CHICKEN WITH CAULIFLOWER WITH ORANGE AND GARLIC.

WHITTLE SEA BLUE CAB Las Vegas

Hi again my foodies, on this post we'll continue to talk about lowering your sugar blood levels as well as your sodium levels. As you all know, or if you didn't. I do have a high blood pressure issue that is pretty serious. I'm trying my best to reduce the top and bottom numbers with the help of medication. High BP is serious, as it can lead to stroke, heart attacks and who knows what else. So is high sugar levels, don't want to be a diabetic, and if you are. I'm your light. Let's all get healthy together. Life ain't easy! No it's not. Life is worth living. The narrow road is good, stay the course. The wide one leads to all kinds of nonsense and trouble. Stay the course even when it seems to be so difficult that you want to quit. No, don't quit. Never ever quit! I mean that.

In this simple recipe using chicken, cauliflower, orange and garlic it will not have any processed sugars, or added salts. Nothing.

INGREDIENTS makes 4 servings

4 skinless halves of chicken breasts, bone off, all natural or organic

8 cloves of garlic

1 large orange, peeled, and all parts separated

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1 head of cauliflower, tops trimmed, part of stems sliced in half

White pepper to taste

Spike seasonings to taste

Onion powder to taste

Garlic powder to taste

Nutritional yeast to taste

DIRECTIONS

In a 12 inch non-stick skillet, add a 1 1/2 cups of water, bring to a boil over high heat, then lower to medium low. Add in the garlic and the 4 chicken breast halves. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes. Then add in the orange pieces. Cover skillet, lower heat. Cook until the orange has softened considerably. 

Once the orange has softened, add in the cauliflower, cover, and cook until just tender. Add all seasonings one at a time, taste until you feel the flavors are just right.

Serve with brown rice or beans. Enjoy.

THE SOUS VIDE CRAZE

The foodie world is going bonkers over sous vide. What the heck is that? Is this some French cooking that only stuck up chefs can do? Sounds intimidating to you? Well don't let this Frenchy term get you all rattled. Don't be a timid cornerback facing Tom Brady for the first time. Stand your ground, defend the pass. Brady, he's only human. I think I made a good analogy. Sous vide, it's pronounced sooo- veeed. What it means is "under vacuum" in French. It's a highly efficient way of cooking anything to perfection. Like slow cooking. 

What happens, you get a piece of let's say a New York steak. You season it with your favorite seasonings. And you stick it in a vacuum sealed bag, like a Seal O Meal one. So when that steak cooks, it will cook in its own juices. Simple. And there's charts for cooking certain foods, the time it takes varies. Because it's a slow cooking process, tough meats are perfect for this method. Chuck cuts, briskets are all good. Pork shoulder. But even the prime cuts can work well because the meat will not dry out. And get this. You cook your steak sous vide, and it's not all crusty, it'll look pale of course. But what you do is, take that steak on a hot stainless steel pan or a cast iron one, and sear both sides and voila! Steak to perfections.

So what tools do you need? Well you can purchase a sous vide cooker, but you can kind of cut the cost and use a pot you already own. And if you don't have a vacuum sealer, you can check Amazon for one. Fill that pot up with water, stick your precision cooker in the pot, and it heats up the water, you clip your bag filled with goodness and cook it for the amount of time needed. Remember, the trick is to vacuum the air out of the bag. 

There are many precision cookers available. And some have Android and iOS apps with wifi connectivity. You need to go on Youtube and check it out. Easy! Most of these look like immersion blenders, or wands. It has all the controls. The temperatures run from 32 deg F, up to 210 deg F. * Close to boiling point.

The picture below is a cook with his sealed bag of food, and a pot of water with the sous vide cooking device inserted into the pot. 

Sous vide cooking times

Example: Beef tenderloin

Rare: 120-128 deg F.  45 minutes to 2 1/2 hours

Medium-rare 129 deg- 134 deg F. 45 minutes 4 hours

Medium 135 deg F- 144 deg F. 45 minutes to 4 hours

This gives you an idea of how it works.

