Noshtopia

Betty White And Delicious Muffins

Last week Betty White hosted SNL, and one of the cool skits she did was with Anna Gasteyer and Molly Shannon as the two SNL vets reprise their NPR radio show Delicious Dish. That NPR skit was one of my favorites back in the day. Who could forget the episode with Alec Baldwin and Schweddy Balls Good times!

Here the ladies discuss dietary fiber and muffins. So funny!

Fast Food: Why Not Take Out The Nasty Food Instead Of The Toy?

This story is a bit old but I just had a thought. Over in Santa Clara County supervisors approved the nation's first ordinance preventing restaurants from using toys to lure kids to meals high in fat, sugar and calories. Basically, there isn't going to be any more Spiderman action figure in that Happy Meal.

According to the new law, restaurants can't give away toys unless the meal meets certain nutritional guidelines. "This ordinance breaks the link between unhealthy food and prizes," said Supervisor Ken Yeager, who sponsored the initiative.

The real problem is not the toy

Now, I get that they are trying to do a good thing here to try and cut down the rising obesity and food-related health issues kids have because of eating fast foods. But here's the thing, the problem is the food, not the toy.

People are going to still buy the crappy food whether there is a toy or not. If parents are caving into their kids because the kid is screaming for the toy, then there is a bigger problem at home. The government can't control that, but the government can regulate the businesses.

When I can see a benefit to Big Brother

Typically, I'm not into big brother or the government coming in when it comes to choices regarding our health or body, but in the case of fast foods, I would be okay with the government establishing some stricter nutritional guidelines like limits on salt, sugar, fat, dyes, preservatives, and artificial ingredients to help get the crappy food out of the system. If the foods aren't there, no one can buy them.

The restaurants aren't going to regulate themselves because they are driven by profit, and as long as people buy it, they will make it regardless of long term health affects. So, why not go after the food itself versus the marketing tactics like toys. I'd love to see a toy in a Kid's Meal that has fresh foods in it as a way to give the kid's a fun association with healthier eating.

The consumption of fast food is a fascinating problem because on one hand yes, a diet rich in these fast foods will affect one's health adversely. Supersize Me still gives me nightmares. However, eating fast food once in awhile is okay. I myself on occasion like to enjoy In & Out fries and Chick-Fil-A nuggets.

In theory, you can't control what people eat. However, maybe there should be some limitations put in place at the fod making source because as Jamie Oliver mentioned in his TED Talk, the U.S. spends $150 billion in health care related to obesity alone. That number is shockingly alarming, and can easily be lowered because it's simply a matter of making healthier food choices.

But still, it's tricky. What do you think?

Weaning Sugar Wednesday #13: Just Because It's Organic Doesn't Mean It's Better

 

I saw this party napkin and had to laugh because it pretty much sums up my false belief that organic sweets are better than non-organic sweets simply because it's organic. Granted, the organic sweets are made out of ingredients as close to as Mother Nature made them which yes is awesome, but added sugar is still added sugar, and we're working on going sugar little to get down to consuming around 25g of added sugar per day.

And yes, organic cane sugar in the raw is a less processed and higher quality sugar than high fructose corn syrup, and if you're going to eat sugar it's better to have the raw sugar over the HFCS, but again, it's still added sugar, and you can overdo it....like I do or should say now, did quite often.

 

My weakness is the Whole Foods bakery and anything vegan. I have yet to see a packaged vegan sweet like a cookie, ice cream, or candy made with high fructose corn syrup. I'm not saying it doesn't exist, I'm just saying I haven't seen it. If you have, do share. I'm curious if it's a values thing, as many vegans I know have more of an as-natural-as-possible-foods mentality. It's a theory.

Every single time I go to Whole Foods which is like oh every other day, I have to scan the bakery and gawk. As I've been doing this sugar wean, the gawking is enough to curb my cravings most times.

And now, luckily for my weaning sweet tooth, because I live in Phoenix where vegan baked goods even in Whole Foods is scarce, I have less temptations than I had in the Bay Area where my biggest weakness were these vegan coconut and dark chocolate covered donuts, and vegan banana nut muffins. Oh how I dream of those moist luscious muffins often.

Not-so-sweet emo week

Last week was a bit rough emotionally, but I did manage to focus on keeping an open heart and keeping sweet thoughts about life. Wonderful things did happen like mom and I got featured in a post in the Wall Street Journal, and the IRS told me that they were giving me money back. Again, see, miracles do happen!

