Trim Healthy Mama

I have heard a lot about the book Trim Healthy Mama by Serene Allison and Pearl Barrett. All of it was positive. I hesitated at the $35 price tag because I never pay that much for a book! At over 500 pages I knew it was a wealth of information though. Finally, I saved enough Swagbucks up that I was able to purchase an Amazon gift card to help pay for it.

It arrived yesterday and I dug right in. This book is not about another fad diet or eliminating huge groups of food. It's just about eating sensibly.

The basis is that our primary fuel sources are fats and glucose but that both should not be eaten all in the same meal. That if you stick to one or the other you body can burn through that one fuel and then attack your fat afterwards. The book goes into much more detail on it but basically, you can mix and match your meals throughout the day but there is Satisfying meals and Energizing meals to choose from (better known as S or E meals). 

I flipped through the recipes and loved what I saw - new recipes that sounded doable and yummy! I started the change today and hope to see how it goes for one month. I haven't been starving and have been quite satisfied. 

For breakfast I had two simple fried eggs and a cup of coffee (S meal)

For lunch I had two pita breads with tuna and mayo (S meal)

For supper I made a simple side salad and Fooled Ya Pizza (from their cookbook). The picture below does not do it justice (I snapped it while holding a baby and two hungry children hovered at my elbow!). 

You'll never believe that pizza crust is not made with flour but rather CAULIFLOWER! Yep, I thought it sounded disgusting at first but figured I may as well put one of the weirdest recipes to the test.

Steam 16 oz. bag of frozen cauliflower. Drain in colander and press out as much of water as possible. Put cauliflower in food processor (I had to use a blender as that is all I have) and pulse a few times. You want about rice sized pieces.

Add 3/4 c. egg whites and pulse a couple more times. Add 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, pinch of salt, dash or two of Italian seasoning, and a little onion and garlic powder. Mix ingredients with spatula inside food processor.

Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and grease this as well. Plop entire mixture in middle of cookie sheet and spread outwards on pan. The crust is better thin but don't let edges become wispy thin or they get too dark when cooked.

Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool crust and then top with sauce, your choice of toppings, and a little more mozzarella (not a lot since there is lots in the crust). Broil until toppings are done.

This was quite easy! You cut it in small pieces since it is kind of floppy (I find it to be best eaten with a fork, not your hands). I fed it to my family and only asked afterwards how they enjoyed it and they all said it was good. Hubby even liked it...and he is picky! I then told them it was a cauliflower crust and they didn't believe me!
To me it tastes a bit like an underdone pizza crust (which is that way we like it). Next time I will spread it a little thinner and see if it bakes up crispier but either way this will be on the menu often. I always feel so bloated after eating lots of pizza but just felt satisfied after this meal. It's a great way to sneak vegetables into picky kids as well!

Have you heard of Trim Healthy Mama before? Tried their plan? What do you think?