Saturday, October 3, 2009

Days 307-314

Sunday Brunch

A few highlights from my week of low carb livin'.

1. My lovely lady made a tasty variation on Paula Deen's Magic Peanut Butter Cookies. Mad used organic almond butter and some organic pumpkin spice to make it more interesting. Me likes. :-)

2. I started a new experiment. I'm testing the effect of an Atkins bar vs. pumpkin seeds vs. an all natural (higher carb) bar on my blood sugar levels. I'll include the results later this week.

3. I tried out another brand of stevia (SweetLeaf) from Whole Foods Market. I ran out of my favorite brand of stevia and decided to give it a go. I don't like it nearly as much - as my usual Now Foods standbys.

Monday Dinner -
picante chicken (from Whole Foods Market - dark meat chicken with some kind of spicy seasoning) and organic avocado slices

Tuesday Dinner -
"jalapeno poppers" (jalapenos stuffed with organic cream cheese, organic sour cream, feta chesse, organic chives, orangic shallots, fresh cracked organic pepper and sea salt) topped with sharp cheddar cheese and organic chipotle salsa

Wednesday Dinner -
"breakfast for dinner" (sunny-side up organic omega-3 eggs over homemade mashed cauliflower and pan-fried prosciutto)

Thursday Dinner -
homemade scallops and homemade creamed spinach (organic spinach, organic onion, organic cream cheese, organic butter (to saute the onion), fresh cracked organic pepper and sea salt

Friday Dinner -
organic Roma tomatoes gutted and stuffed with a soft cheese/herb blend (organic cream cheese, soft goat cheese, organic sour cream, natural pepperoni, fresh organic thyme, dried organic rosemary and fresh cracked organic pepper) and topped with organic provolone cheese

Saturday Dinner - leftover turkey "cowboy" burger (dark meat turkey burger embedded with natural turkey bacon, cheddar cheese, jalapeno pepper and purple onions) topped with melted cheddar cheese

Sunday Brunch - organic, omega-3 cheesy eggs (organic DHA-enriched eggs, a splash of organic half and half, sharp cheddar and organic Parmesan cheese, fresh organic chives, fresh cracked organic pepper and sea salt) natural bacon and organic avocado

We're going sailing today! A first for me and Mad hasn't gone sailing for many years. It should be fun! But I'll be keeping an eye out for pirates and sharks just in case ...

13 comments:

Anne H said...

Have fun, be safe - and have a great time!

Vadim said...

homemade scallops and homemade creamed spinach (organic spinach, organic onion, organic cream cheese, organic butter (to saute the onion), fresh cracked organic pepper and sea salt

it absolutely made me salivate! I looooooooove scallops and creamed spinach. Can you freeze some and send it my way, lol, I will pay for Federal express. But seriously speaking I will have to make one probably today. It sounds so tasty yet really simple to do.

Harry/JP said...

Thanks, Anne!

I'll report back with details ... if we survive! Ha! ;-)

Harry/JP said...

It turned out really well, Mr. V. The beautiful thing about that dish is that it's hard to screw it up. That plus the "simple to make" factor make it my kind of meal to prepare. :-)

PS - If you do make it at home ... it may be helpful to know that we used frozen spinach. That makes it even easier!

Vadim said...

Harry, what brand of protein are you using? I have been using isopure whey for my shakes but there is more and more research suggesting to switch to natural derived whey meaning hormone and antibiotic free cows such as Jay Robb that Sadekat is uisng. It is natural and uses stevia but so damn expensive.

Anonymous said...

i want to make the jalapeno poppers! Have fun sailing!

Harry/JP said...

Vadim,

I'm currently using True Whey by Source Naturals and MRM's Natural Vanilla Egg White Protein:

http://www.vitacost.com/Source-Naturals-The-True-Whey-Powder-16-oz

http://www.iherb.com/MRM-All-Natural-Egg-White-Protein-French-Vanilla-24-oz-680-g/13929?at=0

I like Jay Robb's protein as well but rarely use it - mostly due to cost considerations.

Harry/JP said...

Nancy,

They're awesome! Mad's making some more this afternoon! Mmmm. :-)

Hope you have a great weekend!

~Oct said...

Can't wait to read the results of your comparisons. I agree that SweetLeaf is not as appealing to me as NOW liquid stevia.

Harry/JP said...

Thanks, Oct.

I'm half way through the experiment - three more days of testing. So far, the results have been pretty interesting. I hope to post a column about it on Monday.

I'll have to try the Now Foods liquid stevia sometime. I've mostly been using the packets - in order to get some added prebiotics (inulin). It'll be fun to try a different version next time.

yodasmith said...

I use SweetLeaf stevia! I use SweetLeaf Stevia Plus (added fiber) in smoothies, and have tried it with cinnamon on cereal--sooo good! I have tried a little of their flavored liquid stevia( Orange Valencia, Vanilla Creme, Lemon Drop, English Toffee) on plain yogurt and their stevia plus on strawberries, and those were good too! So, I don't know what you all are talking about!

It also has 0 calories, 0 carbs, and a 0 glycemic index, and is the only stevia brand or sweetener on the market with all three properties! I guess you can tell I'm a fan! To each his/her own, I guess!

Harry/JP said...

Yoda,

No offense intended! My taste buds have a mind of their own. ;-)

For some reason, it just seems as though the SweetLeaf doesn't sweeten as well as the Now Foods stevia packets I typically use. Again, this is just my two pennies worth.

I like that the product uses inulin and stevia as it's only two ingredients. That's a plus. Seems like a responsible company too - contributing to the farmers that grow the stevia, etc.

Maybe I'll do a stevia taste test blog and a blood sugar challenge in the future. It would be fun to do. So many ideas, so little time ...

yodasmith said...

Harry/JP,

It's cool!! I'm not offended!