I want to go on a walk, a LONG walk, otherwise known as El Camino de Santiago

So like a million other people I watched the movie "The Way" with Martin Sheen the other day. It was an excellent and beautifully portrayed movie about a father grieving the loss of an estranged son and his impulsive decision to walk the 800km Camino de Santiago a religious/spiritual pilgrimage across the top of northern Spain to finish the trek started by his son.who had tragically died trying to cross the Pyrenees on the first day out on his own pilgrimage.

After the movie ended I started thinking ... wow Northern Spain is beautiful ... it'd make a really neat vacation ... Martin Sheen's character was 71 and HE did it ... with no training ...albeit in a movie ... ponder ....I wonder if  I could do it? Ponder some more ... I CAN walk now ... I can even hike ... 2 miles anyway ... that's 5 km already .. on the flat, I could probably handle twice that without even thinking if I gave myself the time ... and I had good shoes ... with training I bet I could do even more! I could probably even handle hills if I took it slow ... I don't have to keep up with those fit young kids ... I have all the time in the world ... I could just start walking in the morning and stop at the closest refuge when my feet got too sore. Wouldn't take long to toughen up if you take it easy at the start. The Camino is a walk with a refuge in just about every village you cross and the villages are just a few km apart ... services are readily available, you aren't in the middle of the wilderness ... if things got real bad, help is close. The path is well maintained for the most part, it is well travelled and safe. All you need to carry is a change of clothes and a few sundries. To walk far, travel light! If you stay in the pilgrim's refuges along the way this trip is also very inexpensive, often a night's lodgings is 10 Euro's or less (by donation) ... private hostels are a little more but not much, maybe 15 Euro's. The cheaper lodging is however dormatory style, if you want a private room you'll have to pay more.

The el Camino is a VERY long walk (800km) but there are no timetables. The first day (if you start in France) is pretty tough and is in fact the hardest day of the entire walk (long and steep both up AND down a mountain) but you can actually skip it if you like and start in Spain, or you can break Day 1 into 2 part, stopping half way at a small refuge 8 km up the mountain called Orrison (reservations required). However, after the first day walking over the Pyrenees, the villages are relatively close together, the grade is more or less level and easy going ... the idea is to walk every day (with the occasional rest/sightseeing day) to your next night's lodgings. You can walk as far or as little as you like, this is YOUR camino, you do it your way! Stop and smell the roses, sight see along the way, have lunch in a little cafe in a picturesque village, have a picnic breakfast of fresh bread and cheese in a meadow by the trail, take a siesta nap in the grass beside a river, dine out and socialize with your fellow travellers at night in a local bar. Stop when you get tired, sleep in a bed at night or camp out under the stars. Heck you can even stay in a 5 star hotel in the major cities along the route if you want to pamper yourself ;)

I began to research the Camino to see what it was all about and I started to find myself planning it as if I were ACTUALLY going and not just a "what if" scenario  ... I figured out what backpack I'd take (under 700g) I found the sleeping bag I'd like (under 700g) I called my husband and told him of my plans and asked if it's something he'd be interested in doing, if not I was seriously considering doing this solo (Wow THAT'S out of character) Luckily this is something that is right up his alley, he was on board, if not as obsessed as I was, and I was rapidly becoming obsessed. When could we go? I wanted to go RIGHT AWAY but realized I'd need to work up to something this big, especially at my age, weight and fitness level (none) ok so next summer? Hmmm I wanted to go in May and hubby doesn't retire til summer .... fall? Could I wait til the following spring? Sigh ... ok ... I'll be 2 years older but on the other hand it gives me 2 years to start walking. Alrighty then, May 2014 it is ... unless I decide between now and then that 2 years is too long ... Then I'll aim for September 2013 ;)

Sooo last week I went out and bought a GOOD pair of mid height hiking boots. Some hiking sneakers and a lightweight pair or walking sandals. Time to decide what I want to wear on my feet and to break in whatever I decide to take. Right now I am waffling between light weight boots or heavy soled trekking shoes. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. The terrain on the path is quite varied from wooded paths to rocky hills to paved roads ... the last 100km is almost all paved and can be a killer without good shoes but you also want something with some support for the more rugged bits ... I think for the most part the walk is fairly flat but there are some rather steep ascents and declines along the way in between the flat bits so you should be prepared for just about anything ... and I am not sure a shoe is enough even though I am reluctant to go with a clunky boot. I'm hoping the decision will be made clearer with a lot of local hiking on varied terrain using both types of footwear for comparison ... but whatever I do take it will be something that FITS, is long enough so that my toes don't bump into the end on a steep decline (I'd rather keep my toenails), and is WELL worn in before I leave.

