21DSD: Day3 - Want to Steal Toast....and Cupcakes

Well it's been three whole days since I've had any sugar, refined sugar, wheat, pasta, bread, etc. Every day kind of feels like it is day one and the temptations are so high (toddler in the house, enough said). Each morning I've wanted to steal her deliciously crunchy, buttery toast and scarf it down, but I've been good and have stuck to my list of "yes" foods! Today I don't feel as sluggish, although still tired, and my headache wasn't as bad either. Hoping both of those improve a lot by tomorrow, as I have two, yes TWO, potlucks to go to. It's going to be a tough day tomorrow....especially the cupcakes. I love cupcakes.

I haven't exercised since Monday. I'm still adjusting and have just been too tired to do it. I know it will get better soon, so I'm hoping to start that up again in the near future!

Here is today's menu:

Breakfast: a scrambled omelet with baked chicken, green onion, baby greens, and mushrooms topped with pea shoots, cherry tomatoes, and parmesan cheese. I also had a plantain pancake with almond butter, but it was realllly dry doing it that way, so I am currently making the cinnamon apple butter as I type this. It needs more moisture for sure! There are two pictured, but I only ate one. I also had a glass of seltzer water with lime EO. Still delicious....love that stuff!

I made a balsamic Italian vinaigrette today too, to use in a dish for one of those potlucks tomorrow. Hope it tastes good!!






 

Lunch: three ground turkey/zucchini fritters in Boston lettuce leaves, topped with guac, cheddar cheese, and cherry tomatoes. In case you are wondering, Wholly Guacamole sells individual size containers of guac, and it is totally acceptable for this detox! I think it just needs a tad bit more spices to it next time though. It seems every time I buy avocados, they just aren't ripe when I need them to be, or are bad by the time I use them. So I might just start buying this stuff instead. It's basically just mushed up avocados anyway. :p

Snack: half of a green apple, Rachael ate the other half. I desperately wanted some of her Peter Pan Honey Roasted Peanut Butter she had with it. lol (BEST PB EVER!!!) I got a miniscule taste later after she stuck her fingers in my mouth haha!

Dinner: balsamic braised beef over creamy garlic rosemary cauliflower mash.This one was from the Guide Book, and I added one large parsnip to the stew for a starchy veggie. Served over the creamy cauli-mash, you couldn't even tell it was cauliflower instead of mashed potatoes. My hubby said he even liked it better with cauliflower instead of potatoes!! Winner winner chicken dinner in this house! ;)

As I finish this up after our weekly conference call, my headache is almost gone. I hope it stays that way! I think I'm going to try and get to bed a little earlier tonight....got a lot to do tomorrow! Have a great night everyone! :)

21DSD: Day 2

Well today was much different than yesterday. It took me for-ev-errrr to get out of bed this morning (please read that just as it's said in The Sandlot :) ). I think it was part the diet change, and partly because I tossed and turned a bit last night, along with my husband's super early wake ups for PT. I've had a headache all day and have felt pretty sluggish. I know I need to increase my starchy veggie intake, so I got a few things today while grocery shopping to do just that. Going to make some plantain pancakes tonight to have ready to go for breakfasts, along with some apple cinnamon butter to have with them. But only after Rachael goes to bed. She HATES the food processor. Screams every. single. time. I use it. Ugh.

So besides grocery shopping, I've done some Army FRG stuff today and a little bit of food prep for dinner. Doesn't sound like a lot, but with a toddler in tow this morning, I'm wiped for energy today. The headache doesn't help. I didn't want to take anything because this is a detox, right?? What's the point of a detox if you're just going to throw some drugs into your system. Hoping it's gone tomorrow or the next day. I'm sure I will adjust in the next few days. :)

So here was today's menu:

Breakfast: two yolk eggs (that's over easy to you non-weird people), and two "buttermilk" biscuits with cream cheese. I also had a glass of milk, and a glass of tea - superfruit medley blend. Side note, I LOVE our tea shop in Sackets Harbor! They are amazing and have tons of good stuff. I'll definitely be ordering from them regularly whenever the Army says it's time for us to move again.

