Stressy, Rainy

What an oddly stressy day. Edie didn't have school due to a "staff development" day, and it was raining. We three suited up and went to the supermarket to get a few ingredients for dinner, then met with the accountant to take care of the annual taxes. Home again for lunch, then suited up and took the subway up to the museum of Natural History to meet C & her little one Autumn, but they were running late. We three sat in Central Park for about 30 minutes -- they were both sleeping, and it had stopped raining, a nice 30 minutes of just....peace. We spent an hour in the museum than had a fantastic walk across Central Park to the F train. Got home around 5, Mil was not feeling well and I could not calm him. Fortunately Momma B came home and things calmed down. While dealing with Mil, I did not notice that Edles fell asleep in front of the TV around 5. We put her to bed and she slept through the night, which was nice. Even nicer was after dinner, I packed it in and put myself to bed at 8pm and didn't get woken up the whole night!

TODAY'S COOKING:
Iced Green Tea: New batch, cut the sugar back to 1/4 cup per gallon (from 1/2). Used sencha this time, I don't keep track of kinds of green tea, but I think this is my least favorite. Gotta remember to not buy it again.


AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:30am, homemade pumpernickel bagel with a little cream cheese, water, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
I still have 8 of the dozen left. They're just so leaden and blunt tasting, kinda like how vegetarian cooking was in the 70s. I think in the next few weeks, I'm gonna take a stab at making these a bit more puffy, add vital wheat gluten, maybe more yeast. And definitely some flavorants, like a little espresso -- a caffeine kick in a breakfast bagel is not such a bad thing.

LUNCH: noon, ham and Swiss on a whole wheat slice of bread, large green salad, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Rushing, Edie having ham and Swiss, so I just made myself some for efficiency. The meal was 1/4 sandwich, 3/4 salad anyway.

PM SNACK: 1:45pm, homemade granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 6:15pm, whole wheat spaghetti & meatballs, chocolate pudding & whipped cream, pint of grenadine soda, 1.75 bowl, hunger 4/5

Meaty urge

Weather is still fantastic, makes me nervous that it'll change and be more of a typical miserable cold March any moment...

TODAY'S COOKING:
Chocolate Pudding: Made this pudding again in advance of dinner tomorrow. Went a full cup of sugar this time, never got as thick in the pot as before. Maybe it'll thicken when it cools? If not, it'll still taste good, I'll just have to call it pot de creme or something, he he...

Roasted Broccoli: Used this recipe for ingredients and time & temp, but didn't measure anything, just through it together. Replaced panko with whole wheat panko, used asagio for the cheese, and tossed in some sauteed mushrooms into the mix.

AM SNACK: 9:30am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 11am, hardcore oatmeal, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 1pm, vegetable patty, jerk chicken patty, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
Out and about with Mil, looking for something fast, cheap and relatively healthy. Wandered into a Golden Krust on 14th Street, Jamaican street food. The vegetable patty was remarkably good, a wholewheaty crust, and the vegetable filling was cooked to mushy in the same way the beef filling is, and spiced perfectly. The jerked chicken patty was good, but the crust was white flour and the chicken filling had a very slight, very mild ammonia note. I would have been perfectly happy with another vegetarian patty...


PM SNACK: 5pm, a bit of hot chocolate pudding, a spoonful of freshly made whipped cream, 2oz of dark chocolate, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Didn't intend this snack, but when I get cooking, things get thrown in my mouth. recipe called for 5 oz of dark chocolate, and I had 7 on hand. I took a nibble to see how good it was (the crappy supermarket only had Cadbury on hand), it wasn't so good, but rather than the trash (or Betsy), it went into me.

DINNER: 7pm, roasted broccoli with tabouli, 10oz Sprite, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, whole grain chips with fresh salsa and fresh guac, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 11pm, 2 meatballs, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Huh, tried to minimize my meat consumption today, but the urge grabbed me.

Teaching Style

Woke up pleasantly sore from yesterday's weights -- it means I'm not wasting my efforts. Managed to keep it healthy all day, no sweets, but I think that contributed to insomnia, which lead to a heavy (but sweets-free) late snack.

Taught the first class of a new cycle, with 14 students -- the largest class I've taught yet. Fortunately, three were repeaters, who I were able to let go on do a recipe on their own with minimal supervision, and I just stepped up the running around to give individual attention. I was barkier and sterner than usual, as to keep control and safety in line with a bunch of noobs, and oddly enough, easily got the biggest positive reaction in the debrief with the students after the lesson as we ate. Why is it that the bigger the pushy overbearing task master I am in these classes, more the students seem to respond and enjoy it? I think my teaching style is starting to gel.

AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9am, smoothie, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Finished the frozen fruit mix I made, looking forward to making a new batch without raspy raspberries, half the pineapple, and up the peach. The Acai-Pomegranate juice is more bitter than I thought it would be, hmmmm.

LUNCH: noon, breaded tilapia, small amount of mushroom risotto, baby carrots with a little ranch dressing, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Surprised how good the week-old risotto was. The rice absorbed more moisture, making it softer, the surrounding sauce thickened and got richer. Haven't had the frozen tilapia in a while, was better than I remembered, still doesn't hold a candle to fresh stuff from the fishmonger.

PM SNACK: 1:30pm, homemade granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

SCHOOL SNACK: 6:30pm, fresh salsa, fresh guacemole, a few chips, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER; 8pm, 2 slices of streetza, large green salad, 20oz sprite, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EARLY MORNING SNACK: 1:30am, multigrain corn chips with fresh salsa and guac, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

Bikey Thoughts

Upped the reps from 5 to 8 on the weights this morning, upped the sit ups and push ups, and it felt good. Still can't do a pull up, but I'm starting to move a few inches north, which is the right direction.

Taught Italian at school today, though in reality it was "Italian American". Funny thing, the only plates we had to eat from were tiny 5" dessert plates -- so even though I loaded up the plate with pasta, sauce, 2 (2 oz) meatballs and some broccoli and grated parm, it was a reasonable portion that felt like too much, overflowing the plate. I noticed the kids first dai the plates were too small, to which I responded, well, finish your plate and if you want more, feel free to eat more. Everyone filled up there plates, and only a few of them were able to finish it, no one went for seconds. Hmmm.

NYC is experiencing unseasonably warm weather, it's been in the high 60s/low 70s since Sunday. I hoped to ride last Saturday, but it was in the low/mid 40s. Predictions for Sunday call for the high 50s this coming Sunday. I wonder if I can ride the calorie deficit I go into after a good ride with healthier, less dense food to encourage weight loss -- I haven't been losing weight of late, but my muscles feel stronger than ever (evidenced by my mid-February ride where though my stamina wasn't there, my core felt very comfy hunched over the saddle....)

AM SNACK: 8am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 10:15am, a banana

LUNCH: 11:30am, sardine & avocado on whole wheat toast, large poppa salad, water, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

SCHOOL DINNER: 6:30pm, fresh spaghetti with sauce & meatballs, a little broccoli, grape soda, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Brought home a large number of left over meatballs -- not anxious to get more chopped red meat in my diet, but they were made with a good recipe, based on the one from the restaurant I last worked in. At the least, they'll last a long time and will be a good monthly addition to Edie's meals.  The meatballs are about 50% chopped beef, the other half is romano cheese, mashed up italian bread, lots of fresh parsley, onion, a bit of salt and pepper. Baked hot at 550 for 15 minutes, they burned a little, but that just gave them a bigger, more complex flavor.


EVENING SNACK:  9:30pm, whole wheat ritz crackers with nutella, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 10:30pm, 3 meatballs, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

Poppa Day

The day started off to a rollicking roil with Edie a bit too feverish to go to school. Instead of weights, I rallied the troops to come do the laundry with me, and I'll lift hopefully tomorrow when Edles is back in school.

Baby sitter came last minute, and I took Edles to see the doc, then off to Two Boots on A for lunch. We locked up the bike and strolled over to Tompkins to play in the playground for 30 minutes, then off for food shopping. What could have been a horrible day turned into a nice time and some quality one-on-one time with my daughter. It was a good day to be a poppa.

TODAY'S COOKING
Tabouli: B wanted me to pick some up from the market, but why get stuff that's twice the price and half as good as homemade? 3/4 cup red bulgar soaked in 2.25 cups of hot water with salt. Mixed with chopped deseeded cucumber, deseeded tomato, juice of 1 lemon, 1 clove garlic crushed, 1 chopped roasted red pepper, 1/4 of a sweet white onion chopped, a few tablespoons of minced mint and parsley, 3 tbsp of olive oil, a teaspoon of salt, a half teaspoon of cumin. Mixed up and left in the fridge to set up and meld and mellow.


Poppa Salad: Getting a bit bored of the Spinach, so bringing this out of retirement this week. Chopped salad, lettuce-based. Red leaf & iceberg lettuces, English cucumber, shredded carrot, red bell pepper, scallion, red onion.

AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 9:15am, hardcore oatmeal, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 12:45pm, 1 slice of vegan whole wheat pizza, 2 slices of normal pizza, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Two Boots after Edie's doc. I was going to only eat the vegetable-laden cheeseless whole grain "Earth Mother" slice and a slice with sausage and peppers, but Edie was not feeling her plain slice, so I ended up eating most of that, too. She did, however, greatly enjoy eating an apple. -sigh- Who is showing who how to eat well? Maybe Edie'll publish a "Toddler Diet" book.

DINNER: 7pm, poppa salad, tabouli with sauteed curried shrimp, 10oz Sprite, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, whole wheat pretzel rods with nutella, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Out-out

Must have gotten the sluggish bug going around, after getting up at 9 (which was 8 just the day before), had to go back to bed after eating and sleep another few hours. Got out to Williamsburg for lunch, which was nice, then a foodie event. Felt like the first time going out-out with out kids in a long time.

AM SNACK: 9am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 10am, good yogurt with honey, vanilla and peanuts, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 1pm,  multigrain tortilla chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

BRUNCH: 2:45pm, chicken sandwich, french fries, pint of beer, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Gave half my sandwich and fries up to my co-brunchers, just to make it a normal-ass portion.

