Hey Food Lover Cook This...

Mmmmm...

This is a butternut squash soup,
I like the picture better than the soup.

My sister called me just over a week ago now and asked if I wanted to join her in a pledge to eating healthier. Not only did I agree to but my brother and other sister did as well.  We are all doing are own version of cleaning up our diets. Mine includes cutting out all sugary junk and adding 5 a day, every day. Today is day 8 and I have had only a few monuments of weakness. Which by the way I did not give into. I am tying to make a life style out of this change and I want to fit into my own wardrobe.

Over the past few years I have looked high and low for an understanding of how to cook food that taste good but is also good for you.  Two of my favorite books I found while working out with the fabulous Mat  the trainer (who I would love to still be working out with if it where not a 4 1/2 hour drive to his gym). He suggested them to me and I have enjoyed them very much. I will share week worth of dinners out of them. I am sorry that I don't have pictures for all the recipes.

If you are wanting to make something yummy and good for you then here you go.....

These pieces of ck are bigger than the recipe

Baked Chicken Strips

Prep time: 5 min

Cook time: 15 min

Ingredients: (the serving size 1 large or 2 small)

• Boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into 1/2 inch strips)
• Salt-2 pinches
• Pepper-1 pinch
• Paprika-1 pinch
• Omega-3 egg- 1 egg
• Water- 2 Tbsp
• Coarse whole wheat breadcrumbs - 1/4 cup
• Grated coconut -1/4 cup
• Olive oil cooking spray

Preheat your oven to 350F. Season ck with salt, pepper and paprika. Add the egg and water to a mixing bowl, whisk it together and set it aside. Mix the breadcrumbs and coconut together in a separate bowl and set it aside. Dip the ck into the egg. Make sure it is completely covered and then dip it into the breadcrumb mix. Roll around until it is nicely covered. Lightly coat a lightly cover a cook sheet with the olive oil spray and place ck on it. Bake until it is lightly brown (about 15 min). Take the largest pieces and check to see if it is cooked all the way through.

8-Layer Dinner

Prep time: 10 min

Cook time: 25 min

Serving Size: 3 large to 6 small

Ingredients:

• Boneless skinless chicken breast (1-inch cubed)- 1 lb 
• Salt- 1/2 tsb
• Pepper- 1/2 1/4 tsb
• Olive oil cooking spray
• Sweet Potato (peeled, thin sliced) 2 cup
• Salsa 1 cup (I like it hot) 
• Black beans (drained) 1 can
• Onion (small dice) 1 cup
• Corn (canned or frozen) 1 cup
• Peas (canned or frozen) 1 cup
• Almonds (sliced) 1/2 cup

Preheat the oven to 350F. Season the ck with salt and pepper. Preheat a non-stick frying pan on medium heat and lightly coat with spray. Add the ck (in batches if needed)and saute until lightly browned on all sides. Remove and set aside. Add sweet potato and salsa and saute for 5 min. 

Layer the ingredients in a large and shallow casserole dish. Start with the ck, then the sweet potatoes/salsa, black beans, onions, corn, peas and almonds. Bake for 25 minutes and ten serve.

Texas Thin Crust Pizza

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 10 min

Serve size: 1 large or 2 small

Ingredients:

• Olive oil cooking spray
• Extra lean ground beef- 6 oz
• Salt- 1/4 tsp
• pepper- 1/4 tsp
• Yellow onion- 1/4 cup
• Red Pepper- 1/4 cup
• Garlic (minced) -2 tsp
• Tomato (small and diced. I like to use cherry) - 1/4 cup
• BBQ sauce 2 tbsp ( I don't ever use it but it could be good)
• Whole wheat tortilla- 1
• Pineapple ( I don't use this either) 1/4 cup
• Aged white cheddar (graded) 1/2 cup  (I use mozzarella)

Preheat the oven to 400F. Cook the meat and veggie in a non-stick frying pan on medium heat. Add all the spices at this time. Brown the meat before adding the veggies. Add the tomatoes for the last min before removing form the heat. Spray a cookie sheet with olive oil. Spread the meat and veggies on the tortilla about a half an inch thick. Top with pineapple and cheese. Place in the oven and cook until the cheese is melted and the shell is toasted. 

