Food Journal 5-6

This has been a bad food day for me.  I found out that busyness and exhaustion cause me to make some bad food choices.  Good to know.  Anyway...

Morning:
   1 steamed egg on 2 slices Hormel Naturals Ham

Afternoon:
   2 double cheeseburgers from McDonald's, with mustard, no bun.
 I was out, starving, and that was the best I could find.  Honestly, when I'm out and can't eat a salad, I find that this is a pretty good option.  Contrary to what many people think, McDonald's burgers are 100% beef--no soy.  I'm sure they aren't very good quality beef, and are choc full of sodium, but when eaten rarely, won't kill you ;0)
Snack: almonds and bite-sized prunes.  Again, prunes are amazing.  Did you know they contain more antioxidants than blueberries?

Evening:
Leftover peppers and sausage from last night
1/2 beer (told you I was bad)
Later: Grande Breve Latte and a few M&Ms 

Smoked Sausage and Peppers

 My lovely friend Hannah gave me this recipe the other day, as it has become one of her family's favorites. After fixing it this evening, it has become one of mine too. Delicious and SIMPLE. Now, the original recipe called for Turkey Polish Sausage. But, I've found that it is tricky to find sausage that isn't full of nitrates, nitrites, corn syrup, corn starch etc. I went to Forward Foods ( ) in OKC and found some all-natural, smoked sausage that was marvelous. You can also find natural sausage at Epicurians Pantry here in Edmond, and they also carry this AMAZING ground beef called PlumRich Beef ;)

Smoked Sausage and Peppers


2 T. olive oil
2 medium yellow bell peppers, seeded and diced
2 medium red bell peppers, seeded and diced
1 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 small onion, chopped
2 medium zucchini, cubed
3 T. minced garlic (don't mince it up too small or it will burn)


1 T. steak seasoning (make sure it doesn't contain Monosodium Glutamate, or MSG= bad stuff...it'll kill you.)
1T. onion powder
1 (16 oz.) package smoked sausage, or any natural sausage that sounds yummy to you.
1 T. balsamic vinegar or to taste

1.  Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the red and yellow bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, onion and garlic, and stir to cook evenly.  Season with steak seasoning and onion powder.  Cover, and cook for about 10 minutes.

2.  Add the sausage to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 10 minutes.  Just before serving, add a splash of balsamic vinegar and sprinkle liberally with Parmeasean cheese.

Grated Parmeasan cheese for topping.  (Cheese is not really paleo, so it could be omitted if you desire.

Food Journal 5-4

Morning:
   3 slices ham, orange, strawberries, almonds

Afternoon:
   1 link organic sausage, strawberries, applesauce

Evening:
   Turkey Polish Sausage and peppers (Recipe posted this evening)
   Apples with cinnamon pan cooked in butter...yum!

PS I've also been taking Carlson's Fish Oil.  To figure out how much, I used the Fish Oil Calculator that Robb Wolf and Whole 9 created.  Here's the link.   http://whole9life.com/fish-oil/

Food Journal 2-3

Morning:
   nothing.  oops.
Afternoon:
2 burger patties with chili garlic sauce, raw red bell peppers with ranch
Snack: Natural Fruit Roll-up, organic turkey sticks, diet limeaid

note:  one of my new favorite sauces is Tuong Chili Garlic sauce. (Green lid, rooster on the front) It doesn't contain any "bad stuff", and has a LOT of flavor.  Spicy, but not blow your head off spicy.  Yummo!

Evening:
Burger patty, corn on the cob (I know, not Paleo)
Yogi Bedtime Herbal Tea

Food Journal 5-1

Morning:
   2 "cuties" oranges and some macademias, coffee

Afternoon:
   Taco Salad
   Latte' and some fruit chew things from Starbucks.  No sugar, but they did contain carnuba wax.  Isn't that what you wax a car with?  Oh well, they were yummy.

Evening:
   Leftover taco meat and an apple with almond butter

Food Journal 2-29

Morning:
   almonds--yup, that's it.  Oh, and coffee of course

Afternoon:
   salad with ceasar dressing, 4 slices Hormel Naturals Ham

Evening:
   pulled bbq pork, salad, and a pickle
   strawberries with blanched almonds and a drizzle of honey

Food Journal 2-29

Morning:
   Coffee and Smoothie (strawberries, almond milk, splash apple juice, almond butter) Side note: I only do smoothies if I'm working out right after, as the exercise keeps my blood sugar from spiking and crashing

Afternoon:
   Deli ham, salad with ceasar dressing, carrots, strawberries
   Snack:  macademia nuts

Evening:
   Grilled chicken, salad, couple bites of rice pilaf. 
(Had to respectfully decline Raspberries and Cream Ribbon Cake at a party this evening, and it caused me GREAT PAIN!)

