In The Garden

I spent a couple of hours in the garden today pulling up weeds and grass. I've almost done, just the rhubarb patch left. While I was pulling up grass I found a big fat grub, which I threw in to the chickens. Hot Ginge grabbed it and ran. She had Princess Fiona & Maggie chasing her to try and steal it. Hot Ginge tried to gulp it down but it was too big. I spent around 10 minutes watching the comedy show....she finally got the grub down and the other girls stopped chasing.

I picked 10 large chiggioa beet root (red & white striped), 1 golden beet root, broccoli, a savoy cabbage and countless tomatoes (several varieties, large & small). Bre saw the broccoli and said "broccoli, my favourite", a 2yr old that likes broccoli? It happens!! I'm baking beet root, carrots & potato to have with sour cream for dinner. I'll also have to start cooking, I'm planning on choc/beet root cake, salsa, tomato relish, tomato paste, pesto and beet root relish.

My hands are sore and I'm tired, but it was an enjoyable day gardening.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

I cook a lot at Christmas time. Food for the day: breakfast & lunch, then food for boxing day. I also bake things for gift bags (last 2 years I didn't, brand new baby then i'd not long gone back to work).
So there's a lot of food & ingredients that go through my kitchen. Since I've started becoming more aware about ingredients and prompted by a post by dyno-mom (www.dyno-mom.com), I thought it would be a good idea to reflect on HOW I'm cooking this year.

On the plus side I'm using ingredients that are homegrown/organic/whole grains.
On the menu is shortbread, beet root relish, 2 types of date & nut squares, turkey, rice salad, coleslaw, potato salad, basil/tomato salad, fresh fruit, cream, raspberry water kefir, Brie cheese.

On the minus side the ham that I got isn't the free range "happy" ham I wanted ($$ issues), I'm still making some choc balls that contain questionable ingredients (I will TRY not to touch them).

On the could do better side I know I should be soaking the nuts, rice & flours, making my own lacto fermented mayo (relish should also be lacto fermented) & making the apple & cranberry sauces.

What it comes down to is mostly time. I do feel better knowing I'm (mostly) using the best ingredients. I guess it comes down to better planning. Also I'm less inclined to pre cook stuff in the middle of a heat wave!!

Anyway tomorrow will be a big cooking day so early morning for me. Merry Christmas everyone stay safe.

One of "those" mothers

I work in childcare, my youngest is there 5 days and my eldest comes for school holidays. That means 1-2 main meals (my youngest tends to have an early dinner) and 2 snacks. Since I have been working there the meals have gotten a lot better - no more chicken nuggests or jar sauces, more made from scratch, wholegrain crackers & breads (aka seed bread), afternoon tea is always fruit. However margarine is used, I'm not happy with the rice cakes and we follow Australian dietary guidelines: low fat dairy for over twos.

So I'm now one of "those" mothers. I've taken in organic unhomogonised milk, butter, sourdough bread and yoghurt. Breanna still has foods she doesn't get at home i.e Vegemite, white rice but I feel a bit better knowing she's getting better dairy and bread options and that she is no longer eating margarine. Her main teacher is on board with it and I think the cook is, which makes it easier. I have been contemplating taking in single serves of brown rice that are pre cooked and frozen. Hmm we'll see.....

I also take in extra produce from the garden to be used in meals. That way the kids get extra vegetables (organic). And they might be something they don't always get, like squash.

We are lucky in Australia that our foods at daycare centres are mostly good, but we need to become one of "those" mums if we want our kids to have the best possible foods.

The Dreaded M.....

Again been slipping slightly, maybe that's why I've been quiet on the blog front. Some bad choices along with the good, and that's led to overrating. I haven't eaten at the M word place (think gold think arches) in so long. Then yesterday..... I won't lie it did taste good if a bit salty. Then an hour later I burped & bile came up. All I could taste after that was the burger. It wasn't pleasant.
Won't be doing that again!!! I don't know why I keep slipping up. I know I'm not perfect but when it comes to this....something I believe so passionately in I really shit myself. If I could whack myself upside the head I would....

So I leave you with a question. When you start slipping up how does that make you feel? How do you get back on track?

Stock Bag

My last post was about how we reduce waste in our house. It didn't list everything as I wrote quickly on my phone and some of the things we do deserve their own post.
One of these things is the stock bag. I stated that we have worms, chickens and compost bins and this is where our kitchen scraps go. This is true....but not entirely. I have a large zip loc bag in the freezer and when I peel carrots, onions, garlic, zucchini or use celery, the peels and ends go in here.

So what do I do with a bag full of frozen vegetable scraps you ask? Simple. When I make stock (which is a great way to utilise bones), I grab out a couple of handfuls and through them in the stock pot. This way stock gets great flavour, all the vegetable gets used and at the end the compost still gets it, but I have the base for a delicios soup or stew or sauce. Really easy. If your a vegetarian you can do the same thing but use more of the scraps and no bones. When I make the stock I pour it into large glass jars (leaving room for expansion), then freeze. This way I've always got some on hand and it defrosts really quickly on the counter or by putting the jar in some warmer (not hot - you'll crack it) water.

So now when I buy chicken I don't buy parts, I  buy the whole thing. That way there is a couple of meals plus bones which then leads to a couple of more meals. Easy isn't it?

In other news I'm back working 5 days but have shorter hours for 3 days. Money wise it's great, time wise it's better than 5 full time days and I've got a new challenge. I'm no longer with babies, I'm with 3 - 4 year olds and they are mostly boys. I think having a new room and the challenges that are associated with that are great as it's re-inspired me with my job. Having 3 days off was great but this way I still have afternoons at home, can still have time to prepare meals and can still pick Stella up from school. Also I got to have a few weeks "break" which has helped me recharge my batteries!

What do you guys do with your scraps? Or what new challenges do you have at home or work?

Waste Not Want Not

In any house there is always a lot of waste. Food that never gets cooked, leftovers that never get eaten. General house hold rubbish. Add a baby into the mix and then you also have nappies and wipes. I try to limit our household waste - we only have a small otto bin and I try not to have it full. Below are some ways I reduce our waste, some I've been doing for a while and some are new editions.

* recycle everything! I save glass jars to re-use. Some news paper gets saved for the dog or garden. Tins, plastic etc gets washed & recycled. I try not to buy things with too much packaging.

* compost. We have 3 compost bins.

*worm farms. We have 2 worm farms set up and a 3rd ready to go. Worm farms are great for kitchen waste.

* chickens. Garden waste, kitchen scraps, leftovers all go to my girls. I bring lunch leftovers home from work for them as well.

* using re usable shopping and produce bags.

* meal planning/shopping lists. This cuts down on wasted food.

