Hurrah Jicama

Today got off to a great start -- serious cleaning, a long bike ride, a grocery run to Trader Joe's...which is where I lost my footing. At first things went well enough as I loaded my cart with frozen fruit for smoothies, unsweetened rice milk, and some seltzer. But just before I got in line, I decided Hey, I've been eating so well lately, why not get a little treat? So I did, knowing full well I could easily inhale an entire (7 serving) bag of that-which-shall-not-be-named. I walked home, settled into my favorite chair, and measured out one portion. A few minutes later it was gone, and I got myself some more. Repeat. Repeat again. At this point, I knew I'd gone a bit over the edge. I knew I'd feel sick if I kept eating. And still I went back for more. I was telling myself to stop as I kept popping the pieces in my mouth. Finally, after five -- FIVE -- servings, I got up and emptied the bag into the trash. Enough.

I talked to my friend Todd and told him what I'd done, and we had a nice little chat about how it's only human to go overboard once in a while. He also reminded me that, you know what? It's OK to do that every once in a while. One slipped afternoon will not undo all the work I'd done this far. Whew! The day could have easily gone either of two ways at this point. One, keep indulging because hey, I'd already blown it, right? The other was to decide right then to get back to the healthy stuff. With a little pep talk from Todd, I chose option B. Yet one more reminder that it's nearly impossible to embark on a major health transformation without the proper support. People want to see you succeed at your health; let them help.

Which leads me to jicama! I assure you, the enthusiasm is sincere. When I was buying groceries yesterday (I eat a lot; I have to go to the store a lot) I saw a nice round jicama root in the produce section. I've been served jicama a number of times, but I'd never seen it in it's whole form, and I'd never prepped it on my own. Tonight, in my post-indulgence haze, I decided tomorrow would be a great day for jicama, and dug out a few of my vegan and vegetarian cookbooks. None had a recipe that really wowed me, but they were enough to give me inspiration. Here's what turned out:


It's a perfect, easy, no-cooking summer dish. Just peel and slice the jicama, add a few stalks of sliced celery, a handful of beets (I bought these pre-cooked at Trader Joe's, but you can easily steam and peel beets yourself.) Toss in some minced basil and drizzle with fig-infused white balsamic vinegar. The sweetness of the beets are balanced by the tang of the vinegar, and the jicama and celery provide some really nice crunch. You could also try adding a some vidalia onion or using mint instead of basil. Play with what you have in your fridge, garden, and pantry, and see what you can come up with. Worst case scenario is you don't like it and you know what not to do next time.

In addition to being a refreshing and filling summer salad, it's packed with nutrients. One cup of jicama packs 40% of your daily Vitamin C and almost 25% of your daily requirement of fiber. The beets are packed with antioxidants, and a half cup will get you 17% of your daily folate, which plays a key role in preventing anemia in pregnant women. Two stalks of celery will set you up with 30% of your Vitamin K, critical for blood coagulation.

Making this salad and thinking through all the nutrients I'll be getting tomorrow inspired me to go ahead and prep as much food for tomorrow as I could. I made my favorite sipping juice (carrot-beet-celery-ginger-fennel) and rinsed a huge handful of blueberries to snack on. Like beets, blueberries are a potent source of antioxidants. The deep, rich colors of each is a major clue to the density of antioxidants. I grabbed an avocado in case I get hungry in the afternoon, and have a peach for my morning snack.

For breakfast I'll be making my very first smoothie with tofu. It doesn't sound too tasty to me, either, but it's my first reintroduction on my elimination diet, and I'm supposed to have soy at every meal to get enough into my system. I'm hoping the mango, strawberries, and banana in the smoothie will make me forget about the tofu. Tofu is a great source of protein, though, so I can't really complain about using it to start my day. Fingers crossed that tomorrow I post about how tofu completely transforms a smoothie into the most satisfying and delicious breakfast imaginable. Hey, a girl can hope.