Mimi's Meals

Bacon! 'Cause I'm a woman, W.O.M.A.N.

2012-07-04T12:14:00.001-04:00

OK Wow, so admittedly I have abandoned this blog for some time now. Have you missed me? Well I have an excuse. Around the time I stopped posting here I began a business painting pet portraits. If you are interested you can see what I've been up to by going to my website Pet Portraits By Mimi (a not so shameless plug). Anyway, although my interest in cooking healthy meals, focusing on using as much locally sourced and sustainably produced food never wavered, my dedication to sharing my endeavors on this blog did. But I am here to tell you that I am trying to change that. So I am back and I figured I would celebrate my return as a multi-tasking, blogging, home-cook, artist, gardener and all round nice person ;) with a post about a subject near and dear to many of our hearts ... BACON!!!

It began innocently enough. Instead of opting for the more familiarly branded, supermarket staple of my youth and on a quest to find something that resembled the more flavorful bacon we ate at some local restaurants, I began to buy a healthier (albeit more expensive) nitrate free version of bacon made by Niman Ranch. We really liked this bacon and I felt good that I had not only found a much more flavorful bacon but also one that was better for us. Then the worst possible thing happened. Well it wasn't really the worst possible thing, there are actually lots more worse things, but where'e the drama in that? But I digress - the tragedy in this case was that our local grocery stores stopped carrying the Niman Ranch bacon! Curses - foiled again.

So back on the bacon quest I went, grumbling all the way, until I discovered that one of my favorite local farmers market vendors, Tony Adams from Big Wheel Provisions, was selling his own house cured bacon. Hurray - our bacon dilemma was once again solved! The added bonus was that with each bacon transition, the quality of our bacon experience was multiplying tenfold. Although Tony's bacon was even pricier than the Niman Ranch version, the fact that it was made from locally sourced exquisitely raised pigs, was a real plus to me. His bacon was mind blowing. Because the flavor profile was so amazing, we found that we didn't need to eat as much, so it all balanced out.

Then one day I went to the little market at one of my favorite local farms Lake Meadow Naturals, and saw that they had pork belly for sale. "How difficult could it be" I thought to myself? Maybe I could make my own bacon and save a little money without sacrificing flavor. I was still supporting my local economy. Heck I was buying the pork directly from the farmer. There was no shortage of other goodies I would still be buying from Tony - so into my basket went that pork belly. For a recipe I went to the ultimate source - Michael Ruhlman - who wrote the book on bacon, literally. With a few minor adaptations, I now had my own home-cured bacon to serve. The rest as they say, is history.

Michael Ruhlman's recipe called for either brown sugar or maple syrup. Being the indecisive Libra that I am, I decided to use both. Because I opt not to use pink salt (sodium nitrate) in my cure it is not advisable to actually smoke this bacon because without the preservative properties of the pink salt, there is a slight risk of botulism. So I recreate that smoky flavor by using some applewood smoked sea salt in my cure.

I have been leaving the skin on the pork belly during the cure but here you can see I scored it so the rub can penetrate to the fat layer below.

Here my rub is ready to go on the pork

I put the belly into the bag before I apply the rub. It's just less messy that way.

I have this nifty little vacuum sealer that was made by Oliso. They have since changed the model so I can't speak to the newer version but this older model has served me well.

After applying the cure I vacuum seal the bag. If you don't have a sealer, you can just use a zip lock style bag and remove as much air as possible before closing it up.

Then I place it in the refrigerator for 7 days. Every once and a while I reach in and give the bag a nice massage but otherwise I just wait while the belly takes on all the yummy flavors.

After the 7 days of curing, I remove the belly from the bag, rinse off the cure and pat it dry.

Then I place it on a rack in a pan and cook it in a slow 200˚ oven for 90 minutes or until the internal temperature has reached 150˚.

With belly this big I cut it into usable portions (for the two of us that's 4 quarters) and freeze the slabs separately. When I'm ready for bacon I just thaw out a piece and slice it up which is easier to do when the piece is still slightly frozen. But honestly after smelling it in the oven for all that time, who can wait? I usually have to cook up at least a few slices for "quality control" purposes right away.

I'm telling you, you'll be ruined for store bought bacon ever again.

Home-Cured Bacon

Ingredients

Five pounds of fresh pork belly
2 ounces (1/4 cup Morton or Diamond Crystal coarse kosher) salt
4 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
4 bay leaves, crumbled
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ cup brown sugar or maple syrup (or some of each)
5 cloves of garlic, smashed with the flat side of a chef’s knife
2 tablespoons juniper berries, lightly crushed (optional)
5 to 10 sprigs fresh thyme (optional)

If you don’t have five pounds of belly, either estimate salt based on the proportions above or, if you have a scale, multiply the weight of the belly in ounces or grams by .025 and that’s how many ounces or grams of salt you should use.

