Monday, March 10, 2008

I think I'm turning healthy, I really think so

Update: Dad had to be hospitalized this morning with viral pneumonia, causing them to postpone his open heart surgery for a couple of weeks. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers and words of encouragement.

At some point duing the past year, I fear I may have turned into a... healthy person.

A year ago, I was filling my grocery buggy with frozen burritos, snack cakes, and Doritos, which for some reason I thought were sort of healthy. I was ingesting Little Debbies like there was no tomorrow, and chasing them with one of the five Sun Drops I drank per day. And I was eating fast food five or six times a week. Then something happened.

I think it all began with the John Tesh-inspired Great American Coke Out, which is more accurately described as the Pretty Decent American Coke Reduction. Then a co-worker brought in some handouts the doctor had given her husband when he underwent bypass surgery. Included was nutritional information for several restaurants and fast food places. It was one of the most disgusting things I'd ever read not involving Andy Dick.

At that time, I had already been trying to eat a bit healthier. From that day on, I cut back to only eating fast food about once a week. My arteries and I are actually on speaking terms again.

Today, I check the label of most everything I buy. I look at fat content, cholesterol, sodium, even riboflavin. I haven't a clue what riboflavin does, but I know 10% of the RDA is better than zero. My eyes light up at words like reduced fat, low sodium, and no preservatives. And fat free, well, I'm not ashamed to say I get a little flush.

Recently, I was given a healthy cookbook, and now I try and cook a couple of times a week. I'm dicing, grating, preheating, and sauteeing everything in sight. It's been good, if not always easy.

Maybe it's because I live in a smaller town, or maybe it's because I live in the South, where ranch dressing coarses thru our veins and we fry everything from twinkies to pickles. But I've discovered that finding things such as frozen creamed spinach in low-fat sauce, 95% lean ground beef, or those little tiny edible corns on the cob aren't so easy to find here. Still, I make do.

Friday night, I made creamy spinach ravioli. Except I used tortellini. I figure I got a pasta ending in -ini, that's close enough. Normally when I cook, it tastes pretty good, but winds up looking like a decroded piece of crap. Never like the picture in the cookbook.

Well, for once, my dish turned out aesthetically pleasing. So I wanted to share it with you. Presenting Bone's first attempt at creamy spinach tortellini:



It's OK if you don't think it's pretty, just don't tell me. I'm proud of it. It's my baby. I'll be glad to send you the recipe. Or perhaps we could do a recipe exchange. I've been wanting to try a radish rose.

And you thought a bachelor's blog would be all General Hospital and random hook-ups with hot girls.

"Greasy cheeseburgers and cheap cigarettes. One day they'll get me, if they ain't got me yet..."

26 comments:

  1. This line: "It was one of the most disgusting things I'd ever read not involving Andy Dick." made me laugh so loud. HA!

    Good for you for getting healthy. :)

    Thinking good thoughts for your Dad.

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  2. i suck at cooking... could you just send me a tupperware full of the stuff??? i promise to send you back the tupperware... wink wink.... it looks great!!!!!
    (as i nuke my stoffers spinach soufflé for dinner....)

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  3. Yay you! Getting healthy is one of the hardest things, to my mind, that someone can do. Particularly - as you said - in the South. Everywhere you turn there's something deep fried, slathered in milk chocolate or Ranch dressing and/or made with 8 sticks of butter. For heavens sake, where else can you find a food called Fat Back. :)

    Yes, yes, yes, I want that recipe. It looks so utterly delectable that I want to reach into the screen and pluck it out. Please, please, share!

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  4. Yay for you cooking for yourself and being healthy and all. Your dinner looks and sounds yummy!

    I just bought some spinach to make some creamed spinach (the only way DH eats it.) But I add cheese to the cream and don't use any cream...lol!

