eMeals for Me!

Well, actually eMeals for my whole family! Today I signed up for eMeals.com, a meal planning site that was recommended by my close personal friend, Dave Ramsey. (Who also helped me score a 15% discount on my membership, thanks Dave!)  :) 

I have been having such a hard time lately coming up with good meal ideas, and I always feel like I'm throwing something together at the last minute. I know that this is completely the wrong approach and that I probably spend more time & money at the grocery store by not planning ahead. I think that just having a plan and shopping list will help cut down on the grocery bills, and will definitely save me time!

The way it works is that meal plans are emailed to members one week at a time.  When I joined, I got last week's plan and this week's plan. My next one should come out tomorrow, so already I have PLENTY of meal ideas! Members also get a weekly shopping list. Do your shopping once a week and fuggit-abowdit!

I signed up for the Family Natural/Organic plan, which is supposed to focus on recipes that are a little healthier. Sounds good to me! eMeals even does plans specific to a certain store (Whole Foods, Wal-Mart, Kroeger, Ralphs, etc...none of which are near me!) but not to worry...I'm pretty sure I can get most of what I need at my local grocery stores. And it will be gardening season soon, so that's a plus! 

I will try to update soon on how the plan is going. I'm excited...and hungry! :)

Super Smoothies!

I recently found a smoothie recipe that I think is FABULOSO! I found it at 100 Days of Real Food, which by the way, is a great blog. I can't say that I am totally following the "Real Food" diet, or that I'm even close to it, but I do try to watch what I'm buying at the grocery store. I think it's very interesting that we in the U.S. eat so much pre-packaged, processed food (whether good or bad). Just 100 or even 50 years ago, our diets and ways of cooking were so much different! Anyway, that's another story for another day!

Here's a link to the recipe, and I'm also posting it below. I have experimented with it a little, and found that one banana and 1 Tbsp. of honey is my method of choice. I also have tried different yogurts, and that does make a difference. The brand I LOVE is Kalona Super Natural, which is made right here in Iowa, but you can buy it all over the country. It is great stuff, let me tell you! A little more expensive, but definitely worth it! (And they do have coupons on their website.) Anyway...the other thing I really love about this recipe is that it calls for spinach. I have been serving these to my kids, and they don't even have a clue! Hee hee, so sneaky!

So anyway, here's the version of the recipe I use:


1 1/2 cups plain organic yogurt (go for the Kalona Super Natural!)
1 cup berries, fresh or frozen
1 banana
1 Tbsp. honey
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 - 3/4 cup fresh spinach leaves


Combine all ingredients in blender & mix well. (If using fresh berries, you may want to add ice cubes also).

INGREDIENTS: Yogurt, banana, honey, milk, fruit, spinach. EASY!!

Mix it up and enjoy!!

The Many Uses of Phosphoric Acid

Earlier this week, I went to a lunch meeting for work where the guest speaker talked about paint. (Exciting, I know! I do have a glamorous job, by the way.) He talked about different applications and how to get a surface ready to paint. He said cement floors need to be properly prepped by either sanding the surface or using some kind of acid to smooth it out. He suggested phosphoric acid as a good choice. Okay, so mental note to remember that the next time we paint a basement floor somewhere...

Now imagine my surprise the next day when I purchased a bottle of flavored water and (after taking a few drinks) noticed that ingredient #3 on the list was PHOSPHORIC ACID! EEEEWWWW! See, I'm still trying to avoid HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) so I just kind of skimmed the ingredients quickly in the convenience store. In the end, I wasted $1.50, dumped out half the bottle, most likely corroded part of my stomach, and definitely increased my stress level a couple notches for the day. 

So, lesson learned...remember the "Food Rules"...ALWAYS read the ingredient list!!

Food Rules

A while ago, I mentioned the book "Food Rules: An Eater's Manual," by Michael Pollan. A friend of mine recommended it on her blog, The Health Diary. I finished the book (it's super short and easy to read!) and have been TRYING to follow some of the "the rules" it suggests. I thought I would just share a few of them that have really made me think!

Food Rule #3

"Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry. (Ethoxylated diglycerides, cellulose, xanthan gum, calcium propionate, ammonium sulfate)"

I have been paying a lot more attention lately to the ingredient list on foods I buy, and you would be surprised at how many things have some pretty fishy sounding names. One thing Pollan stresses over and over in his book is that many of these preservatives and artificial flavors/colors are so new to our diets that there's no history to support whether they may or may not cause health problems after years of consumption.

Food Rule #4

"Avoid food products that contain high fructose corn syrup."

Pollan points out that HFCS is in so many foods that didn't traditionally contain sugar or sweeteners. HFCS is in many things these days that you wouldn't expect - bread, yogurt, cereal. And in general, foods containing HFCS are more processed, which isn't good. The closer a food is to it's original form, the better!

Food Rule #5

"Avoid foods that have some form of sugar (or sweetener) among the first three ingredients"

Pollan notes that sugar is sugar (whether in it's natural form or HFCS) and is only good in small doses. Ingredients are listed by concentration in the food, so whatever is listed first makes up the highest percentage of the food. The higher sugar is on the list, the more sugar it contains.

Oh, and my favorite rule so far.... (actually, I don't think it was officially a "rule" but it was mentioned in the book)

"There is no such thing as GOOD soda"

I have heard differing views...diet soda is better because it has fewer calories...no, wait - regular soda is better because it doesn't have artificial sweeteners. Bottom line, it doesn't really matter. They're both bad for you. And I have to say that ever since reading this book, I haven't had any soda. It's been about a month, and I don't really miss it!