Summer Steak and Mash

The best thing to eat on a warm summer evening has to be a massive slab of meat! And you know what! You can eat red meat!!! It won’t kill you! (unless you’re veggy, then you may want to turn away) Grilling a steak is one of those traditional American past times that truly makes memorable summer nights. Sometimes, though, you live in an apartment and grills aren’t allowed, and you have to improvise. Cooking a steak on the stove top is just as productive and makes a pretty darn good steak!

And what is a steak without potatoes? But that’s starch… starch is bad…. We can’t eat starch!!! Yes, I agree! Stay away from starch! But how can you have the American standard of steak and potatoes? Cauliflower!!! It makes an amazing substitute for mashed potatoes and you won’t feel like you are turning your back on your country as you eat them!

*You will need a food processor or blender for this side dish* Starting you want to take your head of cauliflower and cut it up into florets. Make it look like broccoli that just saw a ghost and lost all its color. Once you have all your florets cut away from the core, begin boiling some water on the stove. DON’T PUT YOUR CAULIFLOWER IN THE WATER!!! Boiling veggies removes nearly all nutrients and you might was well eat a starch because you aren’t getting any benefits from boiled veggies. Instead, steam your veggies! Now I don’t have a steamer, because I don’t know why…. But I do have a steel colander! I placed that on top of the boiling water and put my cauliflower in the colander. Make sure the water stays in the pot and doesn’t come into the colander. Cover the colander and let the florets steam for 7-10 minutes. While they are steaming go ahead and grab 2 cloves of garlic, mince it up and throw it in your food processor. Also toss in about 2 tablespoons of fat free cream cheese, a little coconut oil, like a tablespoon at most, and salt and pepper to taste. Once the florets are steamed, toss those into the food processor and close the lid. Turn up to the fastest setting and let it blend until it is very fine. You will start to see it look like mashed potatoes and then its ready! Taste it to see if you need to add more garlic or salt or anything. Set aside and grab the steak!

Let your steak come to almost room temperature before you start cooking. The reason is that meat has tendons in it made of elastin. If elastin is cooked when it’s cold, it will turn into a rubber band material and impossible to eat and will not transfer flavor into the meat. However, if you let it reach room temperature, it will be very tender and flavorful! Best way to do this is let it sit on the counter while you are preparing the cauliflower. Seasoning the steak is very simple! Salt and pepper. That is all you need. Season both sides of the steak and gently massage it in. Heat up a skillet or griddle to high heat. Once it is hot, toss on the steak. You want to get a good quick seer on the outside of the steak. Let it cook on the first side for 3-5 minutes and then flip it over. Let it cook on that side for only 2-3 minutes, just until the sides of the meat are brown. Take from the pan and let it rest for a minimum of 5 minutes before you even think of cutting it.

I also prepared some zucchini and yellow squash to go along with the two stars, but any veggie is good for this! Recipe with my favorite veggie is here!

Serving size of the cauliflower can really be anything you want it to be cause it’s a veggie! But I usually do about half a cup per person.

This is a simple meal that makes any summer night one to remember!

Have fun impressing your friends with this mind-blowing healthy cookout meal!

What you need:

1 head of cauliflower, medium to large

2 cloves of garlic

Small amount of Fat-Free Cream Cheese

Coconut Oil

Steak

Salt & Pepper

Seasonal Veggies (Optional)

- NoPro

Power Brunch to Jump-start the Weekend

So you've been doing great with your eating. Everything has been clean, healthy, and delicious. But, now its the weekend and your friends are coming over for brunch! How on earth can you fix a delicious brunch and still keep it clean and healthy!?! Brunch is all butter and bread and calories! No fear, we've got you covered!

Avocado, eggs, and quinoa are all considered power foods! Avocados have monounsaturated fatty acids, or MUFA's. These are extremely heart healthy and, as a plus, help burn belly fat! They are also relatively low in calories and high in fiber. This means you can eat a larger portion, and they keep you feeling full longer. Eggs are proven to aid in proper dietary decisions. Studies have shown that people that start the day with an egg eat fewer calories throughout the day. Also, the yolks contain nutrients, like vitamin D and choline, that promote heart, liver, and brain health. Finally, quinoa is rich in antioxidants and flavonoids. This can reduce cell damage, increase vascular circulation, and protection for the nervous system. These foods are all great options for a tasty brunch and can jump-start your weekend of clean eating!

