The Mega Omelet

This morning I made our usual breakfast meal for Ryan and myself.  It is a healthy egg white omelet I like to call "The Mega-Omelet".  It is filled with plenty of vegetables, fat free shredded cheese, spices and is extremely yummy.  And with only 1 gram of Fat* and 22 carbohydrates it is sure to keep your tummy full until lunch or your afternoon snack!

I will post it for those who wish to try it with their choice of fixings.  You can also add Mushrooms and Jalapenos for a more flavorful meal.

The Mega Omelet

Cocina De Don Pedro © 2013

Pedro R. Flores, Jr.. All Rights Reserved.

Makes 1 Serving, 1 Large Omelet

Ingredients:

- Butter-Flavored Cooking Spray
- 3/4 Cup chopped Bell Peppers & Onions*

- 2 oz. of Potato, diced

- 2 Slices of low-fat Ham, Turkey, or your choice of meat*

- 6 Large Eggs, separated

- 1/4 tsp Seasoned Salt

- 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/4 tsp Pepper

- 1/2 Roma Tomato, chopped

- 1/2 Fat Free Cheddar Cheese

Kitchenware:

- Small Frying Pan
- Rubber Spatulas
- Wire Whisk
- Egg Separator
- Kitchen Knife
- Bowls

Preparation:

If you've read my other recipes you probably noticed that I use non-stick cooking spray quite a bit.  That is because I don't use butter or margarine for cooking.  I feel it's unnecessary fat added to your foods.  So when I say, "spray generously", spray generously. :-)

- After spraying your pan generously, add Bell Peppers, Onions and diced Potatoes to frying pan on low-medium heat.  Let fry, stirring occasionally until you start to see the potatoes and vegetables turning slightly brown at the edges.

- Add your choice of meat, cover and let fry a little longer until you start to notice your meat browning.

- In a separate bowl combine your egg whites, spices and mix well.  I like to use my Ninja, because it blends my spices into the egg whites amazingly well.

- Before adding your whites*, spray the pan generously while stirring the fixings.  

- Add your whites and tomatoes, then cover and allow to cook for a 2-3 minutes.

- Remove cover and mix the ingredients, or if you can flip into another pan it will keep the omelet uniform.  I can usually flip the pan with the omelet in it, but my pans are starting to stick.  Time for me to get some new ones.

- Once omelet is flipped, add 1/2 of your shredded cheese, cover and allow to melt. Add the remaining cheese to the top of your omelet when placing it on a plate.

** Tips **

- I have a Ziploc bag of bell peppers & onions that I keep in the freezer.  I make them myself with fresh vegetables.

- I like to use low-fat meats, but you're more than welcome to use whatever you like.  The nutritional facts below reflect all the ingredients from the omelet with the exception of the meat product.

- You don't have to use an egg separator to separate the yolk from the whites, you can simply use your and by cracking an egg into the palm of your hand allowing the whites to filter through your fingers into a bowl.

- The single gram of fat that comes with the omelet is derived from the ham in the omelet.  Otherwise, this omelet would be completely fat free!

- The nutritional facts for this recipe are listed under MyFitnessPal under Cocina De Don Pedro - The Mega Omelet

Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size = 1 Mega Omelet

Calories	234	Sodium	620 mg
Total Fat	1 g	Potassium	882 mg
Saturated	0 g	Total Carbs	22 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	4 g
Monounsaturated	0 g	Sugars	4 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	33 g
Cholesterol	5 mg

Dinner Menu of the Week: Jan 13 - 17

Our dinner menu for week 3 of 2014 is as follows:

January 13 - 17
  

Monday  

- Oven-Baked Chicken Parmesan served w/Spaghetti & Salad  

Tuesday  

- Yellow Squash Casserole w/added Minced Seasoned Grilled Chicken & Corn

Wednesday  

- Crab & Shrimp Stir-Fry w/Cabbage, Onions & Peppers  

Thursday  

- Parmesan-Coconut Crusted Tilapia served w/Buttery Garlic Broccoli

Friday  

- Bruschetta Shrimp Bake served w/Peas & Carrots

Weekend Special 

Saturday
- Shrimp & Fettuccine Alfredo served w/Salad 

Sunday
- Zucchini and Potato Bake served w/Mexi-corn

 

As promised... my goal is to take these meals and post each recipe on my blog so that if you want to make them you can too.  I will provide links to any site I may have used and/or share any of my original recipes.

