Salads

The End of Week Thirty-Eight

Fifty Pounds, boys and girls. We have both lost FIFTY POUNDS! I am pretty much in shock. And really psyched!

Tim and Victor

When we walked into LA Fitness 38 weeks ago, it was about signing up for Silver Sneakers - a senior fitness program included with our health insurance. Neither of us knew our way around a gym, and we ended up signing up for personal training - three days a week. I don't think either of us really thought much would come of it, but... we did it, anyway.

The first few months were brutal. We'd crawl out of the gym and suffer for hours after. I was living on aspirin. I hurt in places I didn't even know existed. And then, one day, I wasn't exhausted for hours, after. I didn't need aspirin to ease the pain. Everything we were doing was getting more difficult - but, oddly, easier.

And, obviously, our diet changed - but not as in we went on a diet - because we haven't. We've changed our eating habits and we're doing smaller portions, but we're eating bread and pasta, drinking whole milk and eating full-fat yogurt.

No gluten-free/keto/paleo/whatever/bullshit-billion-dollar-a-year-phony-diet-scheme. We're eating real food - with no foods off-limits. We can and will eat whatever pleases us. We're just aware of what it is and adjust, accordingly. We're not eating a lot of crap. The biggest change we did was to knock off the ooey-gooey desserts every night, but we are satisfying the after dinner sweet tooth with fresh fruit - or, the occasional freshly-popped buttered popcorn. Yeah... real butter.

And losing weight.

It's funny, but I don't miss eating them as much as I miss making them... I'm looking forward to the Easter Bake-A-Thon and a bit of baking creativity! Fortunately, I am still getting my baking fix by making bread all of the time, and while I'm looking forward to baking several fun things, I'm more looking forward to tasting little pieces. My days of gorging on desserts is over.

Fifty pounds... We celebrated with salads...

We have become salad kings - after being soup kings during the winter. There are lots of containers of really good things in the 'fridge at any given moment. It's the alchemy that creates the final plate.

Salads

There are usually two salads - a bean-type and a grain-type - in the 'fridge along with accompaniments like roasted beets, boiled eggs, or steamed broccoli. Lentil sprouts just became a staple, and I'll be making more of them this weekend. Greens and cheeses and, for the dinner salads, something marinated and grilled.

Back in the good old days of Demo Cooking, Ruth and I made five-ingredient formula salads - a green, a crunchy, a dried fruit, a cheese, and a dressing - that were constantly changed and always different - yet remarkably easy to make and we were always being hailed as the geniuses we were.

I'm pretty much doing the same thing, here... It's just a matter of having a few things ready in the 'fridge.

And as the weather continues its upward climb, we will continue to fill those containers.

In the meantime, we both have some new weight goals still to be met -  and we need to continue this well past our training obligation - but, dammit, we have lost fifty pounds.

I could not be more proud of Victor and of myself.

We did it.

 

 

 


Pepper Stuffed Steak

The End of Week Thirty-Seven

We are ounces away from a fifty-pound weight loss! Un-Flippin'-Believable! Never in my wildest dreams did I see myself 50 pounds lighter. Okay - not entirely true. Only in my wildest dreams did I see it. I never really thought it would - or could - be a reality.

And it's within reach!

It has not been easy - yet, it's getting easier - even as the workouts get more difficult. It's all still learning.

More than anything, I need to really work on my breathing. We were walking back and forth across the gym doing lunges while simultaneously lifting dumbbells straight out - think of a kneeling bird stretching its wings and lowering them over-and-over - and I just could not catch my breath. It was pure torture. Our trainer kept telling me to breathe and I kept thinking I'm going to die and my suits are all to big for me. I suppose I could be buried in a tshirt and jeans - I don't even have shorts that fit, right now...

One does need to plan these things...

And... one needs to commit. None of this would have happened if we hadn't committed to doing it - and actually doing the long-term work instead of trying for a quick fix. It is a lifestyle change, and as much as I miss those nightly ooey-gooey desserts, I'm loving fresh fruit - and really can't wait for stone-fruits to come into season!

It is a trade-off - and one that we're happily making.

It's time for a celebratory steak!

Once upon a time, I'd be grilling two of these huge ol' things. Today, it's one - split between us. Still more than enough food - and I often marvel at how much we have cut back while still eating a lot.

The concept for the steak came from the NY Times. It's a grilled strip steak stuffed with a medium-hot chunky pepper sauce. I didn't have the peppers in the recipe, but I did have a couple of bell peppers and some of our smokin' hot roasted peppers from our garden.

