Oh, fish. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways, um, none.

I am not a fan. I will eat it if forced to, and occasionally I try to like it solely (Get it? Sole?) based on the fact that it is good for me. Incidentally, I don’t mind it raw, in sushi. I’m weird, I know.

I’ve been branching out, however, within the confines of this detox plan.  So, this weekend I picked up some gorgeous tilapia for a great price and made up my own recipe for delicousness!

You won’t be sorry you tried it! I only made one fillet at a time, so you’ll have to adjust for more than that.

Cornmeal and Almond-Crusted Tilapia with Lemon Dijon Sauce

(Measurements are imprecise, sorry!)

Fish:                                 

1 large tilapia fillet

4-6 Tbsp Cornmeal (OR use nuts like pistachios or almonds ground in a coffee grinder)

2-4 Tbsp slivered almonds, crushed

Sea salt

Pepper

Tarragon

Granulated roasted garlic

Olive oil

Sauce:

~4 Tbsp prepared Dijon

~1 Tbsp lemon juice

Tarragon

1 clove minced garlic

Pepper

Rinse fish in cold water and flap it around to dry; set aside. Mix “breading” ingredients on a plate with a fork.

Heat a pan to medium heat (hot enough to crackle when you put the fish in), spread oil to coat the pan. Dredge fish in “breading” on each side and place in pan.

In a bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients. Lick whisk to test seasoning, adjust if necessary.

Cook fish for about 5-7 minutes on each side until golden brown and cooked completely. Plate and drizzle fish with sauce and serve w/ brown rice and asparagus (sauce is awesome on the asparagus too).

So, that was my Sunday dinner. My four-year-old wouldn’t touch it, but I made her eat 2 bites like any other meany normal mother would do. It was a great end to a weekend full of “oops I ate the rest of the mac ‘n cheese” moments. Alas, I am not perfect. I aspire to do better this week!

Here’s what I learned this weekend:

·         It is nearly impossible to cook “kid” food for others and not eat any

·         I adore hummus and cucumber slices

·         Buckwheat groats (kasha) are disgusting and should never enter my house again.

·         Coconut yogurt is not doable at home(much to my dismay)

·         And this is nothing new: feeling stressed makes me want cupcakes. There are some in the break room. They are calling me, but I will prevail! Viva el sucre-resistance! (or whatever)

Pour Some Sugar on Me. Or don't; Cuz I Don't Care.

Howdy from day four!

The good news? My cravings have disappeared! The bad news? Preparing every meal from scratch is a big pain in the arse.

Let me say again: MY CRAVINGS HAVE DISAPPEARED!!!

Maybe this doctor/author knows what he’s talking about… But, lemme ask you, how do people live their lives with no convenience food? So far, this is my biggest challenge. I spend hours preparing meals that are consumed in no time flat. Last night I was cooking until 10:00pm, and to disappointing results: some not-very-tasty soup that I am going to eat anyway because I am cheap and can’t bear to throw anything away. Ugh.

Oh, and the cost! My trip to the health food store last weekend cost me, oh, about ONE MILLION DOLLARS (she says in Dr. Evil’s voice with pinkie raised to mouth). I resolve to do better with my shopping this week. Here’s what I learned about the stuff I did buy.

·         Amaranth tastes like cream of wheat when mixed with coconut milk

·         Don’t put too many ingredients in your smoothie

·         Soup made with old, frosty veggies is gross

·         Tofu goes just fine in a smoothie

·         I adore avocadoes, and am fine with them as a replacement for cheese

·         Cashew butter is the best thing ever(with apples, yummy)

·         Coconut milk and yogurt are super good (way better than soy which tastes like green beans)

·         Home toasted nuts are WAY better than store bought

And the icing on the too-much-information cake:

·         Eating a lot of fruit when you are not used to it makes you poop. A lot.

 (that’s for you Cath, I promised to talk about it)

Projects for the weekend include vegan potato leek soup, figuring out what to do with a bunch of purple kale and shopping for other stuff to snack on during next week.

Until later, my friends. I’m off to enjoy my day without being held prisoner by my cravings!

Out Damned Toxins! Out I Say!

