Whole 30 {Week 1} Recap

Week 1 of the Whole 30 is over, and I'd say I did pretty good.  I'll admit, I indulged a little over the weekend on a savory corn flour waffle and a bowl of pinto beans, but believe it or not I've survived a week with NO cheese or dairy of any kind, NO cookies or processed sugars, and almost no gluten (can't forget that most beers have gluten).  My hunnie also did well, though he admitted he snagged a bean and cheese burrito for lunch at work one day....definitely NOT Paleo.  To keep ourselves motivated, we drove out to the desert foothills over the weekend and visited a you-pick farm.  If your not familiar with that term, it means just what you think it means...you go to the farm and pick your own produce right out of the fields.  We snagged up everything from bell peppers, to spaghetti squash, to tomatoes.  Then we went to the apple orchard down the street and picked about 15-20 lbs of fresh apples and pears, right of the trees.  We had so much fun,and having all this fresh, delicious, local produce in the house will be a great motivator for us to stay on track with the Whole 30.   

 {Week 1} Breakfasts: Berry smoothie, Hardboiled egg, Paleo Cereal (recipe here), Green Corn Waffle with Raw Maple Syrup

{Week 1} Lunches: Soup, Tuna Salad with Paleo Pesto Dressing, Salad with a hardboiled egg, more salad, and a Hardboiled egg with fresh snap peas and sautéed apples. 

{Week 1} Snacks: Raw almonds, Bananas, Dried apricots and pears, unsalted sunflower seeds, turkey jerky, California raisins, & a smidgen of peanut butter

{Week 1} Dinners: Elk steaks and okra, Soup, Pizza Salad, Mussels in a saffron broth, Ground turkey marinara sauce over spaghetti squash, Egg and spinach scramble with salsa, & Polish sausage and pinto beans 

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Pizza Salad with Paleo Pesto Dressing

I've made it to October 5th.  Woo, one-sixth of the way through the Whole 30.  So far, Monday was the hardest day--the initial shock my body experienced not having grain or dairy.  When I did my 10 mile run on Monday, all I could think about (besides how tired I was) was cheese and bread...which eventually led to me craving pizza.  One day later, I was still craving pizza.  I'll be honest, I don't love pizza just because the zesty tomato sauce and melty mozzarella...I also love how you can pile on all the veggies you want.  That must have been why California schools used to consider pizza as a member of the Vegetable group on the food pyramid.  (Oh California, how I miss you...)  Anyways, to curb the pizza craving, I made what I'm calling Pizza Salad.  The recipe, including the pesto dressing, is totally Paleo, and ended up being amazingly delicious, even without any grain (croutons) or dairy (blue cheese).  I got lots of "Mmms" and "Yums" from the hunnie too.  I think I'll keep the pesto dressing up my sleeve for even after the Whole 30 ends.
 

Paleo Pesto Dressing

1 cup basil leaves

2 cloves garlic

Slivered almonds, handful (not heeping)

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3-4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Salt, dash

Crushed red pepper flakes, dash

Blend basil, garlic, almonds and oil in blender or food processor until smooth.  Add balsamic vinegar and spices and pulse.  If dressing is too thick add a tablespoon or two of water to the blender, and blend until desired consistency.  Makes ~4oz.

Pizza Salad
Toss together your favorite veggies, either salad veggies or pizza veggies, and drizzle the Paleo Pesto dressing over top.  Here is what our salad was made up of:  baby spinach, sliced mushrooms, vine ripe cherry tomatoes, sliced green bell pepper, sliced cucumber, kalamata olives, pepperoncinis, and sliced pepperoni.
 

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October is...Whole 30, Half Marathon & Halloween!

October is an exciting, and busy time for me.  I've got three planned business trips in addition to a half marathon.  I'm excited to say that this October my hunnie and I are also doing the Whole 30.  You can read about Whole 30 here.


