I am kind of weird in that I love cabbage. Seriously I absolutely love cabbage it is one of my favorite veggies besides cucumbers and spinach. Well today I am really craving it although I know I need to cook up some chicken and broccoli because the chicken will go bad if I don't.
But since I can't make it I can still share this great low fat recipe. :)
Cabbage and Kielbasa soup.
1/2 lb kielbasa diced
1 head of cabbage diced
1 whole yellow onion diced
2 12oz cans of low sodium chicken broth (if you can get organic or have the patience to make and can homemade do it because seriously the canned stuff has a lot of sodium.)
1 clove of garlic minced
Combine all ingredients then cover the rest with water and let simmer until the cabbage and onions are soft. (crock pots are great for this!)
This makes about 12 servings of really low calorie ( I don't have exact numbers because I try to go for more healthy overall choices rather than counting.)
Seriously this with some whole grain toast is one of my favorite meals ever. I know it's a little odd because cabbage isn't really a staple of the American diet anymore (which is kind of weird because it is a staple of the majority of our European ancestors) but cabbage is really good for you with iron and fiber and vitamins and kielbasa while a little on the fatty side is definitely outnumbered by the other ingredients.
Also since I'm on the recipe subject let's talk about some low fat high fiber chille I love Tex-Mex with an unholy passion but a lot of it is really gotten away from it's roots and is now fried with lard and smothered with cheese. Beans are really a wonderful source of protein and fiber but when you eat the refried variety you are replacing most of that with lard. So here's a fun way to make good old fashioned chille that can help you with your weight loss goals.
Turkey Chille stew
1/2 lb dried kidney beans
1/2 lb dried black beans
1/2 lb ground turkey (really not as bad as it sounds)
1 whole onion (I prefer red for chille but yellow works too) diced
1 bunch green onions sliced
1 whole bell pepper diced
1 whole clove of garlic
1 12 oz can of corn in water (organic or no sodium added if you can)
1 16 oz can of stewed diced tomatoes
Spices (optional and to taste although a pinch per person who will be eating is a good rule of thumb)
Chille Powder
Cilantro
Chives
Cumin (if you can, go to the Hispanic food aisle of your grocery store and get the little packet of whole cumin it's only about $1 and there's more than you will need so it lasts a long while)
Ok the day before you need to take out the beans and soak them in water at least overnight a little longer if possible (Yeah good food takes time) and then throw out the ones that float. Take some of your spices or just a can of salsa and put in a ziploc baggie with your turkey overnight (woot marinade!) The next morning rinse the beans and put them in your crock pot (stove works it just takes a long time and crock pots are safer to leave on all day) Then just combine the rest of your ingedients and let simmer all day until the beans are soft. This can take a while so be prepared for a late dinner or start it really early in the day (like before 8 AM at the latest.) this is a time and labor intensive dish but sincerely worth it. It runs less than 300 calories a serving and you can freeze the leftovers for months.
Ok I think that's enough food talk for now I really should probably get around to actually cooking.
