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Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Real Food : Chili
Made a pot of chili and compared it with the nutritional label of a can of chili, holy crapola, what a difference.
I quartered an onion and set in the bottom of my dutch oven (you can use a crock pot, same method). Set my 2lb roast on top and added cumin, dried chipotle pepper, paprika, kosher salt and black pepper. Poured in one beer (to braise beef you need liquid with some acid in it, beer, wine, broth, whatever) and one can of beef broth.
Cook on low heat for 2 hrs, add chopped (2 green peppers, 1 red pepper, 1 onion) and keep going. Looks like a big hot mess, but the magic will happen.
At the end you add 2 cans beans, several tablespoons of tomato paste (to thicken) and shred the beef with two forks and two karate chopping hands. Serve.
I added a scoop of sour cream and some fresh shredded cheddar (hand shredded from a block in the fridge, that stuff in bags is not really cheese).
So here's the kicker and nutrional values. Based on a 2 cup portion, my chili has slightly less calories but so much better in so many ways.
My calories: 474
Theirs: 574
My sodium: 550 (daily allowance is 2400)
Theirs: 2672
My carbs: 38g
Theirs: 62g
My total fat: 12.6 (daily allowance 65)
Theirs: 28
My protein: 52g (recommended at least 50 g/day)
Theirs: 28
So cooking it fresh and clean proves to up the protein, decreases the sodium, decreases the carbs, saves a few calories and give you a heavenly smell in your house and leftovers for days. My batch made 12 cups of delicious shredded beer braised beef chili.
Forget all the 'shrink your belly' bullcrap you see, the overnight way to do it is to cut the sodium that comes in pre-processed food. Less salt = less water retention where you don't want it. There are obviously better food options out there than chili, just trying to show that even chili can be done right.....yum.
I quartered an onion and set in the bottom of my dutch oven (you can use a crock pot, same method). Set my 2lb roast on top and added cumin, dried chipotle pepper, paprika, kosher salt and black pepper. Poured in one beer (to braise beef you need liquid with some acid in it, beer, wine, broth, whatever) and one can of beef broth.
Cook on low heat for 2 hrs, add chopped (2 green peppers, 1 red pepper, 1 onion) and keep going. Looks like a big hot mess, but the magic will happen.
At the end you add 2 cans beans, several tablespoons of tomato paste (to thicken) and shred the beef with two forks and two karate chopping hands. Serve.
So here's the kicker and nutrional values. Based on a 2 cup portion, my chili has slightly less calories but so much better in so many ways.
My calories: 474
Theirs: 574
My sodium: 550 (daily allowance is 2400)
Theirs: 2672
My carbs: 38g
Theirs: 62g
My total fat: 12.6 (daily allowance 65)
Theirs: 28
My protein: 52g (recommended at least 50 g/day)
Theirs: 28
So cooking it fresh and clean proves to up the protein, decreases the sodium, decreases the carbs, saves a few calories and give you a heavenly smell in your house and leftovers for days. My batch made 12 cups of delicious shredded beer braised beef chili.
Forget all the 'shrink your belly' bullcrap you see, the overnight way to do it is to cut the sodium that comes in pre-processed food. Less salt = less water retention where you don't want it. There are obviously better food options out there than chili, just trying to show that even chili can be done right.....yum.
My Chili is Too Hot!
Did some interesting experiments tonight. Still on the "Real Food" mission, I made some homemade slow cooked braised chili, and it came out VERY SPICY! So to neutralize the spicy I attacked it from two angles. First, to lower the ph of the acids, (just need a pinch of baking soda). Secondly, to awaken another part of the tongue so as not to concentrate on the acids...sugar. I added 1/4 cup of pineapple orange juice and with that little bit of sugar competing for attention, the spice has been cut (at least to my own tongue's ability to perceive it). No, you can't taste the juice AT ALL.
So,...baking soda...sugar...done...delicious.
So,...baking soda...sugar...done...delicious.
"Pancake Syrup" update
Had to run to the grocery store today and wanted to check the syrups to see why my bizarre concoction tasted better than any grocery store syrup I've ever had.
My recipe as stated below was brown sugar, honey, water, orange/pineapple juice, butter and pinch of salt.
The ingredient list on every syrup I picked up said:
Corn Syrup, artificial flavors, followed by 4 chemical preservatives I can't explain, nitrites, benzoate sulpha bullcrap, and more. yuk, that's nasty baby. They all has the same stinkin' man made ingredients.
Not real food.
My recipe as stated below was brown sugar, honey, water, orange/pineapple juice, butter and pinch of salt.
