Spoonful of Sugar Free

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Day 18: Butternut Squash Soup

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Welcome to day eighteen of the Sugar Free Challenge!

Thanks for all your words of advice for my wisdom teeth extraction! I pre-scheduled this post, so I am probably getting them extracted while you read this.

Here is today’s sample menu:

Breakfast: Mini Frittatas

Lunch: Spinach Salad with Balsamic Dressing, Hard Boiled Egg, and Socca.

Snack: Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Apple

Exercise Option: For those of you who chose to take part of the exercise challenge, your challenge today is to do 50 crunches, 10 squat jumps, 15 pushups, 20 1-legged calf raises (10 each leg).

Dinner: Butternut Squash Soup (the recipe I promised yesterday).

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Butternut Squash Soup

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Yield: 4-6 servings

Calories per serving: 100

Butternut Squash Soup

~This butternut squash soup is super creamy without the cream. It is thick and full of flavor. If you enjoy curry, feel free to add a dash or two in while simmering. Dairy-free, vegan, gluten-free, paleo, soy-free, nut-free, and sugar-free.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium butternut squash
  • 1 medium yellow onion
  • 1 Tablespoon coconut oil
  • 3 cups broth (vegetable or chicken)
  • 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400*.
  2. Slice the butternut squash in half lengthwise, remove seeds, and place on baking sheet, skin up. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the squash is very tender.
  3. In the meantime, chop the yellow onion and saute with oil until browned.
  4. Scoop the flesh of the butternut squash out of the skin and place in blender with onions, milk, broth, and spices. You may wish to split the soup into different batches before blending. Puree until smooth and pour into large saucepan.
  5. Simmer for a few minutes to warm, and serve. You may serve with a swirl of coconut milk and a sprinkle of nutmeg.
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2012/01/18/day-18-butternut-squash-soup/

This recipe has become a favorite of mine. I’ve made it about three times already! It is super creamy without any cream, and it has just the right balance of spices to compliment the squash without overpowering it. I also love the thickness. You may wish to make several batches and freeze for future use! For instance, when you get your wisdom teeth extracted and are on a liquid diet for a while…

Health Benefits:

  • Butternut Squash: Contains many antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, and is low in calories and high in fiber. Contains more vitamin A than pumpkin, which is essential for vision health and healthy skin.
  • Coconut: Coconut is widely misunderstood because of it’s high fat content; however, coconut’s saturated fat is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. These medium-chains are easy to absorb and digest, and are converted quickly into energy. This means that the body has no opportunity to store the medium-chain as fat. Coconut is also a great source of dietary fiber with a whopping 5 grams per oz!
  • Nutmeg: This spice has strong antibacterial properties, and it is effective in killing a number of cavity-causing bacteria in the mouth. Contains eugenol, a compound that may benefit the heart. Nutmeg can help to combat asthma and relax the muscles.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

What is your favorite way to eat squash?

Remember that you can track what you eat on the printable Challenge Checklist. 

 

Day 17: Goodbye, Teeth

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Welcome to day seventeen of the Sugar Free Challenge!

Tomorrow I am having my wisdom teeth extracted-eek! I will not be “put to sleep,” nor will I have laughing gas. However, they will numb my mouth so I won’t be able to feel it. I am going to a dentist who is more holistic, so I will take a dose of magnesium and L Tryptophan to ease my anxiousness. Trust me, I will be anxious. Shots in the mouth scare me, and they hurt! I’m planning on bringing my ipod to listen to during the surgery so that I can get my mind of my teeth (and so I don’t hear any drilling or whatever they use…).

I’ll be on a liquid diet until my mouth heals, so plan on a extremely yummy soup recipe tomorrow! (see picture below)

Here is today’s sample menu:

Breakfast: Pumpkin Spice Latte Granola

 

Lunch: Butternut Squash Soup (recipe coming tomorrow!)

Snack: High Protein Sweet Potato Spice Cookies

Dinner: Veggie “Quesadilla.” Brown rice tortilla filled with sauteed veggies and black beans.

Dessert: Chocolate Covered Fruit and Nuts

Exercise Option: For those of you who chose to take part of the exercise challenge, your challenge today is to do 50 crunches, 10 squat jumps, 15 pushups, 20 1-legged calf raises (10 each leg).

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

Have you had your wisdom teeth extracted? Any words of advice??

Remember that you can track what you eat on the printable Challenge Checklist. 

Day 16: Processed vs. Whole Food Sugar

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Welcome to day sixteen of the Sugar Free Challenge!

Today’s Reason to be Sugar-Free: 

Processing techniques have created sugar that has been extracted from these whole, natural foods, and is devoid of essential vitamins, minerals, and fibre. A simple way to understand this concept is to consider a large chocolate bar and a can of soda. Together they contain approximately 100 grams of sugar. If we want to eat the equivalent of 100 grams of sugar from whole apples, we have to eat approximately 6-7 medium apples. Of course, many of us become full in eating just a few apples, but we are more than capable of eating a chocolate bar and drinking a can of soda in one sitting. So by eating foods that have been processed and concentrated, we put a great deal of stress on our organs, which is a significant cause of low energy and illness. ~Dr. Ben Kim

Here is today’s sample menu:

Breakfast: Fried egg (coconut oil) atop a bed of sauteed kale, bell peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes.

