Mary had a little Lamb

 And so did I...for dinner!

Garrison and I found some organic eye of lamb loin marked down at Wegmans so we jumped on that and got two! 

Guess what. Even the most google-savy person can't find a satisfactory "eye of lamb loin" recipe.
But I found Inna Garten's recipe for a 6lb lamb leg...that'll do right? At this point in writing, I have not eaten this yet.  I decided I should halve the recipe and that'd be acceptable.

Oh wait. This isn't a 3 pound lamb loin. This is like HALF a pound! We'll see how this goes.

Three garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of rosemary, half a tablespoon of sea salt, a dash of black pepper and a tad of butter pulsed in my little "food chopper" (it wasn't enough to put in the food processor).

 The eye of lamb loin. Guh animal flesh. This is really why I could stand to go vegetarian. I hate handling raw meat!

The next step is to basically massage the rosemary garlic paste all over poor lamby's leg. I tried to touch it as little as possible. This is the paste I scooped onto the meat.

  I'm spreading the paste on with a spatula for as much as I can get away with.

I had to give in and touch it. My ring came off first. 

After I was finished massaging baby sheep's loin eye, I had to let it sit at room temp for 30 minutes to an hour.

Red skin potatoes tossed in olive oil, salt, and 3 sliced garlic cloves. I probably should have left this out. I was supposed to put the whole cloves in unpeeled. I forgot and peeled them. Oops.

My little lamby ready to go into the oven! The 6 pound leg was supposed to roast at 450 for at least an hour. This was well over the internal temperature for medium in 20 minutes.

 

The next step was to cover the lamb with foil and let it "rest." I thought it was put to rest well before it reached my grocery store but oh well. While this rested, I finished roasting my potatoes.

After it's lamb nap, I started scraping the paste off because I was afraid of dying from too much seasoning.

Dinner is served!

I thought since I had pretty much overused my blue and white speckled plates that I should bust out the white ones. The result lacks color. I suppose I'll live.

I was really concerned that this would be way over seasoned and overcooked but to my pleasant surprise, it was still tender and had some pink in the middle. The salt was a little overbearing but the rosemary and garlic weren't causing my mouth the trauma I expected. The potatoes were damn near perfect.

This is definitely a different kind of meal for us. I honestly can't recall the last time we had meat and potatoes with nothing else for dinner. This isn't the most balanced of meals but definitely a rarity especially on a day when I had cupcakes for lunch.

Talk to me: Bahh bahh black sheep, have you any wool?

Wedding Plans - 84 Days to go

I decided to blog through my planning process because I've given so many updates to so many people, it's hard to remember who I told what!

In no particular order, here's the latest:

• I've scheduled my first gown fitting for Thursday March 21st. 
• Garrison and I had our cupcake tasting today! We found an awesome baker Maria whose prices are incredibly reasonable and her cakes are top notch. We tried:
• Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting
• Infused vanilla with infused butter cream
• Chocolate fudge cake with peanut butter frosting. 
• She sent us home with 20 some extras and told us to eat them in 2 days at the latest. That ain't gonna happen so they now live in Garrison's freezer.

Great. Now dessert is readily available as long as we are patient enough for it to thaw.

• We have ordered our invitations! I used a 50% off plus free shipping coupon at vistaprint.com and we got them plus reply cards for under $80!!!
• We have ordered our two tungsten wedding bands from JVL Jewelry for just the cost of shipping since we got a coupon for going to a demonstration. 
• We set our menu a while back but I told Karen and Susan about it recently. We will be serving:
• Vegetable Crudite and Fresh Fruit during cocktail hour.
• Ceasar Salad and dinner rolls.
• Garlic mashed potatoes
• Green beans almondine
• Tortellini Alfredo
• Stuffed chicken breast (lightly breaded with broccoli, mushrooms, and cheese- soooo yummy!)
•  Top Round
• Roast Pork Loin.
• Coffee, tea, soda, wine and premium draught beer (liquor drinks are cash only)
• I am working on decor and the paper flower production is right on schedule.
• I'm going halvsies on two different centerpieces.