I did however overdo it with the agave in my rice milk latte coffee drinks. In fact, last week, I had a tall iced coffee with loads of agave in it almost every day. Along with the emo week, it's getting hot here in Phoenix where we've had a couple 90+ degree days already, and the coffee drinks have been my crutch. But it's okay. I'm aware now, and we can get back on track. No biggie.

So, how has your sugar weaning been going?

Ginger Teriyaki Organic Grass Fed Beef With Lemony Kale

 

If you've noticed, I've been on a kale kick lately, and for this weeks, "I tried something new," I decided to pair a lemony kale side dish with some ginger teriyaki beef.

I don't eat red meat often, but when I do I will eat a really good piece of grass fed beef.

The meat I got was an organic grass fed top round, and let me tell you that if you've never had grass fed beef before, you must try it because there is a noticeable difference - the meat is more tender and to me has a sweeter taste. Cows are natural herbivores, so when you eat grass fed beef, you're getting what's true to the animal.

Ingredients Ginger Teriyaki Beef (serves 1 large portion or 2 small):

 

• 1/2 lb organic grass fed top round beef sliced into 1" rectangular pieces
• 1/4 sliced onion
• 1 tbsp diced fresh ginger root (it's about 1" of ginger)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp teriyaki sauce ( I use Soy Vay Veri Veri Teriyaki sauce because it's all natural ingredients)
• Pepper & salt

Let's Get Cooking:

• On medium heat, pour 2 tbsp olive oil into wok. Saute ginger and onion for about 30 seconds til it starts to soften.

• Toss in the beef. Season with a few shakes of salt & pepper. Saute meat for a minute. Add in the 3 tbsps of teriyaki sauce.

 

• Grass fed beef has high water content so you'll notice that the pan looks soupy. Keep cooking and stirring on occasion the beef for about 5 minutes, and the water will evaporate.

• Take the pan off the hot burner, and let it sit on a cool one for about 5 minutes so the sauce can thicken a bit.

Voilah! Ready to eat.

Ingredients Lemony Kale (serves 2):

• 2 cups chopped kale
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 fresh lemon
• Garlic Salt

Let's Get Cooking:

• Boil 1 cup of water in a pot with lid.

• Blanch kale for 1 minute. No longer than that or the kale will be overcooked and mushy.

• Drain. Put kale in a small bowl pour in olive oil and squeeze lemon juice on kale. Add garlic salt to taste. Toss everything thoroughly.

Beyond Iceberg Lettuce: 5 Different Greens To Try In Salad

 

I don't eat iceberg lettuce anymore because it reminds me of diet food, and the stuff is just bland and boring. Sorry to be so mean to the iceberg, but it's true, and I think many people associate salad with the blah iceberg which is why I want to say, hold up, green salad can be way more exciting.

 

Oops, wait, before we go onto the exciting greens, I'll take some of my iceberg apathy back because I just remembered that iceberg is excellent in Wedge salad with warm bacon, blue cheese, and tomato. I do remember the tastiness of the Wedgey. However, the Wedge is excellent more because of the dressing than the lettuce, so okay, back to square one.

If you're looking at new ways to jazz up a lunch or dinner salad, try some of my favorite greens out:

• Arugula, {in picture above} also known as rocket, is one of my favorite greens next to kale. Arugula has a peppery flavor to it and can be strong if you eat it raw on its own. I recommend mixing the arugula with other greens in the salad.

• Frisee also known as curly endive has a decorative lacy look to them. I enjoy the texture because it's not your average looking leaf.

• Butter lettuce also known as Boston or Bibb lettuce is another one of my favorites because it has a sweet taste and smooth like buttah texture.

• Watercress is another peppery tasting green but is a bit more delicate than arugula, and is one of the oldest known leaf vegetables native from Europe to central Asia.

• Escarole is a variety of endive, has a broad leaf, and is crunchy. Chop some up and use in a sandwich instead of iceberg.

Companies who produce bagged salad greens will mix some of these listed greens into together with other greens like this Trader Joe's Herb Salad Mix, so do the read labels, and try something new. Green salad just may take on a new liking to you. Because there are so many greens to choose from now, I eat greens every day.

Sweet Back Story: How Love Got Mom And I Featured In A Wall Street Journal Post

 

While I tell you this sweet story, let us enjoy a vegan mocha latte cupcake made by @treehousebakery. Friend @jwillensky brought me some yesterday as we hung out at Sola Coffee Bar.

