Loki
Journal
2016 - Week 20 Cooking Results
Weight Loss continues: 17.08% / 13.32% (peak / 2016). As a note from this past week, I'm still having trouble controlling my intake restricting from time to time. We went out, and I really should have stopped eating the Mexican dish about half way through. but I didn't, and was quite uncomfortable after the fact. We'll calling this a learning lesson about what the new normal is.
BA's Best buttermilk Pancakes (gonna have to decide if I want less pancakes, or almost no syrup...whee)
Not the same...but still pretty good. Nice to at least have them, even though I can't stuff my face with them.
Butterfly Pork Chops with rhubarb ketchup
I was excited to see a recipe for rhubarb ketchup, and this was good, however this was not near as good as the stuff that Brett made. This was to sweet. It was, however, a good start. Less sugar, more port and red wine vinegar. Even so, pair well with the pork chops.
Parm Baked eggs and Swiss Chard
Not a lot of up front work, and quite a bit of idle time. It was pretty good, not fantastic...maybe needs something more.
Chicken and Chive Blossom Toasts
This turned out very well. I purchased some Fox Hollow Farm More then Mustard after tasting it at this past Monday's Charcuterie class at the Cheese Shop. This just sort of ticked in with what I should go together. This turned into a delicious thing.
Chive Blossom Omelet
Turned into scrambled eggs. Didn't want to face the possible defeat of omelettes (and was tired). Still quite good.
2016 - Week 19 Cooking Results
Banh Mi Pork Burgers
These were better then I thought they would be. Simple quick and delicious.
BA's Best buttermilk Pancakes (gonna have to decide if I want less pancakes, or almost no syrup...whee)
Delayed until today!
Rabbit Hot Dogs
These were ok. Better then your average shitty hot dog, but not near as good as a well planned really good hot dog.
Spring Garlic and Scrambled Eggs
Quick, didn't work quite like my brain thought.
Seared chicken over lettuce
These turned into an open face sandwich for me. topped with a bit of mustard and kimchi. Good things.
Health Update
I had my 3 month follow up with my doctor this last week, and with the combination of diet, exercise and drug, I was able to drop my A1C from 7.9 to 5.5. So The going theory is that if I am able to maintain this, I'll be able to drop the dose or drop the drug all together (woo!). The weight loss continues, Loss: 14.93% / 11.07% (Peak / 2016). There is some clear evidence that I can manipulate my weight by a few pounds (weight after mowing and yard work (low on water) vs just up out of bed (probably still low on water, but not as much)). Which is why I used today's weight instead of yesterdays.
There has been some loss and regain weeks, some mistakes and corrections, but overall the trend line continues to go down.
Weight Loss and gains over the last 3 months
I've also lowered the goal bar for calorie intake, and have generally met the goal (even the higher points should still lead to loss.
Last Month of calorie consumption
There is a matter of concern with the recent story on how the body can react loss and how one will more or less permanently have to reduce the calorie intake to just maintain the weight. Which I knew I'd probably have to pay attention forever, but maybe not as close of attention. So that turns it into a permanent journey. That being said, we as a couple are making better choices, so that's a good thing. I admit that sometimes I want something (ex: carrot creme brûlée from The Cheese Shop), but pass on ordering the whole thing (on the positive side I still got to try it).
I am excited that the farmer's market is back. This gives me a reason to get up an move on a Saturday morning, though I probably still need to plan for something on Saturday / Sunday. I also need to add a routine and time for some upper body stuff (avoiding stress on my wrists, which are already shitty).
On a less positive note, my Psoriasis seems to be adding spots for flare ups.
2016 - Week 18 Cooking Results
Baked Pasta with Merguez and Harissa Spiked sauce
Small amount of pasta, check. Other things, check. Good stuffs. I used the Merguez smoked sausage on this one. Good stuffs.
Lentil and Chicken Cassoulet
The lentils kind of fell apart, so it didn't look the best, however, it still tasted very good. It took a while to make, but most of that was idle time. I used Merguez sausage (spicy). I didn't use the black lentils it wanted me to (I had lentils and used those).
Mortadella Grilled Cheese
So good...but almost anytime you combine 3 excellent ingredients you are going to come up with something really excellent.
Skillet Beef Enchiladas
Looking at this recipe, I had my doubts. I didn't quite understand it would get that sort of flavor you get out of enchiladas, but it did, and was quite good. Probably not the best thing for you, but really good.
Quinoa Pilaf with Chipotle Queso Fresco, and Peanuts (6 servings)
The Quinoa smelled a bit nutty as it cooked, the chipotle powder...had to be swapped out with Jalapeño powder, but still added a nice flavor. I topped with a bit of 50/50 feta (sheep/goat) and had to skip the green onions (they looked gross). Nice simple meal. Not something i could eat every day, but certainly could be the theoretical base for a lot of things.
