OurBodyTransformations

This flavorful recipe turns leftover chicken or turkey into a delicious, fragrant dish.

3 cups chicken broth
2 19 oz cans cannelloni beans (white kidney beans)
1 onion — chopped
2 garlic cloves — minced
4 ounces canned chopped green chilies
2 teaspoons oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
salt and pepper — to taste
4 cups cooked chicken

Rinse and drain the beans. Combine all ingredients in a large pot and simmer gently about 1 hour. Serve in bowls topped with grated jack cheese or wrapped in flour tortillas.  Note: This tastes better the second day. It freezes well.

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A delicious mélange (Yes, it’s a word from the word of the day calendar) of pinto beans and pizza ingredients, cooked effortlessly in the crock-pot. From Mabel Hoffman’s Crockery Cookery.

Ingredients

• 1 pound pinto beans
  3 1/2 cups water
  4 tomatoes — chopped
  1 onion — chopped
  1/4 cup chopped red or green bell pepper
  1 clove garlic — crushed
  1 teaspoon salt
  1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
  1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Rinse beans, removing any foreign objects.

Place in a large bowl and cover with water and allow to soak at room temperature overnight.

In a slow cooker, combine beans, water, tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, garlic, salt, oregano, and rosemary. Cover and cook on High 6 to 7 hours or until beans are tender.

Right before you’re ready to serve, top with mozzarella, then Parmesan cheese. Cover and cook another 10 minutes or until cheese melts.

Yields 10 – 12 side dish servings or 6 – 8 main dish servings.

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If you’re not familiar with the effect vinegar can have on the glycemic load of food, check this (from Wikipedia) out :

Blood glucose control and diabetic management

Prior to hypoglycemic agents, diabetics used vinegar teas to control their symptoms.^[16] Small amounts of vinegar (approximately 20 ml or two tablespoons of domestic vinegar) added to food, or taken along with a meal, have been shown by a number of medical trials to reduce the glycemic index of carbohydrate food for people with and without diabetes.^[18][19][20] This also has been expressed as lower glycemic index ratings in the region of 30%.^[21][22]

Balsamic vinegar is a great tasting vinegar, while there are other vinegars that are more effective, a small change can be the first step towards larger goals.  After trying this recipe, you may find you like vinegar more than you previously thought!

Ingredients

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• 3/4 lb small mushrooms, quartered
• 2 Tbsp flour
• salt and pepper
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• 1 Tbsp butter

Season the flour with salt and pepper and dredge the chicken breast halves in it. Shake off excess flour.

Heat the oil in a heavy skillet and cook the chicken over moderately high heat until nicely browned on one side, about 3 minutes.

Add the garlic cloves. Turn the chicken pieces over and scatter the mushrooms over all. Continue cooking, shaking the skillet and redistributing the mushrooms so they cook evenly. Cook about 3 minutes.

Add the Balsamic vinegar and broth, the bay leaf and thyme. Cover and cook over moderately high heat about 10 minutes.

Turn the pieces occasionally as they cook. Transfer the chicken to a warm platter and cover with foil.

Let the sauce cook, uncovered, over moderately high heat about 7 minutes. Swirl in the butter. Remove the bay leaf. Pour the sauce and mushrooms over the chicken and serve.

Yields 4 servings.

If it weren’t for the vinegar, I think this dish might be a bit higher on the GI scale… but as it is, it should remain pretty healthy!  Enjoy!

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A delicious, low GI recipe from Deanie Comeaux Bahan’s cookbook, Sugar free New Orleans: A cookbook based on the Glycemic Index.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms
• 8 whole chicken breasts without bones
• 8 thin slices lean ham
• 8 slices mozzarella cheese
• Salt and cayenne to taste
• Paprika or oregano
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 tblsp. chopped green onions
• 2 cups light sour cream

Clean mushrooms and slice into thick slices. Set aside.

Clean chicken, removing skin and as much of the fat as possible.  Pat dry. Slit breasts lengthwise, but not all the way through, to form a pocket.

Put the ham and the cheese inside the pocket. Season with salt and pepper.

Roll the chicken up with the opening to the inside. Secure with a toothpick.

Sprinkle each roll generously with paprika or oregano.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy frying pan and brown the chicken rolls. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon to a casserole dish.

