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Where to buy by bulk? Good quality of all kinds of seeds/nuts, beans, lentils, rice, also coconut flakes, cacao nibs, etc. To buy a whole kilogram at once without getting a number of little bags (like typically found in 200 gr individual bags). Please share! :D
I'm looking for lots of raw ingredients for my regular cooking, baking, milk alternatives, and my own nut butter. Could you tell me if you know of any specific shop where I will find these in good state and flexible amounts? Thank you! :)
I'm new to reddit but have enjoyed reading the posts in this community. My partner and I are doing a dry February so I decided to pick up the Alinea Zero book and up my N/A cocktail game... Here's what we've tried so far (apologies, no pictures so far!): Back Bar: American Whiskey - The book is pretty clear that they're not trying to create beverages that taste just like the spirit, but rather that are reminiscent of those spirits and tasty in their own right. I'd say that describes this one pretty well. I agree with another reviewer in here who said that it's a bit heavy on the cinnamon; in fact, all of the back bar recipes we've tried so far seem a bit heavy on the cinnamon... They're also all a bit sweeter than I'd like. The most unique flavor in the "whiskey" to me is the malted barley, which imparts a bready, "cereal-y" flavor to the drink. It actually makes a decent Old Fashioned style drink, although it's nothing like the real thing. But still, it tastes pretty good. Gin - Like the whiskey, this was a little on the sweet and cinnamony side to my taste. It could also use a little more juniper. The recipe has you prepare a juniper tincture using vegetable glycerin, which you then mix into a stock you make from simmering spices and citrus. If I made it again, I'd try to remove some of the cinnamon and sweeter ingredients, and add more of the juniper tincture. The only issue is, the vegetable glycerin used to make the tincture is pretty sweet on its own. So it would require some playing around to get it closer to where I'd like it more. But overall it's a nice tasting beverage which works great with some tonic water. Sweet Vermouth - Of the three "N/A back bar" recipes we've tried so far, I think this is the best. It's, again, a little heavy on the cinnamon, but the use of verjus rouge and the mix of unusual herbs definitely gives this a taste reminiscent of sweet vermouth. We've been making a very tasty drink of this "Sweet vermouth," club soda and black walnut bitters over ice. We also tried mixing it with the American whiskey to make a "manhattan" which was an interesting drink but a little sweet. The book recommends making a "black manhattan" by combining the American whiskey with the book's take on Averna. Might try that if we end up making more of the whiskey. Modern Cocktails: When we bought the book, I was most excited about making the fake spirits from the back bar section, but upon receiving the book I've gotten more excited about the modern cocktails. Cereal Killer - They bill this as "loosely inspired by a Manhattan" so we figured we'd give it a shot. (Manhattans are the preferred cocktail for both of us.) While no one would ever confuse this for a Manhattan, it's still an interesting drink on its own, although again a tad sweet. However: we did not have carob syrup available so I mixed up some molasses and honey and simmered with cacao nibs to try to replicate, so it's possible that threw the balance out of whack. Overall this drink reminded me of the American whiskey, in that it also uses malted barley flavoring, and layers on some other complex and robust flavors. A decent drink but not sure I'd make it again. Down to Earth - This is our favorite thing we've made from the book so far. The recipe sounds out there--you have to juice mushrooms??--but the result is a sweet, savory and very unusual beverage. It's also one of the simpler recipes in the book as long as you have a decent juicer available. Just a mix of mushroom juice, celery root juice, jicama juice, ascorbic acid and sugar. Highly recommended. We served alongside a few meals that featured mushrooms and celery root and it was a great pairing. I made a mistake in the preparation and let the mixture boil instead of just simmer, so the texture got screwed up, but even with a less than ideal texture it's a delicious drink. ------ That's all so far, but we've got a batch of the Banana Chai in the fridge right now that I'm going to attempt to clarify tomorrow... Overall I'd say I'm having more fun making the recipes so far than actually drinking them. The only thing that's really wowed us was the Down to Earth. However, I'm really happy with the book even though not everything has been as delicious as I'd hoped. It's helped free my mind up in terms of what a cocktail can be, and has got me looking at my ingredients and prep in a different way. Plus, I'm learning interesting techniques that I'll definitely use again once we're back to drinking alcoholic beverages. And clearly I've only scratched the surface so far on such a big book.
Variant's 3rd Anniversary - 3 Days of 3 Beers for 3 Years
Hey guys, We're sad that we're not gonna be able to have our usual big anniversary celebration this year. To continue our best efforts in keeping our staff, patrons, and community safe during the Covid pandemic, we've decided to focus on packaged to go releases rather than our usual big get together. All of these pre-orders can be reserved through our website over the next few days, Monday @ 6:00 PM, Tuesday @ 6:00 PM, & Wednesday @ 6:00 PM. We will have limited drafts available of each of these releases on the days of their releases, with Monday's releases being available on Tuesday at opening as we're closed Mondays, and they will stay on while supplies last. These are some of my favorite beers that we've ever put on. Personal favorites of these are the Time Distortion, Obsidian Nightmares (really spicy), BA Obsidian Dreams, & Compos Mentis. Day 1 Monday @ 6:00 PM Our Annual Anniversary Release • Whiskey BA PRC • 13.7% • Whiskey Barrel Aged Mexican Imperial Stout brewed with cinnamon, Ghana cacao, Ugandan vanilla, and homegrown habanero peppers. Parallax V2 • NEIPA • 7.5% • Parallax V2 is a NEIPA brewed with Citra, Mosaic, Galaxy & Simcoe Cryo hops. Intense citrus, tropical, & stone fruits dominate. Time Distortion • Double NEIPA • 9.2% • Time Distortion is a bigger and more heavily hopped version of Time Collapse. A blend of 5.5#/barrel of Citra, Sabro, & Motueka hops were used to create this juice monster. Theoretical Zero Volume 7 • NEIPA • 7.3% • TZv7 is a New England style "zero IBU" IPA brewed with Strata & Mosaic hops. Orange/Grapefruit juice with dank & herbal undertones. Day 2 Tuesday @ 6:00 PM Obsidian Dream • Imperial Stout • 11.4% • This Imperial Stout was brewed with toasted coconut, Ghana cacao, & plenty of Papa New Guinea vanilla beans. Sweet vanilla dominates with cascading notes of toasted coconut and bittersweet chocolate. Obsidian Nightmare • Imperial Stout • 11.4% • This Imperial Stout was brewed with ghost chili peppers, Ghana cacao, Papa New Guinea vanilla beans. Decadent chocolate & vanilla immediately rush through your palette but with an aggressive spicy kick as you progress past the first few sips. Double Bourbon Barrel Aged Obsidian Dream • Double Barrel Aged Imperial Stout • 13.9% • This Imperial Stout lived for 11 months in a bourbon barrel and was then moved to another fresh bourbon barrel where it sat for an additional 10 months. Upon pulling it out it was blended into a tank with heaping amounts of freshly toasted coconut, Tahitian vanilla beans, & Ghana cacao nibs. Tastes like a bourbon coconut macaroon. Day 3 Wednesday @ 6:00 PM Lucid • Bourbon Barrel Aged English Barleywine • 12.3% • Notes of sweet molasses, brown sugar, toffee & caramel that dominate the palette and has a smooth bourbon kick on the finish. Revival • Bourbon Barrel Aged Blended Strong Ale • 12.2% • We wanted to do something a little different this year. Revival is a unique blend of three different beers that come together to create something even better. There are no adjuncts in this beer as we wanted to show the character of the blend & barrels. Heavy aromatics of oak and char with a big malty sweetness. Delicate bourbon shines with notes of dark fruit, caramel, raisins, & bits of roasted coffee underneath. Compos Mentis • Bourbon Barrel Aged Blended Strong Ale w/ Vanilla • 12.2% • We loved Revival so much that we decided to split it and create a Variant but we still wanted to highlight the character of barrels & the blend. We've taken this wonderful strong ale blend and conditioned it on copious amounts Tahitian Vanilla. A rich marshmallow softness rounds out the edges of this blend and makes this a dangerously smooth 12.2%. Check out the full details here! Thank you all and hope everybody is doing well! Cheers
How on earth did my extraction get so effin strong?
Flaired it "discussion" because it's not really a beginner question, but still a question. I've been making cannabutter for some time, with a slightly customised extraction method. Followed the steps mainly, with some slight differences:
had about 25g ABV - good quality weed for the UK, medium-brown toasted levels, vaped it at 380-390F until the vapour flavour turned slightly charred (in my experience, vaping starts out with a flower taste, then a slightly nutty, toasted flavour, followed by the charred/harsher flavour I dislike)
water cured for two days in cold water, until the water ran clear. Regular agitation, filtered with muslin/cheesecloth
without much drying (I tried it in the oven but was way too smelly), I put about 200g clarified butter ghee in a pan, dumped in the ABV, added a few drops of flavouring (used the Flavodrops from MyProtein - sugar free, quite strong, and the cheesecake flavouring masked the smell of the weed almost perfectly), and simmered for about 40 minutes.
strained the end result and let it solidify in a closed container, the end result being around 210g of nice green hued butter
took half of the butter, 200g of cacao nibs, and 100g cocoa butter, blended it well - it still ended up a bit chunky, almost artisanal
ended up adding about 50g sugar and a bit of milk, and tempered it with 80% dark chocolate
end result was ~500g chocolate that I poured into ice cube trays, resulting in 16 pieces of chocolate, each around 30g
So I've got 30g pieces of chocolate, that are roughly 40% cannabutter (so, 12-13g butter). The butter itself, I'd guess, is around 1-2% potency. The weed in question was mainly stardawg, which is a ~20% THC strain according to online sources. I'm not sure how much of that the vaping part would take out, so let's presume, say, 50% (my actual semi-scientific guess would be more like 75-85%, but again, it's a guess). So 20g of weed with ~10% of THC, that's around 2g of THC, for the whole vat of ~200g butter, not counting other cannabinoids that potentially ended up in there. So in theory, each of these little pieces of chocolate are around 120-150mg THC, roughly equal to 1g of mid-range weed. The thing is... Even half a piece puts me on my ass like a mule kick. It is much, much stronger than it should be in theory. It's a nice and clear head high, the numbing-dumbing kind, paired with a vibrant body high (read: it feels like I'm vibrating). I didn't expect it to be this strong, and I'm one of those guys who can smoke a gram of weed in one sitting and still be relatively clear minded. I haven't gotten red eyes from smoking in ages. But even from a quarter piece of this chocolate, my eyes glow red like I'm some Holiday Season Limited Edition Goa'uld. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, I'm just looking for the mistake in my math here. Either I vastly underestimated the amount of THC remaining in the ABV, or something's amiss. What do you guys think, where does this potency come from?
