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Mar 18

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Marinated Pork Tenderloin with Mango Chutney

My sister, who has recently begun experimenting with Indian cuisine, sent this recipe my way. She had tried it and knew that we would probably like it as much as she had. She was right! I swear I never knew that you can marinate meat in yogurt until I began cooking from my Indian cookbook. SO tender, SO juicy, SO flavorful!  Really, even if you don’t want to try this dish, look up one or find one on this blog that suits you that is marinated in yogurt. You will not be disappointed in how tender your pork, beef or chicken can be. This recipe is less on the Dukan diet only because it uses some sugar and fruit, but if you are on the last stages of the diet or simply watching your processed foods and just eating healthier then this recipe is a must-try. The marinade is easy, the Mango Chutney is also fairly simple. I’ll admit, I’ve never eaten mango before this and had to watch a YouTube video on how to choose and slice a fresh mango. Don’t let that stop you since it all ends up in a blender anyway, it isn’t that important on how the mango comes out. My tip? Make sure the giant seed in the middle isn’t in your mango before you puree it. Thanks for the recipe sis!

Messy Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup plain yoghurt (doesn’t seem like enough but really it is!)
  • 2 ½ Tbsp garam Masala
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
  • 3 -4 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 pork tenderloin, cleaned (small, about 2 pounds each)
  • *Mango Chutney, recipe follows

Mix together yogurt through oil in a small bowl. Coat pork tenderloin with marinade and let set for at least 4 hours or overnight, I am in favor of overnight. I don’t have time to start cooking dinner at breakfast, plus the longer it sits the better.

Preheat grill to medium high heat. Grill pork, searing all sides, about 5 minutes each side (total 15 minutes) with the grill cover down. Brush with barbecue sauce. Continue cooking about 15 more minutes with the grill lid UP (had some issues with charring on our first try) or until internal temperature is 155°.

Transfer to cutting board, brush with a thick layer of the barbecue sauce, and let rest about 10 minutes. Slice & serve with the remaining sauce.

Mango Chutney Mango Chutney

  • 3 large, ripe Mangoes 
  •  ½ Tbsp grated fresh ginger
  • 3 tsp finely chopped jalapeno
  • 3 Tbsp ketchup
  • 1/8 tsp cinnamon
  • ¾ tsp ground cumin
  • ¾ tsp ground coriander
  • juice of 1 lime
  • ½ tsp condensed tamarind
  • 2 ½ Tbsp brown sugar
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
  • 1 Tbsp chopped mint

Place mango, ginger, jalapeno, ketchup, spices, tamarind and brown sugar in a sauce pan. Cook over medium heat until mango breaks down. Season to taste with lime juice, salt and pepper. Puree in blender until smooth; add cilantro and mint.

Sweet and tangy, juicy and tender, this recipe had Daniel asking for me to make it again. Pork isn’t my favorite but I was happy to oblige!

Jan 31

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Baked Salmon with Orange Glaze

Jam’s, Jellies, Marmalade and Preserves. There is a difference though mostly I learned them through trial and error.  Like that jelly doesn’t spread through peanut butter as smoothly as jam. I always hated tearing up my PB and J sandwich trying to evenly distribute the jelly and then I found jam and BOOM my life changed. Just like that. So a quick progression of the differences: Jelly is made from the juices of whatever fruit, where jam has a certain, higher percentage of the actual fruit itself and sometimes the seeds.  This changes the consistency a good bit between the two. Moving on, jam would be a preserve if it contained actual parts of the whole fruit and finally marmalade there on the end, sorta close to preserves but different still.  Marmalade is generally made using the peel of the fruit, usually a citrus fruit. They are normally less sweet because well, there is a reason we don’t usually eat much of the peel of an orange with the rest of it! We learned the difference between marmalade and preserves while trying to sweeten up our yogurt. Daniel accidentally came home with marmalade instead because he wanted to try the flavor  not realizing. It’s pretty bitter and chunky really and we didn’t like it much. In the end I’m “thrifty” to put a good word on it and couldn’t make myself throw out a full jar of marmalade even if we didn’t want to eat it. I found this recipe instead and suddenly marmalade may be a staple I keep on hand for a quick dish like this!