In the remaining olive oil, sauté the mushrooms and green onions for about 5 minutes on medium heat.

Add sour cream and blend well. Pour the sour cream and mushroom mixture over the chicken.

Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes or until done.

Let me know what you think of this one!

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In case you haven’t noticed, I’m kinda a stir-fry fan!  Here’s another one for you to try.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 4 medium carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 bell peppers (your choice of color), seeded and thinly sliced
• 1 medium onion, sliced 1/2-inch thick
• Lemon pepper, to taste
• 2 medium yellow tomatoes, seeded and chopped 2 cups broccoli florets
• 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 portobello mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
• Sesame seeds, for garnish
• 4 pita breads, cut in half

If you haven’t used portobello mushrooms before, here’s a quick primer.  They’re large tan or brownish mushrooms with relatively flat caps up to about 6 inches across.  They have a meaty flavor and texture.  You can grill them, stir-fry them (obviously), you can even bake them, no I’m not going to do the whole Pvt. Benjamin Buford ‘Bubba’ Blue speech using portobello instead of shrimp.

Wait… hrm… substituting shrimp for portobello would work in this recipe!

In a large wok or skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over high heat until almost smoking(you do know the smoke points of the different oils, right?).  Add carrots, bell peppers and onion. Season with lemon pepper and stir-fry until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Remove vegetables to a platter.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in wok. Add tomato, broccoli, asparagus and garlic. Season with lemon pepper and stir-fry until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Remove vegetables to platter.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in wok. Add mushrooms and season with lemon pepper. Stir-fry until tender, about 2 minutes. Remove mushrooms to platter. Sprinkle vegetables with sesame seeds and serve with pita bread. Makes 4 servings.

Let me know what you think of this one after you’ve enjoyed it!

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This low GI salmon recipe is so quick to make, you won’t believe how great it tastes.

Ingredients

1 salmon fillet (approximately 4 oz)
1 tsp fat-free mayonnaise
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dill weed
salt/pepper to taste

Directions

Using a pastry brush, spread mayonnaise over salmon fillet.  This serves to pull all the flavor from the lemon, dill and salt into the fish.   Sprinkle the  lemon juice, dill, salt and pepper onto your fillets.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until salmon easily flakes.

The recipe may be simple, but the flavor will impress even the most discriminating guest!

Let me know what you think of this recipe!

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This pork tenderloin is a great low glycemic recipe to prepare on the weekend. This is definitely a “Low and Slow” dish.  The more time you take to prepare it, the more you’ll be rewarded by the results!

Ingredients

1 lb pork tenderloin, cut into 1 inch slices
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups chicken broth
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp worchestershire sauce
12 new small potatos, quartered
4 medium carrots, chopped
2 medium onions, sliced
1 cup mushrooms, sliced

Directions

Heat oil over medium heat in a large, covered skillet.  Slice pork into slices.  Add pork to skillet and cook for several minutes on each side, or until just browned.  This searing causes a Malliard reaction.  Trust me, this is an amazing thing.  While Wikipedia says red meat has a more intense effect than white meat, do not dismiss the effect on pork!

Add veggies to skillet.  Combine broth, soy and worchestershire sauce.  Pour into skillet.  Bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours.  If you have the time, toss the whole mixture in your slow cooker and wait 4 or more hours before serving.  You will experience the best pork tenderloin you’ve ever put on your plate!

Serves 4

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These green beans are a quick and easy low gi side dish that goes well with practically any entrée.  After cooking them, if you chill them in the fridge, and serve them cold along side a grilled meal.  The cool serving works well during these hot summer afternoons!

Ingredients

2 cups fresh green beans
2 cloves garlic
4 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt/pepper to taste

Directions

Snap beans into 1 inch pieces.  Steam until tender, yet still crisp, approximately 10 minutes.

While the beans are steaming, mince the garlic.  Then combine minced garlic, vinegar, and olive oil.  Remove the beans from the steamer, then toss with garlic mixture.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.   Enjoy!

Like I said before, I like to serve these chilled along side a grilled meal like chicken or beef.  I’ve even been known to put the leftovers into a salad the next day!  It really does a number for salads!  Let me know what you think!

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