Oil Free Butternut Squash Chili or How I learned to tame the Ghost Peppers

Butternut Squash Chili with Ghost Peppers

3 carrots, 3 stalks celery, 1 onion, 6 cloves garlic, 4 stalks kale, 2 generous handfuls baby spinach, 1/2 butternut squash, 28 oz diced tomatoes, 28 oz tomato sauce, 6 oz tomato paste,  2 TBS chili powder, 1 TBS cumin,  1 TBS cayenne pepper, 2 TBS paprika, 2 TBS mesquite seasoning, 1 dried or fresh ghost chili pepper minus the seeds (wear gloves), 12 pitted dates, 1/2 cup red wine vinegar, 6 cups water, 1 TBS basil, 1 cup of dry red quinoa. 

Put all the veggies and the pepper into a food processor and grind them up to a course texture.

In a large pot bring 4 cups of water to a boil with the mesquite seasoning, add the tomato sauce, paste and diced tomatoes and everything else. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to let it simmer covered for 2 hours, stirring it occasionally.  If its too spicy, try adding more ground up dates or agave nectar.

The trick to using the Ghost Peppers is making sure there is enough sweetness to balance the heat. 

Heat is measured in Scoville Units which is a function of how much sugar it takes to neutralize the capsaicin which is what makes the peppers hot.

On this scale a Bell Pepper is 0 units. A Jalapeno is up to 10,000 units. A Habanero is up to 350,000 units.  

We're using the Ghost Chili (Bhut Jolokia) which is rated at 1,200,000 units.  That's why I stress using gloves and avoid touching your eyes.

Naga Jolokia (bhut jolokia, naga morich) Ghost Chili pepper is rated at over one million Scoville units.

By making the chili with butternut squash, carrots and dates, there is enough fructose in the pot to partially neutralize the heat from the pepper and leave the wonderful smoky taste.  I like to add the Mesquite to accentuate the smoky flavor. 

This chili is absolutely great!  I gave out samples to the staff at one of our Surgery Centers and every one of them wanted the recipe.  So here it is!  Enjoy!

Oil Free Spicy Mesquite Veggies Over Quinoa

Spicy Mesquite Veggies Over Quinoa

This is a variation on a theme. Its very close to my previous recipe but plates nicely and doesn't look like Halloween.  Here's what you will need:

3 carrots, 3 stalks celery, 1 onion, 4 cloves garlic, 2 stalks kale, 2 handfuls baby spinach, 2 generous handfuls of snap peas in the pods, 28 oz diced tomatoes, 4 TBS of capers,  2 TBS chili powder, 1 TBS cumin, 2 TBS paprika, 4 TBS mesquite seasoning, 1 TBS cayenne pepper ,  1/2 tsp salt, 1 cup quinoa, 4 cups water, 1 TBS basil. 

Put 1 cup of quinoa in 2 cups of water with the salt and basil in a pot, bring it to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmering boil, cover and cook for 15 minutes.  Remove from the heat and keep it covered. Put it to the side.

Chop up the veggies in large pieces. Save 2 TBS of the mesquite seasoning for later.

In a large pot bring 2 cups of water to a boil with a little salt, add the diced tomatoes and everything else. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to let it simmer covered for an hour, stirring it occasionally until most of the  liquids are absorbed or boil off. Add salt to taste. 

In a 2.5 cup Ziploc or Tupperware container sprinkle some mesquite seasoning to cover the bottom.  Add a layer of the cooked veggies about an inch thick and then an equal thickness of the quinoa over that.  Pack it down a little.  Cover and let it sit over night.

When you are ready to serve, put a plate over your container and turn it upside down so that now the quinoa is on the bottom and the mesquite is on the top.  I heated it in a microwave for 3 minutes at power level 9.

I had this for lunch and shared some.  It was a hit!  Try it, you'll like it!

Enjoy.

10 Months a Vegan - Oil Free Mesquite Spaghetti Squash over Black Bean Noodles

Its been 10 months and I'm still a Vegan!  My weight has plateaued down 60 lbs from where I started on January 1st.  There haven't been any cravings and the pain in my back and knees that I was experiencing prior have disappeared. No need for Statins to control my cholesterol and no blood pressure pills either. I have plenty of energy and I don't get hungry during the day. Just a wild guess but I'm going to say that the complex carbohydrates in whole grains, fruits, seeds, nuts, beans and vegetables are providing stability to my blood glucose level thereby eliminating the peaks and valleys responsible for cravings and hunger.  Works for me!

