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:

Good Morning Stair Circuits!

Yesterday in between my AM Physics class and PM Math class, I completed my first stair circuit. I got the work out from May 2012 Oxygen Magazine. I did one complete circuit on the top 55 steps. I was breathing very hard, and I felt the burn. The total workout was about 40 minutes, including the 1 mile run uphill to get there the shortcut way, and 1 mile run it took to get home (downhill).

                                   

After my PM class, I went to the pool and did a 40 minutes of swimming circuit, made up by me!

Swim Circuit

Warm Up!

100m breast stroke, 50m backstroke, & 50m freestyle

Circuit Time!

100m freestyle swim

Get out of the pool, and on a towel or blanket do 20 Push ups, 25 Crunches, 20 Seated bicycles, 25 Toe touches, 25 Flutter kicks, 50 Russian twists, Plank 30 seconds.

1 minute break

Do this circuit 5X

Cool down!

50m freestyle, 50m backstroke, 100m breast stroke

Total Time: ~45 minutes

Total Distance Swam: 900 meters, which is a little over 1/2 mile

Today..

Early this morning I took the normal route to the stairs, which is a 1.5 mile run from my house, so total of 3 miles there and back! 

I'm now addicted to the stairs workout and its only day 2! I completed all 120 stairs through 1 complete circuit. It was hard, but doable and I could tell this was a great high intensity workout for me that was completely FREE! Combined with the 3 mile run and the 30-40 minute stair circuit, I would say I am definitely getting in a solid workout.

I'll post what the stair circuit includes later tonight!

Post Workout Mini Shake directly after my workout:

1 Cup Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

1 Tsp Powdered Greens

1 Tbsp Vanilla Protein Powder

Combine ingredients into a shaker cup, and shake until fully combined. Enjoy!

Breakfast Time!

For breakfast, I made an egg white frittata (1 large egg, 2 egg whites) with 1 large kale leaf chopped and vein removed, 1/4 cup chopped onion, 1/4 cup chopped zucchini and 1/2 cup cooked ground turkey breast. I topped it with 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1/4 of a mashed avocado and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh green onions.

As a side to my frittata, I cut up half of a pear and half of a banana with 2 tablespoons raw crunchy almond butter.

It was such a beautiful morning I enjoyed breakfast on my back patio with 1 cup of Unsweetened Coconut Milk.

All around, I would say this was a successful breakfast! It is high in protein, low in fat with vegetables, fruit, and healthy fats from the avocado and almond butter.

Banana Almond "Crepe"

Yesterday and this morning were my days to hit the store! It was a big store run, since we just had our refrigerator worked on and had to get rid of most of our fresh food; which says a lot since most all of my food is in the vegetable and fruit drawers. 

I got most everything on my list with the exception of Coconut Flour and Chia Seeds. I also added Mangoes, they were 2 for $1 at Albertsons. I couldn't say no! My Uncle got my sweet potatoes and bananas also! I will be stoked up and ready for the next week.

Also, I couldn't find Ezekial Wraps BUT I found Ezekial tortillas, I am a bit obsessed now. The ingredients are clean and fresh. It tastes very similar to a regular whole wheat tortilla.

So with the tortillas in mind, I had a breakfast idea!

First though, I made a Kale, Onion, Turkey & Bell Pepper Scramble.

I sauteed onion in some olive oil, and added some spicy garlic chili paste (YUM!). I then added my orange bell peppers, kale, and turkey breast.

After the vegetables (and meat) were warm and cooked, I added 2 full eggs and 2 egg whites. I put the top on and cooked this over medium heat. I topped the final scramble with 1/4 avocado slices, and some medium Salsa Verde. It's just a simple scramble, but it was still good and filling!

While these were cooking away, my brain was thinking of a good way to use these tortillas. At first I was going to do a simple breakfast burrito, BUT I had just bought almond butter and I was craving it. Soooo... 

I present to you, Banana & Almond "Crepes"

Ingredients:

1 Ezekiel Sprouted Tortilla

1/2 small banana, sliced

1 Tablespoon Raw Crunchy Unsalted Almond Butter

1/2 Tablespoon ground flaxseed meal

1/2 Tablespoon Agave Nectar (for topping)

Simple, get 1 tortilla, spread almond butter all over, sprinkle flaxseed meal evenly, add 2 rows of banana slices, roll into a "crepe" form. I warmed the crepe up in the microwave for about 15 seconds and topped it with extra banana slices and drizzle with warmed agave syrup!

Final product!

Now, note that these need to be eaten quickly after warmed because the tortilla will get hard relatively fast (which didn't ruin the taste, just made it more difficult to cut through). 

I got my first half gallon of Trader Joe's Original Unsweetened Coconut Milk this morning too! I must say, after having a glass this morning, it may now compete with my love of almond milk. Thank goodness I have both right now so I can switch off.

 

Final breakfast was great!

Scramble + Crepe + Coconut Milk

The perfect way to get your day going :)