Lent is coming (and here's a recipe!)

Yeah yeah, and so's that snowstorm that I don't want to talk about. Go me, posting something that is NOT a Quick Take!

Lent starts for Byzantine Catholics on Monday, and since our first day (and Good Friday) requires total abstinence from all animal products (but not fish--I still don't really get it), we like to plan ahead for what to eat that day.

This year, I'll be making this:

Photo credit: http://us.riojawine.com/files/images/recipes_casas_red_pepper_salad.jpg

Ensalada De Pimientos Estilo-Andaluz
(Red Pepper, Tomato, And Tuna Salad, Andalusian Style)
From One Pot Spanish, by Penelope Casas, page 20; recipe copied from http://us.riojawine.com/en/97-penelope-casas.html since I was too lazy to type it all out.

This version of Andalusian red pepper salad comes from the Cazorla restaurant in Madrid and is an especially delicious rendition. It includes tomato, white-meat tuna and mild bright green olives and it is served in a bowl with lots of liquid from the peppers and tomatoes. More than salad in itself it is meant as a side dish to Andalusian fried fish and grilled shrimp to place on your plate with the fish and take more as you please.

Serves 4

6 medium-large, deep red bell peppers
1/2 pound good-quality white-meat tuna, preferably imported from Spain
1/2 pound ripe but firm tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch slices, then halved
12 mild bright green olives, such as Cerignola
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
6 tablespoons fruity extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon wine vinegar, preferably mild white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Kosher or sea salt

Preheat the oven to 550'F. Place the peppers in a roosting pan and cook until charred, turning once, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and place in a deep dish. Cover with foil and let sit for 15 minutes. Peel off the skin, core, and seed the peppers, reserving the juices.

Slice the peppers into 3/4-inch strips and place in a bowl. Add the tuna, broken into chunks, the tomatoes, olives, and parsley. Fold in the oil, vinegar, sugar, and salt to taste with a rubber spatula. Refrigerate overnight. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Notes from me:
The picture in our cookbook is different from this one that I found online, but I think this will be delicious. I'll be making a few adjustments: I'm using canned tuna, black olives, and dried parsley, since we already have those things on hand. I was excited that red peppers have been on sale for *only* $1.99/pound lately. If you don't have or can't find Vidalia onions, I'd think that a sweet onion, or really, ANY onion would be fine. I'm using whatever we have in our bin in the basement. I just wish I could get summer tomatoes now, since I think the dish would be even better with those, versus the ones we get in the winter.

Additionally, this recipe is great for those of us who are always scrambling to get dinner on the table, as you have to prepare it ahead of time and leave it in the fridge. Now, as for what to serve it with...I was planning on buying a loaf of crusty, multigrain bread at the store, but we're expecting THAT storm and who knows if I'll be able to get down to the store. Plus, it won't be so fresh by Monday. I do have some whole wheat rolls in the freezer(which happen to be vegan!) that I could toast under the broiler and serve with olive oil. Also, to fill up the plate (and the belly) a little more, I think I'll serve it over a bed of raw spinach or kale. I have both in the fridge.

Something I don't get (food)

(If you're friends with me on Facebook, yes, this is my current status, so no, you're not seeing things)

What's awkward: when you're heating up your lunch and someone compliments you on it, then you say something like "thanks! leftovers from the other night" but that's not the end of it. Then they share what they had for dinner last night, which was something like fast food or sandwiches. I never understand this; are they trying to make me feel sorry for them? I've had this happen repeatedly, from different people. It was nothing elaborate* either--a chicken leg quarter (drumstick & thigh), sweet potato, and asparagus.

Why the need to comment on my food (or about yours) besides "that looks great" or "what are you having?" I didn't ask what you had. I don't know how to reply to your statement. Should I say "sorry" or "you can cook like this too?" Or just nod and smile?

One other thing: yes, I eat healthy MOST of the time. There's no need to proclaim that loudly in the kitchen or at the lunch table. I know I'm overweight, but guess what? I still like to try to eat healthy. I don't get why it's always so amazing to other people that some people like fruits and vegetables for lunch. I'm always thinking "okayyyy???"


*not elaborate to ME, I understand that some people out there are daunted by the oven! :)

A recipe post: Roasted Tomato Sauce

I don't share many here, probably since I hardly ever cook. I am blessed with a husband who enjoys cooking, and, as a bonus, is fabulous in the kitchen. I've preferred to take a back seat, performing more sous chef duties or scullery maid chores. C says that I'm lazy about cooking, but to me, it's not so much that I don't CARE about food...it's just that there are other things more important to me rather than spending hours in the kitchen!

