It was still windy and raining when I got out of bed this morning. I'm pretty sure it took even longer to dry off the dogs today than yesterday, after our morning walk. On a day like this, food should be eaten with a spoon. And so it was.
Breakfast was yet another bowl of cereal (Trader Joe's organic corn flakes), loaded with sunflower seeds, blueberries and strawberries. Did I mention that both fruits are still fresh and local? Yep, they were picked Friday afternoon and purchased on Saturday morning. I'm pretty sure this is the last of them after all of the rain we had over the last three or four days, but we're enjoying the heck out of them while they are still available.
We went to see the movie, Enough Said, before going to lunch. If you are into middle aged romantic comedy, it absolutely can't be beat. It is well written, well acted and very charming. After the very entertaining movie, in which the theater had approximately an equal number of men and women, both laughing often and usually at the same things, we went to lunch.
Lunch was at Ringside Fish House and was quite tasty. You'll never guess what I had. Nope, I did NOT have fish and chips. Finally! I did have an excellent cioppino (a spicy, tomato based, seafood stew) that was loaded with shrimp, clams, mussels, fish, crab, and scallops. Wow, was it flavorful! It came with a long slice of baguette, which had been coated with olive oil, then grilled. I alternated between spoon and bread as the vehicle to propel the fishy deliciousness into my mouth. The spices were just enough to make my nose run without causing my mouth to rebel. I'd give it five stars. It really was fantastic. That was my reward for ordering something other than fish and chips, I think.
After lunch, we traveled to North Portland to find Smith Teas. Steve Smith was the co-founder of Stash Teas, and the creator of Tazo Teas; both of which he sold. Now he put his own name on the label and has Smith Teas. I have to admit, they are pretty good. We went to the tasting room and looked around for awhile, until I decided which teas I wanted to taste. (Many of you responded to my whiny post about not getting to drink hot chocolate with a resounding plea for me to stop whining and get some tea.) When I asked about tasting them, I was told that I could order a flight of tea to share with Brian and Marty. Cool! I selected the four I was most interested in and a few minutes later we had a gorgeous tray in front of us.
Tasting tea is a bit different than simply drinking it. We were each given a large, deep spoon with which to taste the tea. The four teas were lined up in order of boldness, starting with the weaker tastes and going to the strongest. Each tea was served in an 8 ounce cup with no handle. Along with each tea was a card describing the make up and flavor notes of each tea, along with a small jar of tea leaves to show how they look and smell. Very cool. We then sipped our spoonfuls of tea, and later ladled the tea into small glasses for additional tasting. We were so hip! I won't go into the teas themselves, just know that they were very good and we had a great time trying them.
We got home in time to take the dogs out for a walk in the dry weather. Happily, it didn't start to pour until after we got the dogs home, fed and outside to to their business. Brian made a fantastic vegetable soup using all of the vegetables in the fridge except for the beets and broccoli. It had green beans, tomatoes, corn, pinto beans, peppers, onions, mushrooms, potatoes, parsley, celery and garlic. Brian used the vegetable stock he made a couple of weeks ago as the base. YUM! So great tasting and so good for you. There was tons left to place in the freezer for future meals. A very good thing. Dessert was an oatmeal, chocolate chip, pecan cookie. I made the dough a couple of months ago, cooked half of it and popped the rest in the freezer, ready to bake. So fresh hot cookies came out of the oven and we each had one. The rest go away until we have another cookie emergency or the need for something sweet.
That is it. A spoon food kind of day. Warm, nourishing and delicious. Now that's what I'm talking about.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Day 15: Epiphanies
Yesterday I realized that our 8-week challenge covers Halloween. Who's bright idea was that? The holiday filled with candy, caramel corn, caramel apples, and other goodies is smack in the middle of week 7 of our challenge. Of course, I'm not a big fan of much of the waxy candies that are associated with Halloween, but the idea of missing it is horrifying. Perhaps that is how I'll celebrate the holiday. Instead of being horrified by zombie, werewolves and vampires, I'll be horrified about missing the gluttony of sugar. I'm sure sure it will not be as satisfying, but at least I'll have the appropriate holiday response.
The second great insight I had today involves ice cream. After a lunch of wraps made with lettuce and a mixture of squash, corn, beans, sweet potatoes, spinach, and kamut, we were wanting a little something sweet. We purchased some almond milk ice cream and some coconut milk ice cream last week, so we thought we might try a bit. The almond milk brand was Amaretto chocolate chip and I found it to be cloyingly sweet. The coconut milk version was a rich chocolate that was very good, although with a strong coconut aftertaste. In preparing to write my blog tonight, I decided to compare the calories and sugar of the two, along with a regular cow's milk vanilla ice cream for comparison and the results were surprising.
Of the three, the caloric counts were about the same. For a 1/2 cup serving size, there are 130 calories in both the cow and almond milk. Coconut milk ice cream had 150 calories. OK, no huge surprises there. We're not really worrying about calories, but I found it interesting. The big surprise came with the sugar content. Based on the taste I'd have bet money on the chocolate having less sugar than the other two. Nope. (Quick note: this is why I never bet money. I always lose.) The cow's milk ice cream had the most at 11 grams. The coconut milk ice cream came in next with 8 grams, and the almond milk ice cream came in at a mere 6 grams.
I know what you're thinking. You are asking yourself why someone who is working to restrict sugar from their diet is eating ice cream. In fact, why is she even buying ice cream in the first place? Sue me! (Which is a more polite expression than Bite Me, which my niece, KG, might have used at one point.) Defensiveness aside, I had less than 1/4 cup all together. And, I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as I thought I would. It really feels like I'm starting to shake the need for sweets all the time, and just a small taste amply met my sugar needs. (If you're keeping count, by the way, this is my 3rd epiphany in today's blog.)
That is about it for the revelations today. It is still rainy and windy here in the lovely Pacific Northwest. It is time to leave two full sized towels at the front door when I take the dogs out for our walks, as the big dog soaks up water like a 70 pound walking sponge. The little dog shakes dry pretty quick, but the big one really holds the moisture. Here's hoping the power stays on with all the wind tonight. Sleep well!!!
The second great insight I had today involves ice cream. After a lunch of wraps made with lettuce and a mixture of squash, corn, beans, sweet potatoes, spinach, and kamut, we were wanting a little something sweet. We purchased some almond milk ice cream and some coconut milk ice cream last week, so we thought we might try a bit. The almond milk brand was Amaretto chocolate chip and I found it to be cloyingly sweet. The coconut milk version was a rich chocolate that was very good, although with a strong coconut aftertaste. In preparing to write my blog tonight, I decided to compare the calories and sugar of the two, along with a regular cow's milk vanilla ice cream for comparison and the results were surprising.
Of the three, the caloric counts were about the same. For a 1/2 cup serving size, there are 130 calories in both the cow and almond milk. Coconut milk ice cream had 150 calories. OK, no huge surprises there. We're not really worrying about calories, but I found it interesting. The big surprise came with the sugar content. Based on the taste I'd have bet money on the chocolate having less sugar than the other two. Nope. (Quick note: this is why I never bet money. I always lose.) The cow's milk ice cream had the most at 11 grams. The coconut milk ice cream came in next with 8 grams, and the almond milk ice cream came in at a mere 6 grams.
I know what you're thinking. You are asking yourself why someone who is working to restrict sugar from their diet is eating ice cream. In fact, why is she even buying ice cream in the first place? Sue me! (Which is a more polite expression than Bite Me, which my niece, KG, might have used at one point.) Defensiveness aside, I had less than 1/4 cup all together. And, I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as I thought I would. It really feels like I'm starting to shake the need for sweets all the time, and just a small taste amply met my sugar needs. (If you're keeping count, by the way, this is my 3rd epiphany in today's blog.)
That is about it for the revelations today. It is still rainy and windy here in the lovely Pacific Northwest. It is time to leave two full sized towels at the front door when I take the dogs out for our walks, as the big dog soaks up water like a 70 pound walking sponge. The little dog shakes dry pretty quick, but the big one really holds the moisture. Here's hoping the power stays on with all the wind tonight. Sleep well!!!
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Day 14: The Kings of Peanut Butter
Today was farmers market day!!! Today was also a blustery, rainy, perfect Northwest fall day. Because of the weather, the market didn't have nearly so many vendors as in previous weeks, but the hearty souls who were there had much to offer.
Brian and I left the house hungry. Our thought was to stop at one of the many food carts to grab a bite before doing our shopping. Like all best laid plans, ours (almost) went asunder simply because there were so few vendors there. The big tent that made breakfast sandwiches and fruity waffles was nowhere to be found. The vegan friendly bakers did not show. The many flavors of Asia were absent. In fact, there were only three vendors who were selling something other than cinnamon rolls (obviously not on today's menu): PBJ's, the pizza guy, and the tamale stand.
Tamales for breakfast really didn't appeal to me. I get that it is essentially meat or vegetables wrapped up in grits, but it just doesn't sound breakfasty. Breakfast pizza, on the other hand, sounded amazing. Unfortunately, it sounded great to lots of other people, too, and the 20 minute wait was as unappealing as tamales. That left us with PBJ's.
PBJ's was a little stand under a big tent. They are a gourmet PB&J making couple of guys. The menu had about 10 different sandwiches, all with peanut butter and jelly as the base, but with additional ingredients ranging from bacon to blue cheese to goat cheese to jalapenos, as well as honey, maple syrup, nutella, granola and more. I overheard one of the vendors telling a customer to come to their other cart during the week and they can add duck to the sandwich! To top it off, all of the sandwiches are grilled. Well how could I, a PB&J gourmand, refuse the opportunity?
The short answer is: I couldn't. My sandwich consisted of peanut butter, apricot jam, granola, bananas, and honey on whole wheat bread. I'm pretty sure it shot my sugar intake for the week, but it was mighty fine. All of the prepared ingredients were made by the guys who ran the booth and they were all excellent. Brian had the peanut butter, blueberry jam, bacon and honey on challa french toast. At least mine was vegan. Brian went way off with his 3 strips of bacon. Either way, they were both fantastic! It made me laugh afterwards, though. We eat lots of PB&J sandwiches for breakfast at home. Who'd have thought we'd end up eating those when we went out to the market? Who'd have thought we'd hand over $7 per sandwich, too? And happily! Go figure.
The rest of the day was rainy and windy. We munched our way though the send half of the UGA/LSU game (Go Dawgs!), eating veggie burgers from Trader Joe's (meh), loaded with lots of produce and hummus. Dessert was fresh strawberries with leftover rice pudding. A fine meal. I think this may be the last week for strawberries, but they were local and mighty fine.
