Southwest Avocado Burgers

This meal comes from Cara's Cravings blog, my own spin on her guest post recipe. I decided to use 1 part ground turkey and 3 parts lean ground beef, adding Worcestershire sauce to the burger mix. If you like kick, I would suggest using Pepper Jack cheese to really complement the flavor, though I used Monterrey Jack because I already had it on hand. This is my new favorite summer burger!

Nutritional facts include 334 calories, 25.4g total fat, 85.1mg cholesterol, 405.5mg potassium, 6.6g carbs, 21g protein, 1.4g fiber per serving (serving size = 1 burger, not including whole wheat bun)

Grocery List:

• 1/4 lb ground turkey breast
• 3/4 lb 96% lean, grass fed organic ground beef
• 2 tbsp. minced onion
• 2 tbsp. ketchup
• 2 tbsp. mustard
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. Southwest or Cajun Seasoning (of course, I used Tony's)
• 1 avocado cut into thin slices
• Monterrey Jack or Pepper Jack cheese, shredded
• Head of lettuce (1 large leaf per burger)
• Beefsteak tomato cut into slices
• Garlic Roasted Salsa
• Whole Wheat Buns

First, heat your grilling surface - I used the flat side of my griddle pan and coated it with cooking spray. If you have an outdoor grill, brush the grate with oil and heat it up. Now we will prepare our meat! Add the ground beef, ground turkey, minced onion, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning of choice into a large bowl.

I worked the meat mix together with a wooden spoon at first, while the meat absorbed the liquids, then I rolled up my sleeves and got my hands dirty, making sure it was evenly combined.

I took a 1/4 measuring cup and scooped 4 balls of meat into patties, flattening as much as I could. Top two with thin slices of avocado.

Next, take your other two patties and affix them over top the avocado, stacking over top the other patty. This is why we try to make them very thin, so you do not have too much meat or too high of a stacked burger. I did not do a good job at this, but I would suggest, trying to press down on the sides of the meat, concealing the avocado and forming more into one piece of meat.

Once your grilling surface is ready, add the burger patties cooking for about 4-5 minutes per side, carefully flipping as needed.

To help them cook more evenly, we covered with a casserole dish to provide a grilling cover. After flipping the second time, you can top with cheese to melt nicely over top the meat.

Build your burger using the buns, fresh lettuce, slice of tomato and then top your burger with a chunky salsa (I used a garlic-cilantro roasted salsa). Served with chipotle sweet potato fries and fresh fruit!

Carrot "Cake" Flapjacks

My love affair with carrot cake bloomed late in life but better late than never. As previously mentioned, I had very finicky tastes for a long time, I heard carrot cake and I immediately thought: gross. That was until my friend Lindsey made a carrot cake about four years ago and I realized what I had been missing. This was during a time period that we celebrated any little thing for an excuse for her to bake and us to indulge such as "I broke up with a boyfriend" cupcakes, "I love fun-employment before I start new job" cake, "staph infection on the toe keeping me from work" brownies, "I bought a new fabulous purse" cookies... it was glorious. Ever since then, her carrot cake was my favorite.

Now I've also mentioned in past posts that I am not a baker. I am very right-brain driven and do not possess the patience and math/science internal wiring to do everything precisely, I'm much more approximate and enjoy putting my own spin on things. This bodes well for cooking where there is more room for whimsical innovation but no, not baking. However, I came across this recipe in Cooking Light's Quick and Easy Low-Cal Recipes and decided this is something I thought I could make without messing up. I even added a little more brown sugar and cloves, a tiny more vanilla, just because I wanted to. These provide a tasty alternative to the common pancake, featuring warm spices and bright carrot flavor! Before heading out of town for the Fourth of July weekend, I made these for Mr. Max and myself as we began our 4-day vacation.

Nutritional facts per serving (serving size = 2 flapjacks) include: 244 calories, 7.6g fat, 7.7g protein, 35g carb, 2.2g fiber, 2.3g iron, 175mg calcium.

Grocery List:

• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
• Dash ground cloves
• Dash ground ginger
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1 tbsp. canola oil
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 cups finely grated carrot

Start by lightly spooning flour into a dry measuring cup and level with a knife. Combine the flour with the next 7 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.

Stir in the brown sugar, buttermilk, canola oil and vanilla extract, stirring until moist. Shred about 2 cups worth of carrot into the mixture and stir it in.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat and spray with cooking spray.

