Weeknight-friendly Faux-Roast Pork

When I was growing up, a good “roast” was a delicious Sunday night treat. Something special when we had company over. Something that required time and effort.  While I appreciate the value in a good traditional roast, I rarely have the time or patience to whip one up. Especially on a weeknight.

This recipe is a great, low fat way to have the tasty, tender meat of a slow-cooked pork roast in less than 30 minutes.



Broiler-roasted pork tenderloin

1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed of visible fat
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon celery seed
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Preheat broiler. Pat pork loin dry with paper towels. Combine sugar, celery seed, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub spice mixture all over pork loin. Place on broiling tray and broil approximately 7-8 minutes per side, until meat is cooked but still pinkish in the center. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes, then slice into ¼ inch slices.

Super quick, super healthy salmon dinner

Salmon and spinach are both “super foods”.  Salmon is full of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, and Popeye’s favorite veggie is loaded with Vitamin A, magnesium, and iron.  Thank goodness pairing these two wonder foods can be both tasty and easy.  This is seriously one of the quickest meals to make, perfect for weeknights when you can’t bear the thought of chopping veggies but you still don’t want to fall off the diet wagon.  It’s faster than takeout and it will make you feel great.



Pan-fried salmon and garlicky wilted spinach

1 lb salmon fillets (with or without skin, your choice)
Low sodium Old Bay seasoning
Lemon pepper seasoning
Fresh ground black pepper

Large bag pre-washed spinach
2 garlic cloves
Salt and pepper
Olive oil

Heat a generous splash of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet on medium heat. Season salmon fillets on each side with Old Bay, lemon pepper and black pepper. Place salmon skin-side down (if your fillets have skin) in skillet and cook for about 5 minutes on each side.

Slice garlic cloves into very thin discs. Heat some more olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Place garlic “chips” in olive oil. Stir garlic often until lightly browned on both sides. Remove garlic from pan, and set on a paper towel to absorb any extra oil. Leaving the oil in the pan,  reduce heat to medium low and add spinach to the hot pan. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir until just wilted and remove from heat.  Serve with the reserved garlic chips on top.

Enjoy!

Stuffed peppers!

For me, stuffed peppers are one of the ultimate comfort foods. Hearty, warm, and rarely found in restaurants, this classic is perfect for a cold winter night. Or if you’re in Los Angeles, maybe a slightly cooler than usual night.

At any rate, classic stuffed peppers usually involve a mixture of ground beef and white rice.  Not so diet-friendly, but that’s easy to solve. White rice is dumb. You heard me - stop eating dumb white rice.  It has no flavor and virtually no nutritional value.  If you absolutely HAVE to have rice (e.g. if you’re eating a spicy curry), make it brown rice.  But in the case of stuffed peppers, why do we even need rice?  It doesn’t add flavor, just filler. Let’s fill our bellies with delicious nutrients, not boring starch.  In my version, I promise that you won’t even miss the rice.



Low Carb Cheesy Stuffed Peppers

2 large red bell peppers (you can use green, but I like the sweetness of red peppers better)
olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
½ green bell pepper, finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1.25 lb ground turkey
½ tsp grill seasoning (I like Montreal steak seasoning)
½ jar tomato pasta sauce (Classico Spicy Red Pepper)
1 ½ cups low fat Mexican blend shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350.  Slice red peppers in half lengthwise to create 4 pepper boats.  Place pepper halves into a foil lined casserole dish. Bake in oven for 7 minutes, and remove.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add a swirl of olive oil to the pan.  Once the pan and oil are hot, add the chopped green pepper, onion, celery and garlic. Once onions begin to get soft, remove this mixture from the pan.  Place pan back on heat and add a little bit more olive oil.  Add ground turkey to the hot pan, and season with grill seasoning.  Cook, stirring often, until meat is well browned. If there is any excess fat in the pan, drain off of the meat.  Add onions and peppers mix back to the meat. Stir in tomato sauce and simmer on low until sauce and mixture have thickened.  Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup of shredded cheese.

Fill pepper boats with the meat/cheese/veggie mixture and bake for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes, sprinkle remaining ½ cup of cheese onto peppers and bake for 5 more minutes.  Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving, and enjoy!

Chicken Pizza!

I am a sucker for baked chicken dishes. It's a great way to get your boneless, skinless breasts nice and moist with little or no fat. I've experimented with the stuffed, smothered, and saucy, but this is one of my favorites. Also, it's so easy that you will Freak Out. Big domestic nerd win.

This recipe was inspired by the South Beach Pizza from What Geeks Eat. While I'm not a strict diet person, there are a lot of great things about the South Beach diet, and I utilize a lot of SB-recommended recipes to keep us on the low-carb track.



Chicken Pizza
I'm not using measurements since this is so easy, you don't need to measure anything. I promise.

Boneless, skinless Chicken breasts (if you can find the thin-cut ones, great, otherwise slice and pound them thin)
tomato sauce
Oregano
Basil
Garlic powder
crushed red pepper (optional)
olive oil
turkey Italian sausage, casings removed
green pepper
onion
2% mozzarella cheese shredded

Heat oven to 350. In a non-stick skillet with a little bit of olive oil, cook the Italian sausage, crumbling with a spatula as you go. Thinly slice the green pepper and onion. Remove sausage from pan when fully cooked. In a small bowl, mix plain tomato sauce with a healthy sprinkle of basil, oregano, garlic powder and crushed red pepper. (Alternately, you can use pre-made "pizza sauce" but this gives you more control over the flavor.)




Spread the chicken breasts over the bottom of a pizza pan or other baking sheet with sides. Spoon a layer of pizza sauce over the chicken. Arrange the sliced peppers, onions, and crumbled sausage over the sauce. Top with a generous layer of mozzarella cheese. Bake for about 25 minutes until browned and bubbly. Enjoy!

Just grill it

A big part of going low-carb for me was adding more veggies to our diet. I replaced a lot of starchy side dishes with fresh vegetables. Along the way, I learned that there are some really easy ways to cook delicious vegetables. Now, I grew up eating lots of frozen, microwave-nuked vegs, and I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I only learned to use a steamer last year. But I'll tell ya what - it's so easy. Cooking seasonal vegs in different preparations is an easy way to keep your dinners fresh and your grocery bills low.



One of my favorite ways to cook veggies is on my grill pan. Of course, you can use a "real" grill, but we apartment dwellers don't have that luxury. Most veggies do fine with a quick toss in some oil, salt and pepper. Zucchini is fabulous tossed with some Italian dressing first. But the best part is seeing your work - those lovely little grill lines!

Next time you're thinking about warming up some canned corn or frozen green beans, think twice and remember that it's just as quick and easy to eat fresh veggies - and so much more delicious!

the BEST (low carb) side dish EVER

This dish is a revelation for low-carbers. It's so creamy and satisfying and Good for you! I've always had a thing for cauliflower, but this takes the veggie to a new level. Substitute this for carby side dishes like mashed potatoes and rice. You can even bake it with cheese on top if you want more richness. You can puree as much or as little as you like, but I prefer to really food-process the heck out of it.

So without further ado...



Cauliflower Puree

1 head of cauliflower, chopped into small florets
1 tablespoon of butter
1/4 cup low fat sour cream
1 teaspoon of parmesan cheese (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Steam the chopped cauliflower for 15 minutes on the stovetop. Add steamed cauliflower to food processor with butter and sour cream. Depending on the size of your food processor, you may want to do this in batches. Pulse until thick and creamy. Stir in cheese, salt and pepper. Serve and enjoy!


*photo copyright Sassyradish

kitteh approved.

someone likes the new seat cushions.