A Fruitful Birthday

Being a cake lover and then going on a sugar detox challenge during your birthday month can pose quite a challenge. At least it did, for my husband who was really puzzled as to what to get for my birthday!
So he decided that I would have to cut a pile of fruits and what you see above is what I got :)

I'm still on my 13th day of my challenge today. But if this cake is any indication of how the rest of the month is going to be, then woo baby, I'm up for it. This challenge has been pushing me to try something new everyday. Here's a recipe of a salad I made a couple of days back. I'm sorry, there are no photos. 


Roasted sweet potato and khichdi salad

Serves two. 
Ingredients: 
1 Sweet Potato
2 cup Mesclun or Baby Spinach
1 Red Apple, sliced and diced
1/2 cup Pomegranate Seeds
2 tbsp crumbled Feta Cheese
1/4 cup chopped Black Olives
1/2 cup leftover Khichdi :)

Method:
- First peel and dice your sweet potato and roast it with a little olive oil. Once they've got a good color and have softened up, sprinkle salt, pepper and any spices you like
- Now in a bowl, add apples, olives, pomegranate seeds and feta and give it a good stir
- In a plate, first scoop some khichdi. Then put the greens on the top. Add half of the roasted potatoes. Now add half the apple-feta mixture above the rest. 
- If you like, you could drizzle a little olive oil vinaigrette or any other salad dressing. 
- Enjoy!

Sugar Detox Challenge

As a foodie and a lover of sweets, I’ve spent my life fantasizing everything sugar. Chocolates. Candies. Cakes. And every dessert that there is. Naturally, my love for cooking and baking translated into all of those sweet li’l treats. Family history of diabetes and cholesterol didn’t seem to bother me. Caution from friends and doctors didn’t bother me either. I’ve been on diets and successfully lost weight by exercise in the past. And most of you, I’m sure are in the same boat as me, because you did that too and you have somehow, mysteriously, gained back the weight, just like I did. 

Sugar is not exactly a friend. It makes us happy and it lifts our mood, but it's a cheater. The internet is loaded with information regarding the ill effects of sugar and why we as a community need to reduce the intake. With sugar being added to almost everything these days, curbing added-sugar intake is a lot less fun than it needs to be.
Today is the 11th day of my 30 day detox from sugar and alcohol. Honestly, I didn’t think I would last that long, it being the holiday month, birthday month, celebrations month! But I did! Yay! And so I decided to write. I have found support from everyone, and I’m being asked questions too. Valid, serious questions regarding this diet. This page is intended to be an answer to all those questions. I will post articles that I find and hopefully some recipes. 
I’m learning too, and as a sugar lover myself for most of my life, I am looking for inspiration to continue and stay on track. Not having a well stocked kitchen at my disposal in my current situation definitely poses some problems. And I’ve made mistakes too. But here is the outline of what I am following (Dec 2nd - Dec 31st 2015) 

• No soda/bottled drinks that have sugar added
• No chocolates/candies/biscuits/cake
• Be careful of the sauce/ketchup you are eating. They are loaded with sugar most of the time.
• Bread is allowed (Not ideal, avoid it if you can)
• No alcohol. Period. 
• Doesn’t matter whether you are going to a party or it’s your birthday. DO IT.