I definitely like the sound of yours better - the spiciness of the chilli will be great with the other flavours. Thanks

great ideas people, i made my own mushroom soup to take for lunch today just mushrooms and onion fried in butter with veg stock and a drop of double cream. blended the hell out of it and i swear i couldnt eat another thing till i got home that night!

Wow! We have mushrooms to use up. That sounds great. We will make that tonight or tomorrow. Our mouths are already watering

Thanks

We made that soup tonight for dinner.. Delicious. We didn't have cream so we put blue cheese into it. Yum yum. That's definitely a keeper, thanks. We meant to have it as a starter, but my boyfriend dished the whole lot up in two big plates, so we're stuffed, lol.

Hello and a belated welcome! I am sorry to hear about the drs office - sometimes it takes something like that to get us going. It is especially hard when you are surrounded by people who can eat what they like- it would be very hard for me. I am finding though that I need to keep the yummiest of the yummy allowed foods around me. Number one is bacon! Meat candy. I cook up a large batch and take two with me to work to use in case of emergency - I am surrounded by people with agenda regarding my diet at work. I find right now I can't go out with friends- I cave too easily. Treat yourself with compassion and be prepared with your own yummy stuff! Starting a journal is very helpful too.
Kat

Oh god yeh mviesprite!
it was definitly the kick up the ass that i needed, nearly died of embarassment. but on the up side , i have been taking all the tips and tricks that you ladies have given me and ive lost five pounds in the last five days . Also downloaded a little carb counter from download .cnet..I dont know if anyone is familiar with it. you have a main data base(which you can add to) and you click on the food you have eaten and then add it to your daily plan ,it then tells you how many carbs you have left for the day. it also give you your wight loss in a little graph..v cool

IMHO the biggest factor in success is planning. You need to plan out what you are going to eat each day. And stick to it as closely as possible. A week is a good period of time. Then adjust what you are doing at the end of the week for the next week.

I found that going LC also meant a lot less calories than before. That made me hungry about every 4 hours. So initially you might want to carry extra food eg pack two lunches or a lunch and a big snack and have extra meat or vegetables for snacking at the end of the day.

Cooking in advance means you have food for a particular meal.

Part of planning is anticipating problems. If you know you are going out to lunch, have a plan. Assume there is nothing for you to eat. Or check the menu online in advance. Or go to good menu items like a burger, no bun, no fries. Do not settle for the least bad item. If there is nothing good, do not eat.

Do not plan for bad meals or a "treat" if you are good. Remember there will be more birthdays and holidays and parties. Just this one is not going to work. And you will eat inappropriate items. Try to make them small and get back to eating well as soon as possible. There is nothing worse than eating a bad snack, then following it with a bad meal or two.

Personally, I liked having the option of removing all starches from my home prior to starting Atkins. It is hard to eat what is not there.

Great tips Scottie..

I was just thinking about that cauliflower potato salad.. I personally won't add the sweet relish - it is not suitable for the level of carbs I am eating.. I'll add a chopped red pepper, which will add all the flavour and sweetness necessary, along with lots of nutrients and anti-oxidants. I'd prefer the fresh flavour of the pepper anyway.

We made that mushroom soup again - we just used the white part of a leek, mushrooms, a vegetable stock cube, butter and blue cheese. It was so quick - 10 mins maximum from deciding to make till we were eating it. It also tasted great without blending it, so we're going to try adding some chili next time to make it a Thai style soup. Yumms!

If you like mushrooms these are amazing

Baby's Favorite Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients
1lb sausage
16 Lg mushrooms
1 tsp Minced Garlic
1 cup shredded cheese-
Mozzarella is best

Directions
Step: 1 1) Place sausage in frying pan and brown.
2) While the meat is frying, use a damp cloth to clean the mushrooms. Remove the stems from the caps and dice the stems. Reserve the diced stems for later. Place caps in a shallow baking pan sprayed with your favorite vegetable spray.
3) When the meat is browned, drain and place hot meat in the bowl of your food processor; pulse several time to get uniformed size bits of sausage.
4) Pour chopped sausage into mixing bowl, add chopped mushroom stems, garlic and cheese. Mix together. Taste for seasoning- add a bit more garlic if you like.
5) Divide stuffing among the mushroom caps, pressing mixture in firmly. Be careful not to split the cap.
6) Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese if desired.
7) Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes until mixture is bubbly and mushroom caps begin to weep. Let sit 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition Information
per stuffed cap, 2 g carbs

Thanks so much karianna, sounds fantastic. will defo be giving that a go! ps just wondering do you guys have a different thread or is it ok to keep posting here?
ps lost 5 pounds this week yay

Wowee! 5lb - fabby! Well done!

It's fine to keep posting here.. It's rather nice to meet up back here now and then.

I tried the mushroom soup today as a Thai style, with chili, mushroom, leeks, veggie stock made from garden greens & stock cube, plus blue cheese. I loved it.. My partner likes it whizzed better, but I was in the mood for something light and broth-like. Delicious. Thanks again for sharing it.

Keep up the good work with the diet.

KariAnni - thanks for sharing the mushroom recipe. I love sausage meat, if I can get to a good butcher to buy good quality 100% meat sausages.

Welcome msmanson!! Sounds like you are off to a GREAT start!
You might consider starting a journal ~ I try to post what I'm eating there and can track my progress. Also, others can find you there and get to know you.

I'm definitly going to try your Stuffed Mushrooms KariAnna!!
Sounds easy and delicious!!

MMMMM those recipes sound great, the soup and the stuffed caps. I love seeing what other people make.
And (belatedly) Scottie is so right. Planning is key. When I choose poorly its because I didn't plan ahead and flailing thru my day does me no good.
Kat