Category: Low calorie

New Year and New Way of Cooking… Farro with Turkey Kale Leeks Sun Dried Tomatoes

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So I did it! For a while I’ve been eying the newly svelte Jennifer Hudson pitching for Weight Watchers. I resisted.I hate counting calories and points just seemed so complicated.  I mean I love food and I love to cook. Therefore I hate diets.A few years ago I tried a home delivery service and the food was awful. I didn’t want to go on some other well-known programs because I hate processed foods. Weight Watchers seemed to be the only solution, where I could cook and have fun developing recipes. Most of you know I’m pretty much an open book and will share my joys and sorrows . Not being ashamed of the fact of what  I was doing, I was surprised when many of my friends contacted be both publicly and off-line that they have had tremendous success with Weight Watchers. One food blogger friend revealed to me she lost 100 lbs in a year. All the success stories I heard motivated me more , as this seemed actually doable, and without depriving myself of anything.

So naturally I’m cutting back on fat, not entirely, as I believe fat carries flavor, but healthy fats and in moderation.I’m playing around with adding bulk and volume to my foods off the Power Foods list ( foods low in points that give you more fuel throughout the day). When I’m hungry mid day I reach for a banana, which surprisingly has zero points to satisfy both that sweet and creamy texture urge. So far so good, and on week 3 , I have lost over  5 lbs. The second week was challenging as we had several social functions with great food and alcohol, but I was able to indulge in moderation. Thank goodness for my Iphone app, where I plug-in foods and receive their values. Who knew a Screwdriver is the cocktail with the lowest points?

Sometimes I post some recipes to the community pages. The Farro with Turkey Kale and Sun dried Tomatoes was a very successful one that both Certain Someone and I enjoyed. I actually tea smoked my own turkey breast to use for the week and throw  it into several recipes. The smoking adding a depth of flavor. For this recipe you can use regular roasted , cooked turkey breast.

Farro with Turkey Kale Leeks sun-dried Tomatoes
 
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A hearty filling stir fry with the grain of Farro.
Author:
Recipe type: entree
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 pound(s) cooked turkey breast
  • 1 cup(s) cooked leek(s)
  • 1 cup(s) Kale
  • 2 cup(s) sun-dried tomatoes (without oil)
  • 2 cup(s) cooked farro
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
Instructions
  1. Boil Farro to package instructions and reserve
  2. Drain Julienne your Kale.
  3. Weigh and chop your turkey breast, tomatoes.
  4. In a non stick pan spray your non stick cooking oil.
  5. Add your leeks and kale and stir fry for a few minutes on med high
  6. Add your tomatoes and continue to stir and cook over med high heat.
  7. Vegetables should start to caramelize a bit.
  8. Add the turkey. Continue to cook.
  9. Lastly add the cooked Farro and stir fry for a few more minutes .
  10. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
9 Weight Watcher points
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The winner of the Creminelli giveaway  is Jen from  The Whole Kitchen. Congratulations Jen!

 

Carrot Kohlrabi and Arugula Salad

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The first time I tasted Kohlrabi (aka German Turnip) was in Germany. A raw piece of this green round multi stemmed vegetable was proffered like a slice of apple. I was pleasantly surprised as this was a new and somewhat foreign vegetable for me. After a heavy meat laden week with them ( it’s Germany) , this fresh offering was welcome. Certain Someones parents  have  a garden, a Scherbergartan (allotment garden) in their family for about the past 50 years.His grandfather was the original gardener, and when he died , his parents took it over. It’s hard work and the garden yields a lot of fruits and vegetables. Approximately 4 million  Germans have Scherbergartens . Originally the concept can  be attributed to Dr. Daniel Moritz Scherber and Karl Gessel.  Family gardens allowed working class city dwellers to have a plot of land  to grow fruit and vegetables . The small houses in the garden provide a weekend getaway and respite from the city. For Dr. Scherber it was all about fresh air and educating children.

After that first taste I never had Kohlrabi again unfortunately. Not  until it showed up my organic delivery box. I really didn’t want to cook it . My friends on Twitter suggested a myriad of ideas from making a gratin , pickling it, or just eating it raw. I decided to shred it like a slaw with some vinaigrette ( another brilliant suggestion) and other vegetables from the box. Paired with peppery Arugula, this salad is just perfect for summer.

