My Diet Watch

I have not been able to post new ideas lately. One main reason is that my over tendency to eat a lot whenever I'm in the kitchen cooking.haha! But that won't stop me from cooking meals, so I will still be posting interesting menus from time to time. :)

I'm forced to try to start a 'simple diet', after realizing that I need to add extra effort when pulling up some of my favorite pair of jeans. Whew! Not easy.

So I officially started my Diet Watch this morning. I'm thinking of doing it 'rice-less', so here we go...

Breakfast was a cup of sweetened oatmeal, no milk. I could have tried unsweetened, but it was just blunt. A teaspoon won't hurt, I suppose. And 2 small pieces of boiled sweet potato. Oh yeah, camote. And that's my favorite 'orange' camote, mind you. I have searched almost everywhere, and luckily saw it at SM, so I bought almost 2 kilos. Good enough for 3 or 4 days of my fasting. Love it! I grabbed 2 more on the way out and had it for lunch, with 'ginataang langka' on the side. Yum! I almost survived till the afternoon, but took crackers and a cup of tea latte for merienda. Was that sinful enough? Oh, I don't wanna get ulcer instead, so I think that's just okay. :) Dinner earlier was still with my orange potato and a bowl of Vietnamese noodles. And 1 small slice of Spam. Sorry, saw a few slices left from my 3-year old's breakfast. :)

So that's for my first day, hope it will help my 130-lb weight to go down a bit. Even just one mark. We'll see... Ciao!

Beef and Gravy Stew

One of my kitchen experiments. Beef with my favorite gravy, a perfect match!

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 kilo beef
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced and sliced
2 tbsp corn starch
1 pack McCormick Beef and Gravy mix
2 cups water

1. Slice meat and remove extra fats(litid). Cook in a pressure cooker for 30-40 minutes, or until tender.
2. In a pan, sautee garlic and onion. Add meat and simmer for 3 minutes.
3. Pour gravy mix in 1 cup water, then pour in. Simmer for another 2 minutes.
4. Mix corn starch with the remaining cup of water and add to concoction. Adjust taste.
5. Prepare in a warm serving dish and serve.

Garlic Broccoli

One of the only few vegetables my little girl eats. And you can just prepare this dish in a flash, so that will give you more family time.

INGREDIENTS:
1 medium broccoli
5 cloves garlic
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
salt to taste

1. Wash broccoli and cut florets. Steam for about 5 minutes, or until cooked. Set aside.
2. In a pre-heated pan, add oil and then toss in butter. Sautee garlic until light brown.
3. Add broccoli and sprinkle salt, simmer for a minute.
4. Add 2 tablespoons water, and adjust taste accordingly.
5. Prepare in a shallow dish, and serve immediately.

Pepper Shrimp

A very simple but tasty way to cook shrimp.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 kilo medium shrimp
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper, ground

1. In a bowl, wash shrimp and remove heads, if preferred.
2. Sprinkle salt and pepper and mix a little.
3. In a pre-heated pan, add shrimp and let it cook, until it changes to a bright orange color. Add some more pepper, if desired.
4. Prepare in a shallow dish and serve.

Chili Pork Steak

Another one of Hubby's personal favorites. Tomato-based with a little spicy twang, just perfect!

INGREDIENTS:
4 pork steaks
2 tbsp margarine (or butter, but it browns too fast)
5 tbsp tomato paste, mix in 2 cups water
2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp oregano
1 tsp worcestershire sauce (optional)

1. In a frying pan, brown meat in margarine.
2. Add remaining ingredients and mix a little.
3. Cover and simmer slowly until tender, about 45 minutes, stirring and turning meat accasionally. Add some more tomato paste if needed, to maintain consistency.
4. Serve hot.