Mujadara - of sorts...

Today while cooking up some staples for this week's meals, I decided to do a Google search for "Lentils and" and there were several recipes right off the top that sounded interested and included veggies I am trying to eat more of in new ways.

Anyway, the recipe for Mujadara (Lentils and Rice with Fried Onions) called for tons of Olive oil (6T) and was very plain (no spices), and another called for 1/2 cup and several spices I love. I figured I could do it with less oil and more spices.

*Note, the second recipe called for 1 t. cumin seeds, I had none, so I just used 1/2 t. ground cumin.

Since I was already cooking lentils, quinoa and black beans, I didn't really follow the recipe fully either. You can look here a them and decide for yourself which you like best and do it that way, or try it my way. It was my first time making this, and I think it turned out pretty tasty - but then again I've never had Mujadara before, so what do I know! *shrugs* I also figured this would be a recipe my mom might like cuz she loves lentils and she LOVES Fried Onions (not to mention plain yogurt).

In a large skillet on medium heat add:

2 T coconut oil (virgin expeller pressed)
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 t ground black peppercorns (it's supposed to be 1/2 cracked black peppercorns - but I only had the grinder kind - winged it!)

(Let the oil get hot, then spoon the cumin in and swish it around the pan - then grind the pepper over it all and let heat - then stir/swish it around again to cover the pan.

While that heats for a minute or two slice thinly or in circles then add to pan:
1/2 large red onion
1/2 large sweet onion

(If it seems to be a little dry add about 1/4-1/2 cup water and stir all around and spread out onions to cook somewhat evenly.)

Once 'fried' then add and stir in well:
1/2 t. ground cayenne pepper
1/2 t. ground cumin
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 c water

(Here you can pull out some of the onions for garnish if you wish - since it was just me, I skipped that step - then later just threw on a few on top for the photo *wink*)

To this mixture add:
2 c cooked Quinoa (the recipes call for long grain or basmati rice, but since Quinoa is rice-like to me and healthier than rice - I booted the rice)
1.5 cup cooked lentils - in their water from cooking - I just scooped it over from the sauce pan without rinsing the lentils, so the mixture would have that added lentil broth (instead of adding more plain water).
You can also cook the lentils in a broth (I'd maybe use a packet of Herb-Ox Sodium Free Beef or Chicken Broth next time.)

Stir this all well and cover and reduce to low for about 5-10 min to absorb the spices.

Spoon Mujadara into a bowl, slop on a dollop of plain fat free yogurt, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, then toss some onions on for garnish and enjoy!

You can also use sour cream (regular, or lite or fat free - your call) in place of yogurt.

I wasn't going to use anything, but I have a full container of yogurt I need to use, so on it went. I used one heaping teaspoon, as I have plans for the rest of the yogurt - some very healthy dessert treats!

Note: I did not add any sodium to the water for the cooking of the Quinoa or the Lentils, so the only sodium in this recipe came from the yogurt. The yogurt, Land O'Lakes Plain Fat Free is 120 calories, 150 mg sodium per 8oz serving. I used one heaping teaspoon - so it was pretty minimal overall.

I also think that next time, I'd add some more veggies: red pepper, broccoli, quartered grape tomatoes, maybe even some chopped kale or spinach, and maybe even some shredded cooked lean chicken for a variation. Or maybe even some sliced apple!

In the comments for recipe 2, the spicier one, some people thought that there was too much heat from the 1/2 t cayenne. I like food hot, and really didn't notice any 'heat', so I'd probably up the cayenne some too.

Overall this was pretty tasty. So tasty I had another bowl without the yogurt and lemon this time and you could really taste the cinnamon. Mmm.

Quick and Easy Healthy Stir Fry

One of my favourite treats on a rare occasion when I'd visit the mall, was to stop at the Asian restaurant in the food court and order some chicken and broccoli. It was delish. I loved the sauce, and it was cheap, maybe $3-4.00 when you ordered it ala carte. The thing I didn't like was that as good as the sauce was, the sodium was probably off the charts, so I'd pick all the chicken and broccoli out, or even ask them to use a slotted spoon and not give me any sauce, as it was only it's flavour that enhanced the food I craved.

