30 Light Memorial Day Recipes

Traditionally on Memorial Day weekend, my friends and I always get together and grill in one of our yards.  Being in the backyard with friends, smelling the deliciousness coming from the grill, and hearing the kids playing out back – it doesn't get better than that! This year, I feel like Memorial Day weekend came super early. The only definite plans I have this weekend is going to friend's wedding, aside from that we really have no plans, but I'm really ok with that too! Since the beach opens this weekend, and I am only 10 minutes away, I just might spend the day there!

Whatever happens, I thought I would put together some of my favorite (light) recipes for backyard grilling to kick start the summer. Let's start with desserts first!

These Red, White and Blueberry Yogurt Cupcakes taste too good to be under 100 calories!

Red, White and Blueberry Trifle is a beautiful, guiltless dessert that will make your

Memorial Day gathering proud.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp is the perfect combination of sweet and tart.  

Skinny chocolate chip cookies made with absolutely no butter or oil sandwiched together with fat-free frozen yogurt and colored sprinkles make these Skinny Chocolate Chip Fro-Yo Sandwiches – a great way to kick off summer.

If you need a last minute EASY dessert, try these Red, White and Blue Fruit Skewers with Cheesecake Yogurt Dip – no cooking involved!

Frozen Banana Popsicles are an easy, fun summer treat for the kids and grown-ups too!

No cooking required for Watermelon on a Stick.  Sometimes it's the simplest things that make the best desserts.

If you want something quick and easy for dessert, Grilled Pineapple is wonderful!

What can be a better way to start off the Memorial Day festivities than with a glass of Freshly Brewed Ice Tea with Fresh Mint

Iced Green Tea Mojito the perfect cocktail to welcome the start of summer and the start of your party.

This Skinny Shrimp Salsa is the perfect light appetizer, just set out some baked chips!

Southwestern Black Bean Salad – this salad makes enough to feed a crowd as a side dish or to start the party off as an appetizer if you serve it with chips.

Guilt-free Grilled Potatoes are made right on the grill. Perfect along side a burger this weekend!

Summer Macaroni Salad with Tomatoes and Zucchini is the perfect macaroni salad without a ton of calories or fat.

Southwestern Black Bean Quinoa and Mango Medley perfect as a side dish and for the vegetarians at your party.

Asian Cabbage Mango Slaw.  A light, fresh, crisp slaw goes great with fish, pork or even burgers.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad, a protein packed salad with fresh Mediterranean flavors.

Baby Red Potato Salad is great if you're not a fan of the traditional potato salad loaded with mayonnaise.

If you love pesto as much as I do, you'll love these Grilled Pesto Chicken and Tomato Kabobs. 

Another recipe using my skinny homemade pesto are these Grilled Pesto Shrimp Skewers – delicious!

Lemon slices in between pieces of salmon make these Grilled Salmon Kabobs  pretty as well as delicious!

The spicy, salty, sweet combination of the creamy chili sauce is what makes these Bangin' Grilled Shrimp Skewers soooo delicious.

The Best Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers are perfect for your vegetarian guests.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork will have your house smelling incredible while it slow cooks all day!

If you're looking for a new way to enjoy a burger, try this Grilled Hawaiian Teriyaki Burger.

Homemade blue cheese dressing makes these Buffalo Turkey Burgers with Blue Cheese Broccoli Slaw amazing!

No one will know these Turkey Burgers with Zucchini are loaded with extra veggies.  

Salsa Verde Burgers (MY FAVORITE) are topped with pepper jack cheese, salsa verde and avocado...delicious!

You won't miss the meat after one bite of this Spicy Black Bean Burger.

Why not make your own barbecue sauce this year.  Homemade Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce is a great balance of sweet and spice; perfect on chicken, pork or beef.

What are your plans this weekend? Whatever they are, hope you enjoy!!

Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger

Lean, delicious, juicy turkey burgers made with zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschetta topping over a bed of baby arugula – no bun required!

I thought I would share this fabulous turkey burger recipe from the archives for those of you who may not have tried this.

This dish was inspired by a meal my girlfriend ordered during a girl's night out. I always get inspired when I go out to eat, and created this lighter version which turned out delicious. For the turkey burger, I went with my skinny turkey burger recipe I posted a few years back, it's made with shredded zucchini which gives it lots of moisture and great flavor. They are delicate, so I prefer to make them on a skillet instead of the grill.

