The Mexico Diet: Week 2

 

Happy Independence Day, everyone!  The first day of the second week of The Mexico Diet was July fourth, and what better way to celebrate than with some BBQ?! I'm talking potato salad, chips, some burgers with cheddar cheese on top...

Yeah, that would have been swell, except that I am not allowed to have any of that on my diet. Truth be told, I would have gladly taken my cheat day on that Monday had I been invited to a celebration for the fourth (after all, it is my favorite holiday)  - but alas, I was not invited to such an event. Therefore, I stayed at home and made my own Fourth of July style dinner, and honestly...it really was delicious.

Grilled Turkey Burgers with Butternut Squash Fries

 

For the Butternut Squash Fries recipe, click here

Ingredients for the burgers:

1 lb. 100% organic ground turkey meat 

2-3 cloves minced garlic

salt to taste 

1 tbsp cayenne pepper 

avocado oil 

For the trimmings:

Romaine lettuce

1/2 yellow bell pepper (or orange)
1/3 Mexican green onion
1 avocado 

1/2 Roma tomato

Corn on the cob (optional)

Instructions:

1. In a medium size bowl combine minced garlic, salt to taste, cayenne pepper, and meat; mix together with hands 

2. Form patties

3. In a skillet, add avocado oil 

4. Add patties and cook on medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes before flipping over 

5. Cook an additional 5 minutes on other side, and then turn heat down 

6. Cook on med-low for approximately 10 minutes and turn over periodically 

7. Transfer burger to lettuce leaf, in place of a traditional bun 

8. Add toppings as desired

9. Serve with fresh corn on the cob and the butternut squash fries - and beer.

I love this diet, and kind of resent it at the same time. There's no question that it's delicious and who doesn't love avocados and tomatoes on the daily? But, the problem with this "diet" is that it's not really a weight loss helper. What with the beans, and the high percentage of fat in all the other items I'm taking in.

But, having said that, let's continue with the rest of the week...

That afternoon I made mackerel for the first time and it was...not half bad. Not something I would seek out regularly, but no, not bad at all. Fatty tasting...

Some other recipes throughout the week included...

Homemade Black Beans

Pretty simple to make, but it does take patience and some time. Just be prepared.

Ingredients:

1/2 - 1 lb. organic dry black beans

salt

water

2-3 cloves garlic


Instructions:

1. Pour beans into a large pot

2. Rinse 2-3 times, and drain water

3. Fill pot with water so that there's several inches above the beans

4. Soak overnight (approximately 8  hours)

5. In the morning, drain the water, and refill again with fresh water with the same amount

6. Turn on stove to high heat, and begin to boil the water

7. Once the water begins to boil, turn the heat down to med-low, and add the garlic (peeled, but whole)

8. Cook for approximately 1-2 hours depending on how long it takes before the beans are soft

9. Serve, and store up to 5-7 days

Picture above: black beans, tomato and avocado mixed together with left over salsa...a tasty and healthy snack

Another healthy snack that I took to work one day was the left over popcorn from the night before. It may be a bit chewy but it's also healthy and light...

Picture above: Left over turkey burger with tomato and bell pepper salad, pumpkin seeds and sunflower kernels on top. A healthy and small lunch to take to work....

Grilled Lamb Shoulder

This was a special treat...and one that I won't soon be repeating as it was so heavy...

Ingredients:

2 medium size pork shoulders

1 small bottle of beer (I used Coors Banquet)

salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Coat each side of the pork shoulders with salt

2. Heat a cast iron skillet and add the meat 

3. Cook on high for 5 minutes, and then flip over quickly 

4. Cook other side for 5 minutes, then turn flame down to med-low

5. Cook in sections of 10 minutes for 1 hour, flipping the meat on either side at the end of each 10 minutes (every time you flip, add some beer to the skillet)

6. Once the hour is up, you will find the meat to be tender, juicy and magnificently delicious!

Wednesday was a really bad day for me, and I was craving chocolate like I might stab myself...or the wall. So I decided I would break my, up to this point, steadfast diet and have a little bit. You can tell by the sad look on my face I really needed it. And actually, I'm being genuine when I say, the two small squares I ate really did help. I felt much more alert and I had a boost of happiness after I had some. I did the best I could with the percentage - that's all I could find at the store.