PM SNACK: 6:30pm, a slurp of borscht, a nibble of gefilte fish, a gulp of kvass
Out at a gefilte event, modern Jewish soul food, like my knishes. Met some nice people, tasted some nice nibbles.

DINNER: 8:45pm, a few baby carrots, angel hair pasta with homemade sauce and romano, water, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Not whole wheat, but need to eat through the remaining stuff in the cupboard. Slurped down about 6oz of the stuff, 3x the box recommendation. Hey, it's the weekend!

Toast, Frenched

Woke up, entertained the tots while making some nice breakfast, then got them wrapped up and strapped into the double stroller for a nice cold journey to the East River. Betsy & Edie were a little feverish, so I stayed in for the rest of the day.


TODAY'S COOKING
French Toast: 2 cups of whole milk, 4 eggs, 2oz vanilla sugar, big pinches of cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Splash of vanilla extract. Clarified a stick of butter for frying. Cut last night's challah into 1" pieces. Fried on low heat to get a nice golden color and firm the centers.

AM SNACK: 7:45am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 8:45am, french toast, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Edie wasn't sure what to make of the french toast, wanted pancakes. :( I cut her small piece into quarters and she hesitantly nibbled a piece. She looked at me with the sweetest, questioning, innocent look, then looked away at the TV and took another bite. "So, Edie, did you like it?" Pause. "Yeah." I looooove her soooo much!

LUNCH: 12:45pm, 2 hotdogs with caramelized onions & mustard, pickles, 7oz ginger ale, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
I intended to have 1 hotdog and baby spinach salad, but after dressing the last of the spinach with carrots dressing, the first bite revealed that the dressing started to turn. So I threw it out, and said, hey, it's a Tom Cruisian weekend, shouldn't beat myself up.

PM SNACK: 3pm, 2 chocolate pudding ramekins with whipped cream, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 7:45pm, baby carrots with a little ranch dressing, Singapore noodles, roti canai, water, a few alphabet cookies, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 10pm, a few whole wheat pretzel sticks, a piece of dried sausage, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Feeling Chocolate Pudding

A day in constant motion. Woke up, got the laundry together, took Edie down to the laundry to get it in, took Edie to school, got home, ran out for some infant Tylenol for a slightly feverish Mil (due to the vaccines he received yesterday), got the laundry in the dryer, say goodbye to Betsy, lift weights, make smoothie, get laundry & put it away, go to Wholefoods for supplies, make chocolate pudding and whipped cream, out to Union Square for follow up about my kidney stones, home cooking labor intensive risotto, entertain a Sabbath dinner with friends, dance party with toddlers, clean up, watch a bad movie, sleep.

Urologist didn't give me any new info, asked if I drank pots of coffee a day. -sigh-. I have another scan and a follow up later in the month, hopefully it'll be more conclusive.

TODAY'S COOKING
Chocolate Pudding & Whipped Cream: Used this recipe, though ignored the technique, just wanted proportions. (I did double the sugar, it seemed too low and I was right -- this is still not a very sweet pudding) Tossed everything in a pot except the cold butter, turned heat up low, and whisked until it thickened. Turned off heat, put the pot in an ice bath while continued to whisk, and hit it with the butter to get a nice glossy sheen. Once it seemed reasonably cool, spooned into ramekins, covered with plastic and into the fridge. 3/4 of a pint of heavy cream into the stand mixer, about 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and scrapings of 2 vanilla beans. Whipped until stiff peaks.

Mil was at my feet distracting me, and I found that the pudding was not perfectly smooth - it had a few tiny little lumps in it. This was probably from getting the pudding too hot, too fast -- a feel thing. If I make it again, I'll probably get it right.


Filet of Sole, Roasted Brussels & Mushroom Risotto: Betsy wanted this meal again, so why not. Nice white fillets on a sheet pan with pats of butter and Old Bay, broiled for about 8 minutes. (The next morning, looking through my c-school recipes looking for french toast, found several recipes for fillet of sole, I regret not using them -- this simple broiling method is my mom's style, what I grew up with. I should of dredged in flour and spices, pan sauteed, finished with a little pan sauce or supremes of lemon!) Brussels halved and coated with olive oil, salt and pepper, roasted at 425 for 20 minutes until soft in the middle and charred outside. The risotto was the same as last week, except swapped out parm for asagio, went a little heavier on the sherry to compete with the cheese's funk.

AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 10am, smoothie

AM SNACK: 11:30am, spinach empanadas, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 3:45pm, Sicilian slice, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER:  6:45pm, filet of sole, mushroom risotto, brussels, 2 small pots of chocolate pudding and whipped cream, half glass of wine, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 9pm, small amount of sesame whole wheat pretzels

Springing

A beautiful day out. After Mil's 4 month check up, brought him out to Roosevelt Island, where he rolled over by himself for the first time on the grass on the north end of the Island. Picked up Edie, spent an hour in the local park with lots of other friends and families. Spring is on the edge of, umm, springing!

BREAKFAST: 8:45am, homemade pumpernickel bagel with cream cheese, iced green tea, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 11:45am, homemade granola bar, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


LUNCH: 2:30pm, shrimp fried rice, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
At a hole in the wall dumpling place in Chinatown, $5 got a big tray of fried rice, maybe 2 lbs worth. I used to really like the large amount for few $, but now it seemed clownishly large. So I ate half, but ate all the shrimp in it. I noticed two things as the cook made the dish in the open kitchen -- he took a bunch of raw shrimp and cooked it in boiled water before adding to the stir fry, and he added a white powder to the cooking. The shrimp is always wonderfully tender and freshly cooked here, and the rice is yummy because that white powder is what I know to be MSG. Not too much like a Dorito, but enough to make the food memorablely different than the typical Chinese take out that trumpets proudly, "NO MSG".

DINNER: 6:15pm, grilled cheese on whole wheat, baby spinach with slivered almonds and carrots dressing, a fistful of Purim cake and chocolate, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Had a variety of cheeses left over from a school tasting. Put Ementaller and Gruyere on mine, with a shmear of caramelized onion, buttered the bread. Fried in grill pan, with a heavy copper pot pressing it. Oh my, I understand why these can be addicting -- crunchy, oozy, salty, fatty. I stopped at one, thank goodness. I could definitely make myself sick on these. The whole wheat bread is definitely on  a fig leaf on it's unhealthiness, though it did give a nice nutty note.

Several packages of sweet stuff showed up on our door from the religious neighbors, so rather than wait and get hungry for another sammich, I slammed some coffee cake and some milk chocolate down and I was right as rain. Threw out the balance of the sweets, didn't feel bad about it, either.

Pill Pop

Around 9am, my kidney started hurting, similar to last week. I managed to stick to my schedule and go out with Mil and do a few chores. By 11am, the pain went from a 2/10 to around 6/10 and realized even though it was slower than the attack last week, I didn't know how bad it would get. So I cancelled class, popped the pain pills and when the baby sitter came at 1, I napped until 4pmish. Woke up groggy but free of pain -- I guess it was only a slight return, not a full on event.

Funny, the warm nice feeling the pill gave me also made my hunger return and had a decent lunch. To groggy and out of sorts to cook, so I ordered in dinner -- looks like I'll be cooking for guests Friday instead of ordering in anyway, so it's balanced. Betsy and her mom don't like fish or Japanese food, so it's a rare privilege nowadays.

AM SNACK: 7:45am, iced green tea

PILL POP: 11am, oxycodone, ibuprofin

LUNCH: 12:30pm, 4oz whole wheat spagetti with sauce & grated parm, baby carrots, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Still amazed that 4oz of dry pasta is 2x the serving size, 4x the FDA serving size.

DINNER: 7pm, sushi, tempura, small green salad, 7oz ginger ale, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, chocolate chips & almonds, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 10pm, whole wheat pretzel rods, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Veggie Burger Horror

Woke up pleasantly sore from weights. Healthy lunch, but going to Red Hook to teach threw off my eating, though it was fun. I need to remember to eat a proper meal when I get home from teaching, rather than letting it build.


AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 10am, corn chex with organic dead milk, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 11:45am, sardine & avocado on whole grain toast, baby spinach with carrot dressing, 7oz ginger ale, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 4pm, grape soda, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

SCHOOL SNACK: 6:30pm, a few small slices of poorly made pizza, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 9pm, whole wheat pretzel rods with nutella, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 10:30pm, veggie burger on whole grain bun, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
My god, Betsy likes these Dr. Praeger California-Style veggie burgers, but they are D-gust-ING. Mushy potato patty with corn and cut green beans studding it for a thoroughly un-burger-like experience. I finished it because I didn't want to be wasteful, but I should start looking at veggie burger labels, and see if any of the more burger-like ones are acceptably healthy.

Fish Fail

Reps are going a little on weight routine, look forward to doubling the original amount so I can cut them back and increase the weight.

TODAY'S COOKING:
Scrod with Chorizo: I was going to cook up a frozen breaded tilapia in the freezer, but the more I thought about how it tastes versus the fresh scrod I picked up the other week, the thought of the freezer fish seemed much less appealing. So Edie & Milli Mil & I swung by the market on the way home from picking Edie up from school. Last time, I prepared it simply, butter and Old Bay, and broiled it for 5 minutes.

This time, I cut up my half-link of chorizo into thin slices, quartered the slices and scattered them on top of the fillet. Added a few pats of butter, and roasted at 400 for 10 minutes (unlike last week, this was a thicker piece). I thought the chorizo's salty/smokey/fatty make up would give the fish a big taste, but it wasn't nearly as salty, smokey or fatty as I thought and the fish was quite underwhelming. I imagine the technique used in the fish I've eaten in high-end restaurants that involve little bits of sausage are a little bit more sophisticated than what I did. Next time I attempt to flavor a roasted fish with a sausage, gonna refer to a recipe for technique first.

AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 10am, hardcore granola, an apple, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 12:30pm, left over whole wheat rotini with mushroom, spinach and onion, a pickle, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
This had to be twice the suggested serving, but it didn't seem excessive. For pasta 3 or 4 days old, tasted surprisingly spritely and fresh. I think the siraccha kick it has somehow helped preserve it.

PM SNACK: 4:30pm, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 6pm,  Baked Scrod with chorizo, roasted brussel sprouts, brown rice mix, 7 oz ginger ale, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 7pm, 7oz ginger ale

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, graham crackers with nutella, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, whole wheat pretzel rods, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Crowded out

A good Sunday -- got to read the paper in the morning, took the train uptown with Edie for some time in Central Park and a kiddie orchestra concert with a friend & her kid in the afternoon. Got some time alone in the late afternoon doing the week's food shopping.

Not a good eating day, but it was my "day off", and despite a horrible (but very much appreciated) indulgent dinner of unhealthiness, I'm looking at this list and seeing how very healthy stuff on hand is crowding out lesser choices. Whole grain home made bagels, home made granola bars, green tea, carrots, competing with the McD's and the frozen pizza.

AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:15am, homemade pumpernickel bagel with a little marscapone, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
My bagel is not as bad as I original feared, look forward to making a much improved 2nd batch. 100% whole grain, and vegan to boot!


AM SNACK: 10am, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: noon, honey-roasted almonds, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Strolling near the Poet's Walk in Central Park, seemed like the healthiest option. Very sweet and crunchy, definitely not light on the sugar. Almond flavor was very muted against the sugar.

LUNCH: 2:30pm, filet-o-fish sandwich, fries, diet coke, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
First Ave in below 72nd St. I just needed the  convenience of an uncrowded, simple experience that Edie would be comfortable and chill in. McD's got my number, I'm an unwonderful parent. :(

DINNER: 7:45pm, Stouffer's Frenchbread pizzas, baby carrots, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, chocolate chips & peanuts, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Unbalanced

Walked over to Williamsburg with Mil to hang out with MAP, cooked in the afternoon and J came over in the late afternoon for dinner and play with the little ones. Didn't eat enough in the first half of the day, ate a bit too much in the second half.

TODAY'S COOKING
Mushroom Risotto:  Got the ol' recipe cards from c-school out. Rehydrated a pack of porcinis in 5 cups of water, along with some portabella stems and bay leaves, reserved the liquid to cook the risotto. Minced a pack of portabellas and the porcinis in the food processor, sauteed with a little olive oil until dry, held aside. Sauteed 3 minced shallots in olive oil until soft, added a few cloves of minced garlic for a minute, added 1.5 cups of arborio rice to coat. Tossed in 1/2 cup of white wine, cooked a sec. Then stirred in a ladel of the mushroom stock one at a time and constantly stirred the rice until all 5 cups were absorbed. Finished with a 1/4 cup of nice sherry, 3 tbsp of marscapone, a half cup of parm and tablespoon of cold butter, a big pinch of minced parsley, some salt.

I considered using a brown arborio rice, but every thing said while healthier, it is not good for risotto, doesn't exude the starch for the right creaminess. Hey, it's Saturday!


AM SNACK: 7:15am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 8am, corn chex & organic dead milk, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


AM SNACK: 9:30am, darjeeling tea, chocolate au pain, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 1pm, spinach salad with carrot ginger dressing & slivered almonds, a few slices of chorizo sausage, water, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
Visited Marlow & Daughters on the walk with MAP, picked up a few interesting dry sausages -- figure it'll add some excitement to my regular salad intake.

PM SNACK: 2:45pm, whole wheat ritz and nutella, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 5:30pm, mushroom risotto, roasted brussel sprouts, water, 1.25 bowl, hunger 3/5
The afternoon snack kinda destroyed my appetite. Shoulda had more for lunch.


EVENING SNACK: 8pm, a cup of mushroom risotto, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, leftover hamburger, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

McNoah's

Woke up tired. Got laundry done, a walk to Wholefoods. Spent an hour at the playroom with the chillun' and grandma. Between the bagels in the morning and prepping potatoes and meat in the afternoon, a good cooking day, though not a great eating day. I intended to eat spinach in the afternoon, but too busy, and the sushi tray from Wholefoods filled me up.

One good thing about the high-fat, high-calorie dinner is that I didn't desire any snacks after, and I was able to get to bed by 9pm without much of struggle.

TODAY'S COOKING
Pumpernickel Bagels: The dough didn't rise much in the fridge, but it did rise maybe by 50%. I divided the dough into 12 4oz portions, rolled and formed into circles. Laid them out on sheet pans, and let them sit in the warm kitchen for a second rise. A very distinct smell of alcohol, which is good, the yeast is eating and peeing and pooing in the dough, hopefully it would puff up nicely.

They didn't puff much, and I was left with rather large wholes surrounded by pretzel-like bagels. It reminded me of some dense German wholegrain bread


Burgers n' fries: Instead of ordering in something unhealthy when momma-in-law is over, decided to cook something unhealthy. Couldn't bother finding my c-school recipe for proper fries, so just followed this, close enough. Pound of 85% lean chop meat, grated half an onion into it, a few dashes of Worcestershire, salt & pepper, let come to room temp before frying in butter.

Fries came out pretty good, I cut them a little thicker than I thought, might have been a cross between a string cut and a steak cut, more soft insides to crisper, browner outside. Took great satisfaction in deep-frying Betsy's veggie burger, rather than the usual zap in the micro.


AM SNACK: 8:15am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:15am, hardcore oatmeal, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 11:30am, pumpernickel bagel with cream cheese, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5m


LUNCH: 12:30pm, brown rice nori rolls with tuna and salmon, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 6pm, 2 burgers, fries, a little ginger ale, pint of grenadine soda, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Holy crap, my soda is a great after-dinner apertivo / palate cleanser after such a gut-busting heavy meal.

Pump der nickel, bagel!

226.8-->228.2--->228.0

Not a significant change, easily attributed to my light eating the last few days due to the kidney stone. Still, I do feel stronger and my muscles a little more defined under my layer of blubber. 

A hard night, as Edie has some gastric distress waking her up all night long. I was a bit restless myself, got to bed 1amish and woke up every few hours to feed Milli Mil.

Finished the course of antibiotics last night, so today will be my first drug-free day since Monday. Lifted weights this morning, and despite a sore back, it did not effect the activity -- the soreness is kidney-related, not muscle related. On the attempted pull-ups, I moved maybe a couple of inches, which is a couple of inches more than I could when I started.

Could not fall asleep until 2:30ish, I think the lack of ibuprofin made my achy back stick out in my mind a bit more.

TODAY'S COOKING
Pumpernickel Bagel Dough: What should a pumpernickel bagel taste like? After reading 5 or 6 recipes running the gamut, I'm still not sure but guess that rye and molasses should be in there. Annoyed by the breakfast bagel, pulled out some ingredients then found a recipe that matched what I had on hand. I substituted equal parts whole rye flour and whole wheat flour for the three-flour mix they recommend, and added salt to the flours rather than the wet. Upon kneading in the machine, found it waaaaay too wet and added a cup of whole wheat flour. Still seemed wet but now it pulled away from the walls of the bowl, so I let it go for 15 minutes, knowing as the grains hydrated deeper, the dough would become wetter and looser -- something I've learned the hard way and killed a stand mixer or two while making bagels. Still too wet, added a cup of whole grain rye and let it go for another 10. (I wish this stupid recipe used liquid measures instead of dry.) Tossed in a tablespoon of caraway seeds during kneading -- it just smells like the pumpernickel bagels I remember as a kid, and I'd rather have them stud the bagel rather than coat the top.

The recipe calls for a quick 1 hour rise to double, but instead I stored the dough in the bowl with a loose damp towel on top in the fridge. Gonna let it go until tomorrow and see what happens. With pizza dough (another high-gluten, tough and chewy bread product), a slow cold rise allows the fermentation to really give a lot of flavor to the final product.) I guess I'll be baking these off tomorrow.

AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 10:15am, pumpernickel bagel with cream cheese, water, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
Really tasting the bagel, it's....not that great. It fills me up, but it's not pumpernickelly enough, and I assume they're not using whole grains in it.

PM SNACK: 12:45pm, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


LUNCH: 2:30pm, falafel platter, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 6:45pm, baby carrots with carrot dressing, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 7:15pm, 2 broc-cheddar knishes, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 8:30pm, chocolate chips & almonds, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 2am, 6 whole grain chicken nuggets, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Gobble 'em up!

Woke up with a sore spot where my right kidney, a slight headache, and a dehydrated cotton mouth (though I drank 3 quarts of water yesterday), but not in pain. Glad I skipped the oxy last night, don't wanna be hooked on no hillbilly heroin...and I want those pills on hand in case I do have another bout! Gobble 'em up, there all gone!

Rough night, as Edie didn't feel like eating during the day, but found her appetite several times in the middle of the night. I was up around 5:45, half awake feeding Mil, fortunately B came in at some point and let me sleep for another 1.5 hours.

B went back to work, Edie is in school, today try to get back to normal. Before the sitter came at one, just focused on chores, the laundry & the litter, making breakfast, looking after Milli Mil. Laid on the couch for most of the rest of the day. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be returning to full strength.


AM SNACK: 7:45am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 10am, smoothie, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Well, I blended this one longer than the last, and the hard nits have reappeared, oh well. Made a double batch so I could freeze up some "noisey ice cream" for Edles.

LUNCH: noon, small slice of cold pizza, baby spinach with slivered almonds & carrot dressing, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 1:15pm, popcorn, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 6:15pm, whole wheat rotelle with vegetables & wine, pint of grenadine soda, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Had some veg that I bought to make lentils, but the recent health scare put a crimp on my cooking. Softened a minced onions, cooked down a box of sliced criminis, added 3 cloves of minced garlic and a couple of cups of frozen chopped spinach. Cooked it down for a few minutes, added dry oregano and basil,  a squirt of Worcestershire, a squirt of sirracha and then a couple cups of white wine, cooked down until it was wet, not soupy. Turned off heat, salted to taste and slapped a cold pat of butter on and stirred it around. It was good, the mushroom, wine and spicy sirracha dominated the flavors, but the onion and dried spices did a nice back ground note.


