Lunchtime a la McDougall

"Pictures say more than 1000 words", right? So just to show (again) how my lunches look like, this time completely Mc Dougall approved ;). 

1 baked potato, 1/2 c black beans, 2 c turnip greens, 2 small tomatoes, salt & pepper and some hot sauce, done!

 Mixed it all up. It was sooo good and I was full afterwards!!!

This one is actually from his book 'Quick & Easy cookbook' and is really a super simple dish! Barley, beans, corn, onion, bell pepper, mushroom and a few peas thrown together (sauteed in a pan), spiced according to your taste, done! Low cal,  super filling and super yummy!

 

And even though this is completely unrelated, I think it's too pretty not to share!:

Today's sunset! It's been raining and thundering all day (completely with constant power outages we sadly get immediately with this kind of weather!.. *eye roll*) but when it cleared up and I was looking out of the kitchen window, I saw this gorgeous sunset, so I rushed into our son's room, from where I got a better view (since it's in the top floor of the house) and this is what I got! [Above!]
It usually looks more like the pic below! 

 

Soups!

I love soups! I could eat them every day, seriously!

Thankfully my husband is the same way, so we have soup quite often in our house, especially now that it's starting to get cooler outside. (Well, here in Sicily not quite yet, but hopefully soon!..)

The other day I had some cabbage left over from making Dr. Fuhrmann's Cabbage Salad (which is delicious, by the way!!!) and decided to make cabbage soup! I remembered having seen a recipe for it on Susan's site over on Fat Free Vegan. I didn't follow it to a 'T' but more or less and it turned out awesome!

The best thing about that kind of soup is: If you're watching your waistline or possibly even want to lose a few pounds, with this one you don't have to worry! It's low in calories yet full of good stuff so you can actually eat a healthy portion (yes, even have seconds!) and not sweat it! ;) 

I will certainly post more soup recipes more often from now on! :)

Another bread post!

I guess by now it's clear that I love my bread, huh? ;-) 

I'll admit though, after having started to watch my calorie intake again a bit closer (having quit smoking some months ago -in November '11 to be exact!- led me to have an increased appetite and over time some few extra unwanted pounds crept up *blech*) I'm probably not going to easily wolf down 2 slices at a time anymore soon!.. Unless they're lower in calories, which is why I'd like to share following 2 bread recipes! From all of my bread recipes I've posted so far, those seem to be really in the lower range! (Still more than a store bought bread, unfortunately.., but we'll have to remind ourselves that the home made ones are much better quality and no preservatives!!!)

I found both recipes on Alicia C. Simpson's blog Vegan Guinea pig and did the calculation over on Sparkpeople (which is a site I've joined years ago but have been MIA for quite some time and just recently started to re-visit! It's awesome for all kinds of things, whether you're interested in nutritional tracking, fitness tracking and conversing with others, get inspired, find a fitness buddy, etc.).

If you ever wanted to find me directly, I'm here: MomOf2Gremlins ;-)

Long story, short, here are the 2 wonderful bread (machine) recipes! 

  ~* Daily Bread *~

Makes a 1 1/2 pound loaf (~10 slices)

1/2 C Water
1/2 C Oat, Soy or Almond Milk
1 Egg Replacer Egg (I use Ener G)
3 C Bread Flour (sometimes I use 2C bread Flour and 1 C Wheat Flour)
2T Milled Flax Seed
1T Vital Wheat Gluten
1.5t salt
1T Olive Oil
2t Bread Machine Yeast
I bake on light - Remove when complete and cool on rack. Sometimes this cools before the family makes me cut it up. Perfect for sandwiches.

Per slice: 157 calories, 2 fat, 28 carbs, 6 protein

~* Potato Bread *~ 

Makes 1 ½ pound loaf (~10 slices)

½ cup water

2/3 cup almond milk

1 ½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 ½ tablespoons agave nectar

2 ½ cups bread flour

1/3 cup instant potato flakes

1 tablespoon gluten (optional)

1 ¼ teaspoons salt

2 ¼ teaspoon bread machine yeast

Place all ingredients in the pan according to the order in manufacturer’s instructions (usually liquids on bottom, solids on top) be sure not to put the potato flakes and the liquids close together as he flakes will absorb the liquids too fast and change the outcome of the finished product.

Set the crust on medium and use the basic white bread cycle (do not use delayed start for this bread).

When the baking cycle ends immediately remove the bread from the plan and place it on a rack to cool. Allow to cool to room temperature before slicing.

Credit goes to Alicia C. Simpson (Vegan Guinea Pig)

Per slice: 175 cals, 3 fat, 31 carbs, 1.5 fiber, 3 sugar, 5.6 protein

Oh and in case you never know how to store your fresh baked bread, I found this adjustable bread keeper few weeks ago on Amazon and love it! All of my bread machine breads fit well in it and keep really nice and fresh! (Not that bread survives longer than 3 days in our household anyway! *lol*)