Cream of Zucchini Soup

Only FIVE ingredients (not counting salt and pepper) is all it takes to make this quick, easy, delicious soup my family's been enjoying for years!

This is one of the first recipes I ever posted on this blog, back when I hardly knew how to use a camera. It's a favorite in my house, and so EASY to make. It takes less than 30 minutes start to finish, and one large bowl is only 60 calories, or 1 Weight Watcher Points Plus!

I like to top mine with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh grated cheese, but that's completely optional. You can add fresh herbs, yellow squash, or whatever you wish! Serve this with some crusty bread and make it a meal, or serve this as a starter to any meal. This can be made vegetarian by using vegetable broth, but I personally use chicken broth. Enjoy!

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Lomo Saltado (Peruvian Beef Stir Fry)

For all the meat and potato lovers out there, this healthier spin on a classic Peruvian stir-fry dish combines two of my favorite cuisines – Latin and Chinese! Chinese cuisine in Peru, referred to as "Chifa", is embedded in the Peruvian culture where you'll find a wonderful fusion of flavors, colors, textures utilizing Chinese and Peruvian ingredients.

I took one of Peru's most emblematic dishes, "Lomo Saltado" and lightened it up a bit – without losing any of it's amazing flavor. This dish is made with strips of sirloin seasoned with cumin, stir fried with tomatoes, red onion, soy sauce, cilantro and finished with french fries – what a combination right? Well trust me, it works!

In Peru they use a yellow pepper called aji amarillo, but it's not commonly found here in the states, so I subbed it with a jalapeno and added mini yellow peppers in their place. Rather than frying my potatoes, I baked my fries in the oven until golden and crisp, seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder – SO good! You'll want to make these with everything!

In Peru, they also serve this dish with rice, but I personally find it filling with just the potatoes plus I add a slice of avocado on the side, it's perfect.

Now, for those of you who have totally written off potatoes from your diet because you think they are bad for you, I'm here to tell you they are actually good for you! There's lots of misconceptions about potatoes but the truth is they are not the carb devil everyone thinks they are! The fact is, potatoes are a whole food – that is food in it's natural state, nothing processed or refined. In fact, one medium-size, skin-on potato is just 110 calories, has no fat, sodium or cholesterol, and it provides 45 percent of your daily value of vitamin C and has more potassium than a banana! It's also rich in fiber, potassium and magnesium, which are all listed as shortfall nutrients in the American diet. So don't blame the potato – it's often the preparation and toppings that add fat and calories.  Plus, they are naturally gluten free and part of a clean eating diet! You can see more potato nutrition facts here.

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Sweet 'n Spicy Asian Glazed Grilled Drumsticks

Here's a yummy, inexpensive, weeknight summer dish – get some drumsticks, remove the skin (see video below for a quick & easy tip on how) and marinated them overnight with a little soy sauce, vinegar and spices, the longer they marinate the better.

Then after work, light the grill (or broiler) and grill them until cooked through. Once cooked, brush them with a sweet 'n spicy glaze – you won't miss the skin! You can easily adjust the heat to suit your family's taste. I leave the glaze off my toddler's because she's not a fan of sauces or spice, and she loves it.

You can use any part of the chicken you wish, but we love eating drumsticks in my house. There's nothing like picking them up with your hands and getting a little messy – super family friendly and fairly inexpensive. And bonus, they take less than 30 minutes to cook. This would go great with any side, try it my Asian Mango Slaw recipe to keep an Asian theme or make a salad and top it with this Asian Ginger Carrot Dressing.

I am trying to get some practice doing more videos and I thought why not share this really great tip on how to skin a drumstick. The video is nothing fancy, no editing or music, I just filmed it with my phone. Some of you may already know this great tip, but for those of you who don't, I think you'll find this super helpful!


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CliqueMe + Disney Park Hopper Tickets PLUS $1500 Visa Gift Card Giveaway!!!

Today I am introducing an awesome new mobile feature on my site, PLUS stay tuned to the end of the post to enter for a chance to win four (4) Disney Park Hopper Tickets PLUS a $1500 Visa Gift Card!!!