Messy Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup orange marmalade
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 TBS soy sauce
  • kosher salt
  • 1.5 – 2 lb salmon filet

Preheat oven to 400°.Combine first 3 ingredients, stirring with a whisk. Place salmon on rack of a broiler pan lined with foil; sprinkle fish evenly with salt. Spread half of marmalade mixture over fish. Bake at 400° for 18 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove from oven. Spread remaining marmalade mixture evenly over fish. Preheat broiler. Broil fish 3 minutes or until topping browns.

That’s it! Shockingly tasty for the few ingredients here and so easy!  Plus, if you like salmon but don’t know how to cook fish, this is a really good one to start with.

Jan 19

Mouthwatering cabbage

Braised Red Cabbage

So once upon a time, in a land far far away, some guy made me this dish with a surprise Valentines dinner.  Long story short, I left the guy and kept the recipe but I swear I’m not a bad person. Now that I think about it, the only positive from that relationship were a couple really good recipes. Anyway, not only does this nice pinkish, purple dish go well with special occasions like Valentines day, it’s darn pretty on the plate any day! Besides the unusual splash of color it offers, I also really like the tangy-sweet combo here. Light on calories, packing some major Vitamin C and accompanying Vitamin A, calcium and iron this veggie all by itself is pretty good for you. There really aren’t that many ingredients here either to make it that bad for you, I would eat it in more quantities except I’m afraid I’d turn purple.  You may have also heard this dish called Rødkall, it is part of a traditional Danish Christmas dinner.

Messy Ingredients:

**You’ll need a large, oven safe pot and lid for this recipe**

  • 1 medium head (around 2 lbs) red cabbage, outer leaves trimmed and washed
  • 2 TBS butter (4 if you’re feeling decadent)
  • 1TBS sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 1/3 white vinegar
  • 1/4 cup red currant jelly (very important part don’t leave out!)
  • 2 TBS grated sour apple

Cut out the core of the cabbage and then slice very thinly.  You’ll need a large pot because this adds up quick! Preheat the oven to 325°F.  While that’s heating up, melt the butter in the bottom of the pot on the stove. Add the sugar, salt, water and vinegar and allow it to boil until the butter is melted.  Put in the cabbage in batches, tossing well until it’s all in and coated.  Cover it and put it in the middle of your oven for 2 hours.  About 10 minutes prior to it being done, take it out and add in the last two ingredients, stirring well to get the jelly mixed in and put it back in the oven to finish. Serve hot and juicy.

**Tip** This is one of those things that tastes even better the next day, usually I can’t wait to dig into it but really, every time it is better reheated.  Also remember when cooking with vinegar to stay away from using metal for prolonged times with it (like don’t store it in a metal bowl).  I can’t get away from my stainless steel pot, that can’t be helped, but vinegar will react with metals and leave a metallic taste in with the food so  you’ve been warned!

Jan 13

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Home Sweet Home

This past year has been a big one for us. We are nearing the one-year mark since moving to this lovely home and have put a lot of effort and money into fixing important “behind the scenes” things, improving the landscape and helping restore her to her potential beauty.  I wanted to document the changes we are slowly making around here.

