All posts by Amanda

Sliding into home plate on my face

i.e. running out of gas before the day is done.

I blamed it on 3 kids, on being 40, on my hashimoto’s thyroid disease, on my workout, on my food, on my period,……. you name it, I blamed it. The last few years I would sit down after putting the little ones to bed and barely be able to pick myself back up again when it was time to walk to the bedroom. Taking supplements helped, but I was afraid it was my thyroid. I’ve been lucky, but was it time to up my dose?

One morning I’m going through the cabinet and, hey what is that back there? I pull out a huge, almost untouched can of Garden of Life Raw Meal. A friend gave it to our oldest when she left for college knowing college freshman don’t eat well, “This might help.” Great gift, right? She probably should’ve taken it with her.

That afternoon I made a shake instead of my afternoon cup of coffee. That evening my eyes were still open all the way through the news!  So I tried it again the next day- same result. Its now my afternoon go-to. I simply must send Candice another thank you letter.

Here’s a thought. I’ve been paleo for almost 3 years now. Veggies are the foundation of my food pyramid, and I’m pretty faithful. I eat protein with every meal, but a lot of it is animal protein. Raw Meal is vegan, plant protein based product. Could there be something to this vegan thing? Probably. A seed was planted with that thought. I’ll let you know if I decide to do a trial vegan run.

It’s all part of the adventure, and its all in the soup.

Spiced Tea

My grandma’s spiced tea. That’s where my head goes when I smell orange and cinnamon. As I was growing up my grandma’s spiced tea was a holiday treat everyone looked forward to. You should understand, my grandma did everything by means of instant and processed foods, so spiced tea was a combination of Tang, instant tea, red hots (yes, the cinnamon candy) and a few other things that would make you hum from a sugar high and feel warm when its cold outside. Sadly I don’t have her recipe, but I have found this substitute.

Spiced Tea

One bag Tulsi numeric ginger tea

2 or 3 drops orange essential oil

1 teaspoon honey

 

It warms the heart.

You buy them books and buy them books, but all they do is chew on the covers. Is there protein in that?

College food. It’s all in the Soup. And by Soup I mean life.

When your first born leaves home you can’t help but have that fear you’re sending them out into the world to be eaten alive. What’s that old saying, “feeding them to the wolves?” Well,  she’s at the University of Arkansas, so they’re hogs, but still. With all the stress of being out in the world, taking care of oneself isn’t usually high on the priority list for an 18-year-old.

She has a meal plan, a drawer full of vitamins, they have really nice dining halls, tons of options, but you just don’t know. What will she eat?

Evidently not dairy. That’s seriously a picture of her and her roommate’s fridge.

And at the end of the day is it my business what she’s eating? She’s “grown up” now. Her successes and failures are her own. This is where we trust the words we’ve preached these past 18 years actually took a foot hold even if she never even looked up from the computer while we were going blue in the face. Deep breath Mama.

Truth is I don’t know anyone my age who still eats the way they did in college. We flirt with it sometimes, but for the most part, the freshman 15 (or whatever the number) was enough, and we’ve moved on with our lives. And so I will let her have her fun and her ramen noodles, Flying Burrito, and whatever else she may be eating (or drinking). College food is just that. And hopefully at some point, she’ll be a little more eager to come home and visit.

I’m her number one fan. #woopigsooie

Lemon Lime Mocktail

Some people say alcohol of any form isn’t paleo.  No judgement here. Regardless certain social situations can  be a little uncomfortable having to explain why you aren’t drinking- again- especially to people who don’t get it.

This will make it look like you’re one of the players without you having to start over from day 1.

1 bottle sparkling water

2 drops lemon essential oil

2 drops lime essential oil

Pour in a cute glass with a couple ice cubes, enjoy.

Paleo Naan Bread

Naaa….. You can have some bread (come on, everybody like a good Pun-jab)… But seriously, my husband would never make it without something to mop up his egg yolk in the mornings.

3/4 C Almond Flour

3/4 C Tapioca flour

3/4 to 1 can Full Fat Coconut Milk

2 cloves Garlic, minced

1/8 tsp Himalayan pink salt

1/8 tsp Black Pepper

Combine dry ingredients, add  garlic. Once that is mixed fairly evenly, slowly add milk. I usually only use 3/4 can. If the batter is still a little thick the bread will set up with some body.

