Kevin 3.0's Low Salt Low Fat Dinners

Kroger NuVAL

2011-02-24T12:29:00.000-05:00

http://www.nuval.com/kroger/

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004
Please stand by

Low Sodium Food Find - Tomato Sauce

2011-02-19T19:35:00.000-05:00

Low Sodium (LS) tomato products are not impossible to find. Kroger has their store brand have a green band for easy identification. I always try to mention how much I appreciate the carriage of LS products. I even go so far as direct employees toward products that actually taste good as well. As such I've also mentioned to Meijer that they stopped carrying a LS brand of salsa: Frog Ranch. I also in-aisle promoted it to another customer that was browsing the only other store in Lexington that still carries it; Kroger.

But today I am giving props to Sav-A-Lot food stores (SAL) at Lexington's Eastland shopping center. They have a pretty low selection of LS as a whole, but they do regularly stock one of my hardest to find products. Tomato Sauce. A product of the 50s, tomato sauce is lightly seasoned and simmered, not simply pureed tomato One of my favorite quickee pizza sauce recipes just adds minced onions to tomato sauce. The SAL store brand, Diane's Garden is only 4/$1. I use it as a quick pasta sauce for one. Its perfect for a dine alone night. Most nights LOL. I pop open the can, add, black pepper, onion powder, minced garlic, Italian seasoning and a splash of vinegar. I swizzle stir it right in the can. Super quick.

Ke7in

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004
Please stand by

Low Sodium Tomato Juice

2008-06-07T22:25:00.002-04:00

this gem was buried in a post about soup, and I wish to highlight it. I get so frustrated with the sodium levels of most tomato products. Thankfully, there are plenty of no salt added varieties of most common tomato canned products.

But look at the side of a V8 or tomato juice . oh my.

But you can make your own tomato juice using tomato paste and water. 1:4 tomato paste to water. Now that is a bargain. Use no salt added tomato paste, ad no salt added water, and you get no salt added tomato juice. Now to cram in 7 other ingredients for a v8. sorry man, you're on your own. `

http://lslf.blogspot.com/2004/07/mmm-noodle-soup.html

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Please stand by

substitute

2008-06-07T22:11:00.003-04:00

The graphic is a screen shot of a pdf that I made of it.

at one point I made a new version of this using the chili powder recipe I have previously linked. Careful readers can do something similar. It also cuts the number of spices down by one. I suppose you could break down the pumpkin pi spice into its component parts, but I won't, because I am widely known for my pumpkin pies at thanksgiving, so I think its "cute" to have the spice in my chili. Even though, like chili powder, Pumpkin Pie Spice is just a common ratio of spices used in the most common pumpkin pie recipe. And originally chili powder had the same purpose for chili, but not people use it as an ingredient, then add many of the same things already in the chili powder. Conversely, despite how it may sound, "Allspice" is not a mixture but a real deal. The British thought it had a multi-flavor aspect to it, thus naming it allspice.

all repeition is due to the 3 year gap in my posts Grin

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Please stand by

chili con png

2008-06-07T21:48:00.002-04:00

I am posting my secret spice mix as a graphic so as to mess with the spiders.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Please stand by

My Chili

2005-06-14T21:07:00.000-04:00

I misjudged how much chili I was going to have yesterday. Ultimately it made 15 ladlefulls of chili. Each one is about what I eat on a pile of Spaghetti. The sodium, and fat is way lower than I expected. My initial idea was to make a sodium free chili. But it does not need to be, in that the sodium I did use, when divided by 15, is negligable. Like 40mg or so per serving. Plus cheese if you want a 3-way. And its awesome. I created this recipe a while back, when I was thinking about commercializing it. I was going to move to Minnesota, which had no such chili. But I am here now, and we have Goldstars all over, and several canned brands in the grocery. Some even have 1000mg per serving! Dixie Chili is at least half the sodium (450 mg) of the other brands. Mine like 40 mg! so I will not necessarily be posting the recipe for my spice mix just yet. I have so protected this recipe that even when I give the recipe out, it calls for "kevin's secret spice mix". The spice numbers went from 12 ingredients to 15 when I substituted home made chili powder for commercial. because of this, I make a ginger jar full of the spice mix and just scoop it into the pot with the tomato paste, garlic, bay leaf, meat, water, and worcestershire.

I am going to experiment with Textured Soy Protein for a vegetarian version. And that could even be in the mix!

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Please stand by

ABC News: Eat 'Supermeals' to Protect Heart: Experts

2004-12-19T10:14:00.000-05:00

This is kind of interesting.
ABC News: Eat 'Supermeals' to Protect Heart: Experts: "They call their recommended diet the 'Polymeal,' playing off the 'Polypill' idea, which got a lot of attention last year, of giving everyone a combination pill to prevent heart disease.

The Polymeal includes ingredients that research has consistently shown can decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease. The menu includes wine, fish, dark chocolate, fruits, vegetables, garlic and almonds. All ingredients must be consumed daily in the recommended amounts, except for fish, which research suggests should be eaten four times per week."

Meatless Taco Filling

2004-11-18T22:20:00.000-05:00

A nice meatless taco filling can be made with
Diced squash, mushrooms and onions.
sauté the onions first, followed by the squash, then the mushrooms. To this I add a can of dice no salt added tomatoes. I season to taste and bring to a boil. To this I add my favorite miniature pasta Acini di Pepe. Small pepercorn sized pasta that you find in Italian Wedding Soup. I cook the pasta in the pan with the vegetables watching to make sure it does not run out of liquid until the pasta is cooked. To this I add hot sauce and cayenne and cumin and parika, and a dash of tghe 1950s classic condiment "Kitchen Bouquet" as a browning agent. I use this like normal taco filling. It has the texture of meat, with none of the animal, and all the carbs hehehehe.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Please stand by

Still eating

2004-10-13T10:58:00.000-04:00

I am still eating, but am doing things other than coming up with new things to eat. Here is some notes on what I have been doing.

My chips and salas are taco shells, and low sodium salsa.
My treats are freezer pops. I have discovered "carribean pops" which are more substantial.

Yesterday, I lookd at my cincinnati chili recipe, and realied with portion control, it was not all that high in sodium. I adjusted the ingredients to handle the elimination of commercial chili powder. Basically, I just added Oregan, Paprika, onion and garlic powder, and upped the cumin and cayenne. I had some last night, and it was tasty. Oh, and I lowered the salt by 1/3. That dropped the total socium in the entire batch to 320mg a serving. A low sodium diet allows up to 800mg for the noon and evening meal, and 400 for breakfast. I still do not come to that limit very often.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Please stand by

Mac n Cheese

2004-08-06T20:14:00.000-04:00

I assumed I'd have to give up mac and cheese with my low salt low fat diet. Well, due to the ingenuity of Kraft Foods, and the inquisivity of me, I can. Kraft started marketing the cheese topping in a shaker can. The sodium level per serving was tolerable to my diet. To cheese it up, I added a serving of ricotta cheese, also low in sodium, and a serving of parmesean. Stired it all up in hot cooked macaroni, then popped it in a 400° oven for 10 minutes.

It was preety good. I was not the "Glue Pot" my grandparents nicknamed, but it was quite tasty, and within the confines of my diet.