Pepper-Stuffed Steak

  • 2 bell peppers, roasted, peeled, and chopped
  • 2 roasted hot peppers, chopped (more or less, to taste)
  • 1 tbsp neutral oil
  • 1 tbsp flour
  • 1/2 cup beef stock
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 pinch oregano
  • 2 (10-ounce) top sirloin or New York strip steaks, 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick, with excess fat cut away
  • garlic powder, salt, and pepper, for steak

In small saucepan, add oil and flour to make a roux. Add the beef stock, garlic, and oregano and cook until thickened. Stir in the chopped peppers. Set aside to cool.

Cut a pocket in the steak making sure not to cut through. Rub with a bit of oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Spoon about half of pepper mixture into steaks and secure with toothpick. Reserve remaining for topping.

Grill to desired doneness.

Heat reserved pepper sauce and spoon over steaks.

The potatoes were a concoction I got from the BBC food section. It's a fun site - and anyone can access! I peruse a lot of the BBC/British food sites and am getting quite adept at metric conversions and British terminology. Like delving into La Cucina Italiana - in Italian - it's a great way to connect with different cultures. And if you think our politics are screwed up, try following Brexit in the British papers!

Mary's recipe calls for parmesan. I used a great Piave. It was perfection! I also made like a third of this recipe but still used a lot of cheese.

Mary Berry's Fennel and Potato Gratin

Ingredients

  • 50g/1¾oz butter, plus extra for greasing
  • 3 large bulbs fennel
  • 3 onions
  • 600g/1lb 6oz large potatoes, peeled
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 50g/1¾oz parmesan cheese, grated (or vegetarian equivalent)

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/ (180 fan). Butter the serving dish.

Trim the tops from the fennel and cut each bulb in half through the root, then cut each half lengthways into three wedges. Cut the onions into six wedges too in a similar way.

Cut the potatoes into wedges the same size as the fennel wedges.

Boil the fennel and onions in a large pan of salted water for about five minutes, then add the potatoes and boil for a further five minutes, or until the potatoes and fennel are just tender. Drain well.

Put the 50g/1¾oz butter and the garlic in the same large pan set over a low heat until just melted. Return the potatoes and fennel to the butter, toss until coated then tip into the ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with the parmesan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until piping hot.

On to week thirty-eight!

 


Bean Salad

The End of Week Thirty-Six

We're still measuring weight-loss in ounces, not pounds - but it's still weight-loss. That's the word that matters.

On the gym-front, our trainer keeps pushing with rapid-fire sets. There's nary a second to catch a breath and we're on to the next ordeal. It really is just a continuous workout.

What has surprised me, is after thirty-six weeks, I can do it! I'm keeping up. My pure pigheaded stubbornness has paid off. The other thing that has surprised me is I feel fine walking out the door. Where once we were both exhausted for quite some time after a workout, it's now a thing of the past. We get home and have the energy to do whatever we want to do. I just wish the weather would start cooperating, because what I really want to do is a yard clean-up.

I just need to work on patience... It will happen in the next few weeks...

Another thing that will happen is the garden - and we will rely less on the store and more on what we're growing. In the meantime, fresh veggies and a few canned things work just fine.

I spaced out taking a picture of the actual dinner plate, tonight, but it was a grilled bone-in chicken breast with the bean salad from the other day. Like our luncheon soups, we make the salads in quantity to last a few days.

There are no recipes for salads like this - and no wrong way to make them. Put what you have in a bowl ad tie it all together with a simple vinaigrette. Add some salt and pepper, and it's a great side or center of the plate.

On to week thirty-seven. I can't wait to see what our trainer has in store for us...

 


Chicken Cutlets

The End of Week Thirty-Five

Weight-loss this week is being measured in ounces, not pounds - but it's in the loss category. I'll take it.

It's also being measured in the pain category. Our trainer is ramping it up, again. He had us working the core, today. I wanted to die several times. The core muscles are just that - the abdominal muscles, back muscles and the muscles around the pelvis. They are where it all begins - and, where I may meet my end.

Strengthening the core means actually doing things with your body instead of with weights or machines. Weights and machines are a lot easier. If weight-loss was measured by perspiration, there would be nothing left of me.

But... it's all working. Slowly and painfully - but it's working.

The weather is working, as well. It is 74°F outside, right now. We're already planning our yard clean-up - called the local recycling center and got info about bringing in yard waste and buying some topsoil and compost - and starting to think about the garden and what we plan to grow, this year.

