Inaugural post & healthy nachos

I think one of the reasons why weight loss has eluded me for so long is because I am an eater by nature. For a long time, I decided that if I couldn't eat the things that I wanted while dieting, then I simply wasn't going to diet. Part of what this blog will contain are foods that I have always enjoyed remixed in a healthy way.

I'd like to preamble this first recipe by saying that I am no doctor. I will not calculate carbs or calories for you. I will not presume to tell you how much you should be consuming on a daily basis (there are sites like Sparkpeople or FitDay for this). Instead, I will tell you that the purpose of this blog is to make healthy food without sacrificing taste. I will also tell you that for my own sake, I try to keep my recipes low-carb, high-protein, and low-fat.

Cool? Cool.

So without further ado, I present to you my version of healthy nachos!

You will need:

1 lbs. lean ground turkey/chicken/or crumbles

1/2 med. yellow onion

6 oz. tomato paste

1 cup water

1 packet store-bought taco seasoning (you can also make your own; I like to make my own, but I generally just shake bottles into a pot until I get the flavors that I want, so a packet might be easiest)

1 whole wheat tortilla (I use Ole Mexican Food's Xtreme Wellness; they are high fiber & low carb)

1/4 shredded cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon plain greek yogurt (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Put one tortilla onto a cookie sheet and do a spritz of cooking spray (I use store brand, but I know Pam is pretty amazing, too). You're going to cut your tortilla in 8 even pieces like a pizza. See here:

Once your oven is heated, go ahead and put your cookie sheet in for fifteen minutes. Once these are finished, you can dust with salt if you choose. These make for a healthier version of a tortilla chip; the brand of tortilla that I use comes with extra protein and fewer carbs than buying a bag of Tostitos. Also, I won't have a half-empty bag sitting on the counter trying to tempt me into snacking.

Next, go ahead and dice up your onion and put it in a skillet to brown. I don't use oil, so I keep the heat on low or medium-low until the onions develop a golden color.

Next, add your turkey/chicken/crumbles. I used 93% lean turkey. Turkey is a super lean meat, so I usually buy 93% lean instead of 97% lean so the meat will be able to brown in its own fats; 97% leaves next to no liquid in the pan. For those of you weary about using turkey or crumbles instead of beef: don't be. Cooking these meats in red sauce is amazing because the meat takes on the flavor of the sauce.

Once your onions and meat are cooked all the way down, remove from heat and drain them in a sieve. I like to run water over my mixture to get rid of any additional grease because gross.

In a saucepan, throw in your meat and onions, 6 oz. of tomato paste, spice pack (or spices), and water. Let simmer. Your finished product should look like this:

After that, the world is your oyster! I put about a cup of the sauce (it turned out to be too much for me) on a plate with four tortilla 'chips' (about half the tortilla) and topped with cheese. You can put a dollop of greek yogurt on top for the taste of sour cream with more protein and a lot less guilt. Other optional toppings: chopped tomatoes, refried beans, jalapenos, chopped onion (I liked mine cooked in), olives, whatever you want. Here is my final product:

So, how did it taste compared to the real thing?: Banging. Maybe I should star recipes for how they compare against their unhealthier counterparts. But really, nom. I get my taco fix and I don't have to feel bad about it, plus because I make recipes for just me, I put the leftover sauce in the freezer for my next fix.

Recipe variations: Do you like sloppy joes? I do. Use a sloppy joe spice pack instead of the taco seasoning. Wrap some sauce in your tortilla with some cheese and roll the wrap around in a skillet until the cheese gets melty. Sloppy joe fix. Bam.