Seasonal Saturday is Back Too along with Fresh, Clean, and Pure Fridays!

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After taking a month off for the holidays and also to help my mother with three weeks of my father's emergency health issues, this link-up is finally BACK!  YAY!  I've have so missed reading all of your incredible posts.  So if you've been participating on this link-up before, you're familiar with the theme.  But if you're new to this link-up, here's a brief introduction and explanation for you:

Seasonal Saturday and Fresh, Clean and Pure Fridays are for any blogger that has a post related to ANYTHING FRESH or SEASONAL that you have included in your life!  It's a brand new year, 2011.  So please share any post on any way that you're starting fresh, or cleaning up, or purifying your life, your cooking, your environment . . . simple as that!

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Incredibly Good, Low Cal Pork Chops w/ Mustard Cream Sauce & Roasted Potatoes

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As promised, here is my first 'heathier' entree and side dish for 2011 that I said that I would share with you.  It is slightly adapted from one of my favorite healthy cookbooks, Fresh Food Fast by Cooking Light.  I'm a spoiled cook and diner . . . I like, I enjoy, I savour good, delicious food.  Period.  Delicious food is part of my life and always has been; it's one of the greatest parts of my Italian heritage.  So if I'm going to get healthier, the food that I put on the tip of my tongue and into my body had better be darn good!  Or it will never, ever cross my lips again.  This has always been my biggest obstacle to taking off some pounds and getting healthier.
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So my search for tasty, yummy, good recipes that are low-cal, low-fat, or even low-carb continues on.  Here's a winner.  Even my perfect cook mother raised her eyebrows in disbelief at dinner tonight.  Even my skinny, can-eat-anything husband wanted more!  That's spells a STAR in this family.  And here it is for you to try, to tweak, or even to throw out if you like (but I doubt that you'll choose the latter option)!
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One last plus:  This was prepared in less than a half hour . . . so move over Rachel Ray, this recipe is super fast and that's a big issue for a woman who works and commutes a long distance!
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Tip:  Get the potatoes in the oven and then begin preparing the pork chops in order to make this in 30 minutes.


Pork Chops with Mustard Cream Sauce

4 (4-oz) boneless center-cut loin pork chops (1" thick)
generous sprinkling of Mrs. Dash original blend (I omitted the salt and added Mrs. Dash instead)
Cooking spray (preferably olive oil-based)
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup fat-free half-and-half
1/2 to 1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard (we liked it more on the lighter mustard-y side)
2 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbsp. butter replacement (such as "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter")
Chopped parsley for garnish

Sprinkle both sides of pork with Mrs. Dash salt-substitute.
Coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray and heat it over medium-high heat.
Add pork to the skillet, and cook for 5 minutes on EACH side or until lightly browned and done.
Transfer the pork chops to a serving plate and place in warm oven.
Add the chicken broth to the pan, scraping browned bits from the pan to loosen them.
Stir in half-and-half, mustard, lemon juice and butter replacement. Taste and tweak to your taste preferences.
Reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 10 minutes or until sauce is slightly thick.
Remove pork chops from the oven and place on plates.
Spoon sauce over pork and sprinkle with chopped parsley for garnish.


Roasted Potato Wedges

1 pound small red potatoes, quartered
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs with Italian seasoning
2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan-Romano cheese blend
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
Combine potatoes and oil in a medium bowl, tossing to coat potatoes thoroughly.
Combine panko and cheese in a large zip-top bag; add potatoes and shake to coat them well.
Place potatoes on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray; discarding remaining breadcrumb mixture.
Bake for 20 minutes or until browned and crispy.
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Roasted Beet Salad with Balsamic Glaze Dressing

.A plethora of recipes are available for roasted beets as a key ingredient, many of which recipes are for delicious, flavorful salads.  The roasting procedure lends to a a more caramelized texture creating a more intensely sweet flavor.  I picked up some gorgeous, plump red beets in the market this week and decided that I simply had to roast them to bring out their sweet, intense flavor.  When roasting beets, it is best to wrap them in aluminum foil in order to prevent them from drying out during the longer roasting time.

The foundation of the salad itself was from Giada de Laurentiis in honor of the Potluck (anything goes) theme with the I Heart Cooking Club group this week . . .  but with one adjustment:  I used my own balsamic vinaigrette.

What did I think of this beet salad?  It was OK, but not as good as I thought it would be.  The dried cranberries, feta cheese, and walnuts were a superb addition and the mildness of the avocados balanced the stronger flavor of the roasted beets.  For those who enjoy more bold flavors, roasting beets is the way to go, but I prefer mine more mild from boiling them.  I think I'll stick to what I prefer in the future, but it was a nice recipe to try.


Roasted Beet Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette


Freshly ground sea salt and black pepper
4 medium beets, cooked and quartered
3 cups fresh arugula or any fresh lettuce that you prefer/have on hand
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries or dried cherries
1/2 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cubed
3 ounces crumbled feta cheese
Balsamic vinaigrette

Line a baking sheet with foil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place the beets in the pan and lightly pour olive oil over the beets, and sprinkle with salt.   Roll the beets around to thoroughly coat with the olive oil.
Cover the beets with another sheet of aluminum foil and roast for 1 to 2 hours. After 1 hour, test for thorough cooking by poking the beets with a fork about every fifteen minutes.  The beets are cooked when tender and a fork inserts easily.  Remove from the oven and cool to a warm temperature.
Once the beets are a bit cooler to the touch, peel off the skins and cut into 1 to 1-1/2" pieces.
In a medium bowl, toss the beets with the balsamic vinaigrette to coat well.
Add freshly ground sea salt and black pepper to taste.

Toss the lettuce, walnuts, and cranberries in a large bowl with enough balsamic vinaigrette to lightly coat.
Season the salad to taste with salt and pepper, and if necessary, some sugar.
Mound the salad on top of salad plates.
Arrange the beets, avocados, and feta cheese crumbles on top of  the salad. Pin It