The Perfect Sandwich

I must say, it's not only difficult to keep to a regular food and exercise routine while family is visiting, but it's hard to find time to write.  The past three days have been a blur.  Preparatory cleaning, yard work, gardening, thousands of pounds of laundry, cooking food I can't eat while watching others inhale it, as well as entertaining.  It's been great fun seeing brother-in-laws, sister-in-laws to be, mother in-laws.  I've been so busy I've barely had time to think about snacking, and I've been on my feet non stop.  So that must be a good thing for weight loss, no?

The added bonus to this visit is that my sis in law to be is on the pre-wedding diet so she and I teamed up together and ate healthy while our men did not!  We were able to commiserate about why it's so hard to lose weight when the men in our lives just want big piles of meat for dinner every night.  So thank you L2 for being my substitute sister this week...I don't know what I'm going to do without you tomorrow night when it's BBQ rib night...I'm sure that is a post in itself.

I did what to let everyone out there know that I am in fact human and have fallen victim to cheating.  I finally disregarded the diet yesterday.  My sister-in-law and I took my daughter out into Boston yesterday to wander around, hit a park, and to do as much shopping as a toddler will allow!  Of course we had to do a ladies lunch.  There is an amazing sandwich place called Parish Cafe (http://02a7d0b.netsolhost.com/index2.html) that has enlisted the help of a plethora of local chefs to create a unique sandwich for the menu.  The result is an interesting, diverse, and eclectic combination of ingredients.  For any local Bostonians who have not tried this long standing establishment you must and for any visiting out of towners, it's a great treat!  There are a few items on the menu that are more diet friendly but let's just say it isn't the kind of place you go to for a pile of greens.  So I finally allowed myself to loosen up for a special treat and I ordered a perfect combination of sweet and salty.

The Schlesinger
Created by: Chris Schlesinger,Chef / Owner- East Coast Grille, CambridgeMonterey jack cheese on warm banana nut bread topped with smoked ham and mango chutney. Served with pickled ginger red cabbage.

I substituted potato salad for the cabbage - why not go all out?  It was bliss.  Caloric bliss.  I thought every possible way to assign this a point value and I couldn't so I just said I'm going to enjoy it and swim a little harder, snack a little less, and keep myself in line the remainder of the day.  I actually surprised myself and could not finish the whole thing.  Normally finishing my entire plate, and whatever my husband fails to eat, is as easy at 1-2-3 for me.  But I think the past few weeks have conditioned my stomach to be used to smaller portions and less filling food.  My daughter ate my second half of banana bread.  I only ate half the ham.  I did polish off the potato salad, it would be abusive to leave any behind.  I was stuffed.  Yet I have NOT stopped thinking about that sandwich all day and am trying to find an excuse to work that into my meal plan every week!!!  I wish I had taken a picture so I could pull it up on my iPhone whenever I feel like I need a fix.  Actually, that's the angle I can take...I simply need to go back eat it again and take a picture for posterity.

Anyway - I hope everyone out there in diet land has had a good week of healthy eating and is ready to go into Mother's Day weekend with some points/calories saved up in the reserve tank.  I may blow mine tomorrow on rib night....we shall see.  Until the next time, happy healthy eating.