From Ima's Kitchen - Core Granola

First, a little bit of background. In order to balance out my love of food and drink, I also do Weight Watchers. Weight Watchers has two eating plans, Core and Flex. In 2004, I lost 30 pounds using the Flex plan.

Flex allows you to have any food you like but within a certain number of Points per day, based on your height, weight, and several other factors. Points are calculated using the calories, fat, and fiber in a serving of food. In addition to those daily Points, you get 35 weekly points to use as you'd like for extra things.

Core is the Weight Watcher "no count" plan. As long as you eat from a specific list of foods, you don't have to count the Points. If you want something that's not on the list, you can use the 35 weekly points. With Core, you eat until you are satisfied - not full or stuffed - just no longer hungry. It can take a little bit of time to learn where that "Comfort Zone" is but by eating mindfully and paying attention to your body's signals, it can be done.

While I used Flex to get to my goal weight, I did it by eating a lot of overly processed foods. The frozen meals, cereal bars, and other not-so-healthy foods were a means to an end; i.e., lose fat/weight. I was hungry much of the time because I wasn't eating real foods or getting enough protein or meeting many of Weight Watcher Good Health Guidelines.

What I love about Core is that it, mostly, focuses on real, healthy foods - whole grains, lean meats, fruits, vegetables, fat-free dairy products, and healthy oils. Note: This is not a complete list nor does it list some of the restrictions; that would be infringing on WW copyright. I still have those "extra Points" for wine, martinis, and carrot cake.

For this post, I wanted to share my recipe for granola. It is adapted, as most of my recipes are, from a combination of other recipes.

CORE GRANOLA
4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup non-fat dry milk powder
1/2 c. cream of wheat
1 cup kasha (buckwheat groats)

Mix together and add

1 cup SF syrup, any flavor (I've been doing a half-cup of Davinci sugar-free hazelnut and a half-cup of sugar-free vanilla)

Mix well, spread into a cookie sheet that's been sprayed with a healthy oil (I use canola) and bake at 275 degrees for approximately 60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes of so. It's done when the granola is crunchy and dry, but be careful not to burn it.

Cool well. Divided into six one-cup servings, each counts as half a dairy serving.
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Oooh! Look! Pictures!




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I just picked up some sugar-free cinnamon syrup and will be trying it next.

My dear friend, Kay, at Gobstruck is blogging about eating clean and focusing on whole foods these days. Be sure to check out her blog.

Oh! Oh! Oh! I'm Having an Organic Moment!

In February, I posted about how It Ain't Easy Bein' Green. I mentioned that I’m buying some organic foods. These posts on being greener are my way of examining, out loud (out blog?), my actions and potential actions. Just writing that I was working on turning off the water while I brush my teeth made a difference. By acknowledging it, my attention became focused on it. I turn off the water now. As in all things, though, I think there has to be balance or there’s a danger of becoming fanatical. Here’s a bit of my balance.

It’s mostly haphazard, this buying of organic foods. I’m spoiled, you see. I’m spoiled by lower prices and prettier produce. Organics cost more. For far too many years, I’ve had to be frugal. I don’t know about you but I haven’t seen many generic organics. Spending more because it’s “better for me” seems kind of vague and hard to defend at times. Then we get to the arguments for and against organics.

There’s the whole “what makes it organic?” argument. There are reports and studies that show that some of the stuff that’s being touted as organic isn’t really organic after all. Then, you get all the conflicting reports about which foods are worth buying organic. Today’s general rule of thumb is that those foods with thick peels we remove, such as bananas and oranges, aren’t worth the cost of buying organic because any of the residual pesticides and chemicals won’t be in the actual fruit. Peaches, apples, and strawberries are a completely different story. The thin skin on these fruits make them worth buying organic. Some fruits and vegetables don’t, for whatever reason, absorb the chemicals. The Wall Street Journal has a pretty good article on “When Buying Organic Makes Sense -- and When It Doesn't”.

