go!  I thought I'd pick back up my recipe Tuesdays where I share some of my favorite recipes that helps keep my family eating healthier and me dropping some pounds.  It also keeps my creative cooking vibes going, which I need. I like to cook, but especialy when I'm trying to lose weight, sometimes I find myself stuck in a rut of eating the same things over and over, and getting bored. 

Dinner in a Bag

This week I'm featuring my "dinner in a bag" as we call it here.  Basically, you fire up the oven, then either make a "bag" out of heavy duty aluminum foil or use one of those Reynolds Oven Bags, load it with a protein, veggies, and the sauce of your choice, then pop it into the oven for about 25 mins. 

Our basic dinner in a bag started with the basics:

chicken breast, chopped
chopped veggies (onions, peppers, carrots, zucchini, grape tomatoes)
barbecue sauce
fresh ground pepper

Load everything on foil, seal it up like a "bag", poke a few holes in the top with a fork, and bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.  Easy, yummy dinner, VERY easy clean up!  Now on South Beach, the BBQ sauce is a bit too high in sugar for me these days (although the KC Masterpiece Classic BBQ sauce is South Beach friendly and low in carbs), so this past week, I made the standard recipe for my family and changed it up for me with the following:

Salmon fillet
baby lima beans
onions
green peppers
grape tomatoes
carrots

Then I drizzled it with a bit of olive oil, squeezed the juice of a lemon over the top, and topped with some salt and pepper.  It was great!  I know lima beans gross a lot of people out, so feel free to substitute.  I just happen to love them ;-)

Hope you like it!  Look for more next week!

Diet update...it's day 7.  My carb cravings are gone and I'm no longer hungry at all.  I love that.  I'm down four pounds as of this morning.  Love that!

My photo blog is updated with yesterday's shot (link is on the left).

 

Comments

[Leslie Rosenthal]

Jan, do you have a Costco? They have *great frozen fish (the salmon filets are are favorite) and I'll be happy to share how I prepare them!

[Jan Connair]

So you can make a decent salmon fillet in 25 min.? Is that fresh or frozen? I have a total lack of knowledge about how to prepare seafood in any healthy way, so I need some tips!

[Kathy]

I am glad you started this up again.

[Heather]

Ok, you so totally rock! I just posted that I needed recipes! This sounds awesome! I'm going to the store to get me some reynold's bags. I've got everything else here. YAY!

Thanks!

Have a great day!

[Carjazi]

The problem I have with the Beach is I hate cooked veggies. But I love the concept. Good for you on the 4 lbs. Keep it up. Also stopped by the photo blog. Love it! Thanks for the sympathy on the game. Big Ten got stick together.

[JanMary, N Ireland]

Great recipe idea to use those cooking bags - will try to give this a go. Thanks for sharing it.