Ostrich Burger!

Today I had the pleasure of joining my father and two brothers for lunch at Fuddrucker’s World’s Greatest Hamburgers. A few weeks ago I learned that Fuddrucker’s now serves a variety of lean game meats in their Fudds Exotics line of burgers. Included are the ultra low-fat choices of buffalo, elk, wild boar, and ostrich. I have tried and loved buffalo and elk elsewhere but when I heard about ostrich I just had to find out more.

This exotic fowl ranks high nutritionally. When compared to 10% ground beef this poultry reigns supreme. For the equivalent 8-ounce serving of the beef it requires 492 calories, 26 grams of fat and 59 grams of protein. On the other hand, the same amount of ostrich is very lean with only 259 calories, 6-10 grams of fat and 58 grams of protein (Not including the cheese, guacamole, and bacon as shown in the picture above).

½ pound ostrich patty	259 Calories	6 g Fat	58 g Protein	0 g Carbs	0 g Sugar
Large signature bun	279 Calories	2 g Fat	- Protein	36 g Carbs	- Sugar
Lettuce	1 Calorie	0 g Fat	0.1 g Protein	0.2 g Carbs	0.1 g Sugar
Tomato 4 thin slices	11 Calories	0.1 g Fat	0.5 g Protein	2.4 g Carbs	1.6 g Sugar
Pickle 4 slices	3 Calories	0 g Fat	0.2 g Protein	0.7g Carbs	0.4 g Sugar
1 tsp deli-style mustard	4 calories	0 g Fat	0 g Protein	0 g Carbs	0 g Sugar
Totals	557 calories	8.1 g Fat	~58.8 g Protein	39.9 g Carbs	~2.1 g Sugar

As far as taste, it did have a pleasant texture. A small bite off the edge of the medium-well patty was a little dry and had a gamey essence. However, when the ostrich was placed on a bakery fresh bun stacked high with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and a little deli-style mustard it felt just like eating an old-fashioned hamburger. As I made my way to the center it turned out to be pretty juicy. Not only was this burger super tasty it was also succulent, satisfying, and healthy. I pick ostrich :)

I am certain that My Health Food Quest will lure me back to the realm of Fudds Exotics for the sole reason that I must eventually try the wild boar. But before I make a second pilgrimage to the site of the World's Greatest Hamburgers I will go and search for the specifications on wild boar. I do hope that it too is tasty and healthy....

Shirataki & Tofu Miso Soup

Tofu Miso Soup	35 Calories	1g Fat	3g Protein	3g Carbs	0g Sugar
Shirataki Noodles	0 Calories	0g Fat	0g Protein	0g Carbs	0g Sugar
Totals	35 Calories	1g Fat	3g Protein	3g Carbs	0g Sugar

I have recently added the Japanese shirataki noodle into my diet. Alas, my quest for finding a way to enjoy noodles without the calories was fulfilled! The only problem was that I was having a little trouble flawlessly pairing them with foods. At first I used a tomato based pasta sauce, threw in some steamed broccoli and added parmesan cheese to make my own version of a guilt-free Italian dish. It just always turned out a bit watery. The taste was fine, it was the textures that did not come together as intended.

A little background information on the shirataki noodle: According to shiratakinoodles.net, they are made from a flour derived from the konjac plant. This is a yam-like plant grown in Japan and China. The noodles are almost entirely composed of a dietary fiber called glucomannan. Therefore, they contain little to no calories since they cannot be digested and so they just pass on through.

Last week I experimented by making ramen noodles but I threw away the noodles and just used the seasoning packet. This worked out really well as far as texture. These noodles are similar to udon noodles which work very well in soups. I do not, however, recommend the ramen seasoning packets because they contain extremely high amounts of sodium and partially hydrogenated oils that will clog arteries. After some brainstorming I thought to use miso soup mix instead.

All I did was use my electric kettle to quickly boil some water. I poured the hot water over the rinsed shirataki noodles and then added the contents of the miso soup packet. Voila! I had a huge bowl of noodle soup with and only 35 calories! It was satisfying indeed.

My only complaint about the health aspect of this snack would be that there is a lot of sodium, 740 mg. This is approximately half of what the Institute of Medicine recommends for daily intake. So enjoy this miso soup but keep the rest of the day very low in sodium. If you have hypertension I do not recommend this dish.

The miso soup packet also contains modified food starch, MSG, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, and succinic acid. I’m not sure what to think when I read those items on the ingredients list so I will do some more research to find out. Thus my quest for yummy and healthy food continues....

Seasoned Tilapia Over Sweet Baby Herb Salad

This dish was created on Thursday April 18, 2011 with three goals in mind: High-protein, low-fat and tasty. First, this satisfying dinner is not only loaded with protein but it’s also low in fat, perfect for those who are trying to build lean muscle and lose weight. Here is the nutritional data for this dish:

2 4oz Tilapia Fillets	196 Calories	2g Fat	42g Protein	0g Carbs	0g Sugar
2 cups Baby Herb Salad	20 Calories	0g Fat	1.2g Protein	5.2g Carbs	0g Sugar
¼ cup Fiber One Cereal	30 Calories	0.5g Fat	1g Protein	12.5g Carbs	0g Sugar
2 Tablespoons Honey French Royal Dressing	60 Calories	4g Fat	0g Protein	12g Carbs	11g Sugar
Totals	306 Calories	6.5g Fat	44g Protein	29.7g Carbs	11g Sugar

The tilapia I used was frozen in vacuum sealed pouches. I simply thawed the fish in their packages under warm water. Then, immediately opened and placed them on a broiler pan to be covered with seasoning. The seasoning I used was Olde Thompson Fish & Seafood Seasoning that consists of: Sea salt, chili pepper, celery, red pepper, black pepper, white pepper, bay, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic, onion, and paprika. I highly recommend this seasoning because it really packs a ton of flavor into your fish.

This dish only took about 10 minutes. All I did was broil seasoned tilapia for approximately 4 minutes. Then they were flipped and broiled an additional 4 minutes. While in the broiler, I mixed the salad: Baby Herb Salad, Fiber One, and Honey French Royale Dressing. I usually find it a challenge to only use 2 tablespoons of any salad dressing. Virginia Brand's Vidalia Onion Honey French Royale Salad Dressing solved this issue for me and went a long way by completely flavoring my 2 cups of Organic Baby Herb Salad. I love this dressing! I have so many more ideas for this dressing (I'm planning something involving chicken and almonds, yum).

My favorite choice for green leafy vegetables is Full Circle Organic Baby Herb Salad. This cocktail of a salad brings together 23 different herbs! It is amazing. The flavors that really jump out are from the dill and the cilantro. Some of the leaves in this salad have a somewhat bitter flavor which is nicely offset by the sweet honey dressing.

The 1/4 cup of Fiber One cereal adds just the right amount of crunch in order to make this salad filling and satisfying. There are a ton of flavors going on in this dish but I loved it so much it had to be my first blog post :)

This saturday I will be joining a good friend at my newest favorite restaurant--Greek Islands. I will definitely take pictures and blog about it. Unfortunately I will not have accurate nutritional information but I will certainly post my estimates. Thank you for reading up on My Health Food Quest.

P.S. My blog posts to come will cover all of my favorite places to eat in Lubbock. Also I will incorporate my kitchen experiments, products reviews, and my overall quest for healthy and yummy food!