Rosemary Pork Medallions with Chunky Applesauce

(from the South Beach Cookbook)

3 t. olive oil, divided

1 small onion, diced

3 sweet apples, peeled, cored, and diced

1 T. balsamic vinegar

3 T. water

1 1/2 lbs. pork tenderloin, cut into medallions, about 3/4 inch thick

2 t. dried rosemary

salt and pepper

Heat 2 T. of the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes.  Add apples, vinegar, and water; reduce heat to low and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.  Remove from heat

Season port with rosemary, salt and pepper.  Heat remaining oil in a large nonstick skillet.  Add pork and cook 4 minutes per side; remove from pan and serve with applesauce

Makes 4 servings

360 calories, 13 g. fat, 4 g. sat. fat, 36 g. protein, 24 g. carbs, 4 g. dietary fiber, 160 mg. sodium

Sweet Potato Casserole 

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes

1 c. brown sugar

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. melted butter

Topping:

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/3 c. flour

1/3 c. melted butter

1 c. chopped pecans

Combine first 6 ingredients.  Pour into a buttered 1 1/2 -2 qt. casserole dish.  Mix remaining ingredients together and sprinkle on top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, until hot and browned.

***this recipe is just as yummy using Splenda brown sugar....that's how I usually make it!

Crock Pot Chilli

Crock Pot Chili

6.5 -7 Quart Crock Pot required

Ingredients
3 - 28oz. Cans of diced Tomatoes
1 - 15oz. Can of Black Beans
1 - 15oz. Can of Pinto Beans
1 - 15oz. Can of Kidney Beans
2 Medium Onions (16 oz.)
2 Medium Green Peppers
1 Jalapeno
2 lbs of the meat of your choice. I use 1 lb of ground Buffalo and 1 lb shredded chicken.

Spices
Pinch of Curry Powder
Pinch of Cayenne Pepper
Pinch of Cumin
Pinch of Crushed Red Pepper
1 TBS Salt
2-3 TBS Chili Power

First
Chop up the Green Pepper, Onion and Jalapeno

Second
In a frying pan add the Green Pepper, Onion, Jalapeno, meat and 1 TBS of Chili Powder.
The idea is to cook the meat and soften the veggies while allowing the flavors to blend.
** I use Buffalo and Chicken so there is not even enough fat to drain before adding it to the Crock Pot

Second...and a half
Empty all of the cans of Tomatoes and beans into the Crock Pot while the meat and veggies are cooking in the frying pan. (Note: I recommend emptying the beans into a strainer and rinsing them with water before putting them into the crock pot.)

Third
Add the frying pan contents to the Crock Pot

Fourth
Add the remainder of the Spices to the Crock Pot

Fifth
Cook on high for 6-8 hrs

Carbs per Cup = 11 to 13

Chicken Satay and Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:  2-4 servings

8 oz.             Chicken breast   

Marinade:

2  fl.Oz          Coconut milk

2  tbsp.          Coriander roots, chopped

1/2 tsp.         Curry powder

1/2 tsp.         Turmeric powder

2 tsp.             Sugar

1/2 tbsp.       Fish sauce

2 tbsp.           Vegetable oil

• Slice the chicken into thin strips ready to be skewered. 
• Mix all the ingredients for the marinade together and mix the sliced chicken with the marinade. Allow the chicken to marinade for at least 3 hours or over night. 
• Skewer each slice of marinaded chicken onto a bamboo skewer which has been soaked in water.
• Grill or pan sear the skewered chicken until done and still moist. 
• Serve hot with Peanut Sauce and Cucumber salad. 

Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:

3 tbsp.             Vegetable oil

2 tbsp.             Red curry paste

1 tbsp.              Musaman curry paste

1/2 tsp.            Ground coriander

1/2 tsp.            Ground cumin

2 cups              Coconut milk

3/4 cups          Coarsely ground peanuts

2 tbsp.             Sugar

2 tbsp.             Tamarind juice or lime juice

1 tsp.                Salt

• Put the oil in the saucepan and heat up. Add both of curry pastes when the oil is hot and stir-fried until fragrant, be careful not to burn the curry by using medium heat. 
• After a minute or so add  the dry spices and continue stir-friend for another on or two minutes. 
• Add coconut milk and the rest of the ingredients except the tamarind juice and salt. Bring the ingredients in the pot and place bat to the boil for a few minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. Keep stir. 
• Adjust the seasoning with tamarind juice and salt. The sauce should taste slightly sweet followed by a touch of tartness and saltiness. The main scent of this sauce is the combination of curry and coconut. 

