Cheesy Tostada Recipe--A Simple Dinner

One of the recipes we really enjoyed on the 21-Day Tummy diet was the simple cheesy tostadas.  They went together so quickly and easily that I wondered if I could just eat these every night during our final week!  But we didn't.  Since they were so tasty and simple, though, I thought I'd share the recipe!

Cheesy Tostadas, makes 5 (adapted from the Reader's Digest 21-DayTummy)
Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground hamburger (you can also use ground chicken)
5 6" soft corn tortillas (you can use gluten-free corn tortillas)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained of juice
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
1-2 tbsp olive oil (for brushing)
Chili powder
Cumin
Salt
Pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Lightly brush both sides of the tortillas with olive oil.  Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, then flip and bake for another 4-5 minutes, watching closely to make sure they don't burn.  Remove from the oven.

While the tortillas are baking, brown the hamburger, draining off any excess fat.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Drain the tomatoes in a colander.  Add the tomatoes to the hamburger and heat everything through.  Add chili powder and cumin to taste.

Scoop the hamburger & tomatoes onto the tortillas.  Top with cheese.  Serve immediately.

A tip: In the picture above, I tried crisping the tortillas, then adding the hamburger and tomatoes and popping them back in the oven to melt the cheese, but it made the tortillas soggy and stale.  I don't recommend putting them back in the oven after you've already baked the tortillas.  Your hamburger and tomatoes should be hot enough to melt (or partially melt) the cheese when you add it to the top.  

Inflammation Diet, Phase 3: We're Done!

Aaaaaaah, finally-- we finished the last phase of this plan!  These have been a hard three weeks.  But happily, we were able to introduce more types of food back into our diets during this past week, so that helped greatly with variety.  However, I'm very much looking forward to our cheat day today!  It's been three weeks since I've seen the inside of a restaurant, and I'm going to really enjoy it.

Cheesy tostadas--these were good!  I'll post the recipe soon.

Before I go on, a huge thank you needs to go out to my husband for all of the help he offered in
making dinner, doing dishes, and prepping for upcoming meals and snacks during this.  There wasn't enough time in the day to do it all on my own, and I'm extremely grateful to him for all of his assistance, assurance, and encouragement.

Since this is the end of the actual plan, here is my summary of pros and cons that I've found:

What I liked about this diet:

• Relatively short-term (although it didn't feel like it)
• Results were easily seen and measured
• It did help with the inflammation and irritation (especially after I quit eating/drinking all of the dairy in the plan)
• Some revelation about possible causes/triggers of inflammation
• Some recipes were tasty, with some simple alterations (that fell within the guidelines of the plan)

What I didn't like about this diet:

• Not an easy change
• So much dairy!
• Did not relieve all of my inflammation symptoms (still experienced symptoms, but they were decreased some in intensity)
• Hard to adjust to not using any sort of seasonings other than salt and pepper, which led to
• Bland recipes
• Recipes that weren't quite right in terms of quantities of ingredients or total number of servings
• A LOT of work in the kitchen!
• Searching for some of the ingredients in the recipes got a little frustrating
• I wouldn't consider this a sustainable way of eating long-term

Our total weight loss was 11 pounds for me and 3" off of my waist, and 12 pounds for my husband (he never did any measurements).  My goal was to lose 15 pounds during this diet, but even I realize that's quite a bit of weight to lose in three weeks.  Plus, I wasn't incorporating the exercises and treadmill workouts during the diet plan, because I just did not have time.  Also, the third week/phase is called "maintenance", which indicates that the meal plans during this time are not meant for rapid weight loss.  We plan to continue our healthier eating and weight loss in the weeks to come, and will be able to incorporate exercise from here on out.  I do have a target weight goal that I would like to reach by summer, and it will be nice to have a little more flexibility in our diets now.  Overall, I would recommend this plan for anyone wanting to lose weight, or, like us, wanting kick-start their weight loss and be encouraged.  I wouldn't say that this is a long-term lifestyle change plan, although for the right person, I suppose it could be.  Apparently, I am not that person!

I should probably mention that I wasn't doing this diet as an endorsement for the book or as a promotion for anyone or any company.  We just decided to do it on our own, and thought that our experience with it might help others who are considering this diet plan.

Phase 2: Almost Complete

Well, we're almost finished with the Phase 2 now.  I don't think it's gotten easier for me, though.  I feel like I spend much of my free time in the kitchen--cooking, then cleaning up, then prepping for the next day.  My husband is determined to see this through, and his commitment is about the only thing that keeps me motivated.  I have to commend him for his seemingly iron willpower.