Happy holidays!! Hey guys! Looking for a quick suggestion on what to use in my chocolate-peppermint mead I'm making. I'm going to being using cacao nibs for the chocolate portion, but I'm not sure what direction to go in with the peppermint flavor. The three options I've seen are:
Adding a little peppermint vodka into the mead at the end (I saw this in a recipe online). It seems a little different, but maybe I'm also not terribly experienced. Only a few years into this hobby.
Using fresh peppermint leaves and steeping them in secondary. It seems like this is what most people do, but I don't have a yard to grow these leaves and I'm not sure exactly where to go to get something like this. I don't think the local Publix sells terribly fresh leaves.
Using dried peppermint leaves and steeping these. This would be an easy alternative to the fresh leaves, but I don't know how well the flavor would come out of dried leaves (as compared to the fresh leaves).
Fun 4th option: I saw someone else on Youtube using 600 peppermint candies. This seems kind of absurd, but I don't know... Is that a real thing? lol
Any guidance in this would be greatly appreciated!
Misc. questions--loose-leaf, tea blending, infusers, etc.
Hey, all! I'm fairly new to all this (also FYI fairly new to using Reddit, even though I've had an account for months, haha, so if I do something wrong, let me know :) ), and have some questions. (Please note that I did look through the wiki and assorted resources, and I don't think I missed anything...hopefully not, anyway, haha.) Also note that my questions are all going to apply to tisanesonly(we're talking completely caffeine-free, unless I put chocolate in or something (see the cocoa/cacao nibs question)), as I don't do actual tea for religious reasons. So, questions, in no particular order (or not much of one; I've tried to go from more general to more specific, but that may be a matter of opinion, haha):
Loose-leaf--from everything I've read, it does actually make better tea, but is this true of tisanes, too? And what exactly is the difference in flavors? (I think I understand why there's a difference; it's just what exactly the difference is that I'm not following.) Specifically/especially, I want to confirm that I've understood right as far as the strength goes--does using loose-leaf and giving it room to expand make an herbal tea stronger? (Because if so, that's for sure something I need to try. I've only ever actually enjoyed strong and fruit-flavored tisanes, because otherwise I just taste hot water.)
Is there any kind of benefit/difference with using fresh herbs/spices/fruit/whatever vs. dry? I did see something somewhere (idek where at this point; I've been doing so much reading that it's all started to blur together, haha) that said using dry fruits was better--and do you guys think that's the case, too?--but what about the other types of ingredients?
(I'm still looking through the vendor resources here, so I apologize if there are some obvious answers to this question in those, but I figured I might as well toss it out there since I was posting anyway.) I'm really wanting to try creating my own blends, but one difficulty I'm running into is ingredients. I don't want to grow my own (besides the time it'd take, I have...idk if it's a black thumb, but it's certainly not green, haha), but I'm having a lot of trouble finding web sites where I can get ingredients insmallamounts for testing. Like, I see a lot of places where you can buy in bulk, but at the moment I don't need, y'know, a pound of rose hips or whatever, haha. I'm not totally sure of the exact amounts I want, but I'd assume it would be maybe a couple of ounces or something, depending on the ingredient--just enough so I can experiment with it a little. (Also, the vendor list here does seem to be focused on actual tea, which makes total sense but makes it a bit more difficult to use for my purposes.) So if anyone is able to point me towards sites where I can get smaller amounts of this type of stuff (I did look at Adagio Teas' pantry section, and there are some things there, but I'd love to find others, since they don't have everything)--or tell me which ingredients would likely just be at a run-of-the-mill grocery store--that'd be great :) (I'll keep looking at the list of vendors in the meantime, but if someone is willing to speed up the process, it would be a big help, haha.)
Are there more resources likethisfor what things taste like? I'd especially love some kind of comparison chart; I've been sort of trying to form one in my head as I read the pages on that site--for example, I know a lot of the herbal teas I've liked seem to have hibiscus, so I looked at the page about hibiscus, noted the key words used to describe the flavor, and am trying to be on the watch for similar descriptors--but it'd be great to have more descriptions.
If I want to try creating a certain blend, would it be worth it to useAdagio Teas' "Create a Blend" featureas a starting point, and then add other flavors as necessary at home, or is it better to just start from scratch? (For example, I was wondering about using sage in a tea, but they don't seem to have that as an option with herbal teas. So, what might be pros and cons to either starting with a custom blend of the other teas I want, ordering it from Adagio, then mixing sage in at home, vs. just forgetting the Adagio "middle man" and getting the stuff I need to blend it all myself?)
Cocoa/cacao nibs (idek which is the correct way to say it, or if they're both correct? Haha)--I was looking into having them in a blend, but I know that normal chocolate--like in a candy bar or whatever--does have very minor amounts of caffeine. I'm not against the amounts in that, but--again for religious reasons--I don't want anything that's more caffeinated than that. I don't know if there's more in the nibs than in the finished chocolate or something, and if so, how much would end up in a tea made with them... So basically, would having cocoa/cacao nibs in a tisane introduce more caffeine into it than is in, say, chocolate candy or hot chocolate or whatever?
So when reading the wiki, I saw the part about not using ball infusers, and that surprised me, as I'd been planning to buy one of those. I guess at the moment I'm looking for a balance between price and quality, since I still don't know if I'm even going to like this whole loose-leaf tea thing enough to do it consistently. So, given that, would something like the larger size ofthiswork (since if I understand correctly, the issue is a lot to do with the size)? Or maybethisorthistype of thing? And if not, whatdoI want in the way of an infuser (and/or what should I make sure Idon'tend up buying), and where do I get it? Note: With tea bags, I've found I honestly prefer to steep for a fair while, so I guess that's the main concern I have with the infusers that fit over the top of the cup--like, the leaves barely have a second to touch the water, right? Or do those infusers extend mostly into the cup and so it's still steeping as it sits? Idk, I'm just confused... (And, to be fair, I was also looking forward to adding a little charm to the end of a hook-and-chain infuser ball, so I kinda hate to give that up, haha.)
So one of the reasons I haven't drunk tisanes that much in the past is that I'm so often doing something else, and like...I'll take a sip or two, set it down so I can use my hands, and then 20 minutes later I remember it exists and oh, look, it's cold. (XD I'm very distractable...) So I found a thing on Amazon that looks like it might help, but on considering further, it's occurred to me that there might be a cheaper solution. So--we're talking a single mug of tea, here, not a pot. Would a tea cozy still be any good with an open-topped mug, or would it not help? I could also look into those things you put on top of a cup, but tbh I feel like they might be a pain to use? Idk. Thoughts/suggestions?
...wow, that turned out hugely long; sorry about that! I've tried to bold the important bits, but I do stink majorly at summarizing, so I may have to see whether that ends up actually helping or not, haha. Also, any other advice on any of this is welcome--including where else I might ask, if this isn't the right place or people might know bettein more detail elsewhere or something. Thanks much for any help!
I don't know if this is the right place for this post, so if it isn't I'll repost it to wherever it belongs. My husband wants to lose weight and so in support of that, I joined him in the keto diet for convenience. Needless to say we're both new to it. Where I live (Ireland), a lot of the things I see on these keto subs aren't really available (Rebel ice cream, and Quest bars to name a couple) and I'm fine with having to make these things up myself. The thing I have the most trouble with is finding ingredients that are keto-friendly. I see a lot of 'bread' recipes call for mozzarella. I assume they mean shredded mozzarella, but when you read the label they're all made with potato starch. Would you just use a normal mozzarella ball instead? It gets melted anyway, so does it matter? Is there another type of cheese that could be substituted as well just in case? Chocolate is another thing. If I wanted to make chocolate chip cookies or something of that nature, what kind of chocolate would I use? Even the darkest has some form of sugar in it. If it reads just sugar then I assume that means cane sugar or a variant of it that isn't keto-friendly? I'd bought cacao nibs from the health food store and they're bittegross AF. I imagine in the future I can add a keto sweetener to it if need be. The other thing I sort of struggle with is breakfast. I can only eat so many eggs and honestly, I don't really like eggs just by themself. Pre-keto I would've had a bagel with coffee or yogurt with granola. I recently made a chia pudding which isn't bad, but it's getting to the point where I dread breakfast and would rather just skip it. I know fruit juices aren't allowed, and I miss my morning orange juice - mostly to take my pills with. Can you juice strawberries or any of the other allowed fruits and make your own juice that way and not add anything to it? Needless to say, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed and I feel like it shouldn't be this difficult. 😐
31yr old. London UK. First baby. Here is what I have learned in my Pregnancy so far.
When you are pregnant you spend 99% of the time trying to separate myth from reality. I am a 31 year old living in central London. First child. Here is how I have approached my pregnancy. The not so sexy stuff:
Heartburn - I probably consume a 600ml bottle of Double Action Gaviscon a week. I even have the sachets for when I out and about. You’ll need it on your bedside table from 20 weeks onward. Now I have graduated onto Nexium to inhibit stomach acid in the first place
Poop - Treat yourself to Germoloids - you are more likely to get haemorrhoids. Warm baths with baking soda, creams and suppositories will become the norm. Your digestion slows so constipation is more common. Buy a squatty potty and take your time having a poop. Iron makes you more compensated so drink loads of water and eat some bran flakes to compensate.
Nausea - If anyone says “have you tried ginger” try and hold back from slapping them. I ate a lot of tangtastic Haribo and starburst, peanut butter on toast and potato croquettes. If it gets really bad go to the GP there is medication you can take, it saved me from going into a black hole of depression. Fizzy water with lemon also helped, I still think the Soda stream was a great investment
Farting - just 'let it go' and move on
Tools to make you more comfortable:
Pregnancy wedge/pillow - Oh man it was so good after 16 weeks when you can no longer sleep on your back. Get a washable cover, I dribbled on mine a lot for some reason. Oh and if you wake up on your back do not worry, just shuffle back onto your left side. If you feel you have hip pain try ensuring you put a pillow between your legs.
Clothes: You won’t need anything until about 20+ weeks apart from leggings maybe. I begged borrowed and bought on eBay. I even just asked women at work and was overwhelmed with the amount of stuff they brought in. Pregnancy is like a secret society, people share and give endlessly. You can get away with a few pairs of leggings, t-shirts, and a jumper or two over the bump. I would invest in nursing bras though. Your boobs are the first things to grow and they get very sensitive. I wore mine from 15 weeks.
Creams and Vitamins
Stretch marks - You cant go wrong with Bio oil - I lathered it all over me most nights. Burts bees mama butter is also fab and even better when you put it in the fridge! Use it on thighs, tummy and breasts. Generally if you keep weight gain moderate you won’t end up with too many marks or issues.