When buying quinoa, you want to look for organic and sprouted. The color is not important, I am using red because my amazing neighbor gave me over a pound of it because she decided her 5 pound bag was too large and she couldn't possibly consume it all. Quinoa cooks a lot like rice and grits, a 1 to 2 ratio between quinoa and water is best. So, 1 cup of uncooked quinoa gets 2 cups of water. Place the quinoa in a pot with the water and bring to a boil. As soon as you reach a boil, lower the temperature to allow the quinoa to simmer. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 10 minutes. After ten minutes, turn off the heat, fluff the quinoa with a fork, and let it sit covered for 5 minutes more on the stove.

With this quinoa, we are going to make "hash browns". Mix in a bowl 1 cup of cooked quinoa, 1 large egg, 1/2 a cup of bread crumbs, salt and pepper to taste. Heat a large skillet with about 2 tablespoons of coconut oil melted in it. Once the oil is melted, portion out your quinoa mixture onto the skillet. Flatten them into patties with the back of the spatula and cook on both sides until it starts to brown, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Once they are browned, transfer them a plate with a paper towel to soak up the excess oil.

Now for the avocado, make sure you have enough for 1 half an avocado for each person. To see if an avocado is ripe, gently squeeze it. You want a slight give, but not mush. Another way is to remove the stem cap at the top, if its green leave it be but if its light brown you're good to go, if its a dark brown, or black, its over ripened and you don't want it.... trust me..... blegh!

Turn on your ovens broiler on low and start slicing the avocado from the top and slice down the middle, wrapping around the pit. hold the avocado in both hands and lightly twist to separate the two halves. Take your knife and slam it into the pit, twist carefully to remove the pit. Place the halves, inside up in a baking dish just large enough to hold all of them. Top the avocados with a single slice of prosciutto, with a hole matching the divot from the pit in the avocado. Crack the egg and get the yolk right in that hole. Place the avocados under the broiler for about 7-10 minutes. You want the prosciutto to start to curl and the whites of the egg to turn, well, white. You will also start to see the exposed parts of the avocado to start to toast and turn brown. Once this all happens, they are ready!

When you pull them out of the oven, lightly salt and pepper them and if you like an extra kick, drizzle them with some Sriracha! Place the "hash brown" and an avocado half on a plate and serve with a Bloody Mary or mimosa!

Enjoy your brunch and know that you have just thrown yourself into a weekend full of healthy eats!

What you need:

• Quinoa
• Avocado
• Prosciutto
• Eggs
• Coconut oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Sriracha (optional)

Cuban Sandwich and the Start to a Great New Relationship

A new relationship is forming between the US and Cuba, and I couldn’t be more excited! This is a culture that is vibrant and passionate. They love their food and they love each other, and I think we, as Americans, could learn a thing or two from them! One of my favorite Cuban inspired foods is the Cuban sandwich! It is full of flavor and you can taste the love in every bite, if it’s made right.

A Cubano is a hot pressed sandwich consisting of ham, pulled pork, pickles, Swiss cheese, and Dijon mustard. It brings influence not only from Cuba, but also Italy and Spain. This sandwich is often baked, but to be authentic, it must be pressed on a panini press. Since I’m a “NoPro” I will be using my George Foreman grill as a panini press.

Now, I’m not going to lie and say that this is a simple sandwich that you can make really quick before work. It takes time and attention to detail to make it truly great. On average, it takes me anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half to make the sandwich, but it is more than worth it!!! In my exploration of a healthier lifestyle, this is one dish that I intend to carry over. So, with health in mind, I edited the traditional recipe slightly with much success!

The biggest change to help this sandwich go from fat saturated heaven to simply heaven is replacing the butter and heavy oils with a healthier choice. I decided to try coconut oil and was pleasantly surprised! I used coconut oil in everything from the marinade for the meat, to the wash on top, and even for the fries on the side!

Another healthy substitute is using shredded turkey instead of pork. Traditional Cuban sandwiches use ham and pulled pork, both fatty meats. Turkey is a lean meat that can absorb the flavor of the marinade just as well as the pulled pork.

