I wanna lose weight the "sensible" way!

Well that was my next diet:  cutting back (ummm, OUT) fried foods and sweets and cut down on portion size. HOLY SMOKES! Great Jumping Jehosaphat!!!  I actually lost weight! It took a while, but I dropped about 30 pounds!  That was great...until....those french fries starting whispering my name. Then some birthday cake at someone's house called me over.

I felt like a cartoon character with a good angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other shoulder.  One told me to eat the cake and the angel with the halo said, "Dave, you've done SO well...don't blow it!"  Speaking of blows, the little devil knocked the angel off my shoulder and I had some cake.  The next day some fried chicken, and it goes on and on..the weight, I mean.  Doesn't sensible means cutting out the good stuff forever?  


The problem is WILLPOWER!!!  It reminds me of the time one of those beggars came over to me and said that he hadn't had anything to eat in several days... I said back to him, "geesh, I wish I had YOUR willpower!!"


If you look at cookbooks from the American Heart Association you'll see there's plenty of recipes for sensible cooking and eating!  

At one time the AHA had some incredible recipes on their web site.  One was for Hot and Sour Soup.  It wasn't exactly like you get at the Chinese restaurants. In fact it was NOTHING like what you get at a Chinese restaurant, but it IS good:

Hot-and-Sour Sou (AMA)
======================
8 Cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 Cup cornstarch
3 TBL water
1 Cup thinly sliced green cabbage or bok choy (about 3 ounces)
1 Cup sliced fresh shiitake, cloud ear, or other mushrooms
1/2 Cup sliced green onions (~ 6)
2 TBL soy
2 TBL minced fresh gingerroot
1/2 Pound reduced-fat tofu, cut into strips
1 Cup white vinegar to taste
1 TBL black pepper (freshly ground)
Egg substitute equivalent to 2 eggs or two eggs slightly beaten
1 TSP sesame oil
.
Bring brother to a boil in a large stockpot over high heat

Meanwhile, mix the cornstartch with the water n a small bowl; set aside.

Add the cabbage, mushrooms, green onions, soy sauce, and gingerroot to
the boiling broth. When the broth mixture returns to a boil, stir in
the cornstarch mixture. Let the mixture boil for about 3 minutes.

Add the tofu strips, venegar, and pepper. Taste and add more pepper or
venegar if desired. Reduce heat to a simmer.

Slowly drizzle the egg substitute into the simmering soup, stiring
gently. Remove from heat, stir in sesame oil, and serve.

Calories: 111
Protein: 9 g
Carbohydrates: 11 g
Total Fat: 4 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 235 mg

From American Heart Association Around the World Cookbook (1996)

Servings: 4