I'm totally ready for Spring!

But while I'm ready for Spring, Mother Nature still has a few tricks up her sleeves. Temps are set to drop, again. Our final frost date is April 30th, which means I can start doing a few inside seeds any time, now...

In planning for the better weather, the grill parts I ordered will be here on Tuesday. I had planned on grilling a chicken breast, tonight, on the falling-apart grill, but Victor volunteered to do cutlets - and I'm always ready for a change in plans. I'm much more flexible mentally than I am physically.

The cutlets were a simple chicken breast, sliced and pounded, dipped in flour, egg, and breadcrumbs seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano. The potatoes were baby yukons with olive oil, garlic powder, oregano, parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper - in the oven at 350°F for 35 or so minutes.

And the bean salad from yesterday.

Another successful gym day and dinner.

To toast our success and kick off the St Patrick's Day weekend, those glasses on the top right of the photo hold The Sexton - an outrageously good Irish Whiskey - created by one of the few female Master Blenders in the industry.

She did well.

Here's to more success.

 

 


Pork Tenderloin

The End of Week Thirty-Four

Another week, another pound. Life is good.

The word of the week, this week, is breathe. I think it is the word we both hear the most when we're with the trainer. There is something about the intake and exhaust of breath that really makes a workout well... work. I'm not quite there, yet. There are times when I have the perfect rhythm, but they are still not a natural phenomenon. Often, it seems that I really have to think it - and thinking it screws up the natural rhythm. Inhale nose, exhale mouth, inhale mouth, exhale mouth, inhale, inhale, hold breath, what am I supposed to be doing? screw up, sweat pouring down, repeat. One would think that after this long, I'd have a better clue.

On the other hand, he leads us through routines where I can actually feel improvement with each rep and his constant reminders to breath do help to keep me focused on not dying. More often than not, though, it's reaching 18 of 20 reps the third time around and knowing that breath or no breath, there is just no way that 19 is going to happen.

None of this is natural to me and all of it has been a struggle - but, for the most part, it's getting easier even as it gets more difficult. And the recovery time is almost instantaneous compared to when we started. Fewer aspirins...

I don't think I will ever consider this fun, but it continues to be rewarding. And that, boys and girls, is what's important.

Food is also important, and Victor made sure we had an awesome dinner, tonight!

I had pulled a pork tenderloin out of the freezer with no clear idea of what I was going to do with it. Victor decided he was going to stuff it - and I never argue when someone else wants to cook!

Victor did a bit of a clean out the 'fridge stuffing, with:

  • dried apricots
  • celery
  • carrots
  • green onions
  • mushrooms
  • fennel
  • garlic
  • cheese

He sauteed everything but the cheese in olive oil, and then added a bit of crushed red pepper, salt & black pepper. Then a bit of white wine and some chicken stock and cooked it down. He added a few breadcrumbs at the end.

While it was cooling, he butterflied and then pounded the tenderloin. He laid it flat, spread on the stuffing, and then added a bit of quattro formaggio down the center. Rolled and tied, and into a 350°F oven for 30 minutes with cubed sweet potatoes on the side.

Perfection on a plate and the perfect end to our workout week.

Week Thirty-Five starts on Monday.

 


Spinach Linguine and Shrimp

The End of Week Thirty-Three

Ah... another week and more weight loss. It appears that by telling myself I didn't care if I lost any weight caused me to lose 2 1/2 pounds. I'm hoping that if I tell myself to gain a couple that I'll lose even more. At this point I don't  care how irrational things sound - it's whatever it takes.

Down a few pounds and  I have a nice, sore bruise on my left calf. I got it from trying to swing my legs up and over some damned bars twenty-five times while hanging from my forearms. That was Wednesday and it's still sore. Flexibility has never been my strong point to begin with and there are certain movements that just ain't gonna happen - but I finally did manage it a few times. The other twenty-two resulted in an altogether new type of pain as I banged the end of it instead of swinging over it. I swear the Marquis de Sade thinks up these damned things.

On a positive note, though, I actually did do it. I've tried at least once a week since first trying it months ago - never getting my legs up high enough. If the gymnasium gods are willing, the next time I'll do it a few more times and won't be quite as bruised. Now that I know the pain involved, there's a lot of incentive to get it done right.

Victor banged his knee on Monday and was favoring it a bit during some of the exercises, but he worked through it, as well. Ya just keep doing what ya have to do.

