Normalizing

Yesterday was a pretty lazy day, although I did cross off 50-plus items at the grocery store. I guess that counts for something. And I'll just say right here and now that Saturday is my absolute worst day for grocery shopping. Were it not an emergency (read that: people at risk of starvation), I would have held off until Monday. And since that wasn't the case, I just closed my eyes, held my nose, and made my way down the aisles. I'll just add that this was much to the consternation of my fellow shoppers because having my eyes closed meant I kept running into everybody. Eventually I just started yelling, "Coming through! Move aside! I can't control it!" in the same way I do when I'm on the ski slope. Not that I ski any more, but I used to make some feeble attempts. But I digress, which is normal for me, and in keeping with the title of my post.

Just now I interrupted what I was writing about below because I realized I'd written several paragraphs with no pictures. That simply will not do, so I came back here to post a bonus picture of the aspen trees we saw on the way home. You're welcome.

So another normal thing for me on the first day back from a trip is to start my annual diet. I believe this is at least the sixth anniversary of my annual diet. I have lost and gained the same 10 pounds (or so) every October for the past half-dozen years. And yes, my goal includes more than 10 pounds. Oh well. I didn't gain anything on this trip, which is saying something. Nevertheless, I'm going to make yet another stab at losing some weight, and THIS TIME I REALLY MEAN IT. And I have to say that too because I say it every year. At least I have a head start this year having sort of a half-established exercise routine in place. (Did you catch the "sort of" and "half-established" part of that sentence? I mention that just to inspire confidence in you, dear readers.)

And you might be asking why I'm bringing this up. And, lucky you, I'm just about to tell you.

On the day we left Dubois, Wyoming, we had breakfast at the Cowboy Cafe. Another normal thing for us is to start eating at restaurants the last few days of a trip because we've eaten all of our food, and we're too lazy to go to the grocery store by that time; hence, the people at risk of starvation mentioned above. All of that to say that I had the most delicious breakfast called "Pesto Sourdough Starter". As I was eating it, I realized that it was a simple dish, low in calories, and that I could easily make it myself at home. And so I did. This morning. And now I'm going to tell you how to do it so you can make it yourself.

Pay attention because I'm only going to say this once. Get yourself an egg, a slice of bread, and two slices of tomato. Toast the bread to your liking. While the bread is toasting, spray a non-stick pan with cooking spray and then crack your egg into the pan, toss in your tomato slices and fry it all up.

You can make your eggs any way you like. I happen to like mine over easy. The tomatoes are really just in there to heat them up a little. You don't want cold tomatoes on your hot breakfast. Besides, heating them up makes them just a tad more flavorful. Don't overdo it, or they'll turn to mush.

I'm all out of homemade pesto, but I bought some at the grocery store yesterday. This brand is pretty darned good.

Once your bread is toasted, spread about a tablespoon of pesto on it.

Then add your slices of tomatoes.

Then your egg.

Season to taste. I'm not much of a salt and pepper person, but I topped mine with a little of my home-made salsa. You can season yours however you like.

Looks pretty tasty, huh? It was! I used Oroweat Oatnut bread here, but the sourdough was better. Just saying. The grains in the bread had their own flavor that competed with the pesto a little. Definitely use sourdough if you decide to give this a try.

And I plugged this into my food log at Calorie Count and it tallied up at 225 calories. A good high-protein, low-calorie breakfast. It was quick too.

That's not the only food I brought home with me. On the menu this week are Enchilada Soup (like that we had at the Rustic Pines Tavern), Pasties (like those we had in Michigan), and last night we had Minnesota Cream of Chicken & Wild Rice Soup (like that we had at the Kettle Hotel in Minnesota). The recipe was a little different from the one served at the hotel, but it was very good. You can see for yourself at that link I've given you.

So today I'm seriously going to unpack the trailer so that Mike can get it out of the driveway. I've been bringing things in little by little, meaning that every time I go out there to retrieve something I need, I bring in as much as I can carry. There is still much to do, but I figure that's about an hour of my day. Then...sewing! I have missed my sewing room so much. I am so ready to get onto my blog to tell you what's going on in my sewing room.

And with that I'm going to get unpacking.