Week 1 of cooking through Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook.
2020 has started off with quite a few changes for our family! They are all good and positive changes but changes none the less.
On January 1, I started a new a no spend January challenge. You don’t realize how often you pull out your debit card until you make a resolution not to! The other change has been recommitting to a Trim Healthy Mama lifestyle. The Christmas cookies and parties derailed me a bit but I’m back on plan 100% this week.
And it feels good. Aside from just being back on plan, I have also started my quest to cook through the entire Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook.
This is cooking through Trim Healthy Mama Week 1. The first week of exactly what I made, what I thought, tips and tricks & costs!
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Cooking Through Trim Healthy Mama Week 1
Here is what I made on the first week:
Cashew Chicken Pg 65
Lentil Soup Pg 89
Cheeseburger Pie Pg 149
Winter Wonderland Sip Pg 405
Cranberry Wassail Pg 406
Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook Recipes
Cashew Chicken Pg 65
Overall Impression: Everyone in my family really liked this recipe. I thought it was nice to have an Asian sauce that I could make without resorting to a bottle of Teriyaki sauce that would surely be off plan.
Total Cost:
Chicken: $5.66
Sauce : $2.11
Veggies $2.33
Cauli Rice $1.87
Total: $11.97
Tips & Tricks:
The sisters use their blender WAY more than I am willing to. The sauce works just fine in the skillet. Just throw it all in the skillet that you cooked the chicken in and save yourself some dishes.
I also used a frozen asian stir fry blend of veggies to make it quicker (no washing/slicing veggies). The blend I used had the little mini corn cobs, so you would want to avoid most of those.
Subs:
I omitted the fish sauce because I didn’t have it. I also used Xantham gum in place of the Gluccie. I also used the same amount of gentle sweet as a sub for super sweet.
Lentil Soup Pg 89
Overall Impression: My husband and I were the only ones that ate this soup. I thought it was good although not overwhelmingly amazing.
Total Cost: <$4
This was incredibly inexpensive and made a ton! Like a literal ton. We have eaten about 8-9 bowls and have about 1/2 left! I will freeze the rest for some easy and cheap lunches later on.
Tips & Tricks:
I soaked the lentils in the crockpot for several hours and then cooked the soup in the slow cooker on low for several hours. Making for a cheap and easy meal.
I recommend adding a Light Laughing Cow wedge to your bowl to add a little extra flavor and creaminess. And Tabasco. Lots of hot sauce!
Subs:
I omitted the nutritional yeast and Just gelatin because I don’t keep it on hand.
Cheeseburger Pie Pg 149
Overall Impression: This was pretty good to me but the rest of my family really liked it so it changed it to a win for me.
Total Cost: 13.32
Tips & Tricks:
I topped it with ketchup, mustard and sliced jalapenos.
Subs:
I made this exactly according to the cookbook with the exception of using regular table salt in place of the mineral salt.
Winter Wonderland Sip Pg 405
Overall Impression: I have pretty much fallen in love with this. A head cold was making me feel pretty crummy this week and the peppermint really helped to give my sinuses some relief. And it tastes like winter in a cup.
Total Cost: .70 per batch (so several mugs full)
Tips & Tricks:
A mini crockpot is great for this sipper. I made it up in the morning and put the sipper in the crockpot on low. Then it was ready all day for a quick and easy cup.
I actually made this several times. The first time I resisted the strong urge to ignore the blender instructions and just stir but I went ahead and used the blender.
The second time, I skipped the blender (because I don’t have time for all that). It definitely did taste better when blended. I’m not sure why but trust me and get your blender out.
Subs:
The only sub that I made was using 2 year old Gentle Sweet in place of the Super Sweet. A few things – first, I didn’t die from old Gentle Sweet! So that was cool. Also, I used the same measurement as the Super Sweet and it was plenty sweet for me.
Cranberry Wassail Pg 406
Overall Impression: This was good and I liked it. I wish I had not made it the same week as the Winter Wonderland Sip because I loved that one so much.
Total Cost: Approximately $3.50 (I can’t remember how much I paid for the fresh cranberries exactly and they are now out of stock at the grocery)
Tips & Tricks:
Definitely don’t forget the filter to strain out the fruit. After I strained the liquid off, I took all the cooked fruit, spices and cinnamon sticks and put them in my mini crockpot with some additional water. I let it simmer and it made my house smell wonderful!
Subs:
You may not believe it but I didn’t sub one thing!
I didn’t make everything that I had hoped to make this week but overall I was happy with all of the recipes that I tried. Hope you will continue to follow along as I cook my way through the entire Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook!
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