Zucchini Surprise

We've tried a few more meals, and they aren't bad.  We tried a tuna romanesco, which is a tuna steak with a flavorful red sauce, and an eggplant dish minus the eggplant (the eggplant spoiled in the fridge, and I didn't really want to buy any more) that we've renamed Zucchini Surprise.  I just cut up some zucchini and threw it in the pan to sub for the eggplant that should have been there, and it was pretty tasty!  We also tried the shepherd's pie, which we altered to taste, and our version was very tasty!  Both the Zucchini Surprise and the shepherd's pie might be something that stays in our regular dinner rotation after the three weeks.

We've also tried the mini quiche recipe, which are okay, but nothing to write home about, and along with the bran pancakes, we have breakfast covered.  I discovered that a tablespoon of natural peanut butter on top of the pancakes greatly improves them.  Still, having the oat bran pancakes and the mini quiches are so much better than trying to down a smoothie every morning!  It's been several days since the last smoothie or cheese items, and I've seen some improvement in my symptoms.  I'm guessing that such a large amount of dairy was too much for my system, but I think smaller amounts will probably still be okay.  It might not hurt me to pick up some lactase tablets, though.  I just think that my system is less tolerant of dairy now, and I'm sure it will continue to tolerate it less and less as I age.

I learned the hard way--do not make these using cupcake liners!!  We ended up throwing the whole pan out because we couldn't peel the muffins out of the liners.

I still feel frequently hungry.  I hate that.  But, I'm still adjusting to a new way of eating and a new lifestyle, so patience is necessary.  I still have not had a chance to try out the exercises in the back yet.  I do plan on starting a workout routine soon--when I'm not spending hours in the kitchen!

Weight loss update:
I have lost 9.5 pounds now, and my hubby has lost 10.5 pounds.  I'm more encouraged with these numbers!

Day 6, Phase 2: Inflammation Diet

Well, Phase 2 of our inflammation diet is underway.  Yesterday, day 6, was interesting.  In this phase, some "new" foods are re-introduced to the diet plan, like eggs and oat bran.  Also introduced are two breakfast foods--a cheesy scrambled egg "quesadilla" and mini quiches.  I tried the "quesadilla" recipe yesterday morning, and was sadly disappointed following the recipe as printed.  The eggs were good--you scramble four whole eggs with two wedges of spreadable mini cheeses, which was fine.  I'm used to adding a little shredded cheddar cheese to my eggs, so that was nothing unusual.  The "quesadilla", however, was another story altogether--it literally tasted like cardboard.  Not kind of, not a little like, no--EXACTLY like cardboard.  I was sad, because they smelled pretty good while they were cooking, kind of like pancakes.  I knew there wasn't anything in them that would be flavorful, but I guess I hoped that there would magically be some flavor explosion in all of the bland ingredients, like they would all meet in the mixing bowl and somehow change to something that tasted, well, good.  It's kind of like when two unattractive people somehow have cute kids.  You don't know how it happens, but somehow it does happen.

Anyway, the recipe uses Greek yogurt and egg whites to create a low-fat, low calorie bread-y type crust; yes, this does make a difference in the calories, but also in the texture and flavor.  A little like subbing applesauce for oil in a cake recipe...mmm, applesauce...  It was bordering on unpalatable, though, so I altered the recipe a bit, adding the fat back in and adding a little (allowed) sweetness to it, because I can't eat the cardboardillas for the next two weeks!

Ingredients:
6 eggs
1 1/2 C oat bran
1/2 C unsweetened coconut milk soured with 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 C water
2 TBSP pure maple syrup
1 mashed ripe banana

Spray a medium frypan with non-stick spray and allow to heat up.  Sour the coconut milk with the vinegar and let it stand for a few seconds to thicken.  Mix all of the wet ingredients together well, then add the oat bran.  Allow to stand for a minute--the batter will thicken as it stands.  Using a 1/3 C measuring cup, scoop the batter into the heated pan and spread the batter out into a circle.  Cook as you do regular pancakes! Makes 10 or 11 pancakes.  (To see the book's original recipe, click here: Cheesy Egg Quesadillas.)

On a side note, I had some ripe bananas that I had purchased to make the smoothies, but couldn't use them in time, so I peeled them and threw them in bags in the freezer.  I took one out to eat with the quesadilla, and found out that I like frozen bananas!  So that was fun!