I hope this gives you a quick idea of what it is. Now go and make your journey towards sous vide greatness!

FREINDLY FORD LAS VEGAS

TOFU CAKES WITH MOCK BEEF GRAVY

It's 3 days after Christmas and the year is almost over. Time to gear up on your New Year's resolution? As I've mentioned in my recent posts, I'll be dedicating this blogspot towards a more healthier cooking. As the diabetic and hypertension epidemic is just running rampant, we have to try and get into a more balanced mindset when it comes to food. Try to eat more lean proteins, more organic vegetbles and fruit. Drink more water than any sweetened drinks. With a changed diet, we can get off of the medications that can really be harmful to our insides. OK, enough of the boredom, let's get to cooking this dish called Tofu Cakes with Mock Gravy.

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs beaten
1 block of firm tofu (14oz), drained of water, and crumbled
1 1/4 cup of panko flakes* more if needed
3 tbsp. of Vegenaise (Vegan mayonnaise)
1 tbsp. ground mustard
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. celery salt
1 tsp. white pepper
1 tbsp. minced onion
1 tbsp. minced green onion
1 tsp. tamari soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil

In a mixing bowl, add all ingredients, and mix well. Once mixed well, form some patties, as many as you can, as big or small as you want.

In a nonstick pan with some safflower oil, fry each pattie until crips on both sides, remove from pan, and rest on a platter lined with paper towels to remove oil. Cover with foil to keep warm.

MOCK BEEF GRAVY

2 tbsp. of Better Than Bouilon 

Mock beef gravy using a vegetarian base.

1 cup of water
1 tsp. arrowroot
3 tsp. of water

In the same pan as the one used to fry the tofu patties, return pan to medium high heat. Add in the Better Than Bouillon with the water. Heat to a slight boil, then lower to a rolling simmer. Mix the arrowroot with water to form a mild paste. Add into pan, stir until gravy thickens. Adjust the flavorings with a little more salt if needed but not too much.

Plate the tofu patties with brown rice or mashed cauliflower or beans, top with some mock beef gravy. Enjoy.

FRIENDLY FORD Las Vegas

CHICKEN AND CABBAGE LAU LAU

In this blog post, on Christmas day 2018, I'll give you a Hawaiian style recipe using ingredients you can get in most supermarkets. Lau lau, is a meal made in Hawaii using some pork or beef and butter fish, simply salted. Then wrapped in taro leaves, and then wrapped again in ti leaves. Then it is steamed for a few hours rendering a soft 

RA SUSHI Las Vegas, NV

and juicy meaty dish. Served with poi, or the paste of the taro root. 

In this recipe, let's use some bone in chicken thighs, and some Napa cabbage, some tamari soy sauce, and some garlic cloves. That's all, and a steamer or a slow cooker.

INGREDIENTS Serves 4

8 large chicken thighs skin on or off, bone in

1 large Napa cabbage, leaves removed and rinsed

4 large pieces of aluminum foil

1 1/2 cups of tamari soy sauce

1/2 cup of water

8 cloves of crushed garlic

DIRECTIONS

In a mixing bowl, add in the 8 thighs, and the tamari soy sauce, water, and garlic. Marinate the chicken for about 1 hour in the fridge.

Take out the thighs, drain the liquid off each thigh. Open a foil, spread some cabbage on to the foil, and place 2 chicken thighs on top of it, and wrap it shut with the foil. Do the rest, 2 each in each foil.

Prep your steamer, with water and steam basket. Or slow cooker. You want to steam this for about 1 hour on a medium simmering steam. Off the heat, and let the lau laus sit in the steamer for a few minutes. When ready to eat, carefully open each lau lau, and servie with your favorite starch. If you are a diabetic, use an organic brown rice, or serve with beans.

Enjoy. Safe holidays.

