Crock Pot Pork Roast with Sauerkraut

Tom and I have been trying to eat more of what we have in our fridge and freezer and buy less groceries every week. I was digging around and found a pork roast and some leftover sauerkraut and came up with a dinner plan that took about 5 minutes to prep.


All you need is a crock pot, preferably a cute one with owls on it, a pork roast, sliced onion, sauerkraut, and whatever meat seasoning you prefer. One thing I have been doing since I heard Michael Symon talk about it is seasoning the meat the night before cooking. I did that with a seasoning blend and I really think it makes a difference in the final flavor of the meat.


Layer in the onions, if you want you can also add some potatoes in.


Put the roast on top of the onions.


Top all of that with the sauerkraut and pop it on low for 8-10 hours.


I sauteed up some broccoli to go on the side and dinner was ready with no fuss and hardly any dishes to do!

I hope you all have a great week!!

Pork and Poblano Stew

I told you about my quest for weight loss and how I am cutting those evil but so delicious carbs and dairy. Some people asked what I am eating instead. Well, I have been eating a lot of stir fries and lots of beans, cruciferous veggies, eggs, and lean protein. When I saw this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens I was thrilled that it pretty much fit into my new eating habits.


I made the full recipe because I can freeze some and have a quick dinner when I don't feel like cooking.

Somehow I managed to forget to take an ingredients photo...but you can just take a look at what you need in the recipe. Poblano chiles are often labeled Pasilla peppers and they are very mild. If you really want to kick this up use a jalapeno or a serrano.


First you want to chop up your pork.


Measure out your OJ.


Chop up your onions and peppers. Biz is about to vomit at this point seeing those onions I am sure.


Season the pork with chili powder. It is easiest to just get your hand in the bowl to make sure the meat gets coated.


Look everyone it is my Microplane that was featured in my last favorites post. I used it to zest the orange that is still sitting on my cutting board. I don't really like fruit...maybe I will just juice it.


Get your pork into a pan with some olive oil and let it brown for about 5 minutes.


Yum, gotta love pork tenderloin but now it needs to get the heck out of there.


It is the veggies turn in the pan. Cook those for about 5 minutes as well.


Add in the tomatoes, broth, and the cinnamon stick.


Cover it up and walk away for 10 minutes. You can use that time to clean up the kitchen or just play around on instagram and text some friends. I won't say which one I did but if you follow the user 'wiliger' on instagram you may be able to figure it out.


So after 10 minutes take off the lid, add the pork and orange zest in and let that hang out for about 5 minutes. Then go fishing for the cinnamon stick, it will hide from you, I promise.


Look at that delicious and filling stew on my nice fall themed table, too bad it is 90 degrees here. But I still loved this stew and will definitely make it again. The stew tastes totally different than it smells, I loved all the complexity of flavor and texture.

I hope you all have an awesome week.

Roasted Pork with Cajun Coleslaw

I think I have confessed my love for pork tenderloin on here numerous times, but I will say it again that this is one of the best cuts of meat out there. I love finding new recipes that use it and the Food Network Magazine had a real winner.


When I saw the ingredients for the Cajun Slaw I knew I had to make this whole meal. I cut it in half, but the hubby ended up eating some of the slaw, I was amazed. He wouldn't touch the pork though.

Preheat your oven or toaster oven to 400 degrees and lets grab some ingredients.


You will need some cole slaw mix, brown sugar, red pepper, horseradish (missed the photo shoot), green onion, mustard, old bay, mayo, lemon and of course some pork.


Chop up your veggies.


Measure out your old bay, brown sugar and salt.


Get your hands in there and rub that pork and really press in those spices.


Sear the pork on all sides in a pan with olive oil over medium heat.


Get the pork into your preheated oven and cook until it is 145 degrees, about 15-20 minutes.


While the pork is cooking mix the mayo, mustard, lemon juice, horseradish and some of the Old Bay and brown sugar. This dressing has SO much flavor, I am definitely making it again.


Get all the veggies in a bowl, doesn't that look delicious already?


Pour on the dressing.


Don't forget your pork! Get it out of the oven at 145 degrees and let it rest for about 5 minutes.


Give your slaw a stir and you are ready to eat!