Today is the end of week two! The time has both crawled and flown. The big lesson from this week is that I can easily do without cow's milk. Almond milk cooks great and tastes great on cereal. It is very high in fat, but low in calories. A cup of almond milk has 30 calories, 25 of which are from fat. But if you compare that to 2% milk which has 122 calories, 45 of which are from fat, I'm just not worried about it. The other lesson is that sweet potatoes are better with ham than salmon. Hmmm, I'm not sure that is the kind of take away I'm supposed to have here. Oh well. You can't win them all!
Brian and I left the house hungry. Our thought was to stop at one of the many food carts to grab a bite before doing our shopping. Like all best laid plans, ours (almost) went asunder simply because there were so few vendors there. The big tent that made breakfast sandwiches and fruity waffles was nowhere to be found. The vegan friendly bakers did not show. The many flavors of Asia were absent. In fact, there were only three vendors who were selling something other than cinnamon rolls (obviously not on today's menu): PBJ's, the pizza guy, and the tamale stand.
Tamales for breakfast really didn't appeal to me. I get that it is essentially meat or vegetables wrapped up in grits, but it just doesn't sound breakfasty. Breakfast pizza, on the other hand, sounded amazing. Unfortunately, it sounded great to lots of other people, too, and the 20 minute wait was as unappealing as tamales. That left us with PBJ's.
PBJ's was a little stand under a big tent. They are a gourmet PB&J making couple of guys. The menu had about 10 different sandwiches, all with peanut butter and jelly as the base, but with additional ingredients ranging from bacon to blue cheese to goat cheese to jalapenos, as well as honey, maple syrup, nutella, granola and more. I overheard one of the vendors telling a customer to come to their other cart during the week and they can add duck to the sandwich! To top it off, all of the sandwiches are grilled. Well how could I, a PB&J gourmand, refuse the opportunity?
The short answer is: I couldn't. My sandwich consisted of peanut butter, apricot jam, granola, bananas, and honey on whole wheat bread. I'm pretty sure it shot my sugar intake for the week, but it was mighty fine. All of the prepared ingredients were made by the guys who ran the booth and they were all excellent. Brian had the peanut butter, blueberry jam, bacon and honey on challa french toast. At least mine was vegan. Brian went way off with his 3 strips of bacon. Either way, they were both fantastic! It made me laugh afterwards, though. We eat lots of PB&J sandwiches for breakfast at home. Who'd have thought we'd end up eating those when we went out to the market? Who'd have thought we'd hand over $7 per sandwich, too? And happily! Go figure.
The rest of the day was rainy and windy. We munched our way though the send half of the UGA/LSU game (Go Dawgs!), eating veggie burgers from Trader Joe's (meh), loaded with lots of produce and hummus. Dessert was fresh strawberries with leftover rice pudding. A fine meal. I think this may be the last week for strawberries, but they were local and mighty fine.
Today is the end of week two! The time has both crawled and flown. The big lesson from this week is that I can easily do without cow's milk. Almond milk cooks great and tastes great on cereal. It is very high in fat, but low in calories. A cup of almond milk has 30 calories, 25 of which are from fat. But if you compare that to 2% milk which has 122 calories, 45 of which are from fat, I'm just not worried about it. The other lesson is that sweet potatoes are better with ham than salmon. Hmmm, I'm not sure that is the kind of take away I'm supposed to have here. Oh well. You can't win them all!
Friday, September 27, 2013
Day 13: Rice Pudding
When we were in Georgia, I dreamed about food with some regularity. In the morning, I'd wake up knowing exactly what we'd eat that day and how I wanted to prepare it. I think I dreamed about rice pudding last night. My mom used to make it as a special treat for us when we were kids. She made it in the oven, then served it hot, covered with cold milk. Oh, it was so good. So today, I made rice pudding.
Mine was a little different from mom's. Hers had eggs, milk and butter. Today's recipe was quite different. The only similarity was rice, and that was even a different kind of rice. So... here it is.
I started with a tablespoon or so of almond oil and put a cup of arborio rice in to saute, along with about 1/2 cup of apples. After about 2 minutes (stirring constantly), I added 1 cup of hot (not quite boiling) water and cooked over a low-medium heat until the water was absorbed by the rice. I repeated that two more times and added another cup of apples. This is a stirring intensive dish! After three cups of water, I switched to unsweetened almond milk, adding 2 cups, one at a time, stirring constantly. I added a couple of tablespoons of honey, along with some cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. It needed a tiny bit more sweet, so I added a teaspoon of candied ginger and some vanilla. YUM! Cook time was about 30 minutes, stirring the whole time, but it was worth it. Super sweet, rich and delicious! And, it really tasted just like I remember Mom's tasting. Go figure.
The rest of the day had some interesting food as well. Breakfast was a peanut butter and banana sandwich... again. I love them and they taste so good. Lunch was an amalgam of the veggies in the fridge left over from last week's farmers market. It was corn (cut off the cob), spinach, sweet potatoes and northern beans all cooked together in a pan on the stove. Quite tasty! Dinner was a sunshine squash (looks like a small, bumpy pumpkin) roasted in the oven, then pureed with onion and almond milk, served over kamut (an African wheat that is an awful lot like brown rice, only chewier, if that is possible). That was pretty amazing, too. The rice pudding was a late afternoon snack.
When you put it all together, along with the nectarine I had before I started making the rice pudding, it was a pretty healthy food day, with plenty of protein represented. Tomorrow is another farmers market day; another opportunity to come up with some new and exciting menu options for next week!
Mine was a little different from mom's. Hers had eggs, milk and butter. Today's recipe was quite different. The only similarity was rice, and that was even a different kind of rice. So... here it is.
I started with a tablespoon or so of almond oil and put a cup of arborio rice in to saute, along with about 1/2 cup of apples. After about 2 minutes (stirring constantly), I added 1 cup of hot (not quite boiling) water and cooked over a low-medium heat until the water was absorbed by the rice. I repeated that two more times and added another cup of apples. This is a stirring intensive dish! After three cups of water, I switched to unsweetened almond milk, adding 2 cups, one at a time, stirring constantly. I added a couple of tablespoons of honey, along with some cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. It needed a tiny bit more sweet, so I added a teaspoon of candied ginger and some vanilla. YUM! Cook time was about 30 minutes, stirring the whole time, but it was worth it. Super sweet, rich and delicious! And, it really tasted just like I remember Mom's tasting. Go figure.
The rest of the day had some interesting food as well. Breakfast was a peanut butter and banana sandwich... again. I love them and they taste so good. Lunch was an amalgam of the veggies in the fridge left over from last week's farmers market. It was corn (cut off the cob), spinach, sweet potatoes and northern beans all cooked together in a pan on the stove. Quite tasty! Dinner was a sunshine squash (looks like a small, bumpy pumpkin) roasted in the oven, then pureed with onion and almond milk, served over kamut (an African wheat that is an awful lot like brown rice, only chewier, if that is possible). That was pretty amazing, too. The rice pudding was a late afternoon snack.
When you put it all together, along with the nectarine I had before I started making the rice pudding, it was a pretty healthy food day, with plenty of protein represented. Tomorrow is another farmers market day; another opportunity to come up with some new and exciting menu options for next week!
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Day 12: Sneaky dairy!
That dairy is really sneaky. I wasn't feeling much like making dinner tonight, nor was I up for going out to eat. I popped over to the local awesome grocery store (New Seasons) and grabbed some salmon patties from their prepared section. I thought, salmon sounds OK. There will be a bit of egg to hold the fish and bread crumbs together, but nothing big. It'll work. Who knew they used milk along with the egg to hold it all together? Well, I did, once I got home and read the label. I'll know to ask, next time. Not, of course, that it really mattered today. We also got a risotto cake, which I know darned well is loaded with Parmesan cheese.
The funny thing is, I had an amazingly self-restrained lunch. Brian wasn't feeling good and wanted a quesadilla, you know, essentially a grilled cheese sandwich on a tortilla. So I made one for him and one for his mom. I made a side salad for his mom, and a full salad for me, all the while, NOT eating any of the cheese. No cheese crumbs, no small slice, not even the super crunchy bits that stuck to the pan after I pulled the grilled items out. Go Linda! Instead, I had a salad with apples, cucumbers and cashews, with a slice of toast with peanut butter on it. Quite yummy, thank you.
Then, along comes the risotto cake. For those of you who know me, you'll know that I am not a mushroom fan. However, risotto (my all time favorite food) completely overrides that. These were mushroom risotto cakes. I cleverly only bought two to share between three people so that I wouldn't get much dairy, but there the dairy was, nonetheless. Ah well. I'll just have to learn to live with myself. Hee hee!
A note about the salmon patties. What were they thinking? I'll not be buying those again. They had all sorts of things in there, but very little salmon. I'd say they were 50% bread crumbs, 5% egg and milk, 2% onions and peppers and maybe 43% salmon. I'm more used to a 75%+ salmon to everything else ratio. Bottom line, I suppose this will teach me to let someone else prepare my dinner if I want to have control over what I'm eating.
Today was an excellent sugar day. The banana bread I had for breakfast was the only sweet thing I ate, and there was no sugar in that. So, all in all, not a bad day, even if you account for the dairy that sneaked in because I was too lazy to make my own dinner.
The funny thing is, I had an amazingly self-restrained lunch. Brian wasn't feeling good and wanted a quesadilla, you know, essentially a grilled cheese sandwich on a tortilla. So I made one for him and one for his mom. I made a side salad for his mom, and a full salad for me, all the while, NOT eating any of the cheese. No cheese crumbs, no small slice, not even the super crunchy bits that stuck to the pan after I pulled the grilled items out. Go Linda! Instead, I had a salad with apples, cucumbers and cashews, with a slice of toast with peanut butter on it. Quite yummy, thank you.
Then, along comes the risotto cake. For those of you who know me, you'll know that I am not a mushroom fan. However, risotto (my all time favorite food) completely overrides that. These were mushroom risotto cakes. I cleverly only bought two to share between three people so that I wouldn't get much dairy, but there the dairy was, nonetheless. Ah well. I'll just have to learn to live with myself. Hee hee!
A note about the salmon patties. What were they thinking? I'll not be buying those again. They had all sorts of things in there, but very little salmon. I'd say they were 50% bread crumbs, 5% egg and milk, 2% onions and peppers and maybe 43% salmon. I'm more used to a 75%+ salmon to everything else ratio. Bottom line, I suppose this will teach me to let someone else prepare my dinner if I want to have control over what I'm eating.
Today was an excellent sugar day. The banana bread I had for breakfast was the only sweet thing I ate, and there was no sugar in that. So, all in all, not a bad day, even if you account for the dairy that sneaked in because I was too lazy to make my own dinner.
