Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Goals · Instant Pot · Uncategorized · WLS

Un-Stuffed Cabbage Bowls-Instant Pot

Again, another Instant Pot recipe, but this time from Skinnytaste.  What is great about their site is that they share Weight Watcher points, and nutrition values.  I have included it in my post today.

8 Smart Points, 338 calories

Quick and easy stuffed cabbage – without all the work!

INGREDIENTS:

  • cooking spray
  • 1 lb 93% lean ground beef
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon dried marjoram (used Oregano)
  • black pepper, to taste
  • 8 ounce can tomato sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
  • 1 cup less sodium beef broth
  • 2 tablespoons raisins (used currants)
  • 1 cup cooked brown rice (didn’t use this in the recipe as I can’t eat it, so served rice for David and Stephen)
  • 1 medium head cabbage, cored and chopped (9 cups)

DIRECTIONS:

INSTANT POT:  Press the saute button on the Instant Pot. Spray with oil then add the beef and salt, cook breaking the meat up until browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the onion, garlic, marjoram and black pepper and stir.Add the tomato sauce, paprika, beef broth and raisins (we used currants), cover and cook high pressure 15 minutes.Quick release, add the rice (we didn’t add the rice to the cooker as I can’t eat it), and cabbage and cook 3 minutes high pressure. Quick release and serve with additional rice if desired.

STOVE TOP DIRECTIONS:

  1. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, spray with oil then add the beef and salt, cook breaking the meat up until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, marjoram and black pepper and stir. Add the tomato sauce, 1/4 cup water, paprika, beef broth and raisins, cover and cook medium-low 25 minutes.
  2. Add the cooked rice and cabbage and cook 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender. Serve with additional rice if desired.

Makes about 6 cups.

NUTRITION INFORMATION

Yield: 4 Servings, Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups

  • Amount Per Serving:
  • Smart Points: 8
  • Points +: 8
  • Calories: 338
  • Total Fat: 8g
  • Saturated Fat: 3g
  • Cholesterol: 71mg
  • Sodium: 808mg
  • Carbohydrates: 36g
  • Fiber: 8g
  • Sugar: 5g
  • Protein: 30.5g

David’s plate with it served over rice.

I forgot to take a before with my dish.  This is a cup measurement, and I had eaten about half of it.  The flavor is spot on, and it didn’t take long at all.
We keep looking for other recipes for the Instant Pot.  I understand now what all of the talk is about.  It was super scary at first (I am afraid of it exploding!), but after this recipe and just following the directions —I love it!
Blessings!
2018 · Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Goals · Quotes · Uncategorized · WLS

House

building house

A reminder to myself.

Blessings.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Potato · Recipes · Uncategorized · WLS

Baked Smashed Vinegar Potatoes

David loves vinegar.  My cucumber salad never has enough vinegar.   He also loves potatoes.  So when I came across this recipe from Gail Simmons, we had to try it.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. small red- or white-skin new potatoes
1 cup plus 2 tsp. malt vinegar, divided, plus more for brushing
5 tbsp. kosher salt, divided, plus more for sprinkling
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ tsp. coarsely cracked black pepper
2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh chives, divided

1. Combine potatoes, 1 cup vinegar and 1 tablespoon salt in a large saucepan over high heat. Add water to cover potatoes by 1 inch. Bring to a boil; cover and simmer until potatoes are just tender, 15 to 20 minutes.2. Preheat oven to 450º. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. Whisk 4 cups cold water and remaining 4 tablespoons salt in a large bowl until salt is dissolved. Add 2 cups ice. Using a slotted spoon, transfer cooked potatoes to ice water. Let stand 30 seconds; drain and pat dry. Allow potatoes to cool slightly.4. Meanwhile, melt butter in a saucepan (or in a microwave) with pepper and 1 tablespoon chives (I always have dried chives – so this is what we used). Remove from heat and whisk in remaining 2 teaspoons vinegar.  5. Use heel of your hand to gently smash and flatten each potato to a ½-inch thickness. Arrange smashed potatoes in a single layer on prepared baking sheet.6. Brush potatoes with butter mixture, and sprinkle generously with salt. Flip and repeat on other side. Bake until edges are crispy and golden, 30 to 40 minutes. Brush generously with more vinegar; transfer to a serving platter. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon chives and desired amount of salt. Serve hot.

I think it needs additional butter as I like my potatoes crispier.  The vinegar taste was there, and we really never thought of boiling potatoes in vinegar.Overall, a tasty dish.  We served the potatoes with mini meatloaves.   My plate below.  One meatloaf and two smaller potatoes.

David loved this.

Blessings.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Beef · Recipes · Uncategorized · WLS

Zucchini Mini Meatloaf

I had planned on making lasagna with zucchini noodles, but things don’t always work out the way I plan.

Most of the zucchini went bad, but one survived.  So I decided to shred it, and make mini-meatloaves.   The zucchini add a ton of moisture, and with some other flavors, really nice mini meatloaves.One pound of ground chuck, half of onion, and one small zucchini shredded.  Added Italian seasoning, two eggs, and some panko breading.I have the Brownie pan from Pampered Chef.  I love the little square portions I am able to make with anything I cook.