First, a little about the house. If you don’t like history or architecture then skip this paragraph. This home was built in 1924, it is older than my grandmother! The style is of the American Craftsman, a subset of the Arts and Crafts period. This period in architecture followed the Victorian period  which had been the style as industrialization came about. Through innovations in machinery and factories, new and ornate designs for homes were possible, they saw more ornate wood and ironwork and vibrant colors with intricate patterns in their fabrics. Also, the time and detail put into these mass-produced accents made them very expensive.  The Arts and Crafts style is defined by hand-made, quality work with simplistic design. The color palette was muted with earthy tones and less overall patterns and homes were laid out to incorporate a working-class household. In the Victorian era there was a huge disparity between those who worked for a living (and lived poorly) and those who had inherited wealth (and lived very well).  Over time the style of architecture and design changed from the ornate to the simple after years of struggle to have greater equality between people. The Arts and Crafts movement was inspired by the thought that people who were in the middle to upper-middle working class  should  be able to work AND have a higher standard of living.  Changing from the super expensive, store-bought designs to simple, home-made themes made a higher standard of living more accesible to the working class. One instance on how this played out in home design was the kitchen. In the Victorian period, houses were laid out where the main living parts of the home included things like sitting rooms, parlors, dining and bedrooms where the family would spend most of their time. The “working” part of the house like the kitchen, servants quarters and laundry were hidden, separated by small hallways to where the family would not have to see the nannies, cooks and servants working behind the scenes to support the way the house ran. As society changed, the layout of the home changed too.  In the Arts and Crafts period, a home was more integrated. Servants still worked days at some homes but went to their own homes at night. Women were more likely to be doing more of the housekeeping, cooking and watching the children so the kitchen and living spaces became more open so that Mom could watch the kiddies while doing her work. I like how social history played such a big part in shaping design and architecture. This of course is a really shallow synopsis of these periods, there were lots of sub-periods and these changes took place  over almost 100 years between around 1840 – 1930.  Also, each period generally began in Europe so changes to architecture and style was always later here in the US as it took time for the culture to trickle our way.

She (we have decided on a gender but not a name) was originally a farm-house and the family sold their crops out on the road.  She started out with five bedrooms and three bathrooms.  Later, after a piece of land was sold, a cabin that had been sitting on that land was attached to the back of the kitchen. This added another room and bathroom. The limestone that forms the foundation of this home was brought from an area of town that now is a local golf-course. The timber is was also produced from this area back when this town was called “Hogtown” and was just a stop on part of the DeSoto trail.  Right now her windows are the old, wavy, single paned glass and the frames are double hung. (meaning they open up from the bottom and also drop down from the top to allow heat to exit and air to circulate better before A/C). The door knobs are old brass ones with skeleton-key locks (that work!). The baseboards are almost 10 inches tall!  The floor is heartwood pine, old and needing refinishing but even though is is worn it is beautiful on a bright day.  The walls are made of horsehair plaster and lathing and they are VERY hard to nail anything into and they are cracking and needing painted. There used to be two fireplaces, both were capped off years ago but the brick of one is visible in the kitchen and both can be seen going up through the attic. The other was converted to gas and can be used in the living room. Yes, this is probably too much house for just the two of us. We have to text each other to talk when one of us is upstairs and one downstairs! But I like to think we’ve rescued this house in a way.  With all the work it needs now and is going to need, if you have five kids (to fill up the bedrooms) you probably don’t have the time or money (or energy) to put into this place what it will take. I feel a sense of belonging that I have never felt anywhere before and I credit that to this house. People asked me after we moved in if it was “spooky” or “haunted” or if I thought about people who had died here in the past 88 years. If anybody died here, they died happy I’d have to say. The overall feeling of this house happy. It makes me feel full of love and care and….home sweet home.

Daniel and his Dad installed a pantry in a closet handy to the kitchen.

Daniel and his Dad installed a pantry in a closet handy to the kitchen.

Daniel, his parents and I put up a fence.

Daniel, his parents and I put up a fence.

Then somebody drove into it and we had to fix it.

Then somebody drove into it and we had to fix it.

We repainted the kitchen and put in some functional workspace.

We repainted the kitchen and put in some functional workspace.

So now, it not only looks better but works better too!

So now, it not only looks better but works better too!

We bought some old furniture off Craigslist and refinished it.

We bought some old furniture off Craigslist and refinished it.

Our refinished coffee table.

Our refinished coffee table.

I repainted the baseboards and walls in the hallway.

