What’s cooking: Easy chicken cacciatore 01/15/2012

If I take a few minutes to think about my favorite meals of all time — the dishes I’d want as a last meal if I should ever find myself on death row and out of appeals, the entrees that make me think of love and comfort and deliciousness — one thing stands out as a pattern.

Tomato sauce.

Whether it’s a plate of chicken parmesan oozing with cheese or a fresh, spicy salsa topping a pile of tortilla chips, tomato sauce takes up a special plate in my heart and tummy. But tomato sauce is high in carbs (relatively speaking), especially when you add it to a heaping plate of pasta.

So I started flipping through recipes to find one that was heavy on the tomato sauce but light on the carbohydrates and came across one I cut out of a Diabetic Cooking magazine a year or so ago: Easy Chicken Cacciatore.

My mom made a version of this often as a family meal, and I’ve made it many times without a recipe. Cacciatore, or at least the dish as we know it in the U.S., has a couple of constants regardless of whether you’re going high-brow or bachelor: bell peppers, mushrooms, chunky tomato sauce and braised chicken.

This recipe, as the name states, is super-easy and doesn’t require you to use all the pots and pans in your kichen arsenal (or my kitchen arsenal, at least, which is admittedly lacking because I haven’t gotten married and thus have not benefitted from the wedding registry tradition).

Couple of notes: This recipe serves 6, which is a little much for a single girl like me. I either invite a friend or two over for dinner the first night and then pack the leftovers for my dinner the next three nights, or I cut down the recipe to serve four. I also skip the first step, but you might not want to. Finally, this recipe does not call for the dish to be served with noodles, rice or another carb. If you do serve it with a side dish to soak up the sauce, make sure you add on the additional calories, fat, carb, protein, etc.

What you’ll need:

1/4 c all-purpose flour

6 (4 oz) boneless, skinless chicken breasts OR 6 (5-6 oz) bone-in breasts, skin removed

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided

1 large green bell pepper, cut into short strips

1 medium onion, cut in half lengthwise and sliced crosswise

1 package (6 oz) sliced button mushrooms

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 cans (about 14 oz each) no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained

1 and 1/2 teaspoon of Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon of salt

6 tablespoons shredded part-skim mozzarella

1. Place flour in a large resealable food storage bag. Add chicken, 2 pieces at a time and  shake to coat.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown chicken on both sides and remove from pan.

3. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to same skillet. Add veggies, cook and stir 3 to 4 minutes until mushrooms are lightly browned. Add garlic, cook and stir for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes, seasoning and salt; bring to a boil. Return chicken to skillet. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 18 minutes if using boneless chicken, 23 minutes if using bone-in chicken. Check to make sure chicken is cooked through before taking off the stove.

4. Serve chicken with veggies and sauce. Top with 1 tablespoon of cheese.

Servings: 6 (1 chicken breast, 2/3 cup of sauce and 1 tablespoon of cheese per serving)

Nutrition per serving:

Calories: 233

Fat: 6 g

Carbs: 14 g

Fiber: 3 g

Protein: 31 g

When multitasking goes bad 01/12/2012

I think I’ve found a goal for next month already: Ending my habit of multi-tasking eating.

You know what this is: When you eat lunch at your desk so you don’t miss that important phone call or so you can catch up on e-mail. Eating breakfast while reading the paper. Mindless snacking while watching TV. Wolfing down dinner while driving somewhere.

We all lead busy lives. But my multitasking eating habits have gotten so bad, sitting down in front of the TV or curling up with a book triggers the urge to eat. I’m not even hungry, but I find myself with my head in my carbohydrate cabinet, trying to find the cheddar popcorn.

Well, some new research shows that people who savor their food — really concentrate on it while eating it — eat less. And it makes sense. Instead of plowing through the bag of chocolate while watching a DVD, letting it melt in your mouth slowly while you concentrate on the flavors will likely leave me feeling more satisfied. And, as we know from years of prevailing wisdom, it takes the brain about 20 minutes to catch up to the stomach when it comes to feeling full.

If I think about it, I can’t remember what my bagel and cream cheese tasted like this morning. I grabbed it on my way in to work and began eating as I made a to-do list that stretched onto two pages.  No wonder I was hungry an hour later.

