Whole30

Whole30: Days 28-30

March 12, 2015

I am documenting my Whole 30 journey to help me see how far I’ve come and to keep me inspired through the whole process. I’m looking forward to the transformation in how I approach food, cook with it, and enjoy it. Read why taking on this challenging dietary adventure is so important to me HERE.

{Day 28}

Sunday, March 1st

It was a good/bad food day. Good in that it was Whole30 foods, but bad in timing of eating. I grazed most of the morning and early afternoon picking at a recipe I was trying to develop for the blog. At least dinner was awesome.

Brunch

(Failed) sweet potato waffles with a berry sauce (no sugar!)

I was trying to make my waffled hashbrowns but with sweet potatoes and it just didn’t work out well so we ate the waffles that sorta survived.

Dinner

Salad with steak, with a homemade mayo based ‘ranch-y’ dressing, topped off with salsa and guac (Holy Guacamole)

This was so good, and not just because it was delicious, but because we all sat down to dinner together. It’s pretty rare for us to eat with Autumn as she eats so early (5.30) but we get out act together today and had an early dinner together. So nice. I really need to put that effort in on the weekends. Plus, she loved the steak. kept asking for more and more, as well as humus. Adorable!

{Day 29}

Monday, March 2nd

In the home stretch! I felt good all day and then crashed and had a banana at night as a snack/dessert. It was really good then but annoyed with myself later. I need to get better about fighting urges like that. Blah.

Breakfast

Eggs over a potato hash with salsa and guac

I overcooked my eggs and was pissed so I made myself new eggs. Annoyed to waste food, but I should at least be able to enjoy the eggs I am eating, no?!?!?

Lunch

Salad (romaine, carrots, tomatoes) with some yummy leftover steak, with EVOO & vinegar dressing. Almonds.

Awesome salad. I got the almond from a job walk through. They were giving them out to promote heart health instead of junky snacks. Love that.

Dinner

Leftover Roasted Chicken with potatoes and green beans

We finished up the chicken from the Mayo Crusted Roasted Chicken that I made on Saturday night. It was basic but quick and it works some nights just to get dinner out of the way.

Dessert

Banana with some almond butter and a sprinkling of cinnamon

Super hungry. I shouldn’t have given in but I’m all over the place with being hungry/not. In a moment of weakness I grabbed the banana. Kinda pissed about it but I have been weird/blah/whatever since getting my period post-baby & post-breastfeeding. My body is just freaking out some days. AHHH!!!

{Day 30}

Tuesday, March 3rd

It’s our last day!!! Kinda exciting, kinda bittersweet. I know I can extend it but I need to take a break from it to test things out and just have a damn cookie. It was a crazy busy day but a good one.

Breakfast

Egg scramble with mushrooms, topped off with salsa and guac

I’m tired of eggs, I don’t care anymore. I am very thankfully for picking up the organic salsa from Costco though.

Lunch

Mixed greens salad with berries and prosciutto, EVOO & vinegar dressing

This has to be my favorite salad, at least currently. I freaking love the berries in the greens. Nice mix with the salty prosciutto

Snack

Cherry Pie Lara Bar

Lunch was great but it left me hungry. I need to up the protein in my salads.

Dinner

Chicken skewers with mixed veggies (peppers & mushrooms) in a sunbutter sauce

Price made this as I was at a planning board meeting (my first one!!) so he made dinner for us. He was bummed he didn’t make a dipping sauce for the chicken but I was starving after the meeting and going to Trader Joe’s (for Autumn’s goat milk). It was really good. I can’t wait for all the snow around our grill to thaw and for Price to start grilling again!

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I’m so proud of us for doing Whole30 and that we did it together. I know that this experience has taught us both about our eating and drinking habits. It’s been very eye-opening. I’ve noticed changes throughout the process about cravings,

I’ll do a follow-up with our lives post Whole30 soon!

Whole30: Days 25-27 Recap

March 9, 2015

{Day 25}

Thursday, February 26th

People are commenting on all the weight I have been losing. I am happy it’s noticable and I feel better about it as it’s been a signifcant amount – about 55+ pounds. I am looking forward to weighing myself when Whole30 is done with to see what I lost in this month.

I see a big change in Price as well. It’s nice that the work involved with sticking to Whole30 is paying off. Of course, it’s more than just losing weight but it is a big factor for us.

Breakfast

Chia Pudding (made with complaint cashew milk) with blueberries and chopped pecans

I’ve missed variety in breakfast, like having oatmeal or a quinoa bowl, so this helps change things up from eggs, eggs, eggs. But it doesn’t get cold, like I run the risk of eggs getting cold if the morning or crazy. Also, its nice to have it all prepped out in the morning as making eggs can be a pain in my ass.

Lunch

Salad made with romaine, tomatoes, cucumbers topped off with prosciutto, EVOO & vinegar based dressing

It was simple and got the job done.

Dinner

A baked seet potato (actually made in the microwave) topped off with pulled pork carnitas, diced avocado, and some garlicly mayo

Price didn’t eat all of his. I ate all of mine. I felt fat…

{Day 26}

Friday, February 27th

Today started off well but ended poorly. We got a BIG HUGE bill from the stupid nutrionist that we had to take Autumn to (per her Dr’s suggestion & referal). The one we didn’t even want to take her to because we aren’t worried about her low weight has she eats well and eats healthy foods, but we took her anyway and got a big bill for like $860. WTF. I called insurance to check it and found out we would be getting another for about $150 or so related to the appointment. I wanted to light the hospital on fire and punch them in the face as they ran out. At that moment I was glad we were doing Whole30, or I would have split a bottle of wine with Price and bitched and bitched about the bill.