Okay. This is embarrassing. I have another problem. It’s part of that being spoiled thing; i.e., prettier produce. Because they’re not sprayed with pesticides and other chemicals, the organic fruits and vegetables have blemishes and spots and potential cooties. I have this nurturing thing going on. In fact, if I were a superhero, my tagline would have to be “Surprisingly Domestic!” I carefully choose the food I buy. Each piece of fruit or bunch of vegetables is carefully scrutinized. No bruises or dents for my loved ones! Cans aren’t dented. Meat is lean. The dairy has the furthest possible expiration date. (This obsessive attitude toward food is probably part of why I need Weight Watchers.) Honestly? A lot of that organic food looks kind of oogy. I should get over that but a lifetime of habit is hard to overcome.

Still, if I pick up something, intending to purchase it, and find out it’s organic, it really does make me feel better about it. I’ve been doing quite a bit of reading about organic meats and dairy (or at least recombinant bovine growth hormone, or rBGH free) and I think that’s going to be the next change in the Wurdibitsch House. rBGH is given to most cows to boost milk production and may cause higher rates of breast, prostate and colon cancer. That doesn’t sound like good stuff.

For my balancing act this month, I’m going to be looking a little closer at the organic fruits and veggies. I don’t know that we’re making the change but I’m considering it. I will be buying the rBGH-free milk and when the freezer full of FoodSavered meat is running low, I’m heading to the specialty butcher. Hold me. I’m frightened.

National Geographic has a quiz on Getting To Know Your Inner Organic Foodie. I liked this quiz because it has good explanations behind the answers. Unfortunately, you don’t get a score. I’m a competitive person. I like scores. I had to go to FreeRice.com and rack up some free rice donations (and scores) to get my competition fix.

In the interest of more balance, I discovered some very funny movies to balance out all the organic/hormone/chemical/cootie talk:

The Meatrix!
Be sure to see Meatrix 2: Revolting and Meatrix 2 ½. Leo, Moopheus and their pals explore the meat industry.

After you get done there, head over to Grocery Store Wars and check out Cuke Skywalker and friends as they battle against Darth Tater.

55 Fiction Friday! February 22, 2008

All the details on what 55 Fiction is and how to play are at the end of the post. Come on, you can do it!

*****
Her skin was bright and clear; her hair shiny and soft. The whole grains, lean meats, and boatloads of fruits and vegetables were healthy and aided in her weight loss.

She considered, happily, that she was going to save a fortune in future medical bills.

Unfortunately, she was spending that savings now on air fresheners.
*****

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55 fiction is a very, very short story of exactly 55 words. It needs to have a character, conflict and resolution.

The Wikipedia article on 55 Fiction is here and some great examples are here.. You can also click on the 55 Fiction label below to see what Wordy Bitch and Wordy Bitch readers have done in the past.
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Come play! Add your story to the comments or put it on your blog and I'll link to it. It's fun. You'll like it.
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It Ain't Easy Bein' Green

Over the course of the past few years, I’ve been making some greenish changes in my life (and not just the new blog color!). Along with the seemingly never-ending quest to eat less (making a smaller, leaner Ima), I’ve been trying to consume less in other ways. I want a smaller, leaner life. More balance, less excess. I’m making the move to a greener existence.

Food:
I’m buying less packaged foods. By focusing on the outer edges of the grocery store, I’m purchasing foods that have less packaging. I still hit the aisles because I do need some convenience items but I try to stay away from overly packaged goods. I’m buying in bulk when I can and when it makes sense. I’m fine-tuning my grocery shopping in an attempt to not throw away food because it’s spoiled. I could go on and on about my love of the FoodSaver for protecting food from spoilage and freezer burn but Duchess Jane has already covered that topic completely AND with pictures. I make stock from chicken, ham, and beef bones (shrimp is next!) along with peelings from my veggies. There are articles on easy stock making here and here. I’m buying some organic foods.

General shopping:
I’m purchasing less stuff. I’ve never been much of a shopper, so that helps. I use lists to keep me away from those impulse purchases. I try to only buy those things I need and/or love. My new peep-toe black pumps fall into both of those categories!

