Turkey stuffed peppers

I love the taste of cooked peppers so when I found this recipe I knew I had to make it. I also like the concept of using food as bowls. I will definitely be making this Skinnytaste recipe again. The original recipe can be found here. 

Review: This was a pretty simple meal to make and certainly was healthy. It had great flavor too with the cumin essentially giving the meal a "taco meat" taste. In fact, I had some meat leftover so if I don't use it to have sloppy joe, I might use it for tacos. I love the concept of using the peppers as a bowl because then I can guarantee I'm eating everything and not letting anything go to waste. Plus, I really like the flavor of cooked peppers so by using them as a bowl I can ensure I'm getting that taste in every bite. I unfortunately did not have any onion, though, so I used onion powder but using a real onion would give it an additional flavor profile. I used ground turkey meat like the recipe called for, but if you were to use ground beef it would have a slightly different flavor that would be just as tasty. I also would cook it longer than the 35 minutes the recipe calls for only because the peppers were just a tad bit too crunchy for my liking. I prefer my peppers to be soft, so next time I will probably bake them for 45 minutes. Overall, this was a wonderful meal and I can't wait to make it again.

Recipe:

• 1 lb lean chopped turkey meat
• 1 garlic, minced
• 1/4 onion, minced
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• salt to taste
• 3 large sweet red bell peppers, washed (I also included a green pepper just to give me more meals)
• 1 cup fat free chicken broth
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce (I just used a whole can of tomato sauce)
• 1 1/2 cups cooked rice
• Olive oil spray 
• 1/4 cup reduced fat shredded cheese

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a little olive oil spray in a medium size saute pan and heat on a medium flame. Add onion, garlic and cilantro to the pan. Saute about 2 minutes and add the ground turkey. Season with salt, garlic powder and cumin and brown the meat for several minutes until the meat is completely cooked through (you might have to stir it on occasion). Add 1/4 cup of tomato sauce (or the whole can) and 1/2 cup of chicken broth. Mix well and simmer on low for about 5 minutes. Combine the cooked rice and meat together.

Cut the bell peppers in half lengthwise and remove all the seeds. Place in a baking dish. Spoon the meat mixture into each pepper half and fill it with as much as you can (if you have meat left over you can put it aside for another meal like I did). Place all the stuff pepper halves on the baking dish and pour the remainder of the chicken broth on the bottom of the pan. Cover tight with aluminum foil and bake for about 35 minutes. Top with shredded cheddar cheese and enjoy.

Broiled salmon with rosemary

Tonight's meal was another one courtesy of Skinnytaste. It was extremely quick and easy to make. The original recipe can be found here. 

Review: This recipe took about 15 minutes to make from prep to serve. It was one of the easiest recipes I've ever made and, including the fish, only had six ingredients. I was worried that having the fish covered in lemon juice, rosemary and garlic would make it have an overpowering taste either from the lemon juice or the garlic but that wasn't the case. I hardly tasted the garlic and the lemon was just enough to give the salmon some additional flavor. Next time I make it I might sprinkle a bit more salt and pepper on the fish but all-in-all it was a nice, light-tasting meal. While I just had brown rice with it, cooked vegetables would go well with the meal too. The recipe says to cook the fish for 4-6 minutes so I cooked both sides for 5 minutes. If your fish isn't very thick it'll take even faster to cook. I had big enough pieces of salmon that I was able to cut them into six pieces total. I didn't change the ingredient amounts though so if you have more than six pieces I would suggest increasing the ingredient amounts. This is definitely a meal I would make if I worked late because I wouldn't have to wait long or fix a substantial meal, but I also wouldn't have to just have a sandwich or something.

Recipe:

• 24 oz or 4 pieces of salmon
• olive oil spray
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tsp fresh, chopped rosemary
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• salt and fresh pepper to taste

Combine the lemon juice, rosemary, salt, pepper and garlic. Brush the mixture onto the fish (I put the fish in the bowl then flipped it over so both sides would be coated). Spray the rack of a broiler pan with olive oil spray and arrange the fish on it. Broil about 4 inches from the heat until the fish flakes easily when tested with a fork, approximately 4-6 minutes per 1/2 inch of thickness. If the fish is more than 1 inch thick, gently turn it halfway through broiling.

Obama says now is the time for a Energy Security Trust

President Barack Obama used his weekly address to discuss his desire to create an Energy Security Trust. The trust is an idea CEOs, retired generals and admirals proposed that would use oil and gas revenues from public lands to go toward research for developing new energy sources for our vehicles. President Obama first mentioned the security trust in his State of the Union address. He said creating ways for our vehicles to run on less oil and gas would not only help Americans save money but also make the United States less dependent on foreign oil. On top of that he said our country also must continue finding other methods of energy such as wind, solar and bio-fuels.

Roasted pork chops and vegetables

We sell a magazine at work called "diabetes & you" and in it there are a few recipes. Around the Christmas season a magazine came out that had a roasted pork chops and vegetables recipe that looked really good. Unfortunately I haven't been able to make it until now, but better late than never. I certainly will make it again.

