pickled vegetables

pickled veggies ..

1 large carrot
1 asian radish
1 cucumber (45cal)
3 shallots
3 garlic cloves
3 red chilli pepper
1 bell pepper (100cal)
1 cup rice vinegar
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 tsp salt
1 cinnamon stick
ginger


Boil vinegar, salt, water and sugar.
Remove from heat.
Seep carrots for 5 minutes.

Press garlic, cut shallots in half and smash, smash ginger as well.

Cut the carrot, radish, bell pepper into strips.
Scoop the seeds out from cucumber and slice.

Put one clove garlic, one shallot and one piece ginger into each container.
Break the cinnamon stick into 3 pieces and put one in each jar.
And one red chilli pepper in each jar.
Put the vegetables into the containers, including the carrot.
Pour the liquid in.


When cool, chill in fridge.
It should keep for about a month. If you eat the vegetables, you can add more to the same liquid.

Mulled Wine

mulled wine =D


1 bottle red wine (600cal)
6 tsp sugar (96cal)
juice and peel of one small lemon (22cal)
dash vanilla
2 bay leaves
2 cinnamon sticks
4 cloves
chunk of pressed ginger or 1tsp minced
1 cup Oceanspray's cranberry grape juice (140cal) or cherry juice


I've never heard of mulled wine in the past, not until I went to a German christmas festival over the holidays.

Thought it was really good, especially out in the cold. Really warms you up.

I couldn't find cherry juice so used cranberry grape instead.

It should never boil, but just steam.

Add everything in a pot except the sugar, add sugar 2 tsp at a time, mix well and taste before adding more.

I like to use Longue Dog just because it's my favorite.

Leave it on low heat settings and drink awaay .

greek pilaf rice

greek pilaf rice

Actual Picture

1 cup rice (242cal)
4tbs butter (220cal)
olive oil
1 tsp salt
2.5 cup chicken broth (50cal)
1 tbs lemon juice
green onions
5 mushrooms (15cal)
1/2 a small carrot (10cal)

Total: 537 calories


I don't eat rice, just wanted to see if I can make it well.

Oil the skillet with olive oil.
Melt half the butter, brown the rice and chopped up mushroom for 2-3 minutes.
Grate in some carrot for color.
Add the chicken broth and lemon juice.
Simmer for 20 minutes or until liquid had evaporated.
Do not stir or the rice will be mushy.
Stir in the rest of the butter, salt and green onions.

Cracking egg into it is optional.

egg salad

egg salad

Actual Picture

3 eggs (240cal)
1/8 cup fat free miracle whip (30cal)
1/4 bell pepper (25cal)
1 tsp dijon mustard (5cal)
1.875ml lemon juice
green onions
grated carrots
salt n pepper
paprika

Total: 300 calories


First, boil the eggs till cooked.
Mash with half the mayo, lemon juice, salt n pepper.
Add the rest of the mayo or until you think it taste moist but not soggy.
Stir in chopped up yellow or red bell pepper and green onions.
Add dijon mustard.
Grate carrot and sprinkle paprika to your liking for color and a little bit of flavor.

Chill until cold, and then serve.


To make a sandwich, scoop egg salad on a piece of green lettuce or a slice of black forest ham.
Serve with toasted bread (lightly margarined)

Shakshouka

shakshouka

Actual Picture

1/4 an onion (15cal)
1/2 a bell pepper (50cal)
5 mushrooms (15cal)
1/2 jalepeno pepper (2cal)
1/2 clove garlic minced (2cal)
1 garlic clove pressed (4cal)
1/2tsp cumin
1/8tsp oregano
1/8tsp paprika
pinch of cayenne pepper powder
2 large tomatoes (72cal)
1 egg (80cal)
salt
pepper
cilantro
0 calorie cooking spray

Total: 240 calories


Spray cooking spray on pan. Saute garlic, onions, mushrooms till clear or looks done.
Add spices and coat everything.
Put tomato in and break it up with spatula.
Add bite sized bell pepper and chopped up jalepeno pepper.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove cover, increase to medium heat while stirring and cook for 5 minutes or until it thickens.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Slowly pour egg in, make sure the white first and the yolk last. The yolk should be on top.
Cook until egg yolk is soft but not hard, or however you like it.
Garnish with cilantro.

