Good and Gentle Care

It is the day after FLEA-MAGEDDON and we are feelin' it. 

It was a spectacular day on all fronts, not the least being the fact that the doom and gloom predictions of heavy rain, strong winds and hail never materialized while we were on the lot. And when the heavens did finally open up (and boy did they ever), we were unpacked, safe at home, all showered and jammied, with two big steaks on the grill. 

 

Yay for foresight and meal planning.

It's been almost three months since we decided to try and break the cycle of sugar addiction in our household. I don't want to jinx it, but I do believe that the cycle has finally been broken. Yes, the cravings still pop up in one form or another but I've made a few changes that support me, like getting all the temptations out of the house and unfollowing every single Pinterest food board that some how or another made it in my news feed. The Pinterest thing may sound pretty benign, but when your computer screen suddenly becomes filled with images of food porn, it's downright excruciating.

So we've cut out sugar, wheat and all grains, and are eating very low-carb these days. 

We've each lost around fifteen pounds, but the biggest benefit from all these changes is in how much less pain we're experiencing overall, how little pain meds we need on a daily basis and how even and lovely we feel emotionally. 

Sugar is a delicious and deceptive demon.

Food issues have plagued me for pretty much my entire life, so it is little surprise that my Day-After-The-FLEA recovery routine centers around cooking and eating. 

There is savory and comforting chicken soup on the stove, and mashed cauliflower, creamed spinach and leftover rib-eyes in the frig from last night's dinner. 

And last week I finally figured out a way to avoid cooking breakfast every day! It's a breakfast casserole that's delicious, keeps for an entire week and gives us a big heaping serving of greens too.


Here's my recipe:

Egg, Cheese, Bacon and Chard Breakfast Casserole

Turn the oven on to 350, grease a 9x12 baking pan and get cracking.

Break eight large eggs into a big bowl, pour in a splash of cream or milk, a good dash of chipotle powder or red pepper flakes and more black pepper than you think is necessary. Whisk it all up.

Cook up the breakfast meat of your choice. I use bacon ever since I discovered that the Piggery offers bacon ends at a fraction of the cost of a pound of sliced bacon.

Chop and saute one whole sweet onion and two big cloves of garlic in a little butter or the leftover bacon fat. Cool the onions and bacon on a plate in the frig.

Chop six or seven big chard leaves into small pieces (compost the stems or tough veins). Add to the egg mixture (yes, put it in raw), along with the meat, garlic and onion mixture, and about a cup of grated cheese. I like a combination or Pepper Jack, Asagio and sharp NYS cheddar. 

Pour it all into the baking pan and check it after 20 minutes. It's done when the center is firm.

Taking good and gentle care today and every day.