* cloth nappies and wet bags. I still use disposables but I try to use cloth nappies a couple of times a week. Wet bags are instead of using plastic bags for dirty/wet kids clothes.

These are just the ones I can remember off the top of my head. What are some ways you reduce waste?

Still Here

I realise I've been M.I.A but I'm still here. It's been school holidays so I've been doing stuff with the girls & family. At the moment I'm at another dancing eisteddfod- sometimes it seems like I live here! Then I think it's something Stella is passionate about, she wants to be professional dancer someday.I believe in supporting my children so if I live at eisteddfods, so be it. I'm a really, really proud mumma at the moment as Stella participated in the South Pacific Dance Championships and came first for her grade of ballet!! She worked really hard and deserved it.

In non dancing news I've been continueing with making various yoghurts. Both Breanna and the cat enjoy the Viili. As soon as its out I have to fight the cat off! With the water kefir I've been adding ginger and its fantastic. Last night I made muesli (granola). I didn't soak the oats but the nuts & seeds were soaked so not all bad. Next time I will pre soak everything, yes there will be a next time because it's delicious. I could just eat it with a spoon (and I may have done that last night).

I'm still getting asparagus from the garden, and I'm trying to be creative with snow peas. I do t know why they cost so much in the shops as they are easy to grow and very prolific! I made ranch dressing & it's a great snack with snow peas. Radishes and beet root are almost ready, tomatoes are starting to flower and the summer cabbages are going great. It's been lovely to sit in the garden with my morning coffee now that the weather is warmer. I look forward to watching all the changes in the coming weeks.

Gardens are for Sharing

One of the great things about having a veggie garden and chickens is being able to share. We always take excess next door, or share with friends and relatives.
A couple of days ago my cousin & her son came over to visit. I hadn't spent much time with them since they moved back from Queensland so it was great catching up. Before they left we went out in the garden and picked veggies. Her son L said that he'd never picked veggies before & I think he really enjoyed it. He also liked feeding greens to the chickens, "If I was Stella I'd be doing this all the time"..,.hmmmm Stella little bit over it now.
Then I showed L how the chickens love worms. Digging up worms for the kids to feed to the chickens is great fun.

Veggie gardens are great for sharing & connecting to people.
Speaking of gardens this afternoon I went out to pick parsley & dill to make potatos salad...yummy

I am Cultured

Most people eat yoghurt, or what the shops like to call yoghurt. It comes in little tubs, it has the bacterias, it claims to be beneficial. Reality is most of the yoghurts you buy are either: fat free, loaded with chemicals for flavouring, full of sugar or all of the above. There are some great yoghurts that are completely without the crap. I like to add honey, berries, chuck them it in smoothies or use to make cream cheese & whey. The added plus is they are convenient. BUT (& there's always a but) you need to read labels to make sure you are getting proper yoghurt. So you have your yoghurt on your shopping list...where's the fun?

I recently brought a jar of bacterias. Then I got a yoghurt thermometer. Then by chance I was in aldi & they had yoghurt makers on clearance. Making yoghurt is surprisingly easy, doesn't take long & is helping Stella learn about tempretures & science. It's also good if you have plain, "normal" milk as you are putting good stuff back in. So making yoghurt is easy. I found something even easier. Finnish viila (spelling??) & Scandinavian piima. These cultures are great, you add them to milk or milk/cream in a jar & pretty much leave it on the cupboard. They culture at room tempreture. Nice & easy.

The only thing is you can't have them next to each other or near other cultures you are doing as they will cross & eventually weaken. So now in our kitchen/dining area I have a water kefir spot, a viila spot & a piima spot. The "normal" yoghurt when it's made has it's own spot as well. Lots of culture in this house! Hehehehehe

So if you live nearby & want to have a go at how easy it is, let me know & I'll hook you up with some starters.

At the Risk of Sounding Repetitive....

My diet is not perfect, but I am trying. I am better with what the girls eat, but it's still far from ideal. I am not an ogre, when there is the occasional birthday cake at school or the occasional sausage sizzle at a gala day I let the girls join in. It is a TREAT. This means they do not get dessert every night, or something in their lunch box everyday. A TREAT may be only once a month or every 2 weeks. When it is all the time/constantly it is no longer a TREAT!! I try to make some "fun' foods e.g pikelets, muffins etc but I mostly keep the fruit bowls filled and the girls have free run with these.
I think most people now have the mindset of "kids eat junk", or if you don't give your child these "treats" you are depriving them of something.

At the moment I feel like I'm being continually undermined by the girls dad. He'll turn up on saturday mornings to take us dancing and he'll hand them a hash brown. Or he'll wait until I'm somewhere else and hand them crap. Or my personal favourite he'll ask if they can have x. When I say no he hands it to them anyway!! This is driving me nuts. I have no idea what to do about this as he knows if they are already eating it I can't really take it off them...Can I?

I've tried explaining why I'm doing what I'm doing, but he seems to have the opinion that if they don't have "treats" they are missing out. At least that's where I think he's coming from. Any ideas for what to do?

Feeling Blah

Yesterday I did an all day anaphylaxis/asthma/first aid course which is a requirement for my work. Good day and the instructor touched lightly on the food issue and what we are doing to our kids. It would of been interesting to talk to him further about that but unfortunately there wasn't time. Mum had the girls & I know they didn't have the best choices for lunch but it wasn't totally gross (ie starts with M or K). This is leading into me getting home late & being tired. We had already done the omelette thing the night before.

We ordered Malaysian. It tasted great. Really, really great. We used to order from there all the time and the food has always been yummy. You can just see a BUT there can't you?
BUT I woke up at 3.30am feeling not sick, but heavy, and really thirsty. I couldn't get back to sleep. Finally at 4am I got up and had water with ACV and warm milk/honey. Close to 5 am I went back to sleep. It's just before 7am and I'm up again and still thirsty. My mouth feels sand papery.

I'm assuming it's dinner that made me feel blah. I'm not sick, I just feel blah. The food tasted great and I had really big servings. I've never questioned what's in their sauces and I think that's the place to start...I also need to find a fantastic satay recipe so I can make my own.  Very clean eating for the next couple of days!

Updates & Giveaways

This has been a week of firsts...The most important first: Stella's dance troupe got first place the first time they performed their new song & dance number (they got highly commended for Jazz - which they absolutley nailed). All the kids work really hard (so does their teacher), so it was great to see.
I made my first lot of whey & cream cheese from Nourishing Traditions and it turned out well. I've used some whey in my first lot of lacto-fermented mayonnaise, which is sitting on the cupboard now. I've got my first lot of water kefir brewing. Stella & I made our first lot of yoghurt which is really yummy. I got my paws on our first lot of raw milk and raw cream. Today we tried our first lot of raw milk in a smoothie. You would think since I live not far from dairys I could find a source of raw milk...but no I have to buy "Bath" milk. That's the loophole. Health food shops are allowed to sell raw milk for beauty purposes....But hey you can buy whatever flavoured milk you want in the supermarket! another first - Bre has her first (and hopefully last) case of hand, foot & mouth. She picked it up from daycare, luckily only a mild dose because some of the other kids are absolutley covered. I like to think that maybe our diets have played a part in her getting such a mild dose.