2016 - Week 15 Cooking Results
Chicken Burritos with Poblanos and Corn
Corn is full of carbohydrates, so corn (and peas) can no longer count as a acceptable vegetable side. However, they can go into things, and this was a good thing to put it in. So the roasted poblanos is really that expected flavor that you get in the standard Mexican restaurant. This worked very well. Could there be some things that are trimmed out? Sure, but this worked.
A warm pan of Chickpeas, Chorizo, and Chevre
Simple, and good. I thought I had chorizo, but didn't, so I used some spicy Italian sausage, which worked. I may have forgotten to add the chevre, but I did use it with the burritos...
Mortadella Reubens with Lemon Aioli
OMGWTFBBQ! This was amazingly good. To be fair I used some really excellent ingredients. Iowa Sourdough from Wild Yeast Bakery, Fresh eggs (from young hens) from Grade A Gardens, Blue Earth Brie (Minnesota), some fine quality Mortadella (not sure from where, but bought at the cheese shop, so you know it's good), and some Sauerkraut from The Brinery. I added some pickles to mine as well, but overall, wowza.
Stir Fried Sichuan Green Beans
Probably should've been served over rice, but didn't. Even so, this made for a filling, tasty, low carb meal.
Hot Chicken Salad
This was...quite tasty, but really not good for you in the slightest....but really tasty... Shannon and I had a dispute over the last serving of it (she won). I cooked the chicken myself, but beyond that this was easy to put together, but did take a while (of non-active time) to cook.
2016 - Week 14 Cooking Results
Dublin Coddle (late, yes, but didn't have the bangers)
Directions are good, the ingredients, good stuffs. It came together well. Need bangers? Contact the Story City Locker, or The Iowa Food Coop, or the farmer directly, Lucky George. A hearty dinner, to be sure.
Open Face Steak Sandwich with Parmesan Dressing
Simple, came together quick, everything was all fine and dandy until I set the plate down and it rolled a bit to the side, and dumped a lot of the toppings on to the floor. So treat that as a warning. This would of been a lot better with fresh, grown in the ground nearby arugula. Farmers market is almost 27 days away...though with the weather being as variable as it is being, who knows if we'll be able to get anything in that first few markets...
I used a Ciabatta from Wild Yeast Bakery to be the basis of this.
Thai Larb
Reading can be hard sometimes. I basically combined all of it together, instead of making a dressing to go on it after. Even so it turned out ok...maybe a bit dry. Oh well, I still like Larb, this one was clearly on me.
Apple-Fennel Chicken Salad
Pretty good, even cut small, raw fennel can be pretty tough. Maybe if there was a bit of a softening of fennel first, it would've ended up better. That being said, I had it for a lunch or two and maybe a snack or two for a bit.
Celery with Meat Sauce
So this would be a fridge clearer for family meal at a restaurant. Which makes sense and what I did. I had leftover meats and then one pound of new meat, to make the combination. I did have a problem with how they specify the amount of celery. Stalk vs Rib. Stalk is a unclear definition where it could refer to the whole stalk of celery or a single rib of celery. So it seems like a bad thing to refer to something as. It has to be ribs, because the other way around makes no god damn sense.
That being said, this was pretty good, low in the carbs (though we had it with some ciabatta garlic toast). I'd make it again, though maybe this time I'd add a different set of meats.
2016 - Week 12 Cooking Results
Thai Celery Salad with Peanuts
I picked this meal, specifically to be quick and also to allow my wife and I to share some ice cream. Since there is a generally stated carb limit, I try to make sure that I stay within that range, Ice cream isn't often allowed. This was ok, not bad, not great, maybe better as a side then a main?
Cacio E Pepe Potatoes
These certainly tasted good, but really it's just a convoluted name to justify putting a crap ton of cheese (I used Pecorino Riserva) on potatoes. I did use the last of my good fingerling potatoes.
Tamale Pie With Mint Yogurt
A pretty nice corn bread on top of a bunch of meat and some vegetables? Yes please. Though I don't necessarily believe in the nutrition make up that the app I am currently using came up with, it still was within my dietary segment (though maybe a bit heavy on the fat). I'm coming to see the inherent problem with doing dishes like this. So normally I'd take a healthy portion and have that as leftovers, so they would disappear out of the fridge. However, limiting myself to what is with in the carb limit or the caloric limit, I've been eating quite a bit less. So there is still leftovers of this...days after...
It's still good though, maybe would be better with something long stewed (like an actual mole), but then that wouldn't fit into an extended evening of cooking, I suppose.
Lamb Pitas
I had diced lamb shoulder, some things to go with it, good stuffs. Flatbread from Wild Yeast Bakery. Very quick to make (since the lamb was frozen leftover from shepherds pie a few weeks back).
Spanish Breakfast Casserole with Eggs and Bacon
I think the cooking directions were a bit wrong on this. Eggs, turned out fine, but the either there wasn't enough liquid, or it cooked at to high of a temperature. I'm going to lean on the latter. Even so, overall, this was still pretty good, even if some of the onions had a bit of extra char on them.