Pregnancy vitamins - don’t take these first thing or on an empty stomach. They are high in iron which is nauseating. Have one with lunch. Third trimester you’ll need to up iron intake to avoid anaemia - try Spatone.
Medication and dental care: You can’t take ibuprofen and boy did I feel that when I had a trapped nerve in my shoulder in first trimester. Look at your skin care products and remove anything with vitamin A/retinoids products. Floss a lot as for some reason your gums bleed. Dentist is free so get the check ups in. If you don’t get enough iron and magnesium you get restless legs at night.
Food and Drinks:
Ice ice baby - I just wanted ice cold drinks every evening. I went through kilos of ice. For some reason unless it was ice cold I didn’t want to drink it. Ice lollies in my first trimester were great!
Drinks - I won't try to say if alcohol is safe / unsafe, that is for the individual to judge. But there are great alternatives such as low alcohol gin and tonic, Seedlip with Fever Tree Elderflower tonic and of course Heineken non alcoholic beer. In regard to Coffee one is fine, but the decaf equivalent if you still love a cup of tea in the afternoon. I went off caffeine completely for first 20 weeks then had one small cup (queue heartburn btw) every morning. Stay away from sugary drinks and Diet Coke. It just bloats and makes you uncomfortable.
Food - Your body will make sure your baby gets vitamins and nutrients before the rest of you. For the first 12 weeks eat whatever stays down and keeps you sane. You have 2 trimesters to make up for it. I found I was super sensitive to sugar and found healthy fats and fibre helped my mood. Sugar made me anxious and depressed. In the first trimester I shied away from fatty meats and cheese which can make nausea worse given the amount of bile / acid needed to break it down.
As the baby gets bigger your stomach will shrink so you’ll be hungry but have less space; queue eating 6 times a day (and that could include, in my case, eating peanut butter on toast at 2.30am)
Snack ideas: Oat cakes, Soreen, nut mixes, bowl of all bran, fruit salads, Babybels, dark chocolate, celery and peanut butter, chocolate rice cakes.
Breakfast: full fat yogurt with banana, flaxseed, cacao nibs, oats and walnuts. Or a green smoothie. Avocado and Eggs, shredded wheat with banana and blueberries, crumpets with marmite and avocado. Cottage cheese pancakes / waffles - just do it, adding cottage cheese has changed my life!
Lunch: sweet potatoes, beans, soups, flaked salmon, wholemeal pasta, quinoa salads, chicken salad sandwiches. Hummus and cucumber. I ate a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches!
Dinner: Salad, green beans, asparagus, white fish, shepherds pie, fish cakes, lasagne, home made veggie pizza, steaks every now and again. I went off of poultry and lamb, but you’ll need to find other sources of protein. Artichokes are good steamed with butter for a lighter supper. Fish tacos! Eat dinner at least 2 hours before bed to ease acid re-flux.
Reading and Learning
Books: Pop along to your local charity shop where you are guaranteed to find a copy of 'what to expect when youre expecting'. Other than that the only book I recommend is 'expecting better' by Emily Oster. Finally a writer that uses stats (not old wives tales or Gwyneth Paltrow type witchcraft) to dispel myths.
NCT: Likely to become the most expensive access to a WhatsApp group. Classes fill up quickly so book for 25-30 weeks in from your 12 week scan. Same with Hypnobirthing which I recommend if only because I am personally keen to move away from TV/ Movie views of giving birth and go in with a more positive mindset. There are lots of 1 day classes and its a great opportunity to meet other parents to be.
Staying Sane:
Exercise: For the love of god move everyday. Stretch. I am still walking between 5-7km and up until 26 weeks was using the cross trainer for 45 mins - 1 hour. Spinning was also good but eventually what bothered me was the loud music more than anything else. Definitely look for pregnancy Yoga at least once a week. If you are in London, Lolly Stirk is fab! It’s easier to pull muscles so be careful. Otherwise keep doing what you’re doing before pregnancy until you can’t. Buy an exercise ball in third trimester and use it to move your hips and to sit on to ease pressure.
Work: Its up to you when you tell people at work. I was so sick that I had to tell my boss before 12 weeks to enable me to work different hours / work from home. Others wait until 20 weeks. Do what feels right. I was lucky enough to have banked hours so I could drop to 4 days a week. If your job is intense do work with your manager early on to identify ways to ease the workload. You may feel great all the way through to your labour day, or you may have ups and downs or even need to take early maternity leave. Working with your employer upfront helps them to work around your needs. Also big shout out if you work in the Government, I have never been so supported and cared for by an employer before!
Treat yo self: From 25 weeks I got a 90 minute pregnancy massage every 2-3 weeks. It eased some pressure on your buttocks and hips as well as lower back. I used the urban app and had someone come over to the house. I also had a facial every now and again, got my nails done had a lot of warm baths with Epsom salts in the evening to rest up. Don’t scrimp on treating yourself, think of the money you are saving not drinking or eating fun foods.
Travel: I found myself doing a few transatlantic trips in the first and second trimester. Personally moving time zones and flying was tough. In the first trimester the tube was overwhelming and I did throw up (sorry to everyone on the 8.30am southbound jubilee line at Green Park!). Get the baby on board badge asap and don’t be afraid to say / scream loudly “please can I have a seat” if people ignore the badge. Book in a Babymoon and go by start of third trimester. We chose The Scarlet Hotel in Cornwall as no flying was needed and I had all of my own amenities (pregnancy pillow, foods I loved). They have a fantastic Babymoon package.
Worries: I consider myself a pretty rationale person but I have been to triage at St Mary's when I stressed myself out and imagined I couldn't feel the baby kicking. Did I feel like an idiot - yes. Did the midwifes treat me like one - No. This is new for you. If you have worries ring 111. Also talk to those people you feel close to about how you really feel. Pregnancy is not all 'glowing' and crap like that, it can take a toll on your mental health and luckily more focus is now on ante-natal as well as post-partum depression. But one piece of reassurance is mother nature has got this, your body knows what to do and the NHS is there for you.
Bonding:
Partner bonding: It can feel like a one man band growing this baby but you can find ways for the dad / partner to get involved. My husband sits on the sofa each evening with his hand on my belly for 15 minutes when she was really kicking and tells her about his day. He also read the book ‘pregnancy for men’ and had a few coffees with guys at work who had recently had kids. Be clear with what you need (can you run me a bath, pop out to get me xyz, clean up after dinner, rub my back, search for the best cribs or prams, tell your mother I don't want anymore knitted booties!). My husband also came to my NCT and hypnobirthing classes. The most important role he played was picking me up when I was feeling low, tired and confused. He helped me talk through a lot of what I was going through or what I was worried about.
A final word: Don't take it personally when people look and speak to you like an invalid or as a baby carrier and no longer an individual aka. "hows bump / peanut / replace with any other annoying word". Don't feel guilty if you resent your other half who can eat drink, be merry and doesn’t get up x4 a night to pee but still gets to be a parent at the end. You will feel that no one can relate to you (or that’s how you feel) or no matter how hard you try you can't ever pee into the cup with wetting the label! Stay away from MumsNet if you can - you are never going to be in a positive mental state after going on those forums. Do your pelvic floor exercises 3 times a day. No one wants to tinkle when they sneeze. Finally it’s nuts that you can grow a human. It blows your mind when you see them kick and feel them get hiccups. Laugh, cry, and enjoy this time.
I don't know if this is the right place for this post, so if it isn't I'll repost it to wherever it belongs. My husband wants to lose weight and so in support of that, I joined him in the keto diet for convenience. Needless to say we're both new to it. Where I live (Ireland), a lot of the things I see on these keto subs aren't really available (Rebel ice cream, and Quest bars to name a couple) and I'm fine with having to make these things up myself. The thing I have the most trouble with is finding ingredients that are keto-friendly. I see a lot of 'bread' recipes call for mozzarella. I assume they mean shredded mozzarella, but when you read the label they're all made with potato starch. Would you just use a normal mozzarella ball instead? It gets melted anyway, so does it matter? Is there another type of cheese that could be substituted as well just in case? Chocolate is another thing. If I wanted to make chocolate chip cookies or something of that nature, what kind of chocolate would I use? Even the darkest has some form of sugar in it. If it reads just sugar then I assume that means cane sugar or a variant of it that isn't keto-friendly? I'd bought cacao nibs from the health food store and they're bittegross AF. I imagine in the future I can add a keto sweetener to it if need be. The other thing I sort of struggle with is breakfast. I can only eat so many eggs and honestly, I don't really like eggs just by themself. Pre-keto I would've had a bagel with coffee or yogurt with granola. I recently made a chia pudding which isn't bad, but it's getting to the point where I dread breakfast and would rather just skip it. I know fruit juices aren't allowed, and I miss my morning orange juice - mostly to take my pills with. Can you juice strawberries or any of the other allowed fruits and make your own juice that way and not add anything to it? Needless to say, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed and I feel like it shouldn't be this difficult. 😐 Edit: Thank you so much everyone for your comments, tips, suggestions for helping me navigate my way through this keto experience! You guys are the bees knees 😊
Hi! I was wondering where is the best place to buy health foods / supplement type foods? I eat very healthy on a day to day basis (lots of fruit, veg, healthy fats, good sources of protein) but I want to kind of want to delve further into my health journey by looking at supplements. They types of things I'm looking for are things such as : matcha powder, maca powder, cacao, cacao nibs, chia seeds, etc.... (stuff that I feel that will further my health journey to help with things like inflammation, digestion, etc) I know I can find these items at my grocery store, but they are quite expensive. I was wondering if anyone used something like iHerb or amazon, or other health food stores to get these items. I want to be healthy but I want to be financially smart as well! Thank you so much.
Hi! I was wondering where is the best place to buy health foods / supplement type foods? I eat very healthy on a day to day basis (lots of fruit, veg, healthy fats, good sources of protein) but I want to kind of want to delve further into my health journey by looking at supplements. They types of things I'm looking for are things such as : matcha powder, maca powder, cacao, cacao nibs, chia seeds, etc.... (stuff that I feel that will further my health journey to help with things like inflammation, digestion, etc) I know I can find these items at my grocery store, but they are quite expensive. I was wondering if anyone used something like iHerb or amazon, or other health food stores to get these items. I want to be healthy but I want to be financially smart as well! Thank you so much.
I find it very hard to find ‘normal’ food products from the the list below in regular supermarkets (e.g hypermart, top buah). Any suggestions on where to get the products below, in jkt?
Hey all, First time to this sub and was looking for some thoughts or suggestions on a recipe I have been working on that I plan to brew this Saturday. My goal was to brew a mint (or peppermint) chocolate stout for the holidays coming up and seeing as I have never brewed a stout before or have never worked with mint or chocolate before I figured I would try to get some advice on my thought process at least. The goal of the beer is to taste like Christmas, but not overly... synthetic (if that makes sense), but I also don't want to go too far and ruin the beer aspect of the beer. Some of the very flavorful beers lose the "beer aspect" (again if that makes sense). So I would like a flavorful chocolaty, minty, Christmas beer. My grain bill was heavily influenced by a couple of sources. I could go back and find them but that is where these amounts are coming from, so if they seem weird please let me know haha. 12.6lbs American Pale 2-Row, 1.1lbs English Pale Chocolate Malt, 1.1lbs Crystal 40, 1.7lbs of Dextrose, 7oz of maltodextrin I was thinking of using Northern Brewer hops 1oz at 60, 30, and 0 but I have read that a lot of people use Perle but I have never used those before so I don't know what they are like. Lastly is the chocolate and the mint. I am torn between peppermint and mint, I am also torn between extracts and raw. I prefer using raw ingredients but knowing how much can be a crapshoot. I was thinking of doing 2oz in the boil and another 4oz as a dry hop addition. But that isn't set in stone. The chocolate I am considering either using cocoa powder in boil or using 4oz of cacao nibs and aging on top of that. lastly, I am torn whether or not to add vanilla. I am leaning no for now, but it seems worthy of consideration. I will also plan on some sort of English ale yeast (probably 1084 or 1028). Thoughts? Input or wisdom greatly appreciated. Cheers
Food Catalog / Ingredients, Herbs, and Spices / Cocoa Powder Written by: Christopher Karam ｜ ✔️ Medically Reviewed by: Dr. Riad M., M.D - G.P and Micheal B., M.D ｜ Last Updated: 2020 March 22 dried cocoa beans Break down and Background Cocoa powder (Theobroma cacao), also known as dark chocolate, was introduced by the Spanish in the beginning of the 16 century. Cocoa beans are thought to have first been used by the Maya civilization of Central America for the myriad of health benefits that come with it. Cocoa powder is a dried, ripen, and fully fermented seed from the Theobroma tree’s cacao seeds, a small evergreen tree from the Malvaceae family. It’s a popular baking ingredient due to its addictive nature and plant-based compounds. How is cocoa powder made? Tryptophan is an essential amino acid that’s a precursor for the production and secretion of serotonin, the chemical that promotes wellbeing and happiness. Cocoa powder has many health benefits and very few side effects. From the cocoa pod to natural cocoa powder, there are many, many steps to take before creating a consumable unsweetened organic cocoa powder or dark chocolate. So how is dark chocolate and cocoa powder made? First, cocoa beans are removed from their pods, later being fermented and then dried, roasted, and ground into a thick cocoa liquor. The liquor is actually made up of the very fine, broken down bean cell particles and cocoa butter that was tucked inside the cocoa nibs, which were inside of the beans. The cocoa liquor is then refined from dehusking dried and roasted beans. Later pressed to extract the cocoa butter, leaving behind a cake-like mass made up of pure, fine cocoa bean particles. Afterwards, the cocoa cake is ground to then make a finalized unsweetened cocoa powder product, that’s rich and dark in color. Natural cocoa powder is a staple ingredient for everyone who likes baking. Dark chocolate is called for in many chocolate dessert recipes since it adds an intense, bitter chocolatey flavor to everything from cookies, to pies, cakes, and other desserts. It’s also a somewhat expensive ingredient because it’s an exotic type of vegetable. It's also justified by being very healthy, since it’s full of healthy fats, fiber, protein, and antioxidants. Helping enhance the taste of many dessert recipes, organic or dutch-process cocoa powder is a versatile ingredient that should be a part of everyone's daily diet since it’s so easy to fit it into your regiment. Unless you’re allergic of course. You can use cacao powder for it’s wonderful chocolate flavor. Most of the top staple desserts recipes out there include baking powder, baking soda, and chocolate. The baking process of using baking powdebaking soda coupled with cacao enhances it’s chocolaty flavor. spoon of cocoa powder on a table Be careful when looking to buy raw natural cocoa powder, as many companies add fillers, additives, and other chemicals to increase the weight volume of the packaging box. Hot chocolate and regular chocolate powder mixes aren’t raw organic cocoa powder as the instant chocolate powder mixes on the market often include a lot of sugar and emulsifiers, like lecithin, to help the chocolate mix better with water. Don’t use hot chocolate mix in place of raw cacao when you are baking. They’re definitely convenient, but there are way more health benefits to adding raw ingredients to your food or drinks instead of pre-packaged mixes. Unless your recipe explicitly asks you to use a hot cocoa mix or dark chocolate powder, just use the raw cocoa powder with your milk or cream instead and add any sweetener you like. Preferably a healthy option like Stevia. Due to cocoa powder’s nitric oxide and flavanols, cacao can dilate your blood vessels which will improve blood flow and lower blood pressure, which is very useful before and after weight training and cardio workouts. And who doesn’t like a healthy heaping tablespoon of dark chocolate? It’s one of the most loved and addictive flavors on the planet. So much so that multiple research papers have proven that it can even become addictive in many cases. The rich intense flavor of natural cocoa powder is delicious with anything including coffee, smoothies and protein shakes, or even oatmeal. Some people even make savory chocolate sauce recipes, a gravy to add on to their meat of choice, or a dark chocolate chestnut pasta. raw cocoa powder and cacao nibs Cocoa Powder Health Benefits Other than its incredible flavor, there are many other benefits of organic cocoa powder. Many research papers have found that it has impeccable health benefits for your heart, brain, and overall health through weight loss. There are so many incredible health benefits of eating organic cocoa powder that you won’t believe that something so delicious could be so good for you. These benefits have lasting effects that can improve your health in every aspect.
Brightens Mood, Boosts Happiness, and Reduces Depression
If you’re struggling with irregular mood swings and regulation, cocoa has positive health impacts on the brain which also helps relieve symptoms of depression. Researchers have displayed that cacao is a natural antidepressant that can healthily increase your levels of happiness. Cocoa contains nitric oxide the mood-boosting chemicals anandamide. It’s a fatty acid neurotransmitter that helps make people feel slightly euphoric, similarly to THC. Raw cocoa powders have also been found to have an effect on the reward center of the brain. Especially due to the transformation of tryptophan to serotonin that naturally occurs in the body. Tryptophan is an amino acid precursor to the formation of new serotonin neurotransmitters in the brain. ground cocoa powder and cacao beans Researchers have also found that cocoa interacts with your brain’s neurotransmitters to release dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins, all of which make you feel happier.
Can Boost your Libido and Sexual Performance
Cacao is the pure, unrefined form of chocolate. We eat the seed, which contains another alkaloid called theobromine. Theobromine acts as a blood vessel widener and is actually used in modern medicine for this purpose. It also increases blood flow throughout your body because it will lower your blood pressure, reduce inflammation, dilate your arteries. Cacao can be consumed as a powder, nibs, or whole beans. Another mood-enhancing chemical found in cocoa is phenethylamine, this chemical releases the same endorphins that are released when we fall in love, and so this can help improve your sex life. In addition, it can also reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke. Mostly linked to the flavanoid contents because it reduces bad LDL cholesterol, improves blood flow, as well as dilates and relaxes your blood vessels, in turn reducing internal inflammation.
Boosts Energy and Helps With Weight Loss
Cocoa powder contains a healthy amount of caffeine and nitric oxide. These help boost energy and fight fatigue. Not only does it have a good amount of caffeine, but it contains magnesium as well. theobroma cacao tree with growing beans Two tablespoons of natural cocoa powder have about 14% of your body’s daily value of Magnesium. Magnesium has been found to keep your body naturally energized. Magnesium has been found to protect your body against other issues such as high blood pressure, type II diabetes, and osteoporosis. Cocoa is known to be one of the healthiest ways to keep your body energized, awake, and focused. Due to all of the health benefits natural dark chocolate has on your cardiovascular system and digestive system, there’s been many studies concluding it’s relation with weight loss. Raising levels of fat oxidation, reducing appetite, controlling blood sugar levels, and insulin sensitivity all help reduce your total weight; mainly targeting your body fat stores.
Boosts your Cardiovascular Health
Cocoa is loaded with the anti-inflammatory antioxidant flavanol and nitric oxide. These antioxidants have been found to improve your heart health and your entire cardiovascular system. Flavanols and nitric oxide can protect your body against cardiovascular disease, improves your blood circulation and lowers the risk of stroke. Having similar effects to olive oil and coconut oil. Other antioxidants, called polyphenols, in cocoa are known to help reduce HDL is (bad cholesterol) levels and prevent atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries. cacao bean and powder
Boost your Skin Health
You should try to have a daily serving of hot cocoa to have long-lasting, positive health benefits. Flavanols, nitric oxide, polyphenols have been found to help you protect your cells from premature oxidation this will keep your skin from looking aged or becoming wrinkled. It can also improve your skin texture and give it a glowing look. In one study, researchers found that dark chocolate helped improve skin microcirculation, skin hydration, as well as reducing skin swelling and inflammation. You will look more youthful and bright with just a little more cocoa in your diet. Not only does it help your skin, but using cocoa butter as a moisturizer has also been found to keep skin soft and smooth. You can try making your own skin moisturizer at home with this simple recipe.
High in Polyphenols, Flavanols, and Antioxidant Enzymes
Flavanols and polyphenols are naturally occurring antioxidants that are rich in foods like nuts, certain vegetables, teas (such as earl grey tea, green tea, oolong tea, and white tea), berries and exotic fruits, chocolate, white wine, and red wine. They’ve had extensive research linking to improved blood flow, stabilizes blood sugar levels, increases your basal metabolic rate and fat burning processes, heart health, reduces inflammation, and boosts insulin sensitivity. Natural 70% dark chocolate is one of the richest sources of phenolic compounds, polyphenols, flavanols, and flavanoids which all have powerful antioxidants and the ability to reduce inflammation. cacao nibs Because these compounds improves blood flow through your body, this reduces your risk of neurodegenerative diseases and brain function. These actually go through the blood-brain barrier and supplies nutrients to the brain for the production of neurons and other necessary molecules for proper functioning. Multiple studies found that daily intake of cocoa flavanols raised the blood flow to the brain by 8% to 11% during a time span of just 2 weeks.
Reduces High Blood Pressure and Improves Heart Health
Raw natural cocoa powders and dark chocolate forms of cacao beans both have equal strengths in helping lower blood pressure. The purer the powder, the better the effects. A large number of flavanoids are lost during commercial processing, so buying the most unprocessed, raw, and natural cocoa powder product is most optimal. Mostly linked to the high levels of flavanols and flavanoids, cocoa increases nitric oxide levels in your blood which strengthens blood vessels, arteries, and your heart.
