Becoming Health

Food Inc.

2009-06-26T18:19:00.003-04:00

Hey there, Internet! Sorry for the neglect. I have had a couple of epiphanies this week and am not so sure a food blog is the healthiest or most lucrative activity for me. I enjoy each entry I produce, but the pictures take forever to load! My New Year's resolution was actually to spend less time on the Internet and I am doing the exact opposite of that, so I just don't know about this thing. This is typical Robyn, by the way. I am so gung ho and then two weeks pass and then all of a sudden I am not. It's tough being multi-faceted! Haha.

I just wanted to write a bit about a movie I saw today called Food Inc. It's a documentary created by the authors of the books Fast Food Nation and the Omnivore's Dilemma (and In Defense of Food!). It's all about modern food production and how truly horrific it is for our health and our planet. I could go on and on about the horrors of factory farming, Monsanto, fast food, diabetes, environmental degradation etc., but instead I just suggest you see this movie. It is eye-opening, even to a fairly educated vegetarian like me. If the movie isn't showing near you, I'd recommend those books, which deliver the same message.

You see a movie like this and feel so empowered to make changes. It is frightening how we can know what we do about something as important and simple as food, and yet still make the same mistakes all because of a monetary price. Spending just 3-5% more on food could seriously change the face of our planet for the good. Back in the 50s, families spent 15% of their income on food. Not bad for, like, total sustenance! Now, we spend about 9% of our income. We are also unhealthier.

So that is what has got me all fired up today. Tomorrow I am heading to the farmer's market and hope to make some inspired choices. I am not sure when I will be back to this thing, but if you are reading, I do appreciate it!

Second-longest day of the year

2009-06-22T18:58:00.003-04:00

Happy Second Longest day of the year! The optimist in me loves and cherishes this time of year. The pessimist in me realizes that the days are only going to get shorter from here. Bah!

I have had a pretty good day...for a Monday. I am still getting over my cold but just have a nasty cough. I feel just fine. And I've been able to eat some tasty things today, too. We have a great selection of fruit right now.

For breakfast, I had some Kashi Probiotic cereal with some plain non-fat yogurt and some blueberries and strawberries on top. I would usually have a spoonful of nut butter with this, but I have been really OD-ing on the nut butter lately. I am almost - almost - sick of it!

For a snack, I had some tasty cherries...

And the rest of this bag of pecans. I bought this bag of organic pecans from the health food store at least three weeks ago and I feel like I really got my $2.20 worth. You know what they say: A little pecan goes a long way.

For lunch, I had leftover Cumin Rice with Eggplant and Peas. It was ok. It needed some sprucing up!

I had my usual coffee but then I really rebelled and had a 3:30 peach instead of apple. I am so excited that peaches are starting to appear in stores, even though they are far from local. I should try to hold out until August when they are in their prime here, but I am a sucker for a peach.

Hubs was cutting the grass when I got home from work, so I tried to tide myself over for dinner by having some crackers and an apple with roasted almond butter. I must confess: roasted almond butter is much tastier than raw. I am not going to fight this realization.

For dinner, I had even more Cumin Rice but I DID spruce it up with half of an avocado. This made a world of difference!

For dessert, I had some dark chocolate, the same sized hunk as yesterday. I ate it while watching the news about the garbage strike that has recently afflicted Toronto. Pray that it is over soon or I will have a garden shed full of rotting avocado peels!

Here is a new product I picked up yesterday. You have to love Celestial Seasonings! If you've seen the movie Catch and Release and you love tea, you probably got a kick out of one of the side story lines. I wanted to try this flavour because I love chai tea but want to stay away from caffeine in the evening. This tea seemed perfect because it is herbal and doesn't require any added milk or sugar.

You can see my own bengal tiger in the background there!

This tea has an amazing sweetness. I feel like there must be some hidden sugar in there somewhere, but I've scanned the ingredient list to no avail!

Thus concludes another day of eats. I think I will be doing less of these Food Journal posts and more about overall health and well-being along with any neat or unusual products or recipes I try out. Alas, taking pictures of food isn't as much fun as I first believed! And it takes a while for them to upload. I don't know. I have definitely benefitted from keeping this blog, but sometimes I can be a bit obsessed!

Well it is time for my daily fix of TMZ. I am not going to watch Jon and Kate and learn what the big announcement is...or at least that is my plan. It is hard to stay away from other people's drama!

Summer Solstice

2009-06-21T18:30:00.005-04:00

Another weekend comes, another weekend goes. This blog is full of false advertising because on days I don't post what I eat, I eat a lot. A lot a lot, if you know what I mean. I went to a wedding yesterday and I really did some damage at the dessert table. There is no photographic evidence, thank goodness!

Today I felt really great about everything I ate, until I was waiting for these photos to post and then I ate two spoonfuls of peanut butter! I think that's my own fault for not having enough protein throughout the day. This healthy eating thing is tough!

So after our busy, hectic day yesterday, I wanted to do nothing more than rest and relax. I began the day by sustaining myself with Sunday Morning's very best inclusion:

And I made a Green Monster for breakfast. This is what it all looks like pre-blend!

It contains 1 banana, 2 cups of spinach, 1 spoonful of peanut butter, and 1 cup of milk.

For lunch, I decided to have another breakfast item. I've been enjoying the blog Yoga is Yummy and this is one of Polly's favourites. Simple oat bran with a sliced peach on top! No milk, no sugar, no cinnamon even - just plain delicious cereal and fruit. This was made with 1/2 cup of oat bran with 1 3/4 cup of water. I really enjoyed this.

I spent the afternoon napping and, upon waking, had a bowl of cherries. The idea of these cherries was the only thing that got my head off that pillow!

I also polished off the last little bits of my jar of almond butter. No worries - earlier today I bought a new jar!

For dinner, I made Cumin Rice with Eggplant and Peas. I had it with a side of steamed carrots and a glass of wine (not pictured).

And for dessert, I lugged this giant bar of Dark Chocolate out of my freezer. I wonder how long it will last around here?

I find the healthy eating to be especially difficult on Fridays and Saturdays. I get out of my weekly routine and almost kind of binge! It's not healthy, going from extreme health to extreme un-health. I am working on striking a good balance, but it's taking a while! I try not to beat myself up too much. I mean, having four desserts at a wedding is normal, right? *everyone reading this now nods their heads in unison*

Ok, well, maybe not.

But I'm trying! And I know I am trying new foods, eating more spinach in the last two months than I have in the last two years combined!, and eating more fruits, vegetables and less preservatives. Yes, there are dessert binges, but I'm not perfect. That's just life.

I am now going to get a giant glass of water and go watch Catch and Release, a library DVD. Tomorrow should be a busy day at work, so I need to rest while I can!

Back on track

2009-06-18T19:22:00.000-04:00

I was SO glad to get back to work today! I did not realize how much I actually enjoyed my job until now. It's not so much the job, as it is the people, the scenery, the not hacking up a lung. Although I still do have a nasty cough. Oh well, if nothing else it elicits looks of sympathy and pity from coworkers. That almost makes it worth it.

I started the day off with a new combination of foods. Yesterday, in the midst of sickness and boredom, I sliced my first fresh pineapple! I even watched a video on YouTube about how to do it. (The Internet: Not Just For Food Blogs Anymore). I don't mind canned pineapple for baking, but if I'm going to eat it straight up, it MUST be fresh. Fresh pineapple is one of my favourite foods, especially when mixed with coconut.

I did not have any coconut. I did have cottage cheese, though, my second favourite choice for mixing it with. I had some pineapple, cottage cheese, and a bit of this Probiotic cereal from Kashi.

It was a great combination.

It was also great to have a Larabar for a snack. I only have these when I'm not at home. Since I've been at home so much this week, the Larabars had to wait. This was a new flavour. Excellent, as Larabars always are.

For lunch, I had a whole wheat wrap with spinach, hummus, tomato, cucumber, 1/2 avocado and salsa.

It was excellent, but I ate it so fast! Salads make me pace myself. On my daily lunchbreak walk, I came across some "50% off" danishes (My daily lunchbreak walk happened to make a detour through the bakery section of the market; I have no idea how that happened!). I must have looked ridiculous, because I literally picked up the package of danishes, inspected them closely, put them back on the shelf, hesitated, and then picked them back up again. After much thought and deliberation, I gently placed them back on the shelf. This is the turmoil that is my life! I was very close to buying them, but some how, some way, did not. Miracles do happen. Yes, I am overly dramatic.

I ended up having a large coffee and a 3:30 pm apple. They were ok. They were no danish.

For dinner, I mixed some of my spinach pasta and whole wheat pasta and made a tomato sauce with zucchini, mushroom, onions, garlic and veggie ground round. Topped with freshly grated parmesan cheese, this was a satisfying meal.

For dessert, I had more fresh pineapple, a sliced kiwi, and some strawberries. I tried to make tea but there was an incident involving curdled milk. Hate that!

Tomorrow is FRIIIDAAAAYYY. I am meeting some friends for some mid-day dessert and coffee, so that should be an exercise in self-restraint! Hubs and I are planning a pizza and movie night, too. There will be some good eating. Glad I said no to those danishes when I did, 50% off or not!

Blah

2009-06-17T13:15:00.002-04:00

I am still sick! My cold seems to have migrated from my head to my lungs. Around 4:00 am this morning, I gave up on the idea of sleep altogether. It is weird and a bit creepy to be up so early. I called out sick to work again and have slept off and on all morning. Sleep really does wonders and reminds me that I need to make sure I get in my 8 hours every night as well as my vitamins (I think that slipping off the vitamin bandwagon over the weekend, as well as being dehydrated from the bike ride, is what pushed my body over the edge and made it susceptible to this cold!).

