January 2011 – Singing about Cooking

Salmon Croquettes, a southern classic

Posted on January 29, 2011May 10, 2017 by singingaboutcooking

Go to any traditional southern brunch location (like Rick’s in Greenwood, SC), and you’ll find salmon croquettes on the menu: a delicious salmon cake deep fried and served over grits.

You see, most folks only hear about shrimp and grits as the classic Charleston breakfast (or any other time) dish, but salmon and grits is far more common and delicious. The restaurants don’t bother to “put their own spin” on salmon and grits like they do with shrimp (usually ruining a simple shrimp and gravy dish).

Plus, this is one of my grandmother’s classics, a special dinner treat, usually when it’s just us girls. So as I make these little fish cakes tonight, I will set aside a couple to take to her to enjoy.

The Menu: Salmon Croquettes, Dijon Roasted New Potatoes, Braised Spinach

First, I’ll get the potatoes ready and in the oven. The Dijon Roasted New Potatoes is a recipe right out of the Weight Watchers Weekly this week, but for those who don’t participate, here it is:

Quarter or halve 1.5 lb new potatoes; we leave the skin on, but that is up to you.
Whisk together 2T Dijon mustard, 1t olive oil, 3/4 t paprika, 1/2t salt, 1/4t thyme (I use more cuz I love it!), 1/4t pepper; toss the potatoes in this dressing.
Bake at 425 for 15 minutes; then stir them well and bake for 15-20 minutes more until they are tender (stick ’em with a fork!).
Tip: if they aren’t crispy enough for you, spray them with a little cooking spray and put them back in for a couple of minutes.

Makes 4 1.25 cup servings at 4 PointsPlus each.

With the potatoes in the oven, it’s time to mix up and form the Salmon Croquettes. Here’s how it goes, with attention to getting the mixture to hold together rather than exact measurements:

2-3 cans of salmon, drained (about 1 lb)
1/3 cup of cornmeal (for coating only; for GF, substitute rice flour)
pinch of baking powder
1 egg, beaten before you pour it into mixture (yes, that is important when you use egg as binding)
1/2 cup very finely diced onion
1T Worchestershire sauce (make your own GF/CF/SF with this recipe)
1T lemon juice
splash of Tobasco sauce
salt and pepper, as you like it

Mix this all together with your hands; yes, that is an essential part of making these. You can’t know if the mixture is at the right consistency if you can’t feel it. The mixture will be “tacky” when you make a ball in your hand, but will not actually stick. It’s also very important that when you roll it into a ball and then flatten it into a patty that the “stuff” sticks together easily, without you having to push it back together. If it’s too loose (wet) or to thick (dry), it will all fall apart in the skillet and just become salmon hash, sort of.

When you’ve got your mixture just right (with a slight, wet squishing sound when you squeeze it into a ball), form eight 4 oz patties; if you’re not actually weighing these, this will be about a small 2-inch ball of mixture in your palm. Roll the mixture into a ball and then flatten the ball into a patty, lightly patting the edges into shape if needed.

Dust each patty in cornmeal, very lightly. This is optional as some don’t like the gritty coating. An alternative for helping them not stick to the skillet is to dust them with rice flour, which will not create a coating like regular wheat flour does.

Salmon Croquettes — Smoking away in a cast iron skillet

Now the original recipe calls for deep frying, which is wonderful and delicious and easy, but completely unnecessary. Just spray a skillet with cooking spray to prevent smoking and cook the patties over medium high heat for about 4 minutes on each side. Since the salmon is already cooked, you are focused on cooking the egg and the onions and heating the whole patty through for great flavor. You may also choose to bake the patties on a cookie sheet at 350 for 20 minutes.

As I put on the patties to cook in the skillet, I’ll start the final dish of Braised Spinach. For this, you’ll need

1 clove garlic, crushed or diced or sliced
1 red onion, halved and sliced
1 large bag of spinach, baby or regular as you like
really good balsamic vinegar (should be sweet and syrupy)*

Heat the garlic on medium in just a touch of oil (or use cooking spray); raise the heat to medium high and cook the red onions until soft and lighly carmelized. Pack the spinach into the pan, salt and pepper the pan, shove on a tight lid, and shut off the heat; this will wilt the spinach, and takes just about 3 minutes. Remove the lid, stir just a little to toss everything together and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus:

Salmon Croquettes (makes 8) = 2 points each
Dijon Roasted New Potatoes (makes 4 servings) = 4 points per serving
Braised Spinach (makes as many or few servings as you like) = 0 points

Cooking

A Surprise Family Favorite: Spaghetti Shrimp

Posted on January 25, 2011December 29, 2016 by singingaboutcooking

Back last summer, my mom found this super easy recipe for spicing up plain ‘ol spaghetti. No one remembers where it came from or what it’s really called, but we’ve named it “Spaghetti Shrimp”.