Now, I’m aware that detox is all the rage right now, and  New Year’s resolutions are in full effect. I'm not interested in a here-today, gone-tomorrow solution. A few months ago I watched the movie Food Inc. It’s this horribly scary/enlightening documentary about where our food comes from. (You can watch it streaming on Netflix, if you have a membership)

You should totally watch it.

That said; I tend to be a doubter. Could it really be as bad as all that, or is this just propaganda to further the filmmaker's and author’s careers? I don’t have the answer, but the truth of the matter probably lies somewhere between “not that bad” and “disgustingly awful”.

In my quest to know more, I have checked out numerous books on varying subjects from the library including: The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan,  Simply in Season by Mary Beth Lind and The Profitable Hobby Farm by Sarah Beth Aubrey. Since I did what I usually do, and requested all the books at the same time, I ended up with about 30 at once, so I really only skimmed through most of them. What I did learn, however, is that there is a whole bunch of stuff you can do to live more naturally. You can even grow and mill your own grain if you want (ugh)!

In December, my mom gave me this book: Ultrametabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss. It is a very interesting read. In it, Dr. Hyman (snigger, snigger) talks about many different things that affect our body and how it metabolizes food. How inflammation, toxins, trans-fats and chemicals in our food are literally killing us.

I don’t want you to think that this is a commercial for this book. Dr. Hyman (!) is, after all, trying to make a buck and weight-loss is big business. After speaking with my doctor and obtaining my current lab results I decided to go ahead.  Since most of the book fits with what I have come to believe about our food supply, I am following the book's the guidelines for detox.

So, that’s where I’m at today. Detox day two is going smoothly, and I’m hopeful about the future of healing my body.  

Pssst. If you want to learn more about how you can learn about whole foods and detox and don’t want to get a special book from the library or Amazon, check out this website instead: wholeliving.com

Amaranth, Allergies and Ah-Ha Moments

So, you know that sayings about moms, right? The one about how they know everything? Turns out it’s (almost) true. Let me tell you the story of a spazzy girl, her mom and her neighbor the nurse.

One evening while enthusiastically preparing for the first day of detox, a girl (let’s call her Famie) cooks a batch of Amaranth for the first time. Turns out it smells pretty bad, but if you mix it with coconut milk, applesauce and walnuts, it tastes kind of like Cream of Wheat. Anyhoo, after reporting the results of her experiment to her mother and sister, Famie goes to snuggle with her kiddo, who is studiously ignoring her.

AND THEN

The prickly, itchy, allover sunburn-y feeling starts.

Now, being that Famie is just a little bit spazzy, she proceeds to freak out, take 2 Benedryl and run upstairs to the lovely retired nurse (who, BTW, deserves a medal for dealing with her neighbors and their children) who lives on the second floor and babble at her about her new Amaranth allergy.

*Sigh*

Turns out after a consult with her all-knowing parents, Famie realizes that it is not an allergy at all, but something called Niacin Flush. Last week my Famie’s doctor suggested she take Niacin for her slightly elevated triglycerides. Since she hadn’t had a reaction since starting it, she totally forgot about  the side effect of flushing. It’s a good thing her mom remembers what medications she is taking, since Famie is obviously an air-head.

Crisis averted! Now if Famie could just push through the Benedryl-induced comaaaaaaaaaazzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

And so it begins.

Welcome to my first blog post! I’ve read, I’ve researched, I’ve shopped and I’ve glutted myself on the oh-so-good-but-bad-for-you stuff. Tomorrow marks a new day in my household.

Starting with a three week, no dairy, no gluten and no sugar detox, I am beginning my adventures in whole foods. My main goal is to drastically improve my health and get myself off my blood pressure medication. AND I really, really, really don't want my daughter to grow up and deal with the same problems I have.

Lots of people are on blood pressure medication. But here’s the thing—I’m 33 years old. Combine this with my increased chances of developing Type II Diabetes and I have a real reason to be concerned with my health.

I’d like to use this forum to share my hopes of success, my inevitable failures, new foods and recipes that I’ve tried and hopefully some inspiration that I find along the way.

I hope you enjoy any small bit of my adventure!