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[caption id="attachment_1798" align="aligncenter" width="512" caption="Mini Lasagna (made with won-ton wrappers) - Yummo!"]  [/caption]
[caption id="attachment_1799" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Mini Lasagna on my plate.  "] [/caption]
SUPER awesome and easy recipe Here. Product Review: Rice Twice and Raisin Bran by Erewhon * Note: I was sent 2 boxes of cereal by Attune Foods after Fitbloggin to sample and review. The thoughts and opinions below regarding the product are my own. I AM IN LOVE. With a cereal. I have to tell you, I am usually not a big fan of crispy rice cereal. Well, unless it is covered in butter and marshmallows and cut into thick gooey squares. YUMMO. It gets soggy quick and I am not usually a fan of the taste. Let’s just say it was never my first choice in cereal. Until now. Anyway, at Fitbloggin, I got a chance to try Erewhon cereals at breakfast each morning. Roni had arraigned for an array of berries to add to 4 or 5 different kinds of cereal. They only one that looked interesting was the Gluten Free Crispy Brown Rice. I was intrigued by the fact that it was made with brown rice and that it was gluten free (I have a good friend who is gluten intolerant and I am always on the lookout for good GF products). I poured myself a bowl and add 1 percent milk, blueberries, blackberries and a packet of Splenda. WOWIE ZOWIE!! So Freaking. Good. I ended up going back for seconds. The brown rice is crisp, and while it did get a tiny bit soggy at the end, I actually was eating the tasty crispies up so fast, they didn’t have time to get soggy! Before I left Fitbloggin, after the group picture, there was a swag room with all the leftover swag from bags or just products from sponsors. I bee-lined to the cereal table and picked up another box of Crispy Brown Rice. I also found Annalies, the Attune guru, who gave me an adorable Attune bowl that has a screw-tight lid. [caption id="attachment_1787" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Adorable green bowl from Attune Foods"] [/caption]
SCORE!! When I got back to my room, I remembered I had a (very) strict one carryon, one purse rule on the plane and I was not about to crush my precious box of deliciousness. I had already packed my carryon to the point of bursting. So I used the string backpack from Sears FitStudio to “smuggle” the box carefully onto the plane—the gate attendant didn’t even notice!! [caption id="attachment_1786" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="GF Crispy Brown Rice"] [/caption]
When I got home, I mentioned on Twitter to Annalies that I loved the cereal and bowl I had gotten from Fitbloggin, she mentioned that she would be happy to send out a few boxes of the other Erewhon cereals for me to try out. I went to their website and picked 2: Rice Twice and Raisin Bran. I was not disappointed. [caption id="attachment_1785" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Raisin Bran "]  [/caption]
I used to eat another brand of Raisin Bran every morning – until I realized how much sugar was in each serving. I liked the taste, and I loved that it was full of healthy fiber. But all that sugar? Oof. When I learned that Erewhon’s version of Raisin Bran had MUCH lower sugar and that the sugar was not table sugar but organic barley malt. The fiber-filled flakes are not so much a flake, but much closer to what a wheat berry would look like when just steamed. The berries have a very earthy, wheat flavor that is tasty and crunchy- very good. The raisins are plump and not covered in sugar like other brands might be- they are naturally sweet and delicious. I have about 2 servings left in the box and I am already looking for a store that sells it. [caption id="attachment_1788" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Rice Twice!! Love it!"] [/caption]
As much as I loved the Raisin Bran, I loved Rice Twice even more. Seriously, I DREAM about this cereal. It’s great: crispy brown and puffy brown rice meet, have a subtle glaze of honey and rice syrup drizzled over them, and they end up in your breakfast bowl. So tasty, so light, so right. So amazing. I have already bought 3 boxes of this stuff and I just noticed this morning that I have only one serving left. Gonna have to get myself to the store and get some more, I guess. By the way, I wish I could buy a set of the adorable green Attune bowls. The one I have is the perfect size to take leftovers to work, a bowl of cereal (of course), nice to use as a place to whip up my egg whites. I need 4 since I am too lazy busy to wash the one I have after each use… hence the picture in the dishwasher!