EVENING SNACK: 8pm, chocolate chips & almonds, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

On the couch

Woke up at 4:45am to go to the bathroom, felt fine. Woke again an hour later with the pain enough to rouse me, so I took the pain killers. That was almost 9 hours without popping a pill, they are supposed to be good for 6 to 8 hours. Got a baby sitter, spent the day on the couch waiting for what's next, hitting the pills around 1pm

Cancelled today's class, as I just don't know what to expect. Made an appt with a specialist one week from Friday, and spoke to my generalist about whats going on. Unless I catch the stone when it comes out, we're probably not going to know what caused this, or the likelihood of a recurrence. If we know what it's made out of, I can perhaps change my diet or habits. For now, after today, I'm gonna go back to how I was eating -- I just don't think I'm getting THAT much calcium from baby spinach.

Took an ibuprofin before bed but skipped the oxy, hoped I wouldn't wake up in the middle of the night in agony....


AM SNACK: 5:45am, banana and a bunch of pills


BREAKFAST: 10am, small amount of hardcore oatmeal, .25 bowl, hunger 2/5

LUNCH: noon, ham & swiss on whole grain bread, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 4:15pm, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 5:30pm, cheeseless eggplant hero, small number of fries, dairy-free tofutti ice cream cone, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Funny, I used to think this was a healthy meal -- hey, it's meatless! Now all I see is fried breading, not enough vegetables, fiber-free white bread and a total lack of nutritional value. Until a doc says otherwise about my stones, gonna go lighter on dairy.

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, another tofutti ice cream cone, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Is a morphine drip at 6:15am technically an AM snack?

Woke up at 4:45am feeling warm and an achy back. Went to the bathroom with an eye to go right back to bed, but instead the pains continued to grow and throb. Tried sitting up in the kitchen, tried lying down in the living room. Sipped some water, felt dizzy from pain, went to the bathroom and tried to throw up, but nothing came up. With steady rising pain, decided not to find out where this was going to end without a professional and Betsy called me a cab and I went to the emergency room.

It's a good thing, because by the time I got there, I could barely stand, talk or see straight -- pain like I had never had before (and hopefully never again.) The doc pushed and prodded me, nothing hurt where she pushed, and she said it was probably kidney stones. Then, my first morphine drip, then a trip to the cat scan. Kidney stone confirmed, I was out of there around 8am feeling quite warm and fuzzy.

Spent the day buzzing on pills, some discomfort but compared to the morning's 10/10 pain, the afternoon lingered at 1 or 2.

So how did this happen? I'll be meeting with a urologist later in the week, but I can't help but think my first ever kidney stone was probably related to a) stress and b) diet. Though I don't write it up here, I usually take in 2 quarts of water a day (that's 8 cups for those not up on your kitchen maths), not including the 2 cups of iced tea I get in. Is it my heavy hand with salt? Perhaps all the calcium I've been eating in my now-regular baby spinach salads? It'll be interesting to hear with the doc says when I present him with a list of everything I ate for the entire month of February! Thing is, I've been feeling pretty great and eating relatively well since my illness over the holidays, this whole episode is catching me a bit by surprise.

I went to the same emergency room I took my dad when he had complications from surgery, same one I met my parents in when he had his first major fall & stroke. Same hospital where they had hospice care and passed away. I never had an IV drip in my arm before, and I hate needles -- the idea of putting a needle in and leaving it there would usually make me queazy, but I was so racked in agony that I just didn't care, if it would take the pain away. Once that morphine hit, I was staring at the emergency room ceiling, thinking ahhh, this is what my parents saw when they were here! Hi mom! Hi dad! Very odd, made me feel a little closer to them, it was comforting, even though I usually get a little bummed every time I bike or bus by this hospital.


BREAKFAST: 9am, hardcore oatmeal, water, oxycodone, ibuprofin, flomax & cipro, .25 bowl, hunger 3/5


NOON SNACK: noon, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 3pm, baby carrots, ritz crackers, xtra strong ibuprofin, .25 bowl, hunger 2/5
Not hungry, but the pill had to be taken with food.

DINNER: 5:45pm, pizza with mushroom & meatball, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

Sans Recipe

It just occurred to me if I can add a tablespoon to heavy cream and let it stand at room temp to make cream fraiche (a fancy french term for mild sour cream), why can't I save a load of money by inoculating milk with a buttermilk starter and make my own buttermilk? Next quart of $5.75 buttermilk I get, I'm going to freeze into cubes, and add a cube to room temp whole milk and let it sit for a day, should turn into perfectly fine buttermilk at around 1/4 to 1/2 the cost, AND be fresher. I'm assuming the live bacteria will go dormant in the freezer, and whatever dies will be minor...

TODAY'S COOKING
Pancakes: We had three couples with kids coming over, but for some reason I decided to experiment with the recipe anyway. I saw a little piece on TV about Clinton St. Baking, who are known for their pancakes. I've had them, and it's immediately clear what is up -- the density of the fat in the pancake is leavened with whipped egg whites, very French. The chef/owner pretty much cops to it, telling a story of how he worked in a fancy French place years ago, and the chef wanted to do an Americanized brunch service. It was up to him to make the pancakes, so he just took their crepe recipe and added flour.

So like last time, I added a pint of cream fraiche to the quart of buttermilk for the liquid, as well as 2oz of melted butter, 3 scrapings of vanilla beans and instead of 3 whole eggs, 5 egg yolks. Dry side was 24 o flour, 3 oz sugar, tbsp of baking powder and salt, 1/2 tsp of baking soda, shake of cinnamon. I beat the five egg whites to stiff peaks and folded it in, once the dry met the wet. (I let the eggs come to room temp over night -- warm egg whites hold air much better than cold whites.) The fluffy batter sat for about 30 minutes before I started cooking them off.

Pancakes came out surprisingly well, and despite making over 50 pieces, almost all of them went with lots of compliments. Upon reflection, this is now one of the few dishes I make that I can honestly say there was no way I could have made it successfully or easily sans-recipe without going to culinary school.

BREAKFAST: 8:30am, chocolate covered coffee beans, water
Forgot to refrigerate the cooling iced tea, so I skipped it. Hey, it's Tom Cruise Sunday!

BRUNCH: 11:30am, handful of pancakes, about 1 donut, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Guests brought the donuts, one jumped down my throat. Thanks, Tom Cruise!


PM SNACK: 5pm, large spinach salad with slivered almonds and carrot dressing, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 6:15pm,  whole grain chicken nuggets, brown rice mix, pint of grenadine soda, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
I was about to have broiled scallops, but the glass pirex pan exploded when it tapped the cool edge of the oven while I was removing it. I picked up some brown basmanti rice mixed with wild rice, rye berries and wheat berries, tasted nice.


EVENING SNACK: 8pm, corn chex with organic dead milk, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 10:15pm, graham crackers with a bit of nutella, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Windy Saturday

A mellow day. Mil & I got out the door around 10 to visit K in Park Slope. We took a nice walk around Prospect Park in the sunny wind -- I actually saw a whole lot of park I've never seen before. Stopped by a much better than it should have been Thai restaurant on 5th Ave before heading home.

Got a pint of cream on the way home. Inoculated it with a tablespoon of buttermilk and left it out overnight, to have cream fraiche for the pancakes tomorrow morning...

TODAY'S COOKING:
Iced Tea: Had the last pint of the old batch this morning, made another couple of gallons (5oz of tea steeped in a gallon of simmered water spiked with 1/4 cup sugar,  just turned off heat, 5 minutes then left to cool to room temp before hitting the chill box.) It occurred to me that I've been buying green tea randomly and sometimes I really like it sometimes it's a bit too woody and hard. The Houjicha that I'm using right now is pretty good, right in the middle of woody, flowery and just nice n' greeny.


AM SNACK: 8am, iced green tea

AM SNACK: 10am, granola bar

AM SNACK: 11:15am, slice of date nut bread, handful of raw almonds, hot tea

LUNCH: 2:30pm, Thai salad, fried tofu, string beans and pork in a curry with sticky rice, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 8pm, baby carrots with carrot dressing, potato chips, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 9:30pm, peanuts & chocolate chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Gryadon, Anais & Roo

Last day of Edie's school's winter break! Joined B & his two similarly aged chillun' for a bus ride to the far west side to visit the Children's Museum of Art. Definitely a different crowd -- the kid's names were Graydon, Lulu, Anais, Roo and Honere, among others. Seriously.

Slow walk home with two sleeping bebes, spent the afternoon making dressing and keeping on top of the tots. When grandma arrived around 5, I got a quick weight lifting session in. This time Edie didn't try to get on my back, but still did a few downward-facing dog poses while I did push ups.

I did detect something in the Chinese food, but it might have been natural umami rather than MSG -- if they added MSG, it was a lot more subtle. After eating much more MSG elsewhere, I can can say with certainty that whatever it is that makes Chinese food make people sleepy, it ain't MSG. I crawled into bed and passed out around 10pm. Children: Better than MSG for sleep.

Considering color coding my entries again. Looking at today, everything until dinner is green, everything after is red, he he.

TODAY'S COOKING:
 Carrot dressing: Used this recipe again, despite thinking I can improve it -- thing is, I had all the ingredients on hand, why not just use it up? Made a triple batch, used my stored caramelized onions in replace of the 1.5 raw onions I didn't have, shouldn't hurt it at all. Unless it spoils, this should guide my spinach and momma salads for the next week or two.

BREAKFAST: 7:45am, iced green tea, hardcore oatmeal, banana, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Actually set the oatmeal up last night, simmered for a minute and put in the fridge until this morning.


PM SNACK: 12:15pm, 2 homemade granola bars, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Walking home from the far west side, glad I had this in my pocket to keep my hunger in check. Was tempted by various food trucks and restaurants, particularly when both babies were asleep, but figured we'd be ordering in food with my momma-in-law, so best keep it on the healthy tip....

