Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Don't get the CRABS!

Hey everyone. I wanted to just drop a blog to say that Jason is doing so good and I'm proud of him. I also wanted to give a couple more recipes. I can not control what he puts in his mouth at work (organic or hormone free), but I can describe what he prepares. Jason is sooooo allergic to shellfish. But, he loves it. He grew up with it, being from South Louisiana-crawfish country. He developed the allergy only about a year or two ago. So, imitation crabmeat helps him feel like he's getting it even though he's not.

Imitation Crab Salad

A lot of Iceburg Lettuce, torn apart place in a large bowl. The lettuce will be the bulk of the dish and will keep you fuller, longer.
A hand full of cherry tomatoes.
Sprinkle a small amount of shredded cheddar cheese on top of the salad.
Place about 6 pieces of chunk imitation crab meat on salad.
Drizzle about 2 Tbsp. of Kraft Catalina Dressing on top.

This is something that Jason can make on his own. It's quick and it's simple. He ate it when he was not dieting.

Imitation crabmeat (called surimi) comes from the Alaskan Pollock and myofibrillar proteins. These proteins make a sturdy gel that allows the meat to be shaped and cut like crabmeat. During processing, they also add natural and artificial coloring and flavoring. :( The japanese have been using Kamaboko (imitation crabmeat) for 800 years. It is one of the main ingredients used in a Japanese recipe book dating back to 1528.

My imitation crabmeat recipe

6-8 chunks of imitation crabmeat chopped fine.
1 stalk of celery chopped fine
1/2 white onion chopped fine
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. no-fat (or light) mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
Mix it well, until everything is well blended.
Use it as a dip with reduced- fat Wheat Thins.

Well, I'm going to cut out of here. DON'T GET THE CRABS!!!!


Friday, January 11, 2008

Behind every successful man is a woman.

"Behind every successful man is a woman." - Groucho Marx

Allow me to introduce myself. I am Tammy, Eitek1's wife. I am here to support him 100% of the time. I wanted to blog to tell his readers exactly what he's eating. I thought that some of y'all (I'm a southern girl) would like to have the recipes he's eating, or maybe I could introduce you to some products you didn't know existed out there. He has vowed only to eat readily available things from Wal-Mart. My goal is to make sure that if possible the ingredients he takes in are fresh and organic. Processed and products laden in hormones and preservative are awful for the liver, for the body.

What do I get from his endeavor?
I get to spend many years with a healthy, happy man. I watch many people's health fade and their last years on earth they spend in pain and suffering. I want to avoid this by doing all I can to live a long quality life together.

For Breakfast

3 hard boiled Egg~Land's Best eggs
Quaker instant oatmeal no sugar no flavor. ( I add a packet of Stevia and some cinnamon)
Horizon organic, hormone free skim milk

Snack

Fuji or a Honey Crisp Apple

Soup for Lunch

Beefy Vegetable

In a 6 qt. pot or bigger I add
Lean Beef (Stew meat, faijia strips or a Lean sirloin steak cubed)
1 TBSP of Extra virgin olive oil
1 med. onion (sliced into strips)
1/2 chopped cabbage
1 TBSP of minced garlic (Organic in jar)
Cook over med. heat until done. Add small amounts of water if ingredients seem to dry out.
Add 1 Box of Organic Swanson Beef Broth. This product is 99% fat free and 25% less sodium than their original beef broth. Bring soup to a low boil. Add 2 large Idaho potatos peeled and cubed. Wash the cubes off before you place them in the boiling broth. Boil about 15-20 mins. Add 1/2 another box of beef broth or just top off with water. Keep the stove heat the same.
Add washed sliced container of mushrooms,
1 lb. Green Giant frozen green beens, 1 can of diced organic tomatoes and
1 lb. Green Giant frozen sweet corn. Season with Tony Chachere's, Black Pepper, Tabasco Sauce or if you must salt. Bring soup to a low boil and then drop heat to simmer. Simmer on stove until all ingredients are done.

In a separate pot, I prepare Heartland Whole Wheat Pasta Elbow Macaroni as instructed on product. I put a couple of spoons of this cooked pasta on the bottom of the bowl I plan to serve my husband. Then I ladel the soup on top of the pasta. I do not like soggy pasta. This way the pasta stays "al dente"

Jason like to eat it without the pasta at times to cut back onsome of the carb calories, but to fill his belly with lots of veggies and broth.

This makes a lot of soup and can be refridgerated for about 4-5 days to be safe.