Pumpkin Ravioli

2010-10-15T23:15:00.000-04:00

So the temperature is dropping here. It finally feels like fall. And I have begun harvesting Seminole pumpkins from my garden. That means it's time to start trying out pumpkin recipes. Tonight I opted for pumpkin ravioli and I kept it nice and local.

First I made my own pasta dough using unbleached all purpose white ultra-grain flour, olive oil, salt, and local eggs from Lake Meadow Naturals Farm.

While it rested, I made the filling using pumpkin puree from my garden, ricotta cheese that I made myself from organic milk, some grated pecorino romano cheese, an egg, fennel seeds, nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, brown sugar, salt & pepper.

For the sauce I used some browned butter, minced shallot, sage and some organic carrot/orange juice. I made the sauce while the ravioli were cooking and then added them directly into the pan with a little of the pasta water until they were nicely coated.

A little grating of pecorino romano completed the plate.

Pumpkin Ravioli with Carrot & Orange Brown Butter Sauce

Yum!

Something To Be Said For Tamales

2010-07-19T23:50:00.000-04:00

Lately Marty and I have been enjoying the bourgeoning slow food movement in the Central Florida area. In particular there are two farmers markets that have made a commitment to supporting and promoting only locally produced food and goods. The leader on this front is the Monday night Audubon Park Market as it is a completely local market. And more recently the College Park Market, which is now being held on Thursday nights, is trying to follow the same model.

We have made some wonderful connections at these markets, actually getting to know the farmers and growers of the food we buy. I love the fact that the soft boiled egg I ate this morning was gathered by Dale at Lake Meadow Naturals from his very pampered and happy chickens; that Cinthia at Wild Ocean Seafood is my own personal connection to the hard working local fishermen and that Trish Strawn from Deep Creek Ranch can tell me exactly which animal my grass fed beef has come from, and every detail of its handling. I am also grateful to have met Tony Adams of Big Wheel Provisions who not only hooks me up with some truly amazing local free range pork but is a source for an endless array of yummy prepared treats - from charcuterie to condiments - pickles to pate. Each week it's a new adventure as he opens his coolers filled with handmade, locally sourced, thoughtfully prepared culinary fare.

Last week was no exception. When he handed us a package of his smoked Deep Creek Ranch beef tongue and told us to just take it and try it, how could we refuse? Perhaps we found ourselves tongue tied, because the next thing you know I was home in my kitchen with a package of food that looked like it was giving me attitude and not a clue what to do with it. My thoughts went in two directions: Vietnamese and Mexican. Should I maybe try it in something like a Banh Mi sandwich or a bowl of Pho? Or should I go the Latin route? After much internet surfing and recipe browsing I decided to use it to make tamales. Although I didn't come across a specific tamale recipe, it became apparent that it would be well suited to such a preparation. Let me just say up front that any trepidation we may have felt disappeared the minute we tasted the tamales.

They were wonderful. The tongue meat was tender and its smokiness layered with the smokiness of the chipotles, gave the filling a really nice depth of flavor. It just goes to prove that sometimes it is best to think before you speak, hold your tongue as it were. Because if we had rejected Tony's offer we would have missed out on a great meal. So thanks Tony - see you at the Market!

Pulling together the ingredients for my tamales

I had to get past the fact that it was sticking it's tongue out at me - literally

Sautéing the meat with some onions, garlic and green peppers

Cooked down with tomatoes, corn, celery, chipotle, honey, spices and herbs

Mixing the shortening into the tamale dough

Stuffing the tamales

Into the steamer for an hour

Fire roasted tomatillos and peppers for the salsa verde

Que Bueno!

Soft Rye Pretzels

2010-06-17T18:09:00.000-04:00

If you know me you know that I love cookbooks. I can't help it, I'm just drawn to them. My latest purchase is called Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce.

I like that it is not only a book full of recipes that use a variety of healthy and interesting whole grain flours, but that her focus was on making sure that these recipes were also delicious. Today I tried her recipe for soft rye pretzels. If everything else in the book is as yummy as these, then I can't wait to keep baking! Maybe next I'll try the maple danish. I'll keep you posted.

The pretzels proof for a second time while the water bath heats up.

Then they take a 60 second bath in boiling water with baking soda.

After they come out of the bath you salt them and place them on a buttered cookie sheet.

