Blah

9
Two waffles
Pat almond butter
Soy yogurt
Raspberries
Half banana
Two coffees


12

Three crackers
Two tbls kream cheese
Sixty Cals tofu

1245
Salad w two T dressing
20 almonds
Asparagus
Three mushrooms

230
little cereal with 1/2 banana and soy mo

4
3 cadbury eggs!

630
last cadbury eggs

8
4 tacos, yummy with nacho sauce
beer

9
ice cream sandwich

Well, let's try again.

Hi there. I am going to reboot this blog as my food diary. If you don't want to read what I eat everyday, unsubscribe to this blog. I cannot guarantee recipes, but I'll try to at least list the site or book I get the recipe from. I have lost 30 pounds from March 2009 to August 2009, but it's March 2010, and I've gained nearly ten pounds back in the last six months. That's pretty good, but I want to keep my health in the forefront as I make my way through graduate school and the rest of my life. I used to use the food diary on my iPhone, but the calorie counting got dull, and the app is not perfect. However, I can sit down at the end of the day and write down everything, or write during the day and post at the end. The idea of anyone reading what I eat all day is sort of terrifying, so hopefully that will keep me honest!

Because that's the point. Let's be honest with ourselves about what we put in our mouths, where it comes from, and why we eat it.

Warning to vegans: I have a weakness for Mini Eggs and Snickers. These are emotional hangovers from my childhood that I cannot seem to replace on my own, and are associated with my mom, who lives states away and who I miss on a regular basis. I try to limit the eating to seasonal or really lonely days.

Breakfast Cake, Strawberry Rhubarb

I heart Fat Free Vegan's Banana Cake. This morning, I made it with strawberries and rhubarb, and sliced almonds on top. I pre-cooked the rhubarb a little as I didn't want stiff pieces after only 25 minutes of baking. Go make some! I think I'll try sour cherry, blueberry, and peach as those crops come into season this summer. About 200 calories (without almonds) for 1/6 of recipe, which is a very large pie-shaped slice. Mmmmmm......

Sweet Freedom Giveaway!

Ricki at Diet, Desserts and Dogs has finished her amazing dessert book, Sweet Freedom!
Head on over and leave your comments for a chance at a free copy!
Her specialty, besides vegan, is using whole sweenteners (agave, brown rice, etc.) and whole grains. I made her Butter Tarts (Canadian specialty) for Easter and we yummed them up.
Go now!

Nacho Bowl

It has taken a long time to find a cheese sub I like enough to use for nachos. This make more of a nacho dip to eat with chips, but it fills the void.

• Make the Mac and Broccoli Sauce and add 2-3 pickled jalepeños. Blend.
  
• Heat sauce in a small pan- remember it has raw tofu, so it should be cooked before consuming.
• Heat up some refried beans (many are now fat free and vegan), and add adobo sauce or chipotle powder. I like them hot, so I add adobo and maybe blend in a whole chipotle from the can if I'm really craving it. Also, you could make the Adobo Sauce from Vcon, and add to your nacho bowl. Very good!
  
• Serve together in a bowl, with whatever toppings you like. 
• I had red peppers, tomatoes, salsa verde and some Tapatío hot sauce. I would have had fresh cilantro, but I'm in danger of killing the plant if I don't let it grow some more. 
• Find some Baked Blue Corn chips. I've seen Garden of Eatin' and Traders Joes, and they are AMAZING. They don't taste like mushy baked chips and they're about 120 calories for 19 chips. 19! That's great!
  

There's a margarita I really like from a local Mexican place, and I always eat too much when we go there. So we save it for special things. But sometimes I really want that sweet-tart with my spicy food. Tonight I did, and I tried a substitute.

• Find some fancy grapefruit soda, add 8-9 oz to a glass, mix in half a shot of tequila, and add a lime or orange slice. 
• Bingo! All the flavor, smaller serving and way, way cheaper. It would make a good party drink too. Around 150-170 calories per glass. Add ice and you'll stretch it farther. 