The ingredient list on every syrup I picked up said:
Corn Syrup, artificial flavors, followed by 4 chemical preservatives I can't explain, nitrites, benzoate sulpha bullcrap, and more. yuk, that's nasty baby. They all has the same stinkin' man made ingredients.
Not real food.
Real Food in 2012!
Kevin got a kick lately trying to cook things from scratch that we take for granted, he's making bread, we made our own pasta, he made hot pretzels, even bagels.
So with all of the organic-driven-buy-local movements happenning, I'm adding my own twist: to make as much of our food as possible and limit processed-boxed-canned-frozen-sodium heavy-preservative-chemical ridden foods of convenience.
Started off 2012 with homemade pancakes and homemade syrup, easy and delicious! Here's the proof!
Pancakes were fluffy and thick, made with eggs, flour, baking soda, baking powder, milk, all real foods.
I didn't make a traditional maple syrup. Instead I put 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup orange juice, tbsp of honey and tbsp of butter in a saucepan. I was totally winging it. Brought it to a quick boil and ladled over the pancakes. OMG, better than any store bought syrup I've ever had and will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks! Just poured it into a baby bottle with a lid and stuck it in the fridge.
Hmmmmm...now what for lunch?
So with all of the organic-driven-buy-local movements happenning, I'm adding my own twist: to make as much of our food as possible and limit processed-boxed-canned-frozen-sodium heavy-preservative-chemical ridden foods of convenience.
Started off 2012 with homemade pancakes and homemade syrup, easy and delicious! Here's the proof!
Pancakes were fluffy and thick, made with eggs, flour, baking soda, baking powder, milk, all real foods.
I didn't make a traditional maple syrup. Instead I put 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup orange juice, tbsp of honey and tbsp of butter in a saucepan. I was totally winging it. Brought it to a quick boil and ladled over the pancakes. OMG, better than any store bought syrup I've ever had and will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks! Just poured it into a baby bottle with a lid and stuck it in the fridge.
Hmmmmm...now what for lunch?
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Day 5: Salmon with Alfredo and Asparagus
After muffins for breakfast, turkey sandwiches for lunch, we had Baked Salmon for dinner.
I bought the pre-portioned frozen salmon and defrosted in the microwave for about 5 minutes.
Place in a baking dish with scattered asparagus, drizzle oil, salt and pepper, bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.
On the stove top, boil half box of pasta and drain. In hot pan melt tbsp butter, splash heavy cream, 1/2 cup crumbled parmesan and toss with pasta, salt pepper, Enjoy!
I bought the pre-portioned frozen salmon and defrosted in the microwave for about 5 minutes.
Place in a baking dish with scattered asparagus, drizzle oil, salt and pepper, bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.
On the stove top, boil half box of pasta and drain. In hot pan melt tbsp butter, splash heavy cream, 1/2 cup crumbled parmesan and toss with pasta, salt pepper, Enjoy!
Monday, April 11, 2011
Dinner Day 4: Homemade Pizza
Pizza dough is crazy easy to make, there are about 2 million recipes online but we just do some flour, some water, some yeast, some olive oil, some salt. We usually make a ton and freeze it in freezer bags by the double handful. Take a bag out of the freezer when you get up and by dinner its soft and yeasty goodness.
We spread out some pizza dough and used some flour to smush and spread by hand, lay a pam'd tin foil on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, we tore a bit of proscuitto, spinach, chopped sun dried tomatoes and fresh mozzerella, salt, pepper. Made a little foil tent over the pizza and into the oven for 20 minutes. Take off foil tent and let go another 10 minutes, eat, and enjoy (folding over into a sandwich is divine)
Restaurant cost: $28 + drinks + tip = $46
Takeout cost: don't even try, any kind of delivered 'fresh herbed oil option' is about 800 calories a piece
Our cost: $4.00
feeds 4-6 people
Calories: about 300 calories for a 4x6 piece
We spread out some pizza dough and used some flour to smush and spread by hand, lay a pam'd tin foil on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, we tore a bit of proscuitto, spinach, chopped sun dried tomatoes and fresh mozzerella, salt, pepper. Made a little foil tent over the pizza and into the oven for 20 minutes. Take off foil tent and let go another 10 minutes, eat, and enjoy (folding over into a sandwich is divine)
Restaurant cost: $28 + drinks + tip = $46
Takeout cost: don't even try, any kind of delivered 'fresh herbed oil option' is about 800 calories a piece
Our cost: $4.00
feeds 4-6 people
Calories: about 300 calories for a 4x6 piece
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