Recipe Review : Hungry Girl's Chicken Pot Pockets

Chicken Pot Pockets recipe is located in both Hungry Girl's 300 under 300 and To The Max.  The recipe makes 12 pockets, and with only 1.25 g fat and 1.5 g sugar per pocket, is a meal that fits into my dietary requirements.

As to the contents, it is essentially chicken, vegetables, and cream soup sealed into a egg roll wrapper and baked.  I think it was pretty tasty for what it is, but perhaps a little bland.  Also, the egg roll wrapper as the pocket was interesting.  It did not get crispy, and was by no means a traditional texture with regards to a "pot pie" type crust.  But it did hold the filling together.  Almost every one of the pockets split a bit and leaked a little cream soup, but it wasn't excessive.  The only part I would say I truly didn't care for was the edges where the wrapper was sealed together.  It got very hard, past crispy, once baked.

I will probably make it again though after tinkering with it a bit.  Each pocket is about the size of a "Hot Pocket."  Below is a picture of two pockets.  I forgot to take picture when they were fresh, so this is what they looked like after a night in the refrigerator.

Recipe: Lower Fat Crazy Crust Pizza

I haven't had much to say lately.  Nothing has been changing and I am just continuing on in my efforts to prepare for surgery.  So, I thought I would post on some of the recipes I've been eating.

This recipe is a easy way of making a thin crust pizza without all the work of making or dealing with pizza dough.  You can put whatever toppings on it that you want of course.  I found this recipe when searching for a thin crust pizza recipe after being told by the dietitian we could still have pizza.  The catch being that it had to be a thin crust with emphasis on lower fat meats and lots of veggies and not on the delicious cheesiness.    It is like she knew me... my favorite pizza:  Deep-dish Cheese pizza with extra cheese.  So yep, that is off the menu permanently.  I realized if I was to still have pizza I would need to find a homemade replacement, because none of the pizza places around here carry low fat versions of toppings.

The original recipe has 17.4 g fat and 1.6 g sugar.  Sugar-wise, it's fabulous, fat-wise not so much.  But I realized that the recipe called for all "full fat" items.  So I've modified it quite a bit, but I do not know how low I've gotten the fat content.  I would like to just call this recipe Low Fat instead of Lower Fat, but again I do not know the exact fat content and it will change depending on what toppings you choose.

During my search for better ingredients, I found out that most of the pizza sauces (and spaghetti sauces) available in my local  stores have a fairly high sugar or fat content or both.  Finally, I found a pizza sauce I am happy with using.  It is made by MID'S PASTA SAUCES and is called Pizza Sauce.  Awe inspiring name, no?  But one serving (1/4 c.) has 0 g fat and only 1 g sugar.  The flavor is agreeable to my husband and myself, so I am pleased with my find.  And I am sure that it helps with the overall nutritional content of the recipe.

I have not checked into whether or not they have an actual pasta sauce we would like, but since pasta is taking a backseat in our life, I'm not too concerned about that right now.

The original recipe can be found here:  http://www.food.com/recipe/crazy-crust-pizza-29002

My version is right here!  The first time I made it was for a gathering of friends (I'm a risk-taker, I know!)  and everyone liked it.  I don't have a 10" x 15" pan the recipe calls for, so I made it in a 9" x 13".   For just the two of us, I usually half this recipe and use a 8" x 8" pan for baking.  Both of these ways make the crust slightly thicker than it would be in the original recipe.  Eventually, one of these days, I plan on tinkering with the recipe some more to make it accommodate my smaller pans without having a thicker crust.  But for now, this is what I have been using.

Lower Fat Crazy Crust Pizza (8 Servings)

1 c. Whole Wheat Flour

1 t. Salt

1 t. Oregano (optional, depending on type of pizza you are making)

1/8 t. Black Pepper

1/2 c. Egg Substitute (or 2 Large Eggs, but has more fat)

2/3 c. 1% Milk

1 lb of cooked lean meat of your choice

Veggies of your choice*

1 c. Pizza Sauce

1 1/2 c. Low Fat Cheese

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray a glass 9" x 13" pan with baking spray.

2.  Combine the flour, salt, pepper, oregano (if using), egg substitute, and milk in a medium bowl.  mix well.

3.  Pour mixture into the prepared pan and tilt the pan around until the batter is covering the bottom.

4.  Evenly sprinkle the meat and veggies over the batter.

5.  Bake for 20 minutes.

6.  Remove the pan from the oven.  Drizzle with pizza sauce and sprinkle with the cheese.

7.  Bake 5 more minutes or until the cheese is melted.  Cut into 8 pieces and serve.

* Note: Veggies are still pretty raw after baking, should you choose, you can saute them first to get a more cooked vegetable taste.