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Day 11: Mmmm... Teriyaki!
We did it! We finally found a Japanese restaurant in the area that serves Japanese food, not the Korean, Filipino, or Chinese take on Japanese food. I know it sounds like I'm splitting hairs, but the taste and style of cooking is different. We had several excellent Japanese restaurants that we frequented in Seattle, but have not (until tonight) had excellent Japanese food in about 6 years. AND... this restaurant had lots of vegetarian options!!! AND... Tomo (the restaurant's name) is walking distance from where we live!!! All good things.
Today was a good food day and a good day in general. Breakfast was the usual cereal and fruit. Lunch was a wrap made with yesterday's leftovers (sweet potato hash) and lots of peppers, cucumbers and lettuce with fruit for dessert. Dinner... ahhhh, dinner. Dinner was from Tomo.
We walked into Tomo and immediately got a good vibe. There was a very large sushi bar in a bright, well lit, yet comfortable place. The waitress was very friendly and cheerful, patiently coming back to our table several times before we were ready to order. Brian got a plateful of sushi; 15 pieces in total, including a rainbow roll and some random pieces of sushi. I ordered a California roll and vegetable yakisoba noodles. The noodles came well before everything else, so I wasn't hungry for much of the California roll by the time it got there. Brian ate half of it. For those of you keeping score at home, that brings his total to 19 pieces. This is not a record for him, but it does make his belly stick out.
Back to the yakisoba noodles: a hot, steaming plateful of teriyaki drenched vegetables and noodley goodness. By the way, teriyaki sauce is really sweet. I didn't realize it until I took my first bite after a day with no added sugar, and got hit by the intensity of the sweetness. It was amazing! Perhaps this is why I'm doing the challenge. By removing the extraneous sugars from the day, I was able to get all of the complexities of the sauce. Or, maybe not. Either way, it was great!
Just in case the food day wasn't good enough, I also loaded the dogs into the car and drove out to the beach between lunch and dinner. The drive was on Hwy 26 through the Oregon Coastal mountain range. It was BEAUTIFUL! So green! So fresh! So wet! It rained off an on for most of the way there. No matter. We came out of the mountain into a gorgeous mix of sun and fog, right on the beach! Katy (big dog) was so excited to be at the ocean again. She was found abandoned on a beach in Washington state seven years ago. Buckley (little dog) had never seen anything like it and was even goofier than ever. First thing he did was find something dead and put it in his mouth. Great.
We left the beach and drove up to Astoria, then took Hwy 30 back home. The whole trip took about four hours and was well worth it. Dean, there is a Wilkerson Camp Ground off of 30, so I kept thinking of you and how much fun you and your family would have up there. I don't know if the girls camp, but I know you'd love the area.
Well, that was it for the day: no meat, no dairy, and the only sugar was in the teriyaki. Not a bad day at all.
Today was a good food day and a good day in general. Breakfast was the usual cereal and fruit. Lunch was a wrap made with yesterday's leftovers (sweet potato hash) and lots of peppers, cucumbers and lettuce with fruit for dessert. Dinner... ahhhh, dinner. Dinner was from Tomo.
We walked into Tomo and immediately got a good vibe. There was a very large sushi bar in a bright, well lit, yet comfortable place. The waitress was very friendly and cheerful, patiently coming back to our table several times before we were ready to order. Brian got a plateful of sushi; 15 pieces in total, including a rainbow roll and some random pieces of sushi. I ordered a California roll and vegetable yakisoba noodles. The noodles came well before everything else, so I wasn't hungry for much of the California roll by the time it got there. Brian ate half of it. For those of you keeping score at home, that brings his total to 19 pieces. This is not a record for him, but it does make his belly stick out.
Back to the yakisoba noodles: a hot, steaming plateful of teriyaki drenched vegetables and noodley goodness. By the way, teriyaki sauce is really sweet. I didn't realize it until I took my first bite after a day with no added sugar, and got hit by the intensity of the sweetness. It was amazing! Perhaps this is why I'm doing the challenge. By removing the extraneous sugars from the day, I was able to get all of the complexities of the sauce. Or, maybe not. Either way, it was great!
Just in case the food day wasn't good enough, I also loaded the dogs into the car and drove out to the beach between lunch and dinner. The drive was on Hwy 26 through the Oregon Coastal mountain range. It was BEAUTIFUL! So green! So fresh! So wet! It rained off an on for most of the way there. No matter. We came out of the mountain into a gorgeous mix of sun and fog, right on the beach! Katy (big dog) was so excited to be at the ocean again. She was found abandoned on a beach in Washington state seven years ago. Buckley (little dog) had never seen anything like it and was even goofier than ever. First thing he did was find something dead and put it in his mouth. Great.
We left the beach and drove up to Astoria, then took Hwy 30 back home. The whole trip took about four hours and was well worth it. Dean, there is a Wilkerson Camp Ground off of 30, so I kept thinking of you and how much fun you and your family would have up there. I don't know if the girls camp, but I know you'd love the area.
Well, that was it for the day: no meat, no dairy, and the only sugar was in the teriyaki. Not a bad day at all.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Day 10: The Salt of Life is...
The sugar craving was starting to make me crazy, so I decided to make some more banana bread for breakfast, and load it up with chocolate. Good plan! This time, I took the recipe from a few days ago and exchanged whole wheat pastry flour for the white flour, and added 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the mix, along with 1 1/2 cups of pecan pieces and 1/4 cup of semisweet chocolate chips. Nirvana! Seriously, there was no sugar in this recipe (I know there is sugar in the chips, but 1/4 cup in a whole loaf is very minor) and yet it tasted like chocolate cake. It really hit the spot!
After yesterday's menu, I was a bit concerned about a lack of protein. For lunch, we remedied that concern. Lunch was a sweet potato hash with onions and black beans, seasoned with turmeric and curry powder. I was going to use cumin, but we didn't have any. I severed it in a whole wheat wrap loaded with lettuce. That should help with the protein for the day, especially when we count the pecans from the banana bread.
Dinner was pizza, with no meat and no cheese. Unfortunately, it was also made without the salt, quite by accident. Note to self: flavoring is very important. VERY important. We ended up sprinkling salt on as a topping after it was cooked. The other toppings were spinach, onion, and bell pepper. We'll just consider this as a trial run and give it another go later. The crust was 1/2 white flour and 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour. It would have been great, with a little salt.
After the pizza, we had a thin slice of the banana bread for dessert. It was excellent. There was plenty of sweet from the bananas and applesauce (you couldn't taste the honey at all), I felt pretty good about using that to satisfy the sugar craving, even if it was twice in one day.
So, as you can tell. today was a pretty dull day, but not a bad one. The key lesson we'll take from this day is: the salt of life is salt.
After yesterday's menu, I was a bit concerned about a lack of protein. For lunch, we remedied that concern. Lunch was a sweet potato hash with onions and black beans, seasoned with turmeric and curry powder. I was going to use cumin, but we didn't have any. I severed it in a whole wheat wrap loaded with lettuce. That should help with the protein for the day, especially when we count the pecans from the banana bread.
Dinner was pizza, with no meat and no cheese. Unfortunately, it was also made without the salt, quite by accident. Note to self: flavoring is very important. VERY important. We ended up sprinkling salt on as a topping after it was cooked. The other toppings were spinach, onion, and bell pepper. We'll just consider this as a trial run and give it another go later. The crust was 1/2 white flour and 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour. It would have been great, with a little salt.
After the pizza, we had a thin slice of the banana bread for dessert. It was excellent. There was plenty of sweet from the bananas and applesauce (you couldn't taste the honey at all), I felt pretty good about using that to satisfy the sugar craving, even if it was twice in one day.
So, as you can tell. today was a pretty dull day, but not a bad one. The key lesson we'll take from this day is: the salt of life is salt.
Day 9: A Great Sandwich
Sorry for missing my post yesterday. Except for an amazing sandwich and a good choice at Starbucks, it was an uninspired day.
I was still reeling a bit from my VegFest experience when I awoke yesterday. But after awhile, I was feeling better. Breakfast was my favorite Trader Joe's corn flakes (surprising low in sugar), with dried strawberries, sunflower seeds and ginger chips, served with unsweetened almond milk. After breakfast, we walked up to the pharmacy to pick up a few things. The walk was damp and chilly, and there was a Starbucks next to the pharmacy, so we wanted something hot to drink.
Coffee is NOT my drink. I barely like the smell of it and I absolutely hate the taste of it. Hot chocolate has always been my hot beverage of choice. But now, milk and sugar both are off the list. What is a girl to do? I have a very limited sense of smell, so hot tea tastes exactly like hot water, which is not really a great flavor experience. So, I steeled myself to go order a tall hot chocolate. When I got in line, I remembered that they used to have hot cider. Hooray! I was saved from myself by a healthier option on the menu. Yay, Starbucks. Later in the day I remembered they also sell a Tazo orange tea, which would have been an even better option, as the citrus is something I can taste. Next time.
OK, so back to the house and the amazing sandwich! I bought a medium sized eggplant at the Olympia market on Saturday, and we used that as a base for a roasted vegetable sandwich. Usually, these sandwiches are made with melted mozzarella and tomato sauce, but we're off the cheese and out of sauce. We forged ahead anyway. (By we, in this instance, I mean Brian.)
Brian sliced eggplant, onion and bell pepper into 3/4 inch slices, placed them in a roasting pan, drizzled them with olive oil, turned them over and drizzled them again. Next he halved a handful of cherry tomatoes and added them to the pan. Finally, he ground a little black pepper over everything and placed in a 400 degree oven for about an hour. When he pulled them out of the oven the vegetables were soft and just tinging brown on the edges. As they cooled, Brian took some Italian bread with whole garlic cloves in it, and pan fried it in a bit of olive oil on the stove. He then assembled the sandwiches and served lunch. WOW! Those were some DELICIOUS sandwiches. If we were thinking, we'd have served them with a side salad, but they were quite filling on their own.
After that, the rest of the day was anticlimactic. I had a cookie (OK, it was really half of two cookies, but they were really big and way over the size limit - not a good choice) mid-afternoon, a small popcorn at the movie theater (saw The Family... not great, not awful), and late in the evening had a PB&J. The sugar thing is really tough. Fruit is really wonderful, but not quite the same as a cookie. Ah, well.
I was still reeling a bit from my VegFest experience when I awoke yesterday. But after awhile, I was feeling better. Breakfast was my favorite Trader Joe's corn flakes (surprising low in sugar), with dried strawberries, sunflower seeds and ginger chips, served with unsweetened almond milk. After breakfast, we walked up to the pharmacy to pick up a few things. The walk was damp and chilly, and there was a Starbucks next to the pharmacy, so we wanted something hot to drink.
