Hot Links and Beans with Rice

I have recently come into possession of a large amount of hot link sausage. It is a bit on the spicy side, so I have been experimenting with rice/bean recipes to help moderate the effects. The beany-starchy-creamy goodness goes quite well with browned hot link pieces (almost as well as eggs). This recipe is not authentic to any particular style or region of cooking. Modify as you see fit. Oh, and I also realize I will not win any awards for the presentation of the dish in the above photo. I was hungry.


Hot Links & Beans with Rice

Ingredients
1 cup uncooked rice
2-3 hot link sausages, cut into pieces
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 green chiles, seeded, finely chopped
1-2 ribs celery, chopped
1 can red beans
1 cup water (or chicken broth)
1/2 tsp thyme
1 tsp cumin
1 bay leaf
salt
pepper
oil

Directions
0. cook rice as you normally would
1. heat skillet; add small amount of oil
2. brown sausage pieces for 3-4 minutes
3. add onions; cook until translucent (about 5 minutes), stirring occasionally
4. add celery, green chiles, and garlic; cook 5-6 minutes
5. add beans to skillet; stir to combine
6. add water, thyme, cumin, and bay leaf
7. simmer mixture until liquid has reduced by half and has thickened (about 10 minutes)
8. remove bay leaf; add salt/pepper to taste; serve

Notes
- To help thicken the liquid, use a wooden spoon or spatula to smash some of the beans as they simmer.
- Other spices can be added, depending on how spicy your hot links are.
- This recipe serves 3-4.
- As I have mentioned before, legumes require a good amount of salt.
- Navy beans also work well in this recipe.
- This recipe reheats well.

Roast Chicken with Gravy

Roast Chicken with Gravy

Ingredients
1 whole fryer chicken, 4-5 pounds, trussed
1 onion, quartered
1 lemon, quartered
3-4 ribs celery, cut into 3" pieces
2-3 carrots, cut into 3" pieces
4 cloves garlic, peeled
fresh parsley, about one small handful
1/4 cup olive oil
kosher salt
black pepper
1/2 cup white wine (for gravy)
2 cups chicken broth (for gravy)
1 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 tbsp cold water (for gravy)

Directions
-chicken
1. preheat oven to 425 degrees (F)
2. rinse entire chicken with cold water; dry thoroughly
3. stuff chicken with the following:
- 2 onion quarters
- 1 rib celery (pieces)
- 1 carrot (pieces)
- 4 lemon quarters
- parsley
- garlic cloves
4. place remaining vegetable pieces on a roasting pan
5. rub olive oil all over the outside of the chicken
6. sprinkle generously with salt and pepper
7. place chicken (breast up) on top of the vegetables in the pan
8. use toothpicks to keep the end of the chicken closed, if needed
9. put chicken into the oven on the middle rack
10. cook chicken at 425 for 15 minutes
11. reduce heat to 400 degrees, cook an additional 1 hour and 15 minutes (1:30 total)
12. check meat temperature in the thick part of the thigh (use good judgement)
13. remove chicken from oven, empty cavity of vegetation
14. place chicken aside; cover; let rest while making gravy
15. carve and serve
-gravy
1. use wooden spoon to squeeze juices out of vegetation in pan; discard all vegetation
2. over medium-high heat, deglaze pan with wine and broth; reduce as desired
3. add cornstarch to thicken gravy; reduce heat; pour gravy into serving dish

Notes
-a 5-pound bird should feed 4 people easily (if sides are included)
-the cooking time may vary, depending on the oven, the specific bird, and the phase of the moon
-assume at least 1:15 cooking time, then take the temp and continue cooking as needed
-I cook my chicken to an internal temp of 165 and let the carryover finish the job as the bird rests (YMMV)

French Onion Soup

This recipe is modified from the Alton Brown version. I omitted the apple cider, which I had found to result in overly-sweet soup. The electric skillet method is his, and works wonderfully. This recipe will feed 2-4, depending on how well you can resist eating the whole batch. The picture is of the onions in their initial cook-down phase (click to enlarge).