So I think I’m going to stop and really focus on what I’m putting in my mouth when I eat something. I’ll put it on a plate and eat it at a table, with no distractions to divert me from the taste, texture and smell of the food. I deserve to enjoy what I’m eating, and I deserve to take a short break to nourish my body.

Your turn: Do you eat while doing other things? What are some strategies you use to curb this habit?

Single and satisfied 01/11/2012

Before you read this post, watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBko_3wT44Q

OK. Welcome back. Can we talk for a moment about how much I hate most 100-calorie packs? They’re bullshit. There’s, like, 10 tiny wafers in there that taste nothing like actual Oreos or Nutter Butters. They don’t satisfy my hunger. If anything, eating one of them makes me want to break into the nearest vending machine and clean it out of snack cakes.

Plus, a box of 100-cal packs are, like, eight times the price of a package of Oreos. The thrifty side of me rebels every time I consider buying a package.

See, 100-cal packs operate under the principle that people can’t control themselves enough to refrain from eating half a bag of chips at one sitting. Or, if you want to be kinder about it, they operate under the principle that that people don’t know what a serving size looks like. Honestly though, if a serving size is a 100-cal pack, I kinda want to jump off a very tall building.

But what if you just opened that bag of chips (or that package of Oreos or whatever your treat of choice is) and portioned it out into single servings right away? It’s cheaper, takes only a couple of minutes and is tailored toward your tastes. And for anyone who thinks “But I’d just eat several DIY single servings  in one  sitting,” I say this: You could do the same thing with 100-cal packs. In fact, I’ve done it with 100-cal packs. (It was a moment of desperation. STOP JUDGING ME!)

So here’s how you do it. At the store, check out the nutrition facts on the treat you’re thinking of getting intimate with and decide whether the serving size is something you can live with. If not, put it back on the shelf and back away slowly.

If so, buy it and bring it home. Don’t be scared. Just get out your trusty scale, measure out single servings and then package it up.

As an example: We don’t have a Trader Joe’s store anywhere near where I live (can someone from TJ’s get on that, please? I sent the petition in to open a store in Scranton, PA months ago!). So when I visit my family in Virginia, I usually stock up on a couple of things I really like. One thing I always buy is Trader Joe’s trail mixes.

Trail mixes are good snacks for me because they’re packed with protein from the nuts. They can be high in carbohydrates, though, both through the dried fruit and from the extras like chocolate chips or M&Ms. So before I buy, I check the nutrition facts and find a mix with 13 carbs or less per 1/4 cup.

When I get it home, I break out my trusty kitchen scale and start portioning out servings.  Then I pour each serving into a snack-sized plastic baggie (which are smaller than the sandwich-sized baggies, so it looks like there’s more food in them!) and then label it with the calories, fat, protein and carbs of what’s inside. Tada! Instant, DIY single-serving packs you can grab for your lunchbox or as a midnight snack.

An aside: Most nutrition facts have both an ounce or grams as serving size as well as an approximate measurement in teaspoons, cups, etc. I’ve found that portioning it out in grams or ounces is much more accurate. Food scales can be found online and in stores for a $15 or so. Invest in one and find the zen in knowing exactly how much you’re eating.

Your turn: What’s your favorite treat? Have you ever tried portioning it out ahead of time so you don’t have to be tempted each time you open the bag?

Smart snacking 01/10/2012

Right now, I’m sitting at the computer trying to make it another 45 minutes before putting something in my mouth. I really, really want chocolate or maybe a cupcake (OK, OK, I want both). I’ll probably end up having some carrot sticks and hummus, since I’m committed to this getting healthy thing.

Visions of red velvet cupcakes dancing through my head got me thinking about the whole emotionally-fraught world of  snacking. And I remembered that I found this quiz to ascertain whether you are a “smart snacker.” The quiz, from the very useful site SparkPeople.com (which some big important magazine once called “Facebook for dieters”), is interesting but not because it actually gives you useful information on whether you are, in fact, a smart snacker. I think anyone taking the quiz probably already knows the answer to that — and that the answer is not “Yes.”

What’s interesting to me about this quiz is that it is so freakin’ obvious what the RIGHT answer is and just as obvious what your ACTUAL answer is. Here’s a sample:

When you crave something sweet, what do you usually do?

