Snow peas throw me for a loop. I am never sure what to do with them other than throw them into a stir fry, where their subtleties can get overtaken by a spiced-up Asian sauce. Not so with Creamy Lemon Pasta. Their crispy sweetness is a great match for the lemony tang of the yogurt sauce in this recipe. The color combo of the squash, peas and red pepper just screams “VITAMINS!!!”.

Look at their cute faces!

When I make a pasta, I will round out a meal with a simple salad consisting of bagged greens, a few olives, maybe some crumbled feta. I’ve started eating salads without dressing, opting instead for olives and a sprinkle of chesse. I honestly don’t miss it.

Creamy Lemon Pasta

Serves 4
Total time: 20 minutes
Cost per serving: about $3

6 ounce container of plain yogurt
1/4 cup vegetable or stock
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch
12 ounces short pasta like shells, rotini, or fusilli
1 medium yellow squash
1 red pepper
4 green onions
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup snow peas
1 teaspoon dried fines herbs (optional)

1. Set a large pot of water to boil
2. In a small bowl mix the yogurt, stock, lemon juice and cornstarch; set aside.
3. While the water is heating up, thinly slice the squash and chop the red pepper and green onion. I used my food processor to make short work of this step.
4. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package, usually 8 to 10 minutes. Heat the oil in no-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the chopped and sliced veggies and the snow peas. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
5. Drain the pasta and add to a large bowl. Add the cooked veggies, yogurt sauce, and dried herbs. Stir to combine and serve.

Check out all the fiber, vitamin C and iron in this recipe. Thank you, snow peas!

A few months ago I was on a muffin kick. Fayza joked that every time she called me to ask me what I was up to my response was “Making muffins”. I tweaked this recipe until I got it the way I like it, and I swear to you I’m so eager to eat these in the morning that I almost want to wake up early so I can get at them sooner.

I said almost.

They're not pretty, but they sure do taste good

Best Breakfast Bran Muffins EVER

(it’s important that you capitalize EVER, should you pass this recipe around)

Hands on time: 15 min
Baking time: 20 min per batch
Makes 12 good sized muffins

1 cup wheat bran (find it at Whole Foods in the bulk section or at some larger grocery stores in the health food aisle)
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup whole wheat flour (I suppose you could use all purpose flour instead of wheat, but you lose the nutrition benefits of whole wheat)
1 ¼ teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 to 1/4 cup flaxseeds (optional, but I like the texture they give and they are full of good stuff)
1 ¼ cup buttermilk
1/3 cup sugar (original recipe uses 1/2 cup, but I don’t think it’s necessary)
1-4 ounce single serving cup of apple sauce
1 egg
1½ Tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350° F. Spray no-stick spray into the cups of a muffin tin.
2. In a large bowl mix the wheat bran, white and wheat flours, baking soda, salt and flax seeds (if using). Set aside.
3. In a smaller bowl, mix the remaining ingredients. Stir them around for about 30 seconds to make sure the sugar is mostly dissolved.
4. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry, and stir until just combined. Spoon or pour batter into the prepared muffin tin. Bake the muffins for 20 minutes. Let cool in the pan, then pop them out.
5. Go ahead and eat one now. They’re healthy

“I started eating breakfast.”

Me, “That’s it?!?”

“Yep.”

This guy has the right idea

So what are your best choices? Anything with low calorie density, which means you get a lot of bulk (yay fiber!) for fewer calories. Here are a few of my favorite kick-ass-cheap-and-easy breakfast ideas:

• Oatmeal with low fat milk and prunes (aka Colon Blow)
• A slice of whole wheat bread with peanut butter and banana
• Low fat yogurt and a piece of fruit, whatever is in season
• Whole wheat tortilla, a few slices of smoked turkey and some low fat cheese rolled up

The idea is to combine something with fiber with a low fat protein. I confess that when I’m regularly exercising I need two small “breakfast snacks” before noon. I usually start with yogurt and save the high fiber snack for when I get to my desk. Spreading it out like that helps keep my hunger at bay until lunch.

Will you accept a breakfast challenge? Try to eat breakfast at least five days a week for the next four weeks. I’d love to know if you see any difference in your health, whether it’s weight loss, more energy, or a reduction in snacking, binging and cravings.

