Chefk's Foodie Blog

[chefk]

Well I'll start off with a quote from Julie and Julia~

(telling her husband, Eric, what she loves about cooking) "Chocolate cream pie! You know what I love about cooking? I love that after a day when nothing is sure and when I say nothing, I mean nothing. You can come home and absolutely know that if you add egg yolks to chocolate and sugar and milk, it will get thick. That's such a comfort."
- Julie Powell, Julie & Julia

In essence this is my issue. I don't think that there is a problem with the fact that I completely identify myself with food, but that somewhere along the way I've lost balance. I tend to think all or nothing black and white and get very very excited about "mmm factor". I know this sounds weird, but my family mmm's at the table. One mmm generally means all is well, two mmm's means I am loved, 3 mmm's means I am loved so much that I should go share this joy with other families! I have resisted blogging up until now and have limited myself to pictures and recipe posts to the world of Facebook. (and many emails to family) We joked about the mmm's a long time ago. I'm sure they have forgotten that day at the table when I pointed it out, but I listen still...Oh so closely.

Food is my joy and my hobby. I camp/ backpack in order to cook backwoods on a fire or an itty-bitty stove. I garden in order to have the FRESHEST of the FRESH! I snap pictures only to study food gloss. I started a personal chef business on the side to cook on my days off. I am a food geek and I admit it.

It's not that I don't love healthy foods. I do. Sprouts, cucumbers, red ripe tomatoes and avocado on a whole grain sandwich YUM! Of course I say the same for pork neck bones simmering with sausage and meatballs in a giant pot of sauce ready to be scooped onto a plate of twirled pasta...YUM! I need balance. So this will be my blog of regaining balance and losing weight.

(when asked if she thought Julia Child knew about her and her blog) "I wish! I have this fantasy that she comes for dinner and I show her my new lemon zester. We become very close. The truth is, no one knows about me. I feel like I'm just sending things into this giant void."
- Julie Powell, Julie & Julia

[Kyan]

Welcome to the world of journaling, Chef!! Your first entry was SO MUCH fun to read! I love the movie quotes!! Not only am I HUGE fan of food, I love love love movies!! Naturally I've seen both the Julie and the Rat movies!

You and I are different in that I don't like to cook, and my sons never Mmmmm over my food. (Unless it's something particularly unhealthy! THEN they do!) But we are very much alike in how we love food! I don't eat because I am depressed or have some inner need to fill or I'm hungry.... I eat because I simply LOVE food! The tastes and textures, the crunch and spice, the sweet and tart, the smooth and cool. I am such a food hedonist! ha ha!

Anyway.... WELCOME to the Beach! If you ever need support I am a post away. You can never have too many SB buddies!

[QueenJean]

Welcome, ChefK!
I think it is just okay to be a food geek! My husband and son are computer geeks, and they are adorable! I love food as well, I am just committed to avoiding foods that are not healthy at this time. I love to read cookbooks, I read them like novels! I would rather cook than eat out most times because I can usually make it better at home! I get disappointed if I eat out and the meal is not enjoyable. My challenge now is make our meals interesting, tasty, and attractive. It is truly easy to do with wonderful whole grains, beautiful colorful veggies, and the ever-present SB oatmeal cookie! I look forward to your contributions!
PS-I am always the camp cook!

[chefk]

Jean- That's funny I have 2 stacks of cookbooks by my bed.

Kyan- Thanks, I'll start posting with recipes and pics soon.

Today was Day 1 and really difficult.
B 2 eggs and sauteed onions soft scrabbled with chervil topped with fresh grated Romano (Then left for the grocery store!)
S V8
L Grilled chicken breast, arugula and green leaf salad w/ FF balsamic vinaigrette
S Edamame and sea salt
D A plateful of raw veggies, avocado salsa, slice of cheese, chilled shrimp

I had really awesome Kabobs I was looking forward to. I completely forgot about this wine tasting benefit. I munched around all the chocolate truffles, meatballs and fried snackies and managed to get out of there with my SB honor still in tact. What a crazy way to start out. There were people tossing empty bottles of wine out to the recycle bins and holding there full bellies and mine was growling. I'm still considering a snack now that I'm home. At least I wasn't counting calories.

The good thing...my Kabobs will be really nicely marinated for tomorrows lunch! I think had I shopped today and started more prepared tomorrow this would've been easier. C'est la vie!

