Day 59

This is certainly a period of changes. Wonderful changes and bad changes, beautiful moments and unbearable sadness. I think it all depends on how we interpret them. The same thing can be interpreted as sad, as nice, as "not-so-bad", or even promising by absolutely different people. So what I am trying to do is to choose to see everything through understanding and optimistic eyes.

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Black tea with milk (yes, I had to have it :) and a slice of bread with honey.

Midday: An orange and a banana

Lunch: Finished up yesterday's rice.

Dinner: Red lentil and vegetable soup, inspired by THIS recipe in the FatFreeVegan Blog.

I actually used cauliflower instead of cabbage, no celery as I didn't have it, and I used red lentils and not suggested brown lentils. I really liked its rich flavour - definitely, soups rule!

I also made pancakes from ricotta cheese (200 g of ricotta, 2 eggs, sugar to your taste, I added 3 spoonful, flour just to make the pancake liquid a little bit thicker and bit of salt. I fried the pancakes on olive oil.

And that's me, talking to a goldfish :) Asking for my health to get better!

Day 58

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and a slice of bread with honey.

Midday: An orange and a banana

Lunch: Italian Caprese Salad: very easy, I found a nice recipe HERE.

Split Green peas and Potato Cream - ok, here's the recipe! I left the peas in water for 12 hours (did it yesterday!). Now, in a big sauce pan I sautéed a big chopped onion, added the peas and boiled them until they were quite soft. Added 2 chopped potatoes, kept boiling everything for 15 more minutes approx, or when potatoes were completely ready. Then I blended everything into a creamy soup, added some olive oil, red paprika, and lemon juice. Nice cream for a change!

Afternoon: A mandarine.

Dinner: Rice with Eggplant and Peas from FatFreevegan. I did not put any pepper in it because I didn't have it. It was very very good, I should say.

Acne Status: Looking good. I do have some new red enemies attacking. I am not getting desperate, but...

Days 47-57 BOOK OF MY LIFE

Hello there...

I haven't been here for quite a long time. I promise - this is not because I have been naughty and was eating McDonald's food. No no. I was emotionally overwhelmed, and I needed to think. I basically needed to think about all the good things that I have done and all good things that I still haven't done in my life. It's interesting that you get to a certain age, look back and see a huge book, the book of all your life. It has so many pages, colourful, colourless, blank, full of little black letters or smiling faces...

What I did see about my book is that many pages were not closed, they were still hanging in the air, waiting for me to pay attention to them and finally close them forever. Some of these pages are people with unfinished stories that were left behind when I was moving from one country to another. Others are some events that I didn't like or couldn't accept and, consequently, get over them.

I believe that some pages need to be turned over. You kind of have to force yourself into making a little effort and turning these pages over and never come back to them anymore. This is what I have been doing these 10 days. I have started. This would be a great beginning of the healing process as well - this time emotional.

As for my healthy eating, I have been doing great. I ate a bit too much bread lately, but still stuck to my oatmel and vegetarian cooking. FatFreeVegan website was of great help.

The Healthy and Beautiful blog is back!

Days 45-46

Day 45

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and a slice of bread with honey.

Midday: A banana

Lunch: Vegetarian Chili from FatFreevegan! I didn't use corn, I used a little bit more zucchini instead. The recipe is really easy, and the chili was great. Don't have any picture of it, unfortunately.

Afternoon: A mandarine.

Dinner: Salad with pasta (pasta, canned tuna, lettuce, onion, sunflower seeds, olive oil and a little bit of Modena vinegar)

Day 44

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and buscuits.

Midday: A banana.

Lunch: Finished up yesterday's vegetarian chili.

Dinner: Fruit: a banana, an orange, a mandarine. Green tea.

Today I bought Anna Selby's book on Ayurveda. It's incredible to get to know more about how our body works. I have done the tests, and I am a clear Vata-Pitta type with an unbalanced Vata dosha. In theory, I should follow the diet to lower my Vata. The new thing that I learned today that I can actually eat things that are not quite suitable for Vata, but I need to use the right spices, which are: cinnamon, coriander, cardamom, cummin, saffron, salt and fresh ginger.

 

The good spices for Pitta are: fennel, mint, coriander, cummin, saffron, nutmeg, camomile.

 

And for Kapha: practically any, except for salt and liquorice.

 

Day 43-44

Day 43

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and a slice of bread with honey.

Midday: A banana and a mandarine.

Lunch: Stewed vegetables (zucchini, tomatoes, onions, garlic, red pepper and carrots).

Afternoon: An apple.

Dinner: Gnocchi with cheese (we had dinner in an Italian restaurant) - I couldn't each much of it, as it was too heavy to digest. Next time I will order something much lighter.

Day 44

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea.