Pizza...lets find out if I can eat this.
So when planning I was putting together the items to this and saying, well based on the crust I can only have 1/8th of the pizza (yes, under normal conditions this would seem like a lot, since it is a pretty big pizza, but it is half of what I normally have). And there's nothing quite a sad as a fat man (although a little less fat) not able to just take all the pizza he wants. Then also have to be careful about drinking beer with it (carbs).
In my current state of less then ideal health, I'm relatively forced to participate in a healthy living program. Instead of taking having to go to these classes that I have to drive to, I chose to take this pre-programmed class online (doesn't merit a mention). Other then the fact that I feel like I'm being advertised to for their orange flavoring that I'm supposed to add to my water (I like my water cold and clean, thank you very much), it did have one redeeming item. When I go out dining, I often turn on the big brain that I have and analyze all the flavors and textures of the various parts and items together. Can I do that when I'm at home, sure, and sometimes it makes sense, but I certainly disagree with the conclusion that paying attention and waiting will necessarily reduce the desire to eat. Anyways, so far it's been more of a waste of time, then not, though I'm sure they'll take credit for the weight I've been losing...
2016 - Week 11 Cooking Results
Spanish Breakfast Casserole with Eggs and Bacon
Delayed…until today. I did make the croutons and then I made the dish this morning, for tonights dinner.
Fire Roasted Tomato Bisque
This turned out pretty good. using some locally sourced (well stored) carrots, and some other of the ingredients, I was able to make this in good time. Though I skipped the part where they said to leave part of it unblended, to create a more rustic mouth feel, I suppose, however, I blended it all. This did lead to a minor flub on my part where for some reason I pressed blend after I had taken the blender lid off.
Luckily, it was on pulse mode and didn’t spray everywhere, though I did make a bit of a mess and may have had a minor burn where it got on my arm.
Instead of using croutons, I made some grilled cheese sandwiches. it fit very well with the weather of the day.
Macaroni and Beef Casserole (Macaroni replaced and reduced)
Using the Dreamfields pasta, and less then the recipe calls for, I was able to pull this off. It turned out quite well, though I substituted the Panko for some sourdough breadcrumbs I had stashed away in the freezer.
Ground Goat Burgers
A little salt and pepper, some of Joseph’s sourdough buns and some stone ground dijon mustard. Good things. Instead of going with a single serving fries (kind of silly), went with a reasonable carb limit. Then had a salad on the side.
Corned Beef Hash
Tis the time of year where Brett at the Cheese Shop tends to make a cured meat of some sort. This year it was Pastrami. So I adjusted the Corned beef has, to be Pastrami Hash, and was quite happy with the results. Not to mention I got to eat a couple of pastrami sandwiches out of the deal. This turned out quite good.
Quick Turkey Chili
It was quick…but also not the best.
This morning I also made some Blood Cake (Cheese Shop) over eggs on toast. This was a quite good breakfast. Now I sip some coffee with some leftover cream and am enjoying my morning.
We also made a trip out to Reed's Hollow (the night that I discovered how long the casserole would take), and had a fantastic meal. This is a great addition to the Beaverdale neighborhood. And I'm glad to see the Hole in the Wall to get transformed into this.
We also made an early dinner trip to the Cheese Shop for their St Patrick's Day specials. This was also delicious. And certainly not the first time I've wanted all the things, but had to settle for one or two.
2016 - Week 8 Cooking Results
Shepherd's Pie (Cooking for Chris & Holly & Heath)
It was kind of funny. We're sitting there eating dinner having a quiet conversation. I start talking about dessert and the bar of chocolate that I brought. Instantly Heath is up and in the conversation. So how do you wake up a 3 year old? Chocolate apparently. We did give him a sample or two, and he didn't like it (completely understandable). It was still quite funny. Anyways The pie turned out really well and was a nice time to catch up with Chirs & Holly before they are in the wading through the needs of baby #2.
The Pie itself, I may have added a bit to much thyme, which I counteracted a bit with pepper, which seemed to work. I did diverge from the recipe by using dried instead of fresh and didn't have rosemary. Good stuffs overall.
Chorizo and Black Beans Tacos (have shells left)
Good as always. Starting off the week of pork goodness.
Pork Burgers
Om nom nom nom.
Sichuanese Chopped Celery With Beef (p138 Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes)
That's a lot of celery. But since celery can be quite good, it made for a delicious meal. I did have problems finding one of the ingredients, but ended up using something that had that ingredient in it.
Com Tam Breakfast (p68 Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes)
Simple to put together and make. Quick and good. This cookbook is proving to be quite good.
One-Pot Baked Ziti with Sausage and Spinach
Quicker then I thought. I did miss the step to chop the spinach, but it still worked. I was only sad that Shannon grabbed the last leftover dish before I did.
Spicy Carrot Sandwiches
Good as always.