This is my first time ever hearing about shakshouka, it's from an Arabic origin.
I was just browsing recipes and happen to come across it so decided to make it.
Quickly made and makes a good lunch. 1/2tsp thyme is also optional, which I didn't have at the time.

minced beef

minced beef

Actual Picture; camera's blurry =/

3oz sirloin (175cal)
1/2 garlic clove (2cal)
1 shallot (10cal)
1/4 cup soy sauce (
1/4 cup sugar (193.5cal)
1/3 a jalepeno pepper (1.33cal)


Use ground beef of your choice, I actually chop mine up myself.
Mince garlic and shallot.
Heat up your skillet, put garlic and shallot in for a bit and add the beef just until brown.
Add sugar, soy sauce, and jalepeno.
Add enough cold water so everything's covered.
Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, and reduce heat.
Simmer for 20-30 minutes, still stirring once in awhile.

Garnish with green onions. I forgot to chop some up this time.
I also wanna try this recipe with aspartame sometime. It'll cut the calories back.
But it was decent .. good drinking food ^^

My version of potato skins ..

potato skins ..

1 medium red potato (150cal)
2 slice Kraft's fat free cheese (60cal)
1 strip calabrese salami (20cal)
green onions
salt & pepper

Total Calories: 230


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Peel potato, rinse, and slice into 3 flats, then chop it in half to make 6 halves.
Toss it in salt and pepper.
Cut the salami into 24 tiny pieces, I'm using this instead of bacon. Put 4 pieces on each potato slice.
Sprinkle with green onions.
Divide each slice of cheese into 1/3rds and arrange on top of potato to cover the toppings.
Put on baking sheet.
I forget how long I baked it for, just keep checking on it till it looks done.
Personally I prefer the cheese burnt.
I didn't use any oil and they turned out delicious anyways !


This was a total random "let's see what I can do with what I have" for dinner tonight.
It turned out surprisingly good.

hotpot dipping sauce ..

raw yolk dip .

1 raw egg yolk (50cal)
light soy sauce
dash white pepper
dash chilli oil
dash sesame oil
satay sauce


First, crack egg and seperate the white from the yolk. If you don't know how, google it.

You can use the white too, I just don't like to.

Then pour light soy sauce over the yolk (the yolk is not broken) so that it's surrounded but not covered.

Now, dash the ground white pepper, chilli oil, and sesame oil.

On one side of the soy sauce, put a small chunk of satay sauce and dissolve it with chopsticks, careful not to break the yolk.

Then when you are finally eating your hotpot meal, goes best with beef, poke the yolk with your chopsticks so it starts to flow out slowly but not entirely mix with the rest of the sauce.

I like to dip the food item into the yolk first and let it slightly touch the soy sauce mix just for taste.

If you run outta yolk, just crack another one in.

Hotpot season is just around the corner !

very asian ..

lettuce spring rolls ..

Note: Actual Picture

1 cup black wood ear fungus (23cal)
1 package konnyaku (20cal)
4 shiitake mushrooms (40cal)
1 small carrot (30cal)
iceberg lettuce (as you need) (2cal per leaf)
1 cup sprouts (30cal)
cilantro
green onions

Total: 150 calories (give or take)


Makes 12 rolls in total.

I was talking to somebody about spring rolls, and how brutal it is to eat the deep fried ones. They are delicious .. but so fucking unhealthy !!

This is my alternative ..

So I first, boiled the wood ear fungus, shiitake, and konnyaku .. while that's happening .. I shredded the carrots and washed the lettuce. Also chopped the green onions and cilantro.

I was missing sprouts today =(

Then I sliced the fungus and shiitake, unraveled the konnyaku.

On a big plate, take a piece of lettuce, and put some of each ingredient on. Roll it up and secure with a toothpick as needed.

For a raw version, use red bell pepper slices, normal mushrooms (i'm not sure you can eat shiitake mushrooms raw), alfalfa sprouts, carrots, cabbage (shredded), green onions and cilantro.

So instead of 70-140 calories of a deep fried spring roll, this will be under 15calories per roll.





Now for the sauce ..

chilli vinaigrette .

warm water
sugar
white wine vinegar
1 garlic clove
1 small piece ginger root
1 red chilli pepper
dash lime juice
dash soy sauce
dash white pepper
shredded carrots


My first attempt was a fail, second attempt was good =). That's not the actual picture, but it should look something like that, clear light color but with shredded carrots on top.

I decided to wing it, so I don't really know the exact amount .. just keep adding different shit till it tastes good I guess.