This is why we have a personal trainer. Not to cause pain, but to push us to do things we wouldn't otherwise do. I don't see myself going back repeatedly to try and do something on my own. I just don't. I need him to keep pushing me when I don't want to do it. Which is all of the time. I really don't want to do it - even though I see the results, feel the results, and know it's the best thing I've done for myself in years. Left to my own devices, I'd bake cookies.

And he does keep pushing. And I'm not baking cookies. And we're both losing weight. And feeling better - albeit sore in places...

I think the smartest thing we did was to commit for a year. It would actually be pretty easy to tell ourselves we've more or less achieved our goals so we could slow down and relax a bit. Forty-five pounds is a lot of weight to lose. However, it has become more than weight loss - it's about actual health and well-being. And we're committed to seeing it through - and feeling better, stronger, and just being healthier.

Tonight, it's pasta night at our house. Homemade spinach pasta. As I have mentioned many times, nothing is off limits around here. Victor made a pretty big batch last week and after making cannelloni and ravioli, the rest went into the freezer. It came out this morning and he turned it into linguine.

The joys of being married to an Italian...

He made a fairly basic scampi-style sauce. He started by cooking the shrimp shells in olive oil, garlic, and white wine. He cooked it all down, and then strained it. From there, he quickly sauteed the shrimp and then added the wine sauce, lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, crushed red pepper, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

He quickly cooked the pasta and then mixed it unto the sauce with a bit of butter and freshly grated parmesan. He had saved a bit of pasta water just in case it needed some - but it was perfect as-is.

Very simple but just loaded with flavor. I completely cleaned my plate - and was borderline close to licking it clean, as well. It really was good.

Nineteen weeks left before we're on our own.

We can do it.

 

 

 


Cannelloni

The End of Week Thirty-Two

Well... it appears that my body has found its optimum weight - 190 lbs. That, of course, is not my personal optimum weight, so I need to change things up, a bit. Victor dropped another pound, so he's doing okay - after going through this a few weeks ago.

It's funny how the body reacts to things... how it gets comfortable at different weights... I was at 165 for the better part of 20 years, and after quitting smoking the first time, hit 200. After quitting smoking the second - and final time - I made it up to 230 and stayed there for the longest time before inching my way up to 240.

I'm 50 pounds lighter than my all-time high with another 20 to go to meet my optimal weight. These are probably going to be the difficult twenty to lose.

In the grand scheme of things, it all centers around my love of food. People are divided into two groups - eat to live and live to eat. I live to eat! I can’t seem to get enough of new foods and flavors, of new ideas and old standards. I just need to keep working on eating less of everything. Of cooking less. Of not thinking I have to clean my plate.

I'll get there. And I'll get there because we're not dieting - we're eating what we want - within reason - but we're not denying ourselves, not making some foods bad and some foods good. We're being realistic. We're in it for the long run.

And the long run around here is going to include pasta - especially homemade pasta.

I saw a shrimp and lentil cannelloni recipe on La Cucina Italiana that looked interesting. Looked interesting, because the site is in Italian. My knowledge of the Italian language is pretty sparse, although I'm getting better in the culinary end of things.

One of the benefits of having cooked for so many years is learning culinary terms of other languages. Of course, it can also make one a bit cocky. I have done more than my share of French cooking in my time, and the first time we went to France I was pretty confident I could order any meal. Needless to say, when presented with an actual French menu, my American Kitchen French was no match for the real thing. Live and learn.

Nowadays, I rely on Bing or Google to translate the pages.

From La Cucina Italiana

What I see when I first get there...

Cannelloni con gamberi e lenticchie

INGREDIENTI

500 g latte
450 g gamberi rossi
300 g lenticchie piccole
300 g pomodori pelati
50 g misto aromatico (sedano, carote, cipolla tritati)
20 g scalogno
20 g burro
20 g farina
8 cannelloni secchi
aglio
peperoncino
timo
noce moscata
brodo vegetale
Cognac
vino bianco
limone
olio extravergine d' oliva
sale fino e grosso

Durata: 2 h 20 minLivello: MedioDosi: 4 persone

Per la ricetta dei cannelloni con gamberi e lenticchie, soffriggete il misto aromatico in 2 cucchiai di olio con un pizzico di sale grosso e, dopo 2’, unite le lenticchie, una spruzzata di vino bianco e 4 mestoli di brodo. Cuocete le lenticchie per 1 ora, bagnandole con il brodo in modo che non si asciughino. Sgusciate i gamberi, eliminando il budellino nero e il carapace e tenendo da parte le teste. Mondate lo scalogno, affettatelo a rondelle e tenetene da parte un po’ da tritare.

