"French" style eating - May [Archive] - CookingLight.com Community

rosie_one

05-02-2005, 08:36 AM

Hi there. :) Thought I'd start us off on a monthly thread. Happy May.

If you're not familiar with this philosophy, it's based on a book by Dr. Will Clower. The Fat Fallacy: French Diet Secrets to Permanent Weight Loss which is a horrible title, but a good book. Amazon Link Here! (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1400049199/qid=1115042738/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/103-0519602-1452607?v=glance&s=books&n=507846) If you are thinking of joining us, that book is the place to start.

You can read some of our BB history in this original thread (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=69409&highlight=french+eating) and in our previous more casual thread here. (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=71246&highlight=french+eating)

Basically, we hope this will be a support group and recipe exchange for those eating within these parameters. It's pretty fun conversation sometimes too with some strange tangents. ;) If you are new to this and have questions, please ask away. It's definitely intended to be an open forum.

____________________________________

So, enough preamble... How was your weekend?

Ours went well, excepting that our little kitty Rosie is MIA. :( I'm worried about her, she's young, kind of a scardey and has always been an indoor cat. I suppose it's just spring biology, but I sure hope she returns.

Foodwise, I relearned this weekend why I just don't drink beer. Some aquaintences of ours recently invested in a bar downtown. We stopped in to say hello and congratulations and they were having a beer tasting. Micro brews. I couldn't really turn it down. Oy. I should have. :rolleyes: You would think I'd have learned those lessons in college.

On the good side, I roasted my first ever chicken on the grill up North this weekend. It was excellent. I had Susan's artichoke recipe in mind, but then forgot it on the way out the door because we were frantically looking for the cat. Dang. So, instead I stuffed it with cut lemon and garlic, then basted with white wine, butter and lemon juice. Took about an hour. Mmm mmm. I'm making a quiche with the leftovers tonight for dinner, I think.

This is my favorite quiche recipe... I think it origianlly came from a Pilsbury cookoff, but I use a homemade crust rather than premade.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Chicken Dijon Quiche

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 c sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 minced garlic clove
2 T butter
6 oz cubed -- cooked chicken breast
1 t Italian seasoning
1/4 cup white wine
1 oz grated Parmesan
2 oz Gruyere
3 eggs
1 cup cream
1 T dijon mustard

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9" pie pan, lay in a rolled crust. Saute mushrooms and onion in butter until tender. Add garlic, then stir in chicken and seasoning and wine. Cook over med heat until liquid evaporates (few minutes). Spread mixture over the crust in pie pan. Sprinkle with cheeses. Beat together cream, water, eggs and dijon, and pour over the chicken and cheese. Bake 40-45 minutes, until mixture looks "set".

Paris M

05-02-2005, 08:48 AM

Woohoo! We have a May thread. Thank you, Alice. Congratulations of your chicken, it sounds ace. The quiche recipe you posted sounds divine - all of my favorite flavors in one dish! :D

My weekend topped off my less than stellar week. I had a great first week with fab portion control and choices, but then I got a little side-tracked this last week with a few glasses of Pepsi here and there along with too much ice cream (I found a new artisenal place 5 blocks from me :rolleyes: ). I do, however, still weigh weekly and I maintained this week.

I started today off feeling very well. I had a slice of the oat cake with almond butter I posted about yesterday with a side of organic strawberries and Greek yogurt. I am still having my 2 cups of coffee, but I've gone down to an 10 oz mug from a 16 oz mug.

One of the aspects of this WOE that I missed this last week was the emphasis on courses. I am back to a three-course supper for this evening and I am stoked about it. It's simple, but I think it makes all the difference for me.

cookinfor6

05-02-2005, 10:31 AM

Hi, I've not heard of that book but is it similar to the "French Women Don't Get Fat" book? I think those are some great eating habits to adapt and am trying to change my bad habits to those of the French :)

Searcher

05-02-2005, 12:28 PM

Thanks for starting this Alice and I'm so sorry to hear about Rosie. I hope she'll wander back soon.