Now here in Charleston, we locals are committed to buying and eating fresh local seafood, but it’s out of shrimp season right now. BUT, we are never without some local frozen shrimp in the freezer. You’ve heard me say don’t worry about thawing your meat…just throw it in raw. Um, that won’t work for shrimp because they cook way too quickly. Be sure to allow for a full thaw.

Preparation:

Thaw and peel 1 lb shrimp
Dice 1 large onion (your choice) and as many mushrooms (whatever variety you like) as you like

Tip: I take a LARGE cutting board into the living room with my bowls and pots and veggies and knives and do this prep work on the ottoman while watching a little tv.

Cooking:

Okay, to keep the number of dirty pots and pans down to just 1, here’s what you do:

cook 4 servings of your favorite pasta, not the whole box; this can be any shape, color, or gluten level! Look at the nutrition label; it will tell you how much is a serving given the nutritional content of your preferred pasta. Just cook the right number of servings, and you don’t have to worry about overeating the carbs!!
in the same pot as you cooked the pasta (which is now hanging out in the colander), saute your onions and mushrooms in just a teeny tiny bit of olive oil. Keep in mind that the mushrooms will “spill” liquid as they cook and you’ll want to wait til you’ve cooked out that liquid before dumping in a jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce (we use homemade marinara that we put up during tomato season). Spice it up with a little more garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes…to your family’s taste tolerance.
stir in a little more than 1 lb raw shrimp, which will cook in the simmering sauce and be flavored by your spices.
stir in your cooked pasta
serve with a simple side salad and bread.

Yep, it’s as simple as that and so delicious. And you can substitute any other meat…chicken, steak, pork…just be sure to cook it first.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus:

1 lb cooked shrimp = 8 points
20 oz Ragu Old World Style Traditional Sauce = 12 points (to give you an idea if you use jarred spaghetti sauce)
2 medium sweet onions = 0 points
1 container baby portabella mushrooms = 0 points
1 teaspoons olive oil = 2 points
4 servings Barilla Plus Multigrain Angel Hair pasta = 20

4 servings (1.5 cups) of Spaghetti Shrimp at 11 points each.

Note: if you make your own marinara or make sure that your jarred spaghetti sauce is fat free, that item drops to 0 points and drops the serving points to 7.5 points each. You can also find lower point pasta in both wheat and gluten free varieties. I’d have used homemade, but I’m not great at making yet.

Everyday Musings

Milestones in Life

Posted on January 23, 2011 by singingaboutcooking

Today I have reached the end of a milestone counter…14 years, 11 months, 19 days.

Funny thing about milestones; unless you–the reader–know what the counter (or countdown) is for, you don’t know whether to congraulate or commiserate.

But here’s a hint:

a counter (adding up days, months, years) usually indicates that you have made a change by choice and you are tracking the time you continue to commit to that change; typically a counter marks the end of a bad choice and the beginning of a new and better choice in life
a countdown (subtracting days, months, years) usually indicates that you have an event or change in front of you, something yet to come, to anticipate or perhaps to dread

Counters are people like recovering alcoholics, divorcees coming back to life, heart attack survivors. Loss of the counter usually means a backslide into something bad…falling off the bandwagon.

Countdowners are people like students looking toward graduation, couples getting married, parents waiting for their baby to be born.

That would lead you to assume that the end of my counter means that I have fallen off of some positive life bandwagon, but that’s not so. Counters are also people who have lost or put away something, who can mark the last time they had it, and who have been patient and lived well through a long period without something they wanted but couldn’t have or chose not to have.

So I created a milestone event, somewhere off in an unknown future, knowing not if or when having that thing again would happen. For years I didn’t even think of it; it just wasn’t important to me, nor was it harmful in any way either. Sometimes when I did think of it, the milestone aspect was more intriguing than anything…how much longer can I go without it? Why do I still go without it? Was it for a good reason? The right reason? Is it still a good or right reason?

This was a milestone of self-denial, a created milestone, one of my choosing, which isn’t usually the way we think of milestones…a choice. And nearly 15 years of self-denial has afforded me a lot of time and experiences through which to explore things I probably wouldn’t have otherwise, including that thing I denied myself.

But one particular milestone has ended, the counter put away on this one. I have no need–inherent, created, or imposed–to start the counter over. I have accepted an old, wonderful thing back into my life…because I am finally ready for it.