I repainted the baseboards and walls in the hallway.

a new coat of paint does wonders!

a new coat of paint does wonders!

The dining room also needed a change.

The dining room also needed a change.

So now the dining room looks much better!

So now the dining room looks much better!

We even worked outside a little.

We even worked outside a little.

and made our backyard less scary.

and made our backyard less scary.

Besides all this, we had a leak to fix in Daniel’s bathroom, there is still a hole in the wall where the plumber was working. I put in a new doorbell that works most of the time. When it wants to. We built a dog-pen. We have mulched and done a lot of trimming outside. We cut down a dead tree. We’ve re-cemented some of the loose stones on the patio walk.  Daniel completely rebuilt some of the frames for our screens and I re-screened them. We had some of the electrical replaced prior to moving in.  We’ve had a new roof put on. And boy how we’ve cleaned!

It’s good to see how far we’ve come, I am very focused on what is left to do that I forget how much has changed.  Daniel gets on to me about that.  Looking back through these pictures has reminded me just all the things big and small that have been done and I can’t wait to see what we will accomplish this year!

Dec 28

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3 Comments

Asturian Beef Stew

As Daniel and I sat down tonight for dinner it occurred to us that this was the first meal we have shared together (just the two of us) for a while.  It was nice making the rounds for Thanksgiving and Christmas to see family but the time travelling, working and shopping can be exhausting.  Add to that the burglar attempt just before Christmas by the “grinch with a gun” and the stress adds up. Sitting down tonight really made me feel like I was home. This is my home; an old  farm-house, on a chilly night, with the aroma of a rich and hearty stew spreading from the warm kitchen. Just Daniel, the dogs and me. This meal will definitely get your family, however many people (or pets) that may be, to the table for some much needed family time.

Messy Ingredients:Asturian Beef Stew

  • 3 pounds beef chuck (stew beef)
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 3 TBS olive oil
  • 4 oz pancetta or smoked bacon cut into pieces
  • 1 large white onion, chopped
  • 8 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2-4 carrots washed and diced
  • 2 TBS flour
  • 3/4 cup white wine
  • 3 cups chicken stock or broth
  • 1can white beans (I used cannelloni, the book also suggests navy)
  • 6 large, canned plum tomatoes, chopped plus 1/3 cup of their juice
  • 1 lb chopped collard greens (or other green of your choosing)

Start by getting out the largest pot you have that is oven safe.  Next you’ll need to brown your meat.  Heat up 2 TBS of the oil on the stove and add the meat. If your pot has a large enough bottom for all the meat to be spread in a mostly single layer then put it all in at once for about 10 – 15 minutes, turning as you go to get all the sides browned. If your pot is not large enough for a single layer then halve the oil and brown it in two batches.  With a slotted spoon, set aside in a bowl.

Pre-heat your oven to 300°F. Make sure your rack is at the right height to hold your pot! Chop your onion, garlic and carrots and have that ready.  Put the last TBS of oil in the pot (you’ve discarded the leftover juice or put it aside to top off  your dog’s dinner) and heat that up and add the bacon/pancetta.  Cook for two minutes on medium heat then add your vegetables. Continue to cook, stirring, for 8 – 10 minutes. Stir in the 2 TBS flour then add the wine. When the flour is well mixed, add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Scrape up any stuck-on brown bits.

Add the meat and whatever juice has come off the meat since sitting back to the pot. Throw in the tomatoes, taste and adjust the seasoning as needed and bring back to a boil. Once boiling, cover and bake for 2 hours.

About 20 minutes before the stew is done, bring 3 – 4 cups of water to boil in a pot with a basket.  Boil the greens and beans for 10 minutes or until wilted. When the stew is done, drain the vegetables and add them  to the pot and let sit for 5 – 10 minutes. Serve in a bowl on top of rice, cauliflower “rice” or just on its own.

