Readers Digest version Of last 2 Bloggy Posts:

Ok
you ready???
Sugar.... included in crazy quantities in foods we buy that are advertised as 'Fat Free'  ABsoLUtelY!!! makes us FAT
and
SOME Fats  (omega 3's) are essential in helping us lose Fat

Sugar = Bad
Fat = Good 


ALSO wanted to include this link below :)

http://www.thebeauty-healthblog.com/2010/07/amazing-benefits-of-virgin-coconut-oil.html

Happy February !!!

Figure Girl Quiche

Golden Vegetable Crust:  
Ingredients: 

• A little oil for the pan
• 2 Cups Packed Cups grated yellow summer squash (I used Zucchini)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 Cup peeled, grated Parsnip
• 1 TBSP melted Coconut Oil

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.  lightly grease a 9 or 10 inch pie pan.
2. Place the grated zucchini in a colander in the sink.  Sprinkle with salt and let it stand 10 minutes.  Squeeze excess moisture and transfer to a medium sized bowl.
3. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Transfer to pie pan and sculpt an attractive crust with a fork (and possibly you fingers)
4. Bake for 40 minutes.  You don't need to let it cool before filling.

The Quiche Part: Pre heat Oven to 375 F

Ingredients :

• 1 whole Omega Egg + 1 Cup Egg whites 
• 1 Cup Skim milk plain Yogurt or 1 Cup milk 

Method:

1. Beat together Eggs 
2. Add Yogurt 
3. Pour over pie Filling 
4. Bake at 375 for 35 to 40 minutes or until firm.  Cool at least 10 minutes before slicing. Serve at any temperature.

I arranged blanched Asparagus spears in my crust before pouring this filling over ...the possibilities are absolutely endless!

A Rainy Weekend in February involves taking care of your body your mind and your soul.  I figured now was as good time as any to break down and treat myself to a cook book I had been dreaming over for quite a while.  The Enchanted Broccoli Forrest by Mollie Katzen author of The Moosewood Cookbook.  In an effort to prolong my McNulty Wire episodes I decided to choose a couple of recipes and breath some life into my neglected blog.  

What I chose first is to make a quiche ....except one that would be highly suitable for Spring Figure Gal diet.  Nothing about a Julie child french Whole Cream Cheesy quiche would really come close..... but I had a couple of ideas up my sleeve that could transform it to something ....perfect???

The Broccoli Forrest has a recipe for a golden vegetable crust.  Only problem was the Ingredients list included  2 TBSP of oil.  This seems like a lot to me and I put myself to work to try and find a concession that would suit.  Coconut oil is what I came up with :) 
Lets give this a shot.  Everything I had research about this interested me.

As with many, I view the idea of FAT as something that was going to make me fat.  As I try and calm my mind on this idea I have slowly learnt the proper in's and outs of the whole thing and incorporate fish oil, almonds, and other nuts and seeds that are high in valuable essential fats Acids (EFA's.... meaning the ones my body can't create on its own) into my diet.  These actually aid  in ridding our bodies  excess fat.     

SO.... Coconut oil.  Here's the goods:
The makeup of Coconut oil includes short &  medium chained fatty acids.  These are known to increase thermogenesis giving increased metabolism and energy.  This is the primary reason coconut oil results in reducing body fat while keeping muscles intact.  Besides   Thermogenesis  http://thermogenesis.org/   another reason why coconut oil promotes leaner bodies is its ketogenic effect.  Ketones are high energy fuel that nourish the brain.  Our bodies can produce ketones from stored fat while in a fasting or starvation state.  But they can also be produced by converting medium chain fatty acids from certain foods (like coconut oil!).  In a fasting state, the body's use of ketones is to access energy while preventing muscle loss (Yeahh!!!  That's what Im talkin 'bout SON.... this Fat's Right! )  

Haven't Tried Stevia Yet .... CoCoa Protein Pudding

Easy !
No Cooking !
A Really Great Snack When you Just want something good!


Minimal Ingredients:

• 1 Tub Fat Free Cottage Cheese
• Two Eye Dropper squeezes of Liquid Stevia
• 1 tsp Cocoa powder
• 2 TBSP Fat Free Yogurt or Even Better Fat Free Greek Yogurt (for even more protein!)

Method:
Put ingredients in Blender
Blend till smooth
use rubber spatula to empty back into Cottage cheese Tub
Rinse blender
Eat Chocolate Pudding that will make you a muscle girl/ muscle man

So that is the Recipe 

Now here is the Rant If you dare to read it 

To Start lets just say it 

Sugar makes you Fat 

wonder if that got your attention

FAT FREE PUDDING has sugar in it 

NOW

Look at how many grams of sugar are in what you are eating

 (on the nutritional Label).  

Now Multiply grams of sugar by 4 because there are four calories per gram of sugar. 

Chocolate Pudding
 Regular Pudding (99g)
 Sugars, total:  16g
 Calories, total:  130 
 Calories from sugar: 64
 

 Low Fat Pudding  (99g) 
 Sugars, total:  15g
 Calories, total:  80 
 Calories from sugar: 60

  That's how much pure sugar you are consuming.  Yikes right?