Today I have really been craving the carbs! I also got my period today (oh yes, I am going there on a public blog!), so it is just all sorts of fun happening in this body right now.

Around 5:00 am (ugh), I had some whole wheat toast with peanut butter along with a mug of green tea. This toast really hit the spot!

Somewhere around 8:00 am, I had a Green Monster. It contained:

1 banana
1 cup of milk
1 kiwi
1 spoonful of flax meal
2 handfuls of spinach

Then the Carb Monster that lurks inside of my body decided to rear its ugly head! The only thing that appealed to me was some plain wheat crackers. I had a bowl...

and possibly a second.

For lunch, I had an open-faced grilled cheese and tomato sandwich with a glass of guava juice.

And two squares of Lindor milk chocolate (no photo because I popped those suckers into my mouth too fast!)

Aside from the GM, all of this food looks so blah and boring, eh? Where is the colour? I will try to eat lots of fruits and veggies for the rest of the day. When I am sick, I am really caught in the middle between wanting to eat as healthfully as possible to help restore my body and wanting to succumb to my cravings and eat what makes me temporarily happy, like carbs and chocolate. I think I am doing a fair job of balancing between the two, but I really could use, I don't know, a carrot or something.

When you are sick, do you try to eat healthy, or do you eat what makes you happy even if it's unhealthy?

Well, now I am drinking some black tea with honey, lemon and milk and I will probably check out the world of online celeb goss! We are supposed to get a thunderstorm this afternoon, and that would really make this picture complete.

I shall return later this evening, hopefully with a picture of a carrot!

Becoming Sick

2009-06-16T18:31:00.000-04:00

I am still fighting this nasty cold. I would have stayed home today, but I just hate the thought of work accumulating on my desk. It is funny to talk about healthy eating when I am feeling so unhealthy - but the healthy eating must continue! For the sake of my health, but more so for the sake of the blog!

This is a pretty sight. I cut these from my peony bush. I've got pink ones out front and white ones out back. The white ones are just starting to bloom.

Wait, this blog is called Becoming Health, not Becoming A Gardener! Onwards and upwards...

For breakfast, I had a Classic: about 3/4 cup of Dorset Muesli, 1/2 cup of plain non-fat yogurt, 1 sliced banana, and 1 spoonful of almond butter. Delicious!

For a snack, I mixed the classics of cherries and walnuts. Instead of making muffins or cake, I just ate, well, cherries and walnuts! (Tasty, but not as good as cherry walnut muffins!)

For lunch, I loaded up on the veggies with another salad. What made this salad special was the large number of pecans I put on top. I love pecans! Too bad they are so expensive. This salad also had hummus, avocado, and sliced figs with fig balsamic vinaigrette, along with the usual assortment of veg. I always use spinach in salads, not only because I buy it for my Green Monsters, but because spinach is much healthier for you than lettuce.

Since I wasn't feeling well, I treated myself to a medium-sized non-fat vanilla latte from Second Cup, the best creator of lattes this side of the Canadian-American border! Sorry Starbucks.

I still ate my 3:30 apple, because, well, it was 3:30 pm! No picture :(

For dinner, I made an egg burrito. Ooh, a new addition to the flog. I took a whole wheat tortilla (worth about 200 calories) and loaded it up with 1 egg and 2 egg whites fried with broccoli, zucchini, tomato and feta cheese. I topped it with some salsa and had a cup of guava juice for some extra Vitamin C.

I foresee many more egg burritos in my immediate future.

Now I haven't had dessert because it is only 6:21 pm. However, I had to take a picture of this slice of blueberry coffee cake that I intend to eat in the next hour or so. I made this on the weekend based on a recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance. It is VERY GOOD and I definitely recommend it.

Hubby just read a section of the paper to me. Paul McCartney wants the world to have Meatless Mondays in which people abstain from meat one day of the week to help the environment. Did you know that a vegetarian or vegan diet is the #1 thing you can do for the environment, even more than driving a hybrid or recycling or praying to the moon goddess in your birthday suit (?). Yes, this is true. Ok, enough proselytizing for one flog entry.

Book Review: In Defense of Food

2009-06-16T14:30:00.002-04:00

Sorry, I have been away from the blogosphere for a whopping two days. Ok, that is not a very long time, but it feels that way when you don’t post on a daily food journal! I was a sick puppy yesterday. Just a head cold, but enough to make basic physical activity impossible. I stayed home from work and even took pictures of everything I ate, but fell asleep sometime around 6:00 pm and didn’t wake up again until this morning. So sorry about that! It is hard to gauge how many people actually read this thing, but I like to pretend its millions and trillions.

In any event, my sick time allowed me to finish reading In Defense of Food. You know what that means: BOOK REVIEW!

Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot. Sometimes, I read books like these and don’t learn that much because it is preaching to the choir. I have been fascinated with healthy eating since I was 13 years old (not that I necessarily practiced what I knew!) so I know a lot. But this book really showcased the faults of nutrition science. You know how you constantly hear about new research that reveals things like “Vitamin C is connected to pancreatic cancer” or “Calcium prevents butt tumors” etc. etc. This book basically says that a lot, if not most, of those studies are rubbish. There is even a word for this kind of thinking: Nutritionism. It’s when we think of food as these little parts instead of it as a whole. We don’t think of milk as milk but as a great source of Vitamin A and calcium. So then we take a Vitamin A supplement and a calcium supplement and then we wonder why we get a butt tumor! (Generally speaking of course.)

You can look at the history of nutritionism and see its many faults. Remember how they used to say that margarine was better for you than butter? Then this pesky little thing called TRANS FATS was revealed (you know it’s illegal to have trans fats in foods in Denmark? Not so over here in Trans Fat North America!). And now there is not just plain old yogurt, but cherry banana yogurt with probiotics and artificial food colouring! It can get exhausting knowing what to eat and what not to eat, especially when scientists are constantly finding new studies and telling us the opposite of what they were saying 10 years ago.

The solution? Stop reading and start eating whole foods. The more basic, the better. Do your own cooking. Buy from farmer’s markets or the outer perimeter of the grocery store (where the basic, fresh food is kept). Eat simple, wholesome food. Don’t worry about calories. Don’t worry at all. Just eat simple, good, natural food and spend your time thinking about other things…like the physical ramifications of butt tumors!

I give this book two healthy, wholesome, and natural thumbs up.

Almost Summer (and the living is sweet)

2009-06-14T18:22:00.006-04:00

The meal was so memorable that I had to post some photos here from Friday night's Keg dinner.

My giant glass of wine:

And fajitas! Fajitas are fun, although it can be tricky figuring out how much "stuffing" you have in relation to the number of shells in order to have a continuous shell to stuffing ratio. Stressful!

Anyhow, today I got the eating back on track! And had a 5 hour bike ride to boot.

I started out the day with a Green Monster and only a Green Monster. I needed to detox!

It contained:

1 banana
1 cup of 1% milk
1 kiwi
1 scoop of hemp protein powder
2 smallish handfuls of spinach

It was quite a bit thicker than usual, I am guessing from the kiwi? The protein powder helped keep me full for about 4 hours and then I had an early lunch. For lunch, I had some leftover greek pasta salad (made with whole wheat noodles, tomatoes, cucumber, olives, feta cheese and a homemade vinegar/oil dressing), topped with some homemade hummus, and with a side of cherries.

We then embarked on a long bike ride (I purposely kept my helmet on to give this photo credibility!)

We ended up making it to Harbourfront, this cute area by the water in downtown Toronto. I can't believe we rode all the way downtown, and I can't believe it only took 45 minutes! We rewarded ourselves with a stop at a patio overlooking the water. I had a frappucino-like beverage with whipped cream! Hubs ordered a Corona and is doing an elaborate flipping gesture in order to insert a lime into it? I don't drink beer and am unfamiliar with its rituals.

We also ordered bruschetta. I had one piece.

We then rode our bikes to The Beaches area of Queen Street East and walked around a bit. I was surprised to be hungry again so soon, but I suppose that constant bodily motion will do that to a metabolism (I am very unfamiliar with this!). I had packed this Vel bar for a snack. It was excellent!

We eventually made our way home and I relaxed for a bit before starting dinner. I had some iced coffee (this had black coffee, ice, and about 1/4 cup of milk). I am reading In Defense of Food. Review to soon come!

For dinner, I had steamed asparagus, more leftover pasta salad, and a morningstar garden burger with some salsa. I am slowly working my way through the different brands of veggie burgers in the health food section of Loblaw's. I really liked Amy's, but these are delicious too (and cheaper!).

And for dessert, 1/2 of a mango, 1 kiwi, and a handful of blueberries.

It's been an excellent weekend. I love summer. The best part is that it's not even officially summer yet. This is the best time of the year, hands down.

Sunday Morning

2009-06-14T07:33:00.003-04:00

No pictures from Friday or Saturday - sorry! I fell off the food blogging bandwagon. The effects were immediately felt: I definitely ate more yesterday than I have in a long, long time. Must start taking photos again this morning! I think there is a Green Monster with my name on it...

On Friday, I had one of the best meals of my life. I think it was mostly because I've been so "good" lately, and my body isn't used to so much food. We went to The Keg for dinner. Have you tried their bread? It is enough to make a girl swear off WHOLE WHEAT flour. It is warm, dough-y, and very very white. I ordered the portobello mushroom fajitas and I ate every single bite - about five fajitas! And I also had a "Keg sized" glass of 9 ounces of red wine. I felt like King Henry VIII or some other obese, gluttonous member of royalty. It was actually marvelous and an eye opener about food's true and beautiful power! It is important to have splurges where it is justified and truly enjoy food for what it is. It doesn't always have to be healthy...or green!