0 Nothing. I don’t eat sugary foods.

0 Go for a piece of fresh fruit.

0 Chew on a piece of fruity, sugar-free gum

0 Search for candy, cookies, chocolate — anything to satisfy my sweet tooth!

Ummmm, yeah. If your answer is the first one, go away. You don’t belong here. You’re not human! (Kidding. Good for you if it’s the first answer. But I will need to cut you to see if you bleed.) The correct answer, if you want to be a smart snacker, is the second or third option. But the fourth option is pretty much my answer, up until a few days ago.

It’s hard to choose the right answer when you’re smack in the middle of a craving for cake slathered in cream-cheese frosting. Making bad food choices is a habit. It’s something I’m used to doing. And that habit has gotten me to where I am today — more than 75 pounds overweight and diabetic.

Habits can be replaced, of course. And that’s what I’m trying to do by setting two goals a month. Slowly putting in place new habits, good habits to replace the old, unhealthy ones.

Your turn: Are you a smart snacker? What are your stumbling blocks and what strategies can you put in place to change your bad habits into good ones?

Human Guinea Pig*: Crystal Light Mojito 01/09/2012

*An occasional feature wherein Diabetic Diva reviews products that purport to help with a healthy lifestyle. She receives no compensation or sponsorship for these reviews. Curious about a product? Suggest one by e-mailing Diabetic Diva at diabetic.diva79@gmail.com.

As a self-proclaimed foodie, being a diabetic can sometimes cramp my style. I have to be careful with what I eat now (though the idea that diabetics need to swear off all sugar for ever and ever amen is not entirely correct).

A few months before I was diagnosed with diabetes, some friends organized a bar-crawl to celebrate my 30th birthday. I remember drinking two sugary alcoholic beverages in rapid succession and then feeling like I was going to pass out and die. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was experiencing all the classic symptoms of high blood sugar.

After I was diagnosed, I swore off drinking. That was entirely my choice, and I’m not making any recommendations  as to what you personally should do. Any recommendations about nutrition and diet should come from a licensed, professional health care provider.

That said, I never really loved the taste of alcohol. I don’t like beer, I barely tolerate wine and straight liquor makes me gag. But put vodka or rum into some fruit juice and add sugar, and I can usually swallow it and ask for another. All that sugar and fruit juice wreaks havoc on my blood sugar, though, so I gave it up.

Every now and again, I miss drinking. One of my favorite drinks was a mojito — which is lime juice, mint, simple syrup, sparkling soda water and white rum. When I saw Crystal Light’s line of cocktail-flavored beverages — and that they had a mojito one! — I wanted to try it.

One note — I grew up drinking diet soda and Crystal Light, so I don’t mind the taste of artificial sweetener. I am trying to cut way back on my consumption of it. But obviously, Crystal Light uses artificial sweetner, so know that going into this, OK?

That aside, the Crystal Light mojito is really pretty good. It has the notes of citrus and lime that you expect in a mojito. At a party I threw recently, I used this as a base for actual mojitos and they were a hit, even amongst people who professed not to like artificial sweetener. For the party, I fancied the drinks up with some fresh mint leaves, a chunk of lime (both of which are calorie free!) and a healthy glug of good-quality white rum.

On my own, though, I don’t go to all that trouble. Unlike most Crystal Light packets, mojitos and others in their mocktail line make 2 quarts per packet. I think the taste is a little strong, so I usually add more water to the pitcher and add some ice cubes to my drink.

Rating: 3 stars out of a possible 4.

Cost: About $2/$3 per package, which contains 5 packages (making a total of 10 quarts)

Find a store: http://www.kraftbrands.com/crystallight/Pages/default.aspx#/mocktails/mojito

What’s cooking: Eggplant-portobello chili 01/08/2012

Because I’m a busy, single girl, I try to cook one or two dishes on Sunday and eat the leftovers for a few days. This cuts down on the time I spend in the kitchen during the week — leaving room for hitting the gym, hanging out with friends and, of course, working. And having meals in the fridge, prepackaged and waiting for me helps curb the temptation to stop at a fast-food place for a quickie dinner or lunch.

Tonight, I made one of my favorite go-to recipies: Eggplant-Portobello Chili. And because it uses a slow-cooker, I can dump it all in and forget about it until I get home tonight. The recipe comes from the Weight Watchers Slow Good Super Slow-Cooker Cookbook, which might be out of print but can be found used in a bunch of places.