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Citrus Basil Mojito Pops

These ice pops are the perfect balance of orange, lemon and lime, plus I added fresh mint and basil from my garden which adds just a hint of flavor inspired by my favorite cocktail – mojitos! You can make these with or without the rum, I made them without so I can share them with my toddler.

These are so refreshing on a hazy, hot summer day, and I love that I know what I am putting into them. Have you ever looked at the labels on ice pops? Some of those bright colors are so unnaturally and many of the ingredients are completely foreign to me. As for the popsicle mold, sizes will vary so you make get more or less depending on the size of your mold. I bought my popsicle mold from Progressive a few years ago on Amazon, I am linking to it here for all of you who asked where I bought it. Small plastic dixie cups would work too, just freeze them for about an hour until almost set, then insert the wooden sticks so they stay in place.


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Zucchini Tots

Getting your family to eat their veggies can often be difficult. Well these kid-friendly zucchini tots are the perfect solution! They make a great side for breakfast or dinner!

I shared this recipe a few years ago, and we all loved them, but the only issue was I made them in a mini muffin tin, and they stuck to the pan. Here's a photo of them as mini muffins...

Then last year I made these cauliflower tots and baked them on a baking sheet and they were perfect. So last night I decided to try it out with this recipe, and the results were zucchini tot perfection – no more sticking to the pan!

I also like how they got a little crisp on the edges – so good! My husband LOVED these, and he's pretty particular when it comes to eating zucchini. One advice is to be sure to squeeze as much water out of the shredded zucchini, I just used paper towels. Some moisture will still remain, but they will turn out just fine.

I have tons of zucchini recipes here on Skinnytaste, so many I created an entire Pinterest board called Yummy Zucchini devoted to it. A few of my favorites are Zucchini Enchiladas (perfect for meatless Mondays), Chicken Rollatini Stuffed with Zucchini and Mozzarella, Zucchini Pizza Bites and one of my summer favorite's – Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats. For breakfast you can try this Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread, even the pickiest of kids will enjoy them!
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Chicken Ropa Vieja

This Cuban inspired dish is made with shredded chicken breast cooked in the crock pot, then sauteed with bell peppers, onions, cumin and lots of Latin flavor!

Cuban cuisine is a favorite of mine and Ropa Vieja, which translates as "old clothes" is a dish I love. It's traditionally made with shredded skirt steak, and served over white rice and fried plantains.

I created this lighter version a few years ago using lean chicken breast instead, sometimes I even use boneless skinless thighs or a combination of both. I like to serve it with baked tostones (plantain chips) and a salad. Leftovers make a delicious burrito bowl (I love Chipotle!) served over brown Cilantro lime rice, Southwestern black bean salad, lettuce and shredded cheese.

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Baked Tostones (Green Plantains)

These savory plantains have been made lighter by baking instead of frying – you won't believe how good they taste!

In most of the Caribbean and Latin America, twice fried green plantains called Tostones or Patacones (depending on which Latin American country you're from) are commonly eaten as an appetizer or a side dish with any meal. They are cheap and easy to make. Seasoned with just a touch of salt, this has always been my favorite way to enjoy plantains. Even better, I love serving them with a dip like my Zesty avocado cilantro dressing – yum!

A few years back I experimented with twice baking them, and they worked out pretty good considering they weren't fried. Just last week I made them again and my aunt told me she always microwaves her plantains before frying them and we both wondered how that would work microwaved then baked, so we put it to the test. The results were pretty awesome, considering they weren't deep fried, and even quicker and easier than my previous recipe. If you don't have a microwave, you can stick with my first recipe.

You need to start with green plantains, the yellow ones are sweeter and won't work for this recipe. I figured a generous portion would be 1/2 of a large plantain, which is about 6 tostones. I weighed a large peeled plantain and it was about 8.25 oz. Plantains, like bananas are high in potassium, fiber, vitamins and minerals. The only difference is you must cook them rather than eating them raw.

Later this week I will be sharing a delicious sweet plantain recipe my family makes at every backyard BBQ. Hope you enjoy these, they are naturally gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free and even Paleo friendly!

