BYOV - Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip with veggies

#healthygamedayrecipes #healthytailgaterecipe #bringyourownveggies #healthybuffalochickendip #dietitianreviewedrecipe

Hi there! My name is Lee Baxter and I'm a registered dietitian nutritionist. I provide one-on-one nutrition counseling services. I love helping my patients learn how to diet and lifestyle modifications can improve their lives! Whether you are trying to better manage a chronic condition, lose weight, or learn to eat to feel your best I am here to help. Through counseling we address all of the factors that influence your food choices. This is what leads to lasting lifestyle changes and long term success.

I live in Birmingham, AL where I have been doing outpatient nutrition counseling dietitian for 4 years. I went to Samford University for my dietetic internship and received a Masters in Nutrition. I'm from Kentucky and completed my undergraduate degree at Western Kentucky University. I'm licensed and can see patients in both Alabama and Kentucky. After graduate school I attended the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City and completed the Chef's Training Program to learn more about plant based cooking. I love to travel, try new recipes, drink Kentucky bourbon and play tennis in my free time. I always want to share healthy meals with friends and family! This blog is where I will share recipes that nourish and fit into your healthy lifestyle.

When counseling my patients I always discuss taking a healthy dish to parties to help balance their plates with non-starchy vegetables among the other rich foods typically served at parties. I call it BYOV (bring your own veggies). I will be posting many more BYOV ideas on this blog to help you through the holiday season as well as football season! Stay tuned!

This delicious recipe is a lower fat, higher protein version of traditional buffalo chicken dip. It pairs well with celery and carrots to include a non-starchy vegetable in your game day spread! This is key as we go into the holiday season and I will talk about including non-starchy vegetables in most of my posts! There are a lot of different variations of this recipe out there.

"BYOV: Part of eating healthy is learning how to include healthy items at a meal to balance your plate and moderate your calorie intake. Including non-starchy vegetables at most meals is great way to fill up on fiber and keep your saturated fat intake lower. I will continue posting other ideas through the rest of football season and the holidays to help you reach your health goals while sharing meals with family and friends."

Recipe:

Ingredients:

1. 1.25-2.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast

2. 1/2 cup buffalo sauce or hot sauce, plus more for topping (optional) - I used Sweet Baby Rays Buffalo Wing sauce (20 calories for 1 TBSP)

3. 1/2 cup non-fat plain greek yogurt

4. 1/2 cup whipped cream cheese

5. 1/2 cup light sour cream

6. 1/2 cup low-fat shredded mozzarella cheese - Trader Joe's and Publix brands are great

7. 1.5 tsp ranch seasoning

Directions:

Start out by pressure cooking your chicken. This will take around ten minutes. While the chicken cooks you can prep the rest of the dip ingredients and chop the celery so the dish will come together quickly. I used 2 chicken boneless, skinless chicken breasts to help keep fat content moderate. In pressure cooker add 2 cups chicken stock and 1.25-2.5 lbs of chicken breast. Cook under pressure for 10 minutes. Release pressure from pressure cooker and remove breasts from cooker. Let chicken cool completely and then shredd chicken with forks. You can chop into small pieces if desired. I put chicken into food processor for finely cut pieces.

While the chicken is cooking mix together the buffalo sauce, greek yogurt, whipped cream cheese, light sour cream, and ranch seasoning in a large mixing bowl. Mix in shredded chicken. Pour chicken and sauce mixture into desired baking dish - I used glass pyrex dish. Smooth mixture on top with plastic spatula. Then sprinkle 1/2 cup low fat shredded mozzarella cheese on top. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 mins making sure mixture is hot and cheese is melted on top. Remove from oven and drizzle on extra buffalo sauce if desired.

Serve with celery sticks, carrot sticks and your favorite whole grain crackers. I suggest Crunch Master Protein crackers.

Want to work with me and reach your health goals? Book your first nutrition counseling session today here.