Filipino Inspired Embutido: Beef Meatloaf

Usually, embutido is made with ground pork. I didn't have pork on hand, so I used some good ole' grass fed ground beef. I winged this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef (get the leanest possible)
• 2 cups of baby carrots
• 2 cups of baby spinach
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 medium white onion
• 3 XL eggs
• 6 slices of bacon
• Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning

 Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• In a small pot, hard boil 2 eggs (on medium heat, cook until 12 minutes after it starts boiling)
• In your food processor, blend all of your veggies
• Season your ground beef with Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning, to taste
• Mix veggies and beef by hand, add the 3rd egg and mix well
• Pan fry your bacon until crispy, set aside and drain excess grease, dice and mix into veggie/meat mix
• Peel and quarter your hard boiled eggs
• Set out 3 sheets of foil
• Separate veggie/meat mix to make 3 loaves and add 2-3 slices of the hard boiled eggs
• Grab some meat and surround the hard boiled eggs
• Form your loaf into the shape of a cylinder and wrap foil to maintain its shape, twist ends to lock in place
• Repeat for the rest of the loaves
• On a baking sheet, line it with foil and evenly place the loaves
• Bake for 45 minutes
• Let cool
• While it is cooling, cook a couple eggs over easy
• Slice loaves into 1" slices
• Take several slices, place the egg on top and enjoy!

Paleo Pot's Spaghetti Squash Curry

So, I'm back on my curry cravings... My brother tagged me on FaceBook to Paleo Pot's Spaghetti Squash Curry. Now, I'm TOTALLY for crock pot meals, especially with very little prep time. By the time I saw the recipe, I was already home and getting ready to go WOD. After my work out, I headed over to Sprouts and picked up 2 spaghetti squashes (they're kind of small, lol) and the rest of the ingredients.

My brother and I saw the recipe and thought, "where's the protein?" So he told me to get some chicken. Here's my variation:

Ingredients

• 1.5 lb chicken thighs
• Salt, pepper, basil - to taste
• 1 x 14 oz can of Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk
• 1/4 cup of water (if using full fat coconut milk as suggested by Paleo Pot)
• 2 tablespoons of Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 small spaghetti squash

Preparation

Spaghetti Squash

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Cut spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise - scoop out guts
• Line a baking try with foil, add 1/4 cup of water, spray spaghetti squash with coconut oil 
• Bake spaghetti squash for 40 minutes

Chicken

• While that's baking, rinse and trim fat of chicken thighs -- then cube them
• Season cubed chicken to taste
• Add some coconut oil, pan fry that poultry

Sauce

• While that's going, your sauce... Shake the coconut milk can really well
• Open that bad boy and pour into bowl, add water if using full fat, add your paste ... mix dat
• Once the paste, water and coconut milk are mixed well, add your minced garlic

Finale

• When the squash is done baking, let cool for about 15 minutes and scrape out the "noodles"
• While the squash is cooling, add sauce to chicken, stir and let simmer for 15-20 minutes
• Mix in spaghetti squash in the chicken and sauce
• BOOM

Kobe Burger... what?

Yes. I am back. And for the lack of updates... I am sorry. You know when you just enjoy life so much, you don't realize how much time is passing and when you finally get a chance to sit down, breathe and catch up on things, you're like "WTF happened?" Yeah. Me.

I haven't really developed anything new during my busy summer, but I have been eating like no other! My brother and I were at Sprouts one day, and he decided to pick up a pack of Kobe Beef Patties. Want to see what he made?

Look at that. Just look at it. I wish I was still up to date on technology so I can have my own DSLR and compooper. Working in an office all day makes going home to be on the compooper again kind of hard. This is a primal dish, and since my brother was kind enough to share, I'll share what's in it!

• Bacon
• 2 x 1 lb Kobe beef patties
• Pepperjack cheese
• Provolone cheese
• Sauteed onions
• Loads of spices
• Fried egg

So simple! Yet so delicious!

I was out with a stomach flu so I was living off chicken noodle soup and crackers.

I hope to experiment with foods soon...

Until then... try that!!!

Overstuffed Bell Peppers

Hello there! I know it's been a while since either of us have posted. It's been a rather hectic start to Summer!

I've been craving that bell pepper that Nancy made for me a while back (posted on Instagram! Are you following us yet?) 

