Detox - Day 30 (Top 5 Recipes)

                                     We Finished The Detox Phase!  Yeah!
                                  It's Time To Celebrate With A Sugar Note.


This is one of my cards, and you can purchase it at:
www.SugarNotes.etsy.com

Our Top 5 Recipes Of The Month

We thought it would be fun if we shared our top 5 recipes from the Detox phase.  My husband and I surprisingly agreed on the top 4, but couldn't agree on #5.  So, I listed both.

#5 - My husband chose the cheeseburger from Day 1
       and I chose eggs, fried in bacon grease.
#4 - Beef Tenderloin Medallions and sauteed mushrooms & onions from Day 17.
#3 - Taco Salad from Day 1
#2 - Roasted Tomato Soup from Day 15
#1 - Butterflied Rosemary Chicken with Pan Juices (Day 2)

Breakfast - Artichoke Frittata (from SS web site) plus 1 sausage link.  First, I increased the recipe to 4 servings so we'd have leftovers.  And, I cut the onions in half; one onion per serving is too much for us. 

Basically, you saute the onion, then add the chopped artichoke.  Saute for a minute, then pour in the whisked eggs.  Top with a little Parmesan cheese, then put it all in the oven (350 degrees) for 10 minutes.  It looked beautiful, but there were too many artichokes.  That's all you could taste.  I'd recommend cutting the artichokes in half, and making up the missing veggie serving at lunch or dinner.

AM Snack - Fruit and 1 oz. of Maqui Juice.

Lunch - Spinach Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing (from SS web site).  This was awesome, but there wasn't enough dressing.  Since it's made from the bacon grease, you have to take what Suzanne tells you is enough.  It's better than nothing.  Also, I added some chopped scallions because, for me, it's not a Spinach Salad without them.

PM Snack - We had more of those awesome Rice Crisps (by Lundberg) from yesterday and fresh salsa.  It's just like tortilla chips and salsa, which is a perfect treat for watching the Nascar race.  (one serving is 10 chips)

Dinner - Lamb Burger, Greek Style (pg. 270).  I'm not the biggest fan of lamb, so I mixed one pound of ground chuck and one pound ground lamb, together.  Plus, at our grocery store, lamb is $8.00 per pound.  Another reason to mix.  The recipe also calls for sliced, raw onions that you place on top of the lamb burger.  But, I don't care for raw onions, so I chopped them and mixed into the raw meat.

After the burgers are cooked thru, you melt 1 oz. of feta cheese on top.  The taste was wonderful.  It was hearty and juicy.  Kind of like a hamburger with the volume turned up.  I placed the burger on a lettuce leaf.  Then, add sliced tomatoes and chopped cucumbers on the side.  With each burger bite, we stabbed some of the veggies, too.  It's very filling and enjoyable to eat.

BONUS:  If you'd like to order one of my Sugar Notes greeting cards, I have a special discount code set up for my loyal blog followers.  At checkout, put in the code, "SexyForever" to get a 10% discount on your order.  www.SugarNotes.etsy.com

Detox - Day 29

I Think I Made A Mistake

Due to a little delay in our Saturday morning activities, I changed our planned breakfast meal at the last minute.  Mainly, because it was getting late and, as a result, I didn't have time to make what I had planned.  Plus, I didn't want to skip my exercise day.  I was tempted to, but calmer heads prevailed (my husband).
 
However, I didn't change the rest of the meals for the day, and I think I ended up having too many carbs today.  If you follow the meal plan for today, change the snack to something other than a carb.

Breakfast - Fruit and one oz. Maqui Juice; then we exercised.  Afterwards we had a frozen whole grain waffle (Vans brand) with natural peanut butter.

AM Snack - By the time we exercised and finished breakfast it was almost 10:30.  So, we skipped our snack to keep on track for the rest of the day.

Lunch - BLT (found on SS website) and a slice of cheese (1 oz.).  Since this was lunch, and not a snack, we could actually add the bacon.  And it was heaven. 

Instead of bread, use lettuce cups or a firm leaf lettuce.  Spread it with a little mayo, some tomato slices, and the bacon.  Then, wrap and eat.  I made 2 wraps, putting one slice of bacon on each.  Allow one tomato per person to get your veggie quota.  I ended up eating one slice of tomato with my cheese because I couldn't fit it all on the BLT.

PM Snack - Rice Crisps (by Lundberg) and homemade salsa I found in our produce department.  This was a fabulous snack as it tasted just like tortilla chips and salsa ... one of my favorite snacks.  I found the crisps in the gluten-free section of our grocery store.  They're made with brown rice and brown flour.  However, as I mentioned above, do not eat this snack if you've already had your carbs at breakfast.

