Gene and I don't eat much fried food but every once in a while you have indulge yourself, right? There's nothing better than good fried fish and home-made fries. But then getting it from most fast food or chain restaurants is mostly a nightmare of wanting in taste and healthiness.
I think I found a way to make a very decent meal at home while still not breaking the artery bank.
I needed dinner to be really fast tonight. Not from any crisis or anything, I just wasn't in the mood to cook so this afternoon I laid out a couple of tuna steaks and marinated them in this:
UPDATE: Rachel of Foodie Rachel was the first to say anything about the Mondo bottle. I didn't marinade the tuna in purple kool-aid, I promise, I just stuck it in there to see if anyone would notice and say anything. My marinade was: the juice of the lime, soy sauce, a healthy teaspoon of minced garlic & ginger, a touch of Wasabi, and some minced lemongrass that I added after the photo was taken.
They were done lickety split on the George Foreman, although I wasn't crazy about the way the soy sauce darkened the colors. They tasted great though.
And then rounding out the meal were some really nice pre-roasted and seasoned Mediterranean veggies from Schwan's that the only thing I added to was a handful of edamame.
And a kidney bean salad. Does anyone else make this? It's something my grandmother used to make, sort of along the lines of pea salad. Normally there's chopped hard-boiled egg but I didn't take the time. It's just a can of rinsed and dried kidney beans, minced celery and green onion, a spoon full of mayo, a splash of lemon, and a hit of seasoned salt and pepper. Then it's chilled for an hour or two before being served.
It tastes better than I think it looks. I've never seen this anywhere but on my Nannie's table. Anybody else grow up with this?
Dinner was a very simple and easy roasted veggies and fish with a Harry & David Rosemary and Thyme grilling marinade. Yum. Very nice. Glad I opened that bottle. I'll be swathing the roasties in that until it runs dry. The veggies are simple. I put a kettle of water on to boil and parboil the veggies one type at a time just to get everything to come out in the even cooking time department and then throw the fish on the baking pan for the last 10 minutes. Couldn't be more simple.
My roasty veggies and fish with their rosemary/thyme marinade are my addition to this weeks Weekend Herb Blogging, created by Kalyn at Kalyn's Kitchen, and hosted this week by Rinku of Cooking in Westchester. Check out her blog later in the week to see this week's round up.
Okay, kids, this is my second attempt at making my own sushi with all those lovely big girl kitchen toys Aunt Miranda gave me for Christmas. It was just as fun the second time around. I'm still getting my feet wet so I haven't traveled off the California roll beaten path yet but give me time. I'll get there. Last time I used vegetables only, just to see if I could roll them. This time I stepped up to shrimp, cream cheese, cucumbers, and avocado in a couple of different variations. For dipping, I had soy sauce and a shrimp sauce that's very close to the seafood sauce at the Japanese grill restaurants, a recipe Aunt Miranda gave me. The red swirlies on top is chinese red pepper hot sauce. Mmmmm...just enough of a bite to complement the wasabi.
For my first post on making sushi that shows step by step photos, click HERE.
The first time I made sushi, Gene was out of town. That was fine with me because it took the pressure off. This time he was home and I was afraid he would be a hard sell. He loves seafood but the whole concept just isn't his he-man macho food style but you know what? He was very game and he ate a whole roll all by himself. Then he devoured a pound of naked shrimp. Then he asked where dinner was. I'm kidding. He didn't ask, he just got up and made himself a grilled cheese sandwich, well I think it was actually two, to finish filling that skinny hollow leg.
For the shrimp sauce recipe, click below:
(My first Phad Thai--don't sneer at my soggy little broccolis, this way I can get my family to at least eat it--we'll work up to less and less cooked with time.)
Let's talk about fiber:
We all know that we should take in 25 grams of fiber a day according to the RDI, Referenced Daily Intake, formerly the RDA, Recommended Daily Allowance. The recommended amount of each, soluble and insoluble fiber, is not spelled out in that recommendation, although both are necessary to the body but work in different ways.
