Food Of The Day: Quinoa

I believe I am the last veggie on earth to get into quinoa.

I've been hearing about it for a year now, as much as I heard about kale chips. I've had a box of quinoa in the pantry for months, but I never got around to making it. I think I was relatively intimidated by the fact I have historically stunk at making rice (I always seem to burn it even though I follow the directions) and quinoa is in the same ballpark.

However, I finally made a plan to try it and I am very happy I did. It's delicious, fluffy, light and tastes nuttier than rice. And it came out perfectly on the stovetop.

Last night I had a bowl (240g cooked, 5 Points Plus) with some baked almond feta, lemon juice and a little kosher salt. So good. 240g is a lot of quinoa, another reason to keep using your food scale.

Today I was jonesing for a light stir fry, so I went to the store and nabbed some carrots, red pepper, peas, zuchinni and scallions. I put 2t olive oil in my wok and stir fried the veg until they were crisp/tender. Gorgeous.



Then I added the 240g of cooked leftover quinoa from last night and heated it all up in the wok. I added a little lemon juice and a touch of kosher salt. Delicious and crazy filling, just what I needed on a day when I was low on Points and high on a need for being full as long as possible.

The 1c of quinoa and the mountain of vegetables made a ridiculous amount of food. Almost embarrassing. Almost.

I can see why quinoa is such a hot topic among foodies and vegetarians/vegans. It's so versatile. A friend asked, "What else can you do with it?"

I answered: "I think it's easier to list what you can't."

Recipe: Baked Almond 'Feta'

I'm going vegan.

I can almost hear the noise in your head, like a needle being pulled across a record: "What? Didn't you just go vegetarian?"

Yes and no. I finally got around to posting about it, but I actually went veg months ago.

Regardless, that is all a post for another day and I swear I will get around to it sooner than later.

Anyway, I've been scoping out vegan recipes and I admit the one thing I was having an issue parting with was feta cheese.

Then I stumbled upon this wonderful blog and this recipe for Baked Almond "Feta."

Could it be good, like real feta? I was game to try.

I got to do all sorts of new things while making this. I blanched almonds. Then I had to peel the skins off, which was kind of a PITA.

Then I got to buy and use cheesecloth for the first time. It's not as exciting as the last sentence makes it sound.

The mixture has to drain in the cheesecloth overnight (or at least 12 hours) so it's not a recipe you can whip up in an afternoon. But it is worth it.

My kitchen smelled insane when it was baking and when it came out of the oven it was golden brown and gorgeous. I measured out a half-ounce and, wow, it was really, really good.

How do almonds, salt, water, lemon juice, garlic and oil end up tasting like cheese? Damned if I know. The only bummer is it's very Points-y if you're a Weight Watcher.

Here's my math on the Points. I am terrible at math, so if I made an error, let me know. I ran the recipe through Recipe Builder and it came out to 47 Points for the whole thing. I will say, blowing my Weekly Points Allowance on this big ball of awesome crossed my mind, it is that good.

I weighed the cheese when it was out of the oven and it was 255g. A typical serving of regular feta is 1oz (28g), which means there were 9 servings in this recipe. 47 Points Plus divided by 9 servings is 5.2 Points Plus - I round down, so 5.

Regular feta is 2 Points Plus for 28g, so that's double, hence the half-ounce I tried. It was really good and if I need to veganize a recipe that calls for feta, I would definitely use this and adjust the Points accordingly. But, when it comes to, say, adding it in a salad, I could live with 14g for 2.5 Points Plus. It is very good.

After draining overnight in the not-exciting cheesecloth:



After coming out of the oven. The horizontal lines are where I smushed the ball with a fork to flatten it out before baking. Looking at Lee's picture on her post now, I realize she baked it as a ball. It looked much better her way, follow her lead. The picture at the top of this post is the feta after I crumbled it up.

In which I become a vegetarian

In January, I just happened to sneak the fact I'd gone vegetarian into a post.

I wasn't trying to hide anything, the true point of the post was the recipe, not my lifestyle change. I intended to expand more on going veg, but never got fully around to it.

Until now.

If you asked me a year ago, "Would you ever go vegetarian?", I would have said, "No." ("Ha, ha!" replied the universe.)

At the time, such a move seemed restrictive, unappealing and unnecessary.

But as 2011 came to a close and I started thinking about what I eat (and reviewing my food journals, thank you, Weight Watchers), I realized I hardly ever ate meat, maybe once a week.

