I cooked something

Trying to eat healthy is helping me to learn to enjoy cooking.

(Insert laugh here)

"Enjoy" might be a strong word.   I'm learning to hate it less and see the value in it when I get to enjoy the outcome.

That's more believable.

Last night I made this.

Sesame fried rice

I cannot tell a lie.  I'm more than a little afraid of brown rice.  I always see these great brown rice recipes with the cooks commenting on how "delicious" their dish was.  So I tell myself that THIS time, I'll make it and like it.

Not so much.  It's the only food I can think of that manages to be chewy and crunchy and bland all at once.

Why does it have to do that?

I had a much better experience last night, however.

Incidentally, I borrowed this from Andie over at canyoustayfordinner.com.  She's a wonderful writer and glowing weight loss success story.

In other words, my hero.

But please don't go look at her pictures of food.  They're much, MUCH better than mine.  I think she uses an actual camera to take hers.  Maybe I should look into that.

(Oh, all right, I'll save you the trouble.  Here's what hers looks like.  Kinda makes mine look like a plate of fish bait, right?):

Happy now?

I used some different veggies (Andie said it was OK) than she used and tweaked it here and there, but it still turned out great.

Sesame Fried Rice

-2 C. cooked brown rice, set aside.  I used the pre-cooked pouch of brown/long grain rice instead.
-2-3 eggs (I used three to add more protein)
-1 T. sesame oil
-1/2 tsp. ground ginger  (this is what I used, but you can use 2 TB minced fresh)
-A few shakes of garlic powder (or 2 cloves, minced)
-1/2 C. chopped green onion
-Broccoli slaw made up of shredded broccoli/carrots/red cabbage. You can find bags of this mixture in the produce section.  Andie used different veggies, but these actually worked really well.  You can substitute other veggies of your choosing.
-4 T. soy sauce
-1-1/2 T. brown sugar (I tweaked this with 1 TB brown sugar and 1/2 TB. Stevia, but  1.5 TBs of brown sugar spread out over an entire recipe doesn't amount to much anyway.  Do it your way)

1.  Scramble the eggs over medium heat in a skillet with some non-stick spray.  Cook until fluffy.  Set aside the cooked eggs in a separate container.  Wipe out the skillet.
2.  Turn the heat up to medium high and add sesame oil.
3.  Add in the veggies, green onion, garlic, and ginger.  Sautee for about 5 minutes.
4.  Add the rice and sautee for about 2 minutes.  You want the rice to get a little crispy.
5.  Whisk together the brown sugar and soy sauce in bowl until sugar is dissolved.  Add to the skillet and stir well to coat evenly.
6.  Add the eggs into the mixture and stir well.

Done.

This is so very delicious, unless you don't have much love for Asian food, in which case ...

What is WRONG with you?

I served it up (to myself) as a side with a baked chicken breast that I seasoned with some McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning.  And before you ask ... NO, it's not just for steaks and NO, it's not just for Canadians.

Like I said, I did a few things differently, but this still turned out really tasty and will DEFINITELY be a weapon in my healthy dishes arsenal.  I may try it without the rice and add more vegetables.

Try it.  Best fish bait EVER.  You can't hardly taste them worms at all.

Make-aheads are your friend

Another recipe for the kitchen haters.

Make-aheads are a great little trick for us kitchen-hating-wanna-be-healthy people.  Make a bunch of food all at once and eat it for the rest of the week, cutting down on future prep time.

Ah, such a simple concept, right?

But when overeating is your downfall, a huge pot of anything can sabotage your portion control efforts.

For example: You make a crockpot full of beef with the intention of feeding your face with it for several days, only to find yourself in a meat coma 30 minutes later--standing over an empty crockpot with  juice dripping from your chin and not the foggiest clue what just happened.

The eater's remorse takes over and you drown your guilt in a few Dove chocolates.

And by a few, I mean the entire bag.

My way around this?  Dish out your portion and put the rest away in the fridge or even the freezer before you even sit down to eat.  That's it.  Out of sight, out of mind.  Eat what's in front of you and move on.

Step AWAY from the Tupperware, Chubs!

Anyhoo ...

I made one of my favorite make-aheads tonight.  This time, I took the picture myself - as opposed to stealing it from Google images - so that you can see why I don't take pictures of food, or why I shouldn't be allowed to.

Green Chili Chicken

Preheat oven to 375

Ingredients

3-4 boneless,skinless chicken breasts, thawed
1 TB olive oil
Pat of butter (optional)
1 small can diced green chilies
1/4 c. diced onion
Salt

Spray bottom of a baking pan with cooking spray.  Place the chicken breasts in the baking pan and bake for approximately 20-25 minutes, or until ALMOST completely cooked (an ever so slight tinge of pink left inside).

Remove the breasts from the oven and cut into small pieces.  Heat oil (and butter, if desired) in skillet over medium/high heat.

