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.

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!!

Curry Chicken Stir-Fry

A few years ago my mother bought me a food processor for Christmas.  I'm embarrassed to say that I would only pull it out when I made my "Double Chocolate Torte," which was about twice a year.  But once I started cooking healthier I have found so many new ways to use it!  For tonight's dinner, I used it to chop all of my vegetables and garlic.  No more hands-smelling-like-garlic-for-days, WooHoo!


Tonight's recipe was created on the fly.  I knew I wanted to make some kind of chicken dish and while I was walking around the Farmer's Market this morning I decided a stir-fry was the way to go.  I used the food processor for all of the veggies EXCEPT the broccoli.  I used the standard blade for the garlic, onion and cauliflower, the julienne disc for the peppers and the shredding disc for the zucchini and carrots.  IT WAS SO QUICK AND EASY!!!  How is it that I had never thought of this before?!

 

Curry Chicken Stir-Fry

1-2 tablespoons sesame seed oil
2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut into chunks
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 onion
1 red pepper
1 green pepper
1 zucchini
2 carrots
2 stalks of broccoli
1/2 head of cauliflower (use food processor to create cauliflower rice)
2 teaspoons curry (I use the mild)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon black pepper

1.  Heat pan with oil.  Add chicken, garlic and onions.  Cook chicken until it reaches the appropriate temperature on a meat thermometer.  (If you find that there is excess water in your pan, turn heat to high and cook it down.  This will lessen the chance for soggy veggies, unless you like that)
2.  Add veggies and cook to desired tenderness.
3.  Add curry, cumin and pepper and stir.  Let it cook for a few minutes and serve!

Whole Chicken

One of the most difficult aspects of Paleo is the preparation and planning part of the lifestyle.  It is so easy, when you're following the SAD (standard American diet), to just pick up something to eat or throw something together, but with Paleo, it is necessary to plan so you are not just grabbing anything that's easy (like McDonalds).  It can be really hard to make good food choices when you're REALLY hungry. 

One of the easiest things I like to keep on hand is a whole, cooked chicken.  I make one at least once a week; it is easy to take to work and I can eat it for several meals.  Cooking a whole chicken is SO easy!  I was always afraid that it was complicated and I did NOT want to clean anything out of the bird.  Thank goodness the butcher does it for me!

Here is the recipe for the seasoning I used on the chicken.  I used a mortar and pestle to grind my parsley, sage and sea salt and then to mix everything.  I also make several incisions in the skin and rub the seasoning on the meat.  I then rubbed the rest of the seasoning on the skin and put some in the cavity.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 2 hours or until the appropriate temperature on a meat thermometer.  Enjoy!

 

Chicken Seasoning

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon sage (I used crushed)

1 Tablespoon parsley

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon red pepper

1/8 teaspoon chili powder

Inconsistencies? Just a Few

When I began researching Paleo, I found many inconsistencies among the "experts," which I found confusing.  One said, don't eat dried fruit, another, dried fruit is a good snack. One said, bacon is bad! While another said,  go head and eat bacon!  Why couldn't these leaders in the Paleo field agree on the parameters of this lifestyle?  I found this to be very discouraging and frustrating.  So I decided to explore what worked for me.  The most important thing I learned from all the "experts" disagreeing is that I NEED TO EAT TO MY BODY TYPE.  This means that I need to find the foods that work with my body and allow me to feel good and preform at my top level.  Some people can eat potatoes, some can't.  Some can eat fruit, while others lose more weight when they limit their fruit intake.  I have noticed that when I cut back on the nuts, Larabars, and coconut milk ice cream, I lose weight faster than if I eat those foods regularly.  Now, I don't need to cut them out completely, just use moderation.  So find what works for you.  Explore your food options but most importantly, enjoy your food!