Coffee is NOT my drink. I barely like the smell of it and I absolutely hate the taste of it. Hot chocolate has always been my hot beverage of choice. But now, milk and sugar both are off the list. What is a girl to do? I have a very limited sense of smell, so hot tea tastes exactly like hot water, which is not really a great flavor experience. So, I steeled myself to go order a tall hot chocolate. When I got in line, I remembered that they used to have hot cider. Hooray! I was saved from myself by a healthier option on the menu. Yay, Starbucks. Later in the day I remembered they also sell a Tazo orange tea, which would have been an even better option, as the citrus is something I can taste. Next time.
OK, so back to the house and the amazing sandwich! I bought a medium sized eggplant at the Olympia market on Saturday, and we used that as a base for a roasted vegetable sandwich. Usually, these sandwiches are made with melted mozzarella and tomato sauce, but we're off the cheese and out of sauce. We forged ahead anyway. (By we, in this instance, I mean Brian.)
Brian sliced eggplant, onion and bell pepper into 3/4 inch slices, placed them in a roasting pan, drizzled them with olive oil, turned them over and drizzled them again. Next he halved a handful of cherry tomatoes and added them to the pan. Finally, he ground a little black pepper over everything and placed in a 400 degree oven for about an hour. When he pulled them out of the oven the vegetables were soft and just tinging brown on the edges. As they cooled, Brian took some Italian bread with whole garlic cloves in it, and pan fried it in a bit of olive oil on the stove. He then assembled the sandwiches and served lunch. WOW! Those were some DELICIOUS sandwiches. If we were thinking, we'd have served them with a side salad, but they were quite filling on their own.
After that, the rest of the day was anticlimactic. I had a cookie (OK, it was really half of two cookies, but they were really big and way over the size limit - not a good choice) mid-afternoon, a small popcorn at the movie theater (saw The Family... not great, not awful), and late in the evening had a PB&J. The sugar thing is really tough. Fruit is really wonderful, but not quite the same as a cookie. Ah, well.
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Day 8: Revenge of the Vegans
Today was an interesting day. I started with a very brisk 2 mile walk with my furry friends. The walk was followed by breakfast of a pear and a pistachio butter/no sugar apricot jam and banana sandwich. Then a quick shower, and Brian and I were off to visit VegFest, Portland's premier vegan trade show/conference. It was right next door to the much more widely and wildly attended Rose City Comicon, which made the day even more interesting as we mingled with vegans dressed as pumpkins and Cosplay kids dressed as Japanese anime. After the Fest, we had tickets to see the musical version of Kiss of the Spider Woman.
VegFest was very well attended. It was in a pretty good sized room at the Convention Center and there were hundreds of vendors to peruse. This was a true vegan (no meat, eggs or dairy) event, with several folks protesting anything related to animal consumption: raising conditions, cruelty to animals, use of animal hides and much more. My personal favorite place was the table that had fake honey (made with concentrated apple juice and... SUGAR, lots of sugar). When I asked WHY, I was told that honey making harms bees. I had to walk away.
OK, enough ranting about the bee huggers, and back to the festival. It was loads of fun! Most of the booths had samples to try, and everyone was willing to share information about their products. I must have tried 12 different ways to eat hemp seed, 6 ways to eat kale, 4 powered green drinks, and 37 ways to eat different beans. Lunch was not on the menu today. One of the booths even had a "cleansing" drink to help your body get rid of any toxins it may have encountered by eating animal products. (For those clueless readers, "cleansing" means making your body discharge anything that might be considered a solid waste. More on this later.)
Most of the people were pretty friendly, but there were some serious vegans out there. Those folks were so militant, it was kind of off-putting. Eating is such a big part of life that it should be fun. But the real militants were the folks guarding the trash bins. For those of you who haven't been in the Pacific Northwest for awhile, folks around here take garbage very seriously. There is landfill (bad!), recycle (better) and composting (yay!!!). Your job is to figure out which of these things your garbage is. Today, there were trash harpies manning each of the trash stations. These creatures would swoop out of nowhere, screeching mercilessly, smacking hands away from potentially misplaced refuse. Most of the waste from today's event came from the paper cups, tasting spoons and other containers used to sample the products. Since all of these were paper that food had touched, they go into the composting bin. I kid you not: every time I started to throw one of these containers into the compost bin, a harpy examined the materials in my hand before graciously allowing me to dispose of my refuse. Yowza!
About 3/4 of our way through the vendors, I noticed a distinct gurgling sound coming from somewhere below my belly button. Luckily, restrooms were near and plentiful, because it seemed that cleansing had begun. Who knew that trying 59 samples of seeds, whole grains, veggie super powders and beans would be so good for you? If by "good for you" you mean able to empty one's colon in about 3 seconds. Hmmm. Perhaps this was not well thought out.
Feeling better after my bio-break, we finished the last few booths and made out way over to the theater. Before the show, I took a quick pit stop and found that the cleansing cycle was still on. Someone forgot to turn it off, I guess. No worries. I went in to see the play, and at one point in the plot, our hero gets poisoned, causing him to have extreme stomach cramps. While he was writhing on the stage, I was writhing in my seat... wishing for death or intermission, whichever allowed me to stop the madness. Well, I won't share any more; this has already gone deep into TMI territory. Let's just suffice it to say that any snarky comments I may have made in today's blog were more than paid for in the Revenge of the Vegans.
On a side note, dinner was a grilled cheese sandwich and part of a can of ginger ale. Both are on the do not eat list, but darn it, my stomach was begging me. Of course, I'm not 100% sure of the wisdom of eating the sandwich on Dave's Killer Bread (made with loads of whole grains and seeds), but hopefully the cheese will counter all of the cleansing agents I consumed today.
VegFest was very well attended. It was in a pretty good sized room at the Convention Center and there were hundreds of vendors to peruse. This was a true vegan (no meat, eggs or dairy) event, with several folks protesting anything related to animal consumption: raising conditions, cruelty to animals, use of animal hides and much more. My personal favorite place was the table that had fake honey (made with concentrated apple juice and... SUGAR, lots of sugar). When I asked WHY, I was told that honey making harms bees. I had to walk away.
OK, enough ranting about the bee huggers, and back to the festival. It was loads of fun! Most of the booths had samples to try, and everyone was willing to share information about their products. I must have tried 12 different ways to eat hemp seed, 6 ways to eat kale, 4 powered green drinks, and 37 ways to eat different beans. Lunch was not on the menu today. One of the booths even had a "cleansing" drink to help your body get rid of any toxins it may have encountered by eating animal products. (For those clueless readers, "cleansing" means making your body discharge anything that might be considered a solid waste. More on this later.)
Most of the people were pretty friendly, but there were some serious vegans out there. Those folks were so militant, it was kind of off-putting. Eating is such a big part of life that it should be fun. But the real militants were the folks guarding the trash bins. For those of you who haven't been in the Pacific Northwest for awhile, folks around here take garbage very seriously. There is landfill (bad!), recycle (better) and composting (yay!!!). Your job is to figure out which of these things your garbage is. Today, there were trash harpies manning each of the trash stations. These creatures would swoop out of nowhere, screeching mercilessly, smacking hands away from potentially misplaced refuse. Most of the waste from today's event came from the paper cups, tasting spoons and other containers used to sample the products. Since all of these were paper that food had touched, they go into the composting bin. I kid you not: every time I started to throw one of these containers into the compost bin, a harpy examined the materials in my hand before graciously allowing me to dispose of my refuse. Yowza!
About 3/4 of our way through the vendors, I noticed a distinct gurgling sound coming from somewhere below my belly button. Luckily, restrooms were near and plentiful, because it seemed that cleansing had begun. Who knew that trying 59 samples of seeds, whole grains, veggie super powders and beans would be so good for you? If by "good for you" you mean able to empty one's colon in about 3 seconds. Hmmm. Perhaps this was not well thought out.
Feeling better after my bio-break, we finished the last few booths and made out way over to the theater. Before the show, I took a quick pit stop and found that the cleansing cycle was still on. Someone forgot to turn it off, I guess. No worries. I went in to see the play, and at one point in the plot, our hero gets poisoned, causing him to have extreme stomach cramps. While he was writhing on the stage, I was writhing in my seat... wishing for death or intermission, whichever allowed me to stop the madness. Well, I won't share any more; this has already gone deep into TMI territory. Let's just suffice it to say that any snarky comments I may have made in today's blog were more than paid for in the Revenge of the Vegans.
On a side note, dinner was a grilled cheese sandwich and part of a can of ginger ale. Both are on the do not eat list, but darn it, my stomach was begging me. Of course, I'm not 100% sure of the wisdom of eating the sandwich on Dave's Killer Bread (made with loads of whole grains and seeds), but hopefully the cheese will counter all of the cleansing agents I consumed today.
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Day 7: A Day in Olympia!
One of the nicest things about moving back to the Northwest is reconnecting with some of our favorite people on earth. Today, we met Ben and Kate in Olympia to enjoy the Olympia Farmers Market and then have lunch together. Brian and Ben were roommates for part of their freshman year in college. The four of us have been friends for more than 20 years. That made for a really great day.
After an early breakfast of cereal with fruit, Brian and I got on the road and drove the two hours to Olympia where we immediately met Ben and Kate. We started at the Olympia Farmers Market. It is set up a more like the Cleveland West Side Market than a standard one day a week market, open Thursday through Sunday from April through December, but it is mostly fruits and vegetables, as opposed to Cleveland which is mostly prepared foods. Either way, it was fantastic. The plums! The apples! The pears!!!!! YUM! We got 4 bags of fresh fruits and vegetables. We shall eat very well for the next week on corn, lettuce, cucumber, green beans, broccoli, onion, celery, eggplant, pears, nectarines, pluots (!!), apples, mini-kiwis (!!), and a Hungarian bell pepper.
We left the food in the car, in a cooler we brought just for the occasion, then wandered the streets of Olympia. Ben found a flea market, which we perused until my nose started to run from all the dust. We found a used furniture store, which only seemed to sell new stuff. We did not get tattoos at one of the 4 different shops we passed, nor did we stop for lunch at a place that proclaimed, "Baby got Mac...and cheese". We passed a noodle shop, a crepe shop, several bakeries, and a pizza joint, finally stopping at Fishtail Ale Brew Pub.
The Pub was right next door to the brewery and there were several VERY local beers on tap. They used the beer as part of the base of a savory/spicy broth for a fish stew. Wow, it was fantastic! I followed that up with fish and chips (I know, that should probably be off the list for next week, but I missed it so in Georgia). Brian was great, having a felafel sandwich and a side salad. Kate had a fried oyster po-boy and Ben had a bratwurst with grilled onions. Everyone really enjoyed their food, and the beer as well. I'm a non-alcohol gal, so I enjoyed the iced tea.