Schiacciate uno spicchio di aglio con la buccia e rosolatelo in una padella con 2 cucchiai di olio, lo scalogno a rondelle e un pizzico di peperoncino per 1’; unite le teste dei gamberi schiacciandole bene, sfumate con 3 cucchiai di Cognac e, quando è evaporato, aggiungete i pomodori pelati, cuocete per 8’, quindi bagnate con un mestolo di brodo e proseguite la cottura per 15’. Filtrate il sugo al setaccio, quindi portatelo a bollore e fatelo restringere per 15’, regolandolo eventualmente di sale.

Frullate 200 g di lenticchie con 120 g di brodo, quindi passate al setaccio la crema per eliminare le bucce. Tenete da parte 4 gamberi interi e tagliate gli altri a pezzi; tritate lo scalogno rimasto e unitelo alle lenticchie intere e alla crema di lenticchie, aggiungete i gamberi a pezzi, qualche foglia di timo e amalgamate tutto. Dividete a metà i 4 gamberi tenuti da parte e marinateli con olio, il succo di mezzo limone, un pizzico di sale e qualche foglia di timo. Preparate la besciamella facendo sciogliere il burro in un pentolino, incorporate la farina, lontano dalla fiamma, quindi il latte, un pizzico di sale e una grattugiata di noce moscata, facendo addensare per 5’.

Cuocete i cannelloni in acqua bollente salata per 3’ e raffreddateli in acqua ghiacciata. Raccogliete la crema di lenticchie e gamberi in una tasca da pasticciere e riempite i cannelloni. Mettete in una pirofila uno strato di besciamella, adagiatevi i cannelloni ripieni, ricopriteli con altra besciamella, aggiungete un filo di olio e infornateli a 180 °C per 15’. Guarnite i cannelloni con il sugo, i gamberi marinati e, a piacere, con qualche lenticchia.

And then, what I get when translated:

Cannelloni with shrimps and lentils

INGREDIENTS

500 g milk
450 g red Shrimp
300 g small lentils
300 g peeled tomatoes
50 g mixed aromatic (celery, carrots, chopped onion)
20 g shallots
20 g butter
20 g flour
8 Dried Cannelloni
Garlic
Chili
Thyme
Nutmeg
Vegetable broth
Cognac
White wine
Lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt Fine and large

Duration: 2 h 20 minlevel: Mediumdoses: 4 People

For the recipe of cannelloni with shrimps and lentils, saute the aromatic mixture in 2 spoonfuls of oil with a pinch of coarse salt and, after 2 ', add the lentils, a splash of white wine and 4 ladles of broth. Cook the lentils for 1 hour, wetting them with the broth so that they do not dry. Shelled the prawns, eliminating the black devein and the carapace and holding the heads aside. Wash the shallots, slice into slices and keep a bit of chopping.

Crush a clove of garlic with the peel and brown in a pan with 2 tablespoons of oil, the shallots with washers and a pinch of chili for 1 '; Add the shrimp heads and mash them well, blend them with 3 tablespoons of Cognac and, when it is evaporated, mix the peeled tomatoes, cook for 8 ', then douse with a ladle of broth and continue cooking for 15 '. Filter the sauce through the sieve, then take it to a boil and make it shrink by 15 ', adjusting it eventually to salt.

Blend 200 g of lentils with 120 g of broth, then sieve the cream to remove the skins. Keep aside 4 whole prawns and cut the others to pieces; Chop the remaining shallots and add to the whole lentils and lentil cream, adding the prawns to pieces, a few leaves of thyme and mix everything. Divide in half the 4 prawns kept aside and marinateli with oil, the juice of half a lemon, a pinch of salt and a few leaves of thyme. Prepare the béchamel by dissolving the butter in a saucepan, incorporate the flour, away from the flame, then the milk, a pinch of salt and grated nutmeg, thickch for 5 '.

Cook the cannelloni in boiling salted water for 3 ' and cool them in iced water. Collect the cream of lentil and shrimp in a pastry bag and fill the cannelloni. Put a layer of béchamel in a baking dish, lay the stuffed cannelloni, cover them with other béchamel, add a little oil and inform them at 180 ° C for 15 '. Garnish the cannelloni with the sauce, the marinated prawns and, to taste, with some lentil.

It's a lot of fun figuring out what one is supposed to do. Most times, I rely on the picture and the base ingredients and then just make something up - as I did tonight.

