Content at Home

So, let me be honest... I've struggled more with food and food prep since being pregnant than ever before in my life! As of January (right before we got pregnant), our family changed to receiving paychecks once a month verses every two weeks. These two things coupled together, have proven to increase my struggle and fight to fix real food on a cheap budget for my family. Also, with the increased need for me to eat more consistently due to being pregnant (high in protein) and both my husband's desire and mine to have healthy, yet yummy snacks around the house to munch on, I've been at a loss as to how to meet these needs and desires.

I've struggled with dry skin my whole life. Then a few years ago I started getting a little eczema on my fingers. I dutifully went to my dermatologist and he gave me a steroid cream and told me to stop washing my hands so much. Only about twice a day! I did what he said and it went away. Yet I was only masking an underlying problem in my body.

Since then, I have come to learn about everything else that is happening within my body (allergies, adrenal fatigue, weak/leaky gut, candida, parasites, etc... the list goes on!). Eczema is one way of our body releasing toxins that are built up inside of our body. So when I was putting a steroid cream on my hands, I was covering up only outside symptoms. Now, my eczema is coming back with a passion! You may not be able to tell by my picture above that we took this morning (you can click on it to enlarge it if you wish), but it wraps it's little red and blistery bumps around my fingers, in the crevice at my thumb, around the bone by my wrist, and yesterday I spotted a couple spots on my wrist. Yes, it is spreading! It came back on my fingers a few months ago and has been spreading ever since. Thankfully, this is still considered a mild case. :-)

After trying just lotion for weeks, I finally gave in and got a steroid cream, while that helped and minimized it, it never went away. As soon as I stop using it, it comes back. Water, scents, and my food allergies really aggravate my condition! I have chosen to stay off the steroid creams! I am a believer in healing things naturally and am not fond of many of the medicinal things that doctors give us. (I'm not opposed to going to doctors for serious illnesses...cancer, diabetes, etc...) I also believe that a lot of the "help" that I have received from conventional doctors has done more to hurt my body then help it. Of course, they always gave me "immediate" relief, for which I was grateful, but the long term affects on my body have been horrible! Again, I'm not bashing all doctors or practices. Our family would not be the same without medicinal care. My Mother specifically.... who has had cancer, diabetes, cushings disease, etc.... We are very grateful for how God has used doctors to help her and heal her!

So, off my soapbox, I have been looking for natural ways to heal my eczema. A friend sent me a link to this blog post yesterday and I was so grateful! It's of a mother with a child who has had eczema for five years (since he was an infant). They also tried creams at first and then realized that they needed to heal him from the inside out. I found her information to be very helpful!

What We Did To Help Our Son's Eczema - Without Drugs

Here is a great new recipe I tried last night for "almondaise." It is from the Body Ecology Diet book, page 252. I was a little hesitant about how it would turn out before I made it, but as soon as it was done, I was hooked!! (Including, licking spoons, fingers, etc...) Even Kyle liked it and thought it tasted like "real" mayonnaise! They say in the book that it makes for a great veggie dip as well and I agree!

So here it is:

Ingredients: (yields 1 1/2 - 2 cups)

1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 to 3/4 cup water (I probably ended up using about 1 cup for the consistency I wanted)
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
3/4 tsp. sea salt
1 cup organic, unrefined oil (flax or pumpkin seed)
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. raw, organic apple cider vinegar

1. Cover almonds with boiling water, allow to cool slightly. Slip off skins and have all other ingredients ready.
2. Place almonds in blender or food processor and grind to a fine powder. Add half the water along with garlic powder and seasonings. Blend well, then add the remaining water to form a smooth cream.
3. With blender running low, remove insert top and drizzle in the oil in a thin stream until mixture is thick.
4. Keep blender running and add lemon juice and vinegar. Blend on low 1 minute longer to allow mixture to thicken to desired consistency.
5. Scrape into a jar with a screw top and refrigerate. This will keep 10 days - 2 weeks.

I made my first batch of cultured veggies, coconut kefir, and coconut "cheese" last night. It took me about 3 hours to complete, not including the dishes!

I used the Marinara-Style Cultured Veggie recipe. I also consulted glued myself to this article with step-by-step instructions and pictures. My jars turned out beautifully, just like the recipe. It's really not that hard, just a little time consuming! Now they just have to sit for 4-7 days to finish culturing.

Next came the Coconut kefir. I enlisted the help of my strong husband to crack these things!

