Healthy Panini Recipe by the Chef!

All I can say today is hooray! Well, I guess there are two things I can say: Hooray, and here’s a recipe for a great panini:

Jalapeño Turkey Club Panini

2 pieces whole wheat bread

1 ½ slices fat-free Swiss cheese

8 slices shaved turkey

1 T chopped tomato

1 slice turkey bacon, cooked and chopped

5 slices pickled jalapeño peppers

2 sprays olive oil cooking spray

Assemble as a sandwich, with the cheese forming the first layer on each slice of bread. Spray the outward-facing sides of both pieces of bread with the olive oil spray and either cook in a panini maker or sear on both sides in a frying pan. Yum!



Chef On A Diet - 2 weeks later

I kept to my goal of losing 2 pounds for the week, for a total weight loss of 5 lb! Again, Friday night was my biggest challenge. Yes, you guessed it—we hit the brewery and the Old Place. I kept to the food portion of my diet, but because of drinks, I did wind up calling Friday night a cheat night. Maybe I need to move!

Of course when I eat at home and have my pre-made meals from California Chef, it is much easier for me to stay on track. I am finding I love anything w/ lean ground turkey. I loved my Turkey Chili Mac & Cheese, Turkey Meatballs, Turkey Genovese Pizza, and of course my Guiltless Turkey Nachos last week. Try the nachos and let me know what you think:

Guiltless Turkey Nachos: 340 Calories

1 brown rice tortilla (or whole wheat)

¼ cup pinto beans

¼ cup salsa

2 oz. cooked lean ground turkey

¼ cup 2% Mexican cheese

2 tsp. chopped cilantro

2 tsp. chopped green onion

2 tsp. chopped jalapeños

1. Spray the tortilla w/olive oil cooking spray and cut into 8 wedges. Place on baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes until crispy.
2. Place 6 of the tortilla chips on the bottom of a plate.
3. Spread beans on chips.
4. Toss turkey in salsa and then spread over beans.
5. Sprinkle cheese on top of turkey, and then top with cilantro, onions, and jalapeños.
6. Microwave or bake in oven when ready to eat.



Eating Right on Date Night!

With such a busy schedule, my husband & I have made Wednesday nights our “date night.” Traditionally this means we spend the night at a local restaurant enjoying each other’s company with dinner & drinks. We live in an area w/ a micro-brewery at our freeway off ramp and a winery 3 doors down from our home. This makes it much too convenient to stop and imbibe “just one more” on the way home since we’re having fun and don’t want it to end.

So, the first goal of last night’s date was to stay away from alcohol.  We decided on the neighborhood taco joint that doesn’t serve any, and a movie rental for home. For the meal, I chose two chicken tacos w/corn tortillas and an unsweetened iced tea for 410 calories—not bad for a date night dinner.

The next challenge was the choice of refreshments for the at-home movie. W/ all that close access to beer & wine, of course we have a fridge and closet full. (Did I mention one of my best friends is a winemaker?)  But I was determined to keep it clean this first week so I went for some chamomile tea. I also planned for an evening snack, which w/ the movie was, of course, light popcorn @ 120 cals. Good food, great company, an interesting movie, and NO diet violations—not too shabby a kickoff for “new-style” date night.



Chef On A Diet- Day 1

With my last weekend of decadence behind me, I am excited to start Day 1 of my resolution to lose it! Since Mondays are such a long day, I’ve decided to try to eat 6 times today.  I have planned out my meals so I know exactly what I need to eat and when to eat it so I’ll be less likely to cheat:

Greek Yogurt & Berries: 120 cals, which I already ate at 2:45 am!

Breakfast Panini (w/egg, Canadian bacon, & fat-free cheese): 340 cals.  I am planning on eating half at 6:00 am and half at 9:00 am.

Guiltless Turkey Nachos: 340 cals. This will comprise lunch at 12:00 pm.

Apples & Cinnamon Zabaglione: 120 cals. This will be my snack at 3:00 pm.

Parmesan-Crusted Salmon w/ Italian Brown Rice & Roasted Ratatouille: 380 cals. This will be dinner, eaten between 6:00 & 6:30 pm.

Lots of water & green tea too.  No wine w/dinner tonight and no calories from beverages. I am right at the 1,300 calorie limit I set for myself, so I cannot have anything additional and need to stick to my portion sizes. But this is a lot more food than I usually eat with a lot less calories, so I am not worried!



Chef On A Diet!

I have spent the last 4 years cooking for people on a diet and somehow I managed to gain 30 pounds in the process! It is the classic “cobbler’s son” tale. While I know all of the things I’m supposed to do, and can provide others with delicious, healthy meals so that they can lose weight, I have not taken care of myself. Examining my routine, I can easily see a few bad habits I’ve acquired. These are my opportunities to make changes. Opportunities to take what I’ve learned by helping others lose weight, and from working with different nutritionists and trainers, and apply that knowledge to a program that I feel I can actually do and be successful at.

Here’s a peek at how some obstacles to good nutrition have wedged their way into my day-to-day life and the bad habits I’ve developed in an effort to deal with them:

A typical Monday has me arriving at work at 3:30 am, too early to eat. Because we are very busy, before I know it, it's 9:30 am—so I grab a handful of nuts. At 11:00 am I’m actually starving and ask my husband to make me a yogurt & granola. However, the pace of work in the kitchen doesn’t let up, so it takes me 3 hours of bites on the run to finish my snack. Around 3:30 pm, after the clients’ meals are all finished and the employees have left, I have another snack (probably something quick that’s loaded with carbs and little or no protein). Then I get home around 6:30 pm and usually go out to dinner. Who wants to cook after a 15-hour day?! In fact, I’m probably having some wine with that dinner because, hey, after a Monday like this, I deserve it! I come home pooped and unwind with a good book before falling asleep.

So, while I am eating 4 times a day, which is good, I don’t eat my first meal until I’ve been up for 6 hrs! Then in about the same span of time, I consume 3 more meals. Not so good. OK, so where am I going to take the opportunity to make some needed changes?

Opportunity #1: Eat breakfast daily within 1 hour of waking.

Opportunity #2: Eat low-fat meals/snacks that are balanced w/ protein & healthy carbs every 3 to 4 hours. Total calories: 1,300 -1,400/day.

Although I strongly believe that running around the kitchen for 10 to 12 hours a day should count as exercise, my scale and mirror tell me that it somehow does not. This troubling fact appears to present yet another opportunity:

Opportunity #3: Exercise at least 15 minutes per day and walk 1 hour 2 to 3 times per week.

Unfortunately, it’s also true that wine doesn’t count as a fruit. So, you guessed it . . .

Opportunity #4: Cut out the weekday wine.

OK, I’m a woman, so I’m not going to tell you what I weigh right now, but by capitalizing on the opportunities above, I intend to lose the 30 lbs. of extra weight I’ve put on in the last 4 years by June 1st. So, if you are resolved to lose it too, visit my blog for great recipes and updates with helpful dieting tips!