When I told Victor of my plans, his first response was Do you want me to make the cannelloni pasta? I did answer in the affirmative. We tossed spinach and squid ink pasta back and forth and spinach won - because he then made ravioli that we're having tomorrow night.

Spinach Pasta

  • 4oz spinach
  • Fine sea salt
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 large egg yolk

Trim stems from spinach, discard stems. Rinse leaves in cold water, do not dry.

In a medium saucepan with a pinch of salt, cook spinach over medium heat covered, until tender, 3 to 5 minutes.

Drain spinach and let cool, then gently but thoroughly squeeze out excess liquid and very finely chop.

On a clean work surface, mound 1 cup flour and form a well in the center.

Add 1 egg, 1 egg yolk and spinach into the well. Using a fork (or your fingers) gently break up yolk and slowly incorporate flour . Continue until the liquid is absorbed, then knead for 10 minutes.

Wrap dough tightly in plastic and let rest for 30 minutes

After the dough has rested:

CannelloniTake the spinach dough and divide into 3 equal pieces (cover the other two and set aside)

Set the rollers of pasta machine at the widest setting then feed pasta through rollers 3 or 4 times folding and turning pasta until it is smooth and the width of the machine.

Roll dough through the machine, decreasing the setting one notch at a time (do not fold or turn the dough this time) until pasta sheet is a scant 1/16 inch thick.

Cut sheet into 6" lengths, lightly dust both sides with flour. Layer sheets between floured pieces of parchment or wax paper.

Cannelloni

Using the recipe as a guide, I made a filling of cooked lentils, tomatoes, onion, carrot, celery, fennel, garlic, brandy, and shrimp. I pureed most of the lentil filling and then stirred it back into the rest and added the chopped shrimp.

I then made the cannelloni.

Cannelloni

Four fit perfectly in the 8" casserole.

Cannelloni

Instead of the standard béchamel, I made a sauce of butter, flour, white wine, and clam juice.

Cannelloni

Very simple - and very tasty.

It was covered and went into a 350°F oven for about 35 minutes.

It came out ooey, gooey, and really good!

cannelloni

Silky smooth pasta, rich and flavorful sauce and filling. The flavors all complimented each other really well. Every bite was fun.

We're losing weight, slowly but surely, and eating well at the same time. We're living life and enjoying it - without stressing over good foods and bad foods, ridiculous diets, and unachievable goals.

And, in the grand scheme of things, that's what's important to us.

 

 


Sausage and Squash

The End Of Week Thirty-One

The weight-loss results weren't what I was hoping for, but considering I had a pretty food-centric week, only gaining a pound is pretty good. It's just reinforcing the simple fact that portion control is really important and even though nuts may be healthy, eating half a bag of cashews is not.

Victor caught a head cold that really knocked his socks off so he missed the gym for five days. I caught a tapeworm on Tuesday and ate more than a couple of these disgusting madeileines I buy for his mom and then ate cashews like they were the last food on the planet, watching bad TV while Victor slept.

On a positive note, though, our trainer was really pleased with our weight progress, today.

We move on...

Victor made a huge batch of sauce yesterday, and while we didn't eat it last night, we did have spaghetti, so tonight, it was about having some of the sauce and sausages - without the pasta. I'm trying to regain the balance.

We had a nice, big, butternut squash, so I cut it up and roasted off a bit of it. The rest went into the 'fridge. I'll figure out something to do with it this weekend.

Into the skillet went a bit of onion, bell pepper, carrot, and fennel. I sautéed it until the veggies were cooked fairly well, and then added 2 cloves of minced garlic and a bit of salt & pepper. When the garlic started cooking, I added some wine and let it cook down a bit. Then went in the sausages and sauce, and the butternut squash.

It got all nice and hot and onto the plate it went. A bit of freshly-grated pecorino on top, and we had a great dinner.

And now on to Week Thirty-Two!

 

 

 


Steaks with Bacon and Chipotle

The End of Week Thirty

I'm definitely filing this in the who woulda thunk category, today.

Really. Who woulda thunk we'd be doing this for thirty weeks - losing weight, gaining strength and stamina, eating better - and actually enjoying it?!? It seriously boggles the mind.

I had to buy a new pair of gym shorts, yesterday, because the old ones were too big and starting to fall off me. All of the XXL clothes have been donated, and while the closet is looking a bit sparse, we're not buying anything new, right away, except for jeans. I've gone from 40x32 to 34x32. Damn, it feels food.