Note the Quick n' Dirty label- I'll put that on my posts that take very little thought and have a lot of pantry staples. No chips? Try rice, quinoa, or polenta. 

Tomorrow night it's Quinoa, Zukes and Chickpeas with leftover Mac/Nacho Sauce. I've got a rehearsal so it's eat and run.

Mac and Broccoli

I combined the Vegan Dad Cheezy Mac and My Veggie Kitchen Nacho Cheeze recipes to create a lower-cal, tangy Mac and Cheese. I loved the creaminess of VeganDad's and the low-cal (and ease) of VeggieKitchen's. It's been cool here, and I wanted comfort food.

I eat about 2 servings of broccoli to every cup of cooked pasta, and that satisfies my craving without busting my calorie budget for the day. I omit the oil recommended in both recipes.

Serves 4, around 130 calories each.

• 1/4 cup cashews
• 1/8 cup sunflower seeds (about 2 Tbs)
  
• 1 cup water
• 2 tbs pimentos
• 2 tbs cornstarch
• 1 tbs dijon mustard
• 2 tbs nutritional yeast
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 oz tofu, silken lite (nasoya)
• 1 t onion powder
• 1/2 t garlic powder
• pinch tumeric

• Blend nuts and water until smooth, then add the rest. Adjust dijon and onion/garlic as like.
• Cook pasta, add broccoli to pot halfway through. Cook until both are just done.
• Add back to pan with a little spray canola. Add sauce, cover, and heat until thickened.

My Health Manifesto

I wanted to write one post about how I've changed my health, my relationship with food, and my current diet guidelines. It could act as an introduction or reference for you, and will help me by making me write all my good ideas down. And I'll keep track of my weight

In March 2009, I was 175 pounds, 5'4", and 26 years of age.
May 2009, I'm now 161 pounds.

Food:

• I count calories.
  
• I use measuring bowls that I keep on the counter, from 2 cups to 1/8 cup. They are cuter than measuring cups, stay tidy, and help me measure all my portions.
  
• I use the CalorieKing Diet Diary for Palm OS. I can total up my calorie total in about 2 minutes because of the 30,000 food database and my saved personal recipes. I think of it as a food budget, telling me how many calories I have left for the rest of the day.
• To keep calorie counts lower (between 300-600 calories per meal)
  
  • I replace most of the starches with vegetables, and cook without oil or just spray oil.
  • Oils are kept to 1-2 tsp if needed, for frying spices or sauteing garlic.
    
  • I only eat 1/2 to 1 cup starches per meal. I tend to eat twice as many veggies as starch or protein, because fiber and protein keep you full.

• Broiling and steaming are underused and amazing ways to cook fresh tasting food quickly.
  
  • Broiled teriyaki tofu and steamed broccoli is a go-to, 15 minute dinner.
• Learn how to eyeball portions of calorie dense foods, it will help you when you go out.

Behavior, Mood, and Exercise:

• I've been using Beck Diet Solution to help me break bad behaviors and use my brain and not my emotions to eat better. Dr. Judith Beck is a cognitive behavior researcher at Penn and wrote a book based on her results. If you've failed other diets because of negative thinking or loss of self control, I recommend this book.
• I exercise, and on the days I do, I eat better and feel better about myself. I've always been a mood eater, so this has helped and will continue to help my eating.
• I use Comcast Exercise TV On Demand. I get free exercise videos any time I want, about 300 in total, and they have made me love exercise.
• I have never been an athelete. I like dancing, hiking, biking, and that's it.
  
• My favorite type is Cardio Interval, or Cardio mixed with strength training. I get muscle tone, which helps raise my metabolism, and some aerobic training in 20-30 minutes.
• I have re-thought running, which I always hated. As of May 2009, can run one, walk one block about 10 times without dying. I'm hoping to be able to run solid about 25 minutes before grad school because it is such an effiecient way to exercise.

That's it for now. I'll re-post as I add or change behaviors. Thanks!