Eating Out

Last week my husband and I decided to "fast" from eating out for one month. We want to trim our food budget and also stop our addiction to eating out. The first day we wanted to stop at every drive thru. Keep in mind we (I) don't eat out often. I've discovered that it's very mental - just like dieting. As soon as you tell yourself you can't have something, you want it. That's why diets don't work.



I was thinking back to our vacation to Spain. We rarely saw fast food restaurants, even in Barcelona. It amazed me how different things were; no golden arches on every corner. The restaurants they do have are dine in. People spend a couple of hours eating lunch or dinner. They use the time to talk with other diners and enjoy themselves. I NEVER saw anyone walking with a big gulp, starbucks coffee cup, or any food for that matter. They sit down and take their time.



So, as I have been trained to drive thru (it's the American way), I have noticed this week has been hard. Even though I thought I didn't eat out much, I do get decaf from Starbucks or an iced tea from Sonic. I am finding that I WANT to drive thru. I want to yell into a big board, hand someone my money and get something "fun" in return. Why? I don't know, but I do know that I am breaking the habit.



Here's how bad my habit is; I found out the brand of tea that Starbucks uses (their black iced tea is the BEST!) and I went to the store to buy some. I balked at the price - $3.99 a box. It took me a second to realize that I never balked at paying more that $2 per glass at Starbucks! How ridiculous is that? So, I bought the tea bags, brewed my own, and kept my car out of the drive thru. I'm breaking the habit!





With all the tea brewing going on here I've got a couple of tea recipes for you:



Pineapple Iced Tea


INGREDIENTS
1 quart water
7 tea bags
1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS
In a saucepan, bring water to a boil. Remove from the heat. Add tea bags; cover and steep for 3-5 minutes. Discard tea bags. Stir in the pineapple juice, lemon juice and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate overnight for the flavors to blend. Serve over ice.


FOOTNOTE
Nutritional Analysis: One serving (1 cup) equals 51 calories, 0 fat (0 saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 1 mg sodium, 13 g carbohydrate, 0 fiber, 0 protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 1 fruit.



Mint Iced Tea



Brew 6 black teabags and 1 mint teabag in 1 gallon of water. Very refreshing!





Peach Tea


INGREDIENTS



3 cups water
3 family size tea bags
2 fresh peaches - peeled, pitted and sliced
1 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons stevia powder


DIRECTIONS


Bring 3 cups water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Add the tea bags, and steep for 15 minutes. Remove tea bags.
Meanwhile, place peaches with 1 cup water into a blender, and blend until very smooth. Pour the peach mixture, tea, and stevia powder into a 1 gallon pitcher. Fill the pitcher to the top with water, and stir until blended.




Eat Intentionally!