Healthy Food: Lebanese Lentil Soup - Shorbit Adas

Lebanese Lentil Soup - Shorbit Adas

Recipe By :Food for the Vegetarian: Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan, p 104
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : LowCal (Less than 300 cals) LowerCarbs
LowFat (Less than 20%) Veggie

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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2 cups cracked lentils
2 medium onions -- quartered
3 tablespoons butter -- or margarine
1 teaspoon ground cumin
lemon juice -- (optional)
salt and freshly ground pepper -- to taste

Wash the lentils well and cover with water in a heavy pot. Add the onions and bring to the boil. Reduce the head and simmer until the lentils are soft - about 40 minutes. Add salt. Pass the lentils through a sieve. Return the puree to the pot and bring to the boil again, adding more water if necessary. Simmer the soup until the water is reduced and the soup is thickened. Add the butter and cumin, correct the seasoning and serve hot with croutons of fried flat Arabic bread on the side.
Serves 6.

Cuisine: "Lebanese"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1992"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 282 Calories; 6g Fat (20.0% calories from fat); 18g Protein; 40g Carbohydrate; 20g Dietary Fiber; 16mg Cholesterol; 67mg Sodium
Exchanges: 2 1/2 Grain(Starch) ; 1 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1 Fat.

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Lebanese Lentil Soup - Shorbit Adas

Healthy Food: Lebanese Chickpea Dip - Hummus bi Tahini

Lebanese Chickpea Dip - Hummus bi Tahini

Recipe By :Food for the Vegetarian: Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : LowCal (Less than 300 cals) LowerCarbs
Veggie

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ ------------ --------- --------- --
1 cup dried chickpeas -- soaked overnight
2 cloves garlic -- crushed
3 tablespoons tahini -- (crushed sesame paste)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil

Boil the chickpeas in water until done. Drain and rub them with the palms to remove the skin. Mash while warm in a food processor, leaving out a few whole ones for garnishing. Add tahini, lemon juice, salt and 2 tablespoons of cold water. Blend the mixture until it is of creamy consistency. Correct the seasoning and pour the thick dip into a deep bowl. Garnish with whole chickpeas and chopped parsley. Sprinkle with olive oil and serve with pita bread.
Serves 4.

VARIATION:
Chickpeas Dip with Pine Nuts
2 cups hummus
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 tablespoons butter, or 1 tablespoon clarified butter (samneh)

Prepare the hummus and swivel it into a deep bowl. Saute the pine nuts in butter and pour into the center of the hummus bowl.
Serves 4.

Cuisine: "Lebanese"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1992"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 289 Calories; 12g Fat (37.0% calories from fat); 12g Protein; 36g Carbohydrate; 10g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 2425mg Sodium
Exchanges: 2 Grain(Starch) ; 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 2 Fat.

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Lebanese Chickpea Dip - Hummus bi Tahini

Healthy Food: Lebanese Dried Navy Beans w Tomatoes and Onions in Olive Oil - Fasuliya bi-Zayt - 33g Carbs, 12g Fiber

Lebanese Dried Navy Beans w Tomatoes and Onions in Olive Oil - Fasuliya bi-Zayt - 33g Carbs, 12g Fiber

Recipe By :Food for the Vegetarian: Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan
Serving Size : 5 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : LowCal (Less than 300 cals) LowerCarbs
LowFat (Less than 25%) Veggie

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ ------------ --------- --------- --
1 cup dried navy beans -- or small white beans, soaked overnight
2 onions -- sliced
2 tomatoes -- skinned, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 cloves garlic -- chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper

Bring the beans to the boil and cook until tender. In a deep pot, saute the onions in oil until golden. Add the garlic, tomatoes, and simmer until pulpy. Stir in the tomato paste. Add the beans and enough cooking water to cover. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes, until the beans are very tender and the sauce is reduced. Garnish with parsley and serve hot or cold.

Serves 4-6.

Cuisine: "Lebanese"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1992"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 222 Calories; 6g Fat (24.2% calories from fat); 11g Protein; 33g Carbohydrate; 12g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 64mg Sodium
Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch) ; 1/2 Lean Meat; 1 1/2 Vegetable; 1 Fat

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Lebanese Dried Navy Beans w Tomatoes and Onions in Olive Oil - Fasuliya bi-Zayt - 33g Carbs, 12g Fiber

Lebanese Dried Navy Bean Stew - Yakhnet Fasuliya - 51g Carbs, 20g Fiber

Recipe: Food for the Vegetarian: Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan
Serving Size: 5
Categories: LowerCarbs LowFat (Less than 30%) Veggie
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
2 cups dried navy beans -- or small white beans, soaked overnight
1 bunch coriander -- chopped
4 cloves garlic -- crushed
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper

Wash the beans well and bring them to the boil in a deep pot. Cook covered until tender. In a separate pan, heat the oil and toss the garlic and coriander for 3 minutes. Add them to the cooked beans, season with salt and pepper, and serve with rice pilaf on the side.

