Today I introduce a stunning new technological breakthrough: photographs! On the web! It's like 1996 all over again.
Above is today's lunch. I took a 5oz chicken breast, rubbed it with a small amount of cumin, a fair amount of basil, and 1/4 tsp of salt. The salt was actually a little much, but I need to take 3/4 tsp a day on the diet, so I use it. I then grilled the chicken on the Foreman. I prepared a bed of 3.5oz of iceberg lettuce, tossed with a small amount of garlic and onion powders. The sommelier recommended a 16oz glass of water from my swanky new Brita Pitcher, and I went with that over a more full bodied wine.
Served hot, the chicken was moist and tender, and very flavorful. The cumin was just right, but the basil wasn't as strong as I'd like. Maybe I need to start using fresh herbs? I really liked the color the basil added, and it made the whole meal much more appealing than simply a slab of grilled chicken.
The lettuce was good, and after this mornings jerky snafu I'm going to stay away from carrots or anything with carbs. The lettuce isn't quite as good together with the chicken as I'd like. There was a slight bitterness to the lettuce. I might go to the market and see what kinds of spices I can find to blend with lettuce.
Overall, the meal was surprisingly satisfying. My dad pointed out that I would win points for the plating, and I guess when you can't have a large quantity, quality really helps keep meals fun and interesting. I don't know if it's just a placebo, but the Brita really makes water taste better. I guess I don't care if I enjoy the water because I just spent $20 on a pitcher, but I still really enjoyed the water.
I think the personal secret for why this diet will work for me is pretty simple: I really like all the foods I can eat. This isn't the cabbage soup diet, or some crazy cottage cheese binge. Basically, I get to eat small amounts of good protein, and a few veggies. That's right in my wheel house. I genuinely enjoy seasoned chicken on the foreman, or filet, or scallops.
I'm already looking forward to dinner, not because I'm hungry, but because I still have some scallops. I'm thinking about trying a more aggressive spicing with them this time, maybe oregano and basil, with a small amount of lemon juice.
Are lettuces other than iceberg kosher? They tend to have more, less bitter flavor. Barring that, you might try tossing small amounts of chopped fresh herbs (basil, thyme, parsley, etc.) with the lettuce.
ReplyDeleteI can eat other lettuces as one of my veggies, but Iceberg is noted as a "free" item. Normally, I'd use iceberg, and still include carrots as a snack or something throughout the day. Today, I'm trying to keep even my veggie carbs really low because of the jerky situation. I think I'm going to try buying some fresh herbs and mix them in. I'd like to stick with iceberg.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I can tell, the veggies aren't for any form of nutrition, they're simply there so you don't go nuts from all meat, and for the fiber.
only purchase small amounts of fresh herbs. they don't "keep" well. thanks for all i am learning. as for the bitterness.... could the iceberg not been as fresh as possible. this is a bad time of year for many veggies. they either come from afar or are "force" grown-greenhouse. that makes them less tasty.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the herb thing is totaly true...we were just talking how fresh basil tastes completely different than, you know, like, fake, old basil. Anyway, I love cumin (insert dirty joke here). I pepper my lettice sometimes...I know, wierd, right?
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