Sugar makes you fat ...and FAT FREE food isn't really free of fat

So This leaves us wanting to know 

HOW the HECK does sugar make us fat if there isn't any fat in it ? !

First lets be clear.  Sugar isnt all evil.  Your body uses sugar to provide you with energy necessary for life.  Many Foods such as fruit for example, are broken down into sugar in the body.

However sugar can sabotage your body and cause fat storage.

Excess glucose is the problem. 

 Easy to explain.  Any time you have filled your body with more fuel than it actually needs (SO easy to do when you eat foods with high sugar content) your liver's sugar storage capacity is exceeded.  When the liver is at its max, it then coverts the sugar into fatty acids ...yep just plain old Fat and sends it right back into the blood stream where it is taken throughout your body to be stored as fat

As a terrible added bonus these fatty acids are also ushered for storage into the organs like the heart, liver, and kidneys.  This in turn reduces organ function, raises blood pressure, decreases metabolism, and weakens the immune system.

Read the labels of the food you eat 

Is sugar in it ?

Remember Ingredients are listed in order of quantity 

so if SUGAR  is First, second, or third on the list.... you can bet that food includes a lot of it  

Stevia by the way folks has actually been proven to LOWER blood Sugar 

FOOT NOTE

If you want to look at the label on your 'fat' free cottage cheese or yogurt included in the above recipe..there are grams of sugar in both...food is food and nobody is perfect 

I guess the idea is to do our best and stay away from sugar when we can 

Eating whole foods is always the best answer 

but you also have to be a human that sometimes wants to eat chocolate pudding too!

trying to find a good balance is all you can do 

Be happy ...eat good food 

FFTG Minestrone Soup!

Time to start cooking again ....
Inspired by a soup night with my two most constant Friends
The Darkness of the month of November should be filled with the warmth of good friends and great Soup.

The start of any really good soup is your stock.  Without it soup is water and sautéd veggies.
The best way I know how is to buy a whole chicken. Give it a good rinse in the sink stick er in a pot with enough water to cover.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer.  Skimming the top to remove impurities.  Add a rough chopped onion maybe a celery stick, a bit of carrot, a bay leaf, parsley.  Let simmer on the stove like this for 2- 3 hours adding enough water to keep everything under water as it cooks....making a stalk sounds like a big step but it really isn't !
Once the chicken is in the pot simmering just put your stove timer on and forget about it.  THe result is chicken that falls off the bone (more than enough for your soup) and a stock that will make the soup of your dreams!
After 2 hours or so (depending on the size of your chicken) Strain liquid into a clean pot, let it cool, then refrigerate it. Remove the fat that congeals on the surface before using the stock.

Next Soup Ingredients:

MINEsTRONE Soup:

1 Can Kidney beans 

1 Cup Chopped Onion 

4-5 cloves garlic chopped

1 Cup Celery, minced

1 Cup Carrot, chopped

1 Cup Zucchini, chopped

1 Cup Green Beans, Chopped

1 Cup brown mushrooms, chopped

2 Cups shredded chicken  

1 Can Whole Tomatoes 

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 Tsp Oregano and Basil

1/2 Cup fresh parsley 

3 Tbsp dry red wine 

3 1/2 Cups of your brilliant stock (or a carton of store bought if you must cheat)

parm cheese :)

In a heavy pot sauté veggies in olive oil.  After 5 - 10 mins add Stock, oregano, garlic, basil, beans, wine, chicken and tomatoes simmer soup until ready to serve.  I love to stick all of this into my crock pot in the am and leave it to cook for the day dinner is ready when your friends arrive :)

I have included a pic of the greatest noodles for minestrone but I actually prefer to add Brown Rice instead.

Serve soup hot sprinkled with parmesan & parsley 

Good red wine, a pretty baguette, a yummy Green Salad
And EVEN screaming kids playing tag in a small mobile home pare nicely with this great soup.

ENjoy!

Fresh Fruit Tart

Blackberries.....Huckleberries....&  Peaches OH MY !

Use Very Little Sugar 

try using Agar Agar as a thickening agent ;)

Trust me this will be TART

Serve with a dollop of Vanilla 0 Fat Greek Yogurt 

Celebrate the abundance of beautiful Fresh Fruit that is everywhere around us 

as another summer comes to a close  

I save bags of these berries and fruit in my freezer so I can bring summer back all winter long 

just by making a Pretty Tart

Crumble...

Made this today too

sorta made my little guy happy :)

Make Lentil Burgers or Veggie Burgers Tuna Burgers OR Chicken Burgers ...Ditch the bun use the Burger as your BUN! After All ...We all want Less BUNS

Want to Have a Carb Free Meal....But craving a Burger ...Solution Break Up with Your Buns!

Lentil Burger

Lentil Burger

Tuna Burger

Tuna Burger

Chicken Burger