These are about two ounces each piece, and works out to be about 95 calories each.My plate with the vinegar smashed potatoes (another post).  Perfect, juicy and the right portion size.

Blessings.

 

 

 

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Goals · Korean · Uncategorized · WLS

Korean Beef BBQ

I have been craving Korean BBQ for a while now, and decided to give it a try making it at home.

Part of my goals/weight loss is cooking more at home.  I found a couple of recipes, and combined what I thought would be good.  David and I loved the marinade, and will make it again.

Ingredients:

For the steak:

  • ¼ cup tamari or lite soy sauce
  • ¼ cup mirin (we made our own with Sherry and sugar)
  • ¼ cup rice wine vinegar
  • 1/2 cup Asian pear (used a firm Bartlett pear)
  • small onion, grated
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 teaspoons fresh ginger
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 1 1/2 pounds flank steak (next time will use Ribeye)
  • Canola or other neutral oil

To serve (optional):

  • 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
  • Cilantro or mint leaves
  • Kimchi
  • gochujang
  • Cooked rice, optional
  • Nori (seaweed sheets), optional
Whisk together the marinade: In a large bowl, combine the soy sauce, mirin, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, pear, onion, garlic, ginger for the marinade. Whisk until the ingredients are well-combined.

Marinate the steak for 20 to 30 minutes: Cut the skirt steak into 2-inch wide strips. Add the strips to the bowl of marinade and stir until evenly coated. Marinate the strips of beef for 20 to 30 minutes at room temperature.

Cook on a grill or stop top grill with the pan at a high heat setting.  This cooks quickly, so be careful not to burn.To serve: Sprinkle the beef with sesame seeds and cilantro or mint, if using. Serve with rice, kimchi, nori, and gochujang.  We did roasted mini peppers and purple onion.  David’s plate, served over rice.My plate. Lots of peppers and not so much meat. This so satisfied my craving for Korean.Like I said earlier, we will make this again! So yummy. Need to change the meat as the flank steak gets a little tough. Marinade was spot on.

Blessings.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Recipes · Uncategorized · WLS

Cheese Crisps

I have seen these around Pinterest, and other sites, and decided to give them a try.  And, I got a fail—-big Pinterest FAIL!So the recipe was pretty simple.  Take cheese slices, place them on the baking sheet (with a silpat), bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.  Well, this was my fail.  Too many cheese slices on the baking sheet.  Everything melted together.  Yes, fail.  So to recover, I cut the sheet and tried baking them a bit further.I spread them out more as well.  They turned out wonderful this way.  Crispy, crunchy, and savory.  Loved these, and will make them again….So much better than buying them already done.  I liked failing at this.  It made me want to succeed, and conquer cooking.  It was supposed to be super simple, and easy.  It was, but if you do it correctly.

Blessings!

 

 

 

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Goals · Uncategorized · WLS

No-Bake Energy Bites

Or Protein Balls.  I made these for my Lunch prep for last week.  Super yummy.

1 cup oats
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1/4 chia seeds
1/4 hemp seeds
1/3 cup honey
1 scoop protein powder (I used vanilla flavored)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

Keep these separate for rolling in later.
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened cocount
1 Tablespoon Cacao

Mix the dry ingredients then add the peanut butter and honey. Stir until well blended.

I rolled them in Cacao and coconut.  Next time I will incorporate those items into the balls, as they really didn’t stick as well as I thought they would.

Form into balls, and place into the freezer for about a hour to firm or set.  Thaw to enjoy!

Blessings!

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Goals · Recipes · roasted · Uncategorized · WLS

Sautéed Scallops

Okay… I love Gordon Ramsey. We had frozen scallops (first fail I am sure), but I have been wanting to try his recipe.

Pat the scallops dry.  Season with salt and pepper.  Place oil in hot pan.

Place them individually clockwise in the pan with the “fatter” side down.

Cook until browned on bottom (about 3 minutes).

For one set of scallops we added a tablespoon of butter, and a thyme stem.  It definitely added flavor.

Drain on a paper towel, and enjoy!

One batch we did without the extra butter but with the thyme, still yummy.

David’s plate (we had leftover Burgundy mushrooms) and served with roasted broccoli.

img_3252

My plate.  The scallops didn’t need any additional sauce or seasoning.  I so loved them, and we will make them again!

Blessings!

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Lunch · Lunch Prep · new habits · Recipes · Uncategorized · WLS

Chickpeas

I needed to make some snacks that would incorporate my healthy changes.

Prepping for the week so that I plan to succeed. These are simple and a tasty snack on their own or on top of salads.

One can of chickpeas, drain and rinse until bubbles are gone. Dry on paper towels.

Put onto a baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil, and sprinkle cumin, cayenne pepper and paprika over, and roll to make sure they are evenly coated.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until crispy.

Sprinkle with coarse salt. Store in an air tight container. These will spoil quickly. I store mine in the refrigerator.

Blessings!

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Lunch · Lunch Prep · Uncategorized · WLS

Lunch Prep

I planned and prepped for the week for lunches and snacks. Will post recipes for chickpeas, cheese crisps and salad dressing throughout this week.

Plan your work, work your plan.  Right?

So rotisserie chicken, spinach, cheese crisps, chickpeas, antioxidant dressing—and protein balls.  We can do this!!

Blessings!