I love lentils but never seem to eat them that often.  I ran across a lentil salad recipe in a Trader Joe’s cookbook called Cooking with All Things Trader Joe’s. It’s a cool cookbook.  It was put out by Trader Joe’s fans, not Trader Joe’s.  As always I altered the recipe a bit.  It was good cold or warm.  And it was tasty as is but next time I think I will add a bit of oregano.

Lentil Salad

2 1/2 cups cooked lentils
1 cup chopped grape or cherry tomatoes
3/4 cup chopped parsley
2 Tbs lemon juice
1 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp salt

Combine lentils, tomatoes, and parsley in a medium bowl.  In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, oil and salt with a fork.  pour over lentil mixture and stir to coat.

serves 5

Nutritional Info
Calories: 146.6
Fat: 3.2 g
Carbs: 21.5 g
Fiber: 8.5 g
Protein: 9.5 g

Weight Watcher points: 2

When I was a kid my mom used to serve us something called Chili Bean Tacos.  I think she got the recipe from a magazine.  Probably a Woman’s World or Woman’s Day or something like that. Basically she would heat up cans of chili (Hormel) and we would put our chili on top of toasted English muffins, then top with cheese and sour cream.  I’m sure the adults probably also used chopped onion and tomato.

I loved Chili Bean Tacos but I haven’t had them in years.  The other night I got back home from being out of town for a couple of days and didn’t know what to have for supper.  It needed to be something quick and easy.  I already had some browned ground beef in the freezer (what a HUGE time save to cook up ground beef and freeze for later use).

I pulled out about 1/2 lb browned lean ground beef.  I defrosted it in the microwave and made a quick chili using canned Rotel and kidney beans.  You could of course use your own chili recipe or use canned chili.  I then, instead of using English Muffins, toasted the new Arnold’s Sandwich Thins.  My refrigerator was running bare so all I had in the way of toppings were cheese, sour cream and diced jalapeno.  Other ideas would be onion, tomato, olives, and avocado.

Chili Bean Tacos

1/2 lb lean ground beef, browned
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can Rotel (or 1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis)
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic
2 tsp cumin
4 English Muffins or Arnold’s Sandwich Thins
Toppings: cheese, sour cream, jalapeno, onion, tomato, etc.

Brown the beef in a medium or large skillet, add the Rotel and kidney beans.  Add the spices.  Mix well and let simmer about 15 to 20 minutes. Toast your muffins or sandwich thins.  Place one muffin on a plate and top each half with chili, use about 1/4 of the chili per muffin.  Top as desired.

The nutritional info will vary with the chili you use and what toppings you put on your Chili Bean Taco.  My quick chili recipe worked out to 4 Weight Watcher points per serving.  The Arnold’s Sandwich Thins were 1 point each.  With an ounce of 2% low fat cheddar and 1 ounce of low fat sour cream, my Chili Bean Taco worked out to be 8 WW points.

As I have mentioned before, I love Mexican food.  A favorite lunch for me is bean tostadas.  Fat free refried beans are a filling and very low point option.  A tostada shell is an empty canvas just waiting for yummy toppings.  Here I will show you my standard bean tostada.  This is not really a recipe but more of a tutorial.

First I heat my beans.  I am usually only making one or 2 tostadas at a time and just microwave the amount of beans I need in a bowl for about a minute and a half.  If I was cooking for more people, I would put the whole can of refried beans in a pot and warm on the stove.  I normally use about 1/4 cup of beans per shell.  You can find fat free refried beans that is 1 Weight Watcher
point per serving, that is what I always use.

Then, I use a knife and spread my beans on the tostada, using about 1/4 cup of beans per tostada.  I find it easier to spread them with a knife than a spoon.

Next I put on my cheese.  Of course, you could wait and sprinkle your cheese on top but I like my cheese next to the beans so the residual heat from the beans slightly melts the cheese.  If I am short on Weight Watcher points for the day, then I will only use 1/2 ounce of low fat cheddar per tostada.  If I have more points to spend, then I might use 1 ounce per tostada.  In this picture I am using mozzarella only because that is what I had in the fridge.

Next, I layer toppings depending on my mood.  Sometimes I only have beans, cheese and a little taco sauce or salse. Other times I add jalepenos, lettuce, tomatoes, and sour cream.  Other options might be onion, black olives, avocado, etc.

Calories and points will depend on who much stuff you put on your tostada.  Mine usually range from 2.5 - 4 points each.

This recipe is insanely easy to throw together.

Red Beans and Sausage with Rice

Serves 6

2 cans kidney beans, drained
2 cups tomato juice
7 oz Lean Turkey Kielbasa
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp thyme
Rice

Chop the kielbasa in small pieces. Mix all the ingredients in a small
crockpot and heat on low for 2 hours. alternatively, mix the
ingredients in a pot and simmer on the stove on medium for 30 minutes.

Serve 1 cup of beans and sausage over 1 cup of rice.

This is also a cheap meal. The tomato juice cost 50 cents. The beans
were 45 cents a can and I bought the whole 14 oz kielbasa on sale for
1.99. I only used 1/2 of it. So that comes to $2.40 for the whole
recipe. Which is 40 cents a serving. Plus about 15 cents a serving (or
less) for a cup of cooked rice. So a serving of beans and sausage on
top of a cup of brown rice is 55 cents. Even if you are extra hungrgy
and eat 2 servings, that is still $1.10.

Nutritional Information (excluding rice):
Calories: 201.5
Fat: 3.5 g
Carbs: 28 g
Fiber: 7.5 g
Protein: 13 g

3.5 WW points

I am not sure where this recipe originated from. It is very versatile. Basically just throw in what you like. I have posted the recipe as is and I put my changed in parenthesis. You can keep it vegetarian or I think it would be good with some ground beef or ground turkey mixed in. I would say 1/2 lb would be enough and it would still be a cheap recipe. Serve this with a salad for a filling and low fat meal.
 

Fiesta Casserole

4 cups cooked rice
2 cups cooked pinto beans-including a small amount of the liquid (I used black beans)
2 bunches diced green onions (I left out)
1 diced tomato
1 can of kernel corn
1 batch of biscuit or cornbread batter or sprinkle some cheese on top (I sprinkled with 4 oz low fat cheese)
(I also added 1 8oz can tomato sauce)
(I also added 1 tsp cumin)
(I also added 1/2 tsp garlic powder)

Layer in order given, adding any seasonings you like. (I mixed all the ingredients together). Bake at 350 for 25-35 minutes. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Serves 6

The possibilities are endless. You could add in a can of green chilies, diced jalapenos, green pepper, use brown rice instead of white, pasta instead of rice, use any sort of bean you like, etc.

Nutritional Info for my version (doesn’t include sour cream or salsa served on the side):
Calories: 324
Fat: 3.5 g
Carbs: 59 g
Fiber: 7.5
Protein: 15 g

WW Points - 6 per serving