From Mama's Table to Mine (6 page)
Read From Mama's Table to Mine Online
Authors: Bobby Deen
Makes 18 cups / Serves 12
In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Season the beef with the salt and pepper to taste. Working in batches, brown the beef all over. Set aside the browned meat on a plate.
Add the onions and celery to the pot and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic powder, tomatoes, beef broth, 2 cups water, and the bay leaves. Return the beef and its juices to the pot and simmer, uncovered, until very tender, 1½ to 2 hours. Add the potatoes for the last 30 minutes of this cooking time.
When the meat is tender, stir in the frozen vegetables, butter beans, and peas and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce just before serving.
After: 24g fat, 335 calories
23g protein | 6g carbohydrate | .5g fiber | 510mg sodium
Here’s a little trick my Mama taught me. To remove excess beef fat that floats to the top of the soup, swirl a large iceberg lettuce leaf around the surface of the soup—the leaf will pick up a lot of the fat.
Makes 6 cups / Serves 4
In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, and cumin and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, 2 cups water, and the salt. Simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes.
Ladle the soup into bowls and top with some of the yogurt, avocado, and a squeeze of lime.
After: 10g fat, 233 calories
11g protein | 29g carbohydrate | 13g fiber | 383mg sodium
It’s really important that you rinse and drain canned beans before tossing them into the pot. You see, canned beans are packed in brine, which is a salty liquid meant to keep them fresh. By rinsing off the beans first, you’ll get rid of this excess salt.
Makes 5 cups / Serves 4
In a medium pot coated with cooking spray, sauté the kielbasa and onions over medium heat until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the beans, chicken broth, tomatoes, brown sugar, mustard powder, and pepper to taste and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer, partly covered, for 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat, stir in the evaporated milk, and serve.
After: 8g fat, 248 calories
19g protein | 30g carbohydrate | 10g fiber | 729mg sodium
Now, traditionally this soup is served with piping-hot skillet corn bread. If that’s what you’ve got a hankering for, I say go for it. But make sure it’s a healthy version, like my
Real Southern Corn Bread
. And whatever you do, don’t blow your healthy diet by adding a big ol’ pat of butter when you serve it up!
A BUSY LIFE DOES NOT HAVE TO MEAN endless dinners of take-out and frozen food. When you’re short on time, a great dinner option is a healthy, hearty salad. Now I’m not talking about some iceberg lettuce dressed up with a few tomato and cucumber slices. No, ma’am. I’m talking about a salad that makes you happy. I’m talking about a salad that’s loaded with protein, fresh veggies, yummy leftovers from the fridge, and then finished off with a drizzling of a tangy, tasty dressing. I get happy just thinking about it.
My salads serve as satisfying meals containing the meats, cheeses, nuts, and vegetables that I like to eat, along with crisp, bright greens. The sky really is the limit when it comes to salads, and
Cornucopia Salad
is a great example. This pretty layered salad is chock-full of crunchy celery, sweet bananas, salty nuts, plump raisins, and Cheddar cheese, all topped off with crumbled bacon. I’ve lightened up my Mama’s version by using light mayonnaise and fat-free Greek yogurt in my dressing. I tell you, there’s everything but the kitchen sink in this salad!
All right, so throwing together some nuts and cheese may sound easy, but what about washing and drying all those salad greens? When I’m really pressed for time, I turn to store-bought prewashed bagged lettuces. They really are one of the great modern conveniences. When I’ve got a little more time on my hands and I make it to the farmers’ market for some fresh-picked leaves, I give all the leaves a good wash as soon as I get home. Then I spin them nice and dry in a salad spinner. The drier the lettuce is after washing, the longer it will last in the fridge. With all my greens washed and dried, when I get a craving for a salad, all I have to do is grab a handful and toss it in a bowl.
When it comes to dressings, I like to mix it up. There are some great bottled dressings out there on the shelves, but most days I like to make my own dressings at home. It’s so easy to create outstanding homemade dressings. Take, for instance, the blue cheese dressing in
The Lady & Sons Wedge Salad with Blue Cheese and Bacon
. I whisk together Greek yogurt, light mayo, buttermilk, and white wine vinegar with some crumbled blue cheese to create my own restaurant-style dressing. Other times I shake my dressings up in a pretty little crystal cruet a friend of mine gave me, but any empty jelly jar will do the trick.
A satisfying salad is a great way to eat healthy when time is short. Come to think of it, a satisfying salad is a great way to eat healthy just about any old time.
Serves 10
To make the dressing: In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice and sugar and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Add the yogurt and mayonnaise and stir well. Refrigerate until ready to use.
To make the salad: In a 9 by 13-inch baking dish, layer the lettuce, bell peppers, celery, peas, water chestnuts, and bananas. Pour the dressing over the salad and, using the back of a spoon, spread the dressing evenly over the entire salad.
In a small bowl, toss together the Cheddar, raisins, and nuts. Scatter the mixture over the top of the dressing. Top with the scallions and bacon and serve.
After: 6g fat, 156 calories
8g protein | 17g carbohydrate | 3g fiber | 204mg sodium
