Damn Delicious Pasta And A Juice Fail

Photo and recipe from Damn Delicious

This looks absolutely delicious! Pesto pasta with sun dried tomatoes and roasted asparagus. There's a fried egg involved...LOVE IT!!!
Go visit Damn Delicious and make this now.


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Juicing update:
Monday, my lovely friend loaned me a brand new juicer. (Super not excited but minimally intrigued.) It has to be easier than blending, straining, straining, straining, right? I got all my veggies ready, read the directions, turned it on, put in 5 chopped up kale leaves and half an apple.  Minutes later the motor burned out and it's now dead. It was  a brand new juicer! Still in the box! (Sigh)

Turns out I have a tendency to burn out motors. The juicer, the string edger thingy (for the lawn), my brother's ice cream machine...
What have I learned?  I shouldn't borrow anything with a motor.

My juicing friend and I have lunch together Monday-Friday this week. What this means is that we are finding places around town that make fresh green juice that include kale. Mmmmm kale.

Turns out Whole Foods makes a few delightful juices. I had something that included both kale and cayenne pepper. (Kicky!)

Begrudgingly, I have to say, that I'm getting so many nutrients with these drinks I'm not hungry at all. My body's happy. That being said, I'm not about to go all no sugar, no flour, no croissants over here.
(Tantrumy!)

I know I have at least another week of this and then I'll see.
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One good thing a day for a year:
Tuesday- Hubby took me on a date! (We had reservations at 5:00pm and were home by 6:45pm cause we are CRAZY!) But it was really fun and he was 1950's charming.

Wednesday- A hug from my past. 15 years ago I worked for a woman, Jenny, who introduced me to my future sister-in-law who set me up on a blind date with her brother who has been my Hubby for 15 years. (We got married fast) I haven't seen Jenny since my wedding. Today Jenny ran over to me, and we had a 10 second hug before she literally ran off  yelling "I haven't seen you in 15 years!" while I yelled back, "I'm still married!"

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Here's to dates and hugs!...and kale?

Sweet Kitty

The Sweet Sour Ice Cream

by

My little guy

Today, as my six year old little boy and I drove home from Grandma Dee's house, he asked if we could play Sweet Kitty. Sweet Kitty is an imaginary Kitty that lives on his head all the time and is, of course, very sweet. She can change color and go to many lands.

I am the voice of Sweet Kitty.

With all the Lego's, Pokemon, Trash Pack toys he brings with him in the car it's been awhile since he's asked to play with Sweet Kitty and I thought, oh my, is he scared about something? Is he regressing or just reminiscing?

Today he gave Sweet Kitty a present. A magic crystal that is so tiny you can barely see it. Sweet Kitty can jump into the crystal and see the special castle that was built just for her.

This went on for awhile and then my heart sank when he told Sweet Kitty this.

"Sweet Kitty, I have to tell you the truth about some things. First, you aren't really six like me you're four. You were born out of my imagination. And Sweet Kitty, you can't stay with me forever. Sometime soon you will have to find a new little boy or girl."

That's when I realized he's getting ready to say goodbye to Sweet Kitty.

Another milestone. A new time.

My heart hurts.

I cried.

After The Party

We went to Aunt Bonnie's yesterday for their 4th of July BBQ and it was quite the food fest. There were healthy snacks like bean chips and yogurt dip but it was so good I completely overindulged. They grilled succulent steaks, there was fresh watermelon, freshly baked rolls and corn on the cob. The homemade peach ice cream I brought was a complete success and was fantastic with the brownies. There were no leftovers.

That's what parties are all about.

Today I'm back to the French Skinny lifestyle. Lunch is a delicious bacon, lettuce, tomato, feta cheese salad dressed with a little bit of olive oil and white balsamic vinegar paired with Hubby's delightful cucumber salad. I don't know what it is about the cucumber salad but I'm addicted. We make a big batch and keep it in the fridge to snack on all day long.

Cucumber Salad

One hothouse cucumber sliced.

Half a red onion roughly chopped. 

Red wine vinegar. (We were out today so I used white balsamic vinegar)

Salt.

Pepper. 

Mix it all in a bowl, cover and put in fridge to chill. 

Enjoy!

Have A Peachy 4th!

