I cooked a carrot, and I liked it.

I've never liked cooked carrots. No matter what was done to them, unless in soup, I couldn't stand to eat them. I was always a raw carrot gal. That has changed! I was watching Best Recipes Ever by Canadian Living and saw a recipe for sugar snap peas and carrots. My first thought was "it looks good, but I doubt I'll like it." I'm glad I was wrong.

I've been buying sugar snap peas to use in pad thai, so I had a package. I didn't like them raw. They needed to be used up, so I figured, what do I have to lose? I knew Joe would eat them. So I cut some carrots into sticks similar in size to the peas. I heated a pan with a little bit of olive oil. Into the pot went the peas and carrots and a sprinkle of salt. After tossing them together, I covered the pan. About 20 minutes later, they felt done. Some were nice and caramelized. I probably could have eaten the whole yield. I'll be making this again and again.

While on the topic of carrots, I tried a carrot and barley soup tonight. This is a low glycemic index recipe. I didn't exactly follow the directions from the website I found the recipe on. Here is what I used.

A few large carrots, a leek, a few stalks of celery, vegetable bouillon (instead of vegetable stock), dried thyme, pot barley, and margarine. The recipe didn't call for leek, but I had one that needed to be used. Also, it called for pearl barley. I use pot barley because it is the unrefined whole grain.

The important thing to remember when using leeks is to cut them THEN wash them. While the leek is growing through the dirt, soil gets stuck between the layers. So cut the leeks and let them soak in water for a little while. This will remove the soil.

 This is not an ingredient you really want to add to your soups or other dishes. This may not look like much, but that grit will make itself known with every bite.

While the leeks are soaking, you can take this time to peel and chop your carrots. I used more than the recipe asked for because, hey, I don't always like to measure. I get that habit from my mom. You rarely get recipes from her that have actual measurements. Anyway, chop the carrots into same-sized pieces.

When the leeks are clean, add them to a stock pot with some margarine. I used about a tablespoon to get them started. When you can smell them, add the carrots, salt, pepper, and thyme. The recipe called for a sprig of time, but I don't usually use fresh herbs because they don't always look good at the store and I don't know if all freeze well. Since I used the vegetable cubes, I threw them in. I find they dissolve better in heat than in water. Mix everything to coat, and I added a little more margarine.

Let the carrots hang out for a few minutes to start cooking them. After a few minutes, add about half a cup of barley. Stir to coat the barley, and cook about ten minutes.

Stir occasionally, because they might start sticking to the bottom of the pot. Add about two and a half cups of water to make up the vegetable stock. If you don't use the cubes, this is where you'd add the stock.

The recipe said to wait to add the celery, but I can be impatient, so I added it with the water. The recipe wanted me to wait until the soup was almost done. I never do that.

Turn the heat to low and cover the pot. Let the soup simmer for about an hour. Check for seasoning. If you used the sprig of thyme, you'll want to remove it now. You may want to adjust the salt. If you have an immersion blender (stick blender), blend the soup to smooth. Otherwise, you can always use a blender or a food processor.

I don't know if the soup is supposed to be thick like mine was, but it was pretty good. The barley isn't totally pulverized, so you get little chewy bits. I imagine if you blend it more it could be more uniform. Overall, it was pretty tasty and rather filling. We served this with a slice of homemade whole wheat bread.

I Knew

I knew you were trouble. Every time I hear that song by Taylor Swift, I think of my relationship with food. I know it is about falling for a bad boy. In my life, the bad boy is junk food.

'I think part of me knew the second that I (ate) it, this would happen.' I knew junk food would make me gain weight. This is where the little devil on my shoulder wins. "Just a little, it won't hurt".

'It was the feeling that came along with it. And the crazy thing is that I don't know if I'll ever feel that way again. ' The feeling that comes along with indulging in something decadent like caramel, cheesecake, or anything else that is sweet is unique. Kind of like how some people say chocolate is better than sex. A feeling only sugar can give.

'I knew you were trouble when (I saw you). Shame on me now. You took (my taste buds) to places (they'd) never been. Now I'm lying on the cold hard ground'. Shame on me. I have to live with the consequences of those tasty, fatty, sugary food.

