Life after Dukan

Wow, time sure flies, doesn’t it? It’s been nearly a year since I started this blog last May. It’s hard to comprehend how many recipes I made in just a few months. In addition to the many that were posted on this blog there were MANY MORE disasters that didn’t quite make the cut. My kitchen really felt my wrath during the dukan diet

Some of you may wonder what happens after the dukan diet. Do you gain all of your weight back and then some? What are you supposed to eat? How do you keep it off? The truth is, I am no expert in this department; never was. Just an overly ambitious dieter who threw some ingredients together and hoped the end result would be edible. After the dukan diet, I did a lot less cooking and guess what? I ate carbs! Even so, many of my carbs were part of lean cuisines and the like due to my lack of time. I eat lots of greek yogurt for lunch and I tend to cheat on weekends. I weigh myself often during the week days and keep my hands off the REALLY bad stuff. The result? I am maybe 2 lbs heavier than I was when I ended the dukan diet. To be frank, I worked my but off to shed those pounds and I am not going back. So, I just kept an eye on my weight, found what works for me, and maintained my weight as best I can.

For those of you who followed my blog as I progressed through the dukan diet, you may recall my mentioning starting a Master’s program (which is the cause of the end of my blogging days). I am now in my third semester and still busier than ever. Attributing to this are my 10 hour work days on top of my school work. It’s exhausting but it keeps me busy. Too busy to think about food during the week days. Right now, I’m trying to shed some additional pounds off for the summer so I reference my blog often for recipes. It was nice to see that there’s still a good amount of traffic coming through! Thank you all for your comments. Although I may not always respond, do know that I read them ALL. Perhaps one day I will return to this blog and the dukan diet to get rid of the last stubborn pounds but for now, I will show my support from afar!

For the fun of it (and since we’re on memory lane), below are a list of my favorite dukan recipes!

Japanese Sticky Chicken

Chicken Thighs in Chipotle Cream Sauce

Swedish Meatballs

Shepherd’s Pie

Juicy Tri-tip Roast

Mongolian Beef & Broccoli

Garlic Noodles

Chocolate Chip Dip

..and some of the most popular recipes:

Savory Dukan Bread

Dukan Pizza

Dukan Tacos

Oat Bran Cookies

 

Good luck to you all! Keep on dukan truckin’!

Rosemary Chicken & Roasted Vegetables

Rosemary Chicken & Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breast halves
• 2 red potatoes, cut into cubes
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 zucchini, cut into cubes
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• mix together a few dashes of: salt, pepper, rosemary, garlic powder, and onion powder.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees F.
2. Lightly sprinkle dry seasoning mix on both sides of chicken breasts.
3. Heat pan on medium-high heat with cooking spray.
4. Brown chicken breasts on both sides (do not cook through).
5. Meanwhile, place vegetables in a medium baking dish with dry seasoning mix and 1 second of cooking spray and toss together.
6. Remove chicken from pan and place chicken on top of vegetables.
7. Bake for 35-45 minutes.

Note: For a CRUISE-FRIENDLY version of this dish, replace red potatoes with another vegetable such as broccoli or bell peppers.

Jalapeño Cheese Chicken

Jalapeño Cheese Chicken

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breast halves
• 3 oz fat free cream cheese
• 3 tbs fat free cheddar/mozzarella cheese
• 2 jalapeños, cleaned & minced
• salt & pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven 375 degrees F.
2. Place plastic wrap over chicken breasts and flatten with a mallet.
3. Season chicken with salt & pepper on one side and flip over.
4. Mix together cheeses and minced jalapeños.
5. Spread jalapeno cheese mixture onto chicken breasts.
6. Roll chicken and hold together with a toothpick.
7. Spray cooking spray on baking sheet, place chicken, and top with more spray.
8. Bake for 30 minutes.

Smoked Turkey Jambalaya

Smoked Turkey Jambalaya

Ingredients:

• 14 oz lean smoked turkey sausage, sliced
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 3/4 cup chopped celery
• 3/4 cup chopped green bell peppers
• 2 tbs minced garlic
• 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp hot sauce
• 5 cups fat free chicken broth
• 3/4 cup brown rice
• Combine a dash of each of the following spices: paprika, black pepper, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, & thyme.

Directions:

1. Heat a large sauce pan on medium heat with cooking spray and brown onions, celery, and bell peppers for 3 minutes.
2. Add tomatoes, garlic, bay leaves, worcestershire sauce, and hot sauce.
3. Stir in rice and slowly add chicken broth.
4. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally.
5. In a separate pan, spray with cooking spray and brown sausage. Set aside.
6. Remove cover and cook until rice is tender (about 15 minutes).
7. Mix in sausage and spice-mix and cook for an additional few minutes.

For a CRUISE PHASE FRIENDLY dish — omit brown rice, increase diced tomatoes to 1 cup, decrease chicken broth to 2.5 cups, and cook uncovered for a total of 15 minutes before moving to step 7.

 

(source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/cajun-jambalaya-recipe2/index.html)

Open-face Philly Cheesesteak

 

 

Philly Cheesesteak

First, make the Savory Dukan Bread. (note: cut into 2 pieces)

Ingredients:

• 2 slices of Savory Dukan Bread
• 7 oz lean roast beef, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
• 1/2 green bell pepper, sliced
• 1/2 medium onion, sliced
• 2 mushrooms, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup fat free cheese (I used cheddar & mozzarella)

Directions:

1. Heat large pan on medium heat with cooking spray.
2. Saute garlic, bell peppers, onions, and mushrooms until just tender(do not overcook). Set Aside.
3. Cook roast beef on medium heat until water is rendered. Strain and set aside.
4. In the same pan, heat cooking spray over medium-high heat.
5. Re-add roast beef and vegetables. Cook until both are browned.
6. Mix in cheese and remove from heat immediately (cheese will melt fast).
7. Top each slice of Dukan bread with cheesy beef & vegetables and serve.

Cinnamon Roll Pudding

Quite a while ago I posted a Gingerbread Biscotti and Chocolate Chip Dip recipe inspired by Chocolate Covered Katie. The dip is a deeelicious, protein-filled dessert made from cream cheese and, surprisingly, tofu! Well, this time around, I made a small additional tweak to the recipe and made a cinnamon roll inspired pudding. YUM. I make enough to refrigerate and have it as a treat for several days to come!

Cinnamon Roll Pudding

Ingredients:

• 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup soft tofu
• 1/2 cup fat free cream cheese
• 3 packets of splenda
• 1 tbs splenda brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Blend all ingredients together in a food processor or blender until smooth.
2. Refrigerate for a few hours for a nice thick consistency.

Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

Ingredients:

• 3 tbs unflavored protein powder
• 2 tsp cocoa powder
• 1 egg
• 2 tbs splenda brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbs oat bran
• 1 tbs skim milk
• 1 tsp baking powder
• dash of salt
• 1-2 tbs sugar-free chocolate sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees F.
2. Whisk all ingredients together and pour into a souffle cup.
3. Bake for 15-18 minutes. (the outside rim should be cooked while the center remains very moist & melty)
4. Pour sugar-free chocolate sauce over cake and serve while hot.