I was bored with my current food lineup and I needed a new challenge for the new year, something to get excited about.

The idea of no longer eating animal protein popped into my head and seemed like a good one. What once seemed restrictive, now seemed interesting and worth pursuing.

I could say I became a vegetarian because I am against animal cruelty and all that nasty jazz that goes on in slaughterhouses. Which I am. However, to be honest, I was a person who up until Jan. 1 would have no problem eating veal (it is yummy), so that'd be disingenuous.

I could say it's because of all the crap they put in/use to process meat, which is nasty and gross. And it is. But I fully believe just living in the 21st century we're exposed to so much horrible crap, we'd have to live in a bubble if we didn't want to be exposed to any of it, so one more carcinogen or whatever the hell they use in the processing/rendering process wouldn't kill me any quicker than I'm already going. I mean, I still drink Diet Coke and that has formaldehyde in it for God's sake.

No, the reason I went veg is three-fold:

1. I was bored.

2. I'm too lazy to cook meat in the winter (too lazy to grill in 30-degree weather).

3. I feel my body runs more efficiently without animal protein.

Seriously, isn't #1 the worst reason ever? But I was somewhat bored with my food choices, and I thought sticking to F&V only would be a good way to mix it up. I think it's pretty funny (and telling) that the numerous health benefits had zero to do with my decision.

This is all personal preference, surely. Your mileage may vary. Always feel free to order a burger when we're out to lunch, I would never tell you how or what to eat, that's not my style.

I knew embracing a vegetarian lifestyle would encourage me to try new fruits and vegetables and new recipes. One of the things I'm realizing about weight maintenance: You have to keep it exciting and fresh when it comes to eating and activity. Get bored and, all of a sudden, going back to the bad, old ways doesn't seem like such a terrible idea.

After making the decision to go veg, I happened to catch the documentary Forks Over Knives (on Netflix, if you have it), which was very thought-provoking.

What I liked about FOK (hee) is it didn't scream at you about switching your lifestyle. There were no scare tactics, horrid crime-scene slaughterhouse photos or guilt, etc. It simply stated, "The more (or all) plant-based you go, the better off you'll be." Then it backed its theory up with research. Nicely done.

Since going veg I realized that I don't eat any differently than I did 95% of the time. It wasn't a big adjustment because apparently I rarely ate meat as it was.

It has been an adjustment going dining out and remembering to check in, say, random products for meat. For example, once I was offered bacon ranch salad dressing as a choice. Dressing is one of those foods I don't enjoy low-fat. I'd rather fork-dip the real deal and have a little than more of something unleaded.

Anyway, I was going to go for the bacon ranch (love ranch), when one of my friends reminded me, "That's got bacon in it."

Oh, yeah. Thanks. At this point, I'm actually concerned if I ate meat. I'm worried I'd be in some, um, gastrointestinal distress if I do.

What I've Learned So Far

Vegetarian doesn't meant low-Point.

I knew this going in. Rice, grains and beans are staples of a vegetarian diet, and they are not Points bargains in the Weight Watchers world. However, they are healthy and promote greater satiety, so they are worth it. But don't go veg thinking you'll have all these leftover Points to spend. I still have an equally difficult time stretching my Points budget now as I did when I ate meat.

Vegetarian doesn't automatically mean healthy.

You can still eat poorly if you choose. I remember a person in my Weight Watchers meeting who called herself a "junk food vegetarian." She didn't eat meat, but was still overweight because she didn't make healthy choices. I could easily, completely eat like crap without eating meat.

Being a vegetarian doesn't make weight maintenance any easier.

It doesn't make it harder, either, but I could still go off the rails eating a host of non-meat foods in large amounts (hello pizza, ice cream, pasta, baked goods).

I'm still adjusting a bit to my new identity. I have a meeting coming up and the organizer asked if I had any special dietary concerns. I replied, "I'm a vegetarian." That was the first time I ever typed that. Seemed pretty real.

I've had people kindly question why, whether I was depriving myself, punishing myself or feeling I had to do this to maintain my loss.

No to all three. Do I miss meat? Truly, I don't. If I did, you can be sure I'd go back to eating it because depravation brings bad juju. I also don't see it as trying to do something I think I should do to maintain my weight. I know I could maintain if I chose to eat meat.

The truth is, basically, this seemed like a good idea at the time. It's still a good idea and I'm a pretty happy herbivore. And, bonus, I know the correct pronunciation of "quinoa." Hint, it's not: Kwee-no-ah.

