Portobello mushroom burger, grilled baby artichokes, grilled potatoes – July 5, 2012

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Beebamom

We had a great Fourth of July party at Ryan and Jon’s where there were a lot of really good things to eat. I made Southwest bean salad and we also made a fritatta with potato, mushrooms, onions and roasted red pepper as an appetizer. Jonathan made shrimp tacos which was really nice of him to think of my healthy eating style when picking out an entree. Unfortunately I did not take any pictures.

On Thursday we had our own little grill out. John had a hamburger and I had a grilled portobello mushroom. My burger went on a thin sandwich round with a little smear of goat cheese, grilled onions, roasted red pepper and arugula. We also grilled some baking potatoes that I had mostly microwaved and baby artichokes.

Happy Fifth of July!

Portobello mushroom burger with grilled onion, goat cheese, roasted red pepper and arugula served with grilled potato and grilled baby artichokes

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Whole wheat penne, chicken, broccolini and mushrooms – July 2, 2012

Posted on July 3, 2012 by Beebamom

It being Chicken Monday, instead of putting shrimp in this dish we decided to use chicken (duh.) But before we get to the pasta, I thought I’d post a picture of what happens when we go to the grocery store and limes are 10 for $1. That would be margaritas. And not just any margaritas but the Earl Gilmore Memorial Margaritas. Here’s the story behind them. A long, long time ago when we were in our early twenties, before we even had children, John’s boss, Earl Gilmore, invited us and a bunch of other people who worked for Data General to his house for a cookout. At that dinner, he served his very, incredibly strong margaritas. It was the first time we’d ever had margaritas. I would tell you what happened at that party but for some reason I just can’t remember. I am assuming that a lot of margaritas were drunk. The margaritas became the Earl Gilmore margaritas and after Earl died way too young, they became The Earl Gilmore Memorial Margaritas.

Here’s the recipe. Do not consume these if you need to drive anywhere.

The Earl Gilmore Memorial Margarita

On to dinner. I sauteed the vegetables. John cooked the pasta. We put the two together with a little chicken stock. Dinner. BTW, broccolini is really tasty.

Whole wheat penne with mushrooms, chicken and broccolini

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Seared tuna with brown rice and broccoli – July 1, 2012

Posted on July 2, 2012 by Beebamom

On Sunday we took a trip up to Whole Foods and bought some ahi tuna. When John cut the tuna into batons, there was some leftover so he made us a very nice tuna tartar served with a dot of wasabi and pickled ginger.

Tuna tartar with wasabi and pickled ginger

Then he marinated the rest of the tuna in soy, ginger and garlic and seared it for one and a half minutes on each side. I made the oven method brown rice and steamed broccoli. To give them a more Asian flavor I added soy sauce, toasted sesame seeds and sliced green onions.

Seared ahi tuna with brown rice and broccoli

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Ancho rubbed pork tenderloin with zucchini medley and brown rice/farro mixture – June 30, 2012

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Beebamom

Saturday night’s dinner consisted of a pan roasted pork tenderloin rubbed with ancho chiles, salt, pepper, garlic powder and oregano. John used the spice grinder to turn the ancho chile into a powder. The pork turned out really well, rosy pink with some spice. I reheated the leftover farro and brown rice mixture from last night. I also made a medley of zucchini, mushrooms, red bell pepper, onions and serrano chiles using a teaspoon of oil in the saute.

This week we have eaten 20 out of 21 meals at home. My one dining out experience is the Chili’s lunch I had on Wednesday, not quite the gourmet experience. I know it is better to eat at home but sometimes I wish we could go out for something exotic. (like Thai food) A year and a half is a long time to go without visiting my favorite Thai restaurant. Sigh.

Pork tenderloin, brown rice/farro mixture and zucchini medley

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Scallops, farro and brown rice, green beans – June 29, 2012

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Beebamom

Seared scallops with green beans and a farro/brown rice mixture[/caption]Scallops are my favorite protein. I notice that I have several dinners on Dining Lite which feature them. For this version, John seared the scallops perfectly. I made an oven baked farro and brown rice mixture (I didn’t have quite enough farro.) I also steamed some green beans. I frenched a few of the larger ones and I added a teaspoon of butter at the end. I made myself tartar sauce to have with the scallops. It consisted of light mayo, capers and sweet relish.

