Everyday Paleo Workshop Recap
As some of you know from my Facebook page, I attended Jason Seib and Sarah Fragoso’s Everyday Paleo workshop this past Saturday. It was my second time attending, but this time it was at Jason’s gym, Clackamas Physical Conditioning, about 25 minutes from my house. Last time, I drove four hours to attend their workshop in Grant’s Pass, Oregon and it was well worth it. Anyway, there were about 100 or so people in attendance, including Cain Credicott of Paleo Magazine, Tammy Credicott of The Healthy GF Life and author of Paleo Indulgences, Ute of Grokette’s Primal Musings and FastPaleo.com, the founders of Fatworks and more! It was such a great crowd! I was humbled to have a few people come up to me and ask if I was Paleo in PDX, and then proceed to introduce themselves. It was kind of strange, but neat at the same time.
Great crowd! (Photo credit: Everyday Paleo).
The infamous, Deb Hunter, helping Sarah. (Photo credit: Grokette’s Primal Musings).
You know what really made me feel special though? Being invited to the cool kids party after the workshop. Jason invited me over to his house for dinner that evening to hang with him, his family, the Fragoso’s, Tammy and Cain, and possibly some others. I had to about pinch myself thinking about the awesome offer. Holy sh*t, I felt honored and like a really flippin’ cool lady. Sadly, I could not attend because Jesse and I had plans at 4 p.m. to meet our friend who’s officiating our wedding, and I really didn’t want to cancel with the wedding only 4-ish weeks away (and considering the fact that we hadn’t even discussed anything with him yet). If I would’ve known beforehand and not the day of (thanks, Jason), I could have planned for it, but it was too short notice. So, it’ll have to happen another time and I’m confident that something of the sorts will. Still though, isn’t that pretty rad?!
Preach it, Jason! (Photo credit: Grokette’s Primal Musings).
Anyway, back to the actual workshop. It was so engaging, even a second time around. I learned new things and took completely different notes than I did before. The questions and discussion always change, of course, based on the audience. This particular audience asked a lot of questions! Jason was as science-y, thorough and funny as ever, and Sarah was down to earth, vibrant and spoke from the heart. They really complement one another well and make a great team. Here are some of my takeaways this time around:
- When you intervene on original diets, disease interferes. We changed the rules with the introduction of agriculture and processed foods, which is why we have the pronounced rise of modern illness today.
- In a study with over 5,000 Swedish men (I believe it was just men), 74% had undiagnosed celiac disease. Just get it out of your diet, people! Don’t even bother with a test that may or may not even tell you that you have it!
- People are not stuck with autoimmune conditions the rest of their lives (unless a rare, chronic issue), despite what they think or are told. The question that needs to be asked is, “what caused it?” It comes back to systemic inflammation, leaky gut syndrome and celiac disease. There was even a woman in attendance who had been diagnosed with MS and was bound to a WHEELCHAIR! Well, guess what? She switched to a paleo lifestyle and is no longer debilitated, and can walk and move freely! Chill-worthy, right? The proof is in the pudding, folks. This is not the first instance of this I’ve heard either. There is another prime example in Jason’s wonderful book, The Paleo Coach, which I recommend buying if you haven’t already.
- Jason shared a quote from Nora Gedgaudas that is so spot on, “Science isn’t the last word, it’s the latest word.”
- 50 percent or more of people that die of heart disease have LOW cholesterol.
- There is a strong correlation between calcium supplementation and heart attack.
- Eliminating vegetable oils (canola, safflower, sunflower, corn, cottonseed, etc.) from your diet makes it HARDER to get skin cancer.
I see my head! I’m the blonde hair on the far left. (Photo credit: The Healthy GF Life).
- Chia seeds should be treated like grain. (Lucky for me, I already avoid these puppies. They’re SCD-illegal. Isn’t it basically bird seed anyway?).
- A few years ago, an Iowa State professor was fired for saying that cows eat grass! Corn is the answer they were looking for since Iowa grows tons of it.
- If and when you do indulge in booze, drink earlier, so it’s out of your bloodstream before you go to bed.
