Quiche with spinach, mushrooms and bell peppers

When I started with the South Beach diet for the second time, I had my doubts whether I will stick through diet this time. And today when I look back at the last 4 weeks (with 8 days of not-so-South beach friendly dishes during my vacation), I am proud to say that I have so far lost 12 pounds and I am almost reaching my pre-pregnancy weight. Yaaay!!! I just wanted to update my readers about my progress.

Every time while starting a diet, I ask to myself:  When is the right time to exercise? Some say early morning in the empty stomach, some prefer to do it in the afternoons and some in the  evenings. But I read in some magazine that exercising early in the morning after a long fast (8 hours of sleep) will help burn more fat. So I have started to workout in the morning. I wake up around 6 am and start the morning with Tony Horton's power 90 and on alternate days I do dance work outs (Bollywood music from my laptop too!!!). Tony does a decent job of stretching, power yoga, weights, abs and cool down sessions. He is motivating and I like the fact that he gives permission to listen to the body, take a break when needed and this DVD is a really helpful for beginners. All you need is the self-determination and commitment to do it for 6 days each week. I started with this program 6 days ago and this seems to give some results. Will keep you all posted on the weight lost after few weeks :-)

For those of you who have read the South Beach diet book will know that regular exercise will help in better weight loss and there is a huge possibility that we can avoid weight-loss plateau by swapping different kinds of workout each day like running, elliptical,cycling, floor exercises and workout DVDs.  

Need ideas and tips for a healthy lifestyle and healthy food choices? Click here to find an answer.

The post for today is yet another South beach friendly breakfast dish - Quiche. It is a French dish, baked with eggs and milk in a pastry crust. Below is the picture of my breakfast with the Zurich cow bell :-), recollecting that I tasted quiche for the first time in Zurich, Switzerland. The one I had was in a small bakery in the downtown. It was baked with potatoes, ham and spinach. I really liked them - it was so filling, easy on my pocket and so delicious.

The quiche I made is without any crust. Yes, you heard them right. No crust. Since I am still sticking around phase 1, I just baked eggs, veggies, cheese and little milk. I got inspired to try this recipe after seeing Sigma's Breakfast casserole. The best part about this quiche is that they freeze really well. During weekends, I make them in large batches, cut them into my desired serving sizes and freeze them in freezer bags.Everyday morning, I take one, defrost it in the microwave and pour some hot sauce and enjoy this cheesy hot breakfast and to wash them down, I either drink a glass of 1% milk (8 oz) or freshly made tomato juice (8 oz).

Serve 8-10 squares

Ingredients
12 large eggs
1/4 cup fat free or 1% milk
1 cup low fat cottage cheese ( I used the fat free one)
2 cups grated low fat parmigiano rijano and cheddar cheese or any low fat cheese blend

1 garlic - minced

2 cups frozen spinach

3 cups mushroom, any choice - diced
1 large red bell pepper - diced
1 cup red onions- diced
1 large onion - diced

1 tsp red chili powder 

1 tsp garam masala

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil  
Salt and pepper to taste
    

Method

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Place the cottage cheese in a strainer and run cold water through it. Drain well and just the curd like cheese would be left behind. Beat the eggs along with the milk till frothy. Mix in the cottage cheese.

In a large pan, heat the oil and add the garlic, cook for 30 seconds. Add the onions and cook till soft. Add the chili powder and garam masala and stir fry till the raw smell disappears. Add the bell peppers, mushroom and saute for 5 minutes. Finally add the spinach and saute till wilted. Set them aside.

Spray a large baking dish or casserole with oil. In the bottom of the dish layer cooked veggies and cheese. Pour the egg mixture over and stir gently with a fork to make sure the liquid is evenly distributed over the other ingredients. Bake for 45 minutes in the pre-heated oven till the eggs are set. Once cooled, slice them into small squares or serving size of your choice and freeze them.

Before you serve, defrost them in the microwave and serve with hot sauce.

Tips: 

1. This can be enjoyed as a breakfast during all the three phases of South beach diet.

2. You can add ham, turkey or any meat of your choice. Just make sure they are lean, low fat and also pre-cook them before baking.