Since I've had that craving and was too lazy to really do the prep work (I know, shame on me), I developed a new recipe, which turned out to be pretty damn good. 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of grass fed ground beef
• 4 red or green bell peppers, top cut off, seeds removed
• 3 or 4 zucchini, diced
• 8 slices of bacon
• 16 oz tomato sauce
• Cajun Seasoning
• 5 oz baby spinach
• 1 medium yellow or white onion, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 8 oz sliced champignon mushrooms
• 2 eggs, XL

Prep:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Pan fry the bacon until crispy - set on a paper towel to cool and drain excess oil
• While the bacon is cooking, season the ground beef with the Cajun seasoning, to taste - set aside
• Put some of that yummy bacon grease away, maybe keep 3-4 tablespoons worth left in the pan
• Pan fry onions and garlic, until it starts becoming translucent and add the zucchini and mushrooms
• Once the onions are translucent, scoop out as much as you can into a big bowl, leaving the excess liquid
• Brown the ground beef and break up into smaller chunks -- cook until medium rare to medium well (Baking will cook it some more, and re-heating too)
• Add the baby spinach with the ground beef
• While that's happening, chop up your bacon into 1" pieces and mix in the bowl with the veggies
• Upon completion, drain the excess liquid from the pan and mix the spinach/ground beef chunks with the veggie bowl
• Add yo tomato sauuuuce ... mix mix mix!
• Let cool for about 5 minutes -- get your baking dish or pan, line with foil or not, whatever. Use a little Kerrygold butter, coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil and spray bottom... add your bell peppers
• After you mix has cooled, crack your eggs on in and mix those bad boys
• Scoop and pack those peppers (*Please note: The peppers will end up crunchy, which I like. If you would like the pepper to be softer, boil in salted water for about 3 minutes, let cool before stuffing it with goodness*)
• Excess mix can go on top or surround the bell peppers
• Bake for 30 minutes 
• Faceplant and enjoy

 

My first attempt - no spinach, or mushrooms

 

Before

 

After

 

The Guts

 

My 2nd Attempt - contains EVERYTHING. So good.

Paleo Loco Moco, sans Gravy!

Look at it. Just look at it. SO good. Want the recipe? Let us know!

Stuffed Mushrooms & SoCal Regionals!

Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

 

Ingredients:

•  1 lb of grass fed ground beef (Sprouts)
• 6 pack of portobello mushrooms (Trader Joe's)
• 1 bell pepper, pitted and chopped to dime size pieces
• 1 XL egg
• 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon - Paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon - Cayenne Pepper
• Pinch - Cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon - Ground black pepper
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil, melted
• Louisiana Fish Fry Cajun Seasoning, to taste* (This seasoning can also take place of all your spices, just add the cinnamon)

Prep:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Line baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with melted coconut oil
• Remove stems of mushrooms, chop and set aside
• Stem face down, bake for 7 minutes
• Stem face up, bake for another 7 minutes. Then set aside and let cool
• While that's cooking, heat coconut oil and saute bell pepper, mushroom stems and garlic on low heat
• Hand mix your spices into your meat
• Once the bell pepper, garlic and mushrooms softens, add meat and brown. Cut up into smaller chunks
• Drain of excess fat/liquid and remove from pan to cool
• Once the meat mixture is cooled, hand mix in the egg. Make sure it's cool enough so it won't cook the egg!
• Bring oven temperature to 350 degrees
• Using a spoon or you hands, scoop the meat mix onto the mushroom and pack that! Stack that! let it fall next to the shrooms!
• Bake for 5-10 minutes, remove from oven and add the Louisiana Fish Fry Cajun Seasoning
• Serve immediately. Serves 4-5.
• Faceplant

 

Yesterday, I went to Del Mar for So Cal Regionals. And I got this shirt from Life as Rx. Too. Legit.

 

Paleo: Interview at CrossFit Ero

So, I was interviewed this weekend about my experience in last year's Paleo Challenge at my gym, CrossFit Ero. We are currently having another paleo challenge and I'm actively participating, but not officially IN the challenge. I haven't been updating much because I'm focusing on healing. I have a sprained thumb, dislocated my knee last week (my coach put it back in place!), and yesterday, I fell and ate it hard at Ross and landed on the knee I dislocated so it's pretty swollen. Although, I did PR on my mile run! 8:56, lol. I haven't had a fast mile since I was in high school. Anyways, here's what was featured on CrossFit Ero's page yesterday!

 

Hope everyone's first week on the Paleo Challenge went well. Last year's Paleo Challenge winner was Stacy V. Her strong discipline in eating clean and working out have helped her transform exponentially in losing weight and building strength. Have you seen how much she back squats?