Once when searching for a recipe for jumbo shrimp, I found a simple one for Jumbo Shrimp and Asparagus! I was in luck! At a recent visit from Fabian Seafood, I had purchased a pound of jumbo shrimp and had some asparagus on hand as well! Mmm. I figured the recipe looked quick and easy enough, so why not.

Turns out, the sauce in the recipe was the exact flavour I'd been craving, and the dish was delish!

Subsequently, in a quest to make it a little healthier, I've modified the recipe and also used various protein ingredients (shrimp, poultry, beef, and pork) as well as played with the veggies, depending on what I had on hand.

Obviously, if you buy meats in bulk and then prepare and freeze them ahead for meals (meaning the meat is already cut into bite sized chunks), then your prep time will be way faster.


2 cups chunked Chicken, Pork or Beef, or 24 Jumbo Shrimp peeled and de-veined.

3-4 cups of veggies of choice cut into approx 1in pieces (asparagus, broccoli, mushrooms, pea pods, onion, red/green pepper, celery, etc - whatever you like or have on hand. I like a LOT of veggies, so I use closer to 4 cups or more.

1-2 Tablespoon of your oil of choice - I use a non-stick pan so I only used 1T of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil). One time with shrimp I used coconut oil, but it was too coconutty for my tastes when making a stir fry - would probably be better for a curry. ;-)

2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger root  - I make ginger tea nearly daily and just used the leftover ginger pieces for the stir-fry. It's already cooked, so easy~peasy, just chopped the pieces smaller. It's also less fibrous when you eat it, but still as flavourful.

3 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce (original recipe calls for 3T, but I don't care for that much soy sauce or all it's sodium).

4 T water (I didn't pre-boil the asparagus/veggies, nor did I use all the soy, so I made up for the difference with water)

1 packet Stevia: 1/2 packet = 1 teaspoon sugar, and the recipe calls for 2 teaspoons. ;-)

1 teaspoon dry sherry (I had none, so I used dry white or red wine, depending what I had and what sort of protein it was). I usually have a dry red on hand ;-)

1-2 teaspoons chopped/minced garlic, onion, and/or garlic, onion and ginger powder, or any/all you like. I used them all - Love lots of flavour and they're all good for you. Notice I used the powder, not the salt.

Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet, then brown the meat or saute the shrimp, along with the chopped onion, garlic and powders til cooked through.

While meat is browning, mix together the chopped ginger, soy sauce, water, stevia, and sherry/wine.

Add the veggies to the meat, then pour in the sauce.  Cover for 5 min so the broccoli or asparagus and other veggies steam (I like mine more al dente than soft). You'll know when they're done as they'll turn brighter green! This doesn't over cook them and provides lots of good vitamins and minerals too!

Makes about 4 servings.

Tonight I made Pork, Broccoli and Pea Pods!
Broccoli from the garden and pea pods from last Saturday's Farmer's Market.

Last week I made Shrimp and Broccoli.
Fabian had just come again and I had some broccoli ready in the garden. Mmmm.

You can make some rice or other side dishes as well.

Note: If you want to thicken the sauce, mix 1T cornstarch with 1T cold water, and then add in after the sauce - stir to mix and then cover til veggies are done to your liking.

Enjoy!

Diet Cabbage Soup ~ Vegetable Juice

Versions of this recipe have been going around for years. The first time I had it was as a teenager when my mom and others she knew used it as a diet aid. As I understand the story, it was originally used for surgical patients to drop some fast weight and help cleanse out their systems before surgery.

A month or so ago I was thinking about making soup after the holidays, and kinda craved the simple vegetable soup that was part of the diet, so I dug out my old recipes and made up a batch. I'm also trying to eat healthier, and lose weight, so it went hand in hand.

