Taco Tuesday In A Bowl

Choosing a healthy lifestyle doesn't mean giving up Taco Tuesday! Having your taco in a bowl has some great advantages too! Nothing falls out!! Try this bowl next Tuesday and you may never go back to hand held tacos!


Green Chili Pork Taco Bowls
(Serves 6)
1 1/2 lb Pork Tenderloin
2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Pepper
1 tsp Cumin
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp Onion Powder
4 tbsp Olive Oil
16 oz. Salsa Verde
1 medium Cauliflower
6 chives
3 tbsp Cilantro
1 tbsp Lime Juice

Toppings: Cheese, Sour Cream, Avocado, Guacamole, Salsa, Cilantro, Tomatoes

1)  Combine all seasonings in a small bowl. Evenly coat the tenderloin, making sure to use all of the seasoning. Slice the tenderloin in 2" medallions.

2)  Heat a skillet over medium high heat, adding 2 tbsp of olive oil once heated. Heat oil for an additional minute then add tenderloin medallions to the oil. Sear medallions on each side for 3-4 minutes. Turn heat down to low and cover medallions with Salsa Verde. Cover skillet and simmer 45-60 minutes until pork falls apart easily. Check after 30 minutes of simmering and if sauce has evaporated, add 2 tablespoons of water.

3)  While pork is simmering break apart and trim the cauliflower removing most of the stem. 

4)   Working in batches, place 1/3 of the cauliflower, 2 chives and 1 tbsp cilantro in a food processor. Pulse until cauliflower resembles rice. Place riced cauliflower in a bowl and repeat with next two batches of cauliflower. Add lime juice to bowl of riced cauliflower and stir to combine. Cover and set aside until pork is cooked.

5)  When pork is fork tender, shred with two forks. Shred pork directly in the skillet, mixing with the sauce as you shred. Cover skillet to keep warm.

6)  In a medium skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil on medium high heat. Add cauliflower to skillet. Saute, stirring often, until "rice" is tender and cauliflower smell has diminished, about 5-8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

7)  Place one serving of "rice" in a bowl and add a serving of pork. Top with any and all taco toppings of your choice!

Calories: 412
Fat: 25g
Cholesterol: 113mg
Sodium: 793mg
Carbohydrate: Total 12g  Net 6g
Protein: 33g

Ole! Taco Tuesday is back! This recipe is also a great building block for future Tuesdays. Instead of Salsa Verde try Enchilada Sauce or any Thick & Chunky Salsa; add a Poblano Chili to the food processor with the cauliflower; top the bowl with Pico De Gallo; the possibilities are endless!

Snack Time

Bigger IS better!

When it comes to snacks and dieting of course!!  I find myself once again bored with the snacks (and lunches) I create while dieting - or "Changing my lifestyle" as WW puts it!  The fresh fruit is great and pea pods nice and crispy but sometimes I just want something to sink my teeth into that doesn't cost half my daily points.

I came across this idea the other day while perusing the internet and although I'm not a fan of the baked egg roll wrappers I figured I'd give it a try.  So many recipes want you to bake these papery wrappers and that's exactly what they come out like...  baked paper!  Maybe I was really hungry this time but these were really quite tasty!

Ham & Swiss Rolls
1 cup lean ham, minced
1/2 cup 2% Swiss cheese
1 green onion, minced
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
8 egg roll wrappers
1 tsp honey
2 tbsp half & half, fat free

Preheat oven to 400F.  Mix ham, cheese and green onion to combine.  Place an egg roll wrapper diagonally on work surface and spread 1/4 tsp Dijon mustard in the center.  Put two tablespoons of ham mixture on the mustard.  Fold the bottom of the wrapper over the filling and gently but firmly pull slightly towards you.  Fold the left and right sides in and roll to the tip, creating a nice firm roll.  Place on sprayed baking sheet and continue with remaining wrappers.  Lightly spray rolls with cooking spray.  Bake for 8 minutes, turn rolls over, bake for an additional 8 minutes until lightly browned.  Mix together remaining tablespoon of mustard, honey and half & half for dipping.

Eaten hot or room temperature, these little rolls do the trick!  At a mere 2 pts each they can be a quick snack or a nice filling lunch.  I'm going to experiment with some different cheeses and maybe a spinach leaf or two but other than that, I think I'll keep it simple and enjoy the flavors just like they are!

