Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Teriyaki Pork Chops with Tropical Salsa

Ingredients:
2/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger root, peeled and finely chopped
6 (1 1/2-inch) thick pork chops

Tropical Salsa:
2 cups finely diced fresh pineapple
1 cup finely diced papaya
3/4 cup finely diced peppers (can be combination of red, yellow or green)
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
salt to taste

Directions:
In saucepan, combine soy sauce, brown sugar, water, vinegar, 2 cloves minced garlic and ginger. heat to boiling, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool. Put pork chops in shallow dish or Ziploc bag. Add cooled soy mixture and marinate in refrigerator overnight, turning occasionally.

In medium bowl, combine salsa ingredients. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Refrigerate if needed for up to a day, but bring to room temperature before serving.

Grill pork chops 7 to 9 minutes per side over medium-high heat, basting with marinade during last 5 minutes of grilling. Transfer to serving platter and serve with Tropical Salsa.

Notes:
Unbelievably good! Amazing!! It took one bite to determine that this is a five star recipe. It is totally worth the effort. Before this recipe I had never purchased nor cut a papaya, nor fresh ginger root, but both are the fabulous ingredients that make this such a delicious meal (along with the mint leaves, that is). I made it with just a green pepper in the salsa, but adding the red would really liven up the color and taste. Also, because I'm on a tight budget, after purchasing the $4 papaya, I decided to go with canned pineapple tidbits instead of fresh. Fresh would be best, but the canned worked well. Finally, the marinade could possibly be used for chicken instead of pork, though the pork was really good. Chicken may not be as tender after grilling. This salsa would be great on some fancy chips. This recipe is good for so many reasons!

Source:
Favorites

Easy Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 teaspoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
230 grams macaroni
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour and salt. Add milk and macaroni to saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and cover. Simmer 15 minutes, or until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally. Add cheese, and stir until cheese melts. Serve.

Servings: 4

Notes:
I like the fact that you do everything in one pan. Also, the noodles are good, having cooked in the milk. I might try reducing or eliminating the flour to get rid of a grainy texture in the sauce, but overall, it's a nice quick recipe.

Source:
www.food.com

Monday, May 23, 2011

Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
salt & pepper
1 can chicken gumbo soup
1/4 cup ketchup
mustard to taste
large spoonful of brown sugar
hamburger buns

Directions:
Brown the ground beef with the onion and salt and pepper. Add soup, ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar. Heat through. Serve on buns.

Source:
Grandma Jean

No-bake Energy Bars

Ingredients:
1 ripe banana, mashed
2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
just short of 1/2 cup agave nectar or honey (or even maple syrup)
1/2 cup coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
just short of 1/2 cup raisins, craisins, date chunks (any dried fruit, really)
1/4-1/3 cup chopped nuts (whatever you like!)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon

optional ingredients:
2 tablespoons milled flax seed
2-4 scoops protein powder (no go for me - the soy makes me itchy...)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well. Press into a wax paper-lined baking dish (one smaller than 13x9 but bigger than 8x8; use what you have). Freeze for 8ish hours. Pull out and cut into bars. Store in individual baggies in the freezer.

Source:
http://skinnybovineskitchen.blogspot.com/2011/05/no-bake-energy-bars-aka-vegan-high-raw.html

Healthy Wholewheat Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 cup wholewheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:
Combine all ingredients and beat until well-mixed. Bake on hot griddle and serve with fruit or syrup.

Notes:
I like to stir fruit into the mixture, like blueberries, or shredded apple. Yum!

Source: Favorites