Mrs. Doodlepunk Rides Again

[sksamboots]

Hey where is this garbanzo bean recipe?

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

It is the burger recipe from the McDougall Made Easy (or was it Irresistible?) and I think it's available from the website. On the home page. I just subbed garbanzo beans, mashed with a potato masher, for the tofu. Used 4 cups. And, I used cooked broccoli instead of spinach. About two cups, I think.

Yup, it was Irresistible. Click here and go to the McVeggie Burger recipe! http://www.drmcdougall.com/mcdougall_ma ... stible.htm

I can't remember right now if there was soy sauce in the recipe or not. I left it out if there was. I used Worcestershire sauce, which probably has sodium in it? In case you are watching that. I sort of am but not obsessing about it.

[sksamboots]

Okay. This is no help. Tell me step by step and how much. LOL. Come on Mrs. D

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Ha, lucky for you, I wrote notes on my print-out and left it on the front of the fridge!

4 cups cooked chickpeas - I used them warm from the pot
1 1/2 cups broccoli, chopped fine
1 cup frozen corn
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 pound mushrooms, chopped
3 cloves garlic pressed
3 cups quick oats
2 Tablespoons vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
2 T. Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Cook the onion and mushrooms in a little water until soft and the water is mostly gone. Mash the garbanzos with the rest of the ingredients, mix in the cooked onion/mushroom mixture with your hands. Scoop out with ice cream scoop onto parchment lined baking sheets and pat out into half inch thick patties or thinner, bake at 350 degrees 20 minutes then flip patties and bake 10 minutes more. Makes 15 to 16 burgers and they freeze well.

[sksamboots]

Thank you!!!!!!

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

During my foray into the northern wilds of Michigan, I went off my gluten free deal for three of the four days. WHAT a stupid thing to do. I am not pretty miserable. Well, not miserable. If I think of all the other things in life - like childbirth? Labor and delivery is a 10 on a scale of zero to 10. This is a three, so I can survive it just fine. But what is going on is that each time I have gluten, the reaction is worse. My upper back is sore and my left ankle has a stabbing pain similar to what I had back when I was having stabbing ankle pains and didn't know what was going on, this was just before being diagnosed as hypothyroid. Now being treated for that and going gluten free, I never have any significant joint problems, no headaches, never terribly tired or have a sore tailbone or back like I did then. This is all coming back now. Or is back and is going away, as I prefer to put it! No more gluten for this girl.

It all is due to one meal as a guest, when I didn't think I should tell our hosts about my dietary needs. I didn't want to consider them "needs", just desires, so they weren't important enough to bring up. Phooey on that. These hosts would have met the challenge, and I did eat potatoes before we went over there for dinner. But I ate a ciabatta roll (did I spell that right? got the little wiggly red line thing under that word.....) then of course one taste of gluten and I was in need of more. I also had some rice pasta and then some corn tortillas, then a grilled sandwich on the way home Tuesday.

So there you have it. Back into the Pleasure Trap and digging my way out. I can do it, I've done it before. A few days of avoidance of my poisons and I'll be free of this current discomfort. I hope.

The plan for today is to make another batch of the delicious garbanzo burgers Mr. D likes (no soy!) and a pot of potato and cabbage soup. Maybe with carrots in it too. He will like that also! Probably not the best choice since we have the house closed up due to extreme heat and humidity, but there are worse things.

We are also taking an old cat to the vet this morning, and will probably be experiencing a sad time over all that. Long story, but this old guy is 13 and looks like he's lived out his time. This is just another life experience for the boys to learn how to handle, I suppose that is good. As things like this sometimes go, and the old guy is getting sicker over the past couple days, a new little black kitty showed up in our yard, skinny and very hungry and quite small. Since we live out in an area where it is convenient for city people who have unwanted litters of puppies and kittens to drop them off (or throw them in the pond next door, ) this happens way too often. So we will probably check with the neighbors first to make sure he doesn't belong to anyone, and take this little guy in for shots and deworming (and that particular unmentionable surgical procedure that makes him a nicer guy to live with!) so he can become a regular member of the bunch here. The other cats tolerate him, and Teddy loves him. Usually very young animals like this don't stick around, the last one was driven off by the big mean older cat.... who is now in no condition to drive anyone off.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I meant to mention this book that just arrived. It came up on my Amazon page as something I would like so I ordered it (of course!) from one of the less expensive options available. Trying to cut back on book expenditures. Anyway, it is very interesting. The End of Overeating by David Kessler, MD. It's sort of like the little boy is standing here saying "Look, the Emperor is naked!" because this is all stuff I sort of know but haven't put into place to make a total big picture for myself yet. If right now, even in my current state of discomfort from all my gluten indiscretions over the past week, there was a piece of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and a dish of peeled cut up carrots, I would definitely be hitting the carrot cake. Good thing, no carrot cake here! Worst thing in the house right now is corn tortillas.

