Hello All,
This is only my second posting, so here goes! I went to Julie in March of this year, 2013. It has been an amazing experience, as it has been for so many people. Before hypnosis there was no off switch for me and if I compare that to a light switch – the light was always on. Julie found a way to turn off that switch….the darkness is nice, rewarding. There has been no real pull to stray from the plan. Now it is November and I am worried, the goal is in sight. I started at size 20, I can now fit into the roomy size 10 clothes and I think I can be an 8/10. My biggest fear is that I get to my goal and I start to add food back in and the light switches on. I need to find a dimmer switch, so I have scheduled a refresher for December 9th. I am hoping Julie will show me how to moderate the light switch. What has life been like at goal for the rest of you?
I was first introduced to celeriac earlier this year when I was in France. My friend Andrea was making a beef stew for my last night visiting at the end of the week and she wanted me to have something in lieu of rice. At lunch one day she ordered mashed celeriac and when I tasted it she was happy she found just the right thing for me to have with her stew.
Andrea diced her celeriac and then cooked them in boiling water like a
potato. She seasoned them with salt, pepper, and butter, then placed
them in a casserole dish and kept them warm in the oven while the stew
and other vegetables finished cooking. She served the celeriac in the
casserole dish. I was careful to balance my meat to veggie ratio.
BTW, you can substitute celeriac for potatoes in most any recipe.
Celeriac and Parsnip Mash
This celeriac and parsnip mash recipe comes from our contributor Jennifer and may be just what you're looking for to add to your Thanksgiving dinner.
Ingredients
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| Andrea's celeriac. Photo by Theresa |
BTW, you can substitute celeriac for potatoes in most any recipe.
Celeriac and Parsnip Mash
This celeriac and parsnip mash recipe comes from our contributor Jennifer and may be just what you're looking for to add to your Thanksgiving dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
- 1 lb parsnip, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 1 celery root, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 3 cups water (or enough to just cover vegetables) or 3 cups broth (or enough to just cover vegetables)
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons butter
- optional seasonings: bay leaves or thyme or caraway seeds or even curry
- Saute the onions in the first tbsp of butter or oil in a large, heavy pot, until just soft, not browned.
- Add the spices and the garlic, saute one minute longer.
- Add the parsnips and celery root, then cover with the liquid.
- Simmer over medium heat until vegetables are very tender, about 30 minutes.
- Remove bay leaves.
- Drain, reserving liquid.
- Return solids to the pot and mash.
- Add cooking liquid to desired consistency.
- Stir in butter, adjust seasonings to taste.
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| Celeriac in my kitchen guarded by army men. Photo by Theresa |
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| Celeriac at the open market in France. Photo by Theresa |
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| Andrea's beef stew served with mashed celeriac. Photo by Theresa |
Here's another holiday recipe, this one if from Gayle, who says this is "a great option for a yummy Thanksgiving side dish, this comes from Moosewood cookbook by Mollie Katzen and has been a favorite of mine for years."
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 4 cups cooked squash or pumpkin mashed
- 1 cup chopped onions
- 1 1/2 cups chopped mixed red and green peppers
- 2-3 large cloves crushed garlic
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 4 beaten eggs
- 2 cups corn
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 cup cheddar
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- dash of cayenne
- dash of black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 Tbs olive oil
- Saute oions, garlic and spices in olive oil until translucent.
- Add peppers and salt, cover and cook 5-8 min
- Add saute to mashed squash, along with corn and beaten eggs. Mix well. Taste to correct seasonings.
- Spread into a buttered 2 quart casserole and top with cheese.
- Bake in 350 oven, 20 min covered and 15 min uncovered.
This recipe comes just in time for the holiday. Thanks Chris for sharing it!
Prep time: 1 hour Cook time: 30 minutes
Serves: 9-12
Featuring fresh green beans and caramelized onions, this homemade green bean casserole is just about as clean as it gets. Rather than relying on a cream-based soup, it’s held together by a creamy puree of parsnips and mushrooms! The caramelized onion topping still delivers the buttery onion flavor that we all love, without the deep-fried grease and flour to go along with it. All of our favorite flavors covered, without the heavy food-coma to follow!
Ingredients
Prep time: 1 hour Cook time: 30 minutes
Serves: 9-12
Featuring fresh green beans and caramelized onions, this homemade green bean casserole is just about as clean as it gets. Rather than relying on a cream-based soup, it’s held together by a creamy puree of parsnips and mushrooms! The caramelized onion topping still delivers the buttery onion flavor that we all love, without the deep-fried grease and flour to go along with it. All of our favorite flavors covered, without the heavy food-coma to follow!