Cylindrical vase with silk flowers and a floating candle

Paper flowers in a jar with gems and ribbon

• Right now I have too much blue on blue so I gotta replace the blue gems and ribbon with silver stuff. I have yet to decide on which silver stuff I shall choose.
• In the picture you see a pizza pan on top of the table runner. While that looks great we'll actually be using our venue's square mirror.

Not an amazing pic but you get the idea.

 The chairs will be in white covers with blue sashes.

• Our reception venue is awesome and our banquet manager is thebomb.com. He's sincerely interested in saving us money rather than making us spend more!
• I want to figure out how I can add a little flair to the church which, by the way, we're only paying $50 to use!

Stay tuned!

What's My Motivation?

Pinterest has proven to be a fast way of circulating information, both helpful and, well, not so helpful. With healthy recipes, fitness tips, and work out pictures a plenty, we might even say Pinterest can help us reach our fitness or weight loss goals. But lately I've seen a few pins that have bothered me big time.

These memes are supposed to help us become motivated to work out. They suggest that when we're tempted to slack off, we need to imagine what positive things other people will say when we've reached our weight loss or fitness goal.


Losing weight is hard. It's hard to say no to the cookie. It's hard to get out of bed early in the morning to  work out. It's hard to make choices that glaringly contrast those of friends who are staying up late, drinking, ordering pizza, and binging on ice cream. Willpower does not come easy. I feel it's important to have a phrase to repeat internally when motivation is low. But I have a big problem with mantras that connect fitness success to the accolades and congratulations of others.


Between my sophomore year and senior year of high school I slowly became overweight. From my senior year through my freshman year of college, I lost all that weight. I don't remember every single workout but I do remember every comment someone made about my body- because that's exactly what a compliment on weight loss is! People looked at my body, noticed that it had changed and told me what they observed. Though positive and well-meant, I was terribly offended by every compliment.

"Wow you've lost weight!" was supposed to be followed up with "Thank you," but I never felt like thanking the compliment-giver.
"You look good," in my mind translated to, "You looked bad before."

The world did not open itself to me once I became skinny again. My insecurities didn't just go away. I wasn't 100% happy all of a sudden. Changing the shape of my body did not change the beliefs I had about myself.

If a friend of mine asked for my help in keeping her motivated to lose a few pounds, I wouldn't dare to bait her with anticipation of all the compliments she'll receive. So why would I do the same internally? Do we have to look a certain way in order to be loved and accepted? If we really need to hear words of affirmation, we must make our needs known in our relationships.

The reason we should take care of our bodies is not so that our friends will tell us how hot we look. We should aim for our own optimal weight or fitness levels so that we are healthy and that we can enjoy life without any hindrances. Perhaps that includes feeling happy about the way you look but that, too, is an inside job.

Talk to me: Have you ever gotten compliments on your weight loss? Do they make you feel good or bad?

Do you love your slow cooker?

"I love my Crockpot! My slow cooker saves me sooooo much time! You won't believe this amazing Crockpot recipe I found on Pinterest! I don't know what I'd do without my Crockpot. No, seriously, don't joke about that! Hmmmmm I wonder how I can make this in the Crockpot..."

-Everyone except for Me

Maybe it's the advent of Pinterest giving me a false idea of what people are really into or maybe slow cookers REALLY are the saving grace of busy people but I'm having a hard time believing that my slow cooker exists to save me time.

I'm a busy person. I don't have kids but I work a full time job as well as teach dance part time and I'm involved with a few groups.Crockpotting just isn't my solution to the nights when I have no time to cook. Here's why:

• I leave for work around 7:40am and I return around 5:20pm. Most crock pot recipes require anywhere from 3 to 6 hours of cooking and no more. I found a few 10 hour recipes. It didn't turn out so great.

