Tonight's Dinner: Tacos with Green Chili Quinoa

Vegetarian Tacos with Green Chili Quinoa and Kidney Beans

Recipe:

Tacos

1 package of Morningstar Farms Crumbles

1 medium onion

Lettuce to top the tacos

jarred salsa--tonight it was Sadie's Hot

Homemade Taco Seasoning Mix:

       2 Tbs of Chili Powder

       2 tsp of Cumin

       1 tsp salt

       1/2 tsp of sugar

       1/2 cup of water

Sweat the onions, add the crumbles and saute until it begins to turn brown.  Meanwhile, add together the dry seasoning ingredients in a separate bowl and add the water.  Pour the seasoning mix over the crumbles and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated.

Quinoa

For this recipe I used Rainbow Quinoa purchased at Whole Foods.  Any Quinoa would do.  I also used a rice cooker for this and it came out perfect, but you don't have to use one.

1 cup Quinoa

1/2 cup of chopped green chilies

1 1/2 cups of broth of your choice--I used organic vegetable broth found on the soup aisle

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp salt

1 can of kidney beans

Cook as directed or until the rice cooker goes ding.  Drain and rinse the kidney beans and heat for one minute in the microwave.  Combine and toss.

Next time I make this I will increase the cumin and I will pour a can of green chili enchilada sauce over it. Carrie said she prefers it without the kidney beans.

Pears rounded out the meal.

It was totally yummy.

I will post the recipes for the Black Bean Soup and the Tomato Avocado Salad later.

Peace.

A Saturday Dinner

Saturday night we had hamburgers, corn, salad and fruit for dinner.  The hamburgers were Morning Star Farms Grillers.  The Buns were Ezekiel Buns and the salad was Romaine, Avocado and Tomato.
Note to my family and friends who are concerned about protein:  The patty alone supplied 75% of my children's daily need.  The pistachios that they had for a snack earlier supplied another 25%.  When you add in breakfast and lunch, the kids went way over on their protein requirements for the day.  Oops, I had better be careful not to give them too much protein on this vegetarian diet!  I don't want them to stress their kidneys at such an early age (snicker)!    Between the burger and bun Carrie and I received over 50% of our daily need of protein. I think I will do a post later about the whole "vegetarians don't get enough protein" fallacy.

Here is a closeup of the salad

Here is our new Mayonnaise. 

It is fat free and about 10 calories when used on a sandwich or burger.

Here is a closer closeup of the salad with the dressing.

Anyone want the recipe for this?

It was yummy.

All in all the dinner was fantastic, filling, yummy and the kids loved it too.  Looking forward to hearing more feedback or questions from you guys.

Peace.

Day 10 (Already?)

Well, Carrie and I are 10 days into the 28 Days to changing our health program so I thought I should post a before pic.

Ain't He A Beauty?  When I saw this picture taken just a few days before we started the 28 Days, I knew I just had to include it as my before picture.

Below, is a picture of the haul from our first trip to the grocery store.  Note, it is almost all fruits and vegetables and very little processed food.  60% of the food we purchase is located in the produce section. 30% is found in the beans, rice and grains section (preferably bulk and preferably from Whole Foods store). Finally about 10% of what we eat is found in the freezer section, frozen fruit for smoothies and Morning Star Burgers and ground meatless.

Below is a picture of a whip-together Black Bean Soup that we had for lunch the other day. It turned out really well.  Just so I can see who is reading this I will only give the recipe to you if you comment either here or on my Facebook page.

Carrie and I both weighed in on day eight.  I was down 8 lbs and Carrie was down 4 lbs.  Last week I came down with a cold and I braced myself for the usual week of misery, except that the cold was completely gone in 48 hrs.  That never happens.  Overall, I would say that I am beginning to feel better.  I have had heart burn only once.  I don't think I am snoring as much, but I should check with Carrie.  I will recheck my blood work and blood pressure in early September to see how that side of it is going.  

Looking forward to hearing from some of you.  Encouragement, snickers, recipe requests and questions are all welcome.

Peace.