I called Kraft this morning, and confirmed my suspicions. The canister contains the contents of the cheese packets from the box dinners. Since the canisters are difficult to find, and a tad, pricey, I can buy the blue box stuff, and use the powdery "cheez-food" and my cheese it up recipe with out adding all that salty old milk and butter.

On another note, I may have found a low sodium alternative to Ramen, but that is for another day.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

HeartCenterOnline For Patients - Broiled fish, not fried, curbs irregular heartbeat

2004-07-28T22:44:00.000-04:00

I've been making sure I have at least one baked fish meal a week. sometimes I'll have 2 or 3.
HeartCenterOnline For Patients - Broiled fish, not fried, curbs irregular heartbeat: "They found that people who ate broiled or baked fish at least once per week were 30 percent less likely to develop atrial fibrillation than those who ate fish less than once per month."

MMM noodle soup

2004-07-24T12:49:00.000-04:00

I made a soup a while ago, and that got me going on soup ideas again. Commercial no sodium soup does not taste good to me. Everyone knows a good homemade soup tastes better anyway.

When I was an undergrad, I worked in a small restaurant as a cook and bartender. We made 2 soups every day, one was always French Onion. The other either came from our secret recipe book, or we made it out of what we had on hand. A soup I like to make we named "autumn broth". It was a tomato soup with pasta and beef base. Today I made a low sodium version of it.

I started with homemade tomato juice. (1 can no salt tomato paste, 4 cans of water), I mixed that thourghly, and added low sodium beef soup base. I added another 2 2cans of water and seasoned with a splash of worcestershire sauce, pepper, garlic and onion powder, I brought it to a bowl and crushed 2 nests of angelhair into it, and continued to simmer for 3 minutes. Originally I made with Acini di Pepe pasta. But this angelhair/vermicelli works fine broken up.

I just had a craving for it.

I hope you noted the tomato juice recipe. 24 ozs of tomato juice for the price of a can of tomato paste.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Spinach Wrapped Baked Crispy Fish on Pasta

2004-07-10T18:11:00.000-04:00

Tonight I dredged Talipia in whole wheat flour, then egg beaters, then crushed wheat puffs and herbs. Wrapped it in wilted spinach and baked. I served it on a bed of angel hair, in which I wisked the remainder of the eggs. It was somewhat bland compared to what I normally eat. But the flavors worked very well together. And it was nice to look at,

for one. adjust accordingly. the flour/egg/cereal combo can make about 3 as is.

1 filet of boneless tilapia
½ C WW Flour
Egg Beaters 1 egg
½ C unsweetened wheat puffs (Look in the bagged cereal section)
rosemary
Italian seasoning
2 large spinach leaves
1 nest of nested angel hair pasta
ice bath

Heat Oven to 400°
Blend cereal in blender, add seasoning.
Boil Spinach for 5 seconds.
remove from water with tongs, and plunge into ice bath (Water with ice).
Drop pasta in water.
I dredged the fish in the flour, then the egg, then the wheat mixture.
wrap fish in spinach leaf.
put on baking pan and bake for 15 minutes.
add remainder of egg to boiling pasta and stir with fork briskly.
strain pasta and egg mixture, set on serving plate.
top with fish.
garnish with tomato wedges.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Onion Soup

2004-07-10T14:48:00.000-04:00

A friend of mine has joined Weight Watchers. So she is now starting to count her points. Not being much of a cook, herself, she ends up buying a lot of prepared foods. I estimate I make about 95% of what I eat from scratch. Not to the point of milling my own flour, or baking my own breads though. I make my own soups and sauces, chop my own vegetables, and make plenty for leftovers for my freezer. That way I can get the convenience of prepared meals, but still get the nutrition of my own cooking. I do not always believe prepared food is less nutiritious or for that matter less expensive. But when I make my own, I know exactly what is in it, what makes me like and and what I will change if I do not like something. Wow this is a pretty long introduction to - I made French Onion Soup yesterday from an old restaurant recipe. I gave her half, and it should be right up her alley. I am sure the points were very low. Maybe even "winning points" or whatever Fergie says on her WW commercial.

French Onion Soup

3 medium sized white onions, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 qt of water
Low sodium beef base to make 1 qt of broth
Black Pepper
onion powder
garlic powder
Cooking Spray

Heat water to boiling, add soup base. Remove from pot to bowl (or use another pot)
Spray pot with cooking spray and add minced garlic, heat over low heat until garlic is slight brown. Stirring as you go
Seperate onion rings and add to pot, let reduce until almost flat on the bottom. They should be clear. Stir to mix them up with the garlic.
add broth to pot with onions and garlic
bring to boil
reduce heat, cover with pepper
continue to simmer for 1 hour
add garlic powder and onion powder to taste
I use a technique called covering, by that I mean sprinkling on top until it looks like it is distributed evenly over the surface

eat as is, or pour in crock bowl with a crusty slice of bread or croutons, top with mozzarella or shredded Swiss or provelone cheese, and broil until cheese is bubbly. Serve immediately.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Food is Great, Carbs are Great. I love to eat.

2004-07-09T18:00:00.000-04:00

I have been pretty quiet on this blog. I have been making up for it writing elsewhere. But mostly because I was in an eating slump. Not terribly balanced meals, quickies. But I noticed my snaking between meals had gone up. I am pretty sure I was replacing nutrition with something else. Granted my snacks were still mostly healthy and low cal/fat/sodium. But I think if I have better meals, I will be better off in the long run. My breakfast shrank from cereal, juice, yogurt and toast to just cereal and coffee. 4th of July weekend, I rollerbladed for 3 hours, and when finished was famished. I concluded that since my fat count is low, I was running out of "quick" energy. CARBS!

Fridays I work out in the afternoon. I got home around 4, after picking up some spinach and a few other things. I save $4 with my plus card.

I immediately started a French Onion Soup. I followed that prep with water for pasta. Once I got that going, I washed the spinach for a salad. Then I made croutons for the soup. Checking on the water and the soup, perdiodically, I was able to take some breathers. Once the pasta was done, though, I decided to have it and the salad. I was just too hungry by 5:30. The soup did not start boiling until 5, and I wanted it to boil a full hour. I'll have the soup last. I forget which culture has soup last. Well definitely my laid back hungry culture.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Heart Healthy Cooking Class

2004-06-22T17:55:00.000-04:00

I took advantage of one of the little perks of Cardiac Rehab yesterday. The dietician had a brunch foods demonstration. Had a delicious coffee cake, and a yummy frittata. Today I went to lunch with a friend and had Mole Poblano, a Mexican chicken with mole sauce. I avoided the drumsticks and stuck tot he white meat. So tonight I am making a very veggie marinara. I sautéed garlic, peppers, zucchini and squash, then added shopped fresh spinach, tomato sauce and canned diced tomatoes (no salt added for both of the latter) I then seasoned it to my taste, and am going to serve it over a heart pasta. It is so darn chunky looking, I think I could make tacos from it. Knowing, me, expect to hear that for lunch tomorrow.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Lasagna

2004-06-20T10:09:00.000-04:00

On May 15th, I was a tease. I mentioned making a lasagna and did not give out the recipe. Last Friday I was apparently a tease as well, as I was talking about my lasagna with a woman at Cardiac rehab, and she asked for the recipe. A man overheard me, and was interested in getting it too. This monday, the dietician is giving a cooking class on brunch, I will be going to that, and I will bring my Lasagna recipe as well. This recipe. I am a big fan of ratatoulle, a versatile eggplant stew. I used it then, and I used it now as a basis for my sauce. I improvise on my sauce recipe, so I will give a standard one here from the No Salt, - Lowest Sodium cook book by Donald Gazzaniga. _{(See right hand column for bilbliography)} What makes the recipe special for me, is the Béchemel Sauce.

