Why I broke my no-bread diet, eggs with salmon, best takeout value

A layered sandwich on toasted 100% whole-grain bread includes sliced Swiss cheese, organic salad greens, smoked wild salmon, and a canned-fish salad with scallions and sweet peppers in a Dijon mustard-fresh lime juice dressing. Most of the ingredients are from Costco Wholesale.

A second version substitutes sliced cucumbers and plum tomato for the greens. Both times, I spread the toasted bread with Dijon mustard and Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce or a sweeter, less spicy Korean red-pepper paste.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

When a lifelong bread lover goes on a no-bread, no-pizza diet to lose weight, falling off the wagon can be easy.

On Thursday, I couldn't resist dipping chewy slices of Balthazar Bakery bread into extra-virgin olive oil at a new Roman-style Italian restaurant in Englewood.

On Saturday, I skipped breakfast to buy a dozen bottles of red wine on sale at Whole Foods Market in Paramus.

When I got home, I quickly assembled a thick sandwich of canned-fish salad -- tuna, salmon and sardines -- with reduced-fat cheese, organic salad greens and wild smoked salmon.

On Monday, I made a second version, bigger and messier than the first, adding sliced cucumber and plum tomato, and gochujang instead of a hot chili sauce. 

Still, I at least skipped lunch on the two days I indulged in the guilty pleasure of a sandwich, and my daily weigh-in showed no weight gain.

Now, I'm off bread again, and substituting whole wheat pasta, organic brown rice, sweet potatoes and quinoa at breakfast and dinner.

A breakfast of three organic eggs and wild smoked sockeye salmon, both from Costco Wholesale in Teterboro, didn't need bread or a side dish.

I dressed a pound of organic whole-wheat spaghetti, one of my favorite bread substitutes, in the juice of three medium limes, extra-virgin olive oil, minced garlic and a half-cup of hot pasta water.

There was so much food in this Meal To Go from Jerry's Gourmet & More in Englewood, I left the eggplant parmigiana, lower right, for the next day. The label on the takeout container says 12 ounces, but on my kitchen scale, the food weighed closer to 2 pounds, below.

Plugging Jerry's dinners

We try to take a break from cooking or eating leftovers at least once a week with a restaurant-quality takeout dinner from Jerry's Gourmet & More, 410 S. Dean St., Englewood.

On Friday, I found several seafood dinners in the refrigerated case after 4 p.m., when they are marked down to $5.99 from $7.99.

I bought two, Tiger Shrimp alla Siciliana for my wife and Linguine with Seafood for me.

My dinner also contained Salmon Tartare, Eggplant Parmigiana, Fava Bean Salad and Roasted Potatoes.

Delizioso, and a bargain even at full price.

In addition to shrimp stuffed with breadcrumbs, raisins and pignoli nuts, this Meal To Go had two beef-filled mushroom caps, sea-shell pasta salad and steamed vegetables.