Happy Peach

Basil Leaves

Veronica — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:25:06 +0000

Basil is my favourite herb. The scent makes me feel good and hungry for fresh, healthy meals. I used to know this older Italian man who would stick basil leaves up his nose while working his garden. Said it gave him energy. I have to say I agree with him and if we weren’t in such a critical society, I’d probably walk around life with basil leaves in my nose all day long. I’d be much happier but I would probably crave more pasta…Just a quick note to show my love for basil, my wedding bouquet was composed of mostly basil leaves along with a few white roses. This was also in honour of the ancient Roman tradition when “brides carried bunches of herbs to symbolize fidelity and fertility — and to scare off evil spirits.” Another reason basil makes you feel good, is probably that it really does ward off evil spirits. I noticed this in Mexico City as it is very common for people to be cleansed of evil by brushing the affected person’s body with basil bouquets. This practice comes from the ancient Aztecs who also used basil as an herbal remedy. I always thought I had an attachment to the spiritual world, maybe I should start with basil. But first let me eat it.

It’s almost the end of August and we’re quickly approaching the harvest season. The market is filled with tons of different types of eggplants, tomatoes, mushrooms, corn and berries. After scoring some amazingly colourful veg, I noticed how basil bouquets were everywhere and I just couldn’t resist. $2.50 for a huge bunch of basil is a good deal I could not pass up. The next step is figuring out what to do with this incredibly fragrant herb. Obviously, pesto was my first thought! Pesto is so easy to make, freezes perfectly in ice-cube trays and added to sauces, vegetables, soups, chicken and fish. Here is the recipe that my mother taught me how to make, notice how there aren’t any real measurements. Reason being, my mother never cooked with measuring cups or tablespoons. Everything delicious is prepared by eye and trusting your flavour buds.

Pesto

1 large bunch of basil, leaves only, washed and dried
3 medium cloves of garlic
one small handful of raw pine nuts
roughly 3/4 cup Parmesan, loosely packed and FRESHLY GRATED
A few tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil

To make a really authentic pesto, you should hand chop all the ingredients with a mezzaluna or sharp knife. However, you can make it easier on yourself and simply use a blender or food processor if you don’t have the skills or patience. This recipe freezes well by adding the pesto to an ice tray, freezing and then passing the cubes to a freezer safe container. Just take out as many cubes as you need and defrost. Add a little olive oil if needed and voilà. Pesto for the next 6 months!

After having made this pesto recipe, I still have a nice bunch of basil leaves left so here are a few ways I will be integrating basil in my meals this week through these recipes from my favorite sites. I’ll post my pictures as I go along

Peaches with Serrano Ham and Basil

B asil Lemon and Garlic Roasted Chicken

S callop Skewers with basil and dill sauce

Macaroni, Tomato, Corn and Basil Salad

Tacolicious

Veronica — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 02:54:34 +0000

In my foodies opinion, tacos are probably Mexico’s greatest contribution to the culinary world after the Chipotle pepper. The soft corn or flower tortilla is one of the quickest and tastiest vehicles to transport varieties of prepared meats, seafood, cheeses, vegetables and sauces. Done right, tacos deliver a taste bud explosion, in 4 bites or less.

Being the world’s perfect food. “Tacos have a long, tasty history in Mexico. In fact, the taco pre-dates Europeans in Mexico and there is evidence that the Aztecs traditionally ate tacos filled with little fish. The food made such an impression on early Spanish conquistadors that Bernal Diaz del Castillo documented the first taco feast enjoyed by Europeans. While they would later plunder, steal and kill the creators of the taco, the food made a big impression on the conquistadors. How could it not? They’re the perfectly convenient, versatile and hand-held delicious food.”

After being around for over 6000 years, tacos have been intriguingly and sometimes grossly interpreted in many countries around the world. From the US, with their lame excuse of a crispy shelled taco (Bell) to India, with their own savory versions of curried meats wrapped in ‘naan’ bread. Icons of the street food world, tacos are best enjoyed outside of crowded food stands particularly after long nights of alcoholic consumption. Essential to this act of taco debauchery are limitless lime wedges, gallons of spicy sauces and of course a Chelada to wash it all down. You might be wondering what in the world is a Chelada, well here goes the recipe and about the only way I’ll drink more than one beer.

