good eats

Zach and I ate some delicious food yesterday... I have to share it with you! 

I am not a cooker. 

So.Not.Betty.Crocker.

But something here lately has gotten into me. 

All I want to do is bake or cook a recipe out of the 3 new cookbooks we have gotten. I am loving every bit of it too. If I had the house and money to entertain every night of I think I might would do it! Ok... maybe not every night but probably 6 nights. ;)

So, on to the good eats from yesterday. 

Let me make a disclaimer real quick... Zach and I eat only meat, veggies and healthy fats during the week, so on Saturday we re-fuel our bodies with carbs from whole foods. Some call it "carbing-up".

We made our Saturday morning pancakes. These have become a staple for Saturday mornings! 

Banana Pancakes

You can find the recipe here. We left out the chocolate chips this time and just used a tiny bit of pure maple syrup. Honestly, these are so good alone that you really don't need any toppings. 

After breakfast, we ran some errands, met up with Zach's parents, and then came home to make some lunch. 

I have written about Practical Paleo before. We haven't tried one recipe that we haven't liked.  

We had some turkey burgers already made so we decided to make some sweet potato pancakes. 

What does sweet potato pancakes and turkey burgers have to do with each other???

You use it as your bun!!!

\

We had turkey burgers, kale and peppers, and made sweet potato fries with the extra sweet potatoes we had. This was so good. Yes, we had two different types of sweet potatoes in one meal but who cares!

For dessert, I pulled out my new Paleo Induglences book. 

I flipped through the book and found a recipe that we had most of the ingredients for already. We did have to go to the store to get nuts but other than that we had everything! 

I have to be honest real quick... these cookies are called Macadamia-Date Macaroons. The store we went to did NOT have any macadamia nuts. So, we improvised and used walnuts instead. They were so incredibly good. The had coconut, dates, walnuts, raw honey... what else do you need???

For supper, we ate left over sweet potato pancakes. Zach ate another burger and I ate them like actual pancakes with a tiny bit of raw honey drizzled on top and some frozen grapes. SO GOOD! I forgot to snap a picture. Please forgive me!!

Here are the recipes!!!

Sweet Potato Pancake:

3 eggs

2 tsp coconut flour

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp sea salt

2 cups shredded sweet potato (we peeled, cut into chunks and pulsed in the food processor)

Coconut oil (for the pan)

Mix all ingredient together and cook like pancakes. The sweet potatoes will still be bits and pieces, not pureed. The pancakes have a great texture to them.

Macadamia-Date Macaroons:

8 pitted dates

3/4 cup of macadamia nuts (or walnuts in our case)

3/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1 egg

1 TBSP of raw honey

1 tsp of vanilla extract

Mix everything together in the food processor. You want it to be chunky not smooth. Scoop spoonfuls onto a greased or lined baking dish and cook on 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. 

These recipes are a must try! 

I guess you can just me...

The New Betty Crocker :)

sled/prowler

I did a little conditioning yesterday and today. 

Yesterday, Zach and I broke out the sled and took it to the backyard, threw some weight on it and started pushing and pulling. We did 10 sets of 40 yards (thats 20 down pulling the, 20 back pushing for a total of 40 yards).

Yesterday afternoon, Zach loaded up the prowler so we could have a little fun this afternoon. We took it to the park in Belhaven (I'm dog sitting so in Belhaven) and got to work. We have always done this in the street in our hood. I'm sure every time we do this our neighbors think we are nuts. This was definitely harder on the grass. My first round I ran straight into an ant bed mound and came to a dead stop. Sorry ants! It was a huge challenge but I kept yard for yard with Zach and I am pretty proud of that! 

It's been nice getting out and enjoying this beautiful weather! It's crazy how its in the mid 60's when I head to work but back in the 80's when I get off but, hey, at least its not 100 degrees!!! 

What are you doing today?? 

kale

Back in the day... well about 1.5 years ago... I was a pretty picky eater. I stuck to what I thought was vegetables like canned cream corn, can green beans, butter beans, baked beans, and the list continues.