Food Journal 4-28

Morning:
  Strawberries, 1/2 orange,  2 pieces bacon


Afternoon:
  1 can tuna mixed with Mayo, pickle, carrot sticks, and a few almonds
  macademia nuts and prunes (hey, don't laugh. I'm not having "issues". They're yummy, sweet, and super low on the glycemic index (ie: don't spike blood sugar)


Evening:
  Paleo Porc au Lait (will post recipe if it's good) and green beans
(Ok, the recipe needs a bit of tweaking before I post...I'll work on it.)
 

Food Journal 4-27

Morning:
 Handful macadamia nuts, 1 apple, coffee with cream
Orange

Afternoon:
2 Jr. Burgers from Sonic, with mustard--no bun
3 slices Hormel Naturals Smoked Deli Ham

Evening:
PlumRich Beef tacos with guacomole and just a BIT of cheese :).  Put them on egg wraps (recipe in previous post)

Lots of water all day.  My favorite is Seltzer Water with fresh lime. (Especially if it's mostly tequilla, lol!! But, none of that today.)

Seaside Kitchen: Egg Wraps

Seaside Kitchen was suggested by a friend, and has since become one of my favorite Paleo recipe sites.  Really different stuff.  Anyway, tacos were on the menu tonight, and since I'm doing this Paleo challenge, my usual corn tortillias were out.  Just so I wouldn't have to pile up meat and guacomole in my hand, I made these egg wraps.  Delicious!

Note:  to make almond meal, just grind up raw almonds with the skin, as finely as possible in a food processor, then shake through a strainer to sift out any big pieces.  Keep an eye on it though--if you grind too long, it turns to almond butter!

Seaside Kitchen: Paleo Lunch - Tuna with Egg Wraps and Avocado: "Lunch is sometimes the hardest part about 'becoming' paleo as most Americans are used to sandwiches and get anxious when they can't think of..."

And so it begins...

I, along with my lovely girl friends at Core SPI started a 30-day Paleo challenge today.  We went through the painful process of taking measurements and calcutating body fat percentages.  We're now all BFFs as we not only know what everyone weighs, but EXACTLY how much fat we have on our bodies.  It was painful.  Very painful.
 We will be strict Paleo, or at least as close to that as possible, and will be keeping a food journal.  I said I'd never keep another food journal, but decided to break my promise in support of my buddies.  In fact, I'm going to post mine here just in case the general public wonders "What do you fix for dinner?...and lunch...and breakfast...and snacks.
Here's to improved fitness performance and fat loss!! *Clink*

(If you would like to join us in our challenge, feel free to post YOUR food journal here as a comment.  Feel free to ask questions as well.  I'll do my best to answer them properly, or at least direct you to someone that will)

Curry Pork

Although this recipe is pretty hard-core Paleo (meaning that it could really use some delicious flat-bread or something to go with it) it was really tasty, and one that I will fix again.  I apologize for the lack of photography, perhaps I'll take a pic of the leftovers tomorrow, and add it!

Curry Pork

2# ground pork
1T. olive oil
1-2 T. curry powder
1 t. salt
Pepper to taste
1 large bag fresh baby spinach leaves
1/2 can coconut milk
2/3 cloves fresh garlic, pressed or finely minced
1 t. *Xanthan Gum

Heat oil in very large skillet or dutch oven (something pretty big) and brown ground pork.  Add in curry powder, s & p as pork is browning, chopping and mixing until there are no large pieces of pork.  Add garlic, coconut milk and spinach.  Mix around a bit, and allow the spinach to wilt down. (Takes about 10 minutes.)
When spinach is completely wilted, remove the spinach and pork, and set aside--leaving the "gravy" in the skillet.  Add Xanthan Gum and whisk until smooth.  Allow to boil until the mixture thickens, about 3-4 minutes.  Add spinach/pork mixture back in and heat through.  Serves about 2. (I doubled it for leftovers)

*

Note:  Next time, I plan to use 1/2 ground beef, and 1/2 pork sausage.  It would be good with a little extra "zing" or spicy-ness, and I think the sausage would be delicious.  The original recipe also indicated that chicken could be used instead of the pork.