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion, sliced thinly
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, or butter
- 2 cups parsnips, chopped
- 10 oz. mushrooms, chopped * 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1½ cups water (or broth)
- 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 lb. fresh green beans
- Heat oil/butter, in a large skillet and add the sliced onions. Saute gently over medium-low heat for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally until caramelized. Use a splash of water, as needed, to prevent sticking. Once the onions are tender and golden in color, remove from heat and set aside in a bowl for later.
- While the onions are cooking, you’ll have plenty of time to steam the parsnips. Fit a steamer basket into a saucepan, and fill with one inch of water. Add the 2 cups of chopped parsnips, and bring the water to boil over high heat. Cover and reduce the heat to low, steaming for about 8 minutes, or until the parsnips are easily pierced with a fork. Transfer the steamed parsnips to your blender container, and set it aside.
- Using the same steamer basket and saucepan, break the pound of fresh green beans into one-inch pieces, and toss them into the steamer basket. Bring to a boil, then cover and steam for 6-8 minutes, until the green beans are bright green with a bit of crunch. Transfer the cooked green beans to an 8″ x 8″ glass baking dish.
- At this point, cook the green beans to be as tender as you like– if you prefer them softer, steam them longer. The baking process later will not make them any more tender, so this is your chance to achieve the texture you like.
- Once the onions have finished caramelizing, you can use the same pan to saute the mushrooms and garlic. Heat more oi/butter, and saute the garlic for about 3 minutes, then add the mushrooms. Cook for about 6 minutes, until liquid is released from the mushrooms.
- Spread half of the mushroom mixture into the baking dish of green beans, and pour the other half of the mixture, along with any liquid, into the blender container with the steamed parsnips.
- Into that blender container, add 1½ cups water/broth and 1½ teaspoons sea salt to the cooked parsnips and mushrooms. Blend until smooth and creamy. (This mixture may be a bit salty to taste at this point, but keep in mind that it will be diluted when it’s poured over a pound of green beans!)
- Pour the creamy sauce over the green beans and mushrooms in the glass baking dish, and stir to coat well. (You may very well have more sauce than you need for this recipe– I only used about 1½ cups to coat the vegetables well. Save the rest for a future dish!)
- Smooth the creamy vegetable mixture with a spatula, and top with the caramelized onions to finish.
- At this point, you could cover the dish and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to heat and serve.
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350F and bake uncovered for about 30 minutes, until bubbly.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
This pumpkin sausage soup recipe comes from one of my key friends. She served this at a family gathering and her grand-niece really enjoyed it. I made it last night and it was yummy. This may be just what you need in the cold winter nights ahead.
Ingredients
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 6
In Jennifer's kitchen
Jennifer, one of our contributors, also made this soup and shared a few words:
- 12 ounces) of Jimmy Dean plain sausage
- 1/2 cup onion, minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasonings (packaged salad dressing)
- 1 -2 cup fresh mushrooms, chopped
- 1 can pumpkin (15 ounce)
- 4 cups chicken broth (I used 2 cups - I like my soup thick)
- 1/2 cup whole milk
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 6
- Brown sausage, drain, then add the onion, garlic, Italian seasonings and mushrooms and sauté until done.
- Add pumpkin to this mixture and mix well.
- Stir in broth and mix well. Use less broth for a thicker soup; I used 2 cups.
- Simmer 20-30 minutes.
- Stir in the milk and simmer on low another 10-15 minute. If soup is too thick, add more broth.
- Taste and add salt and pepper as needed (optional).
In Jennifer's kitchen
Jennifer, one of our contributors, also made this soup and shared a few words:
I just tasted it and all's I can say is OMG! Do I HAVE To share with my husband? I highly recommend it! easy TOO! -- Jennifer
I'm on a quest to kick things up a little in my weight loss journey. I'm committed to make as many new recipes as I can during the remainder of 2013. I've been collecting recipes and in the weeks ahead I plan to make as many of them as I can. What better way to start kicking things up than with a new kind of chili?
Why do I want to kick things up? One of the key concepts Julie teaches us is to mix it up - don't let your body get used to having the same foods. It was time for me to get back to this basic concept again.
Last week I was feeling bored with food. Nothing seemed interesting or tasty to me. That's when I started thinking it was time to switch out my menus for some new ones.
One night after work I looked in my pantry for something to cook with grass-fed beef, but I didn't see many options. Hmmm, now what?"