A gourmet who thinks of calories is like a tart who looks at her watch. ~James Beard

[smay]

Hi Chefk! I'm going to be stalking your journal for recipes! I haven't started a journal yet, and haven't decided if I will or not. I did log my food for the 1st month or so in a hand-written journal, but I am "fully" in P2 now and at a point now where I know I can stay on track without logging.

I know what you mean about cooking for your family and getting that feeling of satisfaction when you make something they really love. I had a whole arsenal of things that I would make that my husband just loves. I really haven't made many of them since starting south beach. I'm slowly brining some back, now that I have added starches back in. He thanked me about 10 times the 1st time I made him his favorite cashew chicken again. Once I added brown rice back in, that opened a lot of doors for asian! I know we could eat it without rice, but rice soaks up the sauces so darn well! I really need to go through my recipes and see what is okay as-is, and what I need to tweak. We have chili all the time now, since it is nice and hearty, has a lot of veggies in it, and a ton of beans too. Now it's getting warmer though, so chili isn't as appealing... That just means it's time to break out the grill! Cooking gets a lot easier when you can use whole wheat bread crumbs too.

I'm glad you survived your benefit. When I started, it was a week before my kids big family birthday party. I made and decorated two huge cakes with the best tasting icing ever, and didn't have a single bite! I had a nice salad while everyone else had pulled-pork sandwiches slathered in bbq sauce. It was worth it in the long-run though!

I loved Julie and Julia!

[QueenJean]

Hi!
I like the ideas of sharing recipes here! I am always on the hunt for new stuff!
Way to go ChefK! Avoiding those social food traps is actually a good way to start. It empowers you early on, and I like that! My son and I are doing the program, and we went a Birthday party the very first weekend. My friend make the most wicked looking cupcakes, and appetizers. I gained so much strength keeping my distance, and contrary to popular belief, no one paid any attention to the fact we were abstaining!
Smay-It sounds like you have alot of good ideas too! I look forward to exploring these avenues with you guys!

[chefk]

Smay...great idea. I hadn't thought of whole wheat bread crumbs, duh. I have a lot of rethinking to do. Stalk away!

I was planning on typing up my days activities at the end of the day, but I had to get out here after breakfast. My husband was mmm'ing like mad. He said, "This dish would be awesome if you weren't on a diet...WOW!" I had to race over to my computer after. (No shame) That's exactly what I'm hoping for, to get dishes on the table that we all feel like we aren't missing a damn thing, if fact it might be better than covered in potatoes and bacon. And yes, I LOVE bacon.

Baked Eggs from Julia's Side of Town (But no butter!)
For 2 or multiply as needed

1 tsp olive oil
4 eggs
big handful of baby spinach
1/2 large can of diced tomatoes (fresh would be great, but it's March)
1/2 of a very small onion diced
1 clove of garlic minced
good sprinkle of lf mozz for each individual baking dish
chervil, thyme and chives
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375F
Heat sauté pan with olive oil. Add onions and cook on medium low until tender, add garlic. Open can and spoon out about 1/2 the tomatoes into the onions. Add spices except chives. Add the spinach. Cook down until the water has evaporated and the tomatoes look "dry".
Spoon about 1/3 of the mixture into the mini casseroles. It will barely cover the bottom. Layer in the sprinkling of cheese. Top 2 eggs into each dish, being careful not to break the yolks. Top around the edges of the eggs the remaining tomato mixture. Bake 15 minutes. This will vary depending on your oven. You are looking for the whites to turn white. They will look shiny and that's okay, pull them out and check. They'll be tender to the touch like a poached egg but not runny. The yolks should be just thinking about firming up. Remove once done and top with chives, serve.

[New.2.Me]

OMG - that looks yummy, yummy! I don't like spinach though... hmmm - what could I replace it with. Keep posting!

[chefk]

Mushrooms (start with the onions then), arugula, or you can do cilantro and swap out the thyme and chervil for a pinch of chili powder...I'm hungry again...time for Kabobs!

