Brunch vs lunch
Gosh we get told some crap don’t we? “Eat within the first hour of getting up”, “Eat regular meals” Never allow yourself to get hungry.” Or this one “The longer your stomach is empty the better it is for you”. Each of these contradictory things may be true sometimes and not true others. true for some people or not true for others.
Since the re-set, it’s a delight to have my appetite tell me so clearly when I want to eat and when I don’t and just as clearly tell me when I’ve had enough to eat. There’s not even the faintest idea of restriction in my mind. I’m satisfied or I’m not satisfied.
There has been a couple of occasions where I found myself wanting more and it didn’t make sense, so I paused and felt into “What was it that I wanted?” On a few occasions it was fat – there wasn’t enough fat in the meal – but it could just as easily have been sweetness, or sourness or bitterness. Click here to understand the six tastes of Ayurveda. I’m giving you this Ayurveda link because those six tastes might be worth knowing about when you pause for a moment’s curiosity about “What is that I am really wanting here?” And hey if it IS more food, then enjoy every bite with gusto.
At the beginning of the reset I was needing to eat a lot (don’t forget though that was when I was losing weight really fast and shrinking my skin!) Back then an egg crepe was made with two eggs, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and whatever herbs I was using for a variation. Weeks later, my appetite has reduced effortlessly because of the reset and one egg for a crepe with its filling is satisfying.
In the crepe pictured I had grated zucchini into it. The crepe mixture itself is plain – just egg and parmesan cheese. It needs to go into a reasonably hot pan sprayed with some kind of oil, in order to loosen up easily and come out clean with a spatula. I pour the egg in, roll it around the frying pan until it’s kind of evenly spread out. It’s not on the stove for very long – maybe a minute or two. Then under the grill for another minute or two to finish it off.
Variations are vast. I’ve used left overs from last night’s dinner, making a kind of bubble and squeak, used tomatoes, mushrooms, I’ve added crunchy cold cucumber to the hot filling and that’s been delicious too.
You can cook a crepe in the morning and use it as a roll up for lunch with the same kinds of fillings you’d use for a wrap.
Almond milk, almond and chia
When I crave fresh almond milk, it pops the taste buds in my mouth. I made a smoothie out of it one morning – putting it in a blender with a carrot and plain cooked beetroot and it was yummy even though smoothies aren’t my thing.
If you like breakfast in a bowl, you could add 3 to 4 tablespoons of chia seeds to 1 cup of almond milk the night before and allow it to set into a jelly like consistency and sprinkle some chopped nuts. No fruit or honey though, during the two week re-set.
Here’s that link again for the almond milk recipe
Soups
I love homemade soups, typically make a bigger batch than I need and freeze in one serve containers. Soups that are slow cooked with bones are so yummy and nutritious, lining the gut and keeping everything healthy. I doubt if there’s anyone who is a semi-regular consumer of Grandma’s chicken soup who has ended up suffering from with irritable bowel syndrome.
To just about all my soups I add seaweed in the cooking. I usually use Wakame flakes, but when they haven’t been available I’ve bought larger varieties and either crushed them by hand or mulched them in the blender. Keep in mind the men in my family had NO IDEA they were eating something as healthy as seaweed!
The variations on Grandma’s soup are almost endless. Some of my favorites are:
Add miso at the last minute for it’s umami flavor and probiotics.
An Italian version with tomatoes and peppers
Lots of garlic and some fresh ginger for a slightly oriental taste.
Add green curry paste.
Laksa spices.
Click here for my version of Granny’s magic elixir
Robin sent me this pumpkin bread recipe
Pumpkin Bread
400g cooked and mashed pumpkin
300g ground almonds (try the almond milk remains?)
4 eggs
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp baking powder
50 g melted coconut oil
2 tbsp chia seeds
Pinch salt
Preheat oven to 160 C
Line loaf tin with baking paper
Mix pumpkin, eggs and coconut oil
Add dry ingredients and mix well
Place in tin and cook approx. 60 mins.
She said “I’ve played a bit with adding other seeds like pepitas or sunflowers, walnuts and am thinking about removing the spices and adding herbs for a variation”.
Have fun adapting old favorites and creating your own new ones.
Read on…
Click here for a video from my own reset called Can doubt really cause wrinkles?