I guess I AM doing this ... it's kinda scary when I think about it too much ... hope I'm stubborn enough not to quit at the first sign of discomfort. I KNOW it will be the hardest thing I've ever done and I really am not sure I am strong willed enough to succeed ... that's part of the reason I want to try. I need to know. The Camino de Santiago is NOT an easy walk by virtue of it's length. It is doable by any age group and fitness level however as long as you pace yourself accordingly and have the time to take it slow. You can even do it in bits if you like ... 2 weeks a year if that's all the time you have, until you finish. I want to do it all in one go however. Age is not a barrier and many many people do this in their 60's and even 70's. I have read accounts by quite a few who have done this in their LATE 70's ... I'm still in my 50's, I should be able to do this. Most fit folks can do it in 5 weeks but I am not fit, nor am I young. I am giving myself 2 months and leaving the end date open in case it takes even longer but who knows maybe 5 weeks is doable even for me ... can I stand walking almost every day for 5 weeks ... for 2 months? Will my feet, legs, back hold out that long? Maybe ... we'll see ;)

This journey is a religious pilgrimage for many. I am not religious in any sense of the word, nor am I particularly spiritual, whatever that means. I am not doing this for those reasons. I am doing this because 3 years ago I could not walk more than 5 minutes without severe pain. I was grossly overweight, unfit and staring death in the face. Then I lost 100 pounds. I am still overweight but no longer grossly so. I am more fit but hardly FIT if you know what I mean. I can walk without discomfort now and a 2 mile hike is just a walk, I am neither particularly tired nor sore afterwards, I go home because it's time and I am done the trail ... I am not entirely sure where my limit is ... can I walk twice as far without trouble? Three times as far? What about hills? What about STEEP hills? Can I walk 8 km up the side of a mountain?  Can I walk another 8 km DOWN a mountain? These are the questions I want and need to have answered. THAT is why I want to go.

This is a journey to celebrate losing 100 pounds. To test my limits and my mettle. Three years ago a journey like this was out of the question, today it is possible. At the very least this gives me the excuse and inspiration I need to get out there and to get walking! Dare to Dream!

Root Vegetable Gratin

This would be great in the fall but I decided to make this today because I had some nice turnip and rutabaga that needed to be used up. Since root vegetables can vary in size just try to use approximately the same volume of each vegetable except maybe the potatoes ... you could go with a bit more of those if you like, using the others to add interest and to offset the taste of the potatoes. Basically you need enough to fill an 9x13 casserole dish or whatever sized dish you are using (scaling the sauce as needed) to about 3/4 full. You can use any combination of root vegetables you have on hand, I use all those listed but let your own taste and availability dictate what you use ... this recipe is flexible. I didn't have regular cream so I used 1 cup chicken broth, 1 cup half and half and an extra 1/4 whipping cream to make up the liquid volume and to simulate an 18% cream. You could probably just use half and half for this but I always like to stick as close top the original recipe as possible the first time I make anything.

I've now had a chance to taste this and I am pleased to report this is a winner :) The taste is a bit different from the ordinary but it went REALLY well with my herbed chicken breast ... so much so in fact I decided to make the allotted portion size a bit bigger than I initially thought. I reduced the servings from 8 to 5 thereby increasing the individual portions by almost 2. It was totally worth it although not exactly a low calorie side. Totally 4 forks yummy in my book.

UPDATE: Assuming an initial weight of 200g (about the size of a medium Russet potato) for most of the root vegetables except the carrot and parsnip (each about 100 g for a extra large carrot/parsnip ) this came to just under 300 calories per serving (based on 5 servings). I initially thought this would make 8 servings and I suppose it still could but I liked it so much  I found my initial serving to be too small ... of course I didn't have anything else to go with my chicken breast so I guess I needed a bit more in any case ... if you happened to also serve another side of veggies with your main ... say green beans, this could easily stretch to 8 servings at 186 calories per serving. Full nutritional details can be found here: Nutritional Details for Root vegetable Gratin

My entire meal of a herbed chicken breast sauteed in some olive oil/butter with a generous side of root vegetable gratin came in a slightly more than 600 calories. Not bad for a main dinner meal but I did get the impression that this could actually benefit from a little less fat, so next time I will use half and half instead of full coffee (18%) cream and I might even reduce the butter by half as well.

