Hello
I am so excited by my new discovery. I am sure the seasoned Zoners know this trick but I am so pleased with it I have to tell it anyway. :-)
I like tuna stuffed into bell pepper wedges, or wrapped in lettuce etc. I love smoked salmon and cream cheese.
Well when I eat these things I want volume! Lots! 3oz is hardly lots when it comes to these foods. So I tend not to eat them on the Zone because even though they are a protein, when I want them I WANT them and they can trigger over-eating.
Yesterday, I wanted tuna. I had a family favorite in the frig, roasted cauliflower. I decided to take
2oz of tuna(2P),
1/3cup non-fat greek yogurt from TJ's (1P, nearly no carbs),
4tbls hummus (1.5C and 3F),
2cups roasted cauliflower
I used my small hand crank food processor and blended it all relatively smooth. The cauliflower took on the flavor and texture of the tuna so beautifully that it tasted, smelled and felt like the pepper was stuffed only with tuna. The roasted cauliflower is slightly sweet and just blended beautifully.
When I roast the cauliflower, I leave it in very big pieces, roast for 1 hr at 350 degrees. So it lightly browns, it doesn't burn.
This morning I am so excited because I am doing it with my lox. A treat I have been saving all week for this weekend. Now I get a larger portion!
Also, I did it (I went a little crazy with my excitement yesterday) and made artichoke dip. I had a HUGE artichoke for lunch yesterday. Who wants a huge artichoke with 1/3tsp of mayo? :-) NOT ME, I want it with lots of mayo (the only time I really really want mayo)
So, I combined
two eggs (2P)(I wanted egg whites only but I didn't have enough eggs on hand - 4) 1/3cup greek yogurt(1P),
2 cups roasted cauliflower,
4tbls of TJ's hummus (1.5C, 3F)
It was amazing with my HUGE artichoke. In fact it was so much I only ate one of the artichokes (I had two) and half the dip mix. I ended up saving the other half for today, then I added in a high density carb and protein to add up to 3 blocks again.
But either way, it tasted great. It gave the satisfying volume of spread/dip that I desired using one of my very favorite foods and I think my children will enjoy this too as their tastes expand because they love roasted veggies. They are just richer and sweeter. I am always careful not to burn or over brown them, then the veggies become bitter.
I have to go make my lox spread now! I going to stuff a couple of bell peppers today I think, maybe with egg and tuna, and chicken salads for the week. This will help with my need for hearty quick easy tasty lunches and with different color peppers and different fillings it will be a fresh taste each day. Not too mention that the stuffed peppers will store and travel well.
Cheers
Cleo |