HANGAR STEAK SALAD HEALTHY STYLE

As we celebrate the holidays, let's do it eating healthy. Cooking right for diabetics and people with hypertension. I vowed that onward this blog will be as healthy as can be. Cooking simple, and as natural as we can. Did you check your blood sugar? How about your blood pressure? Let's try and maintain a good BP, 130 and below/90 and below. Well lower than that, of course. I just took the high figures for those that are around those numbers. Diet and exercise helps. Less stress don't delve in the non important issues in life. If you can focus on what you need to do to survive, and understand that all kinds of negative issues arise throughout the day, you'll be OK. Nothing is easy, you know it. So always take a deep breath, try not to stress the small stuff. Traffic? Bosses? Kids? Neighbors? Just don't let that get your BP running high. Love yourselves. Seriously.

So if you can, go to the market and get a pound of a hangar steak, or some flap. Or some flank. And we'll marinate it in some natural ingredients.

INGREDIENTS Serves 2

1 lb. of hangar steak or other

1/2 cup organic apple juice

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp. tamari soy sauce

1 tsp. sesame oil

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. white pepper

2 cloves crushed garlic

1/4 inch smashed ginger

1 tbsp. minced green onion

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1 small head of green leaf lettuce cut in half, leaves pulled apart, rinsed of all grit

2 medium tomatoes, sliced thin

1 cup black pitted olives rinsed and drained

1/2 cup of canned water chestnuts chopped

2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

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1 cup ume vinegar

1/3 cup apple juice

2 tbsp. olive oil

1/4 tsp. minced ginger

1 clove garlic chopped

1 dash salt and white pepper

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DIRECTIONS

Take the steak and let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes. Then mix all of the ingredients from the apple juice to the green onions in a stainless steel mixing bowl or glass bowl. 

Place steak in the marinade, turn occasionally to coat well. Let sit at room temperature in marinade for about 20 minutes.

Meantime, prep the vegetables from the lettuce to the water chestnuts. Divide vegetables on two separate dinner plates. Spread the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese over vegetables.

Also prep the salad dressing, mix the ume vinegar to the white pepper in a small bowl, set aside.

Heat up a charcoal or gas grill and grill the steak to your liking. If you do not have a grill, use your oven or broiler. If you don't have that, pan sear the steak.

Once steak is cooked, let it sit on a cutting board for about 5 minutes. Slice across the grain into 1/8" slices. Divide cuts onto the salads. Enjoy.

RA SUSHI Las Vegas

THE LIMA BEAN'S HEALTH BENEFITS

Continuing our quest to find a well balanced diet that will prohibit diabetes and hypertension. This post will be our introduction to the one and only lima bean. This bean is just filled with goodness. Like most beans, one may use it as their source for protein as well as a replacement for their starches on that dinner plate. So you ask, what benefits does the lima bean possess? 

• Cooked beans, no salt. (3.5 oz.) serving
• 20.88g carbs
• 2.9 g sugars
• .38 g fat
• 7.8 g protein
• .161 mg Vitamin B1
• .055 mg Vitamin B2
• .421 mg Vitamin B3
• .422 mg Vitamin B5
• .161 mg Vitamin B6
• 83 Hg Folate
• .18 mg Vitamin E
• 2 Hg Vitamin K
• 17 mg Calcium
• 2.39 mg Iron
• 43 mg Magnesium
• .516 mg Manganese
• 111 mg Phosphorus
• 508 mg Potassium
• 2 mg Sodium
• .95 mg Zinc

Large lima beans shown here is uncooked. You will need to boil this down. Once softened you can work with it to add into any dish you are creating. NEVER EAT RAW BEANS.

Uncooked lima beans, a.k.a. Butter Beans.

Canned green lima beans are fully cooked and has some liquid inside the can. You might want to drain it and rinse it out first.

Lima beans like most beans are an excellent source of protein and other important nutrients. It is perfect for anyone with diabetes and hypertension. Of course when adding this bean to your cooked dishes, make sure you aren't adding lots of salt or any type of high fructose ingredient.