First he bored three holes into the tops of the young coconuts for us to drain the coconut water out of. Each coconut contains about 1 1/2 cups of sweet water. It's really quite yummy. After collecting the water, I heated it slightly, then added the Body Ecology Kefir Starter. In about 4 days we will have a great tasting Coconut Kefir to drink. It is highly nutritional for our bodies, especially for those of us who have a dairy allergy and cannot drink kefir made from cow's milk.

Lastly, this was the exciting part... cracking the coconuts open to get the meat out. Thankfully, Kyle is a very patient man and proceeded to spend a while cracking open the coconuts with a screwdriver and hammer.





Kyle cracking a coconut open from Michelle Roland on Vimeo.


***Note: Today is day 7 and I opened my veggies and they are great! Definitely a very strong onion and garlic taste, but mixed with a salad or other veggies they will make for a great, healthy addition to our meals. My Coconut Kefir however, did not turn out so good when I opened it on day 4. I think I let it sit out too long and it turned almost into a coconut vinegar. SO... next time, I'm doing only 2 days!***

Tonight I ventured out and tried roasting my chicken for the first time ever! I had high hopes and wasn't disappointed! I started by checking out blogs for ideas/recipes, then I googled recipes, and finally, I consulted my Better Homes and Garden cookbook. I gleaned ideas, cooking times/temps, from all sources and then decided to wing it and try my own conglomeration of them all with my own touches. Here's how it turned out:


I started with a hormone/antibiotic free chicken from Whole Foods that I got on sale. I cleaned out the insides, rinsed it, and placed it in a baking dish.


Next I rubbed the chicken down with olive oil on the top and bottom, turning it over and back. Then I made a rub consisting of: 2-3 tbps. softened butter, 1/2 tbps. thyme, 1/2 tbps. rosemary, 1/2 tbps. basil, 1/2 tbps. salt (maybe a little less) and about 7-8 cloves of garlic, minced. I mixed it all together into a thick rub and then proceeded to massage it into the chicken. At first, I placed it on the outside of the skin (shown in picture) but then I read that it should go under the skin to prevent burning. I scraped it all off and shoved it up under the breast skin, and left it on the outside everywhere else.


Next, I covered the chicken with foil to prevent burning and drying out, however, leaving "breathing room." Then, place it in a preheated oven at 375 for 2 hours with cover. At about an hour I took it out, scooped up the juices, and coated the chicken in them, to prevent drying. After the two hours I took it out of the oven, took off the foil, and placed it back in for about 20 more minutes. I don't have a thermometer so I just cut into the breast and made sure it was not pink.

Ta-da!!!! Here's our yummy bird that we enjoyed for dinner. The taste was amazing, rich, and perfect! Kyle and I both rated it at a 10 for moistness and flavor.

For dinner I added a salad and sauteed cabbage. (btw... I tried sauteing the cabbage in coconut oil and it added great flavor.)

On Saturday night I prepared Soaked and Baked Oatmeal for us to eat on Sunday morning. A friend had given me the recipe for it and she found it on Keeper of the Home's Blog.
I have to admit, Kyle and I LOVED it! It was super simple, and Sunday morning I only had to add a couple more things then throw it in the oven to cook while getting ready for church. I only made a half batch but we ate it for breakfast... and then snacked on it after church, plus had the remaining for dinner. (I know this was not very wise of us to eat so much in one day... but it was just that good!)

Soaked & Baked Oatmeal

12-24 hours before baking, combine:
1 cup oil (or coconut oil, or 1/2 coconut oil & 1/2 butter) I used coconut oil and butter
1/2 - 3/4 cup raw honey
6 cups rolled oats (I used gluten free oats)
1 cup milk
1 cup yogurt

Cover with towel and leave out on counter. (Yes! On the counter!)

The next day add to oiled 9x13 baking dish:
4 eggs, beaten
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon (we want to add more next time)

Bake @ 375 for 30-40 minutes; until lightly brown. Serve w/cream. (We ate ours without cream and it was still fantastic!)

**Wondering about why we should soak our grains? There are many articles about this... but here are several helpful ones:

Simple explanation
Nourishing Practices: Soaking Grains Part 1
Nourishing Practices: Soaking Grains Part 2

For several years I have struggled with the corners of my lips cracking, being painful, and sometimes bleeding. When I was younger, I assumed that my tummy was upset and that's what was causing this reaction. In the last year or so, I've been contributing it to my food allergies of wheat and oats. However, even when I don't eat those foods I still have problems with it. So then we started thinking that maybe it was dairy. Finally, a couple days ago Kyle asked me if I had looked it up online. I never had, just assuming it was how my body responded.