Lunch: I had leftover bacon wrapped pork tenderloin with green bean casserole.

Snack: half of a plantain, as I didn't need it all for my recipe to make tonight

Dinner: Italian Sausage, Kale & Sweet Potato Skillet with parmesan cheese - I found this on Pinterest, and added my own twist to it ;)

Something I've discovered that is freaking awesome is seltzer water with a drop of lime essential oil in it. It is so refreshing and flavorful, and the essential oil is so good for you to also help detox the body of harmful substances. That may become my dessert until I order some unsweetened shredded coconut to make some other non-sweet treats. :)

I got my plantain pancakes made already, but I think the apple cinnamon butter is going to have to wait until tomorrow. Time to veg out on the couch with my hubby. G'night!! :)

21 Day Sugar Detox: Day 1

A couple weeks ago, I saw that a friend of mine would be holding her first coaching class for the 21 Day Sugar Detox created by Diane Sanfilippo. I hadn't heard much about it before, so I looked into it. It looked very very difficult - all my favorites were off limits for three whole weeks!! No breads, no pastas, no sugar (duh), only fruit allowed is green apples and not quite ripe bananas, limited starchy vegetables, etc. But I knew I needed some kind of "kick me in the ass" event to get my motivation going, and more importantly, my eating habits back on track after a long cold winter of comfort foods and no exercise. So I sent that message to her, got the information on how to sign up, and took the leap of faith into this program.

Yesterday was Day 1. Of course it fell right after Easter Sunday where we had brown sugar glazed spiral ham, scalloped potatoes, crescent rolls, and wine for dinner. Not to mention the crispy little chocolate bunny the Easter Bunny left me the night before. (You better believe I ate the whole thing Sunday night!! But don't think I pigged out or anything - it was the smallest bunny available.)

I think I did very well with Day 1. I didn't stray from the "yes" food list, even when my hubby had mint chocolate cookie ice cream topped with mini chocolate chips and chocolate syrup for dessert. ::grumble grumble grumble:: This is what I had yesterday:

Breakfast: a scrambled omelet, made with sauted baked chicken, mushrooms, green onions, baby greens, and topped with a little parmesan cheese. I also had a "buttermilk" biscuit from the program's cookbook with butter and a glass of milk. I also had a cup of jasmine green tea.

Lunch: ground turkey and zucchini fritters topped with avocado and cherry tomatoes.

Snack: a green apple with almond butter

Dinner: Pollo Asado made from the cookbook, which was basically marinated baked chicken with onions, served with cilantro cauli-rice.

Dessert: another "buttermilk" biscuit with butter and cinnamon to try and get that "sweet" treat. It didn't really work - I need to find something else.

For most of the day I felt pretty good physically, until late afternoon/early evening when I really started to notice the lack of energy I had. I'm doing the "active" modification, which allows for a little extra wiggle room with starchy vegetables & legumes. I need to expand those options, or I'll never keep up with my munchkin!

As a side note, I'm doing this program right in line with a DietBet I joined too! If you don't know what DietBet is, it's basically an online weight loss competition where you "bet" against yourself to lose 4% of your body weight in 4 weeks. If you "win," you will at least get back the amount you bet. If you lose, you get nothing back. So our group is now up to something crazy like 30 people or something and the "pot" is up to $850!! So if some people win, and some people lose, the winners will not only get back their initial bet, but the extra from the pot will be divvied up between all the winners after DietBet takes their fees. If everyone wins, they forfeit those fees and everyone gets back their initial bet. It's pretty much a win/win if you win! :)

That's a wrap for Day 1! I will try to update daily, or at least every few days. Time to go grocery shopping and try to avoid every sugary, starchy, delicious piece of food in that store. Wish me luck! ;)

Spaghetti Squash with Sweet Italian Turkey Sausage Pasta Sauce

I think I begin every blog with "boy it's been a while!" but it really has for a recipe!! Then last night, I thought I'd take pictures of the dinner I put together to finally do another recipe blog. This recipe turned out fantastic, and was even a huge hit with my 1 year old (always a plus)! A friend of mine gave me a spaghetti squash before they moved since she couldn't take it with her, and I had to use it before it started going bad. So I consulted the good old Pinterest boards and came across a recipe that I decided to use the basic premise of, but completely make it my own. I knew I'd be doing some version of healthier spaghetti, because I LOOOOOVE pasta, so that's what I went with! It's so good, I just finished typing it up for my personal family cookbook. :) And now here it is for your personal enjoyment!