We want to share Stacy's experience winning the Paleo Challenge. Here's what she said:

1. Your first Ero Paleo Challenge was last year, how was it for you? It was definitely a struggle transitioning from eating whatever I wanted to eating clean for 30 days. It was a frustrating experiment finding which foods I like to eat and foods I needed to eat. After about the first week, it started to become fun because I ended up finding delicious recipes that were easy to prepare. It also forced me to learn how to cook! I find myself enjoying grocery shopping more than retail shopping!

2. What kept you motivated to stay eating clean during the challenge?
A few things kept me motivated to eat clean during the challenge, but in no particular order: being diagnosed with PCOS and told that I was also borderline diabetic; I liked the feeling of how "light" I felt after a big meal; my brother's encouragement and guidance; the changes to my hair, skin, and sleeping habits; the desire to win the challenge, of course.

3. How was your workout performance during the challenge? I felt weak at first but once I incorporated more fats into my meals and increased my fruit intake, I found myself getting stronger, and getting faster during metcons. I was PRing almost every WOD! Just don't eat a super fibrous meal before you work out, lol.

4. You were the winner of last year's Ero Paleo Challenge, do you have any tips for the new people who are just starting? Don't cave in during the "carb flu." Maybe it's just me, but just smelling the foods I craved, satisfied my cravings. Find a good support system. Eat nutritious foods that make you happy! Meal plan and meal prep for the week. Finally, just remember that good nutrition is the best gift you can give yourself.

Thank you, Stacy V. for your participation in this interview. She said it best – good nutrition is the best gift you can give yourself.

Woopsie!

Sorry for the lack of updates, guys! It's been hectic in both of our lives and we're getting some stuff together. I will be participating in another paleo challenge (that I hope to win again!) and I have new recipes lined up especially for that. So come May... there'll be much more here and on our instagram!

Still not following us? Do it! CuhhlinaryAdventures

We're on Instagram!

Crockpot Spaghetti & Meatballs

I decided to try PaleoPot.com's "Stupid Easy Paleo Spaghetti Squash & Meatballs"

This is copied directly off that website:

 

What you need:

• One medium spaghetti squash.
• One pound of ground Italian sausage.
• One can of tomato sauce, I used a 14 ounce can.
• 2 tbsp of hot pepper relish (optional).
• 4 to 6 cloves of garlic, whole.
• 2 tbsp of olive oil.
• Italian seasoning (Oregano, Basil, Thyme) to taste, I used about 2 tsp

How you make it:

1. Make sure you use a large 6 quart slow cooker for this recipe.
2. Dump your tomato sauce, olive oil, garlic, hot pepper relish and Italian seasoning into your slow cooker and stir well.
3. Cut your squash in half and scoop out the seeds.
4. Place your 2 squash halves face down into your slow cooker.
5. Roll your ground sausage into meatballs, then fit as many as you can in the sauce around the squash. I was able to work in about a half pound worth.
6. Cook on High for 3 hours or cook on low for 5 hours.
7. Use a large fork to pull the “spaghetti” out of your squash, then top with your meatballs and sauce.
8. Garnish with parsley if you feel fancy, and enjoy!

It was my first time buying spaghetti squash so I didn't know what "medium" looked like, lol. So I grabbed whatever. I went to the local grocery store but they didn't have the spaghetti squash, because it's out of season apparently, and I needed Italian sausage. So I headed to Sprouts and picked it up there. I got the pork Italian sausage with red pepper flakes.

I prepared it without the relish, and a 15 oz tomato sauce can. I let it cook in the crock pot for 3 hours.

Right after I removed from the appliance. Spaghetti Squash Titties!

 

Dat sauce doe.

 

Freshly scooped out spaghetti squash.

 

 

 

My lunch :) The sausage I got was too spicy for me, so it was hard to eat, but everything else tasted great!

 

My brother suggested I use half the amount of paprika and replace the other half with chili powder to lessen the spicy, but add more flavor. And he loves the sauce so I'll definitely double the amount next time. I need to find a mild sausage, or prep my own. Either way, it's something I'll be making often!

Crockpot Paleo Meatloaf

I have been spending too much time not meal prepping that I end up cooking too late at night and not getting enough rest. My days usually consist of waking up at 6 am, cooking, getting ready for work, work from 7:30 am - 4:00 pm, quick power nap, WOD at 6 pm (I leave at 5:15 because of traffic), usually socialize and run errands after... so, I usually don't get home until 9:00 - 10:00 pm and by that time, I'm already beat.

