Greg’s Just About Perfect Garam Masala Vegetarian Bean Stew (Corrected Version)

Greg’s Just About Perfect Garam Masala Vegetarian Bean Stew
(not perfect because you’ll eat too much of it, but it IS very healthy)

Corrected Version – I left out one ingredient and one step.

Note:  Use fresh ingredients if you prefer, but I have no problem with canned beans/peas/tomatoes.  If TV chefs can use them, then so can I.

Vegetarian Note:  I recommend S&W canned beans and tomatoes for vegetarians.  Their beans are not cooked/packaged with meat products.  If you’re not a vegetarian, use your favorite brand

Ingredients:

1 sweet onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 cup dry lentils
1 can black-eyed peas
1 can white beans
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 pkg frozen spinach (chopped is NOT recommended)
2 cups vegetarian broth
2 t basalmic vinegar
2 T of garam masala seasoning
1 t onion powder
1 t garlic powder
1 t cayenne or Asian/Indian chili powder
2 t olive oil
Salt & pepper, to taste

Water note:  I use the water from the canned beans and tomatoes.  Some people don’t like to do this.  If you do not use the water from the canned beans and tomatoes, you need an extra 2 cups of water.

1.   Sweat the onions in 2 t of olive oil until transluscent.
2.   Add garlic.
3.   Season with salt & pepper, to taste.
4.   Turn up heat and sautee until just about brown.
5.   Add broth.
6.   Add lentils
7.   Add basalmic vinegar.  Stir into liquid.
8.   Add garam masala and stir seasoning into liquid
9.   Bring to a simmer and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
10.   Add tomatoes.
11.   Add cayene or Asian/Indian chili powder.  Stir seasoning into liquid
12. Bring to a simmer.
13. Add frozen spinach
14. Bring to a simmer.  Allow spinach to spread into liquid.  Simmer for about 10 minutes.
15. Add black-eyed peas and white beans.  If you’ve drained the peas and beans, then add the 2 extra cups of water.
16. Add garlic and onion powder.  Stir seasoning into liquid.
17.  Bring to a simmer.  Allow to simmer for 25 minutes.  Depending on how much liquid you want in your stew, you may need to let it cook down a bit more.
18.  Turn off heat and allow stew to cool for about 5 minutes.

You can eat it by itself or spooned over a cup of brown rice.

Enjoy.

The Heat

The heat has arrived in Riyadh. 

Last week it was 111-F one day, well over 100-F everyday.  This week has been slightly less hot, but still over 100-F.  So far, this year it is not bothering me too much. 

Maybe it’s because I am exercising out in it this year.  After I talk to Cristina on the phone in the evenings, I take of and walk briskly through the compound grounds.  They actually have a nice asphalt walking path in among the trees, which I use.  Until tonight, I’ve been walking about 40 minutes a night.  Tonight, I upped the ante and did 60 minutes.  When I got done, I was sweating pretty good, and it actually was kind of cool. 

I used to be an athlete – used to run 3 1/2 miles a day, used to swim 1/4-mile a day, used to weigh 185 pounds.   As I said a couple of entries ago, I was not a very good one; but, I was in good shape.  So, I have to admit a bit of disgust when I realize just how far I let myself get to before I woke up and realized how much I needed to get back to where I was. 

Back in Australia, I used to run in the heat.  Often, it was above 100F.  I ran in the cool of the evening; but, it was still in the 80s.  Here, it’s still in the 90s when I go out walking.  In another month, it will still be in the 100s in the evening, and I will have to make a choice.  Go out and walk in that heat or walk in my living room to one of the walking/exercise DVDs I own.  I may end up being acclimated enough for it not to matter.  We’ll see.  Mostly, I just have to keep moving.

Weighed in at 222 this past Saturday.  That’s 50 pounds down.  23 pounds to reach my goal of being below 200 by the time I turn 50 in October.  Truthfully, unless something major changes, I should hit that milestone in July.  I may be at 180 by my birthday.  Wouldn’t that be a great 50th birthday present?!

Here’s hoping!

Incidental Thought #2

When performing a job, it’s always best to have the right tool available – an old maxim, but an accurate one.

Due to weight loss, I have been having to put new notches in my belts.  While a heated ice pick does an okay job once in awhile, when you’re doing this regularly, it just doesn’t hold up.

Knowing I would have to have a belt notch party again this week, it occurred to me last week to buy a couple of real leather working tools.  So, I picked up a notch cutter and an awl.  Together with the heated ice pick, I made very quick and easy work of creating the new notches.

The Curse of Weight Loss

Believe it or not, there is a curse to weight loss.

