The only thing I have to prep tonight is breakfast.  That’s because my lunch is leftovers from dinner!  Yay!  I find it’s much easier to just use your dinner as leftover lunch.

So for breakfast…

Breakfast Burrito

• 4 egg whites & yolks separated
• ½ onion, finely chopped
• 1 to 2 tomatoes, finely chopped
• ¼ C. diced canned green chilies
• 1 red pepper cut into strips
• ¼ C. finely chopped cilantro
• ½ C. cooked meat (I used ground beef)
• 1 avocado cut into small chunks
• Frank’s Red Hot on the side

Whisk egg whites. Warm a lightly oiled 10 inch skillet. Pour half eggs whites and swirl pan so the egg whites spread evenly. After 30 seconds put lid on and cook for 1 minute. Use rubber spatula to loosen and slide egg white onto a plate. Repeat once more with remaining egg whites. In the same pan, sauté the onions with oil for 1 minute. Add tomato, green chilies, red pepper, cilantro, and meat. Whisk egg yolks and pour into pan mixing into a scramble with other ingredients. Add avocado at the very end, then spoon half onto each egg white. Roll egg whites into burritos and serve with Frank’s red hot!

You may not get the egg white burrito part on the first try…but don’t stress.  Just scramble it in and next time you’ll get it.

“Every morning you have two choices:
Continue to sleep with your dreams, or wake up and chase them.”

Sorry it’s late, but here you go…

Today’s dinner was PRETTY INCREDIBLE!  I will be enjoying left overs for lunch tomorrow.

Spicy Chicken and Bell Pepper 

• 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
• 2 TBSP coconut oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 each green, red, and orange bell pepper, thinly sliced <–ended up using more because I love bell peppers
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 2 tsp black pepper
• Salt
• Scallions, for garnish

 For the marinade

• 1/2 cup coconut cream from a can, well mixed
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp ginger, minced
• 1 TBSP black pepper
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp turmeric

Place all of the marinade ingredients into a Ziploc bag and add the chicken.  Shake it up and let it  marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or up to 6 hours. In large sauté pan, melt the coconut oil over medium-high heat. Add the cumin seeds and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the marinated chicken and let cook for 5 minutes. Stir the chicken until it begins to brown, and then add the peppers, garam masala, and freshly ground pepper. Sprinkle with salt. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring regularly, or until the bell pepper is cooked to desired doneness. Serve hot.

“All great change begins at the dinner table.”

Hey all!  Posting this so you can make it in time for Saint Patrick’s Day!

Big thanks to Dr. Noah for this one!

Gluten-Free and Dairy Free Irish Soda Bread

This recipe is adapted from a recipe by Connie Sarros, “Leprechaun Bread” which appears in her cookbook, Wheat-Free, Gluten-Free, Reduced-Calorie Cookbook. This recipe makes a light, classic loaf of Irish Soda Bread with terrific flavor and texture.

If you tolerate dairy foods and can find it, serve Gluten-Free Irish Soda Bread with Kerry Gold butter- the rich, deep yellow, super creamy butter from Ireland.

Hello friends…I was able to get a couple of days down for my 30 day paleo meal plan!  I’m going to most likely post 3 recipes a day, and if you’d like to follow along…you’re more than welcome.  This is what I will have for my breakfast and lunch tomorrow.

Don’t worry, at the end of my 30 days, I will post my meal plan in it’s entirety!

For breakfast…

Nutty Banana-y Pancakes
2 bananas
2 TBSP crunchy almond butter
4 eggs
dark chocolate chips (optional)

Mash the bananas, then add the almond butter and eggs.  Combine together well.  Spoon 1/4 C. onto a hot pan (use grass fed butter or coconut oil to keep it from sticking).  When you see the bubbles, flip it for another minute or so.  Top with the dark chocolate chips…and enjoy!