• Chicken and some other meats need to stop cooking right when they're perfectly done. Every type of chicken I've had out of a crockpot has been overcooked and way too dry.

• Cooked vegetables are most appetizing when they are crisp-tender. Any kind of slow-cooked vegetable is way too soft and robbed of its planty flavor (and probably nutrients) when it has been steeped in hot liquid for hours. 

• Slow cooker recipes are pretty much the limited to soups, stews, sauces to go over grains (ah yes, you gotta cook that grain and wash another pan), or roasts with mushy veggies.
• I like food to have a complex blend of textures-- gooey with crunchy, soft with crispy. Crockpot meals often all have the same texture.

Pinterest would like me to believe otherwise. Exhibit A.

Slow Cooker Lasagna. Has anyone ever seen something come out of a slow cooker that was this pretty?

Ok, I won't lie. There are 2 things I  like to make in my (fiance's) Hamilton Beach Slow Cooker: pasta/pizza sauce and chilli because the longer the herbs and spices steep, the deeper and more comples the flavors become. But even then I have to do some sort of extra prep step like sauteeing onions or browning beef. Hey, that's one more pan to wash! If I were simmering these on the stove, I'd only have one pan to wash. Aren't slow cookers meant to save me time?

I'm convinced. Unless it's a Saturday or Sunday, Crockpot cooking is only for people who work from home or full-time moms.

Talk to me- Can anyone prove me wrong?

Spicy Thai Salad on a whim

I think many people have those days. You have plenty of food but nothing to eat. Ingredients galore but no dinner planned!

Hanging like a monkey on the refrigerator door tonight, I stared at the remainders from last week's grocery trip wondering just how I can bring them together in a dish that resembles dinner rather than Must-Go's (a term my daddy loves using for leftovers).

Eventually I decided on the fact that I wanted to feature my vegetation before it was past its peak. So I headed to cooks.com and typed the four C's of my Saturday night dinnerless dilemma into the search bar: cabbage, celery, carrots, cilantro. I don't often use cooks.com but tonight the results were spectacular. Well..they were after I took some artistic license with this recipe I found.

SPICY THAI SALAD
8 oz. rice noodles (rice sticks) 6 tbsp. vegetable oil 1/2 c. canned chicken broth 1/4 c. tamari soy sauce 1/4 c. rice vinegar 2 tbsp. chili paste, available at Oriental Markets 1/2 tsp. sugar 3/4 lb. pork loin, cut julienne 1 med. onion, cut julienne 2 med. carrots, peeled and cut julienne 8 celery stalks, cut 1/2 head Napa cabbage, shredded 1 bunch green onions, chopped 1 sm. bunch cilantro, minced Cook noodles until tender but firm. Do not overcook. Drain and toss with 3 tbsp. oil; set aside.Mix stock, soy sauce, vinegar, chili paste and sugar in small bowl. Stir fry pork in wok. Add onion, set aside. Stir fry the rest of the vegetables but cabbage. Combine pork and onions, vegetables, cabbage, cilantro and the sauce. Mix well. Can be served hot or cold.

Source

Okay. Take a sec and read this recipe. "How on earth do you cook this?" said I. First of all, some specific terms in the ingredients list such as "minced" or "shredded" are used. Thanks but then how, specifically, am I supposed to "cut" the celery? Some of the instructions left me guessing as well.

I was determined to have this for dinner so I substituted or omitted ingredients, adapted it for two and, well, figured out exactly how I'd prepare it. So with all due respect to the well-meaning soul who posted this I shall claim this adapted recipe and it shall be mine.