Serve 4-6.
Cuisine: "Lebanese"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1992"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 378 Calories; 12g Fat (27.6% calories from fat); 19g Protein; 51g Carbohydrate; 20g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 12mg Sodium
Exchanges: 3 1/2 Grain(Starch) ; 1 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 2 Fat

READ MORE - Lebanese Dried Navy Bean Stew - Yakhnet Fasuliya - 51g Carbs, 20g Fiber

Healthy Food: Lebanese Dried Navy Bean Stew - Yakhnet Fasuliya - 51g Carbs, 20g Fiber

Lebanese Dried Navy Bean Stew - Yakhnet Fasuliya - 51g Carbs, 20g Fiber

Recipe: Food for the Vegetarian: Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan
Serving Size: 5
Categories: LowerCarbs
LowFat (Less than 30%)
Veggie

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ ------------ --------- --------- --
2 cups dried navy beans -- or small white beans, soaked overnight
1 bunch coriander -- chopped
4 cloves garlic -- crushed
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper

Wash the beans well and bring them to the boil in a deep pot. Cook covered until tender. In a separate pan, heat the oil and toss the garlic and coriander for 3 minutes. Add them to the cooked beans, season with salt and pepper, and serve with rice pilaf on the side.

Serve 4-6.
Cuisine: "Lebanese"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1992"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 378 Calories; 12g Fat (27.6% calories from fat); 19g Protein; 51g Carbohydrate; 20g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 12mg Sodium
Exchanges: 3 1/2 Grain(Starch) ; 1 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 2 Fat

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Lebanese Dried Navy Bean Stew - Yakhnet Fasuliya - 51g Carbs, 20g Fiber

Healthy Food: Lebanese Dried Broad Beans with Cumin - Ful bi-Kammun - 32g Carbs, 13g Fiber

Lebanese Dried Broad Beans with Cumin - Ful bi-Kammun - 32g Carbs, 13g Fiber

Recipe By: Food for the Vegetarian: Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan
Serving Size: 4
Categories: LowCal (Less than 300 cals) LowerCarbs
LowFat (Less than 20%) Veggie

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ ------------ --------- --------- --
1 cup dried broad beans -- or fava beans, soaked overnight
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon clarifie d butter -- or samneh
salt -- to taste

Boil the beans until tender. Drain and place them in a deep serving bowl. Crush the garlic with the salt and cumin and mix with the warm broad beans. Heat the clarified butter and pour it over the mixture. Serve hot with flat Arabic bread.

Serves 4.

Cuisine: "Lebanese"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1992"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 205 Calories; 4g Fat (16.7% calories from fat); 12g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 13g Dietary Fiber; 8mg Cholesterol; 8mg Sodium
Exchanges: 2 Grain(Starch) ; 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat.

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Lebanese Dried Broad Beans with Cumin - Ful bi-Kammun - 32g Carbs, 13g Fiber

Healthy Food: Kurdish Chicken Soup with Meat Bulgur Dumplings (Kubbeh)- 5g Carbs, 1g Fiber

Kurdish Chicken Soup with Meat Bulgur Dumplings (Kubbeh)- 5g Carbs, 1g Fiber

Recipe By :Morduch Restaurant, Jerusalem
Serving Size : 11 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : LowCal (Less than 300 cals) LowerCarbs
LowFat (Less than 25%) Meat

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ ------------ --------- --------- --
12 cups rich chicken broth
2 celery stalks -- with leaves, cut into 2-inch chunks
5 small zucchini -- cut into 2" chunks
2 lemons -- juice only
12 kubbeh dumplings -- recipe below
2 tablespoons fresh basil -- or dill

In a large pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil. Add the celery, zucchini, lemon juice and the kubbeh. Cover, and simmer about 25 minutes, until the dumplings are soft. add the basil, or dill, and adjust the amount of lemon juice to taste. Simmer a few minutes more and serve immediately in soup bowls giving each person 1 large dumpling and lots of zucchini.

Yields 10 - 11 servings.
Kubbeh - Kurdish Bulgur Meat Dumplings

2 cups fine bulgur
2 cups semolina
salt -- to taste
pepper -- to taste
1/2 medium onion -- chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound chopped beef -- or lamb
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1/4 teaspoon allspice
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Soak the bulgur in warm water to cover for about an hour. Squeeze dry and mix with the semolina and salt. Knead well with your hands, adding water if necessary, to form a malleable dough. For a smoother dough, pulse in food processor with metal blade.

Saute the onion in the oil and then add the meat. Cook thoroughly, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Add the pine nuts, allspice, salt, pepper and chopped parsley. Drain and set aside. Divide the dough into 12 balls about 2 1/2 inches across. Dip your hands in water and make an opening, keeping the walls about 1/4 inch thick. Insert a heaping teaspoon of the meat mixture into the hole and close up again. Refrigerate about an hour or until ready to cook.

Makes 12 dumplings.

Cuisine: "MidEastern"
Source: "The New York Times Jewish Cookbook, edited by Linda Amster"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "2003"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 58 Calories; 2g Fat (24.4% calories from fat); 7g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 842mg Sodium
Exchanges: 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit.

