Paleo Flank Steak

Flank steak was on sale at Srouts! I never have made flank steak, so I searched online for some recipe ideas. I still had fresh thyme and rosemary, so I found a recipe that inspired me to make this Rosemary-Thyme Flank steak. It turned out so good! I love the way flank steak can be used on top of salads.

Rosemary-Thyme Flank Steak

1 lb Flank Steak

2 Tbsp EVOO

Juice of 1 lemon

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 Tbsp fresh rosemarry, chopped

2 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped

Pepper & sea salt to taste

1. Cut grid pattern on both sides of steak. I used a very sharp knife to cut about quarter of an inch deep on each side.

2. Combine lemon juice, olive oil, balsmic vinegar, sea salt, and pepper in a sepearte bowl, whisk together ingredients. On a large plate or baking dish, coat the top and bottom of flank steak in the liquid mixture.

3. Combine chopped rosemary, thyme, and garlic.

4. Place half of the herb garlic mixture to top and other half to the bottom of the flank steak. Cover the plate with a piece of plastic wrap, and let the steak marinate at room temperature for 30-45 minutes.

5. Preheat a lightly greased cast iron grill pan to medium-high heat. I prefer my steak medium-rare, so I cooked mine for 4 minutes on high heat on each side.

6. Once the steak is cooked to your likeness, let it rest on a cutting board for 5-10 minutes to let the juices settle so the steak does not lose all of its moisture.

7. Then serve! I paired mine with steamed zucchini and aparagus which I steaked with chopped rosemary, garlic and pepper.

Final Product!

I also  had to prep my dinner because I worked the evening shift at work! So I made a spinach salad with green peppers, avocado, onion and tomato, steamed zucchini and asparagus with garlic & rosemary, and the yummy flank steak!

I used this Rosemray-Thyme recipe (except I added finely chopped onions to the marinate) on New York Steak. Unfortunately it was not as successful as the flank steak, but it was still very tastey.

I paired the new york steak with mashed sweet potatoes and roasted broccoli!

I love mashed sweet potatoes now. I think I may like them better then regular mashed potatoes! ;)

Homemade Paleo Granola

This morning for breakfast I was in the mood for something sweet and satisfying. I am still going strong on the paleo diet, so I needed to get a little creative. I ended up making a paleo granola! It was actually REALLY good, I will definitely be making a larger batch once I get more almonds!

Homemade Paleo Granola

Preheat oven to 375

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup sliced raw Almonds

1 Tbsp raw Pepitas

1 Tbsp raw Sunflower Seeds

1 Tbsp raw Chia Seeds

1 Tbsp ground Flaxseeds

(You can play around with how many nuts and seeds to add based upon your liking!)

1 Tbsp organic Agave

1/2-1 Tbsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Vanilla Extract (optional)

                                       

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Make sure to saturate as many of the nuts as possible! One fully mixed, put granola mixture on a greased (with coconut oil cooking spray) baking sheet and put in a preheated 375 degree oven. Toast the granola for 5-8 minutes, until slightly golden.

After 5-8 minutes in the oven, take the granola out and let it cool for 5 minutes. 

Mine stuck together a little like granola bars, so I broke it up with a spatula. 

Final Product! 

Mixed with sliced strawberries, blueberries, 

and organic coconut milk!

Perfect breakfast! 

The granola can also be eaten as a snack throughout the day.

The sliced almonds act like the oats in normal granola. Both the almonds and the seeds add good protein, and the chia seeds add good fiber! The small amount of agave nectar adds enough sweetness with a low glycemic index! 

Food Revolution Day

Yesterday, May 19th was the first ever Food Revolution Day! This day is about standing up for real food, and empowering people to think more about how food affects their body. I watched a documentary called Food Fight the other day and it was a very inspiring documentary about the evolution of processed foods into our society and the benefits of eating clean, going to farmers markets, and the quality of these fresher foods.

                               

In light of the documentary and Food Revolution day, I went to the farmer's market on Saturday morning. Some may be intimidated by the farmer's market, but it is a great place to try new items and get the freshest produce. meat and nuts possible.

The quality of berries at the farmer's market always suprises me. Even just sampling 1 berry, I could tell it was packed with nutrients and flavors as apposed to being mostly water; they literally melt in your mouth.

I find that herbs and greens are a lot cheaper at the farmer's market then at the super market. I was able to purchase bundles of thyme, rosemary, chives and mint, each for $1. I also got a big bundle of kale for $2.

The Farmer's Market ended being a huge success. My two favorite items that I purchased were purple carrots and duck eggs. I have never had either so I was excited to try something new! We also got apple pomegranate juice, oranges, maple & orange zest almonds, raw trail mix, cashews, and sunflower seeds! I want to save up and be able to purchase the fresh meat and fish they have! It is expensive, but I believe that the quality of meat is going to be worth the extra dollars.

The purple carrots tasted pretty much the same as regular orange carrots, but the color was gorgeous! I have not tried the duck eggs yet, but I may make hard boiled eggs this morning for breakfast so I may!

Next on the agenda for the day was the WOOF Xtravaganza. This was also the first year for this event, and it was at a local park where dogs could come and there would be raffles, booths, food, and much more! 

I would like to think Jack enjoyed it! It was a beautiful day, so it's always good to try to get out of the house and enjoy the sun a little.