And a new counter toward a completely different, but related milestone has taken its place.

Being Healthy, Cooking

On a Black Bean Kick

Posted on January 19, 2011December 29, 2016 by singingaboutcooking

So this week, seems I’ve been on a black bean kick. Shhhh…it’s the ONLY bean I like and eat willingly.

But, let’s see…there was a Qdoba night with black beans on my naked burrito, then my friend Danielle tried to make black bean soup but simmered all the broth right out and ended up with a most delicious black bean dip.

Tonight, though, is Wednesday. And Wednesdays are for fish in my house. Family pick for tonight: mahi mahi. So now I have to figure out what to do. In an unusual twist, I pick the side first: black beans and rice, paired with spicy cajun mahi mahi and pickled asparagus. The earthy sweetness of the beans with the spice of the fish with the tang of the pickled asparagus make for a wonderful “party in your mouth”!

With some leftover rice from the other night (my dad cooked and made waaayyyy too much), I’ll start with the black beans and then cook the fish while they are simmering.

Black Beans and Rice…recipe from Marsha Mikell (my mom) as published in the St. John’s Lutheran Church Cookbook (long time ago)

1/2 small onion, diced small
1/2 red or yellow bell pepper, diced small
1 clove garlic, minced
1 hot pepper (base “hot” on your family’s preferences)
1 16 oz can black beans, with juice
1T granulated sugar
Spices to taste: pepper, oregano, garlic powder (if not using fresh garlic), 1-2 bay leaves
Splashes of: apple cider vinegar, white wine

Saute on medium high the veggies, garlic, and pepper til soft (or carmelized if you like that), dump in beans, sugar, spices, and splashes. Stir well and simmer on medium low until the fish is done.

Once the beans have gone into the simmer stage, season the fish liberally on both sides. My family likes the Frontier Organic Cajun Seasoning, which we find at Whole Foods. Sear on high on each side for about 3 minutes each; if your fish is thick, then it won’t be quite done in the middle (if you cut it with a fork it’ll still be grey and translucent). I like to pour in about 1/4 cup fruit juice (pineapple tonight since it was leftover from a can I ate earlier today) and “poach” on high for about a minute; pour out the juice and continue cooking til the fish is very firm when poked (no give or bounce). When I use a spicy seasoning, I like to use a sweet fruit juice to give the dish some balance so the heat isn’t so overwhelming.

And, um, that all takes about 20 minutes, from start to plate and eat. Yep, this is my favorite Wednesday night meal for just me and my mom as we try to be healthier with lean protein, nutrious carbs, and yummy flavor combinations!

Weight Watchers PointsPlus

6 oz cooked mahi mahi = 3 points
1/2 cup texmati brown rice = 3 points
1 cup black beans = 3 points
pickled asparagus = 0 points

For a grand total of 9 points for this delicious, flavorful meal!

Children

Bias Against Certified and Experienced Teachers?

Posted on January 16, 2011January 17, 2011 by singingaboutcooking

In an economic climate which continues to see school budgets cut even more, it’s no longer a wise choice to make teaching your college major or professional aspiration. There just aren’t enough teaching jobs out there anymore.

So why, if the state and private schools can’t hire them (it’s not in the budget), can’t certified and experienced teachers become approved as homeschool teachers, paid privately by parents or parent groups who choose homeschooling? Because the state law (South Carolina, here), specifies that only the child/ren’s parent or legal guardian can apply to homeschool the child. Attorney General’s Opinions: Statutory provisions do not authorize students to be taught by anyone other than their parents or guardians in a home instruction setting. 1989 Op Atty Gen, No 89-22, p. 60.

Is this logical?

I mean, if you look at HomeSchoolingInSouthCarolina.com, you find a list of the laws regulating homeschooling in our fair state. Homeschooling is very narrowly defined by SC as parents teaching their children rather than allowing for the historic option of private tutors. This means that if a parent who does not meet the minimal requirement of having a bachelor’s degree (in anything), the homeschooling application will be denied. This means that the following of my parent friends do not qualify to homeschool their children:

My Boeing QA and Customer Satifsaction friend: who builds helicopters and airplanes that don’t fall out of the sky
My SAHM friend who left her career managing an entire region of KMart stores (pre-bankruptcy)
My Chief of Police friend who leads and trains the lawful protection of an entire city
Oh, yeah, and my friend who is the main administrator for all of Charleston County.

And the nation wonders why we consistently come in last (or close to it) in most areas of education. These friends who hold significant positions of knowledge, authority, and responsibility don’t qualify to teach their own children because they don’t have a college degree. And I don’t qualify to teach their children either just because they’re not mine.

