Asparagus Week: Jyoti Bowl

Like Indian food? Every awesome person does. ‘Cakes’ doesn’t, so he’s not awesome. More than that, the only time I get it is when he’s out-of-town or if I”m at ‘Girls Night Out’. This last week ‘Cakes’ was out-of-town in Vegas for March Madness, and the local HyVee’s here now carry Jyoti. I’ve seen it here for last 6 months or so but haven’t really given it too much attention. BIG MISTAKE.  As you know, I try to stay away from pre-made, boxed, or frozen dinners. About the only thing we keep in our cabinets on the regular is Kraft Mac and Cheese (Cakes would probably get rid of me if I didn’t have them on reserve).

If you’re going to be purchasing goods or meals that are pre-made, at least read the label. Do yourself and your body the favor, all the preservative and sodium levels are usually thru the roof. Well, I picked up the can, I liked the picture (I judge books by their covers too), and I checked the label. Not only do they all have an actual list of REAL ingredients that didn’t stretch a mile long, but they are also low in sodium and calories (almost all of their varieties are gluten and wheat free as well if that applies to you). How else could this brand me amazing, well…it has a great spicy kick, it’s perfect, and everyone needs a little zing!!!

Pssht, OK you got me. I cooked the can and made it for dinner. The pre-made, heat-up meal. Guilty.

I purchased the Jaipur Karhi, or Potato Dumplings in a Buttermilk Sauce. It was actually one of very few that have dairy in them in case you are dairy sensitive. The serving size per can is 4, but i added about a 1/3 cup of water to spread it out a little because it definitely wouldn’t serve 4. I paired my Rice Bowl with some whole grain brown rice as well as,  you guessed it…asparagus.

If you haven’t tried any of the Jyoti flavors….do it, it’s worth the 3 bucks, and it’s delicious Indian food without dropping the $15-20 bucks you normally pay for the same serving size at any local establishment. I

Jyoti Bowl

1 can of Jyoti ( I bought the Potato Dumplings w/ Buttermilk Sauce)

1/3 cup of water

Leftover Shredded Chicken (feel free to omit this)

Asparagus

s/p

olive oil

ginger

cumin

whole grain brown rice

1. Cook your rice ahead of time, because the rest of your meal won’t take but 10 minutes to put together. Also Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Start on med-low heat and heat it slowly, you don’t want to go to fast because it will burn to the bottom of the pan. It still should only take about 10 minutes to heat it, you want to heat it up, not boil it.

3. While the Jyoti is warming, break the ends of your asparagus and toss with a drizzle of olive oil and place on parchment paper on a cooking pan. Sprinkle with salt/pepper, ginger, and cumin. By sprinkle…I mean a couple shakes, you don’t want to over season them.

4.When your rice is finished and the Jyoti is warmed thru, add 1/4 cup of rice to your bowl, top with 1/2 cup of Jyoti, chicken, and your roasted asparagus. The perfect at-home rice bowl, and under 15 minutes!

Acorn Squash Bowls

Growing up, my parents always maintained an enormous garden for our family of four,two of those whom wouldn’t eat a thing of it. Funny how your tastes change as you get older and everything that your parents ate when you were young seemed disgusting, and now they’re just dandy.

Confession:  I got the idea for this, they had a screaming sale on squash at the store this week, and I had a flashback of my mother making acorn squash for herself when I was little. She used just brown sugar and butter, and looked and smelled horribly unappetizing for someone under three feet tall. Funny how things change when you get older and your taste-buds become more refined! Now some of my favorite things are foods I refused as a child.

Besides…who uses a microwave anyways, the sole purpose mine provides in my house is to boil water… bam!

Tip: On a time crunch you can cook a swash in the microwave in about 7 minutes. Just cut them in half and place them on a safe plate and follow the directions the same. This is obviously a fraction of the oven baked time, but you will get a much different consistency of the flesh with how you cook it. If you want it very soft use the microwave. I prefer the oven because it still has a more solid consistency but soft enough you can cut it with a spoon.