Another bonus was that I would take about half the soup and run it through the juicer and/or blender and make my own vegetable juice, as I found even the low sodium V8 still too salty for my tastes. It turned out delish!

So now I just make up a batch every Sunday for the week. It really helps to have it on hand to snack on, or drink when you want something healthy and low calorie. As the original instructions stated, this soup helps to burn more calories than it adds to you, and if you'd just eat the soup you'd actually kind of starve yourself it's that efficient.

It makes a huge pot of soup, and for me is just right for one week divided into soup and juice.

Here's the recipe and my modifications, along with the original diet below.
Enjoy!

Diet Cabbage Soup Recipe 10-17lbs a week (when following the food days below as well)

Soup:
3 large onions - in slices or chunks** - sized however you like to eat in your soup.  I use sweet onions. You can also use yellow, white or red.

**I find chunkier pieces of everything make you feel like you're chewing more, and eating more, not just sipping soup.
They also cook down some, so they're going to end up smaller and softer in the end.

2 green peppers (I don't care for green peppers so much, so I used one red one pepper and 2 large jalapenos)

1 (16-28oz) large jar or BPA Free Canned  tomatoes (whole, then slice them in chunks - use all the juice too) -
I use 3 cups of plum or roma or other fresh tomatoes diced.
(don't use canned tomatoes as canned tomatoes are the worst for BPA poisoning).

1/2 large head of cabbage (I used 1/3 of a green cabbage and 1/3 of a red cabbage  -  as I like a lot of cabbage, and love the color!)

1/2 large bunch of celery

1 pkg Knorr or Lipton onion soup mix (I used 2 packets of chicken Herb-Ox - available at Mt Royal and Kenwood Super One in the soup bullion section - no sodium/gluten free)

I didn't add any extra salt or seasonings, but you can add: parsley, hot sauce/tobasco, pepper, ginger, curry or cayenne - any or all to taste. Or season each single bowl for variety each time you eat your soup.
You can also add black pepper, bay leaves, peppercorns, any herbs or seasonings to taste.

I added 4 cups chopped Kale too, as Kale is a superfood and thicker/tougher than spinach so it cooks down somewhat, yet holds up nice in the soup. You can use spinach too if you like. Or add either one/both daily to each bowl.

12c water + the juice from the tomatoes

Chop all in bite-sized chunks or slices and toss in a large pot with 8c of water.
Boil on high for 10-15 min, then let simmer til veggies are tender.
You can kinda leave them al dente - as you're going to reheat the soup all week - although I do like it cold, or blendered to drink and add cayenne - like a V8/Bloody - no alcohol.

This soup can be eaten anytime you are hungry. Eat as much as you want, whenever you want.
This soup will not add calories. The more you eat the more weight you will lose.
Incidentally, if you tried to just live off the soup, you'd suffer malnutrition.

The weight lost is mostly water, and some fat, and is not the type of diet to 'stick' as if one goes back to regular eating, they'll gain weight back.

You can also eat more sensible/healthy (fruits, veggies - leafy especially, and lean meats) after a week of this diet and keep eating the soup when hungry to burn calories.
Work out what is best for you - but the first week is the kick-start week or if you need to lose a bit of weight in a week's time for something upcoming like a trip or to fit in an outfit for a special occasion.

If you're not using a pre-packaged sodium-laden soup mix, you can add salt as a seasoning to your own tastes if you like. Otherwise, there is plenty of sodium in the Knorr/Liption packages.
There is none in Herb-Ox I used (I'm not a big salt person - unless it's naturally in food - like green olives or something). You can also purchase Herb Ox with sodium too. I just prefer none. Sodium is good for you - to a point - check out the daily recommendations and don't go above that, as salt will make you retain water too.

So you can see - here is the same Herb Ox that I used. It also comes in Beef.


Full Diet:
Day 1: Fruit - No bananas!
Otherwise any and all fruit all day (melons especially), and citrus, berries, apples, pears,
and as much soup as you can/care to eat.

