Fresh & Healthy Food = More Expensive

Sad, but true.

I read and sometimes post over here - where there is a mix of old and new people trying 17dd.

One question that new people seem to post is about whether various types of pre-made or even processed foods are 'allowed' on the 17dd.  These range from deli meats to pre-cooked chicken and turey of various kinds.  The old hands on the board gently guide these folks in the right direction - away from those things - unless there is no other choices.

One of the features of 17dd that made it work well for me, is that it is a good fit for those that already enjoy cooking and experimenting with recipes.  I don't mind going to the grocery a lot and spending the time and money on food.  Not everyone has those luxuries, and it can be sad to read about others struggling.  For me, 17dd also fit with a desire to move as far as possible from processed foodstuffs in general.  Certainly one could lose weight eating that stuff, but I didn't want to, and still stay away as much as possible.

That said, i think it is undeniable that in this age of the 'Dollar Menu' that eating fresh, healthy food costs more in terms both of time and money. Lean meats cost more.  Fresh veggies are on a use or lose clock. For me, some of the additional costs have been offset by a radical reduction in restaurant spending, but overall, eating healthy costs more. Eating healthy on the 17dd costs even more, as it seems the American food economy is built around inexpensive but calorie rich carbohydrate foodstuffs.

Recipe 004 - Green Chile Bacon Chicken Burgers

I've written before about what became 2 staple ingredients for all cycles.  Here is another extra lean ground turkey or chicken breast recipe that is a little more involved but well worth all the work (I prefer chicken on this one).  These burgers include turkey bacon that, while not necessarily entirely compliant is pretty darned close.  Be picky - there is a wide variety in fat content in chicken/turkey bacon.  I use Jennie O Extra Lean Turkey Bacon.

Ingredients:

Jennie O Extra Lean Turkey Bacon - 12 oz Package
At least 4 lbs fresh ground chicken breast (no fat)
2+ Cups (still not kidding) of pre-minced garlic from a jar - halve this if using fresh or you don't like garlic
2 Small - Medium onions, minced fine in food processor
3 cups green chiles, minced but not pureed in the food processor.  I prefer the hot frozen variety, but canned would work as well.

1 Cup (give or take) of worcestershire sauce
1 Cup (give or take) of soy sauce
Black pepper to your liking
Salt - a decent amount but to taste.  It took a few tries being bashful until I got enough in, so don't be too shy.  Maybe 1/2 to 3/4 cup?
2 Tbsp Cumin Powder or
1 Tbsp Oregano Powder if you prefer or try your own spices out

Cooking Spray

(In later cycles, I sometimes include Fat Free shredded cheddar as well)

Start with the package of Lean Turkey Bacon.  Prepare the whole thing - crispy is best.  I always seem to set off the smoke detector when I make this but honestly it will crisp nicely without over roasting it as much as I do.  Prepare the entire pack, eat a slice and put the rest in the food processor.  Mince fine - but don't powder it.

Combine everything in a giant bowl and mix very well.

Spray your largest saute pan (that has a lid). Form patties (they will be quite wet) and put in the pan.  Cover and cook thoroughly.  The patties won't all fit in at once, so it will take a few rounds to cook them all.  The cooking throws off a lot of liquid so these almost end up steamed as much as sauteed.  I actually leave the liquid in between rounds.

These keep well in a ziplock or other cold storage for a dense, delicious protein snack that is great to grab when you get hungry.  Delicious hot or cold.

Enjoy!

Back To Posting...

Haven't posted here much, and have had many posts sitting in draft for too long.  Have another friend starting 17dd for real today, so using that for my motivation as well.  Good luck - H!  You can do it!

Recipe 003 - Turkey Green Chile

This is a variation on the 2006 Chili Verde World Cookoff Winning Recipe .  I omit the cornstarch and instead of the 2 lbs of pork, I start with a large roasted turkey breast (both halves) from the freezer section of the local grocery.  I roast the turkey according to the package, allow it to cool a little and then pick all of the meat from the bones, cutting into 1 1/2 inch strips.  This yields at least twice as much meat, so I scale all of the recipe measurements to match.

This makes a very rich turkey chile, that freezes well and seems to get even better in the fridge.  A cup or so added to egg whites and microwaved for about 3.5 minutes makes an incredibly tasty breakfast.  A bowl with fat free Greek yogurt (or FF sour cream) and diced onions makes a delicious hearty and highly compliant meal for a winter day.

Recipe 002 - Survival Loaf

We live near a Sunflower Market that has ground turkey and chicken breast available pretty much all the time.  Many bigger chains will have Jennie-O 99% fat free ground turkey breast available - but not all and not always.  These ground meats, while expensive have been key to our 17DD successes.