Shelley bought a spaghetti squash for me with the challenge to do something with it.  Having never cooked one before in my life, I dredged up a memory of someone telling me that all you have to do is  cut it in half and bake it upside down (400 degrees for 1 hour). Imagine my surprise when that worked!  Then came the fun part. I gathered up the ingredients in the picture above and tweaked them as I went along.  It came out pretty darn good so I'm passing on the recipe to you.

Mesquite Spaghetti Squash

3 carrots, 3 stalks celery, 1 onion, 4 cloves garlic, 2 stalks kale, 2 handfuls baby spinach, 1 spaghetti squash, 28 oz diced tomatoes, 28 oz tomato sauce, 6 oz tomato paste,  2 TBS chili powder, 1 TBS cumin, 2 TBS paprika, 2 TBS mesquite seasoning, 1/2 dried ghost chili pepper, 4 TBS agave nectar, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 cup quinoa, 4 cups water, 1 TBS basil. 

Put 1 cup of quinoa in 2 cups of water with the salt and basil in a pot, bring it to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmering boil, cover and cook for 15 minutes.  Remove from the heat and keep it covered. Put it to the side.

Put all the veggies and the pepper into a food processor and grind them up to a course texture.

In a large pot bring 2 cups of water to a boil with a little salt, add the tomato sauce, paste and diced tomatoes and everything else. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to let it simmer covered for an hour, stirring it occasionally. Stir in the quinoa and let it simmer for another 15 minutes until most of the liquids are absorbed. Add salt to taste.  If its too spicy, add more agave nectar. If you want to add heat, try using a whole pepper. Good luck with that.

  The ghost pepper is EXTREMELY hot.  It comes with a warning about wearing gloves and not touching your eyes. A little goes a long way. I like things hot so I used half a pepper without the seeds and put it through the food processor. 

My nephew turned me on to Black Bean Spaghetti noodles from Costco.  They are gluten free and have no egg.  Just 2 oz of the noodles alone contain 25 grams of protein.  Compare to 2 oz of  Barilla Whole Grain spaghetti noodles with 7 grams of protein. Top it off with some nutritional yeast and you have a wonderful meal with no saturated fat, no oil, no processed sugar, no gluten for Mimi and zero guilt!

Get the book:  The Whole Heart Solution - Simon & Schuster

 by my friend Joel Kahn, M.D. and let him help you learn about the simple things you can do for yourself.

Enjoy!

9 Months A Vegan! Oil Free Curried Veggies With Quinoa. Gluten free, Nut free, Date free, No Added Sugar.

   

Me Sept. 20, 2014

                                  Me 2013                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

       Its been 9 months and I've lost 63 lbs. With no working out, a few push-ups and unwavering determination, my waist went from a 44 to a 36 and collar size from 18.5 to 17.  The major change  is completely attributable to leaving behind animal products and eating nothing but plants. 
       Today I looked in the cupboard and in the  fridge to find them both pretty empty.  We had one onion, one lemon, some carrots, celery, baby sweet peppers, garlic, one bag each of Quinoa and Chia seeds and a jar of sliced jalapenos along with some spices.  That's all I needed to make lunch for today, tomorrow and probably the next day.  We really need to get some groceries!  Here's what I made with what I had:

    

Curried Veggies 

1 small onion sliced, 2 carrots sliced, 2 stalks celery chopped, 4 cloves garlic crushed, 4 baby sweet peppers chopped, 8 jalapeno slices chopped with 2 TBS of the brine, 3 TBS Chia seeds, 1 tsp Lawry's Season Salt, 1 tsp ginger powder, 2 tsp Curry powder, 2 tsp paprika, 1 tsp Cayenne pepper, 1 TBS lemon juice and 3 cups water.

Put it all in a skillet or pot, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and let it simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes until the veggies are cooked and most of the water is gone.

Serve over Quinoa or Brown Rice.  Garnish with sliced veggies of your choice and Sriracha sauce.

