Day 7- 21 Day Sugar Detox

Today is day seven and can I say, I feel great!  Besides the fact that I stepped on the scale this morning and I am down 6 pounds (which is a bonus), I just feel better.  My knee is not hurting, I feel like I am sleeping better and I actually have energy and want to do things.  The new year is a great time to make positive changes that will allow you to live better; what are you waiting for? 

I must apologize because I don't have any pictures but the other night I decided to make some bone/chicken broth with the remnants of the chicken I made.  There are several ways that you can make broth: on the stove, crock pot or...  PRESSURE COOKER!!!  I have never used a pressure cooker before but it was so easy!!!  It only took 45 minutes on the stove and I had some healthy, vitamin rich broth.  (FYI, broth on the stove or crock pot can take anywhere from 12-24 hours...  Who has the patience for that?)

Chicken Broth (pressure cooker style)

 THIS IS IMPORTANT!!! Read the directions of your pressure cooker before you begin.

Place the remnants of your chicken in the pressure cooker.  If you can break the smaller bones, do it-  this will add a lot of healthy stuff to your broth.

1 large carrot, peeled and quartered
1/2 onion (no need to cut this)
2-3 leaves of kale
pepper to taste

(It is not necessary to add the veggies to the broth. I did so to add some flavor and include the benefits of the veggies.)

Add water and make sure to cover the contents of the pot.  Make sure to cover the contents...  Cover the contents completely...  Do I need to say it again? 

Lock it down and..... go!  45 minutes later I had this wonderful, steaming chicken broth.  And the bonus?  The carrots..  I love soft carrots.  After it has cooled, strain the broth from the solids.  If you would like to use some of the chicken meat (include it in soup), go for it.  I pulled out what was available but my broth was mostly from bones.  However, the kale was not very good, so I just tossed it with the bones.

I must say, it was very tasty and is very healthy.  There are no additives like with the store bought broth and I really have this strange sense of accomplishment...  I will be making this again.  Now I just need to learn to can so I can make and store it to cook with later.  No more processed broth!

And let me say it one more time...  THIS IS IMPORTANT!!! Read the directions of your pressure cooker before you begin.

Day 3: 21 day Sugar Detox

Day three has almost come to a close and, I must say, was a success!  I spent the afternoon getting food ready for work tomorrow and ho-ly-cow- I will forever be changing the way I make whole chickens. 



 This was another great recipe from the NomNomPaleo app, so if you haven't bought it yet- what are you waiting for?!?

To prep the chicken I rinsed it, cut out the spine and pressed it flat.  Seasoned the inside with (a little) salt and (more) pepper.  I then turned it over, rubbed the skin with my "fat of choice" which was bacon grease (I knew I started saving that for a reason) and seasoned the outside with salt and pepper and an organic all-purpose seasoning.  Then I let it sit and assume room temperature (ART) for an hour.  I baked it about 40 minutes at around 400 degrees, checking it with an meat thermometer. 

The skin was crispy and the chicken very moist.  This may be the best whole chicken I have ever made!

For dinner tonight we had a pork roast that I put in the crock pot this morning with asparagus.  Very good.

Tonight I am really craving something sweet.  I find this very tough but have found that when the sweet craving hits if I cut a green apple and sprinkle with cinnamon, my craving is usually satisfied.  But I am going to stick with it; I already fell better.  My knee is not as swollen and is not hurting nearly as bad as it has these last few weeks.  I am a Paleo believer...  I just wish I could get my hubby on board!

Day 1 and 2 of the 21 Day Sugar Detox

In an attempt to begin the 21 DSD challenge on the right foot, I made Egg Cakes last night with some leftover sausage from Christmas Eve dinner and some veggies I had in the fridge.  These are very easy and are great for a grab-and-go breakfast or snack.  Plus it's a great way to use up leftovers.

Egg Cakes

I use my food processor to grate my sausage and veggies (onion, green and red peppers) and then eggs.  Grease a cupcake pan with coconut oil and pour about 1/3 -1/2 cup of the mixture into the pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.  Cool on a rack and refrigerate. 


For dinner I decided to try two new recipes from the NomNomPaleo iPad app- and they were very good (I recommend downloading the app if you are able.  She has a lot of great recipes that I am very excited to try).  The chicken and salsa were both new to me.  I have made salsa before but this called for roasted tomatoes, jalapenos and garlic.  It was a little spicy but very good- they both made the 'make again' list.  When I "fried" the chicken the recipe recommends using ghee but I used coconut oil instead.  Next time I will either make the ghee or just try butter and see if it has a different flavor. 

And yes... Those are my favorite bacon, onion, jalapeno green beans...  So yummy!

Day 2 has gone well.  I have a headache but that could be because I have been trying to cough up a lung.  It seems I have the latest cold going around so as soon as I feel better I hope to start working out.

21 Day Sugar Detox Challenge

I'm sure it's no surprise that I fell off the Paleo wagon... again...  It happens.  I can't beat myself up about the food choices I have made.  However, I am going to pick myself up, brush off and start again.  Today I am going to begin the 21 Day Sugar Detox, a strict version of Paleo to get me back on track. 

A few days ago one of the guys at work asked if I wanted to join him in the 21 DSD and my first thought was "heck no!  I can't do that!"  "You can do anything for 21 days," he said.  And he's right....  It's only 21 days- 3 weeks.  It will be tough but I CAN DO THIS.  Most importantly, it will be worth it when the 21 days are up.

I created a group on Facebook and asked my friends if they were interested and there are 10 other people beginning the new year in the right direction with their food choices.  I am really excited!  I have needed a push to get me back to the best lifestyle for me.  So I am going to try to update daily on my progress. Wish me luck!

