Archive

Tag Archives: primal

Wow, so I have been a little absent on the blog lately, but the good news is that my absence is due to me getting the job at Carpe Vino. I have been working full time so it has been interesting to find a balance and a routine but I think I have finally worked out the kinks as to how to spend more time on here. I have also been able to make it back to Crossfit thanks to Coach E! Although I am basically having to start over, and it is sad seeing how much strength and fitness I lost.. I am extremely happy to be back at it. I almost forgot what it was like to be sore EVERYWHERE. It hurts so good.

I am not completely sure of my work schedule now that the restaurant is open Sundays, but I do know that I will at least have every Monday off. Therefore, I will try and get a recipe post up every Monday. Hope you are ready for Monday suppers!

It has been a rough couple of days of whole30. It is day nine but it feels like it should be day 20. I will admit that I have had a few moments of weakness the last couple of days. My weakest moment was yesterday when I wanted to dive head first into a roll of sushi. Forget the cookies and cake, I want sushi. I thought surely I was going to quit and bring everyone down with me…but then something magical happened…. dinner. My urge to quit Whole30 stopped as soon as I had some good food in my stomach. I think I gave Dez false hopes though…

photo-150

We have all had out moments of weakness, I think Dez is aching for cupcakes as much as I am aching for some sushi. I believe I remember her trying to bribe me with sushi… it is my kryptonite.

As we tried to get over our wanting to quit whole30 fit, Dez made us some delicious pork tacos with mango salsa. Yum.

photo-151

Not only were they pretty, but they tasted amazing. There was not much left over.

Hopefully there are easier days ahead.

Onto day 10!

 

It is Day 5 of our household whole30 challenge. I bet you thought we quit again. Nope. We are still going strong. Come on now, have a little more faith in us than that. Sure, there have been a few struggles, but no slip ups. I think we are going to make it this time. Now onto the food.

I should have a lot more food to post but have been in a bit of a pinch with photos and am in need of some new plates for food photography purposes… until then, here was one of the favorites of the week.

photo 1-28

I love carnitas. Maybe that is why this is my favorite. I know, carnitas are not nearly as fun without a taco shell or a tortilla to go with them but I promise you that with the right fixings, they are still damn good. I thought about serving the carnitas in a lettuce wrap…but I have done that about a thousand times and I always end up frustrated with a mess in my lap ( or my plate if I am lucky ). Unfortunately lettuce is just not as great of a  food transportation device as a tortilla. Instead of a lettuce wrap I decided to saute some cabbage and top it with carnitas. Perfect. No frustration, yet with all the flavor. It is not as pretty, but in the end, it is the taste that counts.

I served Yucca root as a side for the carnitas, which many people have never tried before. Let me tell you, if you are missing potatoes, and are turning orange from eating so many sweet potatoes than this is the way to go. I prepared them “cuban” style which means you make a sauce made up of onion, garlic, and olive oil and then pour it over the cooked yucca to finish.  To prepare the yucca all you need to do is peel it, cube it, simmer it unitl tender, and then finish it with your sauce.

For the Sauce:

4 garlic cloves, minced

one onion, diced

1/4 cup olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

I put all of my ingredients in a food processor and pulsed until everything was nicely minced, but you can do it by hand as well.

Place sauce in a pan over medium high heat and sautee for a few minutes just to get the raw onion/garlic flavor out. DON’T BURN YOUR GARLIC.

Pour the sauce over your yucca and toss. Season with salt and pepper. Easy peasy.

I also served homemade salsa and guacamole. Nothing is complete without guacamole.

On another note, today I am starting the first day of my last lab class for culinary school. ( granted I pass ) I am almost done. I am all sorts of nervous and excited. I remember the first time I slipped on these chef coats… I couldn’t help but smile. It was the beginning of a new chapter of my life. A chapter I had always dreamed of. Hard to believe that dreams really do come true. I am curious to see what the next chapter in my life has in store for me. I don’t plan to stop dreaming anytime soon.

photo 3-29

It is not usually a good sign when there is a pretty big blogging break in the middle of a Whole30 challenge. As you may have guessed, or assumed, we had a false start. ( That is what I am calling it for now.) We all decided that it would be best for us to start after New Years and after my birthday which was on the third, and my roomies birthday, which is today. I REALLY wanted birthday sushi, and although my other roomie Anna isn’t doing whole30 we didn’t want to have to worry about eating whole30 at wherever she decided to go for her birthday.

So this means we restart our whole30 challenge tomorrow. Call me crazy but I am excited. I normally wouldn’t recommend being so anal about the food you eat. The whole30 challenge is TOUGH. Eating in a restaurant and knowing your food is 100% whole30 is nearly impossible. Planning ahead is the key to a successful whole30. It takes a lot of work and thought to just simply eat. I wouldn’t live my whole life this way…but if you are someone who normally doesn’t really think about what you are eating, or know what is in your food, this is a great way to be more aware of what you put in your body. The best part is… it is ONLY 30 days.

