Yum Yum Tofu Nachos (Are You Serious?!)

Because of having a love-love relationship with nachos, I had to find a way to eat it during Dukan. As a corn starch opposer (“eating calories” with a little nutritional benefit), there was NO way for me to use it. So I was desperately in need of something which I can make it taste as I wish, low in carbs and high in protein.

Voilà! Tofu!

There are two major type of tofu which you can find in a supermarket. Silken tofu, and regular tofu.

Silken tofu is usually used for making smoothies and shakes, blending with fruits (usually with bananas and berries), honey and ice cubes. It is also used in salad dressings to give a rich, creamy texture. You need to be very gentle while using silken tofu.

Regular tofu is easier to work with –for me-. You can spice it up in many ways and it can be anything as you want it to be!

For many recipes, firm tofu was OK for me but I am trying to use the extra-firm one, which is easier to slice. Both of them are still easy to break up. If you can’t find extra-firm tofu, you can keep the firm one in the freezer for an hour and then work with it.

Anyway, let’s talk about nachos!

I used pressed tofu in this recipe, -to give it a try- which has a softer texture than the extra firm one. Drain and rinse the tofu and let it stay on paper towels for a few minutes. Then press out the excess water in tofu. (If you are not going to use all the brick, keep the liquid which tofu comes in, so that you can keep the rest in that liquid.) 

Slice the tofu in any shape you feel like. I usually make triangles or rectangles for nachos and cubes for croutons. You can marinade the slices in let’s say soy sauce or in any other sauce for 15 minutes at this point. I usually don’t marinade for nachos. 

Pre-heat your oven to 180°C. Put a layer of baking sheet or silicone sheet (better) in your baking tray. Place the tofu slices by leaving some space between them and sprinkle some sea salt. Don’t use any spices before tofu goes a little golden brown-the spices burn easily. 

Bake for about 20 minutes or so, until one side becomes golden brown and flip the slices. Depending on the thickness, they will shrink and get chewier. Try to flip them as many times as you can, until the tofu becomes as you like. We sometimes prefer chewier, sometimes wait till it becomes crispier. In both ways, they have a good bite! 

You can add your spices now. I usually prefer cheyenne pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.

At the same time, stir-fry your choice of meat. I used low-fat wurst this time, but ground meat or ground chicken does a great job as well! I usually use spices (lemon pepper on ground chicken, Cajun on ground meat etc.), soy sauce or any other black sauce at this point. 

On a plate or a baking sheet, place a layer of baked tofu chips, sprinkle with the meat you prepared and cheese (I used low-fat fol epi and feta cheeses this time). Repeat this step; make as many layers as you wish. (Oh yeah feed the crowd baby!) Bake the nachos for 10 minutes or so, until the cheese is melted. If it isn’t my protein day, I usually add diced tomatoes and jalapeños, after this step.

We topped the nachos with a healthy sprinkle of Sriracha. On the side, we had Dijon mustard and low-fat garlic yogurt.

And here comes the fantastic part... Eat your guilt-free nachos!

Enjoy! 

I Seriously Ate That Whole Burger

A protein day. No carbs, no sugar, no fat. Doesn’t sound pretty, for sure. But after being a Dukan lady for four months and reaching my goal, I believe in the magical touch of just 1 protein day a week.

Oh yes the Dukan Diet. Mösyö made me stay at home, cook non-fat carb free meals, bake carb free cookies, freeze my own ice-cream, prepare home-made chocolates, drink milk and go to bed. Seriously. Those were very tough 4 months, especially for a chocolate and gummy bear addicted, night-life-crazy lady, but the result was shining in front of the mirror.

After dieting that long, without cheats (OK there may be a few high ball glasses of gin tonic..come on that was diet tonic!) you become a master carb-free, fat-free cook. Who can think about flourless bread? Flourless cake? The best one is coming: Fat-free, carb-free (1.1gr carb per 100gr of tofu), guilt-free, free free free nachos!

Yes. A magic wand touches you.

After a while, you become so creative. (You should. You have to!) You begin to substitute anything you are not allowed to eat, with the guilt-free one (for example, I ate 2-3 slices of baked tofu instead of bread). Your mind changes. Your eating habits change. When you see that you can bake your own bread without refined flour, make your own huge burger with low-fat (usually %7 fat) ground meat, top it with tomato, caramelized onions (with water, not sugar-just takes longer time), lettuce and a thin slice of low-fat Swiss cheese, you begin to see how you were surrounded with junk food and calories!

Anyway, the diet is over. I am just following the last rule, one protein day per week. Today!

My morning crew was low-fat feta cheese, low-fat cottage cheese, a few slices of double smoked salmon and a hard-boiled egg. For lunch, I will have roasted chicken and low-fat yogurt. We will welcome my famous tofu nachos topped with low-fat sausage for dinner! (I will post tofu recipes soon) For a sweet dream, I will have warm milk with sweetener, mixed with oat bran (let it soak for a couple of minutes) And 2.5-3 liters of water during the day, as usual.

Bon Appétit!

P.S. Oh, nuts, I love you. You have no idea how I miss you during these protein days.

A Welcome Letter

..to you and us, at 6.30am in the morning. –Forget about sleeping. I want to make it official as soon as possible!

Let me introduce the lady, whose posts you will spend time on. I am Beliz, 29 years old. I am an engineer, majored on Financial Analysis. After my marriage with a Quantum Physicist, we moved to Switzerland first, then to United States. After a couple of years in US, we returned to Zurich.

Because of having a lovely husband, who has a potential to travel just to get a sip from a wine that he has heard about, or just to taste a different kind of food, I began travelling more and more…and now, I want to share what I have learnt from our journey-kinda life.

Please Welcome Heels and Burgers!

Heels and Burgers is going to be the place, where I am going to write about beauty and makeup tips and tricks, delicious foods, drinks, wines, recipes, restaurants and a little bit of daily life.. Let’s say, anything in my pocket.

Heels and Burgers is going to be natural and energetic. You are welcome to expect anything, every day.

Heels and Burgers is going to be original. I am always going to be myself and share my own experience.

Heels and Burgers is going to be loaded with information and suggestions. Just ask… and just have one thing in common with me: Passion. I am passionate about learning more and passing along that knowledge to you.

Let’s learn and have fun together. 

Cheers!