October 6

I work at a winery - very cool job.  It's only part-time, but it's fun (most of the time.)

Fall arrived in between my last day and today: I love this time of year!

So days I work it's hard to eat, so here is how I tried to meet the challenge today:

Breakfast: Vermont english muffin with cage-free egg & organic ketchup for breakfast

Lunch: blood orange Chobani, small salad with organic caesar dressing, plum

Dinner: grilled pizza with whole wheat crust, organic olive oil, organic ground garlic, mozzarella cheese

Evening snack: glass of wine

No time for snacks on work days!

Happy eating,
Kathy

October 5

Big football day here today!  Both my teams play, at the same time of course.  Can't expect anything else, right? Sigh.  Go RU! Go Huskers!!

Okay, now that is out of the way, no time for much else today except for a quick review in the Facebook group of cornstarch vs arrowroot.

http://girlmeetsnourishment.com/arrowroot-vs-cornstarch/

Arrowroot passes the kitchen test, cornstarch does not.

Breakfast:  Vermont english muffin with butter and jam.  Coffee with half n half

Morning snack: mojito as the games are starting

Football food:
mozzarella sticks - brought by friends for the game - was polite and only had 2
peach mango salsa by Sabra on Kirkland organic tortilla chips
Hebrew National hotdogs http://www.hebrewnational.com/products/hot-dog-beef-franks.jsp
Vermont hot dog buns with Wegemans organic ketchup

Dinner: a glass of wine; so full from eating during game!

Happy eating!
Kathy

October 4

Hello everyone!!

Got an interesting lesson in tonic water tonite.  I had no idea it was a "drink" as opposed to water.  I was very surprised to find this out!  I've always thought of tonic water as a drink mixer.  That's it.  Fizzy water.  I had no clue it would contain high fructose corn syrup...or something called quinine.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonic_water  This challenge is really opening my eyes!!


Breakfast: french toast made with http://www.vermontbread.com/ Cinnamon Raisin bread.  I picked this up at the grocery yesterday and thought I'd give it a try.  It's in the organics section.  No high fructose corn syrup, artificial ingredients or preservatives.   Batter made with organic skim milk, local free range eggs, all natural vanilla and Saigon cinnamon.  My kids thought the whole wheat flavor was too strong, even with the coating.

Ingredients in bread (from company website:) INGREDIENTS: Whole Wheat Flour, Water, Raisins, Vital Wheat Gluten, Honey, Barley Malt, Yeast, Salt, Cultured Wheat Starch, Cinnamon, Soy Flour 

Morning snack: blood orange Chobani

Lunch:  grilled cheese sandwiches made with Boars Head white american and http://www.naturesownbread.com/ Honey Wheat bread.  Lightly buttered.  The bread is not the best choice, but has no artificial preservatives, colors or flavors or high fructose corn syrup.  But I sent my husband out for bread, and once again he thought he did good. :) I can say he didn't bring home Wonder bread...haha. (Yes, I know it's not made anymore. But you know what I mean.)

Afternoon snack: couple bowls (small) of Angie's Kettle Corn http://angiespopcorn.com/

Dinner: fried chicken (made by me) and a salad

Evening snack: glass of wine...and more popcorn. :)

Happy Eating!
Kathy

October 3

So today I went to visit one of my local grocery stores and spent a lot of time looking up and down the organic/natural refrigerated sections.  One of the things I don't have any interest in making myself are things like sausage, pepperoni, salami...that kind of thing.  I spent a lot of time reading packages, taking pictures, and looking at websites when I got home.  Some brands do a great job explaining their products online, like http://www.applegate.com/ and others not so much, like http://www.fioruccifoods.com/. I found another brand of sausage that looks good http://www.bilinski.com/ in addition to learning more about the sausage I have been buying from Costco for a couple years http://www.aidells.com/.  Overall, a great trip!! Next week I am going to hit up another store and see what I can find there.

Meals for today:

Breakfast: the Mallow Oats are finally gone - last bowl consumed this morning, with local organic milk.  Coffee with half n half.

Morning Snack: strawberry Chobani

Lunch: Boars Head roast beef & provolone on whole wheat bread with a bit of organic mayo & lettuce

Afternoon Snack: Starbucks pumpkin spice latter (I know, I know; I was weak)

Dinner: grilled steak seasoned lightly with fresh ground pepper & Himalayan sea salt, organic peas

Evening Snack: a handful or three or five of Unreal Nutty Ones


Happy Eating!
Kathy

October 2

Breakfast: Honeydew from my local farmers market, followed at bit later with a cup of coffee with half n half, and a whole wheat bagel.  The bagel has organic peanut butter on one half, and butter & "all natural" jelly on the other.  My husband came home with this jelly one day, thinking he did a good thing.  It's made by Welch's...here is the link: http://www.welchs.com/products/jams-jellies-and-spreads/natural/natural-concord-grape-spread jury is still out, but I guess it's better than anything else I've tried.  I've had a difficult time finding a jam-type product I like.   I've tried a few different organic types, but no luck.  May try making my own one day!!  As for the butter, I use: Land O Lakes Butter with Olive Oil.  http://www.landolakes.com/Products/Custom/15179.aspx  Opinions?

