Sugar Free - For as long as I can manage!!!

Well… the weekend! Where do I begin?

Friday night we planned to go out and see the band that are playing at my wedding in November. However, brother in law got the dates wrong so we ended up going and seeing another local band (not quite as good!)

Food wise I had roast duck, roast potatoes and mashed carrots and swede with some chicken gravy courtesy of Bisto (I’m a dirty cheat and I know it.) OH actually made dinner and it was yummy.
Friday night had oodles of vodka lime and soda…not quite enough to get drunk though. Which was a shame because I was in the mood for a good drink.
Saturday morning was bacon, Richmond Irish sausages (they are sugar free) tomatoes, mushrooms and scrambled egg (just egg no dairy).
THEN we went into town with the aim of buying a birthday present for a friend. Fortunately we met up with brother in law to be and wife and went straight to the pub. After MANY vodka and diet cokes later I realised the caffeine had got to me and I needed food. So off we plodded to a new Indian which had opened. I had every intention of having a biriani with no sauce – honestly I did! However, I had fish tandori to start and a lamb biriani with a little bit of sauce. Oh, and some mint yoghurt. ALL BAD! Oh yes, and a bottle of merlot. Very bad!!! Oh and a bit of naan bread….think that’s all!
So Sunday came along and I had pretty much the same breakfast as yesterday, toms, mushrooms, eggs, sausages and bacon. Then I was forced to go to Tesco’s to do our shopping for the week. It did work out quite well though…
I found Tesco’s no added sugar custard!!! So had it with the remainder of the no added sugar jelly I had in the fridge for my lunch. Not the most nutritional but very yummy on the day after the night before.
Dinner – steak, chips and mushy peas (soaked by me – not out of a tin!)

I was supposed to be getting up and going to the gym this morning but realised I had a 9am meeting that I needed to do some prep for so didn’t have time to go to the gym (it’s my story and I’m sticking to it.) so I haven’t been weighed in over a week. Feel skinnier though – will have to try and get there in the morning and get on the scales, oh and do some exercise of course!

Today’s food – breakfast was one scrambled egg. Snack was a raspberry jelly pot (no added sugar from rowntrees) lunch was steak chips and peas (leftovers from last night! Oven chips aren’t the best once warmed up in a microwave!) and dinner will be a turkey curry made with pataks madras paste (comes in a jar and has no added sugar!) with basmati rice (no naan or yoghurt or merlot this time!) I might sneak in another packet of salt and vinegar crisps this afternoon too…or some custard later. Or both.

I love this diet!

ok, so thursday night is fast becoming the night i don't eat dinner and the night i go straight to the pub. had too much vodka lime and soda last night and am feeling it today. copious amounts of vodka with nothing in one's belly is not a good idea. it's not big and it's not clever (a bit like me).

Following the vodka and 2 packets of walkers crisps in the pub (ready salted AND salt and vinegar) i went home and made myself some toast with the remainder of my tomato and olive loaf. wanted to save it really so i could have a bacon sarnie on saturday morning but i wasn't exactly thinking straight by the time i got in last night! i did have a bit of flora on my toast which is a little bit naughty but mostly it's vegetable oil anyway so this once might not cause me too much bother!

on to todays hangover food:

breakfast - scrambled egg (one) 2 x painkillers and 2 x tablets to calm my stomach down!
Lunch - fry up!!! 2 x bacon, 1 x egg, tomatoes, mushrooms and a hash brown. i must admit i did feel quite sick after eating this!

snacks - carrot cake muffin made by me and sugar free!
1 x packet of walkers salt and vinegar crisps!

i don't know what delights lie in store for me for tonights dinner. OH has been at home all day and called me from the supermarket earlier so i can only hope he's cooking up a storm. then we're off out again....can i really take any more???

hell yes!