Photo credit Elston

I started jumping rope and using resistance bands the past two weeks in preparation for all the traveling I’m doing this summer. Check out my gear:

I know this will fit in your suitcase

That’s a light resistance band, a jump rope with a built-in counter, and medium resistance band. All three weigh less than a pound total and I can fit them easily into the front pocket of my carry-on roller bag. I’ve been working on a routine where I start off jumping rope for a minute, then I do three sets of resistance training, another round of jumping rope, another 3 sets of resistance exercises and so on. I repeat the intervals until I’ve gotten to each major muscle group (legs, biceps/triceps, back, chest, shoulders). I finish off with 150 crunches in five different flavors (30 reps of each). This routine takes me about 40 minutes to complete.

With so many distractions in Chicago, it will be difficult to stay on my routine. I’m gonna try my best and let you know how I fare. Wish me luck!

This is a weekend meal for me, mostly because it takes about 30 minutes to prepare. The salmon burgers a little on the expensive side, but they are one of my favorite convenience foods at Whole Foods. Plus, salmon is just so darn good for you. I realized when planning for this dinner that I was gonna dirty up quite a few pots, so I made one pot do double boil duty. Check out the deets below.

Double Boil Pasta Madness!!

Total time: 30 minutes
Cost per serving: about $8 (those salmon burgers aren’t cheap, but they are delicious!)

1/2 cup green lentils
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium sized white onion
2 large garlic cloves
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen spinach
2 cups whole wheat pasta (I like to mix shapes like shells and rotini, but if you want to be all boring then just go for one type)
cooking spray
4 salmon burgers from Whole Foods, any flavor
a few handfuls of fresh spinach
a few spoonfuls of pico de gallo
salad dressing of choice

1. Fill a large pot with waaaaaay more water than you think you need to boil the lentils. Put the lentils in the pot and bring to a righteous boil. Low the heat and let the pot simmer. Now pay attention here, we’re gonna do some math, HOORAY! Lentils need about 25 minutes to get cooked through. Some people like ‘em way mushier, but I prefer then to hold their shape so 25 minutes is max for me. Look at the pasta package and see how long it will take to cook it al dente. Subtract that from 25 and that is how long you will let the lentils boil before you add the pasta. Por ejemplo:

   25 minutes for lentils – 13 minutes for pasta = 12 minutes the lentils boil before you add the pasta to the water

   Make sense? This way you only use one pot for both.

2. While the lentils are boil pre-pasta, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a medium sized SAUCE PAN. Not a skillet or a fry pan, but a sauce pan that can hold a few cups of liquid. Chop the onion and mince the garlic and add it to the oil. Stir for a few minutes until the onion gets a little translucent and the garlic is fragrant. Dump the entire contents of the canned tomatoes into the pot. Don’t drain them, you want the juice. Let that heat to a simmer, then add the frozen spinach and stir until the spinach is, uh, not frozen. Set the sauce on low heat on the back burner and cover.
3. By now you can probably dump the pasta into the simmering lentils and crank up the heat again just until it boils, then lower back to a simmer. Keep an eye on the time, because there is no sin less forgivable than overcooked pasta.
4. While the pasta cooks, heat a pan over medium heat and spray the pan with cooking spray. Add the salmon burgers to the skillet and cook about 6-7 minutes on each side. Meanwhile, make the spinach salad by tossing the spinach, pico de gallo and dressing in a bowl. This is DOUBLE SPINACH MADNESS, too!
5. When the pasta is done cooking drain the entire pot in a strainer and return the pasta/lentils to the big pot. Add the sauce to the pasta/lentils and stir to combine. Serve along side the salmon burgers and the salad.

When I make something a little more complicated like this, I try to think ahead to how I can reuse pots and pans, like for the pasta and lentils and then again for the sauce. I don’t have a dishwasher so this saves me time when I clean up, too.

My camera is on the fritz, so I had to use the BlackBerry to take this

Hummus Sandwich and Non-Authentic-But-Still-Delicious Tzatziki

Total time: 10 minutes tops
Total cost per serving: a couple of bucks?

