M • E • N • U
Pork Loin Chops+ Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower Soup
Steak + Simple Kale Salad
This stew is a staple in our house every winter. Not only is it just easy to make, it is delicious. If you don’t like meat, I am sorry to say that you won’t like this dish at all. Most of my meals can be eaten with or without meat, but this one needs the meat. If you made this last time with me, you know it holds a little sentimental value. I can’t even think about this dish without thinking about my friend Catherine. Catherine, a few others, and I would have “family” dinners in college and I made this a handful of times. It immediately takes me back to the last year or two of my college career.
When I made this the other month, I did not add the bacon. I was so hesitant not to, but it honestly ended up being fine. I love the flavor that the bacon adds to it, but nutrition wise it was a better choice. I used half the amount of butter that the recipe calls for as well. When I last made this it was 309 calories per serving. It had 38.4 grams of protein, 27.4 grams of carbohydrates, and 5.8 grams of fat.
I used a crock pot last time and it worked just as well. I set it on low and let it cook for 6 hours. Check and make sure that your meat is thoroughly cooked, it should fall apart easily when you pull on it.
Pork Loin Chops + Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower Soup
I love a good soup on these cold, wet winter days. This turmeric cauliflower soup is delicious and doesn’t need many modifications. I prefer to not use full fat coconut milk and opt for light coconut milk instead. It doesn’t change the taste or consistency of the dish.
I have had a lot of pain in my foot the past few weeks. I am not sure where it originated from because it happened on a day that I did not work out, over Thanksgiving break and I just woke up with it. It was hard to walk, I could not flex my foot fully. Super strange. I am telling you all of this to say, turmeric is amazing. The pain had started to dull on it’s own, but once I ate the turmeric sweet potatoes last week, it went away! So cool.
So if you have any aches or pains like I did, make this soup or go back and make those sweet potatoes. Maybe it was coincidence or maybe it was the turmeric.
I like to get a pork loin and cut into to pork chops and save the rest for stuffing at a later date. I cook my pork chops at 425 degrees and usually use a single seasoning like, Tony Chachere or a seasoning that compliments the side dish.
This sandwich is so good and easy. I found these bad boys a few years ago when I was hunting for different ways to use deer cubed steak. I am not into frying food and that was about the only way I knew to cook cubed steak. Now I use it several different ways that don’t involve frying.
If you don’t have any cubed steak left in the freezer…ours ran out way too fast this past season, then skirt steak or flank steak will get the job done. You can even opt for sirloin steak, just make sure to tenderize whichever cut you decide to buy. You want to be able to bite pieces off easily and not have to rip it off with your teeth.
The sauce for these sandwiches is EVERYTHING. Depending on how many pickled jalapenos you use, depends on the level of spicy you would like for this to be. I love to make my sauce with a lot of limes. You only need to buy a single serving of non-fat greek yogurt, unless you just want extra yogurt around. Make sure you use the stems of the cilantro, it really has more flavor than using just the leaves and smells amazing.
When I am looking for an easy meal, that doesn’t involve much cooking this is one of my go-to recipes. The only thing I have to cook for this is the eggs and potatoes. Rip open a package of tuna, chop up the lettuce, slice the tomatoes, and make the dressing and I have a huge salad waiting on me that is guaranteed to fill me and taste good.
I can NEVER find champagne vinaigrette around here, so I use white wine vinegar instead. I don’t use any oil in my dressing and it tastes great. To me the oil doesn’t add any flavor so I am not missing out on anything by not adding it. This recipe calls for fresh cut green beans. Josh doesn’t like them in the salad, so I just don’t put them. I think they taste great and are a good addition to the salad. Don’t try to add canned green beans, that just won’t be the same.
Steak + Simple Kale Salad
It is sad to say, but steaks are pretty fatty. When Josh was on his cut but still wanted a good steak, he would get a sirloin. We usually eat rib eyes, but I wasn’t disappointed at all with the sirloin. It had a great taste and was just as tender. It is a good thing sirloin is low in fat, because almonds are not. Why does something so small, have to have so much fat? I feel like the smaller the nut, the more fat it has in it…
If you aren’t meal prepping, this salad is about to be one of your best friends. It is so easy to make and surprisingly has a ton of flavor. You can’t skip the garlic in the dressing or it just won’t have as much flavor. I like to get a block of parmesan cheese, not the bottle kind. It makes a difference when the cheese is fresh. The block of cheese will last a long time, so don’t worry if you feel like it’s too much to spend on a block of cheese. If you don’t like kale, now is your time to try it. I am not sure why people don’t like it or won’t give it a try, but it is great! I eat kale every morning with my breakfast.
Don’t forget the list!
& MERRY CHRISTMAS!
