Thanksgiving Meal Ideas

 

 

 

If you're like me, you're already planning for Christmas before Thanksgiving even arrives. Well, I wanted to make your life a little easier and give you a list of delicious Thanksgiving proteins, sides and gravy to make your tummy scream THANK YOU!

These recipes are all found on my other blog but I wanted to share it here as well.

 

So, here's a list of what will be on our dinner table this year along with some extra goodies. Enjoy!

 

Chicken, or turkey! No Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner is complete unless there's a bird involved. My husband loves turkey and I love chicken so please use this recipe on either birds and enjoy because it is just so juicy and moist!

 

Then there's the gravy. This is honestly the easiest and most full-proof method I've been able to follow. Making the gravy nice and dark cooks out the flour taste and gives it a rich deliciousness that you need to smother the chicken with.

Hey you paleo and gluten free people.. I know corn starch isn't exactly paleo but substitute equal parts corn starch for the flour and you'll have an excellent gravy. You might try it with arrowroot flour but I've never had good luck with that for some reason. Corn starch is easier on my tummy.

 

 

 

The next item of business is a green vegetable. No matter how you cook your green beans, you need to try this blanching method before cooking. It truly makes life a lot easier. Give it a shot!

 

 

 

Hey, how about some dessert? Tired of the same old pumpkin pie every year? Okay, maybe not but if you are, give this delicious Sweet Potato Pie a try. It's so sweet and creamy. I love how it tastes right out of the oven but it's even better after it's been refrigerated!

Here's a paleo recipe for it, too.

 

 

Last, but certainly not least is sweet potato souffle. This is, by far, the best thing at our Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. Always good hot and/or cold and if I make a paleo/gluten free recipe, I'll be sure to post it.

 



 





There are a lot of other delicious meals so look at the search bar on the top right side of my page and type in an ingredient and I'm sure you'll find some great recipes there. If you have any questions or need any help with preparing a meal, feel free to leave me a comment below or shoot me an email at angelasglutenfreebakery@yahoo.com

 

Here's to a THANKFUL holiday season this year.



Stuffed Bell Peppers

Printable Recipe

 

I've been super busy preparing for our local farmer's market that I sell my gluten-free baked goods at. Thanksgiving is also around the corner and I've had to mentally prepare for that so I needed something quick and easy to throw together and this was truly delicios!

Other things I'm thinking about lately is opening up a food truck business (Paleo and GF items only), writing an e-book, and selling to one of our local mom&pop shops.

Life is busy, isn't it? Phew!
 

Well, here's a delicious paleo and/or primal meal all in one. It has the carbs, proteins and fats all in one pretty little package. Now, this recipe does include cheese so if you don't eat cheese, leave it out. Just add some salt and pepper and you're good to go!

 

Ingredients:

Serves 2

2 green bell peppers

1/2 - 3/4 pounds ground meat. beef, chicken, turkey, sausage.. whatever you like

3/4cup crushed tomatoes

1/2cup onion, diced

1/4cup bell pepper, diced (see notes below)

S&P (salt and pepper) to taste

1/4cup cheese, shredded

 

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and preheat a skillet over medium heat.
Slice off the tops of the bell peppers and reserve them for future use. Remove the seeds/ribs on the inside and discard. Using a knife, remove the stem from the tops of the bell peppers you just sliced and dice into bite sized pieces.

In a medium skillet, add the ground meat, onions and bell peppers and cook thoroughly (about 8-10 minutes) and season with salt and pepper. Drain the excess fat and place back in the skillet or clean bowl. Add the crushed tomatoes and stir thoroughly. Scoop the mixture into the bell peppers and top with cheese.

 

In an oven-safe dish, add a tiny bit of water - about 1/4 cup - and place the bell peppers inside and then bake about 40-45 minutes until the peppers have softened.

 

*Tip* If you want to make a lot of these and freeze them, make it all the way up to where you stuff the peppers then freeze them. When you want to bake these, transfer to an oven-safe dish and immediately bake. Do not defrost these. Baking times will be longer since it's frozen.

 

Eat and enjoy!



Greens. Southern Style.

Greens. Southern Style.

Printable Recipe

 

 

 

To me, growing up in the south meant that there was usually greens and cornbread on every menu in town. It's surprising how that has somewhat gone away now but I guess people just forget what makes a good and healthy meal.

My mother's garden is so much more vibrant than mine. She keeps reminding me "It's been 5 or 6 years that I've been planting and harvesting and working on my soil." Compared to her green bean harvest, I only have about 15 beans and I planted a day before her! Oh well.. my soil sucks and I know it but hey, my eggplants and peppers are abundantly producing so go me.