I will return to food blogging today. We are going on a long bike ride so I will be sure to pack some healthy snacks! Maybe take some photos of our journey too.

I hope you are having a great weekend. Enjoy this last one before summer truly begins!

Muffin Tops

2009-06-11T19:03:00.000-04:00

I am writing this with a warm, fresh-from-the-oven blueberry muffin in my mouth. I don't want it to end! Holy cow, are they ever good. Moment of silence, please.

Thank you.

Well this was quite a good day! You will soon see why...

For breakfast, I had one slice of the sunflower seed loaf with jam, a hard-boiled egg, and a Green Monster made very simply with:

1 banana
1 cup of milk
2 cups of spinach

I am all about the simple. This was one of my favourites, probably because the full banana made it thick and sweet and there wasn't any protein powder or flax to make it a bit more bitter. Very tasty.
For a morning snack, I brought about 3/4 cup of 1% cottage cheese with some sliced strawberries and blueberries. The combination of strawberries and blueberries makes me think of summer! Now if only Mother Nature would realize that summer will be here next week so she should start ACTING like it's summer. Stay tuned 3 weeks from now when I complain about the heat.
I am on a major salad kick these days. There is nothing I'd rather have than a salad for lunch. It takes a while to eat and is full of such a variety of foods. What else can compare? This salad was made with the usual conglomeration of vegetables, along with walnuts, sliced figs, feta, and fig balsamic dressing.
Then I went all crazy on my lunch break and got my hair cut! This was today's impulsive action. I have had passing thoughts about getting a hair cut and then, all of a sudden, I knew I had to do it! I knew I had to do it AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. I get this way with haircuts and books. Sometimes, I just hear about a book and need to read it AS SOON AS POSSIBLE so I run out to the bookstore and pay full price for a book that I usually only half-read. Gah! It is tough being me. At least I am kind of cute. And, obviously, modest.

Once I came down off my HAIR HIGH, I ate an apple. No picture. I had other, more important things on my mind!

For dinner, I kept it light with a toasted sandwich made with hummus, tomato, spinach and cucumber, along with a sliced carrot and cucumber to dip in a tablespoon of raw almond butter.

I kept it light because I knew, beyond all reasonable doubt, that I would be making blueberry muffins from scratch this evening and that one, possibly two, of these muffins would end up in my belly. Indeed, they did.

These muffins are AMAZING and so simple to make! I will now write out the recipe to:

ROBYN'S SCRUMPTIOUS MUFFINS, NOW STARRING BLUEBERRIES

As great as it would be to make these all year round, they are the very best when made with fresh blueberries. I found some fantastic ones at the market today.

To make 9 big crazy muffins:

1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsps baking powder
1/3 cup oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Line muffin tray.

2. Combine flour, sugar, salt and powder. Place oil in a measuring cup; add egg and enough milk to make it one cup. Mix this with the flour mixture. Fold in blueberries.

3. Fill muffin cups and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes.

You will not be disappointed! It is not a modified-for-health recipe. Sometimes, it is just nice to eat something that tastes like grandma made it, y'know?

Well it has been an exciting day, what with hairs being removed and muffins being baked. I am pooped!

MESTEMACHER (I don't know what this means, but it sounds very important!)

2009-06-10T19:06:00.000-04:00

I was excited to dig into this organic sunflower seed loaf I picked up at The Health Shoppe yesterday. I trusted the ingredient list, the protein and fibre grams, and - most importantly - the lady on the front of the package.
OBVIOUSLY she is pretty and fit so by eating this product I, too, will be pretty and fit. This is how it works, right?

I knew I could trust this German-made loaf (The Germans make great, dense bread products). For breakfast, I had one slice with some organic raspberry jam, one hard-boiled egg, and a sliced banana, strawberries, and blueberries.
The loaf was kind of bitter. Maybe not bitter, just not as tasty as I had hoped. I don't think I will buy it again, although I will finish off the loaf. I hate to see organic, German goodness go to waste!

For a snack, I had the very filling combination of the last of my Mary's Organic Crackers with a small container of my homemade hummus. This was a great snack and kept me full beyond my usual lunch break.
For lunch, I had some leftover spaghetti. I wish I had a salad instead, but this was still tasty.

I feel like I have been consuming a bit too much caffeine lately, so I decided to skip my usual coffee in favour of a simple green tea. If my research is correct, a cup of green tea has about 1/2 of the caffeine of coffee. And since I usually consume 16 ounces of coffee at once (in comparison to 8 ounces of tea), I thought this would be a good switch. It seemed to work and I didn't get tired this afternoon like I usually do without my usual infusion of Starbs.

For a snack, I had an apple. I was so anxious, I bit into it before realizing that I must take a picture! Old habits die hard.
I was glad we were having burgers on the BBQ for dinner because that meant I could make a fresh salad.

It contained spinach, broccoli, cucumber, zucchini, carrot, orange pepper, mushrooms, avocado, walnuts, feta, and sliced figs with a maple balsamic vinaigrette.

I had it with an Amy's garden burger with a bit of chipotle salsa on top. And...a glass of wine!

For dessert, I dipped into one of the many chocolate bars currently frozen in my freezer. I chose some organic dark chocolate.

I ate it while it was still frozen, but I was too anxious to wait for it to defrost!

I am really tired this evening. I would like to take it easy and just read. I picked up a Prevention magazine earlier today. I know this magazine is for those over 40 years old, but I want in on the secrets to living a long, healthy life. Might as well start as soon as possible, right?

Temptations

2009-06-09T19:12:00.003-04:00

Today has been a day full of temptations. We had yet another birthday party at work (what is up with spring birthdays?) but there was only ice cream and chips. The Rolo ice cream was looking pretty good, but I didn't have any. I don't like being that person who doesn't participate, but I feel like my tastes are changing. This is weird. Hubs went grocery shopping today and brought back a Mississippi Mud Pie. The picture on the box looked amaaaaazing. But the ingredient list? Was gigantic and full of Frankenstein words. And 1/8th of the pie was 380 calories. That isn't too palatable. If only I hadn't read the box! Knowledge is power...or is it?

I started the day with a Green Monster. It contained:

1/2 cup of milk
1/2 cup of guava juice. This was an exciting development.
1/2 banana
2 cups of spinach
1 Tbsp of flax meal

The juice really sweetened this up and I could taste the guava. Humina.

I had this with two slices of Ezekiel with cinnamon raisin peanut butter. Very good.

For a snack, a medjool date and a few pecans and cashews. Oh, the damage I could do if left alone with a box of medjool dates!

I had another salad for lunch. This one had spinach, carrots, peppers, cucumber, tomato, one boiled egg, hummus, raisins, and pumpkin seeds with fig balsamic dressing.

I forgot to take a picture of my 3:30 apple! But I think you know what this looks like. I also had a coffee, which I nursed during the birthday party like a big old party pooper!

For dinner, hubs made spaghetti. He put some mushrooms and peppers in the sauce. I had this sprinkled with some parmesan and paired with a glass of red wine! I really need to incorporate more red wine into my...entire life.
For dessert, the last of my chemical chocolate with some comic relief!

Now, I am drinking some peach white tea I bought at the health food store today. We are about to watch He's Just Not That Into You, one of the very few "chick flicks" I can convince hubs to watch with me. Later!

Book Review: The Thrive Diet

2009-06-09T11:56:00.003-04:00

I would recommend The Thrive Diet to two different kinds of people and two different kinds of people only:

1. Those who are hardcore athletes (i.e. voluntarily participate in extreme events like marathons and triathlons. Who are these people? I do not understand their belief system).
2. Those who are very health and nutrition conscience and are open-minded enough to try veganism.

I partly fit into one of these categories. Can you guess which?

The Thrive Diet is a thorough book. Its author, Brendan Brazier, is a top vegan Ironman. Intense stuff! He is all about fueling your body with simple, nutrition-dense foods like flax, nuts, veggies, fruit etc. You can’t argue with his thorough information about what foods you need, how much you need of them, and when you should consume them based on your workout (before, during, and after). He provides a 12 week diet plan and a bunch of different recipes. Of particular interest were his recipes for smoothies and energy bars. His smoothies often contain flax meal and hemp protein. One step ahead of you, Brendan! And his energy bars sound amazing, although I would need a food processor before trying any of them out. The food he consumes is not cheap, but I am sure the cost is well worth it.

Since I only fit partly into one of the above categories, I did not love this book as much as I hoped. I am not an athlete (unless watching Jon and Kate is being considered for the 2010 Olympics. Badump cha!) and I only dabble in veganism, so this wasn’t the book for me. I did learn about a few new foods I had never heard of before (chlorella sounds neato!) and would like to try some of his recipes. Overall, though, I found this book to be a bit too dry. I wish Brendan were more witty and charming. However, as a hardcore vegan Ironman with a multi-million dollar company under his belt, I imagine he doesn’t have the time or energy for wit!

A Case of the Mondays

2009-06-08T18:26:00.004-04:00

Greetings from my couch! I've got the expandable pants on and am listening to nothing except for the birds outside singing and my fingers typing. It's nice to catch a bit of peace and quiet on a Monday.

Maybe it was a case of the Mondays, but I forgot my camera today! So no snack or lunch photos, but here is a photo of me and Dr. Snuggles last night. She was feeling oddly affectionate (hence the blogging with cat on arm last night) and she nestled into my neck. It was pretty cute so I had to catch it for posterity.
I am not wearing any make-up in this photo and I can't believe how clear my skin is. I don't mean to toot my own ~~horn~~ skin, but I really think it's those glorious Green Monsters that have done this. Praise the Almighty GM!