Gasoline Consumption:
I play a little game with myself since, admittedly, I drive one of those shame-inducing larger vehicles. I have a gauge that tells me what my current gas mileage is. Sure, it does the average, too, but by keeping my eye on the current number, I can see that gunning it makes it go down (duh) while a slow, steady pressure on the gas pedal has less of a bad effect on my mileage. It’s an ongoing contest with myself to see how high I can keep it. I try to figure out the shortest route to where I’m going and I combine trips as much as possible.

Electrical/Water Consumption:
I suck at this. I’m working on it. I leave the TV on when I’m going to sleep; although I do put it on sleep timer. I have a hard time remembering to turn the water off while I’m brushing my teeth but am working on that one, too. I’m slowly but surely replacing my light bulbs with these super-efficient, long lasting ones. They last for YEARS.

Existing Stuff:
I’m trying to give away much of the stuff I have in my home that I don’t need or love. If I feel “eh” about it, it’s going to end up at Hannah Home or Goodwill sometime soon. I’m not going all FlyLady about it (she scares me) but I’m trying to get rid of at least five things each weekday. MrWurdi’s son was talking last year about people who let their stuff own them. He’d been preparing to hike the Appalachian Trail and was, therefore, figuring his bare necessities so I suppose that had him pondering what he (we) really need. We end up accumulating so much stuff that we soon have to live in a bigger place or rent storage to keep up with all that stuff. We spend large quantities of our time maintaining and repairing our stuff. With all the time and money and effort we spend on our stuff, it ends up being our stuff owning us rather than us owning it. I will not be owned by my stuff.

Recycling:
We’re just getting started on this. Our local pick-up doesn’t have a large range of items they pick up for recycling but I suppose every little bit helps.

How Green Are You?
NPR has a neat, little quiz to help show you how green you are. The Consumer Consequences game asks questions about your lifestyle. While you play the game, it keeps up with how many planet "Earths" of natural resources it would take to sustain the 6.6 billion people on this one Earth - if everyone lived the way you do.


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I know I’m not going to live completely green. I drive an Avalanche and a ’77 Corvette (with a high performance engine). That’s not at all green. So, I make the changes I can and am willing to make. I also try to balance the “me stuff” by doing for others. Whether it’s raising funds for breast cancer research with Team GDT or donating goods or volunteering for a local clinic or goofing off, improving my vocabulary, and donating food to hungry people or just trying to help my family when I can, I try to make it all even out. Balance, not fanaticism about anything.

I’m always looking for ways I can be more green. Any ideas?

From Ima's Kitchen - Split Pea Soup

I used to always take the shortcut of using the boxed or canned broths when I made soup. Then, I read two interesting and, sometimes contradictory, articles on making your own stock. The first one was Michael Ruhlman's and he proposed making it in the oven. It seemed like a much simpler method than simmering on the stove all day so I tried it with the turkey at Thanksgiving. I also read an article called "Stock Tips" by Janet Fletcher of the San Francisco Chronicle. Between the two articles, I came up with my own method - a mishmash of everything I'd read.

I L o v e H o m e m a d e S t o c k. It is completely worth the effort.

Just this week, I made ham stock with two ham bones I'd frozen a few weeks ago. I guess it would be more honest to say that I helped make it. MrWurdi stepped up and pitched in with this one. I've been working way too much and he picked up the slack, repeatedly, on the making of the ham stock.

Today, I wanted to make split pea soup so I consulted about forty recipes and came up with a recipe I could almost call my own. I probably need to give credit to those other forty but I couldn't tell you what ideas came from which cookbook, website, or recipe card so I'll just say, "Thanks, everyone!"

I would like to note, for the record, that I did not talk to Duchess Jane while making this soup and, so, managed to avoid scalding my face.

Here's what I did:

Ima Wurdibitsch's Split Pea Soup
Ingredients
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 big handful of baby-cut carrots, cut into 1/4-inch dice***
1 pound dried split peas
About 3 quarts of ham stock
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup diced ham

Instructions
In a large heavy pan, saute onions and carrots in oil until they get a bit soft. Then, add the peas, stock, and bay leaves. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about three hours. When the peas get soft, run your immersion blender (finally got one!) through it a bit to let some of the peas thicken the soup. Add the diced ham and continue simmering and stirring, until the ham is heated through. Discard the bay leaves.

