LEWISTON – Vicky Haley enjoys cooking “any quick, easy and nutritional dish.” She and her husband have four children – Devyn, 15, Keagan, 13, Jagger, 5, and Lovie, 3 – so it’s important to her to be able to make healthy food that doesn’t take much time.
Haley learned to cook from her parents, who were avid cooks. “My father was very particular – cutting foods just so,” Haley said. She also learned a lot from her home economics teacher. “I remember learning from my teacher and then turning around and making the dish at home,” says Haley. She would also cook dinner if her mom was working. “She would leave me instructions on what to do,” said Haley.
As a child, Haley also went with her dad to the local vegetable stand to buy items for their meals. Today, she makes these trips with her own children. “I try to frequent local farm stands to support local farmers … vegetables complement a meal well,” said Haley.
In Haley’s kitchen, you will often find one of her four children helping her. She feels it’s important for them to learn how to make healthy meals. Two of Haley’s favorite kitchen appliances are her crockpot and her blender. And, sticking to her theme of quick and easy, she says, “I do one skillet as much as possible.”
The best part of cooking for Haley is “the reward and satisfaction of my family telling me it’s good.”
Haley used to be active in cheerleading. She coached at Edward Little High School and St. Dominic’s Regional High School in Auburn. Now she focuses her time on raising her four children. She also enjoys traveling, especially to warm, tropical places.
Salad bar fajitas
Ingredients:
½ cup green pepper, sliced (you may also add peppers of other colors)
½ cup onion, sliced
1½ cups cooked chicken strips, or buy 1 package of the Perdue shortcuts precooked chicken
½ can whole kernel corn
1 jar store brand salsa, or your favorite salsa
2 tablespoons Splenda
1 package fat-free or reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese
Reduced-carb whole-wheat wraps
Reduced-fat tortilla chips
1 jar reduced-fat cheese dip
Nonfat canola cooking spray
Method:
In a skillet on medium heat, spray pan with nonfat spray. Toss sliced onions and peppers in the pan for five minutes. Add chicken, corn, salsa and Splenda. Sauté for 10 minutes. Put some of mixture inside each whole-wheat wrap. Put a sprinkling of cheese inside as well. Roll up. Place on plate with 10 low-fat tortilla chips. Place 1 tablespoon of salsa and 1 tablespoon of low-fat cheese dip on the side for dipping.
Vicky’s note:
Picking up items at the grocery store salad bar saves time and money. Nonfat canola cooking spray, instead of margarine or butter, saves on calories.
Chicken or veggie Caesar pizza
Ingredients:
1 light or thin pizza crust – whole wheat crust is nice too
1 small bottle fat-free Caesar dressing
¼ cup feta cheese
2 tablespoons of each of the following:
(add more of any of these to your taste)
• red onion, chopped
• spinach, chopped
• cooked chicken (from a salad bar or Perdue shortcuts), chopped
• black olives, chopped
• grape tomatoes, sliced
¼ cup lettuce (if desired)
Method:
To cut time and expense, utilize your local grocery store salad bar for any of these items. Chop up ingredients from salad bar to a small, diced size. Lay out crust. Spread with dressing, approximately ¼ cup. Top with all other ingredients. Bake according to your pizza crust wrapper directions (approximately 425 degrees for 10 to 13 minutes). Let cool. Shred ¼ cup lettuce while pizza bakes, toss lettuce with one tablespoon dressing. Spread lettuce over cooled pizza.
Vicky’s note:
I use Boboli crust for this. This is excellent alone or served with a variety of raw stick veggies to dip in dressing or, for an elegant side, purchase ¼ to ½ pound of cocktail shrimp and serve with pizza.
Quick and easy low-fat turkey roll-ups
Ingredients:
About 8 slices of deli-sliced turkey
1 canister of Stove Top stuffing
1 jar fat-free gravy
Spices of your choice (such as Mrs. Dash, onion and herb, sage, seasoned salt or salt)
Method:
Make the whole canister of stuffing. I use water only, eliminating any butter or margarine products. Microwave warm water for stuffing (approximately 2 minutes). Stir in stuffing, coat with water. Take the turkey slices one at a time and place 2 to 3 tablespoons of stuffing in the middle of each turkey slice, along the short width of the slice. Roll it up lengthwise. Place in a 9- by 13-inch pan with the crease of the turkey roll face-down. Repeat with all slices. Drizzle the jar of gravy over the prepared turkey rolls. Sprinkle with dashes of desired seasonings. Bake at 375 degrees until bubbly and warm, approximately 20 minutes.
Serve with a variety of veggies. I serve with corn, green beans, cranberry sauce and pickles. Use local farm vegetables when possible.
Serves about four people.
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