    I think this might be pretty healthy... I get a pork roast (you can use the tenderloin which while more pricy is very lean) and put it in the crock pot with some apple juice (about an inch in the bottom) and salt & garlic pepper (just to taste). cook that until it's done. You can pull it appart with forks like pulled pork or you can just slice it. Serve with your favorite bbq sauce or alone...it's good either way. I have a 1.5qt crock pot that I wanted for hot dips, but I've used it more for cooking...it works great for a small meal.

    And I'm sure paisley is referring to Kramer's tupperware...right?

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  5. I am so impressed with you! We could TOTALLY do a recipe exchange- I have got some master recipes. And I made pork tenderloin for the first time ever last week- UH-mazing!

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  6. I know you're just aching to make radish roses:
    Use medium-size round radishes. Trim off the root ends, leaving small circles of white. Holding each radish, root side up, cut a thin rounded slice on one side of the radish, leaving it attached at the base. Cut 3 or 4 more petals, spacing them evenly around the radish. Cut a second thin slice behind the original petals. Chill, covered with ice water, for 30 minutes. Radish Roses add color to cold meat platters, salads and sandwiches, and as a crudite for dips.

    The picture is beautiful

    Turning healthy is so confusing. Suzanne Sommers is a staunch advocate of saturated fats, and I have been reading more articles advocating that

    But more people and common sense advocates unsaturated fats especially canolla oil and extra virgin olive oil

    I can't believe I'm actually leaving this comment

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  7. Sizzle: Thanks. He's almost too easy a target. But when I thought disgusting...

    Paisley: it looks great!!!!!

    Aww, shucks. Thank you! :-D I don't know why it made me so happy, but it did.

    Lillith: Thanks. It hasn't been that difficult. I think I just needed to see those nutrition facts as sort of a kick in the pants to get started.

    Have you ever had fat back? I know it has got to be horrible for you, but man it tastes soooo good.

    Renee: Thanks for the idea. The apple juice is interesting to me. I can't imagine how that would taste.

    Yes, I'm sure. "With a piece of tupperware you just assume."

    Did I mention that I prepared the entire dish in my shower? And here's to DH for helping me install a much needed and much appreciated garbage disposal in my tub.

    Cami: Aww, thanks. That made me smile. And I'm always looking for something new to try.

    Pia: LOL I honestly didn't think I'd get a radish rose recipe. Looks kinda difficult.

    Yeah, it is confusing. One week, someone is saying to eat more of something. Then the next week, they're saying it's bad for you.

    I've got my EVOO! It's a Bone household staple.

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  8. I hate cooking,but I cook to eat healthy ...rather to feed my family healthy. Recipe exchange huh? I know lots of veggie stuff if you are up for some greens :)

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  9. I have already requested this recipe. I'll swap recipes with ya.

    I'm so happy to hear you are eating healthy!

    Sun Drop! You haven't talked about that in forever.

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  10. If you want to get healthy and keep it simple, check and see if there is a DREAM DINNERS near you--they make it easy. They have a large menu of entrées every month that you can pick and choose between, and when you go to assemble your "frozen dinners," they have all the ingredients laid out. You just measure everything and combine them, ready to cook.

    When you want to make one, you thaw them and put them together according to the easy-to-follow directions. Some are casseroles or pan-dishes (like lasagna, and they come with the pans), others are chicken or steak, often grilled or broiled, with wonderful sauces or toppings that come as part of the meal (no extra shopping required). Preparation time at home is usually 20 minutes or less, and you can get them to serve 3 or 6. (We usually get 6.) You can either package the leftovers for later and store them in the fridge, or freeze them already cooked to microwave at a future date. YUM.

    Learn more here. You can go in on a "package" with friends to share the savings--you just have to go at the same time to make them up and you have to pay with a single check and work it out between yourselves.

    I wish they'd had this when I was in college and/or a newlywed. A lot of my friends use this, too, because it's very economical and it sure as heck beats getting half way through a recipe and realizing you've run out of a key ingredient. All these recipes are healthy and good for you.

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  11. Good for you for eating and cooking healthy.

