Saturday, December 29, 2012

Super Creamy Tomato Soup -- With no Cream

small pan size (makes about 2 bowls) 

2 large tomatoes (from the vine is what I got)
Onions -- about 2 inches of onions cut off from the end (minus those layers you have to pull off)
1 clove garlic
olive oil
dried basil
dried dill (put 3 times as much basil as dill)
a bit of ground pepper
swiss or mozzarella cheese (optional) 
Tomato paste (probably 6 tablespoons.)
1 chicken bouillon cube
blender or Magic Bullet 

In olive oil simmer garlic and onions (cut it up sloppy, you'll be blending it in a blender later anyway!)
Cut up tomatoes in big chunks -- you can be sloppy with this as well.

Once browned, add the tomatoes to the onions and garlic. Let it all turn a lighter shade of pink and cook down. Now spoon out the chunks into a magic bullet container, and pulse it until the onions are smooth. Probably twice. Leave it in the blender for now. 

In the same pan (which is now of course empty -- your soup is still in the blender), throw in the buillon, tomato paste and probably 3 inches of water in the bottom. Start cooking this. Throw in a bunch of basil w/ it (coat whole top layer) and the dill. 

Now return to your blender. By the way, if you sample this blended stuff, it tastes creamy, despite being no cream in here! Like magic. 

Now pour your blended tomato mixture into the pan, along with the tomato paste mixture. Add any fresh basil. Add the (optional) cheese to the bowls if it's grated.

It's seriously amazing!!





Healthy Egg Salad!


2 Eggs (you can remove the yolk if you like, but I find it nutritious)
1 small clove garlic
1 slice onion
Splash of olive oil
black ground pepper
A bit of lemon juice
Celery (optional)
Dijon Mustard (get one without sugar and chemicals, such as the Whole Foods one made only with  mustard seed and Apple Cider Vinegar)
Tiny bit of Mayonnaise -- or use plain Green Yogurt

Optional spices: You can add dill, a bit of chili powder, paprika, or chopped Jalepenos are all interesting things to add, if you like some spice. I prefer mine without these.

Saute splash of olive oil and chopped onion and garlic until brown*. Hard boil eggs. Remove shells, chop. Add a dollup of mustard and a tiny bit of mayo (you can leave out the mayo, or use a bit of fat free greek yogurt). You can also leave out the yolks, though I think they're nutritious. Mix together and add some black pepper (and optional chopped celery) and you're done!

To make it a full meal, place egg salad over lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, chick peas, (whatever you like in a salad!) and add a gluten-free biscuit. If you're concerned about fat, most of your meal here is lettuce and vegetables, with just a dollup of your high-protein egg salad. We're leaving out the large amount of mayo, and the common sandwich version it's typically on unhealthy white bread (more calories, and gluten even if it's whole grain bread) with a lot of cheese and mayo. We're leaving all of those unhealthy calories out, but keeping the flavor.

*Note: Garlic and olive oil sauted together release a lot of healthy immune-boosting action. It's actually an ear infection natural cure to put a clove of garlic sauted with olive oil in your ear (please don't burn yourself if you try this -- wait for it to cool off, and never do this if you have a punctured ear drum. So imagine the effects of eating it! Your whole body gets the boost.

Jalepeno and Cheese Biscuits (Gluten-Free, no Bad Fats) 

Lots of buttery taste! (Without any butter). 

1/3 Cup Tapioca Flour
1/3 Cup Soy Flour
1/3 Cup Coconut Flour

1 teaspoon Guar Gum 
1 teaspoon baking soda
sprinkle of salt

1/3 cup olive oil
1 egg
1/3 cup water
1/8 cup chopped canned Jalepenos
Shredded Mozzarella, to taste. 

Mix together in a bowl. Shape into discs about the size of the bottom of a soup can, about an inch thick.  Line two round cake tins with tinfoil, spray tinfoil with Pam, and place the biscuit dough on there.

BAKE 350 degrees in pre-heated oven for 35-38 minutes.

*You can also make without the Jalapenos and cheese, though you can taste the flour after-taste this way.

Here's a plain buttered one. Though I prefer it with the Jalapeno flavor. It needs butter of something on it when it's plain, or else you get the flour aftertaste -- so more added calories. 

Friday, December 28, 2012


SKINNY COMFORT FOOD

SKINNY COMFORT FOOD provides you with fun, delicious, easy recipes that taste as good as the regular comfort food -- often without sugar, gluten/white flour, and bad fats. All to give you the energy you need to attack your goals in all areas of life, so you can be hot, successful, healthy, and happy!!!