Preparation:

Salt the rim of a large, tall glass. Fill with ice and add the lime juice. Top up with the beer. Garnish with the lime wedge.

I can go on and on about the delicious nature of the taco. How they’ve been reinvented throughout the years but all I want is immediate taco gratification. Now where would I do this in Montreal is the big question? Well, trust me, when it comes to tacos, I get around and here are my favorite spots:

1. La Matraca 4607, Rue Saint-Denis
This is hands down, the best taqueria I’ve encountered so far. La Matraca feels like walking into a typical Mexico City taqueria and they have yet to disapoint. Consistently good (trust me I’m there every weekend), clean and friendly enough without disturbing my eating ritual. Word of advice, don’t listen to the haters who think it’s too expensive. For $0.99 tacos, Taco Bell is in the West Island. Go there and hide. Now if you’re into authentic quality, La Matraca is the real deal.

2. Grumman 78 630 de Courcelle

This travelling taco truck is Montreal’s answer to quality street food. They’ve brilliantly managed to find the loophole in this city’s absurd law against street food. Grumman serves up international gourmet versions of tacos right out of their pea green truck at just about every cultural event in Montreal. If you can’t stand the line ups however, they grace us with their culinary delights at Nouveau Palais every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from midnight til 3 am. Keep it up Grumman, your brave taco warrior skills will bring more of your kind to this street hungry city!

3. Itacate 67 Beaubien Est

A few words about Itacate. It’s clean, affordable, offers a decent service, generous portions and I do particularly enjoy the little sope they offer as a free entrée. Their sopa de tortilla is a perfect comfort food but the topic here is tacos so let me be specific. As far as I know (I still have to try Limon on Notre-Dame), Itacate is just about the only Mexican restaurant serving up some decent and consistently good cochinita pibil tacos. It’s worth a visit and won’t break the bank.

Now if any of you have ever been to the Yucatan, the best and only style of taco you should try, are the tacos de cochinita pibil. This dish consists of slow roasted pork, wrapped in a banana leaf and marinated in a variety of acidic citrus juices and colored with savoury achiote paste. “Traditionally, cochinita pibil was buried in a pit with a fire at the bottom to roast it. The Mayan word pibil means “buried”.” Finally, one of the most important elements to complete this delicacy are the pickled red onions. Cochinita is nothing without flavour popping “cebollita morada”. Which incidentally are incredibly easy to make and here’s the recipe:

Pickled Red Onions Recipe

INGREDIENTS

Spices

More spices (optional): Fresh ginger slices, allspice berries, oregano, garlic, cumin seeds, mustard seeds

METHOD

1 Blanch red onions in a saucepan of boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain in colander.

2 While the water is heating in step 1, in a separate saucepan combine the vinegar, sugar and spices. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

3 Add blanched, drained onions to the vinegar mixture. Simmer for 1 minute.

4 Transfer to a glass jar. Allow to stand until cooled. Will keep several weeks refrigerated.

After all this talk about tacos, I bet you all want some. I know I do. Oh and a regular sized taco al pastor (my favorite) will set you back 3pts. Tasty and WW friendly, That is a winning combination in my book. See you at Matraca at my usual table.

Bacon: the new condiment?

Veronica — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 23:52:16 +0000

Remember when bacon was a scarce luxury. When mom used to prepare a full Sunday breakfast and the smell of bacon would waft through the house.When it was finally time to sit down and pig out on a perfect concoction of eggs cooked in bacon grease, pancakes drizzled with maple syrup, golden buttered toast and finally savouring the very last crisped crumb of the measly three slices of bacon with never any left overs. When it came to bacon, it felt like we were living in an economic crisis. The great depression of the bacon era had fallen upon us and there was no way to get more. I thank the pork gods that bacon is now an abundant source of pleasure for all and chef’s have become pork-crazed artisans. Ranging from heavenly versions of the all-american classic BLT to surprisingly delectable desserts such as maple bacon donuts.

Bacon has found its home on just about any dish. But dare I ask, how much is too much bacon?

