30Quest Breakthrough!

As I wrote before, I am on a quest to lose 30 pounds this year. So, I was very excited when I stepped onto the scale for my Friday morning weigh-in and it came up 199.6. I'm under 200 pounds for the first time in 3 or 4 years. :) That is down 2 pounds from my base weight of 202 and over 10 pounds less than I weighed a year ago.

Now, only 28 pounds to go!

But, going to school combined with working about 15 hours a week has thrown a kink in my exercise plans. I was burning over 1500 calories a week with aerobic workouts at the gym, but I don't have the time for that and studying.

Fortunately, I have to walk about half a mile from the parking lot to my evening classes which burns about 40 calories a trip. And, there's no eating or drinking when I'm on the computers. And being on my feet while I'm at work isn't enough to get my heart pumping, but it also burns calories, especially when I'm scrubbing dishes in the kitchen.

Broiled Salmon with Horseradish Sauce and Panko

But the key thing to weight loss is still diet. And one of the key ingredients in my diet this summer is salmon. My honey had a heart attack in November and had heart bypass surgery in December. When honey recovered and started rehab therapy at a local gym we also got some diet advice.

One of the recommendations was to eat fish twice a week, preferably heart healthy fish like salmon that have a significant amount of omega 3 fatty acids. As this article from the Mayo clinic notes:

Omega-3 in fish: How eating fish helps your heart

Omega-3 fatty acids may decrease triglycerides, lower blood pressure, reduce blood clotting, boost immunity and improve arthritis symptoms, and in children may improve learning ability. Eating one to two servings a week of fish, particularly fish that's rich in omega-3 fatty acids, appears to reduce the risk of heart disease, particularly sudden cardiac death.

 So, we have been trying several salmon recipes this summer. And one of the easiest is pictured above. The recipe I found online called for baking it first and then broiling at the end, but I prefer to broil it the whole time.

Spray the broiler pan with cooking spray. We bought a large fillet at our local grocery store, but you can do this just as well with a small 4 ounce filet. Preheat the broiler on low and put the rack one level down from the top. Lay the salmon skin side up on the broiler pan and broil it with the door slightly open for about 5 minutes. This cooks the skin and makes separating the filet from the skin at serving time easier. Then, pull the rack out and flip the filet over.

Drizzle a mayonnaise based horseradish sauce over the top of the filet and use a knife to spread it around. This lets the horseradish bind the panko to the salmon. Then, sprinkle panko (Japanese dried bread crumbs) over the top and broil it for about 10 minutes till the salmon is done and the panko toasted a medium brown. If you have an especially thick filet, you can switch the oven to bake at 350 and finish cooking it for 5-10 minutes.

Adding a light salad or cole slaw with a wild rice side dish and a piece of your favorite fruit gives you a complete meal.

I generally cook more than we want for one meal. You can make a pita sandwich from the leftovers with sliced onion, bell pepper and shredded cabbage. Or, make a hearty salmon bake with a can of diced tomatoes and a cup of shredded cheese. My son really likes that.

So, eat healthy and enjoy the summer!