I like to change it up a bit.  I've included some of my favorite variations so far.  Also, you may notice, green peppers and onions are the only vegetables... I am picky regarding pizza vegetables.  I also don't do the three F's: fruit, fish, fungus on pizza.  And yes, I know peppers and tomatoes are technically fruit, but they are commonly considered vegetables. (according to Google and me)

Variations:

1 lb of taco meat (made using 93/7 ground turkey and homemade taco seasoning)
1 Small Onion, diced
1 Green Pepper, diced
1.5 c. 2% Mexican Blend Cheese
1 c. Chunky Salsa, put in the blender to make smooth and use as pizza sauce
1/2 c. Low Fat Sour Cream for drizzling on top after baking
Additional veggies to add after baking:  lettuce and olives (the olives are for him, not me!)



5 oz Turkey Pepperoni, quartered (only meat used)
1 Small Onion, diced
1 Green Pepper, diced
1.5 c. Low Fat Mozzarella cheese



8 Turkey Hot dogs, cut into coins
1 Small Onion, chopped
7.5 oz can Turkey Chili Sauce, use as pizza sauce
1.5 c. 2% Cheddar Cheese
Mustard for drizzling on top after baking (for him, not me!)



Ideas I haven't tried yet:

1/2 lb Grilled Chicken, chopped
5 pieces crisp Turkey Bacon, crumbled
1 Small Onion, diced
1 Green Pepper, diced
1 c. Low Fat Mozzarella
1/2 c. Feta Cheese
Baby Spinach - I am not sure yet if I will put it on fresh after baking, or if I will saute it and add it with the cheese.



Add two extra eggs or 1/2 c. egg substitute to crust to make it egg-y
1/2 lb cooked Ground Breakfast Turkey Sausage, crumbled
1 Small Onion, diced
3/4 c. Chunky Salsa, put in the blender to make smooth and use as pizza sauce
3/4 c. 2% Cheddar Cheese

Last Dietitian Visit

My last pre-op Dietitian visit was yesterday.  She said my weight loss so far was going good.  I asked if it was "good" for insurance approval and she said yes.  I have officially lost 8.something pounds since the last visit.  Roughly two pounds a week, although I know I plateaued for almost two weeks... so really it is close to 4 lbs a week on the weeks I was losing.  I was a little worried for a while there that I would not have shown enough progress.  But I have no worries now.

We discussed what my diet would be like pre-surgery and post surgery.  She went into some detail regarding the changes that would occur on Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Ten, Day Seventeen and at Six Weeks.  She kept emphasizing that as my ability to eat different foods increased I would have to make wiser choices to keep my calories lower.  I inquired as to the average calories I would be eating.  She said at first I would be doing good to get about 500 a day, but as time went on my diet should be 700-800 a day.  She said if it reaches 1000 calories a day that is when I will have problems losing any further weight.  But at eating 1/2 cup of food per meal, it should be a problem keeping it under that.  If at some point I progress to 3/4 cup a meal, then I will have to decrease my number of meals from four to three to make sure I stay under 1000 calories a day.

We talked about the different pills I would need to be taking and when to start and stop taking each one.  She said she would see me for a six week post-op appointment just to make sure that everything was going okay food wise after surgery.

She told me that they did not have my psych eval yet.  I told her that the doctor I saw told me she would send it over last week.  She said it was typical for it to take two weeks regardless of what the doctor told me.  She said if the surgeon's office had not called me to schedule my surgery consult by Friday then I should call the Psychologist's office and request it be sent again as the Bariatric's office had not yet received it.  So that is my plan, wait until tomorrow afternoon and then call.

I am going out of town 3/25-4/02, and I have a feeling that the way things are going that is when they will want me to come in for the consult.  So bummer, it will probably have to be pushed farther back.  I have been expecting that, but things have been running so smoothly that I was hoping to be able to get an appointment prior to the trip.