They bake at 450 for anywhere from 12-18 minutes until they are nice and brown.

I couldn't wait and dug right in. It was great!

Potato and Green Bean Salad with Poached Egg

2010-06-15T14:30:00.000-04:00

Marty jokes that I will spend more time making a single lunch for myself than he used to spend making a weeks worth of meals. But for me the time I spend in the kitchen is often therapeutic. I get lost in the process of creating a meal. It's not unlike how I feel when I paint.

Today I had the idea that I wanted to do something with some of the fresh string beans from the garden and my homemade pastrami. This is what I came up with. I sautéed a potato in a little olive oil along with some chopped up pieces of the pastrami. Then I steamed the beans with a little roasted garlic and combined them all in a bowl. I made a light honey mustard vinaigrette with dill and drizzled it over the salad. Then I poached an egg and placed it on top of the salad. A little lemon zest and chopped chives completed the dish.

It was worth the effort.

Pastrami

2010-05-24T18:31:00.000-04:00

In an effort to continue to find ways to eat a healthier diet, I decided to make my own pastrami. This way I could start out with what I like to call "happy cow" (humanely raised, grass-fed, organic, local and sustainable) beef. I could also skip the nitrates because I don't care if mine has an unnatural pink hue. What I care about is that it tastes good and that it is good for me.

To begin you take a beef brisket and you let it marinate for about 3 weeks in a brine that has brown sugar, salt, garlic, onions, bay leaves, and pickling spices. Here's what I used.

12 Cloves Garlic, sliced
1 Large Onion - Thinly sliced
3 Quarts Water
1 Cup Kosher Salt
2 Cups Brown Sugar
2 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Black Peppercorns
2 Tbsp Pickling Spices
4 Bay Leaves

Combine the water along with the rest of the ingredients in a large pot and heat and stir until the sugar and salt have dissolved. Cool Completely. (You can speed up the process by heating 2 quarts of water initially and once the salt and sugar have dissolved, adding the last quart of water in the form of ice. This will help cool your brine down faster. Once it is cool, place your brisket in a large brining bag and pour in the brining liquid. Seal and place in the refrigerator for 3 weeks. Check on it occasionally and add additional water if necessary to ensure the meat stays completely covered.

Basically you have to make corned beef before you can make pastrami. If you want you can cut your brisket in half and enjoy one half at the corned beef stage and continue on with the second half to create pastrami. I opted to go all the way to pastrami with the whole thing. So after removing the brisket from it's three week long bath I dried it off and covered it with a dry rub. After reading many different versions, this is the combination I put together:

4 T Fresh Ground Coriander
4 T Fresh Ground Pepper
1 T Onion Powder
1 T Granulated Garlic
6 Cloves Minced Garlic
1.5 t Fresh Ground Yellow Mustard seeds
2 T Kosher Salt
1/4 c Brown Sugar
2 T Paprika
1 T Ground Dried Ginger

I ground the ginger, mustard, pepper & coriander myself.

After removing the brisket from the brine, I rinsed it and dried it off with paper towels. Then I covered it with the rub and let it sit out on a drying rack until the surface looked shiny. This shiny film is known as a pellicle and it is important for the final step in this process to be most effective - that is the smoking. I smoked the brisket using a charcoal smoker and mesquite wood until it reached an internal temperature of between 165 and 170 degrees (about 8 hours). If you don't have a smoker you can rub the surface of the brisket with liquid smoke before adding the dry rub and then cook it in a low oven until the desired internal temperature is reached.

Then I let the meat rest and cool. I wrapped it in foil and placed it in the fridge overnight before slicing.

It may sound like a lot of work - but it really isn't. It's more a matter of time than anything. But believe me when I say that the results are worth it!

Eating From our Garden

2010-04-26T15:27:00.000-04:00

This weekend we really started to reap the benefits of our backyard garden.

I was finally able to pick enough blueberries to add to my morning cereal. It was such a treat!

For dinner Saturday night I kept the garden theme going with stuffed squash blossoms; which I served along with homemade whole wheat tagliatelle and a garden (literally) salad.

First I made ricotta out of organic 1% milk and a splash of organic half & half.

To make the ricotta I poured the milk with a little salt into a nonreactive pan. Starting with a cold pan, so the milk wouldn't stick I heated it to around 180 degrees.

I pulled the pan off the heat to add vinegar. I used rice wine vinegar because I thought it would add a nice subtle sweetness to the flavor. The vinegar should be no more than 5% of the total volume of milk that you use. I used two cups of milk so that came to about 20ml of vinegar.