 

So, I put my foot down, lol, and told myself, "I WANT TO SET IT AND FORGET IT!"

 

Thus, finding this Crockpot Meatloaf recipe from PaleoPot.com

 

This is taken directly off that website:

What you need:

• 2 pounds of lean ground meat (ground chicken works really well for this, as would lean turkey).
• 2 eggs, beaten.
• 4 ounces of bacon, crisped and chopped.
• 1/2 of a small white onion, small dice.
• 4 green onions, chopped.
• 2 stacks of celery, sliced thinly or chopped.
• 2 tsp of dried oregano
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1 tsp of thyme
• 2 tsp of smoked paprika
• 2 tsp of garlic powder

For the Tomato Sauce:

• 1 small can of tomato paste (can also use 1/4 cup of tomato sauce).
• 2 to 3 tbsp of dijon mustard.
• 2 tsp of smoked paprika.
• 2 tsp of garlic powder.
• 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar.

How you assemble your loaf of meat:

1. Cook your bacon until brown and crispy, then chop it up good.
2. In a large bowl combine your ground meat, beaten eggs, bacon, veggies and seasonings.
3. Mix everything together by hand, forming a loaf.
4. Place your loaf in your slow cooker and press it down so that the top is flat and you have about of inch of space between the loaf and the sides of the slow cooker.
5. Mix your tomato sauce ingredients together and spoon them over the loaf. Use a spoon or a knife to frost the loaf’s top as evenly as possible.
6. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours.

 

 

Now, let me tell you... I was rushing to get this done because 1. It was 4:12 when I started prepping. I had to leave and get ready for WOD at 5:15 pm. I had to wash all the dishes. With that being said, after I happily placed my mix in the crockpot and topped it with the sauce... I realized that... I forgot to add the eggs... and the apple cider vinegar...

 

So, Nancy asked me to go run errand with her before WOD, so I scooped out as much sauce as possible, and mixed in the egg, and took the opportunity to add the apple cider vinegar and finally reset it.

 

HOW DO YOU FORGET THESE?! I DON'T KNOW.

 

I got home around 9:30 pm last night, and around 10:00 pm it was ready. So I managed to get showered and ready for bed. I used ground dark turkey meat (I understand the lack of appeal when the fat is at the bottom making it look ugly), so next time, I'll use lean ground beef. Here's the final product...

 

I wish I had a better camera... It looks better than in the picture. See that gunk on top? That's some of the fat that seeped through the top... gross. But still good. LOL.

 

I'm not a paprika or mustard enthusiast, so I added an over easy egg on top of a slice seasoned with salt and it mixed very well.

 

Next time, I will use lean meat for sure, more bacon, add salt, less paprika, and maybe 1/2 of the suggested amount of dijon mustard... and maybe some salt mixed in the loaf. Other than that, it was a hit between my dad and my brother. I'll have Dan taste test it later when he comes over...

 

Enjoy! Trial and Error!

Country Time Chick & Taters

I finally had the chance to meal prep for the rest of the week! I'm so glad I made Cappello's Gnocchi Dish last week, I shared with my brother and it lasted me until yesterday!

 

Last night, I just messed around with what ingredients I had at home. I have a bad habit of not using the groceries right away... can't be throwing away money!

 

Ingredients:

4-5 chicken thighs (trim as much fat as possible)

dried rosemary, garlic, salt

2 tablespoons coconut oil

 

1 head of cauliflower

2 tablespoons of melted ghee

garlic powder, parsley, salt

4 strips of diced bacon, cooked

 

3-4 medium or large sweet potatoes

 

Prep:

1. On medium heat, melt the coconut oil, then place your chicken in the pan; cook thoroughly! When your chicken is done, remove from oil and set on paper towel in a bowl or plate, or even a sieve to drain excess oil

2. While that's cooking, prep your sweet potatoes (Prep here! Click me!)

3. Split your cauliflower into "smaller trees," fill pot with water, and bring cauliflower to a boil
4. Make sure both the sweet potatos and cauliflower are soft enough to the point where you poke a fork and it'll slide off
5. Drain the water completely from the cauliflower... mash it! (using an egg masher, a fork, whatever!)
6. Save 1/2 cup of the boiled water from the sweet potatoes, then drain the potatoes... mash it! And add that same water to desired consistency
7. Let both mashes cool.

.....

8. The cauliflower mash needs some more drainage. It looked soupy after I mashed it, so it took me some time to squish it against the pot and tip one side to get the water flowing, I scooped what looked less wet into a big bowl.
9. Season cauliflower to taste, and add the melted ghee a little at a time to get the desired taste AND consistency.

(mind you, I still really hate cauliflower but I need to force myself to eat more of it, lol)

10. Stir in your bacon chunks/bits (I used 4, but next time I think I'll use 6-8 strips...)

And... you're done!

I didn't follow any recipe for these really, so it was mostly trial and error...
 

 

Cookin' dat chicken.

 

Dat cauliflower mash right after I drained as much as possible.

 

Fin.

Cappello's Gnocchi

So, I pretty much made up another one, but is very similar to my previous dish.

 

Ingredients:

1 pack of Cappello's Gnocchi

1 x 8 oz tomato sauce

1 can of diced roasted tomatoes with garlic

1 bag of Fresh Express baby spinach

5 fresh large champignon mushrooms, sliced

1 lb of grass fed ground beef or turkey of your choice

2 tablespoons of curry powder

1 teaspoon of salt

 

Prep:

- Mix in salt and curry powder into meat

- Boil water and follow directions on back of gnocchi pack (bring water to a boil, add salt, and let gnocchi boil until they float to the top... let float for a few minutes)

- Drain gnocchi

- Add tomato sauce and roasted tomatoes and mushrooms

- Saute until mushrooms are soft

- Add more spices to taste

- Mix in baby spinach and simmer on low for about 10 minutes

 

Put it this way... this was so fast to make that I got home from crossfit and errands at 10 pm, showered, then cooked, and was in bed by 11:30 pm.

 

I hope you enjoy!

 

 

 

I added a lot of curry... my friend said it looked gross, but it totally doesn't and it totally tasted yummy, lol.

Cappello's Fettuccini with Beef & Tomato

So, I received my Cappello's Sampler last week on Thursday. I decided to make a dish using the fettuccini noodles. Here's the ingredients: almond flour, cage-free eggs, tapioca flour, potato starch, xanthan gum, sea salt

 

This gluten free and grain free pasta was absolutely delicious. It says to cook for 45 seconds once the water is at its boiling point and to rinse off with cool water. Me being me, I didn't do that. And the salt used in the water left a yummy flavor to the noodles themselves.

 

I just randomly brought these ingredients together. Trial and error! The package serves for 2 people, but I had about 1/4 of it for lunch and it was very filling.

 

Ingredients:

• 1 package of Cappello's Fettuccini Pasta
• 1 lb of grass fed ground beef
• 1 x 8 oz of tomato sauce
• 1 x 14 oz can of diced tomatoes with basil, oregano (I think that's the size)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 white onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, diced
• Italian seasoning (usual dried spices), salt and pepper

Preparation:

• Mix in 2 eggs in the meat
• Apply italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste
• In a pan, add about 3-5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (or fat of your choice)
• Pan fry the garlic and onion, until onions are transluscent
• Pan fry the ground beef and mix in with the garlic and onion (I like my ground beef as chunks)
• Have a pot boiling for the noodles, take your time... add enough water so the pasta can be submerged. Add salt.
• Once the ground beef has browned and theres very little pink left, pour in the tomato sauce and the diced tomatoes and stir, and let simmer
• Once the water is at its peak, make sure the fettuccini noodles are separated and submerge for 45 seconds as directed
• Drain in colander, and rinse (I didn't do this, lol)
• Using the same pot to boil the noodles, drain of excess water, replace the noodles and pour in the meat/tomato mix and stir to evenly distribute
• Let cool for 2 minutes and serve

BOOM.

 

My eyebrows look ridiculously high, lol. But here's the noodles!

 

Dan, the helper man! While watching cartoons...

 

Nom nom time.

Not-Paleo Duck Tacos

On Sunday for brunch, my brother and I headed out to El Segundo to grub and to hit up Whole Foods. I wanted something different so we ended up going to Sammy's Wood Fired Pizza and Grill.

 

I guess this featured picture of the wild Steven and the mini duck tacos would be considered primal despite the actual taco shells. It was so delicious.

 

As paleo as I want to be, this is a MUST TRY!

 

 

I'm finding new recipes and new conconctions so I hope to give you guys something new soon!