Breakfast

A scramble made of eggs and potato hash

It was boring. I wanted a bagel.

Lunch

Salad with pulled pork carnitas & an avocado, then I had a Lara Bar

The salad was on the light side. I did eat most of it before taking a picture, but it was still a pretty small salad. And salad is a stretch as it was just some romaine for the pulled pork. Like the day before, it got the job done.

Dinner

Aidell’s Chicken sausage with broccoli

I’d say this was similar to a stir fry but I’d have to say that I miss having a rice or quino base to it, mostly quinoa. It was good but boring as it was basically just sausage and brocolli, but it was friday night and I was feeling lazy about cooking. Normally I’d have just ordered pizza. Umm, pizza…

{Day 27}

Saturday, February 28th

The biggest change in things is our weekend breakfasts and my approach to snack food. I’d previously make something like pancakes or waffles or go out to get a bagel or donuts. I miss all of that but it’s nice that the breakfasts don’t feel so heavy. I’m happiest that my snacking has been eliminated. Esp, when we are out, like I’d happily eat a sample at Costco, but now I can’t/won’t and that definitely helps out with calorie cutting.

Breakfast

2 over easy eggs over a hash made of potato, Aidell’s sausage, and tomatoes

I used the extra sausage link I had from the night before and added it to a diced potato and I then threw in some grape tomatoes too. I love blistered tomatoes- so freaking good. The eggs were nice and runny.

Lunch

Apple with some Almond Butter

I wasn’t really hungry from a big breakfast and just being busy meant that I’d eat lunch at 3.30, and I knew we’d be having a great dinner so I didn’t want to ruin my appetite for it.

Dinner

150507_Whole30_Days 25-27_14

Mayo Crusted Roasted Chicken with accompanying roasted veggies (carrots, potatoes, onions) and string beans

I need to roast chickens more often in general, but this Mayo Crusted Roasted Chicken is awesome. I’m thinking of changing up some of the spices next time just to have some fun with it, but it’s a great base recipe to work with.

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We’re in the home stretch!!!! It’s exciting to be so close to the end. Truthfully, part of me wants to continue but part of me is really glad for it to come to a close as it has been so limiting and I need some variety in things. Granted the cooking is fairly simple as it’s what I hae time for. Plus, I want a god damn cookie! Plus, I want to actually enjoy going to Seattle and doing Whole30 while out there would make things boo-hoo boring.

I haven’t felt any big changes- no extra energy, no decreased joint paint, no less aches- but I didn’t have anything that was greatly effecting me, like other people who have stuff like arthritis or eczema. No tiger blood for me,but I didn’t have a big fog in the start either. I’m still tired, but I think that is my nature and I just need more sleep. Clone me and I think I will start to feel better. ha!

Whole30: Days 22-24 Recap

March 6, 2015

{Day 22}

Monday, February 23rd

This is really feeling like routine now. I miss things like toast with eggs and chip with salsa or guacamole but I generally like the change.

Breakfast

2 eggs, leftover potato hash, bacon, and 1/2 avocado

It was a really generous breakfast but I always seem to need a bigger breakfast on Mondays to kick start the week.

Lunch

Chicken soup with a Cashew Cookie Lara Bar

I feel like I should have used eaten more soup or stews because they are so good. I still miss rice or pastina in chicken soup though. Since it felt pretty ‘light’ I also grabbed a Lara Bar from my stash in at my desk.

Dinner

Aidell’s Chicken and Apple Sausage with a mix of sauteed peppers and mustard

I was feeling rather lazy so it was all just thrown together. The mustard really made it work though.

Dessert

1/2 Banana with Almond Butter

Super hungry around 8.30 so we shared a banana with some almond butter. Not ideal to do but pacing around the kitchen so something had to be done.

{Day 23}

Tuesday, February 24th

I worked from home so that I could go to a meeting… that I ended up missing. UGH!

Breakfast

A mixed veggie egg scramble with some guac and our homemade bacon

Not much to say… it was good!

Lunch

Salad with romaine, radishes, tomatoes, prosciutto, hard-boiled egg white

I made a big mess of a salad. I’m getting used to having salads without cheese but I still do miss it at times. Like this could have used feta.

Dinner

Chicken with roasted string beans and tomatoes with baked potato, served with ghee

I could easily eat meals like this all the time. Although having some sour cream on the baked potato wouldn’t hurt. ha!

{Day 24}

Wednesday, February 25th

Back to work. Less than a week to go. I’m so happy that we have decided to take this journey together. It has been a struggle but it’s been good to have support with each other.

Breakfast

A banana and a Cherry Pie Lara Bar

It was a hectic morning so I just didn’t get enough time to make us breakfast. I grabbed a banana to bring to work, which I had with a Lara Bar.

Lunch

Chicken Soup with some salad (mixed greens with avocado & prosciutto)

Since I was still hungry after having soup for lunch on Monday I decided to have some salad with it instead of having a Lara Bar, as I was having one with breakfast. Smart- as it felt like a complete meal. Soup and Salad is a good combo.

Dinner

Butternut squash noodles with marina sauce

I got to get a mani, pedi so Price prepped dinner by peeling and spiralizing the squash. It was nice to have the mani, pedi but to also have the help in the kitchen. I sent Price the link to Ali’s how-to so he would have some help with it. And ta-da it was all done when I got home! So I just tossed in some olive oil, salt, and pepper and under the broiler it went.

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One thing that I have been struggling with is staying hydrated. I don’t really understand why as it’s not like I used to drink much soda and now I’m adjusting to life without soda. It’s just one of those things I’ve noticed. I think I should get some more seltzer so do a better job for the remaining portion of this Whole30 as I really like seltzer and sparkling water.

Whole30: Days 19-21 Recap

March 3, 2015

{Day 19}

Friday, February 20th

Survived another work week! Another pod breakfast day. So many bagels, breakfast burritos, and pastries all around. ALL AROUND!!! But I made it through the minefield and didn’t stray over to grab a delicious Boloco breakfast burrito. (SIGH/YAY!). The day was good, except for Autumn getting sick & having to be picked up from daycare, but it was a good food day.

Breakfast

Chia breakfast pudding with banana & (1/2), blueberries, and chopped pecans

I really should I made chia pudding more often because it was a nice refresher from eggs, eggs, and more eggs for breakfast.

Lunch

Crustless quiche made with sauteed kale, onion and mushrooms; pistachios

Not my favorite quiche, but it worked for lunch. I had to run home to get Autumn from daycare because her cold hit hard during the day, so I inhaled this. Not ideal but at least I got to eat it hot instead of not having lunch. So we spend the afternoon cuddling, and she slept in the Baby K’Tan for about 2 hours.

I freaking love pistachios now. I mean, I always loved pistachios, but have purchased them 2x now while on Whole30. They are so good, and what I really like about it is the process of eating them. At least I don’t shovel them into my mouth like goldfish crackers or another snack.

Dinner

Sauteed fish over salad (romaine, celery, avocado, grape tomatoes) with a lemony tahini dressing

Price was out for poker so I made myself this dinner. It was quick, which was good with taking care of sicky Autumn, filling, and delicious. I ate it while sitting on the floor in the bathroom while Autumn took her bath. ha!

Side note- I made Price food to take to poker so he would have dinner there. Everyone else ate pizza but I made him pork cutlets, roasted veggies and sauteed kale. And he took a San Pellegrino with him too.

{Day 20}

Saturday, February 21st

It was a busy day cooking. I love days like that, but I did miss the baking element to it. I felt like I got a lot done, which was a good feeling. I prepped plenty of Whole30 meals by making the chicken soup, which will last us beyond this Whole30 adventure.

Breakfast

Homemade bacon, 2 over easy eggs, some pear

I’m of the feeling that you really need something to soak up all the delicious runny yolk goodness, which was missing from this breakfast. But it was still good as the bacon is killer. I can’t wait to get more pork belly to make more.

Lunch

Homemade Chicken soup

It was really good but I did miss the rice that I normally have with chicken soup. I didn’t mind it without it but it just felt ‘light’ to me without rice or pastina.

Dinner

Oven roasted fish with roasted fennel and tomatoes, squash

This was a perfect meal. Easy to prep, healthy, flavorful, and easy to clean up.

The squash was a bust since I had left it in the oven after I had turned it off so it was pretty dry. Blah.

{Day 21}

Sunday, February 22nd

Another day of cooking! I love weekend likes this. I had missed the baking the day before so I made muffins witht Autumn. Sad to not have any as they looks and smelled so freaking good

We also watched the Daytona 500 and the Oscars. I missed having some beer and wine while watching them.

Breakfast

Potato hash, homemade bacon, over easy eggs

I learned my lesson from the day before and made a quick potato hash to help soak up that blissful runny yolk goodness. And the bacon was still on point. I was thinking about doing it with some coffee grounds next time.

Lunch

Buffalo Chicken Tenders, 1 Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas taco

Ever since I made Pricer the Bufflao Wings from Against All Grain, he has been talking about them over and over again. So it was time to make them again so that he could enjoy them with watching Daytona. I made myself some tenders with chicken breast as I don’t like to eat wings.

I was making my post for Secret Recipe Club so I made 2 tacos using Boston bibb lettuce, some thinly sliced radishes, sliced grape tomatoes, guac, and cilantro. We each had one. So yummy!

Dinner

Spaghetti squash with homemade meat sauce

I made the sauce to be similar to my Four Meat Italian Gravy, with the exception of the sausage and meatballs. I could have used a complaint sausage and made my own meatballs, but I was feeling ‘lazy’ since I was already making the chicken soup and pork carnitas over the weekend. Ether way it was still really good. I am 110% sure that I am going to put ribs in my sauce from now on. Dear short ribs, I love you.

We were talking about how we don’t miss pasta. Still miss some grated cheese on top, but don’t miss pasta. Sure, we will have it from time to time in the future, but don’t feel the need for it. Although, I could destroy a bowl of ravioli right now…

Dessert

Chia pudding with some whipped coconut cream with berries

Still not a fan of whipped coconut cream. I think I’m missing the vanilla flavor. Maybe if I had a vanilla bean to scrape in I would like it more?

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Everything has been going well. I am happy to have reached the 2/3 mark.

I’m feeling good which is good, especially since Autumn got hit badly with a cold on Friday. I ended up the with the sniffles over the weekend but not a cold, which is really good. So if that is a Whole30 thing, then yay!

Whole30: Days 16-18 Recap

February 27, 2015

{Day 16}

Tuesday, February 17th

I worked from home today as I had a mid day site meeting for a project. It is just more efficent to work form home in the mronign and go directly there and backhome as I would be spending a lot of extra time driving to go to work, plus parking there is crzy $, regardless of being reimbursed. So it was a nice morning at home. I decided to try eating out at lunch as it was lunch time while I was at my meeting and I didn’t feel like getting home and then starting on making lunch. I got Chipotle… meh. At least Dinner was awesome.

Breakfast

Waffled hashrown (leftover from my Waffled Breakfast Egg Sandwiches), 2 over easy eggs, breakfast sausage, blueberries, and some guac (Wholy Guacamole)

This was awesome. I liked the mix of the savory potato with the egg, spicy sausage, and sweet fruit. Plus, guac always wins!

