Making Progress

There are many times these days that I feel like I am thinking way too much about food.  Before my big diet change, if there were no leftovers for lunch--no problem.  I would just have some bread, cheese, and fruit or maybe do a "breakfast" meal with an egg since I ate cereal for breakfast during the week.  Now, if there are no leftovers that means I have to cook something, and most of what I can fix isn't quick.  The solution?  The Plan!

My husband's work schedule is such that I may need to fix anywhere from two to four servings in order to have lunch leftovers.  By planning which meal will provide for which lunch, I can make sure I have enough but not too much.  The specific meals are then written on the big calendar.

If some of my recipes make extra, I divide the leftovers into portions and put them in the freezer, because no matter how good "The Plan" is, things don't always go as anticipated.  Even so, since these extra leftovers are frozen, I need to allow time for thawing if I need them.

All the new vegetable recipes require some reorganizing of my recipe box.  I am going to divide out the main dishes as well according to the meat used.   My desserts will even have their own little section, too.  (Welcome back, chocolate!)

Slowly, but surely, I am getting recipes written on cards so they are easier to manage.  We can at least use part of the breakfast table now.  :-)

Thinking of You, Charlie Brown

And you as well, Mr. Willowby.

Last year we didn't put up a Christmas tree.  We weren't hosting our Christmas gathering, and frankly holidays are always a challenge for me--out of the routine, you know.  So we hung the Christmas quilts and set up the nativity, but dragging the parts for the tree from the attic just wasn't appealing.  What I missed though was the ornaments.  I searched on line for a simple metal ornament holder, but couldn't find anything that I liked or that was a price I was willing to pay. 

Now that the holidays have come around again, we decided to go with a very small 3' tree that fits quite nicely on a plant stand I have in our living room.  It only needs one strand of lights that we will leave on it when we put it away.  So we have a "little" extra Christmas cheer this year.

 Merry Christmas to all!

Dressing Up

Everything is from scratch these days, so I am on the recipe hunt.  Homemade salad dressings were not something I gave much thought to before, but with salads being a several times a week menu item, it was a subject not to be ignored.  Here is one I adapted that I very much enjoy.  My favorite way to use it is on a spinach salad topped with dried apple, dried cranberries, and sunflower seeds.  (On the spices, I use what I would call a good sprinkle, so adjust according to taste.)

Maple-mustard Dressing

1/4 cup oil
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon mustard
Dash of salt
Garlic powder
Onion powder

A Well-stocked "Pantry"

This past Tuesday a fellow quilter and I counted to see how many quilts we had in what I call our "quilt pantry".  When we started focusing on the UFO tubs (unfinished objects) that is what I envisioned--a well-stocked pantry of quilts ready for when the need arises.  Counting two that went to new homes on Tuesday, we had 13 quilts in the cabinet.  When I started coming (two years ago come spring), we had maybe one or two.  How I have enjoyed working with these ladies, and am so pleased to see all the creativity that has produced some very lovely quilts!

Here are some pictures a quilt done by one of our "new to quilting" ladies.  She started a new job a few weeks ago and can no longer meet with us, so I put the binding on the quilt for her.

And here is a picture of my next challenge.  One of the ladies ran across these blocks in a UFO tub, and delegated them to me to put together.  Hmmm.  I think that is a complement. 

As you can see, the blocks are all different sizes.  I think this is the general layout I will use, and now need to figure out how to fill in the spaces between the blocks.  The colors will be fun to work with, and it has the potential of being a really cute quilt.  Bring on the graft paper! 

What's for Breakfast?

Fruits and veggies are the name of the game around here for every meal.  Breakfast is one time I like to have something a little sweet.  Here is an idea for using leftover spaghetti squash that meets the bill.

Here are the main ingredients:  onion, a Granny Smith apple, spaghetti squash, and canola oil.

Dice about 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of onion.  Cut apple in half, cover one half in plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator for later munching.  Peel, core, and chop the remaining half.

Heat a little canola oil in a small skillet.  Add onion and cook until just starting to become translucent.

Add apple to the skillet and cook until tender-crisp.

Toss in a few golden raisins

Add approximately 1/3 to 1/2 cup of cooked spaghetti squash.

Drizzle with some maple syrup and sprinkle on some cinnamon.

Stir well.  Cover and cook just a few minutes until everything is hot.

I served this with a poached egg and some leftover green beans that I had seasoned with onion powder and garlic powder.  A little sweet and a little savory--a nice way to start the day.

Spaghetti Squash with Apples and Onions

1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons onion, diced
1/2 Granny Smith apple--peeled, cored, and chopped
A few golden raisins
1/3 to 1/2 cup cooked spaghetti squash
Canola oil
Maple syrup
Cinnamon


Heat canola oil in a small skillet.  Add onion and cooked just until it starts to become translucent.  Add apple and cook until tender crisp.  Add raisins and spaghetti squash.  Drizzle with some maple syrup and sprinkle with some cinnamon.  Stir to mix.  Cover and cook for just a few minutes until everything is hot.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Theory

First, a quick shift--I am updating my meal schedule to the following:

Breakfast

Lunch

Smoothie/snack

Supper

For one thing, trying to fit in eating five times a day was inconvenient and time-consuming.  Plus, I am not feeling as hungry in between meals, so the mid-morning snack isn't really necessary.  My weight has pretty much stabilized, so that isn't a concern.  And finally, smoothies in the winter weren't going to be very appetizing, so decided to have snack as an option in the afternoon instead.  

I have had several people ask me what I thought brought all my health issues on so suddenly.  The truth of the matter, though, is that it wasn't sudden at all, but had just reach a point of affecting my general health.  Two of my symptoms; my red cheeks and nose, and my constantly runny nose have been around for years and years.  I chalked the redness up to being my particular coloring, and the runny nose was simply allergies, though to what exactly I could never quite figure out.  It was quite a revelation to me when both these issues improved dramatically as I have changed my diet.  

As I said in the first post, I am not dealing with allergies.  I don't react to my lotions which I am sure contain corn derivatives.  Nor do I have issues with basic soaps or with shampoos and conditioners.  It is only what I eat that causes problems.  Thinking back on how I never have been able to tolerate a lot of whole grains, my guess is that whatever the body uses to process these foods is in short supply in my body.  And, with growing older, I am speculating that my body is producing even less of whatever that is, thus causing me to react more strongly to these foods.  I will probably never get a definitive answer, but this is my theory, and I am sticking to it! :-)

Now comes the big menu organization.  I have to put things into some kind of routine or system so that I don't have to always be figuring out what to do on the spot (a very stressful place for me).  Now that I pretty much have my parameters in place, I can look for a variety of recipes to use for each food.  I will write these down and then be able to quickly put together a varied weekly menu.  But, as is always with organization, things always look worse before they look better.

Looks like my kitchen table will be out of commission for meals for a while.  Once I have my recipes in place, I will begin to post them here.  Until next time!  :-)