Creamy sauerkraut with apple and bratwurst

In the previous post I made an awesome sauce for Brussels sprouts and while the boyfriend and I were raving over those sprouts at dinner, the thought occured that this sauce might work just as well for sauerkraut. Since I love a good sauce and a good experiment, I went ahead and came up with this dish. Was I right? Did the sauce work for sauerkraut? It sure did! This is sauerkraut like you never had it before. Honestly, I have always liked sauerkrat, but never really loved it. But with this sauce, and the apple...in combination with a good bratwurst, oh my! I will definitely make this again.

Whole30, day 16: Curiousity & cravings

For the first time in two weeks, I was really craving something sweet today. First I was thinking about chocolate, later it became a serious craving for a giant glass of cola. I resisted. A challenge is a challenge and I can keep anything up for thirty days, right?

Also, I'm very curious to see if I have lost any weight. I've been stalling for nearly two months before starting this challenge and I really want to know if I have broken that stall. Some people report a loss up to 12 pounds, and although that would be awesome, I would really be happy with "just" 4-6 pounds. Oh well...I resisted getting on the scale too. I will for it patiently.

Whole30, day 15: Eggs in Indian spiced tomato sauce

Two weeks in and I keep feeling better and better. The lovely spring weather is helping, but it can't get all the credits. I'm not sure what it is, because I have been eating pretty much primally since august 2011. Does not eating any dairy really make me feel this much better? Or is it the lack of crappy sweeteners (I was using quite a lot of sucralose and I was sneaking more and more diet coke into my diet)? If I'm honest, I hope it's the sweeteners, because I think it's easier to live without...

It amazes me what a challenge like this can do to the way you think and feel about food. When I started this only two weeks ago, I told myself I could stuck to anything for only thirty days, but I would definitely eat cheese or cream as soon as those thirty days were over. Now, only two weeks later, I think I could live without dairy for a few more weeks. It's not nearly as hard as I thought it would be. I used make quite a few dishes with cream in it. Now I use coconut milk or creamed coconut a little more and I really don't care much for heavy cream. Ghee is nearly as good as butter and a tablespoon of fruit juice in a dressing is just as fine as artificial sweetener. I won't say I will never have any dairy or sweetener again, I'm sure I will, but honestly...it's a lot easier than I imagined. And maybe it sounds a little silly, but that insight, that I don't need all these things, makes me feel happy and kind of liberated. What a thirty day challenge can do....

Whole30, day 14: Lunch in the sunshine!

Today, I believe, was the first day of spring. We're not quite there yet, but after months of frost, rain, storms and dull grey weather, today was bright and sunny. And I loved it! I wanted to take in as much sun as I could and had my morning coffee outside in the garden. It was a little chilly, I have to admit, and in the shade it was just cold, but I just had to sit outside and enjoy the sunlight. It warmed up a little, and at one o'clock it was warm enough to enjoy lunch outside in a t-shirt. So I did...

If you've read more of my posts, you know that I love all things curried. Today I decided on a very easy curry soup, with some leftover ingredients.

Whole30, day 11: Sauerkraut & pineapple

Not even half way through the Whole30 experience and I'm already starting to think that I maybe should turn this into a Whole60! That's how good I feel. At least I know for sure, that after these 30 days, I won't eat dairy as often as I did before (like munching on whole chunks of cheese). I'm fine eating the way I eat right now and I'm sure I can keep eating like this for a long time. Maybe I'll use cheese, butter or cream more as an occasional treat instead of a daily habit. The same goes for stevia. Nearly two weeks in, I'm fine now with drinking my tea without a sweetener. I do love my Paleo coconut cake though, but I don't need to eat it every day, or even every week. Just as an occasional indulgence. And taken every now and then, stevia probably won't hurt me. It really amazes me how you can change your outlook on foods. Once I thought I couldn't live without bread. Now I'm living without it just fine. Three weeks ago I thought it would be really hard to give up my beloved cheese, but now I find that it's not that hard at all. Yesterday, I did however wanted a little sweetnes, so I decided to go for some fruit.