Beautiful Saturday at the farmer's market!

I won a 20 token credit for the local Forsyth Farmer's Market here in Savannah Georgia!  I was and still am pretty excited about it! Lol.  I just love the area and how friendly all the vendors are. If you are ever in Savannah or live in the area, you should definitely check it out. They have locally grown veggies, fruits, honey, coffee, sweets, pastas and bread!

With my 20$ in tokens, I got local honey, fresh focaccia bread and roasted pepper & ricotta ravioli!  Not really good diet food, but I couldn't help myself. Pasta and fresh bread are my weakness! It was amazing! So was the honey on the focaccia bread!

Yum yum

I was a little worried that my stomach ulcer slowed down my weight loss process. But I was wrong!

Drinking a ginger root beer zevia!

Try it, you might like it!

Nopales

Nopales are a veggie from the pads of prickly pear cactus. They are very rich in vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber. Nopales have been known to help control blood sugar. The benefits from them are endless!

When I first tried this veggie, I was very skeptical. I thought I wasn’t going to like it. Boy was I wrong. I absolutely love nopals. In fact I put it in almost everything from Eggs, tacos, and even chili. It’s a great way to add texture to your meal.  I like to add it to my meals like I would pickled jalapenos. To be honest with you, it might kind of creep you out. They can be slimy sometimes, but it’s not that big of a deal.  Just think of it as a canned French green bean and that’s pretty much the texture of it.

You can find it in a variety of ways. Fresh, canned or pickled. I prefer the pickled version of it.  You can even find it in some salsas.

Here are a few websites that offer wonderful information about the mighty nopal:

www.diabeteshealth.com - nopals

Wiki -Nopal

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Nopalitos con Huevos

(I have never been good with writing down my recipes; I tend to just eyeball it)

3 large eggs (I normally use just eggs whites)

Pickled nopales (you can add as much or little)

Salt

Pepper

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Whole stewed tomatoes (I tend to use 2)

Few dabs of Texas Pete hotter hot sauce (optional)

Your favorite salsa

Extra virgin olive oil

Flour or corn tortillas (I prefer corn tortillas)

Prep:

-          Heat your tortillas. If you are using store bought corn tortillas suggest patting them with a little bit of water before you heat them up. They tend to be dry.

-          Chop your noaples and whole stewed tomatoes in large chunks and set aside.

-          Whisk your eggs, seasonings, hot sauce, noplaes and tomatoes in a bowl.

-          Heat your pan to medium and lube with  the olive oil

-          Once your pan is heated properly, pour in egg mixture. Stir gently and cook to your desired doneness.

Serve your eggie goodness in to your tortillas and top it off with your favorite salsa.  Really, you can top it off what whatever you like; Cilantro, jalapenos, fresh chopped onions, black beans or even cheddar cheese.

 Yesterday, my husband and I made chicken tacos and added a ton of noples to the mix. It was amazing. Your diet doesn’t have to be boring. You just have to be willing to try new things.

---------------------------------------------------

Come to think of it, I also like them in my grits…. Lol. It is very simple to make and perfect for any time of the day. If you do not know what grits are here’s a link that can help explain it: Wiki -Grits

Grits, Egg, and Nopalitos :

For the grits-

Grits (your desired serving size)

Smoked paprika

Salt

Pepper

Garlic

Cumin

Smoked cayenne powder (optional)

Chili powder

For the egg mixture-

2 large eggs

Salt & pepper

Chopped nopales

                Prep:

-          Follow the instructions on how to cook the grits on the box. Once the grits are almost done mix in the spices.

-          Once the grits are cooked, set aside and let them cool. While it’s cooling cook up the eggs like the Nopalitos con Huevos recipe

 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My husband loves to eat his with cheese and a lot of hot sauce.  I on the other hand just like it the way it is. Lol.  Hopefully I typed this out to where it makes sense. I’ve never been the type of person to write/type down what I make. Normally everything that my husband and I do in the kitchen, we tend to just wing it. Believe me, this is one habit we need to break. My husband has made some bad ass meals in the past, but we could never recreate them because we didn’t write them down. lol

Turkey burgers don't have to be boring...

Saw this on the WholeFoods website!!! YUM! This burger sounds like it would be good with hummus and Havarti cheese. lol

Curry Turkey Burgers

Serves 6

Serve these juicy turkey burgers on whole wheat buns, piled high with lettuce and sliced tomatoes and red onions.

