{"id":3861,"date":"2012-07-06T07:35:18","date_gmt":"2012-07-06T11:35:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/ourladyofweightloss\/?p=3861"},"modified":"2012-07-06T07:35:18","modified_gmt":"2012-07-06T11:35:18","slug":"dysfunctional-chef-secretly-slenderizing-summer-ratatouille","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/ourladyofweightloss\/2012\/07\/dysfunctional-chef-secretly-slenderizing-summer-ratatouille.html","title":{"rendered":"Dysfunctional Chef: Secretly Slenderizing Summer Ratatouille"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>When people ask me how I permanently removed over 50 pounds (11 years ago – my oh my, how time flies)<\/strong><\/em>, I tell them that first and foremost I changed my mind<\/strong><\/em> (as Albert Einstein says, “You cannot solve a problem with the same mind that created it.”)<\/em> and I feed my soul<\/strong><\/em> (took on life with gusto)<\/em>, and with regard to food, fabulous food, I ate copious amounts of fruits and vegetables.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The Dysfunctional Chef ‘portion’ of the Our Lady of Weight Loss<\/a> blog is dedicated to focusing on the foods that you can have; that you can whip up and eat eat eat.<\/p>\n

Zero deprivation; 100% sustainable food tips from your Dysfunctional Chef!<\/p>\n

This week’s focus:\u00a0 Ratatouille<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Ingredients:<\/strong>
\n1 large sweet onion, sliced thin
\n5 cloves garlic, minced
\n1 medium eggplant, sliced thin or cubed
\n2 green zucchinis, sliced thin
\n2 yellow squash, sliced thin
\n1 green bell peppers, seeded and cut into long strips
\n1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into long strips
\n1 red bell pepper, seed and cut into long strips
\n4 tomatoes, sliced into chunks (in my mind, chunks are larger than cubes and not as neat)
\n1 15 oz can of tomato sauce (read the label; some are higher in calories, sodium, fat et al. than others!)
\n2 Tablespoons olive oil
\nvegetable broth, dribble as needed
\n1 bay leaf
\n2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
\nsalt and pepper to taste<\/p>\n

Directions<\/strong>
\nHeat oil in a large pot over medium-low heat.
\nAdd the onions and garlic and cook until soft.
\nAdd the zucchini and then the rest of the remaining vegetables with the exception of the tomatoes, slowly, in batches, until slightly browned.
\nKeep on drizzling in the vegetable broth, so the veggies do not burn.\u00a0 The taste of the olive oil is already working its magic.\u00a0 You really don’t need more than two tablespoons (maybe 3 if you must).
\nAdd the chopped tomatoes and parsley and the tomato sauce, cook on a very low heat until the veggies are soft to your liking.\u00a0 Maybe another 15 minutes.\u00a0 Maybe more!
\nRemove the bay leaf.
\nSalt n’ pepper to taste.<\/p>\n

OPTIONS!!!\u00a0<\/strong> Now you’ve got plenty-O-options!
\nYOU CAN eat just as it is.\u00a0 Get yourself a bowl and fill ‘er up, more than once, if you like.
\nOR you can make a bit of pasta (remember 1 serving of pasta is 1\/2 cup, which equals 120 calories).
\nSprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.<\/p>\n

The IMPORTANT THING HERE<\/strong> is that you treat the VEGETABLE dish as the MAIN EVENT.<\/strong>\u00a0 Yes those caps indicate me speaking loudly!\u00a0 Vegetables are the main course. The pasta, the rice, the whatever are your side dishes to eat in side dish portion size.\u00a0 Like 1\/2 cup.<\/p>\n

More dysfunctional recipes next week.\u00a0 Enjoy!!!<\/p>\n

Spread the word \u2026 not the icing!<\/p>\n

Janice
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Life & Wellness Coach
\nSelf-Help \/ Weight Loss Artist
\nwise * fun * utterly useful<\/p>\n

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\nOur Lady of Weight Loss<\/a>
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\nTushkateer*<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 A Tushkateer is a person who receives Our Lady of Weight Loss\u2019s newsletter, called the KICK in the TUSH CLUB!!!\u00a0 Sign up and receive her weekly e-newsletter<\/a> with all the news that \u2018fit\u2019 to print, and you are automatically a Tushkateer!\u00a0 How cool is that? \":)\"<\/p>\n

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<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When people ask me how I permanently removed over 50 pounds (11 years ago – my oh my, how time flies), I tell them that first and foremost I changed my mind (as Albert Einstein says, “You cannot solve a problem with the same mind that created it.”) and I feed my soul (took on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":123,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2130,1772,5,249,1793,373,640,2,70,82,1005,1236,3,60,92,1,176,2100,369,2511],"tags":[3836,3865,2872,671,3818,3826,3827,3825,2871,1161,3837,3875,248],"class_list":["post-3861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cook-with-me-friday","category-cooking-tips","category-diet","category-diet-tips","category-dysfunctional-chef","category-food-news","category-healthy-eating","category-inspiration","category-janice-taylor","category-kick-in-the-tush-club","category-mindful-eating","category-miracle-cures","category-motivation","category-our-lady-of-weight-loss","category-recipes","category-weight-loss","category-weight-loss-coach-2","category-weight-loss-success-coach","category-weight-loss-tips-2","category-weight-loss-wisdom","tag-diet-tips","tag-dysfunctional-chef","tag-eat-this-diet","tag-how-to-lose-weight","tag-inspiration","tag-janice-taylor","tag-kick-in-the-tush-club","tag-our-lady-of-weight-loss","tag-ratatouille","tag-summer-recipes","tag-weight-loss-motivation","tag-weight-loss-success-coach","tag-weight-loss-tips"],"yoast_head":"\nDysfunctional Chef: Secretly Slenderizing Summer Ratatouille - 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