I wish I had this meal in front of me right now, it was so good. The slaw had such a kick and the pork was tender and delicious.

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend!

Spicy Pork Stir Fry

I was impressed with the taste and the simplicity of my first recipe from the Weight Watchers cook book so I thought I would try another. One of my favorite cuts of meat is the pork tenderloin. I also love to pair pork with pineapple so I thought this recipe looked perfect.


This looks super simple. The most important thing about making a stir fry is making sure your prep is done and you have read the recipe and understand what you have to do. Stir fries move quick so you have to have everything near by and ready to go in the pan.


You will need pork, pineapple, ginger, oil, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, peppers, tomato and onion.


Chop up the pork, try to make it all about the same size.


Chop up all of your veggies and garlic.


Drain your pineapple. In hindsight I probably would have chopped these chunks a little finer also.

Again, make sure you have everything ready to go...this cooks over high heat and things cook fast.


Once your oil is hot, drop in the pork. Stir fry for about 2 minutes until its browned. Get it out of there but leave the oil in the pan.


Drop in the peppers and cook for about 3 minutes.


Green onions in, 30 more seconds. Keep stirring, there is a reason they call this stir fry!


Pineapple, 30 more seconds of cooking...


Here is where it gets exciting, everything else in the pan, including the pork. Cook it for about 2 more minutes and you are ready to eat. Well, the recipe says sprinkle with cilantro first, but you know that aint happening here!


Absolutely delicious, and fast! You could serve this over some brown rice as well. This is the kind of thing that makes me sad for my husband, I know he would love it if he would just TRY it. But he insists he does not like pork, so he misses out again.

I hope you are all having a great week!

Crock Pot Baby Back Ribs

I have made these ribs a couple of times and I cannot tell you how easy they are. This is not a single portion meal but that is just because I love the leftovers too. Preheat your oven to 400 and lets get started.


You just need the ribs, some grill seasoning, salt and whatever sauce you like. I love Sweet Baby Ray's sauce.


Rub the meat with your grill seasoning and salt.


Put it on some nonstick foil and get it in the oven. Let it cook for about 20 minutes, then give it a flip and leave it in for another 20 minutes.


Let the rack rest for about 5-10 minutes and then we make the cuts!


Chop it into individual servings.


Get the ribs in the crock pot and drown in the sauce. Pop on the lid and put it on low for about 6-8 hours.


I served them up with some couscous salad which didn't turn out that great, but the ribs were DELICIOUS! I hope you give them a try and that you like them as much as I do.

Cumin and Lime Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Spicy Creamed Corn

Today I am doing another Rachael Ray recipe, I really do like her cookbooks. This is a great combo meal that tastes great and looks nice on the plate.



Preheat your oven to 500 degrees, I used my toaster oven for this meal.

And now you will need some ingredients...


You will need some cream, jalapeno, red pepper, lime, onion, garlic, flour, pork tenderloin, chicken broth and some corn.


You also need some spices, but they didn't make it in time for the first picture. I don't have coriander so I just used paprika instead. This recipe also calls for parsley and cilantro. I will add parsley in the end but you will not see me using cilantro on this blog. Ever.


Lets get going! Chop your onion.


Chop your jalapeno and garlic.


Smash some more garlic to be put into the tenderloin. Don't worry about uniformity here, just smash it with your knife.


Juice the lime.


Measure out some of that delicious cream.


Slather the pork with salt, pepper, your spices and the lime juice.


Make some slits in the tenderloin and shove the garlic you smashed up into the newly made holes. Drizzle some olive oil on these beauties and get them in the oven.

When the pork is about 5 minutes from completion, melt some butter into olive oil in a small skillet.




Add in the corn, peppers, onions, jalapenos, salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes.


Your pork should be nearing completion, get it out and let it rest. This will allow all the juices to redistribute into the meat.


We have to get back to our corn! Sprinkle the flour over it and give it a stir and let it cook for a minute.


Add in the chicken stock and the cream and give it a stir. Bring it to a simmer and lower the heat and let it bubble away for about 5 minutes. Add in some parsley at the very end and you are ready to plate.


This was so delicious. I don't know what I liked better, the corn or the pork. I will be making both again for sure.