Beef Rouladen

Well, I'm back.  This is such a discipline for me, though I'm not sure why!  I have a couple of new recipes to share, and hope that you will enjoy them as much as I did.  The first is a long-time family favorite of mine that I've modified to be gluten and starch free.

Beef Rouladen

1/4 C. Dijon or Whole Grain Mustard
8 slices top round steak, 1/4" thick, about 2 pounds.  (Have the butcher slice it for you)
Salt and Pepper to Taste
8 Bacon Rashers (or strips, to be less technical)
1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
3 T. olive oil
3 C. Beef Broth
1 T. *Xanthan Gum

Cut each bacon rasher in half lengthwise to form two long strips.  Salt and pepper each slice of beef, spread with a layer of mustard, then follow with the bacon strips and onion slices.  Roll it up starting at the short end and secure with toothpicks.  Did you ever wonder what a "roulade" was?  Well, now you know.
Heat up the oil in a skillet, and brown all sides of roulades.  Add broth, bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.  (1 hour if using grass-fed beef) Remove meat and keep warm.  Whisk the Xanthan Gum into the broth until as smooth as possible, and allow to boil (stirring constantly) until thick.  Remove picks from beef and return to gray, heat through.

*I use Bob's Red Mill brand that they sell at most grocery stores.  It is used as a gluten and starch free thickener.  The same result can be achieved with cornstarch, but it's just better to stay away from corn products if you can.  If you think I'm crazy for making that statement, just give me a call or send me an email, and I will explain why in EXCRUCIATING detail.  Lol!

Pizza Chicken Roulades

This is a recipe that I devised a while back in order to come up with an alternative to traditional pizza, and it has become one of our favorites.  What is a roulade you ask?  Well, read the recipe, and you'll find out!

Pizza Chicken Roulades

Marinaide:
Mix together:
     1/4 C. olive oil
     1/4 C. balsamic vinegar
     About 1 c. water or chicken stock

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts--frozen or fresh
1 container of store-bought pesto (located with the refridgerated pasta)
1/4 pound fresh pepperoni (from the deli--it's so much better!)
Muir Glen Pizza Sauce (I get this at Target)
Freshly grated parmesean cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Pound out chicken breasts with a mallet or rolling pin until they are thin enough to roll.  If the breasts are thick, first butterfly them open with a knife to make them easier to pound out.
Place chicken in a dish and cover with the marinaide mixture.  Allow to marinate in fridge for at least 4 hours.
Spread each chicken breast with a good coat of pesto--don't be stingy!  Then top with pepperonis.
Roll up each chicken breast as tightly as possible and secure with toothpicks.
Arrange in baking dish and cover with sauce  (I don't use the whole can)
Cover tightly with foil, and bake for 45 minutes, then uncover, sprinkle with parmesean cheese to taste and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

After baking, slice each chicken breast into pieces about 1 1/2 inches wide (like a loaf of bread) Ah HAH!!  THAT'S a roulade!  Aren't they pretty?

Primal Pizza

One of the things that I cannot live without on this gluten-free journey is pizza!  Though there are a lot of gluten-free crust mixes out there made with a rice flour mixture, but my favorite is still "Primal Pizza"--a recipe that I found on http://www.marksdailyapple.com/.  It is made with almond flour, which makes it extremely healthy!  I have made some minor changes to the recipe, which I will tell you about, and according to my husband, have "perfected" it.  Yippee!
As for the toppings I used this time...
I just got creative with stuff I had on hand, and it was surprisingly delicious!

Primal Pizza, Chipolte style!

Crust:

2 Cups Almond Meal/Flour **See NOTE

2 Eggs

2 Tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Tsp salt

Toppings:

• Muir Glen Pizza Sauce (can't find this at Crest, so I just load up when I go to Target. Have I mentioned how much I LOVE this sauce?)
• Shredded Mexican Cheese mix
• 1 lb. Chipotle Ground Beef --recipe at bottom of page 
• Chopped Onions

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

2. Mix all crust ingredients in a large mixing bowl. This should give you a ball of “dough”. If your dough is too “mushy” (like mine was), continue to add almond flour until you get a good consistency.

3. Make a pizza sheet or baking tray non-stick. This is VERY important if you want your pizza slices to come off in one piece.

4. Press your dough on the sheet nice and even about 1/4 inch in the middle and 1/2 inch at the edges.

5. Put crust in the oven for 15 minutes. It should look slightly golden brown when you take it out.

6.  Load up your pre-baked crust with toppings, then pop it back into the oven until crust is golden brown, and cheese has melted--about 14-15 minutes.