Back to her garden. She was kind enough to let me have a bag full of fresh cut mustard greens the other day and wanted me to try a recipe she found online and of course I gratuitously accepted her garden veggies and went home and cook them. Let me tell you, there is nothing better than baby mustard greens cooked fresh. Tender and delicious.

 

Thanks, mom.

 

Ingredients:

1 pound mustard greens, washed and de-veined

1/4 diced white onion

1tsp minced garlic

2 pieces of bacon

1/4cup chicken stock

1tsp olive oil (or coconut oil)

S&P (salt and pepper) to taste

Pinch of red pepper flakes

 

 

Directions:

In a large skillet, pre-heat olive oil over medium low and add the bacon. Cook until crisp and remove from pan, drain on a paper towel and crumble. Set to the side.
While the bacon is draining, add the onion and cook 2-3 minutes and season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes then add the garlic. Once the onions are soft, add the greens, chicken stock and 3/4 bacon pieces (1/4 will go on top as a crunchy garnish). Stir until the greens have wilted. Once the greens have wilted, cover and reduce heat to low and cook 30-45 minutes until soft. Garnish with remaining bacon pieces and serve hot!

 

 

Let me tell you something.. I never was a big fan of greens until the past few years and this is by far the best tasting recipe. Give it a shot.. and if you eat cornbread, smother it in butter and indulge!

Time for Another Whole30

Time for Another Whole30

 

This past October, my diet was pretty terrible. And by terrible, I mean I ate wheat, dairy, lots of grains and sugar. When I was eating it, I didn't think too much about it but when I really looked at the whole month, I ate way too much bad stuff. I think this was the first time since January that I let it get out of control. I don't know why it happened this particular month, but it did. October is over and I have a new mindset.

 

Determination.

 

As I begin this journey for the second time this year, I will be monitoring my daily consumption of food and liquid and see how I feel at the end of each day and in the morning when I wake up. If you'd like to start on a great health journey, start it with me today! Check out Whole 9's web page to get started on a Whole30.

 

I'm going to share with you some very helpful information, some gross information and some recipes. Let me know if you have a recipe you'd like to share so I can test it out! It has to be grain free, sugar free, dairy free, processed free.

 

This morning for breakfast I had two scrambled eggs, two pieces of bacon and a smoothie that you can find here at my other blog. For lunch, I had taco meat (recipe coming soon), a large salad of romaine lettuce and some tangy salad dressing (recipe coming soon), an apple and some garlic toasted pecans which you can find here at my other blog. I also had an apple pie lara bar because I was pretty hungry before church (thank you time change for screwing up my meal time!), half a cup of coffee (the other half is in the fridge for iced coffee tomorrow) and 12 ounces of water.

I have to drink 70-80 a day to be where I want to be with that quota so I have a lot of work to do today.

My gut is pretty normal right now but I do have some itchy rashes, which I thought for the longest time was eczema, but not I believe it's a side effect of eating wheat. (I've diagnosed myself with celiac.. I've yet to get that medically confirmed). I also have acne on my back and shoulder but I think it's from sleeping in a sports bra so I'm doing my own research with that lovely eyesore, meaning no sports bras unless I'm working out. The acne on my face has cleared up thanks to washing my face with castor oil and olive oil (crazy, right?). My body goal this time is to replace the fat I have with healthy muscle and gain weight. When I work out hard and eat right, I can gain some pretty good looking muscle so I'm hoping it works out this way for me.

As for emotional/mental, I don't have too many up's and down's but I hope to have a lot more energy than I do right now. As I'm typing, all I can think about it finishing up and going to bed for a quick afternoon nap.

And for being in the gym, or working out at my home gym, I plan on 3-4 days per week with no slacking. I'm trying to better myself so why be a slacker?

I hope you join in and keep me posted on your goals. Happy Sunday!

~Angela

The Hangover

The Hangover

 

No, I'm not talking about that hilarious movie. I'm talking about a terrible feeling the next day after eating poorly the night before.

I thought it was silly that people talked about a hangover feeling; "like food could make you feel terrible the next day." Uhm, well excuse me but it happened and it was horrible! I woke up this morning with pain over my right eye, my eyelids were swollen, I had a headache (just a tiny one.. not a real hangover headache), and I woke up weighing 3 pounds heavier than I normally weigh at the end of the day. It was funny weird last night seeing myself on the scale at 139 pounds, because on a "fat" day (pms days) I only get up to about 136 pounds or so. I knew there was going to be trouble this morning for sure! (I know what you're thinking.. and guess what? The only weight I gain is when I eat poorly or when I loose fat and gain muscle, even then it's hard to gain weight. You think it's hard to loose weight? Well guess again, folks.)