Then I stirred the mixture around until the curd started to separate out. It took about a minute.

I covered the pan and let it sit for at least two hours. We actually went to an earth day festival so it sat for about 4.5 hours. When we got home, I drained the liquid out of the curd using some cheesecloth and a strainer. The longer you let it drain the dryer your ricotta will be. At this point you can add a little more salt to taste.

I mixed the cheese together with some chopped parsley and chives from the garden. I had picked a variety of blossoms - some male flowers (no fruit attached), and some female yellow squash and zucchini flowers. I was curious to see if there was any difference in the taste. I removed the stamens from the blossoms because I had read mixed reviews about their flavors and textures and I stuffed the blossoms with the cheese mixture.

Then I ran each stuffed blossom through some egg whites and seasoned flour and sauteed them in a little olive oil.

A salad of mesclun greens and nasturtium blossoms and whole wheat tagliatelle aglia olio with basil rounded out the meal.

The most amazing part of the whole thing was the fact that Marty ate it. When we first met, his vegetable comfort zone consisted of four main stays: corn, carrots, lima beans and potatoes. When we had finished eating this meal, he just kept saying "I ate flowers." He was very proud. So was I. :-D

We've come a long way baby!

Bagel Time

2010-03-31T15:00:00.001-04:00

Recently a friend asked for a copy of the recipe I have been using to make bagels. Her request placed the idea in my head and since it has been a while since I made them myself, I decided to make some this week. Yes, the irony of my choosing to make bagels at Passover is not lost on me, but I'm not Jewish and I like bagels, so I'm at peace with it.

Of course I can never leave well enough alone so I thought I would try making whole wheat versions this time which threw a bit of a monkey wrench into the process. Suffice it to say I was faced with a few setbacks. First my dough sponge didn't rise properly (maybe it was the Passover thing after all) and after rereading the directions on the package of yeast I decided to start over and make a second batch. Now I had two slow rising sponges! Since this early misstep yielded me twice as much starter, I decided to make one batch of cinnamon raisin and one batch of everything bagels. Making twice as many added more time to the whole equation. When all was said and done, what should have taken 4 - 5 hours from start to finish took twice that.

At midnight, when I had reached the final "floating" stage of the recipe - the dang stubborn things just didn't want to go there. So they went into the fridge and I went to bed. Let's just say that after a good night's rest I managed to work it all out and today my bagels floated willingly in their boiling malt bath and baked up nicely. A few chewy, crusty, bagely bites later and all the trouble I had was forgiven.

Lunch

Toasted whole wheat everything bagel topped with tomato & feta bruschetta and a poached egg

Side of fresh fruit

Getting my Danish On: Ebelskivers

2010-03-21T12:30:00.008-04:00

Decades before it became the latest and greatest kitchen gadget at Williams Sonoma, you could find an Ebelskiver pan in our kitchen. Somewhere along the line my parents picked it up as a nod to my Dad's Danish heritage. This traditional cast iron pan with 7 semi-spherical wells has it's origins steeped deep in Danish history. One legend has it that hungry Vikings used their battle worn shields as frying pans and cooked pancakes in the indentations. And although I grew up seeing this pan all the time (for a while it hung as a decoration near our family room fireplace) truth be told, neither of my parents ever actually used it to make ebelskivers.

When my parents died, one of the things I wanted most was that pan. After looking at it for all those years as a kid, I was determined to use it. So one Sunday I broke it out and invited some friends over for breakfast. There is some technique and finesse involved in making an ebelskiver and admittedly, my first attempts were hit and miss. I didn't use enough batter or I used too much. I tried to turn them before they were ready or I waited too long and they burned. But once I hit upon the right combination, I was enthralled by the way they miraculously transformed into golden brown balls of fluffy pancakey goodness and my guests where equally impressed. From that moment on I was hooked.

Marty and I were out in California a few years ago and he drove me up to Solvang which is a traditional Danish settlement founded in 1911 north of Santa Barbara. I remember watching through a storefront window as the woman inside adeptly rolled her pancake puffs with ease. Again I was inspired to conquer the art of the ebelskiver.

Ironically enough, I soon noticed the pans popping up in my local Williams Sonoma. Turned out these little filled pancake balls that could be traced back for hundreds of years were the "new" thing. I had to smile to myself as I found I was filled with pride for my Danish heritage. I didn't need their fancy pan - I already had one but I did break down and buy the ebelskiver cookbook and a set of wooden turning sticks. This morning I put them all to good use and I hope did my Danish relatives proud.

Good for the Soul ... and the Tummy!

