AVOCADO FLATBREAD FOUR WAYS
My house today, a one act play.
(A, chewing.)
G: What’re you eating?
A: Wheat toast with chocolate spread. (swallows)
G: I didn’t know we had chocolate spread.
A: We do. (bites toast)
G: Is there some secret stash of chocolate spread?
A: (silence)
The end.
Sometimes, it may feel like a chocolate kind of day. That’s where flatbread comes in. And avocados. I think of avocados as nature’s chocolate spread. This recipe for toasted avocado flatbread is silky, rich, satisfying, a powerhouse of nutrients, and best of all, shareable with your significant other.
One bite, and you’ll fall in love with this toasted flatbread, piled high with enough healthy ingredients to keep things interesting. And feel free to change it up as you see fit, or what’s in your fridge. It’s all about variety and creativity.
Next time I’m faced with a not-so great day, maybe I’ll ditch the spread, and see what happens. I know someone in my house will be happy to share.
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 5 Minutes
Avocado Flatbread Four Ways
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 3 per serving
Ingredients
1 Flatout Light Original flatbread
1 ripe Haas avocado, mashed
2 tablespoons pico de gallo
1 tablespoon hot sauce
2 radishes, thinly sliced
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 egg, hardboiled and sliced
3 slices red onion
2 tablespoons queso fresco, crumbled
1 tablespoon almonds, chopped
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 375° F.
2.Place flatbread on a nonstick cookie sheet; use a pizza cutter to slice it into four pieces. Bake for 2 minutes, then remove from oven, and cool.
3.Spread mashed avocado on each slice.
4.Top first slice with pico de gallo and hot sauce.
5.Top second slice with radish slices and black pepper.
6.Top third slice with egg and onion.
7.Top fourth slice with queso fresco and almonds.
8.Use a pizza cutter to divide each quarter into four small slices.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
MANGO CHOCOLATE HEARTS
Love is in the air! Mango and chocolate love, that is. If you’re wondering how you can properly celebrate Valentine’s Day and still be true to your caloric intake, try these heart shaped flatbread sandwich cookies filled with mango preserves (or any fruit you wish) and dipped in deep, dark chocolate. A little goes a long way.
Last year my mom bought me a bag of chocolate dipped mango slices. I have to say, at first, I was dubious. Mango and chocolate, really? But then my better half dug into the bag and fell on the grenade. He bit into one and slowly made his way, with the bag, into the next room. When I tracked him down, I could tell he loved them- and so did I. The bag soon disappeared into the ether.
Those chocolate dipped mangoes no longer exist, but in the spirit of love, I used those treats as inspiration for this flatbread recipe. You need a little something with your sweetheart to celebrate. And these little beauties are meant to be shared with your parents, kids, aunts, uncles, neighbors, whomever you’re close to and want to give a little love.
Because, as the talented Dionne Warwick used to sing: what the world needs now, is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing there’s just too little of… No, not just for some, but for everyone. I think this is especially true right now.
So make a batch of these little valentines and prepare to share the love.
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Mango Chocolate Hearts
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 3 per serving
Ingredients
1 Flatout flatbread, Light Original
2 tablespoons mango preserves
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
1 teaspoon coconut sugar
1/4 teaspoon sunflower oil
Coconut oil spray
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 375° F.
2.Use a 2-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut eight heart shapes from flatbread.
3.Place hearts on a nonstick cookie sheet. Coat with cooking spray, and sprinkle with coconut sugar. Bake for 2 minutes, then remove from oven and let cool.
4.Spread a dollop of preserves on one heart (sugar side down), and top it with another heart (sugar side up) to form a sandwich. Repeat with each set of hearts.
5.Melt chocolate chips in a small microwave-safe bowl in 30-second increments, stirring occasionally. Once chocolate is melted, add sunflower oil and stir until completely blended.