We had a typical weekend but we decided, at the last minute, to go to the movies. We saw Sahara with Mathew Mc Conaughy (sp?) who was very good. We've always liked Clive Cussler's books with Dirk Pitt but didn't realize this was one of his until just before we left the house. We enjoyed that.
Then we decided to go to dinner when the movie was over. We went to a favorite grill and had hamburgers. We can't share, my husband likes his pretty plain so we had our own but only finished about half of them. They come with fries and I nibbled a little on those but left most of them. I did have two glasses of wine though. No dessert, we usually only eat dessert with a meal when we have company.

I still don't have scales but clothing keeps getting looser and looser. I'm hoping this week to be able to take our dog out for walks each day. She's just a year old and should be almost calm enough to behave.....a little.

Welcome, Cookingfor6.
Rosie One can tell you better than I about the differences in the books. I do have French Women Don't Get Fat but I've only skimmed through it. You might want to follow Rosie's links to the two other threads. The thread on the Good Food boards will be helpful, especially.

rosie_one

05-02-2005, 01:44 PM

OH, I love those Dirk Pitt books. I had no idea Sahara was based on one of those either. Those are the best airplane reads. Action packed and not too thought provoking, but not completely without a brain either. I'll have to look for that on DVD when it comes out. I think DH and I are going to watch Garden State tonight.

Cookinfor6, they are similar books in some aspects, they both advocate fresh, tasty food in reasonable portion sizes and that you eat mindfully and enjoy, but they are different in tone and sometimes in practice. French women advocates a leek broth fast to get you "jump started" that Dr. Clower doesn't. Dr. Clower talks a lot more than French Women about processed foods and their evil ways (bwahahahahaha ;) ) and the importance of eating in courses at meals. Both are good reads, thought provoking but not perfect. Both are definitely too long for their subject, but what can you expect with a diet book? I prefer the Dr. Clower book myself as I found the French Women's author to be a bit condescending to us poor tubby Americans (and everyone in general who isn't lucky enough to be her), but that's just me.

I re-read through that original thread on the Great food board and it was a good exercise (I had forgotten how long it is!). Some good food ideas in there and some good reminders. And also nice to see how far I've come. It was especially interesting to read the list of stuff that I purged from my cupboard. Jeez. I still come home from the grocery with stuff I shouldn't though. I bought a package of Thomas' whole grain english muffins today, not thinking, got them home and they are full of preservatives and bad stuff. Shucks.

And I've already changed my mind about dinner. Decided I need me some meat, so we are having 'Seaks with Balsamic Mustard Sauce' out of May's Everyday Food. (p.80) With rosemary, parmesan steak fries (thank you Susan) and broccolini. The starter is going to be a green salad with apples, blue cheese and maple sugar toasted walnuts. (Sliced apples with brown sugar sour cream for the kids.) DH is having a $%^#@ week (durn stock market is all over the place) so we'll have a nice cabernet with it. Consolation prize.

This is the first EF I've purchased. Think I kind of like it. Simple and fresh, with some very good combinations. I like the small format too. And pretty cheap. Has anyone seen their PBS show?

krhm

05-02-2005, 05:25 PM

Hi everyone! It�s great to see the new thread! Personally I can�t believe it�s already May�the last few months have just flown by for us. Ah, I have much on the thread to catch up on! I�m going to take a small liberty and deviate from the new thread to catch up on the old�I figured no one would see what I posted on the old thread.

Sneezles, waayy back to the edible shellac�again, I have to say eew! And yes, I definitely think you should still post here! To me the point of all this is not really so much what we�re eating but how we�re re-focusing a lot of what we�ve been �programmed� into doing, like eating fast, eating processed junk (edible shellac, anyone?), and so on. And besides, I really like your recipes�I�ve printed the chicken, fries, and dip for my own files. I can�t wait for fresh artichokes! Did you use fresh, real crabmeat for the dip?