For breakfast, I had my #2 favourite (#1 favourite breakfast is a GM and toast with nut butter, which I will be feasting on tomorrow). This is 1 cup of spelt, 1/2 cup of non-fat plain yogurt, 1/2 sliced banana, 2 strawberries, a few blueberries, a few raisins, pepitas, and pecans, and a spoonful of raw almond butter. It was so good! I feel like the raisins give this well-rounded cereal mess a nice texture.
For a snack, I had 1/2 cup of 1% cottage cheese with a small handful of frozen blueberries. I am pretty much out of cottage cheese now :(

For a lunch, I had a big salad. It contained the usual assortment of vegetables, as well as some avocado, three sliced figs, a few nuts, and a hard-boiled egg. I had some fig balsamic vinaigrette made by Kraft. This is probably my favourite dressing.

For an afternoon snack, I had my usual coffee and 3:30 apple.

Wow, this is freaking boring without pictures.

For dinner, I made some hummus! I made it using chickpeas I soaked the night before and then simmered in water for about 1/2 hour. I mixed about 3.5 cups of cooked chickpeas with 1/3 cup of olive oil, 1/4 lemon juice, 3 minced garlic cloves, 3 Tbsps of tahini and that's it. Writing this out, I realize I forgot to add any spices. D'oh! It still tasted good, though.
I had 1 cup of Campbell's Healthy Request Garden Vegetable soup and a sandwich with hummus, spinach, tomato and cheddar cheese on toasted whole wheat.

Then I had more of my delicious chemical chocolate! I think I feel a stomach cramp now. Meh. It'd be worth it!

Now I am going to spend the entire night rotting my brain on television. Don't be jealous!

Bachelorette Weekend

2009-06-07T17:46:00.004-04:00

I write this with a full belly and yet have the yearning to eat more. Don't I know this feeling well! I am holding out for an hour and then will have some hot chocolate. That sounds like a good compromise.

Well this past weekend, I was up north at a bachelorette party weekend! I made sure to pack some healthy snacks so as to prevent those pesky SNACK ATTACKS.
The food was excellent and I had some great company...

Who needs a male stripper when one has a donkey? If I had a quarter for every time I've ever said that.

When we first got to the cottage, everyone was already ready to go for a hike. We went out for a 2-3 hour journey. It was tough work, but the scenery was beautiful and made me very hungry for a late lunch.

For our first meal, we had some pumpkin soup, veggies and various dips. I had two bowls of this soup, a couple slices of pita bread, a few more veggies, and much more hummus! I had a glass of red wine too. It was "Fuzion" from Argentina, a very inexpensive wine that is absolutely delicious!
For dinner, a barbecued portobello mushroom and greek pasta salad (which I made!). Because I love pasta salad, I did not have a bun with my "burger". I did have seconds of the salad. I also had another glass of that great wine!

Throughout the evening, I enjoyed some great snacks. I did not partake in the fancy blender drinks, but I did have a couple of smores on the fire and a few chips with homemade guacamole. I think these were great choices. The smores were a must and I have yet to deny the almighty Homemade Guac!

This morning, I had this delicious homemade waffle with berries and real maple syrup. I also had a banana, some strawberries, melon and coffee with half and half. For this one meal, I also assumed the moniker of "Cathy".

On the drive home, I had an apple and an oatmeal raisin Clif bar.

As tempting as the frozen pizza in my freezer was, I knew I'd polish off that sucker in one sitting flat due to my emotions (craving a night of tv and carbohydrates!). I decided to have some steamed broccoli, a baked potato with salsa, and some baked tofu (in a marinade made of olive oil, honey, chili pepper, paprika and black pepper).
I am now watching a Sex and the City marathon with my cat, Dr. Snuggles, sleeping on my arm. Not a bad way to blog!

Nut Fiend

2009-06-06T07:28:00.003-04:00

Whoops! I never got around to posting last night's meal starring spinach noodles. I got side-tracked by one husband, a baseball game, and tying up disposable knives and forks in napkins with hemp string for a friend's large wedding celebration happening in a few weeks. It was a wild Friday night, to say the least. It was so cute to watch the hubs help me. He is not the most dexterous of folks, but he really put in a lot of effort to help me. I hope that the wedding attendees appreciate his craftiness!

Last night's meal was delicious. Spinach noodles taste exactly like regular old spaghetti noodles. I should have realized that! But it was still fun to eat green noodles.

I cut up a ton of veggies including asparagus, zucchini, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, and mushrooms and marinated them in about 2 Tbsps of olive oil and a capful of lemon juice. I roasted them in the oven for about 45 minutes at 350 F.

I sprinkled about 2 Tbsps of parmesan cheese on top. C'est magnifique!

For dessert, I purchased this dark chocolate bar from The Big Carrot. I liked that it was sugar-free, but I was not a Smart Shopper because I failed to look at the ingredient list until I got home. Well, the sugar was replaced with maltitol. Artificial sweetener!!!

I had a couple of chunks, though, and it was pretty dang tasty. I couldn't tell it was artificially sweetened. At some point yesterday, I did experience some weird stomach cramps, but I thought it was from all of the nuts I've been eating (I have been a little nut fiend lately! Maybe that should be my new nickname. "Yo, where is nut fiend at? Oh, she's updating her flog (food + blog)"). In any event, I wonder if my stomach cramping was due to the maltitol. I kind of hope it was, so I can continue to prove that artificial sweeteners are the work of the devil! Perhaps that is a a slight exaggeration.

What made wrapping knives and forks in napkins all night bearable, was some delicious coffee. This little nut fiend can't get enough of coffee!

Well, this morning I am heading away for a bachelorette cottage weekend. To prepare for such an event, I have steadied myself with a Green Monster and half of an orange chocolate scone. This GM contains the usual:

1 cup of milk
1/2 banana
2 strawberries
2 cups of spinach
1 scoop of hemp protein powder

I will try to continue taking pictures of my eats this weekend. This will be a true challenge but I think I am up for it!

Short Day

2009-06-05T16:16:00.005-04:00

Would you believe me if I told you that I purchased all of the above products at Walmart? Furthermore, would you believe me if I said that I purchased these products at a severely discounted rate? I COULD NOT BELIEVE MY EYES. It seemed like half of Walmart's organics section was on sale (I should clarify that this was one of those Walmarts with the grocery store included). Those cereals were $2 a box, even the fancy Dorset muesli! I got a box of 50 bags of green tea for $2 (although this was the regular price). And I even found some unusual products!

I have been wanting to try these peanut butters forever! They aren't so common in Canada I don't think, so I was particularly surprised to see them at Walmart for $2.50 a jar. These were the only two flavours available, but they were good enough for me. I tried the cinnamon raisin this morning. Delicious! I think the raisin part is sunk at the bottom, though. I didn't dare try the white chocolate too because I would have never gone to work. Instead, I'd be passed out on the kitchen floor, with peanut butter all over my face and an empty jar by my feet! This is not an exaggeration.

I also found some spinach noodles This was in the international section, which I suppose is unique due to the area where my Walmart is located (I am one of the few caucasians at this one).

(The people on this package seem to be really enjoying their spinach noodles.)

At first I thought it would be filled with chemicals to make it green, but check out this ingredient list!

I had just read in my The Thrive Diet book that chlorophyll is excellent for the human body. This is a great product too because it has portion control. Those little red bands distribute the pasta into individual portions. That is the tough thing with pasta; it's so hard to figure out a serving because it's all based on weight and, I don't know about you, but I don't weigh pasta on a regular basis. Just not my thing. I will be trying this out tonight!

So today was my first short day at work. I was so excited, but it ended up being quite a stressful morning. There may have been tears. Just one thing compiling on another. You know how it goes. But TGIF!

For breakfast, I started with some muesli (about 3/4 cup), with 1/2 cup of non-fat plain yogurt, a sliced banana, and a spoonful of the cinnamon raisin peanut butter.

For a snack, I had 1/2 cup of cottage cheese with a bunch of sliced strawberries.

I knew I'd be late in getting lunch, so I also packed some dried fruit and nuts. This little batch contained one fig, one date, and a few random nuts. Gotta love nuts that are random (?).

I intended on purchasing some weird yet exciting blend from the juice bar at The Big Carrot, but I wasn't hungry. Score a point for intuitive eating! While there, I purchased some organic cherries, organic blueberries, and an Amy's dairy-free burrito (among other things). This composed my lunch, along with some sliced cucumber.

I was still hungry, so I ate this great little seed and nut bar. It was my favourite kind: all-natural, understandable ingredients, and dense like all get out. I don't know about you, but the heavier the bar, the more appealing it is to my taste buds. Of course, this translates to more calories and fat, but this bar did not display it's nutritional info which was probably a good thing! I enjoyed this bar more than is probably healthy to admit.

I ended up also visiting my local farmer's market this afternoon. It was cute! I bought some local asparagus, spinach, peppers and basil, as well as two orange chocolate chip scones from an Irish baker named Nuala (I love that name!). I hope to have this scone with tomorrow's Green Monster. I am used to the giant St. Lawrence Market, so this market seemed piddly in comparison, but it was neat to talk with the person who actually picked the asparagus, y'know? I kind of wish I had gone on an empty stomach, because I would have liked to sample some of the baked goods. Oh well, next time!

I hope to be back tonight detailing my experience with spinach pasta. Stay tuned!

Organic bliss where you'd least expect it!

