ZUCCHINI, FETA and TAPENADE SANDWICH

Makes 4 sandwiches


This sandwich was inspired by a zucchini side dish recipe in the book 365 RECIPES, from IKEA. The juices soak into the toast resulting in a very tasty sandwich.



Ingredients

2 small to medium zucchini, washed, trimmed, cut lengthwise into slices a little less than 1/4 inch thick
1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped
3 large Kalamata olives, pitted and finely minced
6 almonds finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed and finely minced
Optional 1 teaspoon capers, finely chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons light olive oil (use the½ teaspoon to oil the baking dish)
1 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, finely minced
Hot pepper sauce to taste
3 or 4 ounces fat free feta cheese, crumbled
S & P to taste
8 slices SuperZone White bread, lightly toast just prior to assembling sandwiches
Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling



Directions


1. Preheat oven to 425, and lightly oil a 7X 11” baking dish with ½ teaspoon light olive oil.
2. Make tapenade by mixing together the olives, almonds, garlic, optional capers if using them, and the remaining 2 teaspoons of light olive oil. Mash slightly with the back of a spoon, or place in a mini prep food processor, to make a chunky paste. Stir in parsley and hot pepper sauce, and season with S&P.
3. Spread the tapenade on the zucchini slices, and arrange the slices in the oiled baking dish so they slightly overlap (to fit the dish). Arrange the chopped tomatoes evenly on tip. Sprinkle feta on top of all. Bake uncovered, on the bottom shelf of the oven, for 20 to 25 minutes.
4. To assemble the sandwiches, divide eth filling among 4 sliced of toast. Lightly drizzle each sandwich with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil and top with a second piece of toast.

STUFFED CABBAGE STEW

This recipe makes 10 -12 servings. The leftover stew freezes well. I freeze it in ¾ cup serving sizes for an easy meal anytime. Also, I cook only the amount of orzo I’ll be serving immediately.


Ingredients

2 teaspoons light olive oil
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 tablespoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons paprika
Salt and black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 carrot, grated
10 oz package of shredded cabbage
28-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 cup tomato sauce
1 quart chicken stock
Handful of fresh flat leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
½ package SuperZone Orzo for each person you will be serving
Extra virgin olive oil



Directions


1. Heat a deep pot, or a large skillet, over medium-high heat. Add the light olive oil.

2. Add the onions, garlic, carrots, allspice, coriander, paprika, salt, and pepper.

3. Cook the veggies for 2 to 3 minutes to begin to soften them, then
add the bay leaf and the cabbage and wilt it down a bit.

4. Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, and stock and cover the pot. Raise the heat to bring the soup to a boil, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 18 to 20 minutes.

5. While the stew is simmering, cook the orzo according to Zone directions, drain, cover and keep warm. You’ll want to cook ½ package of orzo for each person.

6. Stir in the parsley, discard the bay leaf and adjust the salt and pepper.

7. Place ½ package of cooked orzo in a shallow soup bowl. Ladle about ¾ cup stew over the orzo and stir slightly. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.

ORZO WITH FRESH HERBS AND TOMATO



Ingredients

1 package Super Zone Orzo
¼ cup roughly chopped assorted fresh herbs (I like to use rosemary, oregano and thyme)
1 small handful fresh flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped
1 ½ teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
A dash of your balsamic vinegar, (I like golden balsamic)
S&P to taste



Directions


1. Cook orzo following Zone directions, and drain.
2. Toss all ingredients together, let stand for a few minutes for flavors to blend, and serve.

This dish is also very good when prepared ahead and chilled.

Hi Sue!
Maggie from Spark here, I'm still looking around trying to figure out what I need to start this.
Thanks for emailing me.
Hugs,
Maggie

Hi Maggie, good to see you here! You're welcome (the email). All the info you need to start right away is here on this site. You can begin by clicking on the Zone Block & Body Fat Calculator (link at right), putting in your stats, and then reading the info in the links you'll find as you scroll down your results page. Quick Start Guide (link at right) is also a big help. If you want to read more about it, TOXIC FAT, the newest Zone book by Barry Sears (released in 2008) would be my recommendation as a first Zone book to read. It gives a complete overview, lost of detains, and also includes a 28 day meal planner with recipes (actually 2, one for women, and one for men's sized portions).


A little about me and the Zone...

16 years ago, I had over 100 pounds more fat on my body than I do now, high blood pressure that my docs were haven’t trouble controlling with meds, plus high triglycerides. I lost 100 pounds in a little less than my first 2 years in the Zone. My pants size went from 22 to 8 over those 2 years (now I wear mostly size 6 pants). I lost it using the plate dividing method. A couple years later, I switched to counting blocks, and then, this past November, I began following the SuperZone plan. I love it! It's the best! It's so easy and convenient, the food is delicious, and I've lost even more body fat in the past few months. It’s working even better for me the original Zone. Oh, almost forgot to mention that I no longer have high BP and my triglycerides are low. I don’t know how much weight you are trying to lose, but you can definitely lose it and keep it off with the Zone.