Engine 2: I Love You

What I really love (besides my kids) are ribs, bacon, sausage...you get the idea. It's my love affair with these foods that got me where I am now, fat, sick and tired.  I am a food addict.  What does that mean?  It means put a slab of ribs or a plate of sausage in front of me and I will eat it until I am sick or very bloated and uncomfortable.  A plate of home made chocolate chip cookies or a carton of ice cream has about as much chance of surviving the night as a six pack of beer at a biker rally.  So now that I recognize that I have a problem, what do I do?  Food addicts have a unique problem.  Unlike other addictions, going cold turkey is not an option.  It is this reality that makes dieting so likely to fail. Hunger and deprivation generally end in failure of the diet.  After researching this issue I came across another way.  Don't go on a diet, change your diet.  Don't go hungry, eat something more nutritious.  Enter the Engine 2 Diet.

If you are interested, take a few minutes to visit the website http://engine2diet.com/ or read a sample of the book by clicking on the image above.

28 Days to a Healthy Family

Yesterday I explained that I have begun to make changes to my lifestyle that I hope will lower my blood pressure, triglycerides, cholesterol and of course my weight.  Here is why:

I have tried many diets and the only one that worked was Quick Weight Loss, and it only worked as long as I was willing to take their expensive pills and eat grilled chicken!  I think I will discuss that diet later.  I don't want to be on another diet but rather I want to change my diet.  There is a difference. Going on a diet is something temporary in order to lose weight. On the other hand one's diet consists of what he or she eats on a regular basis.  For example, the Chinese (in general) have their diet, it consists of lots of vegetables and rice or noodles and very little meat.  The Japanese have their diet and so do the Mediterraneans, Indians and we Americans.  Up until yesterday my diet was aptly called the Standard American Diet or SAD, which is quite appropriate as we Americans are among the fattest people on earth.  We also lead the world in heart disease and cancer, and I just love the people in that picture above too much to leave them behind.

So What Is Your New Diet Called

Well, I'm glad you asked.  For the next 28 days (and hopefully forever)  I will give up foods that are nutrient poor and high in empty calories.  I will give up. processed foods. I will give up foods that are high in fats, sugars and yes I am going to give up all forms of meat.   I will give up, beef, chicken, pork, fish, milk, cheese and yogurt.  What I will eat are nuts, grains, fruits and vegetables and other nutrient rich foods. I will give up a dozen foods but I will gain hundreds of foods that I rarely or never ate before, foods that are super nutritious, like quinoa, spelt, buckwheat, kale, watercress and hundreds of other foods.  So, though you might call my diet Vegeterian or Vegan, that would not be entirely accurate.  A more proper title for my new eating lifestyle would be Plant Strong Nutrient Rich.

So there you have it.  For the next 28 Days (and hopefully longer) I will eat a Plant Strong Nutrient Rich diet.

At the end of those 28 Days, I will report to you the changes to my weight, blood pressure etc.  I can't weight (get it?) to see how it turns out!  So join me on this journey as I will try to blog every day.

Tomorrow:  Engine 2 I love You.

I'm Back and Bigger Than Ever (just ask my scale)

It's true I am back and I am bigger than ever....well almost.  I am six pounds short of my all time high of 218 lbs.  Oh, yeah and my family is bigger than ever too.  Now there are six children running around here, and I do mean running.  Just ask the two who went to bed early because they ran into the parking lot at the store. But I digress.  So much running around in fact that I haven't really had the energy to chase them around and then sit down to keep up with a blog.  I think Carrie and I have gained just enough traction in order for me to resume blogging.

So what to write about.  Well there certainly is no shortage of comedy and drama to record around here, so there will be plenty of that.  I have plenty of strong opinions (you know what they say about opinions) concerning religion, politics and of course adoption, but for the next 28 days at least I will be blogging about a major change in our lifestyle regarding our health.  So let's begin with that.

The Statistics (yikes)

Weight - 212 lbs. (Don't know for sure what I should weigh but I was 130 lbs. when I graduated high school)

L.D.L. - 177 (should be under 130 and preferably under 100)

Total Cholesterol - 287 (should be under 200 and preferably under 150)

Triglycerides - 296 (should be under 150)

That's Pretty Bad Brian, But How Do You Feel?