French Onion Soup

Ingredients
7 medium-sized yellow onions
1 medium-sized red onion
3 tbsp butter
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 cups dry white wine
1 can beef consomme
2 cups chicken broth
bouquet garni (thyme, bay leaf and parsley tied with string)
black pepper (or grains of paradise)
French bread
1 cup melty cheese of your choice (mozzarella works fine if you're on a budget)

Directions
-soup
1. remove peel from onions, halve pole-to-pole, slice into half-rings about 1/4 inch thick
2. heat an electric skillet to 300 degrees and melt the butter
3. add onions in several layers with salt on each layer
4. let onions cook for 15 minutes without stirring
5. cook onions an additional 45 minutes, stirring occasionally
6. add wine, stir, let reduce to syrupy consistency (about 10 minutes)
7. add beef consomme, chicken broth, and bouquet garni
8. reduce heat to simmer, cover, cook for 20 miutes
9. prepare bread and cheese while soup simmers
10. adjust salt and pepper to taste, serve
-bread/cheese
1. cut bread into 1/2 inch slices
2. lay slices on sheet pan and bake at 375 until toasted
3. rub toasted slices (now croutons, technically) with crushed garlic
4. grate cheese
-serving
1. ladle soup into broiler-safe bowl/dish
2. layer bread on top of soup
3. add grated cheese
4. broil for several minutes to melt/brown cheese
5. serve


Notes
-For the wine, I use Fetzer gewurztraminer with excellent results.
-The easiest way to mess this recipe up is to let it get too sweet (wine is critical).
-You can add up to 1/2 cup water during simmering with no ill effects.
-To thicken the soup slightly, add a few tablespoons of flour with the broth/consomme.
-Pretty much any cheese will work.


This year I will try to be better about keeping the recipe-blogging updated.

Minus Fifty

In my earlier post, I outlined my goal of hitting my target weight of 185 (-50) "shortly after Election Day". Today, I hit that goal. It came eight days after Election Day, but that's close enough for me.

I started out at 235 pounds, although my peak was probably somewhat higher. I reached 200 pounds (-35) at the end of August, and 192 (BMI=25.0) in early October. Weirdly, I reached 185 exactly eight months after I started working out and monitoring my weight. That's 6.25 pounds/month, and is right in line with my near-linear rate of 1.5 pounds/week.

I also had my body fat percentage measured this morning. According to the handheld tool, I have 11% bodyfat. Of course, there are lots of caveats with that number, since the electrical measurement of bodyfat is susceptible to error from hydration, eating, and recent exercise. My "real" body fat is most likely somewhere between 10% and 15%, I'm guessing.

In a shocking oversight - especially for someone that has taken an advanced research statistics class - I never measured my "starting" body fat percentage. Because of this, today's number provides no real trend data, just a single data point to inform my future plans. In high school, my body fat percentage was in the high 20s, and was almost certainly higher than that when I started working out. Assuming that I lost only fat - and added no muscle/bone/etc - the calculations go like this:

Currently: 185 pounds x ~13.5% body fat = 25 pounds "fat";
which means: 50 pounds "fat loss" + 25 existing pounds "fat" = 75 pounds of beginning "fat";
and results in: 75 pounds fat / 235 pounds starting bodyweight = 32% body fat in March 2008.

In reality, I probably was higher than 32%, since I have lost weight while adding muscle (my rep maximum has increased dramatically). Since muscle is denser than adipose, I can say with some certainty that I was probably closer to 35+% body fat when I began this program eight months ago.

Over the next few months, I would like to stabilize my weight just below 180 pounds, with a body fat percentage of sub-10%. That means I need to keep doing aerobic exercise (elliptical machine) a few times per week, and start higher-intensity strength training. The cardio stuff should keep the fat off, while the lifting should offset the fat-loss with increased muscle mass. Both types of exercise do, of course, burn calories.

I'm not trying to turn into a fitness model, so once I reach an acceptable (to me) weight/strength/physique plateau, I'll shift completely into a maintenance workout routine. Also, I plan to get a complete-ish physical exam sometime in January. This should provide a nice set of starting data for whatever maintenance routine I establish.

Previous weight loss posts:
-Reaching a "normal" BMI
-How to Lose Weight (Part 1)
-How to Lose Weight (Part 2)

45 pounds

Here's what 45 pounds of weight loss looks like in a face:

















Quite a difference, no?