Peach Ice Cream

Happy 4th of July! Something has come over me this week because I am craving peaches. I bought a box of beautiful juicy peaches yesterday and decided to make homemade peach ice cream to bring to Aunt Bonnie's BBQ today. 

I took this peach ice cream recipe and changed it just a little bit. Instead of finely cutting the peaches, I just pitted them and pureed them in the magic bullet, skin and all. So much easier and the fruit won't become a weird frozen lumpy cube of ick. 

I also added 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Hubby came into the kitchen and tried to eat all of it. It's that delicious.

I hope you have a safe and wonderful day.

xoxo

Mama's Cooking

Shaboom sends us her update from Paris Copenhagen, Denmark:

I'm sure you're all familiar with the term staycation, but I'd like to coin a new noun describing one of my favorite kinds of vacations, the gourmetcation. (Shove everything within arm's reach into my mouth-cation is more fitting but it seems to me that it's supposed to rhyme with "vacation," so excuse me if I'm a little limited, people.)

We started with what's known in America as "Danish" but known in Denmark as "Vienna Bread." (Don't ask me what it's called in Vienna. When I was there with Cashew this summer, I tried to figure it out but with no luck.)

Then we enjoyed one of my favorites, filet mignon of pork with Danish potatoes and a delicious salad.

We had lunch in town with a girlfriend and enjoyed an amazing potato sandwich - another item from my list of favorites. I know it sounds weird, but don't knock it until you try it.

We had Thai food last night that we made at home with my mom. She also made a rhubarb pie for dessert which we served with ice cream. Yum!

Joyeux Dimanche - Boo!

I signed up to make cupcakes for the upcoming Halloween fund raiser at school. I was inspired by angry witch cupcakes made by the awesome Martha Stewart.

Last night, Neighbor Wife and I did a cupcake test run. They were really easy. A little green food coloring in white frosting for the face. The hair is licorice, the eyes are mini M&M's, the noses are candy corn and the hats are ice cream cones.

Who's your Mummy?

Then we got creative. 

 The hungry spider.

Boo!

Happy Sunday!

Birthday Girl's Night

Birthday Girl's Night

Ice Cream Cake with Peanut Butter Cups On Top

Thanks Jen!!!

Happy Saturday

Fresh Peach Ice Cream

I was craving peach ice cream today.

Which is strange because I've never craved peach ice cream.

I found a recipe here.

This is all you need.

Fresh Peaches

Lemon Juice

Cream

Sugar

Vanilla

Simply Delicious

Lemon Sorbet

With the lemons from my tree I made this refreshing Lemon Sorbet.

Simple syrup with lemon zest.

3 cups of freshly squeezed lemon juice.

One ice cream maker.

Delightful.

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Next stop. Peach ice cream or peach sorbet? Hmmmm.

Street Photography In Paris

I love this link: Street Photography In Paris.

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It's so hot and humid here, we haven't turned the oven on for weeks. Dinner is often little bits of cheese, sopressata, baguette, brucshetta and a lot of ice cream. I was going to attempt some French meringue cookies until I read that they have to be in a 200 degree oven for 3 hours. I'm dying to do something with the Orange Flower Water I bought.

What's your favorite cold summer dish? Any ideas on the Orange Flower Water?

Have a great day.

The Pork Chop Won

"Mom, I think this cheese is for Army guys, it's camouflaged."

This is cheese. Cheddar with porter. I bought it because 5 called it Army cheese and there just happened to be a lady in the cheese aisle that gave me the slow nod and half smile. This is the universal sign for "You need to buy that cheese. It could change your life." Unfortunately my neighbor thought the brown outside was chocolate. She confirmed that it is, in fact, wax.

But I'm way ahead of myself.

Today I made an announcement: "I'm making pork chops for dinner. Everyone will sit at the table, at the same time and converse while sharing a meal. This is important if we don't want our child doing D-R-U-G-S when he's a teenager."

To which Hubby replied "It's really hard to make pork chops. There's no fat in them."

This is the second time in my life I've tried to make pork chops. The first time was a disaster. They were over cooked and dry. Which was the first time I heard, "It's really hard to cook pork chops. There's no fat in them." Thanks Hubby. That's super helpful.

I know it can be done because I watched my Neighbor, Margaux, whip them up a couple weeks ago.

I did everything she did. Bought the meat at the same place, set up my assembly line of eggs with a little milk, flour, and Panko bread crumbs and was ready to go.

