Author Archives: Alison Spath

Hearty Chicken Tomato Vegetable Soup

November 24th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (1 Comments)

It’s been a sleepy Sunday here.  I just finished eating this bowl of soup for lunch.  Soup that was so delicious it deserves a blog post – for you, and for me, because I don’t want to forget what I did so I can make this again.

Selfish, selfish woman.

Hearty Chicken Tomato Vegetable Soup

Also note that I did burn my tongue on this soup.  I couldn’t wait for it to cool.

I roasted two bone-in chicken breasts yesterday afternoon and once I removed the meat from the bones, I put the bones into the crock pot with a handful of other miscellaneous chicken parts I’ve been hoarding in my freezer (thanks to you genius people who gave me this tip!) for homemade bone broth.  Read more...

, , , , ,

Chocolate Crunchy Coconut Oil Energy Bites

November 20th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Healthy Snack Attack - (7 Comments)

At the beginning of the year I wrote about one my favorite snacks, Chocolate Crunchy Coconut Cups. Today I’m here to tell you that not only are we still loving these, but I’ve perfected my technique to make them in less time with less effort and less mess.

Chocolate Coconut Crunch Squares

Thanks in part to this silicone mold,

Wilton Silicon Square Mold

and in other part to my realizing that I should be mixing the ingredients right in a pour-able, heat safe vessel.

Melted Chocolate Coconut Oil Mix

(As opposed to combining everything into a mixing bowl and then ladling out into tippy, paper cupcake wrappers.)  Read more...

, , , ,

Troubleshooting a Low Carb Diet

November 17th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Healthy Habits - (5 Comments)

The books and websites I’ve rambled on about lately, (see reading list at the end of this post) from Paleo to cholesterol to brain health, have all been pointing to the same general idea –> following a low carbohydrate diet.

I’m just “a random lady on the internet” (i.e., not a doctor or health professional) so please remember this post is not intended to be used as medical advice.  But if you were my friend and wanted to know more about why I’m loving a low carb diet, this post is full of the stuff I would tell you!  Read more...

, , ,

Grain Brain

November 12th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Good Reads - (7 Comments)

I just finished the book Grain Brain by Dr. David Perlmutter, a neurologist and Fellow of the American College of Nutrition.

Grain Brain by Dr. David PerlmutterAn alternate title for this book could have been “How to Lose Your Taste For Sugar and Bread”.  When you understand what goes on in your body when these foods are a regular part of your diet, suddenly that muffin or bagel for breakfast doesn’t look so tasty anymore.  It’s sort of like going to a dinner party and drooling over the cheesecake they’ve got on display that will be served for dessert, but then someone whispers in your ear that the chef mixed a laxative into the batter because she’s ticked off at the host.  Amazingly, you now have no urge to eat any cheesecake, no willpower needed.  Read more...

, ,

A New Chapter

November 9th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Life - (12 Comments)

When I first started this blog, it was all about me.  I wrote day-to-day, journal style entries that documented my meals and workouts.  I had found my groove in what felt like a much healthier life than I’d ever lived before and I was very excited to share what I had learned and how I was working healthy habits into my life as a stay at home mom of two little girls.  I loved reading healthy living blogs and eventually decided to jump in on the fun, despite knowing how weird it was to take pictures of my meals and telling stories about my latest run, bike ride or nutritional experiment.  Read more...

, , ,

A Chopped Greek Salad for Lunch

November 7th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (6 Comments)

Since reading Cholesterol Clarity, I’ve been rocking out with the Low Carb/High Fat way of eating.  (I’ve been trying to do this for a nearly year now and have finally figured it out… more details to come in an upcoming post.)  I found my way to this salad when I was looking to swap my usual yogurt and fruit combo with something a little lower in sugar and carbs.

Let me cut right to the chase: I’m still a little shocked at how much I love this salad.  This is officially My New Favorite Lunch, I’ve eaten more days in a row than I can count.  Read more...

, , , , , ,

Indian Spice Rubbed Pork Chops

November 4th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (Comments Off on Indian Spice Rubbed Pork Chops)

A few weeks ago I went out to dinner with some girlfriends and did my favorite thing: ordered something that I never make at home myself.

This time?  A pork chop.

Yes, pork chops – not terribly exciting, but the one and only time I made pork chops was as a newly married 20-something who knew very little about cooking, especially when it came to cooking meat.  Those pork chops I made in our little apartment more than a decade ago more closely resembled an old shoe than a juicy, great tasting piece of well cooked pork.  Read more...

, ,

Judgmental Cat is Judging You

November 1st, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (2 Comments)

I recently saw a quote that said:

The greatest prison people live in is the fear of what other people think.

Somehow, that resonates much deeper than the standard “don’t worry about what other people think” one liner.  That just makes me think “don’t boss me.”

I mean, it’s probably not a bad idea to care a little bit about what other people think… especially if it motivates you to do things like brush your hair and to change out of your food splattered yoga pants before leaving the house.  But maybe not caring so much that it paralyzes you from trying new things or being an authentic version of yourself.  In that case, forget everybody.  Do what you want!  (Whoops, I think I’m bossing you.)  Read more...

,

Fall Favorite: Turkey Marinara over Spaghetti Squash

October 29th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (2 Comments)

Zak is going strong with his 40 Day Paleo Challenge (although exceptions were made this weekend for his birthday!) and I’ve been keeping busy stocking the fridge with Paleo friendly meals and snacks.

I’m calling this a “Fall Favorite” because 1.) well, it’s fall – and  2.) I’ve made this for dinner once a week for the past three weeks in a row.  It’s on the dinner agenda this week again too.  It think it’s safe to call this turkey marinara and spaghetti squash a new favorite.

Ground Turkey Tomato Sauce over Spaghetti Squash  Read more...

, , , , , ,

Oven Roasted Coconut Lime Cod

October 27th, 2013 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (7 Comments)

This dinner was so unexpectedly delicious, I’m not sure how to best relay just how much we loved this coconut lime crusted cod.  Here goes nothing.

Baked Coconut Lime Cod

Zak and I both had the same thought while eating this: this doesn’t taste like fish, it tastes like a cookie!  A warm, coconutty, limey fish cookie!

(If seafood and coconut are your thing, you’ll love this fish cookie, I promise.)

This recipe came about because I was in the mood to do something a little more interesting than my usual approach to baking fish – i.e., sprinkling with salt and pepper.  I like cod, but it’s kind of a boring fish.  And I like my fish like I like my relationships: interesting, but not complicated.  Read more...

, , , , , ,