We had a ton of fresh tomatoes that needed to be used up. The inspiration for this sauce came to me a few weeks ago. At that time, we were making a Rick Bayless sauce which we then froze for later (will be great over some enchiladas or huevos rancheros!). While we were making it, I commented on how much it looked like pasta sauce. C replied that there was a sauce recipe out there, with a similar method, and that I needed to watch a video first. Then we could make the sauce.

It look me a few days? weeks? to watch the video. Here it is, for your viewing pleasure. The guy is a genius--C found him months ago and has been eating up (ha!) his ideas.



After viewing, I knew I could make the sauce--it was that easy. So last night, while C was hunting, I noticed that the tomatoes we had picked during the week were starting to look scary. I didn't want them to go to waste.

Now, due to poor planning on my part, I had to deviate from the recipe. I'll share with you what I did as well as the REAL recipe. Guess who didn't have any onions in the house??? I don't know HOW that happened. And we didn't have any fresh oregano, but...we don't often have it, so whatever.

Here's Chef John's recipe, in case you didn't want to watch the video or did and forgot to write it down:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup good olive oil
28-oz can San Marzano plum tomatoes, regular or packed with basil
1/2 onion, sliced
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes
2-3 springs fresh oregano
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups cold water

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425*
2. In casserole dish, pour in olive oil.
3. Cut up tomatoes and onions. Peel and crush garlic.
4. Add tomatoes to dish, then onion, followed by garlic, red chili, oregano, salt, and pepper. Mix.
5. Roast, uncovered, for 1 hour.
6. Take out, stir, and put back in oven for 15-20 minutes.
7. Pour contents into saucepan, add water.
8. Mash up vegetables.
9. Simmer (to reduce liquid) and season to taste.

My Version:

Ingredients:

Enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the casserole dish
3 pounds of raw tomatoes (I used mostly 4^th of July and some heirloom)
14.5 oz can tomato sauce
1 head garlic (to make up for the missing onion)
red chili flakes
oregano
basil
onion powder (to make up for the missing onion)
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups cold water

PLEASE NOTE: I didn't really measure much here, so bear with me :-)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425*
2. In casserole dish, pour in olive oil. I used enough to coat the bottom. The point is, you don't want anything to stick.
   
3. Cut up tomatoes—not too small, mostly in half. Peel and crush garlic. It was at this point where I decided it would be a GREAT idea to use the entire head, you know, to compensate for no onion. More on this, later.
   
4. Add tomatoes to dish, followed by garlic, red chili, and oregano. I just sprinkled the last two over the tomatoes until it looked "good." Because that's a measurement!
5. I added about 1/3 of the canned sauce on top, since Chef John's canned tomatoes had sauce.
   
6. Roast, uncovered, for 1 hour. I don't know how long it was in there when I realized I never set the timer. Oops. Probably 20 minutes. The tomatoes on top and around the sides might get a little blackened, but that's OK.
   
7. Take out, stir, and put back in oven for 15-20 minutes.
8. Pour vegetables into saucepan, add water.
9. Mash up vegetables.
10. Simmer and season to taste.

I was at step 9 when I realized that just salt and pepper were not going to make this anything great. I then added:

• onion powder. By the time I was done, I ended up using a lot. Maybe 1/2 cup?
  
• dried basil. Probably a tablespoon, maybe two?
• more salt and pepper
  

Stir, taste, add. Stir, taste, add. This went on for awhile, also because the sauce was too thin for my eye, so I needed to reduce it. Oooh, I made a REDUCTION; that's some fancy restaurant language for you. I did add the remainder of the can of sauce at some point, just because I didn't want to waste it. The need for reducing could have been because I used fresh tomatoes, versus Chef John using canned.

My husband's reaction tonight when I heated it up for dinner, serving it over penne and some grilled chicken sausage??? "A plus, excellent job. I don't think I could have done this better." Which is a HUUUUUUGE compliment coming from him. He's so good, he's often a harsh critic on other peoples' cooking.

Some of you might be wondering how long this took. It's no thirty minute meal, that's for sure. Obviously the prep, then roasting of the tomatoes will take you about an hour and a half, if not longer, then the reduction of the sauce will take you time. I started this sauce before I made dinner on Saturday night, and finished it well after we were done eating. So it's a good thing to make if you're going to be sitting around the house for a bit. I'll guesstimate 3 hours, tops?

It made about 5 cups of sauce--enough for us to have two generous helpings for tonight's dinner, AND I have enough for Monday and Tuesday lunch! I love when that happens.

Healthy eating at work and on the go

This post was originally going to be a simple comment over at Jessica's blog, after her post about taking care of yourself, but it grew too long and I felt it was sort of rude to just dump an almost-essay in someone's comments. So I turned it into a "real" post, expanding it to a reasl essay and adding more tips for the general population.