 

Okay, here's the back story since I know you're dying to find out how I gained so much weight in one day and ended up in pain the next...

 

It was a dark and stormy night.. we were sitting around the campfire..

 

Sike!

My mom was throwing a cute little party for my kids and my nieces/nephew and some other children. She wanted to make pizza like we did at my sister's birthday party (grilled pizza dough ROCKS!) so she had everything set up where you make your own pizza. There were toppings everywhere and they were delicious. She grilled one side of the pizza then we put our toppings on the grilled side and then we threw it back on the grill to cook it the rest of the way.

 

Aren't these the cutest Frankenstein cups ever? Good job, Mamma!

I had a gluten-free pizza crust at my sister's birthday party a few weeks ago because I hate the adverse reactions I get when I eat wheat, but yesterday was going to be different. Gosh-Darn-It! I was going to eat a big, fat, glutenous piece of pizza.

Well. I ate two pizzas. I also had a cupcake and a slice of cake. Oh, I had a few pieces of candy but this time I didn't go bizerk on it like I did at a wedding a few weeks ago.

 This is my little man, Owen.

Guess what? I'm human. I like bad food sometimes. I like knowing that the paleo way I eat almost 95% of the time makes me feel wonderful and healthy and keeps me well. The days I don't eat paleo, I really enjoy what the paleo lifestyle does for me. This is a crazy analogy but I'm going to do it anyway. It's almost like going to a party, getting wasted and thinking you're having the time of your life and then waking up the next day in the same clothes, reeking of cigarette smoke with the worst hangover of your life. (Not that I've ever experienced that.. my mom reads my blog for crying out loud!)

 

Back to being serious about food for a moment. I truly never thought I'd have such a bad reaction to food. I figured I might have the sniffles or wake up with a stomach ache but never did I think I'd wake up the way I did this morning.

 

If you're tired of waking up and being lethargic all day, or tired of being sick for half the year, or find yourself constantly battling sugar high's and/or low's, maybe it's time you do something with your diet. Maybe it's time to kick yourself in the butt and get off the couch and get some good food coursing through your blood.

 

 My other little guy in action!

Food is a healer and I'm definitely healing myself today.

Don't get me wrong, last night's food was delicious and I have been keeping that meal as a cheat meal this week but I guess my body is moving on whether I like it or not and I have to remember that wheat is not my friend. It never will be my friend again. Reminds me of that dumb song "We, will never ever ever get back together." Thanks Taylor Swift for making another dumb song to get stuck in our heads.

 

So, here's to weighing 134 pounds in the morning, a healthy start to a fitness routine and a week full of healthy food choices!

 

Don't eat this cake.. because it was awesome :)

Hope you liked the photos.. they were from the fun Halloween party my mom put together!

Sticks and Stones

Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones but Wheat, Oats and Candy Will Always Hurt Me.

 

I attended a wedding this past Sunday and was so thrilled that my friend of 13+ years was getting married. I was a little sad because we made a pact when we were younger that if by the time we were 30 and we weren't married, we would marry each other. Well, I've been married now for 5.5 years so that pact went out the window a long time ago and I'm madly in love with my man. It was honestly a bittersweet moment to see him marry the girl of his dreams. The wedding was beautiful and so was his bride. I couldn't have been happier for him and I know she'll be treated well. He's a great guy!

Anyways, back up a few days before their engagement photos, he asked me to cut his hair and I was petrified because I didn't want to screw up his haircut! (I'm a licensed hairdresser and mostly work on women's cut/color). The haircut looked great .. then he asked me to cut it a few nights before his wedding. UGH! I thought I'd butcher it up but his woman gave me the thumbs up so it was all good. That night I told her how excited I was to eat all of the food they were going to have and told her I was going to eat a ton of cake. Why? Because I ate 100% faithfully paleo the week working up to it and this was going to be my cheat meal. I was so excited for cake!

 

When it was time to eat, I saw the caterer bring out a huge hunk of meat. Can I get a whoop whoop for some prime rib. It was fantastic! I ate that, a roll, a few meatballs, a mushroom stuffed with sausage and topped with cheese and a lot of other stuff that is definitely not paleo. It's okay because it was my cheat meal and I deserve it, right?

Well, that's what I thought.