Day 2: Veggies.
No dried beans, peas, corn. Eat lots of Green and Green leafy veggies. (broccoil, spinach, lettuces, kale, asparagus, carrots, mushrooms, beets, cucumbers, pea pods, green beans, fresh sprouts, squash, sweet potato, yams, onions, turnips, kohlrabi, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, brussels sprouts to name a few).
You can have one baked potato with butter.
You can add the extra veggies into your soup too - raw, or canned (rinse if you like too).
All the soup you can/care to eat.

Day 3: Fruit and Veggies.
Use the same guidelines for fruits and veggies above, but no bananas and no baked potato.
All the soup you can/care to eat.

If you have eaten for 3 days as above, no cheating, you should find you've lost 5-7 lbs by tomorrow morning. I usually drop 7-10, depending. Sometimes I only do the first 3-4 days, as a kick start, then eat healthy for a day, then maybe cheat a little on the weekends if there's something going on. Do as you like.

Day 4: Bananas and Skim Milk.
Eat at least 3 bananas and up to 8 if desired, and drink as many glasses of milk and water along with the soup. Bananas are high in calores and carbs, so is the milk, but on this day your body needs the potassium and carbs, protiens, and calcium to lessen your cravings for sweets.
All the soup you can/care to eat.

Day 5: Beef and Tomatoes.
You may have 10-20 ounces of beef (steaks or ground beef or whatever beef you like) and a can of tomatoes or as many as 6 fresh tomatoes on this day. Try to drink at least 6-8 glasses of water on this day to wash away uric acid and eat the soup at least once this day.

Day 6: Beef and Veggies. 
Eat to your heart's content of beef and veggies on this day. You can even have two or three steaks if you like with green leafy veggies, but no baked potato. Be sure and eat the soup at least once this day.

Day 7: Brown Rice, unsweetened fruit juice and veggies.
Again, stuff yourself. (you can even mix the rice and veggies - like asian-style or mexican if you like, add seasonings to taste or flavour). Be sure to have soup at least once today.

The end of the 7th day, if you have not cheated, you should have lost 10-17 lbs. If you have lost more than 15 lbs, stay fof the diet for 2 days before resuming the diet again on Day 1.

This seven day eating plan can be used as often as you like. As a matter of fact, if correctly followed, it will clean your system of impurities and give you an overall feeling of well being as never before.

After only seven days you will have lost 10-17 lbs and have an abundance of energy.

It's fast and fat burning - you will burn more calories than you take in.
This diet does not lend itself to drinking any alcoholic beverages because of the removal of fat build-up in your system.
Go off the diet at least 24 hrs before any intake of alcohol.

If you find your bowel movements have changed, eat a cup of bran or fiber.

Black coffee is ok with this diet, but you'll find you no longer need the caffeine due to the energy from the foods you're eating.

No fried foods or bread, or alcohol, no carbonated or diet drinks.
No sweets.
You can eat broiled or baked skinless chicken instead of meat.
You can substitute broiled fish for the beef on only one day of the beef days. You need the high protein in the beef the other day.

Prescription meds will not be affected by this diet.

Beverages: Unsweetened Tea w or w/o lemon, 100% cranberry juice, water, or Black coffee.
Drink lots of water every day and eat lots of soup.

As I said, I ended up taking a bunch of the soup and pureeing it in the blender, so I could just drink it for breakfast or later in the day with some cayenne - pretty delish too and a change from just eating a bowl of soup or when on the go.

Add a celery stick or two and some olives, etc., and have a virgin Bloody Mary! (or Vodka...)

Pureeing the fruits to make a smoothie rather than just eating fruit is nice for breakfast too - then when snacky, eating the fruits helps you feel like you're eating more.

On the soup veggie days you can add more veggies to your soup to make it really hearty, or make salads and drink the pureed soup. My soup kinda tasted like salsa since I had added jalapenos - eat some with celery sticks!

Enjoy!