Can Improve Symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes
In actuality, cocoa is full of anti diabetic reactions. The flavanols slow down the carbohydrate absorption and digestion in your gut, raises insulin secretion of the pancreas. It also makes the transfer of energy from glucose in the blood to your muscles more efficient and internally reduces inflammation in people who are diabetic or non-diabetic. dark chocolate bar godiva on a table
Protects Against Certain Types of Cancer
All of the flavanols, flavanoids, anti-inflammatory reactions, antioxidants, polyphenols, and phenolic acids all contribute to the strengthening of your gut biome and immune system. 80% of your immune system cells reside near the small intestine and large intestine, having a strong gut biome is your best line of defense against infections, viruses, diseases, and cancer. Multiple test-tube studies on unsweetened cocoa powder being able to protect cells from degenerative and oxidative damage, inhibits cancerous cell growth and spread, as well as induces and facilitates cancer cell death due to it’s high levels of flavanols. Cocoa Powder Side Effects and Detriments Negatively Interacts With Many Medications One of the biggest factors that hinders global, general public use is its negative interactions and side effects with multiple medications. Adenosine (Adenocards) negatively interacts with cacao because it contains caffeine. The caffeine in cocoa can block the effects of the medication since caffeine attaches to the same neural receptors that Adenosine binds to. Adenosine is often used by doctors to perform tests for the heart, primarily used as a cardiac stress test and for facilitating sleep since it’s a vasodilator. Stop taking cocoa or other caffeine-containing products at least 24 hours before a cardiac stress test. Clozapine (Clozaril) is an atypical antipsychotic medication used to treat schizophrenia, decreasing the rate of suicidal behavior. The body breaks down and metabolize clozapine in order to get rid of it. The caffeine in cocoa decreases how quickly the body metabolizes clozapine, increasing its concentration. Taking cocoa along with the medication can increase the effects and side effects of clozapine. Dipyridamole (Persantine) inhibits PDE5 in the blood, which inhibits blood clotting and causes blood vessel dilation. Dipyridamole negatively interacts with the caffeine in cocoa as it might block the effects of dipyridamole. Caffeine interferes with the dilation of your arteries and increases coagulation of your blood, reducing the blood thinning effects of dipyridamole. Ergotamine (Ergomar) is an alkaloid that’s structurally similar to a neurotransmitter. It behaves an a vasoconstrictor to reduce the blood flow through the cardiovascular system, used to treat acute migraine attacks. Caffeine can increase how much Ergotamine the body absorbs. Taking cocoa powder along with Ergotamine may increase the effects and side effects of the medication. Estrogen pills (Estradiol). While the body breaks down the caffeine found in cocoa powder. Estrogen decreases how the speed at which your body breaks down caffeine, no matter the source. Taking caffeine along with foods containing estrogen or estrogen supplements may cause jitteriness, headaches, an increased heart rate, and other side effects. If you take estrogen supplements, you should limit or in some cases restrict your caffeine intake. raw cacao powder Rating and Recommendation Extremely Recommended Going through the huge list of health benefits and side effects of cocoa powder, it's a very easy inclusion in your diet. Dark chocolate is a staple ingredient in modern day cuisine and baking recipes because it has a unique flavor, it’s even used by the health conscious because it has amazing health impacts. Here’s the full list of the health benefits of cocoa powder: Brightens Mood, Boosts Happiness, and Reduces Depression Can Boost your Libido and Sexual Performance Boosts Energy and Aids With Weight Loss Boosts your Cardiovascular Health and Overall Heart Health Boost your Skin Health and Brain Health High in Polyphenols, Flavanols, and Antioxidant Enzymes Reduces High Blood Pressure and Improves Heart Health Can Improve Symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes Protects Against Certain Types of Cancer Here’s the list of side effects of cocoa powder: Negatively Interacts With Many Medications And the list of medications that can cause harm, it clashes with: Adenosine Clozapine Dipyridamole Ergotamine Caffeine Estrogen Pills Due to cocoa's great flavor, boost of mental and physical health, and especially the boost in sex drive, is highly recommended to include into your daily diet. Although the side effects can cause harm when consumed with chemicals found in certain medicines, it's best to avoid consuming any other form or product while taking these medications. Frequently Asked Questions What Is Cocoa Powder? Cocoa, also known as cacao or chocolate is a dried and fermented seed coming from the theobroma tree. It's the basis for anything made of chocolate. The theobroma tree is native to the Amazon basin and Aztec cultures in South America. Popularized by the Spanish, they brought and distributed the seeds to major continents like Europe, Asia, and West Africa. A theobroma tree can only grow properly in tropical areas accompanied by lots of rain. Unlike most other exotic trees, it's able to be harvested multiple times per year. The cacao pods fruits that grow from the tree are either green, purple, or red when young; but become a lighter shade of yellow and orange when fully matured. The pods have a rough leather like texture encapsulating the beans. The Ivory Coast is the largest exporter of pods and beans globally. Currently at around 2,100,000 tonnes per year. While the United States and Germany are the largest importers at around 2.8$ billion and 2.33$ billion dollars worth respectively. Is Cocoa Powder Vegan? Yes, cocoa products are all vegan by nature. Specifically, it's the seeds of the fruit originating from the theobroma tree. Although some chocolate products have milk, eggs, and other animal products. Pure dark chocolate powder products have no animal products at all, making them safe for all vegans. Is Cocoa Powder Healthy? Yes, cocoa powder is very healthy actually. There are so many positive health benefits that come from including it into your diet. It can: 1. Brighten your Mood, Boosts Happiness, and Reduces Depression
Can Boost your Libido and Sexual Performance
Boosts Energy and Aids With Weight Loss
Boosts your Cardiovascular Health and Blood Flow
Boost your Skin Health
High in Polyphenols, Flavanols, and Antioxidant Enzymes
Reduces High Blood Pressure and Improves Heart Health
Can Improve Symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes
Protects Against Certain Types of Cancer
Where To Buy Cocoa Powder, Beans, or Nibs? There are many places like amazon, walmart, and other supermarkets that sell organic, natural cocoa powder, beans, or nibs
To help potential buyers navigate purchase decisions from a single source. My initial reactions only. Not an attempt at knowing the snuffs for real or capturing the full experience. There’s no winter where I live so some of the snuffs that that pair well with cold weather have an unfair disadvantage… YMMV Toque Original: nice balance of bergamot and brown sugar. 4/5 Toque Natural: barnyard (alfalfa, manure). 4/5 Toque Natural Toast: I get a wood-fired brick oven with something dazzling and dessert-like. 5/5* Toque Almond Toast: warm carmelized toasted almonds on a shortcake and good duration. 5/5* Toque Peach: peach skin / peach fuzz. 3/5 Toque USA Peach: apricots and menthol. Similar to Gawith Original but more balanced. 5/5 Toque Coke: I detect real coca-cola flavor and somewhat of a flash of a fizz. Too fleeting to get a hold of. Very short lasting. 3/5 Toque Strawberry: freshly picked strawberry. 3/5 Toque Apricot: strong cardboard scent/taste that lingers. 1/5 Toque Grapefruit: brief whiff of sliced grapefruit on the counter, minus bitterness. scent evaporates soon in tin (2 wks). 4/5 Toque Violet: like having a flower stuffed up your nose. soapy and petal-like. 2/5 Toque Lavender: a rather harsh and soapy headache-inducing whiff of laundry sheets. 2/5 Toque Rose: not the flower but the rose garden. "green" 3/5 Toque Lime Toast: toasty blast of lime salt (Twang) 5/5 Toque USA Lime: zesty twang on an oiled base and oh so moreish. 5/5* Toque Spanish Gem: unlit cognac-drenched cigarillo in a lovely medium-fine grind 5/5* Toque Ambrosia: bananas, apples, grapes, rustica. coarse grind. 4/5 Toque SP Extra: bergamot balanced with a rich, medium-bodied tobacco. lasting scent. 5/5 Toque Quit: hint of bergamot, dominant scent is on the bitter side and resembles crushed black tea leaves. on the strong side nic wise, medium-fine. 4/5 Toque USA Kentucky Bourbon: Tennessee / Irish whiskey 4/5 Toque Bourbon: campfire on a toast. 4/5 Toque Whisky and Honey: Highland single malt on a toast. 5/5 Toque USA Whiskey and Honey: toast and butter with a sugary musk. 4/5 Toque Toast and Marmalade: toast, orange zest, hint of confectioner's sugar, fairy dust. 5/5 Toque Chocolate: chocolate-flavored pudding from the refrigerated aisle. 3/5 Toque USA Chocolate: swiss miss hot chocolate / cocoa powder and extremely high grade cannabis. 5/5* Toque Berwick Brown: citrus peels and a lovely balance of lavender & violet conjure the images of a renaissance era violin shop and saddles hanging in Spanish cavalry stables. 5/5* Toque Peanut Butter: nutty resemblance but more of an industrial scent like high grade formica oppressing the senses at a newly built car dealership. 3/5 F&T Santo Domingo: milled cedar and then the distinct smoky flavor of a peat fire which turns dominant once it airs out. no nic shortage here. 5/5 F&T Macouba: rose oil, violets, sandalwood, something citrusy. soapy. low nic. 4/5 WoS Tom Buck: light, fluffy SP with complex citrus profile, subtle spicy woodiness and refreshing, cool almost lemony nose feel. 5/5 Bernard Zwiefacher: CARMEX. Strawberry shortcake. Cool balance of camphoration with plenty of subtle delicacies lurking about. 4/5 Bernard Jubilaums: camphor and a touch of anise. Say 90% Carmex to 10% anise. I can’t stand anise but if you’re a fan of Lowen-prise it’s worth a try. 3/5 Bernard Aecht Altbayerischer Schmalzler: dark and rich character of dried figs with an almost molasses-like sweetness. Moreish but for a heavy and steady yet delayed nic hit. 5/5 Bernard Klostermischung: thick hickory smoke and fermented figs. 4/5 Bernard Fichtennadel: spruce needles and the distinctive Bernard carmex camphor. Nicely cooling and not overdone. 4/5 Bernard Regensburger Pris: balance of hickory smoke, figs, and a back end of flue-cured/toast tobacco. early hints of sherry and islay scotch. 5/5 Wow! Coffee Bite: little bit of a burn to it, a little earthy. Stovetop coffee. The first few sniffs were different than I expected, but ultimately this is delectably enticing and a happy find. 5/5 McChrystal’s Aztec: definite magic. Fresh harvested cacao nibs stored away in the cold, damp air of a stone chamber. Dank and cavernous. 5/5* WoS Rows of Sharrow: surprisingly not harsh, yet somewhat soapy. Rather fresh and clean scent of fresh roses. 3/5 1: Uff 2:Meh 3: OK 4: Mm Hmm 5: Wowza Balls 5*: heroic craftsmanship