How to lose weight (Part Two)

Previous Posts:
How to lose weight (Part One)
Normal

Last time I wrote about the three main factors influencing weight loss:
1. Calories In
2. Calories Out
3. Nutritional Quality

Today I'll go into some of the minor factors that seem to have worked for me. They are more case-specific, obviously, but the principles are sound.

Goals
One of the first things that any weight-loss plan requires is a target weight. This is used both as a motivational tool and as a measure of improving health. The target weight should be attainable, but low enough to require steady progress. There should be a series of short term goals along the way, since it is tough to stay motivated while focusiing on some distant reward.

When I began my workout/diet plan, I weighed 235 pounds. At 74.5 inches tall, that put my BMI score at 30.6. It qualified me for the dubious distinction of being "obese". I set an overall target weight loss goal of 50 pounds (185), but that was obviously too much to achieve in one fell swoop. My first short term goal was to lose ten pounds (making me "overweight" instead of "obese").

After I achieved the first short term goal (in 8 weeks), I set my new target at 215. This represented 20 pounds of weight loss, and was my weight when I started college. The first ten pounds had given me noticable results, so the reinforcement mechanism was already established. It took six weeks to hit 215, and it occured just in time for my summer trip to Colorado. It was much more rewarding for me to spend a few days relaxing when I knew I was on track with my weight loss stuff.

The third short term goal was, unsuprisingly, another ten pounds (205). I hit the goal in just over six weeks, and it coincided with a friend's wedding back home. By this point, I was noticably thinner, which prompted "positive reinforcement" from people that hadn't seen me in a few months. From that point, I set a time-specific goal of reaching 200 by the time fall semester began. This gave me four weeks to lose five pounds, which I knew was definitely achievable form my past experience. It worked out, and I was now down an impressive 35 pounds in 25 weeks.

With the start of school, I had to modify my workout schedule. I had been working out in the afternoon, but that wasn't going to work with my class and teaching schedule. I decided to switch to early morning workouts, which was quite a change for me. I have never been much of a morning person, so it was tough to start getting up at 6:30 am Monday-Friday. I have stuck to it pretty well, so far. In the past eight weeks, I have lost another ten pounds, putting me at 190 (45 pounds lost).

I am now entering what I consider the final phase of the weight "loss" plan. I plan to reach 185 (my initial goal) sometime shortly after Election Day. At that point, I will reassess my overall health and transition into the "maintenance" phase. This will likely involve cutting my workouts back to Monday-Wednesday-Friday, and starting to focus more intently on muscle-building and toning. That is not to say that I won't try to lose a few more pounds. If I still have some remaining "problem areas" at 185, they will become a focus of my workout. After all, there is no magical formula to this stuff, just an evolving set of priorities.


Measurement
Another important consideration of a successful weight loss plan is the way in which you measure your progress. Some people measure their weight daily (or even more frequently), which captures the minor fluctuations in bodyweight that occur naturally. For the duration of my weight loss regimen, I have used my post-workout weight on Wednesdays as the "official" measure of progress. This standardizes and "blinds" the data collection process, and also avoids the stress of dealing with daily variations.

From time to time, I'll weigh myself on other days, just to get an idea of where I'm at. Typically, I see that my Wednesday weight falls on a wave that fluctuates from about +1 to -2 during the intervening week. This means that if I weighed 200 pounds on Day 0, I would weigh 201 on Day 2 and maybe 198 on Day 6, with an official weight of 198.5 on Day 7 (Wednesday #2). This trend would contnue the following week, and so on. Rather than get caught up in the variation, focus on the long view of good eating habits, exercise, and realistic goal setting. It is analogous to investing in the stock market. There are ups and downs, but the overall trend is more important.

The scale that you use makes a difference. A $20 bathroom scale may be OK for spot checks, but it is best to use a more reliable balance-beam scale at the gym. I always use the same scale at Ames Racquet and Fitness, and it seems to work well enough.

