Skirt Steak Taco Salad

This last week I was on a no carb diet, a diet I don't think I will be repeating LOL. This meant tortillas were out but I love tacos, so I decided to make a taco salad. Basically everything that would be in a taco but instead lose the tortilla and put all of the toppings on a bed of lettuce. 

You can use any meat and taco toppings you like. For ease I would suggest skirt steak since it cooks quickly or do precooked meat like a rotisserie chicken. As the salad dressing I used sour cream but you could use your favorite salsa instead. 

Suggested Toppings:

Pico de Gallo

Avocado slices

Cheese

Sour Cream

Beans

Onion marinated in Lime

Radish, thinly sliced

Beef and Broccolini StirFry

I was looking for a healthy and quick meal and I found this one. Best part of this meal is that it is also carb free. It's a great way to use up left over meat and veggies from a past meal but put a twist on them. This meal will definitely become a staple because it was fast, tasty, good for me, and I could make it ahead!!

Ingredients:
Stir Fry Sauce:
1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup  rice vinegar
1 tbs. oyster sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1/4 tsp. siracha
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 inch nub of garlic, peeled and grated
1 tsp. pepper

1/2 lbs. Sliced Tri Tip Roast (I roasted mine earlier in the week)
1/2 lbs. Broccolini, trimmed to only keep the top 1/3
Sliced almonds, Toasted
3 Carrots, sliced
1 Bell pepper, sliced
Sliced green onions, for garnish


Directions:
note: it is best to do all of the chopping before starting to cook.

Make Ahead:
1. Toast almonds in a dry pan, slice carrots on a bias, slice bell pepper, slice gree onions and trim broccolini. Set aside.

2. Cook Tri Tip: I like to roast my tri tip in a 375 oven with some salt and pepper. Cook until internal temp is 130. Allow to rest fully before slicing. (Slicing is easier to do if your beef has been chilled in the fridge)

3. Combine all ingredients for stir fry sauce in a jar or container and mix to combine.

4. Store everything in the fridge covered in plastic and keep until ready to cook.

Day of Cooking:

1. Pull meat out of fridge and slice. Allow to come back up to room temperature.

2. Pull out veggies and sauce.

3. In a large pan, drizzle 1 tbs. of olive oil. Place all of the veggies into the pan. Cook over medium high heat for 3 minutes until broccolini turns a bright green and carrots and peppers begin to soften.

4. Add tri tip and 1/2 of stir fry sauce. Stir to combine everything, being gentle to not tear the meat or the veggies.

5. Cook until everything is heated through, about 3 more minutes. If stir fry sauce starts to get too thick, add a little bit more to thin it out slightly.

6. Serve up the stir fry on a plate or platter and top with the green onions and almonds.

Slow Cooker Beef Tacos with Salsa Rojo

I wanted to use my slow cooker and wanted to try something tasty for tacos. This was really good but next time I make it I will reserve some of the salsa to serve on the tacos. Optional toppings for the tacos includes cheese, lettuce or cabbage, sour cream, avocado slices, pico de gallo, beans and rice. 

Ingredients: 
Dry Rub:
1 tbs. seasoned salt
1 tbs. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. chipotle pepper powder
   
1 tbs. vegetable oil
1 3 lb. boneless beef chuck roast

Salsa:
5 tomatoes
1 small onion, divided
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 chipotle pepper in adobo
1/2 tsp. adobo sauce (from chipotle can)
4   cups chicken stock (homemade if possible)
1/2 tsp. oregano 

Directions:


1. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the beef with the dry rub. Add to the skillet and cook until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side.

2. While browning beef make salsa. Combine all salsa ingredients into a blender and process until smooth. 

3. Transfer the browned meat to a 6-quart slow cooker, then add the salsa and sliced onion. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until meat is easily shredded. 

4. Remove the meat to a cutting board and shred with 2 forks, discarding the excess fat. Return the meat to the slow cooker.

5. Serve the meat in tortillas and top as desired. Serve with lime wedges.

30 Minute Asian Rice Stirfry

I'm always looking for a good, quick meal to throw together after work. This one was really fast but you do have to plan a little and buy the ingredients. The meal was tasty and made me feel like I was eating a little healthy too!

Ingredients

2 -inch piece ginger, peeled and grated
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. siracha
1 tsp. brown sugar
2 scallions
1 cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed
4 cups store-bought pre-cooked or leftover brown rice
2 breasts from a rotisserie chicken
1 cup shredded carrots

Directions

1. Peel the ginger and finely grate it in to a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the vinegar, soy sauce, siracha, brown sugar and sesame oil. Season with pepper.