'No apologies, he'll (the companies) never see you cry
Pretend he (they) doesn't know that he's (they're) the reason why
You're drowning, you're drowning, you're drowning
Now I heard you moved on from whispers on the street
A new notch in your belt is all I'll ever be'

The companies who make junk food don't apologize. Why should they? We're the ones buying their products. They look the other way when studies state that their products are unhealthy and are contributing to the obesity epidemic. We are drowning in their ads on tv, billboards, radio, and magazines. If they lose you as a customer, they'll move onto the next poor soul who is either too weak to say no or don't know better. We are each just another "notch" on their belt because they know a sucker is born every day.

I've never deluded myself into thinking that milk chocolate, chips, cookies, etc were good choices. I just never thought about it. I don't think anyone out there can say that those things don't taste good. Sometimes I get into a mood where I just done care... until I snap out of it and fall into remorse. Eater's remorse. You can't change what has already been put into your body. The only thing you can do is not do it again and try to work off those dreadful calories.

'I don't know if you know who you are until you lose who you are.' I've lost who I was. It is time for me to find myself again. I know the lighter me is in here somewhere.

Lisa

Temptation

We live in a world full of temptations. On every corner, you'll find a McDonald's, Tim Hortons (or other donut shop), and pizza place. It is a hostile world when you are watching what you eat. My bestest girl friend in the world described "dieting" as rehab. I have to agree. When watching what you eat and trying to make better life choices, rehab sounds about right.

Emotional eating is a trap. You feel bad, so you eat. You eat, and you feel bad. Sound familiar? That rollercoaster is one ride that is not fun. We are addicted to bad food. Trying to rehabilitate your eating habits with so much access to bad food is a very hard feat.

On any given day, I walk past a McDonald's, two donut shops, Subway, and another fast food joint. I'm not including the three convenience stores and three greasy spoon/grill establishments. That is within a 10 minute walk from my house. I make that walk a few times a week. Every time I make that walk, I think "I'll stop in. Just one won't be an issue". That is when I shake my head and yell at myself for thinking that. No, one will lead to two, etc. These establishments feed on us weak people. They are contributing to the obesity epidemic that plagues North America. People can be weak, looking for a quick and easy bite, and want the convenience. They are convenient, I'll give them that. Gotta love the "eat now, think later" mentality. Makes me think of that saying "a moment on the lips, forever on the hips". So true. It takes a lot to burn off one of those "meals" that cost you almost a full day of your caloric allotment. To think, our youth are eating this junk every day.

I guess you can say "fat sells". Don't get me wrong. I love fat. That has to be the old me. You could put out a spread of food in front of me that includes fries, salad, cake, fruit salad, and a soup. I guarantee you I'd be struggling to not have at least one fry or a few crumbs of cake.

I have to learn to love salads. I don't care for salads. Like John Pinett has said in his standup act I'm Starvin'!, 'salad is promise of the meal to come'. I've never craved salad. I've never woken up thinking "I could sure go for a big salad for supper or lunch". I didn't grow up eating salad.

I grew up thinking that corn and potatoes were vegetables. Pasta was a meal, and so was rice. What a shock when I learned that corn and potato are both starches, and pasta and rice do not make a full meal. Vegetables are supposed to fit in there. Surprise, surprise. This is not healthy.

Having developed an intolerance to lactose in the past year and a bit, it has really affected what I now eat. I no longer eat pizza with cheese, or other cheese-laden foods. Cheese has always been a big part of my diet. With few lactose-free cheese options, I've eliminated a number of food choices. I guess it was for the best. No more ricotta, lasagna, pizza, etc. I just have to think of the discomfort that accompanies those foods, and it is enough to scare me off. I think it was a sign.

Learning about food everyday is both interesting and frustrating!

Lisa

Life Choices

Food. We need it to live. We eat when we're happy. We eat when we're sad. We eat as a family and for special occasions. Eating the right food can be challenging. If you're like me, you like food. Personally, I have an insatiable sweet tooth. That is problematic when diabetes and obesity run in your family. Unfortunately, when it comes to health issues, the deck is stacked against me. Being overweight doesn't help. I find it hard to say no to sugars and carbs.

I had to look at my life. It wasn't easy, but I have decided to be proactive and started eating a diabetic diet. I can't say I'm thrilled. I'm not a fan of being accountable for what I do and what I eat. So the food is being measured and weighed. I'm only allowed so much of a particular food group. Who knew that that deck-of-cards sized portion of meat was actually 2.5 oz and counts as 2.5 servings?

