Roasted Cabbage Wedges

Great on Grill or Oven Roasted

Cook time: 20 Min  Prep time: 10 Min  Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 tsp olive oil, extra virgin

3 Tbsp real bacon bits

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1 medium head of cabbage

Directions

1. Preheat the oven (or the grill) to 425 degrees.

2. Mix the olive oil, bacon bits, lemon juice, worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to make the marinade.

3. Prepare the cabbage. Rinse it under water and remove any yucky loose leaves.

4. Cut the head in half on the core.. Then cut the halves in half again…to make quarters.

5. Lay each wedge on a sheet of aluminum foil large enough to wrap it up in. Spoon about 2 tbsp of the marinade on top making sure to get it in all the nooks and crannies.

6. Wrap each wedge and bake or Grill for 20-30 minutes. I say 20-30 becuase they will continue to cook once you pull them out and I like mine still crunchy. So I let them sit for a little while pull them out around the 20 minute mark. However, some in the comments have cooked them up to an hour for softer cabbage.

7. The wedges reheat wonderfully in the oven or the microwave!

Turkey cutlets with Rosemary and white bean mash

1 tbls olive oil + another tbls for the beans

1 tbls butter

1 tbls garlic

2 400 gm cans of Butter Beans

a handful of fresh rosemary

8 turkey cutlets

1/4 chicken broth

lemon juice

Heat the oil, rosemary and garlic in a large deep frying pan.  Brown on both sides. Drain and rinse the beans and toss them with a bit more olive oil and some more rosemary in the bottom of a roasting tin. Salt and pepper.

Lay the turkey on top of the beans.  Deglaze the pan with the chicken stock and lemon juice.  Pour the pan juices over the turkey.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Pop into a 180C/350F oven for about 20 minutes, till the turkey is cooked through, the liquid hot and bubbling and the beans are cooked. Remove the turkey and either mash the beans with a fork or use a wand blender to puree them.  You need only a little liquid so you may need to spoon out part of it and re-add it as you mash or blend so your “mash” isn’t too soupy!

Serve with fresh veg and a lemon wedge to squeeze over.

Pork with butter bean mash

2 small pork loin chops (boneless), pounded thin

1 tlbs olive oil plus 1 tsp butter

thyme

salt and pepper

juice of 1/2 a lemon

can of butter beans

Heat the oil and butter in a small frying pan. Strip the leaves from a few sprigs of fresh thyme and toss them in.   Fry the chops on one side, then flip them over, salting and peppering the cooked side. Fry the pork loins till they are just done through, crispy on the outside but not dry on the inside – this is very quick, maybe 3 minutes a side (assuming you have pounded them very thin!) Squeeze over the lemon juice and remove the pork to a warmed plate.

Dump in your can of drained and rinsed butter beans.  Stir them around in the pan juices until just warmed through – check your plate of pork and tip any juices that came out of the pork into the beans. Roughly mash them with the back of a fork.  Add a bit more oil to give them a more creamy consistency, if they seem dry.

Plate up and eat

Chicken stir fry

Easy Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

• 4 thinly sliced boneless skinless chicken breasts (you could also use two regular chicken breasts, but cooking time may need to be adjusted)
• Seasoned salt (to coat chicken breasts)
• 2 & 1/2 cups water
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup chopped red onion
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup chopped broccoli
• 2 tsp Tony Chachere’s creole seasoning

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken breasts in greased baking dish and sprinkle with seasoned salt. (I don’t measure this out, I just sprinkle it on the tops of the chicken breasts.) Place in oven and bake for 35-40 minutes.

Approximately 15 minutes before chicken is done cooking, add olive oil, garlic, onion, and red and green bell pepper to large skillet and cook on medium high heat for about 10 minutes until onions start to caramelize. Add mushrooms and broccoli and cook for another five minutes.

Slice cooked chicken into bite sized pieces and add to skillet with creole seasoning. Simmer for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and serve. You can eat over shredded cauliflower for a rice substitute or alone.

Recipe....that I found and love!!

Mushroom-Smothered Pork Chops

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped (or more, depending on your preference)
• 1-2 lbs of mushrooms, sliced/chopped (use any variety or mixture you like!)
• White cooking wine (or flavor of your preference again)
• Olive oil
• Pork chops (I like boneless the best!)
• Thyme
• Rosemary
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat a large pan on the stove to medium-high heat.
2. Add a bit of olive oil to a frying pan, and add the diced onions.
3. Cook the onions, mixing frequently to prevent burning, until they have softened.
4. Add the chopped garlic.
5. Add the sliced mushrooms.  Mix things around, and as the mushrooms shrink with the heating, they will free up more space to add more if you don't have the room to add them all in one go.
6. Continue cooking until it is the consistency that you like.  Then add 1/2 cup of wine, mix, and allow that to cook off for a few minutes longer.  While that's finishing, season the pork chops with the salt, pepper, rosemary, and thyme.
7. Remove the mushrooms from the pan and set aside momentarily.
8. Add the pork chops to the pan and cook on medium high for about 3 minutes on each side, or until they are nicely cooked.  I sometimes throw in a dash of the wine at this point.  (An alternate method that I like to do is to sear the pork on high heat briefly on each side to give it a bit of crispiness, and then immediately reduce the heat or remove the pan from the heat, and finish up the cooking under medium heat).
9. Remove the pork, and if desired you can cover it to keep it warm and allow it to continue cooking itself a bit longer.
10. Transfer the pork chop to a plate, and then smother it in the sauteed mushrooms.