Lunch a day later was the leftover pork shoulder with some salad. A really nice change from just peppers and tomatoes.

For the most part these are all the new recipes. Breakfast was always the same: black coffee before I left my place for work; followed by 1-2 plums for breakfast around 11 AM (if I even ate breakfast); lunch was usually the same: bell pepper and tomato salad with some seeds.

Until Saturday.

Saturday was my cheat day. Now, normally I take my cheat day on Fridays, but for different reasons I chose to take my cheat day on Saturday this week. It was going to be a real "me" day, as I had no plans with anyone that day.

Breakfast started out blissfully, with some cream in my coffee (Hallelujah!), coupled with some more of the imported sweet desert bread from Italy and some Nutella.

I didn't eat anything on purpose for around 6 hours so that I had time to process the breakfast before diving into lunch. And I had plans for lunch...

The problem, hmm, was that I started to feel not so great while I was at work that morning. I wanted to ignore it, but it was my stomach. I felt like maybe something I'd eaten that morning didn't settle well with me...like maybe it was the bread. No matter, I thought, I'll throw that out when I get home. But let's shake this, whatever it is before I go pick up lunch.

I went to a chain sandwich shop which I hadn't been to in 7 years, and it was great...but nothing extraordinary. Definitely special on one of my only 2 cheat days of the month though.

I wouldn't say that I inhaled it... but I'm not going to say that any of the sandwich was left either. Because...that would be a lie.

Needless to say, after I finished the meal, I was rather tired. I fell asleep. While I was asleep (for three hours...), I did not feel well. Sweating, having nightmares, feeling really, really out of it even while actually out... I felt terrible.

When I woke up, I was a bit disoriented, and felt sick. But as the evening wore on, I felt better and tried to ignore whatever had been plaguing me all day.

I proceeded to cook the dish I'd prepared several days for, and had been craving for over 3 months - pasta. Yes, it had been a solid 12 weeks (if not more) since I had had the Italian starch and I had been craving it for half the time. 12 weeks, I would say was more than enough time for me to say, I'd earned it.

I would tell you my signature recipe for Ragu al'Bolognese - but then I'd have to kill you. Maw-ha-ha.

And let's not forget about dessert...

It's a hot fudge sundae from a local ice cream chain...and I will definitely be going there again.

I stayed up really late that night on the phone with friends, watching TV, and then crashing at around 1 or 2 AM like some teenager with no responsibilities the next morning.

And when I woke up on Sunday...oh dear Lord. It wasn't pretty. I felt so sick. And things were only about to get worse.

It was not that I was hung over from all the junk food I'd eaten the day before (although I have my suspicions about how much that may have contributed), but rather, I was just sick. I felt so achy and I could barely move. I decided to go lay in the sun for a while, as I read online that the UV rays are good for a cold...

I was out there for an hour, and felt worse by the time I came home. I could barely move. I took a shower, and forced myself to clean my kitchen from the night before with the ability of only opening one eye - as my eyes ached like I had exercised them with weights, and they were burning.

I lay down and realized, this was death. I was tasting death. My neighbor brought me a thermometer to borrow. My fever jumped within a couple of hours from 100.7 to 101.5.

I stayed in bed, shivering, achy all over and pretty much wanting the world to end. An appetite was the farthest thing from my mind. And I did not have an appetite until about 6 pm. However, the problem is that I live alone, and I couldn't even get up to walk into the other room, let alone stand in the kitchen to make myself anything.

Door Dash arrived with some soup and baguette bread around 7 PM and I didn't actually put anything in my mouth until closer to 8. I was so nauseated and felt so deathly, I couldn't bare to eat. Until after I took one Advil to help bring down my fever and the throbbing headache I had, and all of a sudden...VOOM! I was famished. I ate all the bread, to my astonishment, and then by 9 PM, I'd polished off the little cup of soup I had. Which by the way, what do they do at these restaurants throw like 8 gallons of salt in there?

I know I broke my diet that day, but the thought of bell peppers and beans did not sound like it would settle well while I was sick...

To be completely fair though, I only ate once that day. The fever probably countered any calories I took in, right?


Stay tuned for Week 3 coming soon!

"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up..." - James 5:15