Day 20: Tostadas and Validation

I think I had another food dream.  It was a few days ago, but I came up with a plan for making tostadas, which I never make, eat or order.  For some reason, they just sounded good.  Which (spoiler alert), they were.

I've been a little worried about how well balanced my diet has been lately, trying to make sure I'm getting enough variety of nutrients to be healthy.  One thing I tend to skimp on is protein foods, so I decided to try some Tofurkey.  It was surprisingly good. I fried that up with taco seasoning, oregano,cumin and a little tomato paste.  It worked a lot like chicken or turkey, in that it takes tons more spices than beef to be able to taste the spices; however, I found the balance pretty easily and it turned out to be an excellent meat alternative for the tostados.

The tostadas started with a soft corn tortilla, covered with beans, then Tofurkey.  I placed some lightly sauteed red and yellow bell peppers and onion on top of that, then some sliced avocado and a tiny bit of fresh grated Parmesan cheese to keep it from falling off.  In retrospect, I could have probably skipped that part, because they had enough moisture to hang together on their own.  Into the oven they went for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.  When they came out, I transferred them to plates and topped with shredded lettuce and tomatoes (for those who like raw tomatoes, not me). They were EXCELLENT!  If only we had some corn to put on with the peppers, they would have been perfect.  Either way, we really enjoyed them and got loads of protein from the beans and the faux meat. 

So that it is for the tostadas, now on to the validation.  The whole point of this 8-week challenge is to feel better and help my immune system be healthier.  However, I'm seeing a couple of additional benefits.  I seem to have more energy, for one thing.  The dogs and I are taking more long walks and fewer short walks, which is pretty fun for all of us.  Secondly, I am losing weight.  That wasn't really a planned side effect, but hey, when you pull animal fat and sugar out of your diet and replace it with whole foods, it just seems to happen. Go figure. Third, I've dropped a size in clothing.  Today I went to buy some new pants and the XL pants just fell right off.  How COOL is that??? I even bought a size 12 (which fit), which I haven't worn since I was a freshman in college.  The brand runs big, so it isn't really a true size, but WHO CARES???  I can wear a 12!!!! 

So, that is it for today.  Awesome food and a new pants size.  Now we're off to a random high school football game.  All in all, an excellent day!