Instead of preserved flavorings, use fresh fruit juices to season your cooking, or raw creations. So use lima beans when you need to get filled up and want to stay off of white bread, potatoes, or white rice that can cause your sugar blood level to rise.

HEALTHY TOFU WITH GROUND PORK with CITRUS

Merry Xmas folks, on this Christmas eve 2018. As I promised you in the last few posts, I will dedicate this blog to mostly healthy cooking and eating. So in this issue we will do a tasty low in sodium tofu and ground pork. We will not use any canned ingredients. We will not use salt, or pepper. We will use just all natural food, including purchased all natural ground pork. Check out the ingredients below.

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. ground lean pork all natural

1 tsp. safflower oil

2 cloves of minced garlic

14 oz. block of firm organic tofu crumbled

1 tsp. minced onions

1 tsp. minced chili peppers

1 small tangerine chopped

1/2 small lemon chopped

1/2 small grapefruit chopped

1/2 small apple chopped

1 tsp. minced celery

DIRECTIONS

In a non-stick pan, add the oil over medium high heat, sautee the garlic, then sautee the pork. When the pork is brown, drain some of the fat out of the pan. Add in the tofu and the rest of the natural ingredients. Cook until everything is heated through, this will take about 6-8 minutes. Off the heat. Serve with brown rice, quinoa, or mashed cauliflower.

This may seem strange but think about it, everything is natural, mostly plant based. You will get some protein and vitamins too. And of course lots of fiber.

HEALTHY LUNCH- Tofu Sandwich with Cucumbers

How's all my foodies doing? Are we trying to stay somewhat healthy, cooking and eating right? I'll tell you, the last two days, I jumped the healthy train and ate some pork. Not healthy pork dishes. But today is another day. I'll make me a good lunch with organic tofu, and some tasty cucumbers. And some other ingredients. No chips, no french fries. Just a healthy sandwich. So let's check out the ingredients.

INGREDIENTS Makes 1, just double the ingredients for 2.

2 pieces of all grain bread
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2 tbsp. of Vegenaise (vegan mayonnaise)
1 tsp. of stone grain mustard
Mix the Vegenaise and mustard.
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2 leaves of lettuce

2 slices of tomato

2 slices of sweet round onion
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2 slices of firm tofu cut about 1/4" thick or a little thicker

2 tbsp. of tamari soy sauce
1 tbsp. of water
2 tbsp. of lemon juice
1 tsp. of mock chicken powder
1 tsp. of brown sugar
1/4 tsp. minced ginger
1 tbsp. of minced green onion
In a small bowl, mix the tamari to the green onions. Then take the 2 tofu pieces and marinate it in the bowl for about 5 minutes.
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1 medium cucumber sliced in haf, and sliced lengthwise into thin strips. (This is your french fries).
2 tbsp. ketchup
2 tbsp. Vegenaise (vegan mayonnaise)
Mix the ketchup and Vegenaise. 
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DIRECTIONS

Take two slices of bread, and spread the Vegenaise and mustard mixture. Spread it on both pieces of bread. Layer all of the lettuce, tomamotes and onions on one side. 

Take the marinated tofu pieces and place it over the layered vegetables. Cover with other piece of bread. Plate it.

Take your cucumber slices, and drizzle the ketchup and Vegenaise mixture over the cucumber slices. Voila! You got yourself some fiberous lunch with protein.

This is one of my favorite vegan mayonnaise on the market, it's probably the most tasty brands around. Zero cholesterol. No preservatives.

www.followyourheart.com

BREAKFAST LOW SODIUM EGGS

In this blog post I'll give you a simple tip on how to eat eggs for breakfast, and do it a little healthy. I mean eggs, who doesn't love it? Over easy, over buttered toast, and crisp hash browns, with some pork sausage. Love it, and that hot cup of coffee. But now, I'm dealing with issues. Health issues that can't be ignored. Recently I lost my health coverage, and I'm down to a few high blood pressure pills. I know, if I'm taking care of my body I wouldn't need those. But for now I do. 