Searcher, your new kitchen sounds so exciting! Can you send me the name of the roasted vegetable tapenade from Trader Joe�s? I don�t live near one, but when we visit DH�s family in New England, I always make a few stops. We�re going in a month! And congrats on kicking the Pepsi habit!

Daniele, don�t beat yourself up too much about gaining back the three pounds. I haven�t lost as fast as I would have on, say, Weight Watchers or South Beach, but I feel confident this time that it is weight that truly will stay gone. Dining out is tough. Alice had some great suggestions for you. I still have some kind of restaurant-meal-as-a-treat mentality, and I think that plays into why I feel bad about not finishing my �treat.� I also have a �it�s the weekend so I�m ready to party� attitude sometimes!

Alice, I�m sorry to hear about your kitty! It�s such an awful feeling. Do you have any kind of neighborhood group you can contact? Cats are funny creatures�they can be so self-sufficient. How are your kids taking it? What is Everyday Food? I�m out of the loop. Oh, and thanks for starting the new thread!

ParisM, your works sounds cool! I�m a planner too. I get almost as much enjoyment out of reading the recipes, planning the meals, and shopping as I do the cooking and eating! The courses are important, but they are tough when you�re on the run. You know, I don�t particularly care for ice cream, so maybe I got lucky there!

As for me, I�m still feeling very good about my new food choices. I�m working out pretty hard, so I�m seeing more losses in terms of inches rather than pounds. Our CS produce should start coming in a few weeks, and I am completely psyched.

A random observation about portions�I find that certain times of the month I am just not satisfied with eating slowly and eating smaller portions. I�ve been trying to pay attention to those times and realize what�s happening, and that�s helped.

Kari

Searcher

05-02-2005, 05:58 PM

Kari, I've thrown out the jar it came in but I'm positive it just said Roasted Vegetble Tapanade. I found it on a shelf above the frozen vegetables and fruit.

I promise I will post pictures if I ever figure out how to. One of you told me once, but I've lost that post and can't find it again. It's so hard to do that here, and so easy on other sites.

Rosie, I think I've bought Everyday Food since the first issue. I don't always make a lot from the books but I do like them. Two of our favorite side dishes are in one of the early ones, an Oven Risotto that we think isn't half bad and a Spicy Broccoli. Naturally, I don't do all the steps in their recipe but just throw some broccoli, frozen or fresh, in the microwave with a sprinkling of garlic and red pepper flakes thrown on top.
I've seen the PBS show but I just can't get interested. I do still Tivo it but I generally just delete it after reading what recipes they're doing. I guess I'm a tv food show snob! LOL

I'm still having problems with portioning myself and I'm still buying some things like Ketchup. Does Heinz make something without the HFCS or is it just the Low Carb stuff with the even worse sugar substitute in it?
I did find some tortilla chips that didn't look too bad, nothing that seems to have Transfat in it...Nature's Own, I think it is, and after reading the salsa jars, it looks like Newman's Own doesn't have anything nasty in it either. But I'm a label novice so I could be missing something. These days about the only canned things in my pantry are canned tomatoes and various canned beans, then, the mayonnaise, ketchup and mustards. One of these days I'm going to have the space and the patience to make my own mayonnaise and try making some mustard. I do still buy some jams, I used some the other day in a special dessert, Everyday Italian's raspberry Tiramisu, only I used strawberries and I keep a few things for when my grandson's come to visit.

Paris M

05-02-2005, 06:12 PM

Searcher Muir Glenn, Annie's Naturals and Trader Joe's all make an organic ketchup that is sweetened with cane sugar. I am using the TJ's brand now and it's excellent, sweet but not over-powering like the commercial brands.

Krhm ICAM about those certain times of the month when you just want those bigger portions. Le sigh. I wish I could NOT love ice cream, I can turn down just about everything but fabulous ice cream.

Cookinfor6 Alice did a great job of summing up the differences between the books. I enjoyed both of them immensely, but use Clower for the practicalities and Guiliano for inspiration/fun. I have the audio book of FWDGF and I enjoyed it much more than the book, as her tone is much more lighthearted.