The idea behind the Whole 30 is the "Paleo" or "Caveman" diet.  The science is long, but not really complicated--cavemen ate food purely for survival--they ate sugars for energy, fats for energy storage, and salts for hydration.  There was no such thing as a enjoying a s'more around the caveman campfire.  On the Whole 30 plan, you strip your diet completely of the complex foods that make up your daily sugar, fat and salt intake, and instead partake in a more wholesome, natural diet (free of beloved complex carbs, gluten, dairy and processed sugars).  While I can't say I 100% agree with ALL the science behind the Paleo diet, I do think eating processed foods (like my very favorite Mac n' Cheese, or Eggo waffles) makes the human body work incredibly hard just to obtain the BASIC nutrients it actually needs to SURVIVE.  The challenge for me with the Whole 30 is to find alternatives to meals such as Mac n' Cheese, which are full of empty calories and low in essential nutrients.  The challenge is to go back to basics--meats, vegetables, fruits--the cornerstone of early human nutrition.  Since I'm training for my half marathon, that gives me a little freedom to enjoy more carbs per day, but instead of enjoying them in the form of pasta and PB&J sannys, I'll have to find gluten-free, minimally processed foods to meet the bill.   

Today marks the first day of the challenge, but me and my hunnie were so eager to start that we unofficially began on Sunday night.  Here's a glance at what we ate for dinner: grilled elk tenderloin with braised okra and onions.  Meat and veggies, done simply, and yet really delicious.  Amazingly I was even able to motivate myself to get out and run last night--despite my legs feeling like lead and my thoughts centered on pizza and cheese, I was able to successfully complete my full 10 mile run.  Usually, I'd reward such a great run by eating a piece of cheese or a cookie, but last night I stuck to my plan and rewarded myself with a slice of salami and some nuts instead (it was totally not as satisfying as a cookie, but oh well, its only 30 days!).  

In case you need some motivation to accomplish your October goals, whatever they may be, here ya' go:




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Pre-Fall Kick-off

It's not quite the Fall equinox yet, but its been a cloudy, balmy 85 degrees here....and in the Ol' Pueblo that's downright Fall temperatures.  Fall may mean the end of Summer and back to school, but it also means football's back, hunting season is here, and the kitchen is full of Summer produce waiting to be gobbled up.  I recently acquired a Kabocha squash, the lesser known Japanese cousin to the acorn squash.  Don't ask how I ended up with a Winter squash in the middle of the desert Summer...that is a mystery I can't yet explain.  This Kabocha was big (about the size of my head) so I figured the easiest, most versatile way to prepare it was simply to cut it in half, roast it, and puree it down for later use.  The first bit of puree turned into a rustic, cheesy sauce for pasta and turkey sausage.  That was a perfect Summer-time recipe, but I was still wishing for something a little more earthy, more Autumnal.  Thus came this recipe--I simply took a pumpkin bread recipe, replaced the pumpkin with its Asian counterpart, and voila...delicious, wholesome Kabocha bread to enjoy over a cup of coffee and a 10 AM kick off time.  This really is my favorite season of all.
 

Kabocha Bread
1 cup Kabocha (or acorn or butternut or pumpkin) puree
2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 cup pecan pieces (optional)

Grease a 8x4x3 inch loaf pan.  In a bowl mix together Kabocha puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar.  In another bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.  Add 1/2 cup at a time of dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until just combined.  Repeat until all dry ingredients are combined with wet ingredients.  Lastly stir in pecan pieces.  Pour mixture into loaf pan.  Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 50-55 minutes.  To ensure the bread is cooked through, stab a wooden skewer through the middle of the loaf--if the skewer comes out clean, the bread is done.

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Chocolate Chip Cherry Cookies

It's Wednesday, and to be honest I don't have much to share.  Work is work, the dogs are silly, and it's darn hot out here in the desert.  Summers in California were hot, but not as hot as here.  In fact, I remember some California Summer days, where the sea breeze would reach us all the way in the valley and the mornings would be downright cold.  It was on those Summer days, as teenagers, that my sister and I, still in pajamas, neglecting Mom's chore list, would decide to heat up the kitchen and bake some chocolate chip cookies.  She measured and mixed, while I talked and washed the dishes (I wasn't such a good cook in those days).  And by lunchtime we would have eaten a few too many cookies and done a few too few chores.  Those days were the best!

