Tag Archives: healthy food

The incredible, edible, egg. I eat a few everyday. Yep, yolk and all. After so many years of being scrutinized by the diet Nazi’s as being one of the culprits of high cholesterol ( right around the time margarine was also popular ) eggs are making a comeback. Not only are they not going to cause your cholesterol to sky rocket, but they are a great protein rich food to start your day with. Its time to run out and get yourself some eggs. But first, here are some things to look for before purchasing.

Look out for key words….these key words include:

Cage Free – Cage free has no legal definition… cage free basically means that they are probably in a hen house sans cage, yet still crowded together and stuffed like sardines.

Free Range- Free range also has no legal definition. They are basically your “cage free” chickens with “access” to the outdoors. “Access” means the over crowded hen house has a door that is left open. However, chickens are not the brightest of animals…and don’t venture out much. If their food is inside, that is where they are going to stay.

Vegetarian Fed- Did you know that Chickens are not vegetarians? Yep, when they are actually free to roam they will eat insects, worms, etc. Nothing makes my blood boil more than seeing a carton of eggs that says “Free range 100% vegetarian fed”. The only way that you can assure that a chicken is 100% vegetarian fed is if they are kept contained somewhere with no real access to the outdoors. Also 100% vegetarian fed, means 100% chance it was fed some form of soy.

Natural- This term means absolutely nothing. The only thing it means is that the unknowing customer will spend an extra buck because they think they are buying something that is at least a step up from conventional. Wrong.

Omega 3 fortified- This term means that the chickens were usually fed a diet of flax seed or some other type of dietary supplement. The omega 3′s may be a bit higher in these eggs but omega 3 fortified doesn’t mean the chickens were raised outdoors in green pastures and open spaces.

Organic-This means the chickens are given organic feed, and no antibiotics, and they may or may not have access to the outdoors

So what kind of eggs should you buy? Your best bet is to buy your eggs from the farmers market, whole foods, or other gourmet/natural food store. Look for real pastured eggs. Ones that were free to roam, and not fed a “vegetarian diet”. You will probably find that pastured eggs tend to be more expensive so if you can’t afford the extra dollar, I would recommend at the very least going with organic…or you could skip that morning Starbucks which costs the same as a dozen pastured eggs, make your coffee at home, and stop making the “but its too expensive” excuse. Yep that’s right, I said it.

For now, I will leave you with a little lesson on omelet making…or perhaps how to not make an omelet… courtesy of none other than the drunken Hannah Hart. Warning: This video contains explicit language…which is hilarious but not recommended for children or those allergic to cursing.

Day #30 The End?

May 5, 2012

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Day #30 has come and gone. It felt weird making my breakfast this morning and not snapping a photo of it before I dug in…so I snapped a quick photo anyways. I think I have created an odd habit. Taking pictures of my food has worked its way into my routine. Uh oh.

I may take a few days off from posting about my food but I have a feeling I will be back with more very soon…perhaps something a bit more challenging. We shall see.

Now on with the days food!

Breakfast

Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, dill, and sweet potatoes.

If you still have not tried smoked salmon in your scrambled eggs… you don’t know what you are missing out on. I suggest you try it immediately.

Not only did I survive yesterdays WOD but I also had the opportunity to cook lunch for my friend Laura and her little one Claire. ( well, Claire had a sandwich with almond butter and jelly ).

Salmon with red and golden beets, ( glazed with coconut oil, chicken stock, and raw honey ), and brussel sprouts.

I was a little nervous serving beets and brussel sprouts to Laura…little did I know it was the first time she had tried either of these vegetables. If you have had beets before, you know they have what we call in the culinary world an “earthy” flavor. A.K.A. it tastes like dirt. They are kind of an acquired taste…but luckily Laura isn’t a picky eater and enjoyed the beets and the brussel sprouts. Mission accomplished.

Another concern when serving fish is that people are not used to #1 eating the skin, #2 seeing it served skin side up, and #3 are used to it being served to them over-cooked. Laura asked me before she started eating “Can you eat the skin?”. Yes. You can indeed eat the skin. If it is served nice and crispy of course.

Dinner

Salad of of leftovers

For a post-workout meal I made a salad out of leftovers from lunch. The only thing I had to slice up was mushrooms and avocados. I added a bit of balsamic vinegar and dinner was done!

And that my friends concludes my thirty days of Paleo…or does it?