- There is not a single study showing that people who are on statins live any longer than those not on statins. And, in people who have had a heart attack or have advanced heart disease, studies show that they might live 13 days longer than they would have otherwise. 13 days longer…is it worth all the terrible health risks? Did you know that people at Jason’s gym are not even allowed to be on statins to workout there because of all the risks? You actually have to sign off that you’re not on statins.
- When you yo yo diet, you lose WEIGHT and gain FAT. You don’t want to lose weight, folks because that includes precious muscle mass.
- “Paleo treats,” as a staple are like candy cigarettes.
- STOP doing lots of cardio! Six 20-second row sprint intervals have the same EPOC (Excess Post Oxygen Consumption) as 30-minutes of steady state cardio at 80% VO2max, but without the cortisol and prolonged stress. Do you know what excess cortisol and stress equals? Increased fat storage! (This is not new to me, but I like the study Jason mentioned, especially since I understand the terminology, thanks to exercise science).
- “This isn’t a diet, it’s a perspective and perspective will set you free.” – Jason Seib
**Read about my first time attending Sarah and Jason’s workshop here and here.**
Weekend Highlights and a Stellar Opportunity
(Photo credit: musetracks.wordpress.com)
Happy Monday, everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend. Mine was busy, but good busy. Saturday, I had an all day DVRT certification at my gym, which went from 9:30am – 6pm. We learned different assessments, progressions, techniques, cues and much more. It was a ton of information, and both mentally and physically fatiguing, but very valuable in more ways than one. Afterward, Jesse and I were really worn out, so decided to go out to eat. Then, we went home and relaxed for a bit before going to bed. I slept like a baby and it felt amazing to finally get a good night’s sleep. I hadn’t slept well in three nights because of my cold.
Sunday, I woke up refreshed and feeling better. My head felt less stuffy and heavy, and my cough was much better too. I drove to Recreate in the frozen fog (which made me a little disoriented) to help coach class, and then afterward, spent the rest of the day running errands, doing laundry (was way behind because our dryer broke, but our new dryer was delivered on Sunday), making 24-hour yogurt, making pork shoulder in the slow cooker (recipe to come!), getting all my ingredients in order for my treats at Cultured Caveman, and working on my taxes (what can I say, I got a head start).
Today, I have no school, in honor of MLK Day, but have enough to keep me busy. I’m replenishing my treats at the food cart bright and early this morning, meeting my friend, Laura, later in the morning for breakfast and conversation, doing homework, cleaning, cooking and either going to yoga in the evening or taking a rest day. That’s still to be determined.
In other, more exciting news, I have an awesome opportunity starting this week. On Friday, I took a leap and reached out to someone in the health/paleo/fitness world that I respect a lot about a potential mentor-ship opportunity. This person is Jason Seib, who owns Clackamas Physical Conditioning (about 25-30 minutes from me) and runs Everyday Paleo Lifestyle and Fitness with Sarah Fragoso. He also has a book coming out on March 5 called, The Paleo Coach, which I anticipate being fantastic. You may recall, that I attended one of his seminars this past September in Grants Pass, Oregon. I did a couple recap posts about it, which you can read here and here. I was also fortunate to interview Jason this past fall as an industry leader for one of my assignments in school.
Anyway, Jason surprisingly emailed me back within an hour of receiving my message, and asked if I could stop by his gym that very afternoon to chat about what he could offer me. Long story short, I’m going to be hanging out at his gym at least once a week to work with and learn from him! I get to join in on initial assessments, nutrition coaching, training, etc. This experience is going to be beyond valuable and I can’t wait to start soaking things up. To start, he is going to assess and train me (cool, right?). Additionally, we have a project in mind, but I need to hold off on talking about that for now. Oh, and I even got to meet the infamous, Deb while I was there. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, check out the following posts from Jason:
http://everydaypaleo.com/attention-scale-addicts-part-2/
http://everydaypaleo.com/deb-update/
http://everydaypaleo.com/the-giant-women-experiment/
I’m so excited and proud of myself for reaching out to Jason. This is something I’ve been thinking about doing for a while now, but for some reason, was a little nervous about doing so and held back. I think part of it is because I respect him so much and feel slightly intimidated, but I knew that I couldn’t let a potential opportunity pass me by. Seriously, his gym is 25 minutes from me…how could I not take advantage of such proximity?