Spaghetti Squash with Sweet Italian Turkey
Sausage Pasta Sauce
Serves: 3-4 adults

Ingredients:

·         1 spaghetti squash

·         1 package sweet italian turkey sausage, removed from casings

·         Olive oil

·         ½ med sweet Vidalia onion, diced

·         1 garlic clove, minced

·         Handful of fresh basil, chopped (or about 1 Tbsp dried)

·         About 2 cups of fresh baby spinach

·         1 jar Classico Traditional Sweet Basil pasta sauce

·         ½ cup fat free half-n-half

·         Salt & pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1.       This is the easiest way I’ve found to cook spaghetti squash: rinse it clean and then pierce several holes in the skin with a sharp knife. Put it in a large crock pot with 2-3 cups of water, and cook on high for 4 hours.

2.      For the sauce, cook sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat. If the sausage is in links, remove from the casings. I also added some additional fennel seeds to increase the flavor, about ¼ tsp or so. Crumble and cook through, then drain and set aside for now.

1.       In the same skillet, add a couple turns of the pan of olive oil. Add the onion and saute 3-4 minutes. Then add in the garlic, fresh basil, and baby spinach. The garlic will be done by the time the baby spinach has wilted down.

1.       Add 2/3 or more of the jar of pasta sauce, it really all depends on personal preference. Mix to combine. Then add the half-n-half, about ½ cup, or again the amount of your personal taste. Return the sausage to the skillet, and taste the sauce. Add salt & pepper to taste. Keep the sauce warm while you prepare the spaghetti squash.

1.       With an oven mitt or pot holder, carefully remove the spaghetti squash from the crock pot to a cutting board. Slice the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and take a fork to break apart the squash into strands. Serve in a bowl with the sauce and top with parmesan cheese.

     And the final presentation!! Yummy!! 

For the Love of Babies!!

I don't know if you would have considered me a baby crazy person before I had my daughter....but now? Whole other ball game. I love them and want to hold every little baby I see!! This probably would not go over well with strangers, so I seriously have to resist being that lunatic baby lady you see hovering around. But I also love making stuff for them! And now that I've had my daughter, and have had several friends "review" a few things, I have to say, I love gifting burp cloths. The way I make them are super absorbent, so soft, and so brightly colored! They are definitely a one of a kind gift for sure! I don't usually brag, but seriously - every single person I've made these for has said they are the best they've ever used. One was even a 4th time Mom and said they are the best she's ever used!! So I am slowly working on selling them on Etsy (shop is up, just nothing listed....yet lol). So since it's been a while since my last post, I figured I'd share a couple of my latest gifts. They include burp cloths, pacifier clips, and ribbon/tag blankets. I hope you enjoy! :)

2013 Crafts Round Up!

So it's basically been 6 months since I last posted on here. So much has happened! Our daughter Rachael was born July 28th....after 30 LONG hours of labor. Talk about exhaustion! Oy! All I have to say is whenever we decide to have #2, s/he better not take that damn long, or I'll be begging for the knife! :-p I had so many wonderful, helpful visitors after she was born, I never would have been able to do it without them! Chris came home beginning of October and finally got to meet his daughter!! It was quite emotional, as you can imagine, as well as an adjustment. It didn't take too long for Rachael to get to know her Daddy though, since he was able to take paternity leave. Our first holiday season with her was very low key and laid back....no traveling for us, and no one was able to come and visit. But it was still a very nice holiday season, and lots of love and gifts were sent our way! Okay, it was mostly for Rachael....she is one loved little girl! So that's the last 6 months in a very small nutshell. Most of you probably know all the details anyway.