The serving of courses did not work out this eve, but DH and I still had a fab dinner. I posted all about it here (http://raisincakes.blogspot.com/2005/05/so-what-does-one-do-when-one-does-not.html).

rosie_one

05-02-2005, 06:16 PM

Kari, nice to hear from you, thanks for bridging us over from the other thread... Rosie is still out and about. I hope she'll return. I've stopped wondering I guess. Cats are just cats, though I can't help but be a little sad.

Susan, was there a question that you would stop posting on this thread? I vote no! You've given me so many great ideas. Wherever your food road takes you I'd love to hear about it.

Searcher, Muir Glenn makes an awesome ketchup. Look in your natural foods section. I'm a total ketchup snob now, Heinz completely pales in comparason.

Everyday Food is a little grocery store checkout asile magazine. It's a Martha Stewart thing. Simple stuff really, but attractively presented. I think it might be one of those things I'll find myself turning to when I need ideas. http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=learn-cat&id=cat17922 Also a PBS show I guess, though I've never seen it.

krhm

05-02-2005, 06:23 PM

Okay, now on to the food! :D

I've discovered a new salad: organic baby spinach, organic strawberries, sliced roasted almonds, and poppy seed dressing. I've been eating this for a few days now (my strawberry and spinach supply is almost gone, I fear!).

This week I want to try JeAnne's Thai Chicken Barley Risotto. I've finished reading Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy by Walter Willet (someone here recommended it...I'm sorry but I've forgotten who it was!), and really enjoyed it overall, although some of it was far too technical for me. It inspired me to want to try more whole grains. I'm already there on the fruits and veggies!

And I'm just aching for artichoke season, which seems to be a long time in coming. I made this Roasted Artichoke Pur�e for Bruschetta from Michael Chiarello's (sp?) show Napa Style almost a year ago, and it is sooo good! I had almost forgotten it. It is time consuming, but if you like artichokes, it's well worth it. I'd like to double it and have it on hand for a starter. Does anyone know of a faster way to trim the artichokes though???

Roasted Artichoke Pur�e for Bruschetta Serves 6-8 (NOTE: I'm not so sure about this serving recommendation...even eating smaller portions!)

1/3 cup lemon juice
6 medium artichokes
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil (NOTE: I used this much to roast them, but put maybe 1 tbs. in when I blended it
3 cloves garlic, quartered lengthwise
1 tsp. minced fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. sea salt, preferably gray salt
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Select a non-reactive bowl large enough to hold all the artichokes once they are trimmed and pour the 1/3 cup lemon juice into it.
3. Working with 1 artichoke at a time, bend the tough outer leaves backward until they break at the point where the tough leaf becomes part of the tender base; stop when you reach the more tender interior leaves that are at least half yellow-green.
4. With a serrated knife, cut across the leaves at the point where the color changes from yellow-green to dark green.
5. Trim the stem of its outer layer, then trim the base, removing any dark green bits.
6. Quarter the artichokes lengthwise and scoop out the hairy choke.
7. As the artichokes are trimmed, drop them into the bowl holding the lemon juice and turn to coat. Toss occasionally to keep them coated with lemon.
8. When all the artichokes are trimmed, transfer them and the lemon juice to a large skillet along with the olive oil, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper to taste.
9. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, tossing to coat the artichokes with the seasonings, then transfer to the oven and cook until the artichokes are browned in spots and tender when pierced, about 25 minutes.
10. Let cool, remove the bay leaf then puree all of the ingredients in a food processor. This mixture will hold refrigerated up to three or four days.

For Bruschetta:

� Have the pur�e at room temperature.
� Toast thick slices of Italian bread on both sides until crispy on a grill or oiled grill pan.
� Spread an even layer of the puree on each slice.
� Transfer to a serving platter and finish with a grating of aged parmesan cheese, a drizzle of quality extra virgin olive oil and a few turns of fresh cracked black pepper. Serve while the bread is still warm.

krhm

05-02-2005, 06:33 PM

Searcher, that's okay...I'll just keep an eye out. I've already told DH that a good deal of our vacation budget must be saved for the Trader Joe's trip and a Penzey's trip. I live in Duluth, GA, right outside of Atlanta. (as I typed that I thought, well, duh, after the courthouse shootings and this whole run-away bride thing, who doesn't know where Duluth is anymore? :D) Anyway, you would think we would have some great stores down here, but they're all at least 50 minutes from my house and quite expensive.