2009-06-04T18:40:00.004-04:00

Please excuse the time on this post. I was very clever and uploaded the photos from my camera (takes forever!) and then saved this blog draft while I went out shopping at Walmart. You would not believe the awesome deals I scored tonight! But I will save those for tomorrow's post.

This morning began with my good buddy, the Green Monster. It's getting to the point where I feel I need one of these everyday. Either one of these or a big, green salad. I think that officially makes me a health nut, doesn't it? This GM is composed of:

1/2 banana
4 strawberries
1 cup of milk
1 scoop of hemp protein powder
2 big handfuls of spinach

I had it with one of my homemade blueberry scones which I had frozen from last week's batch.

I threw caution to the wind and decided to make a cup of green tea once I got to work. It wasn't cold or rainy or anything, I just felt like a little pick-me-up.
For a snack, I had some strawberries...
And a few cashews and walnuts.
For lunch, we had a pizza party at work. If you raised $25 for our annual walkathon (I work for a charity), then you got to partake. I brought a salad but had one small slice of veggie pizza. This salad is your basic mix of spinach and vegetables with some feta cheese, goji berries, raisins, and walnuts. I had a tiny bit of a sundried tomato and oregano dressing on this.
For an afternoon snack, a good old 3:30 apple. I arrived home from work to my man cooking meat in the backyard. He works best when dealing with an open flame! I did not have any of the angus burgers he was cooking. I had another one of my overly-processed yet satisfyingly delicious sweet italian "sausages" with some grilled veggies, some leftover bean salad, and two slices of whole grain bread. This filled me up and yet I had a sweet tooth I couldn't shake! I had one of these: I bought these because of the packaging. I'm being honest! "A taste of life" sounds...tasty. I want some of that.

This definitely appeals to my new age/hippie food side. The ingredient list isn't half-bad...

Although there are some weirdo words in there. It's kind of amazing how much soy is in EVERYTHING.
They aren't too bad, but I wouldn't buy them again.

I am really looking forward to tomorrow. It's my first half-day Friday at work (each summer, we get Friday afternoons off!) so I am going to hit up The Big Carrot, my favourite health food store, as well as my local farmer's market which officially begins the season! I anticipate a great day of food ahead.

Thriving

2009-06-03T18:59:00.003-04:00

Another day, another dollar! Yep, today is pay day which is always nice, but tomorrow my first mortgage payment comes automatically out of my account. And so I begin the next 26 years of my life.

On a lighter note, I ate some good food today. Makes the "signing of one's life away" a bit more palatable.

For breakfast, I had my favourite cereal combo:

1 cup Spelt
1/2 cup plain non-fat yogurt
1/2 banana
2 strawberries
Some pecans, walnuts, goji berries, pepitas and raisins
Spoonful of almond butter

It was as good as it sounds...and looks!

Strawberries are on sale right now, 2 lbs for $3.77 so I have stocked up. I had some more berries for a morning snack.

You will never in a million years guess what I had for lunch! Ok, I am not placing money on that bet, because I ended up having more of the curried eggplant dish. I think there is one serving left in my fridge but I'm not touching it. Either the hubs eats it or I have to throw it out. This was a tasty dish, but I have definitely OD'd on it. I am looking forward to a salad tomorrow!

This afternoon, I munched on this little container filled with every seed, dried fruit and nut product I currently have in my pantry (except for dates! I like to enjoy those on their own). This contains pepitas, raisins, goji berries, walnuts, cashews and pecans. I am constantly impressed by how filling nuts are. Are they a "superfood"? I am going to say yes.

Dinner contained no curry or eggplant, praise the Lord.

This is one of my go-to meals. We have here a baked sweet potato topped with non-fat plain yogurt (I had yogurt at all three meals today!); some steamed asparagus and zucchini; and baked beans with chopped up veggie italian sausage in it.

The sausage was Yves brand, probably the most common brand for veggie meat delights in Canada. I think I enjoy their veggie ground meat at least once a week.

As I become more educated about food, I realize that I want to decrease my intake of soy, especially highly processed soy products like this. The ingredient list is pretty complex with many scary, Frankenstein words. But then I look at the nutrition facts and I shed a tear. 22 grams of protein!? Come to mama! <--?

This dinner stuffed me full. I haven't felt this full since I began eating healthier early last month. I am going to listen to my body and forego a snack this evening. I am sticking to some lemon green tea, my expandable pants, and this book I picked up at the library after work: The Thrive Diet: the whole foods way to losing weight, reducing stress, and staying healthy for life. Just looking at the Table of Contents gets me excited. It is going to be a scintillating night.

I'm (not) full of artificial sweetener

2009-06-03T11:10:00.005-04:00

http://imway2fat.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/diet-soda-fat-man.jpg

This post - http://www.crankyfitness.com/2009/06/wait-minute-it-said-diet-soda-on-label.html - got me thinking again about artificial sweetener.

When I was a kid, my mom was always very wary of artificial sweeteners. Even in the 1980's, she was talking about how she didn't think it was healthy and was pretty much convinced it was a carcinogen. To be honest, I kind of thought she was off her rocker! Where was the scientific proof? And would the government really allow a known carcinogen to be so widely consumed without any warning label (a la cigarettes)?

But then every so often, I'd hear about a new study involving artificial sweetener, especially the now-dreaded aspartame. There were negative studies involving aspartame and rats. Then when Splenda came out, everyone was all excited because this meant you didn't need to consume aspartame. But I thought aspartame wasn't bad for me?

The real clincher for me came about 10 years ago when a second cousin of mine - in her late 30s and the vision of health - developed bone cancer. She was a beautiful, slim woman. We soon discovered that she consumed vast amounts of diet soda. She'd visit for the weekend and you'd have to buy at least a caseload. This is not even close to a scientific study, but when a healthy 30-something who drinks vast quantities of diet soda develops a fatal form of bone cancer, you begin to think about things.

I'm not much of a soda drinker and I hate fat-free, sugar-free yogurt (it's like creamy jello. Gross!), but I very, very rarely will consume artificial sweetener now. If I consume it, it's usually by accident. The jury is still out whether artificial sweetener is really that bad for one's health, but really, why even bother taking the risk?

Speed Demon

2009-06-02T20:07:00.006-04:00

What a great day! The hubs bought me a bicycle while I was at work and I just got back from a two hour ride.
What a beaut! It's a comfort bike so it's not meant for speedy riding or anything (I am working with only 6 gears) but it's perfect for me and the best part is that it doesn't hurt my butt. Bonus!

The day began on good terms, too. Any day that begins with both a Green Monster and almond butter can't go wrong, can it?
This was a very simple Green Monster composed of:

1/2 banana
2 strawberries
1 cup of milk
1 large handful of spinach

And that's two slices of toasted ezekiel bread with raw almond butter.

For a morning snack, I feasted on an Apple Pie Larabar. As soon as I took this out of the wrapper, it smelled just like apple pie. The same thing happened with the Cinnamon Roll flavour. It was very delicious. Why, oh why, do Larabars have to be so expensive?!

For lunch, I had leftovers (which I also had for dinner tonight and which I will also have for lunch tomorrow...talk about economical...and boring!). This was pretty tasty and more filling than yesterday's because I think I consumed more of the quinoa.

The sweet tooth struck again and I was jonesing for some chocolate. I had one Ferrero Rocher in my desk from a coworker. It hit the spot as chocolate is known to do, but it wasn't very fresh. It had a bit of that weird, white film on it. Boo!

And because I am an honest and dedicated food blogger, I also must admit, dear readers, that I also consumed one Hershey kiss. I don't even really like Hershey chocolate, but there you have it!

As usual, I had a cup of Starbs coffee...

And an apple for a snack. I call it my "3:30 apple". It pretty much stands between me and total gorging upon returning home from work!

For dinner, more leftovers! This time, with the welcome addition of half of an avocado. Avocados can spruce up even the most boring of meals! (That's non-fat plain yogurt on top, my go-to substitute for sour cream in anything!)

Then came the bike ride! It was only around 5:45 pm when we finished dinner (the benefit of leftovers, eh?) so we decided to ride down by the beaches area. We rode along all of the beaches and ended up in Leslie Spit, this area of the harbour that kind of jets out into the lake and feels like a wildlife reserve. You don't feel like you are in the city anymore, until you spot the skyline.
We had a great time. I think this was the first time we ever did something outdoorsy together, and we've been with each other for over 6 years. Oy.

Dreams do come true, because we are also a 2 minute bike ride away from my hub's favourite destination in the entire world, the almighty DAIRY QUEEN. He would take DQ over homemade Italian gelato. Is that insane or what? In our marriage contract, there is a stipulation that I must partake in DQ during every date we have together. I had a small dipped cone. I probably should have got the kiddie size, but I have to say that this hit the spot! I couldn't resist the combo of a bike ride and ice cream. I honestly felt about 10 years old again!

I am so tired, I could easily pass out right now. Fresh air, exercise and refined carbohydrates will do that to a person! I will sleep well tonight.

I think this is a good look for me. I should wear it to work tomorrow and see what my boss says.

Addendum

2009-06-02T09:02:00.001-04:00

It is important to note that last night I also had a spoonful of peanut butter!

Food is what makes the ride worthwhile

2009-06-01T18:33:00.005-04:00

Since the hubs tried his first Green Monster, I had to capture the experience on film. This was taken about 40 seconds after he got out of bed. I am a GREAT wife (yes, he is drinking it out of a Corona bottle that was blown into a glass!)

This was taken pre-taste. Post-taste was a bit too difficult to get on camera because there was too much Green Monster Action.

So another Monday has come and another Monday has almost gone. I am looking forward to an evening of reality television (Intervention is one of my favourite shows!).