Review: This was a fairly quick and easy recipe to make. The most extensive part was cutting the potatoes and vegetables. Even though the vegetable mixture is just sweet potatoes, onions and peppers, you could add a few other vegetables if you wanted. In fact, the recipe calls for mushrooms and tomatoes but I don't like either one so I left them out. I did add a red pepper even though the recipe just calls for a green pepper. The pork might have been a tad bit dry from keeping it in the oven for an hour so next time I make it I might just cook it the first 45 minutes. If you add the tomatoes I'd suggest instead of cooking everything for 45 minutes then adding them and letting them cook for another 15, that you cook it for 30 minutes then add the tomatoes to let it cook for a total of 45 minutes. The seasoning also gave it a nice flavor. The garlic salt gave it the salty flavor it might otherwise have been missing. I ended up doubling the spice and herb amounts to put on the pork chops then made the mixture again with the recommended amounts to put on the vegetables. I felt like if I just used the amounts suggested for both the pork chops and the vegetables it wouldn't have been enough.

Recipe:

• 2 teaspoons parsley flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground pepper
• 4 pork chops, 1/2 inch thick (I used boneless but if you prefer bone-in then they would work too)
• olive oil-flavored cooking spray
• 6 new potatoes, cut into fourths (3 cups) (I used 2 sweet potatoes)
• 4 ounces mushrooms, cut in half (1 1/2 cups)
• 1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
• 1 medium tomato, cut into 8 wedges

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray. Mix the parsley, marjoram, thyme, garlic salt and pepper. Spray both sides of the pork chops with cooking spray. Sprinkle with the herb mixture and place in the corners of the pan. Mix the potatoes, mushrooms, bell pepper and onion in a large bowl. Spray the vegetables two or three times with cooking spray and stir. Sprinkle with the herb mixture and toss to coat. Spread evenly in the center of the pan between the pork chops (if you have to put them as a layer on top of the pork chops that's okay too). Bake uncovered for 45 minutes. Turn the pork and stir the vegetables. Place the tomato wedges over the vegetables. Bake uncovered 10 to 15 minutes or until the pork is slightly pink when cut near the bone and the vegetables are tender.

Slow cooker pork and green chile stew

It looks as if this is my 100th post and yet again it's another wonderful recipe I found on the Skinnytaste website. I really don't know how she manages to make every meal fantastic but she does. I envy her. The original recipe can be found here. 

Review: This was a fairly quick meal and certainly an easy one to make. If you cut the meat ahead of time it will be even faster to make but from cutting to when it goes to the crockpot it takes about 15 minutes. I cooked it on high for 4 hours but if you have time you also could cook it on low for 8 hours while you are at work, for example. Even though it has chiles and jalapeno I didn't think it was very hot. Maybe it would have been hotter had I added more jalapenos but I just included one so it wasn't too bad. The recipe calls for whole green chiles sliced but I used cans of diced chiles. Next time I might do 1/4 cup chicken broth instead of 1/2 just so I don't have so much juice left over, but if you didn't include rice with the meal, the juice could be a nice addition for some additional flavor. I also bought some tortillas when I was at the store so I might try eating it as a burrito next time, but the meat on its own would be fine too. The peppers and the spices give the meal its flavor. The pork itself is just pork with not much there. It's the peppers and the spices that give it that taste that keeps you wanting more.

Recipe:

• 2 lbs boneless pork loin roast, lean, all fat trimmed off
• salt and pepper to taste
• cooking spray
• 2 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup diced onion
• 2 cans (4.25 oz each) whole green chiles, sliced into thick rounds
• 2 tbsp chopped jalapeno, or more to taste
• 10 oz can diced tomatoes and green chiles (Ro*Tel mild)
• 1/2 cup fat-free low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Cut the pork into 2-inch pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat a large non-stick skillet on high heat. When the skillet gets hot lightly spray the pan with oil and brown the pork over medium heat on all sides, about 3-4 minutes total. Sprinkle 1 tbsp of flour over pork and stir to cook 30 seconds, sprinkle remaining flour over pork and cook an additional 30 seconds. Add the browned pork to the crock pot, along with the remaining ingredients. Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours (if using a Dutch oven, cook on low heat for 3-4 hours). When done, adjust seasoning and salt and pepper to taste if needed.

Obama says sequester must end to help economy

In his weekly address President Barack Obama said politicians must find a way to end the sequester so the $85 billion in spending cuts that was enacted would not harm the economy. The latest jobs numbers showed the economy added 246,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate went from 7.9 percent to 7.7 percent. With the sequester in place, several economists have said the improving economy could turn for the worse. That is why President Obama said he would be meeting with Republicans and Democrats over the coming weeks to continue and try to reach a grand bargain to reduce the deficit in a balanced way that would not harm middle class families. The president's plan can be found on the White House website here.