I don't know about the picture thing, but I believe that they have to be on a website somewhere else, but not imagestation, and they must be JPEG files. But I could be wrong about that!

I've never seen the Everyday Food in the grocery store, but I forgot to mention the cover of Woman's Day last week (or the week before). It was a whole thing about an amazing leek soup diet that would make you lose 6 pounds in 2 days! :D

cookinfor6

05-02-2005, 06:36 PM

Thanks for the clarification and the links! :)

krhm

05-02-2005, 08:01 PM

Oops, one more recipe! This one is for Alice:

Barbecue Sauce (from Epicurious)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 lemon
1/2 cup brown sugar (I like dark)
1/4 cup vinegar (sometimes I use cider vinegar)
1/2 cup tomato ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon chili powder, or to taste

Heat the oil in a frying pan and saut� the onion and garlic until soft and lightly browned, 4-5 minutes. Grate the zest from the lemon and squeeze the juice. Add the lemon zest, half the lemon juice, the sugar, vinegar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce and chili powder to the onion and simmer gently, 5 minutes. Taste, adjust the seasoning and let cool.

This is a basic recipe, but can be modified in many ways. I have many more "exotic" ones too. Steven Raichlen's Barbecue Bible is our summer time cookbook. DH once suggested that we try to cook every recipe from it, sort of like that author who cooked every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

sneezles

05-03-2005, 07:34 AM

Good Morning, French Style Eaters!!! (said in my head as Robin Williams :p )...

Thanks for all the kudos on posting here! I knew y'all would be very kind!! I will post about my trip to Whole Foods later...right now I'm killing time while drinking my pre-breakfast tea.

Alice-I apologize for not posting my favorite BBQ sauce. Will find it today and post. It's one that doesn't use ketchup. The quiche recipe looks great!

Searcher-I saw organic Heinz ektchup in Whole Foods yesterday!
You can post pictures on Imagestation (it's free just sometimes a pain in that it can be slow) and can find a couple of threads for your tutorial alter on...

Kari-I used frozen artichokes and fresh crabmeat for that dip recipe. Someone else asked about using canned or faked on the GF board and I thought canned would work fine but not fake. Sorry, I've never cleaned an artichoke so no tips!

Teas done off to discover what's for breakfast!

rosie_one

05-03-2005, 08:16 AM

Good morning to you all too. :)

Thanks for the BBQ recipe. I know I'm going to have fun trying these out. Love good BBQ and it, finally, is supposed to warm up again here by the end of the week.

I love artichokes too, they are (I know this is werid) a real childhood favorite of mine. So thanks for those recipes.

The everyday food recipe was... well, tasty, but not because of the recipe. I guess I thought the steak sauce (just reduced balsamic and dijon mustard) was a little overpowering. We really didn't use it, just enjoyed the steak. The potatoes were great, roasted broccolini and the SALAD, I just loved. Fresh greens with chopped green apple, soft blue cheese and pecans toasted coated with maple syrup and sprinkled with raw sugar. The blue cheese was a new brand for me called saga and really delicious. I'd buy it again.

Paris, I had fun perusing your new blog. It looked like a nice meal too, very pretty placemats. :) And I know what you mean about ice cream. It's a seasonal thing for me, gotta have it in the summer. Up here we have frozen custard too, which is SO indulgent, but divine.

