Another Day

Good morning everyone. I am sitting here drinking my coffee and contemplating the day. It is the first day in a long time that I have nothing specific I need to do. I feel relaxed and lazy, wanting to take advantage of this time.

I know I will make a trip to the grocery store. I need to stock the kitchen with foods that are appropriate for my goals. If not, I will eat simply what is readily available, a lot of which I should not be consuming. (Chips, cupcakes, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, you know, all the good stuff).

I have been wanting some Italian Chicken so I figure that is what I will cook for supper tonight. It is really simple to make and turns out moist, tender, and flavorful. All you do is marinate boneless, skinless chicken breasts in Italian Salad Dressing for about an hour. Then roll them in Italian Bread Crumbs and place them in a casserole dish. Bake them on 400 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour and you have a wonderfully delicious chicken breast.

I think some whole grain wild rice will go well with that and then some veggies. That is the hard part for me. Cooked vegetables have never been a desired food for me. At first I couldn't eat them at all but then realized that I couldn't eat them cooked like southern country women cooked them ... to mush. All vegetables growing up were cooked until they were soft. I learned to steam them or at least cook them only until they were beginning to get soft but still had some crunch to them. I have always liked raw vegetables so it made sense that if I left the crunch to the veggies that I would enjoy them more and I do. I actually like broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, and even some squash now.

I also like fresh produce. Second to that would be frozen. I don't do canned foods at all except for very few exceptions. Canned foods are very unhealthy. They are packed with sodium to help preserve it, sugars, and several chemicals. I realize that even fresh veggies will have traces of chemicals but it is much worse in canned foods. I will decide on the veggie for tonight when I visit the store and see what is available.

I rarely serve bread with my meals. I cut that out a long time ago. If I serve potatoes, rice, or pasta, then bread was not needed. Exceptions to that is when I serve spaghetti or lasagna. I have to have garlic bread, that is a must. The good thing is that I have converted to whole grain pastas, rice, and breads. I try hard not to have anything "white" except for regular potatoes now and then. If I could only curve this need for sweets then my diet really wouldn't be so bad, but I don't know if that will ever happen.

Oh well, it is time to find something for breakfast. The eggs and toast I had yesterday doesn't sound too bad.