As I was reading through my latest edition of Bon Appétit magazine, I fell upon an interesting article by the Foodist, Andrew Knowlton. His answer to the new world order of overloading already rich dishes with bacon sprinkles was spot on. As the Foodist put it, “I’m simply asking for a little moderation and a lot more creativity.” Don’t get me wrong, bacon is my belly’s best friend but like any friend, you need to give it space.

Does adding crispy salty lard help make frosted cupcakes any better?
And is the culinary world now complete with the invention of the calorie busting Bacon Explosion I keep hearing about? Bacon Explosion: pork dish that consists of bacon wrapped around a filling of spiced sausage and crumbled bacon. Urgh, I think i heard an artery pop. And to add to the bacon overkill, how about the never-ending bacon flavoured novelty items such as bacon mints, bacon gumballs, bacon gummies, baconnaise, bacon salt, bacon gravy, bacon toothpicks, bacon soap, floss and gloss, and my personal um favorite?, bacon fresh toothpaste. How far will we go to exploit this porker?

My personal take on the story, just add a few (5-6 or 10) slices to your weekend breakfast plate, indulge in a gut busting dish once in a while and your bacon relationship will last forever. By all means people, enjoy your bacon but avoid the useless heart-attack at the age of 45.

For your bacon information, here’s a few tips and recipes.

Best way to cook bacon:

The best way to achieve perfectly cooked crispy bacon without the mess and burnt eyeballs is to bake it on a sheet in a 400F oven for 20 min.

Quick and easy breakfast:

Bacon, egg and toast cups

Super Delicious Salad:

Iceberg Wedge with Warm Bacon and Blue Cheese Dressing

My Favorite Sandwich:

The Best BLT ever

Bacony Mashed Potatoes:

M ashed potatoes with bacon and cheddar

Super Easy Hors-d’Oeuvres:

Blue cheese stuffed bacon-wrapped dates

Hearty Meal:

Mini Chicken Pot Pies with Bacon and Marjoram

Delicious Pasta Dish:

Farfalle with carbonara and spring peas

Dessert although I’m slightly against this notion:

Maple syrup pudding with bacon

Important Note: This post has completely ignored weight watchers points because it’s about bacon, PERIOD

Garlic Lover’s Nirvana

Veronica — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 06:30:08 +0000

Every summer, around this time, these gorgeous, fragrant twirly green stems start popping up around the market. They are locally grown fleur d’ail (garlic scapes). At first those crazy curlies were a little intimidating. Being unfamiliar with this species, I asked the lovely garlic scape pusher and she suggested sautéing them or making a pesto, intrigued, I bought a bunch. Obviously I needed to find out more about these yummy antennas so I googled. Turns out, “garlic scapes are a good source of protein, vitamin C, and calcium and, like garlic cloves, can help to prevent heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and cancer. They can also provide immune system support and reduce inflammation.” Satisfied with my new-found vegetable, I hit the kitchen. I had a craving for pasta so I started by whipping up a batch of garlic scape pesto.

Garlic Scape Pesto (vegan)

8 garlic scapes, sliced (cut off the bulb/tip—you just want the rigid “stalk” part)
1/3 cup almonds
3/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper

1. Blend the scapes and almonds until evenly chopped and semi-smooth, in a food processor, 2. Pour the olive in slowly through the feed tube while continuing to blend.
3. Scrape down sides, then blend in the nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper. Done!

Since my entire day was turning out vegetarian, I continued with the same theme and cooked a delicious mixed mushroom, baby swiss chard tagliatelle dish.

INGREDIENTS
2-3 cups mixed fresh mushrooms (shiitake, king oyster, cremini, oyster)
2-3 cups of baby rainbow swiss chard, stems but off
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 Garlic Scape Pesto
250 gr Egg Tagliatelle

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Slice the mushrooms and chop the swiss chard.
2. Heat olive oil in pan on medium-high heat.
3. Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms are golden-brown about 5-6 min.
4. Meanwhile cook the tagliatelle, following the directions on the package.
5. Once mushrooms are done, add chard and cook until wilted.
6. Add garlic scape pesto and mix sauce together.
7. Add cooked tagliatelle to pan with approximately half a cup of the boiled water. Adding water helps add moisture to the soft without the calories.
8. Mix pasta and sprinkle with parsley.
9. Add desired amount of parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Voila! Quick, delicious and nutritious meal thanks to the high vitamin combination of nutritional yeast (B-12), garlic scapes (vitamin C), swiss chard (vitamin K), almonds (vitamin E) and mushrooms (vitamin B3). This dish is a power combination guaranteed to please everyone.