If you've got blood sugar issues, or just feel better when you eat every few hours, you need to keep a lot of snacks on hand and find the time to snack frequently. This can be a challenge no matter your life situation, but even more daunting when you're at work. You can start your day on a great note, but lunch schedules, rules about food, meetings, extended days can all take a toll on our so-called plans. Also, when you're on the go, be it after work running errands or on the weekend while volunteering or road-tripping, it can be tough to make sure you've got the right fuel in you.

[I've been told I have insulin resistance, but all of my test results are fine, I've never had to do the challenge with the drinks, so I try to watch my starchy carb intake and eat small meals/snacks throughout the day. My anxiety is also kept at bay with frequent food in take. Strange.]

Healthy eating isn't just about what you put in your mouth. It's about making time to eat, eating good food, and avoiding traps.

Making time to eat at work
I'm fortunate that I don't have a set lunch time and that there are no rules about food in my office. So I eat what I want, when I want, where I want. 95% of the time I bring food from home and eat at my desk. Obviously I don't bring in anything stinky since we don't have a closed off lunch area and I don't want to gross out my coworkers. I know, I should really take a lunch break but the lunch table is 10 steps from my desk, people don't care if you're eating and they have a question, and I'd much rather prefer to go out and run errands or stay in to read blogs, check email, go on Facebook for my breaks.

If you have a set time or can only eat in a break room, it's harder to make that time for yourself. Hopefully you can get on a schedule that works for you and your body, and if you have to eat away from your desk, remember to GO to lunch. You'll be doing yourself a huge favor. I used to skip lunch a lot and would pay for it later. Sometimes I still forget to eat, I just get absorbed in a project and think "after I've coded this" or "let me insert 3 more images, then I'll go heat up my lunch." Then it's 2:30 and I wonder why I feel horrible.

Eating good food, no matter where you are
Often times, people are daunted by eating healthy in general, but especially at work. You might hear "I always go out with my coworkers" or "the cafeteria is soooo good" or "Subway is cheap and fast!"

For me, I don't have the coworker peer pressure of going out--most people in my office bring from home. There's no cafeteria. There are places to get food, but since you have to drive everywhere, by the time you run out, order, wait, come back, you'll have to end up eating at your desk since we only get a half hour for lunch. Some work places will be harder to break the habit...but if you have to get take out, there are healthy options in almost every place. Yes, even at the Chinese restaurant! A simple search of "eating healthy while dining out" will give you over 3 million hits. And you can do it right before you head out with your coworkers to the new place up the street.

Lunch can get boring, which can lead us back into temptation of junk food and not-so-great lunches. For years, I ate turkey and cheese with mustard on wheat bread. Then I got SICK of turkey. Couldn't even look at it without feeling nauseous kind of sick. C kept buying it, I wouldn't eat it and it went bad. I've started back up, alternating with things like tuna salad, lean roast beef, and leftovers. Plus salads and soups.

My newest favorite sandwich, which is only five points on Weight Watchers is something out of Victorian England: a Sandwich Thin (3 pts), two wedges of Laughing Cow cheese (1 pt each)--the other day I used garlic & herb, and slices of cucumber. Delicious, satisfying and fun, since it was so different. The rest of the cucumber I ate on the side. [We have many since they are finally coming in...]

Then there's the matter of storage. Luckily, my office only has about 45 people in it and we have a full sized fridge in our kitchenette. Obviously tons of food won't fit (unlike some of my coworkers who have gone grocery shopping at lunch) but I can always stash a yogurt, cheese, some fruit & veggies, hummus, etc. Recently at work, I've had Greek yogurt (more protein & less sugar than regular), nectarines, apples, baby carrots, raw sugar snap peas, hummus, pre-packaged cheddar cheese cuts. Plus anything I bring from home.

If you've also got a fridge at work, great! Use it to its fullest extent, but please be mindful of your coworkers--make sure you don't take up too much room, throw out old food, and be neat. If you don't have access to a fridge, you can still eat healthy. The climate of each workplace is vastly different, but some produce can be left out if you don't have a fridge or if there isn't much space--apples are good, tomatoes are as well. I've even left out a peach or nectarine for a day or two to ripen.

Additionally, get an insulated bag and some of those freezable packs and you're ready to go. I bought mine at Walmart, years ago for less than $10. It's so big, I can put a 6 pack in there. I don't use mine very often, since my ride is a half hour and I make my lunch right before I leave. I figure the car ride won't make anything spoil. On days where I have appointments prior to work, and going straight in from there, I pack my bag and don't have to worry about my salad wilting in a hot car.

Speaking of my car, I find that I need to keep snacks in there, in case I have a dip in my blood sugar. Snacks can also help you stay on track, if you're attempting to eat healthy or lose weight. Ever try to find a suitable snack while at a gas station? Even the packages of nuts aren't that great for you, especially if a bag contains 3 servings. It's so easy to wolf down the entire thing, and you've just consumed 500+ calories! Which brings me to another point...

