Cottage Cheese Dinner Bowls

Cottage cheese seems to be all the rage right now... but I have always liked it, so I am just excited to discover new and fun ways to enjoy it. Right now, one weight-loss/management tool is to use the protein in cottage cheese to help you feel fuller, so they have been using it as one of the main ingredients in a deconstructed dinner bowl. The one pictured here is my version of a deconstructed taco bowl, but you could do any other kind you can think of, including a pizza/spaghetti version. Maybe southern BBQ with corn and beans? Or breakfast with eggs, bacon, potatoes, etc. 

Enjoy!

 Cottage Cheese Dinner Bowls- Taco

Ingredients:

• 1 serving warmed taco meat (chicken, beef, pork, etc.) (approx. 100 calories worth)
• 1 portion cottage cheese (I take a hefty spoonful, maybe 1/4-1/2 cup) (approx. 100 calories worth)
• 1 serving chips or other crunchy scooping item (approx. 100 calories worth)
• healthy toppings

Directions:

• Place all your parts and pieces in a serving bowl and use your chips to scoop out the food and enjoy. 
• Depending on what chips you use will determine how many you can have and stay in your calorie goals. Some people use protein chips or other low-calorie options. I used sea salt Pop-Corners chips for about 140 calories for 16 chips.
• Your total calories is going to depend on all of your choices for the bowl. I used a healthy pile of lettuce with just a small sprinkling of cheese, one container of Pearls Olives To Go for another 40 calories, and just a touch of Taco Bells Chipotle sauce for maybe another 50 calories (I didn't use an entire serving). My cottage cheese and taco meat are probably about 100 calories each, making my bowls about 400-500 calories each for my dinner.

You can switch up any of the ingredients that you want. You can also do this same thing, but make it a pizza/spaghetti bowl with your favorite pizza toppings (for me, that would be pepperoni, olives, shredded cheese, but you can do any kind you like) and maybe some pizza sauce or really meaty spaghetti sauce. Scoop out with crusty bread or bagel chips. You can heat it up and stir it all together, or eat cold, if you like cold pizza.