6.Dip sandwiches in melted chocolate; let cool on waxed paper before serving.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
TEXAS CAVIAR WITH SRIRACHA FLATBREAD CHIPS
The award season came and went, and you know what that means! Put away your sequins, your de la Renta, your satin, your tux, and roll up that red carpet! Or, better yet, stay in your joggers and jammies like we do and make some fancy snacks to eat in the comfort and privacy of your own living room while watching movies. My better half and I have been couch potatoes as of late, getting caught up on all the award winning movies. It’s been our thing the last few years to make a bunch of appetizers to nosh on while watching all the films that won, after the fact. That way we can stay at home and make our own food, rather than relying on over-priced movie theatre concessions. My better half’s popcorn is way better, besides.
We like to keep it fresh and exciting when we make our snacks, and I’m not talking about wings and pizza and queso dip. We simply have to stay on track at this crucial time of year. It’s not winter, it doesn’t yet feel like spring, but summer is closer than we care to admit. And to me, that’s another excuse to try out a flatbread appetizer, like this one for Texas Caviar.
Everything’s bigger in Texas, maybe even the flatbread! One thing Texas doesn’t have is fish eggs, but they have beans, and lots of them. Black eyed peas to be exact, and this canned bean salsa-style dip was originally served on New Years, to honor the tradition of eating black eyed peas for wealth and good health in the new year. It can be sweet or savory, depending on how you like your vinaigrette, but this one is savory and the baked flatbread chips that go with it are pure zingy, crispy, spicy, chippy goodness.
You already know that beans are an excellent source of protein and may be helpful for your, ahem, heart. The great thing about this dip is that the beans feel extra special. There’s tons of flavor, loads of texture, and a spicy baked flatbread to boot.
So go ahead and veg out a little, just make sure you eat your veggies when you do it.
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 5
Texas Caviar with Sriracha Flatbread Chips
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 7 per serving
Ingredients
4 Flatout flatbreads, Light Original
1 cup black-eyed peas, cooked
1 cup black beans, cooked
1 cup white corn, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 cup of Sriracha or other hot sauce
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Take Flatout flatbreads, and brush the hot sauce over them. Cut them into 10 chip shapes, and bake 2-3 minutes at 375°, until crispy. Remove from oven, set aside to cool.
In a small bowl, combine all remaining Texas caviar ingredients and season to taste with salt and pepper. This can be made hours in advance to allow the flavors to meld.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
BANANA WALNUT FRENCH TOAST
Every time I make this, I ask myself: Is there anything more wonderful than bananas and walnuts and flatbread for breakfast? My better half’s favorite food, the food he buys at the store every single time he visits, is bananas. We may already have bananas, but no matter, he buys more. It’s B-A-N-A-N-A-S. And it really means he’s just like everyone else in the world, because a small survey of several Tesco stores in the UK suggests that bananas are the top-rated impulse buy at the grocery store, and we have 150 years of history behind our universal love of the portable yellow fruit. Even though there are more than 1000 varieties of our most beloved banana, the most popular cultivated variety is the Cavendish, which, believe it or not, came from a royal house in England whose gardener was inspired to grow the fruit after seeing a plant depicted on the wallpaper in the house. The vast majority of the banana plants in the world have descended from the plants still grown today on the premises. Fascinating!
Because I’m always, always, ALWAYS looking for ways to use those extra ripe ones that inevitably appear in the fruit bowl, I have a bunch of recipes in my arsenal (ice cream, smoothies, pancakes, bread, cake) but this one is my favorite, and very likely most delicious. This stuffed French toast uses flatbread, mashed ripe bananas, nutrient packed walnuts, and a dash of cinnamon for an extra morning boost, and even better, it’s easy to make when you’re running out of morning time before work.
The walnuts add crunch and protein, but switch up the nuts if you have pecans or something else, or omit them if you or yours are sensitive to them. These cook up fast in batches and can be dipped in syrup or even nothing at all and still taste great. A simple to make breakfast that tastes way better that a $7 calorie laden something-or-other at the coffee shop. Now hurry up, flatbread lovers! You’ll miss the bus!
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 1
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook Time: 8 Minutes
Banana Walnut French Toast
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 5 per serving
Ingredients
1 ripe banana
⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
1 Flatout Light Original flatbread
2 tablespoons walnuts, chopped
1 egg white
Cooking spray
2 tablespoons sugar-free pancake syrup
Directions
1.Mash banana, and mix with cinnamon in a small bowl.