1 and half cup serving of this dish = 10 pts on the WW scale and I was satisfied until bedtime.

Inspiration by the pound

Veronica — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 03:45:37 +0000

I believe you are all familiar with the saying, ‘So hungry I could eat a horse’, well lately, I feel like I’ve eaten the entire herd. For the last month and a half, I’ve managed to disgracefully gain back the measly 5lbs I suffered so much to lose. My overwhelming need to indulge in nightly servings of double scoop ice cream cones, Doritos by the 25% more bag and bottomless cups of ice-cold coca cola have begun to take over my life. As of today, I’m taking responsibility for my actions. No more excuses! No more finding reasons why shoveling large McDonald’s crispy fries down with a milkshake will solve my daily stress. The stretch marks are stretching, the jeans are tightening and enough is enough. The gloves are off and I’m ready to beat down the enemy.

Step one to my 31st attempt to eating healthy, go to the market. The trip was a success, I managed to buy local, fresh and colourful aka antioxidant rich ingredients without breaking the bank. I went in with a full stomach therefore avoiding the impulsive, starvation buying. I kept it simple and tried to remember recipes as I went along. Here’s a group shot of my colourful new friends.

Is there anything more exciting and delicious then this beautiful mix of seasonal vegetables. Ok fine, maybe a double cheese and bacon burger can make your mouth water but I’ve found a motivating factor to these random thoughts of immediate gratification. Paying attention to the texture and color of my food. Greasy and gray equals breakouts and rolls. Tight and bright equals glowy and thin. This might just work! I’ll keep trying it and tell you how that works out.

Ok, step two, for a healthy body, exercise. I’m back to my bi-weekly classes of hatha yoga at Equilibrium on Saint-Laurent which I’ve come to truly love and I promise to never miss another class unless my limbs fall off. Tomorrow, I’m going back to this mega fat burning, crazy Brazilian Samba class from Studio Danse on Saint-Urbain. I’m totally psyched, I just hope I don’t pass out. In any case, Zumba was my first introduction to dancing and I haven’t gone back to a treadmill since. It’s fun, challenging and I feel the burn. Watch out SYTYCD, you can call me twinkle toes!

I think I covered the basics for now and trying too hard will only make me lose the battle. So I’ll stick to my basic plan, get back on the WW wagon, dance while balancing my zen and in no time at all, I’ll be getting into those skinny jeans that never fit.

Day 1
Breakfast 3pts
maple sugar instant oatmeal ( I make it with coffee for an extra flavour boost and morning blast off)

Lunch 7pts
Leftover grilled sirloin steak on a bed of mixed greens including fresh long radishes, frisee salad, radicchio, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. Flavored with a delicious low-cal maple syrup, dijon mustard, olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing. Soaked up the dressing with a small piece of french baguette bread. Carbs are essential to my diet.

Dinner 11pts

I bought some fresh pink sushi grade tuna steaks at Shamrock and I opted for a simple, low-fat recipe from WW. Tuna steak topped with a fresh tomato salsa with a side of tasty Orzo and Spinach Salad.

As a snack, I had a serious craving for chocolate, so I opted for a healthy serving of blueberries and a deliciously sweet plum. Fine, I’ll admit I succombed to a small mint chocolate square but like I said, baby steps.

That’s it for tonight folks. Id love to share the recipes and some more info but getting back to this blog thing is proving a little challenging, so I wont overdo it. Until next time. Keep reading and eating!

