Savory Soup Beans

This year I am trying to use dry beans in my cooking once a week. I am doing this for a few reasons:

1) Beans are super cheap

2) Beans are healthy

3) Beans are a part of my long-term food storage, so I better know how to cook with them in case I have to use it.

This recipe is great because it tastes good, doesn't require bacon (a lot of bean recipes seem to use bacon, or pork in other forms), and doesn't use a ton of ingredients.

Savory Soup Beans

3 cups dried pinto beans
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons Spanish smoked paprika
6 garlic cloves, minced
7 cups water
2 bay leaves
2 1/2 teaspoons salt

Preparation

Sort and wash beans; place in a large saucepan. Cover with water to 2 inches above beans; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes; remove from heat. Cover and let stand 1 hour. Drain.

Wipe pan dry with a paper towel. Heat oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, paprika, and garlic; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Stir in beans, 7 cups water, and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until beans are tender. Stir in salt. Discard bay leaves. Remove from heat; partially mash beans.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

289 (14% from fat)

Fat:

4.4g (sat 0.7g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.7g)

Protein:

14.8g

Carbohydrate:

49.6g

Fiber:

15.8g

Cholesterol:

0.0mg

Iron:

4.6mg

Sodium:

739mg

Calcium:

98mg

Cooking Light, JANUARY 2004

I didn't have smoked paprika so I just used regular and added a dash of liquid smoke, and I would just use 1 1/2 tsp salt. Serve with cornbread and salad.

Who's With Me?

Alright, Taylors, it's time to take one small step toward better health. It's irrefutably fabulous for your body, takes no time, costs no money (maybe even saves you a couple bucks), and I'm convinced it won't even hurt too bad. Here are just a few reasons your body is begging you to ditch the soft drinks:

Soda has no nutritional value and both sugary and diet varieties have been linked to obesity. The acid/sugar combination is a killer for tooth decay. The phosphorus in soda actually leeches calcium from your bones, causing osteoporosis and increasing your chance of fractures. It's like drinking negative calcium! Caffeinated varieties can cause caffeine dependency, and some say even decreased chance of conception, and some artificial sweeteners in soda can even cause cancer! Studies have also linked ingredients in soda to kidney problems, bladder damage, heart disease, weakened immune system, and tons of other BAD stuff.

So I hereby declare April to be no soda month, and invite each of you to commit to cut the soda for a month. I promise you'll feel better and be blessed for taking care of your God-given body! Sign your name if you're in! Here's my John Hancock:

Ashley T. Taylor

Kicking Your Hypothyroidisms' Butt, No the Other Way Around Part II

After reading a couple hours on how exercise affects your thyroid and hypothyroidism I came to the conclusion that more studies need to be done on this subject. I only found one good study that was peer-reviewed and published in a journal. The rest of what I found was just online stuff which can be questionable sometimes...most of the time.

But this is what I've come up with. First, exercise in general raises the metabolism of your body. Metabolism is something a lot of people have heard but might not really understand even though it's pretty simple. Metabolism = all the chemical reactions that happen in your body (some make energy, some use it). There you have it. So with hypothyroid, not as much is going on in your body compared to someone euthyroid (normal thyroid). This leads to a general feeling of fatigue and tiredness. When you exercise your body is going crazy with chemical reactions- your muscles are contracting, lungs are huffing and puffing, heart is beating faster, brain activity increases, and overall your METABOLISM increases. It's not the only thing that will increase your metabolism, but in my opinion its the best way. Then there is your RESTING metabolism, or everything going on in your body when your doing nothing but laying or sitting down. The overall goal is to raise your resting metabolism. This will make you feel more energetic all the time and I bet will help with some the mental disturbances sometimes associated with hypothyroid. It will also aid in losing weight. Some people will say, "Eat such and such, and eat 6 meals a day instead of 3, and..." but really the only thing shown the consistently increase resting metabolism is exercise.

Second, the study I found stated that exercise raised concentrations of thyroid hormone in the blood. Some misinterpreted this study by saying the exercise cured their hypothyroidism, but that's not true. Exercise will rarely compensate for your defective thyroid organ. (Sorry, that sounds mean). But it helps. It raises the bodies metabolism because more thyroid hormone equals higher metabolism. But after exercise this rise in thyroid hormone in the blood went back down to normal. So we know that exercise does directly affect the thyroid organ. It makes it pump out more juice.

Third, I found some foods that people with hypothyroid shouldn't eat a ton of. I still need to do some reading on this, so don't take this as 100% truth, but I though it was interesting. Also, keep in mind, you don't have to eliminate these foods from your diet, just don't eat like 10 lbs. of them a week.

• Corn
• Potatoes
• Strawberries
• Peaches
• Spinach
• Millet
• Soybeans
• Turnips
• Rutabega
• Mustard
• Cabbage
• Peanuts

These foods contain compounds called goitrogens which can interfere with thyroid function. (Maybe more on this in another post)

So that's what I've learned these past two weeks. But...it's not all. Get ready for KYHTBNTOWA (Kicking Your Hypothyroidisms' Butt, No the Other Way Around) Part III where I'll be demonstrating some awesome exercises for you!!! (I hope I can figure out how to upload a video).

