Mexican Green Sauce Pulled Pork

I got the inspiration for this recipe from Well Plated Salsa Verde Pulled Pork. This is yet another super cheap and easy recipe that will save you money on groceries and time in the evening. It's also fairly healthy compared to regular pork and is 21 Day Fix friendly when served on a salad with a sprinkling of brown rice and feta cheese. 

Be sure to get the right cut of pork or it won't work - trust me I've tried! You'll want to find a big hunk of pork butt or shoulder at the grocery store (don't worry, pork butt is actually not the pig's butt). If the whole thing won't fit in your slow cooker you can chop it in half and freeze the other half for later. Pork shoulder is incredibly inexpensive so adding this meal to your regular rotation will be good for your budget and your health.

The trick to making pulled pork healthy is to pass on the barbecue sauce and add some healthy sauces and seasonings instead. Barbecue sauce is full of sugar which are just empty calories your body doesn't need. And guess what, sugar gives you body a spike of energy but then you'll crash afterwards so it's not good for your energy levels either.

Instead have the pork with a chipotle yogurt dressing which is just as tasty. Just mix 1/4 cup of yogurt with a teaspoon of chipotle seasoning and a minced clove of garlic. Add a tablespoon of both olive oil and freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice and a tablespoon of minced cilantro if you're feeling fancy.

I know this recipe has sugar in it (gasp!) but the sugar is very minimal over all - you're not drenching the pork in sugar like you would with barbecue sauce, okay? I have added a step to Well Plated's version of this recipe of frying up the pork after taking it out of the slow cooker (you don't need to add oil to the pan, the juices from the slow cooker will boil off). This step is optional but if you like crispy, charred type tastes you'll love it this way. I have my pulled pork on corn tortillas, on a salad, in a burrito - pretty much any way you can think of.

Have the pork with brown rice and veggies is a great way to get a well-balanced meal which will keep you feeling full! 

Green Sauce Pulled Pork       Makes about 12 burritos Ingredients  1 Bottle Mexican Green Sauce (salsa verde) 1 Onion, cut into quarters 4 Cloves Garlic, chopped 1 Tbsp Cumin 1 Tbsp Chili Powder 1 Tbsp Salt 2 Tbsp Brown Sugar 1 Cup Boiling water   2 Lbs Pork Shoulder or butt, small enough to fit in your slow cooker Directions Turn on your slow cooker and pour in the cup of boiling water - this helps it heat up quicker. Cover the pork shoulder in salt and pat dry with paper towel. Add all ingredients to the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 to 6 hours or low for 8 to 10 hours - it's really not rocket science. When the pork is ready it will come apart easily with two forks. Pull it apart. Fry it up in a large pan for about 10 minutes to boil off the excess juices and brown it and get it nice and crispy (this part is optional but it makes it very tasty). Serve on tortillas with cilantro, lime, avocado and yogurt.

You also might like: How I lost 15 Lbs in 60 Days or 11 Ways to Actually Complete a Workout Program

Best Turkey Burgers EVER

I got the inspiration for these turkey burgers when my mom made meatballs from the Jerusalem Cookbook. She got the cookbook "for my dad" but probably a bit for herself too. They turned out SO GOOD. Who knew turkey and zucchini were made for each other so perfectly? The zucchini makes the turkey more moist and tasty. The burgers are flavoured perfectly with mint and cilantro. 

Ideally I would use fresh mint and cilantro but my mom actually ripped open a packet of mint tea and threw it in the mix and it actually worked great! 

If you can't find any fresh cilantro (sometimes in the winter the city seems to have a mass cilantro shortage - the downside of living in Canada where the climate isn't so favourable to growing herbs in January) you can try dry coriander seed or - better yet - the coriander paste that comes in those weird tubes. 

The Jerusalem Cookbook

The book suggests making the turkey into meatballs or sliders. Instead, I made them into 8 burger patties by using a ladle to portion them so every burger was even (which also means they cook evenly). I also added some almond flour and green pepper. If you don't have any though you can leave it out and it will still work.

For the burgers I top them with avocado, tomato, lettuce, red onion and 3 year old cheddar - it was an amazing combination and made me want to eat more than just one for dinner. I talked myself down though and held off eating the second one until the next day!

This recipe is really something I can eat every day without complaining. I will probably experiment more with adding more veggies to make it even more packed with nutrition. Maybe spinach for more vitamin A?

The best turkey burgers ever!

Each burger is only 136 calories and packed with 12 grams of protein! It's definitely being added to my regular recipe repertoire. Better yet, these burgers are paleo, 21 Day Fix friendly and great on the PiYo diet. These are good if you're trying to lose weight because each burger is pre-portioned so you can't take just "a little more" burger.

Recipe Time Saving Tips: 

1. Food Processor:  To make the prep super easy grate both the zucchini and green pepper with a food processor using the grating attachment. I used my KitchenAid Food Processor which grated an entire zucchini in a  matter of seconds. Then I drained and salted the zucchini and green pepper and let it sit in a  mesh colander  for at least 10 minutes (this will help the burgers stick together). I squeezed out the zucchini a bit but I didn't focus too much on really drying them out. The drier they are the more the burgers will stick together. If you don't mind crumbly burgers though you don't have to drain the zucchini at all.
   
2. Spiralizer: You could also spiralize the zucchini using a  Vegetable Slicer . I've tried this method and it works great too. I just chopped up the zucchini noodles into smaller chunks before mixing it with the turkey.
   




3. Cheese Grater: The lowest tech option - a good ol' fashioned cheese grater like my very favourite one from Ikea here .
   
