BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This is a great Sunday meal. Easy prep, crock pot, ultra yummy. You'll need a crock pot and an 9x13 pan.

Prep Time: 10 minutes (including shredding cooked pork)
Cook Time: 4 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients:
1 14oz can beef broth
3 lbs boneless pork ribs
1 18 oz bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce
12 dinner rolls

Instructions:

1. Pour beef broth into crock pot.
2. Add boneless pork ribs and cook on high for 4 hours (or until the meat shreds easily).
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. Remove meat and shred with two forks. Place in 9x13 pan.
5. Add barbecue sauce and mix well.
6. Bake for 30 minutes or until heated through.
7. Spoon onto cut dinner rolls and enjoy.

Low Fat Tortilla Strips

Delicious on Chicken Tortilla Soup or Mexican Salad. I got this from Fitness magazine. You'll need a baking sheet.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes

Ingredients:
Non-stick Cooking Spray
4 6-in Corn Tortillas
1/4 tsp Cumin
1 Tbsp Canola Oil (or Olive Oil)
1/4 tsp Salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.
3. Stack the tortillas and cut into 1/4 inch strips.
4. Toss strips with oil, cumin and salt.
5. Place on baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp, tossing occasionally.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I yanked this from Fitness magazine. It was fast, easy and a huge hit with the clan. This is great when you have cooked chicken on hand from a previous meal. I've also cheated and picked up precooked chicken which made this recipe even faster. If you buy precooked, I recommend the Southwest style--yum. You'll need a large pot for this.

Prep Time: 8 minutes
Cook Time: 13 minutes

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp Canola Oil (I also use Olive Oil)
1/2 tsp Cumin
1 cup chopped Onion
1/2 tsp Oregano
2 cloves of mince Garlic
1 Green (or Red or both) Bell Pepper, diced
2 14 oz cans Diced Tomatos with Jalapeno (I also use with Green Chile--not as spicy for kids)
4 cups Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
1 cup Frozen Corn
1 lb diced cooked Chicken Breast (about 3 cups)
1/4 cup Shredded Reduced-Fat Cheddar

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in large pot at medium-high heat.
2. Add cumin, onion, oregano, garlic, and bell pepper. Cook, stirring about 3 minutes until slightly softened.
3. Add tomatoes and chicken broth and bring to boil.
4. Reduce heat, add corn and chicken, simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Ladle into bowls and top with cheddar and tortilla strips.

Calorie count: 474.

Low-fat Chimichangas

I yanked this yummy recipe from Sunset magazine back in August. I also sub out the guts for whatever I have leftover from an earlier Mexican meal during the week. I've done taco meat and cheese, black bean and cheese (for the kids), or pork barbacoa. It makes a fast meal. You'll need a sauce pan and a baking sheet.

Prep Time: 15 minutes (if doing this recipe for the guts)
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil, divided (I like to use Olive Oil instead)
1 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted
1 Poblano Chile, halved, seeded, and sliced
1/2 cup sliced Onion
1 cup cubed Nopales (I couldn't find these, so I omitted)
1/2 tsp Salt
1 cup Shredded Jack or Pepper Jack Cheese
1 cup canned Black Beans, drained and rinsed (I like Bushes)
8 flour tortillas (8 in.), warmed slightly for wrapping
Salsa and Guacamole for dipping

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix 1 Tbsp oil with melted butter. Brush onto baking sheet.
3. Heat remaining oil in large frying pan over medium heat.
4. Add chile, onion, nopales, and salt. Stir often until soft and starting to brown, about 5 minutes.
5. Put 2 tbsp each of cheese, beans and veg mix onto tortilla.
6. Fold in sides and roll up like a buritto. Set on baking sheet with seam side down.
7. Fill remaining tortillas and space about 2 in. apart on sheet. Brush remaining butter mixture over chimichangas.
8. Bake for ten minutes.
9. Turn chimichangas and bake for 10 more minutes until brown and crisp.
10. Cut chimichangas in half diagonally and serve.

Calorie count for 2 piece serving: 294! boo yeah.

Rio's Lime Rice

I love serving this with black beans on nachos, quesadillas, and Mexican salad. You'll need a rice cooker or pot with lid.

Prep Time: 5 minutes (maybe...if you're slow)
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
1 cup Uncooked Rice
1 tsp Butter
2 cloves Minced Garlic
1 tsp Lime Zest
2 cups or 15 oz Chicken Broth
2 Tbsp Fresh Lime Juice
2 tsp Sugar
3 Tbsp Chopped Cilantro

Instructions:

1. Combine rice, butter, garlic, lime zest, and chicken broth in whatever you cook rice in (rice cooker, pot, etc).
2. Cover and cook until rice is finished.
3. Add remaining ingredients and stir in.
4. Adjust lime juice to taste.

Serve immediently. Great with Shredded Pork Barbacoa.

Rio's Shredded Pork Barbacoa

[pictures coming soon]

The good stuff. Great for salads, tacos, chimichangas, nachos...really all things Mexican. You'll need a blender and crock pot for this easy delicious recipe.

Prep Time: 5 -10 minutes (depending on the demand of your kids or the rush to get to church)
Cook Time: 7-9 hours (depending on the size of your roast)

Ingredients:
1 Small Pork Roast ( I like to get around 2 lbs.)
1 1/2 can Coke (not Diet. No skimping on the sugar or you'll pay.)
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 7 oz. can Chipotle Chilies in Adobo sauce
1 heaping tsp Dry Ground Mustard
1 heaping tsp Cumin
1 tsp minced fresh garlic

Instructions:

1. Remove the chipotle chilies from the adobo sauce. (If you want it much spicier, leave a few chilies...but your kids might not eat it.) You just want the sauce.
2. Put remaining sauce in blender.
3. Add all the other ingredients. Do not skimp on the Coke and don't add more than 1 1/2 cans. Sunny did this and it was no good.
4. Blend.
5. Place roast in the crock pot. (I like to stab it on both sides with a fork.)
6. Cover the roast with the sauce.
7. Cook on low for 7 hours. Meat should be able to pull apart easily.
8. Pull pork apart and let simmer in sauce another hour.

Serve in/on your favorite Mexican dish. The meat is even tastier the next day and can be store in the fridge for a week. My kids love these in quesadillas and low-fat chimichangas.

I'm a blog monster...but I need this.

I'm tired of the riff raff in my pantry that I call ''my recipes." This will be the home of all my favorite recipes. And hopefully I can convince my sisters to help me build this into something extraordinarily delicious.