Giving Up Greed - The Challenge

So the Holidays have begun. For most of us this means big meals, lots of sweets, and very little energy to care that it might not be that healthy. Because most of my family lives without or with very little sugar, I nearly made it through Thanksgiving without a hitch. We did,  however, have a run in with some 'real' chocolate chip cookies. I ate two of them.

Because I do my best to avoid sugar, I don't particularly worry about putting on holiday weight, but it might be something that you are worried about. In an effort to bulk up my recipe catalog and provide some helpful information to folks trying to give up the white stuff I have asked all my GREED-free friends and relatives for recipes. I will be trying a new recipe every other day for the next 3 weeks (ish) and posting them along with random commentary / observations for your reading enjoyment. I hope you will play along with me and see what you can do to give up the inGREEDient between now and Christmas.

Since I am still back home in Indiana for the next couple of days, MomK will be starting us off tomorrow with her amazing chicken noodle soup.  This has been one of my favorites since childhood.  It always tastes wonderful, there are always leftovers, and it is one of the most perfect 'cold weather' recipes one could find. (Post Thanksgiving, this can easily become Turkey Noodle Soup)


Ingredients:
1 whole or half chicken
3 - 4 large carrots, washed, sliced
3 - 4 celery stalks, washed, sliced
Optional veggies - frozen corn & green beans
1 large onion, cut in quarters or eighths
2 cloves of Garlic - minced
1 bag 'Reames' frozen Egg noodles
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp Parsley

Directions:
Boil chicken until cooked through
Remove chicken from broth, let cool, and pick the meat off the bones.
Add carrots, celery, onion, corn, green beans (or any veggies you wish) & garlic and resume boil.  Add 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, and 2 Tbsp parsley.
Add Reames noodles and continue boiling until noodles are cooked. 
Add Chicken

Eat well - but avoid sugar
JamiK

Garlic is Good

I have the unfortunate habit of getting into food ruts. If I like it . . . . I make it over and over again until I realize that I'm growing bored. Thanks to all my friends who responded to the request for recipes! I'll be sharing many of them with you over the next few weeks. Right now my house smells like garlic - and I love it.

At the suggestion of my friend Joscelynn, I made the most delicious chicken for dinner.

40 Cloves and a Chicken

(courtesy of Alton Brown)

1 whole chicken (broiler/fryer) cut into 8 pieces

1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp Olive Oil

10 sprigs fresh thyme

40 peeled cloves of Garlic

Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 350° F

Season the chicken with salt & pepper

Toss with 2 Tbsp olive oil and brown on both sides in a frying pay on high heat.

Place into a baking dish with oil, thyme & garlic

Cover and bake for 1 1/2 hrs

The chicken is delicious. What made it perfect was the garlic toast that accompanied it.

I toasted two slices of whole grain bread, smeared it with the garlic that had cooked with the chicken, and then sprinkled it with a bit of Parmesan.

Jos - you are a genius.

Don't get bored with your food

Avoid Sugar.

JamiK

A Clean Conscience

How many times in my life have I experienced food guilt? There are probably not enough fingers and toes in the state of Iowa to count.

When I was a teenager, I was a dedicated dancer at my ballet school. I danced as a student for eight to ten hours per week, taught pre-ballet and fundamentals classes for eight to ten hours per week, and during performance seasons, I rehearsed for eight to ten hours per week. Despite this, I constantly struggled to manage my weight, developed allergies, and fought strep throat on a regular basis. I told myself that it was just my body type, I had a sluggish thyroid, I wasn't meant to be a ballerina. . . . . . . but I knew, deep down that I was lying to myself.

You see, just a block away from the ballet school was the candy store - a daily stop on my way to class, or after rehearsal, or between dancing and teaching. Gummy bears, fruit slices, strawberry Cokes, and chocolate milkshakes were my particular weaknesses. They also made a killer grilled cheese sandwich - processed cheese product on white bread. Guilt, guilt, guilt. These things do not make up the diet of champions; or prima ballerinas for that matter.

In college, it was doughnuts, iced sugary coffee drinks and the vending machine. Guilt, guilt, guilt. Post college, it was fruity drinks and lemon drops, coffee loaded with sugar and flavored creamer, and lots of soda. Guilt, guilt, guilt, and more guilt.

What gets me the most about my guilt years, is that there was no ignorance involved. It's not as if I didn't know everything I ate was loaded with sugar. It's not as if I was under the impression that these 'foods' were healthy and/or good for me. I just wanted to pretend that eating and drinking the white death was OK, and that there must be something else that was to blame for my deteriorating health and constant weight gain.

Well, it's taken me nearly 20 years to get from one end of a sugar addiction to the other. I won't pretend for a minute that I'm 'cured'. I still crave sweets. . . . but I no longer lie to myself and say that it's not the sugar that affects my health and weight. I don't find myself looking around to see who is watching when I eat. My conscience is clean - the food guilt is gone.

My new favorite night of the week is Tuesday night - I watch my favorite TV shows, and enjoy homemade chocolate ice cream sans guilt.

JamiK's Chocolate Ice Cream
(adapted from MomK's ice cream recipe which I found too icy and not enough creamy)
Blend:
1 quart half & half
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup of local honey
2 heaping tablespoons of cocoa

Pour it into an ice cream maker and churn away. Every machine is different. . . . . about 40 minutes gets me soft serve quality ice cream. I usually put it in the freezer for another half hour to make it a bit more frozen. Enjoy!

Keep your conscience clean,
Avoid Sugar!

JamiK