Meal Ideas

Since I decided to give up refined sugar, there hasn't been a single moment in which I thought it would be an easy task. I have been gathering ideas and mentally preparing myself for this since early November. To anyone else who might contemplate giving up sugar in 2010, I would love for this blog to be a resource for ideas and encouragement. My fabulous Sisters-in-Law are joining me in this experiment, and I know that all three of us are going to need all the encouragement we can get. Thankfully, we can rely on MomK to provide lots of ideas and assistance.

One of my goals was to have three weeks of meal plans ready to go before January 3rd. I'm not there yet. But. . . . . there's a long flight to NYC this Friday, that may give me the time to get this all put together. I will eventually be posting recipes for the more complex dishes that I use, but for now, here is a list of meal ideas that I will be keeping in mind on my next trip to the grocery store.

No Added Sugar Dishes:
Grilled, Baked, or Broiled Fish, Poultry, Pork, or Beef
(I was going to add fried, but if eating out, be careful - there might be sugar in the batter)
Meatloaf
Pasta does not usually have added sugar
Recipes for Spaghetti & Alfredo Sauce to follow soon
Black Beans & Rice (or Red Beans if you prefer)
Chicken Noodle Soup, Chili, & Beef Stew
Any type of fresh fruit or vegetables
Cheese does not have sugar added to it. (Velveeta & 'American slices' do not qualify as cheese)

Foods to watch out for:
Bread - I spent 20 minutes in the bread aisle at the grocery store this week looking for bread with no sugar added. No luck. Per MomK, French style bread from the bakery usually doesn't have sugar on its ingredient list. I shall investigate and report back. A good substitute in the meantime is Mission brand Tortilla Wraps. The funny thing is, the plain kind do have sugar - the Garden Spinach Herb, and the Tomato Herb varieties do not.
Salad Dressing - see post from 12/27 - Marie's Blue Cheese, and Bolthouse Farms brands are OK
Deli Meats - The only deli type meats I have found so far are a smoked ham, and oven roasted turkey breast by Oscar Mayer. Will be found with the packaged deli meats at your grocery labelled Oscar Mayer 'Natural'.
Bacon - What a drag. Life without bacon is going to be miserable. MomK is working on making a smoker so she can cure her own. I am not yet that ambitious. I shall double check with the organic foods market before I resort to smoking my own bacon.

Once I have figured out how to customize my blog, I am hoping to have tabs for meal plans and recipes. . . . I'll get the hang of this eventually. . . . I hope. . .

Talk to you later:)
JamiK