All By Myself Meals

This past week was a bit of a hell week--Finals week.  So as a teacher, I spent many late nights grading finals, projects and binders so I could get all my grades in by the deadline.  I also started teaching at the Community College this week so I had very little time to do much of anything besides work.  So with little time, I would usually go to Fast Food restaurants for dinner.  Since I am trying to lose weight, that was no longer an option for me.  Instead I decided to try some Hungry Girl recipes with the ingredients I already had.

Cheesy Beefy Quesadilla - (Hungry Girl 200 under 200, Pg. 172, 196 calories, 4 weight watchers points) Since Diana and I had previously tried the Cheeseburger Quesadilla, I decided to try this recipe to see how to two compared.  The Cheeseburger Quesadilla tasted like it sounds--like a cheeseburger.  It didn't have a mexican food flare to it.  This recipe does.  It tastes like something you could order at Del Taco or Taco Bell.  (I actually used my Del Taco Mild seasoning for this one).  So if you like Mexican fast food, I highly recommend this recipe.  It's fast, easy to make, and filling.

Spicy Tortilla Pizza Mexicali - (Hungry Girl 200 under 200 Pg. 178, 196 calories, 3 weight watchers points) Since I had so many tortillas and Boca Burger patties leftover, this seemed like a viable option.  Again, another easy recipe.  I made this one in my toaster oven--which is becoming my standard way of baking these recipes.  It's not exactly the mexican pizza from taco bell but it is a close second and so much better for you.  I highly recommend this if you do like Mexican pizzas.  I personally left out the extra spices and used the Del Taco seasoning but you can season it however you like.

Green Tea Creme Swappuccino - (Hungry Girl 200 under 200, Pg. 194, 75 calories, 2 points) I have already made this drink several times.  I used to be a Starbuck regular and every time I would order a Green Tea Latte or Green Tea Frappacino.  Now that I know how many calories I used to consume, I stick to the Skinny Lattes.  But when I saw this recipe, I jumped for joy--I can have my Green Tea drinks once again.  I do recommend this recipe but don't expect it to tast exactly like the Starbucks version.  For me, the hardest part about this recipe is finding the Matcha Green Tea powder.  I did find it at Whole Foods but it is $34 for a small can.  Instead, I bought the liquid concentrate of the Matcha Green Tea at Ralphs.  You do have to add more than one tablespoon since you are not working with the powder.  The first time I did this, I just used one tablespoon and I barely tasted the Green Tea--it was more like a Vanilla shake.  A good vanilla shake but still a vanilla shake nonetheless.  So I made it again and added around 4 tablespoons.  So much better.  It's still not green like the Starbucks version but I don't care about the color, just the taste.  If I do eventually find a cheaper matcha green tea powder, I will report back with the results of the comparison between using the powder and the liquid.