Another method of measuring progress is by bodyfat percentage. There are scales and handheld devices that measure electrical impedence in your body and calculate a bodyfat number. From my research, these are too finicky and can be skewed by hydration, muscle density, and numerous other factors. Unless you are having a doctors check you with calipers, view bodyfat numbers as a rough approximation, at best.

Another measurement-related factor is hydration. One pint of water weighs one pound, so exercising hard and sweating will artificially drop your weight. It will all come back as soon as you take a drink, so satisfiy your thirst prior to weigh-in. It isn't healthy to dehydrate yourself, and it doesn't generate real numbers anyway.


Rewards
There is plenty of intrinsic value in losing weight and becoming physically fit. However, if you are a human, you have all sorts of crazy in your head that needs to be reassured that what you are doing is worthwhile. It could be as simple as taking a day off from working out after reaching a goal, or as complicated as a trip or new luxury item. Whatever works for you. Bear in mind that rewards only work if they are proportional to the achievement; a three-day bender of ice cream after losing one pound is not a sustainable weight loss method.

I have used the following rewards during my weight loss plan:
-new clothes at certain benchmark weight
-going out for a nice (fattening) dinner
-cutting loose and being super-unhealthy for a weekend of tailgating
-blowing $50 that I had planned on saving

I have found that tying my weight loss plans to financial goals works well for me. I have been keeping my nose to the financial grindstone for a couple years, so it helps me to cut out junk food, restaurants, and pre-prepared meals if I can find a financial motive to do so. Run the numbers on a month's worth of drive-throughs and snacks, then compare it to fresh food and cooking. The difference is fairly shocking (and motivating).


I'm sure I'll have more on this topic in the future. Best of luck.

Chipotle chili con carne y frijoles

This recipe is a good way to get rid of canned beans and tomatoes that are sitting in the pantry. I guess it could be called "chile para cocineros perezosos". It definitely hits the spot on chilly (get it?) days, or for fall tailgating. I make no claims that this recipe is "authentic" in any way, shape, or form. It does taste really good, though.

Chipotle chili con carne y frijoles
(chipotle chili with meat and beans)

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 can (14 oz) chili beans
2 cans (2 x 14 oz) tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
1 small can tomato paste
1-2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, seeded, chopped fine
5 tsp ground cumin
5 tsp chili powder*
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Worchestershire sauce
salt to taste (I use ~2 tsp)

Directions:
1. brown meat in pot over high heat
2. add onion to meat just before browning has finished
3. cook meat and onion until onions have softened
4. add remaining ingredients, stir well to combine
5. bring to simmer, then reduce heat
6. simmer for ~2 hours, stirring occasionally
7. serve with crackers, cheese, and sour cream.

Notes:
Chili may dry out during simmering. Add water to maintain desired consistency.
Amounts of spices are a function of personal preference, obviously.
I find that tomato paste helps smooth the edges of a spicy chili.
Depending on what beans you use, the amount of salt required could vary.
As written, this recipe serves 3-4 adults.


*I have a bottle of the "hot" chili powder from Savory Spice Shop. Five teaspoons makes a relatively spicy chili, although not overpoweringly so. I recommend their product. Chili powders are highly variable, so add slowly, tasting often.

How to lose weight (Part One)

I wrote about my weight loss last week. This week I'm going to cover some of the methods that have worked for me.

Scientific studies show that the ultimate contributor to body weight is the balance between "calories in" and "calories out". The other stuff is important, but it really does come down to thermodynamics.

Calories In
There are numerous places online to calculate your nutritional requirements. MyPyramid is one of them, but check around for others. The goal is to find a reasonable target for daily food intake, so don't lie about how much physical activity you perform. In fact, I find that it works better to input the data as if you were completely sedentary (probably closer to the truth anyway). That way, the recommended caloric intake will be sufficiently low to actually accomplish something.

My recommended caloric intake (from multiple sites) is around 2500 kcal/day. The easiest way to start losing weight was to reduce that to ~2000 kcal/day. Right off the bat, there was a 500 kcal/day deficit. The formula goes something like this:

(-500 kcal/day) x (7 days/week) = -3500 kcal/week

There are approximately 3500 kcal per pound of body fat, so by cutting out 500 kcal/day, there is a theoretical loss of one pound per week.