After lunch, we walked back towards the market, stopping at a small cafe that served Olympic Mountain Ice Cream. That is a fantastic local ice cream which is not found outside of the Northwest. You will be happy to know that Brian and I shared a small bowl of Marionberry sorbet, which spawned a conversation about the former mayor of DC. I love our friends!!!
We sat around and chatted/people watched for another 1/2 hour or so, then decided it was time to go back home. We went and looked a cupcakes through a window, but they were not anywhere near as amazing looking as Cupcake Jones in Portland (that is a whole blog unto itself), so we skipped them. Ben thought pretty hard about it, but decided he wasn't up to the ribbing he'd get from Kate if he ate one. Brian and I laughed pretty hard at that. Have I mentioned how much we enjoy our friends?
The drive home was especially scenic, as we took highway 30 for the last part of the trip instead of I-5. I love back roads, and this one did not disappoint. It follows the Columbia river for most of the drive and was quite lovely. I was excited to discover that by taking this road, we missed all of the Portland traffic and ended up on the West side of the city, not 10 miles from our house. Huzzah! Oh, a funny note: Brian and I stopped for some caffeinated beverages before our drive home. About 45 miles into it, Brian cursed. I asked what was wrong and he mentioned that he got a latte. Um, latte means milk, doesn't it? Hee hee, I felt slightly vindicated for my incident with the non-fat milk earlier in the week.
Once we got home, we were a little snacky, so we had sliced plums, pluots, pears and apples along with some wheat crackers made with sweet potatoes and cinnamon and some peanut butter pretzels. It was just perfect and made a good ending to an OK food day, although one sadly lacking in green leafy vegetables for me.
All in all, it was a great day and a great end to the first week of the 8-week challenge. I'm very happy with the huge reduction in sugar and dairy consumption we made this week. We had very little meat (I am counting fish, but not completely removing it from my diet) and almost no cheese.
For the next 7 days, we'll continue focusing on the sugar and dairy, and try adding in some exercise (other than walking, we already do that daily). I'll also stay away from fish and chips. Just because fried foods aren't off the list of things to eat, it doesn't mean I should eat them quite as often as I did this week.
Wish us well for the next 7 days! Thanks for following this blog. Linda
After an early breakfast of cereal with fruit, Brian and I got on the road and drove the two hours to Olympia where we immediately met Ben and Kate. We started at the Olympia Farmers Market. It is set up a more like the Cleveland West Side Market than a standard one day a week market, open Thursday through Sunday from April through December, but it is mostly fruits and vegetables, as opposed to Cleveland which is mostly prepared foods. Either way, it was fantastic. The plums! The apples! The pears!!!!! YUM! We got 4 bags of fresh fruits and vegetables. We shall eat very well for the next week on corn, lettuce, cucumber, green beans, broccoli, onion, celery, eggplant, pears, nectarines, pluots (!!), apples, mini-kiwis (!!), and a Hungarian bell pepper.
We left the food in the car, in a cooler we brought just for the occasion, then wandered the streets of Olympia. Ben found a flea market, which we perused until my nose started to run from all the dust. We found a used furniture store, which only seemed to sell new stuff. We did not get tattoos at one of the 4 different shops we passed, nor did we stop for lunch at a place that proclaimed, "Baby got Mac...and cheese". We passed a noodle shop, a crepe shop, several bakeries, and a pizza joint, finally stopping at Fishtail Ale Brew Pub.
The Pub was right next door to the brewery and there were several VERY local beers on tap. They used the beer as part of the base of a savory/spicy broth for a fish stew. Wow, it was fantastic! I followed that up with fish and chips (I know, that should probably be off the list for next week, but I missed it so in Georgia). Brian was great, having a felafel sandwich and a side salad. Kate had a fried oyster po-boy and Ben had a bratwurst with grilled onions. Everyone really enjoyed their food, and the beer as well. I'm a non-alcohol gal, so I enjoyed the iced tea.
After lunch, we walked back towards the market, stopping at a small cafe that served Olympic Mountain Ice Cream. That is a fantastic local ice cream which is not found outside of the Northwest. You will be happy to know that Brian and I shared a small bowl of Marionberry sorbet, which spawned a conversation about the former mayor of DC. I love our friends!!!
We sat around and chatted/people watched for another 1/2 hour or so, then decided it was time to go back home. We went and looked a cupcakes through a window, but they were not anywhere near as amazing looking as Cupcake Jones in Portland (that is a whole blog unto itself), so we skipped them. Ben thought pretty hard about it, but decided he wasn't up to the ribbing he'd get from Kate if he ate one. Brian and I laughed pretty hard at that. Have I mentioned how much we enjoy our friends?
The drive home was especially scenic, as we took highway 30 for the last part of the trip instead of I-5. I love back roads, and this one did not disappoint. It follows the Columbia river for most of the drive and was quite lovely. I was excited to discover that by taking this road, we missed all of the Portland traffic and ended up on the West side of the city, not 10 miles from our house. Huzzah! Oh, a funny note: Brian and I stopped for some caffeinated beverages before our drive home. About 45 miles into it, Brian cursed. I asked what was wrong and he mentioned that he got a latte. Um, latte means milk, doesn't it? Hee hee, I felt slightly vindicated for my incident with the non-fat milk earlier in the week.
Once we got home, we were a little snacky, so we had sliced plums, pluots, pears and apples along with some wheat crackers made with sweet potatoes and cinnamon and some peanut butter pretzels. It was just perfect and made a good ending to an OK food day, although one sadly lacking in green leafy vegetables for me.
All in all, it was a great day and a great end to the first week of the 8-week challenge. I'm very happy with the huge reduction in sugar and dairy consumption we made this week. We had very little meat (I am counting fish, but not completely removing it from my diet) and almost no cheese.
For the next 7 days, we'll continue focusing on the sugar and dairy, and try adding in some exercise (other than walking, we already do that daily). I'll also stay away from fish and chips. Just because fried foods aren't off the list of things to eat, it doesn't mean I should eat them quite as often as I did this week.
Wish us well for the next 7 days! Thanks for following this blog. Linda
Friday, September 20, 2013
Day 6: Stone Soup Burrito
You remember the story about stone soup, right? You know, the one where some smart person said, "Hey, we don't have any meat, so let's make a soup using a stone." And then everyone else runs to get some vegetables to make the stone taste better. I'm pretty sure that was the beginning of veganism. Some gatherer has to cover for the hunter who didn't get the daily quota.
Today, we had stone soup burritos for lunch. The plan was to make a really yummy polenta/spinach/tomato sauce dish for lunch, but when we checked the fridge, we found out that farmers market spinach doesn't last for three weeks. Go figure. (It was all gross and slimy, ick!)
We did have some wraps, so Brian suggested a veggie wrap. Now, I'm a big fan of lettuce, carrots, cucumber and bell pepper... but that alone would have lasted me about 10 minutes. Brian suggested some several day old hummus, but I don't do rancid garbanzo bean paste. So, we had to figure out what we could put in the wraps to make them have a little more staying power. Brian suggested some refried beans (Bearitos vegetarian beans are amazing). I remembered that we still had an ear of corn from last week's market. Brian put in an onion, some bell peppers and some cherry tomatoes. I asked if he had put any kale in yet. Brain said not yet, but he'd be happy to put some in after he added the garlic. About 3 minutes later he called us to the table and there were some giant burritos. Man, they were good!
So that was lunch. Breakfast was Dave's Killer Bread (an Oregon original, dense whole grain bread) with peanut butter and a type of apple I had never heard of before whose name I can't remember but it started with a z. It was really, really good. Dinner was the polenta dish (you know polenta means grits, right?!) because I got some spinach before making dinner.
And that was it. Nothing else. No sugar, no milk, no cheese, and no meat. Um... to be perfectly honest, I did have a bite of meat that was in the spaghetti sauce, which we canned at the end of last summer. It was the last jar and it was just one tiny bite. Still, I'm counting it as a really good food day!
For those of you following along at home, there were 2 recipes included today. For the polenta, we just cooked some grits with oregano and thyme until they were nice and thick. We then placed that in a plastic container and refrigerated it until it was one solid grit cake (Mmmm). We sliced that puppy up and cooked it for 3 minutes on each side in a frying pan (no butter or oil was needed at any step in this process) until it was warm. We set the polenta on a plate and covered it with some sauteed spinach (about 1/3 cup cooked), then covered that with 1/3 of a pint jar of sauce. So easy and SO tasty.
Enjoy! Wish me luck on having another good food day tomorrow.
Today, we had stone soup burritos for lunch. The plan was to make a really yummy polenta/spinach/tomato sauce dish for lunch, but when we checked the fridge, we found out that farmers market spinach doesn't last for three weeks. Go figure. (It was all gross and slimy, ick!)
We did have some wraps, so Brian suggested a veggie wrap. Now, I'm a big fan of lettuce, carrots, cucumber and bell pepper... but that alone would have lasted me about 10 minutes. Brian suggested some several day old hummus, but I don't do rancid garbanzo bean paste. So, we had to figure out what we could put in the wraps to make them have a little more staying power. Brian suggested some refried beans (Bearitos vegetarian beans are amazing). I remembered that we still had an ear of corn from last week's market. Brian put in an onion, some bell peppers and some cherry tomatoes. I asked if he had put any kale in yet. Brain said not yet, but he'd be happy to put some in after he added the garlic. About 3 minutes later he called us to the table and there were some giant burritos. Man, they were good!
So that was lunch. Breakfast was Dave's Killer Bread (an Oregon original, dense whole grain bread) with peanut butter and a type of apple I had never heard of before whose name I can't remember but it started with a z. It was really, really good. Dinner was the polenta dish (you know polenta means grits, right?!) because I got some spinach before making dinner.
And that was it. Nothing else. No sugar, no milk, no cheese, and no meat. Um... to be perfectly honest, I did have a bite of meat that was in the spaghetti sauce, which we canned at the end of last summer. It was the last jar and it was just one tiny bite. Still, I'm counting it as a really good food day!
For those of you following along at home, there were 2 recipes included today. For the polenta, we just cooked some grits with oregano and thyme until they were nice and thick. We then placed that in a plastic container and refrigerated it until it was one solid grit cake (Mmmm). We sliced that puppy up and cooked it for 3 minutes on each side in a frying pan (no butter or oil was needed at any step in this process) until it was warm. We set the polenta on a plate and covered it with some sauteed spinach (about 1/3 cup cooked), then covered that with 1/3 of a pint jar of sauce. So easy and SO tasty.
