Skinny Chicken Pesto Meatballs

When I got to the hospital yesterday morning, Tony was sleeping. I didn’t want to wake him so I let him sleep another 30 minutes. He woke up and saw me and said “please wake me when you get here – I don’t want miss any time with you.” 😀 (best line EVER!)

The mornings at the hospital are a flurry of activity – between 7:30 and 8:00 are the nurse shift changes – all the doctors make their rounds then. Before I knew it I had to get to work.

I had the last slice of my zucchini quiche, 1.5 ounce of a whole grain bagel with a schmear of light hazelnut cream cheese (yum!) and some fresh fruit from the hospital – a large container (like you would get at Panera) is only $1.25!

Then my morning went by quick and when I went back to visit Tony at lunch – he had real food!

Sadly, while on a low fiber diet, the notes on his lunch tray said “no salt, no pepper, no caffeine, no carbonated drinks.” So I had a bite of his pasta sauce but it was so bland I couldn’t eat more than one bite.

He did enjoy his sherbert though! 😀

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA — No one rocks a hospital gown like you honey! 😀

I rocked my own pasta for lunch. Yep, believe it or not, I got home from the hospital at around 9:30 last night and started to make chicken pesto meatballs!

Now these are not as good as the chicken pesto meatballs I made for my Mom’s 70th birthday, but these were still pretty good – 5 meatballs for 4 points!

Skinny Chicken Pesto Meatballs (printer friendly version here)

each meatball: 35 calories, 1.2 fat, 1.1 carbs, 4.9 protein, 0 fiber = 1 WW Point per ball (I love saying balls!)

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons pesto
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 egg
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Directions:

Heat oven to 350.
Mix all ingredients in the food processor – don’t worry, the mix will be a little wet.
Make a meatball about the size of a marble – I got 40 meatballs out of this recipe.
Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Heat a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Spray with Pam and toss the meatballs in the pan to brown.
Serve with your favorite pasta, or dipping sauce as an appetizer.

1a 025 — 4 points of whole wheat pasta, 4 points of balls, zucchini and tomato sauce = 8 WW points for this bowl 😀

I brought this same dish to two of my co-workers and my one friend said “I like the pasta, and the sauce, but I love those dang little meatballs!” I thought they could have been spicier, but that’s just me! 😀

When I got to the hospital after work, Tony looked so tired. He said that one of the doctors said he should only be in bed if he’s taking a nap or sleeping during the night, otherwise he should sit in the recliner and walk frequently. He walked the floor six times before I got there. He had his dinner plate – not even worth a picture – tough over cooked pork and cooked carrots – I had a couple bites and pushed it to the side.

He wanted to walk again, so we did. When we got back I told him to get into bed and just rest. I got him all snuggled with the blanket so he was warm. I turned the lights off except for the t.v. that was on low. He had his hands resting on his chest, and he grabbed my left hand and held it. Within a minute he was asleep. He looked so peaceful! He slept from 6:15 until 8:00 p.m. I couldn’t move because he had my hand and I knew he felt safe with me there to sleep. 😀

He probably would have slept longer if there wasn’t a nurse shift change. Around 9:15 though Tony asked “did you have any dinner?” I told him the cafeteria had long closed and I would just get something when I got home. When the night nurse came back he said “my wife is diabetic, is there any way you can get her any food so I know she can drive home safely?” So sweet of him to think of me!

So my dinner: