Seriously. I live on a planet where cake is plentiful. It has always been around. It will always be around. And the truth is, I don’t really want to live on a planet where there is NEVER any cake around. I don’t want to be held hostage by it. I for sure don’t want to feel like a helpless victim of it. I don’t want to eat it all the time. The truth is, I hardly ever want to eat it. But I do want it there once in a while. Cake is the perfect mixture of sweet and fat, with a little salt mixed in. Yes, Dr. Kessler, it is a problem for me. Or, to quote the King of Siam, “IS a Puzzlement!”
So what’s the solution? Sooorry, I don’t have a solution. As I told BIF Jill, if I had the answer to that, I would probably be a multi-billionaire, and worshipped by millions of fat Americans all across the country. But I do know a few things that work for me, and a few that don’t, so I thought I’d share them here.
- Don’t keep it in the house. I pretty much follow this rule all the time now. Because in the old Weight Watcher’s days, I would make various types of cakes (cake mix and a bottle of diet soda anyone?) and portion it out, and freeze the pieces. Cake does freeze well, in case anyone is interested. But that’s basically too much cake to keep around for one person. And if its there, it WILL be eaten.
- Try alternative recipes. There are some really good recipes out there that either have minimal sugar in them, or completely eliminate sugar and use ripe bananas or dates as a natural sweetener. Some of these recipes are VERY healthy, but can still be pretty high in calories, so you have to be aware of that. Two of my favorite dessert recipe sites: Katie and Georgie.
- Develop your own recipes. For me, that if a recipe has 1/2 cup or less of sugar, it doesn’t cause me as many problems. ‘Problems’ being that I can’t stop eating them. Case in point: I made Katie’s delicious snickerdoodle blondie recipe. Yes, it was a relatively healthy recipe. I think Calorie Count gave it an A- (I love it that they grade their recipes.) But it had 3/4 cup of sugar in the recipe. And yep. I couldn’t stop eating them.
- Avoid the breakroom? I did this for at least a year and a half, when I was actively losing weight. Now I wonder how I did it.
- Eat it last. Seriously, this solution actually works very well for me . If I am being disciplined at a potluck, and I do want a dessert, I will take it and put it away, and save it for the end of the day. Because if I eat it early in the day, I WILL continue to eat sweets that are sitting out. I don’t seem to have any problem going back to disciplined eating the next morning.
I don’t claim to be an expert on weight loss or weight maintenance. (See above comment about being a multi-billionaire.) Heck, truth is I’m struggling mightily right now. I was completely in control the whole stressful week after my dad died. But then the world went wackie, and it seemed, EVERY OTHER DAY I didn’t care. And then, can I tell you that the very first day I went back to work, they had the potluck to end all potlucks? Yes, me + stress of being back at work + celebrating a co-worker’s retirement + unlimited goodies = ...what does it equal? A LOT of calories consumed. Followed by a day at home completely in control of myself and my food. Like, I said, I’m no expert. But I do have a few tried and true tools in my belt. And I do have fun developing new healthified recipes. I got such a kick out of thinking up that clafouti recipe. Here’s another new one I dreamed up on my way home from church today. I had some delicious strawberries from the farmer’s market on my back seat. And I thought, I suppose I’ll just eat them with cottage cheese. Nothin’ wrong with that. Not too exciting though. Then I thought, ooh, I’d really like them with some sugar-free vanilla pudding. THEN I thought, hey, how about combining the pudding with the cottage cheese? Yumm. Now that’s really starting to appeal to me. Then I got home and I had no more sugar free vanilla pudding in the cupboard. Because yeah, I’m trying to healthify the foods I keep in the house. Oh, but there was a package of Knox gelatin in the place where I usually keep the pudding. Hmmm. Read one of the recipes on the gelatin box, and came up with this combination:
What shall I call it? Cottage pudding? Pretty healthy, and pretty good stats for a light dessert. 4g carbs, 13.5 g protein, 125 calories. (not counting the fruit topping.) Okay, I just took a break from blogging so I could taste-test it. Very tasty. Not sure its recipe-worthy yet. Might adjust the amounts a little–more ‘pudding,’ less cottage cheese.
Changing the topic rapidly, here’s what I cooked up for lunch. When I was little, the only way my mom could get any of us kids to eat eggs was to make ‘eggie reggies.’ That’s scrambled eggs with little bits of fried potatoes mixed in. This is my grown-up version of eggie reggies. Very similar to my Skillet Scramble recipe. Only I had fresh eggs from the farmer’s market, and even a home-grown potato from the farmer’s market! Mmmm mmmm!
While I was typing, Mr. Monk was going to town on his favorite bone. For an old guy with bad teeth, he sure does enjoy chewing. Cracks me up.
Over and out. Back to work tomorrow–time and a half for the holiday! Seven shifts left!!! And a week from today I will be in Cambria for rug hooking camp!!!!!
debby weighs in 
MR Monk ! what a sweetie. He’s just a sweet little ol man gnawing on a bone.