If the recipe already exists on my blog I will simply provide a link to that recipe.

The recipe will be provided after each night's dinner or the morning after.  I look forward to sharing my recipes with you and appreciate any comments you may have.

Menu of the Week Proposal

I'm excited about starting a new and exciting venture on my "El Cookbook" blog.  Every Saturday I will be posting a "Menu for the Week" where I will write down what I'll be cooking for my partner and I for dinner each night.  They will mostly consist of meals made from Monday through Friday, with optional "Weekend Specials".

Each of our meals will contribute to our healthy lifestyles with a focus on portion control.  Remember it's not "what you eat", but "how much you eat" - I'm a testament to this.  I lost 70 lbs just by changing my eating habits, using MyFitness Pal and regular exercise.  The first 50 lbs. were lost without a day in the gym.  I lost the remaining 20 when I started using the gym at work.  And I accomplished all of this in a span of 10-11 months.  You can too.

Here is an example of what my menu will consist of.

January 06 - 10

Monday
- Oven-Baked Turkey Cutlets w/Mushroom Gravy & Onions served w/Parslied Potatoes
Tuesday
- Stewed Cabbage Rolls served w/Fresh Pan-Fried Green Beans
Wednesday
- Pan-Fried Turkey Sausage Links served w/Pan-Roasted Corn on the Cob
Thursday
- Oven-Baked Pork Chops served w/Country Gravy, Mashed Potatoes & Kernel Corn
Friday
- Chicken Fajita Tacos

Weekend Special

Saturday
- Stuffed Bell Peppers made w/Extra Lean Ground Beef served w/Rice Pilaf
Sunday
- Buffalo Chicken Strip Wraps
 
My goal is to take these meals and post each recipe on my blog so that if you want to make them you can too.  I will provide links to any site I may have used and/or share any of my original recipes.

Need help planning your next meal?  Check out this pretty cool What’s For Dinner Free Printable I found online.

Cheesy Broccoli-Chicken w/Rice

Each prepared dish has only 4g fat, 0g trans fat and under 400 calories!

This recipe calls for ingredients which have been pre-cooked.  If you plan to make this recipe feel free to use the recipes in my cookbook, or you can use your own ingredients.  Please keep in mind, if you decide to go with your own ingredients you will have altered the authenticity of my recipe, along with the nutritional facts listed below. Otherwise, please enjoy.  

While the cooking part of this recipe is the steaming of your broccoli, the listed ingredients have to be pre-cooked prior to preparing the following dish.  I have provided all the recipes for you - just click on the links.

Cheesy Broccoli-Chicken w/Rice

Cocina De Don Pedro © 2013

Pedro R. Flores, Jr.. All Rights Reserved.

Makes 2 Servings, 1 Prepared Dish, each

Ingredients:

Cooking Part
- 2 cups, Frozen or Fresh Broccoli (Bird's Eye Florets), steamed

Dish Preparation Part

- 8 oz. Seasoned Grilled Chicken©, cubed, divided by 2 (4 oz. each)

- 1/2 cup Multi-Use Low-Fat Cheese Sauce©, divided by 2 ( 1/4 cup each)

- 1 cup Seasoned Rice©, divided by 2 (1/2 cup each)
- 1 cup Broccoli, steamed
- 2 tbsp Shredded Fat Free Cheddar Cheese & Paprika for garnish, optional

Kitchenware:

- Medium Microwavable Bowl
- Rubber Spatula or Wooden Spoon
- Measuring Cups
- Food Scale

Preparation:

Cooking Part 
- How you cook your broccoli is up to you.  I buy the large frozen bag of "Bird's Eye Broccoli Florets" and use this for my recipes.  I usually steam the broccoli in my risotto/rice cooker as my rice cooks underneath.  But you can also cook it on the stove-top or microwave.