Also, in the Cuban vinaigrette I use coconut oil rather than a heavy olive oil. To make the vinaigrette, mix together ½ a cup of white vinegar, 1.5 cups of coconut oil (liquid), 2 tablespoons of sea salt, 4 cloves of finely minced, or pressed, garlic, ½ a teaspoon of dried mustard, 1 teaspoon of dried oregano, and crushed black pepper to taste. The easiest way to mix this together is to put all the ingredients in a container that can tightly seal and then shake vigorously. This can be prepared ahead of time and actually makes a great salad dressing as well!

Once the vinaigrette is well mixed, add about 2-3 tablespoons to a ½ pound of shredded turkey. Toss the meat to ensure even coverage and let the meat sit for at least an hour. Once your meat is soaking up all the amazing flavor, go ahead and turn on your pressing device. You want to make sure this has a good chance to get very hot!

While the meat is soaking and the press is heating, you can start preparing to build the sandwich. Now, the only substitute I refuse to make is with the bread. The foundation of the sandwich is the light Cuban bread. This bread may not be the healthiest option, due to lard being included in the ingredient list, but for a Cuban sandwich, I feel that it is irreplaceable. If you must change it out, you can use a whole grain baguette style bread or even an unleavened pita style of bread.

With one loaf of Cuban bread, I usually get three to four sandwiches out of it. Its built, however, as one large sandwich. Starting with the loaf, sliced down the middle, put a thin layer of mayonnaise on the bottom piece. I know what you’re thinking, “mayonnaise is not healthy at all!” but I made my own, and when you control the ingredients, you can make anything healthy. My mayonnaise recipe will be posted at a later date.

On top of the mayonnaise, place an overlapping layer of Swiss cheese, lay one slice and lay the next slice starting in the middle of the previous slice, about 4-5 slices. The next layer is the ham. I do replace the traditional ham with a low-fat ham, because all the extra fat just isn’t needed. Place a single layer of ham over the cheese. Once your turkey has finished soaking up all the flavor, place that on top of the ham down the middle of the sandwich. The next layer is the pickle. It is very important to use a dill pickle here to ensure the proper taste combination. You want the pickles to almost completely cover the turkey. Atop the pickle layer, the final layer is a drizzle of Dijon mustard. The amount of mustard is purely based on taste. If you like mustard, load it on, or you can go lighter.

Once the mustard is on, top the sandwich off with the top of the loaf. At this point, you can cut the sandwich into smaller sandwiches, 3-4 from a standard Cuban loaf. For grilling a Cuban, you are supposed to put a generous layer of butter on the top of the bread to give it a golden, crispy crust. Butter isn’t that great for you though, in case you hadn’t heard. Coconut oil, however, is a great substitute! Brush liquid coconut oil on the top of the bread and prepare to press.

At this point, your press, or George Forman grill, should have been heating, closed, for about 30 minutes, if not just wait and get it very hot. Once the press is super-hot, place the sandwich on and press down to “flatten” the sandwich. The sandwich will not actually flatten due to the shear amount of stuff in it, but you want to pretend that’s what you are doing to it. Let the sandwich cook on the press for about 7-10 minutes, or just until the cheese starts to ooze out. It is imperative not to lift the press while the sandwich is cooking, you want an even crisp crust and constant heat is needed. Once the sandwich is done simply slide it off the press and serve on a plate, in a basket, or wrapped in deli paper. Make sure the sandwich is served hot!

I made a healthy French fry side dish to go with my sandwich, and that recipe will be coming soon! It truly is amazing what you can do with coconut oil!!!

If this is your first experience with Cuban culture, I truly hope that you will do some research into the benefits of a Cuban-American alliance and urge your federal representatives to pursue a healthy diplomatic relationship with our neighbors in the Caribbean!

What you’ll need:

Sandwich:

1-pound low fat ham, deli sliced

1-pound turkey, deli sliced or pulled (marinated in Cuban vinaigrette)

1 loaf of Cuban bread

1 jar of dill pickles, sandwich stacker slices

4-5 slices of Swiss cheese

Dijon mustard

Homemade mayonnaise

4-5 tablespoons of coconut oil (liquid)

Cuban vinaigrette marinade:

1.5 cups of coconut oil (liquid)

½ cup of white vinegar

4 garlic cloves

Sea salt

Black pepper

Dried mustard

Dried oregano

Serving of 3-4 takes about 1-1.5 hours and about $40

-NoPro