I started the week off right with a Breakfast Cookie. This one contained:

1/3 cup quick oats
1/2 banana
1 Tbsp milk
1 spoonful of flax meal
1 spoonful of peanut butter
1 Tbsp pepitas
1/2 Tbsp unsweetened dessicated coconut

Good stuff when paired with a bowl of strawberries.

For a snack, I tapped into a new container of cottage cheese topped with frozen blueberries.

For lunch, I had some leftover bean salad with some spinach and tomato. Whenever I make a batch of bean salad, I feel like it lasts for days and I have some at every meal. Beans beans the magical fruit, the more you eat, I am going to stop right there :)

(I also had two slices of ezekiel bread with lunch)

My afternoon snack was a good old-fashioned apple. It was kind of on the small side. I did not approve of this!

For dinner, I made the curried eggplant dish. It turned out very good! I subbed in a can of diced tomatoes and I didn't have fresh basil on hand so I used dried, but overall it was very tasty. My only complaint is that it wasn't filling enough. I had 1/2 cup of quinoa which I thought would be enough (it is a super grain, after all), but nope. So I had another spoonful of the eggplant mixture which helped a tiny bit.
And to finish off the day, I had a cup of lemon green tea with a ginger molasses cookie (one of the ones I baked on Friday that did NOT get burned) and a strawberry. With the flower I received at the bridal shower, this makes for a rather quaint photo op.

This is a very sweet quote, although I find it equally as sweet if you replace "love" with "food"!

Weekend Recap

2009-06-01T14:33:00.003-04:00

Another weekend has come and gone! I didn't take photos of my food because it's a bit more complicated on the weekends, but I still maintained my regular eating patterns which is a feat in itself! On Saturday, we visited with the hub's family. I had a bun-less tofurkey sausage, a few veggies grilled on the BBQ in oil, and a slice of this great, hearty bread. On Sunday, I attended a bridal shower which is notorious for delectable appetizers and sweets. I had a few sundried tomato hummus with basil pesto spiral appetizers, a bun-less veggie burger, a bit of potato salad, and some of my vegan bean salad. No dessert, though. I didn't feel like having anything too heavily processed. The veggie burger provided enough of that!

This weekend also had two special events! Firstly, the hubs consumed his first Green Monster! I made it easy on the palate with:

1 banana
1 cup of 1% milk
2 strawberries
2 handfuls of spinach

I left out the protein powder because that makes it pretty bitter. Since the spinach is basically tasteless, this was just a green strawberry banana smoothie. He liked it!

The second big event was that I weighed myself. I don't own a scale but happened to come across one at my in-laws. I haven't weighed myself in a few months. I am down about 5 pounds! For the first time in my adult (or teenage, or even pubescent) life, I have cracked 160 and weigh 159. The pursuit of health is not about numbers, but I can't help but be filled with happiness over this. I walk that precarious line between ecstatic and cautious. Scales and numbers can become an obsessive habit. A part of me doesn't care what the scale says, I just want to eat healthy and exercise (oh yeah, about that...). The other part of me has a very defined number in my head that is the Ultimate Goal. What happens when that Ultimate Goal is reached, I have no idea! So I try to just focus on the healthy eating part. That I can do no problem.

I will post tonight with pictures from today. For dinner, I am making a curried eggplant with tomatoes and basil recipe, served over quinoa with a dollop of yogurt. A great meal for a rainy day! Did I mention that it's the 1st of June and I am wearing a sweater? Welcome to Canada.

A Two Banana (and mango) Day

2009-05-29T20:34:00.007-04:00

It's Friiiiidaaaaay! I like Fridays for many reasons, one of which includes the fact I can wear jeans to work.
As promised, I began this day with a repeat of yesterday's breakfast. 1 cup of spelt, 1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt, 1 sliced banana, raw trail mix, and a spoonful of raw almond butter. It did not disappoint.

For a morning snack, I sliced up a juicy mango and put it with about 1/2 cup of 1% cottage cheese. I had never paired mango with cc before and it was as good as I had hoped.

The money shot!

For lunch, I took the easy way out and had some leftover spaghetti from last night. It was so good (I almost prefer cold spaghetti to hot). Thank God for portion control because I could have easily eaten twice this amount!

After lunch, I had my usual coffee. We had a going away pizza party for a coworker at 2:30 pm. This is past my lunch but before my usual break for a snack. I just brought my coffee along to the party room and opted out of the pizza. Honestly, I would have only gotten one stale slice of a plain mushroom pizza and that just didn't appeal to me. I mean, it was pizza so of course it appealed to me, but if I am going to have pizza, I AM GOING TO HAVE PIZZA, y'know? You know.

After the party, I returned to my desk and munched on this apple for a snack.

I can't believe I opted for an apple over a slice of pizza. Perhaps I'm unwell? Or perhaps the world of food blogs has permanently infiltrated my brain!!!!!!!

On my way home from work, I stopped at that "new to me" natural foods store near my home. It was fabulous! It was teeny tiny, but the lady working there was one of those beautiful aging hippies who was so kind and helpful. The prices weren't too bad either. I ended up with some ezekiel bread (!), some pecans, and some pepitas (I could just call them pumpkin seeds, but pepitas sounds more exotic).

Figuring out a satisfying dinner was a bit complex. I was on my own tonight and knew I wanted a Green Monster and to somehow use the ezekiel bread, but I didn't want anything too heavy. I ended up with a Green Monster made out of:

1 cup of unsweetened almond milk
1 banana (second of the day!)
1 mango (second of the day!)
1 scoop of hemp protein powder
2 handfuls of spinach

I also made a scramble with 1 egg + 2 egg whites, 3 stalks of asparagus, a few cherry tomatoes, and a bit of feta cheese. I paired this with a couple of slices of ezekiel, a couple of spoonfuls of salsa, and called it a meal.
My Green Monster was a beautiful shade of green. I actually placed this on the floor in the sunlight in order to capture the colour on (digital) film. The cats just gave me weird looks.

Speaking of cats, something just doesn't seem right about this picture...

Oh well, a feline dining companion is better than no dining companion at all!

For a snack this evening, I had a Lindor chocolate and a spoonful of almond butter. I tried to bake some ginger molasses cookies tonight, but I had an unfortunate incident involving my oven. The incident involved burning. That is all that I am willing to say right now.

Have a great weekend!

Health Food Shopping

2009-05-29T12:06:00.008-04:00

On my new commute home this week, I noticed that the bus passes by this cute little natural health foods shop at Victoria Park and Kingston Road. I think I may go check it out after work. It is always exciting to discover a new health food store! My love for them has only increased in the past few months. I always like to start in the Larabar aisle :)

There is, of course, the popular Whole Foods, which is a great (but expensive!) chain that is likely the reason natural foods has exploded in recent years! In Toronto, we are lucky enough to have The Big Carrot, a giant co-op that has an amazing selection on par with Whole Foods but with more reasonable prices. Noah's Natural Foods is a small chain of natural foods stores dispersed throughout the city. It's pricier than The Big Carrot but you can't beat their great locations. The shop I most frequent is the aptly named The Health Shoppe. It's close to my work so I like to pop in on lunch breaks and peruse the aisles. (That's normal, right?) I am also incredibly impressed with the natural foods section of Loblaw's and The Real Canadian Superstore. I can't imagine half of these products even being offered at a major grocery store 10 years ago. I remember when I first became a vegetarian (going on 9 years this August!) and finding a good tofu hot dog was like trying to finding a needle in a haystack. No lie. The times, they have changed for the better!

All of this talk makes me want to go check out some bulk bins, y'know?

Breakfast Redeemed!

2009-05-28T19:06:00.006-04:00

After two days of less than stellar breakfasts, I was redeemed today with one of my new favourite concoctions. So simple and yet SO DELICIOUS.
I began this cold, rainy day with a bowl of magic. Magic = Spelt, didn't you get the memo?

This contained:

1 cup of Spelt
1/2 cup plain non-fat yogurt
1 tiny mango
a few blackberries
some raw trail mix (almonds, pepitas, and dried cranberries)
a spoonful of raw almond butter

Heaven, heaven I tell you! This will be making another appearance in tomorrow's journal entry. This is a money back guarantee.

The good eating continued into the morning when I had a Cashew Larabar for a snack. I split this bar in half and had one half around 9:30 am and the other around 10:30 am. How's that for some intuitive eating?

For lunch, I had some salad with the usual spinach, tomatoes, avocado, cucumber, and broccoli but I topped this off with some leftover taco filling (soy ground round, black beans, taco seasoning, and some grated cheddar). I thought I could get away with consuming this without using my usual balsamic vinaigrette, but I was wrong.

For an afternoon snack, I was reunited with my beloved Tall Bold with some half and half from Starbinski's. I also had an apple.

It was a cold and rainy commute home from work. All day, my feet were soaked from my commute into work, so I really just wanted to get my feet into some fuzzy socks and call it a day, y'know? I was so excited to arrive home to my hubs who had made spaghetti with marinara sauce for dinner. With a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and a glass of milk, this was highly satisfying.

I was craving something warm and comforting (to go with the now fuzzy-sock-adorned feet) and some hot chocolate sounded perfect. This is Abuelita hot chocolate, which I picked up at Target in Florida in February. I only have one packet left! It's nice because it has a hint of cinnamon. I suppose I could create my own Mexican hot chocolate, but it just wouldn't be the same!

I made some tea for the hubs and called it a night.

