Baking Love

I have had a life-long love affair with bread and anything with dough.

I'm on a mission to find ways to bring back some of our beloved breads and things traditionally made with wheat or grains and finding ways to have that food experience - but with paleo ingredients. Or - in some cases - mostly paleo ingredients.

I look at it this way - even if I add in some honey .... or gods forbid, actual sugar! ... it's still better than the way I HAD been eating, and a LITTLE - every once in a great while ... will not hurt or kill me.

So sometimes, my recipes might have a wee bit of sugar - but I try very hard to find alternatives. Like dates, or applesauce (and I'm thinking of using actual fresh stevia leaves), or honey .... things that aren't refined and can be found in the real unprocessed world.

People are always suggesting artificial sweeteners to me. well, I *will* at least TRY them - but the reality is ... I have a super tongue and a super nose and I *can* in fact taste and smell them for the most part - in whatever they are used in. I'm one of those people that ... once I can taste it ... I can't entirely LOSE it.

This means living with me is a PITA. LOL! :P

EVERYTHING simply HAS to be covered and sealed - period. I can taste freezer and refrigerator taste no matter how slight it is. Yes, this means when we used tons of butter - each stick had to be sealed into a Ziploc bag, because folks, fridge taste DOES get into even boxed and wrapped butter! No kidding. And I'm SO sensitive, that I can taste it even if it is used to cook with. In fact - it will ruin a dish for me completely. My honey has tried to sneak such things in on me only to find that he'd have to eat it ALL - because *I* can taste fridge taste throughout every bite and it overpowers everything for me.

I've left restaurants because of this issue - luckily that has only happened to me twice. But it's sad because it means they aren't really wrapping their food up right if the taste is sneaking into everything in the walk-in. And yes, it gets on veggies too - even ones that aren't cut! - if it is REALLY bad. I will never eat at a certain Hometown Buffet ever again because literally - every single thing I tried - even  basic LETTUCE had this horrid taste running through it. I even asked for a refund, because I couldn't eat anything and he asked why and I had to tell him. Obviously he didn't believe me, but what else could I do but just go eat somewhere else? lol.

Anyways - all I'm trying to say is that ... my tongue is picky. LOL. And it hates artificial sweetener aftertaste and that smell most of them seem to have. Ad I just do not TRUST fake sweeteners! I do not think that they are GOOD for you - and flat out - if compared to plain sugar as in how bad I think they are for the body ... I think sugar is way safer and better hands down. The thing is, if you eat a paleo lifestyle, or mostly paleo - you don't NEED sweet stuff very often or even really want it that much. And when you do - mellowly sweet is often "just right".

So yeah. Not into agave or splenda, truvia, any of that stuff.

I do have some exceptions - like my Raspberry Ice Crystal Light - that stuff ROCKS!! I cannot taste the sweetener at ALL! NO aftertaste - not one little bit! And it's not grainy at all and the color - OMG, it's just an awesome drink and it's the ONLY one I like. LOL. All I usually drink is water and juice once in a while, and then every so often my cherished Raspberry Ice.

But yeah. So anyways besides being a super-smeller and super-taster, I'm a texture freak.Breads and baked goods are more than taste and smell, their texture is something that is 100% what makes it what it is. Pizzas should be able to be firm enough to hold toppings, but bend, and be able to be doughy or crisp. Muffins MUST crumble! Muffins simply HAVE to have crumbs! There is no two ways about it! Same for cakes - there should be a crumble effect! Different breads and baked goods have different textures and without those elements - one will NEVER truly be satisfied with a substitute.

So my mission is to create or modify recipes until *I* am satisfied with it .... it must pass my need for proper taste, texture, and smell AND accomplish the same things that it's grain based cousins do!

I know it's possible! LOL!

WoooHOOOO!!!

So I weighed myself after a month and I lost NINE pounds!!!!!

I am soooooooooo JAZZED!

That makes a total of 32 pounds so far and that's with falling off the wagon and not exercising really at *all*!

WOW. I can't believe I've lost 32 pounds!

EATING PALEO ROCKS!!!

Mmmm dinner!

OKay so we are eating this a LOT  ... steak and veggies!

 And neither of us seem to have ANY sign of getting sick of it LOL!

Tonight I scored a BIG OL' steak that I got for ... wait for it ... 36 CENTS! Man, I LOVE it when they put the wrong price on things! (and yes, this was most definitely a boo-boo on pricing, it was fresh and a gorgeous slab of beef).

The LAST time I scored something like that - was I got one of those little honey glazed hams for 27 cents - also a pricing mistake, and I to this day - check ALL the stupid prices on any meat I'm thinking to buy, just to see if I might score another deal.

Sooo I was rewarded YET again!

So word to the wise - oh ye readers out there ... check EVERY piece of meat that they have put out for selection - and along with checking the weight, the date, and the color and freshness of the meat  while looking for the best one you can afford - check the price as well. You never know what you might find! :)

Amazing Difference!

So Saturday, we walked in the full hot sun and me in black (of course, like a dolt), for hours up in Columbia State Park.

I actually stood and walked for over an HOUR. Okay I know, this is such not a big deal to regular folk, but for ME ... this is an astonishing improvement! ESPECIALLY since I haven't been strictly eating paleo.

Then again, I really never *fully* fell off the wagon, but I've added in non paleo foods here and there about every other day or so and sometimes for a few days in a row here and there.

Nonetheless, the mere fact that I could stand and walk without additional siupport is a wonder. Now, I *am* sore still a little, but I attribute that to the wheat products. I'm 100% sure that had we NOT eaten ANY wheat products that evening we'd have been fully perfectly NOT sore.

But I seem to desire to have this message repeated to me through pain since I keep trying to add in wheat stuff here and there like a dork.

But still, I am SOOOOOOOOOO proud of my fat ass. LOL! and hey - that got in a huge chunk of exercise, I cannot wait to weigh myself this week rofl.

I need a new phone ...

I need to get a phone that takes AWESOME pictures. My phone sucks booty when it comes to pictures.

But my little point and shoot is a total pain to take food pictures with, so I find I take less and less pictures as I have to go find the camera, then charge it (since it always seems it it's needs to be charged), clear out a card, throw the picture onto my laptop, and then crop and edit it in photoshop and THEN upload it.

Complete pain in the tush.

Sooo I don't take pictures as often these days. But I *do* get a free upgrade, sooo its all now trying to figure out WHAT phone to get. Any ideas out there?

I'm with Verizon, and that isn't likely to change. I don't have internet with my package, though I'm considering it.

What phones do YOU guys like out there? Which ones take the best pictures??? I'd sure love to hear what folks think would be great choices!

Getting Motivated

Well due to some financial issues I sort of fell off the paleo wagon - just couldn't afford it!

Sad to say that I have learned poor=obesity in today's America. It is a sad sad state that if you are poor that you CANNOT eat pure unprocessed food! In what reality does THAT make the slightest bit of sense?

but now we will be able to start up again and I have to say that I am relieved. I have become very enamored of eating paleo and I miss seeing my progress. I look forward to making strides forward again with my health and feeling better with every single passing day!  :)

Fruit, fruit, wonderful fruit! :)

Some cantaloupe, strawberries, a banana, a few blackberries and a bit of honey = delish!

 

 

 

Isn't that just a gloriously yummy sight??  

 

SO good! <3 

 

Nothing better in summer than a medley of nature's bounty dancing together in your bowl! lol

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Some cantaloupe, strawberries, a banana, a few blackberries and 1/2 teaspoon of honey = delish!