[frozenveg]

Mrs. D, thanks for the book recommendation; I had heard of it form someone else and was tempted, but I'm watching both my pennies and my pile of "stuff," so something has to be double-recommended before I plunge.

Also, I am very thankful for your kind words in the the other thread re my DH and his outburst over the food I give him (or not!). I want to try the burger recipe, but we are taking 2 - 4 weekends to re-stain the deck, and so I don't know if I should try them now. DH LOVES to grill. I have a couple questions: Can you make them in the house--in a pan or the broiler? Can they be frozen, and then cooked from frozen? I am hopeful about them.

I hope you are clearing the gluten out of your system and feeling better. I am not sure what gluten-free involves, so I'm hoping I never have to go that route!

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Hey, frozen. Gluten free is a pain in the @$$. You heard it straight from my lips. MWL is pretty much gluten free though so I just don't bother, personally, trying to find bread that is on plan. Just for TME, who really shouldn't be eating that much bread anyway, I need to find a good bread that isn't full of fat. But if I make it without oil or egg, it really doesn't taste really good. WHICH is why this book is so interesting! The gluten free bread products that I can buy that he likes are very high in fat.

Actually, trying to be gluten free means less restaurant meals since those are awful even if you can HAVE gluten. Gluten free in a restaurant means getting a steak and mushrooms, salad with cheese, etc. I usually do baked potato and salad with vinegar.

But I am feeling a little better but still not good. I think that stress has done a huge big number on my poor old body. I am bloated, it's been in the high 90's here and my feet are swollen, maybe it's not all gluten related. I'm up three pounds from last Saturday.

The burgers could easily be done in a pan on the stove or grill, but direct on the grill grate would not work. I used a non stick pan for Jeff's burger recipe. I bake the other ones on parchment, but you just need a non stick surface and it wouldn't matter if it was pan on stovetop or oven on parchment. They don't hold together real well, but do OK. I bake them and let cool, then freeze with wax paper between them, reheat in the microwave.

Have you seen Jeff Novick's recipe for burgers? It is VERY good and very fast and easy.
1 can rinsed and drained kidney beans
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 cup dry rolled oats
1 cup mixed veggies - I used just corn
2-3 T tomato sauce or salsa
garlic powder
Mash the beans, add the rest of the ingredients mix well, shape into patties. I just put blobs on the pan and flattened them out quickly, nothing fancy or involved. Fry on non stick pan, makes 4 patties. Kidney beans work best and they seem to be the only ones that make the patties so they don't fall apart.

I have been thinking about your thread every since you posted it. Food is love, and it's complicated! What really hit me was when I focused on FEELINGS rather than food, I feel rejected when my boys don't like what I put on the table, and I feel unloved when Mr. D makes the mashed potatoes with hazelnut milk and parmesan cheese. Wow. So no wonder he was so bummed out years ago when I decided to go McD. But things got better and now he thinks these burgers taste better than Wagyu beef. Yeah baby! I love it when I read something on here that helps me, and also love it if something I write helps someone else.

But then he is a joker and maybe he's just pulling my leg. But he says he's not, so

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

the continuing Saga of Leonard T. Cat.....

Who is still alive. Amazing. The vet thought it would be reasonable to try antibiotics and steroids before pulling the plug, so shot the poor guy up. Vitamin B shot too. And he perked up somewhat, enough to trot, trot across the yard and disappear into the brush for a 24 hour period. Apparently the little stray kitty has become attached to Leonard and followed along, they both came sauntering back this morning. Leonard is now in the Cat Hospital cage out back, with his own litter box and upper level, it's quite a luxurious place. Baby kitty - who has been named "Bob" because of his short tail, not for any other reason - is lying on top of the Hospital cage, playing with Leonard thru the wires. Leonard is not playing back, but he does seem to like this kitty, purrs and kneads his one good paw when the kitty plays with him. Weird.

We don't think Leonard has eaten anything, he may be drinking because when we find him he is next to the water dish. Some symptoms are better, and he does look a little perkier. The vet said he would be better by Monday if this is going to work.

Today's food is oatmeal and fruit, potatoes and fried cabbage with caraway, and some goulash type thing for the guys (contains rice pasta so I am having more potatoes and cabbage). Later on we are going to a party so the strategy is to feed the teenagers healthy food at home before we leave. Fill them up. No room for junk. Minimize the damage.

