Who doesn't want to save money, time, and also lose weight. Or at least be healthier.
I would get in that line any day. I think I have partially hit on the formula for the majority of the threefer.
I would rather cook once rather than multiple times during the week. I cook in bulk when I do cook. For the in between times, I freeze the extra portions for quick meals that are healthy and allow me to spend my time somewhere else besides the kitchen on most nights.
The food containers came from Amazon. They have the three partitioned places in them for the perfect places for the protein, starch, and the double servings of vegetables, helping me keep the portions to the right size even for the convenience of a home-made frozen meal.
I used to use a rubbermaid dish from a local grocery store. They now tend to sell larger sized containers but no more containers that have the nicely divided sections for me to have types of food in the right amounts for the divided plate.
The containers that I saw on the shelves were all very large. Wow, the amount of foods that the containers held would probably predispose me to eat to much from them. For that reason, I opted to buy the other containers online to control portions. And when I put the food into the microwave, I do not have 'think' about portions. It is already portioned out for me. Talk about less thinking about trying to stay with the right amount of food for a meal.
The recipe that I used for the protein/starch part of the meal is a Gluten free black bean chili. Included at the bottom of the post. I found the chili had really good flavor after it's flavors melded together after one day.
I cooked a bulgar/quinoa mix I got from Aldi's. It was a quick fix of 8 minutes in the microwave on high and wait with the lid on for 5 minutes. Fluff and drain off excess liquid. A good complement to the Black bean chili.
The vegetables added to the plate were a California Blend, easily fixed after microwaving for 7 minutes on high and 3 minutes with the lid on to finish steaming them.
The meal in total took about 18 minutes to prep from start to finish. My perfect concept of a time to prepare a meal. Did I say meal? I actually meant to say 6 meals, including the one that I didn't freeze but ate before filling 5 containers.
I love Easy Peasy!
I also did not follow the directions exactly. I like to use my crock pot for things. I put a crock pot plastic liner inside the crock pot (I also hate to scrub my crock pot). I put all of the ingredients into the crock pot, turned it on high for 4 hours. The flavors were melded together and everything was cooked to perfection without me having to stand over the stove to stir occasionally for 30 minutes.
Best Health,
Juanita
Black Bean Chili
From The Enlightened Eaters Whole Foods Guide - Harvest the Power of Phyto Foods By Rosie Schwartz 2003
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 cup 1/2-inch cubes zucchini (1 medium)
1 tsp finely chopped jalapeno pepper
2 (19 oz) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes, coarsely chopped with juice
1 cup frozen corn kernals
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
salt to taste
3 Tbsp chopped fresh coriander, for garnish (optional)
** Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat.
** Add the onions and garlic, saute for 5 minutes
** Add the green pepper, zucchini and jalapeño pepper.
** Add the black beans, tomatoes with juice, corn, chili powder, cumin, and oregano.
** Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally for 30 minutes.
** Season with salt to taste.
**Garnish with coriander and cheddar, if using, before serving.
Yield 6 to 8 cups
Nutritional Analysis:
1 serving = 1 cup
Calories 143
Carb (g) 31
Dietary fiber (g) 9
Fat (g) 2
Protein (g) 8
Iron (mg) 3.1
Calcium (mg) 92
Sodium (mg) 581