ALL of the comfort food on this blog is hiding something. It's healthy. That's the point of this blog. I want to eat healthy, but I want to live fully, with rich, complex tastes, textures, and all of the benefits of eating sinfully, with ONLY healthy ingredients.

I want to eat buttery biscuits, chocolate milkshakes, rich goey chocolate cake, ice cream, lemonade, creamy tomato soup -- and I want to do it without butter, chocolate, cream, sugar, white flour (or gluten), and with limited or no dairy. Omg YUM! Perhaps I will use the occasional organic omega-3 egg -- of course you can always remove an egg from a recipe.

I always assumed this was impossible. Then I realized you could bake a chocolate cake using avocado. It doesn't taste like avocado, but rich buttery chocolate. Who knew?

Join me as I discover these strange healthy, yet comforting, foods. I will share my recipes with you. I may have to look under every rock for some of them, but I'm determined to find them, for my own health and yours.

We've gotta eat healthy, YET TASTY! Life is to be lived fully, while boosting your health and immune system. I believe you can have it all. Without the unhealthy ingredients, but WITH the taste, texture, and full dining experience. MMm mmm good.

We're all trying to eat cleaner, be leaner, stronger -- and smarter about our health. This isn't just about getting a six pack (though that's an added perk!), but about glowing with natural health, and most importantly, becoming your BEST self -- I am a life coach after all, so there's nothing I'm more passionate about. I see the difference in my clients when they are sticking to their health goals, they seem more centered, less depressed, more focused and full of good humor and charm -- because they have the energy they need to work on very ambitious goals (in Manhattan of all places, so you can imagine the stress level), like starting businesses, dating to find the right person, changing careers, etc. Energy requires good food and good health. The better your health, the better your wealth, and love life, and friendships, and family, and so on...

When you eat healthy, you think clearer, feel better, and have the energy you need to attack your goals in all areas of your life! You might actually make more money, fall in love, or make new friends -- just from the energy you gain from eating healthy yet tasty. That's the power of health. It's not just about your looks, but how your life feels.

I've seen this in my own life as well. When I gave in to the easy take-out food of the big city -- it's as easy as 3 clicks online and pushing my "buzzer" to let the delivery guy climb the stairs up to my apartment -- (and was ordering this stuff nearly every day, at $15-$20 per meal, yikes!), it was my COMFORT after a long day of running my coaching business, rushing through the city, dealing with a painful and lonely divorce and dating again, and making new friends, etc. Those take-out meals were my bright spot for a while. But they also lead me to feeling "blah" and depressed after a while. I was losing motivation to run my business, and didn't even feel like dating anymore. I was getting colds all the time from all of the sugar and refined carbs I was eating.

I knew I had to get my health and life back on track -- um, hello, I am a life coach after all! Come on now :). Before my 10th pound added on, I got a trainer at the gym and dedicated myself to clean eating -- cutting out gluten, sugar, caffeine, and sticking to brown rice, quinoa, vegetables, lean organic protein, etc. It worked great for a while. I nearly had a six-pack forming! I lost 15 pounds. I was 1 pound away from the BMI "too skinny" category. I did gain a pound per my doctor's orders! (Pie? Sure. Okay!) But this only lasted about a year, before I found myself buzzing the delivery guys into my building again -- they started to recognize me! Why? There's a problem with "healthy food only." 

The problem? Healthy food is often not appealing. This drives us to grab the quick, tasty options that are like poison for our bodies: refined white flour, additives, sugar, saturated fats, and all kinds of chemicals and hormones in our food supply that WEAR our bodies down, making it harder to FEEL good and healthy.

I want to enrich my body with the best, organic, gluten-free, low/no sugar, often dairy free, recipes.

So follow me here, to get ALL of the COMFORT FOOD and DELICIOUS recipes you need to stay healthy and ENJOY life :D.

It's easier to stick with something you follow. And my goal is that we all do this together. So follow me! :) I want to read your comments and keep in touch with you all, since we're all on this "keeping motivation up" journey together. Making this a lifestyle, not a fad. Gaining health, strength, energy, and AMAZINGLY tasty food all at once. 

In addition to great recipes, also follow me on my facebook Life Coaching page. This will help you maintain motivation and fun for your life goals as well, plus you may discover a few new goals and life passions, from the energy you gain from your healthy lifestyle!

I'll be posting the pretty recipe photos on Instagram, and you can follow my personal page there as well: JM9977. 

I don't know about you, but when I follow others on instagram, blogs, etc., I find it easy to stay motivated and interested, even when I have a "blah" day. It keeps us all on track.

That said, thanks so much for reading, commenting, following, and being a part of Skinny Comfort Food! <3