Today, mom and I are featured in a post by @geoffreyfowler on the Wall Street Journal Digits blog in the story, "Facebook ‘Friending’ Mom: The Ultimate Mother’s Day Gift?" Indeed, a very exciting moment for this blogger...and my mom as I can hear her screaming through her iPhone in excitement.

I've been tweeting about my mom's venture into Facebook because it's so cute and hilarious. Geoff saw this tweet I wrote yesterday about how mom always ends her wall posts to me with "Love, mom," and that is how the story came to be. However, I also believe this opportunity came about because of something much bigger, and I'll share it because it's a great story about growing and love. It's also a good "I tried something new" post because even though it's not about food, I did nourish myself in a new way.

The choice: Open heart or closed heart

Yesterday, I posted about seeing the flowers beyond the cactus, which was about a painful thing that happened between a friend and I. In handling that situation, this time I chose to head some of my mom's best advice which is, "Always be a class act."

So, I asked myself, what is the classy thing to do?

I chose to not go into that dark place and shut down. Even though I was filled with a great deal of hurt and pain, I chose to react with grace instead of similar attack. I chose to get real about how I contributed to this situation because I am no angel either. I kept my heart open and reached out to people. This does not make me better than my friend. All it means is that I made a different choice than he did. He too can make different choices now and in the future. Everything in life simply comes down to our choices and what we want to create.

I chose to send more love out into my world inspired by something I read in A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle where he said that if there is something you feel the universe is withholding from you, it is because you are withholding that thing from the world.

For a long time, I've felt like the universe has withheld love from me...and more specifically romantic love. I see so many people around me in relationships and I'll share that I wonder often, "What about me? What's wrong with me that love alludes me?" As I write this and see the thought in print, I can see why. Geez girl why you focused on lack...and that is what I have created, a lack of love.

I try something new, not with food but with love

So, this time, I took Tolle's advice and sent out as much love as I could. But, I do it without any expectations of getting anything back in return or expectations of how things should look or happen. I was just more curious to see what happens when I throw the love mojo out.

With the help of many signs from the universe like random posts on my Facebook wall and Twitter stream about the power of love, random stories from friends about how they overcame a broken heart in a positive way, and random sentences in books and magazines which felt like a higher power was talking directly at me, I choose to do something different and kept my heart open instead of closing it...which I would normally do in the past.

This time, I chose to see that my friend is letting his pain run his life at the moment and hope that one day he will grow from this and make things right. I chose to send more love out into my world by just doing small random things like being more interactive with friendly and loving comments with my Facebook, Twitter, and blog friends.

I chose to smile more at people while I was walking down the street. I chose to look myself in the mirror and say this time, "You are awesome Steph and some guy is going to pretty damn excited to be with you!" That my friends was a big time first for me...being my own cheerleader when it comes to love.

Most importantly, I just chose to keep my heart open especially when the pain and hurt started to rear it's ugly head. That was admittedly tough to do, but as my friend Kevin would say, "You need to walk through your fire because the only way past it is through it."

I decided that I needed a dose of positive male energy, so on Wednesday I hung out with @bmok for lunch, and then enjoyed Cinco de Mayo margaritas with @gawthrok, and then spent Thursday morning with @jwillensjy with the vegan muffins, rice lattes, and meeting new friends @aussieheather and @azmissy. I even saw @FnBAZ who is just one of the sweetest guys around.

Yesterday, I also made the choice, to make things right with someone I had shut out last year when he and I had a similar painful situation. He tried talking to me and instead of me talking to him, I felt justified in my behavior because I felt it was my turn to inflict hurt so that he could experience what he had done to me many times before. He and I go back to the 80's and have this long, long history.

Anyway, I chose to take ownership of that situation and make it right in the sense of trying to create a good place, some positive energy between he and I. He didn't have to accept my reaching out, and it didn't matter if he did or not because I realize that this was more an exercise for me in simply reaching out, opening up, and again taking accountability for my actions.

As a result of all this focused sending out of love and keeping my heart open this week, this is what happened:

• I have peace and much love. My heart has been feeling broken pains yes, but I feel like I'm swimming in a vat of loving energy. There is no angtsy trauma because I didn't go there. I went somewhere more positive instead and let go of what love is supposed to look like. Yeah, there is no guy but I got love pouring out the ying yang, and it's wonderful.

• I have strengthened relationships and are building new ones with people who are equally open and friendly, and value me as I feel about them.