Red Sauce

½ pound lean (10% or less) ground beef
1 large onion
6 cloves of garlic
1 T fresh chopped parsley (you will need 2T later as well)
1 6 oz can no salt added tomato paste
2 bay leaves
½C water
1/2 t oregano
¼ t ground cloves

Béchemel Sauce

3 T unsalted butter
3 T olive oil
6 T unbleached white flour
1 & ½ C Skim Milk
3 T Lemon Juice
2 T fresh chopped parsley (aren't you glad you chopped extra?)
1 clove garlic
a smidge (ok a dash) of cinnamon

For the layers

12 oz lasagna noodles (16)
6 oz Swiss cheese
6 oz ricotta cheese/li>
Italian Béchemel Sauce
Cooking Spray

Cook meat lightly, and brown onion in nonstick pan
while that is sautéing, combine rest of ingredients in a medium size stock pot. Add to the sautéed ingredients when the mat is close to being cooked. Bring sauce to boil, then turn down to simmer for an hour(or 4) stirring occasionally. When sauce is done, remove the bay leaves
While sauce as 30 minutes remaining to simmer, heat the noodle water in a large pan so that it is ready when you are close to assembly time(I tried the no bake method, and it did not work well with this recipe)
While water is heating and the sauce is simmering, make the bechemel sauce in a smaller saucepan. Set aside when done. Cook the lasagna noodles in unsalted water. When noodles are done, drain and layer on wax paper for a few moments.

Italian Béchemel Sauce

Melt the butter in a medium size pan on low heat, adding the olive oil, stirring. Don't let it burn. Add in flour, stirring constantly, until fully dissolved and smooth. When it bubbles, remove from heat and add milk, stirring constantly. Return to medium heat and stir in the lemon juice, parsley, garlic, and dash of cinnamon (I subbed Pumpkin Pie Spice by the way). Stir until smooth and slightly bubbles. It will thicken. It tends to look curdled at first with the lemon juice. Use room temperature milk.

Assembly

Preheat oven to 350° F
Spray 9 x 13 glass baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange noodles in a single rectangular layer, and creating a box, by adding noodles to the four sides as well. Layer the bottom with 1/3 the marinara, 1/4 the Swiss, 1/3 of the Béchemel, top with anothe rlayer of noodle. (I use ricotta alternately with the Béchemel). Repeat, repeat again except the cheese. After adding the final layer of noodles (this completes the box, sprinkle remain Swiss on top.
Seal with aluminum foil, tenting the foil to keep cheese from sticking (There is non-stick foil now too)
bake at 350° for 30 minutes, remove foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

FitTV :: FitTV - Fit Cuisine

2004-06-16T16:42:00.000-04:00

FitTV :: FitTV, one of the cable channels in the high numbers of digital cable, has a cooking show that is low salt and low fat. I have watched two episodes so far, and it is right on the money. Although, the host is 75% teeth. I just wonder if he paid to have them capped and feels the need to show them off, or he is just that friendly. The shows all seem to have a copyright from 2002 so it appears as though they were on some health channel. I wonder was fitTV formerly known as Discovery-Health, or is that another channel too?

Sweet and Nutty Salad

2004-06-13T21:03:00.000-04:00

Tonight I made a salad, that was worthy of The Academy of Salad Arts and Sciences award. The Sassy?

Baby spinach greens, topped with sliced strawberries, sliced tomatoes and unsalted soy nuts, with a lite raspberry vinaigrette dressing.

It was a taste explosion, that I did not want to stop eating.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

2004-06-12T21:34:00.000-04:00

They are almost cliché at restaurants right now, and verbotten to the carb counters out there, but I still love them.

I used olive oil instead of butter/margarine in the mashed potatoes. I added just a pinch of salt. I put minced garlic under the broiler until warm and brown, and I used fat free yogurt mixed in with the mashed potatoes and garlic.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Scarce

2004-06-11T13:40:00.000-04:00

I have been pretty scarce on this blog, but I have been cleaning out my freezer, and not being terribly creative about it.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Tunafish Stuffed Tomato

2004-06-11T13:35:00.000-04:00

Today I remade something I remember serving during Lent when I was a teen ager working at Perkins. Tuna Fish Stuffed Tomato. I wanted to cut back on the dressing, so I added minced onion and garlic to the tuna, and some mrs dash. Then I just added 2 T of fat free miracle whip. I took a tomato and cut it into 8 wedges, without cutting through the bottom. I spred it apart, and put a scoop of the tunafish mixture in there. I accompanied it with a baked potato. MMM.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Propel Fitness Water

2004-06-09T10:14:00.000-04:00

I bought the new "fitness water" to see how it was. Too sweet, it may as well be pop. I am not sure what it could be good for. Its as sweet as anything. I do not find it much different than regular Gatorade. Normally I like flavored sparkling water, but this stuff is sugary sweet. Bleh :-P

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

BBC NEWS | Health | Chocolate 'helps blood vessels'

2004-06-01T10:56:00.000-04:00

Ok so it can be high in calories, fat, sodium - but I could not resist reading this article.

BBC NEWS | Health | Chocolate 'helps blood vessels': "Eating dark chocolate helps blood vessels function more effectively, researchers have claimed. "

Brunchy Taco Nibbles

2004-05-31T15:02:00.000-04:00

Ingredients:

Egg Beaters or egg whites
No salt added diced tomatoes
onion
Salt Free seasoning
pepper
Old El Paso Fun Size Taco shells
Low sodium salsa
cooking spray

Dice onions, sauté in pan sprayed with cooking spray
drain tomatoes
add egg to pan with onions
add tomatoes
season to taste
warm shells according to directions on box
when eggs are set, add a Tablespoon of salsa to taste
mix into scrambled eggs
spoon mixture into mini shells.

***
Of course, you can use regular sized shells, or soft if you wish.
###
Kevin Fillips
kevin3.blogspot.com

Lunch

2004-05-25T12:49:00.000-04:00

I've been eating a lot of salads again. I got away from them last week, and I porked up. Granted a lot of it was water retention, as it dropped off almost as fast as it gained up. Granted further it is all relative. I am still not overweight. But because of my condition I have to keep close record of my weight. If I go up 3 pounds in one day it is a medical crisis. My weight jumped up 3 pounds in 4-5 days, and it would have been crisis if it continued. It went back down from its high. But it did serve to remind me - my diligence has its pay-offs. I want to maintain this weight, and this waist size. I like it. I am happy with it. Moving my bigger clothes upstairs was nice.