Body Fortress Whey review

I have been using Body Fortress Whey protein powder for a while now to make my protein shakes.  I had three 2 lb canisters leftover and well as a 12 oz package of Jay Robb Tropical Dreamsicle protein powder all from a diet I tried last year.  Luckily, they fit the requirements for the protein powders I have to use for having weight loss surgery.  I was pretty happy with the Body Fortress, chocolate and vanilla, until last week.  Last week, I saw we were almost out of what I had previous bought.  So I went shopping and discovered that the Whey Protein now has a new advanced formula.  I went ahead and bought it (in vanilla, my favorite flavor) since I had a $3.00 off coupon courtesy of the grocery store.


Old Formula                                                   New Formula
Scoop size: 41 g                                               Scoop size: 33 g
1 scoop Servings: 22                                        1 scoop Servings: 27
Mix with 6-8 oz liquid                                        Mix with 12-16 oz liquid
Consume                                                          Consume within 10 minutes of mixing

So already I can see that the scoop is smaller and you are supposed to mix it with even more liquid.  I can attest that the flavor is indeed diluted and not as good.  I do get more servings, but if I don't really like the taste any longer... not worth it.  Also, the new formula settles more, I think hence the new direction to consume with ten minutes.  But for me, each meal is supposed to take at least 30 minutes, so it is not working out well at all for me.

Old Formula                                                   New Formula
Calories: 170                                                    Calories: 130
Fat: 3 g                                                             Fat: 3 g
Total Carb: 7 g                                                 Total Carb: 6 g
Sugars: 2 g                                                       Sugar: 2 g
Protein: 30 g                                                     Protein: 20 g

At first glance, the new formula may look better if I was a person concerned solely with calories.  But if I consider that the scoop size is small and yet the fat and sugars remain the same with a reduction of the protein by a whole third.  I realize that the loss in calories is a reflection of the lack of nutritional content for which I bought the powder in the first place.

Taste-wise, I am not sure I can finish the 20 something servings I have left.  Health-wise, I'm not sure it is worth it to drink it.  It suffices to say, I will not be buying this again.

Edit: I have learned the new formula is due to a lawsuit again Body Fortress who was accused of protein spiking.  The previous formula's protein count included an amino acid that is not usable protein by the body.  So the formula was changed to not include this amino acid.  So I guess the protein content is about the same.  However, my other complaints still stand.

Miscellaneousness

I have finally moved past the small plateau I was on for about 2 weeks.  I still can't believe that so early in the game I plateaued.  But it is over.  Yesterday, I weighed in at 345.1 lbs for a total of 15.9 lbs lost now.

I will also report that I was feeling pretty over my cold by Friday.  So from Friday to Friday, one week of a cold isn't bad at all, not for me anyway.  I am cough free.  So I guess not eating sugar really does make a difference in recuperation from illness.

Yesterday, I was having horrible cravings.  Just for any type of carb, and I wanted to eat, eat, eat.  I didn't, but it makes me wonder why some days are harder than others when I haven't changed anything.

I have been listening to a lot of audio books lately.  They are great while driving, cleaning, cooking, knitting, even once while I played a video game that did not require reading.  I've found that I cannot read while listening to an audio book, it make me tune out the audio book.  Yesterday, for the first time, I tried exercising while listening.  It was a success and it seems to make the workout video go much faster.  I have had this video for about 8 years now, and while I have not faithfully used it, I've seen it enough times that I could put it on mute and just follow along.

In an effort to be prepared for surgery, I have tried a several different protein powders/drinks so far.  They include:  Body Fortress Whey, Jay Robb Whey, Pure Protein Shake, Ensure Active High Protein Shake, Boost Glucose Control Shake, and Glucerna Hunger Smart Shake.  The Ensure, Glucerna, and Boost are all recommended for the 2 week liquid phase prior to surgery to shrink livers and make surgery easier.  The other ones would all be acceptable to use during the liquid phase after surgery when you stomach is healing and can only take liquids.  Plus at Vitamin Shoppe, they sell individual servings of the following powders:

Syntrax Nectar in vanilla bean and chocolate truffle
BodyTech Whey Tech Pro 24 in many flavors, we purchased a rich Chocolate, Strawberries & Cream, and Cookies & Cream.  How I missed grabbing a vanilla, I don't know.
Natural Whey Protein in vanilla and chocolate

I haven't tried any of these flavors yet, but I love that you can try them before buying a two pound or five pound container of them.  I will let you know what I think of them as I try them.

The Jay Robb Whey powder in Tropical Dreamsicle... yuck!  Husband will use it, says it is okay, but I really don't like it.  I don't like it so much that I don't even want to try the other flavors.  If you combine the expense plus the flavor, let's just say I won't be buying that again.

More on Body Fortress Why tomorrow.