Supermarket Sweep

The other day I was at the grocery store, feeling like a little stroll through the aisles. My trips to the supermarket have changed quite a bit since last October. There are now aisles that I never even bother going down because it's all overly processed, fatty junk. I start in the produce and spend a fair amount of time there looking for bargains and good quality.  Then I go down the dressings aisle, looking for healthy alternatives for salads and vegetables. Go through the canned fruit, if I feel the need, pasta and pasta sauce aisle, organic/health food aisle, frozen fruits and vegetables, frozen soy burgers, dairy and tortilla aisle. Done. Oh, and once in awhile, the pop aisle. :)

Anyway, on Monday, I went to the store I go to less often. I just wanted to see what they had that I might have been missing, so I walked down more aisles than usual. I found a couple of new things I thought I'd mention.

First off, I went down the organic aisle and found another kind of natural, no-additives yogurt called Seven Stars. My only gripe with Cultural Revolution (which I mentioned earlier) is that my co-op doesn't sell the low-fat in plain, only vanilla. I can get the low-fat plain in Seven Stars, and the price is comparable, so I tried it. It's fantastic! Just like European yogurt--thinner consistency, similar tartness. Yum. It's made in Pennsylvania, so if I can get it in La Crosse, you can probably get it wherever you are--more likely than Cultural Revolution anyway. You might look in your organic aisle next time you're there.

Then there was a little collection of sale items and I found two items that I've fallen in love with.  The first is instant steel-cut (aka Irish) oats by McCann's. I said before that this kind of oatmeal is healthier than regular, but they take 20-25 minutes to cook. This instant stuff takes just a couple of minutes. The taste isn't as fresh and good, but they're still really good. I took them to work for any unexpected hunger surges. I brought in some cinnamon to sweeten them naturally, and I keep raisins at work all the time, which works great with them as well. On Tuesday or Wednesday I got really hungry, so I made myself a bowl, and it completely satisfied me for four points (with oats, cinnamon and raisins).

I also found some new stir fry sauce: Wasabi Teriyaki. Holy flippin' crap, it is GOOD. I used it with some of that broccoli slaw and vegetables, and it was the best dinner I've had in awhile. Then the next night, I decided to try a little bit for a salad dressing. Also excellent. It's not super low cal, but it's not terrible. I think 1/4 cup is a point or two, so that's reasonable. As a salad dressing, you would use just a little, so then it's really no big deal. It's spicy and sweet and delicious...try it!

So there are a few new ideas of things to look for.

On a final note, last night my friend gave me a little coconut cream pie tart. She was kind enough, not only to buy it for me, but also to express concern that I might not want it because it's bad for me. However, I chose to eat it without guilt. Totally worth it. It's just a reminder that even though I'm a healthy eater now, I can still enjoy decadence from time to time. I have learned to see food as fuel rather than simple pleasure, but I still want the pleasurable stuff to be a part of my life and a part of my health plan!