Insoluble fiber is the fiber that the body can't use and is moved through the intestines without change. This provides bulk to the stool. Soluble fiber is not broken down by the body either, but is turned into a gel when coupled with water and has a few unique properties dieters can cash in on. For one, it slows down emptying of the stomach making us feel full longer, and it adds softening properties to the stool that make the whole elimination process faster and easier to tolerate. On top of those physical properties we can easily see and feel, soluble fiber also improves glucose metabolism.
To break digestion down into a quick nutshell: Food is broken down into tiny bits of sugar called glucose which the body's cells can use directly. Insulin is the "key" that unlocks the door to allow glucose into the cells.
As we age and/or gain weight or become obese, our bodies function less efficiently and become insulin resistant which is a risk for developing diabetes. The numbers are scary. According to a 2006 study by Dr. Laurie Barclay and Dr. Desiree Lie, there's a 20% chance of insulin resistance with every 5% increase in weight over the age of 20. (Basically, that means I'm screwed because that's how I put my weight on, 5-7 lbs a year, after the age of 20.) The normal weight population has a 4% chance of developing diabetes. The obese population has a 46% risk of developing diabetes. If your weight is in between those two groups, your risk is in between those two figures.
Soluble fiber has been shown to control blood sugar spikes. The object of the game is to eat, transform the food into glucose, and have a steady supply available to the cells, rather than a spike and drop amount of glucose supplied, with an efficiently working insulin key. Soluble fiber helps attain those objectives. Not only does that aid us in losing weight, which is in its most basic form all about not eating more fuel than our bodies need for energy and using up the stores we already do have, soluble fiber aids us in feeling better all the time because our bodies are producing energy more efficiently and lowering our diabetes risk.
So what foods have plenty of soluble fiber? Oatmeal and barley are excellent sources in cereals. Apples, berries, prunes, and citrus are all packed. Apples in particular are loaded with pectin which is soluble fiber. So that gives an interesting twist to the old saying "An apple a day..." All beans, but lima, black, and navy beans are the highest sources in that family. And for vegetables: broccoli, brussel sprouts, bean sprouts, and carrots are soluble dynamos.
Interesting that three of those vegetables are often found together in stir fries. Guess what I'll be eating more of? Little Debbie Carrot Cakes. Just kidding. Little Debbie may be a sweet girl but her cakes are all but poison on anyone's diet just from the transfats alone. Viva la stir fry! Which, as I've said before, to me just seems like hot salad over rice or noodles. It's a way to break up the salad routine. So viva la vegetables in general.
Also interesting that two of those vegetables (broccoli and brussel sprouts) are in the cabbage family. Just something to keep in the back of your mind. Other members of the family include: cauliflower, beet greens, as well as mustard, collard, and turnip greens, swiss chard, kale, bok choy, rutabagas, radishes, and turnips, all good sources of fiber of both varieties.
Phad Thai is easy to make at home,full of flavor, and hosts the soluble fiber of bean sprouts. The genesis of the dish is rice stick noodles, fish sauce, egg, and chopped peanuts. Served on street food carts all over Bangkok and maybe one of the most recognizable Thai dishes in the states, Phad Thai has as many variations as possible ingredients, including those with tofu, shrimp, chicken, or without added protein. I added broccoli to the recipe I chose to increase the soluble fiber count. Gene, who loves his down home cooking, but isn't necessarily unadventurous, really liked this dish. With a little practice on my part (this was my first attempt) I think this could become a regular part of our meal repetoire.
For more on my personal diet story and the recipe, click below:
I know this is a repost but for all of our new friends from Carriage Park Preventive Health Care joining us it's a must have. This sauce still appears in my dreams and frequently on my table on top of everything from the scallops to hake to Kalyn's salmon to chicken. It's a winner.
Salmon Photo courtesy of Kalyn Denny at www.kalynskitchen.blogspot.com )
To see the original links for balsamic syrup sauce recipe postings go here:
Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen Salmon
The basic premise is this. Grill, roast, or saute any meat, fish, or poultry the way you normally would and then serve it with this sauce made on top of the stove.
Balsamic Syrup:
In a small sauce pan, bring:
1/3 cup Splenda
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
a few drops of chinese red hot sauce (optional)
...to a boil until thickened and reduce by half. This is basically a simple syrup.
