When I married my husband, he told me that he did not like pork chops. This Spinach & Feta Stuffed Pork Chops recipe changed his mind! I found it perusing the Cooking Light magazine website a few months ago, and I’ve made it many times since. The addition of feta, sun dried tomatoes and lemon give the dish a lovely Mediterranean flavor, and the spinach keeps it full of veggies. It looks special enough to serve to company or on a special occasion, but start to finish it takes me about 30 minutes to make.

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 4 garlic cloves, minced and divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 5 sun-dried tomatoes, packed without oil, diced
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
• 3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) block-style fat-free cream cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind
• 4 (4-ounce) boneless center-cut loin pork chops, trimmed
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

Preparation

Preheat broiler.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 2 garlic cloves; saut? 1 minute. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, tomatoes, and spinach; saut? until moisture evaporates. Remove from heat; stir in cheeses and rind.

Cut a horizontal slit through thickest portion of each pork chop to form a pocket. Stuff about 1/4 cup spinach mixture into each pocket. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper over pork. Arrange pork on the rack of a broiler pan or roasting pan coated with cooking spray; place rack in pan. Combine remaining 2 garlic cloves, juice, mustard, and oregano in a bowl; stir well. Brush half of mustard mixture over pork. Broil 6 minutes; turn pork. Brush remaining mixture over pork; broil 2 minutes or until done. (Broiling usually takes me more like 8 minutes on each side.)

I pulled this recipe for Black Bean, Corn and Zucchini Enchiladas from a Cooking Light magazine. The vegetable filling provides a nice change from some of the more typical meat-heavy Mexican dishes.

This is a relatively time consuming recipe, but the resulting meal is well worth the effort. The enchilada sauce requires 30 minutes of simmer time, but it’s possible to save some time by preparing the vegetable filling concurrently. The magazine’s copy of the recipe suggests preparing the enchilada sauce a few days in advance and then refrigerating it. I’ve never planned far enough ahead to do this, but it would certainly be a time saver!

I have made very few changes to the original enchilada recipe. In order to reduce total calories and fat, I halved the amount of cheese used. I also sprinkle a small amount of cumin and chili powder on the vegetable filling before assembling the enchiladas. I find that this gives the filling a little more flavor, and complements the seasonings in the enchilada sauce quite nicely. It’s also worth noting that typically end up with only six enchiladas, while Cooking Light states that the recipe yields eight.

Black Bean, Corn and Zucchini Enchilada Recipe

Yields 6 servings (1 enchilada each)

1 teaspoon canola oil
2 cups diced zucchini
1 (10-ounce) package frozen whole-kernel corn
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups Enchilada Sauce, divided (see recipe below)
Cooking spray
8 (8-inch) whole wheat tortillas
1 cup (8 ounces) shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese, divided

1 ) Preheat oven to 350?.
2 ) Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 cups zucchini and corn; saut? for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
3 ) Remove from heat, and stir in beans.
4 ) Spread 1 cup Enchilada Sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
5 ) Spoon about 1/2 cup zucchini mixture down center of 1 tortilla; sprinkle with 1 tablespoons cheese, and roll up. Place seam-side down in baking dish.
6 ) Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, zucchini mixture, and 5 tablespoons cheese. Spread remaining 2 cups sauce evenly over enchiladas.
7 ) Cover with foil; bake at 350? for 30 minutes.
8 ) Uncover; top with remaining cheese (10 tbsp) . Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until cheese melts.

Enchilada Sauce

Yields 3 cups

1 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 cup diced red onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained

1) Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2) Add onion and garlic; saut? 5 minutes or until onion is tender.
3) Stir in broth and remaining ingredients.
4) Reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, my husband and I really enjoy Mexican food. This turkey taco recipe is a favorite of ours! It comes from Rachel Ray’s 365: No Repeats cookbook. While I am not a fan of her show, some of Rachel’s recipes are quite tasty and easy to whip up in a short amount of time. This meal can actually be prepared within 30 minutes, making it a perfect weeknight meal. These turkey tacos are delicious on their own, or with beans and rice. Of course, a margarita is always a welcome addition.

I have changed very little from the original recipe. In fact, my only modification is that I omit raisins. According to a site note in the cookbook, the raisins “help keep the meat moist and balance the spice,” but I’ve never bothered with them. The resulting turkey taco meat, seasoned according to the original recipe, is flavorful and moist. I like using ground turkey when I cook for two reasons: 1) It’s much cheaper than ground beef and 2) It’s a healthier option. My guests are usually surprised to find that this tasty recipe contains turkey and not the standard ground beef.

Enjoy!

Turkey Tacos

Yields 4 servings (2 tacos per serving)

1 package super-size taco shells (I like the Ortega Stand ‘n Stuff)
1 package (approx 1 1/3 lbs) ground turkey
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tsp poultry seasoning
3 garlic cloves, chopped or pressed
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 cup tomato sauce (I use a single 8 oz. can of plain sauce)

Shredded cheese, shredded romaine lettuce, diced tomatoes and salsa for garnish.

1) Heat taco shells in oven according to package directions.
2) Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and break up the meat.
3) Season the meat with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning.
4) When the meat is nearly browned, add the garlic, onions, chili powder and cumin.
5) Cook for 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft, then stir in the stick.
6) Stir in the tomato sauce and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.
7) Fill taco shells with meat sauce and top with desired garnish.