Simple Beef Wellington... a meat lover's dream

Ingredients:
1.5 lbs Beef Loin (makes 4 servings, you might have to ask your butcher for the cut)
McCormick Grill Mates Steak Rub
2 Tbsp olive oil
Prosciutto
Puff pastry
1 Egg for egg wash





Directions:

1. Rub beef loin with steak rub. 
2. Tie beef loin with string in about 3-4 areas to help the beef loin keep a cylindrical shape.
3. In a pot or deep pan heat olive oil. Once oiled pan is hot sear the beef loin on each side, including the ends. For a medium cooked beef wellington I would recommend about 2 minutes each side and 1 minute per end. 
4. While the beef is searing lay out some cling wrap or saran wrap on a counter and take your prosciutto and lay it out on the cling wrap so that it forms a rectangle. 
5. Once you have seared the beef loin on all slides, remove it from heat, cut off the strings, and place in the center of the layers of prosciutto.  Doesn't really matter which way as long as the prosciutto wraps around the whole loin. 
6. Keeping the cling wrap use it to tightly wrap the prosciutto around the beef loin. Twisting in the ends to make sure everything stays nice and tight.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
7. Take your puff pastry out of the package and lay it flat on cling wrap that is lightly covered with flour. This helps to prevent the puff pastry from sticking while your trying to work with it. 
8. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Remove the beef loin wrapped in prosciutto from the cling wrap and place at one edge of the pastry. Take the puff pastry and wrap the beef loin in the puff pastry.  Try to keep it as tight as possible.  I used the cling wrap to help me with this.  Close the ends in and twist the cling wrap around, this will help to seal everything.  I then refrigerated my puff pastry covered beef loin for about 15 minutes to help it set up and keep its shape.
9. Once out of the fridge place on a greased baking sheet.  I quickly sprayed my cookie sheet with some Pam spray. 
10. Use egg wash and brush over the puff pastry.
11. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes.  If you have a meat thermometer you want the internal temp of the beef loin to be around 160 degrees for medium.  The puff pastry should be a golden brown color. 
12. Remove from oven and let it rest for a few minutes. 
13. Use a really sharp knife and serve with some sides. Enjoy!

I served mine with roasted potatoes and sauteed mushrooms but feel free to serve it with maybe a small salad or a side of corn.

Bo Luc Lac aka Shaky Beef

A yummy Vietnamese dish that's quick and easy.

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce 
4 tablespoons sugar 
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 onion, sliced 
1 tablespoon pepper 
4 tablespoons vegetable oil 
1.5 lb round top steak, thin sliced already and then slice it into strips

Directions:

• In a bowl mix together garlic, soy sauce, sugar (minus 1 tablespoon), oyster sauce, onion and pepper in a large bowl and then add the steak. Marinate for at least a half hour making sure all the steak is coated with the marinade.
• In a large pan heat oil and throw in the remaining tablespoon of sugar.  When oil is hot add in the steak and marinade.  Be careful the oil will splatter. This is when you need to shake & watch out! (<- hence the name)
• Continue to cook until the marinade becomes thicker, and meat is brown. About 15 to 20 minutes.  Then serve with rice.  Ta-da! A quick and easy recipe. 

Baked Mac N Cheese... an essential recipe for comfort foods

• Ingredients:
• 1 package elbow pasta
• 1 egg
• 2 cups 2% milk
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 4 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• (optional paprika)

Topping:

1 cup of plain bread crumbs

5 strips of bacon

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a baking dish big enough to hold all the pasta.
• Cook elbow pasta in salted water until pasta is half way cooked. About 10 minutes. Drain pasta and set aside.
• In a bowl whisk together the egg and milk.  Then add in the butter and paprika before incorporating the cheese. Combine together well.
• Place the cooked elbow pasta into the baking dish. Then pour the cheese mixture on top of the pasta.  Mix together lightly to spread out the cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper for taste. 
• Cover baking dish and place in oven.  Check on the mac and cheese in 15 minutes and stir to make sure cheese is coating all the pasta well. 
• While mac and cheese is in the oven make the bacon crumb topping.  Chop the bacon and then crisp it up in the pan. Drain in a paper towel letting the bacon grease to be absorbed and remove as much of it as possible. Add bred crumbs to bacon and mix thoroughly.
• Once the cheese is completely melted in the mac and cheese, place bacon crumb topping on top and turn oven to broil to brown the top.  Once brown it's ready to be served!

Enjoy!!!

Oh and this isn't the most healthiest recipe and there are still some fine tuning that I have to do to it.  However by request I am posting this enjoy!

