Staying on Top of the Weight Issue

A couple of you have sidled up to me and asked sotto voce “How do you keep your weight so, ah, normal, when you’re eating all this delicious stuff you put on your blog?” I usually mumble something about wearing black or being mindful. The truth is that the first two months of the blog, I gained. And gained enough to make me nervous. Having lived most of my life feeling, if not always looking, chubby, I took the gain of five pounds, hefting me over 140 (at 5’4”), seriously. Having foresworn “dieting” many years ago, I knew that I needed to construct some long-term guidelines for myself that might help stabilize the gain and possibly encourage a loss. Since July, between 10 and 12 pounds have come off very very slowly with many ups and downs. But steadily down. No one will ever call me thin (and I don’t aspire to that description anyway) but I now feel back in my normal range. So here are the principles I’ve been using since that fateful day in July. Perhaps one or two of them will strike you as helpful.

Exercise portion control.

Use smaller plates (10-inches in diameter). Your eye and brain perceive a full plate of food and you feel full eating less. It’s a perception thing.

For lunch, I have a favorite green bowl. I can eat whatever I want, as long as it fits in the green bowl.
Cut back on pre-eating (snacking or having a glass of wine) before dinner.
Serve plates in the kitchen. I tend to nibble when serving bowls sit in front of me.

Pay attention to what you’re eating and drinking.
Eat more fruits and vegetables.
Eat less protein, starches, and fats. But don’t eliminate anything entirely. Our bodies want it all.
Eat desserts, enjoying every bite, for special occasions.
Drink less wine. I have been in the habit of drinking a glass or two of wine nearly every night. I’m trying to drink every other night instead.
Eat more slowly, at least 20 chews per bite. I find this very difficult but worth trying.

Exercise regularly.
I go to Curves about three times a week. It’s a 30-minute workout for women with a circuit of machines, running platforms, music and little mind games to stave off boredom.
I also walk six miles a week using a computer program that virtually walks you across the United States. I walk my miles, wherever I am, and log onto http://exercise.lbl.gov to record them. I have now walked 1609.1 miles and find myself in Kansas. You need to have a pedometer.

I hesitate to mention one more thing that I do: I usually don’t eat breakfast. This practice is idiosyncratic to me and would make nutritionists, dietitians and probably some of you blanch. I have nothing against breakfast. In fact, I love breakfast foods and often eat them for dinner. But I am rarely hungry for breakfast, so why eat? If I’m hungry, I eat. Simple as that.

There are weeks when we are eating out a lot, traveling, cooking dinner parties, or vacationing with friends. The principles don’t exactly go out the window, but they get modified to fit the current reality. And that is how it should be. It is wonderful to eat delicious food without worrying too much about the consequences. Once I’ve returned home, I reinstitute the principles. And that feels good too.

A couple of books have been really helpful in educating me about eating and weight:
David Kessler, The End of Overeating and
Brian Wansink, Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think.

Menu 12: An Asian-Influenced Dinner

Cauliflower, Caper and Pumpkin Seed Spread

For the Asian theme, this dip is great served with crispy rice crackers.











8 ounces cauliflower, broken or cut into florets
¼ cup shelled raw pumpkin seeds
1 clove of garlic, coarsely chopped
2 green onions
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon capers in brine + a little of the brine for seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Bring two cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the cauliflower and cook until tender. Scoop out the cauliflower leaving the water boiling. Rinse the cauliflower in cold water to stop it cooking. Drain and set aside to cool.
2. Dunk one of the green onions into the boiling water for 15 seconds. Remove, drain and coarsely chop along with the uncooked green onion.
3. In a food processor purée the pumpkin seeds until they become a fine meal. Add the garlic and whirl until it mixes well with the pumpkin seeds.
4. Add the green onions and drained cauliflower to the food processor. Process while slowly adding the olive oil, capers, brine, salt, and pepper. When the mixture is thick and well combined, it’s ready.
Served with rice crackers, rye toast, toasted pita, herb slab, ciabatta or cucumber slices.

6 servings as a pre-eating dip
Adapted from Marlena Spieler’s column in The San Francisco Chronicle.

Spicy Soba with Tofu

Linda, my Berkeley next-door neighbor who now lives in NYC, requested a tofu dish.  This one is excellent.







Dressing:
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 small fresh hot red chili, seeded, deveined, and minced (green is fine too)
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon molasses
2 tablespoons sesame oil
3 tablespoon tahini
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons chili oil, optional
Salt to taste

Noodles:
8 ounces dried soba noodles
½ bunch scallions, thinly sliced
12 ounces firm tofu
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small fresh hot red chili, seeded, deveined, and minced, optional (green is fine too)
4 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon aleppo pepper or other mildly hot pepper or paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

1. To make the sauce, heat the soy sauce in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add sugar, chili, ginger and garlic. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, stir in the molasses, and heat until warm. Remove from the heat. Whisk in the sesame oil, tahini, vinegar and chili oil, if desired, to combine. Season to taste with salt. Set aside to cool.
2. To make the noodles: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles, return to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes or until they are cooked, but still a bit firm. Drain the noodles. Set aside in a large bowl, if you want to serve them warm. Place them in a bowl of ice water if you want to serve them cold.
3. Combine the drained noodles with the dressing and scallions. Toss well. Place on a serving platter or low-sided bowl.
4. Drain the tofu. Pat dry and crumble. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the optional chili and garlic. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Increase the heat to medium high and add the crumbled tofu. Stir fry for a few minutes to sear the tofu. Remove from the heat and add the parsley and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Distribute the tofu over the prepared noodles and serve warm or cover and chill to serve cold. Sprinkle with Aleppo pepper or other semi-hot pepper or paprika just before serving.

