Pork Tenderloin with a Seasoned Rub and Roasted Carrots

Pork Loin: An easy meat to cook that tastes like it took a lot more time and effort.

This recipe originates for the Food Network, but the gravy magic is my doing with a little inspiration from one of the comments.

(tastes way better than the cafeteria meal it looks like)

Meat
2 tsp. Ground Oregano
2 tsp. Garlic Powder
2 tsp. Dried Thyme
2 tsp. Ground Coriander
2 tsp. Ground Cumin
2  Pork Loins about 1 lb. each
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Tbsp. Minced Garlic
Sea Salt
Pepper

Carrots
6-7 Large Carrots, chopped into thirds (microwaved for about 2 minutes prior to cooking)
A little Olive Oil
Sea Salt

Gravy
1.5 C. Chicken Stock
1 Tbsp. Butter
2 Tbsp. Flour
2 tsp. Dijon Mustard
1 tsp. Sugar

Preheat the oven to 450.
In a separate bowl, mix all the spices. Add 2 pinches of sea salt and a couple grinds of pepper. Mix thoroughly.  Pat the tenderloins with a paper towel so they are dry. Then sprinkle the mixture over the pork and press into the meat by hand, so that they are thoroughly coated.

In a large pan, heat a little olive oil and add the minced garlic.  Sauté over medium heat and then add both pork loins (or one at a time if space doesn't allow both). Sear all side of meat, using tongs to turn. This should take bout 10 minutes. Remove from heat. (Don't clean pan)

In a roasting pan create 2 zones with aluminum foil. Add the pork loin on one side and the carrots on the other. Sprinkle the carrots with  olive oil and a little sea salt.

Place on middle shelf in the oven for 30 minutes.

Taking the pan that you cooked the pork in, add the chicken stock and butter and scape the drippings up. Heat over medium heat and add the flour and whisk until it thickens. Add the mustard, sugar and couple grind of pepper and salt.  Add more flour to thicken or more chicken stock to thin, as needed.

After the pork and carrots are done, pull it out and pour the rest of the drippings (about 2 Tbsps.) into the gravy.

Let the pork rest about 5 minutes, cut and serve with the carrots and gravy. I also made some steamed green beans to add some color!

This turned out WAY better than I expected! Incredibly moist and flavorful...but my favorite part was the gravy! I would recommend doubling the gravy recipe and serving the pork and carrots with egg noodles....yum.

-e

Veggie Stuffed Turkey Lasagna

I love lasagna. Cheesy, meaty, carb-filled lasagna. THIS is my homage to lasagna....a little healthier, a lot less cheese, a lot more veggies but equally delicious.

 

Meat Sauce and Noodles
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
(1) 9 oz. package of No-Boil Lasagna (I only used 10 noodles)
1lb. Ground Turkey
45 oz. Tomato Sauce (Approx. 4 cups for sauce, 1/2 cup for bottom, 1/2 cup for top)
2 Cloves Garlic, diced
1 C. Spinach
1 Tsp. Dried Fennel
2 Tsp. Italian Seasoning

Cheese Mixture
15 oz. Ricotta Cheese (part skim) or Cottage Cheese (or half and half)
1/2 C. Shredded Mozzarella
1 egg
1/2 C. Pecorino or Parmesan, grated(divided in half)

Veggies
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Yellow Squash, thinly sliced
1 Green Zucchini, thinly sliced
1/2 Onion, sliced
1 Tsp. Italian Seasoning
Salt
Pepper
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 375.

Brown meat with garlic. Drain, as needed (I pat down with paper towels.) Add 4 cups of tomato sauce, fennel, Italian seasoning and a little salt and pepper. Simmer. Add the spinach and stir until wilted.

In a separate pan, heat a little olive oil and start to sauté onions. Add zucchini and squash. Sprinkle with a little salt, pepper and a couple dashes of Italian seasoning. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix ricotta,  mozzarella, half of the pecorino and egg.

Take the 13 x 9 pan and spread 1/2 C  tomato sauce on the bottom. Layer 5 noodles. Spread the cheese mixture onto the noodles. Then layer with all the veggies. Add the meat sauce. Layer another 5 noodles and top with 1/2 C.  tomato sauce and the rest of the Pecorino cheese. I dolloped the remaining cheese mixture on top, because I had a little left.

