Sunday, December 16, 2012

Back on Track

I took a week off from the Atkins routine while I was in Orlando last week, starting with a mango smoothie from Smoothie King and ending with french fries from Burger King. I wonder if eating like royalty is an American desire and one that leads to obesity?

We needed to get back into our Atkins eating pattern so tonight I roasted an organically raised, free-range chicken and served that with mustard greens and my take on achichuk salad.
A quick word on free-range chicken. I prefer chicken and eggs that are free range because I think that chickens deserve to be humanely raised and that the meat and eggs from those chickens tastes better. I also feel better about eating meat and eggs from chickens who got to scratch the earth and chase bugs and breathe clean air under an open sky. 
What is achichuk salad, you ask?
It is something delightful we encountered at a little Uzbek restaurant in Panama City. Made of thinly sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and onion, achichuk salad is topped with fragrant herbs that I had to guess at since recipes on line were next door to non-existent.
When we are in phase one our carbs are very restricted and food can become very boring. I wanted our return to the diet to be as pleasant as possible, hence something more interesting than sliced cucumbers or a green salad.

Achichuk Salad

1 ripe tomato, sliced thinly
2 pickling cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp red wine vinegar

salt, pepper to taste
1/4 tsp each of dill and cumin

Layer the sliced vegetables with salt and pepper in a glass dish. Sprinkle with red wine vinegar, then dill and cumin. Adjust the seasonings to your liking; I like up to a half teaspoon of each dill and cumin.
Allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Serve and be ready for applause.

1 comment:

  1. I tried this wonderful salad, and used basil since I had some fresh growing in my grden. It's lovely, light and wonderful. Delicious!

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