So how can I eat the foods I love but alter it so that it's still tasty? OK, here's what you need to do.

Egg whites instead of whole eggs. Cooked in a non stick pan with little oil.

Instead of white bread toast with butter, use whole grain wheat bread, with no butter. 

Instead of hasbrowns eat some steamed veggies. You heard me.

Instead of regular coffee, drink decaf. Use little sugar and no cream.

Now for any meats, the protein. Instead of sausage, which is high in sodium. You can purchase inexpensive beef or chicken at the market. And cook them up, and do not use salt to flavor them. But use a squeeze of orange or lemon, or drizzle it with organic apple juice. 

There you have it something very simple that can go a long way. Let's all live longer together. The fact is, and I'm just speaking for myself. God will come knocking on my door one day and tell me it's time. Or he may just surprise me. But I want to stick around as long as I can. I have things to settle here on earth that is incomplete. 

Until next time.

EATING HEALTHY, THE PROTEIN SOURCE KITCHEN, LAS VEGAS

THE PROTEIN SOURCE KITCHEN in Las Vegas looks good. Their menu is lean and healthy. It's not vegan or vegetarian, just healthy food. So if you are one to eat healthy and can't really find anything at the hotel/casino you're staying at. Head to The Protein Source Kitchen. Two locations. Flamingo & Grand Canyon, 4220 Grand Canyon Dr. Ste 8. 8am-10pm. Or at 7060 S. Durango Dr #115. Open 8am-10pm.

702-701-7054

Their breakfast is healthy. You can order whole eggs, or just egg whites. They have a house made all natural turkey sausage. 9 grain toast, fresh salsa. They have turkey bacon, whole wheat wraps, multi-grain whole wheat waffles, lots of fruits. Even all natural tenderloin steaks. Multi-grain pancakes, organic oatmeal, walnut protein pancakes. Healthy stuff.

The salads look totally healthy. Mediterranean Quinoa, Kale Berry Bomb, Egg-Sparagus, Berry & Nuts, Western Avocado, Cobb Salad. All under $8.00

They offer a few wraps, however their Bulk up Bison Wrap looks killer. For $11.99 All Natural Pure American Bison. Caramelized Onions. Diced Green and Red Bell Peppers. Sweet Potato Hash, Cheddar Cheese and Stevia BBQ Sauce (380-660 cal . 26-35p)

Go to the website THE PROTEIN SOURCE KITCHEN

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE READINGS WHAT DO THEY MEAN?

In this post I'll go over some blood pressure readings and what do they mean. This is in relation to those of us with hypertension, and what we can do as far as cooking and eating to mitigate this health problem. 



What can extreme high blood pressure do?
It can cause a stroke, or heart attack.

How do you read the numbers, what's normal and what is high?
A normal reading reads like this 120/80. If you take your reading and you have something like this or a little below on the first and second numbers, you are good.

What is the first number?

• Systolic blood pressure (the first number) – indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls when the heart beats.
• Diastolic blood pressure (the second number) – indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls while the heart is resting between beats.

OK, so what is the high numbers?

An elevated pressure reads 120-129/80 and below. Notice the first number the systolic blood pressure rises by 9, you now have elevated blood pressure. 

The Danger Zones: 130-139/80-89 is considered high blood pressure. This is the serious time. No joking, I need meds to assist in lowering this. It is not a joking matter. Transportation companies will not hire professional drivers because of this, or drivers may be laid off until it is corrected. That goes for many skilled professionals that need mental focus, and doing pysical work. Airline pilots, captains of boats need to undergo physicals that check their overall health. And like I said, a key concern for all workers in all trades is the blood pressure.

When you are at that 140 or higher/90 or higher, you have a serious problem!

If you are at the higher than 180/120, this is extreme hypertension.

