Getting back on track

Tags

cabbage, chicken, healthy, low carb, paleo, paleo diet, plantains, sweet plantains

 

Its been a while.

Between getting engaged, losing my wedding venue and moving (yes, moving!) I haven’t had the time nor the mental energy to sit down and commit to a post. But in the weeks that have passed, a lot has changed. I am sitting in my new living room with my new view of the Manhattan sky line, I have appointments with potential wedding venues and my healthy diet has been on track. Everything gets put into perspective when you go through trials. Before Brent and I moved, the potential move hung over my head and stressed me out. I was depressed over having to start over looking for a new wedding venue. But that all changed when we got the keys to our new home and started the moving process. Moving in general sucks. The only good thing is the fresh start and forcing yourself to get rid of things you don’t need. For five long days, we made a million trips from one apartment to the other with a shopping cart and a dolly. I didn’t think of our wedding once during the move and when the move was finally done, I was so appreciative that I could check one thing off my list. And you can imagine my relief after Brent and I moved heavy furniture with just the two of us and one out of two elevators out of order. One thing is certain, looking for a venue will be a cake walk compared to this move.

I won’t lie, the next few posts are back logged from when i was cooking regularly. Brent and I have been surviving on take-out for 3 meals a day, for 7 days straight. The day we moved in, I made a breaded tilapia filet with broccoli and mac and cheese. It was all we had in the new place but was so happy to use my new kitchen! Below is a hearty low-carb dinner that was thrown together last minute. If you’re paleo, this is 100% paleo. If you’re not paleo, this is 100% delicious and just so happens to be low carb.

Roasted chicken with sauteed cabbage and sweet plantains.

 

To start, I preheated the oven to 450*. I lined a baking pan with foil (for easy clean up) and placed well seasoned chicken thighs and drumsticks in a single layer. Roast the chicken for 30 minutes on each side.

 

While the chicken is roasting, prepare the sides. For the cabbage, i shredded half a head of cabbage and sauteed with a sliced of chopped bacon. The bacon drippings made for a nice base for the cabbage. Season the cabbage with salt and pepper and saute over a medium heat for about 10 minutes or until cabbage reaches desired texture.

To plate, i served B 3 pieces of chicken, a cup of the sauteed bacon cabbage and half of a plantain that was lightly fried in olive oil. I had 2 pieces of chicken.

A simple, healthy, and delicious dinner for any week night. Just give yourself a little extra time for the chicken. I like mine with a nice crispness on the skin.

Beef Stuffed Cabbage

Tags

beef, cabbage, dinner, healthy, light lunch

When I was in junior high school, or middle school, or secondary school, what have you, I remember fondly when a student brought in a dish for my homeroom teacher that she not only squealed about but loved so much that she devoured it in class. In front of us. Right before lunch.
It didn’t sound wonderful but watching her stuff her face with reckless abandon, I could not understand her excitement. Now, 18 years later (FML), I finally got around to making the dish that made my 6th grade teacher swoon.
Stuffed Cabbage.
How extremely weird is it that I have never had stuffed cabbage?
The inspiration came from a giant head of cabbage that my mother was trying to  get rid of. Normally, since the family is trying to be more health conscious, mom will slice up a cabbage and boil the leave with salt, pepper and a little olive oil. It’s pretty good but how much boiled cabbage can one eat? I got pretty tired of it. I sought a healthy version of stuffed cabbage and I am really happy to share this recipe after I made some tweaks to it.
 
Ingredients:
8 leaves of Savoy cabbage
½ lb lean ground beef
½ cups cooked bulgur
¼ cp seasoned breadcrumbs
1 medium carrot, grated
1 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large eggwhite
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 28 oz jar of sweet basil and tomato sauce
 
Directions:
If you  have a microwave, wrap cabbage leaves in plastic wrap or moist paper towels and microwave on high for 2 minutes.

If you are like me and don’t have a microwave, steam the cabbage leaves (I used my steamer but you can boil them for a few minutes) to soften them up. Cut out the spine of the leaf and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the beef, bulgur, breadcrumbs, carrot, onion, garlic, egg white, salt and pepper.

Combine until all the ingredients are well incorporated into the beef.

Preheat the oven to 300*.
Spray and baking pan with cooking spray and spread ½ cup of sauce into the pan.
Place ¼ cup of the beef mixture into each cabbage leaf and roll up like a burrito. Fold two opposite ends in towards the center and then fold the bottom “lip” up and roll.

Place the cabbage roll seam side down in the sauce. And repeat until there are no more cabbage leaves.  Pour the remaining sauce over the cabbage rolls, cover the pan with foil and bake for 2 hrs.

A serving yields 2 rolls. I made this for lunch. It was a bit heavy for lunch. I recommend this for dinner with, perhaps a salad on the side.