Not Bad for Month One

I just realized this weekend has been one month in on my new year...quick status update:

My most positive change/report is that I have done 12 blog posts! It feels really good to be back to blogging. I am constantly looking at my life for what I can share. I think it makes me appreciate what I see and what I am doing more.

The first two weeks were good and then I allowed poison ivy and steroids to derail me. Okay, I didn't "allow" the poison ivy to invade my body, but have made choices to fight it more than fight for continued weight loss. I am on my second course of steroids and I want to eat all the time. I am not proud to admit a couple times I have actually eaten cereal in the middle of the night. I seriously, never do that...ugh. I haven't been weighing myself because I didn't want to be discouraged by water retention. However, I did hop on the scale this morning just to be sure everything hasn't gone completely nuts. I am up the expected couple of pounds. Hopefully, that will be dealt with fairly quickly as the steroids taper starting Wednesday.


I had planned to get cracking on the exercise, but hot and sweaty is NOT a good mix for my skin right now. Just walking from house to car or work to car in the sun and humidity makes for an itchy outbreak.

I have been back in the kitchen where cooking is definitely a passion. I have been experimenting with new recipes and will be sharing the results - good or bad. While we are on the subject....

Do you ever look at the title of a recipe and say to yourself..."that's not going to happen"?  I am pretty sure that is what I would have said if I had just randomly ran across this recipe - Sweet Potato Peanut Stew.  However, it was recommended to me by a well-trusted palate, I mean, friend. I love sweet potatoes, but I feel like I have had a hang up about peanuts and/or peanut butter in savory applications. A local Chinese restaurant makes decent dumplings, but I can't seem to get them to leave off the oppressive peanut sauce. My friend mentioned the recipe had a really good balance of flavors that was quite interesting. As I studied the recipe, that balance came together in my mind - sweet/savory, spicy/sweet, a bit of acidity from tomato paste.

The flavors and the texture of the stew is very comforting. The peanut butter doesn't overpower the taste and gives it a lush texture. I am already imagining this on my cold weather menu. If I had one criticism, it might be it is a tad on the sweet side .I did add extra peppers from my hot pepper-palooza. I will have to think about how to balance that a bit more for my taste. The peanut butter I used was simply ground peanuts, so no extra salt. Maybe a sprinkle of crushed salty peanuts on top would be nice. Look, I am already starting to embrace the dreaded peanuts! Maybe a splash of lime juice when serving would be nice.

I confess I did make a few adjustments on ingredients because a) it was Friday night b) I couldn't wait any longer to try it c) after a long week I certainly had no desire for a grocery run. I made these substitutions to use what I had on hand:

• Turkey stock for the veggie stock - no longer vegetarian, actual vegan
• Fresno peppers for jalapeno - supposed to be spicier, but I think it was pretty close
• Spinach for kale - kale might have been a stronger balancing flavor
• Orange bell pepper for red bell pepper - red peppers tend to be a bit more flavorful

I don't think any of these changes dramatically altered the flavor - just a bit spicier. I have a couple servings for lunches this week, so perhaps I will test those add-ons above.


Another positive change I have been working on is the 15 minutes before bed tidy up. I can't tell you what a difference it makes to wake up to a tidy house - especially the kitchen!  I am at my most productive in the morning, so having a jump start motivates me to get into some deeper projects. Saturday morning I did a complete fridge clean. I took EVERYTHING out and scrubbed it down. It is always a slightly depressing job because I realize how much food I have wasted. But ultimately the results are great. Not having to fear an avalanche when you open a fridge door is a good thing. And knowing what you have on hand helps plan meals. The before - don't judge :)

After - There is still plenty in there, but it is organized...in the first place you see (top right are things that need to be eaten quickly - cut fruit, leftovers, etc. I am a little proud that my veggies/greens are taking up the two drawers and overflowing to the shelf above, but there better be some salads this week :) 

The empty space on the left was well used this weekend during my cooking frenzy. I made two batches of S'more's pudding cake. One I divided into three small pans instead of the 9 x 13 pan called for by the recipe.I bought these little plans at Dollar tree - 3 for a dollar. They come with a cardboard lid that you wrap the edges of the pan around to seal. For the record, you will use Geometry in real life. I had to figure area of these pans compared to the 9 x 13 - it was a difference of 5 square inches and that made no difference.

Poking holes in the cake before the pudding layer.

Before you freak out about me eating all this cake (you know, steroids), I all put one small pan (7 x 5).  How I need to maintain portion control! Seriously, I do love to bake and baking for others lets me do that without eating everything.

I had noticed on Facebook that our local volunteer fire department had had an extremely busy week - several structure fires and tons of EMS calls. I thought a nice treat would be appreciated. When I dropped it off, I forgot to mention it needed to be stored in the fridge. I sent a FB message and the response was they didn't expect it to last the night anyway :)

My other clean fridge win is that I was able to do this...meal prep!

 Lunches for the week. I will share the details of what all I made on this weekend's cooking marathon later this week.

Spoiler alert:  I even had a couple of pans to put in the freezer. Even if it is delicious I don't think I could eat 10 servings in a row!  Each pan has two pieces.

Now moving forward into month two building on what I have started. Looking forward to fall...is it too soon?