I started keto about a month and a half ago. I made note of my starting weight & measurements, but I haven't weighed or measured myself since then. This is mainly because I don't want to get obsessive over the numbers, which I have a tendency to do. What I do know is that my shirts are starting to get baggy, and I no longer have to squeeze into my too-tight pants. Even my shoes fit more loosely. Oh and my phone and keys now have enough room in my pockets! And there’s now room for one more person under my sheets!… Oh wait. Just kidding on that one. But yeah, for the moment that's good enough for me. A few other things I've noticed: I no longer dread feeding myself, and I no longer stress about where my next meal/snack is going to come from. Let me explain: Xarama’s World of Food used to be a relentless cycle of cravings or hanger, pigging out, and guilt. I constantly felt bad for eating too much, eating things I shouldn’t, being fat, “knowing” that people were judging me, eating at the wrong time, eating out all the time when I can’t afford to, eating more than everyone else at the table combined, or just eating, period. I couldn’t help noticing that I was that greedy pig who takes half the cookies at the office party and hoovers up an extra slice of wedding cake before the last guests in line have been handed their first plate. I hated parties, because in my mind, a party was a place where you spend an evening plotting how to get more food without anyone noticing (or, god forbid, forcing you to have a conversation you can’t focus on because THERE’S STILL FOOD LEFT AT THE BUFFET). I felt unable to drive from one place to another without stopping at a donut store or coffeeshop, because in my mind it made total sense to pick up something sweet to feel bad about later. I beat the summer heat by eating nothing but ice cream and watermelon for weeks on end, growing more blubber and ending up even hotter and sweatier and less motivated to do anything but eat another bucket of ice cream. Maybe with a helping of sweet liquor, to take the edge off, just a little longer before remorse kicks in once more. Every day I suffered knowing I was the fat person at the table. You know, the one who’s still shoveling a mountain of food in their face, seemingly oblivious to the fact that everyone else is long done eating, yet more painfully aware of said fact than anyone else would ever know yet UNABLE TO STOP AND LOOK PEOPLE IN THE EYES… Oh the humiliation. The dreadfully bitter, caustic, swirling cocktail mixed up from self-hate, self-pity, and childish defiance. I justified my bad “choices” to myself and others, fully knowing that my arguments didn’t make any sense and that I wasn’t really making “choices” to begin with. I was incensed by the fact that people treated me like I was stupid, because I know I’m not stupid. But precisely because I’m not stupid, I also realized that I objectively looked pretty damn stupid from the outside. I mean, come on! I clearly hadn’t even managed to stop eating before I turned into a whale, which definitely seems like a Smart People 101 level concept. But I hated the lectures from people who deemed themselves smarter or more educated or more disciplined than I was, the ones who knew all about my heart attack risk and how I should try harder and oh, aren’t I getting a little chubby? and The Diet That Will Work For All People Because It Worked For Me. How dared they assume that I lacked insight into my all-consuming problem, or the desire to change, or the right facts, when I had been trying my entire life to stop being fat, and yes of course I have read about your magic diet and in fact I tried it years ago, thankyouvermuch-but-please-stop-talking-about-my-weight-I’m-so-uncomfortable. I was never satisfied. I never stopped obsessing. I never stopped beating myself up for being so out of control. I was thinking about food 24/7, and feeling bad about all of it literally all day long. So exhausting. Nowadays, I plan a quick and easy breakfast before I go to bed. Things like perfectly cooked, fatty, salty, crunchy, uncured bacon (a new discovery of mine!) with poached or scrambled farmer’s market eggs and a fresh garden tomato. Or smoked salmon with capers (cream cheese optional), served on a bed of intensely flavored greens and/or asparagus, with a drizzle of lemon juice and a hard-boiled egg. Or some of that leftover lamb shoulder soup from last night: succulent meat with Brussels sprouts, zucchini, cauliflower, onion, tomatoes in a richly flavored, hot, oily broth. Such satisfying flavors and textures, yum. Such variety. Such vibrancy. And none of it takes more than 10 minutes to make from scratch (or re-heat leftovers from a more elaborate dinner). Oh and most days I like to drink black or green tea with a generous shot of cream… cold or hot, depending on the day’s temperatures. Or a nice refreshing glass of water. I eat a quick lunch: a crunchy salad, or a steamed veggie, or some greens; paired with creamy cheese and olives and nuts, or a hard-boiled egg, or last night’s leftover steak, or a juicy thigh from a rotisserie chicken I grabbed to take home with me and use in tomorrow’s green beans & chicken salad with mayo and toasted almonds. When I get home from work, I cook a proper meal and sit down and enjoy it. These are not complicated affairs, unless of course I feel like making an elaborate guest-worthy dish, which pretty much never happened in the past and happens quite frequently now. But really, most nights it takes me 20 minutes tops to put something delicious on the table. I eat out significantly less often, and when I do, I usually find it easy to order a dish that I know I will enjoy, all without food shortage panic or regrets. And if I don’t find anything I can eat? Well, then I wait until I can eat something decent later, no big deal. And that’s it. The rest of the time, I truly don't think about eating in between meals. Food doesn’t even enter my thoughts nowadays, except when I fondly think back to the amazing meal I ate last (something that used to NEVER happen, but which happens a lot now), when I’m grateful for how much better I feel thanks to keto (another thing that happens a lot now), or when I go buy more groceries. Boy do I enjoy what I eat. It is delicious, and it keeps me full. I eat way more veggies than I used to eat for the majority of my life, and not the sugary ones from the Hollywood prop box. (You will learn about this in the next paragraph, have patience.) I even have dessert after dinner: cheese and nuts, berries and cream with bits of dark chocolate, creamy yogurt with cacao nibs, or perhaps a sip (no really, just a sip, think a thimbleful) of red wine, or all of the above if I’m feeling really noshy while ready a book on a lazy late weekend night. Or maybe I’ll enjoy some fine chocolate I had to order online (oh it’s worth the extra time and money), or Greek yogurt drizzled with thick, creamy, what-wonderful-things-are-happening-in-my-mouth-I-think-I’ve-died-and-gone-to-heaven peach-balsamic vinegar. Yes, I said it: Greek yogurt and peach balsamic vinegar for dessert. This is a combination for the inventing of which I probably deserve to be burned at the stake, or perhaps impaled on a stake, take your pick, yes I’ve been reading too much fantasy lately and please don’t burn me to death. But yeah, it’s a wicked good flavor combo: try it, if you don’t mind springing for expensive vinegar. I have dessert every day, and it’s incredibly delicious and 100% guilt-free, and even with all this decadence, my blubber is just melting away with zero effort or forced restraint. That’s right, I don’t force myself to stop at the end of a meal… because I don’t need to. I just stop eating when I’m done. Did you know what that feels like? Because I sure didn’t. But “finished and satisfied” is a thing now. It’s when I feel like I don’t want or need anything else, when I feel rich and spoiled and pleased with I have and what I am allowed to do. What a world to live in for the rest of my life! Speaking of food: grocery shopping is infinitely faster and easier. Walking through a grocery store now means passing by entire shelves filled with stuff I no longer buy, or even look at. You know... cereal, chips, rice, pasta, beans, baked goods, most canned goods, prepared foods, the entire drinks section, the "sugary dairy" case, the candy aisle, the fruit displays in the produce section... they all feel like some kind of plasticky, dusty relic from the past. Like a thing that used to be magnetic and magical until I saw behind the veil, and now they're OBVIOUSLY just cheap Hollywood props, and I’m tearing down that veil so you can know it too, if indeed you so choose. You know, we gotta spread the love. And the cream cheese. (cue conspiracy theme music) Anyway, uh… right, grocery store. So nowadays, I hit the cheese section, grab some yogurt, eggs, salmon, and bacon on my way across the store, and end my round by choosing the best-looking veggies (whatever is green plus cauliflower, eggplant, mushrooms, and tomatoes; that’s the rule more or less, when in doubt Google is just a couple swipes away). Pay, boom, done. Time to go home and cook and eat that stuff. I also frequent the farmers' market for locally-grown produce and humanely raised fresh meat and eggs. To think that I used to literally spend hours in the grocery store each week, pondering my choice of sickly colored cereals, picking the “healthiest” type of candy and fattening ice cream out of the many brands that were even worse (gasp), and waffling over which kind of bread or noodles I should buy. And then guiltily returning that ice cream or candy to its spot on the shelf on my way to the register because, come on, I really shouldn't be buying this. And then going back to throw it in the cart at the last moment, after all. Ugh. I’m convinced now that grocery stores are places of great evil, places that only exists to suck up the precious moments of our lives that we should be spending doing fun things. Like writing a longwinded letter to random internet strangers, just because if it weren’t for other random internet strangers, precisely those who shared their thoughts with me in the past, I wouldn’t be where I am now :) But wait, there’s more! Cooking is so much less complicated, too. Where there used to be three components (meat/protein, veggies, and starch) there are now only two. That’s a 33% savings, err, reduction in time, effort, and cookery. It’s just one less thing I have to deal with, you know? Yes this sounds silly, but hear me out! I no longer need to spend any of my already-depleted mental energy on trying to decide which kind of noodles/rice/potato/bread/… goes best with the meal I’m making. I don’t need to pick them out in the store, have room to store them in my kitchen, prep/cook them or provide and later wash a pot/dish to cook and serve them in. I have so much breathing room and storage room and workspace now where I used to store pasta, grains, beans, jam, alcohol, sugar, flour, milk, candy, chips, cookies, yadda yadda yadda. Clutter begone! I need the space for fancy chocolate and vinegar, haha. I’m so much more clear-headed. I’ve struggled a lot with anxiety and obsessive & negative thoughts. Now I just get stuff done: instead of endlessly agonizing over how exactly I should do something, I just do it and move on. I’m not spinning in circles, mentally speaking. I’m more cheerful and less tired. I arrive to work on time (most days). I have more focus. I think I sleep better? (But who knows, I’m not watching myself sleep. That would be weird.) Umm… oh right, more focus. And yeah, you know? I’m happy. I feel like a human being again, after decades of being a junkie. My self-confidence is much stronger, and not because the weight loss is starting to show. To me, keto goes deeper, it goes to the heart of who I am, who I have been all along inside that fat suit. Watch out world, I’m ready to step out. Thanks to my best friend for introducing me to keto, just by living the example, without pressure or guilt-tripping. And thanks to all of you here who encourage each other, and me. May we all have good food, good friends, and happiness always. Edit: Formatting
Cannot eat soy, tempeh, lentils or nuts. Want to lean up. Please help.