So, week 2 down, and I'm exhausted

Man! This week (my "week" starts on Saturday) was rough. P90X only happened 4 times and I didn't even have tests, yet I'm wasted. But, I'm at 160 lbs. and 10% body fat (according to my scale, which could be off 5% or so easily). My goal is by the time I graduate dental school to be 175 lbs. and between 8-10% body fat. We'll see how I do.

Homemade Angel Food Cake

One more recipe. . . did you know that angel food cake is fat free, and actually has about 5g of protein per slice? And I personally think that the homemade version is at least 10x better than store-bought. But store-bought is pretty good, too, if you're low on time. Top it with fresh berries, and you've got a pretty darn healthy dessert! (Also, you can add cocoa for a chocolate version!)

Angel Food Cake

1-1/2 c. egg whites (about a dozen eggs, can't use the egg beaters on this one.)
1 c. flour
1-1/2 c. + 2 T. sugar, divided
1-1/2 t. cream of tartar
1-1/2 t. vanilla extract
1/4 t. salt

Place egg whites in mixing bowl, let stand at room temp for 30 min. Sift flour and 3/4 c.+2 T. sugar together twice, set aside. (Now I know Dad knows I don't have a sifter-- I just stirred them together well.)

Beat egg whites with cr. tartar, vanilla, and salt on med. speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining sugar, 2 T. at a time, beating on high until stiff peaks form and sugar is dissolved.

Gently spoon into an UNgreased 10 in tube pan (or three loaf pans, if that's what you've got). Cut through the batter with a knife to remove air pockets. Bake on lowest rack at 375 for 30-35 min (a bit less if you use loaf pans) or until top springs back when lightly touched and cracks feel dry.

*I've also halved the recipe and baked it in 2 loaf pans-- worked fine. :)

Best of the best: VERY low fat recipes. . . that are actually worth trying!

So, I might not have a lot to say about my exercising habits right now. . . or for a couple of months. But I do know a heck of a lot more about eliminating fat (and now sugar. . . for the hypoglycemia) from my diet than I would bet most people do! Now I know that our bodies need healthy, unsaturated vegetable fats, in moderation. I figure those are easy to throw back in-- some nuts, an avocado, a little olive oil here and there. . . so I thought I'd contribute a few recipes of the better things I've eaten the last few months (I'll spare you the less-desirable meals I've choked down! ;)). These really can be prepared totally or very nearly fat free, but it's easy to add back in a little if you want. :)

Chicken and vegetable chowder (almost completely fat-free, yet still thick and flavorful!)

Now this one I made up last night out of some leftovers and fresh veggies. I have to say, I had low expectations, but Jerry, Sarah and I all loved it! I'm sorry it's not as clean-cut as a "real" recipe.

3 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 T. flour
1 chicken breast, cubed
1 large baked potato, cubed
1 small can creamed corn
skim milk (just enough to make desired amount of broth)
2 t. bouillon
black pepper, thyme, and parsley, to taste

Saute the veggies in a nonstick pan with a little cooking spray. If they start to stick, just add a little water. Cook until onions are transparent and veggies are crisp tender. Stir in flour. Add the rest of the ingredients and heat through. (I used "better than bouillon"--thanks, Mom. :) If you use hard cubes, just make sure they're all the way dissolved.)

*I had baked chicken and a baked potato in the fridge, but of course if you don't happen to, you could chop them small (raw) and cook them in the beginning as well.

Fat-free banana mini muffins

Jerry loves the texture of these-- they're still moist, even though I cut the butter (and reduced the sugar. . . shh).

1/2 c. sugar
1/3 c. egg whites (I used egg beaters or whatever brand of pasteurized egg whites.)
2-3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 c. fat-free sour cream
2-1/4 c. flour
1 t. cinnamon
3/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt

Cream sugar and egg whites. Mix in bananas and sour cream. Stir in flour, cinnamon, soda and salt. Fill muffin tins (I used mini muffins-- yield about 36, but I'm sure regular-sized muffin tins or a loaf pan would work as well. I prefer the "snack sized" version, as does Sarah.) Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or so. Also, if I weren't off the fat, I'd add 1/2 c. walnuts. . . maybe even a few dark chocolate chips. . . oops! I mean. . .

Kalamata Lemon Chicken

This is one of those recipes Aubs and I found forever ago and fell in love with. The original calls for browning the chicken in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes before putting it in the oven, but I learned you can just brown it a little in a nonstick pan or just throw it in the oven-- it comes out delicious any way you decide to go!

about 1 lb chicken breasts, halved
2/3 c. dried orzo
1/2 c. drained, pitted kalamata olives (if you'll use them often enough, these are definitely worth buying at Costco.)
1 14-oz can chicken broth + more broth for serving (maybe 2 more cans)
1/2 lemon, cut in wedges
1 T. lemon juice
1 t. Greek seasoning
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
fresh oregano leaves (optional, but tastes great and looks gorgeous if you're serving to company!)