What also feels good is doing things I never even conceived as being possible. Our trainer has us doing the seemingly impossible - and we continually succeed. I may not have a lot of finesse or style, but I'm making up for it with pure grit and determination. I figure finesse and style will come, eventually - my main focus right now is simply not dying while I'm doing whatever crazed thing he has us doing. Remembering to breathe is important.

Eating is important, too.

And we're definitely eating. Tonight was a celebratory steak topped with bacon, onion, tomato, and chipotle. Ridiculously good. The idea came from the NY Times Cooking pages.

Bacon and Chipotle Sauce

  • 4 oz bacon, chopped
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 can diced tomatoes, drained
  • 1 tsp chipotle powder - or to taste
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Cook bacon in a small skillet until crisp. Add diced onions and cook well. Add chipotle powder and quickly mix in. Add drained tomatoes and mix well. Cook until everything is hot and reduced to a jam-like consistency. Season with salt & pepper, as desired.

This is one of those things that could be used for anything - starting as the filling for a grilled cheese sandwich! Every bite is pure flavor. I cooked the baby zucchini in it, tonight, and it added some excellent flavor to an often-bland vegetable.

I marinated the steak in the drained tomato juice, cumin, Mexican oregano, and ancho chile powder. I seared it on the stove and finished it in the oven.

Waste not, want not, ya know?!?

So... here's to another successful week - and the next one coming up.

I'm feeling better and better about this.

 

 

 

 

 

 


Chicken and Andouille

The End of Week Twenty-Nine

I hit a milestone, yesterday - for about 5 minutes, anyway. I made it to 189 pounds. I have not weighed under 190 for 30 years. Alas, when I did my weigh-in at the gym, today, I was at a solid 190. I'm going to blame it on the oatmeal I had for breakfast.

The goal, now, is to be no higher than 189 next Friday - and never be above it, again. Seeing that little dip on the scale showed that all of this is worthwhile - and getting to a livable weight is totally doable.

It's not always happening as quickly as either of us would like - but it is happening. And that is something I need to keep in perspective.

Our trainer has turned things up another notch and he has me sweating bullets. One would think the amount of liquid pouring off of me would lower my weight. One would think...

Another milestone was squatting and actually touching the floor with my fingertips. It's the little victories. It is happening.

Dinner is happening, as well.

Tonight's dinner was a quick little mash-up of chicken, andouille sausage, and beans - the last of the beans I canned back in September. I vaguely remember September. It was warm. There's been a light snow falling all day with a high of about 12°F - downright balmy.

Our balmy weather definitely called for something to keep us warmed up, so andouille sausage came to mind - you just can't go wrong with it. From there, the rest of the dinner just fell into place.

A quick sauté of chicken and andouille sausage with shallots, garlic, beans, and a hefty sprinkling of cayenne pepper for the center of the plate, and an equally simple sauté of some arugula with roasted red pepper, garlic, and shallots.

Dinner was served.

Great textures, lots of flavors, and just enough heat...

Speaking of heat... we're supposed to be close to 60°F by Tuesday.

We may be barbecuing...

 

 

 

 

 


Orecchiette with Fennel and Tuna

The End of Week Twenty-Seven

I've been circling the sun for 66 years - and I finally have the the very beginnings of a bicep. Not quite Charles Atlas - more like Charles Nelson Reilly - but it's almost beginning to be there! Will wonders never cease...

When we started this, the goal was to lose weight. We've been losing the weight. What I naively wasn't expecting was for my body to actually start working better - like with actual muscles and stuff working together to make things easier. It's slowly happening.

Okay... I still can't touch my toes - but I'm getting closer. And I hurt in places I never knew existed six months ago - but I'm recovering faster. It's slowly happening.

It's seeing - and feeling - the results of all of this that is keeping us going. It is most definitely the best money we have ever spent.

Our goal in all of this is NOT to look like some of the muscle-boys at the gym - no bulging biceps and thighs like tree trunks - but a little bit of toning wouldn't hurt my feelings. Of course, to tone muscles, one must find them in the first place. We're at the search and rescue portion of the journey, right now.

Our trainer is getting more demanding, but he's also extremely understanding of where we are and where we started. He'll start me out with 20 pound dumbbells but will switch them out when he sees me struggling too much. But then brings the 20 pounders back the next time. And he'll keep increasing the weight on machines each time we do a rep until I literally cannot move whatever it is I am supposed to move - all  the while saying This is an easy one. Low weight. You can do it while my arms want to fall off and have completely stopped working.

On the other hand, I almost have the beginnings of a bicep. It's slowly happening.