I wasn't game for running to the store, so I looked in the pantry again. That's when I found a jar of chipolte corn salsa. I often make beef chili with a jar of red salsa, so why wouldn't corn salsa be just as good? it turns out corn salsa makes a delicious chili. I created a whole new version of chili that I liked so much I made it again for a potluck I went to yesterday. This time I made my chili with green salsa.
I discovered something else last week after eating that chili: I had lost interest in the meals I was making because I wasn't adding any herbs or spices. It's time to add some spice back into my foods.
What about you? Are you eating the same foods? Are you bored with your meals? Kick things up in you menu and see if that helps. If you have any nice spicy recipes, please share them with us!
Chili
Last week I topped my chili off with sour cream. I've heard mixed reviews if sour cream is on program or not. One person said she called the office and was told "it can be used as a condiment (i.e., in small amounts), but you should think about what your goal is when adding sour cream." That sounds like good advice to me. It's also a concept we can apply to other food choices.
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| Chili made with Green Salsa |
Last week I was feeling bored with food. Nothing seemed interesting or tasty to me. That's when I started thinking it was time to switch out my menus for some new ones.
One night after work I looked in my pantry for something to cook with grass-fed beef, but I didn't see many options. Hmmm, now what?"
I wasn't game for running to the store, so I looked in the pantry again. That's when I found a jar of chipolte corn salsa. I often make beef chili with a jar of red salsa, so why wouldn't corn salsa be just as good? it turns out corn salsa makes a delicious chili. I created a whole new version of chili that I liked so much I made it again for a potluck I went to yesterday. This time I made my chili with green salsa.
I discovered something else last week after eating that chili: I had lost interest in the meals I was making because I wasn't adding any herbs or spices. It's time to add some spice back into my foods.
What about you? Are you eating the same foods? Are you bored with your meals? Kick things up in you menu and see if that helps. If you have any nice spicy recipes, please share them with us!
Chili
- Place 1 pound of ground beef in a pan
- When the beef is done, drain out the oil.
- Add 1 small chopped onion and 1 small sliced pepper (any color or type) to the pan and allow them to soften.
- Add the beef to the pan with the onion and peppers and mix in a 16 oz jar of Mrs. Renfro's Green Salsa or Chipolte Corn Salsa. I loved the spiciness of these salsas, but you can add any brand of salsa.
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| Chili made with Chipolte Corn Salsa |
Some mornings I grab an egg sandwich at Dunkin Donuts, but I make it a special order so I can have eggs my way: I ask them to
hold the bagel. I've been doing this at my local DnD for so long that when the cook sees me coming, she knows to hold the bagel. She also knows to
put the cheese between the meat and the egg.
If you order eggs my way at DnD or anywhere else, know that you will pay the same price in most cases. They should give you a discount, and at DnD on Main in Northampton they often do, but if it gets in the way of having this my way or not, I keep it simple. If they look confused at how to ring it up, tell them: 1) ring it up as they do a sandwich, 2) let the cook know to hold the bagel (or other bread), and 3) ask the cook to put the cheese between the meat and egg (or skip the cheese entirely). You don't want to order a sandwich with the bread. Pulling the bagel from the sandwich is too tempting. You don't want to do this. No bagel, no temptation. Keep it simple.
Most mornings I don't eat breakfast. This was a big change for me that happened after I started this weight loss program. I don't know exactly when I stopped being hungry in the morning. Prior to seeing Julie, I always ate first thing in the morning, otherwise I felt dizzy. I was not a diabetic, and I was tested many times over the years, so I never knew why I had those spells. I recall when I first started feeling dizzy vividly. I was 19 years old. I woke up, jumped up out of bed like I always did, but that morning I quickly sat back down because I felt dizzy, and ever since that morning, I was dizzy every morning and I found eating stilled the dizzy spells - up until some time after I started Julie's program when I no longer had morning dizzy spells and I lost my appetite for breakfast.
Julie talks about stabilizing our metabolism for us in her sessions. Perhaps she stabilized my metabolism and that made the dizzy spells stop. I don't have another explanation. What I do know is I don't miss those dizzy spells and I'm good with this change.
That said, there are mornings when I am hungry and I have breakfast. Yesterday I saw an article about making a week’s worth of egg sandwiches in 15 minutes, and since I didn't have anything planned for dinner, and I had 2 dozen eggs in the house, I decided to adapt the recipe and made it for dinner last night.
Julie teaches us to vary our menus, so don't make this recipe with a dozen eggs unless you have family to help you eat them or you plan to freeze some. Trying this recipe last night is my first step in changing up what I eat. I'm re-evaluating what I'm eating and I'm cooking new recipes to move away from eating the same foods all the time. I'm making spicier foods and using my crockpot again. There's nothing like coming home to a cooked meal!