Changing Direction

Sometimes the direction we are going is perfect, heading down that golden paved road with nothing but sunshine and roses along the way.  We vow to stay on that path forever, then all of a sudden there's road construction and we have to take a detour!

The first detour (aka straying off the healthy eating) has finally ended after a couple weeks and I'm back on the golden road!  The second detour is going to be a little longer and involves three very beautiful blessings...  grandchildren!  As we were heading down that golden road towards empty nest and teaching the girls independence, our three grandchildren (ages 7, 5 and 2) have joined us!  Talk about detour (and chaotic road construction)!

So after a five day camping trip of wonderful dutch oven cooking and over-indulging in the snack department, here's the meal that got us all back on track!

Orange Herb Pork Tenderloin

2 tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 lb pork tenderloin

2 cups orange juice

1 cup chicken broth, fat free

1/4 cup white wine

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp oregano

Preheat the oven to 400F.  In a large zip lock bag, combine 1 tbsp of the olive oil with the garlic.  Add the pork, turning to coat completely, and refrigerate for one hour.  After marinating, remove the pork from the bag and season with salt and pepper.  In a medium oven proof skillet, heat the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the pork and cook until richly browned on all sides, about 10-15 minutes.  Add the orange juice, wine, broth and herbs and bring to a boil.  Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for about 35 minutes or until the center of the tenderloin reaches 145F.  Remove the pork from the skillet and strain the cooking liquid into a saucepan.  Boil the sauce until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 15 minutes.  If a thicker sauce is desired, mix 1 tbsp of cornstarch with 2 tbsp of orange juice and add to the sauce, simmering until thickened.  Slice the tenderloin evenly and top with sauce.

This was a perfect dinner over mashed potatoes (made with potatoes and cauliflower) to remind me how easy eating healthy is.  The sauce is rich with a ton of flavor that even the pickiest eaters will enjoy!  Each serving of pork and sauce is only 5 pointsplus leaving plenty of room for the mashed potatoes or even some rice.

Although we're still on a detour, we're going to do our best to enjoy the new scenery until the golden road is finished being reconstructed! 

It's about time!

Wow, it's been quite some time since I've been on here! Almost forgot my password... well, actually I did, I just had to remember how this blogspot works!

So we went on our vacation for two weeks down the coast of Oregon and California and we had an absolute blast! The girls enjoyed the dunes, Disneyland, San Francisco and Lake Shasta and are still talking about the Safari in Brandon, OR where we all got to hold, pet, play with and feed the lion and tiger cubs! Although the trip didn't lend itself to any culinary delights prepared in the miniscule trailer kitchen, we did eat pretty darn good!

Since our vacation, I've prepared so many new dishes it's hard to decide which one to do first. After looking at my list though, it was relatively easy to pick out my favorite. Surprisingly, my favorite includes meat, not chicken or seafood!

Baja Pork Tacos
18.4 oz Hormel Pork Tenderloin Teriyaka (585 cal; 18g fat; 0g fiber)
2 cans Ortega diced green chilis (40 cal; 0g fat; 0g fiber)
1 10 oz can Ro*Tel diced tomatoes and chilis (100 cal; 0g fat; 2.5g fiber)
12 La Tortilla Factory white corn tortillas (1080 cal; 12g fat; 12g fiber)
1 cup iceburg lettuce, shredded (0 cal; 0g fat; 1g fiber)
1/3 cup Mozarella, part skim, shredded (70 cal; 3.5g fat; 0g fiber)

Cut pork tenderloin into large chunks. In a medium saucepan, bring to a boil the green chilis, Ro*Tel and pork tenderloin. Lower heat, cover, and continue to simmer rapidly for two hours. When the pork is tender, shred with a fork without removing from the pan. Heat the tortillas in the microwave for 30-45 seconds. Place 1/4 cup of the pork mixture on each tortilla, top with lettuce and mozarella. Serves: 6 Nutritional information per serving: 314 cal; 5.6g fat; 2.6g fiber

This is an extremely versatile recipe. I made it simple and easy with what I had in the pantry. The Ro*Tel gave it a great 'kick' and the teriyaka flavor of the tenderloin added a soft sweetness.

Another great thing about this is that you can do it in the crockpot! Throw in the simple ingredients, set it on low for 6-8 hours and enjoy! Another perfect meal for those cheerleading, flute lesson, choir practice nights!

Enjoy!