Back with Banana Ice Cream and Breakfast Sausage

Guess who's back, back again.  Kelly's back, tell a friend! Okay, okay, no more Eminem (for now).  It has been a while since my last post and that's primarily due to a crazy busy last couple of months.  That craziness has not only left me very little time to post on my blog, but it has also distracted me from eating as clean as I should be eating.  Don't get me wrong, I haven't fallen completely off the wagon.  For the most part, I have been eating clean and I have been working out a lot more than I was back in the fall.  (I have somehow taken 4 minutes off my mile since January-wha what!!)  But, there has been this pesky little enemy that has kept me from losing any weight and has caused me to get into a rut when it comes to my eating, I'm talkin' about the weekend! I love the weekend. I get to spend time with Nick and Livi and that typically means doing things outside of our daily routine, which also means the opportunity to try different foods and eat things that I know are not good for me.  Now our goal is to live by the 80/20 rule.  This means we eat clean and wholesome 80% of the time, and allow for special treats here and there.  However, when you are allowing yourself special treats every weekend, there is a problem.  It sets up a cycle where I have done fabulous all week and by Friday I am feeling great.  Great enough to go have chips and salsa at one of our favorite Mexican food restaurants, followed by an ice cream treat.  Then Saturday, of course, there is brunch followed by some more good eats.  By Sunday I'm feeling pretty frustrated and ready to start fresh, but I have essentially sabotaged my progress.  Now if you are not trying to lose weight, this may be a fine practice.  But I am trying to lose weight and this cycle is only causing me to maintain my weight and not lose.
So this weekend, Nick and I had a long talk about this cycle and we have a renewed commitment to eat clean and be consistent, primarily for this little cutie!

One of the things that often motivates me and keeps my good eating on track is experimenting with different foods and recipes.  To say I get bored easily is an understatement.  It's getting warmer here in Texas and one of my favorite warm weather treats is ice cream.  But we all know, ice cream can easily pack on the pounds and ever since I was pregnant with Livi, dairy hasn't been so kind to me.  So, I set out to find a way to create a clean and low-fat ice cream.  I had heard several times of using frozen bananas as an ice cream.  My Grandma used to put whole bananas in the freezer for us when we were little and when we would come in from playing outside, they were cold and delicious! I decided to give turning this childhood favorite into ice cream a go.  I sliced some bananas, froze them, and then threw them in the blender.  Sure enough, they turned into a creamy delight.

I added some Enjoy Life chocolate chips and it tasted pretty close to chocolate chip ice cream (with a banana flare of course!)  At only 2 Weight Watchers points per serving, I don't mind this at all.  And it is clearly Livi approved!

In planning for the week, I decided to tackle one food that I have kept as a staple for Livi, Owens pre-made breakfast sausage.  I'm not a morning person, so anything to make mornings quicker for us is a win.  We typically make Livi eggs and then pop in a pre-made breakfast sausage in the microwave, and with some fruit on her plate she is good to go.  The ingredients aren't the worst I have ever seen for a processed food, but they aren't the best (after all, what exactly are the "natural flavorings"?).

My goal this week was a clean breakfast sausage for Livi.  So I bought some organic ground pork, added some spices, formed into patties and cooked up some sausages.  Which one would you choose?

Now, they don't taste exactly like sausage, probably because I did not add salt or any other type of sodium product to the mix, but they taste pretty good.  Another bonus, the pack of pork cost me about $3.50 for a pound and cooked up 12 patties.  The box of Owens sausage I typically buy is about $3.50 for 8 pre-made patties.  Eating clean on a budget can be done!

I am excited about this renewed commitment and I will never give up on this journey because Livi deserves healthy parents and healthy food.  Sure there will be ups and downs, but that's life!

Here's to a clean and great week!