When things get really hectic it is not always practical to have separate meat and veggie dishes.  The following recipe is one I came up with to be able to get a very filling serving of both meats and veggies that can be pre-made in large quantity and kept on hand in the refrigerator.  It's had several names, including 'Generic Nutrient Loaf' but we liked Survival Loaf better.  Naturally one can substitute any allowed veggies and seasonings to taste.

Recipe is based on 2 packs (2 1/2 lbs) of ground turkey breast to fill one 9x12 baking pan but in honesty I usually double that and make 2 pans at once.  All veggies are fresh.

2 1/2 lbs ground turkey breast (99% fat free or better)
1 Small - Medium onions, minced fine in food processor
1/2 large bell pepper - also minced fine
1+ Cup (not kidding) of pre-minced garlic from a jar - halve this if using fresh or you don't like garlic
1/2 Std pint of mushrooms - any kind minced fine
1/2 lb broccoli crowns - chopped pretty small in food processor
1/2 lb carrots also chopped very small
1/2 lb Asparagus - chopped small
1/2 bag (10 oz ) fresh spinach
Whatever other allowed veggies you have around that need to be eaten - throw em in the food processor.
1/2 Cup (give or take) of worcestershire sauce
1/2 Cup (give or take) of soy sauce
Black pepper to your liking
Louisiana hot sauce if you like - don't go crazy
1 Tbsp Cumin Powder or
1 Tbsp Oregano Powder if you prefer or try your own spices out.

I've thought about using egg whites as a binder but haven't tried it out yet!

Get a giant bowl and mix all of this together thoroughly.  It will be a wet mess.

Spray your pan(s) with cooking spray, moosh the mixture into the pan(s).

Cover with foil and bake at 350 covered for 45 minutes.
Remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes or until your meat thermometer pleases you.

There will be a LOT of free liquid in the pan(s) along the way and when you are done so be very careful taking them in an out of the oven.  Drain the liquid when fully cooked.

Cut into squares.  Eat some and put the rest in the fridge for whenever you need meat and veggies in one!

We also do a variation of this that is without the extra veggies and with fat free cheese added for cycle 3 and when we have time to make separate veggies.  That one is called "Burger Loaf".

Enjoy.

PS - Edited 1-16-2012 - somewhere in the original post I lost track of the fact that this was a one - pan recipe and I used my usual 2 pan amounts.  Fixed now!

Recipe 001 - General Purpose Turkey Taco Meat

Even when you can't have tortillas, taco meat - using the description loosely - can come in handy for lots of things. Added to egg whites it makes a spicy egg dish. On a bed of lettuce, it's a kind of taco salad. Either works for cycle 1. In cycle 3 where you can actually have a whole wheat tortilla, it makes an excellent burrito,combined with grilled eggplant, squash and peppers. This is one of my many recipes using ground poultry breast. Ground or tenderized poultry takes seasoning very well.

• 2 lbs 99% lean turkey breast
• 1 cup minced garlic from pre minced jar Halve this if using fresh minced garlic.
• 1 large onion- chopped fine
• 2 tbsp cumin
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 1/2 cup chili powder*
• 2 tsp olive oil

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add onions and garlic stirring a lot. When slightly sautéed add the turkey salt and black pepper and brown completely. Add chili powder and cumin along with enough water to allow stirring and distribution of the spices. Simmer until the water mostly cooks off.
*the chili powder you use is up to you. In Colorado we have Mexican spices available at the grocery. I prefer the Chili Colorado - medium from the Mexican spices at the grocery. I recently discovered that the secret to a good red chile is to use way more of this stuff than I thought. I literally dump it in.
I love sour cream on almost everything spicy. Plain non-fat Greek yogurt tastes about the same as fat free sour cream but with a much nicer texture. Try it!

At Our Age....

One of the realizations that has come with this process has been that at our age (mid 40s) it is essentially impossible to lose weight through exercise alone.  This is a hard realization to come to - despite the evidence being right in front of our eyes...and mirrors.  This is a common frustration reflected by other 17 day bloggers.

From my own experience - I've been 'back into' cycling since 2005.  In November of 2005 and 2006 - I was fit enough from an overall standpoint to complete two 109 mile El Tour de Tucson rides in respectable times (just over 7 hours both times).  I completed the inaugural Copper Triangle ride - 80 miles over three mountain passes with almost 6000 ft of climbing in a similar time. I did a fair amount of regular riding to get there. While my weight might have moved 10 pounds or so - down as low as the mid 230s I never achieved any meaningful weight losses.  One of the other 17 Day bloggers I read was running marathons - yet stayed quite overweight.  I got all these event completion medals riding my bike as a fatass.

It seems sad but true, but we seem to age out of our ability to offset a crap diet through exercise alone.