Locally fruits are starting to wane, vegetables still going strong.
Local apples are here and my favorite way to eat them is with PB as a dip. Measure out the PB so you don’t eat half a cup with an apple. 
I’m eating all the fresh tomatoes I can. A great snack is one slice of toasted Dave’s Killer bread or otherwise, some spicy mayo and a sliced tomato with coarse salt and pepper.
@abasket - We like Dave’s Killer bread. (Sometimes I get the thin sliced version for myself, even though my husband prefers the standard version.)
Last week we traveled to Moab, Utah to see Arches National Park and more. Thanks to those who recommended hard boiled eggs. They worked well for picnics and breakfast-stretcher. For Covid caution, we only ate in out hotel room (had microwave and fridge) or outside or restaurants with outdoor seating. We brought bagels along, something I rarely eat anymore. But hey, it was vacation … and I had mine with hummus instead of the usual cream cheese.
I have been using Noom lately and it has been helpful. Noom classifies foods as green, yellow and red. What I have found interesting is the variation between different varieties of Dave’s bread. I usually buy the 21 grain thin sliced - which is a green food. Last week I picked up a loaf of sprouted grain. Imagine my surprise when I logged it and found it to be a red food. Added sugar makes the difference.
Yesterday I picked up the new Skinnytaste book - meal prep. I have yet to prepare anything from it but lots of good ideas for things we will actually eat that use whole foods, not a bunch of processed stuff.
Okay, have to correct myself - not the added sugar. My guess is probably a database error in Noom.
I love hummus and sweet potatoes so I made this. We like to have apps before dinner but this recipe makes a lot so I will have leftovers for snacking during the week. (this is not the exact recipe but very similar, I microwaved the sweet potato for about 7 minutes).
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/229920/sweet-potato-hummus/
@sabaray - I have one of the Skinnytaste cookbooks and really like it. I will have to check out the new one as I am also trying to stay away from the processed food.
The MyNetDiary app I uses rates foods (A, B … through D- . It is a general rating, not specific to any particular dietary priorities or food combos, but it is still helpful).
I do find that once in a while an entry seems terribly wrong, perhaps user manual entries focusing mostly on calories. For example yesterday when traveling home from vacation I splurged on a Wendy’s frosty and noticed that the app entry had no sugar. So I picked another entry that seemed more realistic.
The one drawback to Noom I have found is that food logging is not particularly easy nor is it particularly accurate - and no easy way to compare different entries. I suspect it’s the fact that user entries aren’t checked carefully before being added to the database. Still, it is some accountability which I need.
I am back to eating a lot of steel cut oatmeal for breakfast. Usually I add a very ripe banana for some sweetness or a nut butter but avoid things like honey. Anyone have any favorite add-ins?
@sabaray I make steel cut oatmeal every morning in my rice cooker. I put frozen blueberries in the bowl, then pour the hot oatmeal over them and finish with some chia seeds. Sometimes I put granola on top for a little sweetness. It is so easy and keeps me full a long time, plus lots of fiber
Steel cut oats add-ins: dried fruit (cherries or apricots cut up are my favs), nuts, maple syrup, blueberries.
Savory ideas: olive oil, egg, kale or argula. Or sun dried tomatoes and some sharp cheese like parm.
@sabaray - I used to really enjoy honey on my steel cut oats. (I had read that local honey is helpful for seasonal allergies.) But now that I am trying to reduce sugar, I’ve had to explore other options
My oatmeal “additions” are similar to what I use for my cereal breakfasts (FiberOne with milk) and yogurt snacks. Usually it is a combo of these items:
I have not tried any savory options with my oatmeal, but based on @abasket post I will try it.
I just got the new Skinnytaste cookbook this weekend for my birthday. I’m going to try the recipe that is on the cover tonight. Banh Mi turkey meatball rice bowl probably minus the rice. Sub for the rice will be riced cauliflower or maybe quinoa.