Dude! I forgot to mention they had a candy bar with tons of candy.. and yes, I ate a ton of it and brought a bag home for my kid. I know. I'm an idiot!

 

Okay, so after having a wonderful time at their wedding, I came home to a seriously bloated gut and a rumbly tummy. It wasn't long until I had to use "the facilities" to help rid myself of all the wheat/sugar/bad stuff I just consumed. Well, it didn't end that night. I woke up the next morning with a rumbly tummy and had to use "the facilities" again.. I know, I know.. TMI (too much info) but I need you to understand my point!

 

Ahh. My point. My point is that before I started eating healthfully, I never knew I had digestive problems or upset. I really thought it was normal to be gassy and to stink up the bathroom for hours. Gross, right? After starting the paleo lifestyle, I realized that life is so much less stinky if we just ate the right things. Not only do grains, sugar, and dairy upset our stomachs, they also upset our hormones and make us have acne, headaches, and flu-like symptoms.

 

Eat the right things and you'll feel good. Eat the right things and you won't stink it up so badly. Eat the right things and your body will heal itself and will thank you for being good to it. Eat the right things and I guarantee your body won't get as sick as it used to. I'm living proof of that!

 

I don't have any awesome pictures from the wedding but I had a great time watching two people be united as one and I'll always remember their special day!

P.S. DON'T EAT CRAP!
the.end.

~Angela



Pie. Sweet, Glorious Pie.

Pie. Sweet, Glorious Pie.
Printable Recipe

 

What's the one thing you miss since you've been on the paleo ride? Me? I miss desserts. I tell you what, I used to be a candy/cake/cookies/brownies/pie crazed woman. I used to pick out the red and purple skittles and eat those in bed. Once those flavors were gone, I would eat the green - then yellow - then orange. Sometimes my husband would look at me like "What the heck are you doing? How do you eat that garbage." But as sweet as he is, he smiled and continued watching tv with me. I love that man :)
 

 

 

I've made several pies that have been very tasty. Check out my paleo strawberry pie here! My sister recently made a paleo pumpkin pie and it was out of this world amazing! I hope you post your recipe soon so I can link up with you .. ahem, ahem. I'll be making a pumpkin pie soon and we'll see who's is better. Pumpkin pie and October/November just go hand in hand.

 

Well, I recently made a non-paleo sweet potato pie that is my mother's recipe. I don't know where she got it from or if it is a secret family recipe but I'll share with you my paleo version of it here. I have a non-paleo blog that I'll share the sugar-laden recipe to.. I'm not giving you that blog website unless you ask. Nicely. I don't want to be the bad influence, okay?

 

Let's move on to this pie. It's light and airy and is simply sweet. It has a little maple syrup for the sweetener along with the natural sugars from the sweet potatoes. This pie is so quick to throw together and it tastes great. I live for simplicity.

 

Ingredients:

Makes 1 pie crust and 1 pie filling

 

Pie Crust Recipe:

2cups almond flour

3Tbsp liquid egg whites or 1 egg yolk

pinch of salt

1/4cup ghee or unsalted butter

 

 



 

Sweet Potato Pie Filling:

2oz. butter, softened

1cup cooked and mashed sweet potatoes

3/4cup pure maple syrup

1/4cup almond milk or coconut milk

1tsp vanilla

2eggs, beaten (poor eggs.. why are they always so abused?)

1tsp cinnamon, or pumpkin pie spice

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, add all of the pie crust ingredients together and pour into a lightly greased pie pan. Gently press down on the bottom and along the sides of the pie plate. Set aside.
In another large bowl, add the butter, sweet potatoes, maple syrup and milk and beat until well blended. Add the vanilla, eggs and cinnamon and mix well. Pour into the pie pan and bake approximately 60 minutes or until the middle has set.

  

I always ask my kids to try my recipes because if they like it, I know you will, too. They both scarfed it down quickly and gave me a thumbs up. If you try this recipe, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think about it!

Oh, and don't feel guilty if you splurge on this treat. You're special and you deserve to bake a pie and eat it too!

 

~Angela

Lightly Fried Potatoes

Lightly Fried Potatoes
Printable Recipe

 

Shall I touch on the topic of white potatoes; how, to some, they are a nightshade (an irritant)? My family is not affected by any type of potatoes, thankfully. We rarely eat potatoes anymore in this house, but when we do, I have to make sure they taste good.