Juli's Spicy Thai Salad

2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup Spicy chili dressing (see beow)
1-2 tbsp sesame oil
1/3 cup diced yellow onion
1-2 organic carrots, julienned
1-2 stalks organic celery, sliced into half moons
1 serving of noodles (I used Ezekiel 4:9 spaghetti)
2-3 tbsp fresh cilantro for garnish


Spicy chili dressing
1/2 cup vegetable broth (preferably home made from a broth bag)
1/8 cup tamari or soy sauce
1/4 rice vinegar
2 tbsp of garlic chili sauce


INSTRUCTIONS:

First you take the dressing and you whisk it, you whisk it (translation: whisk all dressing ingredients together in a small mixing bowl). This will give you well more than you need for 2 servings but the excess can be reserved for salads or making the dish again in two days like I plan.

Sriracha! Note the Fast Orange in background.Mechanical engineers can be foodies too!

 
Then you take the cabbage and you shred it, you shred it! I used a food processor with a grate attachment which made the process go super quick. I suppose you could hand grate it but that's a drag. This was my yield from half a softball sized mini cabbage I found at Wegmans.

Spicy chili dressing and shredded cabbage

Next, add about 1/2 cup of the dressing to the cabbage and let it sit while you prepare the rest.

Cabbage plus chile dressing

Prepare your vegetables to meet the saute pan.

Heat the sesame oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Start your noodles--depending their required cooking time, get started sauteing the onions and carrots.

Meanwhile, plate your cabbage. Add the celery to the onions and carrots a minute or two before serving unless you like it soft (yuck).

Cabbage in our famous busy pattern salad bowls displaying our beer pairings for the evening. 

Drain the noodles, return to the pot and add sauteed veggies. Toss together to the best of your ability (my sprouted grain spaghetti didn't combine well. Next time I plan on trying brown rice noodles).

Arrange your noodles and vegetables over the cabbage shreds. Garnish with cilantro!

The finished product! Your patience is appreciated while we work on our photography skills.

The verdict: This was probably the best meal I've ever pulled together at last minute. It had lots of varying textures that worked well together. Even though I didn't like how my sprouted grain pasta didn't toss well with the veggies, its heartiness contributed to the combination of textures and I was surprised with how well the flavors worked with it- not being an Asian noodle.

The heat from the chili sauce was countered by the sweetness of the carrot and cooled down by the water in the celery. The dressing and cabbage added a depth to the familiar flavors of carrots and celery. Cilantro's clean taste really completed the dish.

HEY! Did anyone notice this recipe is pretty much VEGAN? The only thing that may disqualify it are some of the eggshells, meat scraps or bones I throw in my broth bag. I have the feeling this dish will make its way into our regular eating from now on. Not bad for an unplanned dinner night!

Talk to me: What was the most successful dish you've thrown together on the eve of grocery day?

A pineapple for me

But just one over the course of 4 days and counting.

I had grand plans of finding myself a nice fresh pineapple every day, chopping it to bits and eating the whole thing for breakfast, lunch and snacks throughout the day. To a lot of people that may seem far fetched. To me it sounded fun! I know I need more raw fruits in my life, why not start there? The whole idea is because it's chock full of the digestive enzyme Bromelain and that's supposed to help my with my acid reflux battles.

I started hacking away at this thing Saturday and it was easier that I thought! The eating, however, not so much. Don't get me wrong, it was sweet and delicious. But my tongue wanted to jump out of my body because it was overcome with tang even just after eating one fourth of this thing!

Oh yeah...and even though it has a digestive enzyme, the acid in the pineapple was no bueno with my reflux. There is no rest for me.

Stupidbowl Sunday rolled along and I did something naughty. I took an antacid because I'm having an affair with bufflalo chicken dip. I ate brownies. I ate chips and chilli. I ate way too much food. But then I danced in the basement with the teenagers playing Wii. I'm quite young at heart.

Since Saturday the Pineapple leftovers have been making their way into my snacks and meals but I take it with other foods so it's not so harsh on my LES. I may cave in and just buy the bromelain chew tablets. Le sigh.