Have fun learning about the Zone. I’ll be happy to help if you have questions. :-)

Hi Sue,
Thanks for getting back to me, I'm at work so I haven't had much of a chance to look around, I did go to amazon and ended up ordering two books, looks like I'll be looking for Toxic fat now lol

I did find and print the planner, which looks great!

Wow! Your results are amazing! I'm hypothyroism and I'm hoping this works. What exactly is the SuperZone plan? Is that on here too?

I've got about 60 lbs to lose, I had lost 97 following ww when my thyroid went haywire on me.

Maggie

Hi Maggie,

Thanks Maggie, and congrats to you on your previous weight loss! situatin

I have hypothyroidism, too. My endocrinologist, who manages it, is very much in favor of how I eat. He told me most people with my degree of hypothyroidism are usually obese as a result, and the only thing preventing that is the way I eat. The Zone definitely works.

The SuperZone is a way to eat the foods many of us grew up loving (like cookies, bread, bagels, pizza, pasta, rice, etc.) and at the same time lose the stored fat adn improve you health. Sounds impossible, I know, but it's true with the SuperZone versions of these foods. They look and taste like pasta, bread and cookies (even cookies loaded with chocolate chunks, Heath bar toffee, and M&M's), but that is where the similarity ends. They break down differently in your digestive system than regular bread, pasta and cookies, and they give you better hormonal control than a perfectly balanced Zone meal. Here's a quote abouth SuperZone food, taken from the home page of this site:

"1. Eating in the Zone just got easier
The Zone Diet is the foundation for optimal hormonal balance. Using a new revolutionary Molecular Baking™ technology, the Zone “forbidden foods” now become essential for superior hormonal balance."

For more info about the SuperZone foods and diet plan, click on the SUPERZONE FOOD tab above.

Hi Maggie,

Thanks Maggie, and congrats to you on your previous weight loss! situatin

I have hypothyroidism, too. My endocrinologist, who manages it, is very much in favor of how I eat. He told me most people with my degree of hypothyroidism are usually obese as a result, and the only thing preventing that is the way I eat. The Zone definitely works.

The SuperZone is a way to eat the foods many of us grew up loving (like cookies, bread, bagels, pizza, pasta, rice, etc.) and at the same time lose the stored fat adn improve you health. Sounds impossible, I know, but it's true with the SuperZone versions of these foods. They look and taste like pasta, bread and cookies (even cookies loaded with chocolate chunks, Heath bar toffee, and M&M's), but that is where the similarity ends. They break down differently in your digestive system than regular bread, pasta and cookies, and they give you better hormonal control than a perfectly balanced Zone meal. Here's a quote abouth SuperZone food, taken from the home page of this site:

"1. Eating in the Zone just got easier
The Zone Diet is the foundation for optimal hormonal balance. Using a new revolutionary Molecular Baking™ technology, the Zone “forbidden foods” now become essential for superior hormonal balance."

For more info about the SuperZone foods and diet plan, click on the SUPERZONE FOOD tab above.

Hi Sue!

You have thyroid issues too? Not great you have it, but great that I have hope of getting this weight off once and for all.

I'm on my way to check out the superzone right now.

Thank you!

Hi Sue!

You have thyroid issues too? Not great you have it, but great that I have hope of getting this weight off once and for all.

I'm on my way to check out the superzone right now.

Thank you!

"Hi Sue!

You have thyroid issues too? "

Yes Maggie, I do. Mine fluctuates frequently, requiring monitoring by my endocrinologist, and also continual changes in my thyroid med dose. I'm very sensitive in my response to thyroid med, so it's difficult to find a dose to addresses my needs that not too much to cause negative responses. It's more of a balancing act than the Zone. :-)

You definitely have hope of getting the weight off with the Zone, especially if your thyroid needs are being addressed to provide you with enough thyroid hormone. There are many successful Zoners who have hypothyroidism. Some have posted here. You can probably find their comments with a search.

Keep in touch and let us know how it's going.

INDIAN STYLE ORZO AND CAULIFLOWER



Ingredients


½ Package SuperZone Orzo

A handful of cauliflower florets

3 Tablespoons Trader Joe’s Punjab Spinach Sauce (or a similar low carb and low fat tomato based Indian flavored sauce)

2 Tablespoons Trader Joe's Raita (or a similar low fat raita; raita is Indian style yogurt dip)




Directions


1. Cook orzo following Zone instructions and drain.

2. While Orzo cooks, steam the cauliflower.

3. Put the orzo on a plate, top with the cauliflower, spoon the tomato sauce over it and top it with the raita.