For lunch…

Tuna Avocado Lettuce Wraps <—one of my favorite meals.
1 can of tuna
1/2 avocado
2 TBSP paleo mayo (I haven’t mastered it yet, so just Google a recipe)
1/4 C. green olives
2 TBSP canned green chilies, diced
1 scallion
Lettuce of your choice to use for the wraps

Use a fork to break up the tuna and set it aside.  In another bowl, use a fork to mash your avocado and mix it with the mayo (you don’t have to use the mayo if you don’t want to).  Add tuna, olives, scallions, green chilies to the mixture.  Mix well.  Place one scoop of tuna into your lettuce leaf, wrap, and ENJOY!

If you’re prepping the lunch to bring to work or school, you can put the tuna in one container, then put the lettuce in another…and assemble at lunchtime.

I’ll try post dinner tomorrow sometime early in the day!

If you’re along for the ride, let me know and I can get you some recipes in advance.  Be sure to follow me on twitter @paleYoblog.

“You’re off to great places.  Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting, so get on your way!”
– Dr. Seuss –

That’s right, folks!  I will be drinking, bathing, and loving everything about Apple Cider Vinegar…and you should, too!  It really is a wonderful product with many uses: digestion, acid reduction, healthy hair, and clearer skin.  If I knew this years ago, I would have been all over it.

Drink 1 tsp to 1 TBSP before meals.  Doing this will help with the digestive enzymes in your stomach to break down food.  After awhile, you’ll definitely see an improvement.  ACV has a soothing effect on your GI tract, and helps with gas and bloating.  Who wouldn’t want that relief?  Also, if you have heartburn or GERD (raises hand), this will reduce the acid in your stomach, but go easy – too much can irritate your esphogus.  Take a glass of water and put 1 tsp – 1 TBSP of ACV.

After you wash and condition your hair, take some ACV, massage it in and rinse it out.  It improves scalp health.  It will clear product buildup and a dry scalp.  In a short amount of time, your hair will be visibly healthier.  If you have any breakouts on your skin, use this as a topical treatment.  But, if you have sensitive skin, dilute it with some water first.  It has antimicrobial and antibacterial products.

It’s just a fantastic little miracle worker (well, kind of)…and you can find it at your local grocery store.  If you have any uses for Apple Cider Vinegar, or if you have used it…let me know how it went!

BTW, get organic, unpasteurized and unfiltered  Apple Cider Vinegar with the mother…that’s the weird looking “slime” thing in the bottle.  Happy ACV-ing!

“Man is the sole and absolute master of his own fate forever. What he has sown in the times of his ignorance, he must inevitably reap; when he attains enlightenment, it is for him to sow what he chooses and reap accordingly. – Geraldine Coster” 
― Paul Bragg, Apple Cider Vinegar Miracle Health System

Currently  working on a 30 day Paleo plan…it’s extremely time consuming, but I’m pleased with how it’s coming out.  Stay tuned for that!  Make sure you subscribe to the blog so you get the updates.  🙂

So I made one of my favorite dinners tonight, and figured it was time to share my recipe with my loyal followers.  Takes about 15 minutes to prep, and 45 to prepare.

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts
4 TBSP grass fed butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C white wine (I use moscato)
Juice from a lemon
1 TBSP capers, diced
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 egg
1/2 C cashew meal
1/2 TBSP onion powder
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp sea salt
green beans – enough for 4 servings
1 TBSP EVOO

What you need to do:

In a small pot, melt 4 TBSP of grass fed butter; add the minced garlic, diced capers (or whole small ones), wine, and lemon juice.  Let that reduce on a low heat.  While you’re preparing your chicken put another pan on low heat with the EVOO and let it get warm.  The egg, cashew meal, onion powder, oregano,  and sea salt are for breading your chicken breasts.  Now put your egg in one bowl and beat; in another bowl, put the other breading items and mix them up.  Dredge the chicken in the egg, then the breading mixture, and place it on the hot pan.  Leave it uncovered for now.