2 cups plain non-fat yogurt
1 small cucumber
1 large tomato
1 small garlic clove
a handful of pita chips
1 piece of whole grain bread (I use Whole Foods Seeduction Loaf here)
about 2 tablespoons of prepared hummus
1-2 tablespoons prepared pico de gallo
a handful of spinach leaves
1-2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
a handful of cherries
1 kiwi fruit

1. Grate the cucumber on the small holes of a box grater, or if you don’t have a grater then chop the buh-jesus out of it. You want small pieces. Chop the tomato and mince the garlic fine. Mix all of that in a bowl with the yogurt. This is the tzatziki, or at least my version. You can sprinkle a little salt in there if you want, but I don’t think it needs that.
2. Cut the piece of bread in half. I am only making a halvsies sandwich here, you could go for a whole one. I just know that with the tzatziki and the fruit I won’t need a whole sandwich for dinner. Spread the hummus on one piece, then spread the pico de gallo and feta on top. Is it weird to put pico on a sandwich? I think it tastes delicious, and it’s so easy. Top with the spinach and the other piece of bread.
3. Serve the tzatziki with some pita chips, with the cherries and kiwi for dessert. I leave the peel on kiwi fruit and just eat it for the extra vitamins and fiber. Also possibly weird, but that’s how people from New Zealand eat it…or so I heard.
   ]]> http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/06/09/quick-and-cheap-dinner-hummus-sandwich-and-tzatziki/feed/ 1 http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/06/05/growing-your-health-fund/ http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/06/05/growing-your-health-fund/#comments Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:30:08 +0000 drmiggy http://drmiggy.com/?p=438 This past week at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting, I learned a lot about how drug companies are developing cancer therapies aimed at tumor-specific targets. It was fascinating, exciting and a bit sobering. It seems like with every advance made on the disease, cancer finds a way to outsmart us. To be fair, some breakthroughs have been made. I just don’t think there is a simple cure waiting around the corner.
   

   Invest your bling in your health savings

   I don’t mean to be all Debbie Downer. What I want to say in this post is that, given the odds of finding a cure, to me it makes a lot of sense to try my best to avoid cancer altogether. I know it’s not a sure bet, but living a healthy lifestyle is the best way to do it. I got to thinking: Why don’t I approach my health like I do my retirement fund? I sock away a portion of my paycheck every month in the hopes that there will be enough to support me when I decide to quit working for good. What if for every vegetable I eat, for every glass of water I drink instead of a soda, for every minute of exercise I endure, I think of it as dropping a few bucks into a health fund? It’s the same principle: take an action today that is intended to pay off in the future. With a health fund, I am “investing” in my golden years, in the quality of life I want to have. When I retire, I want to travel the world and volunteer and garden and write a novel…I better start aggressively investing in MY health fund if I’m going to do all of that.

   Photo credit Brooks Elliott

   ]]> http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/06/05/growing-your-health-fund/feed/ 0 http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/26/quick-and-cheap-dinner-oh-crap-i-forgot-the-veggies/ http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/26/quick-and-cheap-dinner-oh-crap-i-forgot-the-veggies/#comments Wed, 27 May 2009 03:54:37 +0000 drmiggy http://drmiggy.com/?p=413 Life happens, even to the most prepared. Tonight I got home ready to make a meal I’d been thinking about all day, when I realized that I left the veggies at work.

   Aside: Do you think it’s weird that I schlepp veggies to and from work?

   OK, not a major catastrophe, but certainly it cramped my style in the kitchen. I thought about what I could throw together that incorporates the two things I wanted to get out of dinner, namely vitamins and fiber. Legumes to the rescue! Luckily I had the foresight to cook up a pot of black beans last night while I was puttering around. If you don’t have fresh black beans then canned ones will work perfectly. Lentils are one of my favorite quick fixes for many things, including salads and canned soups. They give dishes more “heft”, and are full of vitamins.

