Last Wednesday was Ash Wednesday, and in our household that means it’s the time of year for two things:

• The Annual Ramsburg Family Ash Wednesday Cross Contest
• Alaina to give up something borderline unreasonable for Lent

To give you some more context, let me give provide more detail…

The Annual Ramsburg Family Ash Wednesday Cross Contest

First of all, Ash Wednesday is a sacred time in the Church and for our family. The remembrance of your frailty and humanity is humbling and sobering. Following such a somber service, our family was always somewhat subdued–which is a rarity in our household.

While we of course embrace this time of reflection and deeply respect this Church holiday, my dad started a goofy tradition a few years back to break the silence in the car ride home after church. His idea? Play on our internal competitive natures by sparking debate on who had the most “perfect” or symmetrical/evenly spread ash cross on their forehead.

While this is dumb, we do eagerly embrace this tradition and have roped Tom into it for the past three years as well. Since my brother and dad were both out-of-town this Ash Wednesday, the competition was a bit smaller this year…and I’m about 90% positive I won…which NEVER HAPPENS.

But I guess I can let you decide…although I think Tom may get brownie points for such a great face in his picture…

So that’s the one thing that happens this time of year…the other?

Well, it has a history as well…

Alaina to give up something borderline unreasonable for Lent

Giving up something for Lent is a pretty popular tradition–especially in more traditional denominations.

{Note: Being Lutheran, we really go either way in this tradition…although I have a feeling Martin Luther would have some major thoughts on anyone giving up something because they think it would make them more favorable or holy. I can hear him now…”Don’t mess with grace, bro!” Or, you know, something like that}

Personally, I’ve had a pretty bad habit of giving up borderline unreasonable things for Lent:

• ALL refined sugar…when I was 10…when Lent ran over my birthday
  • Note: This was before it was trendy. There were not a lot of options to eat. It was a rough forty days. 

• Carbohydrates…when I was 13 and I was trying to support my dad who was doing the Atkins thing to help with his diabetes…
  • Carbohydrates=energy. When you’re 13 and on a competitive dance team you kinda need energy doing competition season. This was not my best idea…and I totally didn’t make it the forty days. More like fourteen. Whoops. 

• Kissing…when Tom and I had only been going out a year…
  • First of all, this is just dumb. It makes no sense. I have no idea what I was thinking. 
  • Second of all, Tom if you are reading this THANK YOU FOR NOT BREAKING UP WITH ME FOR BEING SO WEIRD

Suffice to say, after I suggested we give up kissing for Lent and Tom actually went along with it and supported me I pretty much knew I was going to marry this man. He’s a saint.

Anywho, I can’t blame my family for always being weary when I announce what I’m going to give up (or add!) that year for Lent. This year, I was trying to kick my habit of selecting unreasonable things and decided to really think about what area of my life where I could use more discipline.

The answer I came up with? Food. 

Now if you’ve read this blog at all, you know that Tom and I have a love affair with food. It’s a central part of our relationship, and providing food for Tom that I can eat and that will satisfy his appetite is a major way I show him how much I care.

That being said, this is a dangerous game. While you often don’t think of healthy food as something that can be bad for you, I’ve noticed that I personally consume good-for-you food for reasons other than when I’m hungry.

I eat because I’m on vacation. I eat because it’s delicious. I eat because Tom is still eating and it feels weird to not be eating so I might as well have another serving.

When you love food like Tom and I do, we’ve found it’s hard to slow down and savor. So this Lenten season, we’re mindfully eating and being disciplined about listening to our bodies and actually stopping eating when we’re full.

But let me be very, very clear: this is not a diet. Far from it. We’re not changing what we’re eating at all…just the way we eat. We’re practicing spiritual discipline and mindful consumption in a society that constantly says more is always better.

Now, fast forward to this past weekend: Valentine’s Day. The holiday of chocolate-covered everything. Being that we were relatively new to this whole “mindful eating” thing…it was a bit of challenge to find a dessert that was diabetic-friendly, fulfilled our need for something divinely chocolaty, and also would not tempt us to consume more than we should.

So…where the compromise?

Here’s our answer:

• Prepare a pre-portioned dessert that wouldn’t make any leftovers
• Ditch any refined sugar and just use bananas and a touch of honey
• Swap Dutch-process cocoa powder for the Hershey stuff to give the dish a smooth, rich chocolate flavor
• Add in some natural peanut butter to balance out the flavor profile and give the dish a protein-punch that will leave you feeling more satisfied and full

| Mindful Milkshakes |

Serves: 1 Tom & 1 Alaina

Ingredients Needed:

• 3/4 cup skim milk
• 2 frozen ripe bananas, sliced
• 3 tbsp. Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
  • This is not Hershey’s! Dutch-process powder is less acidic and more mellow-tasting, which is important when we’re not adding much sweetener
  • I have found you can get a great big thing of it at Costco that’s cheaper per ounce than Hershey’s! #score 

• 4 tbsp. natural crunchy peanut butter
  • I recommend Market Pantry–it’s inexpensive and (believe it or not) tastes the best out of all the natural peanut butters
  • If using another brand, ensure there is no added sugar. The ingredients should read “Peanuts, salt”
  • You can use creamy peanut butter, but the crunchy gives the shake an added texture that’s really too good to pass up!
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 1/2 tsp. honey
  • You can use agave if you’d like, but I personally think the honey complements the flavor profile better

Directions:

• Place all ingredients in blender and pulse to combine

• Blend on low for 10-15 seconds to fully mix

• If desired, add more milk a tablespoon at a time if you prefer a thinner shake
• Pour into two glasses and serve with a straw

…and that’s all folks! This dessert takes under five minutes to prep and make. It’s crazy easy, but it’s also crazy delicious…and filling!

Milkshakes really are an easy way to help you have some portion control. The leftovers (if there are any…which in our house there isn’t!) don’t keep well, so (unlike my dancing brownies…which will be the death of me) you can’t keep nibbling or snacking on your dessert for days after.

I also love that this recipe doesn’t use flavored almond milk or flavored yogurt–two common “healthy” milkshake substitutions for ice cream. While it is most definitely true that these are healthier options, the reality is that these is a lot of added sugar in these bases. Save yourself the additives and just use plain milk–you can then adjust your sweetness based on the ripeness of your bananas by changing the amount of honey in the dish. Either way, you’re saving your body a lot of sugar you don’t need!

So while everyone in my family is taking a big breath of relief that I haven’t decided to do anything crazy for Lent this year, I still know that practicing mindful and disciplined eating isn’t going to be easy. When you love food as much as we do…you always want just a little bit more.

So I invite you to join Tom and I as we embark on this Lenten journey over the remaining thirty or so days. While discipline in anything isn’t easy, it’s always a little but easier if you have someone doing it with you.

And personally, I know I’ve got the best partner in the world. He sticks with me through my crazy ideas (hello, giving up kissing?!) and my more sane ones and supports me 110%. Even if I don’t think I can do it on my own, I know I can do absolutely anything with Tom on my team.

Here’s to making many more culinary compromises…all in the name of love.

xoxo,

alaina