Enjoy! Wish me luck on having another good food day tomorrow.
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Day 5: Seriously, where is the sugar???
Recipe: Blueberry bread pudding (modified)
I'm just starting to realize what a serious sugar habit I have. I love sugar, I crave sugar, and I am really missing sugar. So, go me for not eating truckloads of it at the moment, but golly, it is really tough.
So, today started with a modified bread pudding that was quite tasty. I used honey instead of sugar, and almond milk instead of cow's milk, both of which worked very well. The bread was a type of brioche that I found at the farmer's market, which had eggs, but no dairy or sugar added. So, while not actually a "good for you" bread, it wasn't actively bad for me, either. Plus, this recipe has just as many blueberries as breadcrumbs, so there was lots of good fruit involved.
After a sugar and dairy free visit to our local grocery store, Brian and I made some potato/broccoli soup for lunch, served with a sun dried tomato flat bread. That was pretty good, too. The soup was made with vegetable broth that Brian prepared and froze late last week.
Around 2 pm, I got a craving for sugar, so I had a bite of a ginger/molasses cookie. The annoying thing is that there is a bowl of amazing fruits sitting right next to the cookie. Did I have one of them? Of course not. Sigh.
Dinner was fish and chips from a local pub. We'd wanted to try that place and the only other thing on the menu that was not meat was a hemp burger which scared me. Maybe next time. When we got home, I split a cookie three ways and Brian, Marty and I shared it. Before you get impressed by this, you should know that these cookies at 4-5 inches in diameter. I just brought it down to the size of a regular cookie.
Hmmmm. Today was not really a food day of which to be proud. Tomorrow will include some green leafy vegetables and more fruits and veggies. It is closing in on farmers market day (Saturday) and our supply will be replenished. Until then, I will be vigilant. Still, I have to be proud of the huge reduction I've made in snacking and sugar consumption. I've also been cheese-less all week, which is huge!
Blueberry Bread Pudding:
I'm sure it would be healthier made with an awesome whole grain bread, but brioche makes for an amazing texture. I'll try the whole grain method next time and let you know how it goes.
3 cups of bread, cut into cubes
3 cups of fresh blueberries
2 eggs
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 cups of almond milk
Preheat oven to 350. Whisk the eggs until frothy. Add honey and lemon zest and whisk again. Add almond milk and whisk until thoroughly mixed. In a separate bowl, combine blueberries and breadcrumbs. Pour the milk mixture slowly over the breadcrumbs, working to get the liquid evenly distributed. Let sit for a few minutes, then stir lightly. Pour into a 8x8 glass baking dish. Bake covered for 30-45 minutes or until set.
This makes a light and fluffy pudding, rather than a dense heavy pudding. It turned out to be plenty sweet enough with all of the blueberries, but you could use maple syrup or add milk when serving. Enjoy!
I'm just starting to realize what a serious sugar habit I have. I love sugar, I crave sugar, and I am really missing sugar. So, go me for not eating truckloads of it at the moment, but golly, it is really tough.
So, today started with a modified bread pudding that was quite tasty. I used honey instead of sugar, and almond milk instead of cow's milk, both of which worked very well. The bread was a type of brioche that I found at the farmer's market, which had eggs, but no dairy or sugar added. So, while not actually a "good for you" bread, it wasn't actively bad for me, either. Plus, this recipe has just as many blueberries as breadcrumbs, so there was lots of good fruit involved.
After a sugar and dairy free visit to our local grocery store, Brian and I made some potato/broccoli soup for lunch, served with a sun dried tomato flat bread. That was pretty good, too. The soup was made with vegetable broth that Brian prepared and froze late last week.
Around 2 pm, I got a craving for sugar, so I had a bite of a ginger/molasses cookie. The annoying thing is that there is a bowl of amazing fruits sitting right next to the cookie. Did I have one of them? Of course not. Sigh.
Dinner was fish and chips from a local pub. We'd wanted to try that place and the only other thing on the menu that was not meat was a hemp burger which scared me. Maybe next time. When we got home, I split a cookie three ways and Brian, Marty and I shared it. Before you get impressed by this, you should know that these cookies at 4-5 inches in diameter. I just brought it down to the size of a regular cookie.
Hmmmm. Today was not really a food day of which to be proud. Tomorrow will include some green leafy vegetables and more fruits and veggies. It is closing in on farmers market day (Saturday) and our supply will be replenished. Until then, I will be vigilant. Still, I have to be proud of the huge reduction I've made in snacking and sugar consumption. I've also been cheese-less all week, which is huge!
Blueberry Bread Pudding:
I'm sure it would be healthier made with an awesome whole grain bread, but brioche makes for an amazing texture. I'll try the whole grain method next time and let you know how it goes.
3 cups of bread, cut into cubes
3 cups of fresh blueberries
2 eggs
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 cups of almond milk
Preheat oven to 350. Whisk the eggs until frothy. Add honey and lemon zest and whisk again. Add almond milk and whisk until thoroughly mixed. In a separate bowl, combine blueberries and breadcrumbs. Pour the milk mixture slowly over the breadcrumbs, working to get the liquid evenly distributed. Let sit for a few minutes, then stir lightly. Pour into a 8x8 glass baking dish. Bake covered for 30-45 minutes or until set.
This makes a light and fluffy pudding, rather than a dense heavy pudding. It turned out to be plenty sweet enough with all of the blueberries, but you could use maple syrup or add milk when serving. Enjoy!
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Day 4: It Is Harder Than It Looks
Wow! Who'd have thought that the day after a fair food extravaganza would be so hard? All I wanted to eat today was hamburgers and donuts. Seriously! I rarely eat either of those in a normal week, but all I wanted today was junk food.
To make matters worse, I had a hair cutting appointment today (bad cut, no pictures will be forthcoming) which meant I had to drive 30 minutes along streets paved with fast food joints to get to my destination. Luckily, I was running late on the way over, so I didn't stop for anything. Luck stayed in the car while I got my hair cut, then rode with me as I made several wrong turns which led me away from poor food choices. When I finally got to a place to eat, I was back in control and selected a Veggie Bowl lunch from a "healthy Mex" restaurant called Chevey's. It was a little high on salt, but it was meat and dairy free. And, since service was slow (thanks again, girlfriend Luck), I drank so much water that there was no longer room for dessert.
The rest of the day was mixed. I wasn't really hungry for dinner, so I had a banana/blueberry/mango smoothy with a slice of peanut butter toast. That worked well until we started watching a movie, then I had 1/2 of a lemon cookie dipped in chocolate and a cup of kettle corn left over from our move from Georgia (it was stale).
In conclusion, it was not a brilliant day, but mostly good choices were made. And, after a bad hair cut, food therapy is the usual way to go. So, on the whole, I'll call today a success.
By the way, we ran out of cow milk yesterday, and I replaced it with almond milk. I'm a fan! It tastes great and has a good texture. Last time I did the no milk thing, I tried soy and rice milks, and wasn't terribly happy with either. Hooray for almond milk.
To make matters worse, I had a hair cutting appointment today (bad cut, no pictures will be forthcoming) which meant I had to drive 30 minutes along streets paved with fast food joints to get to my destination. Luckily, I was running late on the way over, so I didn't stop for anything. Luck stayed in the car while I got my hair cut, then rode with me as I made several wrong turns which led me away from poor food choices. When I finally got to a place to eat, I was back in control and selected a Veggie Bowl lunch from a "healthy Mex" restaurant called Chevey's. It was a little high on salt, but it was meat and dairy free. And, since service was slow (thanks again, girlfriend Luck), I drank so much water that there was no longer room for dessert.
The rest of the day was mixed. I wasn't really hungry for dinner, so I had a banana/blueberry/mango smoothy with a slice of peanut butter toast. That worked well until we started watching a movie, then I had 1/2 of a lemon cookie dipped in chocolate and a cup of kettle corn left over from our move from Georgia (it was stale).
In conclusion, it was not a brilliant day, but mostly good choices were made. And, after a bad hair cut, food therapy is the usual way to go. So, on the whole, I'll call today a success.
By the way, we ran out of cow milk yesterday, and I replaced it with almond milk. I'm a fan! It tastes great and has a good texture. Last time I did the no milk thing, I tried soy and rice milks, and wasn't terribly happy with either. Hooray for almond milk.
Day 3: "Bad Food Day, Bad!"
Alright, we knew going into it that day 3 was going to be ugly. Brian and I were going to spend at least 8 hours at the Washington State Fair in Puyallup... home of the Krusty Pup, Fischer Fair scones and deep fried butter. I knew there was no way that I could find a vegetable at the fair, other than those that had been thinly cut and thickly coated with batter, and that was pretty much the case.
So how'd we do?? Not as bad as you might think, and not nearly as well as we could have. We started the day with lots and lots of fruit for breakfast. I figured that would help with digestion later in the day. When we arrived at the fair, Krusty Pup's were the order of the day. We got our meat on a stick and started wandering about the fairgrounds.
A word about Krusty Pups. Krusty Pups are the corn dog standard for the civilized world. They've been sold by the Salles family at the Puyallup for multiple decades (at least 5, I think). Never has there been or will there be a corn dog to compete with these golden orbs of crunchy goodness, especially when lovingly draped in yellow mustard. If the gods went to the fair, this would be their nectar of choice. Enough said.
The Krusty Pups lasted us for quite a while and I was feeling pretty superior about my fair discipline (I had passed when Brian got a chocolate/vanilla soft serve cone at the dairy barn)... until we found the cow chip cookie stand. As readers may remember, Cow Chip Cookies were on the must have for my list of fair food. We did not reject them as perhaps we should have; instead we each got one: me a classic cow chip cookie and Brian, a nutty cow (walnuts). The good/bad news out of this experience is that they were not as good as I remembered. I can and do make better cookies, so next time I get a hankering for one of these Seattle delicacies, I'll make some of my own, which will be much better for me anyway.
We are our cookies while watching some of the 4H dog training competition. That was my all time favorite part of the fair. These were not guide dogs in training, but were simply kids and their dogs, learning obedience training together. Brilliant! But after an hour or so of this activity, we got pretty hungry.
Here was crunch time. How to find something healthy at the fair? Well, I'm sure it could be done by some very enterprising person, but not us. We looked for non-meat items, but extremely expensive fish and chips were about all we could find. So then, we branched off to non-fried options. We finally settled on Pete's Wood-fired BBQ, another fair tradition. Mmmmmmm...BBQ! with gross curley fries (so gross, I couldn't eat them, but Brian had no problem with it).
