Zucchini Strips

Zucchini Strips

It's been hectic around here lately and all I've had time for are salads and even that requires some preparation.  So I decided to come up with recipes for meals I can store in the refrigerator and just eat when I'm ready.  Maybe even take with me on outings with my kids.

You can leave it in the refrigerator for up to a day.  I like the "kick" that red pepper brings and I almost always choose it over black pepper but you can substitute if you prefer.

The recipe is just one serving but feel free to double it up if you want to save some for later.

Preparation Time:  5 mins
Cooking Time: 15 mins

The Recipe
1 cup zucchinis (about 1-2 pcs), cut lengthwise into strips
1 tsp olive oil
salt and red pepper for taste
1/4 tsp garlic, minced
1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
2. Brush zucchini with 1/2 tsp of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes (or slightly browned)
4. Mix remaining olive oil, vinegar and garlic.
5. Drizzle oil/vinegar/garlic mixture over the zucchinis
6. Top with tomatoes
7. Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Lean & Green Requirements:
3 portions vegetable servings
1 portion healthy fat serving
less than 1 portion condiment

Yogi Green Tea Blueberry Slim Life

This is the tea I decided to drink 8oz daily.  It has 35 mg of caffeine.  Medifast 5-and-1 allows for up to 300 mg.  According to Medifast FAQ, Essential1: Calorie Burn's combination of caffeine and EGCG works synergistically to boost metabolism, inducing thermogenesis and helping you burn calories, unlike caffeine alone. So, while I do not expect this Green tea will help, I will try it since Yogi Green Tea tea is specially formulated to support weight loss.  It's also a cheaper alternative :-)

Say What Now?

Three weeks into this month and I've only lost 3.5 lbs.  It's been kind of disappointing since I lost 16.3 last month. I've been on the same weight for 11 days now.  It's not going up.  It's not going down.  But 2 days ago, my new shipment came.  In it is my Calorie Burn Capuccino.  I drank it that same day for my evening meal.  No change the next morning.  I drank it again for breakfast the next day and the morning after, I lost 2.4 lbs.  Wow!  Joyful day!  Is that possible?

I'm now under the impression that I need to kick start my day with caffeine to help my weight loss.  So here's what I will try.  Since I only bought one box of Calorie burn to last me for 4 weeks, I will drink regular Medifast Capuccino today and drink 1 glass of [low] caffeineited green tea.  I will report to you if this helps me.

Vietnamese Beef Salad (Bo Luc Lac)

Bo Luc Lac

Prepare for this delicious recipe.  This is our favorite.  I have to warn you though that the substitute Sweet Leaf I use instead of sugar doesnt measure up to actually using sugar but this is delicious nevertheless.  As the name suggests (in Vietnamese), this is shaken beef.  So the secret to cooking is not to use any utensils.  You simply lift up your skillet and shake the beef around making the beef more tender (the garlic also helps with this as it has the power to tenderize meat).  You will love the aroma released every time you do this.  

I used watercress in this recipe but any green mix will do.  I just tried watercress for variety because I always eat spinach arugula and lettuce.  but the watercress is actually a lot more work because I separate the leaves out of the stems which are very bitter. 

Medifast Lean and Green Recipe
Beef Marinade
3-5 ozs rib-eye or New York Strip
1/8 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 tbsp water
1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1/8 tsp sweet leaf
1/16 tsp black pepper
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
1-1/2 tsp finely chopped garlic

Salad
1/4 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp water
1/4 tsp sweet leaf
1/16 teaspoon black pepper
1 very thin onion slice (optional -- if added you would have a total of 4 condiment servings)
1/2 cup water cress (or any green mix)

Combine fish sauce, water, soy sauce, sugar, black pepper and marinate the beef. Marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Combine vinegar, water, sugar and black pepper for the watercress salad. Stir well. Add the onions. Toss well. Add the watercress to the bowl but do not toss. Keep the salad in the refrigerator while preparing the beef.

Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over high heat until garlic sizzles at once. Add the beef and let it cook undisturbed for 1 to 2 minutes. Shake the pan turning the beef to the other side. Add garlic and continue shaking until evenly browned and done to your liking. The key is shaking the beef. There is no need to use any utensils to sear the beef.

Toss the watercress to coat it with dressing and arrange on a serving platter. Scoop us the steak and pile it in the center of the watercress salad. Serve.

Lean and Green Guidelines
1 Lean
1 Healthy Fat Serving
1/2 Vegetable serving
3 Condiment servings

Blender Bottle

The blender bottle that I ordered from Amazon arrived today. I first saw this at Sprouts Market and a bit intrigued by it. You see I've run out of Medifast bars but I needed something to take along with me on my daily outings with my kids. My Starbucks thermos has been doing a great job actually. It takes about 3 hours for the ice to melt.  The only problem is that there's never a guarantee that it was well shaken since I can't see through my thermos.  I usually find a big lump at the bottom. So when I saw the Blender Bottle, it seemed the perfect solution.  I like that it had a "whisk ball". Whisks have been the secret to my Medifast shakes and drinks at home.

