Dieting - Whining and Dining

2022-04-16 04:00

The day began with a crab cake and cocktail sauce, because they are not frozen and have a short shelf life in the refrigerator. Alas, the crab cake was laden with sodium. So was the cocktail sauce

Lunch was not chili, either. It began with an omelet that contained chili. It also contained a smattering of pepper jack cheese and was quite good. Cheese, of course, is another ingredient laden with sodium. Some things must be endured.

That should bring us to dinner. Toting up my dietary excesses to this point (there was an Atkins chocolate bar or two), revealed that I was in danger of exceeding my 1,500-milligram limit of the aforementioned sodium. Heart condition, y'know.

I made a quick trip to my FNFL.

I returned home with chicken thighs (boneless and skinless), the sole New York Strip steak left on the shelves, and a pair of boneless pork chops. I still had one chop left from earlier in the week, and pork is higher in sodium than beef or chicken. I weighed the beef, sighed, and prepared the chicken. It was another variation on a theme. I forget the recipe number, but baked chicken thighs will always be a classic in what passes for my chicken. Here's what I used:

1. Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs - 736g (The whole package, which was marked 1.75lb. (793.8g) I never trust the store's labels. They lie a lot.

2. green beans - 133g after draining. The water weighed 94g, if the "227g" label was accurate.

3. Whole kernel Corn - 167g after draining. Yes, another 8-oz can.

4. sliced onion - 313g Sweet onions come in whatever size they are.

5. minced garlic - 12g I could have added more, but oh well.

6. carrots - 88g The handy little packets are supposed to weigh 85g. :)

7. serrano peppers - 28g Just one, sliced up

8. pineapple chunks - 227g A can of Dole chunks with the juice, too.

9. Mongolian Fire Oil - 5g/mL I splashed a bunch in the pan, first thing, but it barely registered on the scales, so I made up the difference with chili oil.

In a 9x9 cake pan, I coated the bottom with oil. I sliced and layered in the onions, sprinkled on the garlic, sliced up and added the serrano pepper, and seasoned this with garlic pepper and dried pepper flakes. I drained and added the beans and corn. added the carrots and pineapple chunks and juice. Finally, I spread and laid out the thighs on top of everything else.

Baked in the toaster oven on high (450°F/rilly hot°C) for about two hours. Pulled it out once to flip the bird, second time to break it up and blend it better.

Eventually, dinner was a serving of this, about 240 grams, which was enough inside the limits to permit me a carbonated beverage (They have sodium, too) and a couple cups of coffee.

I'd whine more about the salty crab cakes, but I bought them. I didn't have to, but I wanted them. Working with and around the salt limits must be endured.

2022-04-16 06:00

Breakfast this morning was about half of the baked chicken dish. I was very successful in infusing heat in the meal. Chili oil, Mongolian Fire Sauce, and pieces of Serrano pepper - mostly the Serrano pepper - left my lips and gums tingling nicely. Better, the meal consumed only 515 calories, 28 carbs, and 300 mg of Sodium. I have plenty of room for a 700 mg of sodium dose of crab cake, though I may be sticking to tea for my beverages.

2022-04-16 16:15

Right about now is when I should be considering lunch. I don't want to. I had to turn off the heat and turn on the cooling - the room hit 79°F/26°C and it's 92°F/33°C outdoors, according to my remote sensor. The weather channel says 75°F/24°C, so the sun may be shining on the sensor. I need to install that thing in a plastic tube, or find a shadowed location. I just want a cool beverage.

2022-04-16 23:22

I napped for an hour while the AC ran. I finished the baked thighs for lunch. For supper, I ate a serving of my chili. It's Chili Caliente in my spreadsheets and while it lacked the Mongolian Fire Sauce, it had more of the other heat-producers. Lip and gum tingling goodness. At this point, I've only eaten 1,037 mg of sodium. No, the limiting factor is that I've taken in 1,625 calories and I'm trying to stay below 1,722. 97 calories limits what I can snack on.