Archive | August, 2012

ZoneManhattan Days 3 & 4: Everyday is like Xmas!

30 Aug

So far the diet is going well. I don’t find myself overly hungry during the day (though I can’t say I really feel full). The one problem is that both Mike and I have been having mild headaches on the diet. It could be withdrawal from all the sugars and salts that we usually eat, or just getting used to have less calories each day.  Whatever the reason, it seems to be getting a bit better, and I hope we get used to it very soon. 

I certainly seem to be losing weight (full report Saturday after week 1 is complete).

Our plan is to do the diet during the weekdays and then eat well on the weekends.  I’ll be in Pittsburgh this weekend to visit my college weekend and celebrate her birthday, so I’ll have to be good with both eating and drinking.  With so much progress in a week, however, I really don’t want to slip so soon.  

One thing that is really cool is that every morning is like Christmas. I open our door and there waiting for me is our coolers of food!  I have no idea what will be in it each day and I love the surprise.

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When I open it up, it’s all neatly packaged and ready, having been made fresh the night before, and our menu is on top.

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Here were the menus from the past two days:

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I am continually impressed with the flavor and quality of the food. The portions are small, but there is so much flavor packed in that I don’t feel like I’m dieting.  And then there was the apply-cherry strudel today.  SOOOO good!

Cream Puffs

30 Aug

I really love when Mike comes home and says “You know… my coworker says they really love ______.”  And then suddenly I find myself searching for recipes and Mike finds himself lugging lots of tupperware into his office.  I love a good baking challenge.  So when a love for cream puffs was mentioned, I began scratching my head.

Aren’t cream puffs really hard to bake?

As it turns out… NO… Not even a little bit!

I scoured AllRecipes.com and eventually landed on this recipe. I was skeptical how vanilla instant pudding would work out, and while it felt a bit like cheating, the rave reviews about it made me try it out.

The dough is actually started in a pot on the stove. Water, butter, flour, salt. 

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And then put into a mixer and beat in the eggs.

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It made a perfectly thick dough, which I then dropped by the spoonful onto a silpat and baked.

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I was so excited when I opened up the oven and there were perfect little puffs.

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The recipe says to slice the tops off, put the filling in the middle, and then put the sliced top back on.  But I wanted to fill these little beautiful puffs.

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I first tried the old “Put it in a ziplock and cut off the corner” piping method, but the bag was just too soft to get into the cream puff in any sane way.

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So I began to look around the apartment for something to make it easier (and also allow Mike to take it into the work and do it there, so it didn’t get soggy).

Then I remembered my trusty little squeeze bottles.  I don’t know what I ever did before these babies!

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So all you do is flip it over, put the spout into the bottom of the puff, and squeeze until full. There is a hollow space in the puff and it works like a charm.

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And when you popped them open, they were flaky yet doughy and tender puffs with a crispy shell and great filling.  It was a really awesome recipe.

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These were so easy to make, that I would easily do these for any dinner party. They are impressive without being time consuming. And I was impressed that they lasted overnight and that Mike could fill them the following day.

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RECIPE
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Ingredients

  • 2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup milk
  •  
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 eggs

Directions

  1. Mix together vanilla instant pudding mix, cream and milk. Cover and refrigerate to set.
  2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
  3. In a large pot, bring water and butter to a rolling boil. Stir in flour and salt until the mixture forms a ball. Transfer the dough to a large mixing bowl. Using a wooden spoon or stand mixer, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet.
  4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Centers should be dry.
  5. When the shells are cool, either split and fill them with the pudding mixture, or use a pastry bag to pipe the pudding into the shells.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cream-puffs/detail.aspx

ZoneManhattan Day 2: Dinner and Portion Sizes

28 Aug

Our dinner tonight consisted of Herbed John Dory with asparagus, baby pattypan squash, and red quinoa. It was quite tasty, with a bit of a pesto-like sauce.

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But our servings got me thinking about portion size. Too often I fall into the trap of eating just as much as Mike does. But he is much taller and, well, a guy! One thing I’m hoping this diet does is help me better control my portions. I know how much I should eat, but I always wind up clearing my plate anyway and splitting everything pretty much on half. May this be a lesson learned.