This recipe fits the criteria for the Weight Watcher's Core Plan.

Here's a picture of the finished soup. It's in a really small bowl so, for size reference the carrot pieces are about a quarter-inch big.



*** If you're not familiar with the baby-cut carrot conspiracy or the response from the World Carrot Museum, click the links!

From Ima's Kitchen - Hearty Chicken and Corn Chowder with CORE-nbread

As mentioned previously, I'm doing Weight Watcher's Core Plan. Because there are certain foods allowed on the Core plan, I'm always on the lookout for recipes that fit my plan. If a recipe is close enough, I'll modify it to fit or just "count" the non-Core ingredients.

The following recipe (modified quite a bit from a friend's recipe) is Core, as is the Core-nbread recipe (just substitutions to make it be Core) that follows. Neither taste like "diet food."


Hearty Chicken and Corn Chowder

1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp onion powder (you could use an onion but MrWurdi has texture issues with onion, so I use powder or pureed onion)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 roasted red bell pepper, diced
1 15 oz. can diced potato
1 small can chopped green chiles
1 1/2 C fat-free chicken broth
1 C evaporated skim milk
10 oz skinless, bonelss chicken breasts, diced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 C frozen corn kernels

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil until hot but not smoking, over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, roasted red pepper, green chiles and potato. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 mins. Stir in the broth and evaporated milk. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

Stir in the diced chicken, salt and black pepper, and cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 mins. Stir in the corn kernels and cook until the corn is just heated through, about 2 minutes longer. Ladle the chowder into bowls and serve with cornbread.

Makes 4 servings


I made this ahead of time and put it in a crockpot to heat the day we were going to eat it. It was very good. The next time I make it, I will "mash" up some of the corn and potato to get a slightly thicker consistency. The original recipe called for creamed corn but since it's not Core, I didn't use it.

For the Core-nbread, I just use the recipe on the bag of cornmeal and use skim milk instead of regular and substitute applesauce for the oil. You can't taste the applesauce at all.

From Ima's Kitchen - Spicy Turkey Sausage

I love puttering around in the kitchen. Even when I'm exhausted, something about cooking appeals to me. Plus, I like to eat. I really enjoy food. As I've mentioned in the past, I do Weight Watchers. Right now, I'm doing their Core plan.

I made the recipe below earlier this week. We sampled a few patties. Wow. This stuff is really, really good. I'll be experimenting with the recipe over the next few weeks and months. I think a chicken, apple, fennel sausage will be next. In the meantime, you might want to try this one. It's unbelievably easy to make and as good as, if not better, than any sausage from the grocery store.

Spicy Turkey Sausage
1 lb. Lean Ground Turkey Breast
2 Tablespoons Onion, chopped finely
4 Cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 Tablespoon Sage
1/2 Tablespoon Thyme
1/4 Tablespoon Allspice
1/2 Tablespoon Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Cayenne Pepper (less if you don't like hot and spicy)
1/2 Tablespoon Black Pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Using a 1/4 measuring cup, scoop out the sausage to make balls. Place each ball between 2 pieces of wax paper and flatten with the underside of a plate to desired thickness. Cook in a skillet coated with nonstick spray over medium heat until no longer pink.

Note: This is pretty spicy (hot), but you could cut down on the cayenne pepper if you don't like really spicy sausage. You don't have to cook all of the sausage at once. Just freeze each sausage patty between 2 pieces of wax paper and place inside a zip lock freezer bag. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze. When you're ready to cook, simply defrost and follow the cooking directions above.

Serves: 8
Per Serving: 90 Calories; 5g Fat (48.3% calories from fat); 10g Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 45mg Cholesterol; 454mg Sodium.

Core or 2 Points


We're having this with breakfast tomorrow.

Saving 2nd Base!