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Broccoli Rabe Turkey Burgers

These turkey burgers are flavorful and delicious – the perfect quick, weeknight meal! I skipped the bun, served them over lettuce and topped them with sauteed broccoli rabe, but this would also be wonderful on a slice of focaccia.

I adore slightly bitter taste broccoli rabe. Sauteed with garlic and oil and a pinch of red pepper flakes, it's one of my favorite vegetables.

My local organic supermarket carries incredible chicken broccoli rabe sausage, which is where I got the inspiration for this burger. I tried making it with ground chicken and ground turkey, and preferred the taste and texture of the turkey. To make the patties, I simply chopped up some broccoli rabe and added it to the meat along with Pecorino Romano and garlic. My husband loved them too, enjoy!

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Bali Banana Date Smoothie

I'm super excited to share this guest post from my friend Heather. I met Heather a few years ago in San Francisco, and we've been friends ever since. She's an inspiring, positive person – the kind of person you want to be around all the time. She's also the nutrition expert for The Skinnytaste Cookbook, please welcome her!

Hi there, I’m Heather! I’m a dietitian and the founder of www.heatherkjones.com – a weight loss site that focuses on healing and hope instead of diets (ugh) and deprivation (no thank you!). I’m also the creator of Smaller Size Bigger Life, an online group coaching program for women who struggle with emotional eating, compulsive overeating, or body image issues.

I’m thrilled to guest post on Skinnytaste today (thank you, Gina!), and I’m so honored to be the nutrition expert in the upcoming Skinnytaste cookbook. Gina poured her generous heart into this beautiful book and I know you’re going to love it as much as I do!

So I’m a huge fan of green smoothies, in fact I drink a Skinny Green Monster at least a few times a week. But on a recent trip to Bali I discovered a banana smoothie that just blew me away.

The simple combo of banana, dates, yogurt, honey, ice, and (surprise!) cinnamon, makes a refreshing and tasty concoction, especially for sipping on steamy days. I drank one of these delicious smoothies every morning before heading to the pool or biking thru the rice paddies.

Here’s to a healthy and happy summer. Enjoy!

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Spiralized Greek Cucumber Salad with Lemon and Feta

This light cucumber Greek salad is the perfect meatless summer dish. Trust me, you're going to want to make this all summer long! Fresh cucumber, tomatoes, bell pepper, olives, red onion, oregano, lemon juice, olive oil, and fresh feta – it's filling, high in fiber and protein, perfect for lunch or dinner!

I had some fresh Feta leftover from my Lemon Feta Drumsticks, and I've been craving a good Greek Salad, but I wanted to make it without the lettuce and make cucumber the star of the show. This turned out better than I could have imagined! I used my favorite cooking gadget – my the Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer with the chipper blade to quickly whip this up into beautiful spirals and the results were a salad that's crunchy and bright, and not weighed down by a heavy dressing. This took me less than 10 minutes start to finish – win!

If you don't own a spiralizer you can just dice the cucumbers with knife and make it a chopped Greek salad instead. I highly recommend using a decent Feta cheese, not a fat free Feta.

A great Meatless Monday meal. If you are making this ahead for lunch for work, you can leave the lemon juice and olive oil out, and pack it on the side, then just add it when you're ready to eat. Enjoy!

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Quinoa Tabbouleh + Summer Berry Cobbler from the Skinnytaste Cookbook

I know a lot of you are really excited about The Skinnytaste Cookbook release. Well guess what?, so is Target! So excited in fact that they are carrying my cookbook which is now available for pre-order on Target.com.

The Skinnytaste Cookbook has 150 recipes – 125 of those recipes are brand spanking new and have never been published on my blog. But I gave Target a sneak peak inside the cookbook and shared two exclusive recipes and photos from the book. (photo credit: Penny De Los Santos)

I chose two of my summer favorites so you don't have to wait until September 30th – you can start making them now while the weather's warming up. The Quinoa Tabbouleh tastes so fresh – a perfect summer salad whether you serve this as a main dish or a side dish with grilled chicken or lamb. And this Summer Berry Cobbler – cobbler is my weakness and this is my absolute favorite way to utilize those sweet summer berries.