Okay, so back to white potatoes and how they're not really paleo-friendly. In my world, I cut out everything that could have been a problem for my gut. Zero grains, sugars, processed foods and white/red/whatever potatoes. I slowly added them back into my normal diet to see if I had any gut or elevated glucose problems, and I didn't. I didn't notice anything out of the norm and was happy with my diagnosis. I do know that white potatoes are very starchy and aren't too healthy but they do have electrolytes and vitamins so I can't count them out altogether.

If I had to choose between a white and sweet potato, the sweet potato would win. Hands down. Any vegetable with a vibrant color would win out over something so drab and plain.

Anyway, here is a simple recipe if you consume white potatoes. If not, use a sweet potato or yam or zucchini! This recipe is pretty alternative to your needs so go with what you have and enjoy your foods. Sometimes foods are meant to be fried.

Amen.

Ingredients:
Serves 4
1/4cup olive oil or coconut oil (oil of your choice)
3 medium sized potatoes; white, red, purple, orange.. whatever floats your boat
S&P (Salt and Pepper to taste)

Directions:
In a medium skillet, add the cooking oil and heat on medium-high. If you don't like the skin on the potatoes, peel them first and then rinse any remaining grime off.

Slice the potatoes into thin pieces, keeping them as uniform as possible for even cooking. Add a handful at a time to the heated skillet and turn every minute until lightly golden brown. About 6-8 minutes total depending on how you've cut them. Remove from the oil and drain on a paper towel and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Yes, even sweet potatoes taste great with salt and pepper!

 

Tip: Sprinkle cinnamon and salt on the sweet potatoes for a different taste.

If your stomach cannot handle a white/red potato, please give this a shot with a sweet potato or zucchini or squash of choice. The possibilities really are endless.

Enjoy!
~Angela


Paleo Breakfast Scramble

Paleo Breakfast Scramble

Printable Recipe

 

 

Who gets tired of eating the same thing every single breakfast? I know I do and I just had to mix it up this week. I started by cleaning out my fridge. Anything that needed to be consumed that day was going into my breakfast. It's a fun way to reinvent breakfast and use leftovers from previous meals.

 

Here's what I did for this super fast and tasty breakfast.

 

Ingredients:Serves 1

1 small handful diced red potatoes

5-6 broccoli heads, diced

1 small bell pepper or any pepper of choice

7-8 slices of turkey meat

2 eggs

S&P (salt and pepper) to taste

1tsp cooking oil of choice, I prefer olive oil here

 

Directions:

In a skillet, heat up the oil on medium heat and add the diced vegetables. Saute until warmed through and add the turkey meat and cook until slightly browned. Next, add the eggs and scramble in the pan with the vegetables and turkey and cook thoroughly. Add salt and pepper and eat!



Pumpkins, Eggs and Soapboxes

Pumpkins, Eggs and Soapboxes

Printable Recipe

 

It has recently become a huge pet-peeve of mine if someone says "Paleo 'Diet'." I cannot for the life of me understand why people think that eating WHOLE FOODS is a diet? It's so absurd that people's mind really think this way.

"Oh, you're on the paleo diet?"
"Uhm, no. I eat real, whole foods while you eat garbage from a box. What do you call your way of eating? The garbage diet?"

Seriously.

Okay, I'm off my soapbox for now.

Paleo eating is only a style of eating. Vegetarians or vegans aren't associated with dieting because of their food choices, are they? I didn't think so either. It's a personal choice that some people have the hardest time grasping.

I think people in the 1800's would look at us now and wonder what the heck happened to us. Why do we have companies making all of the junk on our groceries shelves and why do people consume it? I don't know about you, but I like eating the way I do and if you think this "diet" is boring or you won't be able to eat what you want, well.. maybe you're just weak.

I remember starting this food journey and wondering if I would like it and if it would actually be beneficial. I have the before/after blood tests to prove that is works and is beneficial to my health and I wouldn't change it for anything. My food has awesome spices added to it so that it's not bland and I've actually stepped outside my comfort zone (no more fried chicken and french fries every other night) and have made some wonderful meals. I've surprised myself many times at how tasty my meals have become.

Mad props to God for creating all the delicious foods and spices we have!

 

Well, I guess I'll give you a great post-workout recipe and since it's fall, I've included another pumpkin recipe and it literally takes 5 minutes to make this meal. It's great cold or warm so you can pack it with ice or take it as is and eat it right after your workout.

 

Ingredients:
Serves 1; 14G Protein, 11 Carbs

1/2tsp cooking oil such as olive oil or coconut oil
1/2cup pureed pumpkin (not pumpkin pie)
2 egg whites
dash of salt
dash of cinnamon

 

 

Directions:

In a non-stick pan, heat up about 1/2tsp oil on medium heat. Separate the egg whites from the yolks and put the whites in the heated pan. Scramble the eggs until cooked through. Turn the heat down to low and add the pumpkin and cinnamon and cook until heated through. Sprinkle salt on top if desired and devour!