Definitely on my list to make again ... a bit of a different taste sensation but delicious none the less :)

Ingredients:

• 1 small Rutabaga, peeled
• 1 Celery Root, peeled
• 1 small Turnip, peeled
• 1 (or 2) large Russet Potato, washed, skin on
• 1 large Parsnip, peeled
• 1 large Carrots, peeled
• 2 tsp olive oil (extra virgin if you have it)
• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 3-5 Garlic cloves, minced (to taste - after making mine heavy on the garlic, I'd have to say, 5 was quite strong, so unless you are a big garlic fan, like I am, 2-3 might be more to your liking)
• 1 Tbsp Fresh Thyme, mince or 1 tsp dry
• 1.25 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup cream
• 2 tsp flour
• pinch salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Cut all vegetable into thin slices using a mandolin. Store in water after slicing to prevent oxidation.
2. Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil and carefully add vegetables. Par boil for 3 minutes then remove and drain no need to rinse.
3. Add 2 tsp olive oil to the bottom of a 9x13" casserole and spread. This is not just to prevent sticking, it is a flavour component so I like to use the good stuff (extra virgin) then pour all the par boiled vegetables into the dish and gently even them out.
4. Next in a small saucepan melt butter and add minced garlic and slowly raise the temperature. Heat until the garlic JUST begins to sizzle then add flour and cook 30 seconds or so before adding cream to cool everything down. You don't want to brown the garlic.
5. Grate in a pinch of nutmeg and add another pinch of cayenne (to taste) and thyme and bring to a simmer and a pinch of salt to taste.
6. As soon as it simmers, remove from heat and pour over vegetables. Gently shake and tap the casserole on the counter to distribute the sauce throughout.
7. Grate a little real Parmesan cheese on top and loosely cover with foil
8. Bake @ 375' for 40 minutes then uncover, grate a little more Parmesan over to allow for slight browning of the cheese and bake UNCOVERED for another 20-30 minutes or until golden, bubbling and when tested with a paring knife all vegetables are tender. Times depend somewhat on the size of your casserole.
9. Let sit for 15-20 minutes to rest after taking out of the oven before serving.

Simple Pesto Sauce

I love pesto ... a couple Tbsp pesto on a serving of home made pasta is my idea of heaven. The only problem is the store bought pesto is REALLY expensive.  Now, I have NO idea if mine ended up any cheaper to make than the expensive store bought pesto, because I didn't do a price comparison of ingredients, but I can tell you this, mine tasted EXACTLY the same as the store brand, and nutritionally it was pretty close as well :) The only major difference was that my pesto was somewhat lower in sodium as I didn't add any extra salt in the recipe. I like to season things to taste on my plate and besides this really doesn't need any extra salt, it's delicious as is.

I always keep some in the freezer and whenever I need it,  I just thaw the pesto to room temperature, use what I need and then put the rest back in the freezer. A serving, appropriate for a single serving of pasta (85g dry weight) is about 2 Tbsp or 30g by weight and clocks in at 164 calories  with 112mg sodium and 16g fat ... even better, there are no ingredients you can't pronounce ;)

There are several ways you can throw this together ... you could go real old school and use a mortar and pestle but I took the easy way out and used my food processor. Depending on how large a batch you are making you can scale up anywhere from a small mini processor attachment on your immersion blender to a magic bullet or even a blender (although blenders are a bit finicky for a small volume thick paste) Basically anything that will pulverize and mince all your ingredients together into a think paste will do. It really isn't too important that this be perfect, a course chopped pesto will just look more rustic (artisan), but it will taste the same  and might even look better ;) Some purists even suggest mincing everything using a sharp knife for 20 minutes or so to get a fine even mince ... they even say the flavour is better done this way ... me? I go for easy and honestly don't see how the chopping method would affect the favour at all ... the texture maybe, but the flavour? No way.

I used a large bunch of fresh basil from my grocery store to make this.  The bundle weighed about 60g give or take and was about 2 cups when chopped and loosely packed into a measure cup. All measurements are approximate,  and you can scale this quite easily to make more servings. As written this recipe made about 16 Tbsp or 8 servings 

Ingredients:

• 60g Basil, Fresh (about 2 cups when chopped and loosely packed)
• 4 Garlic Cloves, whole  peeled
• 60g Pine Nuts (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/3 cup Olive Oil  (use the good stuff, extra virgin is great in this)
• 60g Parmesan Cheese, Grated (about 2 ounces)

Directions:

1. So the short of this is ... throw everything into the pulverizer of your choice (ie: food processor) and blend to a paste. Doesn't get any simpler than that.
2. If you think your pesto is too thick you can add a little more oil to thin it out a bit
3. Unless you are being exact for calorie counting purposes you don't have to obsess about exact measurements.
4. I suppose if you want to get fancy you can doctor this up any number of different ways but made using the above recipe, this is a very good imitation of the Olivieri Brand Pesto 

Pesto is one of those wonderful foods I can't do without, but it IS a calorie dense food, so for me, accurate measuring of ingredients and portions is essential for accurate tracking purposes.  It's something I really enjoy every now and again ... I am just really careful about portion size and I track it carefully ... but I DON'T skimp ... I will allow myself a FULL portion of pasta and a full serving of pesto to go with ... I'm just careful about measuring everything that goes onto my plate :)

For stuff like this, it helps to be a bit anal about tracking though ... just sayin ;)


Note: If you don't have Pine Nuts I've heard you can substitute almonds but I haven't tried that .. seems like it would work just fine though :)

Beef Stew with Red Wine

Just realized today is Friday and I only have 2 pre made meals to send down to the city to feed my kitchen challenged boys for the week. Time to kick things up a notch and get cracking ... so today I am making a slow cooker beef stew made with red wine and a loaf of Maple Seed Bread to go with :)

This is a rich hearty stew inspired by Beef Bourginon but I make it with our home made red wine (Valpolicella or Shiraz in case you're interested) The red wine helps give the gravy a wonderful flavour and I love this stew served up on a bed of garlic mashed potatoes or  alone, with a slice of rustic bread on the side. This also goes well on rice or a thick slice of toasted bread, and you can get as creative with the vegetables that you add to this, or not ;) I tend to like it as a simple stew, with just carrots and celery as the vegetable, but I just as often add small baby potatoes in the last 2 hours of cooking to make this more of a complete meal without all the fuss of cooking potatoes on the side. If the mood strikes, and I have some on hand, I might even throw in some fresh green beans and/or a can of corn, not only to make this an even more hearty nutritious  meal, but to stretch it and lower the calories per serving as well ;) I am doing that tonight in fact. You're the boss of your stew ... remember that!

I don't buy stew meat. I prefer to get some chuck or blade roasts on sale which I use for a variety of beef dishes from stews to ground beef. It's cheaper than some cuts and has a nice fat marbling which lends itself to making delicious stews. I just never know what I am getting when I buy generic stew beef but if you trust your butcher then go ahead, it might save you a few minutes prep time. I'm just kind of picky when it comes to the quality of meat I buy. The only thing I recommend when trimming is to carefully remove any silver skin you find in the roast. It's a lot tougher to cut with your knife than regular fat, so it's a pretty simple procedure to skim the interface between the tougher layer and the meat to remove it. As far as the rest of the fat ... I get rid of the larger more obvious bits but some fat is good so I don't obsess about getting it all. That type of fat adds flavour and most of it melts away during cooking anyway, leaving tender succulent cubes of stewed beef.

This made 8 generous servings and each serving (one soup bowl full) was about 450 calories. with 15g fat and 4g fiber Complete nutritional details here Beef Stew with Red Wine made with all optional ingredients shown.

Ingredients:

• 1 kg Beef chuck/blade roast (I buy slightly larger roasts and usually end up with roughly 1 Kg of stew meat when done trimming excess fat and sliver skin. Today I used a cross rib roast cause that's what I had in the freezer)
• 2 medium cooking onions (diced) or 1 large jumbo onion 
• 2 Tbsp fat or oil ( if I have it I'll use some bacon fat, lard or a garlic infused regular olive oil, not extra virgin you want something that can handle a bit of heat)
• 3 Tbsp All purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 3-4 cloves garlic or garlic puree
• 1 cup red wine (whatever you have on hand for DRINKING don't use cooking wine)
• 3 cup beef broth (I use my own salt free beef broth but a carton of bought broth is fine)
• 3-6 medium carrots, roughly chopped into 1"pieces - how many you add depends on the size of your carrots how much meat you have in the stew and your personal preference, so start with three and eyeball it after you add them. If it looks a little skimpy add more ;)
• 3-4 Celery stalks rough chopped into 1/2" pieces, again, I start with 3 large stalks and go up from there as needed
• 1/2 tsp dry thyme leaves, OR 3-4 sprigs of fresh if you have it
• 1/2 tsp rosemary leaves, OR a couple sprigs of fresh rosemary if you have it
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste (I sometimes add 2 Tbsp (personal preference) ... you might like to look for a tube of tomato paste at the grocery store instead of going to the trouble of opening one of those small cans ... tubes are much more convenient and keep forever in the fridge. I made the switch a while back and I love it ... no more wasted tomato paste when all I need is a Tbsp)
• 1 Tbsp Better Than *Beef* Bouillon (optional)
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I actually don't measure this just a shake or two from the bottle)
• 15 baby potatoes, halved (optional)
• Green Beans (optional)
• Canned corn (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste - Since I use a lot of home made non processed broths etc in my cooking and my home made items are made without added sodium the amounts I might need could be quite different from what you need ... a good cook always tastes her recipes before serving and seasons accordingly ... I am assuming you are a good cook ;) This recipe does benefit from a generous portion of pepper however, the last time I made this I added about 1/2 tsp of each.