Lunch

Chipotle Salad with Pork Carnitas and Fresh Tomato Salso, Tomatillo- Red Chili Salsa, and guac.

I always get salads at Chipotle, but I get them with Barbacoa, lettuce, Fresh Tomato Salso, Tomatillo- Red Chili Salsa, cheese, sour cream. Sometimes guac. Always, no dressing. The Barbacoa is just the best! Sadly, it’s not allowed while doing Whole30 because of the ingrednets used: Beef , Water, Chipotle Chile, Rice Bran Oil, Cumin, Garlic, Oregano, Black Pepper, Salt, Cloves, Bay Leaf, Sunflower Oil. Damn you Rice Bran Oil and Sunflower Oil. DAMN YOU!

I thought that the carnitas had little taste. And I missed the sour cream. It was tolerable but I wouldn’t go out of my way to get Chipotle while doing Whole30 again, esp for $10!

Dinner

Sauteed chicken breasts with roasted broccoli and cherry tomatoes. Served with a Tahini based sauce.

This was the first time I used Tahini. I freaking love it. I’m looking forwrd to making dinners like this again.

I do know that you should limit sunflower seeds, and related products, but I’m happy to have used it anyway to change things up from the typical mustard or mayo. Plus, now I can make my own version of Annie’s Goddess Dressing… the best dressing (besides Hidden Valley Ranch) ever.

{Day 17}

Wednesday, February 18th

Back to work. Back to the normal routine. I keep saying to price how I will be glad when we can eat breakfast at work again. I enjoy that so much more than eating at home. It saves money but I can’t wait for the option to be able to easily grab something on the way into work.

Breakfast

Hash made with potato and kale, fried egg.

I seriously question if I could do Whole30 without Frank’s Red Hot sauce. I really do put that shit on everything.

Lunch

150227_Whole30 16-18_5

Leftover chicken with leftover roasted broccoli and tomatoes

A reapeat from the night before but still really good.

Unfortuantely, I didn’t cook some of the chicken enough the night prior (Autumn was haivng a rough night getting settled, so I was distracted) so I only ate 2 of the 3 pieces I brought.

Dinner

Bunless burgers, coleslaw (made with homemade mayo), avocado, Claussen pickle halves

I made mayo!!!!!!!!! It was so much fun and easy too. I didn’t have mustard powder so I just put a squeeze of mustard in but I’m going to buy some now. I love Hellman’s mayo but I definitely see myself making mayo again and again.

It felt good to make the mayo and then the coleslaw as it felt ‘normal’. Like I could do Whole30 in the summer with salads, grilled veggies, sausages, grilled chicken and steak, and coleslaw. It felt good to have some ‘normalcy’.

{Day 18}

Thursday, February 19th

I feel run down but Autumn is starting to get sick. I have been knocked out with her sickies in the past so I’m curious if I get just the sniffles or a whoop you on your butt cold.

I had to work really late today so I had to properly plan for it so I would have food for myself for dinner so I wouldn’t have to go to Chipotle again. No thanks!

Breakfast

Cruistless quiche made with kale and mushrooms, Kiwi

I put WAY TOO MUCH tobasco Sauce on it.

Lunch

Salad with Sauteed Chicken. Made with romaine, grape tomatoes, carrots, broccoli

Really good but I could have eaten more. I need more chicken next time. I need to also make Annie’s Goodress Dressing too!

Snack

Cacao Macadamia Budi Bar with some On Guard Beadlets (DoTerra)

Okay, so the beadlets aren’t a snack (ha!) but I took them with the budi bar as I was super hungry after lunch. The salad just wasn’t enough. Glad to have had this on hand. They are so good!!

Dinner

Bunless burger, coleslaw (made with homemade mayo), roasted veggies and pears.

I had to work really late (11.30) so I ate this at work. I had made the burger in the morning so I would just have to reheat it at work. The roasted vegies and pears were leftovers from a wine and cheese event held at work, that I didn’t attend.

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A good few days. But so happy that I am halfway through. Happy there is an end in sight and that I’ve gotten this far without any slip ups or horrible throughts about wine, buttery mashed potatoes, grilled cheese, or ice cream sandwiches. Actutally, that last part is a lie… But I’m happy to have stuck to my guns have have followed the Whole30 rules.

Unlike Price…

He has stuck with the diet 100% but cheater cheater weighed himself on Day 16! how dare he!!! At least he is super happy with all the work he has put into sticking with Whole30 as he has lost 8 pounds in 16 days. That’s awesome. But cheater cheater!!!

Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas – SRC

February 23, 2015

I have major Wanderlust right now.

I don’t have the kind of life style that lets me travel as much as I would like, but I love to daydream that I could. I think that scrapbooker & designer Kelly Purkey leads such an adventurous life with all of her travels. I love to read her blog and check out what she is up to. You know when you type in the address bar and Google provides you with suggestions from previous seraches? Well, when I type in ‘K’ her blog comes up. Yeah, I guess I go there often…

Thankfully, I have a trip planned just next month to visit my best friend in Seattle. I seriously can’t wait to go. I haven’t seen her since she visited at Christmas a few weeks after Autumn was born. I miss her terribly ever since she moved away to Seattle, but knowing that she loves it there at least helps lessen the blow. Plus, it means I get to travel to see her!! We are going to cram so much damn stuff in that long weekend. Oh, and the food! And the drinks. I can’t even…

Anyway, back to reality…

I’m sharing such a wonderful, simple recipe today as it is my monthly Secret Recipe Club Reveal Day. I just love SRC as it gives me a little bit of an adventure to check out someone’s blog to make a recipe. Searching their blog for a recipe is like searching yelp for a great restaurant. It’s just a blast, I ask myself “I am in the mood for chicken? a dessert? a dip? should I make osmething with a slow cooker?” just like how you ask yourself ‘hmm, Chinese or pizza tonight.”