The bad: Soy, tempeh and lentils just destroy my stomach. I've tried enzymes and different versions of those foods (wheat-based proteins, etc) and I get painful distension and gas so bad I have to stay in the bathroom for hours. I was full vegan for almost two months hoping my body would adjust and it never did. Nuts, well, I'm allergic. Which super sucks. The good: I'm at the final stretch of my fitness goals (it's the hardest part too but I'm so close!) and also trying to be 100% vegan. Just got back from an ALDF (Animal Legal Defense Fund, a GREAT organization) conference and I'm really pumped to go full vegan. Previously I've included yogurt (YQ, great protein, low carb), some cheese and fish in my diet. But this is no longer an option. You guys know why! My stats: 46F, 112 lbs, 5'1", 20% body fat. I'm pretty much where I want to be as far as muscle mass. I just want to shred. I have a very small frame. Current workout: M: trainer at gym, lower body and back. Sumos, dead lifts, she makes me go hard. T: easy day, fasted walk or jog in the am. 3-5 miles. W: 20 minutes sprints to increase my mile pace (Shooting for an outdoor 8 minute mile. Can do one on the treadmill) and then a light jog. TH: usually some sort of social exercise like bike ride with the bf or dog beach. F: arms and plyo with my trainer. Sat: open Sun: 3 mile jog at 10:15 or higher. Food I do enjoy: plantfusion protein powder, butter beans, roasted veggies, mixed greens with bragg's dressings, lots of shakes (protein powder, spinach, avocado, blueberries, cacao nibs, half banana). And of course, anything with carbs is delicious. Which is really my downfall. I do IF every day except M, F or when it doesn't work socially. I always try to get 14-16 hours in between meals and try not to snack, etc. I'm not IF like how they are on reddit. I read the Obesity Code by Jason Fung and I follow his recommendations for my gender and age. What would you recommend? Should I suck it up and get a nutrition consult? My trainer is not vegan nor does she believe you can achieve fitness goals without meat. But I love what she does at the gym and she's really changed my body so I don't want to leave her. I'm frustrated and feel like I'm all over the place with my food. Open to any suggestions on workout or food. Thanks.
Simple Keto Gourmet dessert - 20 minutes, 5 ingredients, no cooking - Ode to the avocado
I own a chocolate company in Colombia and we started to make dark keto chocolate for health/my own ADD reasons. We make amazing recipes that don’t denature products significantly and launched a Kickstarter just now we are super fn proud of too! 90% funded - http://avocade.fnd.to/ketodose Thought Id share this 20 minute recipe with yall Ingredients: Brasil Nuts (blended) - (12 grams brasil nut butter per serving) Cacao Butter (3 grams per serving) Avocados (1/2 avocado per serving) Olive Oil (4 grams per serving) Cacao Nibs (15 grams per serving) Gonna show you giffys of how this goes down
200 grams of Brazil Nuts, grind in a Ninja or your favorite blended for approximately 10 minutes.
https://giphy.com/gifs/Xzji5mdkWmYCW1EwzO - 60 grams of Cacao Butter (you can adjust depending on ambient temperature here as the brazil nut butter will start to melt relatively quickly after exiting the fridge/freezer) Can add 6 grams of lemon juice as well for tartness
https://gph.is/g/aKnxPNo - Put in the freezer for 20 minutes and in the meanwhile get some nice avocados.
https://giphy.com/gifs/L4fuB9j8ELb0kQJnPr You will use only 1 of each molded brazil nut bombs for each half avocado. Split avocados in half and scoop out. And take out the brasil nut butter bombs from the freezer after freezing for 20 minutes. Put them in the cored avocado where the seed formerly was and lay flat on platebrush extra virgin olive on the avocado oil.
These girls are here for attention and chocolate! Are they willing to give sweets to their those that love or like?!
■ LE+【Elusive Playgirl】FoxtailNine-Tailed Fox Queen / Potential World Enemy
Foxtail’s sweet fragrance could suffocate an admirer’s lungs. This single queen did not gain her title through marriage - but rather through greed and manipulation. And so her inviting gaze easily convinces males to give up their possessions. But will she ever be satisfied by what she owns? No one knows the truth.
Those who passed by the fiery caverns where Mustaria lives picked up an intensely sweet aroma. A brave adventurer entered the cave to figure out the source. They found streams and mountains of chocolate - along with the feminine figure of the one who once guarded the cave diligently. She feels sorry for the trespasser who is hungry for her sweets - and nods slightly with a proud face…
■ LE【Be Mine!】OpushiiOpushii • Apostle Lord Variant / Half Demihuman
The Parabellum kitchen smells like desserts. Today the clever cook happens to be Opushii! She is proud of her cooking. She is spending time with her gem beasts and making chocolates to send to her parents. Unlike dogs or cats, they can eat it and might get a treat. Her apron was made by the Black Oni. She rambles on to the beasts about magic arts that boys can’t use; gold & silver girl onis may know…
February 14th, 2018 16:00 JST - February 21st, 2018 13:59 JST
Limited Hunt: Hunt for the Scrumptious Chocolate
The Time Limited Event Hunt for the Scrumptious Chocolate has opened!
The girls of 【Parabellum】 have given you a request to get some sweet materials. Akane knows that it is just in time for Valentine’s Day. Get monsters to give up their cocoa and acquire materials to learn abilities - and to craft equipment for select time limited units from this week’s Happy Valentine’s Gacha.
Obtainable Abilities 【Romantic Inspiration】+15,000: Chocolate Gift of Love
Boost a target ally’s atk., def., mag., eva., and dex. Encouraging chocolates filled with your love and delicious ingredients raise an ally’s stats.
【Thoughts of a Heartthrob】+15,000: The Power of Love
Heal a target ally. Love is a mysterious thing - your ally will feel rejuvenated after receiving your affectionate healing spell.
Craftable Equipments Majestic Crimson Robes
Clothes that emphasize Foxtail’s natural charms with vivid red colors. Most beings are captivated and cannot stop looking at the garment. That makes it easy for Foxtail to steal more than just a glance. Equip on LE+ 【Elusive Playgirl】Foxtail for the best results.
Basic:
HP +180, Mag +200, Eva +10, Dex +50, Thunder +5
Additional effect:
Added HP +280, Mag +300, Eva +10, Dex +50, Fire +5, Thunder +5, Dark +5 Modified Position: Middle Element: Thunder Range: 3 Squares ► She hits those intoxicated by her fragrance with lightning; can lower def. & mag.; huge man-killer dmg.
Sweet Fountain
Melted chocolate flows from this fountain. The sweet aromas can be picked up from a good distance. Equip on LE+【Sweet Tooth】Mustaria Ignatos for the best results.
Basic:
HP +200, Def +35, Mag +185, Dex +10, Fire +5, Wind +5
Additional effect:
Added HP +300, Def +35, Mag +305, Eva +1, Dex +10, Fire +5, Wind +5 Modified Position: Vanguard Element: Fire Range: 3 Squares ► She uses 【Ultimate Fire Breath】 while raging about melted chocolates; can dmg. & heal block self
Heart Apron
The cute decorations on this apron distract from its true purpose. Opushii’s gem beasts gain unusual powers when she wears it. Equip on LE【Be Mine!】Opushii for the best results.
Basic:
HP +125, Atk +80, Mag +120, Dex +15
Additional effect:
Added HP +225, Atk +100, Mag +120, Dex +15 Modified Position: Middle Element: None Range: 3 Squares ► Her gem beasts kick foes after eating a chocolate treat; may ruin foes’ water & fire resistances.
Other: Garter of Infinite Lust
A special garter that draws out the true inner desires of opponents. Its frightening charm is said to affect just about anyone. Equip it on LE 【World Enemy – The Lust】 Violetta Rapture to show it’s true power.
Charming Chocohat
A delightfully fragrant top hat woven with enchanted chocolate fibers. Although it can be thrown, it’s not very durable. Equip it on SSR 【Tranquil Dame】 Supesei to show it’s true power!
Ruby Mocha Tailcoat
The materials used in this outfit exude an intensely bittersweet chocolate fragrance. The large, butterfly wing-shaped ribbons and bows can be let loose to entangle and constrict opponents. Equip this on SSR 【Mariposa Crush】 Burasato to show its true power!
Obtainable Units
LE+ Golden Fungus (Limited Mission)
LE Golden Fungus (Limited Mission)
Period
February 14th 2019 16:00 JST - February 21st, 2018 13:59 JST
MISC
Added new Time Limited Stage: Hunt for the Scrumptious Chocolate.
Added new Time Limited Happy Valentine’s Gacha.
Added new Time Limited Missions.
Halved Daily Stages stamina consumption until next update.
Special Valentine’s Login Bonus: Akane’s Handmade Chocolate
More Information Visit Re:Monster Wiki for more detail:
A week in the life of 500lbs of sadness work outs, meal prep and raid.