Eggs My Way
I think you'll find this recipe easy to adapt to make eggs your way.
1. Drop a small amount of olive oil into each well of your muffin pan. Smear the oil around the well with your fingertip or a paper towel to coat the bottom and edges of each well.
2. Place a piece of sliced ham in each well and add a small amount of spinach. I added spinach that was still frozen. You can use any vegetable or none at all.
3. Crack one egg into each well.
4. Sprinkle the eggs with a little salt, pepper, and garlic salt. Season to suit your tastes.
5. Bake in the oven at 350 for about 15 minutes. Adjust the cooling time depending on how you like your yolks. Cook them less if you want runny yolks or longer for harder yolks.
I got a phone call while my eggs were cooking, so they were perfectly hard boiled when I ate them. I prefer them runny, but hard boiled means I can eat the leftovers cold from the refrigerator instead of needing to heat them up.
Recipe adapted from Make A Week’s Worth Of Healthy Egg Breakfast Sandwiches in 15 Minutes.
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| Eggs my way - made at home (recipe below) |
Most mornings I don't eat breakfast. This was a big change for me that happened after I started this weight loss program. I don't know exactly when I stopped being hungry in the morning. Prior to seeing Julie, I always ate first thing in the morning, otherwise I felt dizzy. I was not a diabetic, and I was tested many times over the years, so I never knew why I had those spells. I recall when I first started feeling dizzy vividly. I was 19 years old. I woke up, jumped up out of bed like I always did, but that morning I quickly sat back down because I felt dizzy, and ever since that morning, I was dizzy every morning and I found eating stilled the dizzy spells - up until some time after I started Julie's program when I no longer had morning dizzy spells and I lost my appetite for breakfast.
Julie talks about stabilizing our metabolism for us in her sessions. Perhaps she stabilized my metabolism and that made the dizzy spells stop. I don't have another explanation. What I do know is I don't miss those dizzy spells and I'm good with this change.
That said, there are mornings when I am hungry and I have breakfast. Yesterday I saw an article about making a week’s worth of egg sandwiches in 15 minutes, and since I didn't have anything planned for dinner, and I had 2 dozen eggs in the house, I decided to adapt the recipe and made it for dinner last night.
Julie teaches us to vary our menus, so don't make this recipe with a dozen eggs unless you have family to help you eat them or you plan to freeze some. Trying this recipe last night is my first step in changing up what I eat. I'm re-evaluating what I'm eating and I'm cooking new recipes to move away from eating the same foods all the time. I'm making spicier foods and using my crockpot again. There's nothing like coming home to a cooked meal!
Eggs My Way
I think you'll find this recipe easy to adapt to make eggs your way.
1. Drop a small amount of olive oil into each well of your muffin pan. Smear the oil around the well with your fingertip or a paper towel to coat the bottom and edges of each well.
I got a phone call while my eggs were cooking, so they were perfectly hard boiled when I ate them. I prefer them runny, but hard boiled means I can eat the leftovers cold from the refrigerator instead of needing to heat them up.
Recipe adapted from Make A Week’s Worth Of Healthy Egg Breakfast Sandwiches in 15 Minutes.
This question was posted a few minutes ago on an August 2013 post (Quick Recipes) and in order to help Rose, I'm posting her question so that some of you may be able to answer her questions:
11/13/13 update:
I just read an excerpt from the book Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar - Your Brain's Silent Killers, by Dr. David Perlmutter, which supports a lot of what Julie teaches us. I highly recommend this article. It's available on Amazon and the Kindle price is only $6.62. I devoured the article, so I may have to buy the Kindle version! -- Theresa
I am new to blogging and not sure if I'm doing it right. I have been on the diet for two months and doing well. I do still have some food questions and how the food combinations effect the body, as well as dynamics of Julie's philosophy. I really enjoyed the sessions and am in awe of her. However, after driving for two hours from Gloucester and attending the night sessions, I tended to space out and not necessarily absorb a lot if the information. I emailed Theresa, but got back some long form letter of encouragement. Is there anyone out there who can help me? -- Rose
11/13/13 update:
I just read an excerpt from the book Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar - Your Brain's Silent Killers, by Dr. David Perlmutter, which supports a lot of what Julie teaches us. I highly recommend this article. It's available on Amazon and the Kindle price is only $6.62. I devoured the article, so I may have to buy the Kindle version! -- Theresa
