New Projects!

It's time to tighten the belt and get serious about saving money and getting out of debt (past time, actually). I mentioned on my other blog that an absent husband can cost more money that one that is home, simply because it is easier for me to go out to eat rather than cook a bunch of food that I won't finish (another waste of money). He hasn't been flying much recently, so our savings is dwindling (we had hoped that it would be a short-term issue, but it is turning into a long-term one).... So, we need to buckle down and I need to come up with new ways to prepare food that don't cost me more money...

I received my inspiration from the September issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray. In it, she outlines a month of dishes that use food that was prepared on one day, portioned into 1 c. portions, and frozen. Some of the stuff she made with the ingredients doesn't really fit well into my particular eating requirements (eggs were added, or it had some ingredients that I don't like, etc), but I was inspired. I took her idea and ran with it.

I have only just started my new project, but I plan to stock up over the next few weeks. My plan includes preparing/roasting pork, beef, and chicken, then shredding and freezing each into Ziploc bags. Then, I plan on freezing brown rice. Since I get organic fruits and veggies every other week, I should be OK in the produce department. If I run low, I can add some frozen veggies from the store, portioned out the same way as the meat and rice. One departure that I am making from the magazine (and from all the other research done online) is that I am using MY recipes for the roasts. Why make something that I don't like to eat? Then I run into the same problem as before...

So, last night, I started with the pork roast, mostly because Aaron wanted tacos. This recipe is more of a method than an actual recipe. Feel free to adjust quantities and seasonings to your liking. Also, I cooked it in the oven, but you could easily use a crock pot.

2 Boneless Pork Shoulder roasts - about 4-5 lbs each
2 Tbsp whole black peppercorn (approx)
1 Tbsp whole Coriander (approx)
2 Tbsp Sea Salt (approx)
2-4 Cloves of Garlic (approx)
1 white onion.
2 bottles of Dos Equis Amber beer

I bought 2 bone-less pork shoulder roasts (although, bone in is probably better for flavor. My grocery store didn't have any at the time). I cracked the black peppercorn and coriander and then added all of the seasonings to the dutch oven. I roughly chopped the onion and added that to the pot. Then, I added the two roasts and then the beer. I let it slow cook in the oven at 350 for about an hour and a half, then reduced the heat to about 300 for another 2-3 hours. The beer lends a great flavor to the meat as well as helping to tenderize it. If you don't care for beer, then you can substitute water or chicken/veggie broth. It's up to you. You can do this recipe in a crock pot (I usually do, but my insert broke and I haven't replaced it yet). If so, then it is best to cook everything on low for 8-10 hours. You can do it on high in 4-6, but the meat won't be as tender as the low and slow method.

The meat was so tender, that it fell apart while taking it out of the pot :)

Once the meat has cooled enough, shred and put into Ziploc freezer bags in 1 cup portions. Add a little of the cooking liquid and then get as much air out at possible. Freeze flat and don't forget to date the baggies. When you want to use the meat, just take it out of the freezer and put in the fridge to thaw in the morning. When you get home, it should all be thawed! (I say should, because I haven't actually completed this step yet). The pork can be used in tacos (my favorite), enchiladas, soups, pasta, casseroles, sandwiches, or as a side by itself. The possibilities are endless!

Late Updates and New Cleaning Tips!

So, I haven't been as consistent as I wanted to be when I started this blog... I guess that I got a little carried away, but I'm still glad I started it...It still gives me a place to chronicle my journey and reminds me how far I've come...

When I started this journey, I weighed 187 lbs... As of the date of my last physical (a few weeks ago), I have lost 7 lbs! Yay me! Still a lot to go (target weight is 130) but progress is progress! I am still plugging away with my food goals, especially focusing on the types of ingredients and the portion sizes that I am eating. I'm glad I don't own a scale so I can't get obsessed about daily weigh-ins...

My physical brought a new diagnosis to light - fibromyalgia... I haven't really started to do anything to address this issue yet, but I will be talking to an acupuncturist in the near future, hopefully to avoid the typical medical treatment plan of anti-depressants. Other than that, I'm relatively healthy :)

In my constant fight against my allergies, I've been trying out different home cleaning options. I especially wanted to replace my dusting spray with something that doesn't give me a headache. Oddly enough, my new dusting spray is strong tea with a little lemon juice added... Seriously! It is supposed to be really good for pollen. It seems to work well with the dog hair/dander too. I usually have an allergy/asthma attack anytime I try to dust anything in the house, but I don't have the same reaction when I use the tea spray. In fact, I haven't had an allergy attack at all! It works really well on my leather furniture too! My old furniture spray would leave an oily residue on the couch that would make it more difficult to sit on the couch. The tea spray doesn't leave a residue and doesn't make everything smell like tea. It is amazing! I can't say enough things about it.

