Healthy Breakfast Anyone?

I like to have a heavy breakfast. I mean, when I am done with breakfast I like to feel full.

One strategy I've learned is to begin the day with some fairly simple carbohydrates like fructose that kick-start your metabolism after several hours of general lethargy. I usually have a couple of prunes as soon as I wake up while I make my first cup of morning coffee.

For breakfast, I try to work in a lot of fiber since the type of food we eat in the West for breakfast lends itself well to fiber loading. I also try to ensure I get a high quality protein as well which for me usually means some fat free dairy--either fat free cottage cheese, which has an extremely high protein to calorie ratio, or yogurt which is higher on the carbohydrates. I usually include an some additional less complex sugars in the form of fresh and frozen fruit as well. Through the rest of the day, I usually don't consume much other simpler sugars, including fruit.

This recipe is as simple as could be, and it makes for a wonderfully delicious breakfast.

Fruit Oatmeal

1/2 Cup Strawberries or 1/4 Cup Blueberries, Frozen (fresh are okay, too, but frozen are less expensive, cook down easier and keep longer!)
3/4 Cup Whole Old Fashion Oats (slightly over one normal serving)
1/2 Cup Water
1 Teaspoon Honey or Sorghum Molasses

The fruit will give up enough enough liquid to properly cook the oats. First, add the fruit and water to a small pot, bring to a boil, add the oats, and reduce heat. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking . . . it should cook in about five minutes, but you want it to be pretty thick by the time you are done but a little standing liquid is okay. Let cool for about 3-5 minutes while still on the (off) burner and it will continue to adsorb moisture. If you have a hard time getting you kids to have a healthier breakfast--look no further!

Poll Results on Eating Choices

I just wanted to quickly share the results of my recent poll on people's eating/cooking choices. The question was simply, "Which is most important to you when making food decisions for dishes you will cook yourself?"

Choices along with their results:

30% Healthiness
22% Expense
33% Ease of Preparation
15% How Quickly it is Ready
0% Earth Friendiness (Sustainable, Organic, et cetera)

Hopefully, no matter which if these is most important, "I Like My Recipes Healthy, Cheap and Easy" is delivering on all fronts!

No recipes, today, I'm afraid, but we've got several things "on the burner" so to speak including another lentil and another potato soup, homemade salsa, more salad dressings, a healthy version of aloo tikki, and much much more, all coming up!

Also, you may have noticed there are now several advertisements appearing on the blog. I've tried (when possible) to identify partners like Coupons.Com, CoffeeForLess, and MotherNature.Com that are aligned to the "mission" of this blog--to eat great tasting food that is healthy and doesn't break the budget. Some of the ads are generated based on the blog's keywords, as well, so perhaps there will be something there that you are interested in checking out.

Until next time--good cooking and good eating to you!

Hoppin' Johns

Black beans and brown rice are a staple of mine. A bag of brown rice is under $2. A bag or dried black beans is under $2. Together, they make about 8 generous servings that, with a few extras, can serve as a delicious and healthy meal.

It requires some planning as is always the case with dried beans. I find it is best to soak the black beans at least 12 hours, but 18 is even better.

8 oz Dry Black Beans, Soaked
1 1/2 Cups Brown Rice
Romaine Lettuce (enough for a bed to plate the lettuce)
1/4 Cup Salsa per serving
1/8 Cup Fat-Free Plain Yogurt
Cayenne
Hot Sauce/Tobasco Sauce optional

You can put the beans and rice on at the same time. Completely cover the beans with water and bring to a rolling boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add about 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne to give the beans a touch of additional flavor and heat.

Combine the rice with 3 cups of water, bring to a complete boil, and then reduce to low heat, a very low simmer and cover. The rice will take about 40 minutes to cook, and so will the beans.

After about 40 minutes, put down a bed of romaine. Romaine is really best for this recipe. It is a tall lettuce with rigid leaves that are tightly packed together. The leaves are dark green, with the inner leaves having less color. Some consider romaine the most flavorful lettuce variety. It is usually cheaper to buy a bundle of it, wash and shred it yourself, but you can buy it prewashed and ready as well.