   

   Not a Freakin’ Veggie Around

   Total time: 30 minutes
   Total cost per serving: approximately $6 each for two servings

   1 cup dried lentils
   2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
   2 tortillas (corn, wheat…whatever your fancy. There’s so much fiber in this meal from the beans and lentils that it’s OK to go for taste)
   1/2 cup black beans (canned non-fat refried black beans or mashed up fresh black beans will work)
   1/4 to 1/3 cup grated cheese (for my soul)
   pico de gallo
   1/2 cup chopped celery (I cheated and bought the pre-chopped stuff from the store, and it’s still only ~$1.30)
   1/4 cup chopped RED onion (ditto with the pre-chopped onion. I use red onion here because I’ll be eating it raw and red onions are milder)
   1 lemon
   dried thyme
   (all measurements are approximate, go with what tastes good to you)

   1. Put the lentils in a pot and cover 1-2 inches with water. Bring to a righteous boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes. I like my lentils firm, but some folks like ‘em so mushy you can’t tell that they were ever solid. If you fall into the latter category then simmer them for up to 30 minutes.
   2. Meanwhile, cook the chicken in a pan over med-hi heat about 5 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness. You want to make sure it’s cooked all the way through, so check it by cutting if you’re unsure. While the chicken cooks spread the black beans on the tortillas. If you aren’t using pre-chopped onions and celery then now would be the time to chop.
   3. Once the chicken is done let it cool down until you can handle it, then cut it into chunks, smaller than bite size. Sprinkle the chicken on each tortilla, then the cheese. You might not use all the chicken, but that’s OK. Just save it for another meal.
   4. Put the tortillas in a toaster oven or a real oven and heat until the cheese melts. Top the tortillas with pico de gallo.
   5. Once the lentils are cooked strain out the water and let them cool a minute or two. Put the celery and onion in a bowl. Grate the lemon zest off the lemon, careful not to get the bitter white part, just the zest. Add that to the bowl. Cut the lemon and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Dump the lentils in with dried thyme to taste, and mix thoroughly. Serve with grapes, which are pretty much nature’s candy right now.

   To be fair, some might consider celery, onions and tomatoes veggies, but I don’t. Tomatoes are technically a fruit, there’s so little onion in this dish that it accounts for minimal nutritional value, and celery I just arbitrarily don’t consider a veggie, for no good reason. Don’t you love how I force things to fit into my description?

   I want to give one more shout out to black beans and lentils. Check out the links to see how badass these are nutrition-wise. Should you be concerned about the unpleasant after-effects of eating legumes, I have one word for you: Beano. That stuff is miraculous.

   ]]> http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/26/quick-and-cheap-dinner-oh-crap-i-forgot-the-veggies/feed/ 3 http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/18/quick-and-cheap-dinner-omelet-on-a-pita-and-tomato-soup/ http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/18/quick-and-cheap-dinner-omelet-on-a-pita-and-tomato-soup/#comments Tue, 19 May 2009 02:20:47 +0000 drmiggy http://drmiggy.com/?p=376 I call this thing I just made up Omelet on a Pita because it’s basically the same ingredients I would whip together for a Sunday morning omelet, except they’re not actually IN an omelet. Just read on and I’ll explain myself.

   

   Omelet on a Pita and Tomato Soup

   Total time: 15-20 minutes
   Total cost per serving: I didn’t calculate exactly, but I’d be surprised if more than $4-5

   2 eggs
   1 can of chunky tomato soup (Whole foods makes a tasty one)
   1 clove garlic
   Italian seasoning
   1 whole wheat pita
   Olive oil
   1/3 cup chopped frozen spinach (eyeball it)
   about 1 oz feta cheese
   grapes

   1. If using an oven (I use a toaster oven) pre-heat to 375 degrees. Hard boil the eggs about 10 minutes. While they are boiling, dump the soup into a pot and squish the garlic clove into the pot with a garlic press. If you don’t have a garlic press then just mince it and add it to the soup. Sprinkle in Italian seasoning to taste. Heat through on med-low heat.
   2. Nuke the spinach for 45 seconds. Drizzle a little olive oil on the pita and spread it around with your fingers. Don’t be shy, olive oil is supposed to be good for your skin Squeeze out some of the water from the spinach and spread it around on the pita. Sprinkle the feta on top of the spinach and place in a toaster oven (or a regular oven). Bake at 375-400 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until the cheese starts to melt a little and the edges of the pita brown.
   3. Cool the eggs under cold running water and peel. Mash them up in a bowl with a fork and sprinkle about half on your cooked pita. Cut the pita and serve along side half the the soup with the grapes for dessert.

