To diet or not to diet?

When I was in my teens I was totally anorexic, I think it never really leaves you completely, I always count up my intake of food each day, and roughly count the calories I have had, even now I feel its pull, but with yoga and meditation I have managed to control the need a little bit better.  I realize now the need to fuel my body with the right foods to hopefully keep me healthy and I am trying to educate my family into thinking the same way.  I have so many picky eaters its hard to fully cook a complete clean eating menu plan for each week, but I definitely try.

I am absolutely hopeless without menu planning, I've tried not menu planning and my grocery bill goes up, my clean eating plan goes out the window and I feel terrible in myself… so for me menu planning is a way of life and will continue to be even as our children eventually move out.  I love the organization of it, I am even planning breakfast, snacks and lunch now, as Paul and I are on a semi strict carb, protein and fat diet, each meal has to contain at least one of these in healthy form, even the in-between meal snacks.

Each week I try to focus and use recipes from different cookbooks I own, this past week I have used the Gwyneth Paltrow It's all easy cook book, one of our most surprising favorites for almost everyone was her lemon and herb pasta with cherry tomatoes, I adjusted the recipe slightly to accommodate everyones tastes, I added chopped broccoli first then added the pasta, and once I had served up the tomato haters in my house, I added them to the pan too… all in all it was a winner for the week.

 

I am all about fresh produce these days, I like to buy organic if I can, I have restarted my organic delivery just because it makes menu planning and organic shopping easier.

These rice paper wraps are a firm favorite at the moment…

Take a rice paper wrap and soak for two or three minutes in a bowl of cold water, making sure they are fully covered, whilst they are soaking chop up some crispy romaine lettuce leaves, cucumber, slice an avocado and grate some carrots, next crumble some feta cheese, and shred some chicken breast, if you want to add meat… once the wraps have softened place them onto a sheet of damp kitchen paper, fill with salad ingredients, feta and chicken if using it, wrap just like you would a burrito, keeping it as tight as you can. Serve with a dipping sauce, my favorite is sweet chili but Mabels is a balsamic glaze, the world is your dipping sauce 😋

My clean eating menu plan for this week…

Monday

Breakfast… kale, onion and feta scramble eggs

Lunch… chicken/feta Cobb style salad

Snack… fruit and almond butter

Dinner… taco style burrito bowl skillet (ground turkey and veggie version)

Tuesday

Breakfast… green smoothie with almond milk, kale and apple together with a boiled egg

Lunch… egg salad sandwich with chopped carrots on the side

Dinner vegan BBQ chili… for those meat lovers I will add shredded chicken

Snacks… Apple, celery and nuts

Wednesday

Breakfast… overnight Coconut oatmeal with berries

Lunch… protein salad

Dinner… zucchini pasta with bolognese (for those that do not like zucchini I will cook organic spaghetti

Snack… protein bites

Thursday

Breakfast… GF oatmeal blueberry waffles (easy to take out if made the day before)

Lunch… chicken quinoa salad (and a veggie version to take out with me)

Dinner… chicken/fish tacos with mango salsa and salad

Snack… protein bites

Friday

Breakfast… fruit smoothie using whatever berries and fruit I have in.

Lunch broccoli soup… yes I know it's summer, but I have a huge bag of frozen broccoli

Dinner… cheat day… Pizza Fridays

Snack fruit and nuts

Saturday

Breakfast… egg and Canadian bacon sandwiches or avaocado toast

Lunch… chickpea quinoa salad with a few fresh berries

Dinner… breakfast for dinner, GF waffles with eggs and sausages

Snack… black bean crackers and hummus

Sunday

Breakfast… overnight oats with coconut and ginger

Lunch… avocado and egg toast

Dinner… buffalo chicken and veggie pizza with salad

Snack… black bean crackers and hummus

I adapted my menu from one I found on Pinterest… wish me luck, I have never planned our eating so carefully and to every meal we eat, I am desperate to lose 10lbs, I have been doing a morning yoga session 3 days a week and now I found a simple workout program for two days, I like to give myself the weekend off, maybe just a little meditation to ease my mind and relax me… time to drink some water and start the week 😀

 

 

 

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Let’s make a Snowman for Halloween

Sunday, October 30, 2011

enjoying the snow in October

Yesterday I had thought to myself ‘you know what I’m going to veg out all day Sunday’ it sounded like a good plan in my head… Little did I know that after the very unexpected October snow day, I would be in need of a little time out of the house!

 

So after I had made brunch for us… Sausages, poached eggs and warm fresh bread, dinner was cooking in the crockpot, chicken and dumplings with an Italian  twist… we headed over to Costco, just an excuse to get out the house really, as all soccer was cancelled due to snow on the field… No surprise really!  $90 later we got home with the addition of new PJs for Blu, Mabel and Paul, some very nice new wine glasses, oh and of course a few food items!

 

Blu and Mabel were very keen to try out their new Pjs… I added my Italian twist to the casserole… Italian gnocchi, which by the way was delicious!  Paul poured a glass of wine and we just chatted in the kitchen!

 

Then came the phone call… Noooooooo I cried… Yay, the children cried… No school tomorrow, our second snow day used up and it’s not even winter yet… Spring break is disappearing all over again!

collecting arms for their snowman

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chicken and dumplings Italian style

As much chicken as you need for your family… No bones, I used skinless and boneless thighs and breast

Already prepared carrot soup, from earlier in the week, or 3 carrots peeled and sliced

2 sticks of celery, cleaned and sliced

Frozen green beans

3 cups of chicken broth

2 teaspoons each of dried rosemary and thyme ( my absolute favorite dried herbs of the moment)

Salt and pepper

1 pack of Italian Gnocchi

 

Place all ingredients in the slow cooker on high for 3 and half hours, then add 1 packet of gnocchi for 30 more minutes on high, serve in large white bowls, sit back and enjoy… oh and don’t forget a nice glass of your favorite wine… mine was a Californian Cabernet!