Mmmm... I had one by myself and was very full. It was almost to much. This one is very fast and very easy.

All the above recipes came out of....

Gourmet Nutrition: The Cookbook for the Fit Food Lover

DR. John's Chili 

Prep Time- 1 hour

Serving Size -10

Ingredients:

• 4 lbs extra lean ground beef
• 4 cans Kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• 1 lb carrots, peeled and sliced
• 4 bell peppers- 1 green, 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 orange cut into 1/2- inch squares
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• Two 46- fl oz bottles V8 vegetable juice, spicy hot
• cashew meal  (I like the cashews in bigger chunks, so I crush them myself)

Spices: (if you prefer a faster versions you can use 3 packages of chili seasoning mix, but it is better to add the spices yourself)

• 4 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp celery seed
• 1 tsp fresh ground pepper

Brown the beef one pound at a time, over high heat together with garlic and onions. (If your  skillet is large enough you can do it all at once) On the last batch add the spices after the meat is browned. Add the browned beef to a large pot with a lid. Add the beans, tomatoes, carrots, pepper, and V8 juice. Bring to a boil and the reduce heat to a simmer until all the veggies are soft.

This recipe makes a lot. I half it and Travis and I eat it every night for a week, but it's really good and a great way to get some veggies.

Greek Burger

Prep time: 15- min

Serving: 2

Ingredients:

• 1 lb extra lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 cup olive slivers
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• salt & pepper, to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Make into to large patties with the mixture. Cook them on a George Foreman or on the grill for 5- 8 minutes on each side. 

Instead of a bun I eat mine on ice burg lettuce. I like a greek salad on the side or grill veggies. 

Peasant Stew

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 7-8 hours on low or 4-5 on high in Crock Pot.

Serving: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs cubed beef
• 2 large turnips, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
• Cabbage, 1/2 medium head, sliced
• 4 medium-large carrots thickly sliced
• 15 green onions chopped (scallions)
• 10 Medium mushrooms halved
• 4 tbsp whole flax seeds (or 8 ground)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 beef bouillon cube
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 2 tbsp  freshly chopped parsley (or 1tsp dried)
• salt&pepper, to taste
• 3 ups of water

Brown the steak and minced garlic in half of the olive oil until brown on the outside(leaving it raw inside). when the beef is browned, add the water and bouillon in the skillet. Bring to a boil, then pour it into the Crock Pot.

With the remaining oil, stir-fry the turnips, scallions. and carrots in the skillet on medium-hight heat for 5 min, then add it to the Crock Pot.

Add the remain ingredients to the Crock Pot, cover and simmer at 300-degrees F (medium or low) overnight (7-8 hours), or on high for 4 to 5 hours.

Pecan-Crusted Salmon

Prep Time: 15 min

Serving: 1

Ingredients:

• 10oz salmon filet (I like to get it form Costco, they have the salmon cuts that have no skin on either side)
• 2tbsp pecan meal (I put he pecans in a plastic bag and use a rolling pin to crush them)
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste (sometime is use garlic salt)

Mix the pecans (crushed), slat, pepper and olive oil in a bowl. Wash the salmon in cold water and pat dry with a paper towel, before dipping it into the mix. Cook the salmon in an oven at 400-degrees F for 12 min, broiling the last 6 min.  Or cook on a George Forman until the meat is flakey.

This one of my all time favorite way to eat salmon. I like it with steamed spinach or grilled veggies. 

The recipes above are from the GormetNutrition vol 1. by, Dr. John M. Berardi & Dr. John K. Williams. I could not find it online.

I hope you find this helpful on the quest for a healthier life.