Exercise (Calories Out)
Exercise should focus on three goals:
1)build cardiorespiratory fitness
2)tone and develop muscles
3)increase the daily calorie deficit for weight loss

Cardiorespiratory (aka "cardio") fitness comes from aerobic exercise. This can mean swimming, jogging, treadmill, elliptical, etc. The target should be maintaining an elevated heart for around 30 minutes at a time. As your fitness improves, the level of resistance (or speed) will increase to achieve the same heart rate.

Toning and developing muscles is a natural byproduct of weight loss and increased physical activity. Muscle development shouldn't be the primary goal, since muscle tissue is more dense than adipose tissue. Gradually building muscle mass will allow you to lose weight at a more steady rate than attempting to lose fat via strength training.

The more muscle conditioning you have, the faster your body will burn calories. This comes from the simple equation:

more work = more energy required = more weight lost

The rate-limiting step is the work limit. Having better muscle tone and strength allows you to do more work, which burns more calories, which drops your body weight. Having "fit" muscles means that they will transition from resting to working more efficiently, which has the side effect of increasing your basal metabolic rate. This feeds back into the caloric requirement equation, and so on.

Nutritional Quality
While "calories in - calories out" is the most important part of weight loss, nutritional quality is a close second. Here are the five main factors influencing the nutritional side of weight loss:

1. Energy density
2. Nutrient density and balance
3. Psychological appeal
4. Portions, portions, portions
5. food economy

Energy density is determined by the number of calories in a piece of food relative to its size. A tablespoon of olive oil has 120 calories, while a tablespoon of sugar has ~50. A tablespoon of chopped tomatoes has about 5 calories. This has obvious implications when making food choices during the day. You will feel less full (and therefore more hungry) if you eating energy dense meals. Not a good plan for sticking to your caloric intake goals.

Nutrient density and balance are basically the bang for the buck of everyday foods. Fruit and vegetables are high in nutrients, relatively low in energy, and have good bulk (more filling). This means that meals, especially breakfast and lunch, should have more fruit/veg content, and be lower in fat than the evening meal. Some people recommend eating a big lunch and a light dinner, but that strategy makes me sleepy at work and hungry at home (not a great result). Figure out what works for you.

The psychological appeal of different foods cannot be overlooked. I have found that if I focus on not eating junk food, it will just make it more appealing. Instead, try a replacement mechanism. I use frozen grapes in place of candy, homemade granola (low-sugar) instead of pop-tarts, and Diet Dr. Pepper in place of regular Dr. Pepper. Find whatever substitutions work for you, and stick with them. Pretty soon, you will wonder why you ever bothered with junk food in the first place.

Portion control is a pretty obvious factor in weight loss (or weight maintenance). Anybody with a half-measure of sense knows that eating enough to feel bloated is probably going too far. If you're brave, venture into an all-you-can-eat buffet restaurant. You will see that a high percentage of the patrons are...well...fat. There are obviously many factors at play, but the concept of eating as much as your belly can hold just makes zero sense from a weight-control standpoint. Plus, who wants to be the guy at the $6 buffet eating carrots and chicken? The natural urge is to gorge on fatty foods and "get your money's worth".

The buffet thing brings up another important point: food economy. What I mean is the marginal value of certain food preparations relative to weight-loss strategies. Example:

Meal A: pre-cooked, frozen meal; claims to be "healthy"; costs $3.50
Meal B: chicken breast, green beans, potato; prepared at home; costs $5.00

Some people will adamantly assert that Meal A (frozen) is more economical. They will stock up on frozen "healthy" meals and say that they are saving money and time. I admit, I have a few frozen meals in the freezer for time-crunched occasions. However, I would quickly become depressed if I ate that rubbery schlock more than twice per month. Instead, I take the extra 30-60 minutes of cooking time to make a meal that I enjoy. Also, with practice, you can learn to cook an extra portion for the next day's lunch. Anybody who chooses a Lunchable over reheated fried rice is an idiot or worse. Cooking your own food almost always yields better flavor, better nutrition, and better cost per serving than premade crap.


There are more factors at play for successful weight loss. I'll brew up a post in the near future and expand upon them.