Day 2-extreme caffeine

Veronica — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 04:14:21 +0000

M got me a regular coffee at Sablo and a carrot juice, the usual. Quickly fried an egg sunny side up with a tsp of olive oil and a slice of pumpernickel bread. This morning, the egg and juice combo did the trick. Felt super energized and not starved however the coffee was a little like rocket fuel and I’m still jittery. I’m really sensitive to caffeine and if I get just a little over my 100 mg tolerance, I tend to get a little crazy. Anyhow, maybe thanks to the protein and nutrient boost with breakfast and good night rest, I managed to get through the day great. 4 pts

Lunch was also a perfect nutritious meal. I went to Le Pick Up again, it’s become my new favorite lunch spot. I ordered the quinoa salad with grilled zucchini and roasted peppers. Topped with some super delicious grilled chicken and a few blackberries drizzled with a tasty balsamic vinaigrette. Super healthy, tasty, affordable and low on points! 5 pts

I had some leftover chicken from last night’s take out at Serrano’s so I went to the market to pick up some green. Opted for rapini and made a quick whole wheat pasta and rapini bowl and warmed up the chicken. I overloaded the pasta with rapini to really fill up on the veggies and it worked. I felt pretty satisfied with my meal and it was quick to make. In case you missed it on when I posted this recipe a few months ago, here it is again. I insist because I think it’s one of the easiest and most nutritious meals to make in less than 30 minutes and only 2 pots to wash.
9 pts including the 2 oz of chicken

Penne con Rapini

1 pack of penne or pasta of choice. preferably whole wheat for the fiber
1 pack of fresh rapini (broccoli rabe) cut in half
2 tbsp olive oil
3 anchovy fillets
2 garlic cloves minced
Salt and Pepper
desired amount of preferred chili pepper

Get a large enough pot to fit the pack of pasta as well as the entire bunch of rapini. Boil water and add pasta. Add the rapini to the water about 4 min short of fully cooking the pasta.

In the meantime, add 2 tblsp of the oil, garlic, chili pepper and anchovies to a large pan. Fry on low until garlic is golden and anchovy has melted. Turning and squashing the chili, garlic and anchovies to flavor the oil.

Once the pasta and rapini is ready, drain and add to flavoured oil pan. Mix on medium high heat to crisp and heat the dish. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.

Snacks we’re a little early tonight but I did good. Had a peach and delicious lavash whole wheat cracker. 2 pts Then I made a blind decision to eat a Mazapan de la Rosa which is like a little peanut paste not realizing the tiny disc cost me 3 freakin points. At least it was sugary delicious and I don’t regret it too much. I couldn’t resist the blueberries we bought last night so I had a quarter of a cup which is no points but so tasty. Total for nightly snack 4.5 points. Went over the daily points by 0.5. Doing good, feeling good and less bloated. Tomorrow’s dinner looks promising, can’t wait.

rewind

Veronica — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 04:25:20 +0000

Monday, June 21 2010. It’s been a long hard while since I’ve updated you on my journey. The “lose 30 pounds in 100 days while becoming 50% organic, cutting down on meat, exercising more and improving my carbon footprint” journey has ended. Time has elapsed and these are the results. I’ve lost a grand total of 15 lbs in 100 days, half the goal completed. Become at least 50% organic: I’d say more like 30%. Cut down on meat: CHECK. Not counting the week in Mexico where I scarfed down all the meat and tortillas I saw and had ignored during the “journey”. Exercising more, epic fail. Improving carbon footprint: so much thinking required, I need to find a new way to make better earth choices. All in all, I give myself a C for average effort. I’ve found the positive side to this average outcome and it’s that I’ve been told by many “oh you lost weight” which has been a great confidence booster. Thank everyone for that! However, I’ve run into a bit of a “plateau” as they say in the diet world. I can’t seem to move past the 15lbs and keep gaining a pound and then loosing 2 and now after this horrible weekend of fatty munchies, I’ve gained TWO! So I’m starting a new mission as of today and will keep writing to you about it since it helped the last time I wrote about it. The good part is that I haven’t gained any weight back but I’m not loosing any either. This stagnant behaviour means I urgently need to start sticking to the plan again and exercising. I’m restricting myself to 20 lbs in 90 days. If I managed to lose 15 pounds in 100 days without any exercise and lots of cheating, I’m feeling, it’s maybe possible to carry out my goal. Ok, enough talking…it starts NOW.

Day 1: Breakfast started off with one poached egg and a slice of pumpernickel bread. 3 pts good start but breakfast is getting boring, need to spice things up. However, when I recently switched from eggs in the morning to quesadilla’s, the weight loss slowed down. Maybe it’s true what they say about eggs helping you lose weight.