The veggie garden is pretty much planted out now. Lots of beetroot - I love beetroot, cabbage, cucumber, zucchinni, pumpkin, beans, carrots, radish, capsicum, eggplant. As well as everything else we've got in. More will get planted as the season progresses, but we have a great start. I'm going to be buying some mason jars so that I can preserve some by lacto-fermentation, as well as using them for my water kefir, freezing stocks & whatever else I can think of.

The no coffee thing is not doing well. I'm now back on instant & I'm trying to limit myself to 3 cups a day. From there I plan on cutting down further. I'ts such a hard habit to break...I love coffee & the only time I actually hated the taste was when I was pregnant with Bre.

I'm also starting to think about Christmas. It's really not that far away. Usually I bake presents for people (the last 2 years i didn't - heavily pregnant & then small baby/sick child). I've been thinking how I can make the presents more "real" food. The shortbread is a challenge. If anyone else has a suggestion on how I can tweak the recipe (the butter is fine, it's just the caster sugar). I've also found where to get ethical, free range happy ham. This is major because I love Christmas ham & wasplanning on not getting it. I'll have to order soon & i'll be paying more but at least I know the pigs have been treated well and have had a happy life (with one bad day).

GIVEAWAY: Come up with a smoothie recipe. I'll make it and Stella will score out of 10 (I'll add 2 points for unusual ingredients). The winner will recieve 4 stainless steel straws - 2 smoothie width 2 normal. Competition finishes 9th September. So get creative!

Sabotage!!

I've been going pretty well with the whole/real foods thing. There's been a couple of slip ups & a couple of occasions where the girls have eaten crap (e.g been at a fete so they had some lollies, ice cream & sausage sandwich). The good food has outnumbered the bad, but we could have done better. There has been a few sabotages though....The girl's dad keeps buying crap (granted not as much as he once did). He'll turn up with stuff like hash browns from the golden arches and give them to the girls before I can say or do anything. I caught the Asian rice cakes that were full of colours, refined products and god knows what else. That led to the comment about how they can have treats and I might as well just have them eat carrot sticks for the rest of their lives. Then there was the microwavepopcorn. I confess I actually nuked a bag & ate it myself. It tasted like a chemical sh**storm and I felt horrid. I binned the other 4 packets.

Now my mum is back home. For almost 6 months she has been staying with my grandma and I've been getting rid of all the processed junk. Mum comes home and junk is getting brought. In her defense it is "healthy" junk...Example last night to save me cooking she brought a ready made quiche, pasta salad, tabbouleh and coleslaw with shop mayo. I added tomato, cucumber, beet root & onion, I put small serves of the other stuff out. I'm going to have to pre-make some easy dinner meals. Also this weekend I'm going to make some muffins, bars etc for mum to take to work. Then hopefully start weaning her off chemical lunches (noodles, tin soups etc)

Don't know what to do about the girls dad though..and mum really as she doesn't see much wrong with the "healthy" junk. I think slowly change things & try & get her to read some of the books etc that I've got.....

How do other people manage partners/parents/family/friends who don't see anything wrong in feeding your kids (& you) crap??

A Good Soaking Followed by Pumpkin Pancakes

One thing I have come across more and more lately is information on soaking/sproating nuts and grains. Sure I new about sprouts - alfalfa, mung etc that you add to your salads for crunch. But soaking nuts? Soaking flour? This was all new to me.

Nuts and grains contain enzyme inhibitors. This means when you eat them, they help block the absorbtion of minerals and vitamins (including iron). Heres another Who Knew? Who Knew that eating bread, pasta, baked goods etc were stopping your body from getting everything it needed?  Well there is an easy way around this - soaking or sprouting! In the old days when wheat etc was harvested it stood around in the field for a while. This exposed it to rain and sun which started the sprouting process. So modern farming techniques have sped up the time from harvesting to threshing & storage and our wheat no longer has a chance to sprout.

We can rectify this at home. There are heaps of charts online to show you how long to soak to release the inhibitors or to sprout so I wont reproduce them here. It does take a bit of planning. If you want to cook you need to soak at least overnight. This includes flour. If you are baking, measure out your flour into a bowl. If the recipe calls for milk use that but replace 1 tablespoon of milk per cup with whey, yoghurt or kefir. If the recipe calls for water replace the tablespoon with apple cider vinger. This is put with the flour and covered then left overnight. Easy! (but does need planning, no more spontaneous baking unless its with coconut flour)

So on Pinterest I found a recipe for pumpkin pancakes. It looked really yummy but used sugar & vegetable oil. I decided to have a go at making it Real Food and also have a go at soaking flour (I have soaked nuts, seeds and legumes before). Below is my ammended recipe included is the yoghurt for soaking.

                                                          Pumpkin Pancakes

* 1 1/2 cups unhomoginised milk
* 1 1/2 tablespoon natural unsweetened yoghurt
* 2 cups wholegrain flour
* 1 cup pumpkin puree
* 1 egg
* 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
* 2 tablspoons apple cider vinegar
* 3 tableppsoons maple syrup
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoom cinnamon
* 1 teaspoon allspice
* 1/2 teaspoon ginger
* 1/2 teaspoon himalayan salt

The night before soak your flour in the milk/yoghurt mix.
In the morning mix all the ingredients together (I found it a bit thick so I added some more milk)
Melt some butter in a frypan and place 1/4 cup of batter in to cook.

I served these with double cream and maple syrup. I loved them, Stella liked them but didn't love them. Breanna wouldn't try. That was fine as it meant more for me!

Dancing Queen

Stella dances. So does Breanna and myself, but Stella dances alot. She dances four days a week and also does competitions. Because we are at dancing so much I need to pack a snack/lunch bag for Stella (big enery requirements), myself and a toddler.

This food packing is especially necessary at dance competitions. You would think that having a pile of kids who dance the canteens would provide some healthy options for food. NO!! if you are lucky you can select an apple or orange. Other than that there is always water. That's it. There are chips, chocolates, cakes. lollies, noodles, hot dogs, toasted sandwiches on white bread and soft drink. Great food for children who are competing. Great food for children in general. Let's give them the worst possible foods and expect them to dance. Let's give them the worst possible foods every chance we get.

