Burger night!

I was overwhelmed with work yesterday. Nothing new. Two things in my life de-stress me: Training and cooking. Of course, spending time with karel will make me happy but I can't admit that I am always stress-free when I am with him (I'm sure he can attest to what I am like when I am stressed :0
I didn't work at the Trek store because I was busy, busy, busy with an overwhelming amount of nutrition consultations (not complaining!) so I made a quick trip .3 miles down the road to Food Lion to pick up a few groceries. Last night Karel and I had chickpea burgers.
When I start the day everyday I think about what I am going to eat for all my meals. Breakfast is usually oatmeal but occasionally I will have a yummy-filled whey smoothie with dry cereal in it (get it, instead of cereal and milk I have smoothie and cereal..a lot more filling than 1 serving of cereal). Lunch is usually some carb (wrap, bread, veggies) with egg beaters. A staple to my diet...egg whites as often as I can eat them!
Lots of snacks during the day, yogurt, string cheese, wasa cracker with natural PB, nuts, fruit and veggies.
Then for dinner I try to spice up the diet. I always have protein as the main part of my dinner meal: tofu, egg whites or veggie meat. Then I try to think about what I can make for both Karel and I using either my protein or something for me and adding real meat to his meal. I'm ok with touching frozen or deli meat but I won't cook a whole chicken or turkey.
Since I don't meausre anything I am fully aware of serving sizes. I love reading labels and it is just second nature for me to guess how much I am eating. Plus, I am aware of how much food i need to be full because I have trained by body to only need around 300-400 calories to be satisfied. Not only do I eat VERY slow (longtime habit) but I drink water with all my meals (starting before my meals) and I always combine protein and fiber with my meals. Just a habit now but it did take a while to make those changes.
Here's the chickpea burger.
Since I don't have a food processor (it will be on my wedding registry!) I blended 1/2 can chickpeas, 1/2 can diced tomatoes (drained) w/ chili peppers, some corn (probably around 1/2 cup) veggie sausage and a little water to get it going. I also added a little rice and veggies from Karel's risotto from the other night.
I then poured the mixture in a bowl and added a little whole wheat flour and an egg. I mixed it all up, added some hot sauce and made my burgers on a medium-hot pan sprayed with olive oil spray. I used a little olive oil for my veggies to increase the nutrient content.
I suggest using smaller plates for all those who like to eat with their eyes. I am use to recognizing my portions but for people trying to eat less, just use a smaller plate to make your food portion look bigger without adding extra food to fill the plate. I added a whole wheat english muffin to karel's and instead of making a sandwich he has an open face chickpea burger. I topped the burgers with cheese (real cheese when cheese is a topping, low-skim or reduced fat when cheese makes up all of the meal. Fat-free cheese is just too expensive for me and well, it doesn't really have much flavor after eating the real stuff). For the toppings (or sides) I heated up mushrooms and onions with chili flakes and topped the burgers with a tomato. We also had a nice salad with romaine lettuce, carrots and apples and for desert I made croissants.
This is a favorite of Karel and I. We take reduced fat pillsbury croissants and put sugar-free jelly inside before we roll them up. I also like to make breadsticks with them and I cut the individual croissants in half to make more with less calories for each stick. YUm!