Do you create opportunities in your life? What is something that you’re excited about right now?
Simple Supper Friday: Butter Beef Stew
Everyday Paleo’s better butter chicken is one of my absolute favorite recipes. It always satisfies and never disappoints. Additionally, it’s insanely easy to make. I tweak it a tiny bit, but it’s pretty darn close to Everyday Paleo’s original recipe.
To switch things up this time, I decided to try it with beef instead of chicken. I had one pound of grass-fed stew meat that needed to be used and figured it’d taste good in this sauce. So, did it taste good? Yes, of course. To be honest though, the protein swap really didn’t change the flavor much because the sauce is where it’s all at anyway. It was still worth the experiment though and definitely still delicious. As you’ll notice, I called it butter beef stew because I thought better butter beef sounded weird.
Also, side note, but I’m so ready for this early darkness to go away! I made this recipe before going to work the other day, so that it would be ready when Jesse and I got home. I finished cooking and plating at about 5 p.m., and it was way too dark outside for photos. I attempted it, but sadly, it wasn’t too pretty. Of my indoor photos, this one was the best.
Butter beef stew, slightly adapted from Everyday Paleo’s, better butter chicken.
Ingredients:
- 2 tsp coconut oil
- 1 lb grass-fed beef stew meat (feel free to cut chunks smaller if they’re big — it’ll be easier to chew in this recipe!)
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3 oz tomato paste (1/2 a can or a little more than 1/2 a tube)
- 1/4 tsp coriander
- 1/4 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 – 1/3 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 1/2 – 1 Tbsp coconut flour (omit if sauce is thick enough)
- 1-2 Tbsp pastured ghee or butter
- Steamed kale, for serving
Directions:
- In a large skillet, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté a few minutes, until translucent.
- Turn heat down to low and add the minced garlic, cardamom, coriander, and chili powder. Stir well to make a paste.
- Add the tomato paste to the onion and spices, and stir to form a thick mixture. Add the stew meat and let brown for a few minutes over low heat.
- Turn the heat back up to medium and add the coconut milk and sea salt.
- Bring the stew to a simmer and turn the heat down to medium-low. Cover and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the meat is cooked all the way through. Stir occasionally throughout the process. If the sauce is too thin at the end of the cooking time, mix in the coconut flour to thicken.
- After the beef is cooked, add the ghee and mix into the sauce until melted. Serve atop of steamed kale.
First Day of School
(Photo credit: integrameadows.com)
Today marks my first day of school, and I’m actually at school as we speak. It feels odd to be among the new, not to mention young, student chaos. This is a feeling that I didn’t think I’d experience again after graduating from Michigan State University over four years ago, but here I am. I’m excited though and once I get through this first crazy week, things will calm down and I’ll get the hang of things. The thing I’m least looking forward to about this week is the first day of class icebreakers. Gosh, I dread those and it almost seems like they get worse as I get older.
My day was busy from the start this morning. I got up just before 6 a.m., rode down to Recreate and worked out, rode home, showered, cooked breakfast and packed my lunch simultaneously, scarfed down my food, packed my bag, kissed Jesse goodbye (while he was still in bed sleeping) and rode up a couple miles to the PCC campus near my house to catch the shuttle to another campus, where all my classes are held (about a 20-25 minute drive). I had to catch the 9:25 a.m. shuttle and get to campus about 90 minutes before my first class because the next shuttle would get me there about five minutes before class starts, and I didn’t’ want to risk it. Thankfully, my Tues./Thurs. schedule will be a bit better and a month from now, I’ll have my late grandma’s Buick to get me around (I’m pretty excited about that!). Anyway, my classes this term are fitness technology seminar, structure & function of the human body, injury prevention & management, and weight training (also took a beginner’s class this summer, which was required for my program).
I think I might need a new and improved lunch box … for a few different reasons. I bought this during my early days of vegetarianism and it may have even been when I was vegan. PETA is to thank for this.
