Only the Good Friday, November 13, 2009

Nothing like the photo of a cute Grandkid to start off a "Good" post.

I've been fortunate over the years to still be upright. That's "Good" in and of itself. But I have struggled a lot with my attempt to corral my diabetes. I've had periods of time when I've done well as well as periods of time when there has been no control at all. Today, I'm feeling motivated and inspired and that's "Good". It won't help me live forever, but it will make me feel better emotionally and physically while I'm still here. You see, my goal is to live until I die, not just be alive until I die.

So today, for a Only the Good Friday post, a theme started by Shelly Tucker at This Eclectic Life, I'm going to post a recipe for an easy to fix dish that is healthy and "Good". The recipe is in a narrative style, no ingredient lists, baking time etc. Hope that doesn't rattle anyone. If you need a regular Better Homes and Gardens type recipe, let me know, I'll provide one.

Have a great day and find some "Good" in your life today.



Crustless Quiche

Okay, I've eaten myself into a sugar based high that'll have me crashing down to a tired mass laying on the sofa. I'm looking down and can't see my toes. It's time to stop this nonsense and make something good and healthy for myself.

Today, I will make a nice light Crustless Quiche. I say crustless, because I don't need any more pie shell pastry, and a good quiche, made this way, without crust, holds together just as well. For the Diabetic, no crust means no sugared larded flour and therefore less of those dangerous type of carbohydrates.

It's very easy. I use a glass or ceramic deep dish pie pan. I spray it with Pam or wipe it down with Olive Oil and set it aside.

I take eggs, I use between nine and a dozen eggs. I break six of them into a blender. I take the other three to six and separate the yolks from the whites. There are many methods of doing this. I use the shell to shell method because if I miss a bit of yolk, it's no big deal with this recipe. I put the whites and the whole eggs in a blender. I do this to just cut down on some of the calories and the cholesterol.

I also take some cheese. I like to use Swiss, but I also use Muenster. Use any kind you want. Use about an ounce, maybe two ounces tops. Put that in the blender with the eggs. I use soy milk. You can use regular skim, 1%, 2% or Whole milk if you want. If your counting calories, Skim is best. If you are counting carbs, use the soy milk. I like the West Soy brand of Organic Unsweetened Soy Milk. I use about a Cup or Cup and 1/2 of the Milk and pour it into the blender. I find that using soy milk over cows milk is not any different in taste, especially in baking, and gives me health benefits. I also use soy milk on my morning bowl of cereal.


This is the product I use.

I mix on high for a few minutes. It chops up all the cheese and fluffs up the egg and milk mixture. I set this aside and go back to my pie pan.

I use a lot of different concoctions, but with the Swiss or Muenster cheese, my favorite is to use fresh spinach, thinly sliced onions and fresh mushrooms, sliced. I like Portobello mushrooms, but use any kind you want. Simply cover the bottom with sliced mushrooms and put the sliced onions on top of them. Take the spinach and pile it on top of the onions and 'shrooms. This is all fresh, not sautéed or steamed, but raw fresh veggies.

Now, pour the mixture from the blender over the stuff in the pie pan. Try to make sure everything is covered. Push the spinach down into the liquid as you pour it into the pie pan.

In a preheated oven set at 325 degrees, place the pie pan in and watch it. Go check it every ten minutes or so to see if the the center is still liquid. Check with a toothpick in the center, and when it come out clean, the quiche is done.

Take it out of the oven, put it on a rack to cool down a bit. Slice into pie slices and serve. Great with fresh fruit. In Winter, apples and pears slices, maybe a few berries and banana. If you want, sprinkle a little grated cheese on top just before you take it out of the oven.

This is low carb, very low carb. Also low fat. You only used a little cheese and a negligible amount of soy milk. You can eat mushrooms, onions and spinach all day without harm and you only use six whole eggs. That's 1 egg per serving when you slice it into six pieces. No crust, no fat.

Use your imagination and make one with a can of black beans, onions and garlic. (I use those green chiles chopped up in this one) Try the Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese with that. Serve it with salsa and a dollop of low fat sour cream. Or go with other veggies and combinations. Make them up, just use the same procedure for making it crustless and you'll use less calories and be more healthful. Broccoli/Cauliflower, or green pepper and onion. Roasted Red Peppers. If you use a root veggie like carrots or potatoes, you may want to par boil them a little to take the crunch off of them.

This dish is a meal when served with fruit and/or a small salad. It is very low in calories and low in carbohydrates and fat.

Here is some information about the Soy Milk I use and Regular Milk. Regular milk has a minimum of 11.3 grams of Carbohydrates per Cup for whole milk. Skim is higher, with 11.9 grams per Cup. Soy milk is much lower, west Soy Organic unsweetened, like the kind in the picture, has only 5 grams Per Cup, four of which are fiber. Much of the carbs in regular milk is from sugars. Once again, a big difference on how the different types of carbohydrates affect your blood sugar. This is great information for the diabetic who is trying to lower overall blood sugar.

So, to recap, use eggs, but make some of them yolk less. Use Soy Milk instead of regular milk. Use fresh vegetables and a little cheese instead of a box of Velveeta, and bake this without a crust in a glass or ceramic pie pan. You’ll make a great breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, low in fat and calories and good from the standpoint of glycemic control.

This will get you started on that after focus of eating better overall and losing a few pounds before the holidays. Add a bit of exercise and a few meals per week like this and you have the start of a few pounds slipping away from your body and plenty of energy as the weeks go by.

What’s “Good” about this , at least for me, is that I am thinking about doing something to help myself out health-wise. It also tastes “Good”, and is “Good” for you in many ways. I’ve had a terrible stomach flu all week since last Saturday. I went to the doctor yesterday to find out I have some kind of bug that must run its course. This morning, (and most of last evening), I have felt great, finally. Having lost my appetite while being sick, I have a “Good” start on losing a few pounds and working on my own health, the most pressing problem for me has been my blood sugar control as I am a diabetic. So, this feels “Good”, and it’s exceptionally “Good” that I am doing something about my health.

Sorry I didn't take pictures. I know I need to get better about this as a picture of the bubbly quiche would say a thousand words. Let me know if you try it, and for sure let me know if you liked it. If you have questions, e-mail me or ask in comments.

Peace to All.