Pan Seared Tuna Steak Salad

Pan-seared Tuna Steak Salad

Following up on last weeks post about healthy eating and how fresh foods pack a lot more punch than processed foods. Real food that is healthy and nutritious does not have to be boiled, bland mush. I will be featuring more recipes on healthy eating in the coming weeks with the calorie breakdown. Eating fresh and "clean" (has been way overused and I dislike the word) does take a little prepping, planning, some chopping but then the benefits make up for the hard work. Any achievements you want to make have to come with a little effort and hard work. 

The salad might look super fancy and laborious but I promise it only a few ingredients and was super quick and easy to make. I get my Tuna steaks from Costco for their quality and freshness but you can pick any store that works for you. A Tuna steak that I cooked was 1.37 lbs so don't assume its 1 portion. Mine turned out to be 4, 6 oz portions so please be mindful of portion sizes. 6 oz meat should look like the size of your fist. If Tuna is not your thing you can replace it with any meat of choice.

For a Steak that big I seared my tuna on a cast iron skillet (pre-heated medium low heat) for 4 minutes on each side for a medium cooked steak. You can season it with just salt and pepper or amp it up with the spice blend. If you like it fully cooked or medium rare, alter the timings accordingly. So it took me 8-10 minutes to get this ready and a few minutes to toss the salad. 

Number	Food	Calories
1 6 Oz	Tuna Steak (Costco)	195
1 Cup	Organic Romaine Salad	7
1 Cup	Broccoli slaw	20
1 tsp	Sprouted Pumpkin seeds (Go Raw, Costco)	45
2 Tbsp	Champagne Pear Vinaigrette (Trader Joes)	50
1 Spray	Olive oil non stick spray	5
Total		322 Calories

Let me know if you would like to see more quick and easy food ideas.

New Year Resolution: Anti-Starvation Diet

No, I have not lost it (not yet) but if I see one more new year resolution related cleanse or lose weight overnight, I will. Now that all the holidays and parties have taken a back seat in the new year, diet and health resolutions are in full swing (says the parking lot at my gym). I am not the one to shy away from food since I love to cook and eat but that can be done in a healthy way. Starving has never worked for anyone and once we understand that, life will be a lot less complicated and successful. 

Who has read the recent article about Tom Brady and his Victoria Secret Model wife's diet? Something to read and think about.(http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/tom-brady-s-personal-chef-details-quarterback-s-diet-201642671.html) I will keep my opinions to myself on this one. 

Today is a little preview on how you can have a healthy and satisfying snack when hunger strikes and not reach for the 100 calorie snack packs. This is a whole new can of worms and my pet peeve. Every time you grab the 100 calorie snack packs and feel you did good today by staying under the calorie count or not indulging and overeating, flip the pack and read the ingredients. Simply put, IF YOU CAN'T READ THEM, YOU CAN'T EAT THEM. Nothing compares to the fresh, real food that you can eat. I did a post sometime ago about eating foods in its natural forms and trying to stay away from processed foods as much as possible. The calories might be more in the snack I am about to put forth but the body knows how to process it compared to the chemicals that it cannot detect how to process and then store as fat. Another big difference is the satiety level of fresh foods vs. processed packaged food that causes more cravings by messing with your insulin levels.

Here is my go to snack when hunger strikes and it does strike us all.

Number	Food	Calories
1 Slice	Ezekiel Sprouted Seseme Bread, toasted	80
1	Egg, Hard boiled	70
1/2	Tomato, sliced	10
6 slices	Cucumber	5
1 Cup	Power Greens Trio	10
1/4	Avocado, sliced	50
1 tsp	Balsamic vinegar	5
Salt and pepper	To taste
Total		230 calories

Enjoy and leave a comment if you would like to see more healthy food options that are quick and easy.