   The cool thing about this “recipe” is that you can serve two by adding another pita and some more spinach and feta, or you can repeat tomorrow night in even less time because the eggs are ready to go.

   In case you haven’t noticed, I love chopped frozen spinach. All the work is done for you and there is no worry of the spinach going bad before you can eat it all. I live alone, so bagged fresh spinach often gets all nasty before I can eat the whole bag. In this recipe in particular the chopped frozen spinach works really well, almost like a spinach spread. Is that gross? It sounds a little gross, but it’s really good, I promise! Of course you could use fresh spinach in this recipe, too. I’d tear it up and sprinkle it on the pita with the cheese and put it right into the oven.

   ]]> http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/18/quick-and-cheap-dinner-omelet-on-a-pita-and-tomato-soup/feed/ 3 http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/12/quick-and-cheap-dinner-salmon-and-summer-bean-salad/ http://www.drmiggy.com/2009/05/12/quick-and-cheap-dinner-salmon-and-summer-bean-salad/#comments Wed, 13 May 2009 01:35:23 +0000 drmiggy http://drmiggy.com/?p=277 I’m going to make this a regular feature, so check back often. I’m tagging each one of these posts with the main ingredients so when I post enough you’ll be able to search through many quick and cheap dinners.

   I don’t go out to eat much at all, which saves me money and keeps me fit. Although I love to cook, most weeknights I can’t spare more than about 15 minutes in the kitchen. Over the years I have developed a rotation of my favorite throw-together meals, and now you get the benefit of all that work There’s only one rule to making quick and cheap dinners for yourself, and that’s to keep a stocked pantry. I always have canned beans, whole wheat pastas, vinegars, spices and frozen veggies on hand. You’d be amazed what I can come up with when it looks like there’s nothing in the house. I give you exhibit A:

   

   Sesame Salmon and Summer Bean Salad (I just made up that name)

   Total time: 5-10 minutes
   Total cost per serving (for 2): about $6

   For the salmon (2 servings):

   3/4 lb prepared sesame crusted salmon from Whole Foods (it’s a convenience, and only $8)
   no stick spray

   For the salad (2-4 servings, depending on your appetite):

   1 ~15 oz can of navy beans, white beans, cannelini beans, or great northerns
   one med tomato
   one very small clove garlic (trust me, go small)
   about a cup of frozen spinach
   2 teaspoons olive oil
   1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
   1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
   salt to taste

   1. Heat a pan over medium heat. Fish is delicate so be sure to use medium. Once the pan is hot, spray with no stick spray. Lay the salmon in the pan and cook on one side for 4-5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Flip and cook another 4 minutes until cooked through.

   2. While the salmon is cooking, drain the beans in a strainer and rinse well. Coarsely chop the tomato and mix with the beans in a bowl. Mince the garlic clove and add along with the oil, vinegar and seasoning. Nuke the spinach about 90 seconds and add to the bowl. Stir and inhale deeply. It’s heavenly when the hot spinach hits the garlic olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle a little salt to taste and serve.

   I pretty much planned this on the fly, throwing in things that I thought would taste good together. Don’t worry if you are a total noob in the kitchen. Eventually you will learn what pleases your palate and you’ll be making stuff like this, too. The best part about this side dish? It’s mega healthy and it tastes wonderful. Salmon is full of vitamins and good fats, you get fiber from the beans, good fats from the olive oil, vitamins from the tomato and spinach, and all the medicinal properties of raw garlic. That’s why you use a tiny clove, cuz too much raw garlic is no ones friend, and no one will want to be your friend after you eat it.

   And for dessert? I have a late night sweet tooth, which is not good for my girly figure. Instead of dessert I drink an aromatic caffeine free tea, like TeaGschwendner’s Rooibush Creme Caramel, with just a touch of local honey and nonfat milk. Don’t believe it will soothe your craving? Give it a try and tell me I’m a liar.

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