Quick, easy, and full of flavor is this tasty take on the appetizer favorite. Skinny Jalapeno Popper Chicken has jalapeno, cream cheese, and bacon, but just add some chicken and a couple of other simple ingredients and you’ve got a main course with all the flavor and none of the guilt! This is definitely a family-friendly dish that others in your household are sure to enjoy, and you don’t even have to tell them it’s skinny.
Weight Watchers
WW Points: 4 Purple, 4 Blue, 6 Green
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Ingredients
Chicken: For the lowest points, we’re using boneless, skinless chicken breast. Other options are chicken thighs or even pulled chicken from a store-bought rotisserie.
Sauce: In the sauce, we’re starting with fat-free cream cheese, softened at room temperature, and adding fat-free half and half for added creaminess, and finishing with garlic powder for some added flavor.
Jalapeno Peppers: be sure to scrape out all the seeds and veins from the inside of the peppers to remove the heat while keeping the flavor. I cut them in half length-wise and scrape everything out using a grapefruit spoon. My cousin chops the stem end off and hollows out the inside with a paring knife. Whatever works will do!
Cheese: we’re using fat-free cheddar in this dish for a low-point option.
Bacon: we’re using center-cut bacon for less fat. You can also use turkey bacon or other leaner bacon options you have available.
Skinny Jalapeno Popper Chicken
Equipment
- Casserole Dish
- Oven
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breast (boneless, skinless, cubed)
- ½ Tbsp garlic powder
- 8 oz fat-free cream cheese (softened at room temp)
- ½ cup fat-free half and half
- 5 jalapeno peppers (seeded, diced)
- 2 cups fat-free cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 6 slices center-cut bacon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F. Prepare a 9 by 13 casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place bacon on a baking sheet (I place on a cooling rack inserted on the baking sheet to lift it up out of the fat while it cooks) and bake on 375 for 20 minutes, while you assemble the casserole. Remove from oven and set aside, leaving the oven at 375 F.6 slices center-cut bacon
- Place cubed chicken in the bottom of the casserole dish in an even layer.3 chicken breast
- Blend together the garlic powder, cream cheese, and heavy cream. Pour over the chicken and top with diced jalapenos. Top with shredded cheese.½ Tbsp garlic powder, 8 oz fat-free cream cheese, ½ cup fat-free half and half, 5 jalapeno peppers, 2 cups fat-free cheddar cheese
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the chicken is done (chicken should reach internal temp of 165 F).
- While the casserole bakes, chop up the bacon into crumbles. Top the finished casserole with the bacon crumbles and serve.