So I filled my bottle with 16 ozs of water and 2 packets of dutch chocolate shake to last me 4-6 hours. It was great. I packed it in a zip-lock to make sure that it didn't leak all over my bag but I didn't need it. It was well sealed. There were no lumps at the bottom of my bottle but there was still a "grainy" feel indicating that the powder didn't blend as well as I would like. But I shook it a little more with every sip and it got better and better.  I recommend it for convenience. The translucent plastic also helped me see if there's a lump at the bottom and if it needs to be shaken some more. But overall, it's not any better than the Medifast shaker jar ... just prettier and easier to carry around.

Vanilla Pudding Raffle

I'm raffling off my one and only box of Medifast Vanilla Pudding. 

Here are the rules:
Email me between July 22-July 29 at mcsantos (at) yahoo (dot) com.  The 15th email will receive 7 FREE (1 box) Medifast Vanilla Pudding.  Your email will NOT be shared with anyone and will not be used by this website for any  purpose except to contact you if you win.  The box is unopened but I will remove it from the box so it can be shipped easily.  I will announce the winner on my Facebook page (see link to the left) and here on my site on July 30 so you can claim your prize if you're the winner.

Red Robin

Not very appetizing is it?  And oh so wrong.

I thought I'd blog some of the restaurants I've tried while on Medifast diet.  I live in Orange County California so if you live around here, I hope this is an excellent source for you.

Today, I tried Red Robin.  Believe me, I didn't think I'd find anything here but since the kids usually dictate where we get to eat .... well, here we are.

There was nothing in their menu that qualifies for Lean and Green so I thought I'd ask for a House Salad.  I asked the waiter what's in it because the menu didn't say.  He said lettuce, cucumber, tomato and cheese.  I said ok but no cheese and no dressing just give me olive oil and lemon.

This is what arrived at our table.  It had croutons and it had carrots.  So I did have to spend my time separating it out. 

I found nothing at Red Robin.  Let me know if you had the same experience.  If you have other restaurants that is Medifast-friendly you would like to share, please share.

Steamed Tilapia with Spinach, Tomatoes and Capers

I grew up eating Tilapia.   This fish absorbs flavor very well.  My mom used to pick up some at the fish market when I was little.  They fry it there for her so that when she got home, dinner was ready.  We ate the fried tilapia with some fish sauce and tomatoes.  That to me was the taste of home.

Later, during my college years, I favored steamed tilapia over the fried version.  We would order it from the local chinese restaurant and it would be steamed with soy sauce and sesame oil and topped with shreds of green onion.  It tasted so good with rice or noodles.

However it was served, I was used to picking the tilapia from the tank and getting it cooked right away.  While I was shopping the other day, I found frozen tilapia.  I had my reservations because I was used to the fresh tilapia I grew up with but I went ahead and took it home with me.  Each one of them is individually wrapped and weighed 3 oz uncooked.

Medifast allows for 7 ozs of cooked tilapia so I cooked two of them at a time as you will notice in the picture above, it is quite a hefty serving.  

Medifast Lean and Green Recipe
1/4 tsp chili pepper flakes
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup grape tomatoes
7 oz tilapia filets
1 cup spinach
1 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tsp juice of lemon
1 tbsp capers

1. On a skillet, boil the water and add chili pepper.
2. Once boiling, scatter the grape tomatoes.
3. Put the tilapia on top the tomatoes.  Lower heat and cover for about 3 minutes.
4. Add spinach on top of the tilapia and cover to continue steaming for another 3 minutes.
5. Move all of it to a platter.
6. Turn off heat and put butter on the skillet
7. Add lemon
8. Add capers and mix
9. Put the butter, lemon and capers mix on top of the your meal.
10. Serve.

Wikipedia says this about Tilapia:

Tilapia have very low levels of mercury as they are fast-growing and short-lived with a primarily vegetarian diet, and thus do not accumulate mercury found in prey.


Tilapia is a low total fat, low saturated fat, low calorie, low carbohydrate and low sodium protein source. It is also an excellent source of phosphorus, niacin, selenium, vitamin B12 and potassium.

Many articles I've read on the web describe Tilapia as a very nutritious seafood.  However, please be aware of the following study as well:

ScienceDaily (July 10, 2008) — Farm-raised tilapia, one of the most highly consumed fish in America, has very low levels of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids and, perhaps worse, very high levels of omega-6 fatty acids, according to new research from Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Dark Chocolote Shakes

I'm down to my last Dark Chocolate shake and I realized I've never been creative with this drink.  I just want to take in my antioxidants and go.

