Taco Night!

We love Mexican food at our house! It's easy to do without the sour cream, cheese, and tortilla chips!!!

Here is how we like to have "taco night:"

This is 3 (2 was enough!) lettuce wraps filled with my original recipe for Mexi-meatballs, guacamole, homemade salsa, and cilantro leaves. 

When I was looking up recipes for Mecican style meatballs, I couldn't find anything that I really thought would work. So, I took some chances and made up my own recipe. They were good...and even the hubs thought so!

I started with ground turkey, but wanted a little more flavor, so I bought some spicy Italian sausage (chorizo would have been ideal, but they didn't have that at the store I went to). 

Next I added in some finely chopped green bell peps. 

Then some finely chopped onions. 

Some finely chopped garlic and cilantro leaves. 

I LOVE green/verde salsa. I do have a recipe for it, but they had some at the store that didn't have any bad ingredients... So I took the easy way out. I added about a cup to the mix. 

Then I sprinkled with just a bit if chili powder. 

I mixed it all up to check the consistency. I decided that I needed some almond meal to dry it up a bit and then the egg would make it stickier. 

I didn't take a photo of it all mixed up because my hands were too messy! I shaped them into balls (duh!) and fried them in just a bit of oil. 

Note: make sure they are more than halfway cooked before you turn them ... Or else, they fall apart. 

Also, please be sure they are cooked thoroughly. 

This is what taco night looks like! So. Many. Dishes. 

And this is the final product. I tried making plantain chips a couple of weeks ago and I had two plantains leftover, so instead if chips, we pan seared slices of plantains and dipped them in some guac!

Can't wait for leftovers tomorrow!

Whole 30 Part 2: "Build Your Plate"

"Build your Plate"

Start with 1-2 servings of a protein source that is about the size of your palm.  The Whole 9 Company has a whole host of resources and downloads here.  Below is their shopping list, which I included to help you understand exactly what foods to eat.

Then, fill the rest of your plate with vegetables and include 1-2 fist sized servings of fruit... with your meal or just following.

Lastly, add some healthy fats. 

They say that all oils and butters should be 1-2 thumb sized portions; Coconuts 1-2 open handfuls; Nuts and seeds should be 1 closed handful; And the best part.... a half to a whole avocado!!

This is not an endorsement... this is solely to help inspire and motivate our clients and friends.

Whole30 Part 1: The Book

As I discussed in this post, I have been cheating like crazy this summer!  My goal was to get fit and be more healthy in my time off.  I also wanted to lose some more fat before I have to go and buy new work clothes.  Especially since at the end of the last school year, I had to borrow some pants from a friend!  I feel like if I have something to stick to, I will be better about not cheating.

This summer, I have TOTALLY ruined my progress on the weekends-- sweets, alcohol, processed foods.. yikes!

Anyhow, my brother started a 30-day reset when I was visiting him last.  I wanted to see what it was all about, so I bought the book It Starts with Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. I read it in just a few days and decided that I wanted to do it too.
For me.
For my (hopefully) new clothes.
For better skin.
For better health.
For my (newly diagnosed) IBS/IBD.
For my muscles.

Basically the premise of the book can be summed up in two sentences:

"The food you eat either makes you more healthy or less healthy. Those are your options."

This book breaks down the science behind clean eating/ paleo/ whole30. It also explains what your body does with the "less healthy" foods that are in our modern culture.  

This means foods like:

Sugar, sweeteners, and alcohol

Seed oils

Grains and legumes

Dairy

Then, then It Starts with Food explains why we need "more healthy" foods in our lives.  This includes foods that meet certain standards.  

The "Good Food" Standards read:

"The food we eat should:

1. Promote a healthy psychological response.

2. Promote a healthy hormonal response.

3. Support a healthy gut.

4. Support immune function and minimize inflammation."

These foods are:
Meat, seafood, and eggs
Vegetables and fruit
The right fats

It also explains what to do if you have an autoimmune disease, IBD or IBS, or allergies.  It also gives information to vegans and vegetarians, those who are very active, and pregnant or nursing women.

At the end of the book is a breakdown of the Whole30 and then some recipes (that look and sound delicious, by the way!)

If you are looking for a reset/cleanse.. this may be something that you want to check out.  I am currently on day two.... only 28 to go ;) 

EZ Roast Chicken

I bought an organic, free-range chicken the other day.  When I got home from the store, I rinsed it off, took the packet out of the cavity and stuffed some lemons in there.  I sprinkled it with salt and pepper.. you could add more spices though.  I put it in a bowl and left it out to dry off a little bit.  Then, I put it in the fridge for 2 days.

When I was ready to start cooking, I slid it into a glass baking dish and put it in the oven at 425 degrees.  

After an hour, I checked it and it was getting brown on the outside, but it was not fully cooked.  I turned the oven down to 400 so that it didn't get too brown on the outside.  I put it back in for about 30 more minutes and it was done!

I had my hubby cut it up and I served it with broccoli and steamed cabbage!

A Big Step

So, I recently started eating a lot cleaner.  In April, I completed the Virgin Diet and after YEARS of not being able to lose weight, I did! I went on the diet to be healthier since I had a lot of digestive issues. Basically, I cut the seven foods that are the most likely to cause food allergies or intolerances.



Well, since then, I have not been very good.  I have cheated. A. Lot. It is difficult in the summer, but I have been working out every day and I am not doing my body any good by cheating on my healthy food!  My brother picked up this book when I was with him one day and he started the "Whole30."  It is 30 days of REAL FOOD. Protein from meat, seafood, or eggs. Vegetables. Healthy Fats. Occasional fruit. That's it.

It is a 30-day reset.  SO, if I cheat. I start over at day 1. SO NO CHEATING! Who's with me?  Starting Monday, July 29th. 

Spaceship popsicles

I love a good sweet treat after I eat, so I decided to make some Popsicles. We had gotten this little Popsicle kit for our wedding shower.  

I blended up some coconut milk with my strawberries that were about to go bad.  

I put a little of the strawberry-milk mixture into the plastic containers and added in some fresh blue berries and kiwis.  

I put them in the freezer overnight and then yum!

ZOODLES!

My turning slicer, as discussed in the last post.

We made Zoodles (zucchini noodles!!)

We placed them in the cast iron skillet with a little bit of oil, some onions, and seasoned salt.  We fried them up to al dente texture (about 8 minutes).

Then, we at them for breakfast with bacon, eggs, and gluten-free banana pancakes!

Noodle slicer!

So I was pleasanlty surprised one day to come home to a package.  Turns out it was this little gem from my brother-- a housewarming gift!!

It's a slicer that also makes food into noodles.  He came to visit me for the week, so we tried it out and liked it.  We tried to make everything into noodles!! We had curly sweet potato fries this night.  After he sliced the sweet potatoes (it only takes about 2 sweet potatoes to feed 4 people), we placed them in a bowl and drizzled oil on top.  

We shook it up to coat the potatoes with oil and then placed them on the pan.  We tried to make sure to spread them out evenly.

We placed them in the COLD OVEN... yes, we did NOT preheat it!  Then turned the oven on to 425 degrees and baked them for about 12-15 minutes.  When you let sweet potatoes warm up slowly, the natural sugars come out so there is no need for sugar and butter!

We served them up with some grilled veggies and steak cooked on the grill.  Perfect summertime meal!