LUNCH: 1:45pm, whole wheat pasta with homemade sauce and a little parm, baby carrots with carrot ginger dressing, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Eating for 1, Edie already taken care of, so I measured out 4 oz -- twice the recommended portion size on the box. It was a good moderately large entree portion in my eyes, how 1/4 of this could be a USDA portion boggles my mind. With the carrots, this was a satisfying lunch but I could have eaten twice as much just from habit.

DINNER: 6:15pm, curry beef over veg fried rice, shrimp toast, a spring roll, 2 cans of Sprite, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
This seems to be becoming a tradition - a good tradition - of some sinful but convenient delivery food with grandma and the whole family. Once a week, I can deal, Tom Cruise style. Though I probably 


EVENING SNACK: 7pm, wonton soup, a little veg lo mein, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, peanuts & chocolate chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Just add an orange is all?!

The only two breakfasts in my repertoire which are super healthy is the hardcore oatmeal and the smoothie -- everything else needs rethinking. Googled "healthy breakfast options"this morning and came up with these scary top 10 lists published by dumb wimmin's magazines. A McDonald's Egg McMuffin with the top thrown out, and the addition of a friggin orange - seriously yo? Today's breakfast, Greek yogurt, is helped along with the almonds -- perhaps I should consider reducing or replacing the honey with fresh fruit.... I should also make the time to bake my own hardcore multi whole grain bagels...

Got out the door with the 2 tater tots around 9:30 and went to Brooklyn to visit C and her 2 yr old Autumn. C is great, we are of similar minds on a lot of things, and we both thought nothing would be more fun than making lunch -- pizza from scratch. We made a quick dough soon after I arrived to give it time to rise for an hour, and topped it with various simple stuff out of the fridge. Not gourmet or blog-worthy, but still better (and definitely healthier) than 85% of the store bought frozen pizzas out there. We rolled out to a playground in the afternoon, and popped into a cafe for tea and cake before we headed back home.


Both kiddles asleep when I got off the train, popped in the local market and picked up a quart of good buttermilk for pancakes this weekend and a nice piece of scrod for dinner.

AM SNACK: 8am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9am, yogurt with honey, vanilla and almonds, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


LUNCH: 12:30pm, homemade whole wheat pizza, half glass of black cherry soda, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 3pm, chocolate cupcake, green tea, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 6:30pm, broiled scrod with butter and old bay seasoning, brown rice, spinach salad with slivered almonds and carrot tofu ginger dressing, pint of grenadine soda, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Brought home a solid 2/3 lb piece of fish. That's around 11 oz, about twice the recommended portion, but I wanted to eat a big dinner to hopefully cut down on cravings. Last night was an exception because I know the slow creep of calorie deficit that a long bike ride can bring (I should strategize for that in the future, rather than depend on chips!)

Though the dressing isn't there, it's easily the best of the bunch so far. The white bean dip was too gritty, the babaganoush too non-descript, the curry carrot dip too pasty. Contemplating how to refine -- perhaps replace tofu with tahini? Cook carrots before blending to make smoother?

Add vanilla extract to my grenadine syrup, gave a nice cream soda undertone to the proceedings.

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, potato chips, .25 bowl


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, chocolate chips and peanuts, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Early Summer in mid-February

Woke up to various children at 6:30am, good thing I put myself down at 10 or I'd have a problem f'sure. Pleasantly sore in the chest and shoulders, undoubtedly partially due to Edie crawling on my back as I did push ups.

This morning we hosted a playdate for classmates and friends who are also out of school because of the winter break. I served up the broc-cheddar knishes (quartered), juice boxes and a pitcher of lime rickey, as well as some grapes and the momma salad (composed a bit, not just a jumble.)It went well, it was a lot mellower than it could have been.

Being that I do not have to teach this week, when the sitter came, I got spandexed up and road out to Coney -- it was in the mid 50s and sunny, very odd for mid February. Felt a lot stronger than I thought I'd be for being off the bike so long, the weights must be helping.

Got home and started cooking, forgot to eat spinach salad! D'oh!


AM SNACK: 7am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 8:15am, 2 whole wheat waffles, banana, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACKING 10-12:30pm: baby carrots, a cookie, a broc cheddar knish, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 1pm, lentils over white rice, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
A parent contributed this lentil stew and white rice, not very child-accessible but when everyone had left and I found myself hungry and harried with cleaning, there it was -- that's why she brought it, not for the guests, but for the host, he he. I'm not gonna critique such a thoughtful house gift, but it did make me want to reimagine it....


BIKE SNACK: 3pm, granola bar, water

BIKE SNACK: 4pm, small bag of funions, 16oz of gatorade, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
I used to like Funions when I was 8 or 9 years old.  The crappy bodega I stopped at to refuel didn't have corn chips, and this was a small quarter bag, so why not. The first thing I noticed when crunching on the first one was the overwhelming taste of....MSG. Hah! I almost wish I never tasted straight, unadorned MSG, now it jumps out at me like the pink elephant you're not supposed to imagine.


DINNER: 6:15pm, whole wheat spaghetti with homemade sauce, roasted brussel sprouts, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5 
Surprising how normal the whole wheat pasta tastes. It looks brown and grainy uncooked, but looked relatively white cooked. Taste-wise, I didn't taste much difference, especially when coated with sauce, but the bite was slightly different. Despite cooking it a minute past al dente, it still had a slightly crumbly element to the bite. Not enough to make it not-good, but different. Gotta stock up.

This round of sauce also is pretty good, definitely elevated by the cup of wine thrown into the aromatics and reduced.



EVENING SNACK: 8:30pm, potato chips


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, a small handful of cookies


EVENING SNACK: 9:30pm, more potato chips
Calorie deficit from the day's ride.

Terr-ifibling

Edie is off from school this week due to the President's Day holiday. B had off from work yesterday, but today it was me vs. the Terr(ific?)(ible?)(ifying?) Two. Once B left, I set up the weights, put Mil in a bumbo in his crib, and let Edie free range. She immediately gravitated to imitating me, first doing some stretches. Then when I started doing push ups, she crawled on to my back. Instead of doing my usual 20, I squeaked out about 10 with 30 pounds squirming on my back. Surprisingly, got through my routine smoothly. Edie thought my weight lifting was some sort of dance party, and insisted on listening to "Gotta Get Up" by Nillson over and over again while I worked out -- it actually helped. Mil remained chill, my exercises entertained Edie.

Made a smoothie and shared it with Edles, Mil soon went to nap and I got some laundry put away while Edie watched TV, got granola made and in the oven, took care of dishes, put stuff away as Edie scattered them about. Made myself and Edie lunch. Things got a little tense as we waited for the sitter, but once Mil was covered and we got on the bike to the train museum to play with Edie's favorite friend, all was well.

Got to bed at 10, blown out. This week is gonna be not the easiest.

TODAY'S COOKING:
Granola: Another batch with the idea of making bars in mind. Made a bigger batch, 6 cups of oats, 3 cups of nuts including cashews, slivered almonds,  pepitas, and for the first time, raw sunflower seed kernels. 4oz of dried shredded unsweetened coconut by weight (came to almost 2 cups by volume, double the original recipe, ha) Half cup of maple syrup, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup of olive oil, tablespoon of vanilla, heaping 1/2 teaspoons of cardamom and cinnamon, teaspoon of salt. Baked at 325 for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to promote even browning. 1/2 cup of chopped dried cherries mixed in once cooled.

AM SNACK: 8am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:30am, smoothie, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
I was busy bouncing Mil and feeding Edie a waffle to notice how long I let the smoothie blend for, perhaps 3 or 4 times longer than usual -- it actually cut down on the raspberry nit problem almost completely. Either that, or the raspberries floated to the top of the fruit bag and I'm working my way down it.


LUNCH: 11:30am, sardine & avocado on whole grain toast, health salad, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Edie running around, Mil strapped to me, somehow got lunch down...

PM SNACK: 12:30pm, handful of whole grain pretzels, liter of water

PM SNACK: 4pm, homemade granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
DINNER: 6pm, baby spinach with slivered almonds and carrot dressing, 2 slices of streetza, Jamaican beef patty, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Brought in dinner, as was too hungry and blown out from the day to cook. On a whim, got a beef patty from the pizza place, haven't had one in quite a while. I used to love these, and quickly discovered if I had more than one in a sitting I'd feel sick.  The crust is nice, flaky, savory. But the filling is weird, a loose smooth meat paste of indeterminate origin. It says beef, but really, it could be any meat that has been cooked for days and mixed with a very distinct spice combo. I had beef patties in Jamaica and the fillings are much more....distinct. I guess like pizza, this is a "NY style" beef patty.

EVENING SNACK: 8pm: raw almonds & chocolate chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Presidential Cooking

Alarm went off at 6 in the middle of some dream I was enjoying, so I turned it off and woke up at 8 to a toddler jumping up and down on my back, shouting "HOP ON POP!" Dr. Seuss, we need a word.

B was off from work today, so I bundled up Edie and we did a tour of the local supermarket. After getting stuff in, I started to cook, not letting up until after 3pm.


TODAY'S COOKING
Tomato Sauce: Softened two large diced onions in olive oil, tossed in 2 shredded carrots and one bunch of fresh thyme, simmered 10 min until very fragrant. 5 cloves of garlic crushed, 1 cup of white wine, full boil until very reduced. 4 cans of freshly milled whole tomatoes, one bunch of basil, chopped, salt.

Considered tossing in some MSG, but decided against it -- there was so much good stuff happening here, why risk it. When my dad would add his "secret" ingredient to his vat of home cooked sauce (a jar of store bought stuff), I wonder if it was the traces of MSG in that jar that made the difference....


Carrot Dressing: Looking for something to make straight raw spinach appealing, it ocurred to me the original reason I LIKE raw spinach was the salad at Dojo... They make a house-made carrot dressing that is pretty special. So I googled, and found this recipe, but after eating it with lunch, it's missing something. I only used it because it was the top google hit, I think the recipes that use tahini might be a little closer. Still, this was pretty good, except that the yield was a meager cup or so.