All this came about because I’m being laid off from my current job as a communications director and am wondering some things about what I want to do. I’m lucky I have the luxury of taking a few months off to explore some things (including this blog thing), and one option is returning to teaching. My departure in 2007 was abrupt, unexpected, and unwanted. I am a great teacher, with old students from many years ago finding me on FaceBook to ask for advice, networking help, and sometimes just to thank me for making them do all those things they were sure would they’d never use (kind of like algebra).

So why is it that I’m not eligible to be approved by the State of South Carolina or Charleston County School District to be a homeschool teacher…just because I don’t have children of my own. What is it that makes me–with several advanced degrees in a variety of subject areas as well as 12 years of professional teaching experience, positive peer and student reviews, and real-life experience too–unsuitable as a candidate for private teaching at home? I mean, I have spent a lot of time teaching people how to teach, people who go on to be traditionally certified teachers for SC or other states.

Oh, and I’m not just picking on the homeschooling laws; I am also ineligible to be hired by the school system, even on an emergency basis, because I do not have a teaching certificate. I tried; I’m only good enough to be a substitute (though I have to say that’s fun!). Again, 12 years of professional teaching including teacher education means nothing?

For the past two years, one of my friends has only half-jokingly promised to hire me to homeschool her children. Little did she know that with six degrees and 15 years of professional experience in six different industries, I am underqualified. That’s a first for me.

Cooking

Quickie Leftover Dinner–Chicken and Rice plus a bonus Refresher Course on Gravy Basics

Posted on January 13, 2011December 29, 2016 by singingaboutcooking

So last week, I had made oven poached chicken and had some of the chicken thighs leftover. Some other time (is it bad that I can’t remember?) someone else had made some rice, and put the leftovers in the fridge. And then everyone but me went on a cruise to the Bahamas, and I got stuck trying to figure out what to do with the bits and pieces of meals left in the fridge for when they got back this week.

So…chicken…rice….hmmmm…how about chicken and rice. Duh!

So this is a refresher course in basics…and what to do when your pantry doesn’t have some of the basics.

Assumption #1: Everyone knows the ingredients for chicken and rice. Right?! It’s cooked chicken, rice, and gravy.

Ha! Bet I stumped you on the gravy. Why? Because since I was a kid, everyone has just used “canned gravy” otherwise known as cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup. What is cream soup? Flavored gravy.

Assumption #2: Everyone has the ingredients for a basic cream gravy, even during the 2011 snow or snice storm; the term “snice” was coined by my friend Sue Sneed to describe the actual precipitation result in Atlanta.

What are the ingredients for a basic cream gravy? Butter, flour (wheat or rice), milk, and water. Yes, alternatives such as heavy cream and fresh stock will make better tasting gravy, but we’re talking basics here.

How do you make soup out of cream gravy? Use mushroom stock and add mushrooms for cream of mushroom. Use chicken stock and add chicken for cream of chicken. Use vegetable stock and add cooked celery (pureed) for cream of celery. You get the idea, right?

Assumption #3: Everyone knows how to make gravy or a white sauce. Yep, that’s where I lost you. Why? Because gravy has been a “bad” food for several decades now, identified as all fat and no nutrition. Thus, gravy-making from scratch is nearly a lost art in the regular person’s house.

You can look up any gravy recipe, and if you look closely and compare, you’ll see that it’s all about ratios…yes, math. You’ve got a

1:1 for thin gravy or cream soup
1:1.5 for medium gravy
1:2 for thick gravy

Roux…the flour and butter mixture that thickens sauces

The ratio describes the number of tablespoons of butter compared to the number of tablespoons of flour. Then you’ll add the number of cups of liquid (equal parts milk and water) to result in the number of cups of finished gravy. The liquid gets you the mass, while the butter-flour mixture (sometimes called a roux) gets you the thickness (photo from RisingWolfEats.blogspot.com).

Oh, yeah, this is also called a white sauce, which is the base for nearly every french sauce and cheese sauce out there (yes, that includes mac and cheese!!). But in a white sauce, usually only milk is used as the liquid.

And when you get good enough with the basic sauce, you can start to make gravy out of drippings: roasted turkey drippings, fried chicken or steak drippings, breakfast sausage drippings, bacon drippings, and more!

Assumption #4: Everyone has cream of something soup in the pantry. Yep, the Sandra Lee shortcut way of making gravy, which, of course, is why the soup label has recipes on it, showing you how many ways gravy can transform simple basic ingredients into a delicious, creamy casserole combining any yummy combination of meat, rice/noodle, grain, veggies…and gravy.