2010-01-23T17:00:00.005-05:00

Marty felt a little under the weather earlier in the week so I broke out the magic elixir known as matzo ball soup. I'll admit that up to now, when it came to matzo ball soup, I would buy the matzo balls in a jar and add them to my own soup. However, I thought that it was high time that I left the Manischewitz on the shelf and made them myself.

Now having been raised Catholic, matzo balls were not exactly a staple in my diet but hey, that's what recipes are for. So this shiksa rolled up her sleeves and made her ailing hubby some homemade matzo ball soup. A mighty tasty soup it turned out to be too, even if I do say so myself.

OK, I confess those are grilled cheese sandwiches you see along with it - not Kosher. Marty doesn't keep Kosher. Truth be told, he hasn't been to a synagogue since he was a kid. This meal was simply about comfort food. When you don't feel well, there are certain foods that just fit the bill. In this case, these were the few that sounded appealing to him. And when your tummy is upset, you have to follow your gut - literally. So grilled cheese and matzo ball soup it was. He felt better and that's all that mattered to me.

Let's Try This Again in 2010

2010-01-19T12:26:00.007-05:00

So I realize that I disappeared for a few months and I suppose you could say I had a bit of a foodie meltdown. It began when I found myself rethinking my original concept of posting all that I ate every single day because frankly I was no longer enjoying the process. The whole thing had just become a lot of work. Ultimately as the holidays approached I was totally overwhelmed.

I decided that in order to ease my load I would simply consolidate this with my family blog. But truth be told, that wasn't as practical as I thought it would be. Although there may be some crossover interest the two really are separate entities and by mixing them up I was muddying the waters. In some ways it's not unlike painting. Sometimes you can get stuck working on a particular spot. You don't like how it looks and you can't quite figure out at the time how to get it to work but instead of putting your brush down and walking away you keep fiddling with it. Before you know it you end up with a big overworked, muddy mess. Well when I realized that I was heading down that muddy road with this blog, I decided to simply take a breather, step back, clean my brush and regroup.

Now I'm back and ready to continue documenting my meals and culinary adventures especially as they relate to my desire to stay at a fit and healthy weight. But I plan to do so in a much more fluid manner. It is necessary to allow this blog to evolve. Weight maintenance is not a stagnant thing - it's a journey. I'm certainly not the same person I was a year ago so it makes sense that my blog reflects that fact. If you are game and want to see where the road takes me this year, you have an open invitation to travel along with me. You know where to find me.

Vacation Bits from Vancouver

2009-10-06T16:43:00.003-04:00

Did You Miss me?

After three weeks of vacation, we are finally back on home turf. I'll admit that I truly did "vacate" and with a few exceptions, was not consumed with documenting all things culinary while we were gone. Below is one of those exceptions. Near the beginning of our travels we were in Vancouver and one of our stops was at that Public Market on Granville Island. I have one word - AMAZING! We could have spent hours there wandering about. Click on the picture below for a taste of what we saw.

Granville Island Public Market

Vancouver

2009-09-18T21:45:00.006-04:00

So we flew into Vancouver yesterday and I'll admit that spending the entire day in airports and a cumulative 8 hours on planes doesn't make for the healthiest of meal plans. Let's just call it a wash. Today has been a bit odd as well since I woke up at 6AM. If you know me and how much I am not a morning person you will appreciate how the change in time zones is a contributing factor in this phenomenon. So we wound up eating a mini breakfast before we met up with our friends a few hours later for the real thing.

Breakfast #1 was a wonderful banana/cranberry scone that Marty and I shared over a cup of early morning coffee. My actual breakfast was a smoked salmon eggs Benedict (sauce on the side) Greek potatoes and a wonderful fresh fruit salad that included a fruit I have never had before - Dragon Fruit. The flesh looked like a white kiwi and it was similar in taste but the actual fruit bares no resemblance to a kiwi.

Lunch was a quick bowl of Pho and as I type this we are still unsure as to whether or not we will eat anything more. A late afternoon visit to Starbucks for a nonfat latte took the edge off. So we'll see.

As my vacation begins I look forward to enjoying some wonderful food and being able to share my experiences with you though I'm not sure how often I will be able to post once we get on the ship. In addition, going from my Mac at home to this tiny netbook is particularly frustrating. Yes, I am spoiled now. So I think I will wind up doing most of my vacation posts upon my return. Besides, this is a vacation after all.