To make the tea dusting spray - boil 3 cups of water. Add 2 bags of regular tea to the water and let it sit until it cools completely (leave the tea bags in the water the whole time). Add 1 tbsp. of lemon juice and pour into a spray bottle. Spray directly on to a paper towel or rag and dust away!

I've used this on my couches, my lamps, my end tables, and my washer/dryer! Recently, I caught up on all the laundry piled around the house, most of which was covered in dog hair... My washer/dryer combo was coated in dog hair and dust as I would move things in and out of the washer. The spray worked really well at attracting the dog hair and lint dust that was all over my laundry area... AWESOME! Can't say enough good things about it :) I'm still testing other areas of the house, but so far, I haven't encountered a hard surface it CAN'T tackle!

What to make for dinner?

When I got the list of organic produce in my box this past week, I wondered what in the heck I would do with baby bok-choy. Luckily, I have the internet :)

I found a recipe for Salmon with Hoisin, Orange, & Bok Choy that sounded tasty. I did make a departure from the recipe. First, I used Halibut instead (I don't care for Salmon). Second, I used Coriander, but omitted the Cilantro (Aaron doesn't care for Cilantro).

Here are my notes:

This method produces a light, moist, tender fish! However, the hoisin sauce overpowered the fish. The bok choy turned into this mushy crap in the bottom of the foil packet, but it tasted like mild steamed spinich. Neither one of us ate more than two bites of the bok choy (the texture turned us off more than the flavor). Aaron enjoyed the fish more than I did. I think I'll try this sauce (and method) over chicken sometime, but add some soy sauce and brown sugar or honey to make it more of a teriyaki sauce. That might hold up better to the combination of flavors. I'll just stick to broiling my halibut simply with salt and pepper and maybe a little garlic.

Priorities and Oatmeal Packets

Ok... I admit that I have been letting other things in my life take over my healthy priorities. So, for this week's goals, I will go to the gym everyday after work. Since I can't seem to drag my butt out of bed in the morning, I figure this is the best commitment I can make at this point.

To make sure that I will meet this commitment, I will take care of my "excuse" for not going over the past two weeks... I will repack my gym bag with everything that I need. I keep forgetting one thing or another, and I bought a nice gym bag for that purpose, so I'm going to keep everything together in it. As soon as I get done with this post, my bag will be packed and placed near the front door so I can grab it on my way out in the morning.

Additionally, I will be preparing my breakfast and snacks for work tomorrow tonight. This way, I can make sure I am eating my healthy oatmeal, instead of the sugary Quaker stuff I usually eat at work. Although, there is nothing wrong with Quaker, I make an oatmeal packet that is higher in fiber and Omega-3's, and is more filling and lasts the morning.

So, here's my recipe for Oatmeal packets. I took the initial measurements from another website, and I can't remember which one at the moment, but I put my own twist on it.

Start with snack-size zip bags. I guess you can mix up a big batch and keep it in a container, measuring out the desired amount, but the proportions of the ingredients might be a bit off as some of the finer ingredients tend to settle towards the bottom. I usually make up about 6 days worth of baggies at a time, just to make sure that they don't go bad in my cupboard. I keep the ingredients in air-tight containers when not in use. Some are in quart-sized Mason jars, and some are in Tupperware.

Ingredients:

• Quaker Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats AND Quaker Quick Oats (I like the texture of the combination, but feel free to make adjustments as your tastes require)
• Bob's Red Mill Organic Hot Cereal Mix with Flax
• Brown Sugar
• Salt
• Dried Fruit (what ever kind you like: Blueberries, Raisins, Cranberries, etc)
• Chopped nuts (again, what ever you like: Almonds, Cashews, Pecans, etc) - I like the roasted, salted varieties and I decrease the amount of additional salt when I use these.

Measure out 1/4 c. of Old Fashioned Rolled Oats and 1/8 c. of Quick Oats into each baggie. Add 1-2 Tbsp of the Organic Hot Cereal Mix (you can omit this, but I like the extra fiber and flax that this item adds to my oatmeal. It gives it a unique flavor). Add 1-2 Tbsp brown sugar (to taste) and 1/8-1/4 tsp salt. Add about 1 Tbsp of fruit and 1/2-1 Tbsp of nuts. If you like spice, feel free to add cinnamon or nutmeg or whatever else you prefer. I don't care for spice in my oatmeal and I've discovered that when I eat cinnamon, my palate gets irritated and I tend to sneeze more. Sometimes, I'm in the mood for spice, and I use the mild combination of pumpkin pie spice.

Oddly enough, I haven't measured the amount of water necessary to cook this oatmeal. I just add it until it looks right, and it probably works out to about a 3/4-1 c. I have discovered that when I add the hot cereal mix, I MUST cook this in the microwave for a couple of minutes (microwaves vary - the microwave at work takes 2 minutes, the microwave at home takes about 1 1/2 minutes). If I don't add the cereal, I can just add hot water and let it steep.