I am so over it. You go to any sporting event involving children and that's your options - junk, junk and water. Today I'm packing sourdough sandwiches, yoghurt, strawberries, kiwi fruit, soaked pumpkin pancakes, cheese, hard boiled eggs and dried fruit. Stella loves toasted sanwiches so I am going to ask the canteen to toast ours.

I will also be getting pro-active (not the face creams!) and asking if they can start providing some other options. It's no good ranting about it if I'm not willing to make some changes.

www.dyno-mom.com

Check out the above blog. I discovered it in my readings and I find it very informative and inspiring. Melissa has 10 kids (I take my hat off to her), and lives a whole foods life. There is some great reading here, From this blog I have been inspired to make my own water kefir, I have learnt about soaking grains properly and about the Weston A Price Foundation. I highly reccomend this blog.

Mother Guilt & Who Knew?

Mother Guilt would have to be the worst type of guilt known. We read or learn stuff and then we think "Oh my god Idid/didn't do x". Then we feel like the worst possible person in the world. Or we could forget the fact that it's school mufti day and we have sent our child in school uniform. Then we think "I am the worst mum in the world, if I wasn't so busy....."
And so on and so forth. Once we give birth a whole new world of guilt opens up to us (& we also learn how to use guilt on our children but that's another post). It starts from the moment (or just before we give birth). Did you use drugs? Have a natural, vaginal birth? Are you breastfeeding? Bottle? Does your baby follow a routine? It goes on and on and on. It doesn't help that we judge each other over everything (yes if you put coke in your baby's bottle I am judging you).

This preamble leads into my Mother Guilt that I'm having at the moment. I took the girls to the dentist on Tuesday. I have known for some time that Stella's enamel never formed correctly on her teeth - both her baby molars & her adult front teeth. The dentist told me at the moment there is debate about what causes it - antibiotics or the reason the child needed the antibiotics. Stella was sick alot the first year to two years of her life. So she had antibiotics when they were prescribed. Then Stella was fairly healthy bar some food intolerances. But she didn't really get sick. I was careful with her food and she didn't eat processed foods. Then I got slack. Then Stella started getting sick again, culminating in the mystery virus last year.

So my guilt is large. Knowing what I know now about correct diet when you're pregnant, and what foods to eat/give children, I am naturally blaming myself. And there it is...KNOWING WHAT I KNOW NOW. I didn't know back then.I know NOW. I need to keep telling mysel that because of the Mother Guilt. Certainly if I had this knowledge I would have done things different. I would have changed lots of things. But the thing is Who Knew? I did the best I could with the knowledge that I had at the time. And I think that's all we can do. I have better knowledge now, so of course I'm doing things different. Seriously who wouldn't do some things different?

Who Knew?
 Who knew that eating full fat dairy was better for you?
Who knew that you should soak your nuts and grains?
Who knew you should eat cultured or fermented foods daily?
Who knew that foods claiming that they were healthy are actually bad for you?
There are whole lists of Who Knews? These are the things that once you know you go "Oh my good if only..." See it's the Guilt creeping in again.

Just remember do the best you can with the knowledge you have, but try to gain more knowledge. When you learn new stuff DON'T beat yourself up about it. You did the best you could. And don't judge other parents (unless it's coke in the bottle) We give ourselves enough Guilt. We don't need it from anyone else.

And with Stella's teeth? Well she can have sealant put on the molars. The front teeth she can leave or when she's an adult she can have veneers for cosmetic reasons. With her health? Now she is eating well according to my best knowledge. Her diet may change a little bit as I learn new things, but I have removed all the crap from it and this year she has been a lot healthier.

Spring has Sprung!

Yes I know it's only August, but spring has arrived. The plum trees down the road have flowered and more importantly I have harvested the first asparagus spears for the year! I went out to the garden this morning to get some leeks to make potato & leek soup. While I was doing this I looked and saw I had 5 asparagus spears. So went inside and got a knife and soon they were sitting on my cupboard.

Looking at them I realized that I had the makings of a perfect breakfast in my kitchen. I scrambled up 4 eggs from my chickens, added the asparagus then served on fresh sourdough. Everything except the bread came from my yard. You can't get more local than that! Breanna tried the asparagus but handed it back to me...oh well at least she tried it.

I never used to like asparagus. That's not true, I had never tried asparagus. I just assumed that I didn't like it. Then one night I was eating out and there was some on my plate so I tried it. So glad I did because it ROCKS!! I had grown some previously but once I found out I liked it I grew it in earnest. I planted out a small bed with crowns. The thing is you can't harvest them the first year, you need to let them grow, flower and die back. The second year you can harvest, but you always need to let a couple grow and flower. The beauty of asparagus is you can have plants that last 20 plus years.

The season might be short but there really is nothing tastier then fresh asparagus. The stuff in supermarkets just doesn't compare. Another way I like eating it is sautee asparagus, leek & snow peas in garlic & olive oil. Add some black pepper & parmesan and pour over pasta. Beautiful!

So now my morning ritual will include checking the asparagus bed. When you harvest the spears you store them in a glass of water, just like flowers.

In my garden at the moment:

Asparagus
Rhubarb (again can last 20 plus years)
Artichokes
2 types of peas
2 types loose leaf lettuce
Rainbow chard
Kale
Broccoli
Beetroot (seedlings)
Garlic
Parsley
Chives
Dill
Potatoes (musnt have gotten them all out the last time)
Leek
Lemongrass
Sage
Rosemary
Oregano
Mint

Then the fruit trees.

Need to Plant:

Cabbage
Corn
Cucumber
Tomatoes
Pumpkin
Zuchinni
Melons

Coffee and Other Ramblings

I love my coffee. I really, really love my coffee. I start each day with a big mug (equel to 2 cups), recently I moved from instant to perculated. Then when I get to work I have another coffee, then at lunch I have another. Sometimes I'll have one at night with my neighbour. That's a lot of coffee!!
Recently I have been thinking that's too much coffee. So from today I am having my normal morning coffee and that's it. Oh I'm also having it in a normal sized cup not my huge mug. I'm going to use my huge mug for hot lemon or warm milk at night. It will be interesting to see if I get headaches etc from not drinking as much coffee.

This morning I decided to make waffles for breakfast. That's the beauty of only working 2 days. I can cook breakfast. it's fairly easy to make waffles and while they are cooking I can do other stuff, like blog. They are so easy that I doubled the recipe. That way I can have waffles in lunch boxes for snacks or feeze some for quick breakfast on my working days. Stuff like waffles or pikelets is easy to double or triple when you make it and it is so worth it in the long run.

Since I don't work on Thursdays anymore, I have booked Breanna into swimming lessons. Both girls were doing swimming on Saturdays at the Rec centre where we danced. It was so easy swimming then dancing all on the one day. Several of the dancing kids did the same. Then as the saying goes "all good things must end". It shut down. To make it harder Stella dances Tuesdays. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and often has competitions on Sundays. So at the moment Stella is not doing swimming. I was able to get Breanna into lessons Thursday mornings at the YMCA. I think swimming is not negotiable so I need to find a school holiday swim program for Stella.