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Chicken with butternut squash and Brussels sprouts – June 28, 2012

Posted on June 29, 2012 by Beebamom

This was Chicken Monday delayed until Thursday. John made his usual great pan roasted chicken. We added the pan juices to a packet of chicken gravy. The Brussels sprouts although a little oddly shaped were quite delicious made with a teaspoon of butter and sherry to finish them off and make them brown. The butternut squash turned out to be one of those watery, bland tasting ones. I added soy sauce, instant coffee, honey, plenty of salt and finally chipotle powder to make the squash more palatable. With the gravy on it, the enhanced squash was eatable.

Chicken and butternut squash with gravy, Brussels sprouts

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Lunch at Chili’s – June 27, 2012

Posted on June 29, 2012 by Beebamom

On Wednesday I met Sarah for lunch. As usual we went to Chili’s. And I ate my usual thing. Knowing ahead of time what you are going to order makes staying on your healthy lifestyle plan easier. Here’s my Chili’s order – garden salad, no croutons, no cheese, no salad dressing – six grilled shrimp – steamed broccoli, no butter, no parmesan cheese. It’s pretty plain. I ask for lemon wedges. I always bring along my own salad dressing. My favorite is Ken’s Fat-Free Italian Salad Dressing.

Ken’s Fat-Free Italian Dressing

The whole packet contains 20 calories. It’s the tastiest of all the fat free dressings. I buy it in bulk and carry it with me always.

Just so you know that I am human, I always eat one and only one tortilla chip with salsa from Sarah’s basket. It makes me feel really good to know that I can control chip eating.

Later, John and I had a salad and a bowl of whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce for dinner. Once again I was so excited to be eating a big bowl of pasta that I forgot to take a picture.

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Cedar planked salmon, potatoes and broccoli

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Beebamom

I am looking at the title here and thinking that it does not really convey the deliciousness of this meal. Here’s a look at the process –

First John soaked the cedar plank and topped the salmon with chopped rosemary and dill


Then he put it on the grill adding rosemary to the fire for flavor. It cooked for around 12 minutes.

While the salmon cooked, I steamed some tiny new potatoes


and cooked some broccoli.


Dinner was served with a delicious yogurt dill sauce.

Maybe this dinner seems like a lot of bother for a Tuesday night. Sure, it would be easier to get some takeout or go out to dinner. I guess it depends on if you are really serious about eating right and losing weight. I feel like we are worth the effort.

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Bison Monday

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Beebamom

On Monday we had bison steaks which count like chicken so I may be excused for not making chicken on Chicken Monday. We get them frozen at Whole Foods. John cooked them quickly on the stovetop.

John cooking bison. Green beans and rutabagas (in the pressure cooker) in the foreground.

We also made a packet of gravy that I bought at Sprouts. It was not so tasty – kind of thick and artificial tasting. The green beans were great. I even put a tiny bit of butter in them to brown them.

Bison medallion and rutabagas with brown mushroom gravy, green beans

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Fish Soup with fennel, zucchini and potatoes

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Beebamom

I was wrong. I did take a picture from last week. I found it in my camera when I was getting last night’s dinner off the stick. Since we ate this two nights in a row, it counts twice.

This soup is really delicious. We made last week’s version with shrimp, scallops, salmon and snapper – just a little of each. Our broth was a little thin tasting since we didn’t have many shrimp shells to make broth with. We supplemented the shrimp stock with clam juice, chicken stock and water. This time we added a serrano chile for a little spice. There is some chopping involved but after cooking the vegetables for maybe fifteen minutes, you add the fish, then the shellfish and it’s done. In the picture you see that I served with rustic bread. (I really cannot be trusted with bread. We ate the whole loaf. Good thing it was very small.)

Fish soup with fennel, zucchini and potatoes

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