Tonight for dinner I'm planning a southwest something. Guacamole starter, bean soup, cornbread and some sort of mixed grill with leftover chicken and steak. Maybe in a lime marinade with sweet onions and peppers? I'm not sure. I also would love to do margaritas, but it's only Tuesday. Dang. Wishing it were Friday. :)

krhm

05-03-2005, 08:27 AM

Alice, we use this as a marinade and as a "coating" sauce:

Adobo Steak (from allrecipes.com)

INGREDIENTS:
1 lime, juiced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons finely chopped canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers to taste
4 (8 ounce) beef sirloin steaks
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:
In a small bowl, mix the lime juice, garlic, oregano, and cumin. Stir in chipotle peppers, and season to taste with adobo sauce.
Pierce the meat on both sides with a sharp knife, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and place in a glass dish. Pour lime and chipotle sauce over meat, and turn to coat. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours.
Preheat grill for high heat.
Lightly brush grill grate with oil. Place steaks on the grill, and discard marinade. Grill steaks for 6 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.

sneezles

05-03-2005, 12:05 PM

Alice,
Here's the recipe for the bbq sauce. I use Racconto brand with no added salt and usually just the 28 oz can and if the sauce seems too thick then I add some water. Like any other tomato sauce the longer it simmers the better it gets. You can eliminate the orange zest and the serranos or sub lime for the orange as well.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Mesquite Barbecue Sauce

Recipe By : Courtenay Beinhorn
Serving Size : 12 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
4 cups no salt added tomato pur�e
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 tablespoons fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 tablespoons orange zest -- silvered rather than bits is better
2 serrano peppers -- seeded and cut into strips
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce, low sodium
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon vinegar
3/4 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring -- mesquite preferred
freshly ground black pepper -- to taste

Combine the tomato pur�e, onion, ginger, garlic, orange zest, and serrano chiles in a nonaluminum saucepan. Simmer over low heat for 1 1/2 hours (at least), until reduced to approx 2 cups.

Pur�e in blender or use immersion blender and pur�e until smooth. Strain through a sieve or strainer, pressing on the solids with the back of a wooden spoon.

Put the mixture in a clean nonaluminum pan. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Will keep for one week in fridge. Serving size 2 tablespoons

Yield:
"1 1/2 cups"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 90 Calories; trace Fat (0.5% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 22g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; trace Cholesterol; 134mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 0 Fat; 1 Other Carbohydrates.

Source: Beinhorn's Mesquite Cookery, �1986

sneezles

05-03-2005, 03:56 PM

Today I made my first recipe from the new eating plan. I was suppose to have it for lunch but I wasn't hungry so I'm having it for dinner in place of the baked chicken. I don't know if any of you are fish lovers (even though I'm married to a guy who raises cattle, I prefer to eat seafood with the exception of mussels). So I tasted it when it was done and it tastes wonderful!!! On this plan fat is not a problem ;) unless you're eating the wrong kind (trans and polyunsaturated). The coconut milk the author says to buy has nothing but coconut and water...tastes very good on it's own!

* Exported from MasterCook *

Coconut Seafood Soup

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 can coconut milk
3 cups fish stock
1 pound catfish fillets -- cut into 1" pieces
8 ounces shrimp -- raw, peeled and deveined (about 8 large) cut into 1" pieces
8 ounces lump crabmeat
1 tablespoon fresh ginger -- peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 jalape�o chile peppers -- seeded and cut into fine strips
1/2 teaspoon red curry paste (I upped to 1 teaspoon)
1 teaspoon sugar, brown
2 limes -- juiced
1 tablespoon chopped basil

Place all ingredients in a large pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook until seafood is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Serving size: 1 1/2 cups

Yield:
"9 cups"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 304 Calories; 16g Fat (49.9% calories from fat); 28g Protein; 8g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 139mg Cholesterol; 324mg Sodium. Exchanges: 3 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fruit; 2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Paris M

05-03-2005, 05:07 PM

All of these recipes look amazing, definitely whetting my appetite! :D

Searcher

05-05-2005, 01:06 PM

Thanks for the ketchup suggestions. I went to my local health store the other day and they had both Muir Glen and Heinz Organic. I bought both. LOL We're not ketchup fanatics but my husband likes it and I use it in various dishes. I thought we could taste test. Now, does anyone make a sweet gherkin, the teeny ones, withoug HFCS?