• My friend in CA not only was happy to hear from me, he opened up to me in a way I have never seen before and it was incredibly beautiful. It made my heart swell with so much love I can't begin to tell you. We are definitely in a wonderful place and I feel we have our friendship back.

• The Wall Street Journal opportunity appeared, and as my first media mention in that publication, I get to do it with my mom. That is so cool!

• I got a nail in my tire, and I took it to Big-O, where I always buy tires, to get it fixed, and the service was done for free. Money has been tight this month, and this break was such a gift.

• I got a letter this morning from the IRS saying that they redid my tax returns, and they sent me money back. Yes, the government sent me money back! Holey Cow!

So see, miracles do happen when you choose to keep your heart open. In fact, to sum it all up, I tweeted this today:

When someone does something hurtful to you, you can react with grace or like hurt. Whichever you choose is what will come back to you.

What I learned in this experience is that the universe does not reward you for good behavior, no. What happens is that the universe simply gives back what you have given out.

Relationships: Seeing The Flowers Beyond The Cactus

 

Every Sunday morning I go for a walk around my neighborhood. On this Sunday, it was a gorgeous Phoenix Spring day at 72 degrees and I see this cactus with these beautiful yellow flowers.

I've never seen cactus with blooming flowers before, and I smile because I realize that I am in a real desert area as opposed to faux desert that land developers will create for selling affect much like putting palm trees in to create a "tropical" feel.

When a friend acts out of character

Symbolically, I also appreciate the relationship metaphor of these flowers amongst the prinkly cactus as it was a reminder to me to remain optimistic during a challenging time I'm having right now. The other day I found myself in a situation with a friend who did something very spiteful to me. But what caught me off guard is that this particular action is very out of character for this person, and so I didn't really understand it...at first.

Don't get me wrong, the incident did hurt a great deal because hey I'm human, but also it didn't because of the left field aspect. It's like having a Labrador Retriever who is normally a really friendly and loving dog who would never even harm a flea, but then one day turns into Cujo and bites the hell out of you. You know that there is something going on with the dog because he's not behaving his normal nature.

On the surface, I see Cujo attacking me, but down below, inside, I know my Labrador is there. On the outside, it looks like a bad-tempered situation, but deep down, I know there is a lot of pain going on. The dark part of me wants to retaliate and be hateful in return, but the lighter part of me accepts what is and doesn't take the bait.

All we can change is ourselves and our attitude

Seeing the flowers in the cactus reminds me that even in the prickliest of situations there can be grace. Barbed and beauty can co-exist because you love a whole not just the pretty pieces. So in the now, I choose to focus on the flowers, the handsomeness of my friend instead of the sharp spines of their uncharacteristic behavior.

Three years ago, I would have focused on the hurtful spikes and the ordinary of the cactus, and probably curse the plant for not being what I wanted it to be.

As I realize that I am doing the opposite, and focusing on the whole, I smile again because the other beauty I discover in this thorny situation is that I have grown and no longer go to that "place," that place where I feel trapped in hurt and pain.

I'm not saying that what my friend did is okay or acceptable because it is not, and there are consequences. But, I'm not going to hang on to the wrong of the circumstance on either end. I will be compassionate and keep an open heart more because it is good for me. These are the moments where we choose to live in the light of love or in the shadow of fear.

The flowers in the cactus remind me to choose love because it's plentiful and everywhere. We just have to be willing to see it.

Cinco de Mayo Dedication: Playing For Change, Stand By Me

This global version of Stand By Me always swells my heart. My dedication for Cinco de Mayo, and down with SB 1070, let's stand together and overturn this law!

Weaning Sugar Wednesday #12: Change Happens In Moments Not Plans

 

After years of experience with dieting or I should say diet mentality, one thing I've learned about working with my Inner Resistance Monster is to not have plans. In fact, even when I blog, I commonly go to a cafe, get a rice milk latte, and just start writing or tweeting whatever comes to mind. I tried doing an editorial calendar once to help me organize, and yeah, the IR Monster rebelled.

When I started this going sugar little journey to get down to eating 25g of sugars per day, I had no plan other than I chose first to do a wean versus cold turkey, and to have no time line. I had no end date nor any set goal for the day. I didn't even think about how long I would like this journey to take. I just decided to go with the flow man. I would stare down sugar one tasty drink or treat at a time like these Rice Dream chocolate pies.

