Food Rut

[tntopo]

I am on day 12 and found myself in a food rut. I am basically living on the same exact foods day in and day out. I won't last if I keep this up!!

I want to try some new recipes but everytime I start reading recipes I get the urge to cheat because I start thinking about food. It is a catch 22!!

Anyone else out there having these problems and if so how are u handling them?

[shelbyla]

I ate a lot of the same things but switched them up as far as HOW. One day beef on my lunch salad and chicken stirfry at night. One day chicken on my salad and pan fried fish at night. Here are some of my favorites and tricks. HTH

Salad dressings:

Start with...
2T broth (beef, chicken or veggie)
2T apple cider or red wine vinegar
1/4t salt
1/4t pepper

For Italian add...
1t Italian seasoning
1/4t garlic powder
1/4t onion powder

For honey mustard add...
1T mustard (yellow or brown but check ingredients for sugar)
5 drops plain stevia or 1/2 packet Splenda or Sweet 'n Low

For a creamier dressing use...
2T Walden Farms Caesar, Ranch or Blue Cheese dressing in place of one T of broth and one T vinegar

For a different taste use...
2T orange juice, lemon juice or lime juice in place of the vinegar

Switch up spices. I like...
1t curry or
1t shallot pepper or
1t dill or
1t sage or
1t cumin

"Skillet" meals:
(if you are NOT eating the grissini/melba, increase your evening veggie portion to 200g/7oz)

Broth 1/4-1/2c, depending on how saucy you like it
Chicken
Beef
Veggie

Protein 100g/3.5oz raw
chicken breast
lean ground beef
shrimp
crab meat
langostino tails

Veggie 100g/3.5oz raw
Belgian endive
Cabbage
Bok choy
Celery
Chinese cabbage

Spices
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Salt
Pepper

plus...
Italian - 1T Italian seasoning (works best with chicken or beef plus endive or cabbage)
Mexican - 1T chili powder, 1t cumin, couple of dashes tobasco or tapatio (works best with chicken or beef plus cabbage or endive)
Asian - 1T soy sauce or Braggs liquid aminos (works with all)
Lemon pepper - 1t lemon pepper, 1T fresh lemon juice (work best with chicken or seafood plus any veggie)

Add broth to skillet. Add veggie and spices and cook to just before desired doneness. Add raw protein and cook until done (the protein cooks so fast that it's best to add it at the end). Optional: sprinkle with Guar or Xanthan gum (available at most healthfood stores) in a salt shaker for a thicker sauce--a little goes a VERY long way so sprinkle with caution! **DO NOT OVERDO AS IT IS A STARCH AND COULD STALL YOU.

Panfried White Roughy

Sprinkle a filet of Swai (white roughy--available at Ralph's and TJ's), cod, or orange roughy with salt and pepper. Heat skillet until hot. Add fish. Cook on one side for 3 mins. Flip and cook until fish flakes easily--about 2 more minutes. Serve with salad or stirfried veggies.

[sherrymyra]

I eat basically the same thing every other day. Cabbage, lettuce, and fish and chicken. I dream of P3 but for now I just eat what is there. Although tonight for supper I had egg (1 whole and 3 whites) and spinach. Something different. See how that works out.

[jabbok]

I eat the same thing everyday but have you tried the P2 chili very tasty and filling.

My menu is P2 chili for lunch, grapefruit for snacks, grilled chicken with veggies for supper.

[sherrymyra]

I tried chili on my first round and had a stall. For all I know it was just a coincidence but scarred me off. lol

[2bfitb440]

I eat the same thing every day and then switch to something else for a bunch of days. My favorite right now is orgianic, grass fead beef browned with crushed garlic and some onion powder, drained and then served over asparagus steamed in beef broth and crushed garlic. (I use lots of garlic because it's supposed to be good for weight loss). I eat the melba toast and a half a grapefruit as well. (I'm so tempted to skip the melba toast and fruit because of the carbs but I want to follow the plan as perfectly as possible). I drink club soda/seltzer/mineral water with a little lime or lemon in it all day.

[dooy]

I've been experimenting with spices on both my proteins and the veggies and that has livened things up a bit.

My DH sautes cabbage in veggie broth and onion powder, garlic powder, a dash of chinese five spice (or cayenne pepper) and a pinch of clove. Then he runs it through the blender on chop for a few seconds and it has a soupy, rice-like consistency. We put some grilled chicken, ground beef or even some fish on it and we love it!

Sauteed spinach with fresh garlic, squeeze of lemon and NOT overcooked is also refreshing. Chopped cucumbers with apple cider vinegar, onion, garlic powder and oregano.

Ground beef with chili spices (hot chili powder, onion and garlic powder, oregano, cumin, cayenne) over salad greens.

We also purchased a Forman's Grill ($45 or so) and it has become a life-saver! Four chicken breast cooked beautifully in 11 minutes. Here, again, we've used some great rubs on the chicken - creole or cajun, blackened...crisp on the outside and perfect on the inside. We've also done fish steaks in this grill with same spices.

For a treat, we're big fans of the baked apples. Cut, core and halve 4 apples and in a glass baking dish, water to the mid-range of the apples, sprinkle generously with stevia (3 packets), cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, a pinch of clove and bake for an hour at 350. The apples smell great and are soft and wonderful... the water makes for a lovely sauce.

Sorry for writing a book! Wishing you well!

[Felina]

Thanks for the suggestions shelby and dooy. I tried Shelby's Italian dressing yesterday and it was wonderful! I didn't miss the oil at all. So glad to have that one. Those apples sound yummy too. I have to go shopping today.

[emel]

Originally Posted by tntopo

I am on day 12 and found myself in a food rut. I am basically living on the same exact foods day in and day out. I won't last if I keep this up!!

I want to try some new recipes but everytime I start reading recipes I get the urge to cheat because I start thinking about food. It is a catch 22!!

Anyone else out there having these problems and if so how are u handling them?

Just a mind trick to use....
Search for recipes right after a meal.
Decide what recipes to try. Jot them down. Limit your searching time. You can always bookmark the recipe site so you can revisit it later for another session.

When you want to use the recipe for an upcoming meal, include the prep for them in your usual cooking. Like if you want to make a chicken soup, have something familiar like chicken breast/romaine/apple/melba for dinner and cook the chicken for the soup recipe at the same time.