I'm learning about serving sizes. Let me say they are a lot smaller than I thought. I wasn't aware of how many calories are in nuts, olive oil, and seeds. Now we need to be more conscious of how much we use in our cooking. It is easy to lose track of just how much you use when roasting vegetables. Two tablespoons of peanut butter can be quite satisfying. I'm getting used to using only half a teaspoon of sugar in my smaller latte. I'll work on being able to half that, but for now, it is a start.

I am a self-diagnosed sugar addict. I love my sugar. Sometimes I need that can of Coke. Really want that milk chocolate. Crave cake or ice cream. This is going to be a big challenge.  It is really hard shopping at the Bulk Barn with those tempting easter eggs, chocolate covered almonds, etc. I've been strong. I've been fighting temptation. Some days are much harder than others to get over the cravings.

I am not a fan of artificial sweeteners. They don't really agree with me. I am able to use some of that Mio water enhancer in moderation. It helps me get my water in. Sometimes water is just too boring. I know that sweeteners are not good for you. I can't stand sugar twin or sweet and low. I sometimes use Splenda in pancakes/waffles and some baking.

I know this venture will not be easy. I may stumble because I am me and I am human. I have to be strong and God help me get through Easter.

Lisa

Did you save your chicken scraps?

If you kept your chicken scraps from cutting up your chicken, or you saved a chicken carcass from a roasted chicken, you have another meal! Chicken bones make for great soup. In next to no prep time, you could be on your way to using up the rest of that beautiful chicken. Don't know how? Think it is too hard? Take a look!

Take your chicken bones and plunk them in a big pot. Grab some vegetables like carrots, celery, potatoes, onions, or anything that strikes your fancy. In my house, I always have those veggies on hand. Peel and cut them into small pieces. Throw them in the pot. Add about 8 cups of water (or half water and half chicken stock), 4 tsp of chicken soup powder if you didn't use stock. Add a bit of salt and pepper, and turn on that stove top. In about an hour or so, or when you see that the meat is falling off the bones, fish those bones out. When cool enough to touch, remove all of the meat you can get off of the bones and add them back to the pot. Taste and adjust flavours as you'd like.

Guess what? Your soup is done! Making soup out of bones helps to stretch a buck. The whole pot can feed 4 people for less than $5! Where can you feed a family of 4 for that? If you want to add rice, barley or pasta, cook it separately and add at the time of serving. You don't want them to sop up all of the yummy soup if it is sitting in your fridge for lunch. Nothing wrong with that, but it changes the texture of the pasta/grain. If you're like me, and texture is a deal breaker, adding them precooked makes for happy eating.

So save those nickels (since the penny is going bye-bye), and make your own soup. You get to control the fat and sodium, and can make it your own by experimenting with different veggies and spices/aromatics. Soup is a healthy, inexpensive, and easy way to feed your loved ones whether you're on a budget or not. A handy tip! Most soups freeze well for future consumption. Great for make-ahead lunches or suppers.

Remember: Soup is good for the soul.

Lisa

winner winner chicken dinner!

I have a bit of a guilty pleasure. I love watching cooking shows. Since getting the TiVo, I've started watching many different shows. The TiVo records suggestions, and some of them are pretty good. The one that has inspired a new recipe was on America's Test Kitchen from Cook's Illustrated. I know I've said it before, but I may never look at chicken the same way again.

This recipe calls for a whole chicken that is cut up into pieces. Turns out that it is a more economical way of buying chicken. Anyone who knows me well, knows that I love to save money wherever possible. You take the whole bird and cut out the spine. Don't throw it away! Then you cut off the legs and cut them again along the "fat line". Now you have four pieces! Cut off the wings and remove the tips. The show didn't use them in this recipe, but I did because who doesn't like chicken wings? Cut the breast along the breast bone. This requires a little elbow grease to snap the bone. Then cut each breast in half so all pieces are about the same size. This helps the chicken to cook at the same rate.  Keep the skin on to ensure juicy chicken and flavourful veggies. Keep the spine, neck, and any other parts for a soup. The messy part is done!