Acorn Squash Bowls

1 Squash (will feed 2)

2 Tb of brown sugar

2Tb of butter (split)

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup diced onion

1/2 cup of cooked rice

handful of mozzarella

s/p

1 tsp crushed red pepper

parlsey to top

1. In a saute pan, add your sliced mushrooms and diced onions with a tbsp of butter and add s/p to taste. Let this cook on med-low for about 15 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

3. Slice the squash in half and scoop out ‘the guts’ and arrange in a pan.

4. Split the butter and put it in the bowls of the squash along with a tbsp of brown sugar in each bowl.

5. Take your rice (I used whole-grain) and mix it with your sauted onion/mushroom mix along with the s/p and crushed red pepper.

6. Use some freedom here! Anything else you need to get rid of…throw it in (ground meats, more veggies, ! I added sliced cherry tomatoes.

7.Fill the pan with 1/2 inch of water. This will prevent the rind from burning and the flesh from overcooking.

8. Cook for about an hour, if you notice if getting too dark just pull down the temperature a bit. Add your mozzarella about 1 minute before you pull them out of the oven to cool.

9. I found it easier to serve these in bowl so they don’t slide around too much, kind of like a grapefruit.

Braised Pork with Mushroom Sauce: Cast Iron Returns!

Confession: I’ve been gone….but I’m back!! First post after soaking up endless amounts of sun on coastlines of beautiful beaches! I’m a spoiled brat. Spoiled. ‘Cakes’ took me on a cruise over the past 8 days and it was the best week of my life.We had an absolutely amazing adventure exploring different cultures, countries, and coastlines! Grand Turk, La Romana, D.R., Curacas, and Aruba and coasting by Cuba, Haiti,and Venezuela. We meet some amazing people, created a lifetime worth of memories, and came back with great stories that we can’t wait to share with our families.

Back on shore…and ready to be back in my own Nebraska bed… the first trip I made after work was to the store! Meat Mecca sale! I’m a grocery store fool. I haven’t had a stockpile on proteins since the last time I had to borrow someone else’s freezer for storage assistance. Today I got to replenish my fridge with fresh veggies, fruits, and protein, yes!

There was a mushroom sauce at one of the dinners on our ship and it was a little….weak that was the idea for tonight’s meal. Funny how that works isn’t it? Sometime the best and the worst dishes can be the most inspirational. I was going to use chicken, but hey, when you have a great looking pork chop in front of you, calling sweetly from the meat counter….you don’t say no. Pork it…up?

Braising things is one of my favorite ways to cook (especially in my cast iron!). A nice crisp outside that locks all the juices and moisture inside for the perfect bite. A slight crunch, then tender perfectly cooked to 142 degrees inside. Get your pans out and preheat that oven to 375!

Braised Pork With Mushroom Sauce

I made a single portion of whole grain brown rice (not the minute rice), this will take 20-30 minutes so get this going first.

Thick cut pork chops (I used three)

Season these with fresh ground pepper and sea salt, as well as fresh garlic and few shakes of paprika and garlic powder.

Thinly slice a yellow onion, mushrooms, and a hot red pepper and set aside.

Heat (medium-high) the cast iron pan and coat with a thin layer of oil (I used Safflower). Make sure the pan is fully heated before you place anything in it.

Take your seasoned pork and sear each side (all six!) Once each side is finished (about 30 seconds a piece).

pour enough cooking sherry to deglaze the pan. Now,  then add the onion, mushrooms, and pepper around the outside perimeter combined with 1/4 cup of chicken broth. Cover with tin foil and bake until meat is cooked at 140 degrees or approximately 25 minutes.

Once the meat is up to temperature, pull out of the oven and remove the pork chops to rest aside. On the stove top, place your cast iron with vegetable to medium heat. In a small cup mix 1/4 cup of milk and 2 tablespoons of flour then pour into the heated pan to make a roux, mix well until you get the consistency you desire. (adding wine here at this point isn’t offensive if you already have a bottle open!)

