Fabulous Low Cal Low Fat "Tacos"!

Since I lost my weight, from 160lbs to 125lbs :). I have been trying to find easy ways to keep it off. Of course, I still workout. But, I am always trying to find changes I can make to the foods I eat too. I could never drastically change my diet, because that would never stick. That's why diets don't work! Because you can't stay on a diet forever. You eventually give in to the cravings for the things you have been depriving yourself of. So, even when I was trying to lose weight, I didn't change my diet much. I just changed the amount of the bad stuff I ate. I'd always have what everyone else was having for dinner. I'd just have a few bites & then fill up the rest of the way on salad. Which I like any way, so that made it easier. Now, I just have a salad every now & then. But, I do try to turn our normal dinners into healthier ones.

So, here I've taken the regular taco & made it much healthier. I've taken the ground beef 85/15 and substituted ground turkey. I've substituted reduced fat cheese, homemade taco seasoning & an iceberg lettuce leaf instead of the tortilla.  You still get the tortilla crunch from the lettuce!

Hint: the reason most people don't substitute ground turkey for ground beef is because of the softer texture of the ground turkey. The key to this is to "overcook" the ground turkey. You want it to be brown & crispy on the outside. Plus, you can add a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce to give it more of a beef flavor.

Here are the facts for the total taco and also for each ingredient. You'll notice a total significant reduction in calories, fat & sodium. You'll lose a little protein. But, not enough to make it worth eating the regular version.

TOTAL
383 calories vs. 140 calories - AWESOME, Right?!
19g fat vs. 9g fat - AMAZING, Right?!
537mg sodium vs. 195mg sodium - WOW, Right?!
29g protein - 20g protein

Ground beef 85/15 3oz. Vs. Ground Turkey 3oz.
213 calories vs. 98 calories
13g fat vs. 6g fat
61mg sodium vs. 60mg sodium
22g protein vs. 16g protein

Four Cheese Mexican 1/8 cup Vs. Reduced Fat Four Cheese Mexican 1/8 cup
55 calories vs. 40 calories
5g fat vs. 3g fat
85mg sodium vs. 95mg sodium
3g protein vs. 4g protein

Flour Tortilla Vs. Iceberg lettuce leaf
110 calories vs. 1 calorie
1g fat vs. 0g fat
286mg sodium vs. 1mg sodium
4g protein vs. 0g protein

McCormick Taco Seasoning 1/2 tsp. Vs. Allrecipes.com taco seasoning 1/2 tsp
5 calories vs. 1 calorie
0g fat vs. 0g fat
105mg sodium vs. 37mg sodium
0g protein vs. 0g protein