Burrito Bowls

love to try and recreate foods you can get in your favorite restaurants. This recipe is my take on the burrito bowls from Chipotle's Mexican restaurant. If you haven't had a burrito bowl, essentially it is just a burrito turned inside out or a taco salad. While these items look like a healthy choice at restaurants, they can be high in calories and fat but you can make them at home without all the calories and fat by adjusting and tweaking the ingredients a little.

One of my favorite ways to lighten up the meal is by making changes to the guacamole. My favorite way to do this is by adding zucchini to the guacamole. I promise you won't taste it, it will add more vegetables to your daily intake and it will bulk up the amount of guacamole you get to eat. Remember on PINK you should only get 1/4 of avocado and it counts as your fat. This is not only good as a dressing but also great as a dip, serve with strips of colorful bell peppers, carrots and cucumber chips to dip with.

Burrito Bowls (makes 2 servings)

6-8 ounces of Shredded pork

1/2 cup quinoa

1/2 cup diced onions

1/2 cup diced peppers

1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

1/3 cup cilantro

2 tsp. cumin

dash salt and pepper

Juice of half a lime

Lettuce

3-4 radishes sliced

Guacamole Dressing/Dip

1 avacado

1/2 zucchini

1/3 red onion

1/2 tomato

1/3 cup cilantro

dash of garlic powder

Juice of 1 lime

Dash salt and pepper

Method

You will need to start in the morning to make your pork. This is so easy to do and depending on the size of your pork roast will make a bunch that you can freeze for future meals.

You will need a lean pork-loin roast. Then you are going to put the roast into your crock-pot, season with a liberal smear of garlic, pepper, and any type of seasoning you want. I used the original Mrs. Dash. Add in about 1 cup of water around your roast. Put your lid on and set it on low. Walk away and forget for 6 to 8 hours.

When the roast is done cooking, pull it out of the crock-pot and shred with 2 two forks. You don't want to let it cool to much or it will not shred as easily. After it is shredded, set aside and finish the rest of the meal.

Next we will make the Spanish style quinoa. Start by cooking the quinoa in 1 1/2 cups of water until the quinoa has softened and the water has been absorbed/evaporated. Set aside and let cool.

While the quinoa is cooking, chop your onion, peppers, tomatos and cilantro.

Saute your onions and peppers in a mist of olive oil.

When they have softened, add in your tomato and cook for a little bit.

Add in your cooked quinoa, cilantro, cumin and salt and pepper. Stir to combine and set aside while you make your avocado dressing/dip.

To make your avocado dressing, add in the onion, tomato, zucchini and cilantro to you food processor or blender. Pulse until a fine dice is reached.

Add in your avocado, lime, dash of salt and pepper and pulse again until everything is combined into a creamy dip consistency.

To assemble the burrito bowls, lay down a bed of lettuce

Top with quinoa

Top with shredded pork

Top with 1/4 of the avocado dip

Sprinkle with sliced radishes.

Enjoy!

Everything but the Kitchen Sink Harvest Salad

When I told my hubby about salad week here at "Losin' it" he said you must post your harvest salad recipe. It is his absolute favorite salad, yes I had to modify a little bit because the original recipe calls for feta cheese which PINK asks you to avoid. Even without the feta it is spectacular. Most people when told about the salad crinkle their nose slightly due to the long list of items in the salad but every time I bring it to a potluck or party I am inevitably asked for the recipe. What is so great about it is you eat it and feel satisfied like you ate a meal instead of just a salad. Try it and let me know what you think.

Everything but the Kitchen Sink Harvest Salad (makes 2 large salads)
4 ounces chopped cooked chicken
1 hard boiled egg
4-5 cups lettuce (I used romaine but use what you like best)
1 chopped tomato
1 chopped apple
4 mushrooms sliced
1/4 of a red onion chopped
2-3 tbsp raisins or dried cranberries (choose if you want to use, I know dried fruit can be high in sugar. I chose to use because I was only having half of an apple when we are allowed a whole apple and I used so little but it is your choice)
2-3 tbsp chopped raw almonds (again choose to use if you want, almonds are a protein and with 2 ounces of chicken and 1/2 of an egg, you are technically getting your allotment of protein for the meal, but I often add an ounce or two more protein in a day which the PINK method book says is okay to do if you feel you need it.)

Balsamic Dijon Dressing
2 tbsp. Dijon Mustard
2 tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar
1 tbsp. Olive oil

Method

Chop and cook your chicken, be sure to include enough seasoning to flavor your chicken, I used pepper and an herb and garlic flavored Mrs. Dash

Chop and wash your lettuce

Chop your apples, tomato, onion, mushrooms and egg

Make your dressing by adding your oil, balsamic vinegar and mustard to a bowl and whisking together until it is combined and in consistency.

To serve make a bed of lettuce on two plates and top with the apples, onions, mushrooms, tomato, chicken and egg. Sprinkle the almonds and raisins or cranberries over the salad and drizzle with your dressing.

Enjoy!

Zucchini Asparagus Salad

I have received several emails asking about salads and salad dressing recipes which has inspired me to devote a whole week to salads here at Losin' it with P.I.N.K. First up is a salad inspired by what is in season right now which is asparagus. It screams with the flavors of spring and is light and refreshing. Serve it with some chicken and you have a salad that is a perfect meal or serve it along side another dish and you have a perfect side salad that is full of flavor.

Asparagus Zucchini Salad
1 zucchini sliced thinly using a vegetable peeler or your Saladacco if you have one
1/2 lb. of asparagus cut into 2-3 inch pieces
1/2 red onion sliced
Lettuce of your choice, I used romaine and spinach

Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and peper


Method

Make your dressing by whisking the Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper. The mustard will act as a binding agent for the vinegar and mustard and should help to create a creamy type vinaigrette.

Slice the onion, and zucchini and chop the aspargus into bite size pieces.

Pour half of the dressing over the onion, zucchini and asparagus and let the vegetable marinate.

While the vegetables are marinating, chop and wash your lettuce and spinach.

Grill the marinating vegetable on a grill pan or roast them in the oven, either will work.

As the vegetables cook, pull them off to a plate so that you don't end up with super mushy vegetables.

Once they are all cooked, let them cool a little bit so that their heat doesn't cause your lettuce to wilt.

When they are cooled slightly, add them to your lettuce along with the remaining vinaigrette.

Toss to dress the salad and Serve.

I served this as a side salad along side some Dijon Chicken

Enjoy!