Recipe Re-Do: Even Better BBQ Sauce

July 3, 2015July 3, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I was trying to come up with a good 4th of July recipe to give you guys today. I had some really awesome ideas, but they all involved a grill. Sadly, I don’t own a grill and didn’t have access to one in time to make any of my awesome ideas. That’s ok though, I’ll have some great grilled recipes for you later this summer.

In lieu of a grilled recipe, I thought that I would go back and re-visit some of my other BBQ-worthy recipes. I decided that my Quick BBQ Sauce could use a little make over. And what could be more important to a BBQ than the BBQ sauce? Beer, but that is beside the point.

I didn’t change too much to the ingredient list, but I did change the way you make the sauce. It does take a little longer, but it makes the flavor even better. And because it’s easy to double or triple you can whip up a big batch of this sauce for your 4th of July party and put it on everything. Maybe not the beer…

Even Better BBQ Sauce- adapted from my Quick and Delicious BBQ Sauce Recipe

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce, no salt added
1 tbsp maple syrup or honey
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp liquid aminos or tamari sauce
1 1/2 tsp grainy mustard
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano

Add all ingredients to a small saucepan. Mix well
Bring the sauce to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes until it has thickened.
Remove the pan from heat and let it cool completely before moving to a jar or squeeze bottle. Keep the sauce in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.

Health Feature: Meet Jim Kruczinski

June 30, 2015June 30, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

Hello, everyone! I hope that you had a great weekend and are ready for the week ahead. I got to spend some time with family this past week, helping get ready for a wedding. It was fun and I learned that I am a pasta making master! I’m pretty sure I earned the title Nonna Katie after preparing 70 lbs of pasta. Whew! But it was great to help out and see family and the wedding was beautiful despite the monsoon that was going on outside.

Today I have a new feature for the blog. Each month I am going to be highlighting someone who has totally turned their health around. I talk a lot about being healthier and making good choices here. I think talk is good, but action is the only way you will get the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. I want to show you just what hard work and dedication can get you when you finally make the choice to live healthier. I hope these features will motivate you as well as applaud all the hard work these people have put in!

Our first feature is Jim. Jim and I went to high school together and were in marching band together. We also had chemistry together our sophomore year, but I don’t know if he remembers that! Jim was someone who was always friendly and willing to help. Many a time he bailed me out of a chemistry disaster when he was my lab partner and was always gracious about my science shortfalls. Thanks, Jim!

After high school, we went our separate ways and sort of lost touch, but thanks to Facebook I saw all the things he was up to. Around last year, I was scrolling through my facebook feed and a picture of Jim popped up. I was shocked because he had lost a ton of weight. I started seeing posts of him running numerous races and seeing updates with before and after pictures. It was incredible and I was so impressed with all the hard work he had been doing to turn his life around. Jim was actually the one who inspired me to start this new feature. I contacted him with the idea and he graciously agreed to be the first. I asked him a few questions about how he had turned his health around and his advice to others who were in the same position he was.

What did you weigh before and how much weight have you lost?

When I started my weight loss journey on January 8th, 2014, I weighed 408.5 pounds. In the past year and a half, I have lost approximately 220 pounds.

What made you want to lose weight and be healthier?

I got to a point where I was no longer comfortable in my body. It was getting hard to move around. I had to be careful where I sat especially with stadium or airplane seats.

What also helped me realize I needed help was the constant prodding from my sister. One night she got really angry at me and said “Jim, you don’t care about yourself!” At first I was upset, but eventually I realized that she was right. It was after that confrontation that made me search for the program I got into.

What were the first things you changed when you started out?

I started with being on an all protein shake diet for 10 months while taking nutrition and exercise classes. Please note that this was under supervision by a doctor. I work with a special program at Lutheran General Hospital. It is called Advocate Weight Loss. (http://goo.gl/84EYf6) Also, I got more active by walking more and taking the stairs instead of the elevator.

What did a typical day look like before you started?

I would wake up at 6 am and get ready for work. Next I would head over to a McDonalds on my way to work and order a breakfast burrito meal with a large sweet tea. I would start work, which consists of sitting in front of a computer. I would order lunch at my work’s cafeteria. Then go back to work. After I was done with my day job I would go to McDonalds/Panera for dinner. I would finish my night teaching/tutoring GED students. When I got home I would have a snack and go to bed.

What was your goal when you first started?

I wanted to be under 300 pounds and become more active. I wanted to fit easier into places and be able to shop for clothes at regular retail stores.

How did you change your diet? What does a typical day look like now?

Now I basically pack all my meals at the beginning of the day so I don’t have to go out to eat. I now eat more fruits and vegetables. I eat lean meat such as grilled chicken and turkey. I reduced my consumption of bread and sweets. I don’t drink soda or sweet teas. I primarily drink just water. I try to drink 96-128 oz of water every day.

How did you chart/ follow your progress?

I use the myfitnesspal on my iPhone and I use the FitBit app to track my steps and runs.

What do you do for exercise?

I work on strength training with a personal trainer 1-2 times a week and participate in my gym’s bootcamps, spin classes, and run club every week. I try to run at least a mile every day.

What is your biggest challenge?

At the moment, my biggest challenge is portion control with certain foods such as with cereal.

What do you do to keep yourself motivated?

I look at old photos of myself and think of how far I have come. I also focus on what I need to do to fulfill my current goals.

What are your health goals now?

Increase my muscular strength. Maintain my current weight. I am also currently trying to train up for a half marathon.

Who has been your biggest supporter throughout your weight loss?

My family have been my biggest supporters. They check in on me from time to time and give me encouraging words.

Any advice for those who are just starting out?

