Crock Pot Balsamic Pork Tenderloin

This spring our older son started t-ball, his first team sport with practices & games & we're loving it! Well, our younger son decided that since Matt would be busy with t-ball, he wanted to go back for round 2 of swim lessons. So now on Tuesdays at our usual dinner time, we pack up & head downtown to the YMCA for a bit. It works out great, really. The time of lessons makes me prepare dinner in the morning or early afternoon so that it's ready when we get home & they boys usually join the clean plate club since they've been swimming, which always works up an appetite! Crock pot recipes are my go-to Tuesday night meals.

I've made this recipe a few times & we all love it. It's super versatile & can be paired with any vegetables to complete the meal.

Recipe

Serves 8

• 2 one-pound pork tenderloins
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons liquid amino acids (or reduced sodium soy sauce)
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 4 cloves garlic, minced (2 teaspoons jarred, minced)

Directions

•   Place tenderloins inside of crock pot.
• Mix water, balsamic vinegar, amino acids, honey & garlic in a small bowl & pour over pork.
• Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours, flipping tenderloin over once or twice to baste in sauce.
• Remove pork from crock pot with tongs. Slice into 4 oz portions & top with sauce.
• I served ours with steamed broccoli & maple-cinnamon roasted sweet potatoes.

21DF: 1 Red, 1 Yellow & 1 Green (if served with sweet potatoes & broccoli)

Apricot-Basil Chicken with Freekeh & Zoodles

I love adding new elements to a dish, such as a different grain. I always feel that in order to have a complete dinner there should be some protein, a vegetable or two, and a grain. I try to mix it up; sometimes we'll have a side of whole wheat pasta, Israeli couscous, or bulgar. When I saw this recipe with Freekeh (pronounced free-ka, not free-key as I prefer), I had to give it a try!

Freekeh are grains that are harvested while they're still young, which allows them to contain more protein, vitamins & minerals than the same mature grain. It is low GI, low carb, high in fiber (up to 4 times the fiber of brown rice) & rich in prebiotic properties. Freekeh would be a great choice for individuals managing diabetes.

So now that you've learned a little more about Freekah, let's check out this recipe that boasts a sweet sauce:

Recipe (adapted from Cooking Light magazine, May 2015)

Serves 4

• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/4 cups unsalted chicken stock, divided
• 1 cup freekeh
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
• 4 (4-ounce) skinless boneless chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil

Directions

• Combine 1 1/2 cups water, 1 cup stock, freekeh, 3/8 teaspoon salt, & 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover & reduce heat to medium & simmer 18 minutes or until tender.
• Combine remaining 1/4 cup stock, wine, & apricots in a small bowl.
• Sprinkle chicken with remaining salt & pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken; cook 7 minutes or until done, turning once. Add apricot mixture to pan; cook 2 minutes. Stir in butter; remove from heat.
• Place 2/3 cup freekeh on each plate. Top each serving with with 1 chicken breast; divide sauce evenly among servings & sprinkle with basil.
• I served ours with zoodles sauteed in olive oil and garlic.  

21DF - 1 Red, 1 Green, 1 Yellow, 1/4 Purple, 1 teaspoon

Menu Monday - 5.4.15

Long time no type! We've been busy around here, and my blogs have taken quite the backseat, but I am back this week with another installment of Menu Monday! I'm starting another round of the 21 Day Fix today, so I've really taken the time to meal plan dinners and some lunch options in order to have a successful round. You know the saying: "fail to plan; plan to fail."

If you're not familiar with the 21 day fix, you should for sure check it out! I love this program for a few reasons. #1 it's all made up of REAL food. Clearly I enjoy cooking, when I have time, so it's really important to me to focus on clean eating. #2 the workouts are 30 minutes a day, with some yoga (my favorite) on Sundays. I would do an hour of yoga every day if I had time. #3 you see results! Since the beginning of the year I've lost 15 pounds, and that was only with 1 round of the fix and a couple 3 day refreshes. I'll be the first to admit I have quite a bit of baby toddler weight to lose, so every pound counts for me!

Anyway, on to the Menu plan:

Our Menu for the Week of 5.4.15

Monday - Apricot-Basil Chicken with Freekeh

Tuesday - Crock Pot Balsamic Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Steamed Cauliflower

Wednesday - Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Chicken, Garlic & Red Pepper with Lemon-Caper Broccoli

Thursday - Coconut Shrimp with Apricot Sauce & Brown Rice with Peppers & Onions

Friday - Balsamic Glazed Steaks with Mushroom & Herb Risotto & Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Saturday - Grill out with Friends

Sunday - Mother's Day... it's not my responsibility! (or, at least I hope not...)

Some lunch ideas for the week are Italian Wedding Soup (with leftovers from Wednesday),  Tomato Basil Spaghetti Frittata (with more leftovers from Wednesday), Avocado Egg Salad Wraps.

Stop back to see some of these recipes featured!