I am going to confess now, that although I will be 100% whole30 compliant at home, I am not going to sacrifice the way my food tastes at school. This is my last quarter of culinary school so I am going to have to draw the line here. Since this is my second time participating in the whole30 challenge I already know what foods my body is not so fond of. I know that the Hartwigs ( the creators of the whole30/whole9 program) say that you never have to eat anything you don’t want to and that there are no excuses… well I beg to differ. Sorry Hartwigs, I need to graduate…and find a job. So I need to taste my food before I serve it to a chef. My reputation is on the line here!

If you want to know more about what you can and cannot eat on the whole30 or would like to follow along, PLEASE read this first: http://whole9life.com/2012/08/the-whole30-program/

 

Everyone in the household passed whole30 day two with flying colors. There were no accidental non-whole30 ingested items and I have almost stopped throwing a tantrum about not getting my birthday sushi. Okay, I lied. Tantrum is still in full force. I am not ready to grieve the loss of my birthday sushi yet. To add to my tantrum I just received a sushi making kit for Christmas and I want so badly to use it, but just opening up the little booklet that it came with makes me drool. If I watch the documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi…. it’s over.

Enough sushi talk…onto the real food.

My roomy Dez was craving something creamy, so we decided we would give a cauliflower puree a go. Served it with Roasted chicken, chimichurri sauce, and some roasted zucchini. ( not pictured )

photo-147

For the cauliflower puree, I steamed the cauliflower until very tender. (almost mushy ) and then put it in my food processor with garlic and coconut milk. I roasted the chicken with mexican spices..thought i’d change it up a bit. I made a “compound butter” with coconut oil, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. I placed the coconut oil under the skin just like I would normally do with butter.

For the Chimichurri I placed a few cloves of garlic in the food processor with salt, pepper and parsley and pulsed until turned into a paste. I then added in the oil, lemon juice, and apple cider vinegar. You want it to be a little bit tangy to balance out the creamy/salty flavors of the cauliflower and chicken.

Now onto day three of Whole30, round two.

 

 

Fall is definitely here, I try not to think about it because that means winter is coming. The chilly morning runs, and cold evenings are a constant reminder. I am not a fan of the cold…but I was also reminded about the good things that come with fall…

Yep. How about them apples?

It doesn’t get much better then apples picked fresh off of the tree in your backyard. I love that I was able to have picked them myself, and know exactly where they came from. Doesn’t get much more local than that!

So many options came to mind when I carried in my basket of apples…pie, cobbler, poached apples, apple compote for a more savory dish, apple muffins, apple turnovers,  apple butter….ah yes. Apple butter. It would be perfect to bring along with the biscuits I was taking to my crossfit gyms little Friday get together.

Before going paleo one of my favorite things to eat was biscuits and jam. ( you would think I was a fat kid ). There is just something about biscuits…they taste so comforting. It is one of those foods that is wrapped in memories. With the colder weather I was in the mood for a little comfort food and decided to work on a more paleo friendly biscuit. Sure, it is still a treat, but at least it isn’t a gluten bomb that will haunt you for weeks.

Yep. Pure heaven.

I will start with the biscuits:

What you will need:

Ingredients:

1 cup of almond flour
1 cup of coconut flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
5 Tbs. cold butter ( unsalted )
3 Tbs. Honey ( you can omit this but it rounds out the flavor…. your call! but I like it :)   )
3/4 cup coconut milk ( the full fat canned kind )

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
Mix together the dry ingredients ( flour, baking powder, salt )
Cut the butter into small pieces and add to the dry mixture.

Yes, I used real butter. It will work with chilled coconut oil too but seriously…what is a biscuit without butter? If you are going to have a treat. Have a treat.

Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or a fork until it reaches a corn mealy type texture like this…

Then add in the Honey and the coconut milk. Don’t be a pussy and mix it with your hands.
The dough will be a bit wet but the coconut flour is super absorbent so don’t worry. The good thing about gluten free biscuits is that you don’t have to worry about over working the dough.
After mixing, your dough should look like this…

Place the dough onto a flat surface and flatten to about 1-2 inches tall.


Cut out the biscuits to your desired shape. I have a round biscuit cutter so… that is what I used.
You can also just drop semi-formed rounds of dough onto a sheet pan to make it easier.

Bake for 15 minutes. They will be a little brown on the bottom/top but
don’t worry its not burning.
Pull out of the oven and let cool….if you can wait.

Yum. Now for the apple butter.