 

I hope you enjoy this PWO (post-workout) recipe. It has a very mild flavor and isn't nearly as sweet as a sweet potato but gives you enough carbs and protein to replenish your body after a hard workout.

 

And next time someone asks you about your "diet", tell them it's a lifestyle or a food choice or whatever but for crying out loud, it's not a diet!

 

~Angela


Eating Well and Exercising

Eating Well and Exercising

 

My crossfit box is having a push-up challenge for the ladies. Right now, everyone involved is supposed to do 35 push-ups daily for 14 days. I took this challenge on because I've been a complete slacker when it comes to working out. I could rattle off the excuses but do you really care? Nah, neither do I. I decided to do this challenge because it's easy, it only take a few minutes of my time during the day, and it just may help to get me back on the WOD track I belong on.

We have been doing this challenge for 5 days now and it's truly amazing. It was really hard at first and now it's getting easier. I think at the end of it I'll be back to doing the male version push-ups instead of the girlie ones on my knees.

I started off with 7 at a time. Five rounds of seven isn't too hard, is it? Well, the first day it was. The second day I did 7, 14, 14 and was impressed.. the days have continued on progressing quicker and more push-ups at a time before I had to rest.

 

Yesterday I did a 100 count program to get my body ready to look its best again. I did the following:
100 legs - 20 air squats, 20 weighted squats with 25#, 20 deadlifts with 25#, 20 lunges on my right leg and 20 lunges on my left leg.
100 abs - I did the majority of sit-ups straight ahead, some were to the left side and some were to the right side and some I did the scissor crunch.. uhh, you may have to google it :)
100 push-ups - those just sucked. I felt at times that I was kipping .. who kips doing pull-ups? haha ME!

 

Before bed, I did a lot of stretching for my entire body and I felt wonderful when I hopped in bed.

This morning I woke up and drank 1/2 lemon of a lemon, juiced (fresh squeezed) in 20oz. ice water before breakfast. My stomach cannot handle fruit juice hardly ever so I was suprised that I had zero discomfort drinking this. Lemon juice really helps to flush the liver and is just a great cleanse.

 

 

I feel great, I look better than the day before and am proud I got off my butt and worked it out. If you only have a few minutes a day to do a workout, at least it's better than nothing. If you're microwaving something and waiting on it, see how many squats you can do in a minute. See how many push-ups you can do in a minute.. give yourself fun quick bursts of exercise and keep it simple.

 

Ever heard the saying, "If it's important, you'll make it a priority"? Well, I've written that down on my to-do list that hangs on my refrigerator so I see it constantly as a reminder to get up and move!

 

I hope you're encouraged to move more and eat healthier.

One more thing.. there's a free book right now on Amazon. Just click here and it'll take you to the book. It may enlighten the ones that are new to the paleo lifestyle! Hopefully by the time you read this post, it'll still be free for you.

 

Have a super day!

~Angela



 



Schedules. Schedules. Schedules.

Schedules. Schedules. Schedules.

  

Photo Courtesy: Women's Health

 

I find that if I do not have something written down in plain view, I will be a slacker. I won't finish my goal or that looming project. I was listening to a radio station the other day and the host said "I love my planner. I take it with me wherever I go. I love to touch it; write in it; and check off my lists or goals I've taken care of." She went on to say how she hates the digital age and refuses to use her calender on her telephone to sync her and her husband's schedule.

I kind of snickered at this because I teeter on having a physical schedule and a schedule on my telephone because it's so handy. I list all of my medical or work appointments on my phone because it does give me a chance to set up reminders.

In order for me to accomplish daily tasks though, I need a physical schedule or calendar. I have a cleaning schedule listed on my fridge of morning and nightly chores along with a chore of the day (I will be happy to post that if anyone wants an example).

I also will be making a workout/healthy/motivation schedule. Sometimes I go throughout the day only drinking 16oz-20oz of water. My mind is slow and I'm stiff from not fueling my body properly so I set a goal to drink 60oz-80oz of water a day (if not working out .. more if I'm working out). By 8:00am, I need to have finished 20oz of water. By noon, another 20oz and by 4pm, another 20oz-30oz.