Last September, I started working with Jen Comas Keck from Beauty Lies in Strength and Girls Gone Strong. She is real big on eating lots of vegetables. I am so thankful for this!! I know longer work with Jen but I am so grateful for everything that she did for me. I am so much healthier, I crave hearty/nutrient dense vegetables, and now I don't have a meal with out vegetables. 

One vegetable in particular is kale. You know, that leafy stuff that most people and restaurants use as garnish.   

It is loaded with great nutrients!!! 

I eat it mostly at breakfast. I usually saute it with peppers. This is my super large egg/veggie bake that I cooked yesterday for my week away from home.  

It is so good! 

I saw this cute picture on Facebook yesterday! 

Sorry, chickens... I'll eat more of you too! ;)

planning, preparing, prepping

Zach and I usually spend a few hours either on Saturday and Sunday to plan, prepare, and prep our meals for the work week. We only pack what we have to take to work... we eat breakfast and supper at home. When your eating 4 small meals a day its best/easiest to have them all prepared ahead of time. This is very important if you are trying to hit certain macros and have fitness and weight loss goals. 

Today, Zach and I spent a little extra time in the kitchen prepping our meals. I am going to be away from home tonight through next Saturday. That's 6 nights! Six days worth of meal prepping. I wanted to share how it went down over the past few hours...

First I started with breakfast. What is the easiest way to cook 6 meals for breakfast (I'm not including next Saturday in any of my meals)?

 I multiplied what I eat every morning times six.

 Scrambled that many eggs, poured over a baking dish with ghee, kale and peppers.

 Baked for 30minutes at 350 degrees. 

Ta-da!

Six breakfast meals all ready! 

This picture doesn't even do it justice. It looks delicious! 

While I was slicing and dicing vegetables and cracking a lot of eggs, Zach was getting the other 3 meals for each day ready. Yes, we eat the same thing everyday. In these meals, I will have boneless/skinless chicken breast, boneless/skinless chicken thighs, and pork loin with LOTS of veggies. Zach is a great cook so the meat doesn't get dried out or boring. It's still good by day 6.

All my meals, except for my breakfast, packed and ready to go. 

This isn't for everyone and we know this but this is what works best for us and our crazy work schedules. I have some pretty big goals that I want to reach and planning, preparing, and prepping is what is going to help me get there. 

How do you get ready for the week ahead?

indulgences

We all like a little sweet, guilty indulgence every once in a while.

Unfortunately, not everyone can partake in a brownie or delicious pancakes. 

We have been gluten and grain free and mostly dairy free for quite some time. The Paleo lifestyle really works for me and Zach and our bodies really appreciate it. What do I mean by our bodies appreciate it... my skin is clearer, I haven't had any sinus problems, my arthritis in my knee is better (yes, I'm 27 and have arthritis in my knee... thanks to 2 knee surgeries and yes, it hurts occasionally but that is from doing an exercise that irritates it and then I no longer do that exercise), digestion is much better... oh the list could go on! 

 We don't need bread, pasta, crackers, cereal, or oatmeal. We will gladly turn down cake, cookies, cupcakes, or whatever sweet of your choice. But I would be lying if I said we didn't have a craving here and there. 

There are many ways to make gluten and refined sugar free baked goods! 

I saw this cookbook on Facebook and immediately wanted it. I love trying out new recipes with natural ingredients. 

My sweet, sweet husband surprised me with it yesterday. I was THRILLED!!!

How is it possible to make cookies and other baked goods without flour or sugar?

You use natural ingredients like...

almond flour

coconut flour

pure honey

coconut nectar

unsweetened coconut flakes

nuts and seeds

fruits

72% or darker chocolate

The list could go on and on. 

I didn't say that these indulgences were low in fat but your body will appreciate the natural ingredients instead of the bleached flour, sugar and other processed baking necessities. 

I have drooled over every page in this book and I can't wait to start cooking. My co-workers might love or hate me! 

