Menu Planning Monday -- healthy additions

Working to break my mild addiction to bread, I am “low-carbing” it for a few weeks. So, here are the alternatives and breadless options that I brought to the table each meal as my family generally ate our “typical” (read: every week by the law of the Medes and Persians) menu. (so, this is what I actually ate this past week)

Monday

Breakfast: Yogurt, blueberries, honey, ground flax

Lunch: Baby romaine lettuce with feta, avocado, hard boiled egg, and beans (I made the beans and many of my kids ended up eating them instead of sandwiches – left over taco shells from a party, beans, and cheese melted on top, they ate it up!)

To make the beans I soaked 1 pound dry beans overnight. Drained, rinsed, and added water to fill crock pot ¾ of way. Added 3 cloves garlic, crushed, 1 scant Tbsp salt, and a sprinkling of chili seasoning. Cook on high for 4 hours

Afternoon snack: nuts

Dinner: more kidney beans and lots of salad

Tuesday

Today was pumpkin day, finally got around to cooking those little treasures from our garden.

Breakfast: More yogurt, berries, honey and flax for breakfast

Snack: extra pumpkin puree with pumpkin pie spice, pecans, cranberries stirred in -- yummy!

Lunch: cut up pineapple, salad

Snack: Roasted pumpkin seeds, Pumpkin muffins

Dinner: Burger without bun and a salad

Wednesday

Breakfast: grapefruit

Lunch: Baby romaine lettuce with feta, avocado, hard boiled egg, and beans (I love this salad, I ate it for one or two meals almost everyday this week)

Dinner: everyone had spaghetti, I just poured my sauce over spinach leaves instead of pasta. This week I bought a spaghetti squash for the base.

Thursday

Breakfast: While making eggs I decided to throw mine in a hollowed tomato. This was delicious! Just slice top off tomato, scoop out seeds, crack in your egg. I also threw in a couple fresh basil leaves, some Spike natural seasoning, and Parmesan cheese. Tent with foil and bake about 20 minutes in a muffin tin. I made a second one I loved it so much!

Lunch: Baby romaine lettuce with feta, avocado, chicken, and beans

Dinner: Salad

Friday

Breakfast: somehow I forgot to eat . . .

Lunch we had a picnic and I brought my favorite salad along for the ride.

Dinner: I made mac and cheese and ground beef for everyone else. I put the ground beef on top of my lettuce with some tomatoes, a little cheese and sprinkled on some chili powder and cumin. Came out like a taco salad. My 4 year old tried it and had seconds she loved it so much (me, too)

I cannot stick to a healthier plan that requires too much time or leaves me hungry. Eating mostly fruit and salad (with added protein) has been amazingly satisfying and I feel great. I cheated a bit over the weekend as we were away from home more than anticipated welcoming a new nephew into our family (yeah!) I look forward to another week of wonderful salads and lots of fresh fruit and yogurt. A couple more weeks and I might start bringing some grains back into my diet, but for now I have not missed them too much (surprise!)

For more menu plans check out Menu Planning Monday.