Midday: A banana.

Lunch: Pearl barley hot cereal (I had it in the water for the whole night and then boiled and added a little bit of butter). check this info out:

Barley and your health.According to the FDA, barley's soluble fiber reduces the risk of coronary heart disease and can lower cholesterol. But that's not all that this amazing food does! Barley also contains insoluble fiber, which reduces the risk of Type 2 diabetes and colon cancer. One cup of cooked barley provides 193 calories, 6 grams of fiber and 3.5 grams of protein. With less than one gram of fat per serving, barley is a virtually fat-free food and is also cholesterol-free - Great cereal, isn't it????

Afternoon: A mandarine.

Dinner: Salad (lettuce, sunflower seeds, tomatoes, canned tuna. Salt, olive oil and lemon).

It's almost summer in Madrid!!! I just hope it will not be too hot this year.

Day 41-42

Day 41

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and buscuits.

Midday: 2 oranges

Lunch: Salad (lettuce, onions, tomatoes, olives, and avocado). Boiled rice with vegetables (my friend Gema made it, she just boiled "menestra" kind of vegetables - like these:

together with rice. The result was a very light and healthy dish!

Afternoon: A kiwi

Dinner: Boiled yeallow peas with olive oil and a little bit of salt. We bought the yellow peas in Athens - actually I really liked the flavour, you can't buy them here in Spain.

Day 42

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and a slice of bread.

Midday: An apple and a banana

Lunch: Stewed vegetables (potatoes, red pepper, onions, garlic, carrots and a fennel).

Afternoon: A kiwi

Dinner: Greek salad - yes again! We need to finish the Feta cheese!

Day 40 WEDDING!

We were invited to a wedding today! And of course we could forget about our healthy menu. Well, I did my best to eat only moderatley unhealthy things and not super-unhealthy :)

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea.

Midday: 2 Oranges

Wedding Lunch: Gazpacho, looks like the one below. And here's a good recipe for it.

Main dish: grilled monkfish with vegetables:

And for dessert: chocolate mousse, which I should not be including in my diet!!!

Dinner: Several pieces of fruit. I was full and didn't want to eat anything else.

Ah, weddings! I love to dance and wedding are a good place for it :) This is the song that is still playing in my head after the crazy wedding dancing: PLAY!

Day 39

We have guests tonight! I tried to cook healthy and at the same time substancial food, so that our guests come back again!

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. Green tea and buscuits.

Midday: An orange and a kiwi

Lunch: Salad (lettuce, onions, tomatoes, olives, and tuna fish)

Afternoon: A kiwi

Dinner: Here comes the menu for our guests!

1) The Greek salad with the Feta cheese brought from Athens - not the best picture, you can't really see the ingredients. But just imagine the typical Greek salad and its yummy taste!

 2) Lebanese Stew with chickpeas! Brilliant Recipe from FatFreeVegan!

 3) Salmon baked in foil with boiled potatoes - very simple and delicious! I didn't use any oil for salmon. This was the closest recipe to mine: http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1917,155188-252199,00.html I might have overcooked it a little, but it was great anyway.

 4) Our friend from Argentina made this cake with a spongy buscuit and dulce de leche - I didn't eat too much of it, although it was really good. I will ask for the recipe.

Days 36-37-38

Very UNHEALTHY days. For work reasons I had to eat out and the food did not quite fit into my healthy diet. I ate fish, and some Spanish tapas, drank a little bit of wine, and had very intense working days full of stress, meetings and lack of sleep. I will not describe what I ate because this is just not what I would like to see in my diet. But hey, sometimes people just can't always fit the diet into their routine. Isn't that horrible?

On a positive note, I found this post from Andreas Moritz and I decided to try the following oil therapy. See for yourself:

Article # 1 Oil Swishing – An effective way to cleanse your blood daily

Oil therapy is a simple, yet astoundingly effective, method of cleansing the blood. It is helpful for numerous disorders, including blood diseases, lung and liver disorders, tooth and gum diseases, headaches, skin diseases, gastric ulcers, intestinal problems, poor appetite, heart and kidney ailments, encephalitis, nervous conditions, poor memory, female disorders, swollen face and bags under the eyes. The therapy consists simply of swishing oil in the mouth. 

To apply this therapy you need expeller-pressed, unrefined sunflower, sesame or olive oil. In the morning, preferably after awakening or anytime before breakfast, put 1-2 tablespoons of oil in your mouth, but do not swallow it. Slowly swish the oil in your mouth, chew it, and draw it through your teeth for 3 to 4 minutes. This thoroughly mixes the oil with saliva and activates the released enzymes. The enzymes draw toxins out of the blood. For this reason, it is important to spit out the oil after no more than 3 to 4 minutes. You do not want any of the released toxins to be reabsorbed. You will find that the oil takes on a milky white or yellowish color as it becomes saturated with toxins and with billions of destructive bacteria.
For best results, repeat this process two more times. (If this releases too many toxins and you feel uncomfortable, do this only once.) Then rinse out your mouth with half a teaspoon of baking soda or unrefined sea salt (take either of these dissolved in a small amount of water). This solution will remove all remnants of the oil and toxins. Additionally, you may want to brush your teeth to make sure your mouth is clean. Tongue scraping is also advised.

