Living a Low Carb Life in a Starbucks World

Hello my name is Liz and I am a coffee addict.  Living in the upper Mid-West, we have a few options for coffee shops (not as many as let's say, in CA).  Personally, I am partial to Starbucks, it is not too sweet and just enough bitterness to make me aware that I am drinking coffee. 

When I started my low carb life style I had nightmares about not being able to drink Starbucks anymore.  I even cut it out completely for about 3-5 weeks and man was that ROUGH!  So I started searching on Pinterest, I searched "low carb coffee," "low sugar Starbucks," and "low carb Starbucks."  I found some great ideas on how to make my favorite drink, low carb. 

My drink of choice is an iced decaf caramel macchiato, it consists of milk, vanilla flavored syrup, espresso and caramel drizzle.  I made the changes to my drink slowly, first I started by changing my syrup to sugar free syrup.  I had a lot of annoyance when I would ask for sugar free syrup, the baristas would always ask if I wanted skim milk.  NO!!!!!!!!!!! I learned through my researching that the lower the fat content in milk, the more sugar is added to it.  Instead, I would always just ask for 2% milk.    Once I got used to the sugar free syrup ( which honestly wasn't too bad) I then changed my milk.  I changed my milk to whole milk, which I enjoy better than even the 2%, the old adage is correct, fat just tastes better. 

Pictured above is me with my Sister and Nephew in CA, notice the drink in my hand.

Another favorite drink of mine is an iced green tea latte with raspberry syrup, to make this drink low carb just ask for sugar free syrup and again whole milk.

The drink above is the iced green tea latte, also my dog Freyja's treat (her favorite reason going to Starbucks).

I am going to drop a truth bomb on you, I have a Starbucks contact and I may or may not be related to said contact, lets call this contact Drew.  So one day, I went into the store and started ordering my new low carb drink.  Drew asked why I was ordering whole milk, instead Drew told me to order Breve.  Breve is just a fancy way of saying half and half.  This is not exactly my favorite, it takes away from the coffee flavor, but it's still pretty tasty.  I also want to add it does cost $.65  extra to use this milk substitute.

I  want to make sure that everyone knows that your whole life doesn't have to change because of your diet, instead you just have to find substitutions. 


Happy Sipping!!!!

What This has Turned Into

So, this blog started out as a way to share recipes that I have found online and to give any changes that I would/ did make.  My life has been turned upside down in the past few years. 

In the last year, I have had braces put on (yeay for being an almost 30 year old with braces), my husband and I purchased our first house and we welcomed a new family member to our family.

Her name is Freyja, she is part lab, border collie and pit bull and turned one in August of 2015.

Not only have all of those changes happened, but I got a diagnosis that has flipped my cooking life upside down,  in December 2014 I was diagnosed with PCOS.  PCOS is an endocrine issue that make a lot of things in everyday life more difficult.  I am not going to get into all of the medical background, because, well it can get a little gross.  One of the biggest issue that I faced with it is weight gain,  I gained about 70lbs in about 2 years.

 Once I was diagnosed with PCOS, I started reading up about it, trying to figure out how what I eat can affect it and if there are any certain foods that I should stay far, far away from.  After seeing my medical provider, I was started on Metformin, not fun at all.  For about a month (maybe even More) after starting the medication, I became lactose intolerant.  Luckily after about that month, it went back to normal (I can't stay away from cheese).  About 10 months after my diagnosis, my weight loss was not going as fast as I would like, so I started seeing a dietician.

If you are to know anything about me, it would be that I LOVE bread, not a little bit, a whole lot, like an unhealthy amount of bread love going on.  So when my dietician said that I need to cut my carbohydrate intake by a lot, I had a mini freak out.  I am going to let you in on a little secret....life with limited carbs, isn't so bad.  I know GASP!

My dietician is awesome, she is a big proponent of having a cheat meal/day every once in a while, which makes my life a little easier.  I need something to work to and having to be "on" all the time becomes too overwhelming and that's when I stop following the diet.

Since I started the diet, about 5 months now, I have lost 15 pounds, which might not be a lot to most people but huge to me.  Having PCOS make it VERY HARD to lose weight.  Since my diagnosis I have lost a total of 25 pounds.

After months of being monitored by my medical provider, it was found that the cysts (the C in PCOS) were not going away.  Usually the cysts last 2-3 months and with hormonal help, they go away, of course, not in my case.  In February 2016 I had a Laparoscopy Cystectomy (among other things), this surgery was to better my way of life. 

