Cherry Shallot Pork Chops

 Cherries are one of my very favorite foods, and I am so excited they are now in season! This also means that they don't cost a small fortune right now so I don't feel guilty buying them! In an attempt to use the food that I have, I set out to find a recipe that included cherries and the frozen pork chops in the deep freeze. I stumbled across this one and decided to give it a try, and I'm so glad I did! It did involve a little prep work (pitting and chopping cherries, chopping shallots) but it wasn't too bad, and the results were worth it!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil 4 (8 ounce) bone-in pork chops salt and pepper to taste 1/4 cup butter (I didn't use this-I just added some extra olive oil, and it was perfect) 3/4 cup sliced shallots       Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil.   2.Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper, then brown in the hot oil until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Remove the pork chops to the lined baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven until the pork chops are no longer pink in the center, about 20 minutes   3.While the pork chops are baking, melt the butter in the same skillet over medium heat, and stir in the shallot and cherries. Cook until the shallot has begun to soften, about 2 minutes. Stir in the red wine and beef broth, and bring to a simmer. Season with rosemary, and simmer until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper before pouring over the pork chops to serve.

1 1/2 cups fresh black cherries, pitted and halved 2 tablespoons red wine 1/4 cup beef broth 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves, crumbled    *This picture is from allrecipes.com. We ate way too fast to snap a picture :)

Oven Baked Meatballs

I've never been a huge fan of meatballs, mostly because I've never been a huge fan of beef. However, I'm slowly changing my mind and my husband loves beef, so I am trying to cook more with it. This meatball recipe was so good and flavorful! I served them over pasta and with some spaghetti sauce for the hubs, but I just ate them plain, and they were still SO yummy!


Original recipe makes 12 meatballs


1 pound extra lean ground beef


1/2 teaspoon sea salt


1 small onion, diced


2 teaspoons minced garlic


 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning


3/4 teaspoon dried oregano


3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes


1 dash hot pepper sauce (such as Frank's RedHot®), or to taste


1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce


1/3 cup skim milk


1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese


1 egg (slightly beat)



Place the beef into a mixing bowl, and add all the other ingredients. Mix until evenly blended, then form into large balls and place them individually into a muffin tin. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes and dig in!

Lemon Caper Tilapia

We eat a lot of tilapia-mostly because we love fish and it's cheap (let's be honest). I find myself running out of ways to make it interesting though, so I've had a hard time getting excited about it lately. But, I tried this recipe tonight from the Taste of Home website, and it is definitely a keeper. Make a few veggies and throw together a salad and you are done! Easy and delicious!

 

Ingredients

 

• 4 tilapia fillets (6 ounces each)
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons capers, drained
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika

Directions

• Place tilapia in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. In a small bowl, combine the butter, lemon juice, garlic powder and salt; pour over the fillets. Sprinkle with capers, oregano and paprika.
• Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 20 minutes, or until the fish flakes.
• Top with a squeeze of lemon juice

 

Oven Baked Tacos

I've seen the idea floating around Pinterest for oven baked tacos, and I thought it was just an added step to something that was perfectly fine to start with. But I kept reading about people doing this trick and how it was "life changing" so I thought it was worth a shot. It's basically your regular taco recipe, but before you add any toppings, you bake them. You stuff the shells with your meat and cheese and line them up in an 8x8 pan and bake at 425 for about 10 minutes. When you take them out, the shells are toasted, extra crunchy, and delicious! Then you can add whatever toppipngs you like, and enjoy! It's super simple but makes a huge difference. I don't think I'll ever make tacos the old way again!

 

Stuffed Pepper Soup

I love the idea of stuffed peppers, but they always seem to fall short in the flavor department. I found this recipe at skinnytaste.com that sounded delicious though so I decided to give stuffed peppers another try, and I'm so glad I did!


Stuffed Pepper Soup

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1 cup finely diced onion
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 cans (14.5 oz each) cans petite diced tomatoes
• 1 3/4 cups tomato sauce
• 2 cups reduced sodium, fat-free chicken broth
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• salt and fresh pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large pot or dutch oven, brown ground meat on high heat and season with salt.Drain fat if any, reduce heat to medium-low, then add peppers, onions and garlic. Cook about 5 minutes on low heat.

Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken broth, marjoram and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes. Serve about 1 1/3 cups of soup in each bowl and top with 1/2 cup cooked brown rice and a handful of shredded cheddar cheese.

Notes:
*I added 1 can of Rotel (it just makes everything better)
* I also added a few splashes of Worcestershire sauce and some crushed red pepper

(This picture is from skinnytaste.com. We ate this too fast for me to snap one!)

Oven Salmon

Tonight I wanted something healthy, quick, and easy for dinner. I also had some salmon that needed to be used. So, here's what I did:

• On a piece of foil, I layered salmon, spray butter, lemon slices, salt/pepper, and a dash of white wine.
• I wrapped the foil up to make a little pouch and baked for 30 minutes at 325 degrees
• Unwrap the foil and it's ready to go!

Under the lemon slices the butter and wine make a little sauce that's creamy and yummy!

Here's the finished product.

Lettuce Wraps

I have a very black/white relationship with Chinese food. I'm either REALLY in the mood for it, or I want nothing to do with it. It's been awhile since I've had any though, so when I was planning my recipes for the week I started looking for a healthy recipe to satisfy my craving. I wanted something different than stir fry, and I stumbled across a lettuce wrap recipe that sounded delish!

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• 1 tablespoon plus 1-1/2 teaspoons peanut oil, divided
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh mushrooms
• 1 can (8 ounces) water chestnuts, drained and diced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh gingerroot
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium teriyaki sauce
• 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1-1/2 cups shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup julienned green onions
• 12 Bibb or Boston lettuce leaves
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions

• In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook chicken in 1 tablespoon oil for 3 minutes; drain. Add the mushrooms, water chestnuts and ginger; cook 4-6 minutes longer or until chicken is no longer pink. Drain and set aside.
• In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and remaining oil. Stir in the carrots, onions and chicken mixture.
• Spoon onto lettuce leaves; sprinkle with almonds. If desired, fold sides of lettuce over filling and roll up. Yield: 6 servings.

I left out the gingerroot because I am NOT a ginger fan, and I used cooking oil spray instead of the peanut oil so that it would cut down on the calories. Otherwise though, I made the recipe exactly as listed (I did however marinate the chicken in a little teriyaki for about 24 hrs before cooking, which gave it a lot more flavor).

This was the finished product:

We had some hot and sour  soup from our favorite local place, and I steamed some edamame as well. It turned out better than I expected-I'll definitely make this one again!