Slippery slope

I'm loving the crockpot and almost tempted to get another so that I can double up.  I took another stab at the Indian style curried chicken but omitted the yogurt - it didn't work well in the crockpot and I'm doing Whole 30.

I put tomatoes, celery and onions in the crockpot, frozen drumsticks, seasoning, and carrots and went about my afternoon.  When I tasted the sauce, I realized I needed something to absorb the spice but rice and/or potatoes were not an option.  The only thing I could think of was yuca, so I sent my husband for 2 and pressure cooked them for 10 minutes.

I'm having second thoughts about whether this was a good choice...this is a staple source of nutrition in many cultures but I don't know if it is too carby for Whole 30, particularly because I'm feeling a bit of 'carb let-down'.  Of course my son loved it because he said it was like eating potatoes.  He also liked the 'potato like things that taste like carrots' that I made for breakfast (parsnips & turnip homefries).

I'm beginning to worry that I'm on a slippery slope with these improvisations that I'm making...we seem to be doing a lot of pseudo carbs and sweets and it makes me nervous.

Simplifying

We are at the half-way point and I'm finally getting a handle on meal planning and grocery shopping; despite the citrus craze, I spent far less money this week and I'm really using what I have at home rather than stockpiling food in the fridge, freezer, and pantry.

I took out a "london broil" (although there is really no such cut of meat)...this was likely a top round roast that I intended to prepare as a beef london broil.  I'm down to the last few pieces of my cow share...we had liver again last night and will likely have the oxtail Thursday and then I have no idea what I'm going to do next week other than pay retail for grass fed beef, which will run my grocery bill back up.

This morning went smoothly because I made the caveman custard and was able to get lunches packed in a snap.  The first week I was messing around with salads and making dressing everyday; last week I moved to turkey and hardboiled eggs (I resurrected the egg cooker from deep in the closet); this week it's tuna, hardboiled eggs, & celery...plus their regular snacks of applesauce, green beans and nuts.  I'm starting to worry that we might be consuming too many nuts (we've been going through 2.5 pounds per week - rotating almonds, pistachios, and cashews - but maybe that's not too bad for 4 people) but I'm not going to sweat it.

In the midst of the morning spent with the plumber here AGAIN, I decided that I was going to have to put the london broil in the crockpot because I couldn't bare the thought of cooking.  I was a little nervous about slow cooking this cut of meat but part of me thought - who cares if it's not tender.  I didn't want a pot roast so I made an asianesque sauce - tamari, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and I squeezed in a blood orange for sweetness.  I put the meat in the pot with celery and onions, poured in a little stock, seasoned the meat, then poured in my sauce and cooked on high for 5 hours - 3.5 would've probably been sufficient but it came out good nonetheless.  We had string beans and pressure cooked butternut squash on the side; I didn't even bother to slice the meat.

It was a relatively simple yet tasty meal...I'm starting to think I've been over-thinking food and am loving Whole 30 for broadening my horizons.

Limited options

Eating whole 30 requires creativity and will power when eating out.  I've had several lunch meetings and have been ok with salads and fish; my family is running elevation burgers in the ground.  Elevation works because you can get a grass fed burger wrapped in lettuce while you're on the go.

Last night our refrigerator was relatively bare but I couldn't bring myself to cook anything anyway...this was problematic because there was no delivery option and it was getting late.  We finally decided on Le Bercail, it was going to cost us $30 but it was the best we could do and it was worth every penny.  I had poisson (despite it being tilapia), everyone else had dibi viande.  I made a beet & romaine salad on the side.  We ordered plantains because we had to forego the yassa because of the rice...next time we'll try the atieka - if we can eat yams, we certainly can eat cassava.

Today things quickly spiraled out of control.  We went to elevation for our regular Sunday lunch but I had waited too long to eat (ate breakfast at 830 and it was 230 by the time we sat down) and my blood sugar had dropped substantially.  My plan was to go to Wegman's and get the Boathouse green goodness drink but instead I had a sample of the fresh squeezed honey tangerine juice, then I tried a sample of the fresh squeezed blood orange juice.  We were hooked and the kids wanted to buy a container but it was far too expensive, so we had a few more samples.  Finally I decided to buy a bunch of oranges so that I could make some at home.  By the time I got into the car I felt like I had just went on a sugar binge and ruined my Whole 30.  I told the kids that we would have to eat the oranges for dessert instead of making empty calorie juice.

I'm heading to the kitchen to make dinner and prepare for tomorrow with the hope that this weak will be far less hectic than last week.

Pancakes!

Whole 30 has been a little hard on the kids, especially my daughter...the "restrictions" are causing her to lust after carbs - I can understand that she wants GS cookies, since we have hundreds of cookies in our house; but it's the nagging requests for cereal, ice cream, and other crap that's starting to wear me down.  This morning she announced that she wanted Belgian waffles.