This month I took the slow cooker route with these Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas from Fantastical Sharing.

I was given Sarah’s blog this month. Sara is such a rock star with her role in Secret Recipe Club as a group organizer. She is so well organized, friendly, and just all around amazing. Sarah also has a blog full of recipes. FULL of recipes.

Plus, Sarah is due any day now!! I am so freaking excited for her. Her son Mason will be here soon enough.

I bookmarked so many recipes to consider, such as these Crock Pot Baked Potatoes, Dulce De Leche Cheesecake Bars, Kahlua Cake, and Buffalo Chicken Chili. I’m still determined to make those Dulce De Leche Cheesecake Bars!!

Ultimately, I picked this recipe because it was a Whole30 recipe! YAY! It made such great tacos. Plus, it was super simple. Which is fantastic all around, but made for such a great ‘cooking’ experience. I am getting burned out from all this Whole30 cooking. It just never ends! I want take out!! But this was refreshing as it took about 2 minutes to throw together. For real. Chop an onion, open cans, combine it all in a slow cooker.

This recipe is perfect when you know are gonna have a crazy day and need to get dinner on the table quickly. It will have everyone asking for more too!!

Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas

2 pork tenderloins (1 lb. each)
1 jar salsa verde
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can diced green chilies
1 white onion, chopped into

Process

Place all of the ingredients in slow cooker. Cook for 8-10 hours on LOW.
Shred with two forks. Drain off excess juices if you would like. Enjoy in tacos, with rice, or on baked potatoes.

Sourced from Fantastical Sharing

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Check out all the other great Secret Recipe Club posts this month!

And be sure to check out my 3 years of Secret Recipe Club posts!!!!

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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.

Mayo Crusted Roasted Chicken

February 20, 2015

A few years ago when I lived with 2 roommates, I learned that I could not live with 2 roommates. So it goes…

We all have our idiosyncrasies but one of my roommates was off on another planet. Like she insisted on having the biggest room although she froze in it because it had very large widows and a nonworking fireplace (all of which let in a lot of cold air). Also, she would cook her food, eat it out of the pot, and leave said pot on the top of the sofa. Great when my other roommates puppy would discover it. Super great. She was in a residency program so maybe she was just off from being sleep deprived from her long shifts and weekends on-call. So while she drove me crazy but, at least she did teach me about making fantastic baked chicken. So a big thank you to her for that.

She used to bake chicken breasts and drumsticks all the time. They were quick and easy for her to whip up and keep on hand for when she had to work late nights or be on call. But there as something that should would do that I had never heard of before… she would slather the chicken with mayonnaise. What?!?

Years later, while I was feeling in a bit of a chicken rut, I thought of what she used to do. Well, it turns out she wasn’t crazy after all since I googled it and it’s a thing. A pretty common thing actutally… where have I been living all these years? Under a rock!?!?

It makes the chicken super moist and flavorful, while giving the exterior a bit of a naughty crunch too.

The great thing about this recipe is that is paleo and Whole30 compliant, assuming you use complaint mayo, of course! Finding something that fits the Whole30 requirements and is downright delicious just makes me want to jump for joy!

The one thing to note that as it cooks the oil in the mayo will separate from the egg base, and will drip down into the pan. The veggies there can be a bit oily, so if you want to avoid that just put down a wire rack that you use for baking first before you put down the veggies. But I would give them a bit of a drizzle with oil so they stay moist and don’t stick to the rack.

I swear I am a changed roast chicken woman. This makes it so freaking juicy. It is the perfect chicken to make this FREEZING weekend. Stay warm and cozy my friends!

Mayo Crusted Roasted Chicken

Makes 1 whole chicken

Ingredients

5-6 pound whole chicken
1/2 pound carrots, peeled, cut into 2″ long pieces
1/2 pound celery, peeled, cut into 2″ long pieces
2 large onions, sliced into 1/2″ wedges
4 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 bay leaves
approximately 1/3 Cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper

Process

Preaheat your oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove the giblets from the chicken. Remove any excess fat and leftover pin feathers and pat the outside dry.
Place the carrots, celery, onions, garlic, and bay leaves in a roasting pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the chicken on top.
Liberally rub mayonnaise on the whole chicken. Generously sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tuck the wing tips under the chicken to prevent burning.
Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a platter. Cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes prior to slicing and serving. lice the chicken onto a platter and serve it with the vegetables.

Whole30: Days 13-15 Recap

February 19, 2015

{Day 13}

Saturday, February 14th

Happy Valentine’s Day!!

We had a nice day together as a family. We went to the Natick Mall to do some shopping and just get out of the house… hello cabin fever… before more snow dumped on us. So we spent a few hours there, even having out first Whole30 dining experience. I think I did a good job of picking out salads for us. For dinner I made a yummy Valentine’s Day dinner for us. Truthfully I missed the chocolate!! And wine!!!

Breakfast

A Big Ass Sweet potato (Costco!) with 2 fried eggs, wholly guacamole, and Trader Joe’s Salsa Verde.

This was really good but so much. The potato was crazy big, but yummy. I didn’t eat all of it. Next time I would just make 1 potato for us to split.

And Costco has the best sweet potatoes, so much better than Trader Joe’s. But Trader Joe’s rocks the salsa.