Breakfast (#1)

Caffe Express

Half Banana & Cranberry Scone
Coffee with 1% milk

Breakfast (#2)

Scoozi's Mediterranean Restaurant

Dragon Fruit (small speckles are cinnamon)

Salmon Eggs Benedict (sauce on the side)
Fresh fruit

A Change of Seasons

2009-09-07T21:50:00.005-04:00

September marks the fifth month that I've been doing this blog and I find that I have reached a point where I am rethinking my approach. I began with the hopes that showing what I eat every day, while still maintaining my weight loss, would be an inspiration to those who think that healthy mindful eating dooms them to a life of carrot sticks and grilled chicken. Hopefully, I have fulfilled that purpose. All you have to do is look back through the archives of these past four months to see that I have eaten well and I am happy to say that I still weighed in last week within my lifetime goal range. But now I find that my own needs for this blog are evolving.

Frankly, documenting every meal I eat has become a little tiresome. There are nights when I simply don't want to be sitting in front of the computer at 11:30 downloading the days pictures and writing an entry. I also wonder how many pictures of Barbara's Shredded Spoonfuls with blueberries and 1% milk you care to see? The truth is that there is a lot of redundancy to my diet and if I am bored showing you what I ate, I have no doubt that you must be bored looking at it.

What I have enjoyed sharing with you are my adventures in cooking like my determination to create a healthy alternative to a traditional Boba drink, experimenting with Ethiopian food or my first foray into making homemade bagels. As I continue along my own personal journey of weight loss maintenance I want to explore creating even more home crafted meals with a focus on using local and sustainable foods. We eat out a lot so I want to share more about my experiences there. And as we travel, which we also like to do a lot, I want to have the time to share the things I discover about moving throughout the world and enjoying the foods we encounter while still keeping a mindful eye on staying healthy.

So please bare with me as my blog and I evolve. From now on I won't be posting every day as I take a "quality over quantity" approach. I always tell the members in my meetings, this is a lifelong journey and we continue to learn and grow as we go along. If you choose to, I invite you to travel along with me and together we will see where this next road takes us.

In the meantime, I splurged for the holiday and made some really good French toast for breakfast this morning and for dinner I slowly smoked some ribs on the grill. Roasted cauliflower with garlic and baked sweet potato fries rounded out the meal. Yum!

Full of Tomatoes

2009-09-04T22:28:00.004-04:00

We went back to Anthony's for dinner. It was just as good as the first time! Now there's a new gelato place opened up right across the parking lot. Good thing this is at the other end of town from us.

Breakfast

Soft Boiled Egg with Tomato Bruchetta on Multi Grain English Muffin
Cantaloupe
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch
Panera, Longwood FL

1/2 Chicken Salad on Whole Grain
Tomato Soup

Dinner
Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza, Orlando FL

White Pizza with Meatballs
Coors Light

Dessert
Piccolo Gelato. Orlando FL

Small 1/2 mascarpone flavor 1/2 orange & carrot

Leftover Thursday

2009-09-03T21:33:00.004-04:00

It was a busy day filled with leftovers.

Breakfast

Kashi Cinnamon Heart to Heart with blueberries and 1% milk
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch

Tossed Salad with Blue Cheese Crumble and Red Wine Vinaigrette
Whole Wheat Flatbread with Fig, Tomato, Bacon & Blue Cheese

Dinner

Shrimp in Garlic Sauce with Brown Rice

There's Something Fishy Going on Here!

2009-09-02T20:54:00.004-04:00

Marty ate the rest of the strip steak tonight so I had some salmon. I made a topping of Panko, chopped walnuts, chopped fresh dill, chives and a little melted smart balance. I cooked it on the stove top in a pan with a little olive oil first topping side down and then I flipped it. I don't cook fish very often since Marty doesn't eat it so I'll admit that it intimidates me a little (seems this has been the week for me to face down some of my kitchen fears). I was really pleased with the results. The topping got nice and crunchy and the fish stayed moist.

Breakfast

Thomas' Light English Muffin with Light Smart Balance & SF Peach Preserves
Grape Tomatoes
Scrambled Egg with Dill & Chives

Lunch
Peach Valley, Lake Mary FL

Corned Beef Reuben (no dressing)
Sliced Tomato
Cole Slaw
Kosher Pickle

Dinner

Panko & Walnut Encrusted Salmon
Garlic Peas
Baked Potato with Light Sour Cream, Bacon Crumbles and Chives

Running Around Town

2009-09-01T23:06:00.004-04:00

Today was a bit crazed and I spent little of it at home. I must say that the Fig and blue cheese flat bread that I had at lunch was wonderful. I look forward to having the leftovers!

