And Where Have You Been?

Let me just start with...  This was not tonight's original game plan.  A storm blew threw this afternoon and with it came web-like lightning, horizontal rain, and a massive headache.  All I wanted to do was shut my eyes.

Grocery shopping was a challenge.  The full armed elevator ride to the 11th floor was a challenge.  However, cooking was not, as everything else seemed to be, a challenge.  I began sautéing some baby bellas and searing some scallops and all seemed well in the world.  While standing in the kitchen eating, I remembered a few of my sweet purchases.  It was then in my best interest to eat faster.

I've always been a fan of coconut milk "ice cream"; it nears the top of my favorites list on the pantry staples page.  But when I was at the market earlier this evening, a new flavor accompanied the coconut pint my freezer is accustomed to: passionate mango.      

I scooped myself a dollop of mango, scattered sliced strawberries, and sprinkled it with mini chips.  Holy crow.  It's not often, if ever, you scream praise for a food out loud when you're alone.  I just couldn't help myself, kind of embarrassing, glad I was alone. 

Choptastic!

Salads are a sole exception to my food scarfing tendencies.  It's not because I don't love them, I do.  But when you combine a dressing fork dipper with the need for a little of each ingredient in every bite, you get an uber slow foliage feaster.

This little salad chopping gadget is shear genius (no pun intended).  It turned my ordinary salad into dense decadence.  I threw baby spinach, romaine, avocado, green onion, cucumber, and blue cheese in a bowl and chop, chop, chopped.  I drizzled with the tiniest bit of balsamic vinaigrette and satisfyingly ate every last bit.  I can promise you that drawer time will be scarce to non-existent with this thing!

Merry's Miracle Tart

After being on the road for two weeks, I felt as though I could not eat one more junky bite.  Knowing this, my Dallas friend, anxious to show me a new health hot spot, brought me to Southpaw's Organic Cafe.  She ordered the Dr. Luke sans beast and it looked amazing.  But honestly, I couldn't imagine anything passing through my food abused lips.

In true 'I can't sit still' fashion, I wandered around the store.  I honed in on the refrigerated goods and the word 'raw' immediately came into focus.  I'll take one of these!

At 400 calories for one Merry's Miracle Tart, it's not a guiltless treat.  But knowing that the the ingredients were quality, the fats were good and the taste was to die for, was enough to make me not care.  Rumor has it these bad boys are sold at Whole Foods - I'll keep ya posted!   

The Grocery Binge

I had high hopes for dinner tonight.  I made a list and purchased every item on it, with only a few impulsive extras.  And then my first mistake happened...  I cracked open my Hapi Mix.  I cracked open the darn mix before I even put the car in drive.

The next mistake happened as I was unpacking my sacks.  It doesn't take a betting man to predict I would crave a bite of every single one of my impulse purchases - reason number 576 why an impulse purchase at the grocery store is a bad decision.  And it was as I picked up my sweet snack that I decided the stir fry I intended on making tonight could wait until tomorrow.   

It turned out to be only a mini bad decision as Attune Bars are only 90 calories and have five times the amount of live active cultures as yogurt.  I popped a veggie burger in the toaster oven, scarfed my sweetness, and embraced my Monday night badness.

See you tomorrow night stir fry!

Souped Up Satisfaction

When someone tells you that a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup is a staple in their diet, you may rush to assume that someone is a third grader.  And although I may resemble a third grader in stature, I'd like to think my palette is a bit more developed.  I'll justify my progression by admitting that my nine year old self would have tantrum-ed at the sight of a green food on my sandwich.

My staple dish hit the spot tonight, it was indescribably perfect for my Monday meal finale.

-  Organic Creamy Tomato Soup
-  Sprouted Sourdough Toast
-  Veggie American Cheese Slices
-  Sliced Avocado, sprinkled with salt

Cheese Please?

Among the many tasks that contributed to my uber productive Sunday?  Preparing Chilaquiles for destination freezer.  The recipe that I used from Eatingwell.com is a far cry from the traditionally unhealthy dish composed of Tostitos and God only knows what else.  And, at some point during my extended stay in the produce section, I decided to jazz it up with faux cheese.  What!

I started regretting my purchase as I was cooking, and even more so after I took it out of the freezer and invited a friend over for dinner last night.  It’s a slim to none chance that an all American boy will tolerate the taste of yellow nothing with a hint of weird.

While I was preheating the oven, I hesitantly sampled a shred.  Much to my surprise it was decent.  Much to my surprise it was good!  At that point, I knew that I would be satisfied with my dinner, but was still fairly nervous about how my guest would react.

It was clear that my nerves were unnecessary as he requested a second helping.  I’m three for three this week as far as meals are concerned and I think that calls for a solid “heck yeah!”. 

   

The Torture and Triumph of Cleansing

You either hate or love/hate cleansing. I'm a love/hater. But to me, cleansing is the perfect way to jump start a diet.

I've tried a few cleanses and the one that keeps me coming back is The Ultimate Fasting Cleanse. The title itself is intimidating. And the thought of me, the hungriest girl ever, not eating for five days is nothing short of laughable. But if you can make it past the first day, I assure you it's do-able. Of course you'll have to overcome the urge of binge eating every ounce of food within eyeshot for a good 12 hours. And you'll feel like every conversation, TV show, and song played is centered around food. But it all becomes worth it after Day 2, when you start to feel clear, energized, and motivated.

By Day 5, your mind regresses to Day 1. You start negotiating with yourself, justifying how much harm one little raisin will do. I'd be lying if I told you I didn't cheat on the 5th day every time. But in my non-expert opinion, I feel as though 4 solid days of cleansing is sufficient.

Let's revisit the excitement over a raisin. Not just the raisin itself, but the act of chewing the raisin. What a treat! And this my friends is why cleansing is the perfect kick off to your dieting party. On day 5, you aren't itching to go through a Mcdonald's drive through, rather you're excited about food in general - any food, healthy food, the food on your fitness plan. It also doesn't hurt that you've most likely already dropped 5 lbs and enjoy the feeling of an easy zipper on your skinniest jeans.

Ultimate Fasting Cleanse @ iHerb.com
Enter "RIS381" for $5 off