I’m working with a new dietitian and working on (a transition to) Intuitive Eating..I’ve been struggling with either eating out of control or binges with strict low cal dieting . The one sets up and leads to the other -the big circle. Neither works for me so I’m looking for the middle. My plan with the dietitian is still pretty structured, but basically a diabetic exhange diet with flexibility. If I know I can have it, I won’t obsess and can plan to have it. I’m still learning this. Having some success but not perfect.
The point is some basic guidelines are still needed. Your list is on the money. ..certain things are super triggers fo rme that I can’t control right now. Best to not have them in the house.
Cake is one of those things that I’m not often around (working at home changes that work eating thing). So on the rare occasion I’m around cake, I have it. I just can’t buy a cake and have it here..or make it. That cherry clafouuti thing seems doable and I just happen to have all of the ingredients..maybe later this week..
Thanks for the ‘on the money’ affirmation–you’re one that I consider really knows the ropes.
Yep to the basic guidelines. Yep to the triggers that can’t be in the house. I think working with a dietitian who ‘gets’ our eating issues is something that would benefit anyone who struggles.
I really admire you for how far you have come, how much you have struggled, and how you continue to persevere.
Mr. Monk is so sweet. That one picture looks like he is sleeping and dreaming of his bone 😀
I have those rules with certain foods as well, and they look a lot like yours! Twins and all that.
I love the way Mr. Monk is holding his bone – and he is the picture of pure contentment. Life is good, Monkey!
Totally agree with you on the whole not keeping cake (or other temptations) in the house. I need to be safe from myself. Interesting about the small amounts of sugar not being such a trigger for you – I wonder if that’s why I do pretty well with not going loco after having Red Mango, but a bag of M&Ms (same amount of calories) will start my cravings something fierce.
Woot woot for 7 shifts left! 🙂
Monkey is one of Monk’s many nicknames. For unknown reasons, Fuzz is the one I use most often. It’s short for Fuzbucket, again, unknown reasons.
Yep, I do think the frozen yogurt has less sugar than M&M’s.
I am sorry you are struggling. The AFTER usually bites us in the butt. Do not feel alone. We seem to have able to hang on at the time, when we have to, then things become very tough. If it is tough, it probably means you are not shoving it down and are dealing on some level (don’t you think?) and that is good (in a backwards kind of way).
Very interteresting self food observation (the end of the day food thing).
I had a non-weight problem friend who used to eat a fudgesicke at the very end of the day if her food had been in line all day. She did this after the family had been fed, the kitchen was clean/closed for the night. She would eat her fudgesickle, brush her teeth and be done with food for the day. (When I say non-weight problem friend, I mean no triggers, food was just food, was able to maintain her weight.)
I hope you’re right about dealing on some level. Now I want a fudgecicle LOL.
I so hear you on the cake. I don’t keep it in the house. If we do have one i try to make it from scratch but i don’t skimp on anything. I make it full fat, full sugar etc…… Its allowed to stay in my house for one day then i send it off to work with my husband. Them are the rules! LOL!
Love the pic of Mr. Monk sleeping with his bone. Aaawww!
I’m so excited for you Debby! Your retirement is sooo close!Aren’t these last shifts HARD??? I know the last two weeks of my job was a killer.
Hugs! deb
I like that idea–making a great cake from scratch and then only allowing it in the house for one day.
At first I was all, “how did I miss this post?” then I realized, oh yeah, holiday weekend!
I love a good skillet scramble! The hubs and I used to call it the Sunday Special because we would make it on Sunday mornings. We put everything but the kitchen sink in there and just oooh and aaah to our hearts content!
I like your list. Keeping it out of the house is a problem for me, just because I’m so USED to it being there. It’s hard to change our shopping habits. 😦
You’ll get your groove back. As long as we keep trying, it will come back. 🙂
laughed at oohing and aahing over your own cooking. I do that too. I ate it leftover today. It was just as good. I don’t know why I wait so long to have it.
You are right on the money with those tips. Eating it last is a great idea. And Monkey dreaming with his bone is just precious.
Great post Debby and I’m sure a great exercise for you putting that stream of consciousness in black and white. Because I don’t want to totally remove anything from my diet, what I’ve found that works for me goes along with your first point: don’t have too much of anything available. So, I try to only have one portion of treat like foods in my house. For example, I have a cake bakery around the corner from so when I get in the mood for cake, I go there and buy 1 cupcake (well 2 because Mr. Helen needs one too). It satisfied the craving but there’s no option for overdoing it.
The clafoutti you made looks delicious! I happen to have blueberries and cherries right now so it seems I will need to try and make that.
I tend not to keep cake in the house, either. Or cookies. It’s odd–I can have bags and bags of chocolates in the cupboards and I faithfully dole them out in proper portions. But the baked goods are another story entirely. 🙂
Love the photos of Mr. Monk!