I think that's all the little things that I wanted to say. You know the little things that on their own don't amount to much but put them together you have a blog post! I haven't blogged about my garden yet so that's next on the agenda. I have started a Facebook group with the same name so join up! There are pictures there ( I can manage that).

What Lurks Within

I had been planning on cleaning out the food cupboard for a couple of weeks. I've slowly been doing the freezers and fridge and have pretty much finished. I also have a suspicion that we have a visitor of the small furry variety (the dog has been going nuts). So this means today I clean out the crap and make sure that everything is in nibble proof containers. I'm working on the premise that no food source equels no visitor.

So I started pulling out everything. I had a keep pile, a chuck pile and a give away pile. You know how you're at the supermarket and some packet thing looks good and easy? So you buy it and put it away and forget about it? Well we had some that were 2 years out of date. These were chucked.
There were also the packets/jars you buy just before you start reading and changing your lifestyle. These have been bagged up to give away. Then there are my most recent purchases: coconut flour, whole peanuts, dried beans. These are in nibble proof containers. I'm suprised that I didn't find a mutant furry animal in there (mutated from all the chemicals in the packets).

I'm now going to buy 3 whiteboards (fridge, freezer and cupboard). This way I can list everything that is in that area and see what I have. That way I can use everything that we buy and cut down on waste.

What scary items are lurking in the back of your cupboard? (out of date weight watchers mousse anyone?)

Full disclosure I've been a little bit slack the last couple of days- white bread when I visited the hospital for example. I'm getting back on track by packing snacks and lunch items when I go out

Everybody needs good neighbours

Last night the girls and I had dinner at our next door neighbours. I made the vegetables and they supplied the chicken and tea. We eat with our neighbours at least once a week and get together for coffee/tea often.

We are lucky that we live in a small culdesac and know at least half of the people who live here. We have had the neighbours on one side of us for the 20 years we have lived here. They are no longer neighbours but family. I looked after the kids when they were little, those kids have looked after my kids. We feed each others animals, water plants, give cooking ingredients etc every Christmas morning it is traditional to have breakfast together. We are really lucky to have this.

We know our other neighbours and the people across the road but maybe because they haven't lived there as long we don't know them as well. My girls are growing up with a sense of community, which I like. It's not all about us, we are a part of a larger community (even though it's only a small street). How many times do we hear about some elderly person dying & nobody realised for years? Maybe if we took the time to say hello or to have a cuppa, that sort of thing wouldn't happen.

Most people today are shut off from their neighbours and communities. We go to work early, come home late and we are too tired. Weekends are "ME' time (unless you have kids and then it becomes "Kid" time. The people living across the road, or behind, or next door rarely figure. And that is a real shame. We are missing out on potential friendships, potential sharing of resources and skills. I have this and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Do you know any of your neighbours?

August Money

After my little rant about not spending enough on food and people wanting the cheapest food available, I decided to doument my expenses.
It should be noted that I have 4 chickens so eggs don't cost anything, I have a garden (but I'm not growing a great deal at the moment), and I already have stuff like bread & meat in the freezer. However I will need to repenish theses.

It will be interesting to see how much I spend in a month and compare it to other months.

Aldi

4 x organic butter                      Organic Yoghurt
3 x strawberries                         Baby cucumbers
2 x 750g bananas                       200g grape tomatoes
500g Brussel Sprouts                4 x organic pureed apple (Breanna is cutting 3 teeth & wont eat)
3x Oatcakes (3 ingredient!)        Block organic chocolate
Kalamata Olives                        Triple brie cheese
Tea

$59.10

Local Fruit Shop

12 x strawberries
2 kilo over ripe bananas (freeze for smoothies etc)
2 x bunches of silverbeet
2K oranges
2K pink lady apples
1K purple carrots
Box of apples
Swiss Brown mushrooms
6 bunches asparagus
proscuitto

$57.00

Abundant Organics

mix vegetable box
6 x royal gala apples
raw cream
2 x raw milk 2L
2 x bunches of kale
2x water
5 x 2L  unhomoginised milk
2 kilo potatoes
12 pink lady apples
6 pears
2 bunches beetroot
6 sourdough rolls
2 x loaves sourdough bread
2 x Kamut spaghetti
2 K bananas

162.75 (includes delivery)

Alcohol

2 x bottles wine

$24

Hospital Food

$45
This includes coffees. They do have "real' meal and I have brought the best options possible. This expense is from visiting my Ma who was in for an operation. I need to pack more snack options.


Woolworths

2 x Macro vegetable chips                              9 Squeezie organic puree (Again teething)
6 x 1litre organic non homoginised milk        2 litre Organic yoghurt
2 x Double cream                                             Roast Garlic Dip
Double Brie                                                     Organic watercrackers
300g natural yoghurt                                       4 K cherries (on clearance!)
maple syrup                                                     1 K organic peanut butter

$64.00


GO VITA HEALTH FOOD

5 x Sourdough bread
Co Yo Ice cream ( I spent $14.95 0n this but it was worth it!!!)
1 kilo rolled oats
1 K Rapudura sugar
1 K green lentils

$65.40

Local Butcher

Traditional Beef roast
1 K beef soup bones

$18

Grand Total:  $495.25

Was this 20% of my monthly wages?NO!!! This amount was approximatley $100 (give or take a couple of dollars) off that amount. So this is a mega budget food. Again I already had some meat etc in the freezer but we didn't use all of it, so I go into September with things I don't have to buy.

Real food in the bigger scheme of things doesn't cost that much. My food bill would of been less without the alcohol & hospital food.

So remember next time you say "real food is too expensive"  that you are only fooling yourself!

full fat

I have not had full fat milk in years. Or yoghurt or cheese or anything really. In our house when we shopped we brought skim, low fat, no fat or lite. It's what we've been told to do, it's what we've been conditioned to do. Childhood obesity? Well once the kids are over 2 give them low fat dairy. Butter? Hell No! Low fat dairy spreads instead. Limit your avocados, nuts and bananas. Buy lean meat. Cut off all fat. Use cooking sprays. We hate fat, cause fat is unhealthy and makes you fat. Right???

Well guess what, forget the great rock n roll swindle this is the great fat swindle. Without rehashing everything I've read (100 days of real food, Dyno-mom, crunchy thifty healthy cool, In Defense of Food & Nourishing Traditions, Weston A Price Foundation), I'll try to put it in simple terms. Our bodies need fat (especially children), fat does not lead to you getting fat or having heart problems. Don't believe me? Check out that reading material above.

