Going back to work and Caprese Salad

Two things that really have nothing in common with each other. Let’s start with the snack first since that is probably how you found your way to this blog.

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On my first trip to Rome I found myself wandering the streets by myself. My alcoholic aunt who i had traveled with, decided that she did not want to tour the city and would rather drink herself silly at our rented apartment. So I ventured out alone. I visited the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Forum and the Colosseum. I jumped on a bus that took me to the Spanish Steps. It was hot, muggy and there were so many mosquitos. I was tired, my feet blistered and aching. I stopped in a out of the way cafe for a solitary lunch. I was seated. I was a hot, sweaty, tired tourist. The woman seated near me was the epitome of Classic Rome, she was beautiful, poised and drew at her cigarette with a graceful bored look. She blew the smoke my way on purpose. I looked at the menu and spotted a cool and refreshing lunch option. Caprese Salad. I ordered my lunch and gulped what could have been gallons of water. The waitress brought me my lunch and I was astounded to see that my light lunch of cheese and tomatoes was about a pound and a half of fresh mozzarella cheese, with enough tomatoes to feed a family with a lovely drizzle of olive oil and fresh basil. There was no way that I could eat all of this cheese by myself as i once again cursed my aunt for leaving me to navigate by myself, at least she could have helped me eat all that cheese.

it was delicious. A meal to remember, and I did my best to eat what I could. So I give you …Caprese Salad. Easy, convenient and good for you. (Try to get the mozzerella packed in water, it is more authentic)

Caprese Salad

ingredients:
Mozzarella Cheese
Fresh Tomatos
Basil
Quality Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
Cut slices of mozzarella. Cut slices of tomatoes. Arrange on a plate. Drizzle with oil. Top with julienned basil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Going back to work

I am grateful to have a job. I am grateful to have a job that I love. I am grateful to have a job where I make a difference. But my job consumes me. It is my other half. I am Mrs. Clemmerbottoms, and when I come home I am Kate.

I have had the good fortune to have had 16 weeks of maternity leave. 15 weeks to spend with my new baby. And now it is time to go back and leave the care of my baby to someone else for the majority of the day.

I can’t say that motherhood and I have come to terms yet. It is so boring. Everyday is the same. Everyday I attend to every whim of this baby. Sometimes I don’t get dressed. I haven’t left the house in weeks. My boobs ache. My flabby belly folds over my pants. I have spit-up down in my bra and I just don’t care anymore. And next week I have to leave it all behind, and it makes me sad.

I can handle going to work and being Mrs. Clemmerbottoms. I love it most days. But it takes a lot of time and effort to be the best I can be at my job. There are on average 70 souls I see each day, and each day I try to say something nice to them, to know that I care. I teach, I counsel, I encourage, I listen, I joke, I smile, I manage behavior, I write emails, and plan lessons, organize supplies and clean up after 70 kids. And that was all well and good when I didn’t have a child of my own.

Since having my own child I am completely devoted to her. Her every need I attend to. For petes sake I am still supporting her growth from my body. Every moment of my day is for her. And that was all well and good until I have to go back to work.

I am not the first or the last to expound upon this modern conundrum. But I feel pulled in so many directions. Somehow I must balance Mrs. Clemmerbottoms, Mommy and Kate. Three different parts of me, all important. So who loses? Most likely Kate loses out, let’s just hope she doesn’t get lost.

Breastfeeding Granola Bars

So I had a small panic as my supply of milk suddenly dropped. I had cut back on the calories/carbs to try and lose a little weight. I woke up and just wasn’t producing as much as I had in the past. So there is a rumor that oats can increase your supply although I couldn’t find much scientific evidence. But I thought, well heck, it couldn’t hurt. I have given myself the grace of not worrying about losing the 20 lbs I need to until I am done breastfeeding. I am currently right at pre-baby weight. So I made these lovely granola bars. I didn’t measure anything so I am just going to list the ingredients.