@sabaray I put goji berries, raw unsalted walnuts, chia seeds and hemp hearts on my oatmeal. If I have it I also will put fresh berries.
I know what is good for me and most of the time I stay on a healthy meal track but once I start slowly wandering a bit off the road I can slowly add on a few lbs. I can tell I’m slowly moving in that direction. I am giving myself a week to correct my direction and if I can’t do it I’ll resort back to meal tracking.
@mom60, I am not a big fan of riced cauliflower but noticed she mixed hers with brown rice in several of the recipes that I skimmed through. That bahn mi bowl looks delicious. all the flavors I like. Please let me know how it turns out.
@sabaray I have found that I prefer frozen riced cauliflower over making my own. I like “Boulder” brand or the one Costco sells. I microwave it, drain and usually sauté it with onions, garlic, ginger or whatever seasoning works for the meal. I don’t eat I simply steamed as a side. Once I put it with a stir fry or in a “bowl” meal I can’t tell it’s cauliflower.
Another cauliflower product I like is Alexa brand mashed cauliflower. I’ve used it on shepherds pie. I also like it mixed with a bit of goat cheese.
We sometimes use frozen riced cauliflower. Come to think of it, we have not made our own from fresh in quite a while. I’ve tried several different food processing devices from our kitchen, and it is still a messy task.
@sabaray the bahn mi bowls were very good. I would recommend them. I didn’t have hoisin sauce so I improvised and use tamarind paste and I think it worked. My H really liked the meatballs and told me several times he liked them better than the usual turkey patties I like to make. I think all the raw vegetables made the dish. Otherwise I think the sauce is a bit sweet. Served it on quinoa.
I think tomorrow I’m going to make the Sheet pan Mediterranean chicken and veggies. I’d love to hear what recipes you try.
Any recommendations for how to determine reasonable targets for Sugar / Added Sugar?
Last year I was slightly into prediabetic range on A1C, a little improved now (5.7 → 5.5). I’d like to continue eating healthier, decreasing sugar. MyNetDiary food app easily captures total sugar. I’ve been trying to keep side notes on added sugar subtotals too.
Thanks for the input, @Midwest67.
I do no sugared drinks on a regular basis (never was much of a soda drinker) … though I do have an occasional fruit juice (normally I prefer to eat raw fruit).
From foods, some of my sugar comes from natural sources (fruit - pears, bananas, berries, milk etc) or healthy-ish other foods (moderate amounts of bread… example, a slice of Dave’s 21 grain break has 5g of added sugar… I typically only have 1 slice). I still eat some highly processed mealtime foods, but lots less than in past. I really like flavored yogurts, but 90% of the time I now do plain low fat greek yogurt (with added fruit and/or nuts).
Also I do get added sugar from snacks. I could cut back more on that… if I need to. For now, just trying to get in the mode of manually tracking the Added Sugar subset of Total Sugar (split out on food labels but not in my food app).
I had stopped doing local honey (supposedly good for seasonal allergies), but last week got a neighbor gifted me honey from her hives. So I am considering adding 1tsp again to my oatmeal when we get back into winter breakfast mode. In summer, I often have Fiber One cereal (zero sugar) with berries and 1% milk.
That sounds relatively low sugar TBH. You didn’t mention the Neccos though! 
Re: improving your AC1, I bet if we added some more muscle on your frame your body would handle carbs (including sugar) better!
But you knew I was going to say that, didn’t you?! Haha!
Ha… I had listed the Neccos in my originally drafted words, but my post got too long so I deleted a few sentences. I eat about 4 Neccos (total of 5 g sugar) when I run, tracked in the MyNetDiary app “snacks” category.
I like variety, and my diet varies a whole lot (ha, even when not on vacation). MyNetDiary allows me to look at averages, and it even sends me weekly emails with 7day averages and detailed tally. So I do know that each week my daily sugar (total) averages between about 50g/day and 75g/day… where food intake is approx 1600 cal/day (I am 120 lb). I have not yet given myself any daily targets for sugar.