Stir together chicken (browned or not), olives, broth, lemon wedges, lemon juice, Greek seasoning, salt, and pepper. Bake in a covered 2-qt. baking dish at 400 for about 35 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Serve in shallow bowls, with additional hot broth and topped with oregano.

Cuban black bean soup

Tastes WAY better than it looks! This one's from Cooking Light. It's awesome because you use dried beans but you don't even have to soak them first!

2 bay leaves
1 pound black beans
12 1/2 c. water, divided
1 T. canola oil (I omitted, of course, without any adverse effects!)
3 1/2 c. chopped green bell pepper (about 3 medium)
2 1/2 c. coarsely chopped onion
1/3 c. chopped shallots (no tragedy if you don't have them, though)
3 cloves garlic, chopped (not in the original)
1 T. ground cumin
2 T. dried oregano
2 T. chopped fresh oregano
2 t. sugar
2 t. salt (calls for kosher, I used regular)

Toppings:
2 c. diced avocado + 2 T. lime juice(this is my favorite topping-- not fat free, but very healthful!)
2 c. thinly sliced red onion
1 c. shopped fresh cilantro
1 c. light (or non-fat) sour cream
1.3 c. finely chopped seeded jalapeno (about 2)
lime wedges
1 1/2 c. cooked ham (I've never used, but heard it's good)

Place bay leaves and beans in Dutch oven or large pot. Add 12 c. water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 2 1/2 hrs. or until beans are tender, stirring occasionally. (You may need to add more water.) Saute pepper, onion, shallot, and garlic in oil (opt.) until onions are tender. Stir in cumin and oregano. Cook 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and let cool 10 minutes. Puree with 1/2 c. water in blender. Add veggie mix, sugar, and salt to beans, simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaves. Serve and top with desired toppings.

Enjoy! And please leave a comment if you try one of these out. . . or if you have some better recipes! :)

A Random Thought on Starting to Exercise

Before I started P90X I had a hard time believing it would work. Their infomercials declaring "Get RIPPED in 90 days!" made me skeptical, and the pictures they flashed across the screen of their testators that probably had less than 2% body fat made me even more skeptical. I said to myself, "This can't be real." But listen to me now- I'll be preaching "Do P90X!" until I die. I have yet to find an overall health/fitness program as complete.

My point is this- usually we don't believe things we hear about fitness, even if we haven't tried it. And then, when we do hear or see something that sounds legit we say, "Oh, they say it's going to be hard, and I have to talk to my doctor, and it's gonna take an hour a day, and I have to buy all this stuff. I'll pass." That was exactly what I said when I learned that P90X might work for me. I don't know why we think like that, but we do. I was going to have to sacrifice a lot of time, a lot of money ($400), and a ton of physical effort to do this. But now I know investing those 3 things is key to a successful program.

When I started to exercise using P90X the hardest thing for me was making time to do it, and the only time I could use was the time I was then using for sleep. Pulling myself out of bed everyday at 5:00am is still the hardest thing I do everyday- so hard in fact that I don't do it everyday. Spending money on weights, machines, exercise balls, steps, elastic bands, etc. stinks but there's no way around that. The energy/physical effort may be the hardest for beginners. If you're a beginner you don't have a lot of energy. But that's because you've not been exercising. If you would exercise consistently, it's a fact that you would have more energy. I wish you could make money that way- spend more and you'll get more. Bummer.

So here we go...

I've never done this blogging thing so you'll have to bear with me. But I think this is going to help all of us get into a little better shape and have fun doing it. While working out you usually see better and more results when you have a lifting buddy or jogging partner- in other words a support system. Since we're all hundreds of miles from each other I thought we could use this blog as our system. It might a take some getting used to, but that's alright. We can post goals, pictures, workouts, recipes, achievements, general health information, or anything you want really. If we share what we're doing, workouts and things that have worked for us, places we go for information, and other health information I figure we'll motivate each other to try new things. I really think this will work. I know we don't have a lot of time. What I plan on doing is posting once a week, maybe twice a week, but that's all I can do. If we can all post once a week I think we'll have a great blog, learn a lot, and stay motivated and on track to fulfilling our goals. Love you guys, talk to you and hear from you soon.

Kicking your hypothyroidism’s butt, not the other way around. PART I

Here are some quick facts about the causes and symptoms of hypothyroidism.

Causes: Hashimoto’s Disease- this is pretty much thyroid inflammation. It gets inflamed because your body thinks that your thyroid is foreign and attacks it. So your body slowly kills its’ own thyroid. That sucks. This disease can run in the family. There are a few other causes: iodine deficiency diet, development defects from birth, and surgical removal of the thyroid.

Symptoms: This comes from my pathology book: “Deficiency of thyroid hormones affects essentially all organs of the body; slowing their function. The patient is sleepy, lacks mental alertness, tires easily, and lacks endurance. The heart beats slowly and the skeletal muscles are weak, stiff, and aching.” So pretty much your metabolism slows. You’re tired, muscles can’t endure as much activity, you lose some mental alertness, you don’t tolerate cold well (Dad loves this), and you can gain weight.

This is going to Rock

And I will continue to be the strongest Taylor!