Shrimp + Baby Artichokes

Boiled some baby artichokes with outer leaves removed for 10 min. Quartered them. Then I sauteed the following over high heat:

thawed frozen shrimp
2 cloves chopped garlic
a swirl of grapeseed oil
dash of salt
artichokes

When the shrimp pinked up, I took it off the heat, finished with a generous squeeze of lemon and some cracked pepper.

Yummy dinner.

I call it the "Healthy Bachelor"

Tyson and I are feeling a bit, um, generous around the midsection. In other words, we're tired of our guts and can't wait to get rid of them. So, it's Body for Life time. 6 small meals a day, balanced lean protein and good carbs, and throw in some veggies too.

So I threw this together after a quick TJ's run:

The Healthy Bachelor
1 lb ground turkey breast, 98% fat free
a swirl of grapeseed oil
about a cup of low sodium chicken broth
Southern Greens Blend (1/2 bag)
a handful of grape tomatoes
crimini mushrooms, whole, because I didn't feel like chopping them
and some leftover frozen cut sweet white corn

Toss is all together and simmer on med heat.

Topped it off with some "Napa Valley Grill Seasoning" that Tyson given me as a Northern California souvenir, and here we go. One healthy mo-fo of a meal.

I think of it as a bachelor meal because it requires zero prep (except open packages), zero babysitting at the stove, and only one pot/pan to clean. Tyson claims that no single guy would ever cook with these ingredients. So maybe I should call it the Healthy Bachelorette. Or just the Healthy Ang.

Just one more dip amidst shooting pains down the left arm.

 

Ah yes, leave it to climbing friends with Wine of the Month memberships and eyes way bigger than their stomachs to host one of the most gluttonous evenings ever. We should've known, when seeing not 1, not 2, but 9, count them 9 baguettes upon arrival, that we were in for an evening that calls for the billowy pregnancy dress and ultra low-rise, have not been washed after multiple wearings, jeans.

Pictured above are:
1. Traditional Swiss Fondue. At least that's what I'm calling it, as it was made by a traditional swiss man. Ingredients included gruyere, emmental, white wine.
2. Crab Fondue. Ingredients included cream cheese, mayonnaise, crab meat.
3. Supposedly some other sort of fondue. I expected a broth of some type here. Instead, it was a vat of vegetable oil with a generous pat of butter. So we'll just call it the deep fryer.

Dippers included:
3 of the 9 baguettes. The Olive Demi-Batard from TJ's was a sure hit.
Steak.
Fuji apples.
Crimini mushrooms.
Blanched broccoli.
Sliced bananas.

Oh, and we had pizza too, which was satisfyingly dipped into all three fondue pots.

And then came dessert. Chocolate fondue, of course. It's a good thing I don't eat sugar, or they really would've had to gurney me out of there.

I think I just had the healthiest dinner ever, in the history of time.

I simmered some chopped kale (a la Mar Vista Farmer's Market, of course) and diced tofu in some low sodium chicken broth for 10 min. Then I tossed in a handful of frozen organic sweet white corn kernals. Then I transferred it all to a bowl. Then I ate it, alongside two tiny oven-baked yams.

I had just sweat-ed it up at the gym for the first time since re-injuring my back, and apparently my body was craving all the nutrients. Plus, I had vowed around midnight last night to do some kind of detoxing after last night's gluttonous fondue and wine fest.

Ahi goodness.

 

Note: It's not that I need to take a class in food photography. It's just that when I make food, I really want to just eat it instantly. It takes a tremendous amount of willpower to try to go find the Nikon (or the MacBook w/ built-in camera and photobooth for that matter) and actually take a photo or two. It would take even more willpower to actually turn some decent lighting on or clear off a counter. That is willpower that I do not have.

So this was dinner for Tyson last night. Whole Foods had a promo yesterday where they would donate 5% of all proceeds to KCRW, so I thought I'd actually splurge a little at Whole Foods, rather than purchase my $1.99 Low-Sodium Chicken Broth and Pearled Barley and hightail out of there before I actually spend some real money. Their sashimi-grade ahi was just calling out to me. So I brought one home, rubbed two sides with grapeseed oil, dipped two sides in a combination of untoasted sesame seeds (white) and roasted sesame seeds (black) and coarse sea salt. Then I lightly seared both sides and sliced away. The dipping sauce is a combination of soy, rice vinegar, wasabi, scallions, and water. Drool, in that healthy namaste, aloha kind of way.

Tom Yumminess

When I'm under the weather, or in this case, whining like a baby because of a reflared back injury, I totally crave really tangy, clear broth. Lately it's been visiting the pho place on a multi-weekly basis. But this time, I wasn't about to hobble down to the car and off road to my pho (you can pick up in this back alley, which is really nice because you don't have to get out of the car, but you do have to drive over some potholes so cavernous they really should be considered man-made lakes).

So I raided my fridge. My week old basil caught my eye, and in a stroke of creative genius, somehow thought I could do a makeshift Tom Yum in 10 minutes or less. So here are the ingredients I tossed together, then brought to a boil, and lowered to a simmer for like 30 seconds. Then it was in a bowl and in my mouth. Not quite tom yum, but I'd have to say, it hit the spot.