Lunch

Salads at California Pizza Kitchen: Roasted Veggie & Moroccan-Spiced Chicken

I did my best to avoid the non-compliant Whole30 things by requesting no dressing on the salad and to get oil and vinegar instead, and by omitting things like cranberries. I figured that if I slipped up, then I slipped up, but I’m not starting over. Maybe the dates had sulfates but if I left out every questionable thing then we would have just been eating lettuce and more lettuce. Either way, the salads were good, but damn I wanted pizza so badly.

* photos above from CPK website, our phones were dead

Dinner

Steak with coocnut flour crusted sauteed shrimp, roasted potatoes, and spaghetti squash

I tried to make a good dinner that would be sweet and romantic for Valentine’s Day since we were staying in and doing W30. I went with the surf and turf theme with the steak and shrimp. I think it worked will for the night.

I do not suggest using coconut flour to coat shrimp. It burned off very easily and the kitchen got smokey! I will just roast them in the future.

Dessert

Strawberries and Blueberries with Coconut Milk Whipped Cream

I really missed something sweet for Valentine’s Day so I whipped up come coconut milk to make ‘whipped cream’. It was good but would have been better with some vanilla extract, at the very least some vanilla bean caviar. I would try to make the whipped cream again.

{Day 14}

Sunday, February 15th

Another snowy day. Price sent over 2 hours outside shoveling with our neighbor’s visiting son, his husband, and another neighbor who parks in a spot in our driveway. It was such a bummer for him to do that again. On the other hand I enjoyed my day inside cooking. I made a roast by searing it on all sides and then roasting it in the oven for several hours.

Breakfast

Waffled Breakfast Sandwich with sausage and guacamole

So freaking good!!! I really have been missing the fun breakfasts I normally make on the weekends so I had to come up with a version that would work, so, of course, I turned to the waffle iron to make a thicker version of my Waffled Hasbrowns to substitute as the bread. It was yummy but messy, still so worth it!

Recipes here…

Paleo WaffledBreakfast Sandwiches

Homemade Paleo Breakfast Sausage

Lunch

Meat sauce with spaghetti squash

I loved the meaty sauce that I had the other night so I used up the rest of the leftover spaghei squash from dinner the night before. I could eat this 3x a week, easily, but I do miss the cheese.

This was Price’s lunch…

He had been craving wings so when he found this recipe from Against all Grain I had to make it for him. He really enjoyed them and has already requested them again. They were quick to make and the dairy free ranch was good, although I winged it sinc eI didn’t have everything on hand.

Dinner

Pork shoulder with cauliflower rice

Oh man, this was so good. The pork was tender and so flavorful.

ItT was the first time I made cauliflower rice. It was really good but next time I would use olive oil to sautée it vs the coconut oil that I used. It just didn’t jive with the other flavors, but I liked the texture a lot. I will be making it again!

I made the pork shoulder by searing it on all sides, then putting it in the oven with some carrots, celery, and onions and a large can of diced tomatoes. I cooked it at 325 for about 4 hours. So tender!!

{Day 15}

Monday, February 16th

Half way through!!! So exciting!

It was President’s Day so I had the day off with Autumn (price had to work.) I’ve been enjoying the extra time with Autumn, plus it is nice that I get to cook at home. I’m most proud of this experience that I have been able to resist noshing during the day, especially on those darn tasty Goldfish crackers.

Breakfast

Quick version of Waffled Breakfast Sandwiches with some strawberries

I had made extra ‘buns’ when I made them on Sunday so I just reheated them while I made an egg. I used a generous amount of guac on the ‘buns’.

Lunch

Sauteed pieces of chicken breasts on a salad with radishes, celery, and grape tomatoes

Autumn liked this as well. She, of course, had already eaten her lunch but decided she wanted this as well. So we shared 🙂

Dinner

Pork shoulder with roasted green beans and grape tomatoes with leftover cauliflower rice

I love roasting green beans and tomatoes like this. It is quick to prepare and so delicious.

____________________

Things are going well. The hardest part during these few days was trying to eat out. I am glad that we are doing Whole30 as it made us stick to salads instead of getting pizzas at CPK but I miss cheese. It was the first time I really missed cheese. At least we are half way through now!!

Paleo Waffled Breakfast Sandwiches

February 18, 2015

Boston is breaking snow records left and right. Boom goes the dynamite.

It’s been snow storm after snow storm. The snow just keeps on staking up. We have broken the record for most snow in a 40 day period, expect we did it in 18 days. Fun. And then we broke the record for most snow in February. Super. Most recently we broke the record for the most snow in a month. Awesome.

Oh, did you catch the sarcasm?

Well, we are about a storm or two away from breaking the record for the snowiest season on record. We’ll see if we beat it. At least it will feel like all the snow was for something… some awful record!

In the mean time we will be eating these Paleo Waffled Breakfast Sandwiches. I actually got the idea from 2 differnt things. First, the waffled hashbrowns I shared last week for my Waffle Wednesday post. Then for when I was gluten free for about a year and would make gluten free waffles and use them as bread. So I merged those ideas and made these Paleo Waffled Breakfast Sandwiches with those waffled hashbrowns as buns. yum!!!

The waffled potato buns do take a bit of time to prepare so just keep that in mind. You have to stuff the the waffle iron with the shredded potato so that they are sturdy enough to be buns. Each pair tool my waffle iron about 10-12 minutes to cook. This actually works well as it allows you to get ready in the morning. Just get the potatoes in the waffle iron and go about your morning and check on the potatoes again after a bit. Perfection.

Give these a try if you are living a Paleo diet, are going Whole30, or if you just like awesome breakfast sandwiches.

