Whole30

Today's Day 30 of the Whole30...

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand....

My clean eating Whole30 got dirty pretty quickly...WholeDirty. DON'T GOOGLE THAT, MOM!

It went great for a few days. Eggs, meat, nut butter, fruit, veggies, almond milk... I was on board. But then maternity leave was over and I had to pack breakfast and lunch. My usual breakfast of two rice cakes + peanut butter (both of these are not Whole30, but close enough! I had to strike a balance with economy and there was a lot of pb in the pantry) was ok. But if I didn't pack my lunch, I had to pick up something at work. Now, this is a big place with several lunch options, and yes there is usually a baked fish entree. But are you going to eat hospital cafeteria fish? That's what I thought. [I should do a study on visualization of 'hospital cafeteria fish' as an appetite suppressant] So then ham sandwiches crept in...

And so on. To complete the list of excuses we've had our mothers staying with us, both of whom eat little meat. And before Josie started going to sleep at 10, it was just too much to be up with her, pack a lunch, assemble the breast pump, assemble the uniform, fold the clothes, unload and reload the dishwasher, AND watch Top Chef Masters.

I'm going to re-launch when I have a little bit more control over my time, not necessarily Whole30 but limiting white things - dairy, flour, sugar, white potatoes - which we can all agree have limited nutritional value BUT ARE SO YUMMY.

Paleo style eating -- low carb, high fat -- was the subject of a recent On Point. Can we just halt the research and say, don't eat anything out of a wrapper? Clean eating just makes sense. (listen here)

Also take a listen to this lovely little piece on ne plus ultra of food writers MFK Fisher and 'the considered bite'. It has me thinking about how much I'm going to savor my next champagne margarita, classy broad that I am.

AND! Wait there's more! A (70%) paleo diet was easier because of...

A breakthrough: My mom's Egg in a Cup. Crack an egg into a mug, maybe add a splash of milk or piece of cheese. Lightly beat. Microwave at 15 second intervals, stirring each time, until desired consistency. No mess! Clementine loves this.

A re-discovery: Banana ice cream. My mom, amazed, said -- this is delicious. I add cocoa powder.

In other food news, I just purchased ATK's new The Make Ahead Cook and am so excited to try out a bunch of recipes. Each chapter has a different focus and each is geared toward the ways I want/need to start cooking (ie, start today - finish tomorrow, stash in the freezer, big-batch, one grocery bag makes three dinners, large roasts and second meals...) Plus many vegetarian even vegan options (butternut squash soup with kale, chickpea patties, and lots of farro and quinoa recipes).

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