[chefk]

This was lunch today and enough leftovers for lunch at work tomorrow for us.
Greek Kabobs Lunch for 2 plus lunch again later

1 1/2 chicken breasts place in seal-able sandwich bag
1 zucchini slided thick
1/2 red bell pepper 1" chunks
1 red onion quartered
small pack whole mushrooms
Place all veg in seal-able gallon bag
2 lemons
olive oil
oregano, salt pepper

Squeeze lemon into chicken bag.
Add spices and drizzle with olive oil seal, rub to coat, place in fridge.
Squeeze lemon into veggie bag. Toss in all lemon halves.
Add spices and drizzle with olive oil seal, rub to coat, place in fridge.
Marinate at least 20 minutes up to overnight.

Cut chicken into 1" chunks and skewer loosely.
Skewer veggies loosely splitting each onion chunk in 1/2 for skewering
Broil veggies on a foiled cookie sheet with rack.
Once just starting to brown, turn and add chicken skewers
Continue to cook until chicken is cooked through.

[chefk]

Yesterday
B Baked eggs
L Kabobs
s Peanuts
D Chipotle Chicken and Black Bean Salad

Yesterday was much easier and I have a lot prepped for lunches this week so don't expect the work week to be difficult. I took off 4 pounds, but I'm not going to change my signature tag until the end of the week since I'm sure I'll fluctuate.

I brought my walking shoes in too! I'll be one of those walkers at lunch that I usually watch trekking around the lake.

[QueenJean]

Okay, I'm loving this already! Those are some lovely pictures! Thanks for posting those, ChefK! This is fun!

[ladybugmom]

Love your journal! Now I have to make a trip to the store, those kabobs look good. Congrats on those four pounds.

[smay]

4 pounds is great! Congrats on your progress so far!

I'm still drooling at the eggs. That will be on the menu sometime this week, not for breakfast though, since I am an oatmeal junkie since P2 started for me.

I'm making up some turkey chili for lunch today. I also made Moroccan Spiced Roasted Garbanzo beans last night (http://kalynskitchen.blogspot.com/2008/ ... beans.html). They are a nice snack with crunch, but the spices don't come through as much as I hoped they would. I do make them about once a week or so, and just leave them out in a bowl to snack on throughout the day.

Thought I'd share a P2 recipe with you that I am looking forward to making this week. Hopefully it turns out well.
http://thebittenword.typepad.com/thebit ... lemon.html

By the way, do you have a good turkey burger recipe? I've always been a beef person, and am exploring turkey more now.

[chefk]

Thanks! This is fun for me too. I made Chipotle Chicken with Black bean salad last night that I should probably post a picture for.

Smay- Do the garbonzos stay crunchy through the week? I was planning on making them sometime this week. If I do I'm spice them twice on your recommendation. As for the couscous...we can have that? Couscous is pretty much pasta in little itty bitty balls. (semolina) I LOVE couscous.

Turkey burgers go against my better judgement since really you want beef. An no other meat tastes quite like beef. The best plan of attack would be to give your turkey burger beef taste. There's a word for it. If you follow any of the food shows, you'll notice a word coming up more and more ~Umami

Umami is the rich opulent fatty taste that we love and several things have them: Soy, Worcestershire, MSG, seaweed, cheese, mushrooms and so on.

I would start with that. Mix ground turkey with Worcestershire (~tsp per patty or so) and sprinkle with Accent before mixing. (MSG) Split the burger patty ball into 2 and form them into 2 really flat patties. Pile 1 TBS of a good herbed feta in the center. Cover the patty n cheese with the other patty and seal the sides with a little pressure. Cook until done.
Meanwhile, sauté mushrooms with a bit of olive oil and garlic (garlic goes in once the mushrooms are releasing juices so it doesn't burn) Season with a fresh herb preferable matching the herb in the feta, but not necessary.

Another route could be soy, hon-dashi (Japanese spice made from seaweed) and wasabi of you like spicy Asian. Skip the cheese, but consider a slaw with white wine vinegar, sesame oil (1-2 drops with do if toasted), ginger and daikon radish shavings on top after cooking or as a side salad. If you LOVE mushrooms, porcinis would be great. I go over the top with them sometimes.

If you decide turkey is REALLY what you want to taste, go with turkey seasonings like sage, rosemary and thyme. Cranberry chutney for a topping?

I think you'll be able to fix the taste, but I'm not sure about the moisture since it needs to cook though completely and there's very little fat. I shop again in 2 weeks. I'll give it a try and see if I can come up with a moisture answer. Sorry if I come out sounding like a know-it-all. I'm totally not. I'm just a food geek and stuff like this gets me going.