Discussion Board

I've been toying with the idea of starting a journal here for the last month or so. It seems like whenever I post something on a forum, I ramble on forever. I thought it might be more considerate of fellow forum postees if I corralled my wandering thoughts in one area.

Also, I'm home with a cold today, and my internet connection is working. How could I resist?!

I've been eating out quite a bit lately. Not good for the wallet or the waist line. It's so frustrating to be on any kind of restricted diet (vegan, low-fat, etc) and try to eat out. Restaurants cater to SAD eaters, which means meat, fat, salt, sugar, all in giant portions.

I went to a Southern theme placed a few weeks ago with some coworkers. I ordered mashed sweet potatoes. Looking back now, I'm sure they had milk and butter in them...that's how you make mashed potatoes, sweet or otherwise, right?! I also ordered beets and collard greens. I asked the server if the greens had meat in them (again, Southern cooking here) and she said no. But she came back in a few minutes and said yes they did. So I ordered a side salad with the dressing on the side. Let me just say that I wish salads were only that--SALADS! Not covered in cheese, bacon, nuts, eggs, croutons and whatever other non-vegetable toppings the chef can come up with! Well, the salad arrived covered in what looked like bacon bits. So i asked the waiter to take it back. After a moments thought, he said it wasn't bacon bits, but candied walnuts! OK, I could deal with that. So I ate the lettuce from around the nuts. But the whole time, I could just feel my coworkers watching me and rolling their eyes. I think I'm seen as a picky eater or hard to please or something.

I went on a road trip to North Carolina a few weeks ago. I stopped in Asheville, which has a surprising amount of veg-friendly stores and restaurants. I went to a place called the Laughing Seed. It was SO nice to look at a menu and know that I could eat anything there without having to ask, "does this have cheese on top?" The menu was very clear and gave most ingredients so I could pick out foods that I felt would fit McD guidelines. I ordered a black bean and winter squash burrito. I left off the tofu sour cream (which the menu helpfully described). It was delicious! For the first time in years, I could relax and enjoy a meal and not wonder if my food was being fried in lard or coated in bacon bits in the kitchen. I definitely need to find some more veg restaurants to patronize!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE the Laughing Seed Cafe! I live in NC and travel to Asheville several times a year. It's such a joy to eat at that place. The only problem is that it takes me forever to decide what to order. So nice to have a whole menu full of options at a restaurant.

McDougall is opening up a chain of fast food restaurants?
Just kidding.

That black bean/winter squash burrito sounds good...mmm...what else was on it, and what kind of tortilla did it have? I would have got the tofu sourcreme though.....shhhhh.

What would be nice is if all restaurants, even fast food had ff veg options to choose from. I know Burger king has the veggie burger, full of fat, im sure.

So many people are on diets, these days, I'm sure restaurants are getting used to special requests. So don't worry about being picky.

The last time I went out, chinese, a favorite place for years, I asked the waitress if the cook could make the dish with out oil? She said sure thing.
The dish came but was oily, glistening, I didnt send it back. Next time Im going to ask for the veggies steamed, hope that works. But ive decided to have the courage to send it back next time, till the cook gets it right. Hey, I'm paying for it, right?


Hey Mary, ramble on, that's what the forum is for, sharing.

Rambling is legal and it burns calories right?

nomikins--have you ever eaten at Rosetta's? (I think that was the name) It was the first veg place we found. But the sign on the door announced that it was "cauldron soup night" and there were many pierced and tattooed people hanging around the door waiting for the place to open. My mom was with me and she SOO would not have been into the cauldron or the piercings. I'm curious about the place though. Asheville is about a 6 hour drive from where I live, so I don't think I will be getting back there any time soon!

Here's the burrito from the website:
Caribbean Empanada $10.25 (V)
An island inspired filling of curried butternut squash, fresh spinach and fire roasted tomato mojo, wrapped on a whole wheat flour tortilla and topped with slow cooked organic black beans and vegan cilantro sour cream. Served over a bed of mixed greens.

It was SOO good! : ) I highly recommend traveling to Asheville.

I don't mind asking servers for special orders at restaurants. They are there to "serve" after all. I'm always polite about it. It's my dining companions who drive me crazy. it's like they are embarrassed or annoyed that I have to examine every menu item and ask questions and get a special order. I don't jump around and wave my arms when I ask for no cheese on my salad. And I don't wail and cry when I have to send something back. In short, I try to be as discreet as possible. I don't like drawing attention to myself. Maybe I am just being too sensitive.

coverley--I have noticed at many Chinese places now that there is a "special diets" section on the menu. These items are steamed and served with plain rice and sauce on the side. I'm suspicious of anything else on the menu. I've ordered from the special menu from several different places, and I have been happy with my order.

I am absolutely in love with steamed fava beans from Trader Joes. The first time I tried some, I just ate them right out of the package. Then I took some over to my mom's house. I fixed kale (using Ornish's recipe), brown rice, and I heated the fava beans with some dried parsley and lemon juice. It was the best meal I have had in ages! Today I cooked some spinach and poured the heated fava beans on top. I sprinkled on some parsley like before. And I went to squirt on a little lemon juice but ALOT poured out! So I mushed up the beans and stirred the whole mess together. i spread it on some Wasa crackers. it was great! I love happy accidents. And I love lemon juice on just about everything!

Diet books and gurus are always saying that people trying to lose weight need to treat themselves with non-food items. I see a few problems with this. First of all, non food treats tend to be expensive, especially when compared with food. Food in this country is cheap and plentiful...that's why so many of us have trouble! A non food treat like a book or a pair of earrings is MUCH more expensive. Besides, I like food. Also, why I have problems. So anyway, I've decided to treat myself with a legal food treat. Specifically, condiments! The condiments aisle is probably my favorite place in the grocery store. Zippy little sauces make bland potatoes or rice pop! Plus condiments are pretty cheap. Even the "gourmet" ones are only a few dollars. And a jar will last for a while.

My latest acquisition? Ojai Sassy Seafood Sauce. I was browsing the condiments at my local Harris Teeter store, when I found a whole group of Ojai products. Unfortunately, most of them were flavored mayonaises. Not vegetarian and especially not McDougall! But I happened to see the Sassy Seafood Sauce. It didn't LOOK like mayonaise. And a quick check of the ingredients showed that was McD legal. Also it's low in sodium, which is unusual for most condiments. Plus is had ginger and jalepeno in it, so it's extra zippy! I've eaten it on potatoes several times and it's fantastic.

From The Nibble.com:
Sassy Seafood Sauce. Not your basic horseradish cocktail sauce, this chunky, crunchy red seafood sauce leads with roasted red bell pepper purée, tomatoes, accented ginger, jalapeño and other seasonings. It’s spicy but not fiery, and there’s a slight sweetness from the molasses, with lots of crunch in every bite from the minced onions. A delightful change of pace and a fabulous ketchup substitute. Calories per tablespoon are just 20.

Yummy! I can't wait to see what else will be on the condiment aisle next time.

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SandraK--thanks for stopping by. The fava beans at TJ's are in the refrigerated section near the produce. SOOO good!

Incidentally, there is an article on smart shopping in the new Consumer Reports. They rate grocery stores. The top market is Wegman's. Sadly the closest one is several hours away from me. But Trader Joe's was number 2! We got out first one here a little over a year ago. Now we have THREE! They are awesome. Every time I go, no matter what day or what time, there are more people in there than you can shake a stick at! They do sell a lot of "healthy junk food" there, but they also have so much great healthy stuff. My first exposure to TJ's was when I lived up in DC. A coworker was always bringing in cans of mini chocolate chip cookies and saying how great TJ's was. I wasn't impressed with his talk of all the junk, but i fell in love the first time I went. So glad we have them here now!

OK, I just have to complain about one of my coworkers. I kind of think of her as me in 20 years if I don't get healthy. She is a very overweight diabetic. She been struggling to get over a cold for almost 2 weeks. I've been under the weather myself. At work today, I drank a lot of tea (lapsang souchong is what I drink when I feel sick/down/bad/sorry for myself ). I also drank plenty of water. But my sickly coworker? She guzzled diet coke like there was no tomorrow. Who wants to drink soda when they are sick??

Anyway, I'm very concerned about her. I've tried talking to her about a low fat diet, and she has read some Barnard and Ornish books. She keeps telling me that if she ate as much starch as I do, it would kill her. She takes tons of medications. I can't help but think that her pharmaceutical cocktail is killing her. I just hope that I can lead by example, lose weight and encourage her to eat better. Hearing her talk about all of her medical issues is certainly motivating for me. Nothing tastes good enough to justify taking a bagful of pills and SHOTS! Eeek! I will never touch cheese or cake or chips again if it means I never have to give myself a SHOT.

I've had an off couple of days food-wise. Yesterday morning I cooked 3 baked potatoes. So for breakfast, on the way to work, I had a potato with salt and pepper. For lunch, at work, I had a potato with the last of the frozen corn in the freezer and some salsa verde. And for dinner I had...the third baked potato. Pathetic! Where were the vegetables?

This morning I had frozen hashbrowns with peppers and onions (a few veggies). For lunch, I found some Morningstar Farms buffalo wings in the freezer. So good and yet so bad! So of course I ate them. I was despairing a bit of my eating habits this afternoon. as I was reading the message boards. Someone mentioned speedy international stew. So I got out my copy of the quick and easy cookbook (which I have barely looked at since I got it!) and found the recipe. Very similar to the black bean salad I've been making. The salad is cold and has red pepper. The stew is hot and has tomatoes and spices. I also added a Boca burger, which I also found in the freezer and in hindsight, I didn't need. Still, I feel like I pulled today out of the nutritional trash bin.

I think I was a little disappointed and annoyed cuz my ancient refrigerator froze some of my produce. I'll have to go out tomorrow and buy some fresh. i still have trouble using up veggies before they go bad (or freeze!) in the fridge. I keep telling myself that I am going to stick to frozen veggies. But my freezer is so tiny. Plus the fresh stuff looks so great when i go to the store. But it's a terrible waste of money if I DON'T use it up. I think maybe I need to use up what I have before I get more.

Incidentally, when I was looking for a can of beans for the international stew, I found a can of kidney beans in the cabinet that expired in 2007! Eeek! I'm not a huge fan of kidney beans, but how could I have left a can in there for 2 years??

Whew, I'm kitchen challenged these days.

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I know what you mean about credibility. I've been overweight my whole life. I've been a vegetarian for 10 years. I've known about McDougall for 6 years (but obviously haven't been following it the whole time). I know alot more about nutrition than most people. But since I am overweight, no one will listen to me. So I'm hoping once I get my weight under control, I will be able to help others. Or at least lead by example.

What is up with the crap people bring to work??? No one ever brings anything healthy! My boss brings in dried fruit and cheese. I suppose it could be much worse. But other people bring in candy and cookies and chocolate and nuts. I have to admit, before I recommitted to McD in January, I grazed on junk all day long. Now I try to eat a really big lunch and keep an extra potato on hand. It helps me resist the crap. One problem with eating fresh, whole foods if that they don't keep. And they don't always travel well. I was SO hungry at work today and I didn't have any potatoes. I did have a can of beans, but that's not something that's convenient to snack on! I ended up eating a coupld of the boss's prunes.

I have been sadly neglecting my journal! It's late so just a quick note. I weighed myself this morning and I hit 283.5! Eeek! I haven't been at this weight in years!

except for this ridiculous heat in the summer here in Phoenix, those green bags really do work for keeping your veggies fresh longer...might look into that. I keep my tomatoes on the counter, potatoes etc in the oven, the onions in a hanging basket in the bathroom...oh sorry, we are in an rv! But everything else in in green bags. I got both the Debbie Meyers and Evert Fresh off the internet and both work well..... I got the Evertfresh bags as a QVC special off of reusablebags.com

Mary, I just read the bit above where you were talking about some people recommending that you use non-food items as treats when dieting, and my first thought - honestly! - was "why would I want to eat something that wasn't food?"

Shows you where my mind is all the time. I think I'll go eat another potato.