FOR THE SNACK SAAVY

So, I had some extra cottage cheese in my fridge that was about to go bad and so I made up a couple snack ideas to use it with this past week that were surprisingly pretty filling.

FRUiTY APPLE CHEESE SALAD:

- 1 thinly sliced small apple

- 1/4 cup nonfat or 1% cottage cheese

- 1 or 2 TBSP raspberry vinaigrette salad dressing (click HERE for the one i have, which tastes DELICIOUS with only 5 calories in 2 TBSP!)

- 1 packet Splenda (optional)

ZESTY CELERY SALAD:

- 1 medium celery stalk

- 1/4 cup nonfat or 1% cottage cheese

- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice

- 1/2 tsp dried chives (or fresh... way better!)

- 1/4 tsp dill weed, paprika

- 1/8 tsp lemon pepper, garlic powder

ALSO, I recently made a list of several snack ideas all under 100 calories. I eat about half of them on a regular basis. Enjoy!

* 1/2 toasted English muffin with 1/4 cup sliced banana and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 99 calories.

* Hershey’s kisses, 26 calories each

* 1/2 apple with 1 tsp peanut butter and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 95 calories.

* 1 egg fried in a little cooking spray and tony's cajun seasoning + black pepper , 75 calories.

* 1/2 sweet potato with 1/2 tsp. butter and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 99 calories.

* 1/4 small avocado, 40 calories.

* 1 60-calorie string cheese stick with 5 wheat thins, 95 calories.

* 8 baby carrots and 1 TBSP hummus, 80 calories.

* 1 apple or pear, 82 calories.

* 1 pistachio, 4 calories.

* 1 peanut, 6 calories.

* 1 almond, 7 calories.

* 1 cashew, 8 calories.

* 1 hazelnut, 9 calories.

* 1 Jell-0 sugar-free gelatin snack, 10 calories.

* 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce, 50 calories.

* 1/2 can of tuna with 1 chopped baby pickle, 1 tsp. dijon mustard, 1 TBSP miracle whip, 99 calories.

* Air-popped popcorn, just 33 calories per cup.

* 27 frozen grapes, 97 calories.

* 1/3 cup (dry) oatmeal with 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 1/8 tsp. salt, and 1-2 packets Splenda + water, 93 calories.

* 1/2 sliced bell pepper with 1 TBSP light ranch dressing, 70 calories.

* 1 cup strawberries, topped with 2 TBSP Cool Whip, 58 calories.

* 1 medium celery stick, sliced with 1 TBSP peanut butter, 99 calories.

Flatbread Wrap "Pizza"

It all starts with a "Flatout" bread wrap. I found these at Walmart the last time I went grocery shopping. I bought the Light Italian Herb flavor, which has only 90 calories per wrap, 9g protein =), 9g fiber, AND only 6g net carbs. I knew that most flatbread tends to be thin, but this was just a little bit thinner than I'd expected. Still, it was a pretty hefty size of flatbread for such a low calorie content (usually wraps/tortillas contain 120-130 calories a piece). Anyways, after seeing a recipe on their website, I decided to use THIS RECIPE for dinner, modifying a few ingredients and steps. I came to find out that this was one of the easiest, tastiest, and lowest calorie pizzas I have ever made! P.S.. Your kitchen will smell better than Italy in heaven... =)

iNGREDiENTS:

* 1 Flatout Light Italian Herb Flatbread

* 1/4 tsp. Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

* 1/4 cup Red Onion, thinly sliced

* 6 Grape Tomatoes, sliced in half

* 1/3 cup Fresh Mushrooms, sliced (I just had the canned kind, which I think would taste nasty in this recipe, so I didn’t usemushrooms, boo) =(

* 1/2 cup Fresh Spinach (I actually used “Spring Mix” pre-washed lettuce with baby arugula, which has a great flavor I think)

* 1 TBSP. Balsamic Vinegar

* 1/4 cup Barilla Marinara Sauce

* 1/4 cup Reduced-Fat Mozzarella Cheese (I didn’t have any, so I just grated a light mozzarella string cheese stick)

* 1 tsp. Parmesan Cheese (freshly grated tastes better!)

* 8 slices Hormel Turkey Pepperoni

OPTiONAL HERBS TO SPiCE UP THE FLAVOR:

* 1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning (or oregano, basil, sage, thyme)

* 1/4 tsp. Fennel Seed (optional.. i think this gives it a great meaty, italian flavor... fennel seed it also great in homemade meatballs with italian sausage, fyi)

* 1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Rub oil evenly over the wrap on both sides. Place wrap by itself on the oven rack and cook for 5 minutes.

2. While waiting for the wrap to toast, saute the onions, mushrooms, spinach, and tomatoes over in a small greased pan over medium heat for 3 minutes. The last minute or so, turn off the heat and pour the balsamic vinegar evenly over the veggies.

3. Take the wrap out of the oven and spread marinara sauce over it evenly. Add the herbs if you are using them. Sprinkle the cheeses on next, then the pepperoni. Lastly, place the sauteed veggies evenly over the cheese and pepperoni. Season the whole thing with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Place back on oven rack (350) for 6 or 7 more minutes. Take out and slice (or fold in half) and enjoy!

** YUMMY FACTS: 1 pizza serving contains 260 calories, 13g fat, 25g carbs, 23g protein, 13g fiber, with lots of Vitamin A, C, Calcium, and Iron