 3 TBS of Chia seeds = 9 grams of Protein.

1 cup of Quinoa = 20 grams of Protein.

1 cup of chopped veggies = 1 gram of Protein.

That's 30 grams of Protein 

8 Months a Vegan

Me with Dr. Goldstein 2014

Me in 2013

Eight Months A Vegan

I have been totally plant based for 8 months.  No animal products at all. Now I do a little exercise, not because I like it, but because I should and I can. Honestly, I feel great!

I had a conversation with a patient today who underwent gastric bypass surgery about 16 months ago.  He's lost 125 lbs! All he had to do was go to the hospital for 4 days, be intubated under general anesthesia, have surgery to make his stomach smaller, take off work for a month, go on a liquid diet for 8 weeks, change his portions to avoid throwing up everything if he eats too much, eat only the foods that the dietitian  allows and pay the portion of his medical bills that were not covered by his medical insurance.

.....or he could have gone on a Vegan diet, but that would have been too extreme.

Pics of me from March 21, June 13 and August 9.

Me on Shelley's Birthday
March 2014

Me on my birthday
June 2014

Me at our H.S. Reunion
August 2014

Here I am sticking to it and reaping the benefits of plant based eating.  Its been 8 months and I'm down 60 lbs.  Last night, we were guests at a wedding. A beautiful wedding from a beautiful family for their beautiful children! The food was gourmet and I had the vegetarian option which was pasta stuffed with something suspicious. It appeared to have a cheese filling. Everything else on the plate was nuts and veggies so they disappeared along with my wife's salad and the pasta went back with the plate.  The band was great! We danced every dance non stop all night easily keeping up with the much younger guests. I was sweating up a storm, but today I'm not even a little sore and ready for more. 

     
Small changes one at a time make a big difference!  Start now. You may find you get healthier tomorrows and more of them!

Summer Squash Veggie Lasagna - Gluten Free (WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR PROTEIN?)

SUMMER SQUASH VEGGIE LASAGNA

WITH SLICED PEAR

     While eating my summer squash with home made veggie spaghetti sauce,  it occurred to me last night, that the reason the  "Where do you get your protein?" question keeps coming up boils down to the fact that the average person has no understanding of protein! Fortunately for you, I took a lot of Biochemistry in college and I'm here to help.  

     The general misconception  is that only animal sources will give you enough protein.  News Flash! Ever ask a cow, horse, elephant or hippo about their diet?  They don't eat any meat. Where do they get their protein?  When you eat protein from an animal source, your body breaks it down the same way it does the protein from a plant source. Your muscles, tendons, hair, skin, connective tissues and organs do not look like a cow, chicken, fish or pig's because the protein is broken down by your body's digestive system and then re-assembled by your cells to form human protein! In other words: 

YOU MAKE YOUR OWN PROTEIN! 

 The ONLY thing you really need to take as a supplement if you eat no meat is Vitamin B12.  Animals tend to eat dirt with their food and Vitamin B12 from Cyanobacteria is in the dirt. The soil is so depleted now that the animals have supplements  in there feed. Hopefully, you wash your veggies so you need to take a B12 supplement.

     The building blocks of protein are called Amino Acids.  Plants and bacteria take carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen and trace elements from the air, water and soil to build Amino Acids. No animal can do that.  There are 9 essential amino acids, meaning that your body needs them in your diet to make protein. Plants provide exactly the same amino acids as animals, but without the saturated fat. This means that any combination of vegetables and fruits that you already eat such as lettuce, carrots, celery, peppers, tomatoes, nuts, beans, lentils, peas, potatoes, seeds, grains, apples, pears, grapes, spices and citrus fruits will give you exactly the same building blocks for your human protein that you would get from animals.  The plants just don't give you the saturated fat that clogs up most people's arteries leading to heart disease, stroke, circulation issues and erectile dysfunction. Plants are full of fiber which keeps you regular and helps reduce your chances of getting colon cancer. You can eat all the plants that you want all day long, never feel hungry and still lose weight! I also minimize oil intake. Occasionally I stir-cook some veggies in veggie soup stock, but don't fry anything.  

    So now you know where I get my protein.  I'm down 110 lbs. since 1-1-2014 and am not looking back!