Last Saturday morning I paid homage to that memory, by baking some cookies (and neglecting some chores).  These are a little different from the standard Nestle Tollhouse ones my sis and I would make, but they were almost as tasty, especially with the surprise burst of flavor from the dried cherries.  Since I'm the sole cookie consumer in the house, I mixed up a full batch of this recipe, but then stored half of the raw dough in the freezer for another Saturday morning.

Chocolate Chip Cherry Cookies
2/3 cup bleached flour
1 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon plain yogurt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 scant cup semi-sweet (or white chocolate) chips
1 scant cup dried tart cherries

Set oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.  Sift together flour, whole wheat flour, salt and baking soda.  In another bowl, mix together butter, brown sugar and sugar until well blended.  Then stir in egg, yogurt, and vanilla.  Combine dry ingredients, one cup at a time, into the wet mixture.  Repeat until all dry ingredients have been combined.  Then, using a fork, gently mix in the chocolate chips and cherries.  Using a tablespoon, scoop dough onto a cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, until edges are slightly golden. Pin It

The Adventures of Georgia Dog

A few weeks ago, my hunnie and I finally made it out for a real weekend getaway to Durango ,Colorado.  We met up with friends from New Mexico, Colorado, and Northern Arizona.

Georgia came along. 

 

Holmes was there too. 

One morning, we packed up our lunches and off we went (dogs in tow) for a hike along the creek.

 

Long story short, don't let your hound dog off his leash, because he almost certainly will bolt, off into the wild, following his nose the whole way.  Another long story short, scared-y dogs like Georgia will almost certainly hide if they're being chased.  Give them an inch, they'll take a mile.  

 

After two days, I was starting to think I'd never see Georgia, my princess-dog, ever again.  But in the end, Georgia is a smart dog, and she really does love us.  I know this because she sniffed her way back to camp, at night, in the rain, and willingly approached our friends who'd offered to stay an extra night at the campsite.  Oh thank you, Universe (and Bethany and Andrew)!

It took a week, 900 miles, and the help of so many great friends, but Georgia made it back to the ol' Pueblo.  And when she got home, all she wanted to do was take a nap and dream about her adventures in Durango.

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South x Southwest Tomato Pie

Unlike my own tomato plants, which have plenty of buds and no fruit, I was welcomed at last weekend's Market on the Move by many delicious tomatoes.  Big ones, small ones, organic ones.  Now, even in this desert town one can get tired of making homemade salsa (and tomato sauce) every week, so as I walked through the MoM line selecting all those little bright red gems, my brain was spinning trying to figure out how I was going to use them all.  I turned to one of my favorite food bloggers, a Southern gal embracing Texas-style comfort food.  It's been over a year since I first read Homesick Texan's recipe for tomato pie ...and last weekend I finally had the opportunity and ingredients to try it for myself.

The recipe I came up with is more South-by-Southwest, thanks largely to the incorporation of Hatch green chilies.  It goes great alongside BBQ chicken or even on its own with a salad.  Best part is, it's probably the most delicious way to use up all those tomatoes you've worked so hard to grow (or buy from the Farmer's market).  I have to admit that my photo does NOT do the South x Southwest tomato pie justice...it really will become one of your go-to Summer recipes.  

South x Southwest Tomato Pie
8-10 Roma Tomatoes
10-12 Cherry Tomatoes
1/3 Yellow Onion, diced
1/2 cup roasted green chilies, diced (or 1/2 can diced green chilies)
4 slices bacon
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 refrigerated pie crust
2 cups shredded cheese (I used a mix of jack & cheddar cheese)

Slice Roma tomatoes and halve cherry tomatoes. Place in colander and toss with kosher salt.  Let  tomatoes sit for approximately 30 minutes to drain/evaporate some of the moisture.  Meanwhile, cook bacon, let drain on a paper towel, and chop into bacon bits.  Saute diced onion (and don't be ashamed if you used a drop or two of the bacon grease for sauteing).  Lightly coat pie pan with cooking spray.  Roll out pie crust and place in pie pan.  Sprinkle a handful of cheese on the bottom of the pie crust.  Then layer the tomatoes, chilies, onion and bacon in the pan.  Repeat until pan is full.  Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top of the pie.  Place pie pan on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit approximately 35 minutes (or until pie crust is golden). 

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