On Coconut Oil

Pretty basically everywhere I go lately, I hear about coconut oil. And so I figured it was time to try it out.


I picked up Dr. Bronner’s Unrefined Whole Kernel oil at Whole Foods and made chicken and peppers with it.

Pros: Easier clean up than olive oil, and if you accidentally use to much like yoahsss truly tends to do, it doesn’t splatter.

Cons: Contrary to what I’ve heard, the coconut flavor doesn’t cook out completely. The whole time I felt like I should have had some Malibu Rum in hand (+ possibly my swimsuit and a tan).

Re: cooking, I think I’ll stick with EVOO. However, I quickly transferred it from my kitchen to my bathroom, and it’s served as lovely lotion/chapstick this week.

Put the lime in the coconut, my friends!

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Atlanta Fresh!

I'm not opposed to making blanket statements, and certainly wouldn't dare to call myself a skeptic. But as a seasoned Greek yogurt connoisseur, when I heard that Atlanta Fresh Greek yogurt was life changing, I knew I needed to investigate.

Still abstaining from sugar, I could only try the plain version, which was kind of a bummer because of their enticing flavors (Chocolate Rocket! Peach and Ginger!). But, it worked out since I typically eat plain anyway; it made it easier to benchmark.

While I didn't love the price, it had an undeniable smoothness that made it taste more decadent than other Greek yogurts. I also love that it's local because even though I don't technically know the owners, it still kind of makes me feel like I'm supporting my friends.

Next time, I'm thinking I'll mix it with my Reginald's and just really be blissing.

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orange you glad?

Hallelujah oh my stars yaay! Yesterday, after three months of detoxing, two of which have been completely sugar free, I have been officially granted permission to add fruit back into my diet. Still no grains or refined sugar, but I don't.even.care. I'm so stinking excited to eat fruit again. I can't think of a better way to kick-start the most fabulous month of March. 

A funny thing happened during the course of my sugar freeness. My taste buds have changed completely. Things like natural peanut butter (just nuts+salt) taste sweet. My Reginald's cashew butter tastes like absolute candy. Once an exclusive Riesling and White Zin drinker, now I opt for the slightly dryer Pinot.

I feel weirdly dramatic saying this, but I almost can't imagine what it'll taste like when I try ice cream and chocolate milk (my two obsessions pre-detox) again. Will I still like them? Will I be able to add sprinkles to my froyo? Or will it be too much?  (Seriously.)

Last night after leaving the doctor's office, I bee-lined for Whole Foods to stock up on fruit. Upon arriving, I got so overwhelmed with options that I walked out with only bananas. There were too many options! So much potential! Fight or flight at its finest.

I can't wait to jazz up my smoothie regimen, eat Greek yogurt with fruit, and, oh my gosh, have a banana with peanut butter for breakfast. Cloud nining to the max!

I hope your Thursday is equally as exciting as mine. Even if it's the little things, like tiny baby blueberries. Nom!

PS: Best Leap Day ever.

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smoothie fridee

Due to some recently discovered food allergies and intolerances, I’ve been on a pretty restricted diet since December. And by pretty restricted I mean no corn, wheat, soy, oat (OK, grains.) or sugar.

For a while I didn’t want to blog about it because I didn’t want it to be perceived as complaining, but then I realized that I have been heavily relying on other people sharing their coping mechanisms online, so why wasn’t I sharing what I’d learned, too?

At first I tried to just take those things out of my diet, but now that I’m a few weeks in, I am tired of veggies, meat and nuts. Minus peanut butter. Will never grow tired of that.

This week I have been exploring more options, including the smoothie below. I was really struggling without fruit, and this one tastes almost as good as my regular morning banana smoothie. Even if you’re not grain and sugar free,  I highly recommend it.

Ingredients:

Almond Milk

Spinach

Peanut Butter

Flax

Ice

Cinnamon

I subbed the peanut butter and flax for my latest obsession, Trader Joe’s PB with Flax. Blend to taste, and enjoy! And know I did!

Reggie, Reggie

Um. What is wrong with me? I finally went to the grocery (amazing) and I forgot peanut butter. What in the world?

Looks like my misfortune is actually turning out to be my own fortune (I realize that's not the correct expression, but you get it), because in lieu of another trip to Trader Joe's, I ordered Reginald's homemade peanut butter. I learned about it while doing the Shape No Grocery Challenge and have been itching to try it ever since. I ordered the Original Roast and the Hazelnut Amaretto. I'm currently sugar free in my diet, but as soon as I'm eating it again, I'm trying the Apple Sin. It looks amaze.

And now that I'm allowed to shop, I'm apparently going grocery wild. Publix Saturday? Sure. Trader Joe's twice Sunday? Yep. Online grocery shopping? Why not?

My abstinence may have backfired, since I'm apparently binging on groceries now, but my time away from the store did make me realize I can work a little harder to clean out my cabinets. I'm going to try to stick to an every other week schedule, which means this weekend's activities will have to last me until late February. Here waa go!

PS: Would it be weird to buy the shirt? Too much, too soon?

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Grocery free: going strong

My moving date may have been changed to last weekend, but I’m still going strong on Shape's no grocery challenge.

I’ve eaten an inordinate amount of red meat, including two steaks and a burger, which makes me think the challenge may be making my wallet skinny, but having a dissimilar effect on me. Why I bought Omaha Steaks, we may never know. But they’re sure keeping me afloat.

