Admittedly, we started a family later than most. We'll be in our fifties when our kids graduate high school. We certainly don't want to be wheeled down the aisle at our kids' graduations or weddings. We know that, in a sense, we are at a slight disadvantage as a result of the age difference between our children, as well as other parents of our childrens' peers. But just because I'm probably a decade or two older than any other dad out there does not mean I am going to be the old man in the walker, or the wheelchair. I am determined to be a shining example for all dads out there, young and old, to be there for my kids whenever they need me, and even when they think they don't. I'm going to be the most devoted, involved parent in their school, our neighborhood, or whatever social environment in which we happen to find ourselves. That means I, as well as my wife (sorry honey), have to be in the best physical shape we can be.
New Year's Day came on a Friday this year. We spent all day Saturday buying, and most of the day Sunday prepping for our new adventure, by buying all the food necessary for the first phase of The South Beach Diet. Essentially, the idea behind TSBD tells you that processed food is bad for you. You can't eat any processed food, no refined sugars, no white flour, no junk food (of course). The first phase of the diet (14 days worth) attempts to break you of your dependence on these foods, and unnecessary carbs in general. During the first 2 weeks of this diet you are allowed practically no carbs at all. I'm ok with that. I perused the menu plan for phase one, and it looks like, with a bit of preparation and organization, you can eat pretty darned well on this diet. Couple that with a new gym membership, and I am intent on dropping at least 20 pounds before summer hits.
But come on, let's admit it, pretty much all of the diet plans out there work. The hardest part of any of them is staying on top of it all, of sticking with the program. I'm pleased that TSBD book provided me with an outlined, step-by-step, meal-by-meal plan. I've decided we are going to follow TSBD menu plan to the letter, or at least as close as possible, I'm guessig about 90%. We spent most of Saturday stocking up the pantry, the fridge and the freezer with all the ingredients necessary for the diet. We visited Costco, Sunflower Market, Albertson's and Trader Joes. We spend about $500 buying all the food and supplies. Believe it or not, that's about $120-150 more than we are used to spending in a two week period to feed our family, but we figure we'll make up for it in all the beer and wine we're not drinking.
Our D-day, as it were, is Monday, January 4. That's when we hit the ground running. Meantime, we are enjoying our last 2 days of "culinary freedom". Saturday we had asian food, and Sunday, pizza.
The following is a recipe for a Thai soup I made, and we enjoyed, on Saturday. It is most definitely NOT anywhere on TSBD plan - EVER. I ordered this for the first time earlier in the week from our corner Thai restaurant and absolutely fell in love with it. Being the gormond, and chief cook of the family, I wanted to try my hand at the dish myself. Here's a recipe I found that closely resembled what I tasted from the restaurant. I've made a few alterations to the traditional Thai recipe as denoted by the asterisks:
Thai Chicken Coconut Soup. Tom Ka Gai.
1 +1/2 inch piece of galangal or ginger, peeled and sliced *
Small bunch fresh cilantro with roots
4 kaffir lime leaves (makrut), torn **
1 stem lemongrass, halved lengthways
3 tablespoons fish sauce ***
juice of 2 small limes (maybe 3)
1 +3/4 cups coconut milk
1/2 pound skinless chicken breast, cut into thin strips
1 red chile (chilli), seeded and sliced ****
Put the galangal, cilantro roots, lime leaves, lemongrass and 4 cups of water ***** in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the fish sauce and lime juice, decrease the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the cilantro roots. Add the coconut milk, bring back to a boil and boil for a couple of minutes. Add
the chicken pieces and cook for a minute or two, until it is cooked through. Throw in the chile and mix well. Let stand for 20 minutes to let flavors blend and come together. Serve in bowls with the cilantro leaves roughly chopped and scattered over the top.
Keep in mind tat you are trying to achieve a balance of flavors between the sweet of the coconut milk, the sour of the lime, and the hot of the chile. hat's what your shooting for. When you get the balance right, no one flavor will overpower the other, rather they will all individually and collectively dance on your tongue (You'll understand when you get it right).
* Galangal is a type of asian ginger. It is NOT your typical giner root you normally find in an American grocery store. It has a very different flavor from traditional ginger. Please, try to find it at an asian market in your town. It is worth the effort to find it. (The Asian market I found it in callled it Galaga) If you can't find it, regular ginger will work.
** Kaffir lime leaves (or makrut) is very dificult to find, at least in my neck of the woods. If you can't find it, don't worry. There is a reasonable substitute. Peel thick strips of skin off of one lime. Tear a few places along the strip and crush/fold the strip to bruise it a bit to release its flavor and aroma. Discard after cooking. Use about 1 whole lime's worth of peel for this recipe.
*** A note on fish sauce. It is that "magic" flavor in most asian dishes. It is a very pungent smelling and tasting flavor additive. Be very careful adding fish sauce to any recipe. As a round-eye, I always start with about half of what the recipe calls for. You can always add more, but you can't take it out if you added too much!
**** If you can't find a red chili pepper, then just use a teaspoon or two of crushed red pepper flakes. I also used a healty squirt of Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce.
***** I didn't like the texture of the soup I made, it lacked body. I believe it was because I followed the direction here to use 4 cups of water. Perhaps 4 cups of chicken broth would be better.
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