Sunday, November 11, 2007

Persimmon fun for kids

I made this interesting accidental discovery the other day. If you blend fuyu persimmons in a Vita Mix (not sure if another blender would work or not) and leave the mixture to sit for a couple hours, it sets into a jello-like consistency. Why?? No idea. I had forgotten to pick up my persimmon smoothie off the kitchen counter when I went to pick up my son from preschool, and when I returned I had to bang on the bottom of the cup to extract my erstwhile drink.

That fostered the idea of making fun shapes for kids -- desserts, if you will -- out of blended fuyus. I made these two lovely creations (photo above) using sand molds. You could also do something with cookie cutters. I also added some cinnamon and a tad of honey, but plain-old persimmons work great too.

Yesterday, despite this kitchen creativity, was a difficult day. At one point I thought I just couldn't take it anymore, and was literally counting minutes, looking at the clock, thinking, "Can I make it another minute?". This was not, as you may have guessed, a strategy which brought me much relief from my cravings. I just wasn't feeling satisfied. I did end up having a whole avocado on my salad in the evening (the alternative would have been something like pasta, I figured). I still felt like I had a bottomless pit for a stomach, and was quite irritable. Then I added a couple bananas, a few plums, and some dates to my meal, and, hallelujah! then I felt passable, making it through the night.

Today I've felt pretty good. My good moments still are not necessarily a walk in the park: I don't want to be eating fruit at meals, I really don't, but I'm glad that if I eat enough of it my my mental chatter seems to soften slightly.

I really want to make it through the initial withdrawal this time. It's a doozy. I have never in my life actually not had food cravings, so it's hard for me to imagine what that might be like. I would love to get there, and I'm trying as hard as I can right now to pay the price of admission.

6 comments:

Swayze said...

You are not alone in having cravings, as I have had them for the past few days. I have managed them by eating more nuts, which really does not help. And I know what you mean about not having cravings...I really cannot imagine it! I know that it is possible, but "Hungry Swayze" keeps insisting that is it not and that I will always want cooked food. :)

Jamie said...

Hi there. I found your blog through a comment on crazysexycancer. And what a great thing I did! I haven't took the full plunge into a complete diet change as of yet but I'm gradually making changes and so I'm happy about that. It's so great to know that others have found it difficult too. I have a huge issue with food and cravings and self-control! I'm certainly adding your blog to my list of growing favorites!

Stacy said...

Thanks for reading. It keeps me going!

Sarah said...

Eat more fruit Stacy! It really does help with the cravings. 2 bananas and a plum would barely get me thorugh a couple of hours...

When I first started on this, another 811 named Bethany kept leaving comments on my blog, telling me I wasn't eating enough. And guess what, she was right. I decided to really try to eat "as much as I care for" and push it a little, and that truly was the trick to banishing the urgent cravings.

You're doing great! Oh and thanks for the persimmons tip, how cool!

Stacy said...

Thanks, Sarah. I'm trying to eat like 500-600 calorie meals, at least. I'm having issues around nothing being ripe, but, yeah, I'm trying to eat as much as I can. Good nudge though!

Rachel said...

How Cute Stacy!! Loved the persimmon creation!