Dear Blog Reader,

I am not becoming a professional begger. This is the one major fund-raiser I participate in each year where I ask for cash donations. I will not bombard you with requests for money. I anticipate only having two or three posts before this year's fund-raising deadline so if you aren't interested in donating, please bear with me. I'll have a banner on my page for the next two weeks.

Please consider making a tax deductible donation.

Great strides have been made over the years in the treatment of breast cancer but a cure still doesn’t exist. The Susan G. Komen For The Cure Foundation is a leading force behind cancer research and awareness.

As some of you might know, I’ve been doing Weight Watchers for several years. I started participating on one of the Weight Watchers message boards for tips and support. In 2003, a bunch of my virtual friends from Weight Watchers decided to make an exercise goal of doing the Susan Komen 5K Race for the Cure in Boston. Not only was it a good way to exercise, it was an excellent cause. Many of the people on the message board, including myself, supported the team with donations and encouragement.

The next year, I and nearly 30 other women from all over the country went to Boston to join the original Team GDT. The year I joined, our team raised over $33,000 in donations.

Thanks to some amazing support, we raised almost $40,000 last year, placing 1st in the team rankings, and making Team GDT the nation’s top non-corporate fundraising team for Komen. Since our team began, we have raised over $125,000!

I am calling upon your generosity and support to help us raise as much money as possible to help find a cure. I am honored to wear the names of those you’d like to honor, support or memorialize on my shirt while I participate in the race. When you make your donation, please include those names or enter them in the comments section and I will wear them proudly.

Any amount, big or small, is GREATLY appreciated! So please, as you are willing and able, help me in my mission to create a life where my daughter and granddaughters never have to worry about a lump in their breast. Thank you for your time, support and generous donations! With your help, the fight will continue and a cure will be found!

Because of the public exposure of our team and the nature of the Internet, I prefer to not have my real name on the list. So, if you’d like to make a tax deductible donation, you can click on the link below to access the donation site.

Official Komen Site
After clicking the “Sponsor a Participant” button, type in the following:

First Name: Mz
Last Name: Grinch

There'll be a link to my donation page right below.

Or, you can use this quick link: I Like Boobies or click this banner.


TeamGDT has a website. Click on this banner and you can learn more about the team and bid on auction items.


The team also contributed recipes. An amazing woman on our team compiled those recipes into a beautiful cookbook. You can order the Team GDT cookbook, Eat for the Cure, directly from the publisher. Here's a picture of the front cover:



Much love and thanks in advance,
Ima Wurdibitsch aka MzGrinch aka Too Many Aliases to Mention

...Try, Try Again

I suck.

I failed to maintain my quit. I have a new quit date, a new prescription for Zyban (that I've been taking for about 3 weeks), and a new attitude.

I could list all the reasons why my quit didn't stick but then I'd have to deal with that whole philosophical argument in my head about whether they're reasons or excuses. I'm not in the mood for Do-It-Yourself Psychoanalysis so I won't make a list.

Here's the plan:
Take Zyban - check
Keep taking Zyban - check
Pick a quit date, July 4th - check
Figure out how to keep from gaining weight while/after quitting - check back and see if this plan works

I really do want to quit smoking. I really would love it if smoking wasn't unhealthy, stinky, expensive, and completely abhorrent to MrWurdi. I have smoking issues. I'm dealing with them.

Part of my plan involves not gaining weight when I quit. I realize that's nearly impossible but I've recommitted to my Weight Watcher plan and I've started exercising. Yes, me. Even though I've always hate-hate-hated exercise. I've decided to do the Couch to 5K running plan. I completed the 2nd workout of week one this morning and I've learned something about myself.

I still hate exercise.

I dread it. I don't like it when I'm doing it. I feel so good when I'm done but I don't just feel good that it's over. I feel proud of myself and what I'm doing for my health. I also feel good that I'm providing amusement for anyone who happens to witness me as I huff and puff my way through the workout.

I'm a giver like that.

I was waiting for it to feel good. I have been looking forward to that "runner's high" you hear about from some runners. Unfortunately, I'm afraid my running experience will be more like that of a dear friend of mine who said, "The only way I'd get runner's high is if I were, well, high."

