Ranch and Garlic and Oh my!

There is a recipe floating around pinterest for ranch pork chops and I made it a while ago but I wasn't completely sold. It was good but nothing special. I had some thin chops in the freezer and soup in the pantry so I decided I would give it a second try today. The original recipe, or at least the one I saw first, was a picture (with no valid website linked). Pictured was a package of pork chops, the crock pot, cream of mushroom soup and ranch salad dressing mix/seasoning. So I threw it all in the crockpot until the pork was cooked through and served it with rice.

Today I tried to look up the picture on my Pinterest but I couldn't find it, I found a similar one though and that cook seared her pork chops first. SUCH a good idea. So I did that too. I seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic and seared the chops. I also decided to cube an onion and put it in the bottom of the crock pot.

I layered the chops on top of the onion generously topping each one with the ranch seasoning. I had 6 thin chops and I used 2 cans of mushroom soup on top of that. I cooked everything on low for about 6 hours.

While the chops were cooking I cubed up 6 small potatoes and got them boiling with 8, yes 8, large cloves of garlic. When tender I smashed them up a little then added butter and milk and sour cream and let my kitenaid finish the mixing. I love whipped potatoes, no lumps on my plates!

The onion, searing the pork and the garlic spuds really made the difference with this dinner. Try it, I promise you won't be disappointed.

PS, I know canned soup and ranch seasoning packets are not healthy or anywhere near clean eating but I feel like its okay once in a while :)

Happy eating!

Caribbean Salad

In Nevada (and California) there is a fun little restaurant chain with a pepper logo. I am mad at that chain for not being in Portland. Seriously. We loved that place and there is not one in the whole state of Oregon. That makes me sad. But, I was able to re-create one of the salads that they had on the menu and that, that makes me HAPPY! I got help with the dressing from Squidoo.com and I will include a link at the bottom.

First I made a teriyaki marinade with the help of Foodnetwork.com ( I will also include the recipe because it was way tasty!) Then I made the dressing. I poured the marinade on some chicken breasts and let them sit in the fridge for 30 minutes. I grilled the chicken on my indoor grill. I cut up an orange - usually I use cuties but my grocer didn't have any today so I used a navel and diced it up- it worked just fine. I also cubed up some pineapple and took out some of my home made (canned) salsa. When the chicken was cooked through I set it aside to cool and I started salad prep. In bowls I layered spring mix, the orange and pineapple.

Next I drizzled on some of the dressing. Then I sliced the chicken and added it to the bowls. I topped that with some salsa and broken blue tortilla chips (that were baked, not fried- from trader joes).

I mixed it all up and then we got to chow down! It was so yummy, even the kids ate it up, well, most of it :)

Squidoo link-
http://www.squidoo.com/chiliscaribbeansaladrecipe

Foodnetwork link-
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/the-best-of/teriyaki-sauce-recipe/index.html

Reviewing the recipe on FoodNetwork I accidentally used rice wine vinegar instead of sweet rice wine but the chicken turned out great so I hope I will mess up again next time, haha.

Happy Eating everyone!

Knife and fork turkey meatball subs

At the beginning of this week we bought some huge rolls for sandwiches but they were a little chewy so they didn't really work out as sandwich material but I knew they would be perfect for a meatball sub. I'm trying to eat a little better so instead of beef meatballs I made turkey meatballs. I made the turkey meatballs this morning and pan fried them to give them a nice crust. The recipe follows the picture.

I added the meatballs to some store bought marinara that I had going on low in the crock pot. 6 hours later I came home from school and got these bad boys going.

I sliced open the rolls and dug some of the insides of the roll out to make a nice cavity for the turkey meatballs.  I added 3 meatballs per sub and topped them with fresh mozzarella. I put them under the broiler while I sauteed some zucchini for a side dish. I left the subs in a minute to long but they were still super good.

Turkey meatballs:

2 pounds of ground turkey
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
salt/pepper
1/2 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon low sodium worcestershire sauce

Mix all of the ingredients well. Form into balls 1 tablespoon or larger but try to get the meatballs evenly shaped/sized for even cooking.

Please excuse the picture, it's not my best but I was hungry! Happy eating friends!

Wrap it up!

Lettuce wraps! Yummy and healthy!

I started with some diced chicken and pan fried it with a little salt, pepper, garlic and a dash of 5 spice. When the chicken was almost cooked through I added some mushrooms and cooked them until the mushrooms were browning and the chicken was done. I added zucchini, a few shakes of low sodium soy sauce and a store bought teriyaki sauce. I simmered it for a few more minutes while I sliced up some carrots, peanuts and scallions. I also washed some bean sprouts and assembled the toppings on the table with lettuce leaves and hot chili sauce.

For this meal we go family style (everything on the table) and we let everyone build their own wrap with the ingredients they like. Roll it or fold it and you are good to go. Beware these are messy!