Clothing that no longer fits.

You might not believe that’s a curse, but it is – at least when you’ve lost a substantial amount of weight, and you still have a ways to go.  You have to buy interim clothing.

I’ve lost over 40 pounds, now, and the clothing I’ve been wearing just doesn’t fit anymore.  My pants are baggy.  My shirts just hang there (except around the paunch that I still have – though my muffin top is noticeably smaller).  My belts have almost as much notch space as they have space to encircle my waist.  We don’t even want to talk about my jeans. I could pitch a tent with them, just like ol’ Levi Strauss did back in the Gold Rush Days.

I picked up a pair of cargo shorts today.  They are 38s.  I was wearing 42s and 44s when I came here.  The problem is that these new shorts won’t last but for another 15 pounds or so.  They’re not tight at all; in fact, there’s thumb space all the way around the waistband.  And, that’s the rub.  I have another 50 or so pounds to lose.

It’s almost like buying a computer system; you buy one today, it’s cheaper tomorrow.  Well, I buy these interim clothes, and they don’t fit next month.  Hell, it’s almost like when I was in 7th grade and went from 5’6″ to 6’0″ in less than one school year.  Clothes cost money.  I am sure you all knew that; but, just how much would you be willing to shell out for temporary clothes? 

Don’t get me wrong.  I’ll take the weight loss and the cost of some interim clothing.  But, it does give me pause as I try to figure out just how much I am willing to dole out in support of not looking like a homeless guy tramping around in oversized trousers held up by a piece of rope.  As such, I’ve picked a line in the sand.

When I hit 220 (about 8 pounds or so from now), I will no longer be classified obese; I will be merely overweight (according to BMI – Body Mass Index).  At that point, I will pick up some new pants and some new shirts.  Those new clothes should carry me through my goal weight of 180.  Granted, they’ll be pretty baggy by the time I get there.  But, trust me, when I weigh 180, I ain’t going to be too bothered by the cost of retooling my closet. 

Now, I’ll have to figure out what to do with all these clothes I brought with me.  I am NOT taking them back home with me.  Maybe the shirts.  Cristina and I can use them for work shirts in the garden and around the place.  Maybe I’ll sell the pants to some Bedu for tenting material.

I’d be lying…

…if I didn’t admit to being excited about this morning’s official WW weigh-in of 231 pounds.

Week 21: -2

Total: -41

-41 pounds!!!

That leaves me 32 pounds to lose in order to meet my first big goal of dropping below 200 pounds by the time of my 50th birthday in October.

That also means I have 48 pounds left to get to my overall goal of 183, which will classify my weight as normal.

My next mini-goal is 220 – at 220, I will no longer classified as obese, but will be merely overweight instead.

Downward to success!!

Setting a Weight Goal – 41 by 50!

I have set an important weight loss goal.

Actually, it’s one of many weight loss goals, and it does not reflect my ultimate weight goal.  But, this is a big one.

I have decided I want to below 200 pounds by the time I turn 50 in October.  I cannot think of a better birthday present to give myself.

If you are so inclined, you can follow my weight loss journey at PhysicsDiet.com, where I track my weigh-ins daily.  The starting weight says 250 because I didn’t start tracking my weight there until I hit 250, though I started out at 272.  Nor, does it reflect actual current weight (240); so, you don’t get to see that I’ve actually lost 32 pounds.  Rather, they display an average daily weight since I started tracking.  My offical, weekly WW weigh-in is the weight I will go by for my birthday weigh-in.

What IS important is the graph you can see by scrolling down the page a bit, which shows my weight loss trend by tracking each data point.  I love its wonderful downward slope!

So, that’s it.  I need to lose 41 more pounds by the time I turn 50.

41 by 50!

Discoveries in the Sand – Episode 2

Some more items of epiphany and realization on this journey of self-discovery…

1.  Asian Pears. – Mmm…Mmm…Good!  At least to my palate.  A mix of savory and sweet.  And from a WeightWatchers point-of-view, they are a fruit serving, packed with a lot of nutritional value, which doesn’t cost a single point! (Multiple servings may cost points, though.)  They’re a tad more expensive in the US, but worth it.  A real bargain!

2.  Not all British television shows are great TV. – For every Masterpiece Theatre or MI:5 (Spooks in the UK – obvious why they changed the name in the US) there’s an The IT Crowd or Teenaged Kicks…truly awful shows clogging the crowded airwaves like election year campaign commercials without the passion – and even less intellectual honesty.  Then there are the marginal shows like Mumbai Calling, which have some truly marvelous moments mixed with inanity.  Then, of course, there are the niche shows, such as Dr. Who and Torchwood – both of which are among my favorites.  I also recommend you take a look at Hei$t should it come on in the US; although, I understand Amercian TV has pretty much stolen it and turned it into Leverage, which I hear is pretty good, too.