Yesterday I did some baking!!!  Olive and Tomato Loaf (in bread machine)310 ml tepid water2 tbs soya milk (unsweetened) 2 tbs veg oil600g self raising flour1tsp yeast (quick dried)1tsp salt7 black olives, chopped3 sundried tomatoes choppedFew leaves of basil, chopped I followed the instructions on the bread machine and left it to cook. It still tastes a bit yeasty to be honest, but the olives and tomatoes help to cover that up. It’s sugar free and that’s the point! I also made some sugar free carrot cake muffins – which have turned out better than the loaf to be honest, maybe that’s just because I’m now at the point where I’m craving sweet things. (the sugar free jelly is still gong down very well – I’m not sure I’ll ever get sick of it!) Ingredients  225g (8 oz) self raising flour 1tsp baking powder 1 level tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg 70g canderel powdered sweetener75g (3 oz) grated carrot 75ml (3 fl oz) vegetable oil 200 ml (7 fl oz) soya milk (unsweetened) Instructions  1) Put flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, sweetener and grated carrot into a mixing bowl. 3) Add the oil and soya milk and stir until combined. 4) Pour into lined/greased cake tin or muffin tray. (makes about 8 muffins)5) Cook at 200ºC/400ºF for about 20 mins. I will mention though, that in future I need to double or even triple up on the muffin cases as the mixture kind of spread out, so they are more flat than muffin shaped. And I reckon turning the temperature down to 150 or 180 will make them a bit more moist…although I do like the almost crunch outer crust – it’s got the most flavour!! So I had 2 carrot cake muffins last night (hot from the oven!!) Today’s food has consisted of: Breakfast – scrambled egg (in the microwave, no butter or margarine or milk added…just egg) on a slice of olive and tomato loaf which I made last night and toasted this morning. I brought the cold toast into work and for the last 10 seconds of the egg cooking I heated the toast up in the microwave too. Gourmet cooking at it’s best!Snack – Carrot cake muffinLunch – left over pork chop from dinner yesterday.Snack – salt and vinegar walkers and ANOTHER carrot cake muffin!!Dinner – no idea yet! OH is at home, and if he hasn’t gone to the pub already before I get home (as much as he thinks he likes to sit at home and relax, he’s usually bored by about 3pm and ends up in the pub!) then he’ll be making dinner!!! Actually, he usually does – but I've normally taken something out of the freezer that morning to give him a little…er….direction!!! Have found some sugar and dairy free chocolate on ebay…think it’s made by cavalier, so will be purchasing that today. it’s ok, I've had it before. To be fair if you can get flavoured chocolate i.e. orange sugar / dairy free chocolate then all the better. But be warned, excessive consumption may lead to a laxative effect!! L

Oops had a hot chocolate last night (Bourneville cocoa powder mixed with just hot water and 2 sweeteners!) wasn’t the best, smelt better than it tasted and was a bit greasy. I normally avoid hot chocolate because it usually means a migraine, and this was no exception – so didn’t get up for the gym AGAIN this morning. Must try harder!

I also had some sugar free strawberry jelly last night, which I had made from a powder the night before!!

Today’s food:

Breakfast – one egg, scrambled in the microwave.
Lunch – roast chicken, broccoli, cauliflower and roasted baby new potatoes (roasted in rosemary and olive oil.) yep, more leftovers!!! Basically because there is only 2 of us, if we roast a whole chicken the night before for dinner, there is loads left over and I make sure there’s enough veg for me to take to work the next day. There’s no gravy though because it’s difficult to transport!
Dinner – will be a pork chop grilled, chips and peas. My chips will be smothered in vinegar and salt but no ketchup  there are some sugar free organic ketchups, you’ll normally find them on the free from or organic shelves of supermarkets. But they are nothing compared to Heinz ketchup and I've not fund one I've liked yet. Maybe I should try making my own. Any recipes would be very welcome!!

I might treat myself to some more jelly as well!!!

Happy dieting x

well what can I say? the scales are being friendly at the mo, but we can never really see the wait loss on ourselves can we? i still am looking in the mirror and thinking not much has changed. HOWEVER, this morning getting ready for work, I did notice that my clothes are hanging off me. The skirt I am wearing is ok a size 12 and I’m a 10 now anyway but it's much looser than usual - so just as a test I tried on a pencil skirt which has only fit me once and that was because I had a smock top on with it, to cover up how high up my waist it sat. WELL....today it sat quite nicely on my hips, rather than half way up to my armpits!! result!!! must be losing inches as well as pounds. Very happy! (I put the size 12 skirt back on for work though, it's a lot less tarty!!!!) so today’s day has gone and is going like this... went to the docs this morning to try and get some nicotine patches, but doc has referred me to a stop smoking clinic before they'll give me them. so looks like I’m going to be a smoker a little longer. oh well...I’m on the right track. so I didn't really have time for breakfast. have had 3 cups of black coffee (one sweetener) and a packet of salt and vinegar crisps! lunch will be leftover chili con carne from last night (there's loads left) and dinner will be roast chicken and a huge pile of veg. yummy.  have I mentioned drinks during the day (other than my addiction to black coffee!) I drink Robinsons no added sugar cordial, or no added sugar vimto. I know there is fruit sugars in the cordial, but it can't be helped... and I can't drink water on its own. believe it or not, I don't like the taste!!

I don’t think I've been 100% today and have probably set a bad example to dieters by what I've eaten (or not eaten really)…

Breakfast – 3 slices of bacon
Lunch – packet of salt and vinegar crisps and a few slices of cucumber
Dinner – will be chilli con carne. Using the scwarz packets (they are sugar free), chilli beans in water (minus sugar and salt) and tinned toms.

Like I said – haven’t eaten much today. wasn’t feeling hungry earlier, but am getting there now. Am sure I’ll be back for seconds with the chilli con carne!!!

Scallops

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 tbsp Olive oil

200g cherry tomatoes

80g pitted, drained black olives

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ bunch coriander, leaves only

½ bunch basil leaves

1 lemon, juiced

12 scallops (hand dived if you can get them), coral removed.