After the chicken starts to cook, pour the reduced sauce into the pan with the chicken.  Put your halved cherry tomatoes in the pan with the chicken.  While that starts to cook, steam or boil your green beans.  After about 20 minutes I covered the pan with the chicken.  I let it stay covered for about 10 minutes, then flipped the chicken.  After I flipped the chicken I added a little bit more wine and butter (the chicken soaks up the sauce).  Depending on how thick your chicken breasts are, will depend on time cooking time.  I had thicker cuts so it took about 45 minutes to cook them through.  When the chicken was done, I plated the breasts; put the green beans into the sauce pan, mixed it up, let it soak up the flavors for about 5 minutes or so, then plated that mixture.  I poured a little juice on top of the breast…and VOILA!

This is by far one of the best things I think I make.  My mom really enjoys my breaded chicken…and that’s saying a lot.  🙂  The cashew meal, which I got from Trader Joe’s, was a nice change from the coconut flour (which is my go-to).  I know the wine isn’t so Paleo, but it cooks down and adds nice flavor…so comments about that are not needed.  😉

I hope you enjoy this recipe!

“I dream of a better world where chickens can cross the road without having their motives questioned.”

Warning: I had 2 Woodchuck ciders prior to writing this.  Don’t judge me.

So it’s snowing AGAIN in New Jersey…I figured a little yoga and some chicken soup would do the job today, along with some spring cleaning.  I have today and tomorrow off from work.  WOO!

Got out the good old Crockpot.  Made a pretty simple, but oh so satisfying version of chicken soup.  I got this pretty neat contraption for Christmas that finely dices my onions with a little bit of effort, but much less effort than chopping with a knife.  So, get yourself a medium yellow onion and dice that mo-fo!  Then get some carrots and celery…you can chop as much as you’d like.  I tend to do a lot, just because I like a lot of veggies in my soup.  After you’re done chopping all of that goodness, throw it in the Crockpot.  Then get yourself 8 cups of chicken broth (homemade or box), I go with low sodium because my dad has to limit his salt intake and I always make him extras.  Pour it into the Crockpot and give it a good stir.  Take your chicken (I never use whole chicken in my soup, just because I’d rather use chicken breasts, but go crazy!); I take a couple chicken breasts and throw them in.  Then use 1 tsp. of kosher salt, 1 tsp. of black pepper, 1 1/2 tsp. thyme, and 2 tsp. EVOO…I actually omit the salt, but you can add it….and put in into the Crockpot.  Add a bay leaf or two.  Chop up a little bit of fresh parsley and throw that in too!  Now you’re all set.

Turn the Crockpot on low for 7 hours.  Around hour 6, I take my chicken out and shred it with two forks, then throw it back in for another hour to soak up all the tasty soup.  Hour 7…OPEN THE CROCKPOT AND ENJOY!  You can add more salt and pepper to taste.  …and VOILA!  After you go out and shovel the fifteen feet of snow that just fell from the sky, you can come in and enjoy a nice hot bowl of chicken soup…paleo style.

Hold tight my New England friends…spring is near!  You may have to hide your Easter eggs in the snow, but at least you’ll be able to enjoy whatever it was you gave up for lent (dark chocolate for me).  😉

“Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!'”

A full day of my new strict Paleo of 30 days is complete.  I feel pretty good, even though there’s always a little adjustment period.  The amount of food I’m consuming now, sadly, is a bit less than I’ve been eating.   I feel hungry, or maybe I’m just bored not snacking as much as I was.  Snacking is evil.  I’m happy I started this before the weekend…this will be the true test.  I will prevail!

On another note, I feel like I was actually able to get a good night’s sleep for the first time in a long time last night.  Between the tooth not hurting as much, and maybe not having sugar in my system…it seems I’m on the up and up.

Any struggle we face in life should be faced with confidence and courage.  Getting healthy and fit is no different.

“It’s never too late to start over.  If you weren’t happy with yesterday,

try something different today.  Don’t stay stuck.  Do better.”