Thursday was a big day for me! I cooked a healthy, clean eats dinner for my whole family! I truly want me youngest cousin to change his eating habits; unfortunately I can honestly say I have only ever seen him eat a green vegetable (peas) on thanksgiving and Christmas, and he didn't enjoy it. With that in mind, I was determined to have one green vegetable he would like so I tried green beans! Unfortunately, that did not work but I still got him to eat some lean chicken breast, sweet potatoes, quinoa and brown rice instead of bologna sandwiches.
I made two varities of everything to try to please the different palats of my family!
1. 2 types off chicken, one with garlic, onion, and lemon pepper; the second with italian seasoning and light pepper.
2. Quinoa-brown rice: 1 with salt, pepper, and light lemon juice only, the other with light lemon juice, garlic, onion, fresh parsley, and lemon pepper.
3. Sweet potatoes: 1 with EVOO and agave nectar, the second with garlic, onion, lemon pepper and light Italian herbs.
4. Green beans: 1 steamed, and the second sauteed with onions and garlic.
5. Broccoli (My oldest cousin ate some with me! But mostly just me): 1 with EVOO and agave nectar, and one with onion, garlic, and lemon pepper.
Overall I would still rate the dinner a success! Even with my effort of having my youngest cousin enjoy green vegetables be a fail, I think he genuinely does not want to change in a healthier direction and that is the limiting factor in what he will and will not like. I am far from being done with this effort, I hope to cook for them again and try out other vegetables and lean meats! There were a lot of left overs, so I made little meals for the house. I am not sure if they were eaten, but at least I tried!
I am trying to stay strong on the gallon-a-day challenge! It is hard to finish a full gallon some days, but I can usually get 3/4 of it finished. I still recommend to try it out for a week! It is a great way to flush your system. Also, every morning I have been doing the Raw ACV + 8oz water and I think it tastes kinda good too! (My previous post tells you about the benefits)
This week at the farmer's market, I finally got grass fed beef! I talked with the owner for about 10 minutes about the differences between grass fed beef, store bought beef, and the different cuts. It was very informative! The thing I love about farmers markets is the farmer's love to teach about their crops.
Another thing I got from the farmer's market was 1/2 pound of 100% raw trail mix. It includes raw almonds, raw walnuts, and raw raisins with no sulfates. The lady had a premixed trail mix that had raisins with sulfates, and with paleo you want to eliminate all preservatives, etc. I simply asked her if she had any raisins with no sulfates, she did, and she was willing to make me a fresh batch! Like I said above, the farmer's are willing to help you out and give you what you want. They will even pick the best produce for you.
I tried this recipe idea from powercakes.net (check out her blog! She is awesome, and I hope to get to her level some day). This is a great paleo pre or post workout omelet!
Chia Omelet with Fried Bananas
3 egg whites, whisked with 1 tbsp coconut milk
1 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup berries (I used fresh raspberries, and fresh chopped strawberries)
Put about 1/2 tablespoon coconut oil in a small skillet, heat over medium heat, add egg mixture and put on the lid. Let cook about 3 minutes, then check to make sure the bottom is fully cooked. Once it is, carefully flip the eggs, add 1/2 of berries to one half of the omelet. Lower heat to lowest setting, put lid back on, and cook for 1 additional minute. Flip empty side of omelet on top of berries, turn off heat completely, put lid back on and let steam the berries for 1 minute. Then serve on plate with fresh berries on top!
1 banana, thickly sliced
1 tablespoon coconut oil
cinnamon, as desired
In a small bowl, mix banana slices and cinnamon; try to coat each one with a small amount of cinnamon.
Heat coconut oil over high to medium-high heat.
Add banana slices and cook until browned, about 2 minutes, then flip and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes.
I put mine on a paper towel to drain some of the excess oil, then served!
I still am amazed HOW AMAZING these fried bananas were. I was in heaven..
Another paleo recipe I came up with was almond and parsley crusted beef shoulder! I was inspired to make this recipe because my best friend and her mom are trying the paleo lifestyle out and her mom made flank steak and breaded it with almond meal! I really liked it, so decided to try it out. Beef shoulder was on sale at the market so I went with that!
Almond & Parsley Crusted Beef Shoulder:
(2 servings)
.5 lb cross rib beef shoulder (flank steak would be great also)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup almond meal
2 tbsp fresh parsley
1 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 paper plates
In one paper plate, add egg, in other paper plate combine almond meal, parsley, lemon pepper and garlic.
The paper plates worked perfect for me, if you have a side rim bowl that will work also!
First put meat in egg and cover both sides completely.
Transfer from egg mixture to almond meal mixture and make sure to coat completely!
Heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil in large skillet over high heat. Once the oil is hot add steak and cook 1st side 3 minutes, and 2nd side about 2 minutes. My steak was on the thinner side so it needed little cooking time, you can cook your steak to whatever you prefer.
With the other half of the steak, I served it over a steamed kale salad!
I steamed about 2-3 cups of purple kale and 1/2 green apple chopped in a steam basket for about 2 minutes. Plated this mixture, tossed with 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, topped with hemp seeds and the other half of the steak! It was very delicious, and my first time steaming kale.
Chicken thighs were on sale and I got 4lbs for $5! They are bone-in, skin-on, which may not be the best for everyday chicken, but it is paleo and it is DELICIOUS! The chicken below, I seasoned with garlic, onion, italian herbs, black pepper, and red pepper flakes; seared it on both sides (about 9 minutes per side) and BAM! Spicy and delicious. Served with roasted vegetable medley.