One note: This recipe appears to have a pretty high carbohydrate count — 51 grams a serving. BUT! There’s 13 grams of fiber, which can be subtracted from the total, meaning there’s actually 38 net carbs. That’s much more reasonable, but obviously follow the directions of your nutritionist or doctor about the amount of carbs you should be eating at each meal.

What you’ll need:

1 (1-pound) eggplant, peeled and diced

1 and 1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 large onion, chopped

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 poblano chile pepper, seeded and diced

1/2 pound of sliced portobello mushroom caps

14 and 1/2 oz can of diced tomatoes in sauce

8 oz can of tomato sauce (no salt added)

15 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained

3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

2 and 1/2 tablespoons of chili powder

1 and 1/2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons of cornmeal

1/4 cup of light sour cream

1. Sprinkle eggplant with salt and place in a colander. Put a plate on top of eggplant and weight it with a large can. Let the eggplant drain for 30 minutes. Squeeze eggplant of excess liquid with hands or clean kitchen table. (This step is not necessary if you’re using small eggplants, which do not usually get as bitter as large ones do.)

2. Place onion, bell pepper, chile pepper, mushrooms, tomatoes, tomato sauce, beans, brown sugar, chili powder and Worcestershire sauce in a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker; mix well. With the back of a spoon, gently press the vegetables down so they form an even layer. Place the eggplant on top, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge of the cooker. Cover and cook until vegetables are fork-tender, about 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.

3. About 20 minutes before cooking time is complete, gradually stir the cornmeal into the slow cooker until blended. Cover and cook on high until thickened, about 15 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

Servings: 4 (about 1 and 3/4 cup each, with 1 tablespoon of sour cream)

Nutrition per serving:

Calories: 271

Fat: 4 g

Cholesterol: 6 mg

Sodium: 587 g

Carbs: 51 g

Fiber: 13 g

Protein: 9 g

What’s cooking 01/02/2012

One of my goals for the month is to eliminate fast food. I am a newspaper reporter, so I eat a lot of meals at my desk or in the car. My unpredictable hours mean I am rarely home to cook.

But instead of planning ahead, I usually stop for a bacon burger ( Ok, a bacon double burger) and a sack of fries on my way to an assignment.

That won’t work any more. So tonight, I spent some time in the kitchen. I bought a bunch of veggies at the grocery store tonight, including spinach, a red bell pepper, zuchinni, a red onion, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, spaghetti squash, broccoli and baby carrots. I roasted everything but the spinach to use as a filling for omelettes and as a topping for pita bread “pizza” for breakfast and lunch this week.

I destemmed the spinach and sauted it before throwing it into some spaghetti sauce with some lean ground beef. I also roasted a spaghetti squash instead of using pasta to save myself some carbs.

And there you have it. Four nights’ worth of dinner, and the makings for at least six breakfasts and lunches — all in about an hour. Now that’s what I call fast (and healthy) food.

Your turn: What are some of your fast, healthy recipes?

The girl with the plan 12/31/2011

It’s 2012 and a time for new beginnings.

A little more than two years ago, I was diagnosed with Type II diabetes. I was 30 years old, and the news was devastating.

It wasn’t unexpected. I was more than 100 pounds overweight, got winded climbing more than two flights of stairs and regularly unhinged my jaw to inhale entire candy stores (not really, but it felt like it).

Surprisingly, the diagnosis has done little to change my eating habits. Oh, for a few months I counted carbs and went to the gym. And then I got angry because I couldn’t eat what I wanted to eat and I stopped. Yeah … that will show the diabetes!

Ignoring the problem (and dodging my doctor) didn’t make the diabetes go away. And I’m tired of feeling out of control.

So here’s to 2012, and chances to make a fresh start. Instead of some big, fat resolution that will be impossible to keep, I’m going to set two goals per month — all of them focused on developing those healthy habits that I’ll need to make major changes in my life.

The first two goals are relatively modest:

0 Stop eating fast food. It doesn’t really taste that good, I shouldn’t be spending my money on it, and it’s not helping my blood sugar levels

0 Exercising at least 210 minutes each week. This works out to 30 minutes a day, which is completely achievable.

Along with those, I’m hoping to get some friends involved with my getting healthy journey. In addition to making exercise and eating healthy more fun, letting other people in on my goals will help to hold me accountable.

So put on your bike helmet and get ready for the ride!