Burger night does not have to be given up when you are trying to live a healthy lifestyle, but it also doesn't have to be super greasy & fatty either! It also can be a quick & easy treat meal if you use my favorite kitchen appliance--the crockpot. Here is how I do my double decker burger nights at home--

INGREDIENTS:
​- 1 pound (1 pack with 4 burgers) of lean turkey burger patties
​-cheese of your choice (I usually go with cheddar, manchego, or gouda)
​-burger buns (whole wheat is the best option but picture is with white)
​-toppings of your choice, I usually go with all or some of the following:

• ​sliced tomatoes
• sliced avocado
• pickles
• ketchup
• mustard

RECIPE:

1. ​​Season turkey patties as you would like and place in crockpot (do not overlap)
2. Cook on low for 3.5-4 hours or high for 6.5-7 hours (NO OIL USED= less fat & grease!)
3. Toast buns and place 2 patties, toppings, and cheese and DONE! Double decker cheeseburger done the cleaner & healthier way!

​SIDES:
​​I always switch up my sides but I usually like to get a side salad in with either:

• ​baked sweet potato fries (homemade) or store bought (see picture below)
• baked or fried plantains
• balsamic tomato & mozzarella salad

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This is the perfect meal to make when you are staying in on a weekend night and watching movies (or if you just are craving nachos)! Making your own tortilla chips is a much healthier option than a bag of Tostitos because it has significantly less oil, sodium, and preservatives. And, I think they taste even better too :)

INGREDIENTS: (feel free to add or subtract any ingredients, have fun with it!)

• ​1-1.5 lbs of ground chicken or ground turkey
• 1 can of fiesta corn
• 1 can of black beans
• Frozen mixed peppers (if short on time) or 1-3 peppers of your choice diced
• 1 bag of whole wheat tortillas
• 1 bag of low-fat or skim shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 tomato
• guacamole, salsa, or original Greek yogurt (a great sub for sour cream) for dipping

RECIPE:

1. ​​In crockpot- add ground meat of choice with seasoning, 1/2-1 can of black beans, 1/2-1 can of corn & some frozen or fresh mixed peppers
2. Cook on high for 3-3.5 hours or low for 6-6.5 hours

AFTER CROCKPOT IS DONE--

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees & layer a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray oil (you may need more than 1 baking sheet)
2. ​Lay 4-6 tortillas on top of one another and cut into triangles/wedges (you should cut it so that it makes 4-6 triangles)
3. Peel apart tortillas from one another and place on baking sheet (try not to place wedges on top of each other)
4. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until golden and firm to touch
5. Dice tomatoes into small squares
6. In some sort of baking dish- place one layer of chips, add some of crockpot mix on top (you don't want to overdo it so that you won't be able to pick up the chip easily or make it soggy), sprinkle some diced tomatoes, add mozzarella cheese, REPEAT layers (I usually have 3 layers)
7. Bake in oven for 5-6 min (or until cheese melts)

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One of my boot campers (who happens to be my co-worker & friend) brought a little sample of this to work for me to try and I loved it! I use my crockpot almost everyday so I am always looking for new, yummy, and easy recipes to try.  Taste this one for yourself!

INGREDIENTS:

• ​1.5 pounds of chicken breast
• 1/2 stick of light butter
  
• 6 pepperoncinis
  
• 1/2 envelope of Au Jus Gravy Mix
  
• 1/2 envelope of Ranch dressing mix

​RECIPE:

• ​​Dump everything in crockpot (you can melt butter before putting it in if you wish)
• Cook on high for 3-3.5 hours or low for 6-6.5 hours
  
• Stir & shred chicken using large spook
  
• Enjoy! (told you it was so easy)
  

This is SO easy, SO good, and SO cheap...keep these ingredients around the house so that you can whip this together if you have nothing else planned!
​
​-1 can southwest corn
​-1 can chili beans (I used mild)
- 1 package ground chicken
Optional- cheese (I used cheddar) & hot sauce

​-Season ground chicken as you wish (I used pepper and oregano)
​-Place corn, beans, and chicken in crockpot
​-Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3.5-4 hours
​-Serve over rice and add cheese or hot sauce if you wish
​ENJOY (told you it was easy!)

An easy & delicious meal to prep before work or heading out for the day to ensure that you stay on track once you are back home!

Shredded Chicken (5-8 min prep time)
-Season chicken with pepper
​-Throw chicken, mushrooms, and balsamic dressing in crockpot
​-Cook on low for 6 hours

Quinoa Salad (5 min prep time)
​-Place 1 part quinoa and 2 parts water in rice cooker and cook
​-Chop grape tomatoes in half and refrigerate for later

Spinach Quesadillas (5 min prep time)
-Line baking tray with aluminum foil
​-Place whole wheat tortilla on tray and place a layer of cheese of your choice (I chose swiss) and a layer of spinach
​-Place another whole wheat tortilla on top and refrigerate for later

After work/ school/ errands (15 min)
​-Preheat oven to 450 degrees
​-Shred crockpot chicken using large spoon
​-Place cooked quinoa in bowl and mix with grape tomatoes and hummus
​-Bake quesadillas for 5-10 min

​ENJOY :)

 A Cleaner & Tastier take on burritos!
Before Work (5 min):
​-Threw ground chicken in crockpot along with 1/2 bag of frozen peppers & onions
​-Cooked on low for 6 hours

​After Work (10 min):
​-Preheated oven to 350 degrees
​-Placed cheese and spinach on whole wheat tortillas and added crockpot chicken
​-Rolled up burritos and baked for 6 minutes

​Served with a side of jasmine rice that was made in bulk yesterday.

​** Lowest calorie cheese is mozzarella (I used cheddar)
​**If you are looking for condiments, guacamole is a great addition.  If you love sour cream (like I do) but want to cut it out, try plain greek yogurt as a substitute (I admit, I wasn't too keen on this idea but it actually does taste good!)

Simple, Quick, Healthy Dinner

​Before work (5-7 minutes):
​-seasoned chicken breast with pepper
​-threw chicken and mushrooms in crockpot
-cooked on low for 6 hours

After work (5 minutes):
​-used large cooking spoon to shred chicken (just mash the chicken)
-pour blue cheese crumble over chicken and let sit until melted

​Side Salad prepared with spinach & mixed greens, croutons, and balsamic & olive oil vinaigrette.
​
​Roasted Potatoes made last week in bulk and left out to defrost before leaving for work.

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