I thought of a compromise - flourless banana pancakes - the only problem was that my son had eaten all of the ripe bananas so I searched online and found a recipe for coconut flour pancakes that I decided to give a try (I added a dash of apple pie spice & substituted vanilla bean paste for the extract).  I made topping from the one ripe banana...I was thinking that I could that some sort of almond milk glaze would have been nice but I didn't have the energy to figure it out.

When my son saw the plate he exclaimed, "I can have pancakes?!" Although he didn't notice the texture my daughter did but she enjoyed them anyway.

Gravy

I finally made a Whole 30 attempt at a family favorite - liver & onions, rice & gravy, and spinach.  At first I couldn't "think outside of the box" with liver because I couldn't imagine it without gravy...however my Ethiopian friend stopped when I was in the middle of cooking and told me that they eat it for breakfast sauteed with onions, pita, and tea.  

After more thought than was necessary, I finally had a plan and was able to successfully execute it tonight. The only problem was that the liver was frozen.  I placed the package in cold water, cut up onions and garlic for the kale, then more onions, then pressure cooked the cauliflower.  That's when the doorbell rang and the cauliflower ended up cooking under pressure for at least 15 minutes - needless to say, I didn't need my stick blender.  

I sauteed the onions in grapeseed oil, seared the liver, made gravy with coconut flour, then simmered for a few minutes.  I served the liver & onions atop the smashed cauliflower (my son thought it was mushy rice & my daughter thought it was strange mashed potatoes) and we had an enjoyable meal with no leftovers as usual.  

Hectic

In addition to running around like a lunatic as usual, I'm finding myself having to prepare breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday and it sucks.  My new procedure will be a quick dinner Sunday & Monday, Tuesday & Thursday crockpot, Wednesday leftover smorgasbord, and Friday & Saturday beats me.

I also have to develop a faster breakfast routine.  This morning was plantains, fried eggs, and sausage; then I packed the lunches....I also made a new dressing - balsamic dijon.  I was just catching my breath when I remembered dinner - I put some drumsticks, carrots, celery, and leeks in the crockpot and plan to add "noodles" when we return from sports this evening.

Now I'm getting ready to sink my teeth into a t-bone steak and sauteed spinach before I embark on the next task.

Pseudo pasta

So it seems that we are not authentically implementing Whole 30...largely because of the desserts...but the key is sustainability, and what we're doing seems sustainable for the family.  At the end of the 30 days, we probably won't do full blown Paleo, but we will continue to limit our intake of grains, sugars, and dairy.  We've been talking about doing that for years but could never quite make it happen...now we have the tools and creativity to maintain it.

Paleo's emphasis on "history" has been bothering me a bit; particularly because the idea of the "caveman" connotes someone of European descent, and that's not me.  Considering that mankind originated from present day Ethiopia, I feel that expands the potential for food choices.   Additionally, there has been archaeological proof of mortars and pestles being used in the paelolithic age.  So my version of paleo will likely incorporate "ancient" grains in moderation.

I have to cook everyday because there are never any leftovers.  As a result Tuesday & Wednesdays are crockpot days.  Last night I attempted a coconut crusted cod with pressure cooked beets and steamed brussel sprouts.  I say attempted because the fish coating did not come out as planned.  Today I was able to do a sausage and red sauce over noodles.

While I was searching for kelp noodles, I came across another Korean vermicelli noodle - made from sweet potato starch - I thought these would be a great substitute for pasta, and while they have a bit more body than the kelp, they are still glass noodles.

I sauteed onions, garlic, and peppers, dropped that in the crockpot with a jar of spaghetti sauce.  Then I put in browned turkey Italian sausages, topped that with diced tomatoes and a bit a seasoning, then added in turkey kielbasa for good measure.  It cooked on high for about 3 hours.  I served it over the noodles with a side of haricot verts.  My mom said it was delicious.

The pot might as well be empty.

This can't be right

Tonight's dessert was so spectacular that my daughter is certain that we're doing something wrong.  She said there's no way other Whole 30 people are having the desserts we've been having.  She said the bananas and apples made sense but pina colada can't possibly be right.

It is possible that we're making a huge mistake by having dessert several times per week, but I'm thinking that since we're rethinking dessert, we are actually doing good for the long term.

My husband is loving Whole 30 because the food is so delicious.  Once again tonight the food was demolished.  I literally threw together a pseudo pancit - I used the broccoli stems and cabbage core left over from the lunch salads, sauteed with onions and garlic - I added shrimp, a little veggie stock, tamari (I hope we're not supposed to avoid soy), and kelp noodles.  My son's teacher called as we were sitting down to eat and fortunately they made a bowl for me before they ate the entire pot.