Dish Preparation Part 
-In a microwaveable bowl, combine 4 oz. chicken, 1/4 c cheese sauce, 1/2 c rice, and 1 c broccoli.  Using rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix thoroughly.
- Microwave for 2-1/2 minutes, stir, and place on dinner plate. 
- Garnish with 2 tbsp cheddar cheese and a dash of paprika. 
- Follow the same instructions for the second dish.

Tips:

- Making this recipe is unlimited.  You can combine to make a casserole, but in order to arrive at the proper nutritional goals, I made this dish as a single-serve recipe.

Use:

-Dinner parties, Meals for two, Casseroles, etc.

Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size = 1 Prepared Dish

Calories	361	Sodium	2142 mg
Total Fat	4 g	Potassium	618 mg
Saturated	2 g	Total Carbs	38 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	3 g
Monounsaturated	1 g	Sugars	7 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	36 g
Cholesterol	74 mg

Mom's "Zero Fat" Spanish Rice

Definitely authentic is the best way I can describe my Spanish rice recipe.  

My mother taught me how to make this several years ago - without any measurements of course, because true chefs cook without any type of measuring instrument, LOL.  But I've managed to get as close, if not better than her recipe, Love you mom - don't hate. (smiling).

In either case, I've included videos instead of the normal picture by picture guides I usually use, but the fourth video's sound was way off.  Also, I was using my iPhone when recording and forgot to turn the phone sideways, so the landscape is vertical instead of horizontal, but you can still enlarge the video if you like.

Mom's "Zero Fat" Spanish Rice

Cocina De Don Pedro © 2013

Pedro R. Flores, Jr.. All Rights Reserved.

Makes 8 Servings, 1 Cup each

Ingredients:

- Non-Stick Cooking Spray, Butter-Flavored
- 2 C Long Grain Enriched White Rice

- 1 Medium Bell Pepper, diced

- 1 Small or 1/2 medium-large Onion, diced
- 1 Small or Medium Tomato, diced
- 4 C Hot Water
- Small 8 oz. can of Tomato Sauce, any brand
- 2 tbsp Chicken-Flavored Bouillon (Knorr Caldo Con Sabor De Pollo or any brand)

- 1 tsp Salt

- 1 tsp Ground Cumin (Comino)
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

- 1/2 tsp Black Pepper

Kitchenware:

- Large Frying Pan
- Wooden Spoon
- Kitchen Knife
- Measuring Spoons
- Measuring Cups
- Cutting Board

Preparation:

If you've read my other recipes you will notice that I use non-stick cooking spray quite a bit.  That is because I don't use butter or margarine for cooking.  I feel it's unnecessary fat added to your foods.  So when I say, "spray generously", spray generously. :-)

- Using non-stick cooking spray, spray your pan generously and allow pan to get very hot. (not smoking).  Reduce to medium-high and spray some more cooking spray then add your rice, bell peppers and onions.  You will stir-fry this until you start to notice the rice turning brown.  Don't buy brown-rice, it doesn't turn out the same.

- Once the rice is a brown and toasted as seen in the video, you will throw in your tomatoes and stir-fry those for about a minute.

- Reduce to low-medium and "slowly" add hot water to pan.  DO THIS CAREFULLY, because it can start to boil over.

- Add your tomato sauce, stir-in remaining ingredients (the spices).  Continue to stir thoroughly, increase heat and bring to a boil.  Once the broth starts to boil, reduce to low and cover.

- Let rice simmer for 10-12 minutes, remove cover and stir rice a few times, not much.  You don't want a hot sticky mess.

- Replace cover and let simmer another 5 minutes, then turn off burner.  Leave on stove-top until ready to serve.

Tips:
- For an even richer and robust flavor, substitute any chicken broth you have stored from previously cooked chicken instead of the bouillon. Keep in mind, substitute the amount of broth in place of the water, i.e. 2 cups water = 2 cups broth.  Fat content will change slightly.

- Cooking with Bell Peppers and Onions are what make the Spanish Rice flavorful.  If you don't like the taste of these two ingredients, simply cut them larger as I did in this recipe and remove them after the rice is done.