Okay, you’ve got all that; you don’t need me to tell you how to make chicken and rice, right?

Well, in the spirit of the refresher course, here goes:

dice, shred, pick off the bone 2 lbs of cooked chicken*
4-5 cups of partially cooked rice (I use brown)
2 cups gravy (aka 2 cans of cream soup, your pick of flavors)
salt, pepper, other seasonings you prefer (I’m a thyme girl)

Mix all the ingredients well in a bowl and pour it into a baking dish. Top with some grated cheese or bread crumbs or cracker crumbs or sliced almonds or fried onions (like green bean casserole), whatever you like to give it a little crunchy top. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Done!! This recipe is for a 9×13 dish and makes 8 substantial servings.

*Since Weight Watchers PointsPlus values white and dark meat chicken the same, I don’t bother separating them; and I LOVE dark meat…so rich and flavorful, and fat is essential in a healthy and balanced diet.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus: 8.25 points per serving

2 lbs cooked chicken = 16 points
5 cups brown rice = 20 points
1 can 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup = 5 points
1 can 98% fat free cream of chicken soup = 5 points
alternate to canned soups: 2 cups white sauce is 9 points (skim milk and water) or 11 points (whole milk and water); be sure to adjust points if you use homemade stock since it will have fat-points. NOTE: it’s the same points to use a homemade, full-fat roux as nearly fat free canned stuff…please go for homemade when possible.

Total points of casserole = 66 points = 8.25 points per serving

Children

The Princess Sleepover List

Posted on January 11, 2011 by singingaboutcooking

My darling friend Caroline…who turned four years old this past November…invited me to her sleepover party this coming weekend. You know, the sleepover her mother doesn’t know about and hasn’t sent out invitations for. But for Caroline, the invitation to sleepover is her reward for me coming over and cooking dinner and playing with her and most especially for sneaking her strawberries while we were waiting for dinner to be ready.

But really, why am I telling you this? Because the list of things that I need to bring to this sleepover proves that we adults seriously underestimate our 4-year-olds.

You see, Caroline is very accurately termed “a drama queen,” which naturally means…she is a princess. With champion military general command, she demands…and gets…the attention she wants. Why? Because she is so darn cute…and I get to give her back when I’m done.

So I indulged Caroline when she brought me a piece of notebook paper and a pen, and started writing down our list of things to bring to her sleepover. The list started off simply, classically, innocently enough:

sleeping bag–I can borrow her purple and black one, but she gets to sleep in the princess one
bear
blanket
movies
majamas
toothbrush and toothpaste
Viking (my dog) to play with Snickers (her dog)
pillowpet (hers is a ladybug, but mine can be a hippo)
dress up clothes
panties
jewelry–specifically earrings, necklace, and glasses
makeup kit
nail polish

All things that moms remember from their own childhood sleepovers (at least I hope they do), and we all can reasonably expect to be requested as part of any girls’ sleepover. I know my other little girl BFFs expect the same things!

But then Caroline’s list took…well…an interesting twist. Her mother Heather and I have determined I will require a UHaul rental in order to arrive at the sleepover properly equipped. The list continued

food–cheese, lettuce, carrots and hummus, donuts
drinks–soda
my mommy (Marsha)
computer and charger
camera
DS–or I can borrow her brother Brian’s since he has TWO!!!
picture books
paper and pencils and scissors
books
tissue (yeah, like kleenex)
a little lamp
light bulbs
pictures
ornaments–we can hang them from the ceiling since the Christmas tree has been put away
flowers
artwork
calendar
my daddy (Ed)
a fan
shirts and pants
socks and shoes
morning time clothes
brooms
“all my stuff”
singing books
water bottles
candles
jackets in case it is cold
trash bags in case we run out
stools
medicine in case I get hungry for medicine
spoons for eating
camera bag and batteries
plates
curtains
carpet

And I am expressly forbidden to bring the following: my refrigerator and my couch.

I never got around to asking Caroline what we would do during our sleepover, or what the other girls are bringing. I figure it will take the entire night to unload my UHaul and then the day to load it back up and bring it all home.

But, Lord, this little lady is a champion list maker, a girl after her mother’s (and my) type A personality heart. Nothing like making a list, checking it twice, and crossing it all off as done!

Being Healthy

How Many Calories Do I Need Each Day? Yes, this is about METABOLISM

Posted on January 8, 2011 by singingaboutcooking

Why am I fat? The answer du jour…for about the past 10 years…has been “I have a slow metabolism.”

BULLSHIT.

