My Husband Cooks

 

MyFitness Pal vs Weight Watchers

I love WW, don't get me wrong. It's been a great education and really works. I don't love the $23.00 per month it costs to maintain. Retirment has turned me into a miser (for you young whipper snappers out there, that's someone who holds greedily on to every penny). We've had to cut out lots of stuff we loved, TV channels, radio apps, fun and games, food... you know, the luxury items we all enjoy and taken our budget down to the bone. Because of that, I'm dropping Weight Watchers ~sigh~. In it's stead, I'm using an old but true app I've used for years, MyFitness Pal. It's free (if you don't go premium), keeps track of all your calories, carbs, fat, etc. and it's easy to use. The only disadvantage is you have to go searching for the recipes (there's no way to search them in the free version) and there is no point system, although you can set it for how many carbs/fats/sugars you want in a day and keep track that way. There are some great sites on the internet that discuss what those should be if you want to lose weight. Anyway, that's my woes. Here's what today's menu is...

Breakfast:  Homemade french bread french toast (1 slice), 1 egg, coffee with cream

Lunch: Mediterranean Quinoa Salad (recipe below) 

Dinner: Italian Bake Polenta (recipe below)

MEDITERRANEAN
QUINOA SALAD

145.5 Cals 4.5 Protein 15.5 Carbs 8 Fats

PREP TIME:10 mins

COOK TIME:20 mins

TOTAL TIME:30 mins

YIELD:6 SERVINGS

COURSE:Lunch, Salad, Side Dish

CUISINE:Mediterranean

Fresh and flavorful Mediterranean Quinoa Salad is protein packed made with diced cucumbers, tomatoes, kalamata olives, red onion, extra virgin olive oil, lemon and Feta cheese.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 1/4 cup red onion, diced
• 1/2 fresh lemon, squeezed, or more to taste
• 1/4 cup about 10 kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cups cucumber, peeled and diced (from 1 English)
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta
• salt and fresh pepper, to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

• Rinse quinoa for about 2 minutes, using your hands to make sure all the saponins are removed.
• Fill a medium pot with water, add quinoa and salt to taste and bring to a boil. When the water boils, reduce heat to low and cover; simmer covered 15 minutes.
• Remove from heat and keep covered an additional 5 minutes without lifting the lid; then fluff with a fork and set aside in a large mixing bowl to cool.
• While the quinoa cools, dice all the vegetables.
• Add the red onion, olives, cucumber, tomatoes to the cooled quinoa, and squeeze 1/2 lemon over it.
• Drizzle the olive oil over the quinoa, then add feta, salt and pepper to taste and toss well.
• Taste for salt and adjust as needed, add more lemon juice if needed.

Italian Baked Polenta

PREP TIME20 mins
COOK TIME1 hr
TOTAL TIME1 hr 20 minsPREP TIME20 mins
COOK TIME1 hr
TOTAL TIME1 hr 20 mins
SERVINGS 12
CALORIES 323 kcal

INGREDIENTS
2 cups polenta, raw
4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
4 cups soy milk or regular milk
1 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup fresh, chopped basil
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, sliced thin
3 carrots, sliced thin
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 sweet pepper, cut into strips
10 ounces package bela mushrooms, sliced
1 bunch swiss chard, stems removed, washed, drained, and chopped
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 large can diced tomatoes flavored with oregano, basil
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 pound fresh mozzarella, sliced in thin rounds

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Bring broth and milk to a boil. Stir in polenta slowly with a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer until polenta begins to thicken, stirring constantly.
• Add Parmesan cheese and basil. Salt and pepper, to taste. Once polenta is thick, remove from heat.
• In a large pan, sauté onion, carrots, and garlic in olive oil for 1 minute. Add red pepper and mushrooms, sauté for 2 minutes. Add Swiss chard, herbs, and diced tomatoes. Continue to simmer until vegetables are soft. Drain vegetable mixture in a colander.
• Cover the bottom of a lasagna-sized casserole dish with tomato sauce.
• Spread drained veggies evenly in bottom of casserole.
• Spread polenta on top of vegetables.
• Top with mozzarella slices.
• Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking until mozzarella begins to brown, about 15-20 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes, cut into square portions and serve.

NUTRITION
Calories: 323kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 18gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 36mgSodium: 892mgPotassium: 484mgFiber: 2gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 5342IUVitamin C: 29mgCalcium: 432mg
Iron: 2mg