Detox Days 4-5: Snacks, Substitutions, and Such

Days 4 & 5 have been days of learning about snacks and substitutions, and trying not to give up!.

I fluctuate between being a creative, inventive person and being a go-by-the-book person. This detox plan, since it was created by nutritionists, has brought out more of the go-by-the-book side of me. That makes it tough when I'm not sure if something that we want to eat is "allowed". For example, we needed snacks to supplement the meals, but all the snacks listed on the website require a good deal of preparation. First, we stuck with a piece of fruit here and a few walnuts there...but we wondered if there was anything else we were "allowed". So, after church, we browsed the health-food-snack aisle of Market Basket and after scanning label after label, decided on carrot chips. We're not totally sure if they "count" but the only ingredients were carrots, canola oil, and salt, so we figured they couldn't be too bad. We like them. =)

For whatever reason, Day #4 (Sunday) was tougher than the day before, (but today wasn't bad at all). It might not have helped that Sunday's lunch (Kale Slaw with Red Cabbage and Carrots) was kind of skimpy (no picture, sorry.), or that we had three large batches of Pasta Florentine with Keilbasa and two batches of brownies to make, none of which we could eat...(bummer!).

And to add to that, we didn't make dinner until after the pasta dishes were all made, so we were extra hungry...

ingredients for Pasta Florentine with Kielbasa for the Open Door

We had the same lunches and dinners yesterday and today, but I think I liked today's better.

The dinner recipe was Roasted Peppers, Cauliflower, and Almonds, which looked good, but it called for Kalamata olives, which neither of us like. The problem was, if we left them out altogether, the dinner would be pretty lame. I decided that instead of getting olives, we could substitute mushrooms and roast them along with the cauliflower and peppers. That ended up being a really good change--the mushrooms were delish, and they bulked up the meal a little. 

Roasted Cauliflower, Peppers, & Mushrooms with Almonds (minus parsley)

Tonight's version was slightly different (and would have made for a better picture), because we used walnuts instead of almonds, and we remembered to put in the parsley that the recipe called for. In fact, I'd say that this is one of my favorite meals yet--warm, with a good combination of flavors and textures. 

I'm excited because tomorrow is Day #6, which means we almost made it through week 1!!! Yeah! However, I still have to make lunch & dinner to bring to school tomorrow (Tuesdays we work til 10:30), so I should stop blogging and go make some Spiced Butternut Squash and Apple Soup!

Finally, I want to thank everyone who has been reading this and commenting, both online and in person! It's a little isolating sometimes to be doing this detox thing, and it's so much fun to share ideas and experiences with you all! Thanks, and keep up the good work!

~Rachel