So I've been tracking my eating with this journal for over a week now and have really been making a concerted effort to eat well since May 7th or thereabouts. I am starting to notice a few changes, mostly that my pants are now baggy and incredibly unflattering. I was hoping to start wearing summer skirts to work but Mother Nature isn't cooperating with me in this pursuit. Crazy lady! With the rain and the cold and the baggy pants and frizzy hair, I've been feeling like a hot mess lately. So I am really looking forward to some sunny days when I can start feeling happy about my outer appearance as well as my inner. For now, I will just be thankful that my pants don't fit because they are too baggy, not too tight!

When good cookies go bad

2009-05-27T19:03:00.008-04:00

I woke up this morning full of excitement because I instantly remembered what I had planned for breakfast today: BREAKFAST COOKIE. Mornings are bearable when there is a fresh cookie waiting for you! However, I am sad to say that this wasn’t one of my favourites. Three words: TOO MUCH BANANA. My bananas are starting to turn, so I thought I would use up a whole one in this concoction. Mistake! The consistency was just too mushy. This cookie is made with 1/3 cup of quick oats, 1 banana, 1 tbsp of milk, 1 tbsp of peanut butter, a few raisins and some cinnamon smushed together and flattened onto a plate over night. I really enjoyed the banana peanut butter combo (this would have greatly benefitted from the inclusion of chocolate chips as well!), but the mushiness really put a damper on things. Oh well, you live, you learn!

I also had this breakfast cookie with a combo of ¼ cup plain non-fat yogurt and ¼ cup unsweetened apple sauce topped with some cinnamon. Maybe it was the morning fog, but I thought that this would actually taste good. No. It didn’t. I guess you could say that this breakfast was a gigantic FAIL. Boo!

Redemption came with my morning snack. I had about ½ cup of 1% cottage cheese topped with some organic wild blueberries (from frozen, I just let them thaw overnight in the fridge). This turned out to be a big purple mess of deliciousness.

I had an early lunch due to a midday dentist appointment. I had a leftover taco from the night before. Objects in picture are tastier than they appear.

Having the earlier lunch really messed me up though! So much for intuitive eating. After lunch, I was craving some chocolate so I had four dark chocolate-covered almonds (stashed in my desk for EMERGENCY CHOCOLATE ATTACKS ONLY). Then around 1:30, I had an apple (I didn’t want to dirty my shiny, newly cleaned teeth so I opted out of my Starbucks today. Why do I do that to myself, I will never know). Of course I was hungry at 2:30, so I had four more almonds and then nabbed some carrots and hummus from the staff fridge. I think I had like 15 or 20 carrots and at least 3 heaping tablespoons of hummus. I was starved! Or maybe I was just bored. Starved, bored…they go together like Hanz and Franz (We gonna pump *clap* you up)(Ok, did I just age myself like 10 years with that reference?).

For dinner, I wanted something heavy on the veggies! I also utilized only one kitchen appliance. I baked a potato, roasted some asparagus, and heated up an Amy’s Veggie Patty all in the same oven.

This meal was economical AND environmental.

I topped the potato and patty with some chipotle salsa. I was also itching to eat some of my maranatha raw almond butter, so I had some on a slice of toasted whole wheat. Perfection.

Right now, I am having some lemon green tea and digesting one of those Lindor chocolates for a snack. It is one of those evenings where I think I could consume the entire contents of my fridge, but I am somehow abstaining.

Sorry, the pictures are kind of wonky on this entry...

2009-05-26T19:12:00.004-04:00

Today was my first day back at the old grind. I had a new commute which wasn't too bad. I say that now, but talk to me in the middle of January when I am waiting for the bus in minus 20 Celsius! Oh well, for now I am thankful for being on a bus route...and for it being the beginning of spring. Spring just makes life easier, y'know?

I started this day with a classic Green Monster for breakfast, except I have got to say that this was one of my least favourites. It consisted of 1 banana, 2 cups of spinach, 1/2 cup of blueberries, 1 scoop of hemp protein powder, and 1 cup of 1% milk. I think it needed a sweeter fruit addition because it was kind of bitter. Boo! And here I was on such a Green Monster roll.

Life is so much easier with frozen blueberries at one's disposal.

For a snack, I had some cottage cheese. I know that it's high in sodium but you can't beat that protein! And I really love cottage cheese, especially mixed with pineapple or strawberries. I should try some jam on it next time... I also had a second snack of Mary's Organic Crackers because, as I soon learned, a Green Monster does not a breakfast make!

The daily snack line-up, minus the apple:

For lunch, I had a classic salad. The usual combo of vegetables and avocado with some blackberries and raw trail mix thrown on for flare. In the staff room kitchen, I got two compliments on the look of my salad. If people only knew how easy it is to make these, they'd never buy overpriced, pre-made salads again!

Of course I had a Tall Bold coffee from Starbs after lunch (my first in almost a week; it was a sweet, sweet day). We had a birthday party at work, so I didn't have my apple for a snack. Instead, I had a couple of strawberries, some grapes, and some baby carrots and hummus (luckily, there were healthy options! Otherwise, it would have been chips and stale brownies). I did not take a picture of this snack because I am just not quite at the point where I want to explain to my coworkers that I keep a blog of my food intake. It's kind of hard to explain this concept, y'know?

For dinner, I arrived home to tacos in the making! I usually have two but decided to have one with MORE cottage cheese (addicted!). This taco is made with a tomato basil tortilla, veggie ground round mixed with black beans and taco seasoning, tomatoes, spinach, salsa, sour cream, fried mushrooms, onions and pepper, and grated cheddar.

For a snack, I will probably have some tea and a scone. Maybe I will watch some Are You Being Served? rerun and pretend I am British. Maybe not.

So much Internet, so little time!

2009-05-25T19:39:00.005-04:00

A few days away from my beloved Macbook and I am trying to catch up on my favourite livejournals, health food blogs, and - out of pure necessity - the celebrity gossip! Without the Internet, cable, telephone or really even clocks around to tell the time, I've been able to keep productive and focussed. I was up, dressed, had breakfast, swept the floor, and baked a batch of scones all before 10:30 am. This is VERY out of character. No worries, though, because now that I am re-connected to the outside world, I will be sure to stop productivity altogether!

Today was another "good" day, in terms of healthy eating. Having the day off from work definitely helps with that. For breakfast, I had 3/4 cup spelt flakes with 1/2 cup plain non-fat yogurt, one sliced banana, and some raw trail mix on top. It was a very satisfying breakfast. It was my first time trying spelt but not my last! Oh no. Not my last.

We had the cable/phone/Internet installed and then went out to run errands, so I didn't really have a proper lunch. For my first snack, I had an apple and almond butter (polished off that jar, onto the next!)

For my second snack, I was stuck in a car so I was forced against my will to eat a delicious Larabar. It had chili and cocoa in it. I approve of this combination.

By the time I got home, it was almost 3:00 pm and I was STARVING (caps necessary). I had one of the blueberry scones I baked earlier in the day. I used my favourite scone recipe from the cookbook Vegan with a Vengeance but I attempted to health-ify the recipe. I substituted 1.5 cups of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat, and subbed 1/6th of the oil with apple sauce. They were pretty good for being health-ified! I had one along with the last of the chickpea and olive salad.

I was still hungry, so I finished off some pasta salad too. I probably didn't need this, but I wanted it.

For dinner, I tried out some new recipes. Since I've forfeited the idea of kale in Green Monsters, I decided to cook it with some lemon and garlic. I added too much lemon juice and it was SOUR. I made this Greek Frittata from a recipe in a recent issue of Women's Health. Only 206 calories per serving and I get to eat eggs and feta cheese? Sign me up. It was really delicious. And, lastly, I had a simple baked sweet potato topped with some non-fat plain yogurt and cinnamon. Triple deliciousness.

Now I am just drinking some lemon green tea and eagerly anticipating the premiere of Jon and Kate Plus 8. Or should that be Jon Plus 4 and Kate Plus 4? I have to admit, I am a sucker for other people's drama. It is even better when it is televised.

Now where is my almond butter?

2009-05-25T16:13:00.005-04:00

I am moved and settled! I am so happy to be here in my new home with everything unpacked. I can breathe a sigh of relief after a month of living amongst cardboard and garbage bags! It's been a busy few days. I can't say it's been the healthiest few days, but it's been productive! We had company over on Friday and Saturday, so I ate lots of pizza and champagne (our real estate agent brought it over in celebration, so how could I resist? It was my first time having bona fide REAL champagne. It was tasty, to say the least!).

Yesterday, things calmed down a bit and I was able to get my eating back on track! I even made it to the grocery store and bought a few treats, like Mary's Oraganic Crackers and Hemp protein powder with maca (whatever the heck that is!).

I started my Sunday off with a Green Monster for breakfast (Ok, I am new to this blogspot thing and have no idea how to rotate photos!). The psychological benefits of one of these is worth it alone. I feel so great after consuming one! This one contained:

1 banana
1 cup of almond and dairy milk (mixed because I ran out of almond!)
1/2 cup grapes
1/2 cup blueberries
3 kale leaves
1 scoop of hemp protein powder (60 calories and 7 grams of protein!)

I enjoyed it like always, but I think I am going to convert back to spinach for my Green Monsters. I just can't seem to blend the kale up enough and they are WAY too chunky. I also prefer the brighter shade of green provided by the spinach. Call me vain if you will!

For a snack, I was itching to dig into these babies:

They were on sale for $3.50, which is much cheaper than usual. I probably should have picked up many boxes, because they are so delicious. I had one serving.

For lunch, I made a big salad with spinach, avocado, broccoli, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, and some raw trail mix sprinkled on top with balsamic vinaigrette. I also had some chickpea and olive salad and some pasta salad left over from the night before. I love lunches like these. You've got the healthy (veggies) mixed in with the not-so-healthy (oil-covered carbs). It strikes a good balance.

