A Lesson in Time Management, and Low Carb Cauliflower Au Gratin

I had a little problem yesterday with my exercise. I learned early on that in order to get in my 7500+ steps, I need to walk early in the day and again in the evening… not a problem, usually. I walk one dog in the morning after I take my daughter to school and walk the other after dinner. I also bike in the morning after I take the dogs out to play fetch in the yard, at the same time I am going downstairs to do laundry. It’s a nice little system and it works. EXCEPT… when there is something else in the morning (like volunteer work or some other appointment), then I have to “make up” the walking and biking later in the day. Or if my daughter has a dance class in the evening, I walk while she dances instead of watching her or chatting with friends. But Sunday, I had a double whammy that I didn’t plan for: no walking or biking in the morning (because of church) and no walking or biking after dinner (because we went to meet up with friends for a couple hours). We also had guests over in the middle of the day! I tackled the morning thing by walking quickly around the block a couple times after I dropped my daughter off to Sunday School before heading to the service, but that wasn’t enough. Even with a short mid-day walk after my company left, I ended up with just under 6,200 steps… short of my goal. I’ll admit there have been 2 or 3 evenings when I was short on my steps and I paced around the living room for half an hour while watching TV to reach my goal. But last night I knew I wasn’t going to make it. I need to plan better for days like this! I did manage to get in the biking, at least.

Today’s food, for those interested:
coffee with cream
avocado and bacon
Premier Protein chocolate shake
a chicken/apple sausage with spicy brown mustard and apple slices
Port Wine cheese (love this!) and a couple crackers
baked chicken thighs and cauliflower au gratin
square of dark chocolate
will probably have some low carb/high protein cereal with almond milk later

Yesterday’s dinner was amazing! Everyone loved it. Barbecued country ribs, cauliflower au gratin, and steamed peas. For those interested, here’s the recipe for the low carb cheesy cauliflower au gratin (no flour!)

Wash and quarter a small to medium head of cauliflower. Slice two quarters into slices about 1/4″ thick or slightly thicker. Put them in a steamer and cook until just fork tender (not mushy). In another pot, warm about 4 tablespoons of light cream cheese (or full fat, if you prefer) with 1/4 cup of half and half and stir until melted. Grate some sharp cheddar (about 3/4 cup, more if you’d like!) and put about half of it into the melted cream cheese sauce. Stir and add salt, pepper, and onion powder to taste. Add the cauliflower and gently stir until coated. Place in a glass dish, top with remaining cheese, and bake at 325 until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 12 minutes.

Great stuff! Who needs scalloped potatoes? Enjoy!