Take a small bowl, add hot water, dissolve sugar, pour in vinegar

Press the garlic, smash the ginger (too lazy to mince), mince the red chilli pepper, dash white pepper. Stir it around and taste.

Dash the lime juice, I found it slightly too sweet, so dashed light soy sauce (very little), garnish it with carrots.

The only thing with any calories really is the sugar, and it's an insufficient amount, so I wouldn't worry about it.


Serve everything chilled.

simply fresh ..

stir fry noodles .. ;)

Note: Actual picture

"Noodles"
0 calorie vegetable cooking spray
1/2 clove garlic (2cal)
scallions
1/4 bag precut cole slaw (25cal)
minced ginger
dash salt

"Meat Sauce"
4 mushrooms (12cal)
1 tomato (36cal)
fresh basil leaves
dash worcestershire sauce
red pepper flakes
black pepper
cilantro
0 calorie vegetable cooking spray
dash salt

Total: 75 calories


I have been eating unhealthy lately, so today I wanted to start out clean.

Should have eaten it completely raw, but half cooked it cuz broccoli is so hard to eat raw.

Mince garlic, chop scallions. Wash and chop tomato and mushrooms.

Take your non stick skillet, spray with vegetable cooking spray.

Saute garlic, scallions, and slaw, but not fully. Drizzle minced ginger. Only half cook it, you still want the noodles to be crispy. Set aside.

Respray skillet with vegetable cooking spray. Chopped tomato on one side and mushroom on the other. Break down the tomato with wooden spoon while cooking on medium heat. Add basil leaves on the tomato. Dash worcestershire sauce and red pepper flakes on tomato. Stir it and continue to break it down, its water content should make it a chunky sauce type thing.

Dash salt, very little ! Just for taste on both the mushrooms and tomato.

You can now mix it up, or if you're like me and enjoy tasting the food item individually .. then just serve beside the noodles.

Dash black pepper for taste and garnish with cilantro.

Notice I didn't cook it with any oil, I only use the vegetable spray so nothing sticks to the pan and burns. For those of you who don't mind some fat, I'd say give the noodles a drizzle of sesame oil for more flavor. Though I really liked the ginger taste. This recipe saves you from consuming gluten and a shitload more unnecessary calories.

And I had cucumber chips for an appetizer.

Makes a really good lunch.


In comparison, to let's say Earls. or any of those franchise restaurants that serve a crispy noodle bowl. I have this thing against fake asian food. lol .. sure it's called fushion . *Rolls eyes*

Earl's Hunan Kung Pao is a wok fried noodle with veggies, peanuts, and you can add chicken or shrimp. It has 1003.65 calories. You would think noodles, vegetables, and chicken should have less calories than a burger, right ? No, according to the nutritional content they provide on their website .. both burgers have less calories than the bowls do.

Okay let's talk health. I'm totally disgusted right now, The Hunan bowl has 42.12g of fat, so even more than the Bigger Better 1/2 lb Burger which has 40g. But the Hunan bowl has 3324.32mg of sodium. Holy fuck. The burger has 995mg. That's quite a difference. The burger has more saturated fat of 18.27g where as the bowl only has 4.59g. Also the fibre content is very low in both bowls and burgers.

I don't like burgers either, (grounded up proccessed meat? .. that's like death .. wait it is. =P) but I'm just comparing the two because people automatically think burgers are unhealthy if comparing to rice or noodles. And pasta, don't even get me started.
Gross.

So yah, I'm never eating at Earls, lol . Didn't mean to pick on them, but I don't eat at many other places with that sort of food either.

The next time you end up at one of these places, maybe you'll reconsider and just starve. Haha, kidding.

Cheers and have a nice day ! =)

grape tomatoes ..

chunky rosemary tomato soup .

10 grape tomatoes (40cal)
1/2 clove garlic (2.5cal)
2 tbs cilantro
1/2 tsp rosemary
dash of black pepper
1 package Lipton's cup of soup, spring vegetable flavor (50cal)

Total: 92.5 calories


I'm in love with grape tomatoes, their so sweet and flavorful.

Mince garlic, chop cilantro, slice tomatoes.

Put garlic, 1 tbs cilantro, tomatoes, rosemary and black pepper in a bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes or until soft.

In another bowl, put 3/4 cup water and the package of lipton soup.

Stir in the tomato mixture and microwave 2 minutes again.

Take it out, stir and microwave for another 2 minutes.

Garnish with the rest of the cilantro.

So in 10 minutes or so, here you have .. a chunky hearty tomato soup.