Ingredients

1/3 cup plain Panko breadcrumbs
1/3 cup grated carrot
1/3 cup seedless raisins
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1 tablespoon mild curry powder
1/2 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 pounds ground dark meat turkey

Method

In a medium bowl thoroughly combine breadcrumbs, carrots, raisins, cilantro, curry powder, ginger, salt and pepper. Add turkey and gently bring all ingredients together with your hands, being careful not to overwork the meat. With dampened hands, form turkey mixture into 6 patties of even thickness. Arrange patties on a lined baking sheet, cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Light the grill or preheat the broiler. Cook burgers, turning once with a spatula, for 6 minutes per side, or until no longer pink inside.

Nutrition

Per serving (about 5oz/134g-wt.): 220 calories (90 from fat), 10g total fat, 2.5g saturated fat, 90mg cholesterol, 320mg sodium, 11g total carbohydrate (1g dietary fiber, 5g sugar), 21g protein

Source

damn it, lol.

When it comes to our health, it’s easy to think that we are invincible. Some of us smoke cigarettes and some of us binge drink alcohol knowing that it is bad for us. Yet we still do things that harm our body. We completely neglect that fact that food can harm us just as bad. Sometimes we know better and still indulge in greasy fast foods and super sugary treats.

Annnnnnnd it’s so easy to fall off the healthy life style bandwagon. Sneaking in some sweets every once in awhile slowly turns to sneaking in sweets every day. Drinking sweet sugary beverages slowly turns into a nasty addiction, where you HAVE to have it or you’ll have an awful day. Or worse, you get angry at your significant other/co-worker/children.

Maybe it’s because we are afraid to change or maybe it’s because we don’t have a strong willpower? Whatever excuse we make to justify our gluttony with bad food just isn’t going to cut it. There are plenty of healthy choices out there, yet we choose to turn our nose in the air and head near the closet burger joint.

I will admit that I have a vicious cycle of falling off the healthy life style bandwagon. It’s easy. Sometimes I didn’t even realize I was eating badly. Even after going gluten free and feeling happy, I still managed to go back to eating gluten and feeling like crap. I never really went back into drinking soda thankfully. Soda was the hardest habit to kick. Eating bad food for nostalgia is a bad thing. Lol. I tried to justify that eating it every once in awhile was okay, only if it was in moderation. Boy was I wrong…. Lol.

And here I am, starting this healthy life style all over again. I am really excited to try this all over again. My taste buds have changed, so healthy eating isn’t so boring anymore. the only thing I am going to miss is the cinnamon coffee cakes and sandwiches from the publix deli. So far I have been gluten free for a week. I am slowly learning how to enjoy coffee without a hint of sugar.

oppsies

So, since my last birthday i have changed my diet completely. now i am getting reminders that my birthday is near and i have 50 percent off an ice cream cake from basken robins and free ice cream from cold stone creamery. oh joy.....

why can't i get a cupon for hummus and gluten free waffels? i'd be much happier then... lol.

Hummus

Today, I decided that I would blog about my favorite snack in the whole wide world….. Hummus. I fell in love with hummus when I first tasted the roasted red pepper hummus from Jason’s Deli.  Ever since then, I could put hummus on everything. Lol. I also use hummus as a post workout snack! 

Incase what you are wondering what hummus is:

Hummus is a Levantine Arab dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas, blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. It is a popular food throughout the Middle East and elsewhere.

Hummus wikipedia

Hummus is a great source of fiber, iron, protein, vitamin c, vitamin B6 and many other minerals. If you are Vegan or Vegetarian, this would be a great addition to your diet.

 Hummus makes a great replacement for dip and great as a condiment. I personally love to spread on my gluten free turkey sandwiches at Jason’s Deli.  It comes it a lot of different flavors like artichoke spinach, roasted red bell pepper, tomato basil, garlic hummus, roasted eggplant, black bean hummus, and many many other flavors.  

Here is a few recipes for hummus:

Spiced Sweet Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
• 1 (4 ounce) jar roasted red peppers
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. In an electric blender or food processor, puree the chickpeas, red peppers, lemon juice, tahini, garlic, cumin, cayenne, and salt. Process, using long pulses, until the mixture is fairly smooth, and slightly fluffy. Make sure to scrape the mixture off the sides of the food processor or blender in between pulses. Transfer to a serving bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (The hummus can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Return to room temperature before serving.)
2. Sprinkle the hummus with the chopped parsley before serving.

Jalapeno Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 cup garbanzo beans
• 1/3 cup canned jalapeno pepper slices, juice reserved
• 3 tablespoons tahini
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• crushed red pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a blender or food processor, mix the garbanzo beans, jalapeno peppers and reserved juice, tahini, garlic, and lemon juice. Season with cumin, curry powder, and crushed red pepper. Blend until smooth.

Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus

Ingredients

• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons tahini paste
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 (15.5 ounce) cans garbanzo beans, drained
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained
• 1/4 cup finely shredded fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika (optional)

Directions

1. Place garlic, salt, tahini, and lemon juice into a food processor; process until smooth. Pour in the garbanzo beans and 1/2 cup olive oil; process until smooth again, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Once smooth, add the sun-dried tomatoes, and pulse until they have been chopped to very small pieces and are incorporated into the hummus. Finally, add the basil, and pulse a few times until mixed in.
2. Spread the hummus into a shallow serving dish, and make a few decorative grooves on top. Refrigerate at least 1 hour, then drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with paprika before serving.

Word of Advice:

• Hummus would be a great addition to your bento box or lunch box.  Just pack  hummus instead of other fatty dips.
• skip the mayo in your sandwich, use  your favorite flavor of hummus.
• try different flavors.
• skip the tortilla chips, use veggies or hell even some fruits to dip.

Bento boxing it up….

Photo courtesy of Hailey Dallaire

“Bento is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware. Although bento are readily available in many places throughout Japan, including convenience stores, bento shops, train stations, and department stores, it is still common for Japanese homemakers to spend time and energy for their spouse, child, or themselves producing a carefully prepared lunch box.”

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bento

Photo courtesy of Hailey Dallaire

We know that it can be hard to follow the demands of a healthy lifestyle when you are busy with working. Bento is the perfect way for you to keep your is a perfect way to stay healthy. Forget the fast food and forget packing your lunch in a brown sack, the bento is a fun way to get creative with your food. The possibilities are endless with what you can pack.  

Photo courtesy of Hailey Dallaire

I swear by the bento. I used to work in the food industry. I know how tempting it can be to just cook up a fast meal while you have a quick break from a lunch rush.  It’s not the healthiest thing to do, but at the moment it’s the easiest thing to do. After awhile I just got tired of eating fries and cheese steaks. I randomly stumbled across a page dedicated to people professing their love for the Bento box. Even though I didn’t have a credit card to buy a cute nifty box online, I bought a little Tupperware container to keep my food in. the next day I came to work with a little box filled with strawberries, celery, carrots, rice, and grilled chicken. I felt so much better and had a lot more energy to work.  This was back in 2007. I didn’t care about losing weight, but I did care about the food I ate. Going Bento for work helped me not gain weight. 

If you are thinking about going Bento, here are a few things to follow:
 

Photo courtesy of Hailey Dallaire

• Food has to be edible at room temperature.
•  Stay away from the junk food. Packing cookies and Debbie cakes might be tempting, just pack fruit instead.
• Change things up each day. You don’t want to get bored eating the same stuff each day.
• Get creative; Bento boxes are a day brightener!
• Leftovers are a great addition to your bento! 
• You can pack your bento the night before if you want to.
• Bacteria thrive on moisture and protein at room temperature. Use an ice pack and an insulated lunch bag when packing perishable foods that will be unrefrigerated for more than two hours. 

Here are a few websites if you want more information:
http://lunchinabox.net/
http://www.laptoplunches.com/


where to buy bento boxes:
Amazon
http://www.jbox.com/

(via CNN) 'Dirty dozen' produce carries more pesticide residue, group says

By Danielle Dellorto, Senior Medical Producer

June 1, 2010 1:31 a.m. EDT

 (CNN) -- If you're eating non-organic celery today, you may be ingesting 67 pesticides with it, according to a new report from the Environmental Working Group.

The group, a nonprofit focused on public health, scoured nearly 100,000 produce pesticide reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to determine what fruits and vegetables we eat have the highest, and lowest, amounts of chemical residue.

Most alarming are the fruits and vegetables dubbed the "Dirty Dozen," which contain 47 to 67 pesticides per serving. These foods are believed to be most susceptible because they have soft skin that tends to absorb more pesticides.

Read more >>>

Where to start when dining out.. partie deux

Let’s say you are a working lady and it’s time for lunch break. What are you going to eat for lunch? Chances are you’re going to the nearest fast food joint to grab a quick lunch…. The only problem is, you started a diet. What do you eat now? 

Lucky for you, most restaurants have jumped on the healthy food band wagon!!!! Is it too good to be true? Yeah, it probably is considering that salads they have are loaded with SODIUM, FAT and CALORIES…  yowza!