Quick and Tasty Lasagna

Now this is not the typical homemade authentic lasagna.  This is a quick version to help out those that crave lasagna but don’t have the time to really make it, and for those to cut down or properly manage their serving size of their meals.  I’ve cut down the calories as much as possible to make it a bit healthier… I hope you all enjoy this!

Prep time: ½ hour

Cook time: 45 minutes

Yields about: 4 servings

Serving size: 2 in x 3 in piece

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground beef, extra lean (93% lean, 7% fat)

1 tbsp of Cayenne pepper

1 tsp Black pepper

1 tsp of garlic powder

1 clove of garlic, minced

4 cups of mozzarella cheese, fat free

1 package of barilla pasta, no boiling needed/oven ready (only 4 sheets needed for this recipe)

1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I prefer Francesca Rinaldi’s sweet and tasty sauce)

1 small container of fat free ricotta cheese

1 loaf pan, 8x3x2 or around that size so that the pasta will fit into the bottom of the pan.  You might have to fuss with the bottom of the pan so that it will fit the pasta

Directions:

• Take ground beef and brown.  Half way through browning process add in minced and powder garlic, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.  Continuing browning so that all the meat is cooked through and drain any fat that should cook out of the meat.  Once it is add in the jar of spaghetti sauce minus 2 tbsp left to the side. Bring it up to a simmer and then remove from heat.

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

• Once the meat sauce is complete this is when you can start layering.  Take your pan and place 2 tbsp of sauce you have set aside on the bottom of the pan.  This will help keep the lasagna from sticking to the bottom of the pan

• Layering should be:
• Pasta
• Thin layer of ricotta
• Meat Sauce
• Mozzarella Cheese and then repeat beginning with pasta. 
• **You should be able to make between 3-4 layers.  I usually can fit about 4 layers.
•  Cover the pan with tin foil, and place into oven.

• Let it cook in the oven at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes or until you can stick a knife into the middle of the pan and there is no resistance.  Once it is cook through remove the tin foil and use the broiler to brown the top of the lasagna, should only take about 5 minutes.  Once the top is brown you have a completed quick and tasty lasagna.  Let it cool down a little before cutting into and serving. 

Tips: Serve with a side salad with just a touch of dressing and 1 piece of garlic toast.  This is a perfect meal to make during the weekends and then freeze it for later in the week when you don't have time to cook but want a home cooked meal.  The mini sized loaf pans cuts down on the amount of time to cook, and again to help with portion control.  Also makes it easier to store in the freezer.  Also just another fact that when compared to a piece of lasagna from Olive garden at 850 calories, mine only has 814 and sometimes that can make a difference.  Also the calorie count could be smaller for mine because the portion size isn't always accurate, sometimes it's a bit smaller than what my calorie calculator calculates :-) Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts
4 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories		814.6
Total Fat		25.9 g
	Saturated Fat	8.6 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	3.0 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	10.9 g
Cholesterol		117.0 mg
Sodium		2,187.9 mg
Potassium		1,224.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate		71.6 g
	Dietary Fiber	6.5 g
	Sugars	5.0 g
Protein		70.1 g

Spicy Meatballs

Spicy Meatballs

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 35-40 minutes

Yields about: 18 meatballs

Serving size: 3 meatballs 

Calories per serving: 460 (just from meatballs and sauce not considering pasta)

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef (I used 93% lean with 7% fat, the leaner the healthier)

1/3 plain bread crumbs

1 large egg

1 tbsp of cayenne pepper

1 tbsp of black peper

1 tbsp of crushed red peppers

2 tbsp of garlic powder

1 jar of spaghetti sauce (I prefer Francesca Rinaldi’s To Be Healthy Garlic & Onion)

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients in large bowl, except for spaghetti sauce.  Once thoroughly combined, let it sit in the refrigeration for about 10 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350.
• Remove from refrigerator and form meatballs.  To be accurate on size use a ¼ cup measuring cup to make the meatballs uniform in size.  This will help you control the size of the meatballs and help them cook evenly in the oven.  Place formed meatball on a baking sheet. Then place in oven on the second to top shelf.
• Place in oven for 15 minutes, or till tops of meatballs are brown.  If there is any grease that collects on the pan, go ahead and remove the grease.  Then return back in to the oven and rotate the meatballs so that the bottom of the meatball gets browned. Cook until done. You’ll know when it is finished when the juices from the meatball runs clear.
• Place spaghetti sauce in a deep pot.  Once the sauce is heated add in cooked meatballs. Let the meatballs simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.