The day of surgery was MISERABLE, my surgery was bumped twice due to two emergent C-sections.  I was able to have what is called day surgery, which means that I got to go home the same day as my surgery,  I was in A LOT of pain that day.  The next day, it wasn't as bad, my husband was able to go to work.  He text me every two hours to see how I was doing and if I needed anything.  My Husband was amazing through all of this, before leaving for work he would fill my water bottle, bring me a protein shake and my pain medication. 

My plan for this blog is to share my struggles, my wins and the meals that I make for the Hubby and I.  I have found quite a few people who are suffering the same diagnosis as I and others who are just on the same diet journey that I am. 

If you have any words of wisdom or questions, please feel free to comment.

Liz

Zesty Chicken

     Now I can tell you because the deceptive name of this dish I have been burned by ordering dishes with "zesty" in the title at restaurants when I was a child, eventually I did learn my lesson but it did take quite a few disappointments along the way.
    This dish is simple only take a few ingredients and a few minutes to whip it together and then let bake, which in my opinion is the best kind of dinner to make on a week night and if you cut of the chicken into tenders the baking time gets shorter...which is even better since I don't get off of work until 5:15 four nights during the work week, which I know is not rough for those of you who work 8-5 jobs, but I do work 9 hour works days so I can only work a half day on Fridays, but now I am getting off topic.  ZESTY CHICKEN is so good and so juicy it has been a family favorite of since before I was married and I made it for the Hubby when were dating and I am pretty sure that is one the dishes that made him want to marry this, just saying.
So all you need is going to be:

2 Chicken Breasts
1/2 tsp. Dry Mustard
1 C. Plain Yogurt
1 Tbsp. Minced Parsley (I actually prefer dried for this dish)
2 tsp. Lemon Juice
1/2 C. Mayonnaise
3 Tbsp. Soy Sauce

(I usually double this if I am making more than just two chicken breasts)

Now this dish is good with egg noodles or plain rice, but the Hubby is a freak of nature and does not like most rice dishes sooo.......EGG NOODLES IT IS

And now for how you make this glorious feast:

1. Place the chicken breasts into a baking dish and then preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl and whisk together until smooth.

3.  Pour the sauce over the chicken and then bake for 45 minutes (or until done for full breasts)

4. About 15-20 minutes before the chicken is done put a pot of water on to boil, then once boiling cook the noodles until they are done.
5. Serve sauce over the noodle (or rice if thats your thing) and eat.

My mom always blended the sauce in the blender to make it a little more creamy...but I don't have time for that extra step or extra dishes for that matter so I just pour it directly over the noodles.

I swear to you this stuff is addictive I make it often and each time the Hubby says we don't have it enough, I am sure if I made it ever week he would be okay with it.  So go and make this gem and then let me know how it turns out for you!

A New Name and Hopefully a New Blog

     I have decided to rename this blog not only did the previous name seem a little long, but also I wanted to be able to write about everything from products that I am using to frustrations that I am having with the Hubby, this blog will mainly still be about my favorite hobby (cooking) but I just did not want to limit myself.  I am hoping to be able to keep up with this thing now that I am down to one job and have quite a bit more free time than I had in the past.  Please don't judge me if it is not an every week update type blog...I mean I do have a life, but as I sit here writing this with my cup of hot chocolate I realize that it should not be hard to at least update once a week, so let that be my goal (again not a guarantee).  As summer comes to a close and football starts to run the television I will let you know that we have a tradition in our household of some sort of soup on Sunday, we do affectionately call it Souper Sunday, so for a few weeks you might be seeing a lot of soup and thanks to Pinterest ones that the Hubby is not used to me making.
     So from here on "A Modern Day Wife" will begin, hope those of you who actually read this enjoy the change, and if not....just keep that to yourself.

Liz

Udon Noodles and Beef in a Sweet Ginger Sauce

I am a Asian food junkie, I love ginger and sesame oil and those are two ingredients that are very prevalent in Asian cooking. So when I was scoping out some great recipes on Pinterest, I came about one that sounded pretty good,  of course the curse of the north struck again and I was not able to find all of the ingredients that it called for, so what did I do? I found what I could and made my own recipe, and may I say it is delicious!  First I make the sauce and marinate thinly sliced beef for at least an hour.

Ingredients:
1 lb. Steak
Udon Noodles

The Sauce:

4 Tbsp. Minced Ginger
2-3 Cups finely sliced Scallions/ Green Onions
1/2 Cup chopped Cilantro
5 Tbsp. Sesame Oil
4 Tbsp. Rice Wine Vinegar
1/2 Tsp. Chili Oil
2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce
4 Tbsp. Honey
1 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. pepper

Combine all ingredients into a smooth sauce.  Put the thinly sliced beef strips into the sauce and put in the refrigerator for at least an hour.  Personally I always forget to make this ahead so we usually have a late dinner on weeknight because of this, but I promise you it is well worth it to 1. pay for better cuts of beef and 2.  marinate the beef, it makes a HUGE difference.