30 minutes later they were asking for dessert.  I planned to make mango smoothies topped with almonds instead of flaxseed but after reading the ingredients on the coconut milk beverage, I'm a little turned off, not to mention I'm clearly addicted to extra creamy coconut milk.  After I blended everything together, it seemed as if I had made a mango cream but it was heavy on the coconut because I used the entire can.  I threw some pineapples into the blender along with pineapple juice and the result was pina colada.

My daughter reminded me that since we do not live in a tropical climate I had no business using coconut, mango, and pineapple this time of year.

Cold weather improv

We had the first "snowstorm" of the season.  Because my son's foot had grown 2 sizes since last winter, I had to venture out to get him a pair of snow boots.  While we were out, the kids started talking about the things we traditionally eat when it snows - my daughter requested chicken noodle soup (assuming eggs noodles have no wheat) and we all desperately wanted some hot chocolate.

At first I thought we could finagle the hot chocolate - I envisioned melting some chocolate chips into the coconut milk but of course I discovered that chocolate chips are not all chocolate - they can contain milk, butter, and of course sugar.  We thought about doing unsweetened cocoa powder but that seemed like a disaster waiting to happen.  We finally settled on lattes.  I made a pot of OVC decaf and topped it off with the extra creamy coconut milk.  It was absolutely delicious...there's no need to go back to cream and sugar.

We stopped by my friend's house on Thursday and her mother offered us some shiro, of course I had to turn her down because chickpeas are not Whole 30.  My daughter on the other hand gobbled it down like a fiend.  My friend reminded me that she used to eat qulwah with romaine lettuce when she was more carb conscious but it seemed like blasphemy not to have the food with the requisite injera.

Today I was thinking that nothing warms the soul like a spicy Eritrean dish so I made beef zigni.  I served it with okra, eggplant, and romaine.  I was a little mortified about how fast the food was consumed.  I had chopped onions, garlic, and vegetables and the food had simmered in the crockpot for 3 or 4 hours (the meat was frozen, so I had no choice) and within 25 minutes the dish had been refilled several times and the food had been devoured.

Trial and error

I've been trying out different things to keep the Whole 30 interesting,  My husband said that as long as the food keeps tasting good, we can have the same menu over and over.  Of course I like variety and am constantly trying to think of new things to cook.

Girl Scout cookie season began Thursday, not only did we have a cookie booth scheduled but my kids had dental appointments and my son had ice hockey.  I was nervously anticipating a hectic night so I took a couple of hours to be proactive.

I put a meatloaf in the crockpot - I mixed the beef with shredded cabbage, fried onions, dijon mustard, diced tomatoes, an egg, and seasonings.  I sat it on a few stalks of celery and cooked it on high for 4 hours. Once I had that set, I made a veggie quiche for breakfast.

I was very apprehensive about it being eggy, because my quiches, like my omelettes are full of vegetables and cheese with minimal egg.  But I stuck to the recipe (eggs, coconut milk, mustard) and tried to go heavy on the sauteed veggies (zucchini, mushrooms, leeks, spinach).  I poured all of that into a glass pie dish that I greased with coconut oil.  It was edible but I think the kids have grown accustomed to less of an egg taste so I will try it again but this time with 3 eggs instead of 4 particularly because it made the morning rush so much calmer.

New horizons

I may be a little too excited, but the Whole 30 is not only a diet restart, for me it's about resetting the way I think about food.  Not only have I reconsidered food combinations (especially for breakfast), but I'm also enjoying coffee with coconut milk (the canned is way better than the "beverage" in the tetrapak) - what's the point of buying good beans if your going to mask it with cream and sugar? I feel as if my taste buds are being awakened.

Additionally, because I have to plan for breakfast, lunch, and dinner I can avoid making bad food choices when I'm hungry.  I just have to get better with having snacks in the car.  I'm also hoping we can stay the course during cookie season - which starts tomorrow - so there will be lots of cookies in the house and I'm hoping we will not yield into temptation.  As of now, I have no desire to thin mint and I hope it stays that way.

Out of desperation, I tried a new cooking "technique."  I was at the dentist when I realized that I forgot to take out the ground meat for the meatloaf.  The hygienist was talking about her crockpot and gave me lots of great ideas to make prepping and cooking easier.  She blew me away when she said she puts the meat in the crockpot straight from the freezer...perhaps I'm the only person in the world that thaws the meat, seasons, and then slow cooks.  Well I had no choice but to cook frozen meat today because I couldn't leave my family to fend for themselves and risk sabotaging our diet reset.

