Two For The Recipe Box

Roast Pork With Mustard Herb Coating

It's been a while since I posted a recipe and this one is soooo good, I had to share it. I made this roast pork for my family last Sunday and it turned out to be one of the best roasts I have ever tasted. The aroma wafting from my over was absolutely divine and the end product was incredibly flavorful.

Ingredients

6 tablespoons coarse-grained Dijon mustard

6 large garlic cloves, minced

4 small bay leaves, finely crumbled

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

1 2 1/2-pound boneless pork rib roast

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine Dijon mustard, minced garlic, bay leaves, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and rosemary in small bowl; whisk to blend. Dry pork with paper towels. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper. Spread mustard mixture all over pork. Place pork on rack in baking dish. Roast pork until thermometer inserted into center registers 150°F, about 1 hour. Let stand 15 minutes. Transfer pork to platter. Slice pork thinly and serve.

Original recipe from Bon Appetit magazine, April 2000.

Cider Pork Stew

I prepared the above recipe with a 3 1/2 pound pork roast and had about 1/3 of it left over. It was the perfect amount for this diabetic friendly pork stew for Monday night's dinner! A sweet smelling fall recipe, this is a great slow cooker stew.

Ingredients
2 lbs boneless pork shoulder roast
3 medium cubed potatoes
3 medium carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 medium onions, sliced
1 cup coarsely chopped apple
1/2 cup coarsely chopped celery
3 tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
2 cups apple juice or apple cider
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
celery leaves (optional)


Preparation
Cut meat into 1-inch cubes. In a 3-1/2- to 5-1/2quart slow cooker, combine meat, potatoes, carrots, onions, apple, celery, and tapioca. Stir in apple juice, salt, caraway seeds, and pepper. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 10 to 12 hours or high-heat setting for 5 to 6 hours. If desired, garnish individual servings with celery leaves. Makes: 8 servings For full nutritional info, click here.

Original recipe from Diabetic Living Online.

Oh yummy ~ Tangy Barbeque Beef

Wow, this recipe is delicious. Between the savory aroma wafting through my house all aftenoon yesterday, and the sweet and spicy combo created by the fresh mango and hot sauce, this recipe is amazing, and super easy to make. Perfect for a busy day; simply throw the ingredients into the slow cooker, heat on low for 10 hours, and enjoy. Leftovers may be frozen for up to 3 months too! Mmmm.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon celery seeds

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 3-pound fresh beef brisket, trimmed of fat

2 onions, thinly sliced

1 cup bottled smoke-flavored barbecue sauce

½ cup beer or ginger ale

8 large sandwich buns or Portuguese rolls, split and toasted

Bottled hot pepper sauce (optional)

Mango slices

Directions

1. Combine the chili powder, celery seeds, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture onto all sides of the brisket. Scatter half of the sliced onions in the bottom of a slow cooker. Place the brisket on the onions, cutting the meat to fit the cooker, if necessary. Scatter the remaining onions on top of the brisket. Stir together the barbecue sauce and beer or ginger ale. Pour over the brisket and onions.

2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 10 to 12 hours or until meat is fork-tender. Transfer meat to a cutting board and let stand for 15 minutes. Halve meat crosswise. Using 2 forks, pull meat apart into shreds. Return meat to sauce mixture in crockery cooker. Heat through using the high-heat setting.

3. To serve, use a slotted spoon to transfer beef and onion mixture into the buns. If desired, season to taste with bottled hot pepper sauce. Top with mango slices.

Nutritional Information

Servings Per Recipe 8. Calories 442, Total Fat 11g, Saturated Fat 3g, Monounsaturated Fat 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat 2g, Cholesterol 98mg, Sodium 971mg, Carbohydrate 41g, Total Sugar 17g, Fiber 3g, Protein 41g, Vitamin C (DV%)16, Calcium (DV%)9, Iron (DV%)28. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

I found this recipe on Better Homes and Gardens website, at http://www.bhg.com/

The Ultimate Jambalaya Recipe

About once a week I like to include a recently tested recipe in my blog, and I do this for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, I love to cook and I especially love trying new recipes. My family knows this, so they are always ready to try something new, knowing it might be "a keeper," as my 7-year-old daughter says, or might never be served again. Secondly, as a mother of a child with type-1 diabetes, I pay attention to what my son puts in his body and I like his food intake to be as healthy and balanced as possible. Finally, as someone who likes to participate in endurance sports, such as running and cycling, I'm always on the lookout for recipes that have great nutritional value, or a good carb-fat-protein ratio.

