February 02, 2012

Real Foods Challenge: Day 2

This morning, after I got Noah off to school, I had to take Eli for yet another blood test. The doctor told us to go to the lab at the hospital because he would get the results faster. I had no idea that the wait in the waiting room would be FOREVER long.

Eli was SO mad at me because he really didn't want to get his blood drawn again. I let him bring his Nintendo DS, but he was so mad that he didn't even want to play it. While we were sitting in the waiting room, a man across from me said, "Boy, he doesn't look too happy."  I took one look and just laughed and said, "Hmm, how can you tell?"
See how thrilled he looks?  He literally sat with that scowl on his face and his arms crossed for about 20 minutes. All the people in the waiting room thought it was funny.

His blood work came back to be the same as yesterday, which isn't good, but it isn't bad either. The doctor stressed that he is to do NO activity whatsoever. Mentally, he feels totally fine and wants to play, so it's hard to keep him lying on the couch all day.



So Day 2 of the Real Food Challenge went well. I still don't feel any different, but like I said, I'm not expecting much so soon. I've been craving my Cinnamon Raisin Ezekiel bread with peanut butter. This afternoon when the craving hit, I had a spoonful of peanut butter and that helped (a little).

One of my favorite snacks (and something that I'm used to eating just about every day) is a piece of Ezekiel bread (toasted) with some sort of nut butter. I've been having pistachios as a snack instead--they're good, but certainly not as good as my toast with nut butter!

My food journal is pretty boring today, because it's nearly identical to yesterday... but that's the way I am. I go through food "phases", where I find something I like and I eat it every day until I find something else ;)  I'm still on the salad kick for lunch, which actually started on Christmas Eve. It's so funny--I ate probably two salads the entire time I was losing weight, because I just didn't like them. And out of nowhere, I was craving a salad on Christmas Eve, so I had one for lunch. And now I've had one nearly every day since then!
I still much prefer the French+Ranch dressing combo, but since that's not "real" food, I've made my own vinaigrette dressing. It's pretty good, but not the "Franch" I was used to eating.

A lot of you asked for the recipe for the fudge I made yesterday. I will warn you, if you're expecting it to taste like Mackinac Island Fudge, it doesn't. Not even close. It's good, though--very chocolatey and rich, but not super sweet. If given a choice between it and the Mackinac Island Fudge, with no concern for health or calories, I would certainly choose the Mackinac Island Fudge!

But anyway, I don't have a real "recipe" for it, but here is how I made it (measurements are approximate, because I don't measure).
Simply combine:
3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. honey
dash of vanilla extract (or almond extract, coconut extract, or whatever you'd like)
Enough water to bring it together (probably about 1/2 to 1 tsp)

Combine the ingredients in a small bowl. Add the water a very tiny amount at a time--you have to stir this for a long time to get all the cocoa moistened. It will be very thick, like a dough. Separate into two pieces and roll into balls. It tastes best if you refrigerate it until cold, but I can never wait that long ;)

And for those of you that asked for the recipe for the fried rice, you can find that here on my recipes blog.

Today's food log:
Breakfast--oats cooked in milk with dates, walnuts, and maple syrup
Lunch--salad with avocado, chicken breast, and almonds, with balsamic vinaigrette
Dinner--homemade chicken soup with brown rice instead of noodles
Snacks--pistachios, string cheese, spoonful of peanut butter, chai latte (see below), popcorn with oil and salt

*One of my favorite treats while I was losing weight was a chai latte that I made myself. I love the Stash brand chai tea bags, so I would heat 1 cup of milk in the microwave until very hot (about 2 minutes), then steep a tea bag in the milk. Add 1 Tbsp. honey. It's very sweet, which makes it almost like a dessert; and steeping it in milk instead of water makes it very decadent. A great bedtime treat!

29 comments:

  1. Aww, poor Eli. He looks miserable! I hope he's feeling better soon.
    I love making my own Chai Lattes too. I steep the bag in 1 cup of boiling water, then heat 1 cup of light vanilla soy milk in the microwave and pour that into the tea, and mix in about 1 tsp honey. You're right- it's like a sweet treat. I like to make it in the afternoon when I'm craving a snack.

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  2. I started eating "clean" last year and the difference in how I have felt has been incredible. I did have a few "withdrawal" symptoms the first couple of days (headaches, upset stomach, etc) but after that my energy level shot up and I felt so much better! It has been surprisingly easy to maintain. I did really well with it (and lost 30 pounds). I still eat clean and this month I'm eating vegan! I needed a new challenge to kickstart my weight loss again!

    And I can't wait to find some coconut chai tea. That sounds so good!!!

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  3. I'm sorry, but that picture of Eli cracks me up! LOL

    Poor guy, though! Hope he feels better soon!

    Thanks again for responding to my email. I love that you are so easy to contact with questions! You're the best! :)

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  4. I really enjoy reading your blog and just thought I'd pass along this recipe for homemade ranch dressing I found recently. It doesn't taste quite like ranch from the bottle, but tastes quite a bit like the ranch you get at restraunts! Here's the link to the recipe... http://www.foodess.com/2012/01/homemade-ranch-dressing/

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  5. That salad looks so delicious! I can't wait to try that fudge recipe!

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  6. That picture of Eli is hysterical. Thank you for some new recipes! I was on Pinterest this morning and saw a recipe for strawberry fudge- a can of strawberry frosting and melted white chocolate chips. I get so excited when a recipe looks easy I just up to get ingredients and make it. Then I have to ask myself- can I portion this and enjoy it every few days, or will it be gone by this weekend?? Haha so thank you for the fudge recipe!

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  7. I sympathize with Eli, but that picture is too funny.
    Two questions: 1. Where do you buy Ezekiel Bread? I looked for it at the store yesterday and could not find it! 2. Can you have Brown Rice pasta? I picked some up yesterday and the only ingredients are Brown Rice and Water. Didn't know if that fit into your regimen.

