Hi Everyone,
I’m new to this list and to the diet. Reading your comments has been quite helpful this past week. I’m usually a lurker on lists, but Gina’s note struck a chord.
In response to her note, maybe this will help. I’ve been on the diet for a week and one day. I’ve lost 8.1 pounds. I find this an easy diet, because I’ve cooked a lot like this for years and years. Trouble is, two predinner martinis, my own baked bread, an absolute addiction to chips and potatoes and rice, other high-carb high-fat snacks and ice cream every night have all driven me to 100 pounds of excess lard. Make that 130 if I ever think about what I weighed when I married.
So, cutting to the reason for writing–Gina mentioned that she hadn’t yet eaten and that has been something I’ve been working on, too. We’re retired and don’t get around to eating until 10 or 11 every morning. In addition, my husband has a hang up about anything that suggests healthy cooking: Mediterranean, vegetarian, etc. Words like couscous, tofu, grains (other than white rice, of course), edamame, and the like turn him off completely and he quietly refuses to indulge. Sometimes he just plain pouts. Fritatta is the latest. So, now we have omelets that strangely resemble fritattas.
But I keep digressing. What I’m suggesting is a shortcut to breakfast. I now eat early while my husband leisurely begins his morning and then I join him with my morning snack or lunch while he eats his first meal of the day. I came across this the first morning on my diet when he wouldn’t eat a fritatta. I ate half and refrigerated the other half. The next morning, I didn’t cook. The microwave saved me half an hour. A few days later, I had a guest for breakfast and we all ate omelets–the spinach fritatta in the blue book. [My husband thought his was so good that he’s now bragging about the recipes in the SBD book. Go figure.] I had leftovers then, too. So, this morning I made baked eggs and tripled the recipe. If D. doesn’t eat a portion for his breakfast, I’ll have breakfasts for the next five days.
Here’s what I did:
Saute 2-3 cups allowed vegetables in a little olive oil (I used onion, bell peppers, zucchini, spinach and mushrooms) until soft. Add any herbs you like while you’re sauteeing the vegetables. Set aside.
Combine 1/3 cup Just Whites and 4 eggs with 1/2 cup nonfat evaporated milk.
Spray a 10 by 9 x 2 Pyrex dish with vegetable spray. Pour sauteed vegetables into dish. Pour egg mixture on top.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Sprinkle 1/4 cup shredded sharp cheese on top. Add a little grated Parmesan. Turn oven off and let the cheese melt for 2-3 minutes.
If you don’t have Just Whites, you could use liquid egg replacement equal to 6 eggs.
Instead of salsa, I topped my serving with some of the gazpacho I keep on hand.
I drained it with a slotted spoon. It’s like salsa because I chopped cilantro when I made the gazpacho. Saves another step or two.
Another thing I did this week. Since we’re allowed nuts, I roasted some slivered almonds and combined them with equal parts sunflower seeeds and soynuts that I bought at Walmart. I keep this mixture in a plastic container and sprinkle about a tablespoon on salads when I want a crunch that resembles croutons.
And another hint, especially for folks who like Southern Cooking. [Caps are intentional. If you’ve had any association with the Deep South, you know exactly what I mean.] Okra gets a bad rap. It’s a wonderful vegetable and on the allowed list. Okra dusted with cornmeal and fried in deep fat isn’t on the list. So, we have it baked. It is wonderful! Use smallish pods, about the size of your index finger. Rinse well. Remove the caps, leaving just a bit of the bottoms of the caps. It’s best not to cut into the seed section, but if you do, it’s OK. Place in a single layer in a vegetable-sprayed baking dish. Lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with foil. Bake in a preheated oven for about 35 minutes. The last time I made this, I drizzled a little chile oil over the pods. We like spicy foods and thought it was a good addition.
Ann