for the lasagna - because this turned out really good... I layered all the usual suspects but used sliced (lengthwise) zucchini that I cooked just a bit in a grill pan rather than lasagna noodles. Last time I made lasagna I sliced (lengthwise) some left over noodles into ribbons about a half an inch wide and wound them up into sort of birds nests - about two noodles at a time and put them in a plastic bag in the freezer. I took a package out and on top of the zucchini layers I made a large lattice design with the noodle ribbons. I used two noodles in the entire 9 X 13 pan and it was just enough to give it the noodle flavor and texture but saved a heck of a lot of carbs! It also helps to make sure the top of the lasagna gets really crisp and chewy. I think that's the part everyone loves most. I did eat both kinds of fish and some cabbage. The cabbage was crisp tender and I made up a quick wasabi sauce with the prepared wasabi paste and soy sauce and dipped the cabbage in it. I also had a small piece of lasagna. My blood sugar was 101 this morning and 154.3 for the gross tonnage measurement. Not really going down much last week or so but I'm ok with that right now. I am happy to have stayed in the range considering all the cashews I have eaten lately. Those things are as addictive as any drug out there!
Now for the carbonated water part... I love to make drinks using carbonated water. Usually something easy like maybe a couple of sliced strawberries and a lime wedge, a little splenda. Just makes it more fun to drink a lot of water - which helps me not feel as hungry. I buy lots of it every week at the store. Last week I got an email from Williams Sonoma - one of my favorite stores and they were advertising water carbonators. I've been thinking about buying one - it seems like I'm always out of seltzer water so when I saw that I got really interested and checked it out. I noticed the brand "SodaStream" and wondered if they had a website - if maybe I get one cheaper through the manufacturer and sure enough they sold them online directly as well as in cooking stores like William Sonoma. It was a bit less expensive too so I had to have one and ordered it. It arrived on Friday afternoon. I left it in the box that night as we had a lot going on with the folks and Daniel and Aubrey here visiting. By Saturday I just couldn't stand it any more... even though I had two bottles of seltzer water in the pantry... and still do. I opened it up and was excited to see the fun little syrup samples they included to make your own soda if you are into that. I scanned the instructions and it seemed pretty simple... fill the bottle with tap water. We have the chilled water in the fridge door so I was excited for instant seltzer water... screw it onto the machine - which was red :) like many of my other small appliances and press the button about three times rapidly - until you hear a "buzz" three times then you are done. So I did all that and I could tell it was all sparkly in the bottle so with great anticipation and joy I unscrewed the bottle and the entire contents of the bottle fizzed out - more like exploded all over me and the kitchen. It was a hot day and after I recovered from the shock I decided I had just purchased a wonderful cooling gadget. Very refreshing! Just imaging...chilled sparkling water all over my body! I decided I better clean it up and pretty darn quick before Dave came in and gave me the smirk which would so clearly say... I told you so. That was a stupid idea... I'm going to have to kill you now. Alright... that would actually have been my reaction to something stupid he did but all he needs to do is "the smirk". That says it all! The only audience I had was Daniel so I figured I was safe... except that just at that moment Carol drove up to bring me cabbage plants and a beautiful head of green cabbage and wanted to know why there was water and towels all over the floor. I'm glad I could provide so much enjoyment for her! I thought she was going to pass out from laughing. Eventually I figured out that where I went wrong was way back at the beginning when I "scanned" the directions. See... there's a little built in pressure release function that I somehow missed... Oh brother! I have since figured it out though and now I'm doing all sorts of experimenting. I discovered just this morning if you add sugar free French vanilla syrup (like the stuff they use at coffee stands) to the seltzer water it tastes very much like cream soda. To quote the Barefoot Contessa... "how bad could that be?" Right now I have a 16 oz sippy bottle full of ice, seltzer water with blueberries and satsuma orange sections chilling on my desk. I have drank substantially more water since Saturday and will slow down only when the co2 cartridge needs to be replaced (or when I get tired of peeing every 10 minutes). I'll have to order more co2 but one canister will carbonate 60 liters of water so I'm good for just a while. Tomorrow I have an appointment for blood work to see how successful this little diet experiment has been and how improved my average blood sugar and cholesterol levels (and other things) are. The review apt is Thursday. Wish me luck. I really don't want to have to take the meds for diabetes if I don't have to or until it's no longer able to be controlled by diet. This morning I was discussing that with my mom and she said, "well you're doing so well with your diet that you probably won't have to worry about that until you are in your 50's." !!! Come on Mama I think I'm there now! :)
Enjoy your Monday... even if it's Monday that's better than... being in the box! Ciao!
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