Make 4 servings
Per serving Calories: 10 Protein 0 Carbs 3 Fat 0
I never explained but the whole reason we went on vacation to Tahoe and why we went at this time of year, in between seasons, was that Gene's birthday is October 24th. For our birthdays we always plan surprise trips for each other. Gene has wanted to go to Tahoe for a long time. For one, he's always been curious about Reno because he's a huge fan of the whole Rat Pack era of old Las Vegas and Frank Sinatra owned a casino on north Tahoe call Cal Neva. So as his birthday approached he stopped hinting and finally said "Are we going for my surprise birthday to Tahoe?" And I said, "No, the surprise is we're going thirty minutes south to Branson." Funny, that didn't go over so well so I decided I should probably book flights to Tahoe. And then called Sher.
Speaking of, Sher was so kind as to surprise Gene with a birthday cake. Wasn't that nice? It was a sacher torte from Konditorei Pastry Shop and it was a chocolate dream. Of course we forgot to photograph the whole cake but here are the decorations leftover from the top. Isn't the marzipan rose gorgeous?
And more about mine and Sher's food adventures...
These pics almost speak for themselves. I've eaten sushi before, love it, but had never eaten at the big floating boats of paradise before. Okay, that's my own turn of phrase but I got quite a kick out of the floating moat and pull your dinner off the boats presentation. I would have gone back for every meal just for the novelty to me. I loved being able to see all the beautiful rolls prepared and floating in front of me.
Sher and I had a race to see who could stack the most plates and, d***it, I almost won. Lost by a mere one plate.
Sher's:
Mine:
Wish I hadn't looked at these photos. Now I'm craving sushi. But instead I'll be going to work and eating either Campbell's or cafeteria. Seems so unfair.
This WOBAT round up is going to be short and sweet because it's August and even though I personally didn't go on a long vacation and I don't have children going back to school, everyone else does. But I'm figuratively there with all of the rest of you folks. Where has this month gone? It has flown by for everyone I've talked to in the last week. I can't believe it's Labor Day Weekend and the kids are back in school.
So the point of all that rambling is that we only have two entries this time for round-up and I just barely got mine done or Sher would have been on her own for MY event.
When you get a chance, wander over to What Did You Eat for Sher's delicious Potato Chip Crusted Wild Salmon filet, her excuse to buy her once a year allotment of potato chips. You can almost smell it through the computer screen. Doesn't that look divine? Make it, tell the food snob in you that it's Panko and to shut the heck up, and enjoy it.
Here at A Fridge Full of Food, my entry is that good old standby taken right off the back of the Knorr (or Lipton) dehydrated vegetable soup mix box: Spinach Dip It's a simple throw together dip that's embarassingly easy but I've never had a party where the bowl wasn't empty at the end of the night and, as common as it has become, there's always one person in the crowd who's never heard of it. (There's also a recipe for Washington Apple Martinis on the same page.)
Blue Hake w/Balsamic Syrup (w/Splenda), Fresh Tomatoes from the neighbor's garden, and a small wedge of Rosemary Focaccia.
This was one of the best meals I've made in a long time. It was tasty and very good for us and it came together almost as an accident. I didn't feel like cooking tonight and I hadn't defrosted any meat so I pulled together what I did have that would be quick and easy, and then, that balsamic syrup I love so much popped into my brain as the sauce. Except this time I tried it using Splenda which puts this whole plate in at under 400 calories, perfect for most diet plans including that of Dr. Brenda Wells of Preventative Health Care, in the Springfield, MO metro area.
Continue reading "I Need to Eat this Healthy at Every Meal" »
Scallops with Balsamic Vinegar Syrup
I could not get that balsamic vinegar syrup from the grilled peaches out of my mind. It was so perfectly balanced in sweet, sour, and spicy that I cleaned the pan out with a spatula to eat by itself while the peaches grilled.
So what do you do when you have an addiction? You want it with and on everything. I started with scallops. Who knows where I'll end up. I winged it last night just to see what would happen. It came out so perfect and so perfectly easy I almost feel guilty.
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