Ice

I had a tonsillectomy and so Elizabeth has been super nice about blending ice so it is easy to eat.  It is one of the few things giving me relief.  It is also one of the few things I've had to eat today.

BBQ Pork

As I went to the grocery store with no particular plan for making dinner I sauntered over to the meats section of the King Soopers. Looking for random inspiration I noticed that pork loin was on sale at about half price. This got me thinking that I could make some sort of BBQ pork sandwich even though I didn't have a recipe to work off of or any knowledge of what to do. I ended up picking up the loin, 2 bottles of honey BBQ, some whole wheat rolls, brussel sprouts to go on the side, and a half a peach pie for dessert. I was going to use the slow cooker for this, but was kind of short on time, so I needed to medium cook it. In a pot I put the pork (chopped into managable chunks) one of the bottles of BBQ, some rosemary, and garlic powder just to add a little flavor. I set the burner on low and let it cook for about 2 hours. After the pork was well cooked I took shredded it as best as I could (pork shoulder works a little better for this) and then mixed in the remaining bottle of BBQ and put back on a burner on super low just to keep warm. While I was shredding I started boiling the brussel sprouts. This takes roughly 15 minutes. It is a good idea to taste test this because if it doesn't cook long enough it is too hard to bite into and if it cooks to long it gets a bitter taste to it. When it comes out perfect there should be a light sweet taste when you bite into it. It isn't overwhelming, but it is there and preferable to a strong bitter taste. It was a fairly well balanced meal with the whole grains, veggies, fruit, and what turned out to be a lean meat after all the fat cooked off int the pot. There were also plenty of leftovers so I have lunch for the next couple days as well.

Healthy Pizza

One of my favorite things to do lately is to experiment with healthy versions of pizza. Boboli makes whole wheat crusts now in big and small versions that are a great foundation to work from. After that you can pretty much go anywhere you like. A more traditional pizza starts with the sauce (I usually use the squeeze bottle for this) and then freshly grated cheese. Already shredded cheese creeps me out because it has some sort of coating on it that keeps it from clumping together. It is easier to work with but I'm sure it leads to hallucinations after extended use. I like to get a sharp cheddar and than mix it in with some white cheese. Mozzarella works but monterey jack doesn't do too bad either. Apply layers separately because it is better to cover your toppings with the other layer. I really like to put mushrooms, olives and zuchinni on my pizza, but do what works for you. Even if it means using evil onions and polluting your cheese with that vile onion essence. Bake until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is well browned. The other way to go on this is to go cheeseless. No need for pizza sauce without cheese here, it would just be weird. I like to start with some pesto as a sauce. Then you kind of make a pizza salad from there. Spinach works really well with this recipe along with the aforementioned ingredients that I like. Maybe a little artichoke heart in this one would do the trick? Since there is no cheese a good way to check if it is ready is if the spinache is starting to cook in the pesto.