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Carrot Kohlrabi and Arugula Salad

Serves 2

  • 1 Kohlrabi ( skinned and grated)
  • 2 carrots ( skinned and grated)
  • 1 red bell pepper , Julienned
  • Arugula

Vinaigrette

  • 1 part red wine vinegar
  • 1 part olive oil
  • 1/8 tsp mustard powder
  • 1/8 tsp garlic powder
  • dried herbs
  • salt and pepper to taste
  1. In a bowl mix your grated  carrots and kohlrabi .
  2. Mix up your Vinaigrette ingredients and toss.
  3. Toss in with the Arugula.
  4. Serve.

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Baked Cheesy Cauliflower and Baked Grouper Steaks in Parchment Paper…Low Calorie and Tasty Recipes

I hope everyone is settling into the New Year. This week was action packed with some of the goals I mentioned in the last post for the Ten in Ten Challenge.Staring last Sunday I have successfully maintained a 1200 a day calorie intake using My Fitness Pal as a Guide. Counting calories is a drag but this application on my phone makes its easier and I can save foods and info to use again. So it does get easier. I’m not for deprivation at all,and have incorporated going out and social functions in the mix. So yes I have a had a glass or two of wine, just knowing that goes against my calorie intake. I joined a gym and worked out 3 days in a row. Entering the workouts of course increased my calorie allotment because of what was burned. All this activity had me loosing 1 pound by Fridays weigh in. Not bad and totally in syncs with my goals.So that’s my brief week and I don’t want to bore you any more , for Ten in Ten.

I was craving a good fish, so I went to a fish wholesaler and settled on Grouper for the price and size. I love Isaacson and Stein .

Its a gritty place and any sort of fish you want is there fresh or frozen. Once you pay, they can clean it and gut it. I had mine cut up in steaks. I had him give the head and tail for stock later.Big mistake as Certain Someone is funny about bones and such. He like his fish totally filleted and devoid of skin and bones. While he liked this dish , he wasn’t a happy camper with the bones.But the big firm chunks of white fleshed Grouper are so satisfying and pretty mild in flavor. As for me, I love a good fish steak. You can make this recipe in either form. Another cool time saving fact is that you can bake them at the same time on a lipped baking sheet. They finish in about 15 minutes.
I found another site to give you an idea of how many calories are in each recipe. The information comes courtesy of Calorie Count. I have used other sites before to calculate, so its great when you want to create but also need a idea of what the nutritional value is. This whole dinner comes in at 499 calories . Not bad at all.Click on the detailed links at the end of each recipe for a complete analysis.



Baked Cheesy Cauliflower

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 124.5g



Amount Per Serving

Calories 123

Calories from Fat 68

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 7.5g

12%

Saturated Fat 4.7g 23%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 21mg 7%

Sodium 166mg 7%

Total Carbohydrates 6.9g 2%

Dietary Fiber 1.7g 7%

Sugars 3.3g

Protein 8.1g



Vitamin A 5%

•

Vitamin C 53%

Calcium 21%

•

Iron 2%

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional details are an estimate and should only be used as a guide for approximation.

Serves 4

Ingredients
1 head Cauliflower
4 cloves Garlic
1/2 cup Low fat milk
1 tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 cup low moisture mozzarella cheese


salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Steam head of cauliflower and garlic cloves until soft. Drain, add milk. Mash with immersion blender. Add cheese and butter and mix until blended. Spoon in ramekins and bake at 450 F until golden.

More info here.

Baked Grouper Steaks in Parchment Paper

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 262.3g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 376

Calories from Fat 139

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 15.4g 24%

Saturated Fat 2.4g 12%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 95mg 12%

Sodium 158mg 7%

Total Carbohydrates 6.2 g 2%

Dietary Fiber 1.5g 6%

Protein 1.3g

Sugars 1.1g

Vitamin A 10 %

•

Vitamin C 39%

Calcium 1%

•

Iron 4%

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet



Nutritional details are an estimate and should only be used as a guide for approximation.

Serves 2

Ingredients
2 grouper steaks
1 tomato chopped
1/3 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
1 dried onion flakes
1 tsp balsamic
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil


salt and pepper to taste
Directions

Wash and dry Grouper steaks.Place in the middle of a piece of parchment paper. Mix chopped tomato, sun dried tomato, salt, pepper, dried onion flaked, balsamic, and some olive oil in a bowl. Spoon tomato mixture on top of fish . Drizzle remaining oil on top. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Fold and seal grouper in the parchment paper. Bake at 450 f for approx 10-15 minutes or until paper starts to brown.

More Info here.