Clean Eating: Buffalo Chicken Baked Potato Casserole

I love buffalo chicken. I have been on the hunt for the perfect chicken wing for years. I'm not sure I've found it yet, but I really love indulging in these tasty appetizers whenever I feel like a little splurge. Unfortunately, wings aren't the healthiest options being that they are often fried and the sauce is made with gads of butter. So, I created this dish as an homage to appetizers: tasty chicken wings and delicious potato skins.

Sorry, I failed to get a picture of the ingredients before cooking, but I'm sure you can figure out what all these simple items look like.

Ingredients:
16 oz crumbled ground chicken
1 small onion
2 stalks celery
1 medium carrot
2 medium red bell peppers 
1 tsp crushed red pepper flake
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp salt substitute
1/4 cup blue cheese
2 oz light cream cheese
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp garlic powder
6 oz plain nonfat greek yogurt
1 tsp Frank's Buffalo Sauce
1.25 lbs baking potatoes
1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400.

Place red peppers on pan or foil. Place in oven under broiler and cook until skin is blackened, turning to blacken other side.

Remove from oven and place in a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let steam. Once pepper have cooled, remove the blackened skin and seed core.

Place peppers in food processor. Add vinegar, garlic, 1/2 tsp of salt substitute and red pepper flakes to food processor. Pulse grind into a saucy consistency. Put aside.

Slice potatoes into 1/4" slices. Add to a pot and cover with water. Boil over medium-high heat until potatoes are fork tender. Drain potatoes.

Rinse food processor. Cut celery, carrot and onion into chunks and add to food processor. Pulse grind until finely chopped. Put aside.

Add olive oil to large pan. Heat over medium-high heat. Add ground chicken to pan and brown, breaking up with wooden spoon into crumbles. Add pureed carrot, celery and onion mixture to ground chicken. Heat over low heat until mixture is heated through.

Add red pepper sauce to chicken.

Rinse food processor. Add blue cheese, cream cheese, yogurt, lemon juice, garlic powder and hot sauce to food processor. Pulse grind to combine. Add up to 1/4 cup of water to desired consistency.

Spray a baking pan with cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with cooked potato slices and sprinkle remaining 1/2 tsp of salt substitute on top of potatoes. Top with chicken mixture, then spread blue cheese sauce on top.

This picture was taken after I removed from oven and began sectioning portions. Just imagine without the cut marks.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. Enjoy with a fresh garden salad, or delicious eaten as is.

Nutrition Facts
Serves 4
Serving Size 451.8g
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Calories - 426
Calories from Fat - 146
Total Fat - 16.2 g
Saturated Fat - 6.2g
Trans Fat - 0g
Cholesterol - 113mg
Sodium - 371mg
Total Carbohydrates - 40g
Dietary Fiber - 5.3g
Sugar - 8.4g
Protein - 31.6g
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Vitamin A - 97%
Vitamin C - 164%
Calcium - 19%
Iron - 10%

Comfort Food: Creamy Bacon-Wrapped Buffalo Chicken

Instead of doing a "Clean Eating" recipe this week, I've opted to do a "Comfort Food" post. One of Cliff's favorite dishes is this baked chicken recipe his mom used to make for him. She would line a baking pan with dried beef, wrap bacon around a chicken breast and lay the breast on the dried beef, then top everything with a mixture of cream of mushroom soup and sour cream. It really is quite a tasty dish. I decided to surprise Cliff with a spin on this favorite dish.

Ingredients:
8 strips of Jennie-O Extra Lean Turkey Bacon
4 Chicken Breasts (I used Perfect Portions chicken)
6 oz Plain Nonfat Greek Yogurt
2 oz Cream Cheese Light
1/4 cup Blue Cheese Crumbles
4 oz Deli Turkey Breast Slices
1/4 cup + 1 tsp Frank's Red Hot Wings Sauce
1 tsp Lemon Juice
1 tsp Garlic Powder
2 stalk Celery
2 Carrots

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400.

Peel carrots and cut carrots and celery into small pieces. Place in a food processor and finely chop. Put chopped veggies in a large bowl.

   

Rinse out food processor. Add blue cheese, cream cheese, yogurt, garlic powder, lemon juice and 1 tsp of hot sauce to food processor. Pulse chop until well blended. Add up to 1/4 cup of water to get desired consistency.

Cut each chicken breast in half. Place in a large bowl and top with 1/4 cup of hot sauce. Toss with hands until chicken pieces are well coated.

Spray a casserole pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with turkey slices.

Place chicken pieces in carrot/celery mixture to coat (like a breading). Wrap each half chicken in with one strip of bacon. Place on top of the layer of turkey slices.

    

Spread the top of the chicken pieces with blue cheese mixture.

Cover dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 20-30 minutes until done.

Serve alongside rice or vegetable of choice. The blue cheese sauce makes an excellent gravy.

Nutrition Facts
Serves 4
Serving Size 2 pieces with 1/4 sauce (412.3g)
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Calories - 308
Calories from Fat - 92
Total Fat - 10.2 g
Saturated Fat - 3.1g
Trans Fat - 0g
Cholesterol - 118mg
Sodium - 1200mg
Total Carbohydrates - 8.8g
Dietary Fiber - 1.3g
Sugar - 5g
Protein - 42.8g
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Vitamin A - 102%
Vitamin C - 9%
Calcium - 16%
Iron - 4%