tips

[Guest guest]

Here are a few things that help me tremendously while staying on the SBD:

(I have a husband who loves starches and 2 young children who are picky

eaters!)

1. Chop ahead: the worst thing about vegetables is all the chopping.

A.When I get home from the grocery store I throw all the vegetables in the

sink and wash them,

B.then I make celery sticks (for hummus or p.b.)

C.then I dice the lettuce and throw it in a big bowl for instant salads.

D.Then I get the green peppers and onions etc, and chop it up to bite size

for salads and stir frys. I store these in a sectioned sealable container

like the kind you might use for veggies and dip at a party.

E.Then I make tiny chopped veggies for omelettes. I have an omelette every

morning, and who wants to get out all the individual veggies and the

chopping board every morning? not me! I keep these in a small resealable

container, and whip it out in the morning while I heat up the frying pan,

which, by the way, lives on top of my stove. I'm not putting it away just to

take it out again the next day. I just wipe it clean when I'm done and put

it back on the burner.

All this chopped stuff actually takes up less space in the refrigerator as

well.

2. Keep snacks at your fingertips.

A. Make a nice big container of hummus as soon as it starts to get low.

B. Make double batches of SF Jello, mixing flavors keeps it interesting

(strawberry and orange is one of my favs.)

3. Plan your meats in advance:

Unthaw meat in the morning at breakfast time, so that you've got it ready at

suppertime.

4. Keep the water cold.

I buy a couple of bottles of water and then refill them and keep them in the

fridge, so when I'm reaching for water it's cold and handy.

5. Have a bigger salad. I find that I have to provide noodles,

potatoes, or rice for DH and the kids, but I just have a bigger salad with

my meat. This keeps everyone happy, and they don't know it, but their

starch portions have been shrinking!!

Hope these tips help some of you, I know they're mostly common sense, but it

never hurts to repeat what works.

I find the recipe postings most helpful. It really helps to add variety

every now and then.

Good luck to all,

reembarking on phase 1, with optimism. ; )