Receta Why Fry??
Ore-Ida, most famous for their many potato products, report that Americans consume a whopping 4.5 billion pounds of french fries each year. In an interview with Time magazine, back in 1973, the glorious Julia Child confessed to have a sinful desire for McDonald's french fries. Statistics have proven that the love doesn't stop at fries. Dunkin' Donuts claims that each year they are able to sell enough doughnuts to circle the world twice.. TWICE?!? Where does this popularity surrounding fried food come from? Oh..it probably has to do with the crisp, breaded coating holding in the moisture of whatever you have going into that vat of oil. Hmm, did I just ruin it? When it comes to weight loss, managing your heart disease or diabetes, or simply living a healthful life, fried foods can be a culprit for disaster. We now have figured out why we love the fried version of foods..but what makes then so bad for us? When you deep fry a food item, whatever it may be, you are fully submerging it into oil. If the oil is too hot you burn your food to a crisp, but if it is not hot enough, your battered food will sit in that oil, absorbing it, and the result will be a greasy and mushy mess not to mention full of trans and saturated fats. Even if you do the frying the correct way- your food absorbs a significant amount of fat- fat our body doesn't need. On the other end of the spectrum (the brighter end, if I may add..) Baked foods provide a taste you to actually enjoy and identify that particular without contributing to an expanding waistline. Have you ever noticed that fried chicken and fish almost taste the same?! Let's just compare the calorie and fat content of a fried chicken drumstick. One drumstick provides about 905 calories and 52.39 grams of fat. Now for just 110 calories and about 10 grams of fat you an have your drumstick, and the thigh, and some mashed potatoes on the side for the same calorie price! So let us consider this traditionally deep fried poblano pepper- the Chile Relleno :) So delicious, but full of cheese, beef, and them breaded and dipped in a bath of saturated fat. Here I totally skipped the frying step, and the animal protein- making simple substitutions with whole grain rice and veggies.
Stuffed Chile
INGREDIENTS:
- 8 poblano peppers
- 1 cup (cooked) brown rice
- 1 (15oz) can whole kernel corn 1/2 cup red onion, chopped
- 1 medium zucchini, chopped
- 1 (14.5 oz) can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1/2 cup reduced fat fiesta blend cheese, plus more for sprinkling
- 1 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 1-2 teaspoon chili pepper
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat broiler to HI.
For peppers: Place peppers on rimmed baking sheets and place into oven, allowing peppers to char on each side, 10 minutes each. Remove from oven and place on wide container with a lid. When peppers are cool enough to handle, gently remove skin. cut a slit down one side and remove seeds, careful not to tear the pepper or remove the pepper stem. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350*
For filling: In a pre-heated medium-size skillet, cook mix together red onion and garlic, add zucchini, corn and tomatoes. Mix in the cooked rice. In the mean time, drain the beans and press or squish with your palms before adding to the rice mixture (some beans will remain whole, but most should be squished). Add cumin, chile pepper, mix well. Remove from heat and add 1/2 cup cheese. Line a baking dish with foil and set peppers in dish. Fill with rice mixture until full, about 1/4 to 1/2 cup filled, depending on the size of your peppers. Bake at 350* for about 15 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Remove from oven and sprinkle cheese and green onion ove top. Turn on broiler for last minute or two to brown the cheese a bit. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 1 peppers
Calories: 153 calories
Total Fat: 2.06g
Total Carbohydrate :27.01g
Fiber: 6.2g
Protein; 7.12g