Recipe: Easy Crustless Spinach-Feta Pie

There's a reason I am a very lazy vegetarian.

I enjoy cooking, but trying to cook with the kids awake takes three times as long. And, since I don't prefer a European dining schedule of 9 pm on, I haven't been cooking much.

However, Flo posted a link to this crustless (read: low-Point) spinach-feta pie and it looked easy and delicious - two winners in my book.

Got the ingredients today and eventually ("Mom, I need..." "I can't find..." "I want..." "I gotta poop...") got it in the oven.

Look at this gorgeousness of the spinach, herbs and feta before you add in the egg and flour mixture:



Three notes:

Where the hell can I find Bob's Red Mill White Whole Wheat Flour? I searched two large grocery stores and found every other obscure type of Bob's product, including: "Bob's Red Mill Whole Wheat Organic Gluten-Free Buckwheat Steel Cut Biscuit Mix For Sundays in March." If you've ever searched Bob's offerings, that is a very funny joke. On Flo's advice I subbed in King Arthur's White Whole Wheat, but the smallest size was a 5lb bag, so I guess I'll be making this pie quite often.

I bought the smallest bunch of fresh dill I could find and I've now got enough to last me through 2013. If you're in Central Massachusetts and need some fresh dill, I'm your gal.

The "hardest" part of this recipe is getting all the moisture out of the thawed spinach. Especially when you had three kids sitting at the kitchen island, watching you do it, and providing unrequested color commentary: "Eeewww. What's that?"

Regardless, this recipe was easy and really, really good. Gina says to cut it into 6 to 8 servings and if you can eat that little you're a better person than I, Gunga Din. I quartered the pie and called it 5 Points Plus per serving. Totally worth it.

You'll be impressed that I considered adding kale, but abstained.

Food Of The Day: Kale chips

For the past year or so, everyone has been social media-ing about kale chips.

I never understood the fascination.

Then I made some today for the first time and, now, I get it.

I think what didn't excite me is that I am not a huge greens person. Also, I am lazy and the thought of washing, drying and then separating a gigantic bale 'o kale was not something in which I would invest time.

But, today, I was perusing the produce section at Wegman's and I happened to spy a huge bag of pre-washed, pre-cut kale. This is the kale equivalent of Yuppie Eggs. So, I was in. Seriously, this esta un krapload de kale.

Anyway, when I got home I got on Twitter and hit up some WW-ing friends for advice. Dacia was quick to give me the 411. She's lost 90 lbs in one year and has undergone an amazing transformation in so many ways. Seriously, check out her blog.

Dacia pointed me here and making these chips really is easy. I did the easy oil & salt route. I put 6 cups of kale in a bowl, 1T of olive oil and sprinkled it with kosher salt. Baked it for 14 minutes at 350 and below is the result.

I like the picture at the top of this post a little better as it gives you an idea of what the individual chips look like. The "group pic" just looks like a big salad.



However, it was a pretty delicious gang of greens. Until today, I had only had kale in smoothies. I didn't love it, but I also didn't dislike it. Kale is so ridiculously good for you, I had no problem including it in smoothies because of its nutritional awesomeness.

But, lathered in oil and salt? Kale is delicious. Funny how that works. Salt and oil is always a winner, as you know, and the greens were crunchy, mild and not bitter. It didn't taste like I was eating a handful of grass off the front lawn.

Next time, I would drop the amount of oil down to 1/2T. I think I could use less oil, still get a good result and save 2 Points Plus.

I counted today's snack as 4 Points Plus for the 1T oil because I ate the whole damn thing (seriously, it was like a bag of chips to me). Dacia noted that when she ran 2T of olive oil and the 6C kale through WW's recipe builder on eTools, it's 9 Points Plus for the whole thing.

She is a better WWer than I because I will not count that as 9 Points Plus. Truth be told, I hate the Recipe Builder because it calculates Points for Points-free food when they are included in a recipe. I understand why Weight Watchers does this, but I don't agree. I'm not taking a 5-Point hit for 6C of kale, which if I ate all by their lonesome would be 0 Points Plus.

I'm not urging anyone to overthrow the Recipe Builder, your mileage may vary, but I'm being honest about how I count it in this case. Hell, I didn't get to 282 lbs by eating too much kale.