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  12. Yea cooking! I love me some spinach. Hope your dad recovers soon.

    hotpink

    ps did I miss a post about a hook up with a hot girl?

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  13. UL - I actually don't mind cooking. It's just the shopping beforehand and cleaning up afterward that I'm not crazya bout :)

    I am definitely up for some veggie stuff!

    OK Chick - Oh, I still love Sun Drops. We just don't get together quite as often. More like once a day now.

    Gay - Well, there's not one within a hundred miles of me right now, according to the website. Which maybe goes back to the whole small town/South thing.

    Xinh - Thanks. I figure it's about time.

    HotPink - Haha. Um, no, not recently. Um... er... thanks for pointing that out.

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  14. That dish looks so good!!! I love spinach!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    If you keep this up ...everybody will be saying....." I hope he brings that thing he makes" for all of family get togethers!!! :)

    How is your dad feeling today?

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  15. I forgot to say that I hope your dad gets to feeling better soon.

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  16. A friend who had a heart attack who loved Big Macs was told by his cardiologist that the fastest way to the Pearly Gates was through the Golden Arches. Keep it up!

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  17. I’m sorry to hear about your Dad, Bone. :-/ I’ll continue to pray for him and hope things improve there. Please keep us posted on how he’s doing.

    Good for you on making the switch to healthy eating. I’m sure the people who love you are happy to hear this news as they want to keep you around as long as possible. Your -ini looks like it turned out great… except for those things that look like mushrooms: blech!

    Riboflavin is also known as Vitamin B2, and it plays a key role in energy metabolism, and is required for the metabolism of fats, carbohydrates and protein.

    P.S. Is there anything better in this world than ranch dressing? Seriously? Oh yeah... sweet tea.

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  18. Eating healthy can get expensive. Fresh food tastes so much better though.

    We've started using ground turkey instead of ground beef and I'm actually liking it better.

    Good luck on your journey to better health. Hope your dad gets better soon.

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  19. We've been watching that TV show, "The BIggest Loser" and it's really inspired me to get in shape.

    I'm working out like everyday and eating healthier too.

    I feel a lot better since starting this routine... last week.

    Good Luck with the healthy lifestyle!

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  20. Yay for you!
    You're doing great, and you'll continue to do so. And yes, living in the South does make grocery shopping a tad bit harder. I just did a post about eating gluten-free, and getting healthy.
    It is so worth it, MrBones... And I see that you already know that!
    Kudos to you!

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  21. Bravo Bone! And it was all prepared in the shower? ...perhaps I don't want the recipe after all.

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  22. I have found myself skipping the middle of the store and only buying stuff from around the edges. Veggies, milk, fresh cheese, fruits...and here is the biggie for me. I haven't used ground hamburger meat in about a month. Ground deer and turkey breast are used in everything now... Don't tell my friends, they haven't figured it out yet. Word of caution though, the unique fruit from Jamaca is NOT as yummy as it looks in publix.

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  23. That's looks yummy!

    Hope you're dad is ok...

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  24. Good work! The dish looks yummy. I must be getting all the junk food you're not buying. I need to eat healthier.

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  25. lolololol
    I am just taking note at how clean your stovetop was in the photo! lol

    hope Dad is doing better!

    I want to see a souffle next! Ever go to www.epicurious.com ? Its the BEST site for recipes (Bon Appetite and Gourmet mags. website)

    Have to check out the song list (above post) Mine arent being counted for some reason. I think because its a new computer... idk Some consistant favs: Iris/ GooGooDolls, Right Here Waiting/ Staind (with one line in it that always gives me flutters in my stomach its so romantic... especially in a dark song) Smooth/Santana and Rob Thomas, Show Me How to Live/Audioslave,Tempted/Squeeze, Cant Get Enough of Your Love/Barry White...
    lately its Saven Me/Nickelback,No Good/Kate Voegele, How Far We've Come & Unwell/ Matchbox20 and Paralizer FingerEleven... Tough to limit this list. I listen to music all the time!

    Oops wrote a book again. sorry!

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