If you want to make a sauce, just microwave it more in 2 minute intervals until it's thick enough.

Very tasty.

tzatziki dip

tzatziki dip . .

1 cup 1% sour cream (160cal)
1 tbs olive oil (120cal)
1/2 tbs red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced (4cal)
1/4 tsp salt
dash white pepper
1 mini cucumber (10cal)

Total: 294 calories


Take your container or bowl, Mix olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper.

Stir in the sour cream.

Stir in the cucumber. The cucumber can be diced and squeeze out all the water first.

Chill, serve cold with pita bread or fresh veggies.

Okay, so your supposed to add dill .. but I didn't have any .. so yah .

chilli

mmm .. chilli ..

3oz sirloin (175cal)
1/2 clove garlic (2cal)
1 shallot (5cal)
1 tbs chilli powder
1/3 tsp oregano
1/3 tsp cumin
1/3 hot pepper sauce
10 - 15 grape tomatoes (4cal each)
1.5 tbs red wine vinegar

Total: 234 calories


You can buy ground beef of any sort, I grounded up my sirloin steak myself.

Crumble beef into pot, use medium - high heat.

Add shallot, garlic (minced), stir with beef until beef browns.

Remove pot from heat.

Add the chilli powder, oregan, cumin and hot pepper sauce.

Put back on heat, stir in the tomatoes (blended but a little bit chunky still) and the red wine vinegar.

Bring to a boil while stirring, reduce heat to low.

Simmer for a bit, stir to prevent burning .. until just enough sauce is left but not too watery.

It's my first attempt, and that's the actual picture. I'm surprised it turned out so good.

Serve over a bed of pasta or if you're like me and don't eat gluten .. have a side salad.

a quick side

lettuce egg slaw

1 egg (80cal)
2 or 3 tsp green onion
1 tsp red bell pepper (6.25cal)
1 tsp yellow bell pepper (6.25cal)
1/2 cup iceberg lettuce (4cal)
1 tbs fat free mayo (15cal)
1/2 tsp dijon mustard (2.5cal)
1/2 tsp wasabi
seasoning salt
pepper
fresh basil (optional)

Total: 114 calories


Okay first hard boil the egg. If you don't know how, google it. And Mush it up with a fork.
I microwaved the egg cuz I'm lazy, you can google instructions on how to do that too.

Wash and chop green onions, lettuce and bell peppers into tiny little pieces.

Take a salad bowl, put the lettuce in, now add the mayo, dijon, wasabi on the center atop of the lettuce. Shake some seasoning salt to the dressing.

Next, put the peppers on top of the center pile of dressing, then the eggs, and then the green onion.

Now toss and mix well with fork and spoon. Taste it and see if you need more salt or dijon depending on how you like it.

Dash pepper to taste.

Chill in fridge until cold.

This recipe makes one serving.

korean potato side dish

korean potato side dish

1 medium - large white potato (200cal)
1/2 clove garlic (2cal)
1 tsp honey (20cal)
1 tsp sugar (16cal)
50 ml water
1 tbs soy sauce (10cal)
1/2 a shallot (2.5cal)
1 tsp sesame oil (40cal)
1 tsp olive oil (40cal)
green onions (optional)

Total: 330.5 calories


Dice potatoes into 3/4 inch cubes. Rinse with water to remove starch.

Cut shallot and mince the garlic.

Heat skillet with olive oil, add potato and garlic .. saute until translucent looking.

Add shallot and stir it up. Add water, soy sauce, sugar and honey. Keep strring, lower to medium heat.

Cook for about 10 minutes or until liquid is gone. Constantly stirring, if it looks like it's burning .. add soem more water.

Once potatoes are cooked, drizzle sesame oil and green onions.

You can eat it now, or cool it down .. chill in fridge and serve cold.

Definitely a great side dish.

healthy as it gets for ..

a 7 layer dip .

1/3 cup kraft's fat free mayo (80cal)
1/4 yellow bell pepper (25cal)
1/4 red bell pepper (25cal)
1/3 cup 1% sour cream (53.33cal)
1/3 cup home made guacamole (161cal)
1/2 cup mild salsa (40cal)
5 organic cherry tomatoes (20cal)
1 jalepeno pepper (4cal)
cilantro
green onions
seasoning salt

Total: 408.33 calories


I would say serves about 3 - 4 people depending.

So I'm using a clear plastic container that holds about 2.25 cups. I like to see the layers.
Also, I'm not layering from bottom to top, instead I'm layering it sideways so you see all 7 layers at the same time .. looks pretty.