You can make these as large or small as you like. One batch of batter usually makes us 4 or 5  pieces of bread about 6” round (ish). Oil your skillet but not generously. You don’t want the bread to stick, but you don’t want to make the it oily either. I add oil to my skillet and wipe it around with my hand so as to not let any extra stand in the pan. Heat skillet to medium and allow the skillet to warm before adding batter. Cook until the batter firms and looks mostly cooked before you turn it. You want some good color on each side. Be patient. It will take longer than pancakes!

Trouble shooting:

If you’ve never used tapioca flour before it can prove challenging. It absorbs a lot of water, but it doesn’t do it on contact, so its important you add the milk slowly. Give it a chance to soak in.

You want your bread to be chewy and a little stretchy but not gooey or sticky.  If you have goo then you’ve either undercooked them, or you have too much tapioca flour in your mix.  If they look like pancakes you’ve used too much almond flour and maybe not enough milk.

Salt and pepper are always an ingredient you should modify according to your personal taste. Garlic, in my opinion is as well. I Love garlic.

I’ve seen a few recipes with baking soda and baking powder listed as ingredients. This gets into the grey area of whether those ingredients are actually “paleo” or not. That’s your call. I will say this. If you are going to add baking powder, watch that you’ve got aluminum free baking powder.

Uses:

Tacos, sandwich style bread, bratwurst style sausage with onions and peppers, mopping up the curry sauce from what’s left of your plate, wrap your bacon and egg, drizzle with honey and sprinkle with cinnamon….

 

A note about Whole 30:

All the ingredients in this recipe are Whole 30 compliant. However, one of the golden rules of W30 is you shouldn’t duplicate noncompliant foods with compliant ingredients because this doesn’t encourage you to break your bad food habits. They’ve got a point, and therefore this naan bread is not W30 compliant.

That being said, no judgement here.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

 

This recipe has 3 components which makes it a bit high maintenance int he food prep department, but I promise it’s worth it!

1. Cajun Spice Mix

2 tsp salt

2 tsp garlic powder

2 1/2 tsp paprika

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 1/2 tsp dried thyme

Mix it together in a bowl, leave the teaspoon in it, and set to the side. You’ll dip into it a few times during this recipe.

2. Pasta

3 large or 4 medium  zucchini

Spiralize.  This is the perfect job for whomever is sitting on the couch watching TV right now or for the random teenager pilfering through your kitchen looking for Pringles.

Set them aside. We’ll pick them back up later.

3. Veggies and Meat

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes or strips

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

6 to 8 fresh mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 green onion, diced

10.8 oz cocoanut cream

Toss chicken in one teaspoon cajun seasoning. In a large skillet over medium heat, add chicken and a tablespoon of your favorite cooking fat. Brown slightly on both sides.

In separate large skillet add one tablespoon cooking fat and zucchini, Sprinkle with one tablespoon cajun seasoning. Periodically reposition noodles. You want the zucchini to soften, but you don’t want it to turn to mush, so watch carefully. When you find its sweet spot remove it from heat.

When chicken is slightly brown  transfer to colindar at the sink and let remaining chicken juices drain. Return skillet to stove, medium heat, add veggies and one more teaspoon of cajun seasoning. Allow to cook 2 to 3 minutes until veggies start to soften. Add chicken back to skillet. Stir in cocoanut cream and I always add another teaspoon of cajun seasoning. If you don’t care for your food too spicy maybe back off that last teaspoon. Simmer 5 minutes.

Combine noodles with chicken and veggies in a large bowl, serve and enjoy!

Paleo Mint Chocolate Coffee Creamer

 

Sleepy me sometimes can’t be trusted, so having to add individual components to my coffee is sometimes just an annoyance. I premix them and keep them in the fridge so all sleepy me has to do is grab the right thing. This is my favorite combo.

And yes- its not only Paleo, its Whole 30 compliant.

1/2 C full fat coconut milk

2 tsp unsweetened baking cocoa

2 tsp water

1 tsp cinnamon

4 drops peppermint essential oil

It helps to dissolve the baking cocoa in water before adding other ingredients. I use a small saucepan rocked up on its side, but you could use a small cup in the microwave if you prefer. Blend with milk, cinnamon, and peppermint, add a dollop (or more) to your coffee, inhale, and enjoy.

A note about peppermint essential oil:

If you’ve never used it before it can be a bit intense. Start 3 drops for your first run. If you just love the clearing of the sinuses you may try 5 drops.