Directions: 

1. Trim roast into 1" cubes if needed, discard any excess fat and silver skin
2. In a heavy bottomed dutch oven add 1 Tbsp fat or oil of your choice and brown half the cubed beef (about 500g) over medium high heat. Keep meat moving to brown all sides and prevent burning. When edges get a bit of criminalisation remove meat and reserve.
3. Repeat with another Tbsp oil and the rest of the beef cubes. When done remove from pot and reserve.
4. Into the now empty pot add butter and the onions and sweat onions until they just begin to brown. Add garlic and flour and cook a minute or two just to remove the raw taste in the flour. Take care not to burn the garlic.
5. Add 1 cup of wine to the onion/flour mixture and stir well
6. Add beef broth (approx 3 cups or a 1L carton) and again stir well to get all the bits off the bottom of the dutch oven
7. This is where I begin the transfer to my slow cooker but you can just continue in the dutch oven if you like and use the oven to finish the dish (set at 250-300'F) I don't like to finish this on the stove top because no matter how careful I am, I always burn the bottom ;)
8. Place beef with any juices in your slow cooker crockpot
9. Pour onion/flour/broth mixture over the meat rinsing the pot with a little water to get all the tasty bits.
10. Add rough chopped carrots and celery, Beef bouillon (if using), Worcestershire Sauce, and Tomato paste
11. Add Bay leaf and any fresh or dry herbs (if using fresh herbs you might like to tie them tightly into a bundle for easy removal later but I tend to just throw them in and fish out the stalks after the stew is done )
12. Season with salt and pepper
13. If you want to add potatoes to the stew, add them during the last 2 hours of cooking.
14. I generally cook this covered for 6-8 hours on the high setting or until the beef is tender and beginning to fall apart.

NOTE: If the gravy seems too thin when done it is easy to thicken this up by adding a Tbsp or two of instant potato flakes. I always like to keep some on hand just for something like this ... we never actually have instant potatoes as a side  ;) Another tip to thicken the gravy is to add some Chia Seeds and I often do some combination of both chia and potato flakes. Chia seeds have no flavour themselves so they take on the flavour of whatever you add them to and they form a suspension gel with the liquid that does a great job to thicken any sauce. Once they gel you would never know they were there and they also add a nice fiber kick  I never knew much about chia seeds before but they are marvelously versatile little critters and they rapidly became a staple item for my pantry once I figured out what they were and how to use them ... great in smoothies too ;) In case you are wondering,  I don't generally bother with a cornstarch or flour slurry any more, cornstarch sauces don't re heat up well (great initially but too clumpy when reheated) and while there is nothing wrong with a flour slurry per se I just like the potato/chia method better.

Maple Walnut Brownie

A bit of a change from your regular chocolate fudgy style brownies. I just made these following the original recipe but I will be redoing these at some point in the future with a few substitutions to make them both lower in calories, fat and sugar but with added fiber and nutrition as well ;)

I have not yet tasted these beyond a few crumbs that managed to separate themselves from the main brownie tray but those crumbs were delicious and I plan to save enough calories on my plate, to have one of these for dessert tonight. The rest will be frozen to be shipped off to the city with my hubby on Sunday. I am so lucky to have an outlet for all my more decadent creations.

The brownies, made exactly following the original recipe listed below are exactly 163 calories for a 1" square, that's using an 8x8" baking pan and making 16 brownies per pan. I also made a simple glaze for these which added about 60 calories per brownie but you really don't need it. These are good all on their own. All together including the glaze these are about 223 calories which isn't too bad for a dessert item. Omitting the glaze and making this by replacing 1/3 of the butter (2 Tbsp butter) with 2 Tbsp Chia Gel (google it) drops the calories to 150 per square with little to no discernible difference either in taste or texture of the final product.