Paleo Waffled Breakfast Sandwiches

Makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients

For the Waffled Potato ‘Buns’

2 1/5 pounds potatoes, such as russet
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
olive oil or vegetable oil spray

For the sandwiches

8 eggs
8 sausage patties or 8 slices bacon (make sure it’s Whole30 compliant, if needed!)
1 Cup guacamole

Process

To make the waffled potato buns, shred the potatoes in a food processor (I used a medium shred blade). Place all of the shredded potato in a bowl lined with a kitchen towel. Squeeze as much water out of the potatoes as possible.
Preheat your waffle
Place the waffled ‘buns’ on a wire rack placed on a baking sheet in an oven set to 200 degrees to keep them warm and crisp until you are ready to use them.
To make the sandwiches, cook your sausage or bacon.
Cook the eggs them in a sprayed skillet over medium-low heat, flip them once the white is almost set up. Continue to cook to reach ‘over well’ doneness, until the yolk has just set.
Place 2 eggs on a shredded potato bun, and then top with the sausage or bacon. Spread 1/4 Cup of guacamole on the top ‘bun’, and then place the bun on the egg sandwich. Cut in half, if you would like.

Homemade Paleo Breakfast Sausage (Whole30 Approved!)

February 17, 2015

We are half way through our Whole30 and it’s been going really well.

The biggest struggle is breakfast. Oh man, some days I just can’t figure out what to make!

It just feels so repetitive. Eggs, eggs, and more eggs. Gah!! Plus, finding breakfast meats is so dang difficult as 99.9% of store-bought bacon have sugar in them, as well as ham and breakfast sausage. Oh, dang you sugar!

But if you make your own breakfast sausage you can make it Paleo friendly, or even Whole30 friendly. When making it Paleo friendly you can use maple syrup, but you can make it more smokey when you are making it Whole30 friendly.

Either way, it’s so freaking good as you get to customize it exactly to your preferences. I am not a fan of fennel seed so I skipped it, although it’s often in sausage. But you can use it, or other spices, as you wish.

Now that I made this homemade breakfast sausage I am really doubting that I can go back to store-bought sausage. The fresh flavors in this sausage has me hooked. Plus, making your own gives you the opportunity to jazz it up to make it your own.

I really enjoyed the subtle smokey flavor from the liquid smoke that I used. I plan on trying other liquid smoke flavors to see how the different woods impact the flavor of the sausage. It’s really so fun thinking about how to playing around with the different spices will effect the flavors of the breakfast sausage.

You definitely can’t get bored when you are making your own homemade sausage!

Homemade Paleo Breakfast Sausage

Makes 8 patties

Ingredients

1 pound of ground pork
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (add more if you like it spicy)
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (I used hickory)

Process

Put the pork in a large bowl, add all of the spices and mix thoroughly.
Divide the pork into 8 portions, then form into flat patties. If you are not going to cook right away, freeze individually on a baking sheet prior to storing in a container or plastic bag.
If cooking immediately, add a bit of oil to a nonstick skillet. Cook the patties over medium heat until both sides are browned and are cooked through, about 8-10 minutes.

Inspired by Nutmeg Nanny

Whole30: Days 10-12 Recap

February 15, 2015

{Day 10}

Wednesday, February 11th

Ah, back to work! It was hard to get out of the house today on time since the last 4 days had been at a slower pace. But that is why lunch was kinda lame and half assed with some sausage & squash. It wasn’t really enough so I ate a fruit bar with it and that at least made it feel more complete. I looked forward to the rest of the day after that since I had soup planned, and thankfully it lived up to what I had imagined!

Breakfast

Quiche with pepper, onion, broccoli, and shredded chicken. Two slices of roasted acorn squash with salt and pepper.

Lunch

Spicy chicken sausage with roasted acorn squash, and a Trader Joe’s Apple and Coconut Fruit Bar.

This was thrown together right before we left, and it shows!

Not much going on so I had to add the fruit bar to fill up. It was the first time I had one so it was a nice surprise that is was good and not just blah and chewy.

Dinner

Asian inspired soup with shrimp and bok choy over zoodles.

This was the last Blue Apron meal I had to modify to finish up the box. This was the one that needed the most work as it was a soap with Asian flavors, like soy sauce and miso. I ended up using vegetable broth as the base and added ginger, seaweed, and coconut aminos to flavor it. I added the bok choy and the shrimp I sauteed. I poured all of that on top of the zoodles I had in our bowls. A tiny drizzle of toasted sesame oil (use it sparingly!), some sesame seeds, and green onions. Yum!!

This was sooo freaking good. I need to make this again, and again!

{Day 11}

Thursday, February 12th

The day started off rough with a rushed breakfast but ended picking up from there with a great salad and filling quick dinner. Glad to be a third of the way done!! Woo hoo!!

Breakfast

2 slices of quiche (repeat from Day 10), with some sliced strawberries

I really do hate how breakfast is so rushed some days… like today! Basically ~~ate~~ inhaled this while standing at the counter. Oh well 🙁

At least it was super yummy with some salsa verde.

Lunch

Salad made from arugula, pear, grapes, blueberries, and prosciutto. Dressed with oil and vinegar, salt and pepper.

I need to eat salads like this more often. I’m so used to savory salads but the bitter greens with the sweet fruit is a big win. Plus prosciutto is the best! It just went so well with the fruit. It was a big salad but most of it was greens.

Dinner

Sauteed Pork Cutlets with Roasted Veggies

It was so nice to eat a big mix of roasted veggies that was reminiscent to the mixes that I create in the summer. We needed something summery to bring us out of the winter blues. I used a mix of 1 big onion, 1 fennel bulb, 3 bell peppers, and 2 heads of broccoli.