So I figured I'd make another post as I have a few messages and comments from people asking for more detailed info on my diet and exercise so here it goes. I'll go over my typical week that includes work,meal prep,gym,raid. Please note I'm no expert but am following what I know. Also I tend to eat only one large meal a day and am on the "omad" diet with keto. Also I try to eat early in the day as I don't like food in my stomach when going to bed. I schedule my weeks from Saturday - Saturday I am a nurse in a family practice clinic currently my work week is Monday-friday 0800-1700 Saturday - First day off from work I wake up generally around 0900 and get my ass to the gym where I do "back and bi's" I power lift focusing on heavy weights 3 sets with the last set going to failure. I don't take breaks while lifting as much as possible and always preform two exercises at the same time due to limited time(ex lateral raises to hammer curls back to lateral raises rinse and repeat). A good example of a typical back and bi work out Warm up - Jump rope ( I suck at jumping rope but can nearly jump rope for a minute before I screw up and have to restart) Bar bell shrugs 3 sets Sitting bicep curls 3 sets Lat Pull downs 3 sets Military press 3 sets Hammer Curl Seated cable row Seated lateral raise Standing bicep curl alternating arms 21's as a burn out 30-50 mins of cardio on a elliptical trainer. I measure my progress by calories burned. I am aware it is not actual calories burned but I figure if I burn 500 in a 30 min session and then next week burn 550 in the same amount of time that's progress. Food: Saturdays tend to be a "hearty" different meal for me compared to what I eat during the week. A good example is what I ate today I eat these supplements with every meal as per my doctor's orders. Psyllium husk caplets x3 - 6 cals Mct oil - 1tbsp 100 cals Sunflower lecithin 1200mg caps x 3 38 cals Fish oil 1200mg x 2 gels 25 cals Homemade burgers: organic gress fed ground beef 93/7 lean 20.3 oz 913 cals 2 slices of sharp cheddar cheese 160 cals 81g of keto bread ( check out keto connect) 292 cals hidden valley organic ranch 2 tbsp 140 cals Twilight delight chocolate 72% 60 cals Total macros - Fat 119 g net carbs 7g Protein 142 g total cals 1684 Sunday - Getting up around 08:30 and going straight to the gym. Sundays are my "chest and tris" day Jump rope to warm up Bench press Triceps press down Dumbbell bench press Flares Triceps kick back Cross cables Seated machine press Drop set of flares for burn out 45-60 mins of cardio Food: Sunday is typical a "gut rest day" I do about a 40 hr fast Monday: First day of work(0800-1700). Wake up time is 0600. Gym work days tend to be less intense due to work. I shower at the gym and go straight to work a few sets of curls a few sets of tris a few shoulder sets 45-60 mins of cardio. Food: I cook all my work food the night before as I find it tastes best that way. I used to meal prep for a whole week but by the end food was not as good tasting. work food is pretty much the same everyday of the week with the exception of Friday. 16 oz chicken thighs seasoned with cajun spice OR 14 oz of steak 6 cups of spinach 1/2 cup mozz cheese 3 chicken sausages ( this is if im feeling hungry) Macros for typical meal fat -68 g Carbs 6g net Protein 129 1140 cals ( minus 180 if I don't pack sausages" Raid night baby (1900-2200) ! No snacks just water I'm fasting! Tuesday: second day of work: Rest day Food: typical 900-1100 meal Wednesday - same as Monday: third day of work(0800-1700). Wake up time is 0600. Gym work days tend to be less intense due to work. I shower at the gym and go straight to work a few sets of curls a few sets of tris a few shoulder sets 45-60 mins of cardio. Raid night 1900-2200 Thursday- fourth work day Rest day/cardio day I use this day to either get a 5th cardio session in or just rest depending on how my work week has been. Friday- last work day Rest day Food: This is my relax day tends to be movies/anime and an awesome "cheat meal" My idea of a cheat meal is buffalo wings with ranch, turkey crust pizza, ribeye steak with eggs. So that's a typical week of workouts, work, food, and raiding. Here is a list of other foods I typical eat to help give some variety Eggs over easy eggs with spinach, chicken sausage cheese bacon 100% bakers unsweetened chocolate ( so damn good) cacao nibs sharp cheddar cheese home made burgers ( no binder no eggs nothing) Any questions please feel free to ask and I will get back to you. If you want to play wow with me add me on btag Ash#1597 I am an alliance holy paladin.
Won at my office homebrew competition last night with my Mexican hot chocolate porter. Here's my recipe!
Won the People's Choice Award for my entry this year, bringing my win streak to 3 years running. Thought I'd share my recipe along with a couple thoughts for anybody else who wants to make a weird holiday-ish beer this year. Mexican hot chocolate porter: 10.8 lb Maris Otter 110g Black Patent 220g British chocolate 250g crystal 60L 225g carafa 1 (carafa spezial) . Strike @ 170F with 4gal H2O Mash 155F 60 min Sparge 3.75gal @ 170F Collect 6.5gal pre-boil . .5oz chinook @ 13.1%AA 60 min .7oz willamette @ 6.3%AA 40 min .5oz willamette @ 6.3%AA 20 min . Ferment @ 68F with Imperial A10 Darkness (If you can get Imperial brand yeast where you brew, give it a try. I'm a believer for life, the stuff is great. Absolutely rips through primary in just a couple days with no starter.) . Rack into secondary vessel (I just put it straight into my keg), and age 2 weeks with a nice tight-weave a weighted hop bag containing: 60g roasted cacao nibs 2 split ancho chiles 2 split vanilla beans 3 cinnamon sticks Remove spices, pressurize keg to achieve ~2 volumes CO2. . Overall, I'm really happy with how this batch turned out. It wasn't quite what I was aiming for- I initially wanted it to be a mole porter, with a nice strong ancho presence. It turned out much more subdued, but with great body and complex flavor. That said, if I could go back and change anything about it, I'd drop the cinnamon stick count to 2. It's very cinnamon-forward, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it blocks some of the other more delicate flavors from coming through. Also not a lot of head retention, which I attribute to the oils from the nibs. Any thoughts on how to mitigate that? Somebody said something about making a tea from them instead of putting the whole nibs into the beer I think? Bonus picture from the event Cheers y'all!
CBD + golden paste (turmeric) + raw chocolate = excellent synergy
Hey all, just thought I'd share some of my experience using CBD with other plants. A little background. I started using CBD to combat anxiety and depression. I've battled with these issues since childhood and tried many different paths including pharmaceuticals and various illegal drugs in my teens. What I do now is focus on meditation, diet, exercise, and safe plants. I've researched and experimented with all sorts herbs and combos. At this point I am employed in a field where I am drug tested and a positive for THC would ruin my career. This lead me to look for different ways to recreate the entourage effect. I started using turmeric for it's anti-inflammatory effects and raw chocolate after reading that it contains multiple compounds which stimulate the CB1 receptor, the most prominent being "anandamide". I have found that taking golden paste (a preparation of organic turmeric, coconut oil, and black pepper), CBD, and raw cacao (either powder or raw nibs) works amazing. I get a warm relaxed body feel and it is very uplifting mentally. My anxiety is simply melted. I don't get high. I can fully function in all aspects of my life, I just feel great. I usually take about 1-2 teaspoons golden paste, 20 - 25mg CBD sublingual, and 2 - 3 tablespoons raw organic cacao powder or nibs. Emphasis on CACAO not COCOA. Cocoa is processed and dose not contain all the elements of the chocolate plant. Cacao is the plant in raw form. Turns out that turmeric inhibits P450 enzymes which are responsible for the breakdown of CBD. CBD inhibits FAAH which is responsible for the breakdown of cannabinoids, both endogenous and exogenous. Chocolate contains cannabinoids as well as theobromine. Also, the black pepper in the golden paste has "guineensine" which is a anandamide reuptake inhibitor as well as "caryophyllene" which is a CB2 agonist. These different plants seem to have a synergistic effect together, each enhancing the other, at least on paper. All I know is they work very well together for me giving me the effects I desire without getting high. They are all readily available and high quality of each can be acquired online for fairly cheap. Also, I don't have to worry about drug tests, a huge relief. I will continue to experiment as there are many legal and wonderful plants out there which contain various cannabinoids and other compounds waiting to be tapped into. Anybody else tried a combo like this or have a suggestion for me to try? Thanks! Some links: Anandamide CBD Turmeric Turmeric Black Pepper
At one point, cacao nibs were fairly obscure and were difficult to find. That’s not the case now. Instead, cacao nibs are sold at many supermarkets, along with specialty and health food stores. You can also find them online. Looking online is often better, as you have access to a wider range of products and brands. Cacao nibs are bits of dried, roasted, and crushed cacao bean. They are crunchy little nuggets of condensed chocolate flavor. When used in baking, cacao nibs add a texture similar to nuts. In Chocolate Nibs Cookies, cacao nibs give the soft, ultra-chocolaty cookie an extra chocolate boost and a contrasting crunch Check out macro organic cacao nibs cacao nibs 250g at woolworths.com.au. Order 24/7 at our online supermarket If you are using a screen reader to navigate the Woolworths website please select the “Accessibility On” switch in accessibility settings. Cacao nibs help you to curb your hunger in a healthy way while still providing delicious and rich flavors. They are packed with antioxidants and nutrients and are suitable for gluten-free, keto, and vegan diets. Consider these cacao nibs options when refilling your pantry with healthy snacks. Cacao Nibs. Cocoa Nibs are chopped, roasted cocoa beans. They are obtained from the beans that, once roasted, are hulled and crushed. If the cocoa is processed through fermentation (which mainly affects the pulp, more than the seeds) and drying before roasting, it develops more flavor and is less astringent, that is why we can find different Cacao nibs are often used by chocolatiers as the base ingredient for chocolate. Cacao nibs are also a popular ingredient with beer brewers and wineries. Made with Arriba Nacional Fine aroma and flavor cacao beans. Our nibs are raw, and dried with warm - not hot - air. They can be further roasted to acquire different roasting strengths for Unlike processed chocolate, cacao (and cacao nibs, which are basically chopped up cacao beans) in its raw form is full of antioxidants, magnesium, potassium, iron, zinc, and brain-boosting Organic Raw Cacao Nibs Organic Raw Cacao Nibs. 002696. Ingredients: cacao nibs. Nutrition Facts Valeur nutritive. Serving Size 100 g Portion 100 g % Daily Value % valeur quotidienne . Calories / Calories 630. Fat / Lipides 53 g 82 %. Saturated / satures 34 g + Trans Cacao nibs are a tasty snack right out of the bag, or add them to cookies, trail mix, smoothies and ice cream. Cacao nibs are made from pure cacao beans that come straight out of the tropical cacao fruit. Cacao was a culinary treasure to Mesoamericans for thousands of years and touted as the "Food of the Gods" for its superior nutritional Cacao Nibs are Crushed Cocoa Beans. Cacao nibs also commonly called cocoa nibs are the seeds of the Theobroma Cacao tree. High quality cacao nibs are roasted and winnowed cocoa beans that have been crushed into small pieces for easy eating and use in recipes as a crunchy, no sugar topping and inclusion.
A quick video on making chocolate homemade from scratch. I show the cacao tree, cacao pods, fermented beans, nibs and the final process in making chocolate. ... David Wolfe - Raw Chocolate Cocoa Nibs - The Secret Elixir Of Life Get YouTube Premium Get YouTube TV Best of YouTube Music Sports Gaming Movies & Shows News Live Fashion Learning ... Servicio de Tostado y descascarillado de Cacao Curva de temperatura, mejoramiento en perfiles . CAPACIDAD 50 TONELADAS POR MES www.peruviancacao.com.pe 940 144 654 richard.rodriguez@peruviancacao ... This video is unavailable. Watch Queue Queue. Watch Queue Queue This video is unavailable. Watch Queue Queue. Watch Queue Queue Get Cacao here: https://bit.ly/2O6ii0C Superfood Brownies Recipe: 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla 2 tbsp grass fed butter 1 & 1/4 cup coconut sugar 1/2 cup brown rice or gluten free flour 3/4 cup + 2 tbp ... Get Navitas Cacao Power Raw Chocolate Nibs (http://atlashealthnutrition.com/ahn/navitas-raw-cacao-nibs-cocoa-power-azn) Transcript: http://atlashealthnutriti... A run through from start to finish how to do #Cocoanibs at home in #Grenada but not quite #chocolatenibs Why Coconut oil good for Massage https://youtu.be/R5... In this video Aviva Goldfarb shows you how to use cacao nibs also called cocoa nibs. Perfect if you love chocolate but not added sugar. In this video I share...
