Cooking, Cheese, Food & Awards

I have quite a lot to say today.  It's nearly midnight and I am just getting to this, but that's okay.  I have had a varied but good day.  I woke up this morning not feeling too well.  A bit of the old 'bubbly tummy'.  But I had things to do, so up I got.  I decided to postpone the run and get my shopping done, hoping I would feel better after that.  While I was out I went past a Newsagent that had one of those book sale tables out the front.  I found 2 great books for a total cost of $8.  I was pretty impressed.

By lunchtime the 'bubbly tummy' was still there, so I cancelled my afternoon plans.  I was meant to meeting up with fellow blogger Emz and I was really bummed that I wasn't going to be able to make it.  Not only was it the first time we were to meet, I was going to get some of her Bee Calm Massage Balm that I have been really looking forward to.  But I am sure we will meet soon.

It got me wondering about why I have been getting the tummy pains again in the last few days.  Then it hit me. 

Cheese...

I love cheese.  Really love it.  But I have always had a problem with too much.  When I first switched to vego I was horrified to discover that most cheese is not, in fact, vegetarian.  It contains something called rennet which is an animal product.  I have found a couple of varieties that are rennet-free though.  My favourite is Nimbin Natural.

However, rennet-free or not, too much cheese still makes me ill.  Unfortunately I did not work out this was the cause until later in the day when I had consumed more...  So, now I need to really start cutting back again, or maybe even avoiding it altogether.  I have gotten used to having no tummy pains and would like to go back to it.

Since I was staying close to home for the afternoon I needed to do something.  I decided to make some cookies for my Tupperware Party tomorrow.  I made my Mega Choc Chunk since I had all the ingredients handy.

Throughout the day I have been thinking more about being accountable to myself.  Yes, I am aware I sound like a broken record on this, but it is still in my head.  Now I know that the only person I am accountable to is me, and I am good with that.  My exercise I can look after, but where I am still falling down the most is my food.  So I have decided to photo blog my food each day.  If I have to actually stop to photograph the food, I will stop and think about the food.  The theory behind this is that I will hopefully give more thought to what I am putting in my mouth, rather than just shovelling food in.  I didn't decide this until lunch time.  So here goes for today.

Lunch was some Sanitarium Not Burgers on toast with cheese and avocado.

Followed by some ice cream with Milo mixed in.

Not a great choice considering my tummy was still playing up, but it was what I felt like.  Also not a great choice calorie-wise.

Snack was one of the yummy biccies I made.

For dinner I finally perfected a new recipe I have been working on.  I wanted to do a lentil recipe with a Mexican flavour, and have been playing with the mix of spices.  Tonight, I nailed it!  And I got to use my Mortar & Pestle to grind the cumin seeds which was very cool.

I have called the dish Mexican Lentils, and tonight we had it with toast and avocado (was about to go bad so had to use it).  It was a delicious success and can be used for heaps of different dishes.  I have chilled the left overs and will be serving it as a dip at the Tupperware Party tomorrow.

This was followed by half a cookie and more Ice Cream with a few M&Ms

After dinner a couple of friends stopped by.  Luckily I had made heaps of cookies so we had some nibblies.  Aside from the sore tummy and missing out on meeting Em, I had a good and productive day.

Last, but definitely not least, I got a very pleasant surprise today.  I received a "Beautiful Blogger Award" from Dreaming of the New Me. 

I am feel so honoured to have been selected for this.  I am glad my blog is making interesting reading for someone.  Thank You.

So what I am meant to do now is to share 7 things about myself, then pass this on to 7 other bloggers who I l are Beautiful Bloggers.

7 things about me...

1)  My little toe nails are shaped like claws and if I don't keep them very short they get hard enough to wear holes in shoes.

2)  I feel like my life really started when I turned 30 and finally had the courage to leave my first husband.

3)  I was knock-kneed when I was little and had to wear corrective shoes.

4)  I climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge about 5 years ago and began to conquer my fear of heights.

5)  Despite quitting dancing nearly 20 years ago I can still do the splits.

6)  Until 8 or 9 months ago I could only cook about 3 different dishes.

7)  I used to hate outdoor sports and being outside for long periods, now I can't get enough of it.

Now for the hard part, choosing 7 other bloggers.  I read lots of blogs every day, so I hope I do not insult anyone by leaving them out.  But these are the ones I comment on or read the most.

 - Mel

 - Amanda

 - Ali

 - Swayerm

 - Spunkysuzi

 - The Shrinking Violet

 - Em

If you haven't stopped by these blogs, please do, they truly are inspiring.

Sorry for the long one.  It's now nearly 1am so it is time for some zzz's

xox