So on to the point of this post....Christmas Crafts!!! Woo!! So many things made this year, where to begin?! Well some of these are baby crafts or crafts for friends, so it's not all for Christmas. So here goes the rundown!

1) Baby gifts for our friends Kara and Aaron, as they celebrated the arrival of their daughter in October.

Burp cloths matching their vintage story book nursery theme.

Pacifier clips!

Reds blanket! Emblem embroidered by my Aunt Dory. She really made it look awesome! (I so want an embroidering machine!!! lol)

Rachael being my model. :)

2) Baby gifts for our friends Matt and Erin, who celebrated the arrival of their son this fall as well. 

Crochet blanket laid out.

Close up of the stitch...I love this stitch!

The edging, reverse single crochet, also known as a crab stitch. First time using it on a blanket, pretty neat look!

Pacifier clips! Had to make a Hokie one, and found this super awesome beer bottle cap fabric I had to use as well!

Blanket and pacifier clips

 3) Baby gifts for our friends Nicole and Adam, who celebrated the arrival of their baby girl in October as well. I had made her a blanket for their son when he was born, so of course I had to make their baby girl one too!

I love this look...Bavarian crochet looks so beautiful! But seriously takes forever after about round 6. lol

Close up on the center

Close up of the outside and edging

Pacifier Clips for them as well!

Burp cloths too!

4) When my friend Andrea came to visit, we made a trip to Joann's Fabrics. I'm always looking at fabric there, and found this really bright and colorful home decor fabric I knew would make such a fun apron! So I was going to get the fabric to make myself one, and offered to make her one as well, which she quickly agreed to! These are pictures of hers, as mine became more of another test to perfect the pattern layout. But I think I've nailed it now, and it's perfect to make more for my Etsy shop! :)

Apron Front

Apron back

Decorative Buttons

Pocket

Towel Loop

Adjustable neck strap!

5) Aprons for my mother-in-law and sister-in-law for Christmas! Lydia (my SIL) likes to experiment in the kitchen, and Susan (MIL) likes to bake occasionally as well, so I thought they'd like aprons for Christmas. We also try to do some handmade gifts every year, so this was right up that alley! I loved the way both of these turned out, and the pattern for Lydia's will be offered in my Etsy shop as well! :)

Lydia's Apron Front

Apron Back

Apron laid out

Pocket and Towel Loop

Adjustable neck strap on both aprons!

Susan's Apron Front

Apron Back

Pocket, Towel Loop and Bottom Accent Fabric

Accent Buttons!

6) Christmas Gifts for my niece Kara!! My niece is about a year and half old and LOVES her play kitchen stuff! So when I saw an apron set on her Amazon wish list, I asked my SIL Jessie what Kara's sizes were so I could make her a set instead. My original plan was to do puppies or kitties since Jessie said she loves them, but then I saw this elephant print fabric in Joann's and just fell in LOVE with it!! It is SO dang cute, I had to order a LOT more online so I can offer it in my Etsy shop as well! Jessie said she loves it and wears it every day, and now uses her own oven mitt for her play kitchen oven rack instead of stealing her Mom's. She's just too darn cute! :) I also made her a winter hat to match one I made for Rachael...it was a quick work up and super cute as well!

The whole apron set, including mini spatulas I found at the PX!!

Apron includes pocket, 3 utensil slots, and adjustable ribbon neck strap!

Cute little pleats at the bottom

Chef's hat!!

Adjustable to grow with her!

Oven mitt front

Oven Mitt back

Winter hat!

Close up of the flower and a truer color shot of the yarn

Well that concludes all my projects from 2013!! Already working on another baby set for a friend, planning another baby set for another friend, and so much to make for my Etsy Shop! That should be up and running in the next couple of weeks, so be sure to be on the lookout for the link! But trust me, if you're friends with me on Facebook, you won't miss all the advertising I'll be doing!! :)

Happy New Year to all my family and friends, here's to a wonderful year of health, happiness, and love in your life! :)

And as always, Happy Crafting!! :)