When I looked it up I found out that I actually have something called Angular Cheilitis. Many of the websites I have read say that one of the main causes of this is a Vitamin B and Iron deficiency in the body.

This is all very interesting to me because I already knew I was low on iron and I've begun to research symptoms of being Vitamin B deficient. This further proves that I do need to increase these vitamins. I also find it interesting that when we were following the Hallelujah diet strictly, this condition cleared up. Which again, makes sense because I was pumping many more vitamins into my system through the raw food we were eating.

Here are a few helpful articles you can check out:

What is Angular Cheilitis?
Free Cures
Home Remedies
Drinking Ginger

This morning my husband showed me this link he found on MSN.com. Families from different countries around the world are shown with their average food and costs for the week. It is very interesting to see the types of food that various people eat! Take note of all of the processed foods in the American family's weekly diet! It's so sad!

What the World Eats

Just scroll next above each picture.

So I went into work this morning and my boss told me she didn't need me today because one of our doctors was out of the office. I left wondering what I should do with my day. It didn't take long before I decided to turn my day off into a baking day. I've been reading about other wives who devote a morning or evening to baking. I've been wanting to do this, so I can have muffins and breads stored in my freezer, but it's hard to do when I work a lot.

So...here's what's cooking:

Banana Coconut Flour Muffins

Spiced Apple Muffins

Cranberry Pecan Corn Muffins

For several reasons, Kyle and I have decided to add animal products back into our daily eating routine, but in small amounts and only grass fed, free range, non-hormone pumped animals and dairy. Since the cost of this type of meat/dairy is higher, that will also limit how much we eat.

Because we are on the go so much of the time, sometimes it's hard to get enough food into us with just eating fruits and veggies. Because of this, I have been quite concerned that we are getting enough nutrition. I still do not know fully what I think about meat eating vs. vegetarian, but since I've been off of meat (and Kyle mostly) for about 2 1/2 months, we are going to try adding a little back in to see how that effects our systems. We will also be paying attention to energy levels, etc... I know that the two times I have eaten meat I feel heavy and loaded down. Not what I normally feel after eating yummy vegetables!

We are really seeking to find a good balance in nutrition and health. I have been reading A LOT about different styles of "healthy eating" and the one thing I find in common, whether it be vegan, vegetarian, or meat-eating, is to eliminate ALL processed foods from our bodies. That means: no white or brown sugar, no white flour, no caffeine, no boxed meals/cereals, etc... Many people take it down to not even eating any canned food. There are so many toxins and harmful additives (i.e. MSG) that are added to our foods without us even knowing about it. Or worse, we do know about it but continue to still eat it.

So, in trying to sift through what we feel called to eat and cook, Kyle and I have decided to rid our kitchen and baking routines from as many processed items as possible. Over the last three months I have been changing over the products in our kitchen to more healthy, holistic foods. I no longer cook with regular sugar but use Sucanat (evaporated cane juice), honey, and molasses. I've even begun to use coconut flour (which is gluten free and grain free) for some of my baking. We eat simple, whole food meals. We are also still seeking to incorporate a lot of fresh fruits and veggies, beginning the day with a fruit smoothie and having salads for lunches.

Today I bought one cage-free, vegetarian fed, non-hormone pumped chicken to boil down and use in several meals. Much of the reading I've been doing talks about the nutrition found in bone broths so, like any good ol' country gal, I saved my chicken stock in glass canning jars to store in the freezer and pull out for soups this fall. (I have great memories with my Mom of us boiling down a whole chicken together. Mom would teach me how to skin it, take out the insides, and then cook it. Thanks Mom for all the great cooking memories we've shared over the years. I kept thinking about you today as I cooked!)


Since I baked for about 5 hours today, dinner was super easy and quick. I decided to try Health Begins with Mom's recipe for Chicken Burrito Skillet. It turned out really yummy!


Here's our yummy dinner. I substituted yellow corn tortillas for the whole wheat tortillas. We both gave it a 10 on the food rating scale! Yum yum!