My notes on the crust:


--I have added different things to the crust mixture every time I've made it for additional flavor. I've tried basil, parmesean cheese, and ground flax seed. All have been yummy! The flax seed added some nice "grain-ish" flavor, not to mention health benefits!
--spread out the crust mixture with a rubber spatula--you may even need to grease it. The "dough" is super sticky, and has to be spread like frosting on the pizza pan. Make it as THIN as possible.


Chipotle Ground Beef:


1. Brown ground beef, and drain if needed (if using http://www.plumrichbeef.com/, you won't need to)
2. Add to browned beef:
1 t. garlic powder
1 T. chili powder
1/2 T. cumin
2T. Chipole Chilis in Abodo sauce (JUST the sauce)
2 t. salt (you may want to add more later to the meat per your taste)
1/3 C. water

Simmer until water has evaporated, about 10 minutes. This allows the beef to really absorb the flavor of the spices.



**Note: Almond Flour
Yes, you can buy it at Akins or Whole Foods, but it's usually cheaper to make it. Just buy some BLANCHED (Blanched= no skin) slivered almonds, (If you're local, I buy mine at Crest. They have the biggest packages and the best prices) and grind them as fine as possible in a food processor, or better yet, a "Bullet" or coffee grinder. Be careful, because if you grind them too long, they are no longer dry, but begin turning into almond butter! (Humm...maybe I should post my recipe for that?) After grinding, sift out the bigger pieces by rubbing them through a collander. And voila', almond flour! For more almond flour recipes, check out http://www.elanaspantry.com/.

Brazilian Recipe #2

A few nights ago, I tried the second Brazilian recipe that I took from http://www.brazilianrecipes.org/.  This looked similar to what I ordered at Cafe Do Brazil, and I was hoping to duplicate it!  It was very similar, but needs some tweaking for next time.   The sauce/soup was REALLY thin , and just soaked into the rice instead of sitting on top.  Tasted good, but texture was less than desireable.  Next time, I will add less water, and simmer UNcovered to reduce down.  In fact, I might even use chicken stock rather than water for a richer flavor.  Ok, not might.  WILL!!
Sorry I didn't include a picture this time, I totally forgot!


Bacalhau a Baiana

Ingredients:



* 450g/1lb Salted Cod (salt fish) pre-soaked overnight (I used shrimp, and it was fab)

* 3 tbsp Vegetable Oil

* 1 Onion, grated

* 1 Garlic Clove, crushed

* 1 Red Capsicum (sweet Pepper) deseeded and chopped

* 1 Green Capsicum (sweet Pepper) deseeded and chopped

* 3 Tomatoes, finely chopped

* 240ml/8fl.oz. Hot Water (I thought this was too much, will take it down to 1/4 c. next time, and will add more if needed)

* Salt and Black Pepper

* 1 tbsp Dende (palm) Oil (I used olive oil because they didn't have palm oil at Crest.  Surely it wouldn't make a difference...)

* 240ml/8fl.oz. Thick Coconut Milk

* 100g/4oz Spring Onions, chopped (both white and green parts)



Preparation:



1. Drain the fish and remove any skin and bones. Pat dry with kitchen paper and cut it into 5cm/2-inch pieces.

2. Heat the oil in a saucepan add the onion, garlic, and peppers and sauté for 5 minutes until softened.

3. Add the tomatoes, fish, and hot water, cover and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily. (Note: I think I will simmer UNcovered to reduce down and intensify flavors)

4. Season to taste with pepper and stir in the dende oil, coconut milk and the spring onions. Heat through gently without allowing the mixture to boil. Serve hot.

Camarao ao Catupiry

I promised some Braziilian Recipes, so here is the first one.  If only I could pronounce it...  We all liked this a lot, the flavors were simple but melded together nicely.  My only complaint is that the cream cheese curdled.  It didn't do this at Cafe Do Brazil, and I'm wondering if they cooked the sauce on the stovetop, then poured it over the cream-cheese coated dish rather that cooking it all together in the oven.  Next time, I'll try that method, and let you know how it went.  Because it curdled, it lost the creaminess that I remembered in the restaurant dish.
For this one, I made the sauce and put it on top of a chicken breast rather than using shrimp.  It was great, and we realized that it could be a very versitile sauce.  So, for dinner the following evening, I placed the leftover sauce on top of an egg omlette.  Oh my goodness...I think it was better than on the chicken!  Haha!
Enjoy, and stay tuned for Brazilian Recipe #2!