Lunch: Plum Socca Tart with Rosemary

Snack: High Protein Cookie Dough Dip

Dinner: Slow Cooker Chicken with Olives and Artichoke

Dessert: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites

Exercise Option: For those of you who chose to take part of the exercise challenge, your challenge today is to do 50 crunches, 10 squat jumps, 15 pushups, 20 1-legged calf raises (10 each leg).

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

What is your opinion of whole fruit sugars vs. processed sugars?

Remember that you can track what you eat on the printable Challenge Checklist. 

Day 15: Halfway There!

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Welcome to day fifteen of the Sugar Free Challenge!

We are now officially halfway through with the challenge! Wahhoooo! Great job everyone.

Here is today’s sample menu:

Breakfast: High Protein Cookie Crisp Cereal.

Lunch: Heart-Stopping Chicken Salad. Vegan Option: substitute chickpeas for meat.

Snack: an assortment of fresh fruit, veggies, and a bar of unsweetened chocolate (if you don’t like unsweetened chocolate, substitute a small handful of nuts).

Dinner: Hobos. Take a piece of ground beef and roll into a patty. Top with peppers, potatoes, onions, and carrots and wrap in foil. Bake at 375* for one hour. Tastes great drizzled with dijon mustard or Homemade BBQ Sauce. Vegan option: Two Cans and a Potato

Dessert: Slow Cooker Cinnamon Applesauce with Cinnamon

New Workout

The Exercise Challenge changes this week. For those of you who chose to take part of the exercise challenge, your challenge today is to do 50 crunches, 10 squat jumps, 15 pushups, 20 1-legged calf raises (10 each leg).

This option is for those who do not exercise regularly and would like to jump start their new year with an easy exercise routine. Each round of exercises take just a few minutes to complete. It would also be wise to add a bit of cardio to your day like walking, jogging, bike riding, or jump roping. Right when you get up in the morning, during lunch breaks, or before bed would be an excellent time to complete this routine.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

How has the challenge been going for you so far? We are halfway through, so how do you feel?

Remember that you can track what you eat on the printable Challenge Checklist. 

Day 14: Breakfast All Day Long!

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Welcome to day fourteen of the Sugar Free Challenge!

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, right? Not only does it wake your body up and give you energy for the day, but “breakfast” food, in my opinion, has some of the tastiest recipes. I categorize Breakfast food into  categories: Eggs, Oatmeal, Pancakes/Waffles, and Baked Goods/Pastries. Each “Breakfast” today will feature one of these categories.

Here is your Breakfast Sample Menu for today:

Breakfast #1: Mini Frittatas. Starting your day with protein, like the proteins found in eggs, has been shown to keep you more full throughout the day, and give you more energy.

Breakfast #2: Baked Banana Oatmeal. Oatmeal lowers cholesterol, helps burn fat, reduces risk of diabetes, regulates bowel movements, reduces blood pressure, and reduces risk of heart disease. You can also get your daily dose of oats by making Oat Cakes, Pumpkin Spice Latte granola, Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal, or Chocolate Monkey Tail Oatmeal.

Breakfast #3: Bitter Chocolate Waffles. Pancakes and Waffles are a bit time consuming to make during the weekday mornings, so why not have it for dinner? Also try One Size Fits All Pancakes and Grain-Free Pumpkin Pancakes.

Breakfast #4: For your dessert tonight, have a breakfast-inspired Oatmeal Raisin Bizookie. I have tons of different baked good recipes, so check out my recipe page above for more ideas. Some of my favorite include Smacaroons, Breakfast Bread, Grain-Free Pecan Sticky Buns, and Grain-Free Banana Bread.

Exercise Option: For those of you who chose to take part of the exercise challenge, your challenge today is to do 30 crunches, 15 squats, 10 pushups, 20 calf raises.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

Have you ever eaten breakfast for every meal of the day?

What is your favorite breakfast recipe? Please share!

Remember that you can track what you eat on the printable Challenge Checklist. 

Day 13: Friday the 13th and Lucky Green

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Welcome to day thirteen of the Sugar Free Challenge!

Eeek! It’s friday the thirteenth-better find a four-leaf clover. Today’s menu will include lots of green because green is the color of clovers….so green is lucky?

Here is today’s green sample menu:

Breakfast: Ultimate Veggie Omelet made with lots of green veggies. Or how about some Green Pancakes?

Lunch: a big green salad drizzled with ginger-miso dressing

Snack: Green Pistachio Butter spread on anything you wish (how about on top of green celery?).

Dinner: Socca pizza topped with Green Pesto and Green Grilled Veggies.

Dessert: Green Mint Chocolate Chip Shake.

Exercise Option: For those of you who chose to take part of the exercise challenge, your challenge today is to do 30 crunches, 15 squats, 10 pushups, 20 calf raises.

THOUGHT-PROVOKING, MIND-PRODDING QUESTION OF THE DAY:

What are your favorite green recipes?

Remember that you can track what you eat on the printable Challenge Checklist.