We decided to walk around again, looking at the farm animals, so naturally, we ended up back at the dairy barn. The soft serve cone which I so proudly ignored earlier in the day, called my name so loud that the cows stopped producing milk! OK, that is a lie, but I did give in and get a chocolate/strawberry swirl cone. It was mighty tasty, especially after my supreme disappointment in finding the Purple Cow booth a thing of the past. It was mighty fine.
As I said, it was a pretty bad food day. As I also said, it was nowhere near as bad as it could have been. While we strayed quite far from our non-animal protein path, we managed to avoid most of the crazy sugary/fried indulgences and all fudge stands.
So how'd we do?? Not as bad as you might think, and not nearly as well as we could have. We started the day with lots and lots of fruit for breakfast. I figured that would help with digestion later in the day. When we arrived at the fair, Krusty Pup's were the order of the day. We got our meat on a stick and started wandering about the fairgrounds.
A word about Krusty Pups. Krusty Pups are the corn dog standard for the civilized world. They've been sold by the Salles family at the Puyallup for multiple decades (at least 5, I think). Never has there been or will there be a corn dog to compete with these golden orbs of crunchy goodness, especially when lovingly draped in yellow mustard. If the gods went to the fair, this would be their nectar of choice. Enough said.
The Krusty Pups lasted us for quite a while and I was feeling pretty superior about my fair discipline (I had passed when Brian got a chocolate/vanilla soft serve cone at the dairy barn)... until we found the cow chip cookie stand. As readers may remember, Cow Chip Cookies were on the must have for my list of fair food. We did not reject them as perhaps we should have; instead we each got one: me a classic cow chip cookie and Brian, a nutty cow (walnuts). The good/bad news out of this experience is that they were not as good as I remembered. I can and do make better cookies, so next time I get a hankering for one of these Seattle delicacies, I'll make some of my own, which will be much better for me anyway.
We are our cookies while watching some of the 4H dog training competition. That was my all time favorite part of the fair. These were not guide dogs in training, but were simply kids and their dogs, learning obedience training together. Brilliant! But after an hour or so of this activity, we got pretty hungry.
Here was crunch time. How to find something healthy at the fair? Well, I'm sure it could be done by some very enterprising person, but not us. We looked for non-meat items, but extremely expensive fish and chips were about all we could find. So then, we branched off to non-fried options. We finally settled on Pete's Wood-fired BBQ, another fair tradition. Mmmmmmm...BBQ! with gross curley fries (so gross, I couldn't eat them, but Brian had no problem with it).
We decided to walk around again, looking at the farm animals, so naturally, we ended up back at the dairy barn. The soft serve cone which I so proudly ignored earlier in the day, called my name so loud that the cows stopped producing milk! OK, that is a lie, but I did give in and get a chocolate/strawberry swirl cone. It was mighty tasty, especially after my supreme disappointment in finding the Purple Cow booth a thing of the past. It was mighty fine.
As I said, it was a pretty bad food day. As I also said, it was nowhere near as bad as it could have been. While we strayed quite far from our non-animal protein path, we managed to avoid most of the crazy sugary/fried indulgences and all fudge stands.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Day 2: Wait... Non-fat Milk is Dairy???
Recipe for Ginger Teriyaki Veggie Stir Fry below.
Margaret messaged me last night that she was having a really hard time preparing breakfast without dairy. I agreed with her that it was really hard, secure in my knowledge that I had it licked with my healthy fruit laden breakfast. That is, until this morning when I had my usual battle with my brain about having (not having) hot chocolate. I successfully overcame that hurdle and was all smug as I poured my bowl of cereal topped with loads of blueberries and strawberries. It wasn't until I shoveled that first milky spoonful into my face that I realized that yes... for two days now... I've been eating dairy for breakfast!
Deflate my ego, why don't you. Ah well, a little ego deflation every now and then is good for me, I guess. The funny thing is that I made an active choice to finish up the container of cow milk I had in the fridge, then replace it with almond milk. The idea was to not waste food I already had, but to make non-dairy choices moving forward. I suppose I should just calm the heck down for a minute and remember what I'm doing.
On the plus side, Margaret, Brian and I all did a great job with avoiding sugary snacks yesterday. Go us!!! I was thinking about having dessert last night, but after we went out for Indian food (I was totally craving samosas last night) where the dishes were a bit spicy, I drank so much water that there wasn't room for anything else in my belly, sugar or no.
Today has been a good food day so far. Banana bread and cereal with fruit for breakfast; wraps with lettuce and left over veggie stir fry for lunch. Not sure about dinner yet, as we're going to see Pink Martini at a free concert downtown tonight. If we eat out, it will probably be from some funky food truck with loads of vegan options. Today has to be a good day because tomorrow will most certainly be a not good food day.
Tomorrow, Brian and I are going to the Puyallup Fair up near Seattle. This is one of the biggest and best fairs in the nation. We're meeting my cousin and his family for a day of rides, exhibits and... well... fair food. I'll do better than I've ever done at a fair before (no elephant's ears or funnel cakes, for example, but I'm not sure if I can skip the corn dog or the Cow Chip cookie (no poop is involved in the making of these cookies, just chocolate chips). I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.
This recipe idea came from Margaret's son John. I have no idea if this is what he uses, but when he told me that he used whole wheat couscous for stir fry, this is what my mind pictured.
1 cup of whole wheat couscous, uncooked
1 1/2 cups of chopped broccoli
3 medium carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 inch raw ginger, grated
1 tablespoon of Ginger People spicy teriyaki sauce
Cook the couscous according to instructions on the bag. Meanwhile, saute the onions, garlic and ginger in 2 tablespoons of water for 2 minutes, then add the remaining veggies and saute for 10 minutes, or until desired crispness. Add the cooked couscous and teriyaki sauce to the stir fried vegetables and mix thoroughly. Serve and enjoy!
Margaret messaged me last night that she was having a really hard time preparing breakfast without dairy. I agreed with her that it was really hard, secure in my knowledge that I had it licked with my healthy fruit laden breakfast. That is, until this morning when I had my usual battle with my brain about having (not having) hot chocolate. I successfully overcame that hurdle and was all smug as I poured my bowl of cereal topped with loads of blueberries and strawberries. It wasn't until I shoveled that first milky spoonful into my face that I realized that yes... for two days now... I've been eating dairy for breakfast!
Deflate my ego, why don't you. Ah well, a little ego deflation every now and then is good for me, I guess. The funny thing is that I made an active choice to finish up the container of cow milk I had in the fridge, then replace it with almond milk. The idea was to not waste food I already had, but to make non-dairy choices moving forward. I suppose I should just calm the heck down for a minute and remember what I'm doing.
On the plus side, Margaret, Brian and I all did a great job with avoiding sugary snacks yesterday. Go us!!! I was thinking about having dessert last night, but after we went out for Indian food (I was totally craving samosas last night) where the dishes were a bit spicy, I drank so much water that there wasn't room for anything else in my belly, sugar or no.
Today has been a good food day so far. Banana bread and cereal with fruit for breakfast; wraps with lettuce and left over veggie stir fry for lunch. Not sure about dinner yet, as we're going to see Pink Martini at a free concert downtown tonight. If we eat out, it will probably be from some funky food truck with loads of vegan options. Today has to be a good day because tomorrow will most certainly be a not good food day.
Tomorrow, Brian and I are going to the Puyallup Fair up near Seattle. This is one of the biggest and best fairs in the nation. We're meeting my cousin and his family for a day of rides, exhibits and... well... fair food. I'll do better than I've ever done at a fair before (no elephant's ears or funnel cakes, for example, but I'm not sure if I can skip the corn dog or the Cow Chip cookie (no poop is involved in the making of these cookies, just chocolate chips). I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.
This recipe idea came from Margaret's son John. I have no idea if this is what he uses, but when he told me that he used whole wheat couscous for stir fry, this is what my mind pictured.
1 cup of whole wheat couscous, uncooked
1 1/2 cups of chopped broccoli
3 medium carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 inch raw ginger, grated
1 tablespoon of Ginger People spicy teriyaki sauce
Cook the couscous according to instructions on the bag. Meanwhile, saute the onions, garlic and ginger in 2 tablespoons of water for 2 minutes, then add the remaining veggies and saute for 10 minutes, or until desired crispness. Add the cooked couscous and teriyaki sauce to the stir fried vegetables and mix thoroughly. Serve and enjoy!
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Day 1: Where's my sugar???
Note: Make sure to read all the way to the bottom. I've put a terrific banana bread recipe at the end of the blog.
We're starting off our 8-week challenge by maximizing fresh fruits and veggies and minimizing animal products, corn syrup and sugar. Our focus for the first week is on sugars. Margaret, Marty, Glen and I all have major league sweet tooths (or would that be teeth?). The goal is to have no more than 1 small dessert-like item per day. That may sound like a whole lot to those icons of good health out there, but this is a real stretch for us.
Of course, even though I've been working on reducing my sweets intake over the last couple of months, today, all I crave is SUGAR. Breakfast was cereal with fresh strawberries and blueberries and some homemade banana bread. What I wanted was strawberry waffles with whipped cream. Morning snack was a plum. What I wanted was giant cookies. Lunch was a vegetarian stir fry... which was exactly what I wanted (I was thinking about making it since Margaret's son John told me about making it with whole wheat couscous).
Now, here it is, 3:45 in the afternoon and visions of sugar plums (well candy, cakes, cookies, etc.) are dancing in my head. Sigh. The very second you tell yourself not to have something, your brain sets out to kick your butt about it. How rude!
So, to help keep my mind on the prize, here is the list of things we're working to change. I think it is critical to remember that we're doing this because we WANT to. We WANT to feel better and not have to take medicines. We WANT to have great energy. Truly, I find that I like foods that are better for me and that nectarines are just as comforting as biscuits and gravy. But there is all of that history sitting in my brain telling me that nothing satisfies like a Snickers.
We're starting off our 8-week challenge by maximizing fresh fruits and veggies and minimizing animal products, corn syrup and sugar. Our focus for the first week is on sugars. Margaret, Marty, Glen and I all have major league sweet tooths (or would that be teeth?). The goal is to have no more than 1 small dessert-like item per day. That may sound like a whole lot to those icons of good health out there, but this is a real stretch for us.
Of course, even though I've been working on reducing my sweets intake over the last couple of months, today, all I crave is SUGAR. Breakfast was cereal with fresh strawberries and blueberries and some homemade banana bread. What I wanted was strawberry waffles with whipped cream. Morning snack was a plum. What I wanted was giant cookies. Lunch was a vegetarian stir fry... which was exactly what I wanted (I was thinking about making it since Margaret's son John told me about making it with whole wheat couscous).