Pour about 1/4 cup batter onto the hot skillet and spread evenly to form a circle disk. Cook for about 2 minutes and lightly light with a spatula to flip or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked - if you have trouble, let it cook a little longer until more firm.

After carefully turning the pancakes over, cook another minute or until the bottoms are lightly browned. Repeat procedure with remaining batter.

 

Keep the finished hotcakes warm in the oven while you prepare the rest.

When your pancakes are finished, add butter and maple syrup if you choose and enjoy, we certainly did!

Served with scrambled eggs and bacon

Huli Huli Pork Chops

In a recent grocery store run, I looked for new summer cooking magazines for inspiration and came across Cuisine Lite's Grilling edition. This delicious dish sounded perfect for summer using sweet, tangy ingredients for a Hawaiian marinade, thick cut of bone-in pork and  fresh pineapple. The original recipe used round slices but I opted for pre-cut fresh chunks to put on skewers. And maybe I didn't want to have to buy and cut up a whole pineapple...

Contains 473 calories, 24g fat, 32g carbs, 3g fiber and 36g protein.

Grocery List:
For the sauce

• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tbsp. light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic
• 1 tbsp. minced fresh ginger
• 1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

For the pork

• 2 boneless pork loin chops
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into rings
• 1 cup fresh pineapple slices, skewered
• Chopped scallions

Go ahead and pre-heat the grill to medium-high heat and brush your grill grate with oil. In a small sauce pan, heat the ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar, oil, garlic, ginger, lime juice and pepper flakes to create your sauce. Stir well until all ingredients are dissolved and well combined, then remove sauce from heat to prevent it from burning or evaporating.

Season your pork chops with salt and pepper. Place your pork chops, skewers of pineapple and the bell peppers on the grill (I added asparagus tossed in olive oil to the grill grate).

Brush the pork with sauce, then flip after 6-7 minutes and repeat.

Grill the vegetables until they soften and remove from heat, keeping warm on low in the oven or in the microwave contained.

Grill the pork chops until they reach an internal temperature of 150 degrees on a thermometer.

Serve the chops with reserved sauce and garnish with bell peppers and scallions with pineapple.

Served over bed of grilled asparagus spears

Gorgonzola Cream Chicken

When I began my experimental cooking days, I found a lot of recipes of interest on Allrecipes.com. I was starting to learn different sauces and creams, but more so, the healthier ways to make them without the oh so popular heavy cream. This Gorgonzola cream sauce ended up in my email box about 3 years ago, but the original did not use any cream. What I came to find was that the gorgonzola "sweat" so much, it was hard to create a good base, it was oily and separated rather than smooth and creamy. I decided to add just a few tablespoons of Half and Half, the missing ingredient to provide the right consistency, adding an additional 20 calories.

I've made this into a pasta but unless you enjoy the bleu cheese family, it can really be a little over powering. I decided to make a simple chicken and veggie dinner with this sauce to add in a whole lot of flavor. The sauce itself has 110 calories.

Grocery List:

• 3 tbsp. butter
• 1/3 cup gorgonzola crumbles
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-3 tbps. Half & Half
• 1 green onion, minced
• Pepper
• 2 Chicken breasts (I used 2 butterflied chicken breasts and cut them in half for a total of 4)

Usually, I try not to cook with butter but for this I really couldn't use a substitute. In a small sauce pan melt the butter on low heat. Add the Gorgonzola cheese and garlic, stirring until melted and combined well.

Meanwhile, using a griddle pan or grill, add the chicken and cook both sides for about 6 minutes until cooked through.

Add the green onions, pepper and cream, stirring well.

 

Taste your cream sauce to make sure it is as you like it, adding more cheese or cream if needed. Once finished, serve over top the chicken breast.

Paired with sauteed squash and pesto-herb pearled couscous

Blueberry BBQ Pork Chops

Tell me friends, does it sound any more "summer" than this? I've had the recipe source for a few months and have held onto this for a nice summer night. My mom got to come over to enjoy this one with me and it was so fun to cook with Mama Ann. It also comes at a great time because many of my friends are participating in Blondes vs. Brunettes, a fundraiser to benefit the Alzheimer's Association, so this is also in honor of them. How does this relate one may ask? Well studies have shown that blueberries can help to improve brain function, so it can be a good preventative food to help combat Alzheimer's disease and dimentia.

This dish has everything going for it - it looks good and tastes great! Looking at it, I didn't think that blueberries and BBQ sauce would compliment each other, but the unique flavor of the sauce provided a little sweetness with a kick of heat.