Well I'm glad you asked.  I feel like crap actually.  As I have gained weight I have begun to snore again and my sleep apnea has returned.  I have heartburn most nights, and it is uncomfortable for me to sit here and type because my stomach is pinched between my ribs and pelvis.  My back hurts, I am stiff.  I have much less energy.  I want to sleep all the time.  I am always hot.  Being fat really sucks to be perfectly honest.

Well, What Are You Going To Do About It Fatty?

Well I'll tell you what I'm going to do about it, over the next 28 days and beyond.  You will just have to read this blog to find out.  Lets just say that we are taking radical steps around here to make some permanent changes that I hope will mean better health and better quality of life for me, for Carrie, and most importantly for our six little minions.  The adventure begins today, Thursday, August 1st.

Stay Posted

Peace.

Restaurants and Children: Observations, Tips and Warnings (Part 1)

Carrie and I used to be frequent restaurant visitors.  But due to budget cuts and the abundance of children in our party that has changed a great deal.  However, on those occasions that we do eat out here are some observations, tips, and warnings from my dining with children experiences.

1. Never ask your child where they want to eat.  It will never be where you want to eat.
2. During the drive to the restaurant your children will complain that they are starving and that it is taking too long to get there. 
3. If that restaurant happens to have a play area, those same children will eat one Chicken McNugget and three french fries and then loudly exclaim that they are no longer hungry.
4. Did you know that children have compartmentalized stomachs, and that their green bean compartment is much smaller than their ice cream compartment?
5. If I had a child's system of priorities when it comes to play vs. eat I would not be going to Quick Weight Loss.
6. Regardless of how cute you think your child is when she is walking around taking the silverware off of other people's tables, the other patrons will not share your sentiment.  In fact, no matter how cute you think your children's antics are, no one anywhere will think so.
7. If the restaurant that you have chosen doesn't have a playground there will always be a patron at another table nearby who will spot your family of six and immediately frown.
8. Dear restaurant owner--what good is a playground if my children can see it as they walk in but I can't see it from my table. 
9. Do not allow JoJo your child to dance on a nearby table.  Society frowns on such behavior.  Well, most of it anyway.
10. Dear wait staff--unless you want to clean up crumbled and ground up wax off of the floor, please don't provide my 16 month old with crayons.
11. Silverware should not equal drumsticks. See #6 above.
12. Before children I was a good tipper.  With four children, I am now a GREAT tipper.
13. Why do restaurants insist on keeping high chairs with broken restraining safety straps?  I will just have to leave after only ten minutes into my meal when JoJo insists that he MUST stand up. And really, those safety straps have a broken clip more than 50% of the time.  Really high chair manufacturer? You can't come up with a sturdier safety clip for your high chair safety straps?  If I was health inspector king I would close down any restaurant that has broken safety straps on their high chairs until they replace or repair any and or all broken straps.  Oh, now I get it. You're trying to get rid of us sooner.
14. There are no high chairs in China. Nor are there any in the Chinese restaurants in Chinatown Houston, so we don't eat there anymore.  I am deeply saddened by this.
15. If you really want to know how clean a restaurant is, check the high chairs, even if you don't have children.
16. Who is the idiot who invented high chairs on rollers. I know it seems like a good idea because you don't have to pick the high chair up and carry it to the table but once a child is in it it becomes a giant baby bumper car. 
17. Do not let your 16 month old boys out of their high chairs. The young couple sitting nearby will not appreciate it when Manny your son plays bumper car with the gentleman's chair.
18. About #17above.......sorry sir. Of course, in a couple of years you will have a strange feeling of deja vous when your kids are doing it, too.
19. Clearly I need to see a therapist regarding my obsession with high chairs.

In the end, it is rarely worth it to eat out, especially since unless we are eating at the golden arches or the place with the spotted cows it will cost in excess of $30 to eat.  I will really miss you Chipotle, Chuy's and ChinaTown Houston!