This is the perfect summer meal for under 300 calories, especially if you have lots of tomatoes in your garden. You can easily make these vegetarian by using a boca burger or veggie burger of your choice. By the way the lovely fork is by For Such A Time Designs. Hope you enjoy!

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Seaside Florida Vacation Giveaway

 

I am so excited to give one lucky winner the chance to WIN a 3 day, 2 night stay at a fabulous vacation home in Seaside Florida (airfare not included)! This is a great giveaway – I know because I was JUST there on a girls weekend getaway two weeks ago with these fabulous ladies pictured below. Seaside FL, if you're not familiar it's on the Florida panhandle in Walton County, between Panama City Beach and Destin.

It's the perfect, charming beach town with white sand beaches and turquoise waters. Pastel houses with white picket fences are tucked away on tree lined streets with families riding their bikes to the nearby ice cream shop. Quaint restaurants line the streets along with food trucks, clothing stores, art galleries, ceramic shops and more, all within walking distance.

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Grilled Shrimp and Watermelon Chopped Salad

Chopped romaine tossed with sweet, juicy watermelon, grilled shrimp and goat cheese and a golden balsamic vinaigrette – I'll be making this salad all summer!!

I'm so excited to share this recipe with you, it's so good I plan on making it again for dinner tonight so my husband gets to try it. I put this together in about 20 minutes, so it's perfect for busy weeknights. The dressing is DEE-LICIOUS, I used DeLallo's golden balsamic vinegar, which is made from white grapes rather than red and has a sweetly rich taste – it's fabulous! They sell it at my local supermarket, or you can buy it online, but if you want to use regular balsamic, that would work fine too.

I love watermelon in my salad, mostly because I'm not much of a tomato lover. A few weeks ago while in the airport headed to Seaside Fl, I stopped to grab a bite at Marcus Samuelsson's new restaurant Uptown Brasserie located at the new JFK Delta terminal 4, and ordered a salad just like this. Eating healthier while traveling is getting so much easier these days, a good thing although they also have a Shake Shack which after seeing the calories on the menu, I opted not to try.

Hope you enjoy this salad, I'll be making this one all summer!

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Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps

This is my go-to turkey taco recipe. It's delicious and light – On nights I want to go low-carb, I forgo the taco shells and use lettuce wraps instead!

This is an oldie from the archives, but since I make this so often I thought I would update the photos just in time for taco Tuesday! It's naturally gluten-free, low-carb, and paleo & dairy-free without the cheese and sour cream. I find the outer leaves of Iceberg lettuce makes the best wraps, it's crisp and pliable and the leaves are large enough to make decent size wraps.

Add your favorite taco fixins such as shredded cheddar, light sour cream, chives, black olives, jalapeno, tomatoes or whatever you like on your tacos. The portions are generous, and if you're kids want shells, you can easily bake a few for them and use the same filling.

Making your own taco seasoning is a healthier alternative to buying packaged taco seasoning, and uses less sodium, no sugar, no preservatives and no msg. It also saves you money if you are on a budget. If you prefer to use the package seasoning, simply replace it with the spices listed here.

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Veggie Ham Egg and Cheese Bake

For an easy brunch recipe to serve for a large gathering, try this wonderful savory egg dish; made with part whole eggs, part whites, mushrooms, broccoli, bell peppers, scallions, tomatoes, ham and cheese.

You can modify this however you wish – swap the ham for lean sausage or leave it out. Swap the cheddar for mozzarella or leave it out for dairy-free. As for the vegetables, use whatever you prefer, no rules here!

My sister in law Denise recently made something very similar to this at a brunch she hosted and I knew I wanted to remake it (just a bit lighter). Her recipe called for flour but I tested it without and it worked fine, plus I swapped some of the eggs for egg whites, added a lot more veggies and use reduced fat cheese. This turned out wonderful, and you can prep it ahead and bake when your guests arrive. Enjoy!


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Fruit Pizza

Need a colorful dessert idea for Mother's Day? Try these lightened up white chocolate cookie bars topped with cream cheese frosting and fresh fruit. The perfect dessert for Spring or Summer!

I brought these to my daughter's class party yesterday and shared a photo on my Instagram and everyone wanted the recipe, so here it is! You can use any fruit you like, I usually use my favorites and try to keep it colorful but if you don't feel like cutting fruit, just use berries! You may notice some of the photos pictured here don't have white chocolate chips, that's because I tried it both ways and liked it better WITH the white chocolate, but if you're not a fan of white chocolate you can leave them out and increase the sugar slightly. The recipe below and nutritional info includes the white chocolate.

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