Camarão ao Catupiry



Ingredients:

2 lbs of fresh shrimp (medium or small size) (Didn't use the shrimp, but put finished sauce on a chicken breat)

1 Catupiry cheese or 1 lb of Philly

1 can of hearts of palm, thinly sliced into rounds

4 large, juicy tomatoes

1 onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup milk

2 tbsp of finely chopped parsley

2 tbsp of finely chopped green onions

1 tbsp of corn starch

salt and pepper

10-15 whole peppercorns (you can leave these out if you don’t want people biting into them)

Parmesan cheese to sprinkle

lime juice



Methods:



Preheat oven to 450° F. Spread cheese over bottom and sides of 13 x 9 pyrex. Peel, devein and wash shrimp, sprinkle with lime juice and salt. Leave in refrigerator until ready to use. Chop tomatoes into big chunks and puree in blender. Saute onion in olive oil until limp, add shrimp, cover and bring to a simmer. Add tomatoes, parsley, green onions and whole peppercorns. Simmer for fifteen minutes. Dissolve corn starch in milk. Add hearts of palm and milk to shrimp, stir for a couple of minutes and remove from heat. Add salt and pepper to taste (remember the cheese is salty!). Pour shrimp mixture into pyrex. Sprinkle top with parmesan cheese. Bake until cheese is melted (about 15 minutes). Serve from pyrex. Serve with Brazilian style white rice.

Southwest Chipotle Burgers

We love burgers at our house, but since we eat them without a bun, I am always trying to ideas to jazz them up a bit.  A few nights ago, I decided to look South of the border for my inspiration!  I love the flavor of Chipotle Chilis in Abodo Sauce, so I grabbed a can last time I went to the store to use in the burgers.  If you've never eaten a fried egg on top of a burger, than this is the perfect time for you to give it a try.  So good!  Here's the recipe.
(Dear Amy S., I need help with my pictures xoxo)

Southwest Chipotle Burgers

1 lb. grass-fed ground beef (http://www.plumrichbeef.com/)
1/2 cup chopped onion
Chipotle Chilis in Abodo Sauce, chopped, along with just a little of the sauce--to taste (I cut up about 4 of the chilis, and the burgers were fairly spicy.  I didn't put these in the kids burgers)
2 t. ground cumin
2 t. dried cilantro leaves
1/2 t. salt

Fried eggs, 1 per burger
Guacamole'

Mix first 6 ingredients together well--hands work best!  Divide into 4 parts for 1/4 lb. patties.

Heat skillet with a little olive oil just to keep burgers from sticking.  Cook burgers just until juices run clear, flipping halfway through.  If you're using PlumRich Longhorn Beef like I did, I cooked them for about 6 minutes per side.

Top burger with a fried egg, and a sprinkle of cheese.  Serve with guacamole' on the side.

Cafe' Do Brazil

Yesterday evening, I had the pleasure of dining at Cafe' do Brazil for the first time!  I just can't say enough about the amazing food and authentic Brazilian atmosphere.  There were four different dishes ordered at our table, and all were fabulous, and full of complex, fresh flavor. (And gluten-free I might add)
As much as I'd like to, I can't eat there every day.  So I think I will try my hand at cooking Brazilian food for my family this week. Be sure and check in throughout the week, and I will post the recipes as I make them.

My Mom's Steak Marinaide

The other night, we grilled up some PlumRich T-Bones and Sirloins that I had marinated overnight in a delicious homemade marinade.  It's almost impossible to find a store-bought marinade that doesn't include sugar, msg, high-fructose corn syrup, or "hydrolyzed" and "modified" everything, therefore a little extra effort put forth in a homemade mixture is well worth the effort.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Mom's Steak Marinade

1/3 c. hot water
3 T. finely chopped onion
2 T. cider or red wine vinegar
2 T. olive oil
2 T. soy sauce (I use gluten-free Tamari instead)
1 t. beef bouillion granules (This contains huge amounts of MSG, so I used about 1/4 beef stock instead)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 t. paprika (better yet, smoked paprika)
1/2 t. coursely ground pepper
2 beef steaks, about 12 oz. each

In a bowl, combine the first nine ingreditents.  Remove 1/2 cup marinade and refrigerate.  Pierce steaks several times on both sides with a fork; place in an 11 x 7 in. glass dish.  Pour remaining marinade over steaks, turn to coat.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.  Remove steaks, discarding marinade.  Grill.
Warm reserved marinade and serve with steaks.