People Irritate Me ~ Chapter 3

I guess it’s not quite fair to have a “people irritate me” post when I’m trying to quit smoking because my tolerance is pretty low today. I also said I wasn’t going to blog my quitting smoking details. So much for that! I’ve decided to put some People Irritate Me stuff in here right after I blog about my quitting smoking crap.

I was driving home yesterday when I realized I felt sick. Really sick. Sick to my stomach, head hurting kind of sick. Right about then, I had a lightbulb moment. I realized that how I was feeling must be similar to how junkies (not the turnip kind) feel when they're craving their fix.

My body is pretty pissed at me for not smoking. All of the unpleasantness normally associated with quitting is hitting me full force. I know that if I can get through today, it will start to get better. By this time next week, it will probably just be those random and unexpected cravings to handle.

I'm allowing myself some leeway on the whole Weight Watchers thing. I'm not tossing my plan out the window but, especially these first few days, I'm rewarding myself with food. If my brain and body are whining about losing something they enjoyed, I'll substitute food for a while. I know I can handle the food thing again after I deal with now.

I didn’t blog about quitting smoking yesterday so I’ve kind of exploited a loophole. I said I wasn’t going to do a day-by-day blog of it.

Now, on to the People Irritate Me part of this post. This is a general, non-specific kind of irritation. A list of character traits that run the gamut from mildly annoying me to making me want to [the rest of this sentence has been edited out on the advice of my attorney who states that one should never incriminate oneself by providing proof of intent to commit a crime.]

Posting the specifics would only end up making me more irritated (and might piss some people off) so I’ll just do a short list:

[EDIT]

Hoping for a better day tomorrow.

Hospitals Are Making Me Sick

Hospitals have been on my mind lately. People who go to hospitals, people who work in hospitals, food served in hospitals, parking fees charged at hospitals, and the smell of hospitals top my list today.

Between the young (my 4 month-old granddaughter) and the old (my man’s 70 year-old mother), I’ve spent a good deal of time with family and kind-of-family in hospitals recently. My back is paying the price for sleeping in uncomfortable chairs as I kept watch. I feel safe whining about that now that the young and old are out of the woods and either home or on their way there.

I’ve seen excellent staff and mediocre staff and incompetent staff. I’ve learned that anyone in the hospital needs an advocate who can keep an eye on everything. Mistakes are made. I understand that we all have our “off days” but when your job is caring for sick people, you’d better make sure that your “off” moments are inflicted on inanimate objects or non-sick people. I’m generally an easy-going kind of gal but the lab folks were damned lucky I wasn’t there when they, unnecessarily, caused my granddaughter pain. There is much love in my heart for the nurses who fixed that problem.

You can see what I read (Look. Over there. Off to the right. See that list?). I like food. I’m not terribly picky. I thoroughly enjoy gourmet meals but Taco Bell can make me drool under the right circumstances. Because I love food and have a tendency to overeat, I belong to Weight Watchers (also on that list). Being forced to eat from a hospital cafeteria is not pleasing from either a drooling standpoint or a Weight Watcher-y one. You’d think a hospital would have healthy food options.

You’d be wrong.

Two dollars to park? This is doubled from six months ago. This is outrageous. I know what they’re charging for hospital stays and I know what they’re charging for craptacular food. It’s robbery, pure and simple.

I’ve been in the hospital recently, myself. It was just the emergency room but while I was waiting to be seen, I wrote the following:

Feh. Emergency rooms suck ass. Why am I here? Nearly passed out three times with chest pain. Not a good combo but most likely related to the cold I had for the past week and not being able to eat today. Still chest pain and nearly passing out means I’m sitting in this waiting room for going on three hours. Whatever. It sucks. The poor, the uninsured, the hypochondriacs and the truly ill or injured are here. I wonder what category is mine? Hopefully, I’ll find out before morning.

It turned out to be bronchitis and a sinus infection that were cleared up quickly with an antibiotic. I keep a little notebook with me at all times. If I’m bored or inspired or angry, I write. Lucky you, dear reader; you’ll get to read that drivel, too!