The 2013 Food Lover's Cleanse Diary: Day 3
Sara Dickerman didn't just write the Food Lover's Cleanse--she's an active participant. Follow along with her every day as she reboots her diet. (No juice fasts allowed.)
Yesterday the cravings set in. I was sure the salmon and avocado crackers weren't going to fill me enough, but they were actually just fine. Sure, I could have eaten the whole package of smoked salmon on my own, but once I nixed that renegade plan, the combination of buttery avocado and the salty fish was pretty satisfying. My problem was the lack of caffeine.
I squinted the day away as if I'd been caught outside on a Pheonix parking lot without sunglasses. A vague ache groped its way around my skull. I've actually more or less gotten rid of my coffee addiction over the last couple of years--I've started drinking more tea, alternating black tea with less-caffeinated greens and oolongs. But over the holidays, I'd been in a coffee mood, and grew used to a higher dose of caffeine. Much as I love my genmaicha and my Purple Indo (which is tea, I swear, not a fancy medicinal marijuana), they were not quite setting my head straight.
As I drove around town, I'd pass coffee shops (remember, I live in Seattle, where the coffee is very very good), and find myself wistful as I stared at other people, normal people enjoying their roasty toasty espresso drinks fluffed with silky foamed milk. And then it was birthday time. I couldn't face baking a cake right now, so my daughter and I drove down to the wonderful Columbia City Bakery to pick up her buttermilk vanilla beauty. I can live without birthday cake, but it was hard hitting that place at 3 p.m., when lunch was more or less burned off and my hard-boiled egg was waiting for me at home. The smell of toasted bread hung in the air, and I swear the scones were winking at me. I wanted to grab their big basket of baguettes and run.
I made it out unscathed, but a little grumpy for it.
Then after squeezing in a little work, I set out to make dinner not for four but for eight--our family friends were coming over to celebrate with us. The chicken doubled easily enough, and I peeled carrots while the green chutney whizzed in the blender. When my friends arrived, we poured wine for them--another serious temptation as much for the sociability as the relaxation. I poured San Pellegrino and bitters for myself, which is a nice drink when you're feeling a little left out and sorry for yourself.
Dinner was a joyful racket. The young boys at the table refused to wear shirts for some reason, my daughter was beaming, and everyone enjoyed the food, though I fear the chicken portion may have been a little light for the grown men at the table. We were slathering the chutney on everything--the chicken, the carrots, the rice. I love the absurdly green look and flavor of that very basic Indian chutney.
Finally, we had a big candle-blowing ceremony, and the kids and grownups gobbled their cake---some ate frosting only, some just cake, and my daughter licked her plate clean. As for me, I quietly avoided serving myself. There's always another birthday down the road.