Now, here it is, 3:45 in the afternoon and visions of sugar plums (well candy, cakes, cookies, etc.) are dancing in my head. Sigh. The very second you tell yourself not to have something, your brain sets out to kick your butt about it. How rude!
So, to help keep my mind on the prize, here is the list of things we're working to change. I think it is critical to remember that we're doing this because we WANT to. We WANT to feel better and not have to take medicines. We WANT to have great energy. Truly, I find that I like foods that are better for me and that nectarines are just as comforting as biscuits and gravy. But there is all of that history sitting in my brain telling me that nothing satisfies like a Snickers.
Foods to maximize:
- Fruits (fresh, organic and local whenever possible) Fall is a wonderful time for apples, pears, late season plums, grapes and some berries.
- Vegetables (fresh, organic and local whenever possible) Fall vegetables include: spinach, kale, pumpkin, acorn and butternut squash, brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, and many more. Visit your local farmer’s market to see what is available. Canned tomatoes are very good for you. Most other vegetables are healthier when purchased frozen rather than canned, if not available fresh.
- Whole grains (brown rice, whole wheat and grain breads, quinoa and other grains)
- Beans and legumes (hummus, soups, canned beans with no sugar or corn syrup added, dried beans, lentils, peas, nuts – especially raw almonds) When eating nuts, eat no more than ¼ cup per day.
Foods to minimize:
- Meat (beef, pork, lamb, chicken, eggs and other animal based food).
- Dairy (milk, butter, yogurt, cheese, ice-cream, sour cream, cream, Starbucks milk based drinks, milk shakes and other cow/goat/sheep milk products)
- Sweets (cookies, cakes, candy, sugary drinks, ice-cream, sweet rolls, triple caramel macchiato, hot chocolate, donuts, cupcakes and other sugary snacks)
- Foods containing corn syrup (hamburger and hotdog buns, sliced white breads from the bread aisle in the grocery store, many canned foods and drinks, many frozen meals) READ THE LABEL BEFORE YOU BUY!
- AVOID: Artificial sweeteners. Stay away from aspartame, saccharine, splenda, sweet n low, equal. Keep real food in your body!
- AVOID: Fake fats (olestra and olean). Stick with vegetable oils such as olive and canola oil.
Foods to use in
moderation:
- Sweeteners: Honey and maple syrup are excellent sweeteners. Stevia and agave nectar are the current low calorie sweeteners. (I don’t know enough about these to recommend or warn against.)
- Nuts and avocados: While these are very high in nutrients, they are also very high in fat. Both should be limited to no more than ¼ cup per day.
- Dark chocolate: This stuff is really good tasting and great for you, in moderation. Limit to 1 ounce per day.
Linda's Terrific Banana Bread
3 very ripe bananas
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce or apple butter
1/4 cup honey
1-2 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Mash bananas and mix all wet ingredients together in a bowl. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined. Place in a lightly oiled bread pan and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
Add stuff for entertaining combinations. (Not all in one loaf, but any of the following ingredients are great with this recipe.):
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder (I like mine dark, but most folks will be happier with the 2 tablespoons), 1/2 cup of nuts, 1/4 cup of dark chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of ginger chips, 1 cup of chopped fruit such as strawberries or cherries, 1 cup of blueberries.
3 very ripe bananas
1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce or apple butter
1/4 cup honey
1-2 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Mash bananas and mix all wet ingredients together in a bowl. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined. Place in a lightly oiled bread pan and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
Add stuff for entertaining combinations. (Not all in one loaf, but any of the following ingredients are great with this recipe.):
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder (I like mine dark, but most folks will be happier with the 2 tablespoons), 1/2 cup of nuts, 1/4 cup of dark chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of ginger chips, 1 cup of chopped fruit such as strawberries or cherries, 1 cup of blueberries.
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Day Zero: Getting Ready
Margaret and I have so many things in common. After almost seven years apart (I have lived in three different states since we last saw each other), we met in Portland and it was as if we had never missed a day. She is goofy and smart and funny and sweet and silly and serious and thoughtful and kind and an all around good egg. Just like me. We also both live with autoimmune diseases, although I've been luckier in that regard.
A little over 10 years ago, I was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis. No, it isn't the kind that is contagious, nor is it the kind that you have some fun getting (drinking, drugs, eating at a buffet that wasn't clean). Nope, it is all internal where your body tries to kick out the liver, just because. Thanks to the miracle of steroids and anti-rejection drugs, I was able to get rid of it after a couple of years. Unfortunately, less than two years later, it was back. The doctors said I should plan on taking those drugs for the rest of my life. ICK. I was not a happy camper.
I was still on medication when I moved to Ohio a couple of years later. There I met my neighbor, Deni (an amazing woman who recently received her Health Coach Certification), who introduced me to a book called The China Study by T. Colin Campbell. Basically, the premise of the book is that most western diseases are preventable simply through controlling one's diet. (The movie Forks Over Knives is an excellent documentary based on that study.) With encouragement from Deni and support from my husband, Brian, I reduced my (heavy) diet of dairy and meat, while increasing my consumption of fruits and vegetables, and got back on a daily regimen of exercise. It helped! After a year and a half, I was back in remission and have been ever since, about four years.
A couple of years ago, I left my job in Ohio and moved to Georgia to help my mom as she dealt with early stages of Alzheimer's. We used a diet of fresh, local fruits and vegetables with limited meat and dairy consumption, as well as limited sweets. That, along with daily walks and gardening, helped mom go from 78 pounds to 101 pounds and made life more fun for all of us. Unfortunately, it didn't stop the Alzheimer's progress. It got to a point where none of us felt comfortable being able to care for mom and she moved into assisted living. That last 9 months at home was really stressful and I fell back into some poor eating habits: soft drinks, burgers, ice cream, lots of dairy, etc. We also had very limited exercise because it wasn't safe to leave mom alone. I started feeling less than great and at my checkup found that for the first time in years, my blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides were all too high. Danger signs! I needed to do something.
This brings me back to Margaret. When we met up a couple of weeks ago, I found out that Margaret had not been as lucky on the autoimmune front. She was diagnosed with Lupus just a short while after I was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis. Unfortunately, she has had to live with it every day since then. We both still enjoy the daily annoyances of Sjogren's Syndrome (another autoimmune disease that impacts the moisture producing glands in the body), as well as Rheumatoid Arthritis, but those are nothing compared to Lupus, which attacks every organ in the body (slight humorous note: except the liver). We both know that diet and exercise is critical, but we both felt that comfort food was so, well, comforting. What to do?
Brian's cousin Charles unwittingly shared the answer. He posted on Facebook that he was taking part in an 8-week challenge of extreme diet and exercise. I told Margaret about it and we thought it could be something that we could do together. However, when I looked into that program, it didn't seem sustainable for me. Still, I liked the idea of taking eight weeks to really focus on lifestyle choices and make healthy changes, and so did Margaret. Thus, 8 Weeks to a Healthier We was created.
For the next eight weeks, Margaret and I (along with Brian, my mother in law Marty, and probably Margaret's husband Glen) will be working to create a sustainable diet of whole foods, mostly fruits and vegetables, while minimizing our intake of meat, dairy and sweets. At the end of the eight weeks, we should be on the right track for long term healthy food and exercise choices. Hopefully, we can both move to a place where we no longer need medication to moderate our blood pressure, immune system, etc. Even if that doesn't happen completely, I expect that we'll both feel better. And that is a really big deal
A little over 10 years ago, I was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis. No, it isn't the kind that is contagious, nor is it the kind that you have some fun getting (drinking, drugs, eating at a buffet that wasn't clean). Nope, it is all internal where your body tries to kick out the liver, just because. Thanks to the miracle of steroids and anti-rejection drugs, I was able to get rid of it after a couple of years. Unfortunately, less than two years later, it was back. The doctors said I should plan on taking those drugs for the rest of my life. ICK. I was not a happy camper.
I was still on medication when I moved to Ohio a couple of years later. There I met my neighbor, Deni (an amazing woman who recently received her Health Coach Certification), who introduced me to a book called The China Study by T. Colin Campbell. Basically, the premise of the book is that most western diseases are preventable simply through controlling one's diet. (The movie Forks Over Knives is an excellent documentary based on that study.) With encouragement from Deni and support from my husband, Brian, I reduced my (heavy) diet of dairy and meat, while increasing my consumption of fruits and vegetables, and got back on a daily regimen of exercise. It helped! After a year and a half, I was back in remission and have been ever since, about four years.
A couple of years ago, I left my job in Ohio and moved to Georgia to help my mom as she dealt with early stages of Alzheimer's. We used a diet of fresh, local fruits and vegetables with limited meat and dairy consumption, as well as limited sweets. That, along with daily walks and gardening, helped mom go from 78 pounds to 101 pounds and made life more fun for all of us. Unfortunately, it didn't stop the Alzheimer's progress. It got to a point where none of us felt comfortable being able to care for mom and she moved into assisted living. That last 9 months at home was really stressful and I fell back into some poor eating habits: soft drinks, burgers, ice cream, lots of dairy, etc. We also had very limited exercise because it wasn't safe to leave mom alone. I started feeling less than great and at my checkup found that for the first time in years, my blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides were all too high. Danger signs! I needed to do something.
This brings me back to Margaret. When we met up a couple of weeks ago, I found out that Margaret had not been as lucky on the autoimmune front. She was diagnosed with Lupus just a short while after I was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis. Unfortunately, she has had to live with it every day since then. We both still enjoy the daily annoyances of Sjogren's Syndrome (another autoimmune disease that impacts the moisture producing glands in the body), as well as Rheumatoid Arthritis, but those are nothing compared to Lupus, which attacks every organ in the body (slight humorous note: except the liver). We both know that diet and exercise is critical, but we both felt that comfort food was so, well, comforting. What to do?
Brian's cousin Charles unwittingly shared the answer. He posted on Facebook that he was taking part in an 8-week challenge of extreme diet and exercise. I told Margaret about it and we thought it could be something that we could do together. However, when I looked into that program, it didn't seem sustainable for me. Still, I liked the idea of taking eight weeks to really focus on lifestyle choices and make healthy changes, and so did Margaret. Thus, 8 Weeks to a Healthier We was created.
For the next eight weeks, Margaret and I (along with Brian, my mother in law Marty, and probably Margaret's husband Glen) will be working to create a sustainable diet of whole foods, mostly fruits and vegetables, while minimizing our intake of meat, dairy and sweets. At the end of the eight weeks, we should be on the right track for long term healthy food and exercise choices. Hopefully, we can both move to a place where we no longer need medication to moderate our blood pressure, immune system, etc. Even if that doesn't happen completely, I expect that we'll both feel better. And that is a really big deal
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