** This is my healthy take on meatballs.  It's not the traditional Italian grandma recipe, cause let's face it I'm Asian! lol.  But this is what I make for my healthy eating boyfriend and what I suggest for my friends who are watching what they eat and eating towards a healthier lifestyle.  Enjoy!!**

Tips:

I like to serve my meatballs with whole wheat pasta and 1 piece of garlic toast.  

6 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories		460.8
Total Fat		17.0 g
	Saturated Fat	5.1 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	2.1 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	2.1 g
Cholesterol		116.7 mg
Sodium		1,128.7 mg
Potassium		720.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate		36.5 g
	Dietary Fiber	5.1 g
	Sugars	2.2 g
Protein		39.7 g

Spicy BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

Spicy BBQ pulled chicken Sandwiches

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time:  1 hour
Calories per serving: 204 calories, makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

2 lbs of skinless chicken breast, trimmed cooked and shredded

1 and 1/3 cups of water, Divided

1 cup of bbq sauce, divided (any brand, if you use lite the calorie count will be less)

2 tbsp of cayenne pepper

1 tbsp of black pepper

1 tbsp of crushed red pepper

1 clove of garlic minced

2 tbsp of hot wing sauce (any brand will do)

2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar

1 beef bouillon cube

4 burger buns

Directions:

• In a pot of hot water add chicken breast to cook completely. Once cooked, remove from water and let cool.  Shredded the chicken breast once it is cool to the touch.

• While waiting for chicken to cool make the marinade.  Combine the divided bbq sauce, water, cayenne pepper, black pepper, crushed red pepper, and garlic.

• Once chicken has been shredded in a bowl mix in the marinade so all of the chicken is evenly coated. Let stand for 10 minutes. Also Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

• In deep skillet add remaining water, bbq sauce, hot sauce, beef bouillon cube, and balsamic vinegar. Bring to a boil and then add in the chicken.  Cook on stove, uncovered for 10 minutes. Stirring occasionally.

• After the 10 minutes, cover the skillet and move into the oven.  Let cook in oven for 45 minutes stirring occasionally during the 45 minutes to make sure all of the chicken is continuously coated with the sauce. 

• Remove from oven.  Each portion size per bun should be about ½ cup of meat.  Suggestion side dish could be a small side salad. 

Tips:

This would be great in an omelet or added to a salad. 


Also here is a breakdown of the nutrition facts:

	Nutrition Facts   8 Servings Amount Per Serving   Calories 204.2   Total Fat 1.7 g       Saturated Fat 0.4 g       Polyunsaturated Fat 0.4 g       Monounsaturated Fat 0.4 g   Cholesterol 65.8 mg   Sodium 745.6 mg   Potassium 329.1 mg   Total Carbohydrate 18.0 g       Dietary Fiber 0.6 g       Sugars 14.1 g   Protein 26.5 g

Pot Roast!

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 3 hours

Ingredients:

3-4 lbs Boneless round chuck, trim off the fat

½ bag of carrots

½ an onion, chopped

3-4 large potatoes peeled and cubed

3 garlic cloves

1 cup of sweet red wine

1 small can of crushed tomatoes

1tsb of olive oil

3 tbs of Worcestershire sauce

1 12oz can of chicken or beef broth

Salt

Pepper

2 tsp Cayenne pepper

Directions:

·      In a large pot (that is also oven safe, or if you have one a cast iron pot) add in 1 tbs and heat till smoking hot, usually takes about a minute or two.

·      Preheat oven to 400.

·      While oil is heating, trim the fat off the meat if any, then season with a little bit of salt and pepper. Then add the meat to the pot to sear all sides.

·      Once all sides of the meat are seared and has a nice brown crust, remove from pot and place on a plate with a piece of tin foil over it to let it rest.

·      In the same pot add in onions, and garlic. Sauté till aromatic.

·      Then add in crushed tomatoes, chicken or beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, a little bit of salt and pepper. Bring all to a boil and then add in carrots.

·      Cook the carrots and sauce for about 15 minutes, then re-add the meat and add the wine.

·      Take the whole pot and place in the oven.

·      Every 45 minutes turn the meat so that each side has time to cook and soften in the broth. (Should be about 2-3 turns every 45 minutes). At the last turn of the meat add in the potatoes so that they cook down during the last hour.

·      You’ll be able to tell if it is done if you can take a fork and the meat shreds under the fork. If not then let it cook a little bit longer.

** You can also put this in a crock-pot to cook down on high if you don’t have an oven safe pot**

Tips:

For the next day lunch, you can shred the meat after you are done with dinner so that it’s quick to just pop it in the microwave the next day for lunch.  You can also shred the meat and freeze if you don’t want to eat it again the next day.