*** I wrote this post last night but then I lost power to my computer so I didn't post it until today. I have an update about how I was affected by eating this way last night. Basically, I felt bad all morning! I felt so full (from trying several muffins + eating the new food [i.e. chicken and cheese] and my lips broke out again! We knew that I was allergic to wheat and oats, but we were wondering, before starting our diet, if I was also allergic to dairy. Sure enough, after eating cheese last night my lips broke out. The odd thing is that I usually don't break out with other forms of dairy... so I guess we'll have to start experimenting to see what all I'm really allergic to. For now, I've cut the cheese back out of our diets.) The next time I make this dinner it'll probably be without the chicken and cheese. But it'll still be super yummy! --Saturday night--

If you're reading my post and you live in the Louisville area, I wanted to introduce you to a Grass Fed Beef Farm in the Area.

Foxhollow Farm is a proud seller of Grass fed cows, as well as garden grown veggies. I found them at the Farmer's Market this weekend. Kyle and I haven't been cooking meat at home, but I decided to try some of their beef and it was actually quite good. I felt so much better about feeding it to my husband because it was void of growth hormones, chemicals, additives, etc... They were very reasonably priced too! Only $3.99 a pound for ground beef.

For the meat lovers out there, I highly recommend this local farm for all your beef buying needs.

They are having their 2nd Annual Fall Festival on Saturday, October 10th, 2-6 pm.

Check out a great giveaway at Passionate Homemaking's blog site. She is giving away free trial sizes of the products from the NaturOli.

Ok... so it probably looks like I've had no life over the last two days... but I've been in a big blog reading mood, so I'm excited to show ya'll a few posts that I've really enjoyed!

One blog that I am new to is I'm an Organizing Junkie. Well she posted a blog with links to different blogs offering meal planning charts. I looked at each one and then selected one that would work best for Kyle and I.

Check out her post:

Meal Planning

She also offers a link to a grocery list that is excellent along with various other files!

Grocery List

I just wanted to pass along a link for you.

Today's post on the "Health Begins with Mom" blog was very interesting and informative. She posts a video on MSG that was done by the TV show, 60 Minutes. Watch that video here, but also check out her post about it too.

Our neighbors just got a big load of fresh veggies from their family and friends' gardens up in Ohio. Since they brought so much back, they graciously shared with us. What they can't eat fresh, they are canning away for the fall and winter. They have yummy tomatoes, bell peppers, sweet peppers, jalapenos, hot cherry peppers, etc...

I feel some fresh, homemade spaghetti coming on!


Kyle's Mama also sent us a couple bags of scuppernongs to eat and enjoy. Not having ever had one before I threw one in my mouth and began chewing. I learned very quickly that you DON'T eat the peeling or the seeds; they are very tart. However, the inside of the scuppernongs are sweet and fun to suck the juice from.

Off to go make dinner...

This morning Kyle made breakfast and did a wonderful job! He cut up honeydew melon and trimmed it with apples and grapes. Isn't he so creative? I was quite impressed! I have such a wonderful husband! I couldn't ask for better!


For dinner tonight I made cucumber "boats" and salad. They turned out quite yummy and very fun! I took one cucumber, peeled it, sliced it in half lengthwise, and scraped out the seeds. I then finely chopped up bell pepper, carrots, tomatoes and avocado. I then smashed up part of the avocado and smeared it inside the center of the cucumber. Then I mixed together a couple teaspoons of raw almond butter with the rest of the veggies. That was placed on top of the avocado. I then picked fresh basil leaves from our plant and added them as flags atop our veggie boat. :-) This would be a fun recipe for anyone who has kids! I'll have to remember it one day. haha...

Kyle about to partake in his veggie boat.

Well, as you can see, I haven't been very good about blogging this week, sorry! However, we have continued on the diet and are still doing well. We have decided to continue living this way after this weekend, when our "three week challenge" is over. We have chosen that I will continue to cook and prepare food according to this healthy lifestyle, yet whenever we go out to eat we can eat a little bit of meat or dairy... like if a salad already comes with cheese on it, or chicken. I don't think I'll be eating any meat, but Kyle will. He still wants to eat it sometimes. I'll probably save those times for holidays with family or special occasions. This will make this diet a little bit easier to maintain in the long run.

One of the hardest parts about this way of eating is going out to eat with people. Sadly, in our American Culture, it is very difficult to eat anything that does not contain meat, dairy, or is processed. While this will help us cut down on eating out, we still want to be able to every so often without feeling really guilty. So, we are both pleased and content with choosing to continue in this fashion.

