Doin' Some Cookin'... Jamaican Jerk Salmon with Fresh Mango Salsa

I have been struggling to follow any sort of healthy eating plan at the moment. I go a week or so with being really good and then get a craving for something bad and can hold off the craving for a day or two before I cave. My cravings are obviously trigger foods and I end up spiraling out of control for a week or so before getting back on track. It's a vicious cycle and I find myself losing the same five pounds over and over again. It's my own damn fault. Another problem, I love me, so I'm content with my body and weight but I do need to take better care of myself and get serious about my health. Especially since my 30th birthday is approaching quickly. 

Step one: telling my besties "hell no" when it comes to running out and grabbing lunch with them. They eat like shit and so do I. We're all terrible for each other in that regard. But really, it should be all things in moderation, including my besties. Haha!!

So it's back to lean proteins and lots of greens.

This Jamaican Jerk Salmon with Fresh Mango Salsa was my attempt to impress a friend who is from Jamaica and newer to the States. Because I get cooking anxiety when it comes to cooking for someone for the first time or until I become comfortable with them I tend to stick to things I know or will make a recipe ahead of time.

This salmon was so easy to prepare, flavorful, and nutritious. It also made enough leftovers to enjoy for dinner for the next couple of nights which set me up for success each evening to stick to eating clean. 

When I decide to invite my friend over I know what I'll be making for them. 

Jamaican Jerk Salmon with Fresh Mango Salsa

Adapted From: Prevention RD

Makes 4 Servings

Stars of the Show for the Salmon:

• 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 4 (6 oz) salmon fillets
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Stars of the Show for the Salsa:

• 1 mango, diced
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/4 tsp salt

And Action:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 

In a small bowl, combine all of the spices for the salmon. 

Brush the flesh of the salmon with olive oil and rub with the spice mixture coating the entire surface. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 12-14 minutes or until cooked through.

While the salmon bakes, put together the salsa mixing all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve. 

Serve the salsa over the salmon. Enjoy!

Livin' It Up... RMA Course in Austin, TX

A new hire and I were sent to Austin, TX to further our skills on cash flow analysis using business and personal tax returns. Two long days in class. Fun stuff. Not. But... it got us out of the office for two and a half days and I really did learn a lot.

I'm all about furthering my education and skill set for resume building.

Wednesday, February 15th, 2017:

5:30 am - Woke up, did my hair and makeup and got dressed to take Little Man to school and off to work.

3:30 pm - Brittny and I loaded up in the Mustang and hit the road for Austin, TX.

7:00 pm - We arrived at the hotel, Holiday Inn Express - Downtown Austin, and checked into our rooms after a hilarious incident in the elevator with an incredibly drunk man waiting for his girlfriend to find him. We were so hungry but Brittny's phone was dead and she wanted to shower before we headed out. About an hour later she was ready to go. Our plan was to check out the Hillside Farmacy but after making it to our first intersection and coming up to the homeless shelter we were second guessing our decision to walk.

(Feeling overwhelmed and had a man on my mind.)

8:00 pm - A construction worker was outside of our hotel and I asked him for recommendations. He suggested checking out a pizza joint but it was closed. Worried about walking through the homeless and drug dealers by ourselves I jokingly invited him to put away his tools and to join us on our walk down 6th Street to grab a bite to eat. He accepted and he ended up being very entertaining company. He was a 6' 3" black man who was morbidly obese but let us know he would protect us from any bad guys. Walking through the dense population of the homeless and drug dealers was scary as hell. Brittny and I were stalked in the streets while Michael had to run to his work truck to put his tools away. In those short five minutes we were harassed and had numerous men ask for money and then become aggressive in their actions after we would say no. Ugh. We kept telling each other hell no to walking the streets the following night.

8:30 pm - We ended up at Casino El Camino for dinner. As a thank you to Michael for giving us his time and keeping us protected I offered to buy his dinner. I had their L.A. Burger with a side of fries with ranch dressing. The burger was so rich I could barely take down half of it and the fries were perfectly crisp. One of the best burgers I have had.

9:30 pm - Michael escorted us back to the intersection where we picked him up at and we said our thank yous and goodbyes.

10:00 pm - Got ready for bed. There was a heavy metal screaming band playing at Stubbs right next door to the hotel and I could hear them very clearly in my room. I was not amused but thankfully I was tired enough to fall fast asleep.

Thursday, February 11th, 2017:

5:00 am - Woke up and did my hair and makeup. Got dressed and out the door to grab Brittny.

6:00 am - We parked the car at the Chase Tower parking lot which was $18 for the day. We decided to walk to Starbucks since we saw it on the drive in. It was a block away. I grabbed a strawberry parfait and a Grande White Chocolate Mocha. I need to stop drinking these. They are so bad for me.

7:45 am- We left the coffee shop to walk back to Chase Tower to grab our laptop bags out of the car and get registered for class.

8:00 am - Walking into the building we were greeted by security and they got to know us very well over the next two days because we were the "girls who were always smiling or giggling."

11:25 am - Released for our lunch break and while on our walk to Starbucks we scoped out our lunch spot deciding on Athenian Bar & Grill. I ordered their Chicken Salad and it was delicious and filling. Really wanted a gyro but I was trying to be somewhat good.

12:30 pm - Back in class.

2:30 pm - Release for a 15 minute break so we checked out the cafe downstairs and ended up picking up some Horchata and chatting it up with some of the workers. Very friendly people. Made me miss working in Portland, Oregon at the corporate office when I was with a credit union there. I love the professional vibe and rubbing elbows with the higher ups. Maybe I'll check into working in downtown Houston one day. Maybe.