Breakfast

Barbara's Bakery Shredded Spoonfuls with blueberries and 1% milk
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch
Harmony Market, Longwood FL

Mixed Green Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette
1/2 Whole Wheat Flat Bread with Fig, Tomato, Bacon and Blue Cheese

Dinner
Imperial Dynasy, Altamonte Springs FL

Shu Mai (Steamed pork dumpings)
Edamame
Shrimp with Garlic Sauce and Brown Rice

For dessert, later on at home, I had one of the Mint Chocolate Pudding Cake cups I had made yesterday

This Jam is just Peachy!

2009-08-31T22:04:00.005-04:00

I realize that for many folks making homemade preserves is no big deal. People have been canning and putting up vegetables and sauces and fruits for centuries. But those people did not come from my world. When I was a kid, green beans came out of a can and jelly came out of a jar that had a Flintstone character on the outside of the glass. So the fact that yesterday I rather nonchalantly decided to save the peaches that were about to go bad by turning them into some homemade preserves was a rather monumental step for me.

Don't get me wrong, I had been thinking about trying to do something like this for a while which is why I had the supplies necessary on hand but up to this point I had been ... well ... I had been scared to try. But yesterday I figured I had nothing to lose except the few peaches that were already on their way out so I gave it a whirl. I wanted to make sugar free preserves so I took the package of pectin required to help things gel out of my cupboard and dove in. I cooked down my few peaches with some water and the pectin, added some Splenda, a little lemon juice and a dash of Grand Marnier and crossed my fingers that it would set up. Miraculously, when I was done I had 2 and 1/2 jars of pretty authentic looking and yummy tasting sugar free peach preserves.

Now since this post is all about "can"did confessions, I'll admit that since I was making such a small batch my plan was to simply keep the jars refrigerated once I was done. I didn't do the full canning procedure - making sure I had the proper amount of head space, boiling the jars to create a vacuum packed seal etc. That part still scares me. But I think I'm closer to jumping that hurdle now. One step at a time. For now I was just excited that today I was able to enjoy my homemade preserves on one of my homemade everything bagels and feel pretty proud of myself as I did!

Breakfast

Bagel with sugar free peach preserves and smart balance light
Cup of fresh fruit
Coffee with 15 milk

Lunch

Hummus, Tomato, Light Feta and Ham on Arnold Select MultiGrain Bread
Kettle Baked BBQ Chips
Pickle

Dinner

New York Strip with Sauteed Peppers & Onions
Baked Potato with Light Sour Cream and 1 strip of Bacon crumbled
Corn on the Cob with Smart Balance Light

Dessert

Mint Chocolate Pudding Cake cups

To make this dessert I took 2 mint chocolate Vitamuffin tops, broke them into pieces and divided the pieces among 4 custard cups. Then I made some sugar free fat free chocolate pudding and poured it into the cups on top of the muffin pieces and placed them in the refrigerator to cool. I served them with a little Fat Free Reddi-Wip. This was amazingly good for only 1.5 points!

Weekend Highlights

2009-08-30T23:28:00.003-04:00

Got behind on posting this weekend - so here is an overview

SUNDAY

Breakfast

Kashi Heart to Heart cereal with blueberries and 1% milk
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch

Peppers, roasted garlic & Egg sandwich
Sliced Tomato with balsamic drizzle

Dinner

Beef & sausage ravioli in a roasted garlic, tomato cream sauce (I used 1/2 and 1/2)
Tossed salad with fat free Caesar dressing (not pictured)

Dessert

Breyers slow churned vanilla with SF caramel, dark chocolate nibs and fat free Reddi Wip

SATURDAY

Breakfast

Everything Bagel, light Cream cheese, SF Orange Marmelade
Fresh fruit
Coffee with 1% milk

Not pictured for lunch leftover Pho Ga - Vietnamese chicken soup

Dinner
Morgan's Birger Bistro, Sanford FL

She crab soup - not pictured (I ate a few spoonfuls and took the rest home)
Lamb burger with grilled onions and tsatsiki sauce
Homemade potato chips

FRIDAY

Breakfast

Oatmeal with peaches, blueberries and 1& milk
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch

Leftover Paparadelle with garlic, olive oil, tomato & ham

Dinner
Chilangos Mexican Food, Winter Springs FL

Chips, salsa & guacamole
Pork taco on soft corn tortilla (I scraped off the cheese & sour cream)
A chorizo sope on homemade tortilla (I removed the refried beans)

No Frills

2009-08-27T21:33:00.004-04:00

It was a busy day for me so I stuck to basics and some reliable standbys.