So anyway, I love prebagged salads. There are so many varieties with little or now lettuce prep. I know hey cost more, but it comes about a buck a salad, even if I get the fancy red leaf baby spinach ones. I can switch off buying spinach once, and spring mix the next. To balance it out, I also buy a head of iceberg for my sandwiches or tacos. I also mix some in with my fancy to make it go further. I often have parts of vegetables I did not use in dinner left over. These are my salad toppings. Half a fresh tomato or pepper. The peperoncinis from a Papa Johns. I am also light on my dressings. My weakness remains the Italian Pesto. Its a bit high in sodium. I have to think ahead of my day if I am going to use that one.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Prima Vera Vegetables and Pasta with Grilled Chicken

2004-05-18T20:52:00.000-04:00

Tonight, I sautéed vegetables, tossed in some Spaghetti Rigate, and topped it with strips of grilled chicken.

Serves 2

Ingredients
1 zucchini, sliced chunky
1 yellow squash, sliced into coins
1/2 green bell pepper, sliced in 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 red or yellow bell pepper in rings
1 small onion, cut in half and sliced
1 clove of garlic
1/4 pound of spaghetti
small tomato, cut in wedges
cooking spray
Mrs Dash Garlic & Herb
Black Pepper
1 boneless skinless chicken breast
Mrs Dash for Grilling - Chicken
1 T Grated Parmesan cheese

Heat pan, remove from medium heat and add cooking spray, toss in onions and garlic until garlic is lightly browned.
Add zucchini and squash and a 1T of Mrs. Dash Garlic Herb until they start to soften.
Heat Grill, add chicken top with Mrs. Dash for grilling.
Boil water for pasta
add pasta, cook until al dente
drain pasta, and add to vegetable mixture,
add small amount of water to keep vegetables moist.
add Parmesan, and mix thoroughly
cover with black pepper
when chicken is done, slice into strips
spoon 1/2 pasta on plate top with 1/2 the chicken per serving
garnish with tomato wedges.

I had intended on eating the whole batch, but it was so filling, I realized it was enough for 2.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Ratatoulle Lasagna

2004-05-15T13:20:00.000-04:00

Last night I made some Ratatoulle again. Plenty of leftovers. Today I made lasagna using it as my tomato sauce. For the layers, I mixed ricotta, Italian seasoning and my meat mixture from a few days ago. I also shredded some Swiss cheese. I also made a Béchamel sauce, which is a roux. The form I used for the lasagna was a box. Noodles on the bottoms and the sides and the top. It is still in the oven. Of course the meat can easily be left out. I need the protein, and I made enough to use in more than one meal earlier. It was in the order noodle, ratatoullie, béchemel, noodle, ricotta meat mixture, swiss, noodle, raratoulle, béchemel, noodle, and swiss.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

All Purpose Ground Meat

2004-05-13T12:52:00.001-04:00

Laura's Beef 4 oz serving
Calories 160 - 80 from fat
Total Fat 9g, saturated 4g
Cholesteral 60 mg
Sodium 70 mg
carbs 0g
Protein 21g

Ground Turkley Breast 4 oz serving
Calories 130 - 20 from fat
Total Fat 1g, saturated 0g
Cholesteral 70 mg
Sodium 55 mg
carbs 0g
Protein 27g

Averaging the two (not taking into consideration the mushrooms)
Calories 145 - 50 from fat
Total Fat 5g, saturated 2g
Cholesteral 65 mg
Sodium 63 mg
carbs 0g
Protein 24g

I am now looking for some time savers. So, I am now preparing ground Meat mixtures suitable for a variety of recipes.

Ingredients
1 lb Ground Turkey Breast (a lot of ground turkey includes the dark meat)
1 lb of lean ground beef (here in Lexington, we have a local brand Laura's)
1 Pint mushrooms
1 c diced onions
1 clove garlic
Cooking Spray

Dice the mushrooms
Spray pan with cooking spray and sauté minced garlic and onions
add the meat
brown and cook meat
toward the end of the cooking process add the diced mushrooms
continue cooking until meat is done.
Drain well in colander.

I'll use this mixture for spaghetti sauce, taco/burrito filling, or wherever I need some meat.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Cincinnati Chili - Dixie Brand

2004-05-11T22:04:00.000-04:00

I actually found a commercial chili that does not overwhelm my dietary limits of fat and sodium. I am talking about Cincinnati-style, which is a sweet, spicy, Greek inspired, Coney style chili served on spaghetti traditionally. It is Dixie brand. Skyline and Goldstar have almost 3 times the sodium of Dixie as does the other minor brands I have found. So I was able to have some chili while I am working out the bugs in my own recipe.

at 490 mg sodium a serving, still a lot, but nothing like the 1000mg of some of the others. 120 calories, 45 from fat.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Sloppy Joes

2004-05-10T23:01:00.000-04:00

There is a great recipe for Sloppy Joes in the AHA Low Salt cook book, with meat onions, peppers and tomatoes. I have been making tacos and burritos out of it for days.

Ingredients:
1 lb Pork tenderloin or other lean boneless pork, all visible fat removed
Cooking spray
1 c finely chopped onion
1 medium bell pepper finely chopped
14.5 oz can no-salt added diced tomatoes undrained
1/2 C (1.5T) frozen no-salt added corn (thawed)
1 / 8 C cider vinegar
1 T sugar
1 / 8 C (1.5 T) unsalted Chili Powder
1/8 t salt (optional)
buns

serves 6
Calories: 309
Protein: 31g
Carbs 22g
Cholesterol: 95mg
Total Fat: 10 g, saturated: 4g, polyun: 1g, monoun:4g
Fiber:1g
Sodium:102mg
Potassium:510mg
Calcium:114mg

Cut pork into 1/4-inch cubes
Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Remove from heat and spray with cooking spray. Cook pork for 3 minutes, or until it just begins to brown and liquid evaporates, stirring constantly. Transfer pork to a plate, set aside.
Spray skillet with cooking spray and return to heat. Reduce heat to medium-high. Cook onion and bell pepper for 2 to 3 minutes, or until onion is translucent, stirring frequently.
Stir in reserved meat, any accumulated juices, tomatoes, corn, vinegar, sugar, and chili powder. Cook, uncovered, for ten minutes, or until mixture has thickened, stirring occasionally. Stir in Salt.
Meanwhile split and toast buns. Spoon pork mixture over buns.

more later.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Smoothies

2004-05-08T13:31:00.000-04:00

I bought a smoothie machine with a Christmas gift card. I did not have a blender, and thought it would be fun to have one with a pour spout. I also saw it's margarita potential. I have had smoothies as my afternoon snack quite a bit. Today I made one that blew me away, such that I had to write down what I put it in. Fresh Strawberries, Frozen Red Grapes, 1 cup non fat vanilla yogurt, 1/2 cup tropicana tropical fruit twister, and ice. Wow, I want to name it.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Beer and Barley Risotto

2004-05-06T13:16:00.000-04:00

Lunch today, Barley prepared like risotto, with beer instead of wine, low salt beef broth, and lots of squash and onions. I mixed in diced tomatoes after thebarley was cooked, and mixed in black pepper and shredded parmesan. MMM Hearty, it reminds me of beef barley soup, I can eat with a fork. I modified yet another internet recipe for this.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Bagel and Cream Cheese Bake

2004-05-06T08:43:00.000-04:00

I am preparing a brunch menu. I am working out a brunch casserole. Switching out the bacon etc. The tradeoffs I face are sodium versus fat in some of the ingredients. Egg Beaters for eggs, was a no brainer. But I wanted some form of cheese. Fat free cream is low in fat but high in sodium. Marscapone is high in fat, but low in sodium. I am taste testing a version this morning. Other menu items for my yet-to-be-scheduled brunch are; cereal-yogurt-berry parfaits, oven roasted potatoes, & fresh roasted & ground coffee.

the casserole came out of the oven, and it was delicious. 121 calories, 4 from fat, 1 gram of fat and 295 mg sodium. Plus I think I can cut back on the cream cheese. so the sodium number should go down somewhat.