What you will need:

  • Ingredients:
  • About 5 Granny smith apples..or whatever you have, sliced
  • 12 oz dates, chopped ( I put mine in the food processor until it was paste-like ) It is probably about 3/4 cups worth of dates after processing.
  • 2 cups of apple cider
  • 1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
  • 1-2 Tbs. Cinnamon
  • 1 pinch of ground nutmeg
  • Pinch of ground cloves (optional)
  • 1 Tbs. Vanilla extract
  • Generous amount of coconut oil for sauteing

Saute sliced apples until they are coated with the coconut oil. Then add in your dates.

Keep stirring constantly the apple/date mixture over medium-high heat. Your dates will start to break down.
Saute until it looks like this.

Then add in your 2 cups of apple cider, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and cloves.

Turn your heat down to low and let simmer. Stirring occasionally. Reduce until it looks like this…

Remove from heat and let cool. Process in a food processor until smooth… enjoy.

Now if you want to be 12 years old like me, watch this video and try and read this post without laughing….

 

Happy Cooking!

I am day two and knee deep into the Whole 30. If you don’t know what the Whole 30 is than you can check it out here. It is basically a strict version of Paleo…It’s just 100% paleo for 30 days. No cheat days, slip-ups…or paleoifying desserts. I am the queen of Paleo desserts a.k.a. “sex with your pants on.”However, for those of you that know me, you will know that giving up the Paleo desserts is not the hardest part. See, I had a little vice…that vice, was energy drinks. I know. *gasp* how could you?!!! Well, I am one and a half days clean and sober…which is about a half day more than I have been since I started drinking them. I prepared myself for the worst. Withdrawals which included headaches, fatigue, grumpiness….etc. but honestly, I feel pretty damn good. I realize that I am probably not experiencing these symptoms because I am substituting energy drinks with coffee…but hey, coffee is allowed on the whole 30 AND I do not think it is bad for you. So bite me. I am still learning to like coffee, so I am actually enjoying a bit more kombucha due to its similar taste and carbonation to energy drinks.

Normally I would have an energy drink while I blogged

It feels good to be chemical free…and I feel good in general. I even felt good enough for a few workouts over the holiday weekend with my friend and fellow CrossFitter/Paleo blogger Molly.

Crossfit workouts are a little limited when the gym is closed for the weekend, but we did our best. Yesterday we used a playground for our workout and let everyone and their mom (literally) watch us get our WOD on. Funny how “odd” we may have looked, and the moms walking by with cigarettes in their mouths didn’t even get a second glance. What is the norm these days is pretty sad, but Molly reminded me how important it is that we were there…you have to inspire people somehow right? For today’s WOD we hopped up some steps on the football field and went for a short trail run. Of course, the trail run was my favorite part. I have lived in this town for years and have yet to utilize the trails. Running with no music, or anything to track my distance, pace, or time was liberating and the view of the canyon was amazing. I am thinking these trail runs need to happen more often. I am realizing I don’t have much of a balance when it comes to doing something for no reason other than for pure enjoyment. Part of the Whole 30 is addressing every aspect of your life. Stress, sleep, nutrition…etc.. So it is interesting to see the imbalances in my life and how I need to work on them. There is lots of work to be done.

I am still trying to decide whether or not I will document my whole 30 challenge. I might just keep this one on the DL but will try and post some recipes or etc. when I can. Unless of course you think otherwise. Let me know. Do you want me to document my Whole 30 journey?

It’s Monday, and you love your life. Don’t deny it.

Well, if you are not feeling much love for your life at the moment than you should enter my giveaway if you have not yet done so. I know I would love my life if I won an awesome jar of coconut oil, but i’d hate my life if I missed the opportunity to do so. The giveaway ends tonight at 10pm! Time is running out people. Enter Here.

Just in case you don’t win, I have a little recipe to cheer you up. I know it is supposed to be “Meatless Monday” and all, but instead of going meatless I decided I would go beef-less. I went with 100% grassfed goat from Flying Mule Farms instead.

I ended up getting two of these little guys, trimming them up a bit ( removed as much of the silver skin as possible ) and making a curry/stew out of it. You are also welcome to use lamb, or beef in this dish but if you can get  your hands on some goat, I highly recommend it. I found the goat to be less gamey than lamb, and rather tender. This recipe is actually one that has been adapted from my Latin Cuisine class. I believe we used lamb but it comes from Trinidad where using goat would be more authentic. Believe it or not, goat is actually pretty popular in other countries and is a very sustainable meat, but for some reason us Americans prefer beef. Onto the recipe!

Curried Kid

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. Lime Juice

1 lime cut into wedges

1 Tbs. sea salt

1 1/2 pounds of boneless lamb or goat ( cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes )

2 Tbs. coconut oil

1 cup onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons of tamarind pulp ( usually found in the ethnic cuisine part of the store. Make sure to buy seedless or else you will have a fun time picking out the seeds by hand…unless your into that…) Never used tamarind pulp? Consult Dr. Google. Here.