I don't really cheat throughout the day because I know if I eat something with wheat in it, my belly will rumble, bloat and cause some pretty stinky stuff!! I have sweets in the house but they're all in my freezer so it's not too readily available to consume. The healthy stuff is in the fridge or on my counter and is quick to grab so if I really need something sweet, I'll go for some grapes or an apple instead. It's all about mind control with me and if I can control what I eat by placing my items in the freezer, so be it.

 

Some people like to schedule cheat meals or cheat snacks. That's awesome if you can schedule something like that. If you can, go for it and write it down. Put it on paper and work hard towards that goal.

 

One other physical reminder I am doing is placing money (or IOU's if I don't have cash/change) into a mason jar (I'm slightly obsessed with mason jars right now). Once I've worked out that day, I will put a certain amount of money into it and when I've reached the end of the month, I can go spend that workout money on whatever I want. I can save it for something big or use it when I want to. Each workout I will put $1.00-$5.00 in the jar depending on how intense the workout was. If it is just a stroll around the block with the toddler, I'll put in $1.00. If it is a heavy lifting day, I'll put $3.00-$4.00 in it. If it's a PR (personal record), I'll put $5.00 and so on.

You make the rules to your money jar collection.

 

You control what you do with your time, money, and health. If you work M-F 8a-5p, try to get up 20 minutes earlier and do a quick 10-15 minute home workout. See how many push-ups you can do in a minute then see how many sit-ups you can do in a minute then move to squats. After your initial 3 minutes or testing, try to match those minutes again until your 15 minutes is up. Then start on the rest of your day. Hey, you'll be more energized today than you thought you would be!

 

Be happy. Be healthy. And most of all, do something good for yourself today. You deserve it!

 

~Angela

Paleo and Holistic Cold Remedy

Paleo and Holistic Cold Remedy

 

"Let food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be food." - Hippocrates

 

My kids have been sick a lot this year with colds and ear infections. I'm not a fan of sickness (but who is?) and hate it when my kids get sick. I hate it even more when two of them are sick.. and I hate it even more if they get sick and then heal and then I get sick. HATE IT!

I was on a quest for finding a holistic and paleo cold remedy and luckily, I had the mixture right inside my pantry. Fresh, local honey and ground cinnamon. I usually find anything I want to make on pinterest. Everyone said it worked so I tried it early this year when the kids got sick. My throat started feeling scratchy and my lower back started to ache - which for me is the ultimate sign of sickness coming on.

I took the specified concoction and I was surprised that it worked. It warded off the cold and I only had a few aches the first day and I was more tired than usual on the second day and by the third day, I felt normal again. No cold! 

 

So, how does honey and cinnamon work to heal you? Well, let's take a look at the two elements.

First, honey is the only food in the world that will not spoil. Did you know that? I didn't until recently and thought, "wow.. those bees sure do know what they're doing!"
Second, honey is an antimicrobial, which means that it kills microorganisms that carry disease. In other words, it will feast on the germs and kill them before they spread into your body.

And how about the cinnamon? What does that do internally?

Cinnamon treats antiviral infections. Research has shown that it is an antiviral remedy which will kill the cold and flu virus internally.

We put the antiviral (cold fighter) and the antimicrobial (germ fighter) together and the most precious sickness fighter you can imagine has been created.

 

I've tried this twice this year and the benefits are amazing. I am proof that this does work and will continue reaching into my pantry instead of a medicine cabinet from now on. If you look for naturally safe solutions, you will find it. Just keep looking and digging and experimenting.

Cold Remedy Ingredients:

Makes 3 servings (take 3 times a day)
1Tbsp local, raw honey
3/4tsp ground cinnamon

 

Directions:

Stir the honey and cinnamon together in a small container and take 1tsp 3x's daily until all cold/flu symptoms are gone.

 

I mixed up several days worth of this mixture and gladly ate all of it.

I am not a medical professional. This is my own assessment and I will not be held for any misuse of this remedy.
 

Please let me know if you try this and how you like the results!

~Angela

Veggie Packed Paleo Meatloaf with Bacon

Veggie Packed Paleo Meatloaf with Bacon

Printable Recipe

 

 

I have two kids that are mostly paleo/primal and always feel like they never have enough veggies. They eat of lot of fruit, but sometimes they get tired of broccoli and potatoes so I thought I'd incorporate their veggies into the protein and hoped they'd eat it.

The little one is 2 and loves broccoli. The older one is 9 and loves salad and on rare occassions, he'll eat some broccoli. They're good at finishing what's on their plate so if they get something they don't really care for, they know they need to eat it anyways. I like that about them!

 

So anyway. I always have spinach in my fridge or freezer and I had baby carrots this week, too. Threw the veggies in the food processor with the eggs and mixed all of that into the meat, and viola! A super healthy meatloaf.