I also steamed some fresh steamed beans to add to the dish at this point as well.

Plate YO dinner! Rice, steamed beans, pork, then top with your mushroom sauce….and glance at a beach picture from Aruba ❤

 

 

Meat: Chicken Meatballs!

Guilty once of again of lacking posts: I blame this counting calorie diet. >1200 a day, it’s much less tempting to eat, snack, and munch on all my favorite carb and fatty yummies if they just aren’t around. I haven’t so much lost the ol’ L.B.’s but I’ve definitely carved off some inches, helllllllo skinny jeans once again!

Meatballs….go. OK, ready for the facts? Here we go: Normally, fried in a pan with any combination of beef and/or pork (unless you’re going all out and throwing down your wallet for the veal too. Who can blame you for being authentic?! No one!).These can have upwards of 100+ calories PER meatball. Let’s take it down a notch…on your belt loop that is. Same beef and/or pork combo…BAKED, you’re looking at anywhere between 70-90 calories depending on the size. (I made medium so I’m basing my numbers off that) One more notch, chicken, baked, meatballs. A whooping skim number of 40-50 calories and about 1.5 grams of fat (vs 5-7 with beef)! Winner, winner, chicken dinner! 

Confession: As much as I hate watching every single thing I eat, and blame the fact that “myfitnesspal” app calorie counter has made me a calorie counting freak. You name it, I know it. I can spend and hour just plugging things in to see what the nutritional content is. For instance…something you don’t need/want to know. Donut holes…ughhh I’m a sucker…for donut holes. Cake donut: about 46, Glazed: about 60. It’s been very interesting over the past 3-4 weeks really paying attention to what I’ve been putting in my body. Next week starts the workout regime again…hopefully to drop an actually number on the scale, not just inches!

On accident, I’ve become a ghetto grocery store junky. The main chain stores in town are not in path from work to home…but there are several ghettoquestionabledoublechecktoseeifyourdoorsarelocked ones. In attempts to save on gas and time, I’ve been trying out more the junky stores in route. 

Confession part two: I’m addicted to junky stores! Even though they look trashy on the outside, trashy on the inside, less of a selection, kind of dirty, even more questionable cashiers and clientele ….I can’t seem to stay away. Although many of your normal boxed goods, milk, pastas, and produce are more expensive…their yogurt and meat selections are impeccable in every way (the two things I stock up on!). They almost always have a ‘managers special’ steal sticker on them, and as long as you plan on making them the day of….ain’t no thang! (or just stick them in the freezer) I save hundreds of dollars by buying things on sale at the grocery store and sticking them in the freezer or just stopping by to see whats  been marked for quick-sale on the way home for dinner that night. I go to the store so often I make it a point to pinch pennies were I can. I love cooking at home, but when you’re cooking small portions it’s just as easy/cheap to go out.

Enough of the money-saving rant, let’s get down to recipe. Whole-wheat pasta, chicken meatballs, and a vodka sauce.

These were super easy, and made a really nice yet quick dinner. They took longer to bake then actually put together! Not to mention they made a ton, so it will be great to freeze these for next time. Meatball sandwiches….or perhaps….a meatball pizza?!!??!?

Also, here’s a a great simple-complicated-different-exotic variation meatball site! http://food52.com/contests/168_your_best_meatballs

Chicken Meaballs

1 egg

1/4 cup milk

2 Tbsp Tomato Paste

3 Tbsp Parsley

s/p to taste

1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper

1 lb Ground Chicken

1/4 cup of Bread Crumbs

1/2 cup cheese (I used mozz/parm)

Mix everything down to the chicken together in a bowl. Then add the last three ingredients and mix well. I used an oversized tablespoon to make medium balls and I got about 26 meatballs.

Topping

1 Tbsp Grape Seed Oil

1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar

1 Tbsp Tomato Pasta

Bake for 30 minutes at 325.