Cover with foil and bake for 50 minutes.
Remove foil and bake for additional 5 minutes.

This was SO good!!!
enjoy!
-e

Feta Stuffed Meatballs and Spinach Orzo Salad

Hmmm....meatballs. Who doesn't love a meatball?? Nearly bite-sized delicious goodness and now stuffed with feta? Hello, awesome. Here is a yummy meal that is healthy, fairly low carb and WAY easy.

Feta-Stuffed Meatballs
1 1b. Ground Beef (or any other meat....lamb would be AWESOME)
1/4 C. Breadcrumbs
1 egg
2 Tbsp. Greek Seasoning (aka: Oregano, Dried Mint, Basil, Marjoram, Thyme and Garlic Powder)
1/2 C. Onion Chopped
1/4 C.  Feta Cheese, Crumbled
Salt
Pepper

Preheat the oven to 375.

In a large bowl, mix meat, eggs, breadcrumbs, seasoning, onion, salt and pepper by hand.
Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and place a large spoonful of meat mixture into each cup. With your finger, make a hole and fill with feta.

Bake for about 15 minutes. Be careful not to overcook!

Perfect to eat right away or freeze for later!

Spinach Orzo Salad

Salad
1 C. Orzo (You can double if you want it more "pasta heavy")
3 C. Spinach, chopped
1/4 C. Feta (add more if you so desire)
1/2 C. Cherry Tomatoes, halved
Salt
Pepper
1 Tbsp. Toasted Pine Nuts (Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in pan, add pine nuts and stir until browned), if desired

Dressing
1 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
Sea Salt
Sprinkle of Dried Mint
Sprinkle of Crushed Red Pepper


Put chopped spinach in a large bowl.
Cook orzo per box (boil for about 9 minutes in salted water), drain and rinse.
Add to the spinach and stir until the spinach wilts. Add the Feta, tomatoes and a little salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly.

Make the dressing by combining all ingredients. Pour over spinach and toss. Serve immediately.
Add toasted pine nuts, if desired for a little crunch. (I love them, but are high in calories- so I skip).

A great salad to bring to parties- easy, fresh and goes great with burgers, grilled chicken or just by itself!

Happy Cooking!
~e

Triple Pepper Quinoa with Hot Honey Lime Dressing

Quinoa: Super food or just super delicious? I claim both. It is such a great substitute for pasta and most directly- cous cous. It has higher protein and more fiber. I love mixing it with black beans and salsa-- or just squeezing lemon on it with a little salt. This recipe is super easy and a great side dish with grilled chicken!

Salad
1 Cup Quinoa
2 Cups Water
1/2 tsp. Cayenne
1/2 tsp. Chili Powder
1 tsp. Cumin
2 Bell Peppers, (1 red, 1 yellow) diced
1 Green Spicy Pepper (Anaheim, Poblano) or use 3 Jalapenos, cut in half, deseeded
Crushed Red Pepper
Salt
Pepper

Dressing
1 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp. Hot Sauce
Juice of 1 Lime
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. Honey

Preheat oven to 400. On a baking sheet, put the green peppers on foil, sprinkle with olive oil and salt. Roast for 10 minutes.

In a small sauce pan, mix the water, quinoa, cayenne, chili powder, cumin and a few dashes of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove cover and set aside.

Remove green pepper from oven. Once cool enough to handle, dice .

In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, peppers and salt/pepper as desired.

To make the dressing, whisk all ingredients together. Pour over the quinoa salad.  You can always double the recipe and serve it over the grilled chicken! Hot and tangy!

 

As you can see we had grilled chicken, quinoa salad and roast broccoli (raw broccoli + a little olive oil + salt + crushed pepper+ 10 minutes at 400 degrees= awesome)

Enjoy!
-e

5- Minute Cioppino

Cioppino is a fish stew that is tomato based with a mixture of mussels, shrimp, cod and any other seafood you want to throw in. It takes a long time to stew and for the flavors to set....THIS is a super simple, cheap alternative that can be thrown together from the kitchen cabinet....and tastes really good!