So... if you ever come over to our house for dinner... be prepared to eat a lot of veggies! haha! :-)

Well, here are a few pictures from this week:

What our fridge looks like after going grocery shopping for the week. Pretty fresh, huh?

Kyle's lunch one day consisted of homemade whole wheat bread with raw almond butter and honey; apple and orange slices.

From scratch spaghetti over spaghetti squash... quite good, however our sauce was too watery... I've got to learn how to thicken it up without using canned tomato products. I just blended up about three big juicy tomatoes and added veggies.
Yummy Chili... I used a recipe from Rachael Ray's cookbook but changed it up. Basically, I used one can of rotel, one can of kidney beans, one can of white northern beans, one can of corn, one chopped bell pepper, one chopped medium onion, 4-5 garlic cloves, one large tomato chopped, dry black beans cooked, cumin, chili powder, and salt. Pretty basic, but flavorful and colorful!

We ate our chili over brown rice and topped it with cilantro. Oh... and we added a few blue corn tortilla chips. :-)

I wanted to surprise Kyle for dinner yesterday so I made him homemade bread and pizza crust. It was the real deal... the whole wheat bread recipe that I grew up on. It was fabulous! I ate it, hoping that it wouldn't affect me. I did ok at first... but later in the evening I got a really bad headache and sure enough, today my bottom lip is a little swollen, red and itchy. :-( I was really hoping I could eat it... oh well. I'll only eat it every once in a while. Kyle really enjoyed it though and that made it all worth it!

Here's the bread and pizza making process:

The dough rising on the stove, waiting to go in the oven...

The loaf cooked and cooling...

Cutting up veggies to go on top of the pizza... broccoli, zucchini, red bell peppers, onions...

The pizza crust cooked and cooling... sauteing the veggies...
Our yummy pizza... it was delicious and so simple!
Yum-o!!!

This week has FLOWN BY!!! Kyle and I have both been picking up extra shifts at our jobs. I won't lie, this week has been a lot more difficult staying motivated on this diet than last week. This week has been so busy that I haven't had much of a chance to sit down and think through a menu or meal plans. So, we have been eating a LOT of salads... and we're both pretty tired of them. Yesterday was really hard too because I went to hang out with some of my friends and was supposed to bring snacky foods. Well, what snacky foods could I have brought that were cheap and good??? I ended up taking a salad... and had to work on an attitude adjustment!

I'm realizing that eating primarily raw doesn't exactly help in the "hostessing / baking" department. However... I am open to trying new recipes... like there is one for a "raw apple pie" that looks good. It kinda redefines what an apple pie should taste like... but as long as it is enjoyable, I don't mind.

If any of you have any good "raw" recipes that you would like to pass along... I'm all ears. Until then, I will continue to research them and incorporate them into our menus. I find myself living and planning for the one cooked meal of the day... maybe that's not the best! haha...

The Lord is showing me that preparing food is not all about the presentation. I need to humble myself in cooking and realize that it is more important to feed my family (and friends who come over) healthfully, rather than cooking ordinary foods that are unhealthful but look beautiful and puff up my pride! Simple foods can be beautiful though... it just takes a little (or a lot) more effort.

Well, here are some dinners that we have eaten on these days:

Homemade veggie spaghetti with gluten free pasta...

Our favorite yummy potatoes with black beans, sauted onions, and tofu. This was my first try at cooking tofu... I think I need to refine it a little. It was ok but neither one of us were impressed with it.

This is what our snacks look like for work (some days... well, the days I have time to make it look pretty! haha...). This consists of green grapes on the bottom, sliced strawberries, blueberries, and almonds. It was AMAZING!!!

This was my first attempt at making dessert for us. I found some really yummy gluten free, egg free, dairy free cookies at Whole Foods. They were sweetened with fruit juice. I have to admit, they were GOOD!!! We both agreed on it too! Well, I crumbled up part of the cookie on the bottom, made "banana ice cream" (Two frozen bananas mixed in the blender with about a cup of rice milk), and put the leftover cookie on top. It was quite tastey!

I wanted to post up some "fun things" that I have enjoyed using to prepare our food. Since we are newly married it has been a wonderful privilege to have new things to enjoy while crafting our dishes. Here is a picture of just several of my favorite things to use right now.