I returned and had 30 minutes before I had to walk out of the door.  I poured some diced tomatoes into the pot and mixed with garlic paste.  Then I lade down two stalks of celery to serve as a rack for the meat.  I sprinkled a few dashes of worcestershire sauce (and as I'm writing this I realize there's likely hidden sugar in that condiment), some seasonings, and topped with some sliced onions and more tomatoes.  I spread a half head of cabbage around the meat, seasoned that, then topped the whole thing with a bag of broccoli slaw, which I also seasoned.  Then I poured on a bit of chicken broth and walked out the door.

I was literally shocked when I spoke to my husband and he was raving about the flavor and tenderness.  I had a sample when I came home and it was indeed delicious.  I think this frozen meat idea might help me to streamline my cooking.

Unprepared

Yesterday went relatively smoothly.  We capped off Day One with a fantastic dessert of a pseudo bananas foster - I sauteed 1 banana in coconut oil (my new best friend) and topped with nuts - the kids loved it.  We had butternut squash and sausage hash for breakfast (I am so glad I bought the cubes instead of the whole squash) and I was able to get the lunches packed with relative ease - mixed greens, topped with TJ 8 chopped veggie mix, and grilled chicken thighs - I made the dressing the night before (raw acv, dijon mustard, oil oil, & kelp seasoning).

By midmorning I realized I had skimped on the breakfast portions and hadn't provided the kids with ample snacks - we are trying to limit fruit to twice daily but they need something to ward off the temptation at school.  I ended up stopping at Nutbox in Brooklyn to pick up a snack for the drive back home and went a little overboard - I bought Turkish pistachios (they melt in your mouth), dried plums (not prunes), dried guava (my favorite), a nut mix, and coconut chips.

Despite a hectic day, we managed to make it until dinner (leftovers) and I did another fruit dessert - I cut 2 granny smith apples in half, sprinkled apple pie seasoning, and pressure cooked with coconut milk; I topped that with coconut chips, flax seed, and nuts - very good.

That's when the panic set in.  I realized that I am completely over scheduled for today and tomorrow and wasn't sure how I was going to pull off dinner.  I had my daughter peel the sweet potatoes for breakfast and decided that I would attempt to make a crockpot meatloaf somehow between my dentist appointment and my midday meeting.

This morning I went downstairs and the kitchen was in disarray, that's no good when you're racing against the clock to get breakfast prepared and lunches packed.  I got downstairs at 618, 8 minutes too late.  I started grating the potatoes because I planned to make latkas but I realized how ludicrous that was considering that the school bus driver could only wait until 650 (10 minutes past our scheduled pick up time).   So I decided to attempt sweet potato home fries.  I think I'm going to need to get a mandoline, or pull out the attachments for my stand mixer.

I sliced the sweet potatoes into sticks, diced up half a small onion, sauteed, and topped with nutmeg.  I fried the beef bacon (grain fed but nitrate free), and then fried the eggs (too hard).  It was a very good combination - my daughter loved it.  I threw the lunch salads together and as I was telling them to get some sort of vinaigrette, I realized that the added sugar would undermine our efforts so I quickly mixed up my mustard vinaigrette and added a splash of pineapple juice.

By the time everyone walked out the door (late), I felt so scattered that my was heart was racing.  I planned to relax as I ate my breakfast before I embark on this whirlwind of a day, but foolishly chose to multitask and pay bills while I ate...needless to say, I'm far from relaxed.

Will power

We got off to a rough start but we managed to make it through Day 1, kind of.  I planned to make the hash for breakfast but the sausage was still frozen so that left me scrambling for ideas.  I was ready to delay the start until my daughter suggested mango smoothies - I poured some almond milk in the blender, added some frozen mango and topped with flaxseed; we had a handful of almonds on the side.  I knew this wasn't an ideal breakfast, but it was better than nothing.

When we arrived at the MLK Jr. Day of Service the kids went crazy gobbling up muffins and donuts like they were going out of style, promising that they would start tomorrow.  Since I hadn't prepped anything at home, we stayed for the luncheon, this proved to be a bit of a challenge.  The menu was essentially chicken, mac & cheese, salad, and lots of dessert.  I chose the baked chicken, the salad dressed in balsamic vinaigrette, and a spoonful of yams...as I ate, I could taste the hidden sugar in everything.

I came home and got to work prepping because I didn't want to have another day like today.  First, I cleaned out the refrigerator and did a quick overhaul of the cabinet.  Then I set up a snack station of nuts and fruit.  Finally it was time to tackle dinner.

I had planned to make the Paleo Chili, using green beans & carrots in lieu of beans...I made some slight adjustments by making the stock veggies more prominent - onions, garlic, green peppers, celery, ground beef, tomatoes and an array of seasonings - I rolled out the Bragg sea kelp delight and the TJ South African smoke for the first time, in addition to chili powder, etc.  I ended up dropping in an entire bag of baby carrots and had no room for the green beans so I sauteed a zucchini with garlic to use as a topping.

It turