Day 13, Let's Get Cooking!

Yay for today! My sweet bubby didn't exactly sleep though. In fact, she woke 3 times. But I discovered a miracle- ear plugs. Oh, sweet silence. Worry not people, they do alert me to her crying. Nothing can block that noise out. What I couldn't hear was her fussing, kicking, stirring through the dark hours. I only woke when a little person needed my attention- and that was pretty instant on my part. Oh, how I love those little squishy things that made last night almost a good night of sleep, in stages anyway.

That allowed me to feel pretty human today. So I got busy. I went to mother's group for an hour. Bubby and mumma enjoyed that. I rode my bike to the shops. Mumma definitely enjoyed that, especially after pumping the tyres up once in town. Then I got myself into the kitchen and had some fun.

I have some awesome friends and family. My sweet dad sent me a belated birthday gift this week- a Magic Bullet. I'm in love. I made a spinach dip, and some tapenade. They blitzed in seconds. It is as good as the ads say :)

The spinach dip recipe is this...

large handful of baby spinach leaves,

2 tablespoons of raw cashews,

a large chunk of parmesan,

2-3 tablespoons of olive oil,

a generous squeeze of lemon juice,

some rock salt.

Blitz. 

The tapenade...

Black olives- 3/4 cup,

Olive oil, 

Juice of 1/2 lemon,

cracked black pepper,

rock salt.

Blitz.

These are both stored in sealed containers in the fridge for added zing to salads, wraps etc. Please note, garlic can be added, but as I'm not planning on killing my hubby anytime soon, I omit it, unless it's just for my lips only.

Simple ingredients to make yummy pesto and tapenade spread.

Then I decided it was time to switch to another flavour breaky. Before I fill you in, I shall tell you this: I have a beautiful friend, Kylie Mozer, who spoils me beyond words. Her generous heart is an inspiration, and it is with thanks to her that I made this, and many other, healthy stuff. Kylie, THANK YOU! 

Pear based bircher muesli.

In a food processor, add 1 cup of oats (not the quick stuff), 1/3 of a cup of almond meal, 1 pear, lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of shredded coconut and 200mls of whole milk. Mix until a creamy mixture forms. More liquid can be added if desired, though I like mine a little firm.

Whatever your budget, kitchen gadgets, like my awesome Sunbeam one here, make creating healthy foods so much easier.

Makes 4 generous servings. I use whatever glasses I can find. Put 2-3 heaped spoons in each glass, top with a few cherries and 1 heaped teaspoon of plain yoghurt. Lasts in the fridge for at least 4 days, though cover if mix gets too dry.

For family dinner tonight, I slow cooked cheap lamb chops. In a large greased, oven proof dish, I placed 6 flour coated lamb chops and covered with a heaped teaspoon of mustard powder, a generous splash of soy sauce (approx 1 dessert spoon), the same of tomato sauce (I know- sugar laden, but you can use tomato paste. It equates to a 1/4 of a teaspoon per person though, so don't stress!) and some white pepper. Then I covered it with foil and placed it in a moderate oven for 2 hours. Meat should fall off the bone when done. And depending on fat content of meat, you should end up with a nice gravy, though fattier meat doesn't work as well. Great way to cook tough budget cuts though. 

My dinner, drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice and seasoning. So good! The family had theirs with mashed spuds.

Now, onto my diet today...

Breaky: Last strawberry parfait and a cuppa at 7am.

Morning tea: 2 boiled eggs at 9am.

Lunch: left over pork chop and a weak cuppa at 12 noon.

Afternoon tea: chunk of parmesan cheese and 5 grapes. Also sampled dips. Very weak cuppa.

Dinner: Above- baked lamb on salad.

Oh, before I forget, I did cut back on coffee today! After my breaky cuppa, I made a 500ml flask of weak coffee and drank that throughout the day. Today's consumption was down a third from yesterday. I'm definitely happy about that.

Until tomorrow :)