While this recipe seems to take a long time, it really isn’t that much in prep time, just plan ahead 2.5 hours for this meal. When it is done you have pretty much a one-pot stop!  Mostly Dukan Diet Worthy on Phase 2 and higher. I altered this recipe from a book I got last Christmas by Anya von Bremzen called “The New Spanish Table”.  It’s nice to think that every culture, all over the world, has some variation on a “beef stew”.  Maybe that is what makes it such a classic dish.  I hope you enjoy!

   Happy New Year!

 

Oct 29

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Crunchy Asian Coleslaw – hold the mayo!

Love this recipe!  This is the other part to the Chicken Satay recipe (previously posted) that I found on Food Network but I liked it so much I’ve made it separately just to munch on.  Crispy, cool, tangy…refreshing even!  This one hits the spot to fill a savory craving without being unhealthy.

Messy Ingredients:

  • 1 small Napa Cabbage – shredded thinly
  • 1 lb snow peas – shredded thinly
  • 1 cup cilantro – rough chop
  • 2 TBS fist sauce
  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
  • 2 TBS agave nectar
  • 1 TBS low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 TBS fresh ginger – minced
  • 4 cloves garlic – minced
  • 1/2 tsp red chili flakes
  • 2 TBS vegetable oil

After the veggies and cilantro are chopped, place them in a large bowl.  Whisk all the other ingredients together in a smaller bowl and then pour over the veggies. Toss well to combine, cover and refrigerate.  So easy!  The flavors are good fresh but in my opinion, this one gets better on the second or third day.  This recipe is adapted to make a large bowl.  If you are making the chicken satay with the slaw for a dinner for 2 – 4 (leaving no leftovers) follow the instructions for making the chicken satay marinade (essentially the same for the slaw) and reserve 1/4 cup of the marinade before pouring it over the chicken.  Use 1/4 a Napa Cabbage, 6 oz peas and 1/4 cup cilantro.  Whisk in 1 TBS the vegetable oil with the reserved marinade, pour over smaller bowl of veggies and refrigerate.  Smaller serving, same ingredients!

Oct 1

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Chicken Satay and Peanut Sauce

It is a good thing that I don’t have a peanut allergy because I have a hard time staying out of the peanut butter.  I have heard of some people with food allergies will eat the foods they are allergic to because they decide that the risk is worth the reward and they chance it.  I would be tempted. If you do have a peanut allergy, make this without the sauce and it will still be good.  Maybe make a creamy coconut-lime sauce instead?  Satay originated in Indonesia (it is their national dish) and typically is a skewered and grilled meat served with a sauce of some kind. This requires some pre-prep with the marinating so not a great option for a last-minute-meal but very tasty, not too spicy and can throw some variety in your dinner line up. There are several ingredients here I have never used before, lemon grass and agave nectar. To be honest almost the whole reason I looked for this recipe is because I bought some dried lemon grass at a specialty spice store my Mom took me to and I wanted to try it out!  Agave nectar is produced from the Agave plant, native to areas like Mexico and south Africa. It is more sweet naturally than honey, with a similar consistency so is used as a substitute sometimes.  Also, being sweet and having a lower glycemic index than regular table sugar, it can be a better option to sweeten drinks and other things too if you’re switching from regular sugar. Also, side note, the agave plant is where tequila comes from so it’s a win -win!  Anyway,  let’s get to it!

Messy Ingredients:

  • 2 TBS fish sauce
  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
  • 2 stalks lemon grass (if you don’t have fresh use dried or could  leave out)
  • 2 TBS agave nectar
  • 1 TBS low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 TBS minced fresh ginger
  • 1/2 tsp red chili flake
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1.5 LB boneless/skinless chicken breasts or thighs
  • 2 TBS vegetable oil

Easy Marinade: whisk it all together (except the vegetable oil) in a non-metal bowl or casserole dish and place the chicken in it.  You can first score the chicken a little with a knife to help the marinade penetrate even better.  Put it in the fridge and let it sit 24 hours.