Your body has a metabolism…a specific number of calories necessary to maintain your basic body funtions: breathing, blinking, making saliva in your mouth, sending visual messages from your eyes to your brain so you know what you’re looking at, peeing, pooping, smelling, laughing, talking, walking from your desk to the snack machine at 2:57 pm at the office.

This means that your metabolism CANNOT be slow or fast; it needs what it needs. You don’t get to determine what your body needs, but if you have the correct information, you CAN make new choices about how to feed your metabolism to effect changes in your body.

If you think you can’t lose weight because you have a “slow metabolism,” you are making excuses for yourself. Yes, I am aware that I am oversimplifying, but I’m trying to make a point here. Take responsibility for and control of yourself and your lifestyle. This includes taking responsibility for knowing and managing any health conditions you have because they ALL affect your weight; don’t feed me lines about your thyroid or PCOS or menopause as if you can’t do something about that.

Other unacceptable excuses: I don’t have time, I have kids, It’s too expensive. These are all excuses for

not knowing what you need to know (which takes all of 10 seconds to discover)
not acting on what you know “because it’s hard” <insert whine here>

Ladies: put your big girl panties on!

Gents: your choice…get a girdle or put your big girl panties on!

What do you need to know to make the right choices? Geez, that is so easy a caveman can do it. You need to know how many calories your body’s metabolism requires each day to keep you alive and perform basic activity functions. Yes, there is a complex mathematical formula for this. Yes, it looks very cool when all the proper symbols are aligned. No, there is NOT going to be a math test. It’s as simple as clicking on this link to a calulator for your Basil Metabolic Rate. Enter your current weight (be shockingly honest), your height, your age, and your sex. Mine comes out like this:

For me to stay exactly as I am, I must consume a total of 1880.87 calories each day; no exercise required.

For me to lose weight, I must consume less than 1880.87 calories each day through a combination of food intake and exercise burn off.

Now, let’s match up a diet and exercise plan to support weight loss. We all should know by now that I’ve chosen Weight Watchers, originally on the Points plan (with 31 points of food a day) and now the PointsPlus plan (with 38 points of food a day). On the old Points plan, each point was roughly equivalent to 50 calories, so that plan (and the nutritional formula) came out to a 1550-calorie-a-day diet. The new PointsPlus plan does not include calories in the formula, so I’m still looking for an explanation of a calorie equation that makes sense, but if we assume the same 1:50 ratio (which is not a rational assumption), the PointsPlus plan comes out to a 1900-calorie-a-day diet.

Dang, it’s a good thing I simply cannot eat 38 points of food on a normal day (special occasions on any version of the plan are exceptions). I average a consumption of around 30 points a day, uhum, just like the old points plan. So I’m still working on a 1500-calorie-a-day diet, which supports weight loss.

Add to that the fact that I exercise at my optimal fat-burning heart rate for 30-45 minutes every day, I’m burning 600 calories of that intake. On Weight Watchers, that 600 more calories I get to each on days when I work out, or roughly 12 more points. And, no, that does not mean I eat 42 or 50 points a day, even on a special occasion day.

Oh, I guess I should say how I know how many calories I burn during a workout. I use a SportLine Solo Fitness Watch that accepts age, height, and weight information and uses that in combination with heart rate data before, during, and after my workout to calculate and track my calories burned. Typically, my main aerobic workout is running (well, technically, jogging at a 13-minute mile pace for you die-hard runners), and I have now three years of data from several sources: my fitness watch, the treadmill (where I enter the same info), the elliptical machine, and my group of friend/trainers at my gym. I can get in 3 miles on the treadmill in 45 minutes or on the elliptical in 30. All of these data sources give me internally and externally consistent data to show that for every 15 minutes I spend at my ideal working heart rate (145-160), I burn 200 calories. (NOTE: the Cooper River Bridge Run takes me 1.5 hours to jog, which means I burn 1200 calories on the run itself and then another 400 calories on the mile power warm-up walk from the house to the start and then from the finish to the ferry to go home; that’s 1600 calories in one morning.)

Okay, so now you are ready to hit me with the trick question: if I need 1880 calories a day to stay alive, how does 1500 calories plus exercise get me by.

Short Answer: ensure that as many of those 1500 calories a day are supplied with super power foods (clean protein, fresh fruit and veggies, high fiber carbs, healthy fats) rather than empty calories (Doritos, cheese puffs, easy mac and cheese, hot tamale candies).

Long Answer: subscribe to my blog 🙂 I will keep talking/writing about this!