I am so freaking hungry. I had nothing ready/available for lunch or dinner today. Dumb, I know, but I guess I really wasn’t as prepared as I thought for bootcamp day one. Lunch was tuna , 13 whole wheat crackers and a single serving of low-fat cottage cheese. Oh, and water. And some black berries. For dinner, I had some left over crock pot chicken, but no brown rice or veggies to go with it. Ran to the grocery store tonight at 7:30 (30 minutes before I wanted to be “done” eating for the night) and was over-hungry*. Nothing looked remotely good. I grabbed 3 packages of frozen brown rice, steam in a bag fresh broccoli and cauliflower, 3 cans of 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup (for a crockpot recipe) and a few other things (including cat food for my poor little big hungry one). I threw the rice in the micro, then the leftover chicken, then the bag of veggies. I had a meal in under 10 minutes, and of course, I wolfed it down. I had 3 veggies left and 1/2 my plate of chicken and rice, and I am feeling full but not stuffed (a 4 on the WW Momentum 1-5 scale). Also, I had about 5 sips of Diet Coke, and while I am not happy about it, I had a raging I-haven’t-had-a-diet-soda-in-2-days-and-haven’t-eaten-since-1pm headache. I am happy to say it is gone. To break the soda dependency, I am going to have to go slow. Maybe one a day for a few days, then 1/2 for a few days, then 1/2 every other day until I lose the headaches. This going cold turkey is for the birds. This is the part of working out I haven’t figured out- I have never been able to eat well AND excercise a the same time. It is either one or the other. Walk four 5k’s and one 10k during the year, eat alot of crap. Eat well, absolutely no exercise. I am sure it is a dance I will learn to do over time, but I always seem to fail at one as I succeed at the other. OK, I am going to clean up my dishes and get to bed so I can be up at 5 tomorrow morning. *Old over-hungry me would have ran to McDonald’s instead of the store, so that is a small NSV. … I may be speaking too soon, but I just might have gotten myself over the proverbial hump of starting (what seemed to be a monumental shift in )a new way of eating today. Finally. It didn’t seem “Hard” today- While I didn’t get much sleep (ok any) last night for a ton of reasons, I got myself out of bed at 6am, got my workout clothes on, and worked out. (the link will show you how excited I really was about this feat) Oh screw it, I will post it again here too!
I ate Breakfast:
A snack:
Ran errands to the grocery store, bank and gas station. Worked on my resume, updated tried to update itunes Ate lunch:
spent time applying for jobs, played with the house felines, took a 20 minute nap, caught up with friends via phone Snack:
Ate Dinner: Take out from Reza’s Mediterranean in Chicago – healthy and YUMMO!
I had a very satisfying dinner full of veggies and lean protein- i didn’t miss the heavy sauces or sweets I would usually consume at dinner. It is about 2 hours after eating and I don’t feel sluggish and the need to fall asleep in front of the TV- actually, I think I am going to go unpack a few boxes. This morning I took a page from Jen at Prior Fat Girl and took My Sweaty Proof pic after I worked out early this AM- I shared it with her for her page and thought I would share it here:
[caption id="attachment_1033" align="aligncenter" width="461" caption="Sweaty Proof and proud of me!"] Also- I made it over 7000 steps today!! :-0 (I know it says “1 day before” but that is because I can’t remember how to change the time lol) [caption id="attachment_1034" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Over 7000 baby!"] [/caption]
Finally I was proud to say “I KNOW HER! I’ve even hung out with her!!!” when I opened cnn.com’s homepage today– Roni made the bigtime! Not only is she on the homepage for losing 70lbs, but she is the most popular story right now!! CONGRATS GIRL! (She’s even more popular that the healthcare bill passing the senate!!) [caption id="attachment_1035" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Check out that popularity!"] Roni on cnn.com’s homepage
Have you ever had Turducken? Here is how Wikipedia explains it:
We had aundui sausage and cornbread stuffing inside- it was fantastic. I was celebrating with friends that will not be in town for the “real” Thanksgiving, so this was an early turkey day. Normally, I would be all freaked out about eating such high fat food (and alot of it), but I think I did really well. I drank one soda, one very small glass of white wine, 1 smallish peice of the turkey and chicken (I don’ eat duck) and the stuffing that was on it, steamed asparagus with lemon, a small serving of green bean casserole, a normal serving of mashed potatoes with garlic and onions and a very small piece of the BEST pumpkin pie I have ever had. The friend who brought it said it was Paula Dean’s version so you KNOW it was FATTY and AMAZING, all at the same time. I looked up the recipe, and more for posterity, I am posting it here: Pumpkin PieRecipe courtesy Paula Deen
 Ingredients
DirectionsPreheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color. For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated. Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream. (this recipe is from here.)– I cannot explain how good this pie is. Anyway, I was proud of myself for enjoying the evening, the company AND the food. Early on in the day, I remembered something Roni said about her eating habits (paraphrasing): If she knows she is going to have a big meal later in the day, she will make a concious choice to eat smaller healthier meals throughout the day to make up for the big one (and calories) she is going to have later. People who are naturaully thin still eat unhealthy meals now and then– emphasis on the NOW AND THEN. Just because one meal is bad, doesn’t meal they ALL have to be. Here is what I had for the rest of the day: Breakfast:
Lunch:
Dinner:
Still no workout, and I am sad to say I didn’t meet my goal of walking 6k steps today– I only got to 4K. But I will try again tomorrow. While chicken wings are not currently on my list of healthy foods, I found this video and HAD to share. I never get wings because I have no idea how to eat them. Well, someone made a video and posted it. And now I am re-posting it for you to view. Enjoy your wings! So, you ask: AJ- HOWDYA DO ON YOUR FIRST DAY??? Pretty good thank you. Not the best, not the worst. Here’s what I ate:
What I liked about today:
I amPROUD OF MY SELF for:
What was kind of a set back today:
I think adjusting is the right word for what I did today. I am proud of myself but I know I can push myself to the limit. I just made the best dinner ever… and it was all thanks to this lady. Roni has the best recipe: Ramen Noodle Chili. At first I though- Hm. Sounds…interesting. I could make that. And I might like it. Maaaaaybe. I am horribly picky. Anyway, I made it tonight and let me tell you- SUPER SUPER YUMMY! AAAAMMMMMAAAZING Yummy. She uses (and I found) Choice Ramen Noodles, which have a lot less fat and sodium than normal Ramen noodles. The only thing I changed from the recipe was that I only had Great Northern Beans and I had no cilantro. A few pics:
Did you wear green?!?! Or did you get pinched?!?! Monday, March 17, 2008
Weight in is tomorrow!! We shall see if I did better on CORE or FLEX… I tried a new recipe today – it was actually really good: Mexican Bean and Tortilla Pie
Ingredients
Instructions
AJ’s notes: I changed this from the WW website – I only had a reg sized can of black beans (should have used 2 regular sized cans) and I took out the chopped canned green chilies – I don’t like them. I also used these GREAT tortillas (of course- no picture – they are the olive oil whole grain rye wraps) that are only one point each (90 cal; 3gr fat; 13 grams protein, yep 13!!)- so that lowered the pt count to 3 instead of 4. The way the recipe appears above is how I made it.
I found a really cool new product -Bird’s Eye Steamfresh Brown Rice. it is in the vegetable section with all the other Steamfresh items. It comes in brown, white and white with veggies varieties, and though I am not sure of the pts value, the brown rice is Core. I usually don’t like brown rice, but I LOVE this version and will be eating it as long as they make it. It is also 2 servings per package (2 cups total), so I won’t overeat. I wish I had a picture for you but the Bird’s Eye website does not even have them listed yet. Anyway, if you see the rice, try it- it cooks up in 5 minutes and is extry fluffy! |
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© Ajlovestolose and ajlovestolose.com, 2007-2010. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Ajlovestolose and ajlovestolose.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. Thoughts expressed here are strictly my own and do not reflect the views and opinions of my family, friends or employer.ajlovestolose.com - All Rights Reserved |
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I am proud, darn it!
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