PaleYOLO: Snickerdoodles

I'm back on the Paleo grind, if I'm not Paleo I'm at least Primal. I'll allow myself a cheat or two during the day only because I suck at meal prep and because I'm too hungry to wait for anything to cook. I got this recipe from my friend Diana (she posted it on Facebook a few weeks ago) and I've been meaning to try it and I finally had the chance today. If you are expecting a snickerdoodle dupe like the ones you've eaten in the past (filled with gluten, butter, muffin top enhancers, sugar, thundering thigh stimulants, etc.) then don't bother making this recipe. It's not going to taste like those, it is however a good Paleo version.

Ingredients:
2 cups almond flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt

1/4 cup honey
5 tbsp coconut oil, melted
1 tbsp vanilla

1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp coconut (palm) sugar

Put the dry ingredients in one bowl. Mix the wet ingredients in a separate bowl and combine with wet ingredients. Shape into evenly sized balls and roll it in the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Place it on a baking sheet, flatten the ball with a piece of wax paper and a jar (or your hand). Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes (the time varies depending on your oven and if you like them crunchy of soft)

This recipe was good and I yielded 16 cookies. 15 of which were devoured by me in ONE DAY. hell yeah I ate them, they were good. Next time I'll probably add a little more sugar than cinnamon since I was craving more sweetness. I also burned the second batch but crunchy crusts are okay.

PaleYOLO-ing

On Saturday after the morning WOD, Nancy and I hit up Stacked to refuel. I can always count on Stacked to keep me on track when I go out to eat!

 

 

I finally got to Whole Foods and did my meat/almond butter haul. Don't mind that can of Vienna Sausage... we feed that to the dogs... lol.

 

1 lb of skinless, boneles chicken thighs

1 lb of grass fed ground beef

1 lb of ground dark turkey

1 pork shoulder (2 lbs?)

Hot Dog

Cocktail Pork Links

1 lb of almond butter

 

The stuff for me (all but the pork shoulder) cost around $50 and will last me about a week and a half.

 

 

 

Sunday was such a nice morning out for a good run :) I went with Nancy and Ana. I'm surprised at how much I actually ran and the pace I was going at... progress!

 



Crushed it!

I finally got the idea of how to make that damn Cream of Curried Broccoli Soup! It's been a battle and after 2 failed broth/soup stuffs, the consistency is "cream" awww yeah.

 

I still suck at making Cauliflower "rice" so I made a meal again.... lol.

 

The finished product! I prefer adding bits of bacon to the soup! Yesterday for lunch, I diced up about 3 slices of bacon.
 

 How's that for such a simple meal prep?

Meal Prep Success

I finally got my butt to the grocery stores on Monday after my WOD. I stopped off at Whole Foods to get 1 lb of ground turkey, 1/2 lb of chicken thighs, Hail Merry Choco Macaroons and Hail Merry Chocolate Tarts (not Whole 30, but Whole YUMMY).

 

I was going to stop by Sprouts but it was already late, like 10 o'clock late. I was going to buy raw almonds and cashews and beef chorizo, but I had more than enough meat and snacks at home.

 

I went to our local grocery store and picked up all my produce. All in all, I spent about $70 to last me a week and a half.

 

 

 

 

And this is what I usually have on a daily basis...

 

 

PaleYOLO: Chicken Something Again

So, I know I have been lagging tremendously. I went to Sprouts sometime last week to force myself to cook again. I didn't have a recipe in mind, so I decided to mess around a bit.

 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of chicken breast (I will forever be a chicken thigh person)
• 2 tablespoons of curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon of sea salt
• 2 tablespoons of ghee, melted

Preparation:

• I would recommend seasoning the chicken overnight with the salt and peper
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• If you haven't seasoned the chicken, do so :)
• On a baking sheet lined with foil, coat with ghee for flavor and non-stickiness
• Place chicken breast and coat with ghee
• Sprinkle curry powder all over
• Bake for 15 minutes on one side, flip over, then bake for another 15 minutes

Variation:

• I would cut slits on the chicken breast and inject with some melted ghee and chopped garlic

Enjoy with some cauliflower rice :)

 

Before

 

After

Meal Planning

I haven't been very disciplined for the past couple months, what a fail. I knew this was going to happen. I keep telling myself "next week I'll be paleo" but heh, that hasn't happened yet. Until today.

So, for today:

• Breakfast - 3 slices of bacon, 2 scrambled eggs, sauteed spinach
• Snack - 1/2 banana
• Lunch - Chicken curry (based off my not so meatballs recipe)
• Snack - 1/2 banana
• Pre-WOD Snack - 1 scrambled eggs with spinach
• Dinner - something with ground beef, sloppy joes perhaps?

