Spicy Lentils

I LOVE SPICY FOODS!!!  Love, love, love!!!

I love the taste, but I also love that it helps control your portions when it's really spicy.

This recipe can be altered to suit your tastes, so don't worry about that!

This is a perfect side dish for grilled chicken!!!  

Can also serve over rice as a main course.

I like mine spicy and soupy, so I add the full tablespoon of garam masala and the full 2 cups water.  Garam masala is a spice blend used in northern Indian cuisine.   Adjust as your palate prefers!

This recipe makes 2 servings.

Ingredients

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 white onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tbsp turmeric

1/2-1 tbsp garam masala* (this brings the spice, so adjust to your taste or omit)

Handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped

1/2 cup dry lentils

1 1/2-2 cups water

1/4 cup half and half

Salt to taste

Heat coconut oil in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat.  Add onion and red pepper and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add chopped garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.  Add spices and mint, heat for one more minute.

Add lentils and 1 1/2 cup water.  Bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 30-35 minutes, stirring every once in a while.  If your lentils are not tender and the water is almost gone, add more liquid and continue to cook.  Once lentils reach desired tenderness, add the half and half and stir.  Season with salt to taste.

Nutrition Information Per Serving 

Calories: 217

Carbs: 20g

Fat: 11g

Protein: 11g

Grilled Pineapple Salsa

Seriously, you need to make this.  It goes with EVERYTHING!!!  

Eat it with chips, or use it as a topping for some blackened fish, chicken, or mushrooms!

And it's also pretty!

This recipe makes a lot of salsa, but I like having it around!  You can always cut it in half!

Ingredients

1 pineapple, peeled and sliced into rings (with cores still intact)

2 red bell peppers, diced
1 small red onion, diced

1 jalapeño pepper, seeds removed, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup cilantro, chopped

Juice from 2 fresh limes

Salt

Pepper

Olive Oil

Spread out pineapple slices.  Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.  Mist with olive oil (I LOVE my Misto- and love that I found it at Marshalls!) so it doesn't stick.  Cook on a grill or griddle pan (my preference), turning every few minutes.  You want it to start to caramelize, not burn.

Remove from heat once it is softened and browning, allow to cool.  Remove flesh from core, and dice flesh, discarding the cores.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Season with salt if needed.

Spicy Shrimp and Cabbage Soup

I love soup.  Doesn't matter whether it's summer or winter, I just enjoy a big, hot bowl of soup!  I was craving soup the other day, so I took a look through my always well stocked kitchen, and created this delicious soup!

I make it a point to keep my kitchen stocked with the basics, and then some.  That way, I always have something healthy to make, and can resist ordering out or grabbing fast food.  The only thing in this recipe that I don't usually have was the cabbage, but luckily I picked up a head at the store yesterday!  I make sure to always keep a bag of frozen, cleaned raw shrimp in my freezer.  They thaw out in minutes and cook quickly, and are such a great protein!

This recipe makes 2 servings.  

Each serving has 204 calories, 31.5g carbs, .5 g fat, and 15g protein.

Ingredients

• 4 cups chicken broth
• 75g buckwheat noodles (I use Sau Tao noodles, they are pre-portioned into 75g bunches.  Each bunch has 264 calories, so depending on your noodles, you might have a higher/lower calorie count)
• 2 cups napa cabbage, roughly chopped
• 12 shrimp, raw and cleaned (if frozen, thaw before using)
• 1 tbsp sriracha sauce

Bring broth to a boil in a medium pot.  Add noodles, stirring to avoid clumping.  After about a minute, add the cabbage and sriracha.  When noodles are almost done, add shrimp. Cook until shrimp are just cooked through, about 2 minutes.

Enjoy!

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Huevos Rancheros

I will start off by saying I've never had huevos rancheros before, so I don't know how authentic this recipe is.  I can tell you that it's delicious!!!

I often get in a breakfast rut, having yogurt, oatmeal or a shake.  Sometimes I want something different, and this was perfect!

The recipe below is for a single serving, multiply as needed.  Each serving has 247 cals, 24g carbs, 8g fat and 14g protein.

Ingredients
1/4 white onion, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1-2 tbsp adobo sauce (from canned chipotle peppers in sauce, start with 1 and adjust depending on how much spice you like- I like mine spicy so I added 2 tbsp)
1 tsp salt
Pinch black pepper
1/4 tsp cumin
1 egg
1 corn tortilla (I used a Mission extra thin yellow corn tortilla, one has 40 cals)
2 tbsp reduced fat Mexican blend shredded cheese
olive oil spray

Spray pan and place over medium heat.  Add onions and sauté until softened and beginning to brown.  Add tomatoes, adobo sauce, salt, pepper and cumin.  Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, spray each side of the tortilla with olive oil spray.  Heat a pan over medium heat.  Place tortilla in pan, heat each side until it begins to form bubbles and brown.  Be careful not to burn!  Remove from pan.  

Spray pan , continue to use medium heat, and crack egg in.  I like to cover my pan with foil so that the whites set without overcooking the yolk.  Cook until desired doneness, I like mine yolky!

Plate tortilla, then egg.  Cover with sauce, and sprinkle cheese over top.  Enjoy!