One of the snacks I brought to the WOOF X event were the purple carrots, and I let Jack try one! I think he liked it ;)

Once we got back home, it was lunch time! I made myself a HUGE PALEO salad. It included, spinach and arugula, purple carrots, cucumbers, avocado, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, green bell pepper, tomato, green onions, and ground chicken! It was delicious :)

Over the past few days, I have also put together an arm and leg workout! They were both difficult but worth it after I completed them!

Legs:

Arms & Abs:

New Books & Bars

This morning my 2 new books came in the mail! I am so excited to read them as soon as school lets out. Thank you to my Uncle for getting them for me.

The first one is Bright Side Up by Amy Spencer. I read reviews about this book in fitness magazines and thought it sounded like a perfect book for me. It gives an inspiring and optimistic perspective while showing you to not take for granted what is right in front of you.

The second book is Main Street Vegan by Victoria Moran. My uncle and I were watching TV and the author was on the show talking about her book. I don't plan on being a full vegan, but I do find it compelling to eat clean and she writes about the practical "baby steps" to becoming a vegan. The author has lost 60 pounds and has been successful in keeping it off. The book also includes 40 vegan recipes! I didn't know this until I got the book, I am very excited to try some more vegan meals.

Yesterday I went to Mother's Market and found some fun bars to try! I had heard a recommendation for the Skout Chocolate & Coconut bar, but when I got to Mother's they had so many choices!

I ended up getting one of the Skout Apple Cinnamon food bar (middle in picture). The ingredients looked promising (which is what I was drawn to at first with the recommendation): Organic Dates, Whole Grain Organic Oats, Organix Dried Apples, Organic Almonds, Organic Apple Juice Concentrate, Organic Sunflower Oil, Organic Cinnamon, & Sea Salt. Total 190 calories, good fats (1g poly unsaturated fat, 2g monounsat fat, 0g trans & sat fat), 6g fiber, 4g protein, 0mg Choleserol. 

I also got a Raw Crunch Energy Bar with Blueberries (bottom in picture). It is handmade, uncooked, and unprocessed, which doesn't sound too bad! Now let's look at the ingredients; Organic Sesame Seeds, Organic Sunflower Seeds, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Organic Cashews, Organic Blueberries, Organic Flaxseeds, Organic Pecans, Raw Honey, Organic Macadamia Nuts, Celtic Sea Salt. I can not think of one ingredient in this bar that is bad for you! With 150 calories, 10g Fat (1.5g sat, 0g trans), 0g Cholesterol, 10g Carbohydrates (5g sugar, 3g fiber), and 5g Protein. I am excited to try this one!

The top RAW bar pictured, was also blueberry, but unfortunately I ate it after my Coed Rec softball game and forgot to keep the packaging! My bad, I know; it was delicious though so I will just buy it again and update you!

Yes, I did just start in a Coed Rec softball team, with some girls I played with in high school. I played inter-murals in college also, so I have kept some skill. I just need to get use to slow pitch softball, since I played fast pitch for 13 years, I need to be patient (HA!). 

Greek, Chinese, and Dessert!

Yesterday, before work, I had prepared my chicken greek salad for lunch! Work was so slow, so I also finished reading April Oxygen magazine and finally starting doing my math hw! I picked up the may edition of Clean Eating and Oxygen magazine so I will have something to do Friday at work!

Greek salad with grilled chicken:
3 cups fresh spinach
1/2 tomato, chopped
1/4 cucumber, chopped
1/4 red onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1/4 cup cubed grilled chicken
1-2 tbsp nonfat feta
2 tbsp Trader Joes Nonfat Balsamic Viniagrette

Once I got home from work, I was so hungry! I had left overs from the Sweet & Sour Chicken recipe so I decided to make it into a "fried" quinoa with green beans and broccoli. I was hoping that by mixing the left overs with the quinoa and veggies it would mellow the spice. It worked! It was still spicy, but not nearly as bad.

I mixed the left over chicken & bell pepper and sautéed it with 1/4 cup cooked quinoa and a lot steamed broccoli and green beans! I used Trader Joes Olive Oil Spray which has no calories! So it was a healthy "fried" quinoa.

After dinner, I was craving an apple crisp so I decided to experiment! I was determined to make a "healthy" apple crisp, so I used no butter nor oil, and added ground flaxseed, wheat germ and fresh blueberries!

Before:

After:

Final Product:

Recipe will be up soon! Putting the final touches together :)

Tofu Part 2

I used some more tofu this morning to make my breakfast shake!

1/3 cup firm tofu
1/2 cup chopped pineapple
1/2 cup strawberries
1/2 scoop vanilla Pro7 Synthesis Protein Powder
Water & ice

Total calories: ~250 calories, 4g fat (0.5 saturated fat), 25g protein

This tofu shake turned out a lot better then yesterday's and I think it's because of the vanilla protein powder! in my opinion, vanilla protein powder is a lot more versatile then chocolate.

Now I am at work reading April Oxygen Magazine having my healthy and yummy breakfast!

Reminders

Reminding myself daily that I am looking and feeling then I ever have and the reason is because I have stayed dedicated to a healthy lifestyle of working out and filling up on lean protein, veggies, and fruit. It's worth it to continue to eat healthy and workout; no matter how much I do not want to put on those running shoes and go out in chilly weather or no matter how much I want that cereal or candy.