I also read about 10 recipes on how to do this. Which means I also read that you have to get the center of the pork chop up to 150 degrees at least or bad things could happen. (Insert icky face)

Most of the recipes said it would take about 4 minutes on each side unless they are a little bigger.

I had high hopes for these suckers. I added chopped garlic and spices to the Panko bread crumbs. And some of my fresh herbs from my new baby plants.

I cooked them for 5 minutes on each side. Then another 5 minutes. Then turned them on the sides to get them nice and crunchy.

But that meat thermometer would not get past 126 degrees. It's not broken, I checked. Then I remembered that some chefs flash fry stuff then stick it in the oven to bake the rest of the way. So I did that. I'm starting to panic at this point.

When I finally got the temperature up to 150 degrees I took the pork chops out and set them on a plate to rest for 15 minutes.

Then took out the baby artichokes that had been cooking. And went to find my family.

Hubby was still full from a late lunch with a friend. But he "might have a bite".

5 was fast asleep.

The only thing worse than my kid falling asleep at 5:00pm is waking him up.

Now there has been some talk of me having control issues which I'm still denying and this is why. Did I freak out, start crying or get mad because I have a giant dinner, Hubby's not hungry and my kid fell asleep? No, of course not, because I'm a go with the flow easy breezy kind of gal. I went next door and asked if Margaux and Ballerina girl would like to come over for some pork chops because clearly my family didn't understand the announcement/proclamation plan. They were nice enough to oblige.

I set out a cheese platter with some gorgonzola crackers. The army cheese was included. Suddenly, Hubby appears and sits at the table, 5 wakes up and starts playing with Ballerina Girl. Now it's a party. And I don't have to worry about the whole D-R-U-G-S thing. Whew!

I dish it up to expectant faces.They start eating before I do. I'm not hearing any oohs or ahhs. I try it. Dry and chewy. Then I hear Hubby say "It's really hard to cook pork chops. There's no fat in them." Thanks Honey. Super helpful.

I quickly make a sauce to dip the pork in. Mayo, cayenne pepper and curry. This saved the day.

I still haven't mastered the pork chop but just in case it didn't work out I had a back up plan.

French Vanilla Ice Cream With Whipped Cream And A Sprig Of Fresh Mint.

A Lovely Day

Shaboom sends us her update from Paris, France:

Good morning!!


I had a lovely day. First, I ate mozzarella and tomato in the gardens of the Louvre. I had a mango with ginger ice cream directly afterwards.






I sat in the sun and enjoyed the view for a few hours. There were cute little dogs running around and the nearby dog park, lots of Boy and Girl Scouts visiting the museum and people sprawled out on blankets everywhere.



Next, I went off to spend the rest of the afternoon the the gardens of Palais Royale. When it started to rain, I sought refuge in a nearby café.








- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone 4

The Final Countdown

Countdown

Photo by Karen at French Skinny

It's almost done. The last pound. The last day. I want to make something irresistible. Something so fantastic you are left wondering about my superpowers. But I was so crazed I made pasta with a sauce from a jar. (Trader Joe's sauce. Hubby thought it was from Grandma Dee's garden. I can't even process that right now.)

I didn't even make cheesy bread. And guess what? No one cared.

I added mozzarella and parmesan cheese at the very end. It's now one of my "secret fast meals."

I had to have some chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce for dessert.

Next stop?

French Skinny Photos.

You asked for it!

Croissants

Good Morning

Day 171 from Burbank: Breakfast is served!

I ate one of these with the homemade loquat jam from Jennifer.

Lunch: 2 strawberries and a scoop of chocolate ice cream.

Dinner: Rib Eye Steak with a blue cheese sauce and veggies. The sauce is just cream and blue cheese heated up. Very rich but very delicious.

During goodnight prayers I hear 4 say,

"Dear God, thank you for all the delicious food I get to eat....except blue cheese. Yuck!"

Gentle Judging

Photo by Karen at French Skinny

Full pot of black tea.

4 and I went to a friend's house. She put out humus and pita chips. I ate 6 pita chips with humus. Then I was full.

She said, "Is that all your going to eat? Have some more. Oh wait, you're doing your French Skinny thing, I forgot." (She gave me a giant eyeball roll.)