Almond o' Joys!

 Banana-Pecan Pancakes

 Decadent Brownies

 Some-More-Ahhhhhs

 Vanilla Cupcakes

This is just a small sample of what is inside this book. There are also some savory dishes that are mouth watering!

I plan on posting when I try some of these!!! 

battle

 I love working out. I love everything about it.

The sweat.

The burn.

The soreness.

The overall feeling.

Yes, some days are harder to make myself get it over with but usually once I start I get in a zone. 

I had the day off today and would usually just workout in our garage but I really needed to get something done at work. I thought to myself...

If you go to work and get your stuff done you can play with these...

 Since, I have been doing so many of my training sessions at home, I haven't had the chance to use the battle ropes in a long time. I kept it to an upper body workout only because of some pain I have been having in my right leg. Trying to let it rest a couple of days. 

Here is what I did..

Bench 95x3x5

Seated Low Row 60x3x10

DB Bench 30x3x12

1 Arm DB Row 25x3x12

Push-Ups 3x15

Pulldowns 60x3x15

I finished off with the battle ropes. I did 15 slams on the minute for 10 minutes straight. 

It felt good and I was glad that I got it done. I was back home by 615am. The rest of my day I have been so lazy! Why not? It's my day off and I have to work this weekend. 

I did make this delicious meal...

Sweet potato hash with 2 eggs on top. The hash consisted of sweet potatoes, bell peppers, arugula and turkey sausage. So.Incredibly.Delicious!

Anywho... Happy Friday! Have a great weekend!

tailgating

Today at work, our membership coordinator decide to make it jersey day. We encouraged all of our members to support their favorite team and they would get a prize for participating. Of course, all of us workers jumped on board. We decided last minute that we would also make it a party day. We really will find any reason to throw a party. Usually, its for a birthday or holiday but why not throw a tailgating party in the mix. 

I, of course, supported the Saints! I borrowed a jersey and wore it with pride... even if it was a size or two too big!

Brandi loves some Ole Miss!

 Me, Kim and Brandi.

Saints, Dawgs, and Rebels or should I say Bears. 

Once again, we threw down on some groceries. We had a little bit of everything. 

I decided to bring the goodies! 

I found two recipes off of fastpaleo.com and one out of our Practical Paleo Cookbook. They were all absolutely amazing! A must try. 

Here are the recipes!

Better Brownies
(fastpaleo.com)

• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup Almond Butter, smooth and unsalted
• 1/4 cup Coconut Oil
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• 1/3 cup Honey
• 2/3 cup Canned Coconut Milk
• 1/3 cup Almond Flour, 1/3 cup Coconut Flour
• 1/3 cup Cocoa Powder, 2 teaspoons Baking Soda
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon (optional)
• 2/3 cup Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (make sure they are gluten, dairy, and soy free)

Combine wet ingredients in one bowl and dry ingredients in another bowl. Mix together and pour into a grease 9x9 baking dish and cook for 30mins at 350 degrees. 

Almond Butter Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
(fastpaleo.com)

• 1 cup almond butter
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 2/3 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Mix first 7 ingredients together and then combine dark chocolate chips and coconut. Scoop dough and place on a greased cookie sheet and cook for 7-9 minutes at 350 degrees.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
(Practical Paleo Cookbook)

• 2eggs
• 2TBSP butter
• 2TBSP Maple Syrup
• 1/2tsp of Vanilla Extract
• Pinch on Baking Soda
• 2TBSP of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 Cup of unsweetened coconut flakes
• Almonds (optional)

Mix all ingredients together and cook for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Original recipe says to bake for 20-30mins but my first batch seemed a little on the overdone side so I made a second batch and they turned out much better.... Just watch them!

My sampling plate from last night. 

They were all delicious, I can't just pick out one so try them all out and let me know what you think. 

Good Luck to your favorite team this weekend! 

What do you bring to your tailgating paty?

breakfast cookies

Since going paleo last February, Zach and I love trying out new recipes that fit the paleo standards.

