Rebirth of The Healthy Food Warrior

  

I've been trying to switch my palette from the carb-heavy, cheap, high fat (let's not mince words here) shit I have been eating, to a lighter, low-fat, low-carb, lots-of-vegetables one.     I was wondering how I could do this, especially since both my husband and I don't have full-time jobs right now and money is, to say the least, tight.    I've been doing the majority of our grocery shopping at Aldi.  When I lived overseas, I used to do most of my grocery shopping there.   Since I've come to the U.S., there seems to be this stupid, weird stigma attached to shopping at Aldi.   Personally I think it's part brand snobbery, and partly the big supermarket chains spreading lies so they can hold on to their customers and get them to continue to pay the big money for name brand stuff.   I have no problem shopping there, and I can honestly say I've never had any problems with anything I've ever bought at Aldi.  In a lot of cases, I actually prefer the Aldi branded product over the name brand one.  And saving extra money, especially in this economy can only be a good thing.

  So today when I was at Aldi, grocery shopping with my husband, I set myself a challenge: could I make a healthy, nutritious dinner using only Aldi products?  One that was also very tasty and quick to make?   The answer was yes.

Healthy Girl Redux's S.E.V.I. Omelette

Ingredients:
(Makes 2 servings).

1 carton of Aldi Fit & Fresh Egg substitute
2 serves of Aldi Season's Choice Steam Garden Blend Vegetable Mix (4 servings per package, red and green peppers, snow peas, onion.)
1/2 cup Aldi Happy Farms Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
1 serve olive oil spray (for skillet)

Optional: Tapatio or Tabasco hot sauce (a few sprinkles after serving - to taste.)


Instructions:

Following the directions on the package, steam two serves of the Aldi Season's Choice Steam Garden Blend Vegetable Mix.  Drain bags and set aside.

Lightly spray a 18in skillet with olive oil spray.  

Over low heat, pour in the shaken Aldi Fit & Fresh Egg substitute.  

Gently spoon in the pre-drained Aldi Season's Choice Steam Garden Blend Vegetable Mix, being careful to distribute it evenly throughout the omelette.

Measure out 1/2 cup of Aldi Happy Farms Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese.  Sprinkle cheese over omelette and vegetables.

Place lid on skillet for a few minutes and allow the cheese to melt. Once cheese is melted, remove lid.  Be sure to carefully rotate the skillet on the stove throughout the cooking process to evenly cook the egg.

When omelette is nearly cooked all the way through, carefully use your spatula to flip the omelette in half.   Allow to brown for a few minutes before serving.

Nutritional Information:

(Per serve)

274 calories
14g carbohydrates
10g fat
33g protein

(*S.E.V.I. stands for 'Sneaking Extra Vegetables In' - don't bother telling your husband or kids what it means!)

  Next time I make this omelette, I am going to add 2 servings of steamed broccoli to push up the vegetable/fiber content.   Obviously I'm not a healthy food warrior - yet. (I have been one previously, so I know I can be one again.)  I thought this was a good start, though, considering that for the last few weeks I'd been existing on way too many carbs (instant mashed potato, mac & cheese, frozen ravioli).  In the past I've had a very "all or nothing" mindset when it comes to food, to the point of feeling paralyzed by making food-related decisions.   One of my healthy eating goals is to get to a point where the healthy eating becomes automatic and I don't have to worry about whether or not I've made a positive choice at each meal.   I would also like to get into the habit of eating three to four small meals a day, rather than two or three big meals.   I suspect all of these things will become second nature in time.  It will just take a while of consistently making healthy choices for it to become so.