My best friend in the whole world would agree that she learned how to REALLY cook by spending time with me in the kitchen (which led to about a million other steps, which led her to being a very good cook in her own right). It started with her watching, and wondering why I put so much “stuff” into everything that I made. Spices, and flavors…I love these things…and remember, I can’t follow a recipe as written, I just know that it’s not my taste, so I add “stuff.” This time in the kitchen very quickly led to her completing prep work in the form of rinsing, tearing, chopping and dicing of ingredients. Well, to make a long story short, she gradually became more comfortable and confident in the kitchen. When we were no longer roommates, and she had a kitchen of her own to manage, she blossomed into a natural cook with the freedom and fun of experimentation (this is especially great since she’s a vegetarian…undercooked veggies don’t make you sick in the same way that meat can!!). She now has some recipes of her own creation that she has shared with me. I made one of my favorites this week, which I shall share with you here. May you try, modify to your own tastes, and enjoy!!

Chile Garlic Eggplant

1 eggplant

1 block tofu (look for fresh…The Bridge out of Connecticut makes a fair tofu)

1 onion

4-7 garlic cloves (to taste of course!!)

Veggie base

Chile Garlic Sauce (Lee Kum Kee makes a mainstream one)

Soy Sauce to taste

Olive Oil

Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil. Add the cubed eggplant (1” cubes or so) and cook. Add whatever veggie base you like (broth, bouillon, whatever—I like Better than Bouillon, it comes in a jar…very rich) with some liquid (1/4-1/2 cup or so). Add in your chile garlic sauce, any additional chile that you want for heat, and a few splashes of soy sauce. Cook and stir all this until eggplant is at desired softness (Incidentally, I prefer Italian eggplant b/c I think it’s more flavorful….but since being back on the East Coast, I can’t find a price that I’ll pay, so I just use plain old eggplant instead.) With about 5 mins or so left, add cubed tofu (same size as eggplant), stir to coat with sauce. Enjoy over white or brown rice…sometimes I have it over mashed cauliflower, and that’s yummy too!!!

Be well…

Yum…Slllurrrppp…Mmmmm…THANK YOU Blogger Mike for the Parsley Soup recipe—it’s so great to have a comfort food for the soul that is a comfort to the body! If you are even a tiny bit curious about this SUPERFOOD, consult Mike’s blog entitled “Who needs chicken soup?” dated 03/17/2004. All I can say is YUM!!!! You won’t be sorry!

On other notes, I’m making a great recipe found in one of the South Beach cookbooks. It’s AB compliant, and with a few changes (what!? Me make changes to a recipe??!! The heck you say!!??), it’s one delicious meal that sticks to the ribs without being loaded down with fat, or heavy meats. It also keeps well over the week (the spices combine to a flavorful end). The dish is below (with the changes that I can’t ever seem to resist making to any recipe!)…enjoy!!

1 TBS olive oil

1 onion, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves (I use 3-6)

1 lb ground turkey (recipe calls for turkey cutlets)

1 TBS chili powder

1 TSP ground cumin

1 (15-ounce) can Mexican diced tomatoes (the kind with green chiles in them)

1 (15-ounce) can cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained (I use navy, bought dry and boiled myself)

1 C stock (I use turkey or veggie)

Salt (I use Herbemare)

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.

Add turkey, chili powder, and cumin; cook, stirring ofen, until turkey is no lo ger pink inside, about 5 minutes.

Add beans, tomatoes with juice, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until flavors blend, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Make 4 (1 1/4 –cup) servings

May you enjoy…and be well….

P.S. This is from a thread started over in the forums…I thought that it would be nice to record over here too.

Re-Starting 1/2/06: Long Term Goals:

Height- 5'6" Height- 5'10" (unattainable, I know...)

Weight- 187 lbs Weight- 160 lbs

Size- 14 Size- 10-12

Activity- WO 2X's/week Activity- WO 4X's/week

Happy New Year!! I’m so happy to see the sun yet again…even if it is cold here in blustery New England, the bright rays make life bearable. The holidays saw me cheating in all ways—food, drink, sleep, stress, and personal time. Despite all of those rather typical preoccupations, it was a wonderful family holiday season, and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.

The one thing that has me a bit concerned is my reproductive system once again…I’m off schedule, and feeling all kinds of hormonal/physical side effects. It’s back to parsley soup, my weekly portions sheet, sleep, and exercise…concentrated effort will clean out my system and bring me back to wellness.

As 2006 gets underway, I look back to when I started BTD for the final time two Januarys ago. Even with the tumultuous rides that I’ve taken over these two years, I find myself in better overall health and wellness. For that I owe Dr. D’Adamo my life. Best of luck to y’all in your own personal journey through your BTD experience. All healthful choices are well worth it, and you’ll find yourself being more “you” than perhaps you’ve been in a long, long time. Giving oneself the gift of health is the ultimate promise for any new year.

Be well…