I know I'm not fully planning things out, but I haven't found the excitement I did before while cooking. I need to go grocery for sure.

Here's some recipes I plan on conquering this week:

• Sloppy Joe's: http://www.paleoplan.com/2009/12-03/sloppy-joes/
• Cilantro Turkey Burgers: http://www.paleoplan.com/2011/02-02/cilantro-turkey-burgers/
• Curried Cream of Broccoli Soup: http://www.cuhh-linaryadventures.com/2012/11/paleyolo-curried-cream-of-broccoli-soup.html (I've been failing at this so hard, my brother told me to give up, lol)

Among other things, I'm so picky about what I eat, so I've decided to make more of my accidental cauliflower meal to mix in with my eggs. I still seriously hate cauliflower.

Well, at least I have a plan, right?

Cheers.

Happy Birthday Marilyn!

Happy fucking Birthday to one of my cousins and best friends, Marilyn (the co-owner of Cuhh-linary Adventures!)! My life would be miserable without her! <3

Eat CLEAN!

Taken from my home blog, acerz.com...

Ever since the holidays, I fell off the paleo wagon HARD. I know I've mentioned this before, but now I'm really seeing the differences from being paleo, to... not. As a matter of fact, the following has gotten worse since pre-paleo, to full paleo, to 80% paleo, to the shitter.

• Allergies: I would normally get my eye allergies and sneezies out in the morning by 8:00 am. While I was doing the challenge, my allergies were practically non-existent. Now, my allergies last almost all day, and I thought I was getting sick, but no... just allergies. All day, all the time.
• Sleep: I would sleep maybe 4-5 hours a night, waking up maybe twice at the most. While on the challenge, by the 2nd week, I slept through the whole night, PLUS felt great in the morning, not the typical sluggish crap... and by the time I got home from work and WODing, I still had energy to pull together a full meal to eat for dinner AND meals for the next couple days. As of late, I get maybe 5-6 hours of sleep a night, but I wake up every 1-2 hours. RIDICULOUS! I may as well be sleeping 3-4 hours. I noticed too, that even when I get home post-WOD, I shower and just pass the fcuk out! This week has definitely been my "rock bottom" week because, out of the 5-6 meals PER DAY, I've maybe been paleo, 3 times max. Absolutely horrendous.
• Emotions: I don't know what it is, but when I saw Dan on Sunday, I started crying because I was hungry. CRYING! I had just finished my period the day before (sorry male readers), so my hormones were fine. Obviously, will all the bad food I've been eating, I've been sleepier, crankier, more feisty and sad.
• Thumb/Wrist Sprain: I don't know exactly how my eating habits affect my injury, but I feel like I'm healing slowly compared to before. Maybe this week of just pure carbs clogging up my insides is just preventing my usual fast healing time.
• Weight Gain: I gained almost my weight back from the paleo challenge; I gained 8 lbs, I weighed myself yesterday. It didn't really shock me because I have been eating really bad and because I feel like I've been babying my injury, I haven't been WODing hard.

Given all these factors and reasons and SHIT, this week has slapped me so hard on the face that I'm in the process of making my grocery list. Bullshit to the side, I can't let myself go again. I've been doing so well, and I'm surrounded by good, healthy, driven people... and plus, I'm still featured on CrossFit Ero's website.

I feel as if I need an incentive to be Whole 30... It was nice getting my new Adipower OLY shoes... maybe I'm just being vain... but I'm really trying for these to be my incentives:

1. Stabilize my allergies
2. Get a FULL night's rest on the daily
3. Be zen
4. WOD to my fullest potential
5. Lose weight

*Also, because of reason #5, I will be visiting my friend in Baltimore, MD... Angel. We met online a decade ago (no lie). We haven't met in person, but after a decade... I think it's time. I'll be spending a week with her and for her birthday... Gotta be physically/emotionally ready for something like this.

Okay so, it's decided.

No more excuses. Tonight, I have a doctor's appointment, and I'll hit up Whole Foods and Vons either later or tomorrow after the WOD and shit's about to get REAL.

Back on the Paleo Grind

I went Grocery Shopping yesterday at Trader Joe's and Whole Foods and let me tell you my haul consists of Paleo friendly bacon, sausage and cold cuts. Why no veggies? Well because, even though I love Whole Foods and Trader Joe's so much... it's so much cheaper and more beneficial for me to buy them at Costco. I told my husband (awwww shit. I'm still in shock that I have a husband!) I went grocery shopping and he's so supportive with me making the change to Paleo. When I told him how much I spent, he didn't get mad, he simply replied "Well, my babies to need to eat."