My new normal is still not normal for some of the people around me. I don't really blame them. I've been dieting since I was 18. Almost everyone I know is on one kind of diet or in between a diet. The in between a diet includes gorging on guilty pleasures before ramping up to yet another diet to reach a goal weight and then eat again.

I know this because that has been me. Up until now.

Like someone who's just found religion, I enthusiastically explain that this isn't a diet. I'm not starving myself to lose weight. I'm eating exactly what I want. I wanted the pita chips and humus. My stomach is now used to French Skinny portions so I stop when I'm full. The idea that I need to keep eating food after I'm full seems strange to me now. Grab a tambourine and hop on my bandwagon!

This was met with a "Whatever works for you." And a smile that never reached her eyes.

*Sigh*

In general, there is a part of our culture, in America, that's in the habit of gently judging not just what you eat but the amount. The eye roll, the sigh, the off handed comment, I have encountered all of these in my French Skinny Experiment.

Shaboom told me that she has found the exact opposite in France. No one judges you if you leave your entire meal on a plate. If they're not hungry they don't eat. She said it really hit home for her one day when a French woman said to her, "This food will just go into the trash. Would I go in the trash can and eat out of it?"

Now, I'm no dumpster diver but I'm still struggling with this one. I have a hard time dumping food into a trash can and I hate to waste things. The best I can do is eat my French Skinny portions and save the rest for the next day.

I had a nice walk to the store for fresh bread and brie.

I was hungry when I got home so I had 3 pieces of baguette with brie cheese, cherry tomatoes and fresh basil.

I made chicken salad from the roasted chicken we had yesterday. Hubby wanted me to use the mayonnaise with olive oil. How can I put this nicely? I don't care for the taste of mayonnaise made with olive oil...... So I made it for him and 4. I wasn't hungry anyway.

Hubby felt bad about me not eating the chicken salad because I used his mayo. *Sigh*

Wait, am I gently judging him for judging me?

Later that night I had one bowl of popcorn with some real butter.

Then one scoop of chocolate ice cream.

"I love my new lifestyle!"

You are my Earth.

Photo by Karen at French Skinny

"Mommy, you are my Earth. I can see me in your eyes."

Happy New Year!

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Day 130 of The French Skinny Experiment:

Tea, baguette and yogurt for breakfast.

Chocolate covered almonds, cheese and an apple for lunch.

French Onion Soup and baguette for dinner.

Ice cream for dessert.

4 and I went bike riding for fun.

French Skinny portions for everything. Taste for flavor.

Everyone Needs An Elf

Karen - Day 129 - Burbank, CA

Photo by Karen at French Skinny

My Elf

That's my Elf. She's on my Momma's Christmas tree and has been around since before I was born but she's my Elf nonetheless. Every year Tammy and I help Mom decorate her tree. 4 helped this year too. When I unwrapped my Elf and saw her smiling little face I had the strangest feeling. As if she has been hiding clues for me all year. I'm pretty sure she's in cahoots with the gnomes.

Breakfast: Black Coffee and a half a croissant.

Lunch: Half a bowl of my French Onion Soup. Bubbly water.

A Diet Coke. (I know this is not what Shaboom would say is included in The French Skinny but everything in moderation is how I'm rationalizing it.)

Dinner: French Skinny portions of Roasted Chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans and a roll.

A scoop of Chocolate ice cream before bedtime.

.

I am now eating about one fourth to one eighth the amount of food I was starting out. I have reset my "normal portions" to French Skinny portions and am enjoying what I'm eating more because I'm paying attention to it. The first few bites are where the flavor is.

EVERY single time I would ramp up to lose weight I had an end goal in sight. Then if I was very good, I could go off of it and treat myself with real food. There is no end goal anymore. I'm not denying myself anything. I'm living my life, eating the food I want, enjoying it more than ever and being physical because it's enjoyable, not to lose weight.

"Everyone needs an Elf."

Weigh In Week 18 - The Plateau Is Over!

Photo by Karen at French Skinny

Lunch

Weigh In Week 18

Goal: Lose 35 pounds in 6 months the French Skinny Way.

Lost 5 pounds this week!

Total lost so far: 19.5 pounds

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After the Victory Dance, I have tea with a little cream.

I'm just a couple pounds away from the lowest weight I was last year doing cleanses, protein shakes and a salads every day. Along with Cardio Bootcamp, step classes and running.