 Needless to say, we follow lots of blogs and drool over all the yummy recipes!

Here is a new recipe we tried this past Saturday.

Breakfast Cookies

We got the recipe from Paleo Parents blog. This is a great cookie and definitely worth trying! 

Recipe:

(Straight from the Paleo Parents Blog)

Ingredients (yields 1 dozen)

½ pound ripe bananas (about 1 cup mashed)

½ cup unsweetened applesauce

2 tablespoons palm shortening

2 oz pitted dates (about 3 or 4)

1/3 cup coconut flour

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

1½ tsp lemon juice

½ cup finely shredded dried coconut

2 tablespoons dried apricots, chopped

2 tablespoons dried currants

2 tablespoons raisins

We changed a few things up... basically the dried fruit. We found SunMaid Fruit Bites that had a little bit of everything in it. We, also, used coconut oil instead of palm shortening We kept everything else the same. 

 It looks like a hot mess when mixing all the ingredients together but it taste yummy!

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a food processor, puree the bananas, dates, applesauce, and shortening until it has the consistency of baby food, about 30 seconds.

3. Add the coconut flour, cinnamon, vanilla, baking soda, lemon juice and pulse 5 or 6 times until combined.

4. Add the dried fruit and shredded coconut and pulse twice. Don’t run it long enough to puree the dried fruit, just enough to incorporate it.

5. Spoon golf-ball sized balls of dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment or a Silpat.

6. Flatten the balls a bit with your palm. These cookies don’t spread, so make them the shape and size you want prior to baking.

7. Bake for 18-20 minutes. 

Mine didn't turn out as good looking as the creators but they are super moist and extra delicious. Zach and I brought a little container of these to Brooklee's birthday party so we could enjoy something sweet while everyone was inhaling cupcakes. 

Try them out and let me know what you think!

Happy 3rd Birthday Brooklee!

I can not believe in a few short days my little niece, Brooklee, will be 3 years old! The past 3 years have been so much fun. This girl is so incredibly smart. I have never seen a child that knows as much as she does at the age of 3. Yes, I might be a little bias but at the same time I'm honestly just stating the truth :).

Today, we celebrated her big day. She picked new splash pad in town and she had a blast. All the kids were running back and forth and just having the best time. 

Here is Brooklee and her cousin, Kale, striking a pose! 

 They have so much fun together! So stinking cute!

So, everyone who is close to me knows that I will do anything for my family. Em decided to get Brooklee's cupcakes from a local bakery this year to make it a little easier. I must say those cupcakes were a train wreck. I knew Em wasn't happy and had a feeling that we would be redoing those cupcakes. Being the early bird that I am, woke up at 4am this morning. I had planned on working out before the party. At 4:05am I get a text from Em asking if I was up. I sat up and I knew exactly what she was about to ask. I ran into the closet got dressed and Zach and I headed to Wal-Mart to meet her. We grabbed some cupcake mix and icing, headed back home and got to baking. 

Are the professional? No.

Do they look better than the professionals???

OMG, YES!!!!

Em and I enjoying the party!

 My wonderful husband who never questions any of the crazy things that my sister and I come up with!

 Our wonderful grandparents! 

(FYI- grandparents day is tomorrow)

 Cute little party favors. How cute are these tin buckets with chalkboard paint on them??

Super Cute!

 Me and the beautiful birthday girl. She was so busy running around that it was hard to get her to stand still. I maybe bribed her saying that I had a secret to tell her. ;) I snapped the picture real quick and let her go back to playing. 

 She was standing under the buckets waiting on them to tip over and splash her. 

She loved it!

 Silly Girl!

 Brooklee and Cage waiting on cupcakes!

 Isn't she beautiful!?!?!

Check out that hot pink nail polish... She picked that out all on her own!

 Enjoying herself!

 So excited about her LaLaLoopsy doll that Zach and I got her. 

 I believe it was a wonderful party. She smiled the entire time. 

Loved every second!