Sage Apple Sausage Breakfast

I have gotten tired of eggs.  It was bound to happen since I only like scrambled eggs and something has to be in them: bacon, sausage, onions and peppers- you get the picture.  So this morning I decided that I was going to give the eggs a break and go with something a little different.  I have made this dish before, the last time was as a stuffing/side for some pork chops (if I can find the recipe I will post it- it was REALLY good).  This is my best recollection of the recipe and this was just a bit more than one serving.   It can be made in the oven or on the stove and since I am usually in a hurry in the morning I do it on the stove.  You're going to have to take my word on this one since I don't have any pictures...  I wasn't really thinking about blogging when I made my breakfast this morning.

Sage Apple Sausage Breakfast

3/4 pound sausage (I bought the country sausage from the butcher shop)
1/2 small onion, chopped
1/2 large apple (I used a Honeycrisp), chopped
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
pepper to taste

Break the sausage apart and combine all of the ingredients in a pan.  Cook until the sausage is cooked and is the appropriate internal temperature.  Enjoy!

**  If you want to make this in the oven combine all ingredients and bake at 350 degrees.  I don't know the approximate time in the oven (sorry).   

Preparation

As I've said before, the hardest part of following Paleo (well, any lifestyle really) is preparation- having food ready to eat so you don't feel like you need to go to McDonald's or Taco Bell at the last minute when you're starving and can't find anything to grab. So tonight I decided to fire up the Egg and make a few things we could take to work tomorrow and have for Sunday. 

The garlic chicken brats are quick and easy, perfect for any meal.  Great with some peppers and onions or eggs for breakfast.

I rubbed the chicken with 1 tsp black pepper, garlic powder and onion powder as well as 1/2 tsp red pepper and paprika and a sprinkle of white pepper- I've never tried this before so I'll let you know how it turns out. The chicken is also sitting on The Big Green Egg's "Sittin' Chicken" filled with chicken broth and what was left of the seasoning.

The rib roast was coated with a seasoning packet I got as a sample from DC Meats.  I should have paid more attention to the ingredients because it wasn't until after I coated the meat that I looked and noticed that the first ingredient was wheat, followed by white sugar and also brown sugar.  Thankfully I do not have a gluten allergy- it just means I need to pay more attention when I pick up a new seasoning.  Next time I will just use my own seasonings.  I also cut up 1/2 green pepper, 1/2 onion, 1/2 orange pepper, a sweet red pepper and 2 carrots and placed them under the roasting rack. 

So now I just sit and wait for everything to be done.  I think the hubby and I are going to enjoy our Friday night with a movie while I check the Egg every 30 minutes or so.  Have a good weekend!!

Genetically WHAT?!?

Right now there is a huge political battle going on in California, and no, I'm not talking about the Presidential election.  I'm talking about Proposition 37.  Heard of it?  I hadn't until this morning.  According to The Cornucopia Institute "Proposition 37, a citizen’s initiative on the ballot on November 6 in California, would mandate clear labeling of genetically engineered (GE) ingredients on food packages." 

What are genetically engineered ingredients?

According to Rob Endelman at The Delicious Truth (as noted from the Home Garden Seed Association) "Genetic Engineering describes the high-tech methods used in recent decades to incorporate genes directly into an organism. The only way scientists can transfer genes between organisms that are not sexually compatible is to use recombinant DNA techniques. The plants that result do not occur in nature; they are 'genetically engineered' by human intervention and manipulation."

One example of a GE food would be the long-lasting tomato.  Introduced to consumers in 1994, this tomato was created in a lab to contain less of the substances that cause tomatoes to rot, giving it a longer shelf life at the store.  While this may seem great, one of the greatest disadvantages to the long-lasting tomato was that it contained a gene that was resistant to antibiotics.  Meaning that if someone who unknowlingly consumed this tomato became sick it would be more difficult to treat that person with antibiotics to fight the illness. 

Wait, you mean food is not required to be labeled if they use GE foods?

Nope.  Companies are required to label their product if the plant processes peanuts or peanut products, milk and other allergens but not GE foods.  So you could be unknowingly consuming a food that might have an effect on your health later down the road. 

http://www.traditional-foods.com/

So Californians have stood up and said they want to know when GE products are used in their foods.  GREAT!  However, the most interesting part of this battle is the players that are opposing prop. 37.

You might recognize some of the companies on the left as companies that value the natural, healthy way of life: Kashi "7 whole grains on a mission," Naked, Larabar, Silk, Smuckers, Morning Star- just keep looking (I know it's hard to see but trust me). 

The one that caught my attention was Larabar.  I purchase this product and on the label it says "Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Soy Free Non-GMO, Vegan, Kosher." So if the label reads Non-GMO, yet the company does not want people to know that the foods they are consuming contain GE foods, what are they (or the corporation) hiding? 

It was interesting to learn that some of these "healthy" companies are also owned by larger corporations.  Kashi is a part of Kellogg, and according to The Cornucopia Institute, included GE ingredients in the "natural" cereals. Cascadian Farm and Larabar are owned by General Mills, Silk and Horizon Organics are owned by Dean and all oppose proposition 37. 

I hope that as November 6th approaches in California the people realize that this is an important decision.  Hopefully, "As California Goes, There Goes the Nation" and soon everyone will have the opportunity to decide for themselves if they want consume foods that have contain GE ingredients.  Now that I am aware of the situation I will not support any of the companies that oppose this movement and I encourage you to do the same.  If we stand together we can make a difference.  Vote Yes California!

http://www.traditional-foods.com/