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Kurdish Chicken Soup with Meat Bulgur Dumplings (Kubbeh)- 5g Carbs, 1g Fiber

Diabetes: Question on food choices

I am supposed-to- be vegan most Wednesdays and Fridays, during Christmas Lent, Great Lent, Apostles' Fast, and Dormition Fast - all added together, about half the year. Although I have my priest's blessing to use fish and eggs during the longer fasts, I try to do it completely vegan the shorter fasts and individual days. My son-in-law, who is also diabetic, is ovo/lacto/once- in-a-while- fish/vegetarian.

READ MORE - Diabetes: Question on food choices

Healthy Food: Claudia Roden's Matzoh Meat Pie - Arab - 30g Carbs, 2g Fiber

Claudia Roden's Matzoh Meat Pie - Arab - 30g Carbs, 2g Fiber

Recipe By: Claudia Roden, Adapted from The Book of Jewish Food
Serving Size: 5
Preparation Time :0:00
Categories: LowerCarbs Meat

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ ------------ --------- --------- --
1 large onion -- chopped
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds ground lamb -- or beef
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
2 tablespoons raisin
2 tablespoons pine nuts -- or walnuts
1 cup beef stock -- warm
5 matzo crackers -- or 6
1 small egg -- lightly beaten

In a skillet, fry the onion in 2 T. oil over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes until golden. Add the ground meat and spices. Cook, stirring, until meat has browned but is still moist, about 10 minutes. Add raisins. In another small pan, fry the nuts in the remaining 1 T. oil for about 1 minutes, stirring the nuts or shaking the pan until the nuts are lightly colored. Add to the meat mixture and stir.

Place the stock in a large, shallow, rectangular pan. Soak matzohs, one at a time, pressing them gently to absorb the liquid. Press 2 or 3 softened matzohs in a 9-inch pie plate. (You may to tear or cut matzohs with a scissors to accomplish this.) Place the meat mixture on top of matzohs, and use the remaining softened matzohs to cover pie.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Brush the top with the beaten egg and bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.

This particular blend of raisins, nuts, spices and meat is characteristic of the Arab world.

Cuisine: "Arab"
Source: "The New York Times Passover Cookbook"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "May 2009"
Copyright: "1999"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 628 Calories; 43g Fat (62.8% calories from fat); 28g Protein; 30g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 142mg Cholesterol; 521mg Sodium
Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch) ; 3 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 6 1/2 Fat.

READ MORE - Healthy Food: Claudia Roden's Matzoh Meat Pie - Arab - 30g Carbs, 2g Fiber

Diabetes: Gastric bypass and diabetes

It has been a long time since I posted here. I sometimes read, often don't, but continue to be on the list.

As long-timers might remember, I was doing a serious body-building exercise program with a professional trainer to lose fat and deal with diabetes. However, I felt my body clock was ticking in many regards and I was not close to where I wanted to be at age 60. I've considered this option for probably 10 years. I signed up for weight loss surgery and gave myself that wait time to see how much I could do on my own.

I opted for the bypass because it is the only one that has an immediate impact on blood sugars. I can't say that we know why bypass affects BG, but it does.

When I left the hospital in early-April of this year I was off byetta and fortamet. My sugars have not been as low as I'd like, but I want normal. However, the doctors are thrilled. I've lost weight, albeit more slowly than most because I was not malignantly obese. I'm told that I'll eventually be at or around a "normal" weight in a year or so - whatever normal means for someone who is still trying to do body building. My knees are better and I'm a lot more active as the weight drops off.

I attend a Healthy Ongoing Weight Loss (HOWL) meeting regularly and every diabetic who has had the bypass has reported either a huge improvement in their diabetes or are in full remission. We all eat a restricted calorie, low-carb, high protein diet of about 800 calories for women and a bit more for men. The trade off is taking vitamins, minerals and calcium supplments for the rest of my life. At the meetings I listen to people who are up to 10 years out and a year out the vast majority of diabetics have normal sugars that run in the 70's without any medication. The only people who still take medication were the ones with malignant obesity who, having lost hundreds of pounds are still a hundred or more pounds overweight; they mostly take low doses of insulin.

This isn't a solution that would work for everyone. In some cases people can't get insurance coverage - medicare doesn't seem to cover it for anyone and perhaps it is difficult to get in some countries. Some folks are intimidated by the costs or the surgical risks (which are far, far lower than having diabetes) or the concept of being forever restricted in eating - even on festive days. The center I went to requires psychological evaluations and ongoing intervention since the surgery is on the stomach and gut, not the head, meaning food addicts are going to have serious problems unless they deal with their addictions before surgery.

I am not advocating, merely reporting. For me, it was the right choice. My gastric reflux is gone as an added bonus and I now wish I'd done this years ago. The sugery was minimally invasive, I was back at the gym in a week doing walking, cycling, and the like and I feel good. I'm still learning what I can and can't eat - raw veggies and fruits are still beyond me, but my years on Bernstein low carb and the gastric restrictions of byetta made me a perfect candidate for this surgical intervention.

READ MORE - Diabetes: Gastric bypass and diabetes