So today, I decided to put this in the blender.

One thing is for sure is that this drink cannot be enjoyed without using a blender. This will guarantee a creamy shake with no lumps.  You can try anything without a blender and nothing will work -- fork, whisk, spoon, crush each lump individually, mix vigorously -- nothing will work.

Do you have any recipes you can share?

Medifast Scrambled Eggs

I've been reading about so many people complaining about the scrambled eggs so I thought I'd give a little tip about it.  It makes a huge difference if you cook it in a pan.  Get a PAM cooking spray.  We are allowed up to 10 seconds of that spray.  I usually only use about 3 seconds and I make scrambled eggs sprinkled with red pepper and salt.  I love to eat mine with raw tomatoes but once in awhile I make an omelette from whatever vegetables' left in my refrigerator.

So try it.  It's a huge difference.

Chicken with Tarragon Sauce

Before Medifast, this was my favorite dish to make.  The creamy sauce has an opulence reminiscent of meals at five-star restaurants.  It's light.  It's delicious.  Not to mention, it takes 10 minutes to make.  

It's important to make the chicken juicy and this is typically difficult to do with boneless chicken breasts.  So, before cooking try to pound the chicken so it will be even in thickness.   Then, cook in medium-high heat.  Do not overcook.  An inside temperature of 170 degrees is sufficient.

For side dish, try steamed asparagus. 

The ingredients are too small  to measure since I made the recipe good for one.  Cook for another person and just double the ingredients to make it easier.

Medifast Lean and Green Recipe 6 oz  boneless chicken
1/16 tsp salt	Condiment #1 (1/8 of recommended)
1/16 tsp pepper	Condiment #1 (1/8 of recommended)
1/2 tbsp olive oil	Healthy fat serving
1/16 cup water
1-1/2 tsp cream substitute	Condiment #1 (3/4 of recommended)
1/2 tbsp dijon mustard	Condiment #2 (1/2 of recommended)
1/8 tbsp tarragon	Condiment #2 (1/8 of recommended)

1. Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper.  
2. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat and add chicken .  Cook until inside temperature reads 170 degrees about 10 minutes
3. Transfer to a plate when done.
4. Adjust heat to medium.  Pour water, half and half, mustard and tarragon into hot skillet.  Whisk until thickened.
5. Pour sauce over chicken.
6. Serve with vegetables like asparagus.

Finally!

I stalled for 10 days losing only 1.5 lbs in those days but I've lost 3 lbs in the last three days bringing me to reach my 20 lb weight loss goal.  Only 11.4 to go!  Happy day!

Beef stir-fry with Asparagus

We are at the tail end of Asparagus season I believe which explains why it's everywhere nowadays.  I picked up some when I saw it on sale at Sprouts today.  They had such a beautiful, huge display that it made me want to buy some.  Besides, my fastest dinner nowadays always involves frozen salmon and we all know asparagus is the perfect side dish to salmon.

But today, I wanted to have some beef because I haven't shared any beef recipes yet. 

For those cooking for your entire family, serve this with rice for those not in the Medifast plan.

To those with aversion to asparagus, you can try cauliflower or brocolli florets instead.

This recipe meets the less than 3 condiments recommended by Medifast.

Medifast Lean and Green Recipe

Ingredients:

1/4 lb boneless beef such as flank steak, tri-tip or sirloin thinly sliced	(1/4 lb is only 4 oz.  Remember that you are allowed up to 5 ozs.  so feel free to add a bit more)
1 tsp fish sauce	Condiment #1 - 1/3
1 tsp water
1 tsp tamari sauce (or soy sauce)	Condiment #2
1/6 tsp black pepper	Condiment #1 - 1/3
1/4 tsp sweet leaf	Condiment #1 - 1/8
1/2 cup asparagus	Green (1 serving)
1 tsp olive oil	Healthy Fat (1 serving)
1 tsp chopped garlic	Condiment #3
1 tsp water
1 tsp thinly sliced green onions	Condiment #1 1/24

In a medium bowl, combine the beef with 1/2 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp water, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp black pepper and sweet leaf.  Toss and mix well.   Allow to marinate for 15 to 20 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

Trim the asparagus by cutting off 1/3 of the flat end.  Then cut the rest diagonally into 2-inch lengths.  Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat oil over high heat.   Do not allow to heat up so much that smoke is starting to form.  Add garlic, toss well adn then scatter the beef in the pan.  Cook briefly on one side then toss once to sear the other side.  Add the asparagus and toss well.  Add the remaining 1/2 tbsp of fish sauce, 2-1/2 tbsp of water and the green onion.  Cook, tossing once or twice while the aparagus is shiny and tender but not soft. 

Serve.