Read more>>>

Where To Start When Dining Out

 It’s pretty easy to go on a diet. It’s doesn’t have to be torture. There are plenty of good foods you can eat on a diet.  I myself tend to cook at home rather than go out. But if you are the type that love the restaurant experience or can’t cook, there are things out there you can enjoy:

Read more>>>>

Crash and fad diets are a piece of shit

To me a crash diet should be considered to be a type of eating disorder. The definition of an eating disorder is extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors surrounding weight and food issues. People are constantly pushing their bodies to the point where they might be harmful. Deprivation diets and intense exercise can be extremely harmful to your heart. Why do people think that it’s okay to push your body so hard? Times have changed and food has changed.  Food portions at restaurants have tripled, which are causing people to become fatter and fatter.  People aren’t as active as they used to be. People are sitting on their asses all day watching tv, staying on the computer or staying on their beloved video games all day. Then they wonder why they are gaining all that weight. Well, since I have been exercising and changed my eating habits, I no longer feel sorry for people. It’s like they have an excuse for everything. It’s not hard to get off your butt and go for a walk; it’s not hard to give up soda or other junk food. You have to be willing to change. One positive change to your life style will reward you and will inspire you to make another positive lifestyle change.  It’s like a domino effect. 

With more and more people gaining weight, more and more crazy diets are popping up left and right. Some diets tell you to eat nothing but cottage cheese, eat cabbage soup, and just eat lima beans for a certain amount of time. Sure you’ll lose weight, but you will also make you sick. Rapid weight loss can lower your metabolism and cause you to gain all that weight back eventually. Not to mention that a long term low calorie intake (anything below 1,000) can lead to heart damage. All that “yo-yo” dieting can cause heart muscle loss which leads to all sorts of heart problems.  

People are so impatient and want rapid results. They never consider that the crazy diet they are doing can lead to death. I don’t know about you, but I am not dying to be skinny. If you really want to lose weight or be fit, you should stick to a healthy life style change and stick to it.  I know I’ve said this a lot, but losing weight takes time. 

Mental side of weight loss

The first part of my weight loss was pretty quick. I really wasn’t expecting to lose as much as I did. My first freak out was when I realized that I was no longer a size 20, but now a size 18. Lucky for me, for the 5 years I’d been married; my pant size would fluctuate between 20 and 18. Since I can remember I wore a size 18. When I started running more, my pant size dropped down to a 16… I remember the first time I tried a size 16 jeans I flipped out. I wanted to yell up and down the store that I had lost enough weight to wear a size 16 jeans!!!!!! I really can’t remember a time that I wore a size 16 jeans.  I still kind of freak out when I pass by a full length mirror. Even when I look down at my legs I kind of freak out. I can’t believe that my thighs are smaller. To me, I still think I look like I should wear a size 20. I think it is all because I lost most of my weight in my lower body and my back (as I would like to call it, my muffin tops lol). It would be nice to just lose all the weight in my upper body. 

With all the weight lifting I have been doing in the past month, I can see that my stomach is smaller and my arms are starting to get toned. Keeping a photo blog has helped me keep track of how much my body is changing. What I really need to do is buy a cloth measuring tape to keep track with everything. I have always feared what the numbers would be. 

But as the pounds keep shredding off, my confidence is getting higher and higher and I am starting to feel like a different person and I am starting to view weight loss in a different light. I have been reading a lot of articles about how people accidently turn anorexic and bulimic. It’s easy to become obsessed with the scale and the things you put in your body, or don’t put into your body. When I was 13 I had a problem with bingeing and purging. I was always chubby and I got made fun of a lot for being a little fluffy. It’s something I couldn’t control, or at least I thought I couldn’t control. Do you even know how bad a Mexican American diet is? Horrible. Most of the food is consumed with flour tortillas and covered and smothered with cheese. ROFL. Then you have the refried beans that are most of the time made with lard. I never understood that.  Mexican cookies are even made with lard. In the menus at the Mexican restaurants, it’s mostly beef. now you can understand how some Mexican Americans can get so hefty. I grew up on this food…. and I still love it even though I can’t eat it anymore. But I always try to make healthier versions of everything I crave. I do make a mean grilled chicken tacos on corn tortillas. 

As a close to this entry, I am proud to say that my size 16 jeans are starting to get lose on me. I think in the New Year I might be able to fit into a size 14. I’m not going to worry about it, but I will be excited for that day I try on a size 14 and it fits.

 

I also leave you with a few pictures of my bird, Niko. I will post pictures of my other birds later! <3

Eating his favorite snack out my hand

 

climbing the side of his cage

he is the most photogenic bird i have