2.Spread mixture on half of flatbread. Sprinkle walnuts over mixture, then fold flatbread in half.
3.Beat egg white in a small bowl, then brush it over the outside of the folded flatbread, coating both sides.
4.In a nonstick pan coated with cooking spray, cook the flatbread, flipping gently, until toasted. Serve immediately with syrup.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
CHICKEN TACOS WITH STRAWBERRY MINT SALSA
Summer is here and I couldn’t be happier! Our grill is perpetually warm in the backyard from all the cooking, and the garden is filling out and looking lovely. Even though I love cooking outdoors, it can’t be all steaks and burgers, night in and night out, because that can get old fast. If you’re looking for a little something that’s easy, light, and a refreshing take on an old favorite, tacos, then look no further than this flatbread recipe. I make the most delicious taco shells from a Flatout Artisan Thin Crust flatbread, baked crisp or warmed up soft, depending on what everyone is in the mood for.
Someday, I hope to move to California, because produce is bountiful and interesting there. People have lemon trees in their yard, and persimmons, for crying out loud! Fruit just drops off the trees. I would absolutely take advantage of their growing season, which is twice as long as ours. In my city, as you may know, we have a very short growing season, about five minutes. (At least it feels that way.) Years ago I remember wearing gloves in June; that should tell you what you need to know about our weather. Gloves. In June.
The strawberry mint salsa that tops these shredded chicken tacos is just the sort of thing you’d find in California. It’s the perfect, slightly sweet, slightly spicy compliment to just-grilled chicken, or even some leftover shredded chicken you have from the night before. Seriously, these tacos make chicken go from blah to ah in about ten minutes.
And what to make with all the leftover strawberries? Strawberry margaritas, of course! The ideal cocktail pairing. You can thank me later. Vivà California! Vivà summer! Gloves, be gone!
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 1
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Chicken Tacos with Strawberry Mint Salsa
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 9 per serving
Ingredients
1 Flatout Artisan Thin Crust flatbread
3 ounces boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked, shredded
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
1 ounce queso fresco, crumbled
5-6 strawberries, chopped
1/2 jalapeño, chopped finely
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
1/2 lime, juiced
2-3 mint leaves, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Cut the flatbread into three rectangles. In a bowl, combine the cilantro, strawberries, mint, jalapeño, and lime juice to make a salsa. In a skillet, heat the chicken up if necessary, until hot. Season with salt, pepper and chili powder. To assemble the tacos, divide the chicken, queso and salsa into each flatbread shell, in that order, and serve.
Grilling method: Preheat grill to 375°F. Pre-bake the flatbread on the grill for 1 minute to warm shell. Remove flatbread from grill and assemble the tacos according to the recipe.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
ROASTED SPRING VEGGIE WRAP
When I was little, my grandmother would make a Schaum torte in the spring, almost always for Easter, because in those days spring was the only time you could get fresh strawberries. For those of you who are curious, Schaum torte is a very light, ethereal cake made with meringue, whipped cream, and fresh sliced strawberries. It’s pure heaven to eat, so it was always gobbled up as soon as it was served, without any leftovers. Maybe that’s why I revere the cake so much, because it was so short-lived and never lasted until the next day.
Anyways, thanks to technology, almost every fruit or vegetable can be found at any time of the year, for better or for worse. Those strawberries you see in January? Well, they’re usually not very good. More white than red, they don’t even have a flavor, am I right? And baby carrots in the bag? Ugh. Those aren’t “baby,” they’re just enormous carrots filed down to size in a big machine. Who wants that? But in the spring, carrots are glorious. Most produce just tastes better when it’s eaten in season.
