Cooking the FP4H Way

I am a foodie. I love cooking food, shopping for food, and eating food. I could spend hours reading recipes. All about food! 

When I joined FP4H, I discovered I could make food delicious and healthy too.  What a delight to learn how to substitute various products for the fat, sugary, and salty ingredients. For example, instead of fat free cheddar cheese that tastes like cardboard, use a small amount of very extra sharp cheddar. Lower amount equals lower calories but the flavor is wonderful.  Now I’m cooking light using coconut oil, olive oil, and natural sweeteners. And the food looks interesting and tastes good!  Today I made a mock pizza using cauliflower. So good and only 184 delicious calories.

Probably one of the most important tools that has helped my husband and me to eat less is using a small plate.  I shopped at antique stores, flea markets, and discount centers to find the prettiest small plates. When we have a meal, our plate looks full and we don’t feel deprived at all. I fill one-half the plate with something green and divide the other half between the protein and carb of the meal. The plate is beautiful and bountiful. We feel as if we are dining not simply eating.

At FP4H, I heard a new term for the first time – Clean Eating. This term means eating foods as close to its natural state as possible. So instead of canned corn, I choose fresh. Instead of boxed potatoes, I head to the produce department to get the real thing. Clean eating helps eliminate additives, preservatives, and other chemicals from your diet. Eating fresh, whole foods gives you more volume and promotes good health in body and skin. So now when I shop, I go to the outside aisles of the grocery store – choosing foods from plants instead of machines.

So foodies take heart!  Food can taste wonderful, look delicious, and fuel your body too.

The Recipe for the Cauliflower Pizza:

½ head fresh cauliflower, roughly chopped

½ onion

½ green pepper

12 black olives

½ cup Jimmy Dean Turkey Sausage Crumbles

2 cups Spaghetti or Pizza sauce

½ cup mozzarella.

Layer the ingredients into a round casserole dish (I used a quiche pan) starting with the cauliflower pieces. Cover with the cheese. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly.  1/4^th of this “pizza” is 184 calories!  Enjoy.

Karen Porter is a people person who says her greatest achievement is her marriage to George. But she’d love to talk to you about her five grandchildren! Learn more about her at www.karenporter.com