Uses:

- Great with Enchiladas, Beans, Burritos, Tacos, or just by itself.

Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size = 1 Cup Cooked

Calories	186	Sodium	956 mg
Total Fat	0 g	Potassium	172 mg
Saturated	0 g	Total Carbs	40 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	2 g
Monounsaturated	0 g	Sugars	2 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	4 g
Cholesterol	0 mg

Seasoned Ground Turkey

This is a very simple recipe I've used over the years, because of it's robust flavor.  I created it with one thing in mind - Multi-use.  I've used it in potstickers, steamed dumplings, burgers, tacos, and many more variations.  Try it out and let me know what you think.

Seasoned Ground Turkey

Cocina De Don Pedro © 2013

Pedro R. Flores, Jr.. All Rights Reserved.

Makes 5 Servings, 4 oz. each

Ingredients:

- 20 oz. Honeysuckle Ground Turkey, 97% Free
- 1 tbsp Chicken Flavor Bouillon, Knorr Caldo Con Sabor De Pollo

- 2 tsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt

- 1 tsp Onion Powder

- 1 tsp Chives

- 1 tsp Garlic Powder

- 1/2 tsp Chili Powder

- 1/4 tsp Pepper

Kitchenware:

- Small Bowl
- Measuring Spoons

Preparation:

- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and using your hands, mix well.

Uses

- Fillings, Dumplings, Tacos, Burgers, Meatloafs, Meatballs, and many more!

Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size = 4 oz.

Calories	141	Sodium	1196 mg
Total Fat	2 g	Potassium	17 mg
Saturated	0 g	Total Carbs	1 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	0 g
Monounsaturated	0 g	Sugars	0 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	27 g
Cholesterol	70 mg

Extra Lean Beef Taco Meat

Throw away those taco seasonings and make this Extra Lean Beef Taco Meat using only a few spices.  You'll truly have an authentic homemade recipe you will enjoy making over and over again..  I incorporated some of my mother's ingredients, but used extra lean ground beef instead of the fattening meat she usually buys.  With only 5 grams of fat and 4 carbs per serving, this recipe makes enough to fill 12 taco shells, and your tummy.  Hope you enjoy.

Extra Lean Beef Taco Meat

Cocina De Don Pedro © 2013

Pedro R. Flores, Jr.. All Rights Reserved.

Makes 4 Servings, 1/4 recipe each, enough to fill 3 crunchy tacos

Ingredients:

- Non-Stick Cooking Spray, Butter Flavored, generous amount

- 1/2 cup Bell Pepper (any color), diced

- 1/2 cup Onion, diced

- 1 lb. Extra Lean Ground Beef

- 1 tsp Salt

- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

- 1/2 tsp Chili Powder (preferably Gebhardt brand)

- 1/4 tsp Pepper

- 1/4 tsp Comino (ground cumin)

Kitchenware:

- Medium Frying Pan
- Wooden Spoon
- Knife
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Cutting Board

Preparation:

If you've read my other recipes you will notice that I use non-stick cooking spray quite a bit.  That is because I don't use butter or margarine for cooking.  I feel it's unnecessary fat added to your foods.  So when I say, "spray generously", spray generously. :-)

- Place frying pan on high heat and "spray generously."  After a full 90 seconds throw in your peppers and onions and stir-fry vegetables for a good 3 minutes. Continue to spray as needed.

- After done frying, reduce heat to medium and add beef.  Break apart with wooden spoon until it's slightly crumbled.  Cover and let simmer for 10 minutes.

- Remove lid, add remaining ingredients (spices), and Mix thoroughly.  Cover and let simmer another 5 minutes.

- Remove lid, spray with non-stick cooking spray and stir-fry until most of the broth evaporates. Leave very little broth, just enough to keep meat slightly moist.

Uses:

- Tacos, Enchiladas, Salads, Burritos, etc.

Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size = 1/4 Recipe

Calories	160	Sodium	654 mg
Total Fat	5 g	Potassium	91 mg
Saturated	2 g	Total Carbs	4 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	1 g
Monounsaturated	0 g	Sugars	2 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	25 g
Cholesterol	70 mg