Eating healthy can help maintain a lower blood pressure.

Eat more greens, cabbage, lettuce, zucchini, cucumber, green beans, tofu, tomatoes, radish, carrots. Fruits such as bananas that have vitamins and potasium. 

Eat lean meats.

Lean beef, lean pork, lean chicken, fish is good for you. Keep it lean, cooked in light oil, poached, baked, grilled is good.

OMIT 

High sodium foods that come from cans. If you only have a canned food to eat, rinse it under cold water to remove as much salt and sodium as you can. Stay away from heavy sodium sauces like soy sauces, oyster sauces, black bean sauces. If you really want to eat these, water it down by half. At least it's better than having 100% of that in your body. 

Also stay away from high sugar foods. Fructose is the killer. Keep it at a minimum. 

Drink lots of water, stay away from high caffeine drinks because it makes your heart beat faster. If you love your coffee, drink your cup a day. Or drink decaf. CHECK WITH YOUR PERSONAL PHYSICIAN FIRST.

GINGER VEGGIES

Eating healthy is very simple, by eating all natural whole foods and meats, lean, low in sodium and sugars, you'll do pretty good. And right now in this point of my life, it's all about being simple. Forget all that complicated cooking techniques from being a chef. I'm all for the everyday person. Using your kitchen and tools, and cooking from scratch as best we can. I am an advocate of utilizing ready made products. Why not if it isn't gonna kill us, and it's healthy, without too much preservatives, I say use it.

So in this simple recipe simply entitled Ginger Veggies, the ingredients I'll use is listed below. And if you don't fancy these veggies, feel free to use what you want.

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup minced ginger 

1/2 stick of no salt butter

1/2 cup low sodium tamari soy sauce

1/4 cup apples cider vinegar

2 tbsp. brown sugar

1 cup organic veggie stock

8 oz. sliced mushrooms

6 oz. sliced cherry tomatoes

1 large green bell pepper sliced thin

2 small eggplants, peeled and sliced thin

5 oz. of green beans, trimmed and sliced thin

1 large potato, skin scrubbed, and cut into dices

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

In a large skillet with a cover, heat up the butter, ginger until aroma fills the air. Then add in the tamari, vinegar, veggie stock. Heat up to simmer.

Add in all of the other vegetables, stir occasionally. Simmer with cover on for about 10-12 minutes on medium low. Remove lid, season with salt and pepper. If you like, add on more fresh minced ginger.

Serve with brown rice or quinoa. Or over whole grain pasta.

VEEEEE GAN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Vegan cookies using spelt flour. When I cooked at a health food store, we used spelt exclusively. It is made of emmer wheat and wild goat-grass. With added health benefits such as improved blood circulation according to various health sources. However, it worked well for most baking applications. However for coating foods for batter its finished texture after deep frying was less than desireable.

Bob's Red Mill brand of Light Spelt Flour

Emmer Wheat

Goat Grass, kind of resembles wild weeds.

This blog post will be a recipe for a vegan chocolate chip cookie. No animal products, all organic (if you can get it).

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of spelt flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/3 tsp salt

1/4 brown sugar

1/3 cup pure chocolate chips

2 tbsp. of almond milk

2 tbsp. of safflower oil

1/3 cup pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Mix all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, then stir in wet to form a dough – it will be dry at first, keep on stirring until a cookie-dough texture is made. If you need, add 1-2 tbsp extra almond milk. Form into one big ball, then refrigerate 2 hours until the dough is cold. Once dough is chilled, preheat oven to 325 F. Form dough balls, and place them on a greased baking tray, leaving enough room between cookies for them to spread. Bake 10-11 minutes on the center rack. They’ll look underdone when you take them out. Let them cool on the baking tray 10 minutes before touching, during which time they will firm up. If the cookies does not spread enough the weather could be a factor outside, just press down with a spoon after baking. You can also choose to make extra cookie dough balls and freeze them to bake at a later date.