Food Friday: Crockpot Pork Carnitas

This recipe is pretty easy, it uses the crockpot and would be perfect for a big gathering over memorial day weekend. It comes from Pinch of Yum.

  Ingredients-

    4-5 lbs. pork shoulder

    5 cloves garlic
    1 tablespoon salt
    1 teaspoon cumin
    1 teaspoon chili powder
    1 teaspoon black pepper
    1 teaspoon oregano
    ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
    ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
    1 tablespoon chipotle hot sauce (optional)
    juice of 2 limes
    ½ cup orange juice
    12 ounces beer (it's necessary, it makes the flavor of the whole thing)
    ½ cup salsa (I like to use a less chunky one)

   - Place the pork shoulder in the slow cooker. Roughly chop the garlic and place in the slow cooker (I actually kind of rubbed it onto the meat to get as much garlic flavor as possible, but you could just toss it in, too).

   - Sprinkle the meat with salt, cumin, chili powder, black pepper, oregano, cinnamon, and cayenne. Rub seasonings onto the pork.
   - Add lime juice, orange juice, beer, and salsa. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
   - Shred meat with two forks directly in the slow cooker (or take out, shred, and replace in sauce). It should fall apart easily.
   - Preheat broiler. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the shredded meat on the cooking sheet and pour a few spoonfuls of sauce over the top. Broil for 5-10 minutes or until you get browned edges on the pork. This is a MUST.  We debated doing it and tasted it before and after. It makes a difference. Just do it.

  

 Serve on tortillas with fresh cilantro, black beans, avocado, lime juice or whatever ya got.

This recipe is Max approved (but what isn't these days).  Have a great Memorial Day weekend!

P90X Week 2 Update

We started P90X last week and have been going strong ever since (minus when I got sick and had to skip 1 day, but I made it up don't worry). The workouts are hard, even when we are half doing them because we are either lost or exhausted. We still burn a TON of calories though. David averages 900 and me around 400 per work out. Isn't that crazy? The week 1 results are in. David has lost between 3-5 lbs (we forgot to record what his before weight was) and I have lost 0-1 lb. I was stretching to give myself credit for 1. I am not trying to loose weight, just wanted to get more fit and toned.  I wanted to share some of what we've been eating. We love our protein shakes in the morning.

 This is what our typical dinner looks like. Seasoned salmon with quinoa and brown rice and green beans. We rotate the meat with island pork tenderloin, lemon garlic chicken breasts and asparagus.

We get 1 carb/ grain serving per day and I choose to use the rice as mine. We found these microwaveable organic rice packets at Costco. They have 2 cups in them so they are perfect 2 portions. They are probably too expensive, but so worth the money since we work out after work and its usually around 7:30 before we eat dinner. I figured them out to be about $1.85 per bag ($7.40 for 4) so maybe they aren't so bad. 

Here is the recipe for the island pork tenderloin. My meat was really thick so it took more like 45 mins to cook. It's really good though.

Cajun Meatloaf- AKA the best and only meatloaf I make now

When you think of meatloaf sometimes you think of plain, dry meat, but the Pioneer Woman has transformed the regular stereotype of meatloaf.  Her recipe calls for 3lbs of meat, I portioned it out smaller and used 2 lbs and it made 2 loaves.  So click here for the original recipe (great for freezing and leftovers).

One thing that I love about the recipe is the use of vegetables. I actually feel somewhat healthy eating this. Those peppers look so fun to me. Have you ever been to California Pizza Kitchen and seen their wall art of Vegetables? I LOVE them and wish I could steal them off their walls. Okay on to the recipe.
          Ingredients

• 1 1/2 Bell Peppers (I used a red and half a green)
• Medium Onion
• 1 bunch Celery (I used 4 Ribs)
• 4 cloves Of Garlic
• 4 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire
• 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
• Optional: A Few Shakes Of Hot Sauce
• 1 cup Ketchup
• 1/4 cups Milk
• 1 cup (to 2 Cups) Breadcrumbs
• 1 pound Of Lean Ground Beef (92% Lean)
• 1 pound Ground Pork
• 2 whole Eggs
• 2 Tablespoons Honey
• Extra Ketchup for Topping

Chop all of the fresh vegetables (peppers, onions, celery) into a small dice and mince the garlic.  Over medium-high heat, melt 4 tablespoons butter.  This takes the longest time so if you are in a rush you can do most of this ahead of time.

