Day 174: Low carb-Recipe Stuffed Zucchini “Manicotti”

I am making these today.

Zucchini

– 1 zucchini

– 1/8 cup olive oil

– Salt and pepper to taste

Cut off the ends of zucchini. Using a mandolin, slice zucchini into long thin strips. Toss in olive oil, salt and pepper and set aside.

Ricotta Mix

– 1 cup ricotta cheese

– 1/8 cup basil (chopped)

– 1/8 cup parmesan cheese (grated)

Mix everything together, set aside.

Assembly

– 4 zucchini strips

– 1.5 oz. sauteed Italian chicken sausage

– 1 oz. ricotta cheese mixture

– 2 oz. marinara sauce

– 1 oz. mozzarella cheese

Lightly cover the bottom of a parchment lined sheet tray with marinara sauce. On a different clean surface, lay down zucchini strips. Add chicken sausage, top with ricotta cheese. Add 1 oz. marinara sauce, roll up and place onto sheet tray. Top with the rest of the marinara sauce and sprinkle the mozzarella on top. Bake in oven until cheese is melted.

Source: http://www.sself.com

Day 168: Low carb recipes- cauliflower pizza crust

Every low-carber must have this recipe. The cravings for pizza can hit at any moment and when you have to watch your carbs, this is a great arsenal to have.

It’s quick and simple to make and marvelously delicious.

 

Ingredients:
1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese*

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp crushed garlic

1/2 tsp garlic salt

Olive oil

 

 

• Chop cauliflower into chunks and place in food processor. Pulse until the cauliflower is riced. You can also use a cheese grater and you will get the same results
• Place the riced cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl, add 1/4 cup water, and microwave for 6-8 minutes, stirring half-way through.
  
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and spray a cookie sheet with some oil.
• In a medium bowl, combine the cauliflower, mozzarella cheese and egg together and stir until well incorporated. Add the oregano, garlic, and garlic salt. Transfer to the cookie sheet, and shape into a 9-inch circle. Brush the crust with olive oil to help it brown in the oven.
• Baked for 15 minutes, until the crust is browned and cooked through the middle.
  
• Remove from oven and add your topping. Do not overload your pizza. Place in oven until the cheese is melted.

 

 

 

 

 

The ultimate guide to nuts

Pinterest is a wealth of info.

Day 164: Day 1 carb cycling

 

My weekend green smoothie was a mixed success. On Saturday I was on plan and had the smoothie for all three meals with snacks in between. However on Sunday I went off plan and had some rice for lunch (oops)

The good news is that I lost 2.8lbs over the weekend challenge. I’m pretty sure its water weight but I am glad for a loss any way I get it.

Now that I am partially back on track,( My eating in improving but my running is still suffering.) I am starting my carb cycling today. The recommended time is between 21 days to 3 months. I plan on going with it as long as I can as long as it doesn’t interfere with my marathon training.

 

Here is what my menu looks like for the next 3 low carb days.
Goal  30-50g  net carbs and 1200 calories

 

Monday- Wednesday (there will be slight changes to make things interesting)

Breakfast:

16 oz warm water with juice of half a lemon and a pinch of cayenne pepper

2 eggs and homemade salsa  (140 cals, 2g carbs)

2 TVP Patties (recipe on blog) (185 cals, 8g carbs)

Green tea

32 oz water

 

Snack: granny smith apple (60 cals, 13g carbs)

16 oz water

 

Lunch: veggie stir fry I cup cauliflower, I cup broccoli  (56 cals, 6g carbs)

Grilled Tofu 100g (85 cals, 1g carbs)
32 oz water

 

Snack 2: 2 servings nuts (320 cals, 8g carbs)

Green tea
16 oz water

Dinner: large salad, lettuce, half avocado, salsa (homemade with onion, cucumber, tomato, green pepper, tomato and fresh coriander), Tofu, Zucchini, (Cals 215, 6g carbs)

 

Totals 1121 calories, 43 g carbs

 

Need to work on upping the calories a bit.

Other Ideas for breakfast

• Protein pancakes
• Zucchini harsh
• Protein shake

 

Day 163: Low carb Recipe: Zucchini Hash browns

Found this on pinterest and it is a great replacement for potato hash. Yum!

Zucchini Hash Browns Yummy and healthy zucchini hash browns that helps with potato cravings. Ingredients 2 medium eggs 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder 1 dash pepper 1 dash salt 1 tbsp olive oil 1 cup shredded zucchini Directions Heat oil in skillet. Mix together zucchini, slightly beaten eggs, salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder. Drop by spoonfuls into the hot skillet. After browning on one side flip and brown the other side. Note: substitute egg whites to lower calorie, cholesterol, and fat counts.

Source: fatsecret

Day 141:Julia Child’s eggplant pizza

Cold weather and stuck indoors screams order in a pizza and curl on the couch watching old episodes of Dr. Who. But maybe just turning on the oven and baking something is even better.