On another note, I think I either need to get off of Instagram or stop following people who cook/eat such delicious food. I have a friend who cooks ALL THE TIME and her food looks so good. But that just influenced me to look for a Paleo version of it. Be aware: I will start posting my recipes here once again!!!

I am deciding to go back to Paleo, or well 80% Paleo because my allergies, skin, and body has been going crazy. My face is like a teenager hitting puberty, wassup sex pizza face! NOT! I'll soon be 100% Paleo but I have some Whole Wheat Bread and Brown Rice that I want to finish up so that it won't go to waste. So probably next week I'll be 100% Paleo.

Later on, I'll meal prep LIKE A BOSS!

Muscle Cups

I have been meaning to cook turkey meatballs, but by the time I was ready to use the meat, it went bad :( There goes $10 of meat that I could have consumed sooner! I had processed a mix to hand mix in the meat, but since I didn't get to use the ground turkey, I ended up making these instead...

 

Ingredients (my recipe is up in the air since I just cooked without any guidelines):

• 6 strips of bacon pan fried, cooked enough but not crunchy
• 5-6 eggs
• 6-7 whole champignon mushrooms
• 4-5 garlic cloves
• 1 whole medium white onion
• 3/4 bag of the Fresh Express baby spinach
• salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon of ghee (or even the bacon grease)

Prep:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• In a food processor, toss in 5-6 of your mushrooms, garlic cloves, onions and baby spinach and process until it looks like a possible paste (but not, lol)
• In another bowl, beat your eggs until consistency is smooth
• Add the green mix with the egg mix and mix, mix, mix! Add salt and pepper to taste
• Next time, I want to add oregano, basil and rosemary
• Grease the muffin pan compartments with ghee or bacon grease and strategically line it with the bacon strips. Yes. Strategically.
• Using a ladel, fill compartments leaving 1/8 of an inch to allow it to rise
• Slice your remaining whole mushrooms and place in the center on top of the mix, and lightly press down to secure it
• Bake for 8-10 minutes or so (depending on how you like your eggs)
• Eat dat.

 

 

You will have some mixture left over if you decide not to make so many of these yummy Muscle Cups. I didn't have time this weekend to make more, so I used the remainder for breakfast today!

 

 

I just scrambled it. I forgot I added salt, so when I cooked it this morning, I added even more salt = FAIL

 

Next time, for this breakfast creation, I think I will add 1/2 cup or 3/4 cups of almond flour to make a veggie type pancake. Maybe add a tablespoon or so in the original mix so the cups won't be so moist.

 

Trial and Error, man.

Definition of a FAT ASS

If I were to log onto dictionary.com and look up "fat ass" you would indeed find one of the definitions say "Marilyn Sanchez"

Oh why you ask? Well since the New Year my life has been HECTIC! Everyday I'm running errands or attending school, taking care of my daughter. Let me give all you people a piece of advice if you get married... DO NOT CHANGE YOUR LAST NAME! Don't do it. It's a headache. Le husband didn't want to take my last name, unfortunately, so I agreed to taking his.

I have been such a fat ass since the New Year started. I mean it could be because I haven't been Paleo, I've been too tired to cook, I haven't gone grocery shopping. Yes, this means I have been through a Drive-Thru practically everyday this week. I am NOT proud of that. It really hit home when I went to Jack in a Crack. The lady gave me my food and said "See you soon." YOU BITCH! "See you soon." As if you already know that I'm willing to eat such degrading food again. Ugh. She was right, I probably saw her the next day. DON'T JUDGE ME!!!

My eating habits got out of hand because of the holiday and I indulged. Like seriously indulged. My husband (that's right ladies and gents. I got married bitches.) loves to eat. He was back from bootcamp and we ate EVERYTHING he wanted to eat. Sushi, Steak, Prime Rib, Fast Food, Starbucks, Pasta, Rice, etc. You see the trend right? There are no fruits and veggies. All carbs & Red meat.

With that being said I plan to make a change. To eat healthier and be Paleo. More on this later because my stupid responsibilities are getting the best of me and I need to study. Haha.

Howdy!

Sorry for the lack of updates guys! Holidays and whatnot.

Lots of things happening!

I haven't been paleo, but today is my first day! So expect recipes and pictures soon :)

How were your holidays?