Quick Skillet Steak with Onions and Mushrooms

From :  http://www.skinnytaste.com 
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 1/4th (about 4 oz) • Old Points: 2 pts • Points+: 2 pts  
Calories: 95.4 • Fat: 4.1 g • Protein: 12.5 g • Carb: 3.5 g • Fiber: 1.0 g • Sugar: 1.1 gSodium: 26.8 mg (without salt)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb thin cut beef round sandwich steaks
• 1/2 large onion, sliced into rings
• 1/2 tsp olive oil
• 8 oz sliced mushrooms
• 4 seconds cooking spray (I like Smart Balance)
• garlic powder to taste
• salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

Directions:

Slice beef into thin strips. Season with salt, garlic powder and fresh pepper to taste.Heat a large skillet over high heat. When the skillet is very hot, spray with cooking spray and add half of the beef. Cook one minute, then turn steak and cook an additional 30 seconds. Set aside in a large dish.

Spray the skillet again and when it gets hot add the remaining steak, cooking one minute, then turning and cooking 30 seconds more. Add remaining steak to the dish.Return skillet to heat and spray once again with cooking spray; add onions and season with salt and pepper. Cook one minute, then turn and cook onions an additional 30 seconds or until onions are golden.

Lower heat to medium and add 1/2 tsp olive oil to the skillet, add mushrooms, salt and pepper and lightly spray the top of the mushrooms with cooking spray. Cook 1 1/2 minutes, then turn mushrooms and cook another minute and a half. Add to dish with steak and onions and stir to combine (serve alone or over cauliflower)

Rules on how to do a slow carb diet….

Its called a slow carb diet….what that is…The Slow Carb Diet is based around lowering insulin spikes that would trigger off energy to be stored as fat…it is Carbohydrates that are low in the Glycemic Index.

Foods include Brocolli, Cauliflower, Spinach, Collard Greens and of course lots of Protein Rich Foods like Chicken, Eggs, Beef, Pork, etc…. When I first started this plan….I lost 15 pounds Total in 2 weeks. With the diet and light excercise….

Below is the basic diet break down…The is a book called the 4 hour body diet….you can go on amazon and get all the details….but here are the basics

Rule #1: No White Carbohydrates. This means no bread, rice(no brown as well), pasta, tortillas, cereal, potatoes, and fried food with breading

Rule #2: Same meals over and over. It is believed that having a few meals to choose from helps you stay on track and are easy to make. I will give u a food list later….

Rule #3: Don’t drink your calories. Drink LOTS of water, unsweetened tea, coffee and any other low or no calorie drink. No milk including soy milk, no soda or fruit juice. You may have 1-2 glasses of red wine a night.

Rule #4: No Fruit. You can have tomatoes and avocados, 1 cup or 1 meal per day.

Rule #5: Take 1 day off.Usually Saturdays or day 5 of you diet, helps keep metabolism guessing and increase fat loss. There is no limits to food and can eat whatever you want. Helps with staying on track and cravings.

I take a multi vitamin, calcium, vitamin d3.

I tell everyone I know about this life style change because it truly works, it is not some fad diet. Is it easy, no but it is totally worth it. Once you get into the groove of things it is easy but most things are. I dont eat beans with every meal… so i increased my protein intake. There were challenges but i had my friends and my daughter there to support me every step of the way which i think is a huge must, having someone there to support you! If you are looking for something to try, this is it! If everything else has failed, try this! If you are ready to be you again, start NOW!!!!!

Here is a list of foods…

Not allowed:

Milk

Milk products including cheese (except cottage cheese)

Refined soy products (Soy milk, Tofu, tempeh, soy protein shake)

Fruit

Potatoes (sweet potatoes, yams, yucca, any starchy vegetable)

Bread, rice, grains, oatmeal, tortillas, quinoa

Ketchup

Creamy dressings and dressings with sugar

Sugar, honey, corn syrup, maple syrup, fructose

Deep-fried breaded food (corrected, good catch!)

Corn, popcorn (updated, per Tim’s comment)

Kombucha

Allowed:

Eggs

All meat (Beef, pork and poultry NOT treated w/hormones or antibiotics)

Turkey bacon, organic bacon, organic sausages

All fish, seafood (canned is fine)

All beans (chickpeas in moderation)

All vegetables (except potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams)

Hot sauce

Salsa w/o sugar

Any oil (Olive oil, macadamia nut oil, grapeseed oil preferred)

Butter

Spices & herbs

Mustard

Non-creamy low-sugar dressings

Brown rice protein, hemp protein, pea protein

Unflavored whey protein isolate

Unsweetened cocoa

Vanilla extract

Allowed in moderation:

Mayonnaise

Peas

Tomatoes

Avocado (1 cup/day max)

Peanut butter/ almond, and other nut butter (1 TB/day)

Nuts (5-10 per meal)

Hummus, chickpeas/garbanzo beans

Coffee (w/up to 2 TB cream)

Aspartame / Equal (Diet soda 16oz/day, Sugar-free JELL-O)

Unsweetened almond milk