I posted the latest pictures on both AOL and MSN. I know I can email other AOL users with them but I'm not sure about MSN. And I still can't figure out how to post them here. I'm a techno-idiot. I will look into it soon. My dog is enjoying the lower cabinets that are currently without doors. She hides her cookies in them.

I did make bologese sauce and make some homemade fettucini last night on my new pasta attachment for my Kitchen Aid. It was fun, more fun than the hand cranked one.

We're not doing well this week with our eating plan. I'm making good food but we're not taking our time or eating in courses. We're rushing off the the hospital every evening. My mother was taken to the hospital the other day with pneumonia and heart problems. She's 83 and has Alzheimer's. We go through this periodically but this time it's bad. It would be good for her to finally have peace, I think.

sneezles

05-05-2005, 02:14 PM

Searcher,
So sorry to hear about your mom. It's very difficult taking care of elderly parents.

So far I've only found sweet relish and Kosher dills without HFCS but since we don't really eat the baby gherkins I haven't really looked for them.

Congrats on your fettucine!

I hear ya on the lousy eating! DH was in for tests all day yesterday and it really through off my schedule! Fortunately I did take breakfast with me (he had to be there by 7am) but we stayed beyond lunch (and though he got those lovely clear liquids they serve in hospital) so I was pretty hungry by the time we got home. DH then took a 3 hour nap and then ate some "cream" of soup then had more soup while I ate dinner...man seemed a bottomless pit at that point!

Searcher

05-06-2005, 01:02 PM

We are eating, Susan, just not very well. Last night I made chicken paillards marinated in lime juice and zest, garlic, chili powder and red pepper flakes....I forgot the Tequila! Darn it. We had Gail's Quick and Easy Black Beans and Rice (I'd have been happy with just this) and some zucchini and yellow sqash slices I'd brushed with a mixture of olive oil and chili powder and grilled. We were in a hurry to go and practically ate standing up. We did spend some time cleaning up the glass of wine I spilled all over everything though.

My mother is in a hospital not particularly close to us, something I can thank the blasted nursing home for, and it takes a while to get there. She has Alzheimer's...or Dementia, and was admitted with pneumonia and a high temperature. When there they discovered that she was also having a heart attack and had, apparently, had another one we didn't know about sometime in the past. On top of that she has congestive heart failure and she's not eating. Alzheimer's is a nasty disease and since she's not in any pain and relatively comfortable, I wish she could just let go peacefully. Horrible thought.

krhm

05-10-2005, 08:14 AM

Hi everyone! Just wanted to check in!

Searcher, how's your mother? Take care of yourself during this time!

Sneezles, how is your new eating plan working out for you?

ParisM, how are things for you? Are you in the midst of finals?

Rosie_One, have you found the ultimate bbq sauce yet? Any new meal ideas? You always seem to have great ones!

I'm just counting down the days until our CSA produce starts. We've been looking for some sources of organic meats, too, but the expense is shocking! I've been reading Affluenza (saw it discussed on the Other Stuff board) and would be interested in reducing our meat intake now anyway. But that will not go over well with DH, I fear, who is not a fan of beans or tofu. And since he's lactose-intolerant, protein can't come from dairy! So we'll see.

It may seem that I've gotten off-track from the French-style eating in some ways, but I'm still eating slowly, in smaller portions, with much less processed food, and eating full-fat products. I really do feel a difference in so many ways! My weight loss has slowed down, but I think that is mostly due to my work schedule. I am still a bit of a stress eater! :D

sneezles

05-10-2005, 08:55 AM

Originally posted by krhm
Sneezles, how is your new eating plan working out for you?

Morning, Kari!
Thanks for asking. I really like this new plan. I still seem to be losing very, very, very slowly (which is probably better but not what I'm use to). Though last night I was bad and had 5 gingersnaps after my ice cream...bad, bad, bad!!! I go for my checkup in 2 weeks and hopefully my numbers (LDL, lipids and triglycerides) will be better.