This particular mix is quite filling, with the fruit and nuts providing quite a lot of energy to get through the morning. Add any kind of cream (milk, coffee creamer, etc) that you like, if you like. I prefer to add a couple of spoonfuls of vanilla yogurt. It gets nice and creamy and provides another layer of flavor with the tangy yogurt. It is also really good when topped with fresh fruit - Strawberries, bananas, etc. Yummy!

I keep these packets in a basket in my pantry and grab one on my way out the door in the morning. I like that these are so healthy. When I go out hiking for a good portion of the day, I'll make a double batch of oats and add extra fruit and nuts (usually a combination of multiple nut combos). I used to make my packets to this quantity, but I found they were WAY TOO hearty and a little high in calories - somewhere in the 800 range. But, when you are going to be active throughout the day, it is a great way to start a hike!

Whole-Wheat, Egg-Free Zucchini Muffins

I had a zucchini from my organic veggie order a couple of weeks ago and I had to use it before it went bad. The only time in my life that I have ever enjoyed zucchini was when my mom made zucchini bread when I was growing up. She always planted zucchini in the garden, so we almost always had some zucchini bread lying around.

I started my search online for a good egg-free zucchini bread recipe. I found one on on Jazzy Allergy Recipes that sounded easy and tasty. When I found her alternate recipe for Zucchini Muffins, I quickly changed my vote from bread to muffins. I did make a couple of modifications to her recipe, but you can click on recipe to go to the original. The muffin modification recipe is found here.

So, here's my take on this fantastic recipe:

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup finely shredded zucchini*
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 and line a muffin tin with muffin cups. Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt to a bowl and whisk to combine. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, shredded zucchini, oil, vanilla and applesauce. Add the flour mixture to the zucchini mixture and stir until just moistened*. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let them cool (or eat them hot if you just can't wait any longer, he he he).

*You can peel the zucchini before shredding if you prefer, or you can leave it unpeeled. The peel has extra fiber and looks good in the muffin (in my opinion). Just make sure to wash the zucchini really well if you choose not to peel it.

**Important step! Do not over mix the muffin batter as it will over-develop the gluten and you will end up with hard/chewy muffins. Mix just until you no longer see flour bits, no more. As Alton Brown says - "Just Walk Away" - You'll be glad you did! You'll have nice fluffy, moist muffins, despite the use of whole-wheat flour. Also, it is easy to mix this recipe by hand, so don't use a mixer if you don't have to. A mixer may overmix the batter, which as stated above, will produce bad muffins.

This recipe makes one dozen muffins if you fill each one to just above 2/3 full. I slightly underbaked my muffins (mainly because my husband called me while I was checking on them, so I didn't check them completely) and some of the fuller ones were still a little doughy in the middle. The next time I make them, I will bake them for 20 minutes rather than 15. My zucchini was quite large and I got 2 cups of shredded zucchini from it. I froze 1 cup and will make another batch soon. I will also try the different varieties that Lori lists on her recipe, such as apples or bananas. Ooohh, maybe I'll even try carrot! What a great way to get some extra veggies into my diet (even if they are coated in sugar, flour, and cinnimon)!

I brought them with me to work today and they are a big hit! I have 4 left so far, and it's not even lunch time!

Organic Produce

I recently signed up for Full Circle Farm organic produce. It is delivered to Juneau and I go pick it up. I need to eat more fruits and veggies in my diet, and I think that this is the easiest way for me to get it. I find that I go overboard at the store and spend a good portion of my budget on produce that I don't use. This way, I don't have to think about it. I check the website every other week to see what is in my box of produce and download recipes that I can make that use up the produce.

I picked up my first two boxes today. It would normally be one box, but I added some extra stuff that thought I would eat. Here is what I got today:

The box contains kale, romaine lettuce, arugula, and carrots. I have never eaten kale before and I have a soup recipe that I am going to try it in. But, I need to go to the store to get the rest of the ingredients.

On the counter, I have strawberries, kiwis, potatoes, apples, oranges, a mango, snow peas, spinach, onions, tomatoes, a cucumber, and fresh herbs. What a bounty!

I only had a few casualties... I lost 5 strawberries to mold and one of my kiwis was crushed. But, other than that, all was well!

So, what does someone do when presented with fresh produce? Make soup, of course :) You can find the recipe for Lentil Soup here (my soup choice for the evening because I had all the ingredients in my pantry... well, almost all the ingredients). I didn't have any celery on hand, so I omitted it, and used celery salt to finish the soup. I also omitted the vinegar because I don't care for it with vinegar.

For dessert, I had yogurt with strawberries, kiwi, and a little granola on top for crunch! I didn't take a picture of dessert, I just wanted to eat it.