Tilt it sideways, and start with the mayo .. spread it nice and smooth with a butter knife, then sprinkle the entire side with seasoning salt.

Add the chopped up red and yellow pepper for it's second layer. Pat it down but not so that it's mixed with the mayo, you want separate layers.

Next, load on the sour cream, again .. smooth it nicely with butter knife.

The home made guacamole (mmm soo good, look at the recipe before this) .. scoop that on and even it out.

Fifth layer is salsa, scoop it on then add the chopped up tomatoes (6th layer), smooth it out .. it'll probably sink into the salsa a bit but not to worry, it tastes great !

The last layer is the jalepeno pepper, cilantro and green onion chopped up. I took out the seeds of the pepper but that's optional.

Now the container should be mostly filled, tilt it the other way to even out the weight shift.
It should look pretty good, put it down on a flat surface and see which layer might need more stuff, then just add it on neatly with a spoon.

Sprinkle the top of the mayo with seasoning salt, before it was only on the inner surface.

Chill in fridge until cold .. then serve with chips or veggies.

I like cucumber slices, carrots and cauliflower.

When eating it, I noticed the cilantro green onion layer was hard to scoop, so dip into one of the sauces first and the leaves will stick on .. lol

This was my first attempt in making this and I didn't follow any recipes, it was an experiment.

Turned out great though =)

I wonder how it'd be with wasabi mayo or taco seasoning flavored mayo .. I skipped the cheese because I didn't have any, also saves calories .

guacamole

guacamole .

1/2 avocado (161cal)
1/2 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs chopped onion or shallot
1/4 tsp salt


So halve the avocado, remove seed, scoop meat into a bowl. Mash with a fork. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Stick it in the fridge for awhile and serve cold.

This recipe makes one serving. It's super simple and quick to make.

a quick and simple sauce

lemon butter ..

1/3 cup 67% less fat becel margarine (200cal)
2 tbs lemon juice or juice of one lemon
3.28 ml lemon zest
1/2 garlic clove minced
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
2 tsp corn starch (20cal)
cilantro

Total: 220 calories


Over medium heat, place ingredients except corn starch into a saucepan. Cook until the butter melts.

Bring the mixture to a low boil and cook for 2 minutes. Add cornstarch to thicken sauce.

Add the fresh chopped cilantro and serve at once.

Apparently it goes well with seafood .. I'm not sure what I'm gonna use it for, I don't feel like eating seafood .. I just wanted to try this sauce.

It's not bad.

sirloin

broiled steak .

6 oz sirloin (350cal)
seasoning salt
pepper
1 tsp corn starch (10cal)
vegetable cooking spray

Marinade:
1/3 + 1/6 cup honey (515.493cal)
1 tbs minced ginger
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tbs low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil (40cal)
1/2 tsp orange zest
1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce
2 garlic cloves minced


So because I didn't throw out the marinade from the wings I made before for lunch. I'm using it on a steak for my dinner.

I defrosted the cut of beef, and scored the surface of it, about 1/4 inch deep.

Leave it in the marinade in the fridge for a few hours. Place it on the rack and season with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to the setting "broil" .. put steak on the top rack near the element.

I like mine medium rare, but more on the rare side. So I left it in there for about 6 minutes, 7 max.

The top should be browned. While that's happening, microwave the marinade for 3 minutes or until boiling, discard the solids .. add in 1 tsp cornstarch (10cal) and microwave for 30 seconds - 1 minute .. you should have a sauce now.

I found the sauce to be too sweet, so I squeezed in some lime juice.

After you take out your steak, let it rest for 5-10 min, if you don't want it to get cold, cover with tin foil.

The sauce can now be used for dipping your steak in if needed.

wings wings wings

honey ginger

6 winglets (180cal)
1/3 + 1/6 cup honey (515.493cal)
1 tbs minced ginger
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tbs low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil (40cal)
1/2 tsp orange zest
1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce
2 garlic cloves minced
seasoning salt
pepper
vegetable cooking spray


Mix everything together minus the wings and cooking spray.

Marinate wings in sauce overnight in the fridge.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Spray grill rack with cooking spray, arrange wings on rack, season with salt and pepper.

Cook for about 20 minutes, take out wings, brush with marinade and put back in oven for 1 to 3 minutes.

Take out and serve hot.

So the good news is your not actually consuming all that honey. lol