Posts Tagged "what i ate wednesday"

what i ate wednesday: summer eats

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Posted on May 22, 2013 in Food

I think summer officially showed up here this week. It’s been hot and humid and that means I’ve been craving summer eats like crazy. I tend to eat much lighter in the summer. Which, you’d think, I’d drop some weight because of it, but I just replace all the heavy foods of winter with beer in the summer. Ha! Balance!

I was sitting out on the front porch drinking some coffee and my incredible husband showed up with breakfast! He put together this beautiful yogurt bowl for me: Greek yogurt, strawberries, raspberries, apricot, raisins, cherries, hemp seeds, oats, PB2, and almond meal.

For lunch, I had one of my radish green toasts, plus a side of salad and a nice, cold glass of lemonade. It was so warm by lunch time! I also had a piece of chocolate for lunch dessert that managed to escape the eye of the camera.

After I spent a few hours out in the heat mowing, Craig and I took a break on the porch to snack on some tortilla chips and drink some shandys. Such a perfect summer drink!

Dinner was fish tacos! If you follow us over on The Broken Plow (our DIY, homesteading and gardening blog) you know that we’ve been catching fish out of our lake. It is so nice to have a hyper-local source of fresh fish. Along with the tacos, I made a strawberry cucumber salsa with the fresh strawberries we got in our CSA this week. SO yum! That recipe is coming your way soon. Alongside, I had a beer. Because you can’t have tacos without cerveza, right?

As always, big thanks go out to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting this fun food-filled party we have every week. If you guys haven’t clicked over to the main WIAW post yet, you should! There are so many fun eats and so many new blogs to discover. You could lose a handful of hours just discovering new friends and foods!

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

what i ate wednesday: intuition

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Posted on May 15, 2013 in Food

Happy Wednesday, my friends!

Before we dig into this week’s WIAW, I want to chat for a bit about intuitive eating. Intuitive eating is something I’ve never been good at. In fact, if I could venture a guess, I’d say that the vast majority of folks struggle with it. How could we not after decades of being assaulted by the messaging that we are not supposed to trust our food intuition? Don’t eat this food that you like because it’s bad. Do eat this food even though you don’t like it because it’s good. Order the salad instead of the pasta. Eat three meals a day. Eat seven meals a day. Don’t eat at all. Eat 1200 calories. Eat 2000 calories. Go no carb. Go low carb.

Phew. It seems like there is always someone somewhere telling you what to do with your eating. And I’m personally so guilty of listening to them. And even worse, letting them drown out my own intuition.

It’s one thing to collect and absorb information about nutrition from an outside source and then use that collection to inform your own decisions, but it’s a whole other thing to take the word of others (professional or not) as gospel. I am so guilty of being a bandwagon eater. I tend to leap onto food trends like a spider monkey.  Which is ridiculous, because the truth is, I know how to fuel my body. I know what makes me feel good and what doesn’t. I know when I’m full and when I’m not. And I just need to trust that.

All this thinking about intuitive eating comes courtesy of Mr. Bob Harper. If you don’t keep up with him, he recently put out a new book called Jumpstart to Skinny. I haven’t read the book, but from what I can gather, it’s a short-term program to help you either (or both) get ready from an upcoming event with quick weight loss, or help you jumpstart a longer-term weight loss. I know quite a few people who are enjoying the program and having great results (which is awesome).

Now, just from reading the descriptions and reviews, I get the feeling that this program isn’t for me. There are some relatively extreme principles laid out in the book, and honestly, they just aren’t my cup of tea. It’s not that I think the program is bad or wrong, I just know it isn’t a good fit for me. Honestly, the fact of the matter is, weight loss just isn’t that important to me. If I could press a button and have 30 pounds fall off, would I? Heck yes. But I’m not going to completely flip upside down my life just to shed some LBs. Being skinnier is just not that high on my priority list. So, for me, Jumpstart to Skinny just isn’t a good fit. The same may or may not be true for other people. I think that’s for each person to decide.

That being said, it hasn’t stopped my self-doubt from creeping in. Maybe Bob Harper is right. Maybe he knows more about this that I do. Maybe I should try and see if it works. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe I’m eating all the wrong food. Maybe I’m not taking care of myself. Maybe he knows my body better than I do.