By 1pm, I was starving. I tried to fend off the hunger but when my mother started eating her salad in my face, I cracked. Lunch was quite light. Spinach salad with a small can of tuna in oil and a quarter of a pita bread. Very uninventive but we haven’t gone grocery shopping yet so points for health although the better tuna choice would have been, tuna packed in water. 5.5 pts

Today, I decided to use a gift certificate to Le Bath Room for a one hour floating bath and a one hour massage. Needless to say, it felt great although I got a little bored in the floating pool and I couldn’t fall asleep. Anyhow, I knew I’d be there until about 8pm so I quickly toasted myself a quesadilla. I eat them more now since I discovered magic tortillas in Mexico. They’re made from nopal (pear cactus), are almost fat free, high in fiber and calcium. It’s almost like the miracle flatbread. Did I mention it’s carb free. The only points I added up where from the 1 oz of mozz cheese and some baby spinach for some green. 2 pts perfect snack with a dash of salsa Valentina, yum!

After my pampering session, I was in no mood to cook and my stomach was growling. My perfect go to option coming from downtown was to stop at Serrano Rotisserie and pick up a chicken and some boiled potatoes. 8 pts for dinner, not bad but disappointed in myself for being too lazy to eat veggies. Tomorrow I’ll have an extra carrot juice and tell you all about it.

Day 44 posted on Day 47

Veronica — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 01:57:13 +0000

Breakfast this morning was really delicious and satisfying. Two poached eggs with roasted asparagus, covered in two heaping tablespoons of Hollandaise sauce. I make it from the Knorr instant pack. This is one of those foods that I rarely indulge in, so I can skip making it from scratch. Knorr Hollandaise sauce is actually quite creamy, tasty and easy to make.

My morning coffee has sent me into a speedy cooking frenzy. The coffee at Kafé sablo seems to turbo charge my life and today, I decided to make enough green pea soup for a week. Pulled jerk pork in banana leaf (forgot to take picture and ate it all), fresh pasta and ultimate cinnamon buns .

Dinner consisted of fresh homemade eggless pasta which to be honest I totally messed up. I think I went heavy on the flour and it turned out to be hard little gnocchettis but the sauce was really tasty. Definitely a repeat. I haven’t given up on homemade pasta. I will try and try again until I get it right. My mother has also promised me a pasta machine. Very excited about that. I think I will pick her brain a little more, I’m aiming for ravioli and penne. Pasta is on my list of top 5 favorite foods. I grew up on it and I think it’s the most versatile, nutritious and filling food. I don’t believe pasta promotes weight gain, I believe the fatty problem can be the sauce as well as portion size.

Top left: Measuring cup yellow $9.95; Ultra sharp, colored blade, all-purpose kitchen knife $8.95 www.motivo.ca

Gnocchetti di Zia Lalla

How to make fresh eggless pasta the way my family taught it to me:
Cup your hands together and fill them with flour. Count one scoop per person.
On a wooden board, make a kind of donut mountain with the flour. Fill halfway with room temperature salted water. Start mixing water with flour and keep adding water until you get a nice, elastic dough. Knead until dough is smooth not too dry nor too wet, about 5 minutes. Cut dough in about 6 pieces. Roll out pieces in single strands about 3/4 inch thick. Cut little pillows (about 1 inch in length) out of each strand. Take your index finger, press down and roll the middle of the pillow dough. Boil salted water and cook gnocchetti a few minutes, until they all float up.

Tomato and Basil Zesty Sauce

1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 thick slice spanish onion, chopped
1 tbsp Ortolina (veggie flavour paste available at Italian grocery stores)
1 tsp Lemon Zest
3 Basil Leaves, chopped
1 14 oz can diced organic tomatoes

Fry all ingredients on medium low heat. Cook until onions are transparent. Add the can of diced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes then add pasta. Top with freshly grated cheese of choice. Ricotta S alata or Greek Feta are great.

The green pea soup with dill yogurt turned out great and only 1 point per serving. Green peas are one of those little cute little foods that are fun to eat and great for your health. These green little squishy balls are packed with vitamin K and contribute to energy and overall wellness. Along with dill, the anti-bacterial spice. Dill much like garlic have bacteria-regulating effects.