Broccoli Cheddar Knishes: As Edie is off this week, I'm hosting a playdate on Wedneday. This being Edie's favorite knish and I had a log of left over dough from last week, I made a couple dozen.


Momma Salad & Health Salad: Not gonna have a lot of free time to cook and prep this week, so just tossed these off to have on hand.

AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 11am, hardcore oatmeal, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


LUNCH: 2pm, baby spinach & slivered almonds with carrot dressing, 2 kasha knishes

DINNER: 6:15pm, 12" veggie burger on whole wheat hero, cool ranch doritos, sprite, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Stopped by Subway with Mil strapped to me sleeping, an evening walk to Whole Foods. I picked up the "Cool Ranch" Doritos because I remembered it had that distinct umami taste that I now know to be MSG. I used to think there must be some dehydrated buttermilk in there or something. I looked at the ingredients, and low and behold, once you get through corn and oils and sugars, the primary flavorant, before any cheese, buttermilk or herb or spice, is MSG. Well, there ya go. Tasting the chip, instead of tasting cool or ranchy or buttermilky, all I tasted was MSG. Ick. I did not finish the bag.


EVENING SNACK: 8:30pm, chocolate chips & almonds, water, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

A Vist to my bruddah, a visit to terrible eating

Rented a car and took the family unit up to Albany to visit my brother and his horde of hotten tots. As expected, my eating was horrible -- too busy getting the car and getting everything in order to feed myself properly, eating a bagel on the road to keep my stomach from chewing itself. We hit a McDonalds drive-thru outside of Albany and chowed in the parking lot, oh so American, I felt vastly underweight. Again, fast food on the thruway home. Weird, I actually feel a bit crappier from the day's eating, I would probably feel even worse tomorrow evening if I stuck to fast food. Looking forward to food shopping tomorrow and having a larder full o' fresh veg, healthy stuff and the like.

AM SNACK: 6:15am, iced green tea


AM SNACK: 9:45am, 1/2 a bagel, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


LUNCH: noon, 2 hamburgers, fries, 3 chicken nuggets, diet coke, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 1:30pm, 1/4 bagel with cream cheese, a cup of apple juice, a cupcake, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 4:45pm, 3/4 of a Pizzeria Uno "Pizza", handful of fries, diet coke, baggie of chocolate chip cookies, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

DINNER 2: 9pm, cheese tortellini with tomato, garlic, butter, dried herbs & MSG, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5 
Hungry, but nothing healthy or fresh on hand. So I tossed this dish together, and dossed it with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon MSG to see how it would be. It was that fine line between delicous and weird. As with when I tasted it straight, it left a weird meaty aftertaste for hours afte I had finished. MSG is STRONG. This big dish would probably could have used 1/4 teaspoon of MSG and still been fine.

Feelin' a Burito

After passing out on the couch last night at 7pm (thankfully grandma was around to assist with the kids so B didn't have cause for a conniption!) I transferred myself and a sleeping Milli Mil to bed around 8 and didn't wake until my alarm at 6:15. I guess 2 nights of poor sleep and a good day of weights and productivity (and heavy Chinese food) will set you up for a good sleep.

B stayed home, I strapped on Mil and strapped Edie to the light stroller, and set out to Westchester via subway and Metronorth to visit a friend and her family for the day. Eating involved a greasy spoon, but hey, it's the weekend and I'm kickin' it Tom Cruisian. I was tempted to order in in the evening, but it occurred to me that tomorrows loooong trip to see my brother would bring a lot of bad food, so I just raided the fridge and ate a knish that needed eating. Not the greatest meal, but calorie wise, probably half of what I would have consumed if I ordered in the burrito I was feelin'.

Woke up with pleasantly sore muscles, though I think maybe they should hurt a little more. I'm pushing as much weight as I can, but perhaps I should up my reps from 5 to 6 or 7.

AM SNACK: 6:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 7am, 4 banana pancakes, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5

BREAKFAST 2: 9am, 3/4 of a whole wheat bagel & butter, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
A little picnic on the Metronorth train with Edie, waiting for it to move. Food can be so much fun with the right context and the right sharer.


LUNCH: noon,  blueberry muffin, bacon, home fries,water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
It could have been a lot worse if I ordered a proper plate of food instead of sides. The plate of the "side" of homefries was at least 12 oz, and Edie's "children's" OJ was a good pint (I poured half out and replaced it with water -- Edie still wasn't able to finish it.)



PM SNACK: 4:45pm, granola bar, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 5:30pm, hot dog, coney-style knish, a little veg fried rice, 1  bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 8pm, ritz crackers, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Warm fuzzies

Got the laundry in early, felt better -- my neck isn't sore anymore, got a solid 7 hours sleep. Pushed it a little lifting weights, felt good. I doubt anyone but me can see it, but my muscles are feeling harder and a little swollen in a good, mass-building way. I'm hardly the Situation, but makes me look forward to the Spring to see how a bike handles under me with this additional core strength.

As I knew the in laws were coming over for a dinner that I was not to be cooking (i.e. ordering in), I was extra careful to eat healthy during the day to have some sort of balance...

Dinner was delicious in that comforting way, Chinese take out was a popular family meal with my parents, and it set a warm fuzzy blanket of tired on my right after I finished, passing out on the couch at 7pm.

AM SNACK: 7:45am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:30am, hardcore oatmeal, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Finished the can of McCann's, which I bought after getting sick - I guess that is a marker of time, I haven't gotten sick of this push for healthier eating yet! I also doubled up on the vanilla, salt, butter and brown sugar, as the last batch was tepid. MUCH better, and still relative low in this additions.

LUNCH: 12:15pm, breaded tilapia, baby spinach salad, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Breakthrough! I didn't have any baby carrots left to counter the mild chalky bitterness, and have been finding the bottled Italian dressing way too vinegary and strong. So I looked in the cupboard for an alternate and there it was: blanched slivered almonds!! A sprinkle of it gave the needed textural and flavor counterpoint to make the spinach pop to life AND it's a super healthy food. Huzzah! I dressed it with a little olive oil and a little balsamic, and it was mostly perfect -- perhaps a light sprinkle of salt would make it restaurant worthy.


PM SNACK: 2pm, apple

PM SNACK: 4pm, handful of whole grain pretzel sticks
Edie was running around with the bag in the playroom, it was impossible to resist sharing them with her.



DINNER: 6pm, roast pork & tofu in brown sauce over veg fried rice, shrimp toast, a couple of steamed vegetable dumplings, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Delivery with the family. My attitude is starting to emerge about bad-for-you food similar to alcohol and other similar activities -- it's only acceptable when done socially with friends or family.

Pasta pasta!

One of my chefs in c-school scolded me for plating way too much pasta on a plate -- he complained that American's relationship with pasta is WAY out of wack. At dinner this evening, I measured out 4oz of dry pasta out of the 1 lb box, it looked too meager. So I cooked up 8oz and....ate about half. Too bad the box says 2oz dry is a portion, and the USDA recommends a serving size of 1oz.

Funny, I never weighed out pasta before, always kinda made the whole box and whatever left overs there were, there were. I know in college when I was hungry, I could eat a full 1 lb box of pasta (cooked, of course) -- that's 8 portions, or 16 according to the govmint! Still, 1oz? It doesn't really indicate if that is a side dish size or a meal size. My stomach & mind are set for 4oz as a side dish, 8oz as a main. When I think of what I expect in a restaurant setting, this is actually on the smaller size (or if we're talkin' Olive Garden, REALLY tiny.) Regardless, I think the move is a) be more mindful of pasta portion size and b) start buying up every brand of whole wheat pasta and see if any are good. Worst comes to worst, I got pasta attachments, I can make it if none work out...

I think ending the day with a bit more than a small amount of sweet desert last night didn't help a good night's sleep, and I woke up a second time pretty exhausted. I almost set up for weight liftings, but realized I felt so low-energy, it would take twice as long for 1/2 the result. Just focus on sleeping tonight and doing it right tomorrow.

No appetite came to me for a while for  breakfast, and I left the house at noon before I was hungry for lunch. Had two nibbles out and about, one packed and one healthy enough. Held me over to a proper dinner time.


AM SNACK: 7:45am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 10:15am, smoothie, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Made a double batch, so Edie could have a new batch of "noisy ice cream" in the freezer.

PM SNACK: 1:15pm, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK 2:45pm, whole wheat spinach tofu empanada, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 6:15pm, baby spinach with baby carrots, shrimp and roasted brussel sprouts with angel hair pasta, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
I wanted a heavy meal because of my lack of a proper lunch, but limited myself to 4oz of pasta with extra brussels and extra shrimp. Hopefully cravings won't come and bite me on the butt...


EVENING SNACK: 8pm, potato chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
....chomp!


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, small bit of dark chocolate
.....CHOMP! A bit of Mast Brothers chocolate left over from a gift. Really weirdly bitter and fruity, not my cuppa tea.


EVENING SNACK: 10pm, left over pasta, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
.....CHOMPITY CHOMP CHOMP! I think that was another 3 or 4 oz down the hatch...

Kooking Knishes

Woke up just as sore as I did the day before, must have something to do with actually being at work for a full day. I was in the kitchen most of the day today, and noticed my lower neck is sore, making it a bit ouchy to fully turn my head. Hopefully that works itself out before tomorrow's weights.

I got into cooking today, so muh I kinda forgot to stop for lunch. That was a nice feeling - the being busy, not the skipping a meal, which is unhealthy in the scheme of things.

TODAY'S COOKING:
Knishes: Made a full spread, and a new one. Potato, deep fried potato, spinach-garlic, broccoli-cheddar, sweet potato, kasha, brisket and a chocolate hazelnut. I'll go into the making at length on my knish blog, but one thing that was notable was how hard it was to produce. I did not have baby help until 1pm, and keeping Mil chill made it hard to move forward. On top of that, I discovered in the morning I had 10 pounds of rotten potatoes so I ran out with Mil to get more. After I got back and tried to move forward, I realized I was short on eggs and went out once the help arrived.