One thing on my back to school need list is a new lunch box and pictured below, from PlanetBox, is what I plan to get. Sarah Fragoso of Everyday Paleo recommended it in a post a while back and said all her boys use and love it (even the 17-year old). I appreciate many things about it: the fact that it’s stainless steel, lightweight, has many compartments and is dishwasher safe. It’s a little spendier than most lunch boxes/containers, but it seems well worth it. This will be much better than packing a few glass Pyrex containers and stuffing them into a lunch sack that is too small. Plus, not that I really care and actually it’s kind of funny, but the phrase on my lunch koozie no longer applies to me … there were definitely animals in there today … in roasted chicken breast form.
Rover Basic lunch box from PlanetBox (Photo credit: http://www.planetbox.com)
I also want to get a Kleen Kanteen insulated thermos at some point. Sarah also recommended this and said it’s great for hot foods (or cold) such as leftovers, meatballs, soup, stew, bone broth, etc. I am wishing I had one today, so I could’ve bought some bone broth to school with me. I just made a fresh batch over the weekend.
Adjusting to a new (school) schedule is hard and I had the luxury of eating lunch at home all summer, so all of a sudden, packing food Monday – Thursday feels like a lot of work! In reality though, it’s not … just a matter of planning, timing things out and getting into a new groove. Life is good.
Klean Kanteen insulated thermos (Photo credit: http://www.kleankanteen.com)
Everyday Paleo Workshop Takeaways
Here are some interesting tidbits I jotted down at the Everyday Paleo workshop with Sarah Fragoso and Jason Seib this past weekend. I had heard some of these things before, but others were new. Either way, I thought I’d share 20 various knowledge bombs with you. This list could have gone further and actually, I tried to cap it at 10, then 15, but finally I just said screw it … I’m going for 20. It’s all about sharing the wealth and spreading the good word!
(Photo credit: http://www.onlypaleo.com)
- Paleo is a life plan. It is not a diet, it is not calorie restrictive. It is a lifestyle!
- During the first two weeks on paleo, people (especially those with high levels of systemic inflammation) experience what’s called, “low-carb flu.” People feel sick and lethargic during this time because the body wants glucose and is not tapping into fat stores yet (not fat-adapted). During this time, people sometimes revert back to eating carbs because they think it’s what their body needs. Tough it out and shortly after those first 10 – 14 days, the clouds will clear and you’ll start feeling better! But you have to tough it out and know that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
(Photo credit: http://www.dietdiva.com) Don’t give in to that bowl of cereal when you’re experiencing the low-carb flu! This will soon pass and you will feel so much better!
- We are not predisposed by our genetics, but the foods we eat can increase our predisposition (i.e. eating foods that cause inflammation like grains, legumes, etc.).
- No other animals do a special diet. Humans are the only species that diet, and the majority of the time, it is not effective or people end up gaining back everything they lost and more. It can be argued that the original human diet is paleo.
The Giant Panda (Photo credit: Wikipedia). Pandas don’t go on crash diets to fit into a dress for a wedding. They eat their natural diet, as should we!
- We don’t cure infectious diseases, and frankly, will never be able to (or at least it’s highly likely that we won’t).
- 70 – 80% of your immune system remains in your gut, and leaky gut is the root cause of every autoimmune disease that has ever been tracked back.
- Zonulin, a new drug that has not been approved yet, is purposely meant to give people leaky gut, so that other drugs (i.e. migraine drugs, etc.) are better absorbed. This is absolutely insane and if approved, many people are going to get hurt! Sadly, it will most likely be approved.
- We have not and never will evolve to eat grains.
- There is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate. We have to have essential fatty acids and essential amino acids, but again, there is no essential carbohydrate.
- Dairy is a growth promotor and promoting more cells increases the chances of something going wrong (i.e. cancer). Also, we are the only mammal known to drink another mammal’s milk. If you choose to eat dairy, opt for grass-fed and full-fat fermented products. Things like heavy cream and butter/ghee tend to be benign for a lot of people, but it’s all dependent on the individual.
- Grain-fed meat is pro-inflammatory. If you cannot afford grass-fed, pastured, organic meats and can only eat conventional, that’s still better than eating bread. Just opt for leaner cuts of meat in this case and increase your intake of fish oil.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)
- Toss the word willpower — it’s not necessary and goes along with diet! Again, this is a lifestyle and a way of eating for optimal health. It is not a diet!
