Keeping frugal, trying to stay somewhat low-carb.

Eats lately: Boneless pork chops with veggies sheet pan meal (a maple gravy was spooned over each chop on our plates-made with real maple syrup that I was gifted), tomato & mozzarella slices with a splash of olive oil and balsamic vinegar and steak smothered with mushrooms/onions/peppers, lettuce salad with sunflowers and cheese and mushroom smothered steak and salt & vinegar roasted fingerling potatoes.

A Frugal Doing:  These pictures are from this past fall. Dad had a good crop of leeks in the garden and we just weren't eating them quickly enough to eat fresh. So I dug the rest up, cleaned them really well, then sliced and dehydrated them. I didn't keep track of how long they were on the racks, though they were on overnight and then some. That small kitchen sink full of leeks gave me about 6 sandwich baggies full.

I'm hoping to get back on the low-carb bandwagon. I haven't fallen completely off, but pretty close. My weight's stayed pretty much the same. Though I am afraid that one of these times that I hop on the scale it is finally going to have caught up with me. A friend has finally started a "diabetic type of diet" (aka low-carb) and while we no longer work together and see each other as often, it is still nice to have a friend that understands the how and why of eating this way. Sadly, she is the one who gifted me a quart of real maple syrup that I have used on several occasions, ha ha... I have a new job in a convenience store where cheap eats are abundant and has added to my failing. I've recently started to bring my own lunch and am continuing to work on that. Meeting for coffee at friends' homes is another challenge for me as there's typically goodies on hand. I warned them at the last one that if I bring something in the future it will be made to suit my needs. Selfish aren't I? Anyway, here's to keeping a better diet and keeping a better record of it, too!

Yummy Shrimp & A New Baby

What I'm Eating: Today's Snapshot:
B> 1slice toasted Ezekiel w/egg salad, 2 coffee with h&h and sweetener
L> 2slices toasted Ezekiel w/egg salad, water
S> 1/2med roasted sweet potato, grilled shrimp skewers, sf iced coffee
Snacks> 1sf choc & caramel bar, 1 strawberry, 2 chunks cherry almond dark chocolate bar, handful pecans

Let me make my excuses right away. I have been PMS'ing for a few days now. I don't know about y'all, but my brain tells me, "FEED ME", and more specifically, "FEED ME CHOCOLATE". Also, we are in need of a little shopping to pick up some veggies and such, hence the overdose of egg salad. The sweet potato on my plate was merely scrubbed, diced and seasoned liberally with olive oil, s&p, dried rosemary and fresh minced parsley. Popped the pan into the toaster oven and in about 45mns time of about 350 degrees... perfection. The shrimp was made by mostly following Melissa Joulwan's recipe from her Well Fed cookbook. Oh my, oh my... divine. Her recipe calls for cilantro. I'm not a fan of that so I used parsley instead. I used precooked/frozen shrimp instead of fresh. (Can you tell I don't follow directions very well?) I also thought half a lime provided plenty of juice, rather than the whole one as called for. Purely divine. I was in such a food-blissed-out state after eating this meal! Just between you and I? J and I polished off the entire pound of shrimp.

What I've Seen This Week:

Yay! Gerbera Daisy still making blooms!

Pork Roast & Sweet Potatoes

Pork Roast & Sweet Potatoes 
(by Becky @ Becky's Place)
3-4lb pork shoulder roast*
2 small onions, peeled & quartered
2 small heads garlic, peeled & smashed
1/2 tsp pink salt
2Tbsp herbes de provence
2Tbsp rosemary
1Tbsp liquid smoke
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chunked, tossed with a dash of olive oil

Place roast in Dutch oven.  Add onions and garlic, salt, herbes de provence, rosemary and liquid smoke.  Cover and place in oven set to 350 for a half hour.  Reduce oven to 325.  Add sweet potatoes, cover and return to oven to continue to cook for 1hr.  Reduce heat to 300 for another 1hr & 20mns.  Remove from oven and let rest 15mns before serving.

*My roast was direct from the freezer.  You may wish to cook yours for less time if it is thawed.  Use a thermometer to test for doneness.

Drats!  I forgot to get a picture once it was completely done.  Well, it looked a lot like the second photo... just a little browner, I guess.  This was a very good combination and I'll make it again.  I was hesitant when adding the liquid smoke.  But I'm not sure it added much to the outcome, maybe a little additional saltiness.  Next time I would like to increase it to 2-3Tbsp. This fed 5 of us with leftovers for at least three more servings.

Day 12 BFC and a non-BFC recipe!

Back on the bandwagon, folks.  No more planning a cheat day, because despite my strong will and good intentions in the morning, my subconscious still says, "But you said I could have that today!" and stomps its ornery feet.

Breakfast>  1 Ezekial toast with peanut butter, 1/2container Fage yogurt with jam, coffee with cream and xylitol (s/c=6/2)

Lunch> Zevia ginger root beer with cream (s/c=01)
Snacks> 2 mini Reese's sugar-free pb cups (s/c=0/1)

Supper> 1c chicken vegetable soup with jasmine rice, 1/2 rye crisp with cheese and ham (s/c=0/2)
Total s/c for today - 6/6

This is a recipe that I'd made a little while back.  I'd found it in one of my Cook's Illustrated magazines.  It truly does make a fantastic baked potato!  Especially if you like to eat the skins, too!

Salt-Baked Potatoes
2 & 1/2c salt, plus 1/8 tsp
4 russet potatoes, cleaned and dry (I needed 5.)
2 sprigs rosemary, plus 1/4 tsp minced
1 whole head garlic, outer paper removed and top 1/4 cut off
4 tsp olive oil
4 Tbsp butter, softened


Heat oven to 450 degrees.  Spread 2 & 1/2c salt in 13x9 baking pan, Nestle potatoes in salt, leaving space between potatoes.  Add garlic head, cut side up, and rosemary sprigs.  Cover pan with foil and seal tightly.  Bake 1 hr & 15 mns.  Take pan out of oven.  Increase temperature to 500.  Carefully remove foil, then remove garlic to let it cool.  Brush potatoes with olive oil.  Return to oven uncovered.  Bake until tender, approximately another 15 mns.  Meanwhile, once garlic's cool enough, squeeze root end of head until cloves slip out of the skins.  With a fork, mash garlic, butter and remaining salt (I omitted) and minced rosemary together for a topping for the potatoes.  (Make sure you dust off any extra salt sticking to the outside of  the potatoes.)