Cool as a cucumber

I love cucumbers! They are my favorite vegetable, besides cabbage or course. I REALLY love when coworkers with overflowing gardens bring in heaps of cucumbers to share! They are especially perfect for the height of summer when it is hot outside, you need to cool down and don't really feel like expending much energy on cooking. Because cucumbers are so full of water, they are very hydrating and good for your skin when you consume them. You can also just put slices on your eyes to reduce puffiness. I love when snacks double as beauty products! Here are two ultra lazy non recipes centering on cukes.

Refreshing!

Cucumber Mint "Spa" Water

Want to pretend you are relaxing at a fancy spa? Put those extra slices on your eyes and sip an icy glass of this! 

1 small cucumber
1 bunch fresh mint
1 1/2 liters of filtered water

Peel and slice cucumber into thin slices. Put in pitcher. Leave mint leaves attached to stems. Rinse off, then gently rub each leaf between your thumb and index finger to release their oils. Add to pitcher, fill with filtered water and refrigerate. I have found that you can get at least one refill pitcher' worth of water out of your original cucumbers and mint.

Cucumbers with Guacamole

1 cucumber (I like English seedless ones)
guacamole in a pouch
Johnny's seasoning salt

Slice cucumber. Lay slices on a plate and sprinkle with Johnny's. Squeeze a dollop of guacamole on each slice. Devour entire plate without guilt!

Two notes on ingredients: I have tried various brands of ready made guacamole, and the best one, both for flavor and price, is Aldi's Little Salad Bar brand. It comes in a two pack of pouches, which keeps it fresh longer, and is very convenient to squeeze out. I prefer the mild flavor, as the spicy is pretty hot. It is only $2.99. If you are not familiar with Johnny's, I highly recommend it! The original seasoning salt goes great on  everything, and they have lots of various blends for specific foods, like poultry or seafood. Kent is really into grilling and smoking meats, so we use a lot of this stuff! It is gluten free, and contains MSG, which in my opinion is what makes it so magical, but if you are sensitive to that, it is also available without MSG.

I hope you are enjoying a summer bounty of cucumbers like I am!

Quick meal ideas for breakfast or snacks

Here are some really fast ideas for grazing breakfast foods or snacks that are ready made or super fast to prepare. I think that one of the challenges to this low carb way of eating is to be prepared at all times to avoid succumbing to carb temptation. If you are ready with things that are delicious alternatives to the stuff you're trying to avoid, you won't feel deprived, and your will power doesn't even feel tested!

I am very happy to report that I only had two temptations this week, on the same day. Girl Scout cookies and the offer of free donuts. I managed to resist them both. Probably because my own snacks were awesome too! I've also lost five pounds in my first week. This is very encouraging. As Kent told me, the addiction to seeing results will be much more fun than the addiction to eating the carbs. I can't wait to see more of it! Here's what helped me this week:

English cucumber sticks with Hummus Quartet (original, roasted garlic, rosted red pepper, and jalepeno cilantro flavors) from Aldi.

I have been eating a one ounce cup of mixed nuts every morning with my cup of iced coffee. It is interesting that since I haven't been eating sugar, I can detect the natural sweetness in foods more easily. I could really tell how sweet a pecan is compared to a cashew.

Dill pickle, turkey meat stick, and string cheese. Grazing breakfast of champions! I've been putting a week's worth of these in a bag that I keep in the fridge at work, so I don't have to think about taking something with me every day. I'm notorious for running late in the morning. I also bought a huge pack of string cheese and separated them all before putting the fridge. Now we have a string cheese and jello cup drawer. How luxurious!

Sugar free gelatin cups are awesome! Before we started this diet, we were addicted to Cozy Shack tapioca pudding cups topped with spray whipped cream. Turns out, the whipped cream is perfect for low carbers. Only one carb for 2 tablespoons. Pictured is orange gelatin with vanilla whipped cream. I also REALLY like chocolate flavored whipped cream on a black cherry gelatin.

In an effort to add fat to our diet, and replace desserts, I put heavy whipping cream into a glass of diet root beer. It is just like my favorite part of a root beer float- when the ice cream melts into the soda. So good! Also delicious in orange soda for a creamsicle experience.

That's it for now, but I will post more ideas as inspiration strikes!