- “Blaming cholesterol and saturated fats on heart disease is absurd!” — Jason Seib
- Grazing does not allow for metabolic flexibility.
- You don’t get to decide what your body does first when making lifestyle changes. Some people lose 5 lbs first, others stop having migraines or have an increase in energy. Everyone’s body responds differently to diet/fitness.
- You are going to make excuses if you’re not ready.
- The opposite of fat is HOT, not skinny! Hot is physically capable and healthy. You have to do something sustainable if you want to improve your health, get more attractive and reach this point (yes, that means diets are out!).
(Photo credit: http://www.queensweat.com)
- If you fall off the wagon, get right back on! It’s always worth getting back on, otherwise you’ll never truly know what good health feels like.
- Why get your kids on board? It decreases the chances of health risks later in life, improves current health, improves behavior (this one is huge!), and ends food battles. Get them involved and let them help in the kitchen — delegate responsibilities (i.e. mixing in the spices), give them kid kitchen tools, let them make choices, name that dish, etc. All these things get kids excited and teach them about their food! I don’t have kids right now, but when I do, I definitely plan to do these things.
- Lift heavy weights, especially ladies!
Note: This video is not from the workshop I attended, but is from a previous Everyday Paleo workshop Jason and Sarah hosted.
Weekend Recap
This past weekend, Jesse and I had the privilege of attending an Everyday Paleo workshop with Sarah Fragoso and Jason Seib in Grants Pass, Oregon at CrossFit GP. We signed up back in July and have been looking forward to it ever since. Anyway, Friday evening, we made the 4+ hour drive south to Grants Pass. This is the farthest south in Oregon I’ve ever been and the closest I’ve been to California as well. I was so tempted to stay longer and explore beautiful Grants Pass and the Rogue River Valley, and then maybe go into California. Jesse and I didn’t plan for that though and were trying to go the cheap route, plus we both had to teach in the morning. Another time, I suppose, but it really is beautiful down there.
We stayed at the Travelodge in Grants Pass, which provided a clean room and a bed, along with a continental breakfast. I figured the breakfast would be mostly bread and pastries and sugared cereals, and boy, was I spot on. We ate a couple fresh orange slices and walked out the door.
Bowl of sugar anyone?
How about some “heart healthy whole grains”?
We walked right next door to the Black Bear Diner. I had a good laugh over this place and boy, did it remind me of Northern Michigan. It also reminded me a bit of Big Boy, a restaurant that’s all over Michigan. Jesse and I were both able to find things to eat. I ordered some hot tea, a 3-egg omelette with avocado, spinach, mushrooms and chicken, and a side of fresh fruit instead of potatoes and toast. I made sure they didn’t add milk to the omelette mixture and emphasized ‘no cheese’ on my omelette.
Black Bear Diner in Grants Pass, OR.
Jesse walking up to the restaurant.
The omelette I couldn’t eat. There was cheese inside and on top, underneath all the goods, and they forgot my spinach.
I was excited when my plate arrived and saw that everything looked great … or so I thought. As I was seasoning my omelette with a little salt and pepper, I noticed some white stringy stuff that blended in a bit with the omelette. After putting my fork into it and pulling it away to see a long white string attached, I knew it was cheese. I had to send it back and couldn’t even take one bite, but a short time later they returned with my new omelette and this time there was no cheese!
After breakfast, we drove over to CrossFit GP for the workshop, which started at 9 a.m. (and went until 3 p.m.). Walking up to the gym, I recognized Sarah’s husband sitting at a table checking people in. Jesse and I quickly grabbled some seats and were happy to see many other people in attendance. Sarah kicked off the workshop and from there, she and Jason took turns covering various topics. I was excited to find out that Jason lives right near Portland, in Clackamas, and owns a gym called Clackamas Physical Conditioning. Here, I thought he was from NorCal Strength and Conditioning as well (Robb Wolf’s gym, where Sarah also coaches), but come to find out, he’s our neighbor! During a private conversation with Jason and Sarah, Jesse and I spoke with them about collaborating in the near future and Jason offered for us to come check out his gym (take a class or sit in on the free nutrition class he offers, which is an abbreviated version of what he covered in the workshop). We chatted about some other things and it so was rad to have that one-on-one time with them. They’re such great people and an awesome team.