This recipe is made the night before and popped in the oven in the morning. A great homemade breakfast sandwich taste in a casserole form.

Prep Time: approx. 30 Minutes. Cook Time: approx. 30 - 45 Minutes. Ready in: approx. 9 Hours .

Recipe has been scaled to make 6 servings. based on a recipe from from Allrecipes, Submitted by Muse

5 slices tomatoes
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 plain bagels
6 oz fat free cream cheese (if this is too much sodium and you can take the fat, sub marscapone cheese)
6 eggs worth of egg beaters
1-1/3 cups skim milk
1-1/4 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

Spray sauté pan with cooking spray and add onion. Cook over medium-high heat until carmelized. mix into cream cheese Slice each bagel into 4 thin slices.

Arrange 6 bagel slices in the bottom of a 9 x 9 inch baking dish, sprayed lightly with cooking spray. Spread the cream cheese onion mixture. Top with with tomatoes remaining bagel slices.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, parsley, and pepper. Pour the egg mixture over the bagel layers. Cover, and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 400° F (200° C). Uncover the chilled bagel dish, and bake in the preheated oven 25 to 30 minutes, or until eggs are firm (possibly up to 45 minutes). Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, and serve warm.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Salsa Picante

2004-05-05T21:50:00.000-04:00

I was inspired by Cinco de Mayo to make a batch of salsa. I went to the green grocer and found some nice roma tomatoes, tomatillos and peppers. I bought them along with some yellow and green bell peppers. I Roasted the tomatoes and tomatillos, and some of the peppers. Blended them smooth with some tomato paste. Meanwhile I had chopped onions and peppers into nibbly size bits. I added cayenne, home made chili powder, cumin and red pepper flakes to my tomato tamatillo pureé the chunks. I had enough for 2 pints, all of which are soaking up their spice in the fridge. In 3 days, I will move one to the freezer.

Note: my tomatoes are cooked, so it is not a "fresh salsa" as I understand picante sauce, that is what is cooked. Hence the title name.

Great Blooming Onions (no)FatMan
Fast Food Nutrition Guide from 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet! Includes calories, fat, weight watchers points, and more: "According to Restaurant Confidential, one Bloomin Onion with the Dipping Sauce contains 2130 calories and 163 grams of fat! Leave out the sauce and you still consume 1690 calories and 119 grams of fat, 57 of them saturated."

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Grilled Chicken, Sautéed Vegetables with Pasta

2004-05-04T22:27:00.000-04:00

Hip Tip

Cutting on a Bias is when you cut an an angle

I was a healthy pig today.
I really pushed my limits of fat and sodium today, but managed to stay well below the 30% guidelines for fat, despite having 1/2 pint of ice cream, and cheese on my salad, and Tortillas with cheese dip!

My dinner was especially good. I did not follow a traditional recipe so I'll give the narrative like I did the Ratatoullie. I sliced zucchini at a bias, as well as a yellow squash. I used up the last of a green pepper I had in the fridge and diced a small onion. I sprayed a pan with cooking spray, and and sautéed the onions, then added the squashes. After they began to get soft I added the pepper. I had 2 0z of linguini on the stove, and a boneless skinless chicken breast on the George foreman grill. I seasoned the sauté with some spicy Mrs. Dash ands the chicken with the Mrs. Dash Grilling blend. When the pasta was not quite done, I drained it, and finished the vegetables. I added the pasta to the vegetables and stirred it around. When the chicken was cooked, I sliced it up. I plated the vegetable pasta mixture and put the chicken pieces on top. The vegetables were still al dente, as was the pasta. I also had a salad with Parmesan cheese and dressing. I was hungry for something crispy on the salad so I broke up a large (not spoon sized) shredded wheat cereal. This inspired me to someday make salad crispins out of that stuff. They are sodium free, unlike most bread. I'll probably also sub them for bread crumbs. I was very satisfied when I was finished eating. But I did save room for dessert.
nutrition for my dinner:
Calories: 725 (130 from fat)
Fat :15.5 (6 from the dressing, and 6 from the chicken!)
Sodium: 700 mg

my dessert was ice cream. I will not depress anyone here with those figures. But stayed well within my limits. I also managed to get close to my calorie needs. It is so strange to me to be below a figure like that and have it be "bad". If I continue to eat the way I am, I will lose more weight. I do not need to.

Also I think I have a convert. A friend of mine was at the doctor and was told she is a "heart attack" waiting to happen. She is going to ease into my eating regimen. She must cut down in the sodium and the fat and of course calories. She should be able to lose weight with quite a bit more calories than I eat. But that number should go down. It will be a challenge for her to jump in, exactly where I am, but I'll be supporting her, and even perhaps cooking for her one in a while. I was thinking of hosting a healthy Sunday brunch one of these days. Maybe it can be a cooking party. Lessons and all. She is not taking any chances after seeing what I went through.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Dietician

2004-05-03T17:19:00.000-04:00

Why do I find this Ketchup recipe so funny?
Start with the thick tomato sauce described above. Add lots of sugar, some salt substitute and vinegar or lemon juice. Add ingredients a little at a time, tasting as you go. When it tastes like the stuff that goes on the hamburgers and french fries you can't eat anymore, then you have it right. Congratulations! Now throw it away because you can't use it on anything you are allowed to eat.

More here

...At rehab I met with the dietician. I learned a lot. But mainly, I learned I was misinformed about what "Low-fat"means. It should be 30% not 50% calories as fat. So I am afraid my white castle preference may have to be rethought. I'll also have a preference toward "whole foods". Where did I put those birkenstocks?

Since I am not over or underweight, I should eat 2000 calories a day, of that 495 can be fat, (55 grams).

I can still do my White Castle meal, but have to watch the rest of the day.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

MPR's The Splendid Table

2004-05-02T11:16:00.000-04:00

...it must be true...
A 350-pound inmate found the perfect hiding place for his stash of drugs, said authorites at Okeechobee County Jail in Florida. Police found nothing when they strip searched the 27-year-old convict the first time. But a second search revealed a cigar tube filled with crack tucked beneath a roll of belly fat.
- from The Week, May 7, 2004, p.14

This is a great show on Public Radio. Not always full of heart healthy food ideas, but always good food information. Today she had Sally Schneider, author of A New Way to Cook. Here is a link to the audio story ( be warned. your audio player should start to download the story upon clicking). And Lynne Rossetto Kasper's The Splendid Table radio show's website.