Nutritional Facts: 352 calories, 15g total fat, 51mg chol, 36g carbs, 21g protein, 26mg calcium per serving (serving size is equivalent to one pork chop with 1/4 cup sauce)

Grocery List:

• 1/2 cup minced shallots
• 1 poblano pepper, seeded and minced (or jalapeno but I used poblano instead)
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cups fresh blueberries
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (directions said packed, but I left it loose)
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 2-4 bone in pork chops (4-6 oz. each)

This is one that you will want to use some kind of grilling devise for, so I turned on my Egrill and brushed my grates with oil.

Start by sauteing the shallots and the poblano pepper in oil in a saucepan over medium heat until soft - about 2 minutes.

Add blueberries, vinegar, brown sugar, Dijon, garlic powder, and salt; simmer until the sauce thickens - about 3 minutes.

The directions instructed me to puree the mixture but my food processor was in the dishwasher and I didn't feel like make a mess with the blender so I decided not to, but if you are able to, try that out! If you puree, move back into the pan, if you don't, keep it on low heat and either way, now is when you stir in the lemon juice. Because I didn't puree, I used my wooden spatula to help crush the berries. Let simmer for about 2 minutes more, then remove from heat and set aside.

I haven't ever been the biggest fan of the pork chop: it can be a little too tough for my liking but I really enjoyed this. I asked the butcher the difference between the bone in and the filleted and he recommended I go with the bone in for more natural flavor, so I did. Grill the pork chop covered for about 6 minutes per side, until a thermometer reads 155 degrees. While grilling, brush some of the sauce over the chops the final few minutes on each side.

While the pork was grilling, I threw an ear of corn on with the grill (as you can see above) and tossed a simple spinach/arugula salad adding grilled corn and fresh blueberries to serve with the pork. I added 1 tbsp. champagne vinegar, about 1 tbsp of the rest of that fresh lemon used for the BBQ sauce, 1 tbsp. of olive oil, mixed it all up for a simple vinaigrette. Serve it together for a summer time delicious dish!

Make a Meal: Mongolian Flank Steak and Noodle Salad

This recipe comes out of Cuisine Lite's Easy Weeknight Meals and I highly recommend it as a nice switch up. The combination was perfect and plenty filling but altogether very healthy for you. The trick to this recipe is scoring the meat to allow the marinade to penetrate into the meat and soak in all of the flavor. The cook time was about 45 minutes total and collectively as a meal, this consists of 349 calories, 16g total fat, 19g carbs, 34g protein, 51mg calcium per serving.

Grocery List:
For Mongolian Flank Steak

• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tbsp. rice vinegar
• 2 tbsp. minced garlic
• 2 tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. chopped fresh ginger
• 1 tsp. Sriracha 
• 1 tsp. chili paste
• 1 1/2 lb. flank steak, trimmed

For Noodle Salad

• 1 package Udon or Yokisoba noodles
• 1/2 cup slivered red onion
• 1/2 cup thin strips carrot
• 1/2 cup thin strips bell pepper
• 1 tbsp. fresh cilantro leaves
• 1/2 cup reserved sauce (from above)

Start by heating your grilling surface and make sure to brush the grill grate with oil. Combine the hoison, broth, vinegar, garlic, sesame oil, brown sugar, ginger, soy sauce and Sriracha in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Score one side of your flank steak in a diamond pattern and place in a resealable plastic bag. Pour all but 1/2 cup into bag and marinate at room temperature for about 20 minutes. Make sure you move the steak around to allow both sides to coat with marinade.

While your steak is bathing, boil your noodles in a large pot - these noodles cook fast. Drain and let cool, running cool water over them to assist.

After 20 minutes of marinating, take your meat and throw it on the grill to cook for 5 minutes, then flip the meat and grill until desired preference - about 3 minutes more was medium-rare.

 

Meanwhile, take your thin strips of bell pepper - as you can see below...

and your thin strips of carrot....(I grated it with a knife like Juliette Lewis in Christmas Vacation when she asks her mom if it would be indecent for the grandparents to stay at a hotel because when Alexander called, Grandpa told him she was using the bathroom and that's humiliating)

and your thin slices of red onion (done with a mandoline)....

Combine them all together in a bowl with the noodles and cilantro, adding in the reserved Mongolian marinade and tossing together.

Add some chopped scallions for garnish if you would like!

Finally, transfer the beef to a cutting board and using a serrated knife, slice at an angle against the grain into thin long strips of steak.

Put it together and you have a delicious and nutritious meal! Top the beef with additional leftover sauce, as shown in the intro, if it strikes your fancy.