5:30 pm - Class ended and we drove back to the hotel to drop off our stuff and to freshen up for dinner.

6:00 pm - We decided it was early enough in the evening to walk past the homeless shelter on our own to make it over to Rainey Street after someone in our class suggested that being the place to be on "Thirsty Thursday".

(Strawberry Mojito before the bartender made me an off menu cocktail and that ceviche!)

6:30 pm - We made it over to Rainey Street which is a street of converted homes that have been turned into bars and restaurants. We picked a Mexican restaurant, El Naranjo, and grabbed two seats at the bar by the window. The bartender looked like he could have been Paul Walker's twin but he was such a douche bag. Brittny was all heart eyes over him. I have my heart set on someone else so no one turns my head at the moment. He was a good bartender though, chatting us up and even made me an off the menu cocktail after telling him what I was in the mood for. He muddled serrano chiles, basil and ice and then shook it together with lots of vodka and pineapple juice before pouring it into a chile salt rimmed glass. This cocktail was crave worthy and I lost count of how many I had. Haha! Needing food in my belly I ordered the seasonal ceviche which had yellowfin tuna and manadrin oranges in it served with hot salted chips. Amazing!! All of their food looked so good coming out of the kitchen.

10:00 pm - We decided to call it a night since we were incredibly tipsy and hailed a cab. Our driver's name was Godswill and he was from West Africa. He fell in love with your girl over here and couldn't believe I was going to call it a night but I explained we were already intoxicated and didn't want to be wandering the streets and with Brittny calling me out as well he offered to turn off the cab fair for us for the remainder of the night, gave me his cell number, and promised he would drop us off at a favorite spot of his and take us anywhere we wanted that night. He dropped us off at Star Bar and a couple hours later he came through as promised. "Wait 10 minutes and I will be right there." We were so drunk by this time and needed food. He offered to take us to Whataburger. After getting our food he dropped us off at the hotel and I thanked him so much for chauffeuring us around. He was such a nice man.

1:00 am - Back to the room to get ready for bed. Godswill sent me a text message about how beautiful I was and how if he ever came to Houston maybe we could meet up for a night out. Flattered but it would definitely be a just friends thing.

Friday, February 12th, 2017:

6:00 am - Woke up, showered, and did my hair and makeup before getting dressed. My eyes were so bloodshot and I was still slightly intoxicated. I needed food.

6:30 am - Grabbed Brittny and we drove to Chase Tower. On the drive in a road was closed so we had to take a detour and ended up seeing Voodoo Doughnut and Brittny just had to try it. I am not a doughnuts for breakfast kinda person since all that sugar makes me feel like shit but when in Rome... So I had their vegan chocolate doughnut topped with peanuts and a maple bar with bacon. We both picked up an iced cold brew coffee with cream and sugar. Damn this was strong and needed. I could have used two of them. I was dog shit that morning for class.

7:45 am - Walked back to Chase Tower to grab our laptop bags.

11:25 am- Released for lunch and we walked across the street to an Italian joint, Italic. We split a bunch of food trying their roasted local veggies, butternut squash soup, crispy polenta, and the baked penne with ricotta and sausage. The food was incredibly. I wish I didn't have to go back to class or else I would have ordered a pasta dish just for myself. We grabbed iced coffees from the restaurant to take back to class too. We were dragging from our late night out.

4:00 pm - Class ended and we were on the road back to Houston.

8:00 pm - Dropped Brittny off and made it home.

I would have loved to have more time in Austin to enjoy more of what the city has to offer. The food definitely did not disappoint, the hotel room was comfortable, and we both left the city more knowledgeable for our careers. I am incredibly blessed to have been given the opportunity to go.

Doin' Some Cookin'... Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

This Slow Cooker Pulled Pork was a lifesaver on Little Man's swim class night. He had early release from school and that meant he ended up eating lunch at school around 9:30am and got released to his after school program and they only provided a snack. Clearly lunch, a snack, and a protein bar prior to swim class was not enough food to hold him over until 6:30pm. No surprise his performance at swim class was poor since he was not properly fueled for the hour of swimming.

Poor guy came home famished and fatigued. The normal routine on swim nights is coming home to shower and while he is doing that I get dinner made and plated. Not that night. I knew the pulled pork was waiting for us and had him head straight to the table for dinner.

I opened the slow cooker, removed the pork putting it into a large plastic container, added the rest of the BBQ sauce, shredded it, and then put a thick layer of the pork between a whole wheat bun. Little Man ate two of these for dinner.

After dinner he showered, did his homework, brushed teeth and went down for bed without a fight.

Back to the pulled pork...

This recipe made enough pulled pork for approximately 10 sandwiches. That's a lot of leftovers or perfect for feeding a crowd. The meat is tender, juicy, and full of flavor. Next time I would add a dry rub prior to adding the BBQ sauce and serve this with some coleslaw and pickles. Mmmm.

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

From: Thriving Home

Makes Approximately 10 Servings

Stars of the Show:

• 2 1/2 lb pork butt roast
• 1 bottle BBQ sauce
• 1 cup water

And Action:

Put pork in slow cooker with the water and 1/2 the bottle of BBQ sauce. 

Cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 3 hours. 

Remove pork from the liquid and place in a storage container. 

Add the remaining BBQ sauce and shred the pork with two forks. Mix well to combine the meat and BBQ sauce. Enjoy!

Freezer Meal:

Cook pork fully and shred. Let cool completely and freeze in an air-tight container for up to three months. 

To reheat, thaw in refrigerator and warm gently on the stove or in the slow cooker on low. Add more BBQ sauce if needed. Enjoy!