After Easter Ham Bone Soup

Ohhhhh yeah. I love love love that ham bone from Easter dinner. One of my favorite things to make is soup. Its so comforting.

The night before you plan to make this soup soak your beans! I used a 13 bean soup mix, store bought Red Mills brand. In the morning rinse and sort the beans. Add them to your crockpot and cover them with chicken stock. If you don't have homemade stock use a good store bought brand with lower sodium and nothing you cant pronounce added, I like Kitchen basics in the yellow box. Add your ham bone and 1-2 chopped celery stalks and carrots. Add pepper (no salt, the ham has enough) and a few bay leaves. Cook on low for at least 6 hours, or until the meat is falling from the ham bone and the beans are tender. Enjoy with some fresh crusty bread!

As always, happy eating!

London Broil

London Broil is so simple anyone can make it. I love it because its fast and its the only 'steak' I can make at home since we don't have a charcoal or wood grill and I think that's the only other way a steak should be made.

Anyway... for a LB I usually liberally coat the meat with olive oil, coarse sea salt, pepper, garlic and either cajun seasoning or a steak blend seasoning. I sprinkle on some tenderizer too. I like it to marinate at least an hour. Then all you do is pop it under the broiler for a few minutes on each side  or until desired doneness - I like a nice pink center.

For this particular dinner we had baked potatoes topped with broccoli and cheese sauce and of course the steak- this sauce was simple but naughty - I made a roux and added Velveeta (I used the package directions).

Easy Peasy!

Happy eating!

Gyro

Gyro is (are?) so good. I love everything about them. The soft warm bread, the simple seasoned chicken, that yummy sauce! Lets start with the sauce...

8 oz plain yogurt, traditional or greek (if you like it thicker)
1 cucmber

Wash and peel the cucumber then slice it into rounds. Lay the rounds on a paper towel and top with another paper towel. Press the towel into the cucumbers and let sit for at least 20 minutes. Chop the cucumbers well, reserve some for topping if desired, add to the yogurt. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic. Let chill for 20 minutes.

Filling:
1 chicken breast per person
lettuce
tomato
red onion
Pita Bread

While the sauce is chilling season your chicken to taste. I like salt, pepper, garlic and oregano. You can pan fry the chicken, bake it or grill it. I used my indoor grill. When the chicken is fully cooked set it aside to cool and let the juices redistribute. Place pita breads in the oven on the warm setting. Cut romaine, tomatoes and red onion and anything else you would like on your gyro. Chop up the chicken.

To assemble lay a pita flat and spoon on some of the yogurt sauce. Top with chicken and any veggies you prefer, add more sauce and roll it or fold it and enjoy it!

Carnitas

Pork has to be one of my favorite meats. I mean its bacon, ham, chops, loins, roasts. How do you go wrong? One of my favorite things to do with a pork roast is season and sear then plop it in the crockpot with a jar of sauerkraut. The vinegar in the kraut makes the best pork roast ever. Seriously. Even my picky 7 year old asks for more!

But, what's ever better than awesome and easy pork roast with kraut? The leftovers! I always cook enough pork for at least 2 dinners. The leftovers go back into the (clean) crockpot with homemade green chili salsa for another 3-4 hours. Then the next day you take some of that delicious pork roast that soaked up all of the green chili salsa and you cook it in a fry pan until slightly crisp. My mouth is watering just typing this. I love to take the carnitas and layer it into nachos or a burrito but the last time I made it I had soft taco shells, new ones from Mission- blue corn and flax seed soft taco shells. They were really good too but they do not qualify for clean eating. Pro tip- toast the tortillas in the pan you crisped the pork in for a little extra awesome.

Anyway, here is a picture of the taco all dolled up with salsa, avocado, cheese and sour cream.

Happy Eating!

Corn Salsa

Fresh corn is so delicious and so cheap. I love cheap and I love corn. Corn is perfect right off the cob so that's how I used it in this new fancy side dish. When I made this "salsa" I did not have this blog yet so I only have a finished picture, no pictures of the process. Sorry about that. Here's what I used and how I did it...

3 ears of corn - husked

2 tomatoes - seeds removed and chopped

1 red bell pepper - diced

salt/pepper to taste

1/2 Tablespoon olive oil

Juice of 1 lime

1 Tablespoon Rice wine vinegar 

2 green onions, chopped

Handful of cilantro - chopped

Take a large bowl and place a small bowl inside of it but upside down. Place the corn on top of the small bowl and use a sharp knife to cut the kernels off the corn. Be careful, the corn may wobble a bit. Get as close to the cob as you can, scrape off all the milky corn goodness too! 

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Taste and season as needed. Place in the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes. 

We ate the salsa on the side of blackened chicken, it would also be great mixed into cold pasta with extra olive oil and lime juice.