Thursday, March 6, 2014

Red Lentil Soup

I make a double batch of this soup, as it never goes to waste in our house! This recipe is a double batch, feel free to halve it, which would make 8 and 1/2 cups instead of 17 cups per batch. Enjoy!

2 packages Bob Mill's Red Lentils
4 packets Herb Ox NO SODIUM ADDED chicken bouillon
9 cloves of garlic, minced
4.5 tsp of ground ginger
4.5 tbsp of onion powder
1 large can of Hunt's Crushed Tomatoes, undrained
1 small can of Hunt's NO SALT ADDED tomato sauce
4 tbsp of canola oil
2 and 1/4 tsp ground cumin
2 and 1/4 tsp paprika
2 and 1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt

8-10 tablespoons of honey, to suit your taste

1. Soak the lentils in cold water for one hour. Rinse and drain.

2. Combine lentils, broth packets, garlic, ginger, onion powder, crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce and enough water to cover in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Whisk the lentils to release some of the starch.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot. Stir to combine, mixing well. Heat for another five minutes. Serve with any garnish you like- some folks use yogurt and cilantro. Makes 17 one cup servings.

Nutrition per one cup serving:

calories- 303
fat- 4.4
saturate fat- 0.28
polyunsaturated fat- 0.9
monounsaturated fat- 2.1
carbohydrates- 54
dietary fiber- 9.24
protein- 15

Daily value of vitamins and minerals:

vitamin A- 5.4%
vitamin B6- 4.9%
vitamin C- 5.4%
vitamin E- 10.4%
calcium- 3.4%
copper- 1.7%
iron- 21.8%
magnesium- 1.7%
manganese- 14.4%
niacin- .82%
pantothenic acid- .29%
phosphorus- 1.7%
potassium- 14.8%
riboflavin- .94%
selenium- .88%
sodium- 7.8%
thiamin- 12.8%
zinc- 1.52%

Healthy High Fiber Chia Seeds Cookies

1/4 cup egg whites
1/2 tsp Stevia liquid drops
1/4 cup peanut butter- I used half regular, half Walden Farms, will try PB2 soon!
1/4 cup chia seeds 4 packets of Quaker High Fiber Maple and Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal

1/4 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup butterscotch morsels (or any morsels or dried fruit such as raisins or cranberries)

 2 tbsp to 1/4 cup water

1. In large bowl, mix egg whites and Stevia drops well. Add peanut butter, stir with a fork until "liquidy". Add Chia seeds, stir with a fork until all seeds are coated with egg mixture. Set aside for 15 minutes to let the seeds gel.

2. In a smaller bowl, mix oatmeal packets, baking powder, and sugar, using a fork to break up oatmeal and brown sugar chunks. Add butterscotch morsels, add to wet ingredients after the 15 minutes is up. Mix well, add enough water to just moisten.

3. Drop by rounded tablespoon on a sprayed cookie sheet- you should get 15 cookies total. 4. Bake in a 375 oven for 14-18 minutes. Let sit for 20 minutes on cookie sheet to harden- you can gently push a metal spatula under cookies after five minutes to help prevent them from sticking, but let them continue to cool on cookie sheets after you do this. Store in an air tight container for up to two weeks in a dry, cool place.

Nutrition per cookie (with butterscotch morsels):
calories- 101
fat- 3.7 grams
saturated fat- 1.2 grams
carbohydrates- 14.8 grams
dietary fiber- 3.8 grams

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Hey FIRST magazine and Woman's World- can we please stop promoting Dr. Oz?

I don't know about any other reading lovers of the magazines "FIRST" and "Woman's World", but I am so sick and tired of reading about Dr. Oz and all of his silly diets and supplements that he allegedly promotes but doesn't use himself. I think the man makes stuff up, just to keep his mug on the front of these magazines.

How about articles from Jillian Michaels? Bob Harper? Denise Austin? Joannie Greggains? (yes, Joannie is an oldie, but goodie, just like Margaret Richards!) People in the weight loss industry that have helped people lose weight in a healthy manner? How about Leslie Sansone, expert and instructor of the infamous "Walk Away the Pounds" video, who could help a lot of people get off of that couch and do some walking right in their own home? Can you please start promoting other weight loss trainers, coaches, and diet experts instead of this guy who make up the same diets week after week, only with a new name or new test for your to take to see if you're carb sensitive or not?