Now is where you can use what veggies you actually like. Root vegetables are great for this part. I used some carrots, parsnips, potatoes, mushrooms and whole garlic. The show used shallots and brussel sprouts with their root veg, but not a big fan of those. Cut the veggies into similar sized pieces keeping in mind you don't want them to be too small, otherwise, they will overcook and you'll have mushy veggies, and no one likes that! Use as much of the vegetables as you want to cover a rimmed baking sheet. Throw them all in a big bowl so you can toss them with the seasonings.

Flavour time! For the veggies, add 1 tbsp vegetable oil (or other mild flavoured oil), 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme, 1 tsp fresh rosemary, 1 tsp sugar, 3/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper. It was cold out, so I just used dried herbs. Use less if you are using dried herbs. Toss all with the veggies and spread them on a rimmed baking sheet. I sprayed/greased the sheet first because I always do that.

In a small bowl, melt 2 tsp butter. Add 2 tsp thyme, 1 tsp rosemary, salt and pepper. Mix this up. Place chicken on top of the veggie bed with the breast pieces near the middle and the dark meat around the edges. Dark meat takes longer to cook, so they will get blasted with the heat more than the light meat. With a brush, slather each piece of chicken with this mixture.

Place the baking sheet in a 475F oven for about 30 minutes or until the chicken is properly cooked. Larger chicken pieces take a bit longer. The skin will come out crispy and golden and the veggies tender. Remove the chicken and mix up the veggies with the drippings before serving.

The house smelled amazing! I've never really used herbs before, but I'm not as scared anymore! We loved the flavours, and it turned out really well. Can't wait for the leftover chicken!

Hope you like this recipe as much as we did!

Lisa

Always on my Mind

It has been a while since I've talked about food on my blog, but it is always on my mind. Every day, you have to eat, so it is hard to NOT think about food. I have a confession. I HATE PLANNING MEALS. Each meal seems to be a creative battle. I try to ensure that each meal has a balance of protein, vegetable, and starch and is nutritious and delicious. Sometimes nutrition goes out the window for flavour and fat. I know flavour doesn't always come from fat, but there are days when you just want chicken wings and potato wedges.

I've challenged myself to try a few different kinds of food. I find it easier to be adventurous in the produce section. There are some scary looking things at the grocery store. I've found lemon grass, celery root, jicama, shitake mushrooms, sugar snap peas, and parsnips. Have you seen what celery root looks like? Talk about unappealing! Let's break that list down.

Lemon grass! Tried my hand at cooking some thai food. Thai coconut mushroom soup was a very cool adventure. I love coconut and I love mushrooms. Still haven't tweaked it to my liking, but getting there. Going to have to visit Chinatown before trying that again.

Celery root! Wow! Not the easiest vegetable to work with since you have to peel it with a knife. After chopping off the gnarly root end, it stops running around. I tried it in stew (more on stew to come), but it didn't float my boat. Then my brain started inserting it into other things I cook. Wait a second! Celery root is a root vegetable! I make a root vegetable "medley"! So in the pot it went with sweet potato, white/yellow potato, garlic, parsnip, and white turnip. Gives a nice celery flavour. Mash them up with a little butter, and what a side dish!

Jicama! Haven't figured out how I like to use it yet. The first time I bought it, I tried to make a jicama and apple salad. That didn't work so well, especially when I sliced my thumb on the mandolin. I'll have to revisit this intriguing vegetable.

Shitake mushrooms! I found this dried. Since I absolutely LOVE mushroom soup, I thought this was a natural move for me. The smell of these things leaves something to be desired. I couldn't bring myself to use the "broth" after soaking them. Hard to taste them when mixed with a ton of other mushrooms, but the chewy texture was neat.

Sugar snap peas! I discovered that these are great in pad thai. I tried eating them raw, but I didn't like them that much. I might try them as a side dish steamed with some kind of flavour boost.

Parsnips! These are becoming a regular ingredient in our week-to-week meals. These white carrot-like things are incredible! I'm trying them roasted tonight! They give a neat peppery taste that is unlike any other vegetable I've tried.

Speaking of stew... I had never made stew before. I'm starting to really get the hang of it. I tried it in the slow cooker, but it didn't really like how it turned out. I used what I learned from that to improve my stove-top stew. I browned the beef then added beef stock, bay leaves and marjoram and let that simmer for an hour or more. Oh my! The beef was so tender, just like when in the crock pot. I love stew now!

I'll try my best to be more diligent with my posts about food. I love reading about food about as much as I like talking about it.

Try something new!

Lisa