A delicious snack I had was 1 mango sliced, with 1/2 cup of my raw trail mix! Mangoes were on sale 3 for $1! Always check the newspaper for good deals, I learned this from my uncle! :)
Pre workout fuel: 2 egg omelet with veggies (red onion, garlic, spinach, thinly sliced zucchini and red bell pepper), with a splash of coconut milk in the eggs which made them so fluffy! I made the plan omelet in coconut oil, flipped it, put the fresh veggies on one half of the omelet, put the lid on and lowered the heat for ~1-2 minutes. Flipped the other half over the veggies, turned off the heat and let them steam for 1 minute longer. Then served! with 1/4 avocado on top and 1 nectarine sliced up! The reason I did the veggies like this was because I am trying to not over cook my vegetables which makes them lose nutritional value. So yes the vegetables inside this omelet may not be extremely tender but they are warmed and slightly wilted and PACKED with nutrients! :)
Post workout lunch at my best friend's house! Almond crusted flank steak, turkey with olives and tomatoes, roasted egg plant, and zucchini egg scramble.
Grilled salmon, seasoned with garlic, onion, lemon pepper and seared in coconut oil on HIGH heat (2-3 minutes per side) to get the outside really crispy, served with roasted vegetable medley.
Now this may not look as appetizing as my other pictures, but it was good! I was at a friends house and it was getting late and I was getting hungry! I searched his whole kitchen to find paleo food, and I came across grilled chicken, steamed broccoli and natural salsa. So I mixed them all together, heated, and surprisingly turned out great!
July 5, 2012 Lower Body Workout
Warm up: 10 minute walk/jog
Leg Suspect #1 x3 (40lb bar): 20 deadlifts + 20 sumo dead lifts
Leg Superset #2 x3 (40 lb bar): 20 alt forward lunges + 20 squats
Leg Superset #3 x3 (40 lb bar): 15 Calf raises + 20 Alt back lunges + 15 back leg extensions (each side)
Leg Superset #4: 15 box jumps (9 high) + 20 squat side walk (10 each side)
Ab Superset #1: 20 standing side crunch (15 lb) + 20 twisting plank
Ab Superset #2: 20 butt lifts + 50 Russian twists (10lb)
Ab Superset #3: 50 Crunches + 45 sec plank
Cool down:10 minutes bike
July 6, 2012 Upper Body Workout
Warm up: 5 min stretch + 15 min bike
Superset #1 x3: 20 Narrow lat pull downs (50lb) + 20 Wide lat pull downs (50lb)
Superset #2 x3: Tricep pull downs w/ rope (20lb) + Tricep pull overs w/ rope (20lb)
Superset #3 x3: 20 Seated row (40lb) + 20 Ab pull down w/ rope (50lb)
Superset #4 x3: 30 Press to Curl (10lb) + 15 Bent over two arm row (10lb)
Superset #5 x3: 20 Tricep extension w/ bridge up (10lb) + 10 Jack knife w/ stab. ball
Superset #6 x2: 25 Toe touches-25 Butt raises + 50 Reverse crunch w/ stab. ball
Superset #7 x3: 20 Crunches + 30 Russian twists
Cool down down: 5 min stretch
July 7, 2012 Lower Body workout:
Warm up: 5 min stretch + 15 minute bike
Superset #1 x3: 20 Body squat w/ leg lift + 30 sec quad stretch
Superset #2 x4: 20 Alt cross back lunge (40lb bar) + 15 Good mornings (40lb) + 50 Low-wide-side-side
Superset #3 x3: 10 Narrow squats + 10 mid squat + 10 sumo squats (all- 40lb bar)
Superset #4 x3: 15 Sumo deadlifts (40 lb bar) + 20 Alt. side lunges + 50 High knees
Superset #5 x3: 15 Calf Raises (40lb) + 15 Single leg squat
Superset #6 x3: 20 Alt jump lunges + 20 Side ab crunch (each side, 25lb plate) + 20 Ab twists (10lb plate)
Superset #7 x3: 10 Plank pike up w/ stab ball + 40 Reverse crunch with stability ball
Superset #8 x3: 10 Ab crunch stab. ball pass off + 40 Russian twists
Superset #9 x1: 1 min plank + 50 regular crunches
Superset #10 x1: 30 sec straight arm plank + 50 straight leg crunches
July 8, 2012 Upper Body Workout
Warm up: 10 min stairs
#1 x3: 20 Reverse sit up + 20 Right side reverse sit up + 20 Left side reverse sit up
#2 x3: 20 Bicep cable curls w/ bar (20lb) + 20 Lat pull downs (50lb) + 20 Wide lat pull downs (50lb)
#3 x2: 20 Plank-dumbbell alt one arm row (10lb) + 20 Dumbbell rotational press (10lb)
#4 x3: 20 Dumbbell flat bench press (15 lb) + 20 Hang clean (w/ 30lb bar)
#5 x3: 20 Flat bench dumbbell fly (10lb) + 10 Push up w/ twisting plank
#6 x3: 20 Kneeling cable crunch (40lb) + 20 Cable face pull w rope (30lb)
#7 x2: 25 Toe touches + 25 Butt lifts + 50 Reverse crunch w stab. Ball
Warm Down: Stretch 5 min
Lastly, let me leave you with two informational pictures I came across. The first is how to distinguish the differences in your produce aisles, and the second is food lingo translations.
I found this one extremely interesting and will research this on my next grocery store visit!
I am not sure how truthful this one is, but it makes a lot of sense! So think about it next time you are at the grocery store.
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