Breakfast

Barbara's Bakery Shredded spoonfuls, with banana & blueberries and 1% milk
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch

Boars Head Honey Glazed Ham, Hummus, Low fat Feta & Tomato on Arnold Select
Kettle Baked BBQ chips
Cup of fresh fruit
pickle

Dinner
Boston Market, Lake Mary FL

3 Piece Dark Chicken meal (I removed skin and Marty ate part of one thigh)
Steamed Veggies
Dill Potatoes
Corn Bread

Total Points 20.5 (much better!)

Tomorrow is Another Day

2009-08-26T17:31:00.004-04:00

Some days you make good choices, some days - not so much!

Breakfast

Kashi Cinnamon Harvest with 1% milk and blueberries
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch
The Authentic Cuban Cafe, Winter Park FL

First we split a beef empanada

I know, I know ... what was I thinking? Simply, I wasn't!

Then we each got a different sandwich and shared them

I tried a variation on a Cuban that had Serrano ham, very thinly sliced chorizo, Swiss cheese, a pickle and mustard
Marty got a Mojo marinated roast pork sandwich

It seemed like a good idea at the time. The bread was very light and there wasn't an over abundance of fillings. It fact they really hit the spot. Unfortunately they took up permanent residence in the spot. Not such a good idea after all. And although I do know better, my "How bad could they be?" attitude came back around and slapped me we when I looked up the points on these. Yikes! OK - so tomorrow is a brand new day.

Dinner
Pho Hoa, Orlando FL

Pho Ga (chicken & rice noodle soup)

After today's lunch this was all we really wanted and it was the right call. Our tummies were happy and I have leftovers which is always a bonus!

Total points 37.5 (ugh!)

True Colors Shining Through

2009-08-25T22:08:00.005-04:00

Prettier mix of colors today don't you think?

Breakfast

Soft Boiled Egg
Bruchetta on Thomas' Light English Muffin with Smart Balance Light
Coffee with 1% milk

Lunch
Subway, Longwood FL

6" Turkey on Honey Multigrain
Baked Lays
Diet Coke

Dinner

Baked Chicken with Roasted Garlic
Pierogi's with Sauteed Onions and Light Sour Cream
Maple Syrup Glazed Carrots
Pineapple Bliss Tea

Dessert
Rita's, Apopka FL

Sugar Free Pink Lemonade & Fat Free Slenderita Custard Gelati

(at 3 Pts this is my new not guilty pleasure)

Total Points 30

Monochromatic Day

2009-08-24T22:46:00.006-04:00

After looking at these pictures I realize I didn't do a very good job at eating a colorful palette of foods today. There was a preponderance of yellow and orange. According to the World Health Organization Yellow-Orange foods promote health and vision and boost your immune system. Guess I had that covered today.

Breakfast

Kashi Heart to Heart with blueberries & 1% milk

Lunch

Lamb, plums & saffron rice
Bread with smart balance light (not pictured)

These were my leftovers from the Kabbab House. But with 3 oz of lamb, 1/2 cup of rice and the plums this meal was quite filling. Dinner was a lighter affair as a result

Dinner

Curried Carrot, Pineapple & Ginger Soup
Bread with Whipped Cream Cream

Dessert

1 Large Peach

Total Points 25.5

A Peachy Sunday

2009-08-23T22:00:00.006-04:00

It was a nice Sunday. For lunch we went to a place out in Lake county on Little Lake Harris. This is the type of place that you can drive to or boat to. It seemed the perfect venue for a lazy afternoon lunch. We sat outside to eat, watching storm clouds build up far across the lake and enjoying the live music and banter of Tommy Treadway. He was very entertaining.

On the way home we stopped at a road side stand and bought a watermelon, some Georgia peaches, and some tomatoes that came from Tennessee. The sad truth is that there is very little going on in the farmer's markets and stands at this time of year that is local. The weather is just not cooperative. So Tennessee and Georgia it is.

I marinated and grilled a pork tenderloin for dinner. Then I made a crumble for dessert using whole wheat flour, oatmeal, smart balance 50/50 and some splenda to make a light topping for the peaches. Served up with some slow churned low fat vanilla ice cream, it was the perfect end to a really lovely day.

Breakfast

Barbara's Bakery Shredded Spoonfuls with blueberries and 1% milk
Coffee with 1% mik

Lunch
JB Boondocks, Howey in the Hills FL

Grilled Mahi Mahi sandwich with coleslaw

Dinner

Grilled marinated Pork Tenderloin
Whole Wheat orzo with saffron
Sauteed organic green beans with garlic and toasted almonds

Dessert

Peach crumble with Breyers low fat, no sugar added slow churned vanilla ice cream