Behold my dinner last night ... my jerry-rigged version of the Posole Burritos with Escabeche Slaw from the Almost Meatless cookbook. Jerry-rigged because I was too tired to fight the masses at Fairway and defaulted to my lame supermarket which offered me neither the tomatillos, hominy, nor pork tenderloin listed in the recipe. Sigh.Since I was hell-bent on making these burritos, I opted for some boneless pork loin chops, a bit of spicy green enchilada sauce in place of the tomatillos, and black beans in lieu of the hominy. The results? Stunning! The final dish suffered not at all for my substitutions and I loved everything about it.
Naturally, I "beached-up" the recipe a bit as well - replacing the sugar in the slaw with some agave nectar, and swapping out the corn tortillas in favor of whole wheat. And while I had my heart set on that hominy, the black beans are certainly South Beach friendly, so more's the better. The bottom line - the combination of the crisp, crunchy slaw atop the spicy simmered pork is sheer brilliance. I added a squeeze of fresh lime to the simmering sauce and garnished the burritos with some chopped fresh cilantro and plain non-fat Greek yogurt before rolling them up. Yum! The husband absolutely raved about this dish and its one I know I'll make again and again.
After a long week, and an even longer day yesterday, I was in serious need of nourishment. Tempting as it may have been to pick-up the phone and order in ... that's just not how I roll. My idea of relaxation after a difficult day is to throw myself into culinary creation. The simple pleasures of slicing, dicing, simmering and seasoning, nourish me - body and soul. That the end result is a delicious, healthy and satisfying meal is really just the cherry on the cake. I enjoy both the process and the fruits of my labors.
Which, of course, is not to say that I never order take-out. I do on occasion, but I much prefer to cook for myself. What about you? Do you cook to relax? Or are you more likely to order in at the end of a difficult week? Curious Diva wants to know.
Bon appetit!
This looks good! I'm not a huge fan of mayonnaise, so slaw like this looks good to me.
ReplyDeleteOn the weekends I treat cooking like you do...it's something I enjoy that nourishes me. But I usually work until about 8pm, so on the weeknights I just don't have the energy to throw myself into it or the time to eat at 9:30. I usually do something easy on weeknights like canned soup, a sandwich or an omelette, and I usually get takeout on Fridays.
words words words - ah, something else we have in common ... I'm not big on the mayo either. This slaw is just a simple combo of red wine vinegar, salt and sugar (or agave nectar). I added a pinch of celery seed to mine and a dash of cayenne pepper for fun. I also decided to use red cabbage and added some shredded carrots and red bell pepper, along with some mint and parsley. OMG it was good!
ReplyDeleteI hear you on the late nights. It would be difficult to cook every night on that kind of schedule. I like to make soups and stew over the weekend, so I can have quick reheats during the week.
I love that dinner! On weekends we may big meals and freeze part for easy weekday meals!
ReplyDelete"The simple pleasures of slicing, dicing, simmering and seasoning, nourish me - body and soul" looks like I am going to be stealing yet another quote from you...
ReplyDeleteCooking is the last thing I wanna do after today: have been seriously rained on, hair is a bush, work was awful, and have nothing to do or watch tonight which is bugging me: someone else needs to slave over a stove for one day only!
ReplyDeleteBut most days cooking is good: the best meal is the one you cook yourself (even if you're a naff chef!)
Ciao
Scarlet xoxo
Blonde Duck - I do that too on weekends when I have the time. Makes the week so much more tasty!
ReplyDeletedoggybloggy - steal away my friend ... because come the end of summer I'll be wanting to steal some of your tomatoes!
Scarlet - ugh, I hate that kind of day ... especially the bit about the hairs. I'm sadly prone to brillo head myself. :( In that case, by all means let someone else do the cooking. Order something super yummy! xoxoxo
When you have the time to cook, and you are not under any pressures, cooking and baking is so fun and relaxing. But when you are tired and/or stress, its not the cooking part that really gets to me, I always love cooking, but the cleaning up... ;P no!
ReplyDeleteHey Deevs,
ReplyDeleteI cook to relax but I also sometimes order take out.
I find baking super soothing - especially baking bread. I find the kneading very zen.
Cooking is super relaxing...just gives the hands work and the mind time to veg. Plus, there's a great result at the end that makes it feel like a successful feat. We'll be cooking this weekend. :)
ReplyDeleteI think it looks perfect just the way you made it. I love the slaw.
ReplyDeleteThe slaw is great! My husband who also doesn't like mayo would love it. Have a relaxing weekend!
ReplyDeleteI do like to cook but HATE the cleanup afterwards. I never did learn the technique of clean as you go...therefore I'm left with a giant mess at the end of the cooking process no matter how many cooking shows with helpful hints I watch. It's less relaxing the way I do it but you seem to have mastered the process. I do love to slice and dice, though. That's therapeutic.
ReplyDeleteYou could've fooled me! When I've 'jerry-rigged' a recipe, it's pretty obvious (and not in a good way!)
ReplyDeleteI find myself cooking at home more and more but my husband and I have had a longstanding tradition of going out to eat every Friday night. It's something I look forward to and it re-energizes me for returning to the kitchen if I feel that cooking has become a chore rather than the pleasure it normally is!
Oh, Diva, this looks right up my alley! I'm going to have to whip this up this weekend!
ReplyDeleteYum, this is like a healthy version of a kebab! I love when you can trick your brain that you're eating something naughty but it's actually really healthy. Good work Diva!
ReplyDeleteGreat blog, I've put the link on my blogroll. My favourite kind of food is food you assemble with some discernment, then throw into the oven and forget about for an hour or so. Then I relax with a few gin and tonics while I wait for it.
ReplyDeleteYou need to jerry rig more often is this is how great it turns out!
ReplyDeleteDiva I do love to cook and there is nothing more relaxing to me than a Sunday spent in the kitchen. Pixiegal I luckily don't have to clean up after my cooking sprees - the DH does it for me!
ReplyDelete