dinner under 500 calories

Lately Ryan and I have been really trying to lose some extra weight. I'm about 4 pounds from pre-baby size, and 8 pounds from my goal weight. Ryan is about 15 pounds from his goal weight.

To help us accomplish our goals, I've been cooking a lot healthier and cutting out a lot of our past 'staple foods'. I've found some new things that are really good, and a much healthier alternative, like quinoa and greek yogurt, both high in protein without the extra fat that meat has. Also, I've been packing veggies into EVERYTHING! Spinach in scrambled egg whites, and just doubling the amount of produce called for in recipes.

The dinner I made tonight was SO yummy and filling, and only 486 calories...can't beat that! I don't remember where I found the recipe, so I can't link you to it, but I'll post it here, along with the calorie count for each part of the meal. If you try it, then come back and comment to let me know if you loved it as much as we did!

Panko Crusted Salmon

368 calories per serving, serves 2

1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp lemon pepper

2 salmon filets (7 oz each)

1 tsp canola oil

Line a baking sheet with foil. Pre heat oven to 400. Combine salt, panko, and lemon pepper on a dinner plate.

Add oil to a large non stick skillet and heat to medium high. Dredge one side of the salmon in the bread crumb mixture, and place that side down on the skillet. Cook 3-4 minutes, until golden brown. Transfer salmon to the foil lined sheet, now with the crispy side up, and bake in the oven about 10-15 min. depending on the thickness of your filets.

Serve with the following fruit salsa on top

Mango Salsa

40 calories per serving, serves 4

1 mango, diced

1/2 medium red onion, minced

1 lime, juiced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

kosher salt and ground black pepper to your taste

(I've made this with peaches before too, just as yummy. Also, if you have a jalapeno, de-seed it and it's yummy to chop up in there too for an extra kick)

Then the yummy salad I made was super easy to throw together!

Mandarin Salad

30 calories per serving, serves 4

2 cups loosely packed spinach

1 head of petite heirloom lettuce heads (the multi-pack at Costco)

1 can Mandarin oranges, drained

1/2 medium red onion, minced

chopped or sliced almonds

Mandarin Salad Dressing

48 calories/Tbls

1/4 cup white vinegar

1 tsp kosher salt

couple grinds of black pepper

3/4 cup white sugar

1 tsp mustard

1 green onion, FINELY chopped

1/2 cup vegetable oil

put all ingredients in the blender. Or if your blender is broken like mine, get out the whisk and give your arm a work out!