Cuban Braised Beef Recipe

Cuban Braised Beef

My husband and I planned for a picnic at the park last night.  He wanted to practice some disc golf and I just like taking the kids to the park in the afternoon.  It tires them out enough so that they will sleep faster at night.

The problem was that I had also had to clean up the house and get everythig ready for the week.  So what's perfect for this kind of evening?  A meal that you "set and forget" -- not literally of course.

You basically put all the ingredients into a large sauce pan and let it cook for 2 hours.  Easy right?

I came across this recipe in one of my favorite magazines yesterday and I thought I'd give it a whirl.  The recipe calls for Flank Steak -- a lean but juicy cut.  It also called for some mangoes to top off the dish but that's off limits to us so I'm going to skip it.  For those of you in the Transition or Maintenance Mode, try it with mangoes. 

I served this over a bed of cauliflower "fried rice".  This dish is about 228 calories per serving. 

Medifast Lean and Green Recipe:  Cuban Braised Beef
Adapted from Real Simple July 2010

• 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
• 1-1/2 lb flank steak (cut in half)
• 1/2 medium onion cut into wedges (we are allowed 1 thin slice of onion for our diet so try to only use 4 thin slices for this 4 servings recipe)
• 1-1/2 tsp Chili Powder
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves

In a large sauce pan, combine flank steak, onion, chili powder.  Season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil.

Once boiling, lower heat and simmer for about 2 hours.

Shred and top with cilantro leaves.  If preferred, use Cauliflower "Fried Rice".

Cilantro Thai Chicken

Servings: 1

When I found out I can have up to 1 cup of cilantro for condiment, I was excited.  I love cilantro.  I love the smell and the flavor.

If you are cooking for the entire family, please adjust the ingredients.  What I will list below is good for 1 person.  Just multiply each ingredient by however many people will eat.

This recipe uses approx 2-1/2 condiment servings and still meets the < 3 recommended by medifast.

Ingredients:

1 tsp minced garlic Condiment #1

3/4 tbsp cilantro (stems included are fine) Condiment #2 -- 1/16 allowed by medifast

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper Condiment #2 - 1/2 allowed by medifast

1 tsp tamari sauce* (or soy sauce)  Condiment #3

1/8 tbsp fish sauce Condiment #2 - 1/8 allowed by Medifast

pinch of salt (optional) **

1 tbsp water

3/4 lb chicken (drumsticks or wings)***

*  I use Tamari Sauce because it tastes just like soy sauce but wheat-free but soy sauce works even better.

** This would taste better with salt if using a low-sodium tamari/soy sauce, but I choose to skip it.  Salt is just not good when you're on a diet :-)

*** Up to 5oz of dark meat (cooked weight) is allowed.  When weighing, do not include the bones.

Instructions:

Chop cilantro and garlic very finely.  In a medium bowl or a tupperware, add the cilantro and garlic, ground pepper, tamari sauce, fish sauce and water.  If you are making for more than one person, I recommend just throwing all the ingredients, except the chicken in a food processsor or blender and grind to a fine, fairly smooth paste adding more water as necessary to grind evenly.

Add the chicken pieces, turning to coat everything well.  Cover and allow to marinate for at least an hour or even overnight

Preheat oven to 450F.  I use a toaster oven occassionally depending on how many I'm cooking.  If you are using a toaster oven, preheat oven at 425F or set to Broil.  After heated for about 3 minutes, place the chicken  in the oven turning occasionally to brown and cook pieces evenly until cooked through.

Cooking for the Entire Family:

Serve this with rice and cucumbers for members of the family not on Medifast and if available, use a sweet chili sauce that can usually be purchased pre-made at grocery stores.

Vietnamese Cauliflower with Garlic and Pepper

This cauliflower is good with soups, rice or by itself but to stick with L&G, I grilled pork instead.  I usually serve it with rice for my husband and kids.

The picture shows 3 oz. I always underestimate how big the serving we're allowed to have is ... so just add more for 5 oz of pork. I used all my condiments for the cauliflower so I had none left for the pork. But after grilling, I sprinkled some of the liquid from my cauliflower and it added good flavor to the pork.  Also, ignore the parsley ... that's just garnish to make it look pretty ... I like my food looking pretty ;-)

Medifast Lean and Green Recipe
1 tsp Olive Oil Healthy Fat Serving
1 tsp Minced Garlic Condiment #1
1 cup Cauliflower 2 Green Servings
1/4 Tbsp Fish Sauce Condiment #2 -- 1/4 allowed for fish sauce
1 packet Sweet Leaf Sweetener that is 0 carbs, 0 calories and 0 glycemic index -- get it! :-)
1 tbsp Water
1/4 tsp Black Pepper Condiment #2 - 1/2 allowed for pepper
1/2 tbsp Cilantro Condiment #2 - we're allowed up to 1 cup so this is a very small portion.

1. Grill the pork and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until a bit of garlic sizzles at once, and then add the garlic. Toss well.
3. Add the cauliflower. Cook for 1 minute, and then toss well, exposing the other sides to the hot pan.
4. Mix the fish sauce, water, sweet leaf and pepper in a bowl
5. Add to the cauliflower and cook, tossing often until the cauliflower is tender but still pleasantly crunchy, about 1 minute.
6. Stir in the cilantro, toss once more and transfer to a serving plate deep enough to hold the sauce.

I do "try" to avoid sugar when I cook for me and my family. One of the substitues I absolutely love is Sweet Leaf. It has a very good taste minus the calories.

I avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup for my children. What I found is that most fish sauces include this ingredient. Thai Kitchen Fish Sauce is one of the few I've seen that does not use HFCS. 

Both are available in available local health grocery stores my favorites of which are Mother's Market, Wholefoods and Sprouts.