Dinner

Skinless Boneless Chicken
Spray cooking pan with Mazola Pure Cooking Spray Olive Oil.
Place raw chicken on pan and Pour pour some Kraft Fat Free Italian Dressing on top of the chicken. Cook 20-35 mins. on 350 degrees (according to the thickness of the chicken).
If you use the frozen Chicken, cook it for an hour.
Steamed Broccoli, or boiled brussel sprouts
and 1 cup of Kraft Minute Brown Rice
Jason likes to add Balsamic Vinegar to his rice for flavor.

Snack
1 bag of Orville Redenbacher's 94%? fat free gourmet popping corn


Another Soup Recipe ( I used what I had on this recipe)
Chicken Wheat Noodle Soup
Fill a 6 qt. pot 2/3 of the way full with water. I had no organic chicken broth on hand so I added 4 TBSP of Wyler's Chicken Bouillon granules (I don't even want to think of the sodium intake here) . Mix until bouillon dissolves.
Drop 3 large frozen skinless boneless chicken breasts into water. Put stove on high.
Chop up and add 1/2 bundle of organic celery, 1 med. onion, and 1 TBSP of Minced organic garlic to the water. When water comes to a boil, cut heat back to keep water from boiling over or splashing. Cook until the chicken is done. Remove the chicken to a cutting board. Add water until it's about 3 inches from the top of the pot. Bring water back to a boil. Add 1/2 bag of organic whole baby carrots to soup. Continue to boil. Add 1 TBSP of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Add 1/2 lb. of Barilla Plus Spaghetti to the soup. Boil 8-9 mins. Remember to stir often. Cut removed boiled chicken into cubes. Add cubed chicken back to pot, heat, stir and serve.

Next time I'm using Swanson's organic chicken broth.
When Olive Oil is heated it loses a lot of it's health benefits. However, I just wanted to use a healther choice of oils in these recipes. I believe canola oil would also work in these recipes.

Barrett's Crock Pot Roast Beef

1 large beef roast
2 large potato peeled and cubed large
5 sm. washed portabella mushroom
1 onion chopped
Sprinkle with salt and black pepper

Put all this in a large crockpot. Add water until it's about an inch from the top of the pot. Put crockpot on low setting and leave for work. It cooked for 10 hours.
He made some rice and we poured the beefy/vegetable broth over the rice on our plates and Jason ate a big slab of the roast beef with it.

If we're out and we can't seem to make it home for a meal. Jason always has some honey crisp apples to snack on in the car.

We sometimes have to eat something a little larger than an apple, so we eat the salad bar at Jason's Deli. Remember to make wise choices when making a salad. Organic or Whole food doesn't always mean Low-fat or no-fat so a lot of these foods can be high in calories or fat.

Chili's has a guiltless section on their menu. Jason choses from this section.

Another, not so healthy choice (last resort meal) is when we must drive through. We order the grilled chicken breast sandwich with no sauce (mayo or honey mustard dressings). A bottle of water is available at most fast food resturants now. But I'm always thinking about all the hormones and chemicals I'm eating when I consuming these sandwiches. I watched the movie Super-size Me. I am now a freak about a lot of food.

I know that my first blog was very lengthy, but I hope the recipes and preparation instructions will be helpful to someone, to anyone. I really am proud of my husband for his new interest in his body and health.

My final word on health and fitness. I believe that success in obtained, whether it be maintaining health or losing weight or I guess this could apply to every aspect of life, by making a lot of small wise choices.

Three years ago I weighed 219 lbs. On a 5'9" frame many people would say " Tammy, your just a big girl. You have a large frame and muscular legs." There is no excuse for weighing this much. Yes, I could blame it on the 6 years of fertility treatments. And yes, I could blame the weight on the fact that I've been diagnose with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome/Borderline Diabetes. Or I could blame it on the years of depression that I endured when not conceiving a child after tens of thousands of doctor's bills where paid and all the efforts resulted into nothing. No baby. But more accurately I should blame...me. I blame me for putting pints of ice cream down my throat and bowls of chips and salsa and mexican food.

Now, taking the blame for the weight, I can also take the credit for dropping from a size 20 to a size 12-10 and taking off over 40 lbs. I know that through wise choices I am a healthier person. I so not have to take Glucophage (diabetic meds.) any longer. My cholesterol is around 150. My body fat in within normal range and something I'm real proud of is I participated in a full marathon in Oct. of this year. In order to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. 26.2 miles, Yeah, Baby.