[simoncat]

Hi, Mrs. D. Hope you don't mind if I call you that. I have hypothyroidism as well, so I know what you mean about the gluten thing. For me, if I eat it, my scalp feels like it's on fire. (I know how Michael Jackson must have felt). Anyway, I started losing handfuls of hair and then I stopped eating gluten and soy and became vegan and now, I hardly ever have scalp burning problems and my hair and scalp look normal. Isn't it strange what gluten does to people like us???

Thanks for the recipes. They sound yummy. Do you find soy affects you too?

Hope your kitty gets better. You might just try the site pet herbs direct.com. I use a Chinese Herbal pill for my 19 year old cat and it's called "Rejuvenation Tonic". I really think it has helped him. Just a thought.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Simoncat, the thing about gluten is that I keep testing myself. SToopid. I know it's bad for me yet I keep relapsing. Sheesh. But that is interesting about the scalp burning.

Leonard T. Cat has now actually eaten food, so we are pretty happy! Bob Kitty his faithful sidekick still hanging around on top of the cage to keep him company. So cute. Although Leonard is better we are keeping him in the cage so he can get all of his medicine. He hates it and will run away again, I'm sure. I am just giving him an extra dose today and tomorrow to make up for the two doses he missed yesterday.

Just so you know what weirdos we are, the other cats are named Pooky (Leonard's clever sister who catches more mice but has serious thrill issues) and then Sylvester and Tweety, the one year olds who actually resemble the cartoon Sylvester and Tweety. Then Bob, totally black little kitten with a shortened tail who showed up last week and this morning caught and killed a mouse. An actual kill, so he's earning his keep already and has not cost me anything yet!

Had burgers tonight and I tried it a bit differently than before. I used chopped broccoli instead of corn and they held together better. Also went back to Jeff's original amount of oats and vegetables, my other mixture didn't hold together as well. I think it really needs to be one can of beans with the lesser amounts of rice and oats. This is what I did tonight:

one can kidney beans, no salt, drained but not rinsed
one cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup chopped broccoli (very finely chopped)
1/3 cup rolled oats
3 T salsa - a new tropical fruit variety that was very good, no sugar!
garlic powder and minced dried onion

These held together much better. I use gluten free oats and they are thicker than regular rolled oats, don't know if that makes any difference or not.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I do not feel my best today. Like yesterday, I feel tired and this is unusual. I am going to see the doctor soon so will write this in my journal that I use to keep track of health and thyroid issues, this doctor is the thyroid doc who always tries to get me to do South Beach or use the protein powder stuff he sells. Well, this time I go I will be at least 20 pounds lighter than I was the last time he saw me. Should be more but .... oh well, I'm not going to beat myself up over it.

Food today is oats with fruit, lunch was a cold rice salad I put together quickly. I used fresh salsa that I bought, it is a tropical fruit variety and not hot but still good. No sugar either! I am going to try making my own fruit salsa pretty soon. I have that recipe that uses peaches and we have some good ones now. Make that HAD some.... TME hit them after lunch and they are now gone. Supper is baked potatoes and tomato/onion/mushroom sauce. I'm trying to repeat a sauce I made while we were up north, it had lots of oregano and garlic and tasted just like pizza, even when cold it was delish.

Looks like I need to make the garbanzo burgers again too. I was just informed that the last batch is almost gone. The boys are really digging into them which is good. I told them that I am no longer allowing meat and cheese in the house. <-----Yep, that's me, Mean Old Mother, MOM for short.

[sksamboots]

hey, hope you get to feeling better. I think I'm going to try your bean recipe today. Keep on laying down the law in your house

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Well. The cat is now eating, still lying around most of the time but eats and drinks and uses his litter box. Oh, and when he sees me coming with the syringe of medicine, he lays his ears back. I am always the one who gives him medicine, and he has always run away from me, I can't pet him, which is fine with me. I guess he still hates me. So, all is well.

Mr. D was supposed to be gone all week, but when he found out that the hotel was 30 minutes from his job site and home was 90 minutes from the job site, he came home tonight and decided he will commute. So he will be eating better than if he had to do the hotel thing. And I don't have to be the only adult all week! Woo hoo!

Food was excellent today. Only problem is it tasted good, and that makes me nervous! Oats and fruit, potatoes and tomatoes, potatoes and cabbage. Tasty stuff. Mr. D had the garbanzo burgers, heated in microwave then mashed up with salsa and eaten in corn tortillas. Boys had sandwiches. I guess most people would call this "pot luck".

Oh, and a big bowl of berries for dessert! And some fresh sweet corn! Still no home grown tomatoes yet though.