OK, while I've not read Affluenza, I have looked at the website but disagree with the less meat idea. Humans are not herbivores and without meat you'll be missing out on many important nutrients (they may be in plant foods but the volume you'd have to eat would mean you'd do nothing but eat all day) or you'd have to be supplementing with chemically produced supplements so you're moving away from real foods...JMHO.

Paris M

05-10-2005, 09:41 AM

Hi Kari and my other eatin'-like-the-French friends!

I am not to finals yet, midterms were last week since we are on the quarter system. Um, and last week was a disaster with eating. My choices were okay but portions were crazy and I did a lot of snacking. I am doing much better today. :)

The only new recipe I've tried is the Texas Sheet Cake, and it was very good. I am digging about for some T&T chicken recipes, as I have a whole ton due to a sale at Giant Eagle last week (when Bell & Evans goes on sale, I load up!).

I finally made the switch to whole milk, and my oh my is it incredible! I love it. I am also working on getting my sugar intake lower. I am down to 1 1/2 tsp in coffee --- from a high of 2 tbsp!

Susan glad to hear the plan is working for you. ITA about meat. I am more concerned about obtaining meat from well-cared for animals than reducing my intake (which is actually not all that high). With my sugar sensitivity, I need to eat protein along with my carbs for balanced blood sugar.

Have a fab day! :D Paris

krhm

05-10-2005, 09:48 AM

Hi Sneezles! I'm losing slowly too. You're right...it's probably better this way, but sometimes it's a little frustrating. I can very easily slip back into "diet" mentality and start thinking about how much faster I could lose, especially since the pool in our neighborhood just opened Saturday! But, this is about more than just the weight loss for me, and I think it is more of a permanent lifestyle change than anything else I've ever tried.

I agree that protein from meat is an important part of a balanced diet, and I could never ever give up filet mignon completely! :D The book doesn't advocate complete vegetarianism either, but does advocate a more ecologically aware use of resources and a more balanced intake. I don't have the book with me right now, but I can post some of the reasons they give later on, if you're interested. I think the biggest point is just that Americans consume much more meat than they actually need, and this not only creates health problems for people in general, but it uses more natural resources than other protein sources do.

Personally, I think I tend to focus too many of our meals on meat and not enough on fruits/veggies. My thinking tends to revolve around whatever cut of meat is thawing in the fridge. When I'm pressed for time, I don't make as many side dishes, so sometimes we end up eating very unbalanced meals.

sneezles

05-10-2005, 02:02 PM

Originally posted by krhm
Personally, I think I tend to focus too many of our meals on meat and not enough on fruits/veggies. My thinking tends to revolve around whatever cut of meat is thawing in the fridge. When I'm pressed for time, I don't make as many side dishes, so sometimes we end up eating very unbalanced meals.

That is exactly my problem! Though I'm limited on the vegeatbles and fruits that the other members of my family will eat. That and DH won't eat entrees with fruit in them :rolleyes: but I do tend to focus on the meat.

I will have to read the book and it sounds like something I would agree with since it doesn't eliminate meat. Though it is a bit hard on the pocketbook to buy organic meats (the chicken breasts for tonight's dinner were $6.49 a pound!!!) I think buy reducing the portions it may work out about the same...

krhm

05-15-2005, 11:52 AM

Hi everyone! We're very quiet this month!

Sneezles, I'm hoping to do the same thing...buy organic and use less, hoping it will come out to about the same. Our grocery bills have been quite high lately; I know some of it has to do with the organic stuff we're buying, but also because now we really are feeding four people as DDs appetites increase. I used to be able to cook 2 chicken breasts and DH and I would share with the kids, and that is just not enough now when the meal is based on the chicken. Just another reason I'm trying to incorporate more fruits/veggies/whole grains into our meals.

I made some veggie kabobs and grilled them with some chicken breasts the other day. With some whole wheat couscous it was a great meal. I'm looking for more marinades/sauces though that would go well with grilled meats and veggies. Any thoughts?