Next, pile on your rice and then put your black beans on top of that. Then your salsa follows (I'll give you a quick and easy salsa recipe in the following weeks, but you can use any canned variety, but I urge you to pay attention to the ingredients and try to find something preservative free). After that, put on your dollop of yogurt. Fat free plain yogurt is a fantastic substitute for fatty sour cream--so good, in fact, no one who hasn't seen me dumping yogurt on their Cubano food hasn't asked, "Is this sour cream?" So, save yourself a heart attack and try yogurt instead.

That's it. Two pots dirty and your plates. This is also a great packed lunch dish since you can make it for dinner the night before and prepare yourself a Hoppin' John for breakfast the next morning and stick in your lunch box.

I had a bit of an eclectic meal the last time I served this, having some spinach with garlic and vinegar and some locally made kim chee to go along with this. The spiciness of the kim chee went well with the spiciness of the Hoppin' John (to which I added quite a bit of hot sauce to in addition to the hot salsa), and then vinegar taste of the spinach (recipe given in a previous post) went well with the kim chee, so in the end it all came together. I hope you enjoy as much as I did!

A Tasty Pasta Salad

Where I live, the price of red and yellow bell peppers tends to follow that of silver, but occasionally I am able to catch them on sale at a reasonable price. I gorge myself on them fresh, always slice and put a few pounds into the freezer for a later date, and also usually roast and then freeze a few red bells to use. I try not to keep any food in my freezer longer than a month for fear of freezer burn, loss of taste, or mixing of tastes. For this colorful and healthy recipe, though, fresh peppers are a must. Also, be sure to use red onion. Another step you can take is to lightly toss your red onion in a little lime or lemon juice, too, as it neutralizes some of the heat and makes it more palatable, as well as the bit of juice that is added to this recipe.


Remember, folks, that tuna, while an inexpensive and high quality source of protein, is also a danger because of high mercury levels. You should treat it as just that--a treat--rather than a staple. I do not eat tuna more than once a month. Also, remember that tuna fishing is having a devastating impact on some species and local ecosystems. When you do choose to eat tuna, choose albacore. Canned tuna is often sold as “chunk white” or “chunk light." Chunk white is always albacore, although chunk light may refer to a number of species: bigeye, yellowfin, skipjack or tongol tuna. Skipjack is an okay alternative, but except for extremely rare sashimi treats, avoid yellowfin, bigeyed, and tongol. For more information on making healthy seafood choices, see Seafood Watch from the Monterey Aquarium.

Pasta Salad Recipe

Cook 2 cups of whole wheat pasta (elbow or bowtie noodles), rinse with cold water, strain and set aside
Chop 2-3 red bell peppers (yellow and orange are also okay--I like to use all three to make this an especially colorful dish)
1/2 cup of sliced olives, black or green (I prefer green in this dish, and you can use whole olives, just make sure they are pitted)
1 small RED onion, chopped fine
1 clove of garlic, chopped very fine
About 1 teaspoon of oregano or Italian seasoning (more to taste)
A pinch of salt
One or two turns of the peppermill
A can of drained albacore tuna
1 tablespoon of olive oil (or less)

Add this all together and toss. Serve cold.

That's all, folks!

Hearty Vegan Lentil Soup

Get ready for two lentil soups: one vegan and the one to follow made with the delicious but humble hambone!

This is a complete protein, high in fiber, and with enough carbs to keep you going but is almost entirely fat free.

Hearty Vegan Lentil Soup

1 1/2 Cups Brown Lentils
1/2 to 3/4 Cup Pearl Barley (remember barley expands 4X as it cooks)
About 4 cups of water (you will need to add more as it reduces)
Plenty of Fresh Black Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne
1 Teaspoon Basil (dried is better for this recipe)
1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric
Salt to taste

This recipe is simple--combine all the ingredients in a pot and bring to a rolling boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for about 50 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more water if needed.

The main flavor comes from the black pepper, so be generous with it. It is also better to add one or two turns of the pepper grinder to each dish as you serve it. If you don't have turmeric, you can omit it but it does give a subtle flavor and enhances the color of this particular dish.

Quick and Easy Japanese Meal

This isn't properly a recipe of any sort. Instead, it is just a quick and easy meal of the type you will rarely find here--one with mostly pre-prepared ingredients. It is simple, fast and easy--it should be done in under 15 minutes. It is a good summer meal, too, as except for your bowl of miso soup these are all cool or cold dishes!