 

While the meet is marinating is when I start the noodles, I buy one package of udon noodles from the grocery store inside the package there are three bundles.  I usually use two of the bundles so we can have left overs to bring to work.  Boil the noodles for about 10 minutes and then drain and rinse, they do tend to have very salty flavor. I set the noodles aside until I am ready for them.

When the time is right heat a skillet with some oil in it, when it is nice and hot remove the meet from the marinade/sauce and cook until browned.  Promptly remove the meet from the skillet and drain the liquid from the pan, put the marinade into the skillet and heat up until it is boiling.  Once boiling add the noodles and heat through, I like to let the noodles sit for a while on the heat so a crust forms. Toss the noodles in the sauce, and just an FYI I cook the noodles so that they become stiff and not so gummy. 

Serve the noodles with some beef strips on top and you have a perfectly delicious meal.  I would like to grate some carrots into the sauce at some point but the hubby doesn't want me to change a thing about it....I guess that is a good thing.

 Please ENJOY!

Roasted Fresh Veggies

Last week my sister and nephew came into town, so the Hubby and I took them to one of the many lakes up here, my mother-in-law was at the cabin, so we had a nice day surrounded by family.  As we were leaving my mother-in-law gave us a bag of fresh veggies which included carrots, two types of potatoes and green peppers.  So when making dinner the other night I knew I had to finish off the vegetables before the went bad so I roasted them in the oven with fresh herbs and olive oil, and can I say, they were great.  Now the recipe I am going to share with you is not very precise because when you have fresh vegetables they are not the same size as vegetables that you get from the store and for the amount of herbs its however you like and feel free to add or subtract herb depending on what you enjoy or don't enjoy.

Ingredients:

1 Green Pepper
2 Red Potatoes
2 Idaho Potatoes
3-5 Carrots, Peeled
1/8-1/4 C Olive Oil
1 tsp. Salt
1tsp. Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp. Onion Power
(I only used the powder because I did not have garlic cloves nor an onion in my kitchen at the time)
handful  mixture of Fresh Basil, Rosemary, and Parsley, chopped.

1.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Wash and chop all of the vegetable, I do the potatoes last.
3.  Mix in the salt, garlic and onion powder, and seasonings.  Stir well and place on a baking sheet and bake for 30-45 minutes, depending on how big you chop your veggies.

 

4.  If you like feel free to stir the veggies half way through the baking time, I don't because I like the crispy sides that come when you let it bake.

The texture and taste was perfection, I even liked having the powders used because it brought a little extra in, that I can not explain.  I urge you to mess around with the amounts and  types of seasoning that you use, possibly trying dehydrated onions or oregano.  If you are looking for a way to have fresh herbs of you own without having to buy them from the grocery store, I started planting my own because it is SOOOOOOOO much cheaper than buying them from the store.

Please make this as a side dish and ENJOY.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I LOVE sweet and sour chicken, honestly I am pretty sure I  could eat it everyday.  So when I find a recipe that not only has me making the chicken the way I like it, but also has me making the sauce, I have to try it.  The hubby likes Chinese food, but he is very wishy-washy when it comes to liking it.  Now this recipe does take some time for preparation but the ingredient list is very small and most of them I already had in my kitchen.

Ingredients:

Chicken:
2-3 Boneless Chicken Breasts
1 C. Cornstarch
2-3 Eggs, Beaten
1/2 C. Corn Oil (vegetable oil will work too)
Salt and Pepper

Sauce:
3/4 C. Sugar
4 Tbsp Ketchup
1/2 C. White Vinegar
1 Tbsp. Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Garlic Salt

Directions:
1.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2.  Cut the chicken into cubes and season with salt and pepper.

3.  Dip the chicken into the cornstarch, and coat them all over, the dip the chicken into the eggs.
4.  Heat the oil in a skillet and cook the chicken until it is browned, but not thoroughly cooked.

5.  Place the chicken on a 9x13 greased baking sheet.

6.  Mix all of the sauce ingredients together and whisk until smooth.

7.  Pour the sauce over the chicken and bake for 45 minutes-one hour.

This chicken is moist and delicious, and the sauce is perfect!  I served this with my fried rice recipe and it was just as good as I find at take-out restaurants.  The only warning I can give you, is when you are baking the chicken to be careful when you open the oven door, the hot vinegar burns your eyes so make sure your are facing away from the oven when you open it.  Other than that, make this and ENJOY!