False. Nope. Wrong-o. No one knows my body better than I do, and I have to keep that in mind. Sure, Bob Harper may be an expert, and sure, some of his advice and principles may work in my world, but I have to be the final say in how I treat my body. And if something he is saying makes me uncomfortable (no matter how well it works for other folks), I have to trust that feeling. I have to trust my intuition.  I have to trust that I know how to take care of my body.  For the longest time, I couldn’t count on that. I didn’t know how to take care of my body. But now, I do. And I need to be confident and strong in that knowledge.

Who has two thumbs and is a work in progress? This girl.

Okay, really, that whole spiel had a whole lot of nothing to do with my WIAW eats this week. Ha! I just needed to word vomit some feelings I’ve been having. Anywho, onto the food before I bore you with some other ramblings…

Are there any other savory breakfast people in the house? I’m okay with waffles, pancakes, oatmeal, smoothies, etc., but my favorite breakfast is of the savory variety.  I will always choose bacon and eggs over donuts. This time, I had two poached eggs over toast with a side of sliced apples. No bacon.

We had a rogue chilly day on Monday, and I refuse to turn the heat on in May, so I was freeeeezing by the time lunch came around. Soup was calling my name! I had a bowl of roasted red pepper and tomato soup (from a box) plus a grilled cheese and salad on the side. I ate my soup, salad and breadsticks grilled cheese out under the sun and felt much toastier.

Lunch dessert was a no-bake cookie! We hardly ever make these because Craig and I can polish off a whole batch in an afternoon (we looooveeee no bakes!) but I made a batch this past weekend and we’re going on our 5th day of them still being around. Progress!

Dinner was done on the grill—tofu burgers with grilled peppers and onions, feta and mustard. On the side, I had a few grilled potato planks.

For dessert, Craig and I dug into the last two pieces of Light Triple Coconut Cream Pie leftover from Mother’s Day. Holy wow, do I love that recipe.

As always, big thanks go out to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting this fun food-filled party we have every week. If you guys haven’t clicked over to the main WIAW post yet, you should! There are so many fun eats and so many new blogs to discover. You could lose a handful of hours just discovering new friends and foods!

Are you good at trusting your intuition?

what i ate wednesday: on track

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Posted on May 8, 2013 in Food

I’m feeling really great about my eats this week. Over the weekend, I made a pretty detailed menu chart and following that this week has been super helpful. Planning is good, friends!

Onto my food from this past Monday…

On the docket for breakfast was a yogurt bowl, but Craig was in the mood to make pannukakku—a Finnish oven pancake, and I’m not one to turn down delicious, delicious cultural food made by my husband, so I had a small piece with some of our maple syrup.  I still had my yogurt bowl on the side, just a smaller version with Greek yogurt, kiwi, blueberries, raisins and chia seeds. I also had a cup of decaf coffee. Yum!

I’m trying to be a bit more preemptive with my eating, so I whipped myself up a snack late morning—a sliced apple with peanut butter (actually, PB2 mixed with water) and a hard-boiled egg.

For lunch, Craig and I dug into our stash of homegrown asparagus, yum! I roasted up a skillet of garlic, onion, and asparagus, and then cooked some eggs alongside and some toast to dip it in. We both split this skillet—no need for plates! I’ll have more details about this recipe tomorrow.

Dinner was a big bowl of dairy-free stuffed shells (love this recipe!) and a side salad made from lettuce from our garden. Craig and I both had a massive chocolate craving later, and he whipped us up a small batch of no bake cookies that managed to miss the camera lens. I had two and man, they were delicious!

As always, big thanks go out to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting this fun food-filled party we have every week. If you guys haven’t clicked over to the main WIAW post yet, you should! There are so many fun eats and so many new blogs to discover. You could lose a handful of hours just discovering new friends and foods!

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

what i ate wednesday: portion control

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Posted on May 1, 2013 in Food

One aspect of healthy eating I’ve always struggled with is portion control. I have a theory where this comes from (and it’s just a theory). My depression-era grandfather never had enough to eat growing up, so when he got a little older, the economy was recovered, he was making his own money and a full dinner plate was a reliable part of the day, he ate. A lot. He ate big portions and big meals. He had second and third helpings. He ate like it might all go away at some point, because, for him, it did once. So my Dad grew up in an environment where the portions were large and second-helpings were a compliment to the cook. And then, that conditioning was passed along to me.

