Parmesan- Crusted Lemon Chicken

Yield- 4 servings

Ingredients

4- 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 to 1-1/2 pounds) 

5 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, divided 

1 egg

1- 1/4 cup dry oatmeal, finely ground (can be done in a blender), or use bread crumbs

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

2 Tbsp lemon peel, grated

1/4 stick butter, melted

Lemon wedges

Instructions

Place chicken in baking dish and pour 4 Tbsp lemon juice over the chicken.  Place in refrigerator and let sit for 30 minutes (or overnight for a more lemony flavor).  Beat egg with remaining lemon juice in medium bowl.  Combine finely ground oatmeal, parmesan cheese and lemon peel.  Dip chicken in egg mixture and then in bread mixture to coat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Melt butter in baking dish and place chicken in dish.  Bake at 400˚F for approximately 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Use the lemon wedges to squeeze more lemon juice onto the chicken before serving for extra lemon flavor, or to garnish the plate. 

Serve with lemon rice (see below) and steamed broccoli!  

Lemon Rice

Add one cup of dry white rice to a small pot.  Place 3 Tablespoons of lemon juice in a two cup measuring cup.  Add chicken broth to lemon juice to equal 2 cups.  Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat.  Let simmer on low for 15-20 minutes.   

Stop drinking empty calories!

Addicted to soda or other sweetened beverages because of the bubbles? 

Start drinking Sparkling Water! That will instantly cut your sugar intake and many unnecessary calories! See my previous post to see how much weight gain you can avoid if you stop drinking beverages with added sugar.

Try ones sparkling waters with no sweeteners, only the essence of fruits for a little flavor. Some of my favorites: Arrowhead Sparkling Water and La Croix, and Trader Joe's.  Do you have a Trader Joe's in your area? They have sparkling water too. My favorite flavor: Berry. It's oh so good!! Better than soda any day!! 

A 20 oz bottle of coke = 240 calories.  Those calories can add up faster than you think.  Here is some food for thought...

Do you have a weekly habit of drinking soda or another sweetened beverage (i.e. sweet tea, juice, or coffee beverage with added sugar)?  One drink consumed on a weekly basis equals nearly a 4 pound weight gain a year.    

Do you drink 3 beverages a week?  That would equal nearly an 11 pound weight gain annually.  

Do you have a habit of drinking one 20oz soda a day?  This would equal roughly a 2 pound weight gain every FOUR weeks!  Which would be a 25 pound weight gain each year!  All from one beverage, consumed daily.  

Start today and cut back on the number of soda or sweetened beverages you consume each week, or month.  If you were to cut out 4 sodas a month, you would reduce your weight gain by 3 pounds a year.  Can you cut out more than that? Reduce the amount of soda or sweetened beverage consumed annually by 3 sweetened beverages a week, and you could save yourself an 11 pound weight gain annually,  or nearly a pound a month!  

Think about your drink, pick a better beverage... one without empty calories (or calories just from sugar, which are found in sweetened beverages).  A great substitute is sparkling water!  Not the kinds with sweetener in them, but one such as Arrowhead sparkling water, La Croix, or Trader Joe's sparkling water.  These all have carbonated water with a hint of NATURAL flavor (usually from the essence of fruit, you know the kind of stuff you get when you squeeze the peel of an orange).  

**All calculations are based on a 240calorie beverage.  If you consume a beverage with more calories, you will gain even more weight annually!!!**

Quick Nutrition Tip

Watching what you are eating? Take a step in the right direction by taking pictures of everything you eat and drink. Its like a digital food journal! It may open you eyes, and/or make you more aware of the choices you are making daily.

Watch your budget and your waistline

One of the best ways to improve your diet and your food budget is portion control!  

As Americans, we eat very large portions.  Think steak house dinner with a 12 or 16oz steak for one person, served with a huge baked potato.  This is after your appetizer of bread and salad, and maybe even a bloomin' onion or baked potato skins.  All of which is way more food than any one person needs in one sitting.  The steak alone exceeds one person's protein portion for the entire day! 

By learning proper portion sizes and using portion control in your eveyday life, not only will you cut your food costs, but you will also cut down on your waist line!   That 12oz steak dinner could be shared with someone else at the dinner table, and you split the bill.  In fact, you could even split a 6 oz steak and get the proper amount of protein needed with an even smaller price tag.  You save on cost, and calories. Don't forget it will also save you from that horrible feeling of being overly full.  

Get started today by watching how big your portions are while eating.  Think your portions are alright, consider comparing them to recommendations by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans or Choose Your Plate. You may be surprised at how far off your portions are compared to what you should be eating.  For example, a baked potato should be the size of a computer mouse… not the size of your plate. 

Watching what you are eating???

Try using smaller utensils, plates, bowls, and cups!!!  

Research has shown people who use smaller bowls and spoons eat less then people who have larger bowls and spoons.  One of the researchers sited in the study below- Painter, JE- did a TV spot with people eating ice cream.  The people who had the little pink sample spoons from Baskin Robbins and a small bowl ate less and were JUST AS SATISFIED with the smaller amount of ice cream eaten when compared to people who had larger bowls and spoons and ate more ice cream.  

Also, if you keep the food you have eaten in front of you, you are less likely to overindulge. Don't let the server clear all the plates and dishes from your table while you are eating at a restaurant.  Keep the empty soda/drink cups on the table too!  

Final application:  When eating nuts (such as pistachios) if you crack the nut and eat it from the shell while keeping the cracked shells in front of you, you are less likely to overindulge and are more satisfied with less pistachios eaten than compared to someone who eat pre-cracked pistachios (or other nuts).  Basically- crack the nuts yourself, you will slow down, eat less, and still feel full!  

When you serve your dinner at home tonight, use the salad plate instead of the standard dinner plate.  Use the small (short) cup, instead of the big 16oz cup.  And don't clear the table of any foods eaten until you are completely done eating.  Happy Eating! 

Research citation:  Wansink B, Painter JE, North J.  Bottomless bowls: why visual cues of
portion size may influence intake.  Obes Res. 2005 Jan;13(1):93-100

Healthy foods cost more???

Think it's too expensive to eat healthy... think again!

A new research study that was just released shows ounce for ounce, calorie for calorie... healthy foods cost the same as junk foods. And in some cases, healthy foods are cheaper! 

Myth Dispelled! Healthy Foods not more expensive... read on