So this means for the first time in years I'm buying full fat milk, yoghurt, cream, cheese and butter. I cook using butter or olive oil or coconut oil (peanut and sesame oil are also acceptable). Im giving both my kids full fat dairy. And guess what? I havent put on weight. I have lost weight. I'm not counting calories or portion sizes. I'm having full fat everything (along with no processed or refined foods). I get full. I'm not having mad binges or cravings.Crazy right. Who would think eating full fat would help you loose weight.

Money, Money, Money

I was thinking about doing a post regarding whole, real foods and a budget. Then I started thinking....(I may start ranting, you have been warned!). Why should we try to eat as cheaply as possible? Yes I do things like have my own chickens, have a vegetable garden, buy local in season produce (where possible), buy extra staples when they're on sale and I've just brought a 5 kilo bag of flour.

But and here is a big but (not unlike my own hehehehe),I  will willingly spend $6.30 on a loaf of bread. This bread has 4 ingredients. If I got bread from the supermarket I could get 3 loaves that have like 20 ingredients. So I pay more to get less. I pay close to $7 for 2 litres of milk. I pay extra to get organic, pasture fed meat.

I love food. I love cooking. So I figure I might as well have the best I can afford. I don't eat meat every night and when I do I use a smaller amount and have more vegetables, so that is a saving there. I know there are some people that generally can't afford a lot for food. But think. Do you have a house phone and a mobile? Do you have the internet? How many t.vs in the house? Do you have cable? How many times a month do you get your hair or nails done? Do you smoke? How much alcohol do you buy?

The thing is we buy or do all these things that we think are essential. We buy the biggest t.vs, the latest clothes, see the latest movies, go out and blow $100 plus on alcohol at the pub. And we think nothing of it. We do all of this and more and then expect to pay the least amount for our food. This is something we do at least 3 times a day and we want to be cheap skates. In my reading I discovered that around 50 years ago spending 25% of your income on food was considered budgeting. That's right BUDGETING!! I did the math and I wasn't even spending that (& as I said I try to get the best I can).

We live in a world where we buy our kids the latest game console (and games) and we pay as little as possible to feed them crap. Then there is the fact that if we pay $1 or $2 for milk and bread we are ripping off the farmers.

Back to my $6.30 loaf of bread, this bread rocks! After eating this I realise that the other cheaper breads taste just like crap. My bread is delicious, When Stella and I have a sandwich we are full. So that means a loaf of bread does all week (or more as I'll freeze some). So my bread costs more, has less ingredients but is more filling. I think that's great value for money.

So next time you whinge about your grocery bill, make a list of all your "essentials" you willingly spend big bucks on. Then think do I want to eat something that tastes great, is filling and isn't filled with crap?

How much do you spend on food?

Liebster Awards

I have been nominated by Neenish Arts for the Liebster Blog Awards.
This is an award for up & coming bloggers with less than 200 followers - so I sure qualify!

The conditions are:
1. Each person must most 11 facts about themselves
2. Each person must answer 11 questions set by the person who tagged them
3. Each person must set 11 questions for the people they tag
4. You then choose 11 people & link them to your post
5. Tell them you tagged them
6. No tag backs!

Unfortunatley I don't know any blogs that I read with less than 200 followers, so I can't tag anyone. But I will answer the questions and reveal the facts (Just the facts Jack, just the facts....LA Confidential).

11 Facts About Me

1. I do adult ballet. Im not that great at it but I love it. I started up 5 years ago and I should be doing a higher level class than the one Im doing. I can't make it to the higher level class though so I stay with my saturday class. When I was pregnant with Breanna I continued doing ballet. I did a class on the Saturday including all the jumps & turns and i had her on the Friday. She was backstage at the end of year concert at one week old.

2. I don't feel the cold as much as other people. In winter I hardly wear jumpers or jackets. Conversley I'm not that good in the heat.

3. I love Russel Crowe (that explains the LA Confidential quote above). I dont love, love him. I just think he's a fantastic actor and hot.

4. I'm addicted to gossip websites (DListed & crazy days and nights). I have to limit myself to reading them otherwise nothing gets done.

5. I can not stand seafood. No not even prawns. Hate it all. But I will cook it for my kids.

6. I love vintage and retro stuff. I don't have a favourite era and I will mix and match. I also dont have a set style. I can wear girly, rock chick, hippy etc just depends on my mood.

7. I  love all different types of music. As part of my new life/new me I plan on starting to see bands again.

8. I have 11 piercings. I did have 13 but I let 2 close up. 8 piercings are in my ears.

9. I use the same Sally from Nightmare before Christmas cup every morning. It holds a cup and a half of coffee and its a really cool cup.

10. I try to be organised/planned. I start with good intentions or have good ideas for organising stuff but I never finish/follow through.

11. I am never late (maybe once or twice). I am always early. Being late makes me anxious. Even if I have to get up earlier I make sure I get somewhere when I'm meant to.

11 Questions set by Neenish Arts

1. What prompted you to start a blog and for how long have you been blogging?
I've always liked writing things down and this is an extenstion on that. I have been blogging for maybe 3 months now.

2. Do you forgive and forget or do you hold a grudge?
I try not to hold a grudge, but if you really screw me over I will cut you out of my life. This does take a lot to happen though. People may p**s me off and I get angry and rant and rave but I do generally get over it.

3. If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go?
Where do I start? I would love to travel everywhere!!

4. Have you ever had your heart broken?
Yes twice.

5. Have you ever broken someone's heart?
Not that I know of. If I have I am truly sorry.

6. What's the best meal you have ever cooked?
Slow cooked (8 hour) Morroccan leg of lamb with red onion tagine. Was a beautiful meal.

7.What makes you laugh?
My girls, the kids at work, watching the chickens, some shows on the ABC. The other day I killed myself laughing after I saw the 2 to 3 year old bathroom at work. They had trashed it with red paint, including a hand print on the wall.

8. What makes you cry?
Cruelty - to children, people, animals, the environment.  War. When I don't do things perfectly.
Toy Story 3, P.S I love you, Gladiator.

9. Whats your favourite book?
I dont have a favourite but I love anything by Kerry Greenwood, Terry Pratchett, Janet Evanovich. I also love Living the Good Life, Animal Mineral Vegetable, oh Jasper Fforde and Lisa Lutz.

10. If you could live in a t.v show, what would you pick?
Modern Family. I could be Lily's nanny.

11. Have you had any encounters with a celebrity?
I have met Costas from gardening Australia.

Serendipity

I have been feeling stressed. I've been wishing for more time. There was so much more I wanted to do.

Well now I have an extra three days. How? You ask. Due to necessity I've had to go from working five days to only two. Stella's after school cater informed me yesterday that she can only have her two days a week. I have no other options. Work is letting me job share which is great. I get to spend more time with Stella (I'm with Breanna all day), I'll have time to garden, cook more and have some me time.