L-R: The little silver bowl has been wonderful to make up salad dressings in for my personal salad... a little olive oil, raw honey, and a squeeze of lemon fits perfectly in there. The little red colander is the perfect size to dump a can of beans in to rinse. The green knife is from pampered chef and my all time favorite right now. It is very sharp and cuts SO smoothly! (Even better than my new knife set... I was surprised!) What kitchen is complete without a garlic press? I've loved using it!!! It's been so long since I've had one... I would always chop up my garlic or use my Mom's mortar and pestle to grind the garlic. Last, but not least, I love my little rooster timer. It's so fun to use it and to have it setting out on my counter. (Thanks Susannah!)

I also wanted to include a picture of some fun new additions to our pantry.

L-R: For my birthday I asked my parents for Barley Max. Now, that probably sounds weird, but it's so good for us and I really wanted to use it (especially since we're supposed to be taking it on the diet anyways!). The vegetable broth came in handy tonight when I cooked our herb rice. Instead of using water, I cooked the rice in the broth which gave it so much flavor! Next, raw honey. I don't think I even knew there was a difference in honey and raw honey. However, I was educated when I opened the top and found that raw honey is still firm; very unlike "normal" cooked honey. (Who would have thought that honey was cooked? Not me!!!) Black beans are next... instead of spending a dollar a can to buy organic black beans (Kroger brand), I opted to try my hand at dried beans (bought in bulk at Whole Foods for cheap) in order to keep our grocery bill down. I have yet to try them but am sure I will at some point this week. Dates... I love all kinds of dates... dates with my husband, coffee dates, double dates... and yes, DRIED DATES... Never tried them? You don't know what you are missing out on!!! I'm telling you... if you're craving sugar, grab a date... they are amazing! I have to limit myself on them! haha... They can be used in so many recipes too... And last, but not least, Pure Maple Syrup. We use it to sweeten our Sweet Potatoes (and other things). We really enjoyed it too!

Well, that's it for now...

Wow! I can't believe I'm so far behind! I'm so sorry that I have slacked off the last few days. Well, we are still on the diet and moving along great! We are thriving on our new eating lifestyle and enjoying the benefits of eating healthfully.

One thing Kyle has really begun to notice is more energy when he wakes up in the mornings. It's not as hard to drag ourselves out of bed. Woo hoo! We've also noticed that after we slipped up a little bit by having some cheese over the weekend due to eating out, we felt worse after eating it and Sunday afternoon I felt horrible! However, as soon as we returned to eating mainly raw again we felt tremendously better.

So what have we been eating?

Well, after work on Saturday, I made us some yummy chili. I found the recipe in the Hallelujah Diet book and was surprised at how good it was! Kyle really enjoyed it too! We crushed up some tortilla chips on top... talk about comfort food!

Sunday we were invited after church by one of my professors from Boyce to go out to lunch with his family and some mutual friends. We went to Red Robin. We had a wonderful time with them and enjoyed the fellowship. Kyle and I got Caesar salad wraps... they were excellent, however the cheese and wheat did me in! My lips are still broken out. But they sure were good! haha...

That afternoon, the community group we had visited had a cookout at a couple's house in Indiana. While they ate hotdogs and hamburgers, we ate salad and black bean and mango salsa that we had taken. It was hard for Kyle to watch all the guys eating their meat, but in the end it was so worth feeling good. Kyle was a trooper and I'm so proud of him!

Yesterday, Monday, my office took me out to lunch for my birthday to Jason's Deli. They have an All You Can Eat Salad Bar which is AMAZING!!! I got a huge salad that was very satisfactory! Then last night we had left over chili.

Today, our day off, we ran some errands, and since today is "grocery day" for this week, we grabbed a bite to eat out. Kyle had never been to Jason's Deli before so we went there and he really enjoyed it! I tried their red pepper hummus with some spelt crackers they offer on the salad bar, along with my salad... it was incredible! I fell in love with it from the first bite! They also have an amazing bean salad... very good!

My Salad today from Jason's Deli... look at all that yummy FRESH goodness!!! My tummy approves! haha...

Tonight for dinner I made an herb rice recipe from the Hallelujah Diet book, with asparagus, and yellow squash that our neighbors gave us from their garden. Even though this seems to be a bland meal, it was still very filling and satisfying!

Well... this is what we've been eating for the last few days... hope it is inspiring to others who would like to seek out more healthy options for their family's table!