Only think about one day at a time. Thinking about how long it will take to get down to your goal weight can be daunting. Also appreciate the little changes, such as losing a pant size or being able to walk an extra 20 minutes. Don’t be afraid to ask for help or support. For exercising I suggest getting involved with a workout class. It creates camaraderie with other people and also helps you stay committed to working out.

You can obviously see that Jim has put it in a lot of hard work to get to where he is now. He knew that he didn’t want to stay where he was and started making changes to achieve his goals. I LOVE his advice about taking it one day at a time. Health starts with small simple changes that lead to big results.

Thank you so much, Jim for being my first feature and keep up the awesome work!

Blog Recipe Roundup

June 26, 2015June 23, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 2 Comments

Happy Friday! I don’t know about you, but it has been HOT here this week. The heavy, muggy, wet, kind of hot. It seems like summer is either cool or super hot, there is no in between. I guess it could be worse and at least it isn’t snowing sideways anymore.

I don’t have a new recipe for you this week, but I do have some delicious things that I have found on some of the blogs that I follow regularly. I think it’s good to share a little blog love and I hope that you find something here that strikes your fancy. Enjoy!

Eating Bird Food- Chocolate Banana Overnight Oats

Have you ever tried overnight oats? If not, then you need to jump on the bandwagon. Not only are they delicious, it’s the perfect breakfast for a busy morning because you can make it the night before. Plus chocolate and banana are born to be together.

Kath Eats Real Food- Orange Dill Bean Salad

This is the perfect dish to bring to a summer BBQ or party. It’s easy to put together and you don’t have to use the oven which is a must on hot summer days.

Cotter Crunch- Gluten Free Spicy Rice Noodles

I could eat noodles for every meal. Sorry, I’m not sorry. I like the versatility of this dish and it’s a perfect summer dinner!

PaleOMG- Watermelon Mint Granita

Ok, this looks amazing. Whenever it’s super hot out all I want is ice cold watermelon. I feel like this is going to be a regular around here this summer…

Monday I’m going to be introducing a new feature for my blog, so make sure you come back and check that out! It’s gonna be a good one! Have a great weekend!

DIY Wednesday: Grainy Mustard

June 24, 2015June 23, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I love mustard. I put it on everything. Sandwiches, vegetables, pasta, rolls, spoons… Yes, I have eaten mustard right out of the jar. I love the spicy bite that it adds and I especially like the texture of a good, grainy mustard. After peanut butter, I would say that mustard is my favorite spread.

Which is why it’s shocking to me that I have never made my own. I mean, it’s fairly simple. Mustard seeds, some vinegar, salt, and turmeric is all it takes to make standard mustard. Once you get that down, you can get fancy and make honey mustard or horseradish mustard or spicy mustard. You can make it super smooth or keep it nice and grainy. The possibilities are endless.

Here is the basic mustard recipe. Once you get this down, you can play with some variations and have an endless supply of mustard. That sounds like heaven, doesn’t it?

Grainy Mustard

1/4 cup yellow mustard seeds
1/4 cup brown mustard seeds
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp turmeric
water, as needed

Add mustard seeds and apple cider vinegar into a small bowl and make sure all of the seeds are submerged. Let the seeds soak for a day or two.
Add everything into a blender. Blend until the mustard reaches the consistency you would like. If you want a smoother, thinner mustard blend for a longer time and add a little water to smooth things out. For a grainier texture, blend for a shorter amount of time and don’t use as much water.
Store in a sealed container in the fridge.

I don’t think that I will buy mustard again after realizing how easy it is to make my own. Plus, I can make my own specialty mustard for much cheaper. I’m all about homemade and less expensive!

A Few Thoughts On Food

June 22, 2015June 22, 2015 / ktbuchs87

Food is a complex thing.

On the surface, it’s just fuel to keep our bodies functioning. But we know that it is so much more than that. It is social, it is cultural, it is pleasurable, it is creative, it is tradition, and unfortunately it is sometimes the enemy.

I don’t know exactly when food became such a problem. If you think back to our ancestors, they didn’t really give much thought to food in regards to good or bad food. They knew that they needed to eat and that meant hunting, gathering, and cooking. There weren’t really off-limit foods. There weren’t junk food aisles at their local store, candy bars didn’t surround the cash register tempting them as they waited to pay, and while they had parties and gatherings with special dishes, they enjoyed them and then moved on with their life.

Somewhere along the line, food started to get more troublesome. We started mass producing food and creating products out of things that you wouldn’t necessarily find in a home kitchen. We moved away from making our own meals and started relying heavily on other sources like restaurants or meal services to provide. Diets started emerging each promising to fix all our myriad of health problems. All of these things combined has led to huge amounts of confusion when it comes to what food we should eat.

I have been there with the thousands of Americans who have no clue what is healthy and what isn’t. It’s hard when you have advertising for all of these products claiming to be healthy when in fact they aren’t any better than the junk food we know isn’t good for us. I’ve done my fair share of diets and cleanses and fasts and made food out to be the enemy of all my weight problems. Don’t get me wrong, food is a huge part of being healthy even more so than exercise. But it doesn’t need to be a complicated headache.

When things finally started clicking for me it was when I simplified my food. I stopped buying food in packages and that had commercials and marketing campaigns. I started using more fruits and vegetables and making all my meals. I learned how to cook and make things taste good without store bought sauces or dressings. I tried to stop stressing out over food and feed my body what it needs.

It’s an ongoing process. I still have times where I have a rocky relationship with food and I have to remind myself to simplify. Food doesn’t need to be a huge stress in your life. It will take some work to change the way you view and eat food, but it can go back to being pleasurable, social, cultural, and traditional instead of the enemy. Eat simply and if you have to wonder about a certain food then you probably don’t need it.