Once butter begins to start browning, add the diced vegetables and garlic.  Add about 1 teaspoon salt.
After these have cooked for a few minutes add 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon nutmeg and 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper.  If you like it hot, add a couple shakes of your favorite hot sauce (I left this out).  Next add about 1/4 cup of ketchup.  Continue cooking and stirring for a few more minutes.  Remove from heat.  Don't the colors look magnificent in the pan, am I the only weird one that thinks so?

After allowing the mixture to cool for a couple of minutes, add about 1/4 cup of milk.  Stir until combined.  Next add at least 1 cup of breadcrumbs.  Continue adding breadcrumbs and stirring until mixture is a nice, thick paste.

In a large mixing bowl place the ground beef and pork.  Whisk 2 eggs and add to the meat.  After allowing the pasty vegetable mixture to cool down a bit, begin incorporating it into the meat.  Keep working all of the Cajun-Vegetable mix into the meat until all is blended well.  Spray meatloaf pans with cooking spray and put the meat mixture evenly between the 2 pans (I had plenty for 2).  You can also form yours right on a baking sheet (Pioneer Woman does that) or I sometimes make meatballs from this.  In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix together 1/2 cup of ketchup with about 2 tablespoons honey. Slather this sauce over the whole meatloaf. Place in a 400 degree oven for about 40 minutes.

I know this doesn't look that appetizing, but it really is great. It has just the right amount of spice, but not too much. Hope you enjoy!

Pico De Gallo/Guacamole and Spicy Shredded Pork

I was craving Mexican since that's where my siblings spent all of last week so I will post these yummy recipes for you. Both recipes come from The Pioneer Woman.

 PICO DE GALLO:

     5 whole Plum (roma) Tomatoes
     ½ whole Large (or 1 Small) Onion
     3 whole Jalapeno Peppers (I used 1, they are just too spicy for me)
     Cilantro
     Lime Juice
     Salt To Taste

 GUACAMOLE:
     3 whole Avacados
     Pico De Gallo
     Lime Juice
     Salt To Taste

Pico de Gallo:
Chop jalapenos, tomatoes and onions into a very small dice. (Leave seeds in your jalapenos for a hotter pico). Adjust amount of jalapenos to your preferred temperature. Next, chop up a nice-sized bunch of cilantro. Just remove and discard the long leafless stems before chopping. No need to remove the leaves from the stems completely. Place all of these ingredients together in a bowl and give it a good stir.
Squeeze the juice of half of one lime into the bowl. Add salt to taste and stir again.

Guacamole:
Start with buttery-soft avocados. Halve them lengthwise and remove the pits. Next, with a spoon scrape them out onto a large plate. Next, with the bottom of a clean cup (or with a fork) mash the avocados, making sure to leave it relatively chunky. Add just a couple of shakes of salt to taste. Next, add a generous helping of Pico de Gallo. Fold together. Lastly squeeze the juice of half of a lime over the top. Give it one last stir.

    Next we made Spicy Shredded Pork to make soft tacos with.
     Ingredients
     4 pounds (up To 7 Pounds) Pork Shoulder (you can use pork tenderloin, if you can't find a shoulder)
     1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
     1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
     1 teaspoon Chili Powder
     1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Salt
     Pepper To Taste
     3 cloves (to 4 Cloves) Garlic
     1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Olive Oil
     2 Tablespoons (to 3 Tablespoons) White Wine Vinegar
     ¼ cups Brown Sugar
     1 whole Onion
     Lime Wedges

Preparation Instructions
Rinse and pat dry the pork shoulder.To begin, just throw the dried oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt, black pepper, garlic, olive oil, white wine vinegar and brown sugar into a food processor or blender. Cut one onion into quarters and put it in the food processor with the spices. Blend mixture until totally combined and then pour it over the pork shoulder.

Now rub it into every nook and cranny of the meat, tucking it under folds an in crevices. Then place the pork into your slow cooker with 1-2 cups of water. Cover tightly and roast pork on low for approx. 8 hours. When it’s done let it rest for 15 minutes before shredding.

Shred the pork shoulder (two forks work well). When it’s all shredded be sure to pour the juices all over the meat. Serve with warm tortillas, lime wedges, sour cream, pico de gallo, guacamole, tomatillo salsa...

It made a ton so invite some friends or bring it for lunch!