Monday, February 24, 2014

Dr. Oz Breaks Into Our House





I use the warm lentil salad as a snack or paired with many of the diet's main meals, particularly as a base with greens and a bit of the brown rice for a very filling dinner with a nice piece of poached or grilled salmon. The dressing for the lentils is made in large batches as well.

We’re a happy bunch, not really into worrying over those carbs or GMOs in our daily doings. But then Dr. Oz started popping up on the TV that seems to always be on in the, well, TV room.

And he makes sense. I’ve been checking out the RapidWeight-Loss Plan and I got hooked on the veggies and all the healthy snacks.

While we may have a regular booth at McDonald’s, we are big on healthy stuffs too. And maybe that's why we're, um, big. We like the raw nuts, berries over bananas, hummus, Greek yogurt for just about any time of day or recipe substitution and leafy greens are a go-to dine and dash for those nights when time is eating into our bedtime reading rituals.

So I decided to try the diet. I made it a week. It was easy. It wasn’t expensive. Everybody could eat the same dinner, with a few more fun things thrown in for the kids throughout the day.

But…I had no idea I’d miss certain foods and libations.

Eggs. I love eggs. I love to dress them up with little carrots and olives to make them into bunnies and penguins for the twins. They don’t eat them but we all get a kick out of the process and end-product. Plus, more for mommy.

Coffee. I love green tea. Drink it nearly every day. And I usually only partake of one cup of bold Starbucks brand home-brewed coffee with a splash of FF dairy creamer. I crave that cup and a splash all day long. All. Day. Long.

Juice. I love me some juice and seltzer. The twins call it spicy juice and the Burger King by the thrift store (our weekly sojourn into shopping on the skinny), has one of those choose-your-own flavor machines. Oh man, it’s like a mommy bar! Lite cherry syrup with seltzer. Mango syrup with a splash of Minute Maid Light lemonade with the flavored club soda. Sigh. Nope, just my lemon water, thank you. Kids! Eat your fries before they are cold (or confiscated!).

And that brings us to the lemon water in the a.m. I buy lemons in bulk. I drink lemon water all day, ice cold. Sometimes I add cucumbers for a little kick. Cucumbers! But that morning cup of hot lemon water is a little much. Maybe it’s the lack of French Roast flavor and a splash, just a splash, of FF creamer.

Anyway. I lost six pounds during that one week. Six pounds! Every one in the family was elated...when I went off the diet and stopped being so cranky. I drank three cups of coffee that day on the strong Keurig setting with extra splashes of the hubby’s Coffee Mate Girl Scout Samosa full fat creamer. Heaven.

Good news is that I have included more veggies in our daily and some of the recipes I came up with when the chicken and rice became too boring are now family faves.

Here’s the first of many I’ll post as the hubby lost a bit off the middle while I was trying to shred, so we’re getting back on the Dr. Oz health train. What is it about that man?!


Warm Lentil Salad
(4 servings, but you can eat it anytime on the Dr. Oz diet)
Prep time: 20 minutes

I adore lentils. They soak up the flavor of whatever they are bumped up against and make cozy partners with nearly any veggies you may have on hand. This recipe is good hot or cold, eaten as an anytime snack (very filling) or laid out as a bed for a beautiful piece of grilled salmon (recipe to follow). I make a big batch at the beginning of the week to have it on hand.


Ingredients:

2 Tbs of olive oil
1 leek (or green onions)
2 carrots diced
1 tsp garlic, minced (more if you like a big flavor)
1 C lentils
1 onion, diced
1 turnip (I use leftover raw turnips on hand from making Dr. Oz’s veggie stock)
Cloves or a dash of all spice, to your taste (it brings a depth to the flavors you’ll )

For the dressing:
(I make a mason jar of this stuff and use it as salad dressing or pour over the brown rice at dinner if you are following the Dr. Oz diet)
1 tsp olive oil
4 tsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbs red wine vinegar (I only had apple cider vinegar and that tasted just fine as well.)
1 Tbs kosher salt (or sea salt)
1 tsp black pepper (I add more depending on how I plan to use it, as a side or a main meal)

Directions:

Cook the lentils to package directions (about 20 minutes of boiling time with 4 C water) with the turnip and onions.

Heat the olive oil in a medium sauté pan to fit all those veggies, add the leek and carrots and cook over medium for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and swirl it around for about 1 minute. Take the pan off the heat and put ingredients in a bowl. Add the cooked lentils after discarding the turnip (which you could save for mashed turnips for b-fast or a main side, but that’s a future recipe post).


Whisk together the dressing and pour to your desired taste over the lentils. Done! (Add salt and pepper to your own taste, but don't leave it out completely!)

This is a great go-to dish when you have to whip up something awesome in no time. Serve it with tortilla chips as a cold dip as well!


 

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