Last week I tested a recipe I had been eyeing for a few weeks; a slow cooker recipe for Jambalaya, a cajun all-in-one meal that I adore, but have never made in the slow cooker. This recipe (below) is unique in that it is as close to a complete meal as I have seen for Jambalaya. It's low calorie and low fat, especially when it comes to saturated fat, and yet still high in fiber and protein. Plus, for those of us cooking for a type-1 diabetic, this meal is relatively low carb with only 35 grams net carbs per serving (or less for someone with a smaller appetite). Throw in a glass of nonfat milk to round out the meal, and it's still only 47 grams of carbs. And for those who are cooking for picky eaters, there are lots of possible substitutions with this meal; you can substitute chicken for clams or shrimp, change the chorizo to a regular sausage, or even add a low fat sirloin steak, without really changing the taste or nutritional value of the meal. 

So here it is:

Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 sweet green pepper, chopped
1 sweet red pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn kernels, thawed
1/2 pound chorizo, in 1/2-inch pieces
1 can (6.5 ounces) chopped clams, rinsed & drained
1 can (15.5 ounces) red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 can (14.5 ounces) stewed tomatoes
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1.5 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
0.5 teaspoon salt
1.5 cups instant brown rice
1/2 pound small shrimp
3 scallions, thinly sliced 

Directions
1. In 5- to 5 1/2-quart slow cooker, layer onion, celery, peppers, garlic, corn, chorizo, clams and beans.
2. In bowl, mix broth, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, seasoning and salt. Pour into slow cooker.
3. Cover slow cooker; cook on high heat for 5 hours.
4. For last 10 minutes, stir in instant brown rice and shrimp.
5. To serve, garnish with scallions. 

Nutritional Information (Based on 8 servings per recipe)

Amount per serving: Calories 360, Total Fat (g) 13, Saturated Fat (g) 4, Cholesterol (mg) 70, Sodium (mg) 980, Carbohydrate (g) 43, Fiber (g) 8, Protein (g) 21.

Slow Cooker Thyme-Garlic Chicken Breasts

Like so many of us, my schedule can get pretty insanely busy and at those times, my slow cooker becomes one of the most valuable appliances in my kitchen. Simply throw stuff in, go to work, come back, and it's done! It doesn't get any easier than that. 

I made this recipe late last week and it was fabulous. My whole family loved it. Lots of flavor, and the salad was really enhanced with the addition of the kalamata olives and feta cheese. I served it with a fat free balsamic vinaigrette. Not only is this recipe very low fat, it's low carb and high in protein. Definitely will be making this one again!

Ingredients

3  to 4 pounds  bone-in chicken breast halves
6  cloves  garlic, minced
1-1/2  teaspoons  dried thyme, crushed
1/2  teaspoon  salt
1/4  cup  orange juice
1  tablespoon  balsamic vinegar
1  8- to 10-ounce  package mixed greens
1/2  cup  cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
1/4  cup  pitted kalamata olives, halved
1/4  cup  crumbled feta cheese (1 ounce)
1/2  cup  bottled vinaigrette dressing

Directions
1. Remove and discard skin from chicken. Sprinkle chicken with garlic, thyme, a-d salt. Place chicken in 3 1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker. Pour orange juice and vinegar over chicken.
2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 6 to 7 hours or on high-heat setting for 3 to 3-1/2 hours. Remove chicken from slow cooker; cover and keep warm. Discard cooking juices.
3. In a large bowl, toss together greens, tomatoes, olives, and feta; divide among serving plates. Slice chicken from the bones, discarding the bones. Top each salad with some of the chicken. Drizzle dressing over salads. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Nutritional Information
Servings Per Recipe: 6 to 8, Calories 252, Total Fat (g) 8, Saturated Fat (g) 2, Monounsaturated Fat (g) 1, Polyunsaturated Fat (g) 1, Cholesterol (mg) 90, Sodium (mg) 660, Carbohydrate (g) 8, Total Sugar (g) 5, Fiber (g) 1, Protein (g) 36, Vitamin C (DV%) 22, Calcium (DV%) 7, Iron (DV%) 8 

Source: Better Homes and Gardens website