Simple Dinner Wins Rave Reviews

As you know, I’ve been on a diet, starting this past Sunday. I’ve been doing pretty well with it so far, sticking to my meat and veggies and avoiding carbs such as breads, grains and really starchy vegetables. My family has also been pretty happy with the meals, but the REALLY liked dinner last night! Here is the menu:

• Mixed Veggie Salad with Homemade Yogurt/buttermilk Ranch Dressing
• Seasoned Parmesan Cheese Crusted Center Cut Pork Chops
• Butter Baked Sweet Potatoes
• Carrots in Butter Sauce

Wow, I got rave reviews! These are all recipes that I just created on the spur of the moment, but turned out really well. Of course, I’m going to share them with you 🙂

My Mixed Veggie Salad was simply 1/2 lettuce, 1/2 green cabbage, chopped onion, carrots, celery and green peppers.

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Homemade Yogurt & Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

1 pint canning jar with lid
Homemade yogurt made using raw or organic milk
Homemade buttermilk
Garlic powder
Onion Powder
parsley flakes
dill
chives
salt
Pepper

You’ll see, there are no measurements for for the seasoning, I just did it to taste. In a pint canning jar put in the yogurt to about the line shown in the photo to the let. Add the buttermilk to about the line shown on the jar to the left. Now, add you seasonings. Put on the lid and shake well to mix. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. My family REALLY liked this salad dressing! Next time, I’m going to finely chop some onion and garlic to add to it and let it sit overnight before serving. It’s really much better after letting it rest overnight…the flavors mingle and combine much better. Store in the refrigerator. Also, you may need to adjust the yogurt/buttermilk ratio to get it to the consistency you like. The first time I made it, it was too thin, so the next time I added more yogurt to thicken it up. That worked really good and the consistency was more to our liking. This is also really good with a mixture of yogurt and kefir, we tried that at my SIL’s house and it was really good!

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Seasoned Parmesan Cheese Crusted Center Cut Pork Chops

6 center cut pork chop
2 eggs scrambled
1 stick butter, melted (raw or organic)

For the Crusting:
8 oz. grated parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
2 tbsp. parsley flakes
2 tbsp. dried chopped onion
1/2 tbsp. each sea salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a ziplock bag, combine all the ingredients for the crusting. Combine well. In a bowl, scramble 2 egg. Melt the butter and put into the bottom of a baking dish. Dip each pork chop into the egg and then put in the ziplock bag with the crusting mix. Shake well to cover each pork chop. Place pork chops in the baking dish. Coat each pork chop the same way. Put baking dish in the oven and cook for 30-40 minutes. I cooked for 4o minutes and it was too long, but mine weren’t really thick, so watch and adjust your cooking time.

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Butter Baked Sweet Potatoes

1-1/2 lb. sweet potatoes
1 stick butter
sea salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small baking dish, melt the butter. Cut the sweet potatos into chunks. Place them in the baking dish and toss with butter. Season with sea salt and pepper, toss again to coat. Place in the oven for 40 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are done through.

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Carrots in Butter Sauce

6 carrots
1 stick butter
sea salt & pepper, to taste

Cut the carrots into 1 inch pieces. Place in a saucepan and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil and then cover. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes (until carrots are tender). Drain off most of the water and add 1 stick of butter. Let butter melt and season with sea salt and pepper.

This was such an easy menu and my family really loved it. It was not only a favorite, but it was healthy and made from scratch! Making meals from scratch does not have to be a difficult thing. I know exactly what my family consumed and I can ensure that they didn’t get any extra chemicals!

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