What didn't slowly happen was dinner, tonight. It quickly happened, because it's ready in the time it takes to boil the orecchiette. The recipe came from Jacques Pépin and has become a staple in our house. It's really quick and easy to make. And it tastes fantastic! Our friend, Ann, started putting anchovies in it - and it's a great addition!

The recipe calls for pine nuts, but I didn't have any so I used pistachios. They were an excellent switch.

Orecchiette with Fennel and Tuna

adapted from Jacques Pépin

  • 1/2 lb Orecchiette
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 anchovy fillets, chopped
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts
  • 1 medium fennel bulb, thinly sliced
  • 1 bell pepper, cut into thin strips
  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 3 cloves of garlic,  minced
  • 1 6oz can of tuna (packed in oil, preferred)
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Start cooking orecchiette.

In a large skillet, saute onion in olive oil until translucent. Add the anchovies and cook a minute until they dissolve. Add the pine nuts and cook until they begin to lightly brown and are fragrant.

Add sliced fennel and stir or flip pan until fennel is on bottom and pine nuts on top. Add a bit of pasta water or white wine. Cover, and cook about 3 minutes.

Uncover and add bell peppers. Cook a few minutes and add the garlic. Continue cooking and add the tuna and raisins.

Cover, again, and cook until vegetables are tender – just a few more minutes.

Drain pasta and stir into fennel. Stir in parsley and cheese.

Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as desired.

Twenty-five more weeks to go.....


The End of Week Twenty-Six

Week Twenty-Six. Six Months. The pain, the pain. And I do mean pain. Oy, such contortions that man tries to put me through!

Twenty-six weeks and we're both feeling so much better than when we started - more stamina, more energy, able to repeatedly carry things up and down the stairs without getting even the slightest bit winded. And forty pounds lighter. It's pretty awesome.

And then we have days like today where I felt like I was back at square one and couldn't do a damned thing. I have found that I can do a lot of things on machines, do lunges like a pro, and swing a kettleball until the cows come home, but when I'm left to doing things strictly with my body... all bets are off.

I start off each session with a good 10 minutes in the sauna to help warm and loosen up the muscles. One of my prime problems is lack of flexibility and tight muscles. I still can't bend over and touch my toes, but today, in the sauna, I actually was able to squat and get my fingertips on the ground. Being that it's the first time, ever, I thought it reasonably significant.

I walked out to start our session kinda pumped up, and within minutes was knocked down to the ground - figuratively speaking, of course. Our trainer brought things to a whole new level and my body did not want to cooperate.

It's difficult to describe it all, but right off the bat, I'm hampered by a few things. I cannot touch my toes and I cannot sit with my feet straight out in front of me, so sitting on the floor with my legs raised out in front of me passing things back and forth and building stacks using two hands is going to cause discomfort. And then there was squatting down, grabbing dumbbells from the floor, walking back, doing a push-up, walking back into a squat, picking up the dumbbells, curling, twisting, and then lifting them straight up overhead, back down, into squat, lather, rinse, repeat. I wanted to die after the first one. I did twelve. Sweat pouring off me like I was a fountain.

Victor, who is a lot more limber than I am, was able to at least look better doing it all, although he was writing his obituary, as well. The pain, the pain. And for all we went through, I barely lost a pound and Victor stayed the same as last week.

Obviously, we're still eating too much. I made a big batch of lunch soup, yesterday, so that will help. I need to switch up my breakfasts and start drinking more water. I've slowed down on the water consumption - and that was key in keeping me feeling full during the day. And dinner portions need to be more realistic, as well.

We're still 40 pounds down in six months, but we can do better. And carrying less weight will help with a lot of the contortions we're being put through.

Back on the plus side, our recovery time is excellent. As beat up as we were, we were feeling just fine as we walked in the door. More or less. My legs will be sore for the rest of my life. That's just the way of it.

Using up leftovers is just the way of it around here, as well. We had filling left from the stuffed peppers, yesterday, so I reworked it into a sauce with spaghetti squash.

A while back, I heard or read about cutting spaghetti squash into rings instead of in half lengthwise. Evidently, the strands go around the squash, so cutting it in rings gives you longer squash strands.

Spaghetti Squash

And I think they were...

Spaghetti Squash

For the sauce, I chopped and then sautéed a bell pepper, and then added about a cup of tomato sauce and some leftover cherry tomatoes. Next went in some olive tapenade and a bit of pepperoncino to spice things up.

When it was all nice and hot, I stirred in the spaghetti squash, let it get hot, and that was it.

So... six months down and six months to go.

Bring on the aspirin. We're ready.