Pork Chops with Garden Vegetables

“There is poetry in a pork chop to a hungry man” ~ Philip Gibbs

My guys have never been big fans of pork – pork chops, pork tenderloin, pork roasts, you name it. And for this reason I hardly ever get to make some of my favorite dishes. But the few times I have tried to sneak it in for dinner (which is once in a blue moon), they can always tell its “the other beef” and the meat ends up being “whats not” for dinner.

So I thought I’d try my sneaky hand once again last night, with a Pork Chop and Vegetable dish. And because the meat soaked up all the flavors of the veggies while being cooked AND I smothered the chops with the vegetables upon serving the dish, surprise surprise – no one knew it was pork. As a matter of fact, half way through our meal Mr. Big even said the CHICKEN was delicious. It wasn’t until after we finished our dinner did I let them in on my little secret, and it was then when they finally admitted they’ve been missing out on some super yummy foods all these years. Mission accomplished – my work was done!

So check out this super easy dish. It only took about 10 minutes to chop and prepare and 45 minutes tops to cook. And at only 250 calories per serving for the pork and veggies and about 150 for the cauliflower “mashed potatoes”, it’s a pretty low cal meal for those of you who are counting calories. And let’s not forget the side of Caesar Salad – yummo !!

Enjoy 🙂

Pork Chops and Garden Vegetables

Ingredients

2 tsp EVOO
4 pork chop cutlets
1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/3 cup chopped onions
1 3oz canned green chiles, diced
2 crushed garlic cloves
1/8 tsp ground cumin
1 cup butternut squash, chopped into 1″ cubes
2/3 cup thinly sliced zucchini

Directions

Heat oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté cutlets for 5 minutes per side until browned. Stir in the remaining ingredients with the exception of the zucchini. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Add the zucchini, cover and simmer 10 minutes longer or until the zucchini is soft.

Cauliflower “Mashed Potatoes”

“Green Eggs and Ham was the story of my life. I wouldn’t eat a thing when I was a kid, but Dr. Suess inspired me to try cauliflower” ~ Jim Carrey

Just to set it straight, potatoes contain none of the grain we are trying to avoid on this wheat belly diet. However because they have the potential to cause extreme blood sugar rises and many of the spuds sold today have been genetically modified, it does make some of us a bit concerned. But rest assured – you can still enjoy the “mashed potato” consistency by recreating the dish with some “healthy as heck” cauliflower. It’s easy breezy to make and has that same yummy flavor (no – even better) as moms good ol’ mashed potatoes.

Enjoy

Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes
Serves 2

Ingredients

1 lrg head cauliflower, cut into florets
2 tbls sour cream
2 tbls butter
Parsley

Directions

Place a steamer basket in a large pot with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Place the cauliflower in the basket and steam for 20 minutes or until very soft. Remove from the heat and drain.

In a blender or food processor (or mash by hand) combine the cauliflower, sour cream, and butter. Blend until smooth. Mix in the parsley