{Day 12}

Friday, February 13th

Oh man I slept horribly last night. It took me forever- or what felt like forever- to fall asleep. Then I dreamt a lot. I even dreamt that I was eating skittles. I looked down and I was eating them and I freaked out that I messed things up in my dream, and then woke up freaked up too. Fun…

Breakfast

Scrambled eggs with prosciutto, grape tomatoes, guac, and picked jalapenos

I beat together 5 eggs that I cooked in any of the leftover Ghee that remained in the pan after I cooked grape tomatoes in there. We eat it with spicy guac, pickled jalapenos, and prosciutto.

Lunch

Thank god I had a frozen pack of a roast beef that I picked up from Costco since I didn’t have time to make anything. I defrosted the meat and Price divided it up. We eat it with leftover roasted veggies. I brought Koop’s Organic Stoneground Mustard with me from home as well.

I didn’t eat everything for lunch. But I did eat a banana later on around 2.30

Dinner

Spaghetti Squash with Meat Sauce

This might have been my favorite Whole30 meal so far. Prior to W30 we didn’t eat that much pasta but I was craving it, mainly I was craving a hearty meat sauce. And this worked out perfectly. I feel like I could eat this every day.

____________________

Autumn ate Goldfish right in front of me and I held back from having them. So very difficult!! And I made a cake for daycare for Valentine’s Day and resisted as well!

I am counting down to having a cookie.

Whole30: Days 7-9 Recap

February 14, 2015

{Day 7}

Sunday, February 8th

Price had to go into work today to make up time time he had missed from taking Autumn to the Dr on Friday so it was mainly just Autumn and I hanging around. I prepped food for Price but I got to do whatever for my meals. So I basically did whatever, and whenever. Like lunch at 2.30, very unlike me. But sometimes things are just ‘meh’ when it comes to the day and food.

Breakfast

Spaghetti squash with steak and veggies.

I got ta late start to breakfast so I just morphed it into lunch food. I used up the spaghetti squash, TJ’s Cruciferous Crunch mix, mushrooms, and some steak. I didn’t like that I make it into stir fry since once I was done with it it just felt weird to eat it for breakfast so I picked at it and ate the steak and some of the rest.

Lunch

Waffled Hashbrowns with a fried egg and salsa

This made up for my lack luster breakfast. I’m loving my Waffle Wednesday posts so I was excited to make this. I need to make more and more and more of these hashbrowns.

Dinner

Beef Burger Patty with grilled pineapple, guac & cilantro. Side of sweet potato fries.

I was struggling to think of what to make for dinner and ended whipping this up. It worked but I miss buns and ketchup. I think I only use ketchup for burgers and fries which is a vast improvement from when I used to eat it with everything. So I miss it with meals like this. But it was still really, really good.

{Day 8}

Monday, February 9th

We were getting pummeled with snow and daycare was closed so I stayed home with Autumn. It felt great that is was a

Breakast

Potato and veggie hash with 2 fried eggs

Lunch

Shrimp scampi with zoodles and an apple with crunchy almond butter

This lunch felt like a treat but I felt like I needed a treat as I was home yet again with Autumn because of the snow. Shrimp for lunch is such a treat! And it was a very good lunch. I make it scampi style with some oil, garlic, crushed red pepper, and some ghee.

And an apple with almond butter never hurts anyone. So good.

Dinner

Chicken breasts with a kumquat relish on a bed of chard and mashed potatoes (Modified Blue Apron Meal)

This was a winner! We loved it. It was so flavorful and hearty.

I forgot to cancel Blue Apron this week so I just ended up modifying the ingredients to make it Whole30 compliant. I skipped the sugar in the relish recipe and I swapped out the freekah for the mashed potatoes made with vegetable broth. And I made a pan sauce with the drippings in the pan after I cooked the chicken, some veggie broth, and almond flour. I have to make this one again.

{Day 9}

Tuesday, February 10th

Yet another snow day. The MBTA was closed down so I had to work from home (unless I drove in), but daycare was closed so I had Autumn at home, so no real working, besides a conference call. Price had to get in so he drove in. So just me and Autumn again! 🙂

Anyway, I feel that the biggest progress in this process

Breakast

Scrambled eggs with veggies, salsa mixed an an avocado, and pineapple

Price was still home when I made this so I enjoyed the company. Autumn ended up eating quite a bit

Lunch

Chicken with swiss chard mashed potatoes and asparagus

I’m always so glad when I make a lot of food when cooking something as it makes the next meals come together quickly. As in this one as I got to enjoy leftover chicken and mashed potatoes from the night before. I just quickly made some asparagus in a skillet and ta-da, all done!

Dinner

Pork Cutlets with a Beet, Heirloom Carrot, and Hazelnut Salad (Modified Blue Apron Meal)

There was not much to modify about this recipe to make it Whole30 compliant, just ditch the butter and use ghee. Simple! And we ended up with a delicious, filling dinner. Plus, it just meant that I only needed to dirty a pot and a skillet. Next time, if I use prepared beets I’ll only need to dirty a skillet- such a win!!

____________________

I’m glad that I have stuck with Whole30 so far at this point without any slip ups. The strict restrictions have really helped me stay in check with what I was eating while at home, which is when I will most often snack on stuff like Ritz crackers or Goldfish crackers. It’s not about not even having them at home, since I have other similarly tempted things (chocolate pudding, cheese, etc), but more about controlling cravings. yay!

We had some great dinners so the repetitive nature of some of the foods so far is. I’m glad that I forgot to cancel the Blue Apron package as those dinners were fantastic!