Cucumber Salad 

1 cup             Cucumber, peeled and sliced thin

2 heads         Shallots, peeled and sliced think

1 tbsp.           Red spur chili peppers, sliced

1 tbsp.           Chopped coriander

1 cups            Water

4 tbsp.           Granulated sugar

4 tbsp.           White vinegar

                       a pinch of salt to taste    

• Chilled sliced cucumber, shallots, chili peppers and coriander in a fridge. 
• In a mixing bowl, combine water, sugar, vinegar  and mix well, adjust the taste by salt. 
• Add in cucumber, shallots, chili peppers, and coriander and let stand for about 5 minutes before serve. 

Did you know? (from forward mails

• Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to pick the little "stringy things" off of it. That's how the primates do it.
• Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster.
• Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and not mold.
• Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.
• Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef. It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.
• To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.
• For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty frosting.
• Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic and at the end of the recipe if you want a stronger taste of garlic.
• Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream. 
• Reheat Pizza- Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza.
• Easy Deviled Eggs- Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.
• Expanding Frosting- When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer fro a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving. 
• Reheating refrigerated bread- To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.
• Newspaper weeds away- Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients in your soil. Wet newspapers. put layers around the plants overlapping as you go cover with mulch and forget about weeds.
• Broken Glass- Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of glass you can't see easily. 
• Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away. 
• To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.  
• Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin the seam of slacks and static is gone. 
• Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out. 
• To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2" with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid, mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!

Papaya Salad (Som Tum)

• 2      cups   shredded green papaya
• 1/2  cup     shredded carrot
• 1/2 cup       sting bean (cut into 1" long)
• 2 tablespoons   fish sauce
• 1  1/2 tablespoons palm sugar (or brown sugar)
• 3 tablespoons    lime juice
• 1/2 cup       tomato (wedged)
• 1/3 cup       dried shrimps (optional) soaked with warm water before use. 
• 1/4 cup        roasted peanuts
• 5  green   chillies
• 3  cloves  fresh garlic

Preparations

• Use mortar and pestle to crush the chillies and garlic.
• Add string bean, papaya and carrot then mix it well in the mortar. 
• Add palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice.  The taste should be sweet, salty, sour and hot equally. 
• Once you get the right taste for your salad add in dried shrimps and peanut. Mix them well before serving. 

If you don't have mortar and pestle then no worries. You can mince the garlic and chillies and mix the salad in a salad bowl.

Garlic Roasted Red Skin Potato Soup

6 cups Red Skin Potatoes, cubed
1/2 Red Pepper, washed, seeded, cut in half
3 large Garlic Cloves, minced
3/4 cup Green Onions, chopped
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Seasoned Pepper
1/8 tsp Crushed Red Pepper
8 Slices Bacon
1 (14.5 oz.) Can Chicken Broth
1 (12 oz.) Non-fat Evaporated Milk
1/1/4 cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese (1/4 cup for garnish)
1 tbsp Sour Cream

1. Heat Oven to 400 degrees. Place potatoes, red pepper, green onions, olive oil, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper in a large mixing bowl; toss until potatoes are well coated. Dump potatoes in a 13X9 pan; spread out into one layer. Roast for approx. 40 minutes. Flip twice during cooking.

2. While potatoes are roasting, fry bacon until crisp. Drain, crumble, set aside.

3. When potatoes have finished roasting, remove from oven. Place red pepper in small glass bowl covered with plastic wrap. Allow skin to soften and remove.

4. Place potato mixture, chicken broth and evaporated milk in large saucepan. Stir to combine. Heat. Remove 1 1/2 cups of potato mixture and the skinned red pepper; pout into electric blender. Process until smooth. Return to saucepan.

5. Stir in bacon and cheese. heat thouroughly over low heat (do not boil) Just before serving stir in sour cream.

6. Garnish each serving with remaining cheese, bacon and onions.

Enjoy!

Serves Six

Note: This makes a very thick soup so I ended up adding more chicken broth.

Nutrient Information
Calories 206
Total Fat 10g
Saturated Fat 4g
Carbs 15g
Protein 15g
Calcium 279mg
Fiber 3g