Day 40

Veronica — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:12:07 +0000

So sorry I stopped writing. Life got in the way however, I’m sticking to my points and have officially lost 8 lbs. I’m a little off target from my main goal, 30 lbs 100 days. But I’m staying positive and happy about just losing weight and feeling better. I have more energy, confidence and the will to keep going. I would really be disappointed in myself if I would stop now and go back to my old ways. To quit now would mean pointless days of restraint, irritability and starvation. The thought of this is a big motivation and represents my new outlook on life about stepping out of my comfort zones, breaking through difficult situations and having a “can do” attitude. All this to say, I’m happy today and my pants are falling off. Things are good.

Today I discovered a new meat. Bison or buffalo to my fellow Flintstonians. I found out that bison has 70% to 90% less fat than beef and 50% less cholesterol. It is known to be a highly nutrient dense food because of the proportion of protein, fat, mineral, and fatty acids to its caloric value. Bison has a greater concentration of iron as well as some of the essential fatty acids necessary for human well-being. Readers’ Digest magazine has even listed bison as one of the five foods women should eat because of the high iron content. The most important aspect of this meat is essentially the taste. Tonight, I cooked bison burger infused with gorgonzola and sundried tomatoes. It turned out to be really delicious and juicy. I have a few bites without the hamburger fixings and the meat was very tasty. A little bit sweeter than beef but very similar tasting to beef. The bison burger had a delicious aroma and perfect color. The flavors popped with lots of dijon mustard and arugula. So to answer the question “Does buffalo taste good?” It definitely does. I think the only thing that was setting me off is my sociological programming to only eating chicken, beef and pork however I’m expanding my horizons. Trying new things and I’m definitely going to start with food. 12.5 pts entire burger

I also found a faux fried onion ring recipe of WW website and they were totally crispy and delicious dipped in organic ketchup. Definitely a recipe I will repeat and only took about 15 minutes to make (without cooking time). 4 pts for one serving

Tomorrow I’m making mexican black bean soup. Keep you posted.

Day 24

Veronica — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:40:37 +0000

Sunny and beautiful Sunday morning, glad I’m awake. I had quite a restless night and broke my night lamp during a parasomnic episode. I think I was dreaming about pushing something and I pushed the night table and shattered the lamp. I’m starting to fear for M and I’s life. If these night spasms don’t stop, I’ll end up electrocuting us in our sleep. I’m wondering if these vivid dreams, sleep talking and rapid movements during my REM sleep are related to late night snacking?

Anyhow, still woke up in a good move. Prepared two poached eggs with a dash of hot sauce and a slice of whole wheat bread. I also had a bite of leftover arugula and parmesan salad. 5 pts Eggs had a bad reputation in the past because of cholesterol but they have been proven to be quite good for you and can even help weightloss. We went to the market to restock our food supply because wee only had mayo and hot peppers left in the fridge. I was much more careful this time around with the foods we purchased. I managed to find mostly local and organic products. We ended up spending around $200 including meat which is usually what we’d spend at the supermarket. The market was beautiful today and I found some great products at Capitol and Aliments Merci Vrac.

After we got back from the market and I put away all the vegetables and goodies we bought. I lunched on the leftover red bean salad and was ok for the rest of the afternoon. 1 pt We did lots of spring cleaning to make room for our new washer and dryer arriving on Thursday. So excited about finally doing laundry at home. This will be another step in the right direction to get our lives organised.

For dinner, we had leftover bowls of baked butternut squash pasta which was still delectable. I also mixed a huge bowl of frisée, arugula, radicchio asparagus, tomatoes, green onions, cucumbers, edamame beans, a nice piece of fresh Feta goat cheese. The cheat was the chunks of parmesan and ripe goat cheese as well as exactly one and a half oz of hand-made smoked chorizo. These are my favorite types of dinners. Totally fresh and lots of variety. 19.5 pts

Yesterday, I mentionned I was going to bake bread and I DID! It actually came out tasting delicious The only problem is the bread didn’t rise enough but I guess that comes with practice. I’m just happy the bread tasted good. It’s 11:00 pm and I’m starting to have munchies. Apples and peanut butter sounds good now. 3 pts