Being Healthy, Cooking

Cooking Four Dinners at Once

Posted on January 6, 2011December 29, 2016 by singingaboutcooking

Poached Salmon — Rich with aroma and flavor…a dense, satisfying dinner!

My dilemma:

No one in my family eats the same thing, which makes dinner prep sometimes challenging. One of my family does not eat salmon, which means any time I cook salmon, I have to also cook some other major protein for him. Tonight, chicken is the compliment. Luckily, I’m in the mood for a preparation that I can use on both: oven poaching. Another eats only certain carby dishes and no veggies, while I want to keep a good balance of carbs and veggies. And, guess what, I can and will do this with only three dishes: 1 entree (2 meats), 1 carby side, and 1 veggie side.

Okay, the game plan:

poached salmon and poached chicken breast (both currently frozen)
potatoes au gratin (Betty Crocker box mix)–for the boys
frozen peppers and onions sauteed with some fresh onion and purple cabbage over egg noodles–for the girls

Step 1. Put the fish and chicken out to thaw…or not. Since oven-poaching is the regular person’s way of saying steam or even en papillote, you have probably done this before…with frozen meat since the water and juices help with the cooking.

Step 2. Choose a flavor combo. This will determine the liquid and herbs you use throughout the meal, but most importantly in the pan or baking dish with the fish/chicken. Tonight, I have decided to finally open and use one the bottles of Rose Merlot I recently purchased on my trip to Long Island to visit Rachel, Al, Carter, and Samuel. Rachel and I have always made at least one of our visit days a Long Island vineyard day. This past November, I found this Rosé Merlot at Palmer Vineyards on the North Fork of Long Island; Palmer can ship wines to the following states: AK,DC,IA,ID,IL,MN,MO,NH,NY,OH,RI. With the lightness and fruitiness of this wine, I will pair the classic Herbs de Provence, a combination of thyme (dominant), fennel, savory, basil, and lavender (only in the US).

Alternative combos that I like:

lemon juice and basil/oregano/garlic
balsamic vinegar and garam masala (or curry and coriander)
pineapple juice and cayenne pepper
soy sauce and ginger/dry mustard
apple juice and all-spice (think pork chops that will be paired with butternut squash or pumpkin

Step 3. Prepare the poach.

Since the salmon and chicken will need different cooking times, I use two 9×9 baking dishes. Since most of the liquid bases are acidic (I guess you could use water?), I try to use glass or ceramic baking dishes, but if I have to use a metal one (because everything else is dirty), then I am careful to line it with aluminum foil so that the acid doesn’t leech anything out of the metal and into my food.

Simply pour in about 1/4-inch of liquid. For a 9×9 pan, this is usually about 1/3-1/2 cup of liquid. Place the meat in a single layer in the dish (yes, touching sides is okay) and season as lightly or liberally as your palette desires.

Cover the dish very tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees: salmon for 30 minutes, chicken for 40 minutes.

NOTE: this is a fantabulous way to cook just one meal at a time and cut down on dishes to wash. Just prepare your one piece of meat in a parchment or aluminum foil pouch, no pan at all.

Step 4. Set water to boil on the stovetop and get crackin on the Betty Crocker potatoes au gratin. Sure, I can and do make these from scratch, but I have a 6:30 meeting tonight, and my family doesn’t care if it comes out of a box.

Now, the directions offer both oven and stovetop directions; I am choosing the stovetop preparation tonight because the oven temp and cooking times vary so significantly for the meat and potatoes that one or the other would be…well, yucky, to be technical. The stovetop directions require only boiling time and 15 minutes of simmering. And since I’ll already be at the stove doing the veggies (coming up next), it’s an efficiency of effort that I can’t pass up.

So, Betty Crocker potatoes au gratin, prepared just as the directions say. Once you get to the simmering step, you should be ready for the next step.

Step 5. Drop the egg noodles into the other pot of boiling water and cook just as your package’s directions say…around 8-10 minutes. Go ahead and set up the strainer in the sink now.

Step 6. Drop your veggies into the skillet with just a drizzle of olive oil. Fresh veggies go in first since they need a little more softening; the frozen ones were blanched before freezing, so they only need to thaw. Tonight I’m using fresh onions and carrots. And I’ll let them just sit still in the skillet for a few minutes with their salt and pepper and herbs de provence sprinkle, until I’m convinced they are getting a little soft…and they start to get a little brown…not actually carmelized but just a hint of starting. That’s when it’s time to drop in the frozen peppers and onions and pop the lid onto the skillet. Trap in the heat and let the water from the frozen veggies steam the combo with the lid on. Chop up the purple cabbage ( just a quarter head we had leftover from cole slaw a few weeks ago) and drop it on top at the last minute. Snap the lid back on for about 3 minutes…and you’re done.