Dinner - Garlicky Shrimp on Mixed Greens (from SS web site).  While the shrimp was wonderful (saute in EVOO and minced garlic) the dressing was too overpowering.  And, for me, it didn't quite go with the dish.  The dressing had soy sauce, rice vinegar, lime juice, EVOO, salt & pepper.  It was the soy sauce that ruined it for me.

I made enough shrimp for lunch on Monday, and I'll try a different dressing and let you know if it's better.

Detox - Day 28 (weigh-in day)

It's Weigh-In Day!

Today's a good day, because my hubby and I saw the scale move, again!  We're just thrilled with the Sexy Forever plan!

My hubby lost 4 pounds; for a total of 15 pounds after 4 weeks on the plan.  So, he's already half-way to his goal of losing 30 pounds.  For me, I lost one pound, and I'm amazed!  So, that makes a total of 8 pounds after 4 weeks.  It's the most I've ever lost in the first month on any plan I've tried during the past 10 years.  And, I can't say enough about the food ... so satisfying and fairly easy to prepare.

Breakfast - Ate up the last of the fruit in the house plus 1 ounce of Maqui Juice.  Waited 20 minutes and then had a Whole Grain, Gluten-free frozen waffle (by Vans) and some natural peanut butter.  My husband found it to be a little dry, but I'm a die-hard bread fan so I loved it!  I'll take bread any way I can get it.  Even disguised as a waffle.  Plus, who doesn't enjoy peanut butter?

AM Snack - I wasn't hungry for a snack.

Lunch - Salad topped with the last of the chicken tenders from Day 26.

PM Snack - Slice of cheese.  (1/2 oz)

Dinner - Leftover marinated sirloin steak from last night.  I also roasted the last of the cauliflower and broccoli by sprinkling them with a little EVOO, dried marjoram, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.  Then roast in the oven on 375 degrees for 18 minutes.  Yum!

Beverages:  I was really thirsty today for some reason and exceeded my water by one 8-oz. cup.

Detox - Day 27

A Word About Eggs

One of the things I enjoy about this program, is not having to buy those cartons of egg whites in the dairy case.  They're yucky if you ask me.  In her book, Sexy Forever, Suzanne tells us not to be afraid of eggs.

She says eggs are an excellent source of protein, plus they have the added benefit of being naturally rich in lecithin, a substance your liver needs in order to produce bile.  And to look for organic-omega-3 and DHA fortified eggs for added benefits.  Also, if the cost of organic foods are prohibitive for you, she adds that organic eggs are the least expensive form of organic protein, and they're versatile for any meal.

Just in case you're wondering, one servings of eggs is 2 large eggs.  I have truly enjoyed the experience of eating eggs without worry and especially the decadent taste when you fry them in butter.  It's just about as good as a slice of cake, in my book.  I do have to worry about my cholesterol, so we'll see what my blood work says during my yearly physical next month.  I'll keep you posted.

Breakfast - Kashi puffed whole grain cereal with non-fat milk and a sprinkle of SomerSweet.

AM Snack - I had a bad headache today, so I felt nauseous for a few hours and didn't even want a snack.  Plus, I had to skip my exercise today, too.  I hate that.

Lunch - Still felt under the weather, so I had a little leftover chicken (about 2 oz.) and a tiny, tiny salad.

PM Snack -  Medicine finally kicked in, so I was hungry for an organic apple.

Dinner - Marinated sirloin steak, that I pounded to 1/2 inch; then I broiled it.  And, sauteed rappini.  I didn't know what rappini was, but it was on sale for 99 cents a bunch and my produce guy said it was great sauteed. 

It looked like big leafy, dark green lettuce, but on stems like broccoli.  And, it even had a few buds on it that looked like broccoli.  I sauteed a shallot in olive oil until golden on the edges.  Then, I added the rappini, which only took about 3-4 minutes to wilt down.  The result:  it was too bitter for my taste buds, but very tender like sauteed spinach.

Beverages:  came up way short today due to my headache.  One of the benefits of having your own business is having the flexibility to take time off when you're sick.  So, I layed in bed with a heat pack on my head for most of the morning.

Detox - Day 26

I'm All About Saving Time

On Thursdays, I make time to plan our meals for the whole week.  My game plan is to make enough servings for 3-4 meals, depending upon the meal.  That way, I have leftovers throughout the week.  And, that means, I eliminate some prep work each day.  This is especially important, for me, when preparing lunch.

Like most of you, I don't have time in the morning to prepare a full meal to pack for our lunches.  And, a person can only eat so many salads before they get sick of them, and in turn, sick of the diet/lifestyle plan.

But, there is a method to my madness.  When I choose meals, I take into consideration how they taste when they're re-heated.  And, how well they last in the fridge, before they become re-heated.  I have found that all soups, and meats, like chicken and patties, do very well. 