Morning Snack: blueberry Chobani

Lunch: Boars Head roast beef with provolone on whole wheat roll from farmers market.

Afternoon snack: Unreal candy - a handful or three or five - The Gimmie Ones. :)

Dinner:  last minute company for dinner tonite!  I had a roasted turkey breast in the freezer I quickly defrosted, since I did not have enough to feed my guests with what I had originally planned to make. The turkey breast is from Kirkland, no preservatives, chemicals or fillers. Mashed potatoes and organic white corn on the side.

Evening snack: more wine...

Happy eating!!
Kathy

October 1

Here we go...day 1.

For breakfast today I already failed. Haha!  I have been searching for alternative breakfast cereals my teen boys will actually eat, so a couple weeks ago I found an alternative to Lucky Charms made my Mom's Best Cereals.  They make "Mallow Oats" - aka Lucky Charms - with natural colors.  My kids like their marshmallows, but not the oats part.  So they left the box to me to eat.  Since I am not throwing my money away, I will finish them for my own breakfast today & tomorrow.  Why do they not pass the kitchen test?  They contain corn syrup.   Hard to have a decent marshmallow without it.  But I did see a recipe that makes them with agave I may try when the challenge is over.  I use organic cows milk in my cereal bowl - it's local and of good quality.  Cup of Starbucks coffee with a bit of half n half - just a bit.

Here is where you can find this brand of cereal: http://momsbestcereals.com/

Morning snack: Peach Chobani.  Does it pass the kitchen test? Ehhhhh...probably not.  But not negotiable in my eating plan.  I need the dairy mid-morning due to my acid reflux problems...otherwise I can't have that one cup of coffee I so desperately need each day.  I get really grumpy without it!!  I can make my own yogurt if I try...but one of my concessions is the Chobani.

Lunch: leftover organic chicken sausage from the previous day's dinner.  I don't have the package to read the ingredients, but since it's organic I'm going to pretend it's okay. :) And a salad with a bit of white balsamic vinegar and grapeseed oil.   There are sulfites in my vinegar. :(

Afternoon snack: the end of a container of Turkey Hill All Natural Salted Caramel Ice Cream.  I had a small portion left and now it's gone.  While it is the better of the choices on the market, it does contain sugar which does not pass the kitchen test.

Dinner: cheeseburger with Boar's Head sliced cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, no bun.  Problem with this meal - the PICKLES!!! Did not notice before that there are artificial food colors in pickles. Ugh.  So now I am on the search for pickles made more cleanly.  Never thought I'd have to read that label before.  So I have learned something!!!

Evening snack: glass of cab sav from the winery I work at.

Overall, not a great first day but tomorrow will be better!!!

Happy eating,
Kathy

October Unprocessed Challenge

I have decided to participate in the Unprocessed Challenge hosted by Eating Rules.

The challenge is for the month of October; starts today!!  I think it's going to be tough on Halloween, when I have leftover candy from my own door, as well as whatever my kids bring home.  Last year our Halloween was spoiled by Hurricane Sandy; in NJ we didn't trick or treat until well into November.  Neither of my teen boys had any interest in the festivities by then, so they did not trick or treat.  Maybe they will not want to go again this year?? Otherwise, I will have to wait until the morning of November 1 to eat what they don't like.  We eat so clean everyday, that this once a year treat is not going to hurt us.  I'll talk about what I am giving out at my door when we get a bit closer to the holiday.

My plan is to document my journey through the month; since we eat clean normally, it should not be too difficult, but this challenge encourages a but stronger adherence to the clean eating rules than I may normally follow.

So if you are interested in participating too, here is the link to the challenge:

http://www.eatingrules.com/october-unprocessed-2013/

The challenge is sponsored by Bob's Red Mill, one of my favorite manufacturers of whole grain products.  If you sign up, they will send you some coupons to help stock your pantry.




Here is where you can find the official guide to the challenge: http://www.eatingrules.com/2013/09/official-guide-to-october-unprocessed/

One thing the challenge encourages you to do is set your own rules and limits as to what you can really hope to achieve.  They encourage you to do as much as you reasonably can within your own family guidelines.

My exceptions to the challenge: (I'm going to try my best to stick with these and only these - but as the month goes on I may have to edit as situations arise)

Chobani - I need it every day to help manage my acid reflux
Wine - I work at a winery and have to be able to taste our wines & we have a glass each night with dinner
Bread - I don't have a breadmaker YET so I have to reply on store bought breads
Unreal Candy - cause I am being realistic; can't give it up

Good luck everyone, and happy eating!!

Kathy