Ingredients:

• 1.25 cups All Purpose Flour (150g)
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 6 Tbsp Butter (or 1/4 cup butter and 2 Tbsp Chia Gel)
• 3/4 cup Brown Sugar, lightly packed ** - see note
• 1/3 cup real maple syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 tsp maple extract
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. In a small bowl whisk the dry ingredients together and reserve
2. In a small saucepan add the butter and brown sugar and melt over low heat until butter is melted and sugar dissolved. Do not over heat, once the butter is melted you are good to continue.
3. Remove from heat and stir in the syrup; Allow mixture to cool slightly (to lukewarm) then break the eggs one at a time into the butter/sugar mixture mixing well after each addition.
4. Add maple extract to the butter sugar mixture and stir to combine.
5. Pout butter mixture into the dry ingredients; Add chopped walnuts and stir with a spatula to blend well. Do not over mix you do not want to beat air into the batter, just stir to combine then pour into prepared 8x8" baking pan. (I like to grease my pans then line the bottom with a bit of parchment to fit the pan which I also grease. This makes getting the brownies out of the pan when done a LOT easier.) 
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 350'F for 25-30 minutes until done. The top of the brownie should be lightly golden and the brownie should JUST be separating from the sides of the pan.
7. Cool on a rack for 30 minutes before removing from pan or attempting to cut.
8. I like to use a pizza cutter to cut my brownies into squares it seems to work a lot better than a knife but in any event brownies are a lot easier to cut when they are FULLY cool, so wait ;)

The original recipe calls for a maple  glaze poured onto the top of the brownie once cool. To make the glaze mix together n a small bowl; 1 cup icing sugar,  2 Tbsp maple syrup and 1 Tbsp Cream (and maybe a tsp or two more if needed). I had to add a tiny bit more (maybe 1/2 Tbsp) cream to make this nicely pourable but still thick enough that it sets up after it dries, use caution adding the extra cream, as it doesn't take much to overdo it. Drizzle glaze over brownies after they are fully cool either before or after slicing.

** I rarely substitute artificial sugar for real sugar, since I find the taste or texture often suffers and I don't think the calories saved is worth the effort or disappointment in the final product. I don't like to *settle* just for the sake of calories but if you want to, I would only replace up to half the sugar and use caution, many brown sugar substitutes are a LOT sweeter than the real deal and if added measure for measure will ruin your baking, and even if they say you can measure like real sugar I'd still reduce the volume if using artificial ... they lie for convenience. At some point in the future I may experiment and I will post here to pass on any results.

Just a few final notes now that I have had the pleasure of tasting this. The brownie was more cake like than fudgy and when cool quite dense ... IN A GOOD WAY. They were moist not too sweet and the maple flavour was noticeable yet subtle. I really really enjoyed this and I suspect my gang will as well when I send them back down to the city on Sunday. The 16 squares were quite generous in proportion and I'd even probably be satisfied with a slightly smaller square on days where there isn't as much room on MyPlate ... maybe cut this into 5 on one side and 4 on the other to give you 20 servings instead of 16 ... I enjoyed the glaze and though I initially thought it would be too much (overkill), it complimented and finished the brownie off quite nicely, in fact. ** 2 thumbs up**

Common Food Myths Dispelled

I've learned a lot on my weight loss journey and no one piece of knowledge stands out for me as THE most important lesson except this ... EDUCATE yourself. There are a lot of commonly held beliefs out there that have no basis in fact AT ALL but people believe them because someone they trust, told them so ... because someone told THEM ... I just came across the following list/slideshow and while I am not usually impressed by these so called myth buster slide shows, THIS one is different. Every single slide/myth has been fact checked and represents something I have learned or relearned during my own weight loss journey and ALL, are things I consider important and incorporate every single day into my own daily diet plan.

I WAS going to put up a post today on the benefits and pleasure of using REAL food in your diet as opposed to tasteless unsatisfying fake or heavily modified diet food but this slide show changed my mind. There was just too much good advice in there for me not to post it. Dieting should not be about denying yourself the pleasure of real, good food .. it should be about learning to identify real food as opposed to manufactured food and how to eat those real foods, which can sometimes be calorie dense, and still maintain or lose weight safely.  If you follow the advice and tips on these 2 list/slideshow links, you will be half way there. NOTE: The slideshow link contains most, but not all of the same myths debunked as in the first link, they are just in a slideshow format with captions.

Common Food Myths Dispelled

OR

25 Common Food Myths Slideshow

Hope you enjoy!