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    Replies
    1. Daisey, you can find Ezekiel bread in the frozen section of the store :) It usually is in orange packaging...

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    2. Yes, it's in the frozen section. In my Kroger, there is a health food section (including a freezer) and I find it there. I also saw it at Whole Foods in the freezer section.

      I store mine in the freezer and any time I want a piece, I just take it right from the freezer and put it in the toaster. I've never tried it with a sandwich; just with nut butter :)

      About the brown rice pasta... if those are the only ingredients, then yes I can have it. I love brown rice, so I think I may pick some up next time I'm at the store. Thanks for the suggestion!

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    3. Ok, I will look again. Fred Meyer here has a nice size whole foods section including freezer stuff.
      I love brown rice too, prefer it to white. Let me know what you think.

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  8. "Franch"! I feel so honored :) Hey, I found that tea you were talking about at Cub Foods in St. Paul, soooo make your brother send you some - otherwise I can! I bought a box in your honor to try it out :) You're an inspiration in my daily life of trying to get some sort of diet in place to lose...

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    1. I was trying to remember who came up with the name "Franch" so I could give you credit! I love it.

      I hope you enjoy the tea! I ended up ordering it online.

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  9. Awww, poor Eli. Is he still not drinking enough? When they're sick they get even pickier and they don't understand how important it is for them to do the right thing to get better. My son had a spell in 4th grade where he didn't want to eat. He had a cold and he has a super sensitive gag reflex. He would cough and eventually vomit. In his mind if he didn't eat, he wouldn't vomit. He lost so much weight, I didn't know what to do. I was crying at the dinner table telling him he was going to be force-fed with tubes in the hospital. I was at my wits end. Somehow, after weeks of that, he started to come around. Now I can't get him to STOP eating! I guess I should be thankful!

    The fudge is great because I have all of the ingredients already! No fancy-shmancy stuff. Thanks for the heads-up on the Celestial Seasonings store. I wish I could use my coupons! And I never thought to make the tea WITH milk. I do add some, but making it with more would be a nice treat!

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    Replies
    1. I had to tell Eli that we were going to have to take him to the hospital for an IV if he didn't drink, and that made him gulp down a glass of water. But it's a fight to get him to drink anything--water, juice, even 7-Up (we NEVER have soda in our house, so I thought he'd be excited to drink that). I just hope he gets over this flu soon!

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    2. Will he eat juice pops? I know they arent the same as water but i think they would help get some more fluids in. Hope he shakes this flu soon. Pat

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  10. Hey, I am a super regular reader and have posted a few times about running questions. First I want to thank you for some Tips you gave on setting speed goals, I have been folowing them and slowly (very slowly) but surely I am getting faster on my long runs and speed work. Second I am trying to cut out refined sugar and white flour from my diet so chocolate (my nightly habit) has been out of the question. I instead have begun making "milkshakes." Into the blender I throw - 1 frozen banana - 6 ice cubes - 1 Tablespoon (heaping) of cocoa powder - 1 cup almond milk. It tastes so chocolaty and delicious and barely anything like banana. I read somewhere on the internet the frozen banana would give it that creamy consistancy of ice cream, and it did!

    Happy Friday!

    Mary

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    Replies
    1. That sounds great, Mary! It sounds a lot like the jamocha banana shake I make sometimes (if you like coffee, try adding a couple of teaspoons of instant coffee to the shake--it sounds strange with the banana, but it's REALLY good!)

      Congrats on your running--sounds like you're doing great!

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  11. I'm cracking up at Eli's face! Too funny!

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  12. Eli's expression was priceless! Wow, my hubby turned me onto "Franch" also! Ha, I thought it was the strangest thing until I tried it. You're doing an awesome job Katie :) ---Tammy

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  13. Is Ezekiel bread good? I've been tempted to try it but it's pretty pricey. I thought it was pretty natural? I guess not if you can't eat it this month.

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    1. It's delicious! It's chewy, kind of like a whole grain bagel. You're right, it's pricey--but I keep mine in the freezer and the loaf will last me MUCH longer than other bread. I'm the only one in the house that eats it.

      It IS pretty natural (lots of sprouted grains) but my general rule of thumb has been "If it's not something I could easily make in my kitchen, then I can't eat it (for this challenge, anyway!)"

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  14. Oh Mackinac Island fudge. Or really any fudge from the UP and LP in Michigan. Amazing! My grandparents live near Traverse City, and there is nothing like the fudge from MI. Also nothing like the cherries!

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  15. Do you, or will you be making a section of "real food" recipes?

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    1. Oh, I like that idea!! I have a recipes blog (www.runsforcookiesrecipes.blogspot.com) but maybe I'll add a tab at the top with links to all the "real food" recipes I use this month. Thanks for the suggestion!

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    2. I second that idea! That would be awesome.

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  16. I can't stand Ezekiel bread, it tastes sour, however I could see the attraction with a nut butter on it.

    Also, love the pouty child! :)

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  17. http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/real-food-resources/

    Have you tried that link for recipes. I stumbled upon it on pinterest and thought of you.

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  18. Are you using a recipe for your salads? I know that sounds strange but whenever I make a salad at home I don't get the ratio of ingredients right and it tastes do gross. But yours look fab! I love salad with chicken and avacado!!! Yum

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  19. Thank you so much for that chai latte idea, I think I have a new favorite drink, after coffee of course... lol

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I used to publish ALL comments (even the mean ones) but I recently chose not to publish those. I always welcome constructive comments/criticism, but there is no need for unnecessary rudeness/hate. But please--I love reading what you have to say! (This comment form is super finicky, so I apologize if you're unable to comment)

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