Avoiding traps
My last job, working in a bookstore with an in-store cafe was DANGEROUS. A cookie or a scone was always a stairwell away. Then I came to my current company, where I got used to not having food around. I had to go out, even for a soda. Four years went by, then we got a vending machine. For a long time, I avoided it, but one day I caved. And then caved again. It was SO easy, and I always had change. I've managed to break the habit again, but it's always there...

Solution: having snacks at your desk or nearby, and definitely in your car, as I mentioned above. Besides what I keep in our fridge at work, I also always have a can of soup in my desk, in case my lunch ends up terrible, or I forgot it at home, or have to work late and am starving. I think I also have some oatmeal packets and a Special K bar or two.

It's tough when you want to eat healthy and/or "whole foods" as possible, but you are on the go. Carrying fresh fruit is a challenge! My go-to fruits have been apples or bananas, since bananas are wrapped already and apples are a bit more durable than other fruits. Summer time is when all of the easy damaged fruits are in season--berries, peaches, nectarines--I've managed to wrap them up in wads of paper towels, and they've been unscathed but that can be wasteful. Sometimes, I'll use a clean, dry dishcloth to protect the fruit. Baby carrots are good for a purse or bag, as well.

In the cooler months, I was keeping Special K bars or cereal bars in my car, but now that it's summer, things melt. My summer snack will be raisins and unsalted peanut, portioned out into baggies. I made some today; it felt like I was creating party favors! There's 2 tablespoons of raisins and 3 tablespoons of peanuts in there, for 6 points. That's almost what some of my sandwiches are, but if I need it, they are there in the car for me.

I keep mentioning Special K bars; no, I am not being paid for this endorsement. They have been a life saver for me. Only 90 calories, portable, individually wrapped. There are better options out there, but with more calories; maybe something by Kashi with a bit more protein? Those are stashable, too. I avoid them only because I have an almond sensitivity and they really like using almonds. I used to like eating them...

I hope my tips and tricks are useful to you! Remember, as I said in the beginning, healthy eating isn't just about what you put in your mouth. It's about making time to eat, eating good food, and avoiding traps. No matter what your reason is for wanting to be healthier, it can be done with a little planning ahead and preparation.

Good luck!

"Fat" Sunday

Yup, today is pretty much Fat Sunday for Byzantine Catholics. Priest's Wife explains what goes on much better than I do, so you can read that here. In short, our Lent starts tomorrow, not on Ash Wednesday, like Roman Catholics. We don't get ashes on Wednesday, either, which makes me miss my old traditions (I'll try to post about that on Wednesday).

Tomorrow and Good Friday are totally meat-less and animal product-less, although we can eat fish. Don't ask, I don't really get it either. As an aside, when I was a practicing Roman, I never got why we couldn't eat meat on Fridays during Lent either. Byz Caths abstain from meat on Wednesdays and Fridays during Lent, but we can eat dairy, eggs, and fish. Bring on the fish & chips and ravioli, please!

(I say "practicing Roman" because ritually speaking, I am still a Roman Catholic. It's kind of like being a registered Republican, but voting Democratic--it's all about numbers and "where" you are. Does it matter in God's eyes? I tend not to think so. Plus, Turtle himself was Roman for years and didn't even know it, even though he practiced as a Byz. Note to self: share that story sometime; it's a hoot, if you're into church jokes/humor, haha.)

Soooo back to today! Tonight we're celebrating my dad's birthday, which was yesterday, by having my parents and brother over for dinner. On the menu: pasta with clam sauce (including bacon!), homemade garlic bread, salad, and of course, some kind of cake. My mom's bringing that. Definitely a "fat" meal in more ways that one, haha. Turtle's at the store right now getting the last minute ingredients and I should be cleaning up and getting stuff done.

I hope everyone--no matter their rite or denomination--has a good and spiritually full fast. And no, I'm not giving anything up. Personally, I think that's lame. (And, um, I always cheat if it's food-related, ha.) I'm going to try and be a better friend, wife, worker, person. Let's see how this goes.

Busy busy busy

I'd say as a bee, but it's December 15, and it is FREEZING here. Actually, below freezing.

I'm long on things to write about, and short on time, so this will have to do for now.

I know I have comments from people, and I'd like to reply to them...but this house is cold, so I need to start a fire, then comes dinner prep.

We're having this tonight instead of whatever was on my meal plan:
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/pasta-with-bacon-cauliflower-recipe-00000000029610/index.html I cannot wait, it looks delicious!

I have a ton of cauliflower that's in the freezer. Got it fresh a few weeks ago (thanks Dad!), steamed it, and froze it. Bacon was already pulled out, so why not?

Tonight is Turtle's late night so I hope he's surprised.

Most of all, I hope it's GOOD!