Once I lost the weight I gave myself a break. All of a sudden I had gained all the weight back and then some.

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Zanymad commented the other day about how hard it is to stop even when your full. I totally understand this. We eat for all kinds of reasons. It looks good, it tastes good, we're sad, we're happy, we're bored.....

This week I wasn't hungry. However, I really never realized how much I "mindlessly snack". I kept finding myself, even when not hungry, wanting to go grab some cheese or other "little something." Since I'm constantly getting snacks and food for my growing 4 year old, I'm around food all day. At night, after I put 4 to bed I would sit in front of the TV and zone out with a snack. I'm changing my habits. Now it's some chamomile tea, a little writing and bedtime.

I will not deny myself anything. If I am really hungry I eat. But if I'm eating out of boredom or anything else I walk away. This is the French way.

Shaboom was trying to explain this to me when she was here and I thought I was doing that but I really wasn't.

Yesterday I had sweet potatoe fries (10) and dipped them in mayo (as much as I wanted) for lunch, hot dog with everything on it and half a piece of corn on the cob. A scoop of chocolate fudge brownie ice cream for dessert. Like I said, I'm not denying myself anything.

I am really eating Shaboom size portions now.

I haven't done any stairs or big walks since last week's French Skinny Epiphany. Since I run around chasing a 4 year old all day, do all the cleaning and cooking I don't need to do any extra working out. (Let's not forget the all important "indoor cardio".)

I can feel my body burning the fat for fuel because I'm eating French Skinny portions.

Half a peice of French Toast for breakfast.

2 cups of coffee with cream.

Lunch was 2 pieces of French Bread with Brie cheese and a few grapes. Sparkling water.

For dinner I made brown rice (cooked with chicken broth instead of water) mixed with broccoli, corn and a soft boiled egg on top. I know the French like to throw an egg on top of things and it was delicious.

Things I do instead of "mindlessly snacking":

1. Clean the house.

2. Write.

3. Read.

4. Dance around with my kid.

5. Think about amazing recipes I can now make and eat without fear.

Photo by Karen at French Skinny

"This is not a diet. It's my journey to find The French Skinny Lifestyle."

I'll Have Fries With That!

I fell in love with these guys.

I made the mistake of drinking black coffee for breakfast.

It's too harsh for me now that I'm eating French Skinny portions.

Tomorrow I'm back to the tea.

A leaf hanging in midair.

4 had a play date with his buddy. Afterwards, we went to a diner for lunch.

A real jukebox.

I can't order French Skinny portions, so I ordered a giant cheeseburger with fries and a to go container.

It felt a little funny at first but I didn't want to be staring at all that extra food on my plate. And I don't feel French enough to just let them throw it away.

I'm amazed at how full I am on half a cheeseburger and four fries.

When we got home, 4 gave himself a 2 hour nap. He woke up and we both wanted ice cream.

His favorite, mint chocolate chip.

I ordered a kids one scoop chocolate fudge.

This was dinner. Sweet potato fries dipped in mayo.

I actually ate more today than I have for the last few days and feel a little uncomfortably full. I have totally changed my "normal full feeling" in 3 days and after 2 or 3 bites I don't really "taste for flavor" anymore.

Today's motto:

"I'll have fries with that!"

Karen - Day 89 - Sushi Type Items And A Smiley Face

Karen sends her updates from Burbank, CA

Went to Trader Joe's for groceries and brought home these brown rice sushi type items and some spring rolls.

While I'm enjoying my sushi type items I witness this little encounter.

4 is walking around with a smiley face stamper.

Hubby: "You can only use that stamper on paper. I don't want to see it on the walls or the floor or anywhere but paper, okay Buddy?"

4: "Okay Daddy."

Hubby walks away with a false sense of parental perfection as 4 walks over to the pile of bills and starts stamping our mortgage statement. Which is, of course, paper.

Personally, I think the person who receives our payment will think it has that certain je ne sais quoi. No?

This picture was borrowed from the internet

Dinner was spaghetti (I made the sauce) with toasted par baked artisan bread topped with butter and parmesan cheese.

We tried some Mochi for the first time. It took a few bites to get used to it but we ate it all.

Hubby: "It's like ice cream with skin on it."

I don't think we'll be enjoying Mochi again anytime soon.

Bon Appetite