Before you start grilling, put your skewers into water first so they will withstand the heat of the grill better. They will need about 15 – 20 minutes soak.  Once ready, oil your racks and put the grill on medium-high. Grill as you normally would chicken…until done! That may be about 4 minutes on each side.  Serve with some peanut sauce for dipping!

Peanut Sauce:

  • 3 TBS reduced fat smooth peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup light coconut milk (don’t forget to shake the can!)
  • 2 tsb fish sauce
  • 1 tsp chili-garlic sauce (this I found in the ethnic section at the grocery store. The jar literally say “chili-garlic” sauce and wasn’t hard to find!)
  • 1 tsp fresh lime juice
  • 1 TBS agave nectar
  • 1.5 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix it all together until well blended and smooth.

There is a little more fat in this than my average Dukan meal but it was worth it!

Recipe adapted from Food Network.

Sep 10

Caprese

Caprese Salad

Juicy tomato, cold, crunchy Romaine lettuce, sweet basil, creamy mozzarella and the tang of a Balsamic vinegar reduction…..delicious!  Sure, a caprese salad won’t do for a full family meal but for a decadent lunch or as a side salad with dinner, this dish is packed with flavor and texture and other good-for-you-things!  I really was having a craving for fresh basil a while back.  I wanted it in any food I ordered out, I wanted it in food I made at home and I thought that not only did this salad sound like a nice change in our vegetable routine, but it calls for fresh, raw basil.  In my opinion, this is the type of dish that the quality of your ingredients really can make or break it.  Being mostly uncooked, if your tomato flavor is flat or the mozzarella isn’t quite the right texture, the whole thing falls apart.  My advice, and the reason I call it decadent is because I pull out the good stuff for this one.  I am using my “good” olive oil, the oil I save for special dishes where the flavor of the oil will really be apparent.  I selected the tomato carefully and bought a type that not only looked nice but has a good flavor.  In this case, regardless of what you feel about organic products, here organic usually IS better. Interesting aside – in the race to produce more, larger, and more bug-resistant tomatoes, they have bred the flavor OUT of most commercially grown tomatoes.  The farms get more per plant and a more even growth rate but they aren’t taking into account how those tomatoes taste.  Some growers are taking that problem back to the root of things and are breeding the flavor back into their crops but right now, it seems UF (go Gators!) and Publix (go Lakeland!) have the market cornered. Here is an article on UF’s new breed of tomato, only available at Publix supermarkets right now.   So I picked out a few nice tomatoes, bought the fancy, fresh mozzarella and made sure the basil was not spotted or dried up at the corners.  Then I bought a good balsamic vinegar (raspberry flavored at that) to reduce.   The rest of this salad is simple, you’ve got the main part done before you get home!

Messy Ingredients: 

  • Fresh, firm, tasty tomatoes, 1/2 – 1 medium tomato per salad
  • Fresh crispy romaine lettuce
  • Fresh Mozzarella
  • Fresh Basil
  • Good olive oil
  • Good Balsamic vinegar 1/4 cup for 2 salads
  • salt and pepper to taste

Chop up, wash and pat dry the Romaine, toss in a little olive oil and salt/pepper to taste and split among the plates.  Wash and slice the tomato and place them neatly on top of the lettuce.  Slice up the mozzarella and finely chop the basil; put those ingredients on the salad.  Lastly, reduce the vinegar by putting a small amount in a sauce pan on high.  The vinegar will boil quickly and reduce even more quickly so don’t walk away!  Once boiling, durn the heat down and allow to reduce for a couple of minutes.  What you want here is a thicker, more syrupy consistency to the vinegar so swirling the pan will give you an idea.  When ready, drizzle over the salad and enjoy.

100% Dukan Diet Worthy Stage 3 or higher.