Being the food lover that I am, to me spring also means spring vegetables: tender greens and asparagus, baby carrots, peas. Usually at this point in the year, I don’t ever care to see another potato or brussel sprout ever again, bacon or no. I’m ready for different flavors and textures, that’s all. I know that come winter, brussel sprouts will return to my menu’s rotation, but for now, I’m dreaming of salad greens, some goat cheese, and tender roasted vegetables. This flatbread has all those things and more: a crunch that comes from toasted sliced almonds for some extra texture and protein. Getting all your veggies in is easy with this delicious recipe! And at 7 Weight Watchers® SmartPoints® value per serving, it’s a recipe that’s easy to make part of your weekly menu!
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 1
Roasted Spring Veggie Wrap
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 7 per serving
Ingredients
1 Flatout flatbread, Light Original
1/2 head radicchio, in wedges
2 asparagus spears
1-2 baby carrots, peeled and quartered
1 shallot, peeled and cut in wedges
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 ounce goat cheese, soft
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 425°F. On a baking sheet, arrange the vegetables evenly, spray them with cooking spray, and season with salt and pepper. Roast the vegetables for 15-20 minutes, turning once midway, until they’re fork tender and caramelized at the edges. Remove from the oven when roasted enough and squirt the lemon juice over the vegetables. Set aside and allow to cool. To assemble wrap, arrange the roasted vegetables in one direction on the flatbread. Next, break up the goat cheese over them, and sprinkle the almonds over the cheese. Roll the flatbread up beginning at the rounded end, and cut in half.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas
There’s a Pakistani restaurant close to my house that is open 24 hours a day, and serves up the best, spiciest, cheapest food in the area. It doesn’t hurt that I live near a university, and so it’s always busy with hungry people at all hours of the day or night. My favorite regular order is a rice dish called biryani; I order the green chili chicken biryani, loaded with chunks of chicken and spicy green chilis. Delicious! One order lasts a couple meals, and oh, what meals they are. Well, until just recently, when they changed chefs. The last time I was there, someone in the kitchen went a little crazy with food coloring and all the chicken in my biryani was- wait for it- BRIGHT GREEN. I guess the chef thought the dish should be called “green chicken chili biryani,” not the other way around. The flavor was much the same, but I have to admit, it was a little unsettling to eat green chicken. Later I learned that so many people complained about this, that they might switch back to chicken colored chicken again. Fingers crossed.
In the meantime, I have to get my chili chicken fix somehow! I’m a sucker for green chili everything, and I’m never without at least one can of diced green Hatch chilis in my pantry. Flatout flatbreads make awesome baked enchiladas, so what better way to use them than with some shredded chicken and chilis and invite over some friends? I can feed four people with four flatbreads, and gussy up the enchiladas with an assortment of healthy toppings like chopped scallions, cilantro, pickled onions, or just a squirt of lime to take the edge off the heat.
I don’t even need green food coloring, how about that? We can save that for, well, something. Anything but chicken.
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 45 Minutes
Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 7 per serving
Ingredients
4 Flatout flatbreads, Light Original
12 ounces cooked chicken, shredded
1 cup green enchilada sauce
7 ounce can diced green chiles, drained
1 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup Weight Watchers reduced fat Mexican blend shredded cheese
1/4 cup fat-free Greek yogurt, plain
Non-stick cooking spray
Chopped scallions
Chopped cilantro
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat a skillet treated with non-stick spray over medium to high heat. Sauté the onions and garlic until soft, about 4-5 minutes. Add the cooked chicken, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and the chicken broth, cooking for 4 to 5 minutes until mixture is hot. Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper. Next, treat a 13 x 9” glass baking dish with the non-stick spray. Cut each flatbread in half, then divide the chicken mixture evenly into each flatbread piece and roll it up, placing each enchilada next to each other, seam side down, in the baking dish. In a small bowl, combine the green chilis with the enchilada sauce, then pour the sauce over the flatbread enchiladas. Scatter the cheese across the dish, and bake 20-25 minutes at 400°F. Garnish with chopped scallions, cilantro, and Greek yogurt.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
SUPER KALE BOWL
I love salads, really I do, but sometimes I get a little tired of baby salad greens. I’m old enough to remember when they were a brand new product to hit the grocery stores, and back then they were all the rage. In those days, all you really had to choose from in the store was iceberg, romaine, or spinach, so the little baby leaves were novel and considered extremely exotic. Nowadays, though, they are everywhere, even in the most basic of salad bars.