Some of the visible effects of oil swishing include the elimination of gum bleeding and the whitening of teeth. During times of illness, this procedure can be repeated 3 times per day, but only on an empty stomach. Oil therapy greatly relieves and supports liver functions, as it takes toxins out of the blood that the liver is not able to remove or detoxify. This benefits the entire organism.

Permalink: http://www.andreasmoritzblog.com/2011/04/07/article---1----oil-swishing--an-effective-way-to-cleanse-your-blood-daily.aspx

Day 35 ATHENS

Our last day in this wonderful city... Beautiful weather for first week of April - really warm and nice...

The change of the Guard we saw on Sunday (happens every Sunday at 11 am)

Agora, Temple of Hephaestus

What's left of Pantheon

Lunch: We bought the famous cheese pies and mushroom pies. It was not a healthy choice, and to be honest, I wasn't that impressed. That day, I really missed my veggies.

Afternoon: A banana and a pear. We finally remembered to buy some fruit.

Dinner:

We couldn't get enough of tzatziki - and here it comes again. This time with a looooot of garlic!

New interesting salad: some soft goat cheese, tomatoes, parsley, olives, all on toasted bread. Some wonderful secret sauce, but I guess we could use anythink we like here.



Smoked mackerel

Overall, this was a great trip. I wouldn't say that the monuments in Athens are in great shape, they are really far from being that. But the Greeks are working on restoring things and renovating the city - and it keeps attracting millions and millions of tourists every year. The food is one of the main reasons, I am sure.

Day 34 ATHENS

We went to a very famous cafe Chatzis for breakfast, and we were not disappointed! Look at this beauty (we ate it all, but only with our eyes! And we chose something the least sweet option for breakfast!)

Breakfast: I wouldn't know the recipe, but this pie wasn't too sweet. It had some kind of cream inside.

Lunch: In one of the typical taverns we had nice mezes - salads and appetizers.

Lettuce, smoked mackerel, onion and Greek yoghourt

Boiled baby octopus with olive oil; boiled black-eyed peas

Greek salad wih Feta cheese - beautiful!

 Dinner: Three little starters: tzatziki, hummus and babaganoush.

Salad: sun-dried tomatoes, lettuce, soft Feta cheese, croutons, salt, olive oil and lemon juice.

We also had some grilled fish, but unfortunately I don't have a picture of it.

I haven't eaten so much of Feta cheese in my life - and now I am absolutely addicted to it. I didn't even know there were so many kinds of it! We bought almost a kilo of it to take back home.

Day 33 ATHENS

This is the beginning of our amazing 3-day trip to Greece, Athens! Oh my goodness, this has been absolutely fabulous!!! What I liked most? The people, the food and the dogs!

The Greeks are very friendly, very nice, generous and cordial. I loved their food! The trip has become a non-stop feast for us - we just couldn't stop eating! See for yourself!

Breakfast: Lovely black tea with milk and a biscuit - nothing healthy here, just pure pleasure!

Lunch: Just see in pictures:

Wine Rosé



Typical Greek Liquor to open appetite and their homemade bread



I think this was sea-bass... on a bed of grilled vegetables - yummy!

Cuttlefish with cheese sauce - out of this world!

Dinner: I will find all the recipes - these are not difficult to make, you just need to find fresh ingredients!

This is a very famous meze (starter) - fried cheese Saganaki

Greek Salad with Feta cheese - of course!

Babaganush - recipe here

Pureed yellow peas

Baked peppers

Tzatziki - found a good recipe here.

And this has only begun - tomorrow more!

Days 31-32

Day 31

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. A toast with butter and green tea.

Midday: An apple

Lunch: Pureed boiled vegetables (pumpkin, onions, carrots, leeks, tomatoes, salt and olive oil)

Afternoon: 2 oranges

Dinner: Finished up the pureed vegetables.

Day 32 - Going to Athens!

Breakfast: Oatmeal with honey. A toast with butter and green tea.

Midday: An apple and a kiwi

Lunch: Boiled rice and steamed broccoli.

Afternoon: A pear

Dinner on the plane: A piece of bread with butter, pasta and some tomato sauce.

All details about my trip to Athens will be posted tomorrow - it was an unbelievable gastronomic week-end!