AM SNACK: 8:45am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:45am, yogurt with peanuts, honey & vanilla, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 1pm, bite of chocolate hazelnut knish, water

PM SNACK: 4:30pm, potato knish, water, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 7:30pm, halves of 9 different knishes, a whole mess of macaroons, lime rickey, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

A Day at Work

Woke up pleasantly sore -- let's me know I'm not wasting my time and efforts in the weights. Babysitter came early and I made it to school at noon for some brownie-infused recruitment for the 2nd class I'm teaching starting in March. Spent the afternoon at the school cleaning and inventorying the supply closet, as we recently got a new funding source that allows us to buy all the supplies and equipment we need, then after a quick lunch out, taught from 4 to 7:30. Nice bike ride home in the dark, snuggles with Edie, a hodge podge dinner & TV.

AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:15am, organic cheerios with organic dead milk, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 3pm, lobster roll, a few chips, whoopee pie, sarsaparilla soda, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
This is the first time in a long time I had a proper 8 hour work day, so I treated myself to a nice lunch. Walked over to the Lobster Pound on Van Brunt. They gave me a complimentary whoopee pie (I guess I'm just charming or something) which was not what I needed, but it tasted good. It came with a bag of chips, which I ate one of then thought, "y'know, the grease and the calories are not worth the satisfaction I'll get from eating this." Between the soda and pie, it's already a lotta sugar, don't need the extra kick of the chips. And I was right, this was a very satisfying, decadent meal without the chips.

PM SNACK: 5pm, grape soda, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

SCHOOL SNACK: 7pm, farro & sausage, a bite of brownie, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
A big pot of food, but this kind of dish needs to sit in a fridge for a few days and thicken up before it's completely delicious.


DINNER: 9pm, whole wheat chicken nuggets, baby carrots, granola bar, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
It's late, I'm hungry, I don't wanna cook. Ate some of Edie's nuggets (well, I paid for 'em) and ate the granola bar I brought to school today but forgot to eat.

EVENING SNACK: 11pm, potato chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
I write how many "bowls" in each entry, to keep mindful of quantity, but this is the first time in a while I actually consciously used a smaller bowl to limit quantity. I filled the small bowl up to the top with chips, and it felt like a lot, but it was not.

Tom Cruisian

A bumpy night with waking babies and a cranky momma, but hey, it's Monday. Time to stick to my Tom Cruisian ideals of refocusing on healthy eating during the week, and eating whatever within reason on the weekends!

Granola bars are fab, though I forgot to add spirulina and flax to this batch. Cook's Illustrated has an article breaking down granola, which may make me reformulate the recipe I've been using for quite a while now. 

Lifted weights this morning, funny how a baby crying can motivate you to move harder/faster so you can go and stop them from crying!

TODAY'S COOKING
Brownies: Not for consumption, but for recruiting students tomorrow.  The standard recipe, replacing extract with bean scraping and doubling the salt.

Caramelized Onions: Baking a series of knishes on Wednesday, already have 4 cups worth of cooked onions from a month back (stored in the back of the fridge, still smell great), but don't want to be short handed. While Mil slept, chopped 6 lbs, salted and two big glops of shortening, 200 degree oven for about 6 hours, stirring every once in a while. If I'm caught short handed, it'll defintely effect the thing I like most about knishes -- a proper level of yummy cooked onion flavor.

Vanilla Extract: As I make this kitchen staple myself, I don't know if I've ever gone on at length about it. As I split and scrape beans, I put the used husks in a dark glass jar that's full of 180 proof vodka (that's 90% alcohol). When a good number of beans fill the jar, by that time about half the vodka has evaporated from opening and closing the wide-mouth jar. I place the contents in the blender and make a slurry. I strain the slurry through a cheese clothe covered chinois back into the jar. I fill it up with water, as the strength of the extract uncut is crazy-strong. It's still much, much stronger than any commercially available extract, so watering makes it go a lot farther with not really blunting it's pure vanilla punch. Even if this was standard strength stuff, a pint of it would cost 40 to 50 bucks -- my half pound of beans only cost $30, and after using the scrapings in all sorts of things, I end up making 3 or 4 pints of extract from it. Just about all my pastry, all my ice cream, all my smoothies and various other things get hit by vanilla in my kitchen, and buy buying in bulk and making extract, it's probably not only something that elevates my cooking over the scrum, it also is one of the biggest bangs for the buck. I should get some nice little jars and give it way as presents to my cooking-friendly friends...

AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:30am, smoothie, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
I don't mind that the spirulina makes the smoothie a really ugly shade of mud-blue, but the fruit mix with the nitty raspberries are a drag. A smoothie is suppose to be smooth, not slightly gritty! But down it went. I imagine if I tried to push the smoothie through a sieve, I might loose more than the nits, but it might be a worthy experiment regardless...

LUNCH: 12:30pm, sardine & avocado on whole grain sprouted toast, health salad, pickle, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 5:45pm, granola bar, water, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 7:45pm, hotdog with onions, mashed potato, baby spinach with bean dip, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, grenadine soda, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
I made myself a whole pint, but half of it was enough.

Mac n' Cheese, I quit you!

Mac n' cheese was one of those first dishes I made at home when I decided to focus on cooking in my life. I grew up with kraft dinner, and continued with it, making greasy casseroles with it in college. I started making real mac n' cheese with this recipe, and at first I deliberately adjusted it, and after c-school and learning the inside outs of roux and mother sauces, I kinda just wing it. Nowadays, I make it regularly every semester with my students, and make it once or twice at home every cold season.

However, I think mac n' cheese in my life is coming to a close. I ate a relatively small portion of it this evening, maybe 3" x 3" by 2" tall, had more chicken and brussels than mac by volume. (In the past I would eat maybe 4 to 5 times that much of mac in a sitting). Still, it was too rich for my system and ended in some discomfort (and I'll leave it at that!) In the end, mac n' cheese as a make it is just a block of creamy cheese. with some macaroni stuck in to give it some structure. Betsy loves it, Edles loves it, it's not going to waste for sure, but that's it for me. I'm too elderly for my mac n' cheese!

I'll still make it with my students and for my family, but I'll be limiting myself to small tasting portions when it's fresh and leave the left overs to others.

TODAY'S COOKING
Mac n' Cheese: Gotta make it once a winter. 3 lbs of cheese, 2 lbs of macaroni, a half gallon of whole milk -- after giving our guests a sizable brick to take home, we still have enough left overs to last a few weeks.


Chicken Nuggets: B asked me if I knew how to make nuggets, since I never made them before, and I had to laugh. Cut chicken breast into coins, standard breading procedure with panko bread crumbs (mixed with some mustard powder and smoked paprika), and deep fry until golden. Hit with some salt while hot. Not too sophisticated, but the kids dug it.


AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:30am, hardcore oatmeal, banana, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


BRUNCH: 11:45am, onion bagel with cream cheese, 3/4 of a donut, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 4:45pm, chicken nuggets, mac n' cheese, brussel sprouts, a donut, two glasses of beer, water, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, potato chips, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Superbowl of Banana Bread

Food shopping at Pathmark in the morning with Edie on the big bike, a nice play date at some friends we don't see often enough in the afternoon, a walk by the river, then an evening in with B's momma & some pizza ordered in. Over all good chill day in the 'hood with the family.

Not the greatest eating day, but I think the only way not to fall off the wagon is to loosen up (if not lighten up) on the weekends. I hear that Tom Cruise eats only what his team of nutritionists and cooks allow him during the week, but on the weekends he's off the hook and able to eat as many Scientology Crackers as he likes or something. I wonder if he would hire a guy like me to record everything he eats and write a witty blog about it.


AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9am, special k with organic dead milk, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 10:45am, cheese ravioli and spinach, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: noon, banana bread, pretzels & hummus, different cheeses, salumni & crackers, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
At friends house with the kids. We brought some banana bread as the host also made banana bread and ate them head to head -- too different to really compare. Really nice cheeses and salamis, ate lightly because a ton o' meat and cheese will kill my guts, but enjoyed it highly regardless.


PM SNACK: 3pm, baby carrots & white bean dip, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 5:45pm, 3 slices of streetza, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5

EVENING SNACK: 8pm, potato chips, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

Top of it

Busy day. Did the laundry in the morning, got out with Mil to visit MAP for hot chocolate, went downtown to do a secret special chore, got home by 1:15, made lunch, put away laundry, cleaned up house, picked up Edie, exchanged some clothes at a kids store, spent an hour at the playroom and changed multiple diapers, got everyone home and made dinner for everyone. Rushed but on top of it.

TODAY'S COOKING
Granola bars: In a small pot, a few glugs of maple syrup, quarter stick of butter and about a cup of almond butter. Once smooth, added 2 eggs, a glug of vanilla extract and a sprinkle of salt. Mixed it into yesterday's batch of granola, pressed it into a parchment lined glass pan, and baked at 300 for 20 minutes.

Banana Bread: Had 4 bananas on the edge of oblivion, so made up a recipe. Beat a stick of butter into 1/2 cup of white sugar and 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Added 2 eggs, the 4 bananas and a 1/4 cup of full fat fage. Teaspoon each of baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Turned to slow, added 1.5 cups of whole wheat flour. Baked at 350 for 1 hour. Came out weirdly dense but light, so moist almost to be mushy, just holding on by a thread.


AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 9:30am, hardcore oatmeal, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5

AM SNACK: 11:am, large mutzu apple
Looking for a snack in the farmer's market. My mind went to pretzels and whole wheat baked goods, but the farm stand of 15 different apple varieties caught my eye. This golden yellow apple was almost a pound, and was cold, crisp and seasonally perfect.


AM SNACK: 11:45am, 3oz bourbon hot chocolate
Visited my friend MAP at City Bakery for hot chocolate, she does a blog every year tasting every flavor they do in the month of February. It was really good, had the smokey wood flavor of bourbon that worked well with their dairy-based rich hot chocolate. Most notable was the size -- we got tasting servings, which in actuality for something so rich was pretty much all you need. A 20oz Starbucks-size serving of this stuff would probably be enough calories to cover lunch and dinner, he he. Mil slept through it, but I think later in the month I'll be taking Edie, and she'll also have a 3oz shot. I hope it aint cappucino hot chocolate then!!