It's becoming very disappointing attempting this heartburn diet. All the foods I love make some form of acid so they have to basically wait until I'm healed. I think in order to give my body a little reprieve, I will allow a small amount of refined sugar in my diet just so I'm not saddycakes all day long.

Coffee has to go too. You have no idea how difficult that will be but since I haven't been able to cure it while still sipping my black magic juice, it's gonna go.

So I'm just gonna wrap up in my blankie and cry now. Bye.

Post-Cleanse update

Since coming off the Master Cleanse, I've made a few changes in my diet and in my lifestyle. There are certain things I eat a lot less of but haven't cut completely- hey, no one's perfect!

Foods I've been avoiding (translation: have done well in not eating until I just can't take it anymore):

1. Dairy: Low-fat varieties have dangerous ingredients added and full-fat versions are said to trigger acid reflux. Conventional dairy products have synthetic hormones (as if I don't have enough hormones myself already) and all milk products, even organic, are said to increase mucous production and cause inflammation.
2. Citrus Fruits and tomatoes: Solely because of their acid content.
3. Meats: I'm cutting down on meats significantly but not going completely vegetarian. Stanley Burroughs suggests that too much meat will cause ulcers. Meat also takes longer to digest which means it stays in the stomach longer. Meals that stay in the stomach too long can worsen acid reflux. 
4. Spicy food: This is a tough one because I love peppers and wasabi. I managed to avoided my beloved Frank's Red Hot for a few days but I've since indulged.

I've also introduced some wonderful new habits in my lifestyle to help both with heartburn and with weight loss.

1. I've been eating less.  My appetite has decreased! The first week off the cleanse I got full SO FAST at mealtime! It hasn't really grown back into what it was and that is very good. I've been able to note when I feel full and I stop eating right when I get that indicator...usually. When I was a kid, I was told to "make a happy plate" by eating everything that had been served so it's tough for me now to listen to my own body's "I'm done" signals. This becomes a problem especially when there's only 3 BITES TO GO and I'm full. When something tastes amazing, it's so hard to let those 3 bites go! I'm still working on this one but in general, my stomach hasn't been able to contain as much food as before.
   
2. I've been walking at least 20 minutes per day. I've scheduled a workout routine that requires me to "squeeze in" my exercise rather than carving out a long block of time. There's a treadmill as well as some light hand weights in the basement where I live and there's also a small workout room where I in the office building that has a treadmill and a total gym-type weight machine. My plan is to do at least eight 30-minute workouts per week. I missed a few last week but I'm back on track this week. I love it - I get a great calorie burn, I feel more energetic and since I'm using my muscles, I STAY WARM when I go out in the cold.
   
3. Snacking on raw fruits, making meals more plant based: My mid-morning snack is usually an apple and I'm full through lunch. I've been packing more vegetables (raw and cooked) into lunch and dinner to fill in the meatless gaps. Results are tasty! Coming soon: new vegetable per week challenge.
   
4. Stop eating before bed: Good for sleep and discourages acid reflux.
   
5. Water, water, water: I've been upping my H20 intake for better hydration and cleansing. In the morning I'll drink a glass of water with an ounce of aloe juice to help heal my esophageal sphincter. Aloe hosts a ton of other benefits too, like boosting the immune system.
   
6. MOST IMPORTANTLY-- NO SWEETS AT WORK: I won't lie. I had a truffle yesterday. The other day I had some peanut m&m's. But this resolution comes from what I've learned at OA--that not taking the first bite of your personal binge trigger is imperative. If I'm bored at work, thinking about things that upset me, I could dive straight into the cookies or donuts with no remorse...at least not until later. If I REALLY want to maintain my weight and lose more, I can't have that first bite. I told myself that if I didn't have sweets at work, I could have what may be offered at fellowship on Tuesday. It's nicer to share treats with company rather than alone at my desk.

Stay tuned because I'll be starting a couple series. I'm going to do an experiment with Pineapple and I'm going to track my gym-less fitness endeavors!