Method: How to make pan-roasted scallops with tomato and herb salsa

1. First, place a small saucepan over a gentle heat and add 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Chop the cherry tomatoes in half and add to the oil. Add the pitted black olives, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and stir over a low heat for 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

2. Hold the stalks of the coriander and basil together and slice down with a sharp knife to shave off the leaves. Discard the stalks, gently roll the coriander and basil leaves into a ball and chop. Add the coriander and basil to the salsa and stir to combine.

3. Roll the lemon on a chopping board to soften it and release the juices and then chop in half. Add the juice of half a lemon to the pan, stir and set the salsa aside to allow the flavours to infuse.

4. Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat until smoking hot and then add one tablespoon of olive oil. Lay the scallops out on a board, pat dry with kitchen paper and then season one side with salt and pepper.

5. Think of the frying pan as a clock face and add the largest scallop (seasoned side down) in the twelve o’clock position. Continue adding the scallops clockwise working your way round 1,2 3 etc until you get to 12 again. Season the unseasoned side of the scallops and after 1-2 minutes or when the underside is turning golden brown, with a palette knife or spatula, flip over the scallops starting with the scallop you placed in the twelve o’clock position. Squeeze the other half of the lemon over the scallops and give the pan a good shake to ensure even cooking.

6. After 1-2 minutes or when the scallops are golden brown on all sides, tip the pan onto a plate lined with kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil.

7. To serve, lay out four small plates and place a large spoonful of the salsa in the middle of each plate, arrange 3 scallops on each plate and serve immediately.

Despite my wicked food behaviour on Saturday - I have good news to report!!! I have dropped below 9 stone for the first time since I was 19. Am now 1lb below 9stone!!! YIPPEE so it's working....did however have a naughty day on Saturday, read on to find out! Saturdays food consisted of: 3 x grilled bacon rashers, tinned toms and sliced (cooked) mushrooms for breakfast. these were cooked in the microwave (!) with a splash of water - not butter as I usually would cook them.then things took a turn for the worse:Lunch - custard. yes I know, bad, bad, bad. But I was doing a dinner party for the night and forgot to eat lunch - the only thing i wanted once i realised I was REALLY hungry was custard. I sent OH out to get me the sugar free powdered variety very rare) and he couldn't find it, so i got the low fat version instead, which is wicked of me and I shall give myself 40 lashes (not really.)Dinner - pan fried scallops with herby salsa (recipe below) they were FANTASTIC. (lemon juice in salsa is bad though and not really allowed.) then we had mango stuffed chicken. I won't bother posting the recipe because it was bland and technically mangos aren't allowed on this diet anyway! served with boiled new potatoes and salad. THEN I had Christmas pudding and custard. BAD BAD BAD. Plus lots of red wine BAD BAD BAD.  I don't know why I slipped, think trying to show off whilst cooking for friends I suppose. Sunday was much better... Breakfast - 5 x bacon (grilled) tinned tomatoes and a fried egg.Lunch - Cajun spiced chips whilst out at a rugby game.Exercise (yes really) 30 minutes swimming.Dinner - lamb chops, chips and salad. (back to basics - yummy.) And that's the weekend really. Forgot to mention that I drank lots of vodka lime and soda on Friday night too and ended up only eating a chicken drumstick from a pre-cooked chicken I picked up at tescos. oops...no wonder I was a little bit tipsy! still....I’m now 8 stone something! instead of 9 stone something...feeling pretty damn good about it!

OH has just phoned and said he's off to pub, and kind hearted that I am I don't want to force him to go alone! Was wondering whether I could be bothered to stop off on the way home and get some chips and gravy (totally allowed on this fab diet) but probably won't! So my chinese chicken medly is off. Doesn't look like i'll be having dinner (maybe another packet of salt and vinegar walkers in pub) but will be having plenty vodka, lime and soda - the slimmers friend!

will let you know tomorrow how rough i'm feeling!!!!

Whilst making dinner last night (very nice cod fillet) I though it would be prudent to sort out my food for the next day. So i boiled 2 eggs up for my breakfast and threw together a sald with what I had in the fridge (not a lot.) I was hungry because I hadn't eated the cod yet but on reflection it was quite disgucsting! I shredded some lettuce and diced some cucumber and chopped up some anchovies into the mix. It didn't look too appetising even then but after I'd eaten dinner and got rid of the crazy hungry person I ended up throwing it away! What a waste you may think? well yes, but the salad was old and withered and the anchovies had been in a jar in my fridge for months (they prob weren't safe to eat anyway!)

So todays food:

Breakfast: 1 Boiled agg
Early lunch - prawn salad tray from local deli (lettuce, cucmber, onions, tomato and prawns NO SAUCE!!)
Snack - another boiled agg
2nd Snack - walkers salt and vinegar crisps (can you see a pattern emerging)
Dinner - my own chinese chicken concoction - chicken breasts cut into strips, fried up with onion and green pepper and ginger, sprinkle of five spice and coated in soy sauce (Kikkoman Soy Sauce is the only one I have found without sugar) i'll serve it with long grain rice (nicely salted) and it'll be yummy - wish I could put some pineapple in it though! (NO FRUIT!!!)