Once butter is melted or oil is heated, add chicken, chilies, onion, and salt (to taste).  Reduce heat to medium. Continue to cook and stir until chicken is slightly browned and cooked through.

All done.

You can eat this alone with veggies (boooooring) ... or ...

Do what I do and put it into a whole grain tortilla or a couple of corn tortillas and sprinkle a small amount of grated cheese, oodles of chopped lettuce, and salsa  (oooh, I have a recipe for fresh homemade salsa that will rock your socks.  I must remember to share).

This chicken is also yummy (or as my husband says, "tight") on top of a tostada shell with some black beans and a little cheese and a tiny dollop of reduced fat sour cream.

I love having this super easy make-ahead chicken on hand for when I'm in a hurry and don't want to spend too much time in the kitchen -- which is pretty much kind of always.

On Kitchen Hatred

Are you a kitchen hater?

I am.

I hate cooking, which is at least partly how I got to be where I am now.   It's a lot easier and faster to whip up a batch of  #5 combo meal from Burger King than it is to prepare chicken breasts and chop vegetables and then ... GASP! ... cook them over medium heat for an hour.   An hour?  That's like, 60 whole minutes!

Me and Immediate Satisfaction have had a very tight-knit relationship since my childhood.  We're like husband and wife.

Really dysfunctional, overweight husband and wife.

I recently broke up with Immediate Satisfaction.  I may occasionally go back for a meaningless one-night-stand or a nooner here and there, but we will never again be in a long-term relationship.  He's just not good for me.

I know many of you who are starting a weight loss journey -- whether for the first time or the gazillionth time -- struggle with your hatred of cooking.  You want those healthy, Martha Stewart-looking meals with the fat,  juicy, grilled chicken breasts and vegetables and herbs and pretty garnishes on the side, but you're either not good at it or you just don't have the patience for it.

Or both.

I feel your pain.

I've been told by a few that I'm really good at cooking ... when I choose to do it.  I have those few dishes that I do well and I like to stick with those.  But I HATE/DESPISE/LOATHE spending a lot of time in the kitchen.   I want the pretty results without the ugly effort.  

Wow, that sounds painfully familiar, right?

I'm learning that it's possible to make simple, healthy dishes that don't take a lot of time and that can even be done well by the dumbest and most talentless of wanna-be-chefs.   (Thank you, Pinterest.)

Now, when I say "simple" and "don't take a lot of time,"  I'm not pulling your chubby leg.  I mean it.

I like it fast 'n easy, baby.  And yes, we're still talking about food.  Get your mind out of the gutter.

So, one thing I plan to include on this blog is the occasional SIMPLE, QUICK, HEALTHY recipe.

Keep in mind that "healthy" is somewhat relative, depending on the plan you're following.

After trying everything under the sun, I came to the realization that my body has a severe addiction to sugar and bad carbs.  Most of my excess calories were coming from carbs--chocolate, bread (lots of bread), chocolate, crackers, chocolate, chips, chocolate -- you see what I'm saying here.  You can read about my plan over in the sidebar.

Now it's time to share my very first "recipe" post with you.  I put that in quotes because I'm not sure anything I post here qualifies as a recipe.  The ingredients are few and simple.  I. Don't. Do. Complicated.

Baked chicken breast and green beans

p.s.  I'm not good at taking pictures of food. I tend to eat it before I get the chance.  So I steal other people's photos.  This one looks pretty close.  (Remember my first post?  I said "brutal honesty.")

Trust me on this, even if you think you don't like green beans (I never did), you are going to LOVE these.  The flavors of the bacon and onion come together so beautifully that even my seven year old eats these.  If I could marry them, I would.

Ingredients:

-2 slices uncooked bacon, chopped
-1/2 c. diced yellow onion
-1/2 c. water
-Fresh snap green beans, ends removed (how many you buy is up to you--I like to make lots at once for leftovers)
-Boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (again, the quantity is up to you)
-Paprika, salt, pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375
1.  Place chopped bacon and onion in a large saucepan and cook over medium or medium high heat until bacon is sizzling and nearly cooked through
2.  Add water and green beans to bacon/onion mixture and turn heat to low.
3.  Cover and cook until beans are tender.  Depending on how many beans you have, it can take up to 45 minutes or more.  Watch your water level in the pan.  Add more if the bottom of the pan goes dry.
While those are cooking ...
4.  Place chicken breasts in baking dish (I prefer glass) and salt/pepper/paprika both sides to your liking.  Generously always floats my boat.
5.  Bake for about 30 minutes, depending on thickness.  Turn once during baking.  Breasts are done when they're no longer pink inside. (I know, duh).
6.  When green beans are done, generously salt and pepper them and stir them well to get them coated with the seasonings and with the flavor from the bacon and onion.
7.  Put it all on a plate and enjoy.

See how painless that was?  You can add tons of flavor to your cooking without getting complicated.

I have lots of easy little gems like this.  Stay tuned ...