2. Thinly slice the scallions, keeping the white and green parts of the scallions separate. Add the scallion whites and the edamame to the dressing in the large mixing bowl. Stir to combine and then marinate at room temperature while you prepare the rest of the ingredients, stirring occasionally. Reserve the sliced scallion greens to use as garnish.

3. Place the rice in a glass mixing bowl and break it up using a fork. Place a damp paper towel directly on top of the rice and place in the microwave; cook until just warmed through and softened, about 3 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, remove the skin from the chicken and shred the meat in to large bite-size pieces, about 2 cups. Toss the chicken, warm rice and carrots with the mushrooms and edamame. Season with some salt and pepper.

5. Toss everything into a large pot and cook over medium heat until warmed through. Garnish with the reserved scallion greens and serve.

Beef and Sausage Burger

I had some leftover ground italian sausage and I wanted to use it up. I decided to make a 50/50 blend of ground beef and the sausage into a burger patty. It was super flavorful! Make sure to cook it through since the pork in the italian sausage shouldn't be served medium rare.

If you buy 1 lb containers of each type of beef you should end up with 4-6 burgers depending how large you would like to make them.

I went with a Mexican inspired burger so I used avocado slices, a little bacon, and a lime sour crema (sour cream mixed with a squeeze of lime and a pinch of salt and pepper).

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (I like 90/10 so it's not so fatty)
1 lb. ground italian sausage - mild or hot
1 tbs. ketchup
Salt and pepper
1 egg, whisked
1 tbs. bread crumbs

Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix together gently until just combined. Use your hands or a wooden spoon. Make sure not to over mix or it will make the final product really tough.

2. Form the burgers into patties. The patties will shrink a little while cooking so make sure to make them larger than whatever bun you plan on using. You can freeze them at this point in foil and store for up to 1 month. Just thaw in the fridge for a few hours and continue to the next step.

3. Preheat a grill to high heat. Grill the burgers for 4-5 minutes on each side until temperature of patty comes to 150-160 degrees.

4. Remove burgers to a plate and cover with foil and allow to rest. While burger is resting prep any toppings or condiments.

5. Assemble your burgers and toppings and enjoy!!

Cookies for Dogs and Humans

I was trying to find something I could make for my dog's birthday that we could eat too. These cookies aren't the most delicious for humans but my dog loved them and I felt good giving her a handmade treat for her birthday! Above are the cookies as well as my dog eating them!!

Ingredients:
2/3 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 large eggs
3 cups whole wheat flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a bowl combine the pumpkin puree, peanut butter, and eggs. This is easier if you use an electric mixer but you can do it by hand as well. Make sure everything is really well combined.

3. Add 1/2 cup of flour at a time to mix and beat until just incorporated. Once a total of 2 1/2 cups has been added, add more flour 1/4 cup at a time until the dough is no longer sticky.

4. Sprinkle a large work surface with a little bit of flour. Knead the dough a few times until it comes together. Roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Use cookie cutters or a knife to cut out whatever shapes you desire.

5. Place cut out cookies onto the baking sheet. Cook in oven for 20-25 minutes until the edges of the cookies are slightly browned. Let cool completely.

6. You could add a little icing to the cookies for the humans but do not ice the cookies for the dogs!

Baked Meatballs

I came up with this recipe while trying to get rid of some meatballs in the freezer. It's a great way to heat them up slowly so they stay tender. I suggest getting fresh bread to eat the meatballs with because at the end you can sop up the rest of the marinara sauce in the dish!

Ingredients:
12 meatballs (about 4 per person)
1 jar marinara sauce (if you have time make your own sauce)
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
fresh basil for garnish


Directions:

1. Find a pot large enough to hold all of the meatballs. Add the marinara sauce and turn the heat to medium low. Slowly heat up meatballs, stirring occasionally, until they are heated through and the sauce is warm.

2. Preheat an oven to broil. Find an oven proof pan and lightly butter the inside (this will prevent too much sticking and clean-up). Spoon a little sauce to cover the bottom of the pan. Place meatballs in the pan so they are in a single, even layer. Pour a little sauce over the top of the meatballs.

3. Top the dish with all of the cheese, spread evenly along the top. Broil the dish until the cheese is bubbly and slightly brown, about 3-5 minutes.

4. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Then serve with some crusty bread!