Phew! Ready To Go

So tomorrow morning I'm getting up at the crack of dawn, well, maybe not quite that early, I'll sneak to the shower, get dressed and tip-toe out of the house and set out for LaGuardia airport. I'm flying to Ann Arbor, and then with my parents we'll head to Alaska for a cruise through the glaciers. I'm leaving the Trainer with two weeks worth of burgers in the freezer and 5 bags of pancake mix that should last him until my return. He will have to handle all the gerbil duties for two weeks. I'm sure he'll do fine (he's really a great gerbil papi).

In preparation for the trip I spoke to the cruise company and our very helpful customer service rep. Cruise West already has a system in place to accommodate people with food allergies or dietary needs, and I didn't give my mom permission to make the reservations until I was confidant that I would be able to eat safely. They say that they are familiar with gluten free options, although I did end up educating Ken, the customer service rep on all the various types of contamination.

My adoption of the SCD threatened to derail things, but after a quick call to Ken, he thought things would be just fine. Between us we decided that a list of what I could eat was much more helpful than what I can't eat, and that I would be able to meet with the chef to discuss the particulars. There are no refrigerator in the cabins, but there is one at the bar where I can keep my homemade yogurt if I can figure out a way to bring it along.

I will let everyone know how Cruise West does on the food. I'm sure the cruise will be fantastic. I'm really excited about that. My cabin will open right out on the deck, so I'll have an extra window and can run out to see the whales.

Toni is doing well without his cast. He still has the silly little collar on, but the Trainer will take him to the vet on Tuesday and if all goes well it will come off. I will leave you with an unauthorized shot of the Trainer with Tavo, Toni's twin brother.

Aren't they cute?

Chao! Until I return.

Stay at Home Mom for a Day

Yesterday did not start out as the greatest of days. I woke up and still felt poorly. It didn't help that I was getting up earlier than usual to take Toni to the vet for the day. The plan was to drop him off before work, he'd have x-rays and come home without his cast at the end of the day. Nothing is ever that simple. Ever.

After a number of rather worrying phone calls it was determined that he would indeed come home without the cast, but the doctor is still concerned that one of the bones is not healed properly, if at all. Now we just watch him and wait and see.

On the flip side, somewhere between the phone call where the vet told me he thought Toni would lose his arm and the one where he told me the final set of x-rays showed some healing, I was informed that our office would be closed today, Friday. Neither of the head honcho's would be in, so they decided to give us an extra long holiday weekend. This means that I have an extra day to relax before preparing for my trip. And another day to stay and take care of Toni.

Last night after picking up Toni I was in need of something special. I decided to try out my new SiliconeZone backing cups and Naomi's recipe for Cocoa Butter Cupcakes. I tried to follow her English directions and used cashew butter that I got on sale near the vet's office, and they turned out beautifully. I've frozen the rest to take on my trip with me, or to have when I get back.

Now, the cupcakes were blissful, but the cute little backing cups I found at Whole Foods stole the show. They're made of food grade silicone and are non-stick, oven and dishwasher safe. I first saw them and thought they were cute but didn't think I could justify the price tag. When I got my Munch Box I thought that they would make great little compartments for vegetables or condiments, so I swung by and got them. Once I had them it was quick hop to bake with them. All I had to do was stick them in the muffin pan, fill 'er up and bake. And the muffins popped out with no problem. No more having half your muffin stuck to the paper for me!

My other new purchase was a yogurt maker. I decided that if I'm going to follow the SCD then I needed to make my own yogurt. My first batch turned out well, I had it some mixed with cinnamon baked apples for a snack yesterday and this morning I had frozen yogurt, ala The Peanut Butter Boy. I don't think my blender is as powerful as his, or perhaps my freezer is colder, either way it wasn't photo-worthy but it sure did make a great breakfast. I made mine with the fresh yogurt, 1 nectarine, 1tbsp of cashew butter and a little vanilla. Frozen yogurt for breakfast!

If this is the life of a stay at home mom, I think I could get used to it. Although I've been checking on my baby, yes Toni is my baby, feeding him and worrying about him. Later I'll go to the gym to work out with the Trainer and we'll go to Whole Foods. Then I'll have to really start getting ready for my trip.

A Day of Rest

All this week I've been feeling a little run down. Somewhere between caring for Toni (he may be tiny, but he and his brother are the lights of this home), taking care of the Trainer, and trying to keep myself in order I got a cold. At first I thought it was allergies, but it was exacerbated by an extended wait at the vet's (I'm allergic to almost all other furry animals). I knew that I was needed more at work yesterday, tomorrow and Friday than I was today.

After waking up and taking a hot shower I felt no better and called the VP to see if they could manage without me today. I ended up sleeping for a good part of the day, with the Trainer at my side, and resting for the remainder.

I did get to enjoy my Ginger Glazed Salmon at home, and it was really good. I succeeded in making one egg crepe and made a wrap which was really good. Now I just have to get through the next two days and I will get my first ever paid vacation from work.

Lunch Time

As I've mentioned before, my job is pretty hectic. I eat lunch at my desk so that I can continue to answer the phones and buzz people into the man trap. Wether I'm eating or not, I am still responsible for answering the door and receiving packages. I get to work when my boss takes his lunch, if he takes one.

Heaven forbid I dessert my post to buy food or eat in the lunch room. Having food in my mouth does not stop my boss from barging in with questions or tasks.

So today I instituted Lunch Time. I brought a cute placemat from home and spread it out on my desk. From now on 2-3pm will be my eating and computer time. When the placemat is out I will answer the phone, door and any questions, but nothing else.

Here is my first Lunch Time with Pollo Ropa Vieja and Tomatollo Salsa.

Sent from my iPhone

Fresh, Local, Seasonal Menu

This month's "Go Ahead Honey, It's Gluten Free" event is being hosted by Cheryl at The Crispy Cook and the theme is seasonal veggies. Since this week is my last chance to enter something (I'll be away the following two) I hit the Green Market in Union Square on Saturday.

I found some great stuff, and if you've never tried ground cherry tomatoes I highly recommend them. They taste like tomato and pineapple together. Lots of vendors had fresh herbs and loads of heirloom vegetables. Check out these sexy veggies I found.

So, this week all the vegetables I'm using, aside from the lemon, lime and ginger, are fresh, local and seasonal. I would like to submit my whole menu, but I think I might just have to choose one dish.

Monday:
Breakfast- Tortilla Roll-Up
Lunch- Beef Burger lettuce wrap and peas
Dinner- Shrimp Cakelets with Grilled Peach Salsa

Tuesday:
Breakfast- Tortilla Roll-Up
Lunch- Pollo Ropa Vieja with Tomatillo Salsa
Dinner- Beef Burger lettuce wrap

Wednesday
Breakfast- Tortilla Roll-Up
Lunch- Beef Burger lettuce wrap and Grilled Peach Salsa
Dinner- Ginger Glazed Salmon and salad

Thursday:
Breakfast- Tortilla Roll-Up
Lunch- Shrimp Cakelets with dipping sauces and peas
Dinner- Beef Burger lettuce wrap

Friday:
Breakfast- Tortilla Roll-Up
Lunch- Pollo Ropa Vieja with Grilled Peach Salsa
Dinner- Whole Foods

Saturday- Take Toni to the Vet and finish up left overs, make burgers for the trainer.

Sunday- Pack for trip, finish anything that's left.


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Goodbye Granola

If you've seen The Devil Wears Prada (see 0:44), then you have some idea of what my life is like here in New York. This morning I found myself running for the bus with my over-full gym/lunch bag in one hand, my purse over my other arm, trying to answer a text massage from my boss, all in one of my best dresses. Thankfully this was sans high heels, which I keep a collection of under my desk. The montage of Andy running around loaded down with bags and boxes ran through my head. And my first task when the boss got in? Make lunch reservations, at two restaurants, for his very important customer. *sigh* If only I got all those clothes, too.

Good thing I had this for breakfast to get me going.

Lately I've been making my own granola bars, so that I could tailor them to my specific desires, increase the protein and cut down on the sugar. My mother used to make granola with oatmeal and wheat germ, and I found that quinoa flakes and flax meal make very good substitutes. These recipes still need a little tinkering, but I present them to you as a starting point.

Raw Granola Bar

1/2 cup- Pumpkin seeds
1 cup- dried cherries
2 cup- quinoa flakes
2 cup- Mesa Sunrise or other GF cereal
1/4 cup- flax meal
1/2 cup- peanut butter (or other nut butter)
3/4 cup- agave syrup or honey
1 tsp- vanilla extract (GF)
Cinnamon
Sea Salt
6 tbsp- NutriBiotic protein powder (optional)

In a small microwave safe bowl, or on the stove, heat the nut butter, agave and vanilla and stir until well mixed.

In a separate bowl mix all the dry ingredients well.

Pour agave nut butter mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until everything is well coated.

line a baking sheet or cake pan with wax paper. Press the granola mixtures into the pan using a wet spatula or a second sheet of wax paper on top. Place pan in freezer for several hours or over night.

Cut granola bars and keep refrigerated.

*Note: This batch came out a bit too moist. They were great straight from the freezer or fridge, but lacked structural integrity when they warmed up, they could probably work just as well with much less agave

Baked Granola Bar

1 cup- pumpkin seeds
1 cup- dried cherries
1 cup- dried blueberries
2 cup- quinoa flakes
2 cup- Mesa Sunrise or other cereal
1/4 cup- flax meal
1/2 cup- peanut butter, or other nut butter
1/2 cup- agave syrup or honey
1 tsp- vanilla
10 tbsp- NutriBiotic protein powder
Cinnamon
Sea Salt
2- egg whites

Preheat oven to 250 F and line a baking pan with wax paper

In a microwave safe bowl, or pan on the stove, heat the agave, peanut butter and vanilla, stirring until well mixed.

In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients well.

Add the peanut butter mixture and egg whites, stirring until everything is well distributed.

Press into prepared pan.

Bake for about 30 min.

*Note: These were dry and fell apart easily, probably because I used to much protein powder.

Puffed Amaranth Bar

1 cup- amaranth
2 cup- quinoa flakes
1 cup- mixed nuts
2 cup- dried fruits
1/4 cup- flax meal
1/2 cup-peanut butter or other nut butter
1/2 cup- agave syrup
1 tsp- vanilla
Cinnamon
Sea Salt
4- egg whites

Preheat oven to 250F and line a baking pan with wax paper.

In a large sauce pan with a cover heat a little oil on the stove. Puff the amaranth in small amounts in a manner similar to popping popcorn. Don't worry if it seems like some of it burns.

Collect puffed amaranth and other dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

In a microwave safe bowl, or in a pan on the stove, heat the peanut butter, agave and vanilla, stirring until well mixed.

Add the peanut butter mixture and egg whites to the dry ingredients. Stir until well mixed.

Press into baking sheet and bake for 30 min.

*Note: these were the most satisfying in terms of being like a store bought granola bar, but, in my opinion, much healthier.

Dedicated Woman

Now that I'm starting the SCD there are few things that are going to be difficult to give up. This protein shake is one of them. Buy whey is 70% lactose and chocolate is of the list, so once I finish the bottle I have now I'll have to try to go without. And you'll notice that I have two of these a day.

There's a little supplement store in our neighborhood and the Trainer has a good relationship with the owner. He always gets good deals and lots of free samples. So one day he was sent home with a few samples of Dedicated Woman protein powder for me.

Being me, I had to do a lot of research before I would even touch the stuff. Unable to find all the answers on the website I made a phone call and left a message.

The delightful woman who called me back was actually the president of the company. We had a chat and she explained to me that her husband is a well known former body builder, and is also the chemist who creates all the formulas. He has his own company, Extreme Labs, that caters to men, and her company, Dedicated Woman, deals in products specially formulated for women's nutritional needs. They manufacture all of their products in Las Vegas to ensure that they are pure and safe.

She herself has Crohn's Disease and all of their products are gluten free and safe for folk with other stomach issues. And the chocolate is flavored with Ghirardelli. Besides the nutrition: 125cal per serving with 2g of carbs and 27g protein, it just plain tastes great. I have to say, it is by far the best protein shake I've ever tasted, and I've tried quite a few.

I recommend this as great ore or post workout meal, as a quick breakfast or for whenever you need a protein boost. Until I use it up, I mix 1 scoop of Dedicated Woman with 1/2 scoop of Green Vibrance for my mid-morning and pre-workout meals.


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Breakfast Tortilla Roll-Up

Some of you maybe wondering what this egg white, flax and blueberries thing is on my menu. Eggs and blueberries together? What an odd combination.

Well, my friends, it's a great combination! I've perfected it and it tastes an awful lot like a blueberry crepe or pancake.

I've always been a little curious about crepe, and never quite able to make one myself. (I'm still working on that, by the way) And then I saw recipes for egg crepes from both Naomi and Carol. The only thing was, I want a more substantial, protein packed breakfast, like an omelet only now milk is out on the SCD.

Enter my second cultural influence: the Trainers mother. On Friday nights when none of us kids are home for dinner she'll make herself a tortilla with some left over meat and rice. In South America, at least those countries that were once Gran Columbia, a tortilla is whisked eggs cooked in a pan with meat and potatoes or vegetables and resembles an Italian fritata.

We begin to see just how universal a dish like this is. And after several days of delicious experimentation I present my own version.

Breakfast Tortilla Roll-Up

3-egg whites
1-tbsp flax meal (Blood Type O) or nut meal (SCD)
1-dash GF SCD vanilla extract
1/3 cup blueberries

•In a bowl whisk egg whites (or whole eggs if you wish), flax, vanilla and sea salt until frothy

•Heat and oil a skillet.

•Pour eggs into skillet and swirl around so the eggs are evenly distributed.

•When the eggs are cooked through spread the blueberries along one edge.

•With a metal spatula or two spoons carefully roll the tortilla from one edge.

This tortilla base could alternately be used with any type of filling, sweet or savory. I'm thinking burrito, dosa, anything you can imagine.



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Jalapeno Cilantro Chicken with Spicy Sweet Potato Rounds

I might be crazy. Actually, anyone who knows me, the Trainer included, would say might skeptically and with a raised eyebrow. This evening I was working out, pumping my heart out on the elliptical trainer and reading a cookbook and thinking about the dishes I had to prepare.

But just a few days after cutting grains and sugar (and cheese) I have so much energy and I'm not pulling myself wearily along, muddy headed and exhausted to the next meal in hopes that food will revive me.

I could have gone on if I hadn't had responsibilities (read: gerbil who needs to be hand fed) and cooking. Last night I was awake until almost 2am and woke before my alarm.

Tonight I made a stab at a version of my father's favorite dish at my parents Asian haunt.

Jalapeno Cilantro Chicken for two

2 boneless skinless chicken breast, in bite size pieces
1/3 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
4 limes, juiced
2 small jalapeno peppers, seeded and sliced
1 small vidalia onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Canola oil

•The night before set chicken to marinate with cilantro and juice of 3 limes.

•Heat a small amount of oil in a skillet and cook the onions and garlic until transparent.

•Turn heat to low and add chicken and marinade. Sauté until chicken is cooked.

•Add jalapenos and a little water if necessary. Simmer for a few more minutes.

Spicy Sweet Potato Rounds

I have to give credit The Good Eatah for planting the seeds of this side dish

1 sweet potato or yam, sliced as thinly as possible
Fresh ground pepper
Sea salt
Light oil for frying

•Arrange sweet potato on a plate or tray and season both sides of slices with salt and pepper.

•Let stand for10-15 minutes

•Oil and heat a skillet until very hot

•Fry sweet potato slices until they are cooked through

•Remove to a paper towel to stand.

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A New Munch Box and Menu Plan

New York is not a place to go if you're seeking calm and inner peace. It's a pretty hectic place, and my life here is too. One would think, in a city this size, inter-library loans would be fairly timely, but alas, Queens still seems behind the times. I finally got the SCD books I requested and am looking forward to reading them. My future menus will follow the SCD strictly, but in the mean time, I will attempt to use up the last of my forbidden foods. (Even if they are forbidden, the wasting of foods is anathema so, waste not . . .) Saturday is no different, it's really my busy day, the day I try to get everything done, fix any type of complicated food I want to make and stock up the freezer for the Trainer and myself.

But this Saturday, somewhere between taking the gerbil to the Vet, preparing my Burger Mix, retrieving Toni from the vet and finishing all the cooking I had a precious moment of calm with the Trainer. When I got home with Toni, he said put him to bed and come here and patter the bed. I went and laid my head on his stomach. A feeling of peace engulfed me and all the little hamsters running in my head stopped one by one. I remember thinking to myself this moment is precious, don't let it go. The next thing I new I was waking up as the Trainer tried to slip away to eat one of his numerous mini-meals.

Along the way this weekend I also found a new Munch Box. I've been enamoured of the concept of the Japanese Bento Box, but unable to find one that suited me, I found this combination at a local dollar store that seems most suitable. I am inordinately pleased with this new Munch Box. As the Trainer points out, I'm taking lunch and dinner, so I can't really call it a lunch box and it's not really a bento box either.

Here it is all packed for Monday (the little cups do have lids too): Today, Sunday, I caught up with Alyssa and went to the matinee of the new Stars Wars animated movie, The Clone Wars and had a nice early dinner before hitting the gym. She, a Star Wars aficionado, found many faults with the movie. I went to watch a movie and I enjoyed it. The new Jedi student Ahsoka is really cute, and in a way, inspiring.

And now, without further ado, my menu for this week. Notice how I'm getting better at this?

Monday:
Breakfast- egg whites with flax and blueberries
Lunch- Beef Burger lettuce wrap and Carrot Ginger Soup
Dinner- Lemon Dill Salmon Salad with peas and Nonna's Antipasti


Tuesday:
Breakfast- egg whites and Carrot Ginger Soup
Lunch- turkey burger lettuce wrap with Simple Pea & Basil Soup
Dinner- Jalapeno Cilantro Chicken with Spicy Sweat Potato Rounds

Wednesday:
Breakfast- Breakfast Tortilla Roll-Up
Lunch- Sea Bass Papitolle with wilted spinach and Carrot Ginger Soup
Dinner- Beef Burger with Adzuki Bean Egg Salad

Thursday:
Breakfast- egg whites with Carrot Ginger Soup
Lunch- Jalapeno Cilantro Chicken with Simple Pea & Basil Soup
Dinner- Tuna Salad Lettuce Cups and Spicy Sweet Potato Rounds

Friday:
Breakfast- egg whites, blueberries and flax
Lunch- beef burger lettuce wrap with Simple Pea & Basil Soup
Dinner- Whole Foods Surprise

Saturday & Sunday:
Fly by the seat of my pants!

**By the way, my mother never call them left overs, she always insists that they are Planned Overs**

A Friday Hero

A few months ago I reconnected with a girl I went to middle school with. She found me on Facebook and decided to say "hi". We weren't close in school, but us uncool kids had to stick together. So we caught up on each others lives, and of course I mentioned the blog and being gluten free.

Last weekend I got an email from her to tell me that her young son has just been diagnosed celiac and asking for any and all advice I could give.

Of course, I wrote her a very long email with as much crucial information as I could. Wooden spoons, non-stick pans, toaster contamination along with advice and a few recipes. When I got to work Monday I packed up a bunch of the extra sample products I had in my office and sent her a sizable package. (you really won't believe how many samples some of these companies send. I had chebe bread coming out my ears)

Since I'm going grain free, for an undermined length of time, I was planning some sort of give-away, but my friends need prompted me to send everything to her. I hope you all understand.

She got her package yesterday, and her email of gratitude made me feel like a hero for the day.

This is a great end to such a hectic week.


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A Busy Week and Sea Bass Papillote

Sea Bass Papillote

It's been a bit of a busy week so far. The Trainer's brothers forget that just because their schedule has changed, mine has not, and my morning routine's been all thrown off. Beside the fact that I'm having to get up earlier to begin with.

I've been so tired lately. Yesterday there was an emergency visit to the Vet, sans Toni, since he's still losing weight and not eating much. I had to stop by after work and get special food to feed him. Today he's coming to work with me so I can monitor him.

The Trainer is taking an online movement assessment course so that he can move up to the next level of trainer at his gym. He wanted my help and support while taking his test last night, but I conked out somewhere around question 8. I vaguely remember something about him passing, but that could have been a dream. (I hope not)

It's a good thing I prepared my Sea Bass Papillote on Monday, as I've been too tired to cook since.

Yesterday also marked my 1 year anniversary at my job. Outside of college this is the longest I've held a "real" job. Here's hoping this weeks check is larger than last weeks. (I believe I'm going to get reimbursed for the sick days I haven't used)


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Home-Roasted Beef

At Whole Foods this week beef sirloin steaks were on sale at a $2 a pound savings. Last time I got a steak I cooked the bajesus out of it because the Trainer doesn't like rare meat. In fact, he claims it turns his stomach. Oh well. More for me!

This week I was not going to ruin such nice cut of meat. I got the thickest piece they had, and the wheels in my head started turning. This is what spun out:

Rosemary Home-Roasted Beef (I promise I'll post a picture on the recipe page!)

1 onion
4 cloves garlic
6-8 full sprigs rosemary
Juice of 1 lime
Fresh ground black pepper
Sea salt

I started by laying out a large piece of aluminum foil on the kitchen table and then generous amounts of cling wrap

I thinly sliced 1/2 the onion and garlic and arranged the slices on the cling wrap, followed by half the rosemary, roughly chopped/bruised

I scored 1side of the meat and squeezed lime juice onto it. Then liberally covered it with salt and pepper. I laid the meat seasoned side down on the garlic and onions, pushing everything under the steak

I scored, juiced and seasoned the other side and then layered on the rosemary, garlic and the rest of the onion, sliced.

I wrapped the whole thing up snugly in the cling wrap, wrapped the whole package in the foil and put in the fridge to 'cure'.

The next night I fired up the George Foreman grill, and heated up as hot as it would go, 425. When it was ready I in carefully unwrapped the meat and tipped it quickly onto the element, keeping all the seasoning in place.

I cooked it for 10 minutes and then let it stand until it was cool enough to slice.

I sliced it as thinly as possible, trimming the fat, and stored it onions and all in the fridge.


Sent from my iPhone

iPhone! iPhone! iPhone

I am not a person that idles well. I can't really sit still. Stare off into space? Not me!

I need fairly constant mental stimulation. I like to take action. To do SOMETHING. I will read just about anything you put in front of me. And probably knit at the same time. I keep crossword puzzles ferreted away all kinds of places. Unless, and not always then, I'm completely exhausted can I sit still and just 'chill out'

This can drive the Trainer crazy, he's a work hard and then chill out kind of guy. But then again, when he works he works a lot harder than I do.

And that is why this iPhone, this new "toy" is so worth it! I can write posts while I'm on the subway or bus and email them to myself to post ((you'll notice that they may be tagged "sent from my iPhone" at the bottom). I can do research on the bus or the elevated train. And I can read my blogs or chat with friends while the Trainer is doing research or studing on the laptop.

So: hooray for my iPhone! We will all benefit from this new gadget.


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A New Toy, A New Snack and a New Menu

Well, I've been playing with my newest you for the last week (this ones not a kitchen gadget, surprisingly) and it looks like the only thing I can't do with the iPhone, besides julianne potatoes, is post to this blog. If you're reading this, I figured out a way to write on the iPhone and email it to myself to post.

On Friday the Trainer and I went to Whole Foods for groceries and dinner. This is as close as we get to going out to eat these days. We figure it's cheaper and healthier. And at least Whole Foods lists all the ingredients in thief salad bet offerings.

I had a coupon for Mary's Gone Crackers and after checking the nutrition and ingredients we decided that they were acceptable to try. I'm trying to move away from overly processed items, who wants crackers made from chemicals, even if they do taste like their gluten counterparts? And the Trainer is very anti carb, especially for me.

The verdict? The Trainer didn't try them, but I thought they were great. They're more like a conglomeration of grain rolled thin and baked, rather than the more traditional cracker I was expecting. Nice and whole food-y with lots of whole seeds and crunch.

After a baking debacle this weekend, I think it's time I went completely grain free. Does anyone want most of the box of Mary's Gone Crackers? Let me know.

And now, without further ado, my tentative menu plan for this week.

Breakfast: ricotta cheese and homemade granola or eggs and teff-quinoa pancakes

Lunch: Beef, chicken or turkey burger lettuce wraps with boiled egg whites

Dinner: Home-roast beef with grilled onions
Pan roasted Sea Bass with wilted spinach and adzuki beans
Horseradish Dill Salmon salad with peas and Mary's Gone Crackers Caroway crackers.

Between-Meals: Dedicated Woman shake with Green Vibrance and homemade granola bars.

Have a great week!

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Menu Plan Monday...er, Tuesday

Things have been a bit busy around here since Toni broke his arm. Shortly after that I started to feel poorly, on closer examination of his new food, I discovered, and it shouldn't have surprised me, that gerbil food is not gluten free. I thought perhaps that's what was making me so blue.

Then the itching started. Turns out the good word is: I have scabies. So that's what all the horrible itching was all about. Now I just have to take care of that. Anyone have any herbal remedies for scabies? I'm not such a big fan of over-medicating myself.

On a happier note, I keep seeing everyone else's menu plans (and I can't quite get the banner for myself) and I thought I'd follow my fellow bloggers lead and try my hand at it. Since it's supposed to be a way to share with our fellow gluten free folk I decided that someone might benefit from my rather unconventional meal style.

As some may know, my boyfriend is a personal trainer and I am trying to lose some weight and tone up, so that I can look like a gym-rat too. Following his advice we eat about every three hours. Between that and being gluten free we have to plan to take food with us too eat at specific times and meet our nutritional requirements. In doing this I eat pretty much the same thing everyday, but it does require some planning. My daily diet goes something like this:

Breakfast 8am: 1 cup of ricotta cheese and 1 teff quinoa pancake

Snack 11am: 1 Dedicated Woman protein shake with Green Vibrance

Lunch 2pm: 1 4oz turkey, beef or chicken burger and 1 boiled egg white

Pre-Gym Snack 5pm: 3 hard boiled egg whites and 1 piece of granola bar (a recipe I'm still perfecting to post later)

Post-Gym 7:45ish: Dedicated Woman shake

Dinner 9pm: Dinner varies depending on what's in the house, but is always some type of
protein and brown rice.
example: tuna with egg whites and brown rice
shrimp scampi (watch for this recipes) with brown rice
poached salmon with onion, tomato and brown rice
grilled chicken breast lettuce wrap
scrambled eggs, 3 whites and 1 whole egg

Weekend meals don't really vary much from this, but I often fix something fresh.

My gym routine usually includes 30-45 minutes of strength training and 1 hour of cardio.

(And if anyone is wondering, this routine and eating schedule is working for me quite nicely. My boyfriend and I are happy to answer any type of "diet" or workout questions too)

P.S. As so many of my fellow bloggers do, I am going to give my boyfriend a pseudonym. Rather than use his initials (MM) he will be known as The Trainer.