LUNCH: 2pm, breaded tilapia, health salad, pickle, water, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Between going out and getting Edie, popped home to do chores, put away laundry and make a proper lunch. The frozen fish is weird -- it's breaded, but the actual fish is raw, so it would not be fair to say it is deep fried, but the amount of oil in the breaded that leeches out on to the pan, the oil that allows it to become crunchy, makes me wonder. Maybe I should get the unbreaded ones and bread them myself on demand?


DINNER: 5:45pm, cheese ravioli & spinach, grenadine soda, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5
2 lbs of frozen mini cheese raviolis, a pound of frozen spinach cooked with a little olive oil and 3 cloves of garlic, a cup of homemade tomato sauce, all thrown into a pot and mixed together. Not the yummiest -- the ravioli are so bland -- but filling and could be worse, I suppose. Ate a small second helping in hopes of avoiding snacks in the evening.


EVENING SNACK: 7:45pm, banana bread, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

Granola bars to the rescue

Hung out with old friend J and Mil in the afternoon, walking around, kinda skipped lunch but I had some homemade granola bars with me to stay sane, and had a small lunch when we got home after picking up Edles from school.

Fried up a nice sausage from Whole Foods with dinner -- unlike a lot of different meats from a butcher case, one link is 1/3 lb, a good single portion with no worrying about using the meat over several days.

TODAY'S COOKING:
Granola: My friend brought me a gift of a huge 32oz jar of artisinal granola, but I went a made this anyway. The jarred stuff was fresh, organic and full of healthy stuff, but still too sweet for my palate and had walnuts in it, whose flavor just doesn't appeal to me.

Brown Rice Pilaf: Sauteed a cup of shortgrain brown rice in 4 tbsp of butter for a solid ten minutes. Added water, half cup of slivered almonds, smoked paprika, salt, pepper, onion & garlic powders. Came out pretty good, though the almonds had less impact then I thought they had -- next time I'll sautee them with the rice.

Iced Tea: Another 2 gallons, each gallon with 1/4 cup of white sugar.


AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea
Last pint of the 2 gallon batch. Noticed it tasted a little funky, from being in the fridge too long. Hmmmm.


BREAKFAST: 9:45am, toasted pumpernickel bagel with scallion creamcheese, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
I was looking in the cupboard for a healthier breakfast -- had smoothie yesterday, oatmeal soon but not today -- and realized I had to change it up or risk getting bored. Makes me think perhaps I should make a load of my own bagels, a pumpernickel bagel with proper 100% whole grains, rye and wheat, and just freeze them. Won't be cheaper than buying them, but will be fun and healthier...

PM SNACK: 1pm, granola bar, seltzer, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


PM SNACK: 2:45pm, pickle


LUNCH: 3:30pm, whole grain chicken nuggets, health salad, water, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5


DINNER: 6pm, momma salad, andouie pork sausage, brown rice pilaf, roasted acorn squash, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
I don't like acorn squash that much -- I suspect it has such a high water content that it makes the flesh a little bit too juicy, despite being roasted at high heat for more than an hour. Weirdly sweet, too, like a sweet potato (another thing I don't like.) Well, I ate it, despite remembering that I don't like it, hrumph.


EVENING SNACK: 8pm, whole wheat ritz & nutella, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
Went hard. Lunch and dinner were both too small.


EVENING SNACK: 9:30pm, 3 small buttermilk pancakes, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

Up the Walls

And old friend and her toddler come over in the morning to hang out and share smoothies, had coverage in the afternoon and took myself out to lunch -- in a few weeks, I'll be teaching on Wednesdays, too, but we put the child care coverage down in advance. Nice dinner at a friend's in the hood with kids crawling up the walls.


TODAY'S COOKING
White Bean Dip: Made this recipe pretty much faithfully, an alternative to bottled salad dressing. It came out nice and salad-dressing runny, but I wonder how it'll thicken when it's chilled... I suppose even if it thickens to hummus-like standards, it'll still liven up the momma style salad.


Health Salad: Kinda forgot about this slaw, a good simple side.



AM SNACK: 8:30am, iced green tea


BREAKFAST: 10am, smoothie, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
Yep, lose the raspberries, halve the pineapple, and we'll have a divine smoothie. Pretty good, makes me feel good, but look forward to working through the gallon of frozen fruit to create a new mix...


LUNCH: 1:30pm, veg dim sum, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Took myself out to lunch, but improved. I always order too much when I go to veg dim sum by myself, but I limited myself to 3 small plates and it was a nice, proper amount in which I was able to finish everything and feel good after. Not enough veg, very starchy, but it hit the spot.


DINNER: 6:45pm, shake n' bake boneless chicken thigh, boxed mac n' cheese, a little roasted broc, 2 wedges of salted chocolate caramel tart, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Took the fam over to a neighbor's house for dinner, a little bit raucous but a good time. Brought the last of the 3 tarts I made for the stupor bowl -- I wiped off about 2/3 of the finishing salt before presenting it, was definitely more balanced....

EVENING SNACK; 9:45pm, Special K with milk. .25 bowl, hunger 4/5

A Nice Granola Bar

Got into a funky mood last night, continuing through the morning. Forgot to eat breakfast while taking care of Milli Mil, doing the laundry, cutting back my beard, etc, but a nice granola bar held me over.

Started teaching a new culinary class, these kids are a year younger than who I've been teaching, 15 to 16, and I'm surprised at the difference. A little bit more hand holding, a little less explanatory oratory, a little more cat-herding to clean up. Still, the food turned them on and got mostly positive feedback at the end of the lesson.

Still, our meal wasn't the healthiest, so I ate lightly, and by the time I got home, I shoveled in some unhealthy snacks and that was that.


AM SNACK: 7:30am, iced green tea

LUNCH: 11:45am, turkey & Swiss on sprouted whole wheat bread, baby spinach & carrot salad, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
The bread struck me as kinda tiny, so I toasted a second pair while I ate the first, but half way through my sandwich I realized it was really dense bread and that it would be enough.

PM SNACK: 1:15pm, granola bar, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5


SCHOOL DINNER: 7pm, chimichurri flank steak, mac n' cheese, sauteed spinach, water, a little grape soda, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 9pm, potato chips, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 10pm, whole wheat ritz and nutella, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

Off the Chart

Woke up to my phone alarm -- B woke up early and got out the door around then for her first day of work, and miraculously both chillun remained asleep. Got both of them up, fed, dressed and the big one to school, and lifted weights when I got home.

Have been enjoyed the baby spinach salads, but I need to change it up. It's slightly bitter, chalky taste begs for accompaniment, which has been met with baby carrots and creamy Cesar from a bottle. The carrots are fine, but I need to make my own creamy dressing. The ranch recipes I've looked at call for butter milk (yay!), sour cream (eh) and mayo (ewwww.) Makes me think I should just invent my own, and hope the buttermilk and fresh herbs can give the right flavor. I can make cream fraiche again with the buttermilk and some cream, and make my own mayo. Soup it up with fresh herbs, vinegar and maybe water to thin it. Could be good, but how long would it last in the fridge? It won't be the forever-stuff like you buy in the bottle...

I bought a pound of spinach, and including the one more left, I've gotten about 5 servings out of it. I think in the future I will rotate momma style salad / spinach salad and chopped poppa salad. Need to get one more in there and will have a month's round of salads!


AM SNACK: 7:15am, iced green tea

BREAKFAST: 9:45am, hardcore oatmeal, banana, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Funny how what was two servings of oatmeal the first time became 3 solid servings the second time.

LUNCH: 12:30pm, chicken parm hero on whole wheat, spinach salad, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
This time reheated chicken and bread in micro, added more sauce and a bit more cheese, and set the broiler to lo instead of hi. Edges of bread still burned, but tasty. Add around the bottom half of the bread, leaving over about 1/3 of it uneaten. Chicken, how ever, was pretty good despite being almost a week old. Three solid meals out of one chicken boob!


DINNER: 5:30pm, angel hair pasta with roasted brussel sprouts, momma style salad, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 6:30pm, whole wheat ritz with nutella, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5


EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, left over angel hair pasta, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
I suspect I did not eat enough today, ravings for sugar and carbs off the chart.

A pretty good apple

Another hard night with babies up here and there, but with a new approach and a newly put-up gate, hopefully things will settle soon. Took Edie out in the morning for a big food shop, as it has occurred to me now that B will be at work, it'll be difficult to haul weight by foot with Milli Mil -- he's too young for a bicycle.

Took Mil to a friend's Superbowl party in Brooklyn. She made a veritable feast of fancy food, though due to some appetite-destroying cupcakes B inflicted on me in the afternoon, it was easy to go easy. My salted chocolate caramel tart was good, though I went a little too heavy on the finishing salt.

BREAKFAST: 8:30am, iced green tea, hardcore oatmeal, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5

LUNCH: 11:45am, brussel sprout fried brown rice , baby spinach with a few baby carrots and a little creamy Cesar dressing, 1.25 bowl, hunger 4/5
A powerfully nutritious lunch, in advance of a dinner that'll be very, ummm, American.

PM SNACK: 1pm, an apple
A crisp, cold fuji apple is pretty delicious, but it's even more delicious when cut up, munched on while on the couch, and your 2.5 yr old comes up, puts her head on your shoulder, and shares it with you. Mmmmmmmmm!

PM SNACK: 3pm, 2 cupcakes, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5
-sigh- B brought these back for me, after a few hours out and about while I looked after the kids. I guess she didn't get the memo. Didn't stop them from jumping down my neck quite quickly, though.


SUPERBOWL DINNER: 6pm, a few vegetarian dumplings, pulled pork on a steamed bun with a little kimchi, 1 beer, 1 slice of salted chocolate caramel tart, .75 bowl, hunger 4/5