The Glycemic Index Diet for Dummies - Meri Raffetto [112]
5 Pour another third of the sauce overthe cheese and then pour the remaining half of the polenta over the sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and cover with the remaining third of the sauce. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
6 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
7 Bake the casserole until it's completely heated through, about 25 minutes. Let it cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Vary It! Add 1-inch pieces of rotisserie chicken to the tomato sauce for a nonvegetarian meal.
Per serving: Calories 225 (From Fat 64); Glycemic Load 8 (Low); Fat 7g (Saturated 3g); Cholesterol 17mg; Sodium 665mg; Carbohydrate 33g (Dietary Fiber 5g); Protein 8g.
Figure 17-1: How to extract, peel, and mince garlic.
Freezing casseroles and other leftovers
If you're single or if you have a small family, you may find that casseroles make too much food to eat within three to four days. Freezing casseroles (and other leftovers) is a great way to avoid waste and to have your own prepackaged frozen meals for later use. Naturally, some foods don't freeze well (such as fresh mushrooms and fresh tomatoes as well as overcooked pastas and milk-based sauces), but most cooked casseroles, stews, and soups do freeze well. Follow these tips to create your own homemade frozen meals:
Keep your freezer temperature in the safe zone of 0 degrees Fahrenheit or less. If your freezer compartment doesn't stay that low, just know you'll need to use up your frozen foods a bit quicker.
Package your leftovers so they're air tight in plastic bags or freezer containers. If you're planning on eating your leftovers in one sitting, then you can freeze the whole amount together. But if you want individual servings, then portion out your leftovers and wrap them individually. This is a great trick when you want to grab something for a quick lunch. Instead of reheating an entire half casserole, you have just one serving that's ready to go. (Note: Whatever you do, don't thaw a large amount because you expect to finish it in a day or two and then decide later to refreeze it. That isn't good for the quality of your food.)
Label so you remember. Do you ever wonder whether some of the items in your freezer have been there for years? Avoid losing foods in your freezer compartment by grabbing some masking tape and a mar and writing down the date that you put the leftovers in the freezer. Doing so makes it easy to know how long the food has been in there so you can discard ancient entrees. You can also keep a log of what you have in the freezer along with the date it went in there. This way you can easily see what you have in the freezer without having to rummage through the cold.
You should also know that even frozen foods have a limit on how long they'll remain good. Here's how long certain leftovers will last in your freezer:
Casseroles: Two months
Cooked meat dishes, soups, and stews: Two to three months
Cooked poultry and fish: Four to six months
Making Lower-Glycemic Lunches on a Weekday-to-Weekday Basis
If you have a little more time on your hands during the week, or if you don't like the idea of preparing your lunches in advance, then you can make yummy lunches out of salads or even tacos and burritos. These dishes often require less cooking time and produce some very healthy, lower-glycemic meals. The sections that follow share some simple recipes to get you started.
Powerhouse salad entrees
Salads are a perfect choice for lunches, especially when you're short on time. You can easily load them up with veggies and lean protein sources for a low-glycemic, low-calorie, and highly nutritious meal. Even better, if you choose to use vegetables that have a high fiber content and then add some lean protein, you'll feel full for a longer period of time (perhaps shocking from a salad, huh?). Salads also take a little longer to eat, which in turn helps you slow down during your meal. Put all that together, and you realize that salads are (generally) superb for successful weight loss.
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