Dinner tonight

Today was a very busy day at work.  I spent the entire day in car seat class and didn't get back to the station until 5:30.  When I got back, I was ready for dinner but didn't want to spend a ton of time in the kitchen.  Every Friday night during the summer, DC Meats, the local butcher shop, has a BBQ that includes chicken, brisket, pulled pork, rib tips and slabs of ribs.  Holy cow it is FANTASTIC!  I am so thankful they are in our district and we could just run over there to grab something quick.  So tonight's dinner was pulled pork...  It was SOOOO good!  And quick.  And easy.  Now, I wouldn't just go anywhere to get food, in fact, I told my mother-in-law the other day that I felt it was a hassle to eat out because I am so concerned with what is added to the food: gluten fillers, monodextrowhateveryacallit...  Food should not contain ingredients that you can't pronounce or that were created in a lab.  I have been very fortunate to have the opportunity to get to know the people that work at the places I shop, including my local butcher shop.  I know that they believe the same things I do and that they strive to produce a top quality product that they would feed their family- and that is important to me.

Stuffed Cabbage

This recipe has evolved from "Unstuffed Cabbage" in The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson.  When I cook, I like to have leftovers to take to work so this is perfect for us.

1 head of cauliflower
1/2  yellow onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 head green cabbage
1/2 - 3/4 pound of ground sausage
1 pound ground beef
salt to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
2 tablespoon dried parsley
2 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes



1.   In a large pot, boil water (enough to cover the cabbage)
2.   Using a food processor, grate the cauliflower into rice, add to pan.
3.   Put the onion and the garlic into the food processor and chop.  Add to the cauliflower and turn
heat to medium.  Cook for about 5 minutes,  place in a bowl and set aside.
4.   Place cabbage in the boiling water and boil for about 5 minutes.   Remove from the water.  (Careful! I find this to be the worst part of the meal. I usually get water everywhere and somehow end up burning myself.)  When cabbage has cooled enough to handle, carefully peel leaves.  Once the cabbage becomes difficult to peel, add remaining head to pot and boil again. 
5.   Add beef and sausage to the same pan used for the cauliflower and brown. 
6.   Add salt (to taste), pepper, parsley.
7.   When most of the meat is cooked and there is only a little pink in the meat, add the cauliflower and cook for 5-10 minutes.
8.   Add tomatoes and stir.  Cook another 5 minutes on high heat.
9.  Fill cabbage leaves with mixture and fold/roll.  Place in a 9x13 pan.  When the pan is full, cover with the remaining mixture, cover and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. 

Easy Station Dinner

Hamburgers, sweet potato fries and asparagus!

One of the things I have noticed about following Paleo is that I no longer crave the sweet, sugary treats I did when was was eating a standard American diet (SAD).  No, now I crave MEAT, mostly hamburgers or meatballs but fantastically wonderful, grass fed beef that I buy at the local butcher shop.  So tonight at work I decided to make hamburgers. (On a side note, I never realized how wonderful a burger could be until I ate a grass fed burger without the bun.  The bread really detracts from the full flavor of the meat.)  Tonight I was lucky and made it through prep, cooking, eating and was just washing my last dish when we got a call; I am so thankful for the little things. 

Hamburgers

Burgers are also wonderful because you can change the flavor as much as you want.  Sometimes I will season the meat with taco seasoning and top it with guacamole.  Other times I will just add what I can pull out of the fridge: bell peppers, onions, garlic.  Tonight was easy: garlic powder, cracked pepper, chili powder, sea salt (just a pinch)  and parsley, whatever I could find in the cabinet.   Grilled on the top rack (indirect heat) so they retained the tasty juices and didn't burn.  This takes a little longer but allows for cooking the sides.

Sweet potato fries

While the burgers were cooking, I cut up a sweet potato into "fries," placed on a cookie sheet and drizzled some Light Extra Virgin Olive Oil on top.  Then I seasoned with a little sea salt, cracked pepper and garlic powder.  I baked them for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees, stirring and flipping about half way through.  These tasted wonderful!

Asparagus

Before I began eating paleo I would have never thought that I would make and eat asparagus.  However, when I decided to follow this lifestyle, I knew that I would need to be more open to trying a wider variety of foods and asparagus was one of those veggies.  Now it is one of my favorite things to make because it is so easy!  I wash and trim the stalks, then place on tinfoil on the grill (top rack always! unless you are going to babysit the grill - and I do not have time for that).  Drizzle with EVOO and sea salt and pepper to taste.  I love that I can cook the asparagus on the grill and clean up is so easy!