Beef Carnitas Tacos

These were great! I omitted the cilantro because I didn't have any. I probably made the servings larger than intended, but it was still a light, filling dinner. We had a little chese and sour cream on ours.

2 cups chopped plum tomato (about 2 medium)

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup diced peeled avocado

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

8 (6-inch) corn tortillas

2 cups Beef Carnitas (Recipe below)

1 lime, cut into 8 wedges

Combine the first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl; toss well. Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spoon 1/4 cup Beef Carnitas onto each tortilla; top each with about 3 tablespoons avocado mixture. Fold in half; serve with lime wedges.

Julianna Grimes Bottcher , Cooking Light, SEPTEMBER 2006

Beef Carnitas

Cooking spray

1 cup chopped onion

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 pounds beef stew meat, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 cup less-sodium beef broth

1 teaspoon sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 large unpeeled orange wedge

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add beef; sauté 5 minutes or until beef is browned on all sides. Stir in broth, sugar, salt, and pepper; nestle orange section into beef mixture. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until beef is tender. Remove and discard orange. Continue simmering, uncovered, 8 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates, stirring frequently.

Julianna Grimes Bottcher ,
Cooking Light, SEPTEMBER 2006

Tomato and Parmesan Strata

(Cooking Light)

I really liked this. It was fairly easy, filling, and (if you trust the calculated nutritional info) pretty low in calories. The wheat bread taste was a little over-powering. I might try french bread or something else next time.

2 (1-ounce) slices whole wheat bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cups baby spinach leaves
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
3 large egg whites
1 large egg
1 cup chopped seeded plum tomato (about 2 medium)
2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375°.

Place bread cubes in a 1 1/2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add spinach and garlic; sauté 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Remove from heat.

Combine thyme, salt, black pepper, egg whites, and egg in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk. Stir in the spinach mixture and tomato. Pour egg mixture over bread cubes in baking dish; sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until set; let stand 5 minutes.

Yield: 2 servings (serving size: about 2 cups)CALORIES 186 (29% from fat); FAT 5.9g (sat 2g,mono 1.6g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 16.9g; CHOLESTEROL 112mg; CALCIUM 183mg; SODIUM 684mg; FIBER 5.3g; IRON 2.3mg; CARBOHYDRATE 18g

Cooking Light, JUNE 2007

Broccoli and Three Cheese Casserole

(Cooking Light)

This was delicious!! I'm not sure when I would ideally serve it...breakfast? dinner? It was yummy and definitely a good vegetarian option.

2 cups cooked white rice
6 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon dried fines herbes
3 egg whites
Cooking spray
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded fontina cheese
4 cups coarsely chopped broccoli florets (about 1 bunch)
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup (1 ounce) reduced-fat shredded extrasharp cheddar cheese
3/4 cup egg substitute
3/4 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 (1-ounce) slices firm white bread

Preheat oven to 400°.
Combine the rice, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1/4 teaspoon salt, fines herbes, and egg whites. Press mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle fontina evenly over rice mixture. Set aside.
Cook broccoli in boiling water for 4 minutes or until tender; drain well.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion; cook 4 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in broccoli. Spoon broccoli mixture evenly over rice mixture. Top with shredded cheddar cheese.
Combine egg substitute, milk, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper in a small bowl; stir well with a whisk. Pour egg mixture over broccoli mixture.
Place bread in a food processor; pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure 1 1/4 cups. Combine breadcrumbs and the remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle breadcrumb mixture evenly over broccoli. Bake at 400° for 23 minutes or until set.
Yield 6 servings (serving size: 1 piece)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 242(28% from fat); FAT 7.6g (sat 4g,mono 1.6g,poly 0.9g); PROTEIN 16.3g; CHOLESTEROL 20mg; CALCIUM 259mg; SODIUM 613mg; FIBER 2.5g; IRON 2.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 27.8g

Maureen Callahan
Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2006

Smothered Pork Chops with Thyme

(Cooking Light)

We didn't love these. I cooked them significantly longer than what's called for and they still seemed underdone. The sauce thickened up nicely and it was easy to do. I'll work with this one...

First, sauté the chops, then make the flavorful gravy in the same pan. Time: 30 minutes.

1 cup fat-free, less-sodium beef broth

2 tablespoons fat-free milk

2 teaspoons all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

8 (2-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (about 1/4 inch thick)

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

Cooking spray

1 cup coarsely chopped onion

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

Combine 1/4 cup broth, milk, flour, mustard, salt, and pepper in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Set aside.
Sprinkle one side of each pork chop with paprika and thyme. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add half of the pork to pan; sauté 1 1/2 minutes on each side or until pork is done and lightly browned. Remove pork from pan. Repeat procedure with remaining pork. Reduce heat to medium. Add chopped onion; sauté 4 minutes or until lightly golden. Add remaining 3/4 cup broth; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes. Add milk mixture, stirring with a whisk. Add pork, turning to coat; cook 1 minute. Sprinkle with minced parsley.
Yield 4 servings (serving size: 2 pork chops and 1/4 cup sauce)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 145(34% from fat); FAT 5.5g (sat 1.9g,mono 2.5g,poly 0.4g); PROTEIN 17.2g; CHOLESTEROL 44mg; CALCIUM 40mg; SODIUM 475mg; FIBER 0.8g; IRON 0.7mg; CARBOHYDRATE 5.8g

Cooking Light, JANUARY 2007

Italian Meatball Burgers

(Cooking Light)

These were so good! I made them with Italian seasoned fries. I also made the rolls more like garlic bread. Both adjustments were very easy, but I posted them below mostly so that I'll remember next time!

8 ounces sweet turkey Italian sausage
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pound ground sirloin
Cooking spray
2 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
6 (2-ounce) Italian bread rolls, split
3/4 cup fat-free tomato-basil pasta sauce (such as Muir Glen)

Prepare grill.
Remove casings from sausage. Combine sausage, oregano, basil, salt, fennel seeds, garlic powder, and ground sirloin. Divide beef mixture into 6 equal portions, shaping each into a 1/2-inch-thick patty.
Place patties on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes. Turn patties over; grill 2 minutes. Divide fresh mozzarella cheese evenly over patties, and grill an additional 5 minutes or until a thermometer registers 165°. Remove from grill; let stand 5 minutes.
Place rolls, cut sides down, on grill rack; grill 1 minute or until toasted. Place 1 patty on bottom half of each roll; top each serving with 2 tablespoons sauce and top half of roll.
Yield 6 servings (serving size: 1 burger)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 375(33% from fat); FAT 13.9g (sat 5.3g,mono 4.4g,poly 1.7g); PROTEIN 28.1g; CHOLESTEROL 80mg; CALCIUM 130mg; SODIUM 894mg; FIBER 1.8g; IRON 4.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 32.7g
Bruce Weinstein ,
Cooking Light, AUGUST 2007

Italian Seasoned Fries

Frozen Steak Cut French Fries

Olive oil cooking spray

Dried Basil

Garlic Powder

Kosher Salt

Grated Parmesan

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Spread out the fries on the sheet and coat with cooking spray and cook according to the directions. After turning the fries, halfway through cooking time, season them with basil, garlic powder and kosher salt. When fries are done, sprinkle them with parmesan before serving.

Garlic Bread Rolls

Kaiser Rolls

Olive Oil
Garlic Powder
Grated Parmesan

Mostly because these burgers were smaller than the kasier rolls I bought, I squared them off to make them the right size. Spray the rolls with olive oil spray or brush them with olive oil. Sprinkle with garlic powder and paremsan. Throw them in the oven with the fries for about 6 minutes.