no oil – Cyd Notter

Black Bean Lentil Taco Soup

June 13, 2019 By Cyd Notter Leave a Comment

Thanks to my sister-in-law for recommending this recipe! Black Bean Lentil Taco Soup by The Garden Grazer is a definite “keeper” that is super easy to prepare! Top with avocado, green onions, or tortilla strips for a little something extra.

Becuase this soup is hearty and thick, it also makes a great potato topper! Boil and mash a few Yukon gold potatoes and top with this soup for a satisfying, delicious, starch-based meal which not only fills you up, it also provides ample protein, calcium, fiber, and all those lovely nutrients which our bodies need for good health.

Let me know how you like it!

Oil-Free Tortilla Chips

March 14, 2019 By Cyd Notter Leave a Comment

It can be challenging to find oil-free tortilla chips on the market. Sometimes even the “baked” varieties contain unwanted ingredients. But here’s a solution which is easy, cheaper, and it my opinion, much tastier!

Purchase corn tortillas, the type that come in a paper wrapper. The ingredients are typically corn, water, and lime. Cut into quarters, brush or spritz with a little lime juice, and add a salt (or low salt/salt-free) seasoning or other spice. Bake on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet at 350 for 13-15 minutes until crispy (they may require more time, it depends on your oven. Keep an eye on them and be sure they’re crispy, but not burnt. They’ll harden up a bit as they sit, too.) Note: You can also make tostada shells using this method, simply bake the tortilla whole rather than cutting it.

For the batch shown in the photos, I used NutraSalt Low-Sodium Seasoned Sea Salt. It packs a bit of a punch due to the added spices and paprika. Serve with your favorite salsa (mine happens to be any mango or peach based salsa, which offsets the spices nicely). Bon Appetit!

Place quartered tortillas on baking sheet

Sprinkle with Low Sodium Salt or Favorite Spice

Have Your Weight Loss Effort Stalled?

March 22, 2018 By Cyd Notter Leave a Comment

If your engine has stalled out while striving to lose weight, you will benefit from Dr. McDougall’s “Maximum Weight Loss” (MWL) 10-point checklist to get it revved up again.

Start each meal with a soup, salad or fruit; avoid flour, sugary drinks and high-fat plant foods; use the 50/50 plate method (starches and non-starches). All of these tips make sense for quick weight loss.

Remember that we don’t “diet”. You should never be hungry when following any type of whole food, plant-based, no-added-oil plan. Following the MWL tips will help you break through the plateau.

Share your success stories with me, I love to hear them!

Read about The ‘Plan A’ Diet.

Why should you try The ‘Plan A’ Diet?

Our Mission and Philosophy

Easy Tostadas are Muy Bien!

September 19, 2017 By Cyd Notter Leave a Comment

Are you craving a crunchy taco? I sure was, but I had given up searching for crispy taco shells years ago since most store-bought shells contain lots of oils. And I although I could bake my own shells using the small corn tortillas, I decided to once again peruse the grocery shelves to see what’s out there.

Then I stumbled upon these Charras oil-free, baked corn tostadas in the ethnic section of the grocery store. Oh. My. Goodness.

These baked corn tostadas are incredibly yummy and so versatile! You can top with your own mixture of rice/beans; or sautéed burrito spiced veggies; or make incredible nachos with Mexican Cheese Sauce; or break into chips for use with your favorite guacamole or salsa recipes.

One of our new personal favorites is to top a crispy tostada with:

Fat free refried beans (any variety, just be sure they’re oil-free). Spread as thick as you wish.
Add 1-2 TBSP of Taco Meat (see note)
Drizzle a bit of Fat-free Mexican Cheese Sauce
Add chopped tomatoes, green onions, shredded lettuce. Oh, and jalapeno if you like the heat.
Your favorite taco sauce (optional)

(Note: For the taco meat, I used 3 cups of “riced cauliflower” that I purchased in the frozen section of Walmart, 4 oz. mushrooms, and 1 cup of walnuts, along with the spices as shown in the link).

So far I’ve seen the Charras Baked Tostadas at Fresh Thyme and at certain Walmart stores; they’re reasonably priced between $2.20 – $2.70 a package.

I’d love to hear some of your ideas or see a photo of what you create!

Three Thumbs-Up Recipes, and Our Next Potluck

May 1, 2017 By Cyd Notter Leave a Comment

If you’re like me, you might have a file folder (or computer file) labeled “Recipes To Try“. Well I went into the folder this week and decided to make three recipes from Chuck at the “Brand New Vegan” website. Here’s how they turned out:

Creamy Fat Free Macaroni and Cheese

The ‘cheese’ sauce for this recipe is really good. The base of the sauce is potatoes and carrots, and as Chuck points out in the recipe, it’s creamy, cheesy and decadent. I agree! The recipe calls for a bag of frozen veggies to be stirred in at the end of the pasta boiling time, but instead I bought a bag of carrot/broccoli/cauliflower steamers, microwaved them, and stirred them in after the pasta was drained. The nice thing is that you can add it whatever veggies you want! Also, I did not have brown mustard on hand, but used Dijon and it worked fine. NOTE: The cheesy sauce recipe does make more than you’ll need, so you can either make additional pasta, or save the extra sauce for potatoes, nachos, or wherever you like to eat cheese sauce!

Crispy Baked Onion Rings

I’ve been craving some really good onion rings, so when I saw this recipe in the “To Try” file, I quickly pulled it out and decided today’s the day. I followed the recipe pretty much to the tee (except that I forgot to cover the onions while they were soaking in the fridge for an hour). I’m not sure if that mattered, I’ll find out next time I make them. In any case, these turned out really well, and yes they are crispy!

Easy Veggie Lo Mein

I typically haven’t chosen Lo Mein dishes in the past when we ordered Chinese….but this recipe looked like an interesting comfort food and I had almost everything on hand. One item I had to purchase was “chili garlic sauce”, and I’m not sure if I used too much, but it proved to be a bit too spicy for my delicate palate. I can tolerate a little heat, but this one made me break into a sweat; again, perhaps I added too much. I was also expecting a sweeter tasting sauce, but I’m not sure why since I’ve never ordered Lo Mein! The recipe calls for only 1 tsp. of brown sugar, which should have been a clue. Anyway, I added a little “sweet chili sauce” to my own plate which made mine a bit sweeter (but still very spicy for me). This is a great recipe, I just need to tweak the sauce by cutting back on the chili garlic sauce. My advice is to start with just a little and add as you go.

I also used mixed greens instead of spinach, just because I had the mixed greens on hand.

Lastly, I found both the Chili Garlic Sauce and the Sweet Chili Sauce in the Asian section at my local Walmart.

Have you tried any new whole-food, plant-based, oil-free recipes lately that you feel are “keepers”? If so, we’d love to hear about it!

OUR NEXT POTLUCK: If you live in the area of Wilmington, IL, we’re hosting our next “World’s Healthiest Potluck” on Friday May 12, 2017. More details can be found here. (Seating is limited. RSVP’s are requested, and the deadline to reserve a spot is Sunday May 7).

Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. (3 John 1:2)

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