Did I tease you enough? Well that wasn't my plan... head on over to Target's A Bullseye View and get the full recipes!!!

Grilled Cumin Spiced Pork Tenderloin

Summer parties and dining al fresco doesn't get more convenient than this – lean pork tenderloin seasoned with a quick, flavorful rub then grilled to perfection served with the easiest salad ever!!

I love having my friends over in the summer for BBQs, but I don't love spending hours in the kitchen. Instead I prefer to keep things simple so I can actually enjoy my company, which is why I love these new DeLallo SaladSavors.

If you're not familiar with DeLallo; I first discovered them last year. They are the only brand of whole wheat pasta my family will actually eat, but they sell tons of other quality ingredients like olive oils, vinegars, olives, roasted peppers, marinated artichokes and more. So it only makes sense that they took those ingredients and conveniently packaged them to create quick and easy salads – all you do is add the lettuce!

Whatever you throw on the grill; whether it's pork tenderloin, shrimp kabobs, pesto chicken kabobs, harissa lamb chops or even just burgers – making a salad with one of these salad toppings takes minutes to put together – EASY!

Back to the pork tenderloin – it's super lean, a serving is under 175 calories (4 points plus) and is gluten-free, clean, paleo-friendly, & takes 25 minutes to make. You can easily double the recipe to serve more. Enjoy!

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Lemon Feta Chicken with Oregano

Mediterranean ingredients such as lemon, oregano and feta cheese turn ordinary chicken into a spectacular dinner. The cheese forms a light crust on top when broiled – you won't even miss the skin!

This is sooo easy to make with only a few ingredients; simply marinate the legs with lemon juice and oregano and bake. Once it's done, top it with fresh grated feta cheese and broil until golden.

I keep this simple and serve it with a salad on the side or you can make this with one of my favorite summer sides, Sauteed Zucchini with Summer Tomatoes.

I first published this recipe back in 2009 using skinless chicken thighs, but a year or two ago the USDA changed the data for chicken thighs and the calories, fat and points increased so much, I started using drumsticks instead. There's a part of me that hopes they made a mistake but until then I use thighs less often.

The drumsticks I used were pretty small, so if yours are really large the points may increase slightly.  Hope you enjoy!

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Aloha Teriyaki Shrimp Burgers

If I can't be in paradise, at least I can bring a little paradise to my backyard with these grilled shrimp burgers topped with grilled pineapple and a homemade pineapple teriyaki sauce – just under 300 calories!

It's June and the weather is getting hot out there, which means most of my dinners are being cooked outside on the grill. Last year I created a shrimp jalapeno patty which I modified slightly to come up with this Hawaiian inspired burger. I found making the burgers ahead of time and keeping them refrigerated before grilling helped them maintain their shape perfectly and I had no issues with them sticking to the grill.

They only take a few minutes to grill on each side and you can grill the pineapples at the same time. This recipes makes 8, but if you want to halve it, you can certainly make enough for 4, although I would probably keep the teriyaki sauce as is and use it for another day.

I served these on whole wheat potato buns but you can skip the bun and serve it over lettuce if you wish to go low-carb.

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Avocado Coconut Popsicles

These creamy popsicles are a real treat! Made with just 4 ingredients – nutrient dense avocados, coconut-almond milk, raw sugar and sweetened coconut flakes. They are also dairy-free, vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free.

It’s no secret, I'm pretty avocado obsessed! I grew up eating avocados all my life and I usually incorporate them into a meal just about every day! In fact, I love them so much I created an entire Pinterest Board devoted to avocados. But I usually eat them in some type of savory dish such as guacamole, BLT, egg salad, in my salad dressings, with my soups and more.

But the fact is, in Brazil where my Dad lived for many years, avocados were never eaten with salt; instead they were treated as the fruit that they are and were often sweetened with sugar. My dad used to make a smoothie years ago with avocados, milk and sugar which he called Vitamina. Because I love coconut, I took his smoothie idea and added coconut flakes and loved it! And since avocados are so nutrient dense, you're also getting a good dose of healthy fats, vitamins and minerals to boot!

PS - The popsicle mold I used is from Progressive which I bought on Amazon, click the link if you're interested.

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