Vegetarian "Cheese Steak" Nachos

2004-05-01T12:17:00.000-04:00

I have not be inventing much since I started my quest for the perfect chili. I've been cleaning out my freezer, and not being terribly creative. Today, I made up for it. I had a Portobella Cap in my fridge, and was craving something I remember eating once, a portobella popover sandwich. It was sautéed portobella, cheese peppers and onions. I decided to try and make it. Upon further investigation I realized the only bread I had on hand was cinnamon swirl toasting bread (or pop tarts). But I decided weird is as weird does, and moved on to some other form of carbs. I had this huge bag of unsalted tortilla chips I got at Wild Oats. So I decided to get great in the nacho department. I did grill the mushroom head instead of sautéing it. But first I marinated it in my Pesto Salad Dressing.

Ingredients.

1 Portobella Mushroom Cap per serving.

2 slices of Swiss cheese per serving

1/2 - 1 bell pepper chopped per serving

1/2 onion chopped per serving

2T Pesto salad dressing

cooking spray

Tortilla chips (unsalted)

Directions
Pour marinade in shallow dish coat top of mushroom, turn over let soak into the bottom. Preheat nonstick pan. Add cooking spray. On low-medium heat sauté onions and peppers. Grill Mushroom cap. When peppers and mushrooms are soft, add sliced cheese and a table spoon of water, cover and steam until cheese is nice and melted. When Mushroom is done, remove from grill and slice into chunks. Add peppers and cheese on top of chips, and top with mushroom chunks. I did not even use a salsa or a dressing.

Alternatively you can skip the marinade, slice the mushroom and sauté with the peppers and onions if you like. I just like pesto.

Most of the sodium and fat came from the dressing and the cheese.
My dressing was about 50mg sodium and 1 g of fat the cheese was 100 mg of sodium and 12 g of fat. The chips had 0 sodium and 5.5 g of fat ( the chips really are fantastic - the brand is Garden Fresh Salsa Company - 1-866-725-7239)

Calories: 307 fat calories 109
Fat: 18.5 mg
Sodium 150 mg
Cutting back on the cheese would drop a lot of the fat.
I am in weight gain mode at the moment. My new name seems to be Minny as in "skinny minny". But I still try to keep my fat calories at less than 1/2 total. I do pretty well.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Chili Powder

2004-04-28T19:13:00.000-04:00

Of the 3 "problem" ingredients for my chili recipe. One of them has plenty of substitutes.
Apparently Chili Powder is a mixture of spices. Like "Pumpkin Pie Spice" or "mixed Pickling Spices"
so I looked up some low sodium recipes for chili powder, and subbed that for chili powder. In fact two of the ingredients were already in so I upped them, and added the other 4 (Garlic powder, paprika, onion powder & oregano).

The other problem ingredients;
Worcestershire sauce - I'll be looking for the lowest sodium, variety
salt - I left it out and added Lime juice for the recipe for "batch 1"
but it may take a few trys before I get the taste right. Potassium Chloride is a possibility.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Comfort Food

2004-04-27T19:35:00.000-04:00

I was craving a Tuna Hotdish. (Minnesota calls casserole this).
I used low Sodium Cream of Mushroom Soup, topped with home made LS Bread crumbs.
despite my best effort to pep it up, it turned out a little bland. I'll have to work on some spices.
Granted the HDs are not always that zippy anyway. I was wanting to have tuna, but figured making a casserole would spread it's requisite sodium out over more servings than if I just had a sandwich.

Yo-Juice?
My nephew likes something called Yo-J! from Kemps. a yogurt Juice drink. He did not like drinkable yogurts. Tonight in my smoothie machine, I made a juice, yogurt smoothie. On a whim I added some marscapone cheese. Wow was it ever good. It was super creamy. The juice was a Hansen's all natural strawberry banana "smoothie"(non-dairy) that I picked up at Big Lots!.
Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Salty Weekend.

2004-04-26T13:43:00.000-04:00

Friday I went to a dinner party and Stouffer's Lasagna was served. The sodium was through the roof. I had pizza Saturday and Sunday, but should have kept within my guidelines those two days. Today, at cardiac rehab, I weighed in a bit higher than I did Friday. Also I did not have the low blood pressure issues at rehab today. I wonder if there is that much of a connection. I wonder if I am keeping my sodium too low? So this week especially today and tomorrow, I am going to be extra diligent about the sodium. I'll see what happens Wednesday.

Lunch Today
consisted of a salad, with a slice of my potroast, 1 slice of Swiss Cheese and the pesto dressing. I also made a Strawberry-Pineapple-Yogurt Smoothie.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Garlic Cheese Toast

2004-04-25T16:58:00.000-04:00

Low Salt, and delicious

Ingredients:

English Muffin Toasting Bread (From Master, Thomas or other bakeries)

Garlic Cooking Spray

Garlic Powder

Kraft Italian Pesto Dressing

Fresh Mozzarella

Preheat Broiler
Cut slices of bread into quarters
Put bread on baking sheet.
Spray with cooking spray
sprinkle with garlic powder
spoon a 1/4 t of dressing in center
divide 1 oz of fresh mozzarella into 4 pieces (per slice)
Broil until bread is toasted.

Tip: You can never have too much garlic on garlic toast.
Out mozzarella next to pesto, and

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Did not feel like cooking.

2004-04-25T13:03:00.000-04:00

What a surprise, I got the lazy bones last night, and did not feel like cooking. I ordered a thin crust, veggie pizza with onions, mushrooms, fresh tomatoes, green peppers and pineapple. No Black olives, otherwise it would have been the Veggie Delight. Light on sauce, light on cheese. I had 2 pieces, last night, and half a piece today for breakfast. This morning I also had yogurt and toast.

The Chili Project
I have gone over my chili recipe and am ready to start my experimentation. First I am going to have to switch the way I cook the meat. This may sound disgusting, but the norm is to boil the hamburger right in the chili. I'll be sautéeing the hamburger, draining it and rinsing it to cut down on the fat. I may cut down on the meat, and mince some mushrooms with the meat. I am not sure if they will hold up to the 4 hour simmering process though. Normally I use cocoa powder and let the fat from the hamburger turn it into chocolate. I'll leave that be for the time being. If it affects the taste too much, I may go to the more normal square of baking chocolate with the trivial amount of fat. Cincinnati chili has Greek influences in it, chocolate and cinnamon are both in the recipe.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Steak Soft Tacos

2004-04-24T14:30:00.000-04:00

More leftovers. I used some of the sliced potroast strips I had in the freezer, and made up a hot marinade out of low sodium seasonings. (cayenne, Extra Spicy Mrs. Dash, red pepper flakes and water)

low sodium/fat soft flour tortillas

shredded lettuce

diced tomatoes

low sodium salsa

shredded parmesan

fat free sour cream

warm the tortillas in microwave wrapped in a damp paper towel.
fill with desired toppings.

A note about salsas. The sodium level on them is all over the map. Most of the name brands are pretty high. I found a very low sodium one at teh co-op. Although at my grocery store, I found the brand: Frog Ranch All Natural with only 40 mg of sodium per 2 TBL

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Cincinnati Chili

2004-04-24T10:20:00.000-04:00

Some time ago, I created my own precise Cincinnati Chili Spice mix. It was adjusted to my personal tastes. I have let people sample it, and fans of that particular style of chili agree with me that is great. One of the goals I set for myself when I was lying in my hospital bed was to de-sodium it. Today is the day for that task. I am very proud of the recipe, and will be publishing it.

