A delicious vinegar based BBQ sauce with pulled pork recipe.  We served it with a side garden salad and some fresh corn. I am not usually much of a pork eater, but I decided to try this out because my husband absolutely loves BBQ pork.  I researched a few recipes and of course ended up creating my own.  I turned the crockpot on before I went to work, and when I came home the house smelled amazing!

Ingredients:

1 lb pork roast, browned

1 tsp olive oil

3/4 -1 cup apple cider vinegar

1 can no salt added whole tomatoes

1 can tomato paste

2 tsp paprika

1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce

1/2 large onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp pepper

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 Tbsp hot sauce, like Louisiana or Frank’s

Instructions: Brown the pork in a pan with olive oil. Put apple cider vinegar, tomatoes, paprika, worcestershire, onion, garlic, pepper, cayenne, and hot sauce in a crock pot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Yep, it is that easy! When you pull the pork out, it will fall off your fork… This is definitely a thin vinegar based sauce. If you like more of a mustardy sauce, just add some mustard and a little less vinegar. To make it even easier, you can use your favorite BBQ sauce to cook it in.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size (281 g) Servings Per Recipe 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories 227 Calories from Fat 54 (23%)
	% Daily Value *
Total Fat 6 g	9 %
Saturated Fat 1.9 g	10 %
Monounsaturated Fat 3.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.9 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 71 g	24 %
Sodium 535 mg	22 %
Potassium 1090 mg	31 %
Total Carbohydrate 17 g	6 %
Dietary Fiber 3 g	12 %
Sugars 10 g	NA
Protein 26 g	52 %
Vitamin A	29 %
Vitamin C	38 %
Calcium	7 %
Iron	17 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs.

Weekly exercise update: I have definitely had to make an effort to keep the physical activity up every day.  But, I have been able to keep up the daily activity! I have still been going to Crossfit almost every day, went for a run when I couldn’t go to the gym, and did a lot of housework one day.  I have been sleeping really well this past week 🙂

Yummmm! One of my most favorite snacks from growing up is fruit roll ups! Especially the strawberry flavor!

 

I was googling some different recipes yesterday and came across a couple of different fruit roll-up recipes. I merged them together and headed off to the Cobb Farmers Market. It was perfect, as they had strawberries for $0.50! So, I grabbed 3 of them so that I could use at least half for this recipe.

Ingredients:

1.5 pints fresh strawberries

1 gala apple

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp maple syrup

 

Instructions:

Heat oven to 175F. Slice apple and strawberries. Throw into a pot.  Add juice of 1 lemon and maple syrup (or sweetener of choice). Tip: This recipe does not really need a sweetener. Heat the ingredients for approximately 4-5 minutes.

 

Use an immersion blender or regular blender to blend together the ingredients.

 

Spread fruit puree into a thin layer onto either parchment paper or oiled foil. Put mixture into the oven.

 

Cook the fruit puree for approximately 8 hours or until the liquid has cooked out.

 

 

I just tasted it and it is delicious!! I am so excited that I can make a healthier (no preservatives and all natural) version of one of my favorite childhood snacks!

P.S. An update to the physical activity challenge: I have successfully made it through the 1st 4 days of May.  I went back to Crossfit on the 2nd (which was so hard!), I took the dogs on a long walk yesterday, and I did about 4 hours of cleaning the house today! 27 days to go 🙂

Happy Sunday!

 

 

The President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition has declared the month of May as National Physical Fitness and Sports Month!  With that being said, I am setting a goal for myself to reach my 30 minutes of physical activity every day this month! According to their website, “less than 5% of adults participate in 30 minutes of physical activity each day;² only one in three adults receive the recommended amount of physical activity each week.”³  Less than 5%!!! I have to admit that I have been part of the 95% probably more frequently than I would like to admit, especially on the weekend… That is why I have decided to challenge myself.  I recently joined a new gym, CrossfitEX, which has been amazing so far! If you are in the Smyrna area, I would highly suggest this gym.  I have been going about 4 times per week, so I will continue that and then add at least 30 minutes of running, walking, mowing the lawn, whatever motivates me the other 3 days. Remember that physical activity is not just going to the gym! You can reach 30 minutes of physical activity easily if you put your mind to it.  Keep in mind that it still counts if you break it up into segments.  3-10min sessions or 2-15min sessions count, too! So, just get moving. Whether it is dancing, swimming, yard work, walking, taking the stairs, just do something 🙂 

Here is my progress from Day 1:

Day 1: Complete! My workout today consisted of a warm-up of 1 lap around the parking lot, 10 squats, 10 burpees, 10 sit-up to butterfly stretch, strength: Deadlifts 5-3-3-1-1; I got up to 155lbs! Definitely my personal best 🙂 Then, our workout was 100 kettlebell squats with a 53lb kettle bell. We did 20 sec on, 10 sec off. This was followed by 21-15-9 thrusters (45lb) and burpees for time: 12:47. We finished up with 50 medicine ball sit-ups and a 20 second handstand.  I thought I might pass out… but, I was proud of myself for finishing!  

Here are some more facts and statistics from http://www.fitness.gov (the references can be found on this website):

• The typical American diets exceed the recommended intake levels or limits in four categories: calories from solid fats and added sugars; refined grains; sodium; and saturated fat.²
• Americans eat less than the recommended amounts of vegetables, fruits, whole-grains, dairy products, and oils.²
• In recent years, nearly 15% of American households have been unable to acquire adequate food to help meet their needs.2 In 2008, an estimated 49.1 million people, including 16.7 million children, experienced food insecurity (limited availability to safe and nutritionally adequate foods) multiple times throughout the year.¹
• Data from 2009-2010 indicates that over 78 million U.S. adults and about 12.5 million (16.9%) children and adolescents are obese.¹¹
• Recent reports project that by 2030, half of all adults (115 million adults) in the United States will be obese.¹²

http://www.fitness.gov/resource-center/facts-and-statistics/

So, who’s coming with me?  Celebrate National Physical Fitness & Sports Month by being active with me each day!