I like to mix my noodles and veggies in the skillet together, but if you need to keep them separate for pickiness sake or figuring out nutrition, you can mix them on your plate.

All done. Ready to plate:

For brother: salmon and potatoes au gratin
For dad: chicken, potatoes au gratin, and veggies and noodles
For mom: salmon and veggies and noodles
For me: salmon, potatoes au gratin, and veggies and noodles

That’s four specialized dinner plates making four people happy and full coming out of one 45-minute dinner preparation, which is pretty normal when you consider all the chopping and pulling out pans and stuff.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus: for this meal, I’ll break down each item:

3 oz poached chicken breast = 3 points
3 oz poached salmon = 4 points
1/2 cup Betty Crocker potatoes au gratin = 4 points
1/2 cup egg noodles = 4 points
veggies = FREEEEEE!

So my dinner = 12 points

Children, Cooking

Making a Meal out of Nothing

Posted on January 5, 2011December 29, 2016 by singingaboutcooking

Danielle: So, what do you want to make for dinner?

CeCe: Whatcha got?

Danielle: Chicken and feta, a veritable smorgasbord of choices there for ya <laughter>.

Um, but, yes, I am one of those annoyingly imaginative and versatile people who can take someone’s leftovers or still-frozen food and have dinner on the table and super yummy in just 45 minutes.So, what did I do with these insane options? Make a fabulous dinner in three easy steps.

Summer in Her Apron — Summer in her apron, ready to help me cook dinner!

Step 1: Entreé…I had my choice actually of frozen chicken breasts, frozen pork chops, or frozen stew beef. Since I already had a chicken idea in mind, that’s what I picked out. Simple. Tossed the equivalent of two chicken breasts into a baking dish…yes, still completely frozen…poured about 1/4 cup of lemon juice in the bottom, and sprinkled the top with salt and pepper. Actually, one of Danielle’s daughters helped with the salt and pepper. Into a 350 degree over with the timer set for 45 minutes.

Step 2: Veggie Side…here, my choices were very limited. As Danielle had no fresh veggies in the crisper, a salad was out as was any kind of sauteéd, carmelized, fried, etc. veggie. But, as any mom does, she had several bags of frozen veggies. We chose a steam-in-bag medley of green beans, wax beans, and carrots, mainly since her girls would eat them.

Step 3: Carby Side…since Danielle’s girls had already mandated mac and cheese (one of them eats ONLY mac and cheese), she always has a box mix or some Bob Evans mac and cheese.

As the timer goes off for the chicken, I turn off the oven but leave the chicken in. Meanwhile, into the microwave go the frozen steam-in-bag beans. Done. In goes the mac and cheese. Done.

Magic Sauce: While I make the kids plates (which consists of cutting up the chicken and the beans and cooling off the mac and cheese), I put one more bowl in the microwave. A special bowl…just for the grown-ups. Remember that feta Danielle laughingly mentioned? Time for a quick sauce. In the bowl is equal parts of regular cream cheese and feta cheese, liberally sprinkled with basil, oregano, and pepper (no salt because cheese is already loaded with salt). Microwave for one-and-a-half minutes, then stir it all together to blend.

Kids plates: simple baked chicken breast with a hint of lemon juice, green beans, and mac and cheese.

Grown-up plates: Baked Lemon Chicken with Feta Sauce and Kalamata Olives, Haricot Verts, and Pasta with Cheddar Sauce.

And, yes, you can do this too. Here’s what to remember:

Make three choices. That’s all it takes. Doesn’t matter what’s frozen or what’s raw.
Start cooking the thing that will take the longest. Here’s a quick priority list: frozen meat, raw root veggie or grain (like rice), box mix of something (like rice-a-roni). Well, that’s actually it. Fresh and frozen veggies take just a few minutes in the microwave.
For frozen meat, in the oven, add about 15 minutes per pound of frozen meat. In the skillet, remember that your fingers are your best judge, not a timer. Yes, I have just advocated poking your tender finger near a very hot skillet and testing the resiliency and elasticity of your meat–chicken, pork, beef, whatever.

Weight Watchers PointsPlus: for 3 oz of chicken (3 pts), 2T feta sauce (2 pts), 1t sliced olives (1 pt), 1/2 cup or 4 oz Bob Evans mac and cheese (6 pts), and as many green beans as you want = 12 points

Sorry, as happens with making a meal out of nothing, it’s done quickly and on the fly, with no thought to taking pictures at different stages.