Wine for Dummies

Andrea Immer's
Great Tastes Made Simple

Karen MacNeil'sThe Wine Bible

Life is Too Short to Drink Bad Wine

I like wine. In my family, happy hour is called "wine time". As a waiter at a fine restaurant, I learned what wines I liked, as well as what other people liked. It was to the point people just had me pick a wine for them. Other waiters were selling wine with the phrase "Kevin likes this one". Or I would get a referral from another waiter, "some customers are asking me what that wine was you suggested". I am not purporting to be any sort of expert. I will leave that to the society folks. I just like what tastes good. Notice I did not say "cheap wine", but "bad wine". Expense has as much to do with product postitioning, cost of production, perceived value, scarcity and many other factors that have nothing to do with how it tastes. One of our better Australians blends was actually about as inexpensive as our house wine.

A lot of people are intimidated about wine. Unfortunate. Some people obsess about what glass to drink from. Its about the wine. When I designed the wine list for Mia's. I labored to make it fun. It made such an impression two of our wind distributors used it as an example to other customers. I think I have an acrobat file of one somewhere. I'll hunt for it. A good suggestion is learn a couple reds you like and a couple whites you like, and memorize the names. Do not let a wine list intimidate you. When it comes to home buying, remember what wines, and the years, you liked in restaurants. I never thought I would ever say "I prefer 199x to 199y" but I found myself saying that not too long ago.

There is a club I would like to get a chapter in Lexington. Wine Brats. As I understand it, it was founded by the younger generation of Vinters. I remember hearing a story on NPR about it. To paraphrase what I heard was "drink it out of a paper cup if you want to, just drink it".

Here is what the American Heart Association says about red wine:

"What about red wine and heart disease?
Over the past several decades, many studies have been published in science journals about how drinking alcohol may be associated with reduced mortality due to heart disease in some populations. Some researchers have suggested that the benefit may be due to wine, especially red wine. Others are examining the potential benefits of components in red wine such as flavonoids (FLAV'oh-noidz) and other antioxidants (an"tih-OK'sih-dants) in reducing heart disease risk. Some of these components may be found in other foods such as grapes or red grape juice. The linkage reported in many of these studies may be due to other lifestyle factors rather than alcohol. Such factors may include increased physical activity, and a diet high in fruits and vegetables and lower in saturated fats No direct comparison trials have been done to determine the specific effect of wine or other alcohol on the risk of developing heart disease or stroke."

There remains some controversy. What is not controversial is, if a person has alcohol problems. Drinking wine is not a good solution. The risks of alcohol abuse outway any potential benefits.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Crispy Corn Crust Ratatoule Mini Pizza

2004-04-23T12:41:00.000-04:00

Today for lunch, I am really mixing it up.
Ingredients:

2 Tostada Shells (low salt)

1/2 cup Ratatoulie

4 oz pulled grilled chicken

2 mushrooms sliced

4 Tablespoons Shredded Parmesan

1 small Ball of Fresh mozzarella

Salt-free Italian Seasoning

Preheat oven to 350°
Set Tortillas on baking sheet.
Spread Ratatoullie as sauce, to a 1/2 inch form edge
Sprinkle Italian seasoning on sauce
add Chicken
add mushrooms
Sprinkle with Parmesan
Slice Mozzerella cheese and spread decoratively on top of Parmesan
Bake for 9 minutes

Keep in mind I used leftovers for this. I had the grilled chicken and ratatoullie from earlier this week. To spice it up add pepper flakes to ratatoullie to taste. I'd have used any meat I had on the firdge. I have some of the roast left, but wanted to get rid of the chicken.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Leftovers

2004-04-23T07:48:00.000-04:00

Cooking for one, I have a lot of leftovers. I almost always eat leftovers for lunch, sometimes dinner. But who wants last night's dinner for lunch every day? I have gotten creative with my lunches.

Last night for dinner I had baked spaghetti. I had made spaghetti earlier, and just sprayed a small baking dish with cooking spray, added leftover spaghetti mixed with leftover sauce, topped with fresh mozzarella, and baked at 350° for 25 minutes. A perusal of the Mayo Clinic recipe site inspired this one.

Wednesday I made Ratatoullie Potroast on Pasta. It served 8, I am exactly 1. Despite my best efforts to get someone to share, I ended up with a lot of leftovers. I put 2 sets of double portions in freezer bags for future dinners, but kept some of the ratatoulie and some of the pasta in the fridge for leftover lunches. Since Ratatoulie can be served cold, I added it to my pulled chicken salad I had for lunch on Thursday. The chicken itself was from Tuesday night, I pulled the meat from the bone and shredded it with a fork, placed it on a top of greens, along with the ratatoulie, a little shredded Parmesan, and dressing on the side. The "best" dressing I found is Raspberry Vinaigrette. But for this I used Italian Pesto. Not the lowest sodium around, but within the confines of my diet.

The Vegetarian Tacos was a leftovers idea too, as I had made Mrs' Dash Stuffed Mushrooms the night before. The stuffing was Mushroom stems, celery, onions, plain yogurt and bread crumbs. I made the bread crumbs myself, so I knew they were low salt.

Other things I have done to make leftovers more interesting is Spaghetti Wraps. Low fat Tortillas, with Spaghetti and sauce, lettuce and shredded Parmesan. Spaghetti on salad. I sliced the meat off the bone of the pork chops and served that on salad.
Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

A Note About Cookbooks

2004-04-21T13:49:00.000-04:00

A person I know once said "cookbooks are for housewives". Maybe I am special because, I look to them as inspiration. When I made my risotto, I looked at all three recipes, and combined the process. Am I still a housewife? I don't care. There are plenty of us that have not been to cooking school, that use the recipes and techniques in books to help us create.

If a person is looking for cookbooks, I always suggest used, if available. I doubt only the bad ones make it to used book stores. But, with the internet a someone can find so many available it can be rediculous. ABEBooks.com is a network of independent booksellers with their inventories consolidated. Thats how I got two copies of the Larousse (one for me and one for a gift) as well as two of "The Professional Chef" a cooking school textbook. I have had no problems buying through them, although it can be cumbersome if you find multiple books from multiple sellers. Amazon.com also allows independent booksellers to sell through their site. I have bought books that way too. With that service you pay Amazon, which in turn pays them. I have also had no problem with that process. See examples below for new and used at Amazon.com. With abebooks, the prices seem to fluctuate more, and lean toward the super low side for cookbooks, not so with literature. I found my Larousse Gastronomique for $10, and as of today abebooks has it at $10, while amazon has it at $30 (used - new is $51)

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

What is Ratatoulle?