Steel cut oats

Sunflower seeds

Sesame seeds

Flax seeds

Chia seeds

Shredded unsweetened coconut

Pecans

Dried cranberries (strawberry flavor)

Coconut oil

Butter

Peanut butter

maple syrup

brown sugar

vanilla

salt

Combine all the dry ingredients. In a pot, melt butter and coconut oil with sugars and vanilla. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients. In a 13×9 pan place buttered parchment paper. Pour granola into prepared pan, press using you hand. Bake for 20 minutes (longer for crunchy) at 350 degrees. Press it again. Take it out and let it cool. Cut it into bars and enjoy!

And I can attest, that it worked! I have 4 bottles in the fridge and put at least a 4oz a day away in the freezer.

 

As for PCOS, I don’t know that I would recommend this as a good low carb snack as there is sugar and oats. But it is packed full of great nutritional stuff!

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

It’s football season here in Colorado. I think the Broncos are doing well, but I don’t really know because I haven’t watched a football game in 10 years or so. But the news is full of Tebows and Mannings it is hard to avoid it completely.

Speaking of Manning….did you know that he signed a contract for 18 million dollars to play this year? 18 MILLION DOLLARS! Did you know that I, as a school teacher make…let’s just say…considerably less than 18 million dollars? Where are our priorities people? A pituitary case throws a ball and gets compensated in large sums, and a teacher that devotes her time and energy to shaping the minds of our youth gets a water-bottle that says “You make a difference!”

Dear Payton Manning, (who happens to be the same age as I am) if you are reading this I encourage you to fund 80 Colorado teachers at $100,000 a year, this would still give you 10 MILLION dollars to spend on things like…oh I don’t know…your own trained dancing bear in a tutu. It makes me discouraged that as a nation we have such messed up priorities.

Ok, but I am a minority in my disdain for everything sports related. So I present to you the perfect sports snack. Everyone will love them, and you as a PCOS gal will not have to worry about the carbs. I don’t have time to make these, and I have never once been invited over to watch a game…so I am linking you to a different site. But I can tell you these are always a favorite and they are just so easy!

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

Ingredients

 

10 to 15 jalapenos

8 oz of cream cheese

1/2 lb bacon

 

Instructions

 

1. Soak toothpicks in water for 15 minutes. Cut the jalapenos in half length-wise and scrape out the seeds and membranes (this is the source of the heat, so if you want them spicy leave them in, if you want them mild make sure you scrape really well).

2. Put a chunk of cream cheese in the hollow body of the jalapeno

3. Cut a slice of bacon in half width-wise and wrap all the way around the jalapeno pinning it with a toothpick

4. Place filling side up on cookie sheet covered in aluminum foil or parchment paper. Put in oven at 375 for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bacon is cooked.

Happy Snacking!

 

 

Chia Seeds

Remember those silly commercials for Chia Pets? The awful terracotta, simply add water-and-watch-it-grow ridiculousness that somehow we all had at one time? Yeah, I had a Garfield Chia Pet that I loved.

Did you know that you can eat the chia seeds? Did you know that they are amazingly good for you? Originally the seed comes from Mexico and Central America. They were consumed as a main staple because of their amazing benefits. So why have we forgotten about them?

A Tablespoon of chia seeds contain about 40 calories, but those calories carry an important nutritional punch. They contain fiber, protein and omega-3’s. You can use them in so many different ways, from adding it to baked goods, smoothies to soups and stews. They quickly absorb water and swell, they are fun in your mouth (almost like tomato seeds) and they fill your belly so you don’t have to eat as often.

Chia seeds also might be beneficial for a PCOS diet because it offers so many good things in such a little package. Of course consult with your dr to decide if it is a good addition to your diet.

Chocolate Chia Seed Energy Bars

These bars are wonderful in so many ways because they contain lots of proteins, fibers and healthy fats. In addition they are perfect for simple take along snacks, and can satisfy that sweet tooth without refined sugar.

Soak the dates ahead of time to help ease the load on your food processor.

Ingredients
1½ cups pitted dates
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup whole chia seeds
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/2 cup slivered almonds (unsalted)
1/2 cup coconut (unsweetened you can find these at health food stores)
optional: sprinkle of salt

Instructions
Purée dates in food processor until a thick paste forms. Add cocoa powder, chia seeds, vanilla and almond extracts. Pulse until all ingredients are combined. Add the almonds and coconut; pulse until nuts are well incorporated into date mixture.