Day #29 and a WOD

May 4, 2012

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Hard to believe yesterday was day #29, only one more day to go…that is if Is survive this WOD today…

WOD ( workout of the day )

50 Box jump, 24 inch box
50 Jumping pull-ups
50 Kettlebell swings, 1 pood
Walking Lunge, 50 steps
50 Knees to elbows
50 Push press, 45 pounds
50 Back extensions
50 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
50 Burpees
50 Double unders

I might die. Guess I better make some good food.

Breakfast

Bacon, eggs, and sweet potatoes…yum

Lunch

Left over London Broil and the usual avocado, mango, peppers, and olives

Dinner

More leftovers!

I love leftovers. I used the rest of the London Broil from the night before and sauteed some peppers, onions and mushrooms. I guess you could say I made fajitas..just minus the tortillas.

If there is no blog tomorrow its probably because I didn’t survive today’s WOD…or my arms, including my fingers are too sore to lift. Wish me luck!

Day #28 Where’s The Beef?

May 3, 2012

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I was kind of a slacker yesterday. I think I had an adrenaline hangover from the midterm the day before. I didn’t even make it to CrossFit. I know, complete and total slacker. I did however, get some time in the kitchen.

Yea…

Lunch

Sauteed chicken breast, carrots (and purple carrots), and brussel sprouts with bacon

I usually blanch, or steam my veggies before I saute them. In this case I steamed the carrots and brussel sprouts so that I am pretty much just warming them up and adding a little color in my pan while I season them. I seasoned the brussel sprouts with salt, pepper, and some white wine. The carrots are seasoned with salt, pepper, and fresh dill.

Dinner

I don’t eat a lot of beef. Not because I think it is unhealthy, but because I only eat grass-fed beef and it is kind of pricey sometimes. Well, I picked up a little treat from the Farmers market…

Yep, Grass-fed goodness courtesy of Flying Mule Farm.

Fun Fact of the day: London Broil is not a cut of meat…it is actually just a cooking process. What you are really getting when something is labeled London Broil is usually top round roast. Oh, and they have no idea what a London broil is in London. Yep, Americans just love to make this stuff up.

Here is another fun fact: Dogs go crazy for grass-fed beef. I think there is something different in the way it smells when its cooking compared to corn-fed beef. That should say something right?

Good thing there is a glass door between me and this hungry pup..I hadn’t even started cooking it yet.

There was a huge watermelon taking up space in our fridge so for the purpose of creating some more storage space I decided to use it up by making a gazpacho…

Watermelon Gazpacho

Along with the watermelon I used 1/2 serrano pepper, 1 tomato, 1/4 cup red onion, olive oil, dill, and a mix of apple cider vinegar and balsamic vinegar. Red wine vinegar would of been ideal but I was out. I just blended the pepper, tomato, onion, dill, and watermelon up in the blender until smooth and then added the vinegar, salt pepper, and oil, to taste. After it I seasoned it to my liking, I placed it in the fridge to chill for a bit and served it topped with more dill, coconut milk and olive oil.

For the london broil: I marinated it with a mixture of balsalmic vinegar, coconut aminos, garlic, olive oil, and italian herbs. I didn’t want to make a liar out of the name so I broiled it in the oven until it was medium-rare. I served it with a side of mashed sweet potatoes and asparagus. Yum

What is your favorite cut of beef?

Day #25 Happy Monday!

April 30, 2012

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It’s the start of another week and another day of Paleo food. Day #25 to be exact. Oh, and it is also ~~Meatless~~ Monday. My Monday shall remain meatless…and by meatless I mean my day will be absent of the term meatless.

Breakfast

Applegate farms chicken and apple sausage with scrambled eggs and sweet potatoes.

I have a strange need to scramble things into my eggs. I couldn’t just put the sausage on the side…. the eggs just call to them.

California Poppies

After I worked up an appetite frolicking through the poppies I decided on a salad for lunch. Surprise surprise.

Lunch

Chicken, spinach, avocado, olives, mango, salsa, bell pepper, red wine vinegar

After testing my patience, my avocados finally ripened. I took full advantage and applied them liberally to my salad. Oh avocados. How I missed you.

DInner

Sauteed red cabbage, smoked salmon, and avocado

For dinner I felt like a little something on the lighter side that didn’t require much effort because I knew I would spend the rest of the night baking this:

Apple Pie

I know… this is definitely not paleo friendly. It’s been awhile since my hands have been covered in flour in my home kitchen. It felt almost…wrong. However, pie crusts and I don’t get along too well and I have to make an apple pie for my baking and pastry class midterm. For the sake of my grade, I decided to practice a bit at home. I won’t be missing pie crusts too much. They are like the Tourne cuts of dessert. A pain in the bum.

Happy ~~Meatless~~ Monday! Go buy some local grass-fed beef!