When I moved, I was thrilled to discover an extra chicken breast that had gotten buried under a broccoli steamer bag in my freezer. After switching back and forth between vegetarian and red meat only dinners (an interesting combination), this poultry brought a whole new level of excitement to my Monday night.

Similar to Karen, I’ve had a bit of trouble cleaning out my fridge as effectively as I hoped, because my parents bought me a few groceries at Whole Foods when they were in town. I almost told them not to, but I was out of nuts and cheese, and seriously, who passes up a free trip to Whole Foods? We picked up cheese, carrots, pistachios and peanuts, and those three items have turned my lunches around. I’ve also had a few dinners out, so I still have more than enough food in that arena.

My current inventory includes:
Freezer
Two Omaha Steaks and Four Omaha Pork patties (100 percent sure these will not be gone by the weekend)
Half a bag of artichokes
Two bags of broccoli steamers
Frozen soup (my lifeline for lunchtime)

Fridge
Cheddar Cheese
Peanut Butter
Carrots

Cabinets
Peanuts
Almonds
Pistachios
Canned soup (less exciting than the homemade variety in my freezer)

I almost think I could make it another week to finish out the challenge with Karen...

I will have to noodle on it. But the reality is, my peanut butter is getting low.

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peanut sat on a railroad track...

More than a year ago, I purchased a value pack of Omaha Steaks, (1) because it was on a major discount and (2) because there was chicken involved. 


Well, my friends, the chicken is long gone, and the steaks have been unleashed on my groceryless home. Considering I’ve had red meat maybe four times in the last year, and the steaks were wrapped in bacon (ick!) this scenario could be slightly alarming. But, I thawed them just enough to unpeel the bacon, cooked them with some olive oil, and voila! My first time making a steak was a success! Grocery-free has its benefits! 

Overall, it was pretty challenging making it through the weekend, especially because my green beans, cottage cheese and almonds are all gone, but I got a little creative and am feeling good about my nearing-bare cabinets. 

I will confess that I had one misstep Sunday, as I had to (had to!) buy peanut butter. I didn't have any breakfast items and I knew I would end up buying it at work every morning - so buying a jar of PB was actually more economically sound. Maaaybe I'm rationalizing here, but when brekky time rolled around this morning, I knew it was the right decision. 

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And so begins the fridge challenge...

When my mom visited me in April, we were thrilled to discover  the new Publix Greenwise was opening in my apartment complex the same weekend. 

While we didn't technically plan the two to coincide, you may as well have thought we did based on our grand opening attendance. We ran around the store like kids on Christmas morning - checking the superb aisle organization, oohing and aahing at the product selection and interviewing the employees: "are you excited?" "do you think the people at Kroger are sad?" "what's your favorite sample?"

We love a good grocery store.

However, combine that with my love of fresh produce, and you've got an astronomical grocery bill.

Inspired by Shape's One Month No Grocery Challenge and the fact that I'm moving at the end of the month (more on that later), I'm abstaining from going to the grocery store for the rest of the month.

It's going to be a serious (majorly serious) challenge, seeing as I'm currently chickenless in this house. However, I'm relatively stocked up on vegetables - both frozen and fresh. It will just force me to eat more strategically and be less flippant about expiring spinach. No doubt I'll be nomming on soup by Jan. 31, but I'm hoping I'll actually clean out the cabinets, save money and avoid lugging cans of beans to my new place.

Wish me luck!

PS I only wish I had so many peppers as there are in that stocked fridge above! Yummers!

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Is it OK to blog about food two days in a row?

Don't get too excited now, but this week can be summed up most adequately as the Week of Brussels Sprouts. I've been on a serious mission to fall in love with them, partially because of their high Fooducate score, and partially because I'm trying to expand my horizons.

Tuesday night was a total failure. I threw them into a sauté pan with veggies and chicken, and when I started eating them, they were basically still raw.

My mom then informed me that you have to boil or steam them prior to sauteing, which was a real game changer Wednesday night. Once boiled, I cooked them with walnuts and evo -- and never looked back. I can't stop thinking about them! Now I know why people either love or hate them. People that love them have moms that know to boil them. People that hate them have sillies like me making them.

I'm really excited about this addition to my fridge. Anyone want to come over so I can sauté them up some bsprouts?

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[no]meatlove

Although I like to give her a hard time for her non-meat-eating ways, Courtney is my favorite vegetarian around.  And even though I think we'd have a grand old time grilling chicken together, I support her decision to love the animals (even if she secretly doesn't want a dog either).

So, today, on Hug a Vegetarian day, I'd like to send her some virtual love.  If I were in Virginia with her, we'd certainly be celebrating this lovely holiday together (probably with froyo, because, let's be serious, we're not vegans). 

And while I tell her (all the time) that I wish she'd join in my carnivorous ways, it takes a very special vegetarian to buy me deli turkey every time I visit. She's certainly a friend of the animals, and of mine.

A special thanks to Erin for telling me about this monumental holiday.
Photo via dolce vita.

never too late to celebrate

Meghan and Erin and I have been brainstorming a name for an upcoming business venture of one of Meghan's friends.

Erin has easily come up with the best name so far (kept under wraps) utilizing some basic French.

After making sure we were conjugating the words correctly, I was reminded that I completely failed to blog about Bastille Day.

Fortunately, Court summed it up stellarly, but, being the only (semi-) French speaker of the clan, I feel it's necessary to at least put up my pictures...

The adorable crêperie in Charlottesville, the flat.Lily waited so patiently... And while we waited, she told me about the table Skip bought them...
And then she enjoyed...