From left: Jesse, Sarah, me and Jason.
The workshop flew by pretty quickly, but covered a lot of topics and allowed for ample Q & A time. We covered Sarah’s story, paleo nutrition basics, getting started, paleo science basics, paleo survival guide, family matters, making it happen, and sleep, stress and how not to be a mess. There were many other subcategories within these topics including eating out, insulin resistance, athletes, autoimmune protocol, aesthetic goal conundrum, maybe foods, why feed your kids paleo, and so forth. At the beginning of the workshop, Sarah even threw a meal into the slow cooker that we got to eat at the end (slow chicken curry). It was delicious!
As I mentioned, Sarah and Jason are an awesome team. Jason has extensive knowledge and understanding in biochemistry and science and knows a lot of the nitty gritty stuff. Sarah has a lot to offer in terms of getting started, getting your family and kids on board, juggling kids, schedules, work and cooking, recipes, etc. Their knowledge and experience pair together really well.
Six hours later, after the workshop ended, Jesse and I sadly, had to head for home. Next time we drive all the way down there, we are going to stay at least one more day to explore. Needless to say, it was a great trip and workshop, and we left with more knowledge, insight and excitement. I love the life I lead and am so grateful for this lifestyle!
For more info, check out Sarah and Jason’s website eplifefit.com. They also have a Facebook page, Everyday Paleo Lifestyle and Fitness.
My Go-To Lunches and Some Ideas
In debating what to blog about today, I realized that I’ve never addressed any lunch recipes or ideas. I’m not sure why that is exactly … maybe because I usually just throw something together or eat dinner leftovers. Also, lunch is my least favorite meal of the day. Don’t get me wrong, I love to eat and definitely enjoy lunch, but of my three meals each day, lunch is number three (breakfast is number one and dinner is number two). I generally don’t eat snacks because my body doesn’t need it, and eating high-quality protein and fats in each meal helps carry me over to the next.
Below you’ll see a few of my typical lunches. Sometimes, I’ll have a small dish of homemade 24-hour whole milk yogurt and a piece of fruit with my lunch as well. It just depends on what my lunch is and how I feel. Following my photos, you’ll find a few great sounding and looking lunch ideas.
Applegate Naturals fresh-sliced (not pre-sliced) oven-roasted turkey breast, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, avocado and carrots.
Two Applegate Naturals nitrate-free, grass-fed beef hot dogs, sauerkraut, avocado, cucumber slices, carrots and Dijon mustard.
(Taken with iPhone). Large spinach leaves wrapped with Applegate Naturals freshly-sliced oven roasted turkey breast, avocado and cucumber slices, and carrots with homemade beet dip. Sometimes I make these wraps with romaine or green leaf lettuce too. See link to my beet dip recipe below.
(Taken with iPhone). Salad at Whole Foods: spinach, cucumber, carrots, beets, hard-boiled eggs, small amount of walnuts, rotisserie chicken, all topped with olive oil. Also, a side of fresh strawberries and blueberries. Sometimes I buy a few slices of Applegate Naturals freshly-sliced oven-roasted chicken or turkey breast and add it into my salad. It’s cheaper (because of the weight) than adding a bunch of rotisserie chicken pieces!
In case you’re curious about my beet dip recipe, check out this blog post from a while back. You’ll see a carrot dip recipe, which is exactly the same as the beet dip — just sub beets for carrots (about 2 cups worth).
Now, here are some lunch recipes that look worthy of trying. I’ve pinned all of them to my Pinterest boards and encourage you to come follow me! To find these recipes, just click on each photo.
Turkey avocado roll-ups from Avocado Pesto.
Hayley’s Chicken Salad from The Food Lovers Kitchen.
Or this chicken salad from Everyday Paleo.
Bacon, egg, avocado and tomato salad from Mark’s Daily Apple.
Spinach and smoked salmon salad with lemon dill dressing from Food & Wine.
Grain-free salmon cakes from Balanced Bites.
Stocked and Loaded
Check out what arrived at my doorstep yesterday … a whole lot of meat from US Wellness Meats! Granted, half the order is for my dear friend, Macala, but still, it’s a lot of wonderful, high-quality meat. It’s all grass-fed, pasture-raised, hormone/antibiotic-free, and compassionately raised.