4. Mini Muffin Tin Burgers: If you don't have time to sear them you can also make them into mini meatloaves. This saves a lot of time and is great for kids that might not eat a whole burger. First spray down your Muffin Tin with cooking spray. Then take an ice cream scoop and portion 1 scoop of the burger mixture into each muffin spot in the muffin tin. Then bake for 20 minutes at 350F. Serve them with potatoes, salad or pasta like meatballs or meatloaves. The recipe will fill one muffin tray (12 servings) to the brim or two muffin trays (24 servings) about halfway full depending on how mini you want your mini meatloaves.

These burgers are great on hamburger buns or just on their own - they're that good!

Best Turkey Burgers Ever Makes 8 Burgers (or 12 mini meatloaves) Ingredients  For Burgers 1 Lb (500gr) Ground Turkey 1 Large Zucchini, grated or spiralized (about 2 cups). Let sit in a colander to drain for at least 10 minutes. 1 Egg (large) 2 Tbsp Chopped Fresh Mint (or use mint tea) 2 Tbsp Chopped Fresh Cilantro 2 Cloves Garlic, Minced 1 Tsp Salt 1 Tsp Pepper 1 Tsp Cayenne Pepper 6 Tbsp Sunflower Oil (or substitute canola oil)  1/4 Cup Almond Flour 1 Cup Green Pepper, diced 4 Green onions, diced or sliced 1 Tbsp Cumin  For Sauce 1/2 Cup Sour Cream 2/3 Cup Greek Yogurt (look for a brand that doesn't contain whey protein or milk protein... to avoid gas) 1 Tbsp Freshly squeezed lime juice (or the juice of about half of a lime) 1 Glove Garlic, minced 1 Tbsp Olive Oil 1 Tsp Salt 1 Tbsp Chipotle spice (or try za-tar if you can find it - it's a Lebanese spice mix). Directions Combine the ingredient for the sour cream sauce in a small bowl. Stir well. Refrigerate (you can make this in advance).  Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs except the sunflower oil Mix and use a ladle to make even portions. Then shape into burgers. Pour sunflower oil in a large frying pan (I use a cast iron pan that has been heated over medium high heat for about 5 minutes so it becomes non-stick). Sear about 3 burgers at a time about 2 minutes per side until they are browned and transfer to a baking sheet.  Once all the burgers are seared pop in the oven for 7 minutes. Serve hot with the sauce for dipping or serve on hamburger buns with the sauce instead of mayo. These are great with avocado too!

You also might like: How I lost 15 Lbs in 60 Days or 11 Ways to Actually Complete a Workout Program

Vegetarian Award-Winning Lentil Curry Poutine

Curried Lentil Poutine…

Update: This post was featured in Canadian Lentils Recipe Revelations as the Grand Prize winner. Thanks for all the support!

Vegan Curried Risotto with Lentils

Curried Risotto: In an effort to be healthy and incorporate more vegetarian protein into my diet I came up with this recipe using basmati rice, red lentils and broth.

Power Balls (DIY Cliff Bars)

Since starting P90X (and figuring out I was allergic to whey protein powder) I’ve been looking for whey-free ways (ha!)  to get my protein into my diet. Since Clif bars have about 10g of protein per bar I had been eating them obsessively - not the most frugal obsession (they’re cheapest at Costco if you were wondering). I was already lamenting the preservatives and various other unpronounceable ingredients in the bars when a friend informed me of the concern over hexane used to extract the soy protein they used in Clif bars. Serendipitously I stumbled upon an Energy Ball recipe from the Healthy Foodie - a fellow Canadian! I used Vegan protein powder like Vegan Shakeology because it contains a balance of different plant-based proteins.

Curried Lentil and Chickpea Dip

Curried Lentil & Chickpea Dip

Inspired by finding lentil chips (pictured above - they were tasty but not as good as rice chips) at the Bulk Barn one day I took on the challenge of making some lentil hummus. It turned out to be a tasty change from our normal hummus experiments. Any excuse to add lentils to a recipe is a good thing in my mind.

Easy Gluten-free Seed Crackers

The best thing about these crackers - other than the fact that my gluten-free friends can eat them and my gluten-loving friends actually love the taste too - is that the recipe is so easy you can pretty much memorize it after attempting it once. It basically just includes a half cup of four types of seeds - the crackers bind together through the magic of Chia Seeds (cha-cha-cha-chia!). When you add the water to the chia seeds they excrete clear jelly an stick the whole mixture together. Chia seeds are also magical because they are packed with all sorts of nutritional value - hence the name Endurance Crackers.

Make-Ahead Butternut Squash Frittata

Butternut Squash Frittata makes an awesome make-ahead brunch.

This make-ahead vegetarian Butternut Squash Frittata will save you time on weekday mornings (something I eternally need more of!) and is 21 Day Fix friendly, vegetarian, paleo and gluten free. Make it on Sunday and then eat it throughout the week. I microwave it for about 30 seconds and eat it with whole grain quinoa toast.

It's packed with protein and incredibly simple to make. Frittatas are also super versatile - you can serve it for breakfast lunch or dinner! Each serving (1/6 of a pie) is 206 calories, 10g of fibre and a whopping 126% of your recommended intake of Vitamin A. If you don't have butternut squash you can use sweet potato which has a similar taste and is also packed with vitamin A. Vitamin A is great for your skin, hair, bones and eyes. It can also help with your immune system which is why it's great to eat vitamin A rich foods in the winter when colds and flu are rampant and your skin is dry.