Monday, April 19, 2010

The Diet Blitz - Day One

I weighed in this morning at 161.7. My ultimate goal is 125 which for my height, is correct on the charts. My goal this week is to get into the 150's pre-cruise.

I awoke late - as has been my habit since I started working the night shift, even now on days I am not working so brunch was my first meal.

I sauteed onions in a touch of water to get them nice and brown; tossed in chopped baby potatoes from last night, adding tiny amounts of water as the potatoes browned. When I plated them, I sprinkled my new salt blend of sea salt, rosemary, basil and thyme.

On the plate I tossed some baby lettuces. In my former life, lettuce was the carrier of "the good stuff, including gobs of salad dressing. Now, I actually like lettuce and try to notice how the different lettuces have different tastes. I topped it with a corn, chipotle, black bean, stewed tomato and green chili mixture I made a few days ago and topped it with chopped cilantro.

I had saved half the potato in the pan to use for my evening meal, but my beloved, Gordon, walked out into the kitchen and said, "Hey, these look great, are you going to use them?" Of course, I told him to enjoy, so he made a fried egg sandwich and ate the potatoes with it. He likes them just as well without the oil -- probably didn't even notice it was missing.


EVENING MEAL

Since I leave for the hospital around 3 -- I pack my evening food. I usually eat in stages throughout the evening.

In the split dish you will see my main starch meal:

I layered the bottom of the dish (you can't see it in the photo) with broccoli slaw, then chopped up some of the baby potatoes I boiled last night and topped it with the corn/bean/tomato mixture and cilantro.

On the other side, I filled it with steamed green beans. To Gordon's absolute horror, I did not trim my beans first. The beans, to me, especially since I eat alone, are finger food, so a) I save time by not trimming them first, and b) I use the stem as a holder, like you would the stem of a strawberry.

For dessert, I filled the bottom of the container with the carrot/yam/sweet potato mixture and topped it with marinated beets. I baked the whole beet, previously, in the toaster oven wrapped in aluminum foil, and when it cooled, it was easy to skin and slice. I tossed the sliced beets in a jar and added a yummy balsamic/raspberry/lemon vinegar and let set. To my dessert mixture, I sprinkled lots of Vietnamese cinnamon. Then I tossed in a bag of mini carrots in case I needed to sit and crunch something.

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My friend, Leona, is on this blitz with me (the gauntlet has been thrown) and she emailed me that mustard was good on her mashed potatoes. Indeed it is. Mustard is a yummy, lo/no calorie condiment for vegan meals and adds a nice flavor.

Any others on the blitz?

may your day be filled with health and vitality.

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The Story Behind the Garden of Eden Vegan Blog

For those of you who knew me prior to December 30, 2009, I was a veteran of the fast food culinary institute. My son, when he lived with me would ask if I had ordered the "Shabbat pizza" yet as the sun was setting Friday nights.



My idea of a good meal was a McFish sandwich, fries with extra salt, and a medium diet coke.



Everything was better covered in a rich creamy sauce and the idea of a naked baked potato was as foreign to me as walking naked in Manhattan.



In June of 2009 I decided to formally become a vegetarian. Although I had dabbled with this, it was not until I read Skinny Bitch that the gauntlet was thrown.



Now being a vegetarian does not sign you up for good health. I was proof of that. Chubby when I started, I indulged in pizza, french fries, cheese, cheese, butter, cheese, pizza......and became very over weight, tipping the Toledos at 200 pounds at 5'4". And taking an assortment of meds for cholesterol and GERD and who knows what else.



As the decade was waning, and with my 60th birthday approaching in the year 2010, there was a perfect storm that snapped my beak and got me in gear. The same friend who gave me Skinny Bitch, turned me on to the John McDougall website. At the same time, there was a Grand Round lecture at the hospital where I work on the book Eat to Live, and at the same time, I was tired of how I looked and felt and needed to make a change.



I regret that I did not start this blog when I changed my lifestyle, but it is better late than never.



My weight is down about 35 pounds, my size has gone from a tight 16 to a loose 12. And I am on no meds, although my vegetarian doctor and I will review my blood work within this month to see if I need anything (like b12) boosted.



I began as a Vegan Minus. Or what I call a Garden of Eden Vegan.



As you know, a Vegan eats no animals nor animal products - none. But then I subtracted oil, sugar, and processed foods.

That is a big subtraction -- but it is this subtraction that helped with weight loss, lack of cravings, increased energy, health, and vibrancy.



Now I am dabbling in raw foods and have signed up to learn with Russell James (google him).



I like the taste and health aspect of raw foods, but worry about the increased calories. So I will (hopefully) use the raw creations as a supplement to my Gan (Hebrew for Garden -- I am in a Hebrew mood today) Eden Vegan lifestyle.



My doctor said that I should write a book about this since most of her patients need it. I said, "Who, or how many, would want to do this?" We shall see. It has been easy (no cravings) and exciting as life and energy unfold before me, just as it was meant to be. (It didn't unfold over a fried fish sandwich, extra tarter sauce.)



Join me or not. Walk with me the whole journey, day trips, part of it, or not. This is my 60th year -- buckle up life, here I come.