Good Monday morning

Afternoon actually!  I am enjoying my lasagna made with zucchini sliced very thin like lasagna noodles.  No cheese in it either - don't miss either the noodles or the cheese!  Of course, except for the fact that it is layered and almost looks like lasagna (but not, because of no cheese on top) I would have to call it a vegetable and meat casserole instead!  No matter! The flavors are wonderful and a small portion is incredibly satisfying.  I had to run out for fresh basil and it was well worth it.  I have the rest of the bunch drying as I am out of dried basil anyway.  It calls for a pound of beef and a pound of italian sausage, which I used - but I have a wonderful sausage spice blend and so next time I will use two pounds of the beef (I buy 90+% lean) and the seasoning.

Which is a perfect segue into something I am adjusting right now.  Not all calories are created equal: 100 calories from a snack pack are not the same quality as 100 calories from an apple.  HOWEVER, that being said, I will gain weight on 3000 calories and lose weight on 1500, so calories DO count!  I also am in agreement with the fact that saturated fats are not the TOTAL  villains they are made out to be.  However, I think they are not healthy in excess, and not healthy if they are from unhealthy sources (such as nitrate and chemically laden bacon).  Now keep in mind that this is my opinion and what I am most comfortable with.  I feel that some of the recipes I have been making from my Paleo cookbooks don't need as much fat as called for, or that fat can be drained after cooking. 

This thinking all ties into my feelings about not following any diet (or lifestyle) dogma, but to take the best of several things and meld it into something that is comfortable - and reasonable - for myself.  Someone asked me why I am diving into so many Paleo cookbooks if I am not following Paleo dogma.  The reason is that I looked at several gluten-free cookbooks and the majority of them either had GF substitutes for the real thing, or used other grains/legumes in abundance.  Since I am not looking for substitutes, and am staying away from grains and legumes as part of an auto-immune protocol, the GF cookbooks are not for me.

In the Paleo cookbook camp, my family has absolutely LOVED every recipe that I have made so far.  Last night I made apple shallot pork chops and  a cabbage side dish made with onions, pancetta and raisins.  I have also found that I am so incredibly comfortable with the recipes in these cookbooks because the food is whole and healthy, and the way I love to cook and eat anyway.  I do not miss grains or legumes at all (and neither does my family)! 

The only things I have had NO luck with have been my couple of tries at Paleo treats.  One was a total failure (in my eyes, although my son liked it) and last night I made a chocolate coconut macaroon.  My husband didn't think it was sweet enough (it was made with honey, not sugar) but my son did like them.  Me - I didn't care for them and actually had the whole tray hovering over the trashcan this morning, but my son stopped me.  I will hold onto them another couple of days then ditch them.

The interesting thing here is that I melted some chocolate chips to frost some of them (hoping that would add a little sweetness for my husband's liking) and of course I snitched a few chips.  OMG - I couldn't have had more than 6 of them and not only was I nauseous, but during the night I woke up with a real hungry feeling - that used to come after a night of  sugar/flour indulgence, which always wreaked havoc on my blood sugar.  I think I keep looking to see if grain and sugar free is REALLY real for me... I don't know how much more convincing it will take!

My concern right now is that I do want to lose weight.  I think that eating this way with reasonable portions will accomplish that, even if the weight loss is slow.  In early January I will repeat all my blood tests - without the statins and with this new eating path, and that will be the test regardless of what the scale says.

Dinner tonight is the leftover pork chops - which my husband, the chef, had me put back in a slow oven for about two hours... he assured me it will soften the meat to be like short ribs and not toughen it into shoe leather.  We shall see....

Miriam