2004-04-21T08:39:00.000-04:00

This is not a recipe per se, but the description of a dish and the process.
It is an French eggplant stew.
I made mine with chopped celery, onions, zucchini, Italian "Plum" tomatoes and sliced eggplant. Low salt tomato puree and spices; Garlic, pepper, salt-free seasoning, Low-salt Italian seasoning, bay leaf, and dried basil. Baked covered for 2 hours at 350°

The "BIG DADDY" authority on French cooking is Prosper Montagne's larousse Gastronomique. In encylopedia form, with cross references galore. It is not exactly low salt or low fat. Ok, its about as far from healthy as fat back and ham hocks, but as a person's substitution skills grow, you (hopefully) can convert. Anyone thinking low salt and low salt just means leaving the salt out, should stick to the books to the right.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Vegetarian Tacos from Leftover Mrs Dash® Stuffed Mushrooms

2004-04-21T07:05:00.000-04:00

The Stuffed Mushroom Recipe

(recipe from Mrsdash.com but modified by me - the cheese)
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. (15mL) Mrs. Dash® Spicy Blend
12 large mushrooms
1/4 cup (60mL) finely chopped celery
1/4 cup (60mL) finely chopped onion
3/4 cup (180mL) dry breadcrumbs
1/2 cup (120mL) Fat free plain yogurt
4 tbl unsalted butter divided.
1 small ball fresh mozzerella divided.
1 Tbsp. (30mL) lemon juice
Serves:12
Prep Time:25 min
Cook Time:15 min to 20 min

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
2. Clean mushrooms; remove stems.
3. Finely chop stems and set aside.
4. Place mushroom cavity sideup on baking sheet.
5. Heat 3 tbl butter in a small skillet and add mushroom stems, celery, onion and Mrs. Dash® spicy Blend.
6. Saute until golden brown (about 5 to 8
minutes).
7. Remove from heat and stir in breadcrumbs and yogurt.
8. Spoon lightly into mushroom caps.
9. top with mozzerella.
10. Drizzle lemon juice and 1 tbl melted butter over stuffed mushrooms.
11. Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.
12. flip on broiler until Mozzerella is brown.
13. Serve immediately.
Nutritional Information Per Serving:
Calories:83 Sodium:30 mg
Total Fat:6 g Potassium:181 mg
Saturated Fat:4 g Carbohydrates:5 g
Unsaturated Fat:2 g Fiber:1 g
Trans Fat:0 g Protein:2 g
Cholesterol:9 mg

_{(from leftovers of the stuffed Mushrooms) Oh but I used Mrs Dash Extra Spicy Blend instead of regular Mrs. Dash®}

Ingredients:

left over stuffing from mushrooms

Soft Taco Tortillas

Shredded Parmesan

Lettuce

Diced tomatoes

2 tsp La Victoria Salsa Brava

Serves 1, serving size 2 tacos
adjust accordingly
Instructions:

Heat tortillas in microwave between paper towel

Heat filling in microwave

Spoon tablespoon filling, in warmed tortilla

Top with lettuce and tomato and cheese and sauce.

Marinated Porkchops

2004-04-16T20:23:00.000-04:00

INGREDIENTS:

4 pork chops

Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing

Balsamic vinegar

Mrs. Dash for Grilling

Put the pork flat in a baking dish, pour vinegar over pork until about an 1/8 inch is on the bottom of the dish. Do the same with dressing allowing total volume to rise to about half the width of the chops. Cover and let sit in fridge for 15 minutes. Remove, and turn over and let sit for another 10 minutes. *

Sprinkle chops with Mrs. Dash for Grilling, rub into meat, put on grill season side down, add more Mrs Dash to plain side and rub in meat. Cook until desired doneness.

*using more eliminates having to turn them over.

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Weird Food & Junk Food, oh and Good Food

2004-04-16T19:59:00.000-04:00

Last night I made Marinara, today for lunch I put together something unique. Perhaps. Linguini Marinara Wraps (mixed Linguini and sauce added lettuce rolled in warmed tortilla). Fun to eat, not dull, and low in sodium, (131 mg sodium - 363 cal), thanks to my low sodium tortillas I found. I am going to be thinking outside the box when it comes to food. If the way I approach other challenges is how I ultimately approach making food, I'll be eating some pretty interesting and tasty stuff, all within my diet. Not sure what I'll be doing tonight.

I Downloaded the nutrition information from Papa Johns and White Castles. I learned I can have 4 white castles (actually 2 doubles) and a small fry (415 mg sodium, 995 cal, 310 Fat Calories) and stay within the limitations of my diet. That is good to know. My Garden Style Pizza thin at PapaJohns, is another story. (447 mg sodium /piece,228 cal. 102 fat cal/piece) I eat at least 2 pieces, sometimes I want a third. ( 1341 mg so/3, 684 cal 306 fat cal / 3). Trade off wise, the pizza is through the roof in sodium and calories slightly less. Both are technically "low fat" based 1/2 rule. Granted I do not plan on munching these every day, but its good to know the options.

For dinner, I marinated pork chops in balsamic vinegar & raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Then I rubbed them with Mrs. Dash® Grilling spice, and slapped them on the old George Forman Grill. The result was a salty sweet tasty dish, complimented by niblets corn, and a salad. I used a tablespoon of unsalted butter with the corn.

Better, Stronger, Faster

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004

Risotto Milanese

2004-03-27T07:11:00.000-05:00

I love risotto. I never had it until I worked with Chrissie, now of Gramercy Tavern in New York. She's very Italian, she makes excellent risotto. Some "World Traveler" customers of mine compared it favorably to risotto from Milan. She was always going to show me how to make it before she left for culinary school in New York. I watched her do it, and learned the narrative of the process. I just had not done it until now. If I say so myself it turned out quite well. Not as salty as I was used to but still full of flavor.

The other chefs, James of Holly Hill Inn, and Adam of Harvest, each made theirs a different way. All good, I preferred Chrissie's. I only found one risotto I did not like (at another restaurant). I think it was a mistake. It tasted like rice in broth. It did not seem to be cooked slowly over 25 minutes in broth and wine, more like cooked in water, and swimming in broth. Ugh. Anyway here is the recipe;

from Teri's Kitchen
SERVES 4

This is not the classic Risotto alla Milanesa because substituting olive oil for some of the butter. It is delicious and not quite as rich.

INGREDIENTS

1 can (14.5 ounces) low-salt chicken broth, or 2 cups homemade

1/4 cup dry white wine

Water as needed

1/4 teaspoon saffron threads

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter, plus another tablespoon

1 cup chopped onions

1-1/4 cups arborio rice
1/4 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese

Season to taste

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 pound of shrimp, deveined.

Mix the chicken broth, wine and enough water to make 2-1/2 cups in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and add the saffrom threads. Cover and keep hot.

Heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir until all of the grains are coated with the oil. Add 1/2 cup of the hot broth and stir well. Stir often until the liquid is absorbed. Add another 1/2 cup of the broth and stir again. Repeat the process until all of the broth has been used and the rice is very creamy, about 20 minutes. (Depending on the age of the rice, you might need to add more broth. Water will be fine.) When the rice is done, stir in the remaining butter, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and parsley. Grill Shrimp with low salt seasong, top on risotto. Serve immediately.

Additional heart healthy recipes for risotto can be found in:

Low Salt Cookbook, by the American Heart Association

The No-Salt, Lowest-Sodium Cookbook, by Donald A. Gazzaniga

IMPORTANT: The following is Low fat, not always Low Salt

The New American Heart Association Cookbook 25th Anniversary Edition, by the American Heart Association

Eating Healthy Since Feb, 2004