Anyone with any kitchen proficiency must at one point in time try a Julia child recipe.  She is know for her elaborate French cuisine and I was glad to stumble upon a recipe by her that vegetarian (could be made vegan with cheese substitution), low carb and extremely easy to make without ingredients that you cannot pronounce.

 

I made these today and they were delightful and you wont feel guilty about wolfing down the whole thing.
You will need:

• Large eggplant
• Tomatoes finely chopped
• Green peppers, olives and onion (not included in the original recipe)
• Basil leaves, large about 10
• Dried oregano
• Italian seasoning blend
• Garlic 3 cloves
• Red pepper flakes
• EVOO
• Mozzarella blend- low fat

 

Steps:

• Wash eggplant and cut into round slices about an inch thick. Place on a paper towel and salt generously to remove any excess moisture. Takes about 30 minutes to release the moisture
  
• Add the EVOO to a pan and sauté the chopped garlic and then add in the tomatoes and your dried spices. Oregano and Italian seasoning. And let it cook down to form a thick sauce. Add the other chopped veggies.
  
• Once the eggplant has lost its moisture, brush with evoo, sprinkle some dried spices on top and let it bake for about 25 minutes at 375
•  Remove and add the topping. Fresh chopped basil, the tomatoes sauce you just prepared and cheese.
  
• Put under broiler until the cheese melts. 

 

In Exercise news, I have completely lost any motivation to wake up and run. I wake up alright, but getting up to go out in this abysmal weather is tough.I am pretty sure that I will not meet my goal for 100mi/month and that annoys me. But apparently not enough to go out. My eating hasn’t been too bad, not perfect by any stretch of the imagination.
I am a bit terrified of getting on the scale. I moved my weigh-ins to monday to curb my naughtiness over the weekend. I realized that I am pretty good during the week and all the progress is negated after I weigh-in saturday morning.
The good news is that I finally finished level 1 30-DS. I had to restart after not finishing it over the holidays. It is so monotonous that I have to force myself to go through it. I start level 2 tomorrow and hope the change will reduce the boredom.
have a great weekend everyone 😉

 

Day 140: Make your own Vol.4- Homemade yoghurt

Why make your own yoghurt you might ask. Well

• It tastes better
• It’s better for you (no preservatives, sugar or chemicals added)
• It’s less expensive

• You control what goes into it.

 

Your will need

1. 4 liters/ a gallon of milk (1 gallon of milk=1 gallon of yoghurt. You can change this depending on how much yoghurt you want to make)
2. 1 heaped tablespoon fresh yogurt, (check the label to make sure it has live, active culture — most yoghurt at the store does.
3. 2 large pots (one has to be bigger than the other to make a type of double boiler. The larger pot should have a lid)
4. I plastic or metal spoon
5. A candy thermometer

Steps:

 

–       Make a double boiler by putting the smaller pot into the larger on and add water half way up the bigger pot

–       Put the milk into the smaller pot and put the thermometer at the rim of the pot.  Boil the milk to 185⁰ but if you do not have one, your milk will have reached the desired when it forms a film at the top and begins to froth like a late. Stir frequently

–        Cool the milk down to 110⁰  . You can let it cool at room temperature or put the put in a sink of water

–       Once it gets to 110, add your 3-4 tbsp. spoons of the yoghurt.  Stir well to ensure the live yoghurt is well mixed and place in a warm are. You can use a heating pad. Or I just place mine in a warm oven switched OFF and leave it for about 6-7 hrs.

–       After 7 hrs. Stir your yoghurt well. Note- there will be a cheesy smell and a greenish liquid on top. Have no fear.

–       Portion out your yoghurt into containers with lids. Cover them and chill overnight. Refrigerating will thicken the yoghurt and this can keep for up to 10 days.

Yum.

–       Enjoy.

Is it worth going through all the trouble. absolutely. This is great for breakfast or a snack.

 

 

 

Day 138: what I ate Wednesday

I decided to join the WIAW movement and see if it will work out. To day I took a picture of all my meals and this is mostly what I have been eating all week. (see food prep)

Breakfast.

Avocado “taco” made from two eggs protein pancake
1 piece of toast and PB (totally cheated but it was right there in front of me and I couldn’t resist.)
tea and lemon
32 oz water

used the egg as a tortilla. this is my trick for getting a low carb taco

not be best of pics. Calories 621, Net carbs 19, protein 33. Did not need the toast&PB

Lunch

Thai stir fry (broccoli, cauliflower,french beans,snap peas,carrots)
salad (I cup lettuce, half a granny smith apple,quarter carrot strips, boiled egg, half Avocado)
32 oz water

Calories 304, net carbs 15, protein 11

Afternoon Snack (before 30DS)

Green tea
I serving nuts

calories 160, net carbs 4g, protein 7g

Dinner

Green monster smoothie ( 1 cup swiss Chard, 1/2 banana. 1/2 mango, 1 cup soy milk)
32 oz water

Calories 162, net carbs 30, protein 7

I decided to move my green smoothie to dinner so that I can have a bigger breakfast. I run in the morning and I am moving about all day therefore my new strategy is 600/400/200 calories  plan during the day. Heavy in the morning to give me more energy throughout the day and light at dinner time for laying about and watching Telly Studying hard. Isn’t the general rule of thumb “One should always go to bed hungry? “

Exercise

3.3 mi walk (Didn’t get up in the morning to run because the wing was howling outside and my bed was warmer- excuses… excuses)
30-day shred- day 8 level one.