Of course, I’m not blaming my weight, portion control and food issues on my Dad (Ha! Wouldn’t that be easy?) but I think that depression-era mindset is something that has never really left our family. Even though I’ve never, in my life, gone hungry. I find myself constantly worried that there won’t be “enough”. If I don’t have two slices of cherry pie now, I’ll never ever in my life ever get another slice ever. Or if I don’t take this giant serving of something delicious at dinner, it’ll be gone tomorrow. When that couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m a fairly successful adult with a debit card and access to grocery stores that carry enough food to feed me and 50,000 of my closest friends. There will always be more. I can always make more. But every, single day, I fight the urge to just put another scoop into my bowl or grab another forkful from the casserole dish.

Anywho, this is all related to my WIAW this week, because of my oatmeal bowl in the morning. I looked at the serving size (1/2 cup of dried oats) and thought, “there is no way that’s enough!” So I doubled it. Then, it turned out, there was only about a 1/4 cup left in the container, so I just tossed that in, too. Soon enough, with all the add-ins and toppings, I had a 971 calorie oatmeal bowl. The interesting thing about that—it’s not like the oatmeal is going anywhere. We don’t have oatmeal-stealing gremlins living in our pantry. Why didn’t I just start off with 1/2 cup, and then come back later if I was still hungry? Why am I constantly afraid of going hungry when I’ve never in my life gone hungry before? Onto my eats…

Ahh, the infamous 971 calories worth of oatmeal! I was freezing yesterday morning, so I was looking for something warm. I managed to hit that 971 calories thanks to a bloated portion and overdoing it a bit with the richer mix-ins. It was delicious! And it kept me full for about six hours (as it should). So yay for that! In the mix: oats, raisins, PB2, chia seeds, coconut oil. And on top: a touch of butter, baked apples, cinnamon, coconut milk and a drizzle of maple syrup.

For lunch, I made a sandwich! We hardly ever have sandwiches in our house, which is a total bummer because I love them. This guy was: rye bread, mayo, mustard, alfalfa sprouts, harvarti, pastrami, lettuce, tomatoes and tortilla chips (you do put chips on your sandwich right?). Alongside, I had two carrots, a hard boiled egg and a square of dark chocolate for lunch dessert.

Craig was working late, so I had an afternoon snack around “normal” dinner time—a banana and a LARABAR.

Dinner was what we like to call “hash” in our house—although it only somewhat resembles what hash typically is. We eat this probably 2-3 times a week using different veggies, greens and mix-ins. It’s a great way to clear out the fridge before our CSA box shows up. In this bowl: a bed of cooked amaranth topped with bacon, garlic, leeks, tofu, kohlrabi, zucchini, spinach, potatoes, feta and two poached eggs. Yum.

For dessert, I had a small bowl of Mint Julep Frozen Yogurt—a recipe that will be coming your way toward the end of this week, just in time for your Derby parties! It is so, so good. And really, really boozy. Not for kids.

As always, big thanks go out to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting this fun food-filled party we have every week. If you guys haven’t clicked over to the main WIAW post yet, you should! There are so many fun eats and so many new blogs to discover. You could lose a handful of hours just discovering new friends and foods!

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

what i ate wednesday: productive

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Posted on Apr 24, 2013 in Food

My gosh, I am feeling really great this week, friends! I took this weekend “off” from work and instead focused on spending some relaxing time with my favorite Babyface, Puppyface and Kittyface (and, let’s be honest, getting lots of work done around the property). Come Sunday evening, I started to feel a little guilty about shucking my responsibilities all weekend long, but by the time Monday rolled around, I was refreshed and ready to be my most productive self. It’s amazing what a couple of days off can do for the soul! I gotta do that more often.

It also meant that I carved out some time this weekend to do lots of food prep and make sure that things were in tip-top shape for a healthy food week. Seriously, if you are feeling overwhelmed about healthy eating, I urge you to think about devoting a few hours on the weekend to food prep. Not to sound dramatic, but it’s changed my life.

Alrighty, enough with the theatrics, on my eats from this past Monday…

As always, big thanks go out to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting this fun food-filled party we have every week. If you guys haven’t clicked over to the main WIAW post yet, you should! There are so many fun eats and so many new blogs to discover. You could lose a handful of hours just discovering new friends and foods!

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?