I didn't have a snack and I have no idea why not. I was at a little "welcome to the neighbourhood" party, and didn't eat a thing! It was hot in the sun so I stuck to water.

For dinner, we kept it easy with roasted red pepper and tomato soup coupled with an egg salad sandwich, a leftover from the move on Friday.

For dessert, some mango and blackberries...

And one of these 60% dark chocolate Lindor chocolates for a snack:

It felt good to get my eating "back on track". Now that we are out of an apartment and in a house, I am excited by the ability to buy staples on sale and store them in the basement. I imagine myself hoarding boxes of Larabars and Mary's crackers in a corner by the furnace.

I am so stoked to have the Internet back, I'll likely post tonight about what I ate today. Can you handle the anticipation? ;)

Snack Attack Strikes Again!

2009-05-21T08:07:00.004-04:00

I don't know if it was the packing, the excitement, or what, but last night I had another SNACK ATTACK. It all began like so many snack attacks do...with a piece of chocolate. One measly piece of chocolate turned into finishing the box of Kashi crackers, followed up by finishing off a can of peaches. Almost immediately afterward, I felt sick to my stomach and then I got a headache. I wonder if the headache was from the sodium of the crackers (exacerbated by the canned soup I had for dinner?). No matter, it was not a pretty sight. I felt like I had a hangover, but without the fun drunk part first.

But the beauty of a failed snack attack is that tomorrow is another day, right? I began this day with a healthy, well-balanced, and very delicious breakfast of 1 egg plus 2 egg whites scrambled with asparagus and red pepper on top of a piece of whole grain toast, as well as a chopped banana and strawberry topped with the last of my plain non-fat yogurt, and finished off with a cup of coffee. Wow, that was one long, ungrammatical sentence! But tasty-sounding, no?

I won't be able to maintain this journal for the next few days, as I am currently existing in the middle of this!

The Internet is being shut off sometime today and i won't get it back until they install it at the new house on Monday (can't get here soon enough!). In the meantime, I hope to keep with my schedule (three meals and three snacks and NO snack attacks!), my habits (lots of whole, healthy foods), and my mentality (positivity, through and through!) until I can resume journalling again. Peace out, homies.

Fridge Raid

2009-05-20T17:39:00.007-04:00

The day before a move means that you are eating up the contents of your fridge and cupboard without caring too much about how all of the flavours configure. I think I didn't do too bad today. I used up lots of produce, including the involvement of avocado twice. It's been a good day.
For breakfast, I started out with yet another breakfast cookie. I smell an addiction on my hands! I made this one exactly like yesterday's, but had it with a side of peaches (1/2 cup) and a two spoonfuls of plain non-fat yogurt with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Breakfast isn't complete without a cup of coffee!

My morning snack was simple and delicious. Who can argue with fresh strawberries and a cheese string? All I needed was a glass of wine and I could have been French! (Something tells me that the French don't eat processed cheese strings. This is just a hunch).
Lunch was a good old-fashioned sandwich, just like how mom used to make! Except mom never used hummus, now did she? This whole grain sandwich had homemade hummus, 1/2 an avocado, sliced tomato and baby spinach. The bread was very fresh. Always a bonus.
After my usual cup of Starbs coffee, I wasn't too hungry for my afternoon snack until 4:00 pm. I treated myself to a Pistachio Larabar. I hadn't tried this flavour. It was subtle, but very tasty.

I love that the ingredients are so basic and natural. 5 grams of protein, 4 grams of fibre, 10 grams of fat, and a WHOLE DANG LOT OF DELICIOUSNESS.

For dinner, I really went hog wild. I had a can of Amy's Butternut Squash soup. The hubs had some too, but was more interested in my leftover pizza from last night. I made us some salads using up most of the contents of my crisper. This salad included:

Spinach
Cabbage
Strawberries
Tomatoes
Green pepper
Avocado
Walnuts
Hummus
Broccoli
Mushrooms
God knows what else
Maple balsamic vinaigrette

I love a gigantic salad like this. So satisfying!

The plan is to have some green tea for an evening snack. I know that my eating will get kind of wacky these next few days, so I'm going to try to stay away from the kashi crackers and peanut butter jar tonight!

Food Lust

2009-05-20T13:00:00.001-04:00

Since discovering the world of food journals, I’ve learned about so many products I want to try! I’m not sure that all of them are available in Canada, but I will have to keep my eyes out:

Chobani Greek Yogurt
Fage Greek Yogurt
Mary’s Gone Crackers: I’ve seen these at the health food store but am resisting their hefty ticket price (over $5 a box) until my Kashi are gone
Oat Bran: This I definitely know I can get in Canada…
Protein powder: I’m thinking I’d like to try hemp because I’m sure I get enough whey and soy protein as it is.
Ezekiel bread: I really know nothing about this bread but since it’s so popular I’ve got to try it! Yes, I am easily swayed.

It's fun to dream...

Snack time

2009-05-19T22:08:00.004-04:00

Ah, the snack attack strikes again!

I just spent the evening putting my entire wardrobe into garbage bags because we are moving in two - yes, TWO - days. This must have expended some extra calories (yes...that's it) because afterwards I got THE MUNCHIES. It was the kind where you look in the fridge, and then in the cupboard, and then back in the fridge without any focus or direction.

Danger, Will Robinson!

I ended up having a handful of Kashi crackers and a spoonful of peanut butter. It could have been better, it could have been worse.

I watched the program X-Weighted (have you seen this?) and did some calisthenics. I would love to write about each move with their proper, technical terminology, but I don't know them! I do about 20 minutes' worth of movements focusing on my upper body, core, and legs. I've been doing variations of this routine since I was 16 years old. I've not always been the best with cardio, but I've always been a fan of strength training. Any sort of exercise that allows me to do it in my pjs while watching cable television has my support.

Well it is time for me to go to bed. There is a breakfast cookie in the fridge waiting for me tomorrow morning!

The first post

2009-05-19T18:07:00.003-04:00

Greetings Internet!

Welcome to my food blog! I've been reading other food blogs for a while (beginning with Self Magazine's Eat Like Me) but only now am I embarking on one of my own. My intention is to write about my journey towards utter and complete health, happiness, and enlightenment, but in all likelihood I will just rave about the wonders of oatmeal (Steel Cut vs. Quick: The Untold Tale)

I hope to write about more than just the record of my food intake. As fascinating as it is to know how many almonds I ate in one day, I'd like to branch out a bit, test out my writing skills, and see if I can learn (and teach?) about health and nutrition. For today, though, I write about what I ate. Put on your seat belts, because I am going to BLOW YOUR MIND (or not).

This is what I had for breakfast today! This is called a "Breakfast Cookie", one of those secret recipes you really only get to hear about if you are privy to the food blog world. This is an ingenious idea. Last night, I mixed 1/3rd cup of oatmeal with 1 Tbsp of almond butter (the superior of the nut butters!), 1 Tbsp of milk, 1/2 mashed banana, and some cinnamon and a few raisins. I mixed this all up in a bowl and then spread it out on a little plate using the back of my spoon. I put it in the fridge to set overnight and voila, this was the end product. It was even tastier than I was expecting and will definitely become a mainstay in my breakfast repertoire. I had this with a few strawberries and a cup of coffee.

For a snack, I had an apple and a cheese string.

For lunch, I had a classic salad made with spinach, pepper, broccoli, and tomato. For protein, I added a lump of homemade hummus and a few almonds. For pep, I also added some chopped dried apricot. I had this with balsamic vinaigrette. I love balsamic vinaigrette because it really accents the flavour of vegetables instead of masking it.

Without fail, I have a coffee from Starbucks after lunch everyday. I live in a Starbucks-dense area, so how can I resist? A human impossibility. The secret is to use a grande sized travel mug. I order a "Tall" coffee every day, but with the discount with the travel mug (10 cents), the barista usually just fills it to the top. Not bad for $1.68. There are worse addictions out there.

For an afternoon snack, I had a couple of medjool dates, a few cashews, some almonds, and a few goji berries. It was the poor man's trail mix, although with the price of dates, cashews, and goji berries, it really isn't the poor man's trail mix. More like the inventive man's trail mix.

I was STARVING when I got home tonight. I shouldn't complain, since I get home before 5:00 pm (for one day longer!). I had some pizza! For those that don't speak Italian, this translates to "four cheese pizza" (are you impressed with my translating skills?) In the olden days, I would have eaten this entire pizza in one sitting. It's a thin crust, so what do you expect? In an attempt to be healthy, I had 1/3rd of it. I have to say, it was difficult not to go back for seconds!

(I am new to this thing and have no idea how to flip this picture. Baby steps).And this horrible looking thing is The Green Monster, made famous on http://ohsheglows.com/. Colour aside, I have kind of fallen in love with these things. There is something about drinking kale that is so wrong, it's right. This monster was made with:
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1/2 cup coconut water
- 1/2 cup canned peaches
- 1/2 cup grapes
- 1/2 banana
- Wow, there are a lot of halves in this monster
- 1 Tbsp flax meal
- 3 leaves of kale

It was delicious, although somewhat...chunky. Need to mix longer next time!

Ta da!

As tasty as this was, I was STILL hungry, so I had 3/4 cup of baked beans in tomato sauce from the night before. It hit the spot. Beans always do! <-- Not sure what I really mean by that.

I can already feel the positive effects of keeping an online food journal. I was pretty tempted by that pizza, but staying accountable via this journal kept me on track. Having the beans instead of seconds on the pizza was a healthier option. I deserve some sort of gold star for that.

Or maybe some cake? :)