Day 137: Vegetarian Low carb recipe: protein pancakes and 2013 goals

First lets start with the goals. One of my 13 in 13 was to start running in the rain. I live in a pretty rainy area. pretty much rain and fog all year round. As a result, I always make the excuse to not go running when it rains, which is always. this year, I decided that I would get myself some running in the rain gear( still haven’t gone shopping) and just step out and run.

Today I did it. I woke up at about 5:30 and when I stepped outside, the grass was wet and there was a light drizzle outside.Let me start by saying that getting out of bed today was a struggle. I finally got out about 30 minutes after my alarm clock rang by reminding myself MARATHON!!! MARATHON!!!. so the rain was a perfect excuse to go back to sleep. good news, I didn’t. I got out there and pounded out 3 miles with misty glasses, wet hoodie and all. I felt really good about myself. I think I have proven to myself that it can be done. Next time it rains and I have a run scheduled, No more Excuses.

Now onto the Yumminess.

I love pancakes for breakfast but the carbs in each are just too much. I have accepted the fact that my body does not work well with carbs and this weekends carb-fest led to a 4lb gain despite the fact I was under my calorie limit on all days. A calorie is not a calorie.

So Now that I am back on my regular schedule I decided to make a low carb version of pancakes. No flour in the recipe and no whey or protein powder.

What you will need

1. I cup of any nut flour (almond, peanut etc. I used peanut flour)
2. ¼ cup of desiccated coconut
3. ¼ cup of soy milk
4. I large egg
5. I table spoon of baking powder
6. 2 teaspoons of sugar (avoid this if you want- the coconut has enough sugar to make the pancakes sweet.

 

(Makes 5 servings)

-Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl

– Add the wet ingredients and mix. Make sure the consistency isn’t too thick- can add some water.

you don’t want the mixture to be too watery

– Put some butte on a hot pan and put about a table spoon of the mixture( I leaned the hard way that too much will result in a mess that looks nothing like a pancake.) small pancakes about 2.5-3.5 inches in diameter are best.

– Cook both sides about 2 minutes each on medium heat.

– Ready to serve

I think it might take me a whole to get used to the taste. It is sweet (coconut) and nutty and I’m not a huge fun of nutty tastes. I can’t even look at a peanut butter cup and it’s taken me a while to even put peanut butter on toast. But I will make myself love these. Don’t get me wrong they taste delicious. And at 5g carbs and 15g protein, they are a win

 

Nutritional value

Calories 149, carbs 9g, Fiber 4g, net carbs 5g, protein 15g, sodium 23g

 

Traditional pancakes

Calories 178, net carb 21g, protein 5g, sodium 26g, fiber 1g

 

 

Exercise

-3mi/41 minutes- walked about half of it.

-Ab work 100 crunches, 100 reverse crunches, 100 bicycle crunches,  30 sec plank, 100 oblique crunches,

-30-day shred.- day 7 level 1

 

 

Day 131: coconut cauliflower stew

I am travelling tomorrow to go back to school after spending the holidays with my mum and so I decided to throw together everything I had left in the pantry to make something delicious.

I had a can of coconut milk and a head of cauliflower and decided to use that s my base. I then rummaged the fridge for left over veggies I had and decided to make a stew. I wasn’t really in the mood for a soup.

Coconut cauliflower stew

I medium zucchini

1 cup chopped French beans

2 chopped tomatoes

Crushed garlic

I purple onion

I can coconut milk

Mixed spice

Curry powder
cayenne pepper

–       Heat up oil in a pan and sauté onions and garlic until softened. Add mixed spice, curry powder and cayenne pepper and continue to sauté for about a minute

–       Add chopped tomatoes and zucchini and stew for a minute

–       And the coconut milk and a half cup of water with the cauliflower and French beans

add coconut milk and a half cup of water or broth

add the cauliflower

–       Reduce heat to medium-low and let it simmer partially covered for 15 minutes.

let it simmer until the cauliflower is soft. 15 mins

–       Remove form heat and you have the option of adding in chopped cilantro.

–       Enjoy

Nutrition

3 servings

Calories: 214, carbs net- 12,fat 16, protein 4g, sodium 39, fiber 5g