3.  Hello, my name is Greg, and I am a bookaholic. – I love books.  They are comforting to me.  I’ll buy books no matter where I am…proven by the close to one hundred (am I past that number, now?) I’ve acquired since coming here to KSA.  Some of them I actually read.  Some of them are for reference for my job.  Some…well, I really don’t know why…other than the sense of ease they provide me when they surround me.  Keep your fracking Kindles!!

4. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are as popular in the Middle East as they are in the US. – The political humor of these two seems to transcend cultural barriers.  Their shows, during the last year, have become staples of the Showtime satellite network, one of the largest providers of satellite television throughout the region.  Where they struggled to fill the 9pm – 10pm timeslot the first year-and-a-half I was here, these two fake news shows have found their home and made the programming manager in Dubai very happy.

5. Battlestar Galactica is great television even if it’s not in English. – Throughout the week, I can watch BSG in German, Russian, Arabic, and English.  I have seen the first three seasons (in English), which comprise most of the episodes available over here.  Even without the English, I have found myself captivated by the intense drama of the scenes unfolding on-screen.  How many TV shows can make such a boast?  Sure, I am biased.  I, along with Rolling Stone magazine, consider it the best show on TV.  But, any show where the acting doesn’t require a language to be conveyed is a show worth watching.  I can’t wait to watch Season Four!  Thank you, Cristina.  🙂

Dropping The Weight

As I’ve indicated in a previous post, I have lost twenty pounds.  This is intentional, and I am doing it via WeightWatchers Online.

This is my second round with WW.  The first time, five years ago, I lost 67 pounds with them.  Unfortunately, I became very involved with a bar league for playing poker, and I abandoned the good, healthy nutrition principles taught by WW, which do work, for fried bar food and quality beer.  Needless to say, but I will, I gained it ALL back.  I still like quality beer, but I’ve given up on the fried bar food.

I’ll post my progress from time-to-time.  I’m also taking some photos of my journey, which I’ll try to post.

Downward to success!

Climbing Back Into The Saddle

I doubt there is anything more disheartening than to see an accomplishment at which you have worked very hard be rendered a dull memory by subsequent events. Well, maybe it is a bit more disheartening if you could’ve preventend it, and you know you could’ve prevented it.

In January 2004, I joined Weight Watchers, along with Cristina (but, this particular tale is not hers). I enjoyed tremendous success, losing 65 pounds by July of 2004. I had even figured out a way to take Saturday off from the plan, after my weigh-in, and still lose weight. But, such success can sometimes breed a bit of arrogant casualness in one’s approach to such endeavors. I have to own up to that fact for myself.

In August, I began playing competitive poker in a bar league. I like beer. I like bar food. 1 + 1 = 2 . I started gaining weight, always telling myself that I’d eat before I went, only make healthy choices (lol) from the menu, and drink iced tea instead of beer. Uh huh. As the weight began to creep back upwards, I found that I started skipping meetings. By the end of the year, I simply wasn’t going anymore, and I definitely was not On Plan (OP) anymore.

A weight problem, particularly if it is coupled with an overeating problem – and I am definitely an overeater – is like a substance abuse problem in that it is necessary to stay on top of it every single day. Weight Watchers (WW) helps with this by providing guidance and coaching regarding proper eating habits. Compared to a lot of diet plans out there, WW is pretty inexpensive and verifiably successful – if you stay OP. Therein lies the rub. In order to lose weight and maintain it, it is necessary to change one’s lifestyle. Any weightloss program will help an individual lose weight in the short term; the issue becomes the longterm sustainability of it. And that, more than anything else is an adjustment of one’s brain. It does not matter what weight loss program one uses…if you don’t have your brain in gear, it won’t succeed in the longterm. No one can control that component but you, yourself. I know. I let mine veer off into a land of lazy, easy decisions to eat what is not healthy.

So, know that I’d gained back a significant chunk of my weight, I resolved to return to WW starting last Monday. I subscribe online, and I figured I’d start by weighing in on Monday, record it online, then return to actual meetings on Saturday (meetings work for me; they may not work for others). My weigh-in made me sad. I had gained back every single pound I’d lost, and I weight, once again, 272 pounds. But, I’ve done exactly what I resolved to do. I recorded it online, and I am going to go to a meeting on Saturday morning. I’ll attend down here until I get moved fully to Oregon; then, I’ll find a new meeting up there.

Onward and downard.