new this week

This week I have manged to get myself off diet cola.  The only caffeine I have is a cup of tea in the morning at break time.  I'm substituting ice water and when that really doesn't cut it, I add a little lemon or lime juice.  This is a big step since previously I only drank soda.  I probably consumed 4-5 cans a day.  I went with half as much, half as often until I could quit with minimal distress.  I miss the bubbles.  I miss the taste.  I'll have to see what I can do to make my beverages more interesting.

The next steps are switching to maple syrup, honey, or rapadura in place of refined sugar and increasing our milk from skim to 1%.  When we get used to that we will move to 2% and then to whole.  When that is palatable, I will see if I can find a source of raw milk and give it a go. 

I remember as a child visiting friends who had a dairy farm.  We stayed for supper and I almost gagged on the raw milk they drank at every meal.  But I was used to skim and it was like drinking cream.  I figure if I can make it to whole milk, stepping up to raw, even if just for cooking at first, will not be as difficult.

I tried kombucha this week as well, but the tart flavor from the fermentation might take some getting used to.  I think I'll try a different flavor.  I'll also try kefir to see how I like that.  I love yoghurt so it can't be much different.  Again, it might be added to a smoothie to make it more palatable at first.

I have a powdered French vanilla non-dairy creamer on my desk at work to mix with my chai tea.  I'm starting to consider options for when it is gone.  Real cream is fine since there is a fridge at work but I love that rich vanilla flavor.  I might have to explore vanilla beans or make my own vanilla extract.  I hate to think what might be in that shot of vanilla the coffee shops use.

I'm also working on ice cream.  I have an ice cream maker that is pretty easy.  It plugs in and has a bowl that goes in the freezer for several hours before you use it so you don't have to worry about salt and ice.

So, it's been a busy week here.  I still struggle to choose the right foods and I make mistakes. Most of the mistakes are choices and not surprises.  I chose to eat fast food one day at lunch and suffered all afternoon.  I knew better but went with the convenient option. The thing is, now when I eat something wrong, I notice how bad I feel.  It's hard to believe I felt that way before and thought it was normal.