sugar-free

We all need a few great weeknight meals that can be throw together when we are short on time. This quick egg roll in a bowl recipe can be thrown together fast and it is delicious. I love that it is packed with some great veggies and, unlike most Americanized Asian dishes I’ve come across, this one has no sugar added.

Late afternoon is usually when I fall off the wagon. I’m great about staying on target for breakfast and lunch but by late afternoon the sugar cravings kick in.

That’s the point in the day where, if I don’t have something quick, easy, and amazing planned for dinner, I usually give in and eat something that I shouldn’t. I know that eating something sugary or loaded with carbs is going to make me feel terrible, but in that moment I don’t care.

I guess I’m “lucky” in a way, that sugar makes me feel so terrible (I am not diabetic, but my blood sugar swings wildly in both directions and I’ve been told diabetes is in my future if I don’t keep my blood sugar regulated better). Knowing that I’m going to feel terrible after eating something should stop me. But we all know how strong those cravings can be.

Sugar is my drug of choice.

I do much better when I keep plenty of healthy snacks on hand so I can munch when my blood sugar tanks and I just want to grab anything that is front of me. It’s way easier to fight off the sugar cravings when I’m not hungry.

This easy dinner has the added benefit of making amazing leftovers, so it’s easy to grab a min-bowl as a snack the next day.

You can eat this on it’s own, served over rice, or (my favorite) served over cauliflower rice.

You can buy cauliflower rice in the produce section of the grocery store, but I haven’t been overly impressed with the quality that way. It tends to go back quickly once riced so I prefer to make my own.

If you haven’t made cauliflower rice before, it’s not as intimidating as it sounds. I love the food processor attachment on the Ninja (check out the full Ninja Kitchen system here). I just chop the cauliflower into small rice-sized pieces and sauté it in a pan with a bit of butter and it turns out perfect every time.

My kids love egg rolls so, fortunately, even my picky eaters were willing to try this. If your kids are iffy about the texture of the cabbage, you can always chop it up into finer pieces.

Egg Roll in a Bowl Ingredients

• 3 cups shredded green cabbage
• 2 cups shredded purple cabbage
• 2 cups shredded carrot
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 2 tsp powdered ginger
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 Tbsp crushed red pepper
• 4 tsp soy sauce
• 1 pound ground beef (or any other ground meat you’d like to use)
• Green onion
• 1 head Cauliflower (optional)

Egg Roll in a Bowl Instructions

In a large pan, cook the meat until browned.

Add the onions and sesame oil and cook for a few minutes, or until the onions are transparent.

Add the cabbage, ginger, garlic, salt, and crushed red pepper.

when the cabbage has cooked slightly, stir in the shredded carrot.

Just before serving, stir in the soy sauce and top with green onion. Serve over riced cauliflower or rice (if you don’t need a low-carb option).