 

Ingredients:

8 servings

2lbs. ground beef (any ground meat will work)

2-3cups spinach, fresh or frozen. If frozen, thaw and wring out excess water.

1/2cup baby carrots

2 eggs

1tsp salt

1/2tsp pepper

1/2 - 1 tsp garlic powder, the amount is up to you.

1/4cup white onion or 1Tbsp minced dried onion

1/4cup ketchup or diced tomatoes

3-4 pieces of uncooked bacon

 

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line a cookie sheet with tin foil.

In a food processor, combine the eggs, spinach and carrots until your desired consistency has been met. Pour ingredients into a large bowl and mix everything together thoroughly. Form the meatloaf into whatever shape you desire and cover or wrap in bacon.

 

Bake for 40 minutes, uncovered and check for doneness. If you have bacon on top and wish for it to be crisp, turn the broiler on until desired crispness has occurred.

 

 

I hope you try this and enjoy it like we did!

~Angela



Delicious Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

Delicious Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

 

 

When you go paleo, you have to give up a lot of normal foods and desserts. A lot of the recipes we make may not taste as great as we'd like, but it's a treat so we'll take it regardless. Fortunately, I've been following a website for a while now and decided I'd try one of her recipes since the reviews have been pretty good. Check out the recipe for Against All Grain: Chocolate Chip Cookies.

My review is this:
I used ghee instead of palm shortening because I don't have it on hand. I also used dark chocolate chips because that's what I like. You can use whatever you have on hand and make this recipe your own. You can add pecans, walnuts, almonds, pistachios, cashews for an added crunch and/or leave out the chocolate chips and add some dried fruit like chopped dates, raisins, or cranberries. The base of the cookie is good on it's own so if you wanted to leave it plain, go for it. Drizzle on some melted chocolate and dip in crushed nuts? Heck ya!

These are the ingredients you'll need and make sure you check out her post on the recipe and photo. I'll be honest, her photo looks a heck of a lot better than mine.

 

Palm Shortening, I used Ghee
Palm Sugar
Honey
Salt
Egg
Vanilla
Almond Flour
Coconut Flour
Baking Soda

Chocolate

One other recommendation is to not flatten out the cookies if you use ghee. Mine spread a little too much.

 

Enjoy this pretty darn good treat!

~Angela

Paleo Mayo-Rubbed Baked Chicken

Paleo Mayo-Rubbed Baked Chicken

Printable Recipe

 

 

 

I'm a big fan of baked chicken when it's cooked right and not dry; which has been what my past baked chicken dishes have been. It's so sad when a great piece of chicken turns out dry. You miserably eat it and regret all the time you put into prepping it.

Thankfully, I made my own concoction of a delicious and simple mixture to spoon on top of chicken then bake it off. It was honestly as simple as putting a few ingredients in a bowl, stirring to combine, spreading on top of the chicken and baking. That's my idea of cooking right there.

 

 

In order to have this dish be paleo, please visit my other website Easy Peasy: Homemade Paleo Mayo. You'll be glad you tried a new recipe and you'll be happy to know exactly what's in your mayo. So, go there and make your mayo and then come back here for the recipe.

 

Ingredients:
Serves 4

4-6 chicken breasts, trimmed (bone in or out.. that's up to you)
1/2tsp salt

1/4tsp pepper

1cup fresh paleo mayo
1/2cup shredded mozzarella, chopped into tiny pieces

 

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, salt and pepper and 1/2 of the cheese. My mozz cheese is always frozen as I don't eat it a lot, so when it's nice and cold, I just chop it with a knife. It makes it much more pleasant to eat when it's in small pieces. Once the chicken is trimmed of the extra fat, pat dry and place in a baking dish. No need to spray the pan if you make your own mayo. Next, spoon the mixture on top of the chicken and spread to cover the entire chicken tops. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese on top of the mixture.

 

Bake approximately 45 minutes or until thoroughly cooked then broil on high, if you trust yourself to not let it burn, or low, for 5-10 minutes to get a nice golden-brown color.
Let cool slightly before consuming and enjoy!

 

This meal took 5 minutes to prepare and then I walked away.. didn't have to babysit something on the stove. It was amazing! I'll be honest with you, I was so afraid the chicken was going to taste tangy and sour from the mayo, but it didn't at all. It was savory and simply delicious. In fact, everyone scarfed it down, requested seconds and thirds and asked me to make it again the following night.

 

You will love this recipe as much as I do. I promise.

~Angela