Anyway, this was a great snack. While I was waiting for the chips to cook, I was eating raw kale bits out of the bag because, hey, they were there. And, even raw, they were great. Next time I put out raw veg and dip for an appetizer, I am including kale. It was very good and would be more fun to eat than, say, gigantic broccoli crowns.

I can also envision having these salty devils instead of popcorn next time we're watching a movie at the house. No, I can't imagine sneaking a bag into a real theater. Although...

Food Of The Day: The 'Are You Pregnant?' Wrap

Were I to spy you eating this wrap I would say, "When are you due?"

This concoction totally looks like a pregnancy craving come to life. And, before you can ask, let me reply: "No. Absolutely not. That ship has sailed."

That cleared up, this wrap was inspired by two friends. Flo posted a link (which I can't find) to some grilled-hummus/egg sandwich thing that looked delicious, yet I stupidly did not bookmark. I figure she'll eventually bail me out in the comments below, because she is awesome.

The other half of the germ of this idea came from my friend, Lynne, who keeps telling me to put olives in my sandwiches. Not sure why, but she's adamant. If they were 0 Points, believe me I would have jumped on this earlier.

Anyway, both ideas sat in the back of my head, resulting into this mash-up, "Are You Pregnant?" wrap:

28g roasted red peper hummus spread (1 Points+) over a whole Lavash (2 Points+). You had me at "whole Lavash."

2 Eggland's Best hardboiled Yuppie eggs, which are only 1 Points+ each because they're medium eggs. Yeah.

14g green olives (happy now, Lynne?) works out to about 5 olives for 1 Points+. Yes, I weigh them every time hoping I will be able to jam in a sixth for 14g. Has not happened yet, maybe someday.

It may sound like an odd combo - and look like a hot mess - but it's quite delicious.

Recipe: Butternut-Apple Soup

I'm one of those people who gets annoyed when others walk around in January in New England and complain, "It's so cold!"

However, it really was cold this morning. A pitiful 6 degrees when I ventured out in the cold dark to drive to bootcamp, so everyone gets a pass from me today.

I have had the ingredients for Butternut-Apple Soup on hand for 5 days and never had the time to make it. Today seemed like a good day because not only did I have the time, but we're also experiencing prime soup weather.

I got the recipe out of the excellent cookbook Appetite for Reduction, which I've been perusing because I am now a vegetarian. I wanted a new food challenge for the new year. I'm sick of eating the same-old, same-old and in theory this will get me to try new recipes, something at which I am traditionally pretty darn lazy.

I thought perhaps the transition may be hard because I love meat, yet I realized that I hardly eat meat anymore, thanks to Points Plus. More fruit & veg = more food for me? All righty.

Aside from chopping (see Notes below), prep was relatively quick and easy. The soup came out thick, creamy and spicy (again, Notes).

I calculated 5 Points Plus for 6, 1.5-cup servings. However, if you don't subscribe to WW's "Fruit And Veg By Themselves Are 0 Points But If You Put Them In A Recipe They Suddenly Count" Rule, the Points total would be much lower. Observe in whatever fashion you are comfortable.

Ingredients

1t olive oil
1 medium onion, diced small
1T minced fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 red pepper flakes
2t dried rosemary
1/2t salt
3 lbs butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4-inch chunks
1lb red apples, peeled, cored and cut into 3/4-inch slices
2C apple cider
2C vegetable broth
1T freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium heat. Add onions to the oil for 5-7 minutes, until translucent.

Add ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes, rosemary and salt and saute for a minute more.

Add the squash, apples, apple cider and broth.

Cover and bring to a boil. When boiling, lower the heat and simmer briskly for 20 minutes or until squash is tender.

Puree the soup in a blender or food processor. Add lime juice and season to taste.

NI per serving

Calories: 200; Total fat: 1.5g; Total carbs: 41g; Fiber: 7g; Protein: 3g.

Notes:

Chopping 3 lbs of squash and 1 lb of apples into 3/4-inch chunks takes some time, so it's not an I'm Starving And I Want Lunch NOW endeavor. And whining while chopping will not make it go faster. Ahem.

The soup will be very hot, so if you, say, lick a metal ladle out of impatience, you will burn your tongue. Or so I am told...

It's only 1/2t of red pepper flakes, but they give the soup a very nice kick. Nice if you like said kick, not so much if you don't (I'm in the former category).

Eating a bowl will make you drink a ton of water because the red pepper makes it spicy. This is good if you're trying to drink more water.