Here's your menu!

Yomainma Soba with Wasabi
White Miso with Shiitake and Tofu
Mixed Greens with Wasabi-Miso Vinaigrette
Fresh Watermelon

Yomainma Soba-->Buckwheat Soba Noodles with Yam

These prepared noodles, imported by JFC International, have just four ingredients: wheat flour, buckwheat flour, yam and salt. These cost less than $3 a bag. If you don't have a store nearby that carries them, you can order them online. You can get them in bulk from a vendor here or can buy individual packages here.

With only 210 calories per serving (5 per bag) and 10 grams of protein, they are perfect to complete a meal with some soy. Simply put into boiling water and cook 6-8 minutes. After cooking, rinse under cold water--these are not served hot. Then, set them aside to drip dry for a few minutes before dishing. I actually put them into a pot of ice water for a few minutes after rinsing them before straining and allowing them to drip.

When dishing, add a little wasabi--to taste, but at least 1/4 inch per serving--and a splash of soy sauce. Mix well and serve with the rest of this meal.

White Miso with Shiitake Mushrooms and Tofu

You need to prepare for this before by soaking your dried mushroom for twenty minutes beforehand in cool water (if using fresh shiitakes, then no need, of course). You just need 1 mushroom for every two servings. Remove, slice as thinly as you can manage, and add to your water. Take extra firm tofu and slice into 1"x 1" squares and set aside.

You want to bring your water to a near boil, remove from heat and stir in your miso paste (follow the directions of your miso. I recommend paste, not dried miso, as the paste is more likely to be all natural). After you've stirred in your miso to where it has mostly dissolved, return to heat at very low--you do not want your miso soup to come to a boil. You can now add your tofu.

Another way to make this soup is to also add very small potato squares, but this time peeled. You'll have to boil your potatoes beforehand, though, as you don't want to let your miso cook so long. Adding nori, or seaweed, is also a great addition to this recipe. I used to have this with my breakfast when I lived in Japan.

Salad with Wasabi-Miso Vinaigrette

This is easy enough--just make the vinaigrette recipe in the last blog entry, serve over mixed lettuce or greens (avoid too much iceberg as it has nearly no nutrition). Add whatever you normally enjoy in your salad, and the faint hints of wasabi and miso will help tie this simple but elegant meal all together!


Watermelon!

I served with with two cups of fresh watermelon as a dessert. At only about 90 calories and with plenty of nutritional value (vitamins A and C), it was a nice cold end to this pleasant warm weather meal.


Here is the nutritional information for each person:
415 Calories, 7 grams of fat (5 from soy), 19 grams protein

Wasabi-Miso Vinaigrette

One of my great pleasures is the simple salad with one of my own homemade dressings. I have a lot of different ones. from Asian soy and sesame to honey mustard, all prepared from simple ingredients by yours truly. Here is one of my dressings that sometimes gets more attention than the rest of the entire meal. Make this and keep it in the fridge--it will easily keep a month if you don't use it up first (this recipe makes about 6-10 servings depending on how much you like to use). It is also a good idea to make this a day before you plan to serve it--it allows the flavors to mix and the garlic to mellow in the vinegar.

Wasabi-Miso Vinaigrette

4 Tablespoons Good Quality Balsamic Vinegar
1 Garlic Clove, finely chopped
1 Teaspoon White Miso Paste
3/4" of Prepared Wasabi (from tube)
1/2 Teaspoon Soy Sauce
2 Teaspoons Olive Oil

Combine all ingredients except oil and stir together--you want to make sure the miso dissolves. Once you've ensured that there isn't a miso clump still there, add your oil. Refrigerate over night before serving to allow the "heat" of the garlic to mellow in the balsamic vinegar. This dressing is good enough to drink, and with a couple teaspoons drizzled over a mixed green salad, you have a side dish or a snack worth committing seppuku for. Oh, and you can easily cut the olive oil to a teaspoon, but you do want some to help the dressing "cling" to your salad.

Remember to shake, stir or whirl this before serving, though, as the garlic and other goodies tend to settle in the bottom, and if not the first person you serve will end up getting all the oil on their salad!