So I have to admit today was a little challenging. I think it was just because I had a taste of freedom yesterday. However,  I desperately wanted a glass of wine as I watched the Olympics this morning...I mean evening...really I mean evening haha. And I really thought a cheeseburger sounded like a slice of heaven, for some odd reason...since I never eat cheeseburgers...but alas I stayed true to my detox.

I also really missed baking today. It was kind of a cool, overcast day and I would have loved to bake some cookies, muffins or bagels, but since I can't use sugar I was kind of at a loss on that one. I am creative, but I haven't mastered the art of gluten free and sugar free baking...yet.

I have also discovered another detox-ism, for some odd reason when I am hungry I am like seriously hungry, like feeling shaky hungry. This is a new and odd feeling for me and I have found that I quickly get to a point where I "need" to eat. So I need to start remembering to carry snacks with me at all times so I don't hurt someone.


So this morning I tried the brown rice toast with almond butter and I have to say it was pretty good. It definitely fulfilled my toast cravings. The texture of the toast is way different, it is almost the consistency of pound cake, but obviously not sweet like pound cake, so it is pretty dense and not flaky, but not bad, just different. I also had coconut/almond milk blend and I really enjoyed that as well. It has a subtle coconut flavor and the consistency is closer to milk than the straight almond milk, so I can't wait to put it in decaf coffee or make a decaf chai tea latte with it. I will keep you posted as I experiment with it more.


For lunch, I discovered that Whole Foods makes sushi with brown rice, so I had an avocado role, which was pretty good.

And for an afternoon snack I had guacamole and bean/brown rice chips, which were actually super good. They are nutty, earthy and have the same texture and crunch as chips. I actually almost like them better than corn chips and I love my tortilla chips.


For dinner, I decided to try and make something in the crock pot, so I made Mushrooms & Sweet Potatoes on Rice. This was good, but a little bland and to be honest I didn't care for the giant chunks of onion. The sweet potatoes and mushrooms were good, but it almost felt like too much of a good thing. This just felt like more of a side dish to me or maybe I would have liked it as more of a side dish, but as a stand alone it just felt like a lot of potatoes, mushrooms and onions. I did also use vegan mushroom gravy and I think it may have been a tad on the unexciting side because I just didn't feel like this dish had a ton of flavor. But oh well you can't win them all and maybe if I add some hot sauce or something I can revamp this for lunches this week. Hmmmm...


It is super easy if you want to give it a try or serve it as a side dish.
Combine the following ingredients in a crock pot:


4 sweet potatoes, that are peeled and cut into 1" cubes


 8 oz of quartered mushrooms (I used cremini but you can vary the mushroom selection)

2 onions cut into wedges


1-12oz jar mushroom gravy

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1T tapioca

 1tsp dried thyme

salt and pepper

Cook on low for 5-6 hours or high 2 1/2-3 hours.

The original recipe has 1 1/2 cups of sprinkled gruyere or swiss cheese on top of the vegetables and that also could add a little more excitement to the dish. However, I omitted that part for detox reasons and maybe that is what caused this dish to fall a little bit flat.

All and all I really can't complain as I sit here on this lovely Sunday evening watching the Olympics, seeing sports that I never knew existed, enjoying candles burning and Miss Kitty lounging on the couch with me. Cheers!