4 servings
Adapted from The Junior League of Honolulu, Inc.’s Aloha Days, Hula Nights

Cucumber Salad

Refreshing and so easy.














1 large cucumber
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cider or other vinegar

1. Peel the cucumber and cut it in half length-wise. Scoop out the seeds and discard. Cut the hollowed out halves into about ¼-inch or narrower slices.
2. Mix together the remaining ingredients and stir until the sugar dissolves. Pour over the cucumber slices and mix well. Serve cold or at room temperature.

4 modest servings
Adapted from Wonona W. and Irving B. Chang and Helene W. and Austin H. Kutscher’s An Encyclopedia of Chinese Food and Cooking

2/3 The Artist Chef Manila

It's very funny that I have forgotten the name of this couple again. I think I also forgot the name of the couples of the last customers I posted. One more couple and I am done posting my Manila customers! I am so sorry for taking so long posting these photos. Too many activities going on here n Saigon. Maybe by April I can finally post my very first customers here in Saigon. My good friend Angel was the first to experience my intimate dinner Saigon style. I am also excited because Sunday next week I'll be in the heat of the kitchen cooking Italian set meal for my third couple customers. They are Belgian and can't wait to do it for them in my huge Saigon veranda this time!

Italian set meal is the most favorite set meal in Manila. Aside from Spanish, Thai, American, Mediterranean & Mexican. I look forward cooking sumptuous dishes for local & foreign customers here in Saigon!

Ciao everyone!

hugs,
joanie xxx

Cooking 3 Dadar Susu Gulung PIsang

6 Maret 2010, sabtu

Hari ini baru kesempetan bikin bareng anak2 mpe pada berlumuran coklat n kacang bubuk hahha...gpp dah, soalnya pada seneng banget tuh pencetin coklat tube nya.
Pertama bikin kulit dadar susunya dulu, ini gw catetin lagi bahannya. Pertama si pengen bkinnya stengah resep aja, tapi liat telornya cuman 1, kalo separoh mesti dibagi 2 lebih repot lagi...malas com hihi, ya uda deh bkin 1 resep.
Bahan
150 gr tepung trigu
1/4 sdt bubuk vanila, gw pake vanila cair
1/4 sdt garam
1 sdm gula
1 sdt baking powder
450 ml susu cair
1 bh telur kocok
1/4 sdm mentega

Cara
- campurkan aduk terigu, vanila, garam gula, baking powder
- tuang susu sedikit demi sedikit lalu masukkan telur kocok, aduk rata
- panaskan wajan oles mentega
- tuang 1 sendok sayur, ratakan, buat dadar di atas api kecil mpe mateng
- angkat

Buat isi
- ambil kulit dadar, olesin coklat cair, letakkan pisang, taburi keju parut n kacang, digulung
- sajikan, lumuri dengan coklat.

Enak, nyam nyam, kayak model crepes, tapi kulitnya lbh tebel dikit, mungkin pas bikin dadarnya harus dikurangin jadi 1/2 sendok sayur kale ya???
Tapi gulungnya agak susah, coklatnya mesti banyak biar lengket dadar ke pisangnya, biar sip, terakhirnya lumurin lagi pake coklat...nyam nyammmmmmmmmm

i didn't miss my lunch & dinner yesterday

friday - 5th march 2010

yesterday was a great day. it begun just like my ordinary day, doing all my 'housewife' stuff ;P ,blogging, and, i fell asleep around 930am til almost 1115am. dang~ and then, kma asked me to follow her to go to wangsa walk. i took my bath, choose another different shirt, and, ta-da. this is what i looked like yesterday~

black & grey~

at wngsa walk, we went straight to wangsa bowl~

bowling. 2 games. ppl... i need to practice!

college tournament - 3rd april 2010.

**gentlemen, i'm not good in bowling.

i just love to play bowling. but seriously i'm not good**

so, here's mine + kma's mark.

the last time i play bowling was... 30th jan 2010

NOT even a SINGLE strike~ T__T

lunch here. it's my 1st time ;P

nasi goreng. with carrot juice.

i'm sooo into carrot juice these few weeks.

nasi putih with chicken curry.

and white coffee.

around 230pm, we rush home. telekom ppl were there, maka...

TERpasanglah telefon rumah yg baru. internet utk STREAMYX lmbt lg!!! T__T

ends up around 4pm, on9, waiting for mr. barney. he arrived around 5pm,

i rush to JJ au-keramat and bought a few things, including kak yana's jamu.

rush to Melawati, and met kak yana, for the sponsorship for my FYP.

end up at melawati around 645pm.

straight to cheras....

traffic jam amat sgt. sampai d cheras perdana around 8pm.

went to mama + ayah house. cheyyy. gedik. umah mr.barney. solat~

borak2 dgn ayah, mama, then along sampai. FYI, his siblings, sy x jmpa along lg.

makanya semlm berjumpalah sudah. leaving around 9pm.

straight ke area UPM... dinner time~!

1st time sampai cni jgk! ramai org. tp harga reasonable sgt!

mr. barney

kemudian sy ke mapley sebentar. bertemu kwn2 d sane. act semua kwn2 mr.barney, tp semua sy dah kenal. and sudah biasa dgn mereka jgk. mknan d mapley tu pun best, so sy skeee la. haha. bergelak - ketawa, tgk2 almost 12am, so balikkk... whoaaa. penuh an jadual. sempat spend time dgn cousin + selesaikan 1 kerja FYP + spend time dgn mr.barney. purrfect day~ thanks Allah. for giving me such a beautiful happiness. ;))