Aug 27

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Quick Chocolate Mousse

I don’t make desserts often, in fact, probably only 2 – 3 times a year and usually only for a birthday or major holiday.  Not to say we don’t eat sweets but having a box of cookies lying around is in direct conflict with our diet!  This recipe is one that my Mom gave me after she read it in her local newspaper.  The nice thing is that it is a nice treat and 100% on the Dukan Diet!  If you are lactose intolerant then this post is most definitely not for you.  Let’s get to it!

Messy Ingredients:

  • 2 cups fat-free ricotta cheese
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened
  • 3/4 cup Splenda (Truvia probably would work too but I used Splenda for baking)
  • Skim milk
  • 1-2 teaspoons flavoring such as: mint extract, Kahlua, Creme de Cacao, Bailey’s Irish Creme or Grand Marnier
  • fat-free whipped cream

Place all ingredients except flavoring into your blender and mix.  Add more or less skim milk by the tablespoons to the consistency you’d like your mousse. The recipe states 1+ Tablespoons, I used closer to 1/4th a cup but added it tablespoon by tablespoon so as not to get too much.  Can’t take it back out! Chill when done. I mixed my flavorings in separately so that we could have multiple flavors and we liked it with Bailey’s Irish Creme the best, would have used Kahlua if we had it on hand.   Anyway, mix in the flavoring into your serving, top with whipped cream, (and sprinkle it with a teeny-tiny bit of real sugar just for fun if you like) and enjoy. Cool treat on the Dukan Diet and even better there is about 5 grams of protein in a serving of ricotta and even a little Vitamin C!   Thanks Mom!

100% Dukan Diet Worthy on all stages of the diet.

Aug 13

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Stuffed Peppers

Simple twist on a theme.  How many ways can you prepare ground beef or poultry? Let me go a little Forrest Gump: Hamburgers, meatballs, tacos, spaghetti bolognese, sausages, stuffed zucchini, chili, meatloaf, burritos, lasagna, shepherds pie….the list could go on and on. Ground meat is versatile, relatively inexpensive and if you buy the lean ground beef, ground meats are a good source of lean protein.  What I did for a quick dinner the other night was to take my meatball recipe and pop it into a half of a raw pepper.  A bag of green peppers at Sam’s costs about 6$ and resulted in 12 pepper halves.  Bake, top with a spaghetti sauce of your choosing and a slice of provolone cheese and voila!  Throw a salad down with it or another vegetable of your choice and you have a filling, healthy meal plus leftovers.  I cleaned out my pepper halves without taking out the stem, I chose to leave that on during cooking to help hold in more meat and just cut it out during the meal instead. Cutting it out ahead of time is fine too, whichever works best for you! Let’s get to it!

Messy Ingredients:

  • 1 lb ground meat
  • 1 whole egg
  • 1/3 cup dried minced onion (or 1/2 a finely minced fresh onion)
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/8 – 1/4 black pepper (to taste)
  • 1/8 – 1/4 white pepper (to taste)
  • 0.5 – 1 tsp rubbed sage
  • 0.5 – 1 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp Worcestershire
  • 5-6 large bell peppers – any color will do!
  • spaghetti sauce
  • sliced cheese (I used provolone)

Wash and slice the peppers in halves, cleaning out the insides of their seeds and membranes and place them on a cookie sheet lined with tin-foil. Mix all the but last three ingredients in a bowl well. Place a small handful of the meat into each pepper being sure to press the meat down into the bowl of the pepper.  Repeat this process until the meat has been distributed evenly through the peppers. (it is OK if the meat is rounded up a little higher than the sides of the pepper).  Bake at 350°F for 45-60 minutes or until the beef is cooked well.  Plate the peppers you will be serving that meal, top them with the spaghetti sauce and cheese and microwave them a minute until the cheese is melted and the sauce is warmed.  I did it this way so that the leftovers could be packed and prepared at work without being messy and so that the cheese didn’t over-cook being melted more than once.  The sliced cheese was sent with work lunches wrapped separately because re-warming the pepper requires more time and the cheese will get crusty when nuked that long. Warm the meat up partially in the microwave, then add the sauce and cheese if having as these as leftovers.

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