In my old catering days, when we’d prepare huge bowls of salad for guests’ first course, we’d always have to be watchful for the red leaf lettuce variety in every mix, because it wasn’t as durable as the other varieties and it would wilt the quickest. Several of us caterers would keep a watchful eye out for the little wilted red leaf on every plate, pulling it out before it was served. Darn you, little red leaf! I’m sure you’re delicious, but you shouldn’t be in a salad mix.
Which brings me to kale. My friend Michele and I met for lunch the other day, and we both ordered a kale salad as a first course. I love kale, Michele not as much, but we both adored our salads. It had a slightly sweet, acidic dressing that softened the kale up quite a bit, and was loaded with pepitas, powdery cotija cheese, and spicy jalapeño slices. The nice thing about kale in a salad is that it travels so well and really holds up, unlike the red leaf, even when dressed. The more acidic the dressing is the better, in order to soften the leaves. I was so inspired that I made my own version of the salad adding radishes and a tomato vinaigrette, all served together in a baked flatbread bowl you can eat. Dark leafy greens have never been so fun or delicious!
P.S. I bake the flatbreads pressed over a washed out tin can in the oven to get that great salad bowl shape.
-Amy at Flatout
Serves: 1
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 5 Minutes
Super Kale Bowl
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 8 per serving
Ingredients
1 Flatout flatbread, Light Original
2 cups packed chopped kale
1 ounce queso cotija, crumbled
2 tablespoons fat-free vinaigrette
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 jalapeño, sliced crosswise, very thinly
2 radishes, sliced crosswise, very thinly
1 tablespoon pepitas
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place Flatout flatbread over a mug or empty can resting on a cookie sheet and press and fold into an inverted bowl shape. Bake at 375°F for two minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to cool. Once cool, the bowl is ready to fill with your salad.
In a separate bowl, add all the salad ingredients together and toss until well combined. Season with chili powder, salt, and pepper. Fill flatbread bowl with your delicious salad and serve immediately.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
YOGURT CHIA PUDDING WITH CINNAMON AND SUGAR FLATBREAD CHIPS
A diagnosis of diabetes does not mean having to say goodbye to pudding anymore! Thanks to this delicious take on the standard recipe, this family-friendly dessert makes the perfect after school snack to curb those pre-dinner munchies. The combination of fiber and protein from the Flatout flatbread and yogurt will help to keep you feeling satisfied for hours. Swapping in the mashed banana in replacement of larger amounts of added sugar helps to reduce the overall carbohydrate content of the recipe. And the addition of cinnamon may provide a slight improvement in post-meal blood sugar levels. This easy to make recipe is sure to become a family favorite!
(Make the chips and this chia pudding the day before, so the seeds have time to absorb all the liquid, and you will love yourself in the morning when you pull it out for breakfast or that snack you’ve been craving.)
Chia seeds can be found in bulk reasonably online, or in box stores in your area. They’re that popular!
Serves: 6
Prep Time: 60+ Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Yogurt Chia Pudding with Cinnamon and Sugar Flatbread Chips
Weight Watchers SmartPoints® value: 3 per serving
Ingredients
4 Flatout Light Original flatbreads
1 teaspoon sunflower oil
1 tablespoon coconut sugar (or sugar)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups fat-free plain yogurt
1 tablespoon honey
1 extra-ripe banana, mashed
1 ½ tablespoons chia seeds
3 tablespoons toasted shaved coconut
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 375° F.
2.Brush flatbreads with sunflower oil. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon, and use kitchen scissors to cut into chip shapes. Place on a nonstick cookie sheet; bake 2-3 minutes, until crispy. Remove from oven, and set aside to cool.
3.To make the pudding, combine yogurt with honey, banana, and chia seeds in a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 12 hours. 4.Spoon into six snack-sized portions, and top with toasted coconut. Serve with flatbread chips for dipping.
Weight Watchers for services and SmartPoints are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc. Trademarks are used with permission by Flatout, Inc.