Safflower Oil- Dr. Oz recommends it, but should you use it?

In Woman's World this week, Dr. Oz's mug has invaded their front page, AGAIN. It seems like he is always on FIRST magazine's cover, and sometimes, I would just love to see other weight loss experts advice, diets, and tips on the cover for a change. Does he do these interviews for free publicity, or what?

Anyhow, Woman's World has Dr. Oz this week recommending Safflower Oil as a way to help lose weight. The article is a bit misleading, though. First it tells you that you can lose belly fat just by taking one teaspoon of Safflower Oil twice a day, once with breakfast, and once with dinner, and that's all that you have to do, and you will lose up to up to 6 pounds and 5 inches a week without dieting or working out, according to the cover. However, read the article, and in a little box, fourth one to be exact under the "Safflower FAQs" section, the question says "Can I skip diet and exercise?" to which Dr. Oz replies: "Let me be clear on this, I want you to exercise and eat smart". Well, duh, did we really think that we were just going to take two teaspoons of Safflower Oil a day and be thin and lose over 150 pounds within a year doing nothing? However, the article basically says that! Misleading, huh?

Now, for those reading- go to Dr. Oz's website. He says nothing about Safflower Oil, nothing about trying it, and there are two articles on his site that either debunk this or discourage it. Looks like Woman's World and Dr. Oz aren't in sync with one another on this story. Also, if you're allergic to daisies, then it's best not to take Safflower Oil. Read up on it before trying.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Low Carb Pita Crisps

1 Joseph's Oat Bran and Stone Ground Whole Wheat Flour Pita Bread
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Brush pita halves with olive oil. Sprinkle garlic powder on top. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about five minutes. WATCH THESE CLOSELY while cooking- because they are thinner than regular pita breads they cook faster. Tonight one half was done in five minutes while the other half took another minute and a half. So just watch them carefully so they don't burn!

Serves 1

Calories: 185
Carbs: 9
Sugars: 0.35
Dietary Fiber: 4.15
Net Carbs: 4.85

Served with Cedar's Oringinal Hommus:

Serving size: 2 tablespoons
Calories: 60
Carbs: 5 grams
Sugars: 1 gram
Dietary Fiber: 1 gram
Net Carbs: 4 grams

You can also use I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray in place of the olive oil to reduce the calories. Keep in mind that a tablespoon of this is 60 calories.

Total counts for pita bread crisps with Hommus:

Calories: 245
Carbs: 14
Sugars: 1.35
Dietary Fiber: 5.15
Net Carbs: 8.85

Low Carb "Cocktail Sauce" for shrimp

Low Carb Cocktail Sauce:

2 tablespoons of Walden Farms Calorie Free Tomato Ketchup
1 tsp of Woeber's horseradish
1 tsp of tomato paste
1/8 tsp white vinegar
1/8 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Mix well and enjoy with as much shrimp as your heart desires! :D

Serves 1

Calories: 25
Carbs: 2
Sugar: 1.5
Fiber: 0

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Low Carb Cheese "Crackers"

I found this recipe on the Low Carb Friends Message Board on Netrition.com. I believe the recipe is from a poster named LindaSue. Most low carbers are always looking for something that tastes like bread or crackers as we miss some of those foods while eating on this plan. Anyhow, LindaSue found a genius way to make cheese into crackers to which I eat with either tunafish salad or chicken salad. Remember- don't make more than 2 oz worth as you're not supposed to have more than 4 oz of cheese a day or it could stall your weight loss! These are VERY addicting- my husband didn't know they were just made of cheese and wanted more of them and he's not on a low carb diet!

These crackers are also great on Jorge Cruise's Belly Fat Cure Diet as they have no sugar or carbs in them! Anyhow, here is the recipe for low carb crackers:

Low Carb "Crackers:

2 pieces of American Cheese, quartered

Quarter the American Cheese slices so that you get 8 pieces total. On a microwave safe plate, place on a silicon baking sheet or parchment paper (DO NOT USE WAX PAPER!. Place the cheese slices on the baking sheet or parchment paper keeping the slices spread out a little. Microwave on regular power for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Let cool for about 30 seconds, then flip over the cheese slices and cook for another 30 seconds. Let cool for about five minutes. Enjoy with chicken salad, ham salad, egg salad, or just alone. You can use other cheese as well- just separate into small mounds on the silicon baking sheet or parchment paper. Follow the same directions as above. Makes 8 crackers.