I have a sneaking suspicion that my continuing symptoms are a result of the increased dairy in this plan.  I did some internet research, and found that it's common for low-cal, low-carb diets to use a lot of dairy in substitution, and this seems to be no exception.  I've had a hard time tolerating yogurt ever since I started feeling ill, but I'd read that Greek yogurt can sometimes be tolerated by those unable to eat regular yogurt.  However, I don't think I'm one of those people.  I couldn't find any plain soy yogurt at the store to substitute, so for the time being, I'm making some changes and removing the smoothies from the plan and limiting the soft cheeses.  I'll see if the symptoms go away or at least get better, and if so, I'll have my answer! 

Inflammation Diet, Phase 1

Well, we were finally able to start our 21-Day Tummy routine on Sunday.  Due to some events that were out of our control, we had to postpone our start date until then.  We had hoped to have three weeks of uninterrupted time to just focus on the plan (but that's already out the window).  The reasons for doing this diet?  My inflammation and gastrointestinal problems, and to lose weight and be healthier.  Good reasons.  So, what do we think so far?

This first phase, lasting for five days, has been hard for both of us.  You pretty much cut out all sugar cold-turkey and eat a  very low-fat meal plan, with limited amounts of olive oil for cooking.  That has been hard for me!  I have a affinity for sweets (like, a whole mouth full of sweet teeth), and the cravings for sugary foods and fats (like using butter for cooking) has been hard to fight.  We've both experienced what I call withdrawal headaches from the lack of sugar--I know it's not caffeine withdrawal, because coffee is allowed, and hubby still drinks it daily.  I don't drink coffee, but I do drink pop, although I don't drink it enough to cause headaches when I don't have it for a day or two.  Ergo, sugar withdrawal!

Simple dinner--baked salmon and potato, sprinkled with parmesan

We've tried several recipes, and have liked most of them.  We have made some slight alterations to account for items we didn't have or personal tastes.  I've also had a need to make quick meals due to a family emergency, and found that it's easy to just use elements from other meals to make something fast, like a piece of fish and a baked potato or sweet potato.  The smoothies are the worst for us--it took a few days to find a tolerable smoothie flavor combo, and because smoothies are part of the first 14 days, finding a palatable combination was important.  Neither of us likes yogurt, and it's more tart than either of us cares for, but we'll soldier on.  I'm hoping that my tastes might change, or I find a sweet enough combination to get me through the duration.  So far, the most tolerable smoothie flavor combo has been banana, cocoa powder, vanilla, and cinnamon.  I miss real food for breakfast, and am counting down the days to no more yogurt smoothies.  Other than the smoothies, the meal suggestions and recipes have been decent so far.  I say "decent" because the book states that spices like garlic are inflammatory (despite the fact that I've always heard that it was anti-inflammatory), so they recommend not using them, and the food can be a little bland when following the recipes exactly (the Hearty Roasted Vegetable Soup recipe should be renamed Cooked Vegetables in Hot Water Soup).  It helps to have a little cooking knowledge under your belt with this plan to make the meals a little more flavorful.  

A typical smoothie--I make them the night before and store them in the fridge in insulated glasses so that we can just grab and slurp in the morning.

The format of the book is taking a little time to get used to.  There are recipes in the book, but there are also general meal directions on the day-to-day meal plans that are not found in the recipe section.  There are shopping lists in the back to make buying groceries easier, but depending on what you plan to make, you might end up with more than you need if you discover you don't like a recipe or if the recipe makes four servings and there are only two of you (such is our case).  I decided to make my own meal plan for Phase 2, and it took a while to go through all of the recipes and come up with a tailored grocery plan.

There is also an exercise section of the book, but I have yet to try any of the routines--I just haven't had time yet.

Vegetable soup--a very bland recipe.

I also found new foods that I like, such as chard (never had it before), sweet potatoes (just never cared for them), kale (a little bitter, but great in salad), curry (although I think it caused some of my symptoms during the week, and will be limiting its use), and zucchini (I've never liked it prepared in restaurants).

I have still experienced some GI issues during this phase.  It's possible that my body is adjusting, but it's also possible that the foods we've cut out so far have not been the cause of my problems.  I think that the severity and frequency of the problems has decreased, and I am not kept up at night with intestinal pain, but the fact that the symptoms still remain gives me pause and makes me continue to wonder what could be causing this.



Here's my summary of these first five days:
Pros--rapid weight loss, decrease in inflammation symptoms (but not elimination).
Cons--constantly hungry, some of the recipes are bland, still experiencing GI symptoms. 

However, after the first five days, I've lost 5 pounds and two inches off of my waist, which is enough encouragement to keep going.  I guess.