US Wellness Meats order
The order shipped on Monday and arrived yesterday (Tuesday). The meat was still frozen solid upon arriving, and was packaged very well to keep it cold. It was inside a silver bag with a couple dry ice packs and this bag was packed inside a styrofoam cooler. The cooler was packed inside a box.
So, what did I order? 85% lean ground beef, buffalo stew meat, beef Polish breakfast sliders, chicken drumsticks, sugar free beef bacon, flank steak, beef pemmican sticks (jerky and tallow sticks), and beef tallow (also grass-fed). Macala ordered the same things, minus the pemmican, but pork chops instead.
Look at all this stuff!
Beef Polish breakfast sliders.
Buffalo stew meat.
I haven’t had a chance to try any of the meat yet, but I’ve heard very positive reviews from some of the big-ups in the Paleo world (The Food Lovers Kitchen, PaleOMG, Everyday Paleo, etc.). I’ll keep you posted!
My stocked freezer, and more in the door too! Notice all the blueberries that Jesse and I picked a couple weeks ago too.
You know what else arrived yesterday? My Weber portable grill! I was shocked how fast it got here (I ordered it Saturday afternoon). Now, we just need to get a small propane tank and we’ll be good to go. I bet we’ll be grilling this weekend! Stay tuned.
Almond Banana Cookies
Ah, a relaxing Sunday afternoon of baking. It felt good to get a little project going and not only that, it produced a tasty batch of cookies. I wish I could share smells with you all because these smelled so wonderful while baking, but hopefully you can imagine it or recreate the recipe for yourself and gather your own smells.
These cookies are soft and nutty with a slight sweetness from ripe banana. The best part is that they’re healthy, grain-free (of course), quick and there’s no added sugar. Inspired by Everyday Paleo once again, I made a slight twist on her nutty cookies recipe, and cut it in half. (Seriously if you don’t have the Everyday Paleo cookbook, get it or see if it’s available at your local library!). I bet kids would love these cookies and there’s truly no shame in letting them indulge in these anytime.
Ingredients:
- 1 ripe banana, mashed
- 5 Tbsp coconut flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 C unsweetened applesauce
- 1/4 C unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1/4 C plus 2 Tbsp almond butter
- 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon
- 5 Tbsp coconut milk
- 1/4 C sliced almonds
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Mash banana in large bowl with a fork. Add coconut flour, baking soda and almond butter, and mix thoroughly.
- Add remaining ingredients and stir.
- Drop by tablespoonfuls on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 25 minutes. Yields 12 cookies.
Simple Supper Friday: Grass-fed Chili
Yes, a hot and hearty meal of grass-fed chili. Not what I’d normally make in the heat of summer, but Portland’s warm weather has been pretty hit or miss thus far. The past two days were hot, sunny and gorgeous, but today, it’s a been a bit cooler and gray with a few sprinkles. It made me crave the warmth and happy tummy feeling that chili yields. Plus, chili definitely falls under the simple meal category, making it today’s perfect ‘Simple Supper Friday’ meal.
Normally, I think of chili as a free rein meal, meaning that you really don’t need a recipe to make it. You can literally throw whatever sounds good into the pot. This time though, I used Everyday Paleo’s Bean-Less Chili recipe as a base and as usual, altered it to my liking. Here’s my take on the recipe:
Ingredients:
- 7 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 medium zucchini, quartered and chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 – 3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil or ghee
- 2 lbs grass-fed ground beef
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 Tbsp dried oregano
- 2 Tbsp dried basil
- 1 Tbsp cumin
- 3 Tbsp chili powder
- 1/8 tsp cayenne
- 1 26.4 box Pomi diced tomatoes (love this brand!)
- 1 cup frozen kale (Whole Foods sells)
- 16 ounces low sodium chicken broth
- Avocado slices, optional
Directions:
- In a large soup pot, sauté the veggies in olive oil for a couple minutes, then add the beef and brown.
- Season the meat mixture with all of the spices.
- Add the tomatoes, frozen kale and chicken broth and simmer for 35 minutes.
- Taste and add more seasoning if desired. Serve with avocado slices on top, if using.