All good things. The money will be less but I've managed before and I will again. It just means less impulse buys, grow more food, cook more and maybe learn to sew. Less stressed mummy will be better for the girls (and for me).
Sometimes fate needs to step in so we can make some changes. This will be all good.

Where does she find the time?

This morning I realised that we had no fresh bread. Or any bread at all (tomorrow is shopping day). Saturdays are a long day at dancing and I need to pack snacks and lunches for myself and 2 girls. What to do?
I made tortillas. I have never made tortillas before and they were really easy. In total they took approximatley 15 minutes with 20 minutes rest time. That 20 minutes I used to pack a nappy bag, pack a dance bag, drink a coffee and start washing up.

This is leading to the question stated above: "Where does she find the time?"

*I get up early. I am a naturally early riser and as long as Breanna doesnt wake up really early as well I have an hour plus to do stuff.
*I prioritise. If my girls are loved, cuddled and spent time with, it doesnt really matter if I dont fold the washing straight away. It will get done but the girls come first.
*If I can cook tonights dinner and something else at the same time I will.
*Leftovers!! If we have the same thing 2 nights in a row the girls & I deal with it. Or if I can freeze something I will.
*Quick and easy dinners...I hear you say "Takeout/packet/jar/frozen foods take much less time". I work full time. I get home at 7pm, I too get tired and want something quick with not much thought. Solution: Omlettes with cheese. 2 cheese omlettes take 10 minutes (including cooking time). You can add kale, silver beet, onion, mushrooms, tomatoes etc. Quick, easy and your not eating crap.
*Slow cookers, or dishes you can put on and walk away from. These mean you can spend the time with the kids or clean or veg in front of the t.v.

Feeding myself and my family well is important to me. I'm lucky that I love cooking. This means I make the time. Yeah I might want to sit in front of the t.v but turning it off for an hour or so allows me to get in the kitchen and make several things (snacks, dinners, lunches).

All that said, I would love to have more time. I have so many things that I want or need to do (mostly want), but at the end of the day if something is important to me and my family I will make the time.

What time saving tricks do you use?

Sustain

Yesterday I made the trek into Moore Park to go to the Sustain organic expo with my Aunty Jo & Breanna. Had a fantastic time looking at the different products, sampling wares and spending time with Jo. I still haven't worked out how to get photos on. I know the theory but can't do it from my phone & I can't find where on my computer my photo files are! When I do I'll put up pics of my stash. In the meantime here's a small run down on what I got: Subscriptions to both ABC Organic Gardener & earth Garden. Two fantastic magazines that I buy. At Organic Gardener I got a free gardening book for liking them on Facebook. At Earth Garden I bought a bread book, bok choy seeds & spinach seeds ( these will be for the greedy chickens). Speaking of seeds I also got butternut pumpkin, gramma pumpkin, chiggioa beet root & lots of garlic. Coconut oil, flour, dried coconut, proper chocolate. I have never tried cooking with coconut flour but I'll have an attempt today. Tri coloured quinoa. Again haven't used it but have wanted to try. Stainless steel divided children's plates, reusable snack & sandwich bags, reusable produce bags. These are because I'm trying to limit the amount of plastic we use as a family. Soap nuts, bamboo brush. From the same guy I get my bamboo toothbrushes from. Coconut milk in BPA free cans. Why do we use BPA? Rock dust to help improve my soil condition. Kombucha. I also got a ton of freebie magazines, food samples etc. big Thankyou to Mojo Kombucha for the free bottle, TOM for the sample and Spiral Foods. Where I live they do coal seam gas, so I also signed petitions, got stickers, posters & a bag against coal seam & mining in food production areas (food security is close to my heart). Also signed petitions against GM foods. Lunch was a sourdough steak sandwich with rocket, beet root & caramelised onion followed by a glass of organic cab sav. It was fantastic to be at an expo and be able to use real silver wear, glasses and plates. Heaps better for the environment and made you feel like "yes I'm a person who can actually eat of china without breaking it". So many expos & shows make you use plastic. Today after doing the usual cleaning & cooking thing, I'm going to sit down and read through the literature that I recieved yesterday.

Perceptions

Perceptions are a funny thing. We can all look at the same object and come away with completely different ideas and thoughts. Take my families' diet. My perception is that it was fairly healthy, a few convenience items and a little bit too much takeaway and lollies sneaking in. Someone else would look at it and think: " They grow their own vegetables, have chickens, eat dairy, whole meal bread and occasional treats. They are WAY healthy". A third person would look and say "But it's low fat dairy, store brought whole meal, look at all the packets and jars!". And finally someone else would say "They eat meat/animal products, how is that a healthy diet?" so on and so on. My perception now is my families' health and well being is the most important thing (it always was but now I'm being more pro-active). My eldest daughter is probe to allergies/food intolerances and asthma. She got very sick last year and took a while for her to recover. She is also very active and dances several times a week. I don't want my youngest to have health problems. My mother has high blood pressure and hypothyroidism. I had put on weight. I started reading. Yes compared to some people our diet was ok. BUT I have the ways and means to make it better. This blog will mainly be about the changes I'm making in our lives, it's not about being perfect, or putting anyone's lifestyle down. It's about what I'm learning, changing and teaching my children. I don't have unlimited funds - I work full time, rent and have two kids. I don't have unlimited time. Sometimes I'll stuff up, but hopefully I will make enough life changes that it's easy to get back on track. When I look at my families' diet I want my perception to be "Thats a fantastic way to eat"

Busy, busy, busy

Flew home on Saturday night and it's been non stop. Sunday morning I unpacked, caught up with my neighbour, went shopping visited with my mum & Ma, roasted a chook, stripped it down , made stock, Lara bars, popcorn, had dinner with my neighbour then got ready for work on Monday. Monday I got home at 7pm, made fajitas from some of the chook, made Pikelets for snacks and packed school/dance/work food & bags. Today I had work again (I work full time & catch public transport),leftovers for dinner, pack bags again and I'm going to the gym for the first time in weeks. Oh yeah I've also been washing up, feeding chickens, collecting eggs and general house stuff. I've also been trying to read my blogs (100daysofrealfood, foodbabe & dyno-mom)to help keep me inspired/give me ideas for my families' food overhaul. Oh yeah got to find time to do my tax....sometimes it feels like something's got to give! So that means I'm making plans, running budgets etc I think I've got a workable plan (more on that later) What has been keeping you busy?