1 Can Progresso Manhattan Style Clam Chowder
1 Can Diced Tomatoes
1 Can Crab, drained
1/2 C. Dry White Wine
1 Bay Leaf
1 Tsp. Ground Thyme
Cod ( I had it on hand from last nights dinner, but you can throw in some shrimp, scallops or any other white fish)
Salt/ Pepper

In a large pot, empty contents of soup, canned tomatoes and crab. Bring to a boil, add thyme, bay leaf, fish and wine. Cook until heated through and/or the fish is cooked. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with hot sauce for a little heat, the rest of the white wine and a chunk of crusty bread (if you need some carbs)!

Super easy weeknight dinner for 2.

-e

Cod with Apple Slaw + Spicy Sauce

All we had in the house tonight was cod and cabbage....fish tacos, right?? well, we didn't have tortillas so decided to go carb-less.  This is a fun light dish--- seriously parents out there, please do not give your kids fish sticks....sautéed cod is WAY better and then you can eat it too!!

Slaw
1/4 Green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
2 Carrots, shredded
1 Granny smith apple, thinly sliced
1 Jalapeno, diced
1 Garlic clove, diced
3/4 Lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
1 Tbsp. Sugar

Sauce
1/4 C. Mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. Horseradish
1 Garlic clove, diced
1/4 Lemon, juiced
A little lemon zest
1 tsp. Capers

Fish
2 Cod Fillets- cut into strips
Sea Salt
Squeeze of lemon
Olive Oil

So, I made the slaw first. Mix all of the veggies together. In a small bowl, mix garlic, lemon, oil and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Pour over the slaw and mix. Salt and pepper.

Next, I made the sauce: Mix it all together and set aside.

Then the fish. We had a recently thawed fillet, so I used a paper towel to remove excess water. I then lightly salted the fish. I heated olive oil in a deep frying pan and added a little garlic. I squeezed a touch of lemon over the fish and placed it in the pan. It cooked in about 30 seconds on each side. It becomes immediately white, flaky and delicious.

Serve with the slaw, sauce, a sliced avocado and a little hot sauce!
Oh, and we had spicy margaritas to accompany.... perfect combo!
Enjoy, E

Broccoli Matchsticks and Kale Salad

When the holidays began, you literally eat nothing but sweet, meats and starches for 2 weeks straight. Fun and delicious, but it takes a toll on your body! About a week in, I start to CRAVE greens! not just salad but spinach and kale! This recipe originates from Food and Wine, but was reconfigured by my bestie for Christmas dinner. She shared the recipe with me, and now I shall share with you!

1 Large Bunch of Kale, inner ribs removed and thinly sliced
1 Bag Broccoli Slaw
3 Large Leeks, washed and thinly sliced
1/4 C. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Lemon
1/2 C. Pecorino Cheese, Grated
1/2 C. "Salad Nuts" (the thinly sliced  spiced almonds that come in bags in the veggie section)
Salt and Pepper

First, Mix the kale and broccoli slaw. Salt it, and then massage it until it starts to shrink-- don't be gentle! Work that salt into those greens!

Heat the olive oil in a medium sized frying pan. Add the leeks and cook for about 3 minutes, until softened. Squeeze the lemon all over the leeks and stir.

Pour over the greens, sprinkle with cheese, nuts and toss. Season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately. (It refrigerates fine, but tastes best right away!)

Happy healthy eating!
-e

Easy Homemade Sugar Scrub

So I make this for myself all the time. It's inexpensive, easy and fun to customize. This year, I made a big batch and gave it out to friends for Christmas!

The Basic Recipe

2 parts sugar (I typically use granulated, and then throw in a spoonful or 2 of raw sugar and a sprinkle of sea salt for fun!)
1 part olive oil (or coconut oil)

Mix in everything in a bowl. Add whatever you want and put in jars!

That's it. But the fun part is adding the goodness! For this batch, I did two styles.
Lavender Rosemary (a couple drops of Lavender oil and 2 pinches of dried Rosemary) and Cocoa Vanilla (a couple drops vanilla extract and a big pinch of cocoa powder).

Other Add-in Ideas:

-Cinnamon with Brown Sugar
-Vitamin E Oil
-Sandalwood Oil
-Dried herbs like thyme, rosemary or even dried tea-- perhaps chai, chamomile or earl grey!
-Lemon essential oil and dried mint or basil

The best part- this can be used on your face! It exfoliates and moisturizes, eliminating the need for face moisturizer.
Now, steam up the shower and enjoy!!
-e