meet my lunch: homemade plantain chips with guacamole

guacamole was one of my faves before i even started this diet. so. i've basically been surviving on lunches consisting of homemade plantain chips with guacamole.

plantain chips

• 1 medium/large sized plantain
• PAM 
• sea salt (and other spices to taste) 

directions

• preheat oven to 350degrees
• peel plantain; keep whole 
• starting at the bottom, cut even slices on an angle 
• line baking sheet with aluminum foil or wax paper. spray with PAM
• place slices of plantains onto baking sheet; lightly spray with PAM again

• bake for 20mins or until golden brown (timing with depend on thickness of chips); turning midway
• remove from oven; sprinkle with sea salt – or other spices 

guacamole 

i've spent ALOT of time perfecting my recipe. it's pretty much the most delicious guacamole. ever. 

• 1 ripe medium sized avocado (you'll know it's ripe if it's soft when you hold it)
• 1 small/medium sized tomato
• 1 small onion
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• tbs chopped cilantro 
• lime and lemon juice (approximately 1tbs each or to taste)
• salt (to taste)
• ground pepper (to taste)

directions

• mince garlic; chop tomato and onion into small pieces: set aside
• scoop the inside of the avocado out into a small mixing bowl. mash until smooth (i like it slightly chunky) 
• squeeze lemon and lime juice; mix
• add minced garlic, tomato, onion and cilantro; mix into mashed avocado until fully incorporated 
• add salt and pepper to taste 

serve immediately with cooled plantain chips or refridgerate and eat the next day! 

i cheated today.

i can't decide if it was worth it. but it certainly was delicious.

i'm full ... ?

i have to admit that the first few days have been a challenge. i've been faced with a number of cheating opportunities: ACS Gala complete with hors d'oeuvres, drinks and cake pops; invitations to get dinner with friends and my NEW boss offering to take me to lunch AND a Burger King friday at the office ... all of which i resisted.

i'm currently i'm on my third dairy rotation. i've come to find that these dairy days are MUCH easier than i originally thought. mostly because my first time i tried incorporating Walden Farms products. anyone who is unfamiliar with Walden Farms is lucky.

i know what you're thinking. how could anything that is: fat free, sugar free, calorie free, cholesterol free, carbohydrate free + gluten free NOT be delicious* ... shocking, i know. 

so. during my first dairy cycle, i measured out 5ounces of whole milk yogurt with 5ounces of blueberry "fruit spread" in doing so i realized why this diet would work. the combination was so disgusting i would have rather not eaten at all. seriously. the texture. the smell. everything. in an effort to make these products edible, i tried making a smoothie. i didn't think anything could be worse than the yogurt. i was wrong.

in short, i've realized these dairy days will be easy, as i will only be "eating" 20ounces of whole milk. additionally, i had my first weigh in. i'm down 6 pounds! ... great start, i think! 

current weight: 165 pounds-to-go: 25 

*note: anything described as "spread" should probably be avoided. ie: peanut butter spread; blueberry fruit spread

"nothing tastes as good as skinny feels"

... or so i've been told. normally, i'd respond to such an absurd statement with something like, "i can think of a hundred things that taste better," or "skinny doesn't taste like anything ... which is why i eat" or some other snide comment. and by saying that,  i'm not alluding  to an "addiction" or even an “unhealthy” relationship with food – i’m just saying i’ve finally reached a point where i can admit i’ve made excuses which has resulted in me being overall unhappy with my weight.

so, in an effort to become more happy and healthy, i started a completely ridiculous over-the-top diet – obviously. this diet consists of a strict regimen alternating between veggies/fruits and dairy. and by “dairy” i mean 20ounces of whole milk and/or whole milk yogurt: no cheese. no cottage cheese. no sour cream. no fruit-on-the-bottom delicious (packed with sugar) yogurty-goodness. i know what you’re thinking – i must be hungry. and, yes, in fact i am. i dreamt about a bowl of pasta last night. a steaming bowl of pasta tossed with butter, garlic and parmesan.

i digress. i’ve decided now – more than ever – to make my health and weight a priority for a number of reasons. most notably:

• i’m sick of making excuses and putting off losing weight. therefore, in addition to my recent career change, i’ve decided to make an overall lifestyle change … all have been affirmed by the universe via daily oms (http://dailyom.com/).

• because i literally waste hundreds – if not thousands – of dollars a year on going out to eat and that needs to stop.

• my sister’s wedding is rapidly approaching and even if the marriage doesn’t last – the pictures will.

anyways. the point of all this is because i will have to become more conscientious about what i am eating, i am going to be more conscientious about my food-blogging. i will use this as a platform to discuss new  healthy vegetarian recipes, track my progress and to complain about how hungry i am – but only sometimes.

current weight: 175 goal weight: 140 pounds-to-go: 35