1 cup green mango, peeled and diced about 1/2 inch cubes

1 Tbs. curry powder

1 jalepeno pepper, seeded, minced

1 cup tomatoes peeled, seeded OR since tomatoes are not quite in season or yet you can use one 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes.

1 Cup of chicken stock

1 cup of potatoes, peeled and diced ( optional if you don’t do potatoes or if you can sub white potatoes for sweet potatoes )

1 Cup Kohlrabi, peeled and diced ( you can find this at the farmers market, whole foods and even Raleys right now. )

1 Tbs. Fresh Thyme, chopped

1 tsp. fresh lime juice

Salt and pepper to taste

1 large spaghetti squash

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

First you are going to want to get your spaghetti squash baked so that you have it ready to serve with the stew.

Place your spaghetti squash face down on a sheet pan and bake until tender. ( usually around 30-40 minutes but keep an eye on it. )

1. Combine the 1 tablespoon of lime juice, lime quarters, sea salt, and meat with one cup of water. cover and allow to stand for 30 minutes. ( meanwhile prep the rest of your ingredients.

2. Drain your meat and pat dry. ( make sure to dry it off really well or else it won’t brown properly ).

Heat coconut oil over medium-high heat and brown the meat on all sides. Remove the meat.

3. Add onions; cook 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown. Add garlic, tamarind pulp, mango, curry powder, and jalapeno pepper. Cook, stirring for 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook 2 minutes. Return meat to the pan; cook 2 to 3 minutes to make sure that the meat is coated with the spice mixture. Add the stock.

4. Bring to a simmer, add kohlrabi, cover, and cook for 30 minutes.

5. Add potatoes, and cover and simmer 30 minutes or until meat and vegetables are tender. Stir in the fresh thyme, 1 teaspoon of lime juice and correct seasonings.

6. Serve hot over spaghetti squash.

Bon Appetite

 

 

Now that I am free from homework, I have no excuse but to get back to talking about real food. I will try to post as much as I can this week, but I will be headed to Washington D.C. next week. No guarantees on the blog posts! I’ll see what I can do however. For now, here is what I cooked for Father’s Day:

Chicken with roasted broccolini and a honey mustard sauce

Ingredients for the Marinade:
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1/4 cup grainy mustard
  • 3 tbsp honey
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tbsp lemon pepper
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice (2 lemons)
  • 1 1/4 cups good quality olive oil

For the Chicken:

  • 6-8 Chicken breasts or chicken thighs ( you can use less and just save some of the marinade )
  • Fresh thyme
  • Fresh oregano

Directions:

For the Marinade:

First pulse the garlic in a food processor. Add the grainy mustard, honey, Dijon, lemon pepper, salt and pepper. Pulse a few times to blend. Then add the lemon zest and fresh lemon juice. Keep the food processor running while you slowly add the oil. Do not over mix. The consistency should be thick but still pourable.

For the Chicken:

Coat the chicken with the marinade like this….

Then chop up your oregano and thyme and add it to the chicken/dressing mix. Let the chicken marinate in the fridge for about 4 hours.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Place the chicken on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake for approximately 15-20 minutes..or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. ( It will go up to 165 after it is removed from the oven. This is called carry over cooking ).

Viola! Chicken is done.

I will admit I got a little primal and had some dairy with dinner. I made a Tzatziki sauce to go with the chicken. If you do dairy here is the recipe, otherwise pretend this isn’t here. Avert your eyes. Now.

  • 3 tbsp onion (approx.)
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 3 tbsp fresh dill
  • 3 tbsp fresh mint
  • 1 cup cucumber
  • 2 cups Greek yogurt ( the full fat plain stuff )
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

roughly chop the onion, garlic and fresh herbs. Peel the cucumber, remove the seeds and roughly chop.

Purée the garlic and onions in a food processor. Add the cucumber and herbs and pulse just a few times. Strain the cucumber mixture.

Once strained, add the cucumber mixture to the yogurt and season with the salt and pepper. Mix together and serve.

And again, if dairy does not agree with you. PLEASE ignore this recipe. The chicken tastes just fine without the yogurt sauce.

For the broccoli I just tossed it in some melted coconut oil, salt, and pepper and put it in the oven for about 10 minutes or until it was tender. I served it with some remaining marinade ( Marinade that did not come in contact with the raw chicken! This is important peeps! Food safety first! )

I also served this with a large salad that is not pictured. It was just as simple spring mix salad with tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, kalamata olives, shaved carrots, and a red wine vinaigrette.

Dinner is served.

Happy Cooking!

 

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?

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 57 other followers