Flying Home

The girls and I will be flying out of Adelaide tonight. It will be good to be back home, but I will miss Adelaide. I feel like I need another week or two to explore. So many markets and op shops not yet visited. So many cafes and restaurants not eaten at. So many plans, ideas, recipes not yet tried. We went to Semaphore on Thursday, a lovely seaside town. I want at least another full day to fully look around. As we were walking down the main street I was earmarking places for when I come back. The future visit will need to be in summer so that we can go swimming (beaches with no waves in adelaide - how freaky yet kid friendly). I also want to bring my mum down, she will absolutely love it here.
So quick round up of some cooking: Carrot & walnut muffins, raw fudge, spicy tomato & vege soup, home made pizza (yes even the base), scones, morroccan chickpeas & couscous, macaroni cheese with mustard chicken & veges (I have never eaten boxed mac & cheese, that stuff is just wrong!), proscuitto wrapped baked Brie, savoury Pikelets with tomato salsa, sautéed wild pine mushrooms....that's all I can remember, I should of written it down. All of these use whole grain, local, full fat products & if I could get it in organic. I do have some pictures which I will have to work out how to upload. My recipe for morroccan chickpeas will be up on NeenishArts (again need to work out links). Today I will be hitting up the health food store (40% off closing sale, next week 50%), and if the weather holds out going on a dolphin cruise. Then it will be off to the airport & one day at home before back to work.

I HEART Adelaide

What I Love About Adelaide
1. Spending time with my cousin and her family. We spent a lot of time together when we were young and since she moved interstate, I miss her. My eldest (Stella) is her goddaughter and my youngest (Breanna) is 4 weeks older than her daughter. I love most of my family to pieces, so this is the biggest thing I heart about Adelaide. Watching the two little ones play is fantastic.
 2. The markets. I've only been to the Fishermans Wharf markets and Adelaide Central markets, but they both rock. Fishermans Wharf is great for finding second hand treasures and the priced aren't evil. I'm taking home some old ballet books, retro cat shakers, various cutters and molds for cooking & postcards. I could of brought more. Adelaide Central markets will be my first stop on a return journey. Excellent food stalls, including several organic, specialty cheese, bread, meat (local), delis etc. I got pine wood mushrooms, proscuitto, Brie, quince paste, truffle oil, pink lady apples, cocoa butter, bananas, sourdough baguette, free range organic eggs and some heirloom seeds. Some of my finds will be coming home, some have been eaten!
3. The op shops. I love a good second hand shop. I really love a second hand shop that doesn't jack the prices up. I got myself and the girls some new clothes. Breanna scored an apron (Stella has several to wear when eating messy foods).
4. The old houses and buildings. These are everywhere and are beautiful.
5. Haigh's chocolates - need I say more?
6. The fact that it's a city but has a more relaxed feel. The high rises aren't very high. The trains are two carriages long and only have one level. You can get a seat at rush hour. I love Sydney but that would NEVER happen! When I come back, I'm planning on coming in warmer months. That way we can explore the beaches and other markets.

Holiday part two

The zoo was great. I'm used to zoo + school holidays = crowds, and if you add pandas to the mix? So I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was not many people, which meant we could get close to the animals. It was also great having a zoo you can walk around in a couple of hours and not feel exhausted afterwards. Don't get me wrong, I love Taronga zoo but sometimes it's just too much - too big, too many people, too far to come home at the end of the day. The kids had a great day, but the bubba was tired & cranky by 4 and the "I walk" was just not an option. So we were treated to a nice tanty! On the food front I made carrot & walnut muffins to bring packed with sourdough salad sandwiches, fruit leather, grapes, strawberries, cucumber, cheese, almonds and corn crunches. When I made the muffins I also made scones, which provided my eldest with afternoon tea for a couple of days. I love cooking and find it soothing and relaxing. I'm also loving the fact that I have time to cook. That's something I really miss working full time. Next post I'll do a quick run down on food I've made for dinner, markets I've been to and what I'm stocking up on to take home.

Holiday part one

I'm on two weeks holiday at the moment, visiting my cousin in Port Adelaide. Loving it here. Today I had a brilliant lunch at Red Lime. I had a Morroccan stew with hummus & couscous, followed by raw carrot cake & raw chocolate slice. My eldest & youngest shared fruit salad & a choc/banana smoothie. My cousin had a sweet potato/pecan burger. Her little girl loved the raw carrot cake. My two tried it but weren't too fussed on it. Port Adelaide also has a great health food shop (unfortunately its closing down), great bulk items, lots of range. I spent $73.60 and got dates, oats, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, cashews, yoghurt covered strawberries, chocolate covered raspberries, cocoa powder, coconut oil, sourdough rye bread, iron supplements, shampoo, conditioner & deodorant. I'm going back before I leave! Tomorrow we are going to the zoo so I'm going to make some snacks.

Confessions

Ok confession time. I ate pretty well at the baby shower but did eat some junk. Since then I've eaten a pile of crap - cheesecake slice, mixed lollies, marshmallows. And the good choices I've made I've eaten too much of - raw food fudge, cashews. There hasn't really been any exercising and I'm feeling blah. Today it's Thursday and time to get back on track. I had Greek yoghurt with Manuka honey for breakfast, lunch will be spicy tomato/veggie soup. I'll be out for dinner so I'll grab sushi & seaweed salad. Snacks will be 30 almonds & an apple. I think I've proven to myself that if I eat crap, I feel like crap.

Baby Shower

I have a baby shower today. I kept on being asked "so you're not doing your diet today". Firstly it's not a diet! I'm choosing not to eat processed, refined junk (cause lets face it that's what most "food" is now). Secondly just because I'm at a party it doesn't mean I can't eat good food. I made chocolate brownies from 100daysofrealfood, raw food fudge (can't remember the site), savoury Pikelets, salsa & guacamole. There will also be mixed berries & I'm taking limes to slice & put in my water. I think this gives me a good selection & I won't do the party thing of over eating. Why are parties an excuse to eat until you explode? I've been guilty of this so many times. Im trying to get out of that mindset.

Tomato & veggie soup

Ok first post & it will be about lunch. Or specifically my lunch. I have been inspired by 100daysofrealfood. So I'm trying to get back to eating no processed/refined foods. Lunch today was: spicy tomato & veggie soup (& I mean spicy, I put 1 chilli in the pot), strawberries, slice whole grain bread & coffee. I'm doing full cream milk in the coffee, that is a first for me. I have almonds for after work & I'm making macaroni cheese for dinner. Breakfast was natural yoghurt, organic blueberries & Manuka honey. Back to the soup. I had the last tomatoes of the season sitting on the bench. I figured soup was good as its getting colder here. I added onion, garlic, carrots & zucchini. Oh yeah & the chilli from my garden. This year the plant has produced very hot chillies. Luckily I like a bit of a bite to my food. I also put in a tin of tomatoes & three cans full of water. Cooked it for around 30 minutes, then blitzed it. Nice, easy, cheap (maybe $3 for whole pot)