 

Now, the "no plan" strategy is completely opposite of my instinct to plan. I'm a natural planner. Back in my corporate career, I was the master project manager and multi-tasker. Oh you should have seen my Microsoft Project sheets - they were almost works of organized art.

And of course, I would apply my planning skills into creating one of my famous "lose 15 pounds in 12 weeks" plans where I would have two Excel spreadsheets: one for body stats like inches and pounds lost, and the second spreadsheet for calories in and out. I'd cut out recipes from magazines and print out more recipes I found online.

And yes, I would start on Monday because geez what other day of the week do you start?...Oh how we laugh now, naive dieter I was.

Plans & action

Even though I was an amazing planner, I was a poor executor. In my career it was different, everything I planned I would easily and eagerly turn into action and achieve every goal I set out to accomplish. With losing weight, well that was a whole other story. For some reason, I couldn't mimic the success I had achieved with work projects with success in getting back into the skinny jeans.

I would either not start on Monday or start but then slack or give up by day 5. Sometimes, if I was fed up enough with that pesky muffin top, I would last on "the plan" about a month and drop about 5-6 pounds.

But then like a ship who lost it's rudder, I'd veer of course. I discovered later in therapy that my Inner Resistance Monster was okay with plans at work but not plans in my personal life and even more specifically with my weight.

 

Two years + 4 months ago, after dropping 30 lbs and keeping it off all this time, I think I was successful in not only taking the weight off but keeping it off this time because I shifted strategy and focused on attitude before diet & exercise, and I didn't really plan. I did a little planning but nothing close to what I used to do with the Excel spreadsheets.

The Tolle approach to weight loss

What I did focus on was just choices in the now. Yes, I'm sounding Eckhart Tolle. I did away with "planning" thinking and focused more on what I would eat for the day or even in the moment and what I would do for exercise...again just for that day. Tomorrow didn't exist, only right now did.

I found that I experienced less anxiety and I felt like I had more control. Thinking about the future and the past would really depress me, and that would then trigger night emo eating of chocolate chip cookies, pecan praline ice cream, or gingerbread cake...not beneficial for anything other than getting a temporary sugar high which would then trigger a crashing low. I'd rinse and repeat almost every night. It was exhausting...and frustrating.

In the past, I think one of the main reasons I would gain weight back whenever I did lose weight was because mentally I was "done" meaning done with whatever weight loss plan I was on because I had reached my goal, so we're done, right? My brain was no longer in plan mode any more, so I'd drift back to my old habits.

One of the tactics that worked in keeping the weight off this time was that I had to retrain or trick my brain a bit and nix the planning mentality and just focus on the "is." What will I eat right now? What exercise will I do today?

We don't need no stinking plan

It finally dawned on me that I can't live my life on a constant plan or program, and that having that healthy body I want and keep is not a result of big plans but really a result of everyday choices in the now that added up over time and will continue to add up going into the future.

Being more in the present is also how I discovered the tiny actions strategy because even if I only did 10 minutes of exercise or ate 100 less calories for the day, it was better than doing zero. Also too, the idea of tiny actions is far more doable and stress-free than big plans which can scare the beejeebies outta my Inner Resistance Monster.

So, how about you? Have you found that you do better on plans or more go with the flow in the now type of strategies.

Sweet Creamy Goat Cheese Dip With Pepperdews and Walnuts

 

I love pepperdews because they add a nice sweet peppery flavor to sandwiches and in dips they can add a cheese like flavor like in this Edamame and Sweet Pepperdew Hummus Dip.

This sweet creamy goat cheese dip with pepperdews and walnuts takes about 5 minutes to make and is great for an afternoon snack with crackers or for a party dip with pita and wine. I came up with the idea while at looking at a bunch of cheeses at the Whole Foods deli, so I thought it would be cool for this week's "I tried something new."

In this recipe, I used some creamy goat cheese I got at Trader Joe's that was packaged in a convenient 4.5oz tub. You can use whatever creamy goat cheese favorites at your local grocery store.

Ingredients (makes about 1/2 cup):

• 1-4.5oz tub Trader Joe's creamy goat cheese
• 4 pepperdews
• 3 tbsps walnut pieces
• 1 tbsp light agave nectar

 

Let's get cooking:

• In a small 3-cup food processor, grind the pepperdews until they are in small chunks. Took me about 30 seconds.

• In a small bowl, mix together the goat cheese, walnuts, agave nectar, and ground pepperdews until all ingredients are blended together.

Place in nice serving dish and you're ready to nosh!