Spread large sheet of wax paper on work surface. Transfer date mixture to wax paper, and press mixture into 1/2-inch-thick rectangle. If desired, you can even out the edges by trimming them with a knife. Wrap tightly in wax paper, and chill overnight.

Unwrap block, and cut into 8 bars. Sprinkle with a bit of salt (if using). Re-wrap each bar in wax paper and refrigerate leftovers in an air-tight container.

A little rant:

As a pregnant woman who knows that my body does not effectively process sugars and carbs I try to make sure that what I put in my body is good for me and good for my baby. I occasionally have a soda, or fast food chinese or a piece of cake. I do, I have and I will again. I am not a saint. But I am keenly aware that I have a better chance of developing gestational diabetes. I have chosen not to take the glucose test, as I do not believe that dumping all of that sugar into my body at one time is healthy. I would never put my body or baby through that. My dr. and I have agreed that I will have my glucose monitored for the rest of the pregnancy. The mothers group that I am part of is currently going through their glucose tests, and failing. Which in turn brings my palm to face. Seriously? If you know that you have a greater chance for developing gestational diabetes, why wouldn’t you do everything in your power to avoid that? Fast food, sweets and pasta are not good for you and not good for your baby. Stop eating that shit. Now. I started this blog because I wanted to document my struggle to eat right and deal with my body as it pertains to food, weight and PCOS. It has gone the way of a surprising PCOS fertility success story. I started overweight, I admit this and own it. I was 20 pounds over weight, and during this pregnancy (I am 28 weeks now) I have gained a total of 9 pounds, that’s it. I do not use pregnancy to eat whatever I want when I want it, I do not use pregnancy as an excuse. If you are currently a pregnant woman with a history of PCOS and find yourself failing your glucose test, please take responsibility for what food goes into your mouth and the decisions you make.

Snacks: Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese

Is there a better combo? I doubt it. In my previous post I mentioned my well-intentioned aunt  gave a thoughtful but in-a-way-missed-the-mark gift….my guess it was a case of sibling rivalry. You see my other aunt (her sister) lives on an island off of Seattle, and has her own boat, and a boyfriend that loves fishing as much as she does. So the two of them catch huge amounts of wild salmon. For christmas last year during our gift exchange my aunt sent me 50 pounds….50 pounds of fresh, wild caught salmon, boned and filleted, along with a few packages of salmon she had smoked at her house. best christmas gift ever. So, I don’t  really recommend having this snack at work, as the smell might be off-putting to co-workers. But if you are struggling to find a quick snack that will satisfy your hunger without breaking into a carb-induced coma. Try a bit of smoked salmon, cream cheese and substitute your cracker/bagel for a fresh cucumber. (I sprinkled a little dill on top of mine)

Snacks

We had left-over Coq Au Vin for dinner, so I have no new recipes. But I can tell you what my go-to snack is.

 

I am a teacher, which generally means I eat and pee on a bell schedule. I need to be up, dressed, functioning and at school before 7 am. I am not a morning person, and no matter how hard I try to rewire the system I just can’t seem to manage. Ever since I was in high school I get a twinge of morning sickness (maybe PCOS related?) so I generally shy away from breakfast. So my mornings look like a mad rush and a quickly made espresso shoved into a travel mug.

When I finally do get a chance to eat something there are usually at least 3 or 4 students in my room…ALWAYS. So I never have a chance during the day to sit down to a proper meal. But stuffed in my desk drawer is my pre-made snack bag, and I manage to munch on that whenever I get a chance. Nuts have been shown to actually help with PCOS and they are high in protein so they made the perfect snack for that satiated feeling.

Mrs. Clemmerbottom’s Snack Attack:

1 cup raw almonds

1 cup raw walnuts

1 cup raw pecans

2 cups roasted and salted pumpkin seeds (the green ones)

1 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup peanuts or cashews

1 package of Craisins or raisins,

1 package of dried apples or dried cherries.

So I just put them all into a big ziplock bag and have it ready at all times.

Occasionally I will have the foresight to bring something to eat, or if I squeeze my way between the giant hulks of teenage lunch-eaters I can find a salad. But most of the time I can’t be bothered and this at least can get me through the majority of my day.