Recipes that don't reheat well, I reserve for a one night offering for dinner.  However, I'm lucky because my husband will eat just about anything.  So, if we happen to have a leftover from a recipe I don't like when it's reheated, he'll eat it.  That's because he hates wasting food more than I do!

Breakfast - Leftover quinoa from Day 24.  I don't know why, but it seems to taste better when re-heated.  I'd love to hear comments about your experience with quinoa from some of my followers.

AM Snack - Organic apple.

Lunch - Today was a refrigerator clean out day.  My husband has been sick, and as a result he missed a meal one day (choosing broth instead), and didn't eat all of his 8 oz. protein servings each day.  So, we ended up with leftovers for two meals.  He had the leftover fennel soup with chicken and I had leftover Caesar salad (yum) and Chipolte Pork.

PM Snack -  My metabolism must be kicking in, because I've been hungry for both snacks these past few days.  I had some string cheese today.

Dinner - Something new today.  We had a delicious salad (pg. 174) with baby green lettuce, chicken tenders that I sauteed tonight, sun dried tomatoes, goat cheese and homemade balsamic vinaigrette dressing (pg. 227).

Beverages:  Fell short today; six 8-oz. glasses of water and a cup of tea.

Detox - Day 25

SomerSweet

I don't like the taste of artificial sweeteners because they taste artificial to me.  But, on the other hand, I like the taste of sugar, and that's a no-no on the Sexy Forever plan. 

Suzanne claims that SomerSweet, her all natural, low calorie sugar substitute, looks like sugar, tastes like sugar, and bakes like sugar.  So I ordered some from her web site.  And today, I tried it for the first time on my cereal.  I don't know if I would go so far and say it tastes like sugar, but it's pretty darn close.  Mainly, because it didn't taste artificial, and that's huge in my book.

Breakfast - Whole grain puffs (by Kashi) and non-fat milk.  First, I tried the puffs without SomerSweet because I'd never had them before.  I'm used to Post Golden Crisp puffed wheat, and this was sadly bland.  Then, I added some SomerSweet and it perked right up.  While it still had a long way to go to compare to the sugary goodness of Golden Crisps, it was a nice healthy alternative.

AM Snack - Today was an exercise day, so I had a bowl of red grapes.  Yum.  And, one oz. of Maqui Juice.  Note:  I soaked the grapes in lemon water for 60 minutes to get rid of the toxins.

Lunch - Leftover sole from Day 23, and the last of the fennel soup from Day 23.

PM Snack - A slice of cheese.

Dinner - Leftover Caesar Salad (from Day 24) and leftover baked chicken breast (from Day 24).  This time, we ate the salad like Suzanne suggests.  Just dip the spears in the dressing, and crunch.  It was a fun way to eat salad, and, I think it tasted a little better, too.

Beverages:  seven 8-oz. glasses of water and a cup of tea.

Detox - Day 24

We Need A Pat On The Back

Since today was a holiday day off, my husband and I decided to take care of some looming projects that we keep putting off.  One of them was submitting all the paperwork for our healthcare flexible spending account.  I know, I know ... it wouldn't be such a big project if I took care of it every 3 months, but I tend to be a procrastinator.  My husband is not, which makes for some challenging times.

It took me almost 5 hours to sort and write out all of the information on the stupid forms.  There has to be a better way to do this!  Plus, with my hubby's help, it took another 45 minutes just to photocopy everything.  Whew, what a job.

So, if any of you want to give me a pat on the back, I'd appreciate it.  Plus, my husband deserves one too because he took care of lots of little things around the house.  We were both so proud of ourselves.  Normally, after this kind of unpleasant work we reward ourselves with a glass of wine and some cheese and crackers.  But, we're still in the Detox stage.  So, I think that restraint deserves an extra pat on the back, don't you?

Breakfast - Quinoa with a splash of non-fat milk and a squirt of Agave nectar.  I'm beginning to like this breakfast.

AM Snack - a fruit bowl (1-1/2 cups) and one oz. Maqui Juice.

Lunch - Leftover Chipolte Pork & Salsa, from Day 21, plus leftover fennel soup from Day 22.

PM Snack - String cheese.

Dinner - Caesar Salad (Slim & Sexy book, pg. 183) with Baked Chicken breasts. Making your own Caesar salad dressing really makes a difference.  It was so flavorful, but fresh tasting at the same time.  I could have eaten double, it was that good.

To make the chicken breasts, I basted EVOO all over the meat, then sprinkled Grillmates Montreal Chicken (by McCormick) on top.  Then, bake in a 375 degree oven for 45 minutes.  They were a wonderful compliment to the salad.  I made extra chicken for leftovers later in the week, too.

Beverages:  seven 8-ounce glasses of water and a cup of tea.