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Eat Clean With A Grill Pan

April 6, 2012 By 8 Comments

Months ago I saw Rachel Ray using a “grill pan” to cook burgers on her in studio stove.   I thought it was a cool idea, but then I thought nothing could beat my beloved George Foreman.

Then tragedy struck…. my George Foreman died.

After proper mourning I headed to Amazon to look into getting either a new George Foreman or try out a Grill Pan.   I ended up getting the latter and I absolutely could not be happier.

I chose the Cuisinart Green Gourmet 11″ Square Grill Pan.  (PS – its cheapest on Amazon) I was stoked when it arrived just 3 days later, and have been cooking on it almost daily ever since.

Cuisinart® is leading the way in eco-friendly branded cookware with our new GreenGourmet™ line. Exclusive Cuisinart Ceramica™ nonstick technology is ceramic based instead of petroleum based, helping to conserve existing oil supplies and the coating is applied at a temperature one half that of conventional nonsticks. And it’s completely free of PTFE and PFOA. The cookware’s hard anodized construction provides high heat conductivity, which requires less energy to reach desired cooking temperatures. Riveted stainless handles stay cool on the stovetop and are made from 70% recycled stainless steel. Today, more and more home cooks are going green… and so is Cuisinart® cookware!

Part of “Eating Clean” is adding as little as possible to whole foods.  My diet consists of all meats, fruits, vegetables, and nuts – which can get boring after a while if you do not change it up from time to time.  With my Grill Pan I put just a bit of cooking spray on the pan, and a bit of dry seasoning to my meats and grill – just like I do on my outside grill!  For veggies I do the same thing – only with no seasonings at all – and it tastes just exactly like I slaved over a grill.

We use the Cuisinart Grill Pan almost daily for lunch.  It is so easy for Mike and I to throw on a chicken breast and some veggies and in 10-12 minutes have a healthy, tasty, economical lunch for us both.   And in a quarter of the time it would take us to go out, and half the time to fire up the big outdoor grill.  It is large enough for me to cook a meal for all four of us as well, which is nice, and clean up is a breeze – I just pop it right into the dishwasher.

I absolutely love this thing and have cooked chicken, steak, fish, veggies – and even a London Broil on this thing.  It cooks up perfectly and I never have to walk outside.   Between the Grill Pan and my Westbend Food Steamer, Eating Clean is not only easy, but incredibly tasty!

Disclaimer:  I was not compensated in any way for this post – I just absolutely love this thing and wanted to spread the word with my fellow Eat Clean friends!

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Does Portion Control Really Matter?

January 25, 2012 By 17 Comments

Since beginning on the journey of Eating Clean this year, I have run across many conversations where the “jist” is that as long as you are eating healthy, clean food – you can just about eat as much as you want.   I understand the concept – putting good stuff in opposed to bad stuff will help your body run better- but I still wasnt seeing the results on the scale that I was hoping for by cutting out all processed food and not drinking any wine (or alcohol of any kind)…. that is until this week.

Last Thursday I went to hang out with my friend Trisha just to get out of town for the day and have some much over due “girl time.”   It was a relaxing day of walking around furniture stores and pet shops – me still trying to convince her that a ferret is a better pet for her daughter than a hamster.

Anyway.

We got on the subject somehow of weight and food that we eat and such and Trisha said – “I cook enough food for two people – and then divide it between the three of us.”   I thought it was crazy since I have been cooking for my family of four for years now.  If it’s chicken – four chicken breasts.  If pork – four pork chops.   I mean… there ARE four of us, right?

Wrong.

There are two adults, one preteen, and one child.  That DOES equal four PEOPLE…. but not four SERVINGS.

So starting the very next day – Friday – I began cooking for three people.   I gave Mike his portion, Sami her portion, and then I split the third portion in half and shared it with Taylor.  I also cooked two sides – but only enough for 2/3 people.  (i.e. one can of corn and one can of green beans)  We divided the vegetables up evenly.

Here are the results -

First off, no one went hungry.    When I changed the portion size I thought for sure we were all (wait – Taylor and I) were going to starve to death.  We havent. In fact I have felt comfortably full, and Taylor has happily finished her whole plate with the family, instead of taking forever.   Mike also hasnt been tempted to “help Taylor out” by finishing off her leftover portions.

Speaking of leftovers – there haven’t been any.  There also hasnt been any waste.   Normally if I cooked and entire bag of chicken, we would have 2-3 breasts left over - IF we did not over eat and stuff ourselves with a second helping at dinner.  Now I only take out three pieces, and put the rest back into the fridge.  This week Mike and I have been having those “leftover” breasts for lunch the next day instead – saving us from eating junk food our going out to a restaurant to eat.

I also also excited that our garbage disposal hasnt gotten a work out this week.  When I was over-cooking, we would have a lot of left over waste.  Which is not only disheartening – but EXPENSIVE!  No wonder I was spending a fortune at the grocery store – I was throwing 30% of it AWAY!

My grocery bill / restaurant bill has been cut nearly in half.  I admit one of the “benefits” to working at home and being your own boss is getting to go out to eat for lunch wherever and whenever you want to.  However eating out for lunch every day is as hurtful to your wallet as it is to your waistline.   We have pretty much eliminated the need to go out to lunch since I can just pop the “leftover” meats on the grill,  and since now one package of meat lasts two meals instead of only one, my grocery bill is lighter.

But here is the biggest part…. I lost five pounds.   In five days.  Five pounds.  That’s like a pound a day.

There are all kinds of tools to help you with portion control – decorative plates that tell you how much to fill with which food group, fancy schmancy food scales, “snack bowls” that are no bigger than the palm of your hand…. and they are all great.   However, if you are like me – feeding a FAMILY with even one young child, and need something just quick and easy that you can begin implementing as early as dinner tonight… just simply make one less serving.

Now that I am doing this, its seems like such a “no-brainer” but it took someone actually saying it out loud for it to click.  Even though I had been feeding my family healthier food, I was still overfeeding us all.   I will never cook four full portions for my family again…. or at least until Taylor is old enough to actually need a full portion… you know, when she is thirty.

Does portion control really matter?

My five pounds in five days says – OH YEAH!


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Mississippi Sketti – A Simple Spaghetti Recipe

September 26, 2011 By 17 Comments

As I mentioned in my post yesterday about our Italian Night, I am so very excited to have finally mastered my Dad’s famous “Mississippi Sketti” that he used to sell in the dorms in college to make extra money.  What I love most about this recipe is that it is simple, but absolutely delicious.  I love too that it is relatively “clean” – using lots of fresh veggies.  I promised to share the recipe (and even got permission from Dad) so here it is:

Mississippi Sketti

Ingredients: (remember I was making enough for 21 people in this picture)  

  • Green Bell Pepper
  • Onion
  • Fresh Mushrooms
  • Ground Chuck
  • Hunt’s Tomato Sauce
  • Hunt’s Tomato Paste
  • Hunt’s Fire Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Oregano and Garlic Power to taste *optional

First dice up your onion and bell pepper and coat in EVOO.  Saute until peppers are soft and onions are browning.  Add in ground chuck and brown.  Drain.  Add in tomato sauce, fire roasted tomatoes, tomato paste, and three paste cans full of hot water.  Let cook at least 30 minutes at a very low simmer.  Season to taste with oregano and garlic powder. (you wont need much) Add in fresh mushrooms and let cook until mushrooms are tender – about another 30 minutes.  Serve over any of your favorite pasta. (and pair with your favorite wine!  I suggest Flip Flop Moscato!)

 


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Super Simple Southern Supper – Fried Chicken and Potato Salad

July 23, 2011 By 4 Comments

I am no great chef.  In fact I totally cracked up just typing that.

I remember being 17 and my mother and I living in a little 2 bedroom townhouse with very little storage room.  We used the OVEN to store our sweaters… that is how often we turned it on.   But there were a few things I did learn to cook well.  This one by far is my favorite.

Potato Salad:

Ingredients (yes, brand specific):

First of all, for any good potato salad you must use the little red potatoes… they are SO much better than brown ones.  I also like to leave the skins on.  Cube up your potatoes and cover them with water.  Add whole eggs to the pot and boil all together until potatoes are tender.  Drain.  Peel the eggs and remove the yolks.  (Trash them or feed them to the dogs like I do) Cut up the eggs and add to the potatoes.  Dice up the little pickles and add to the potatoes and egg.  Then add mayo and mustard to taste.  Voila!  (I told you this was simple right!?!)

 

Fried Chicken:

Ingredients:

  • boneless, skinless, fatless (I cut EVERYTHING white off) chicken breasts
  • eggs
  • Bisquick
  • Vegetable or Peanut oil

I had no idea that frying chicken was a talent… I have tons of friends who say they can not fry chicken (must be a Southern thing) so I am going to break it down easy for you.  First trim your chicken to be as lean as you can possibly get it.  You are going to add enough calories by frying it, no need to have more.  Scramble your raw eggs and dip the chicken in to coat.  Then coat with Bisquick and put into deep frying pan heated to medium high.  Then just let it sit for about 7 minutes or so, depending on how thick your chicken is.   Use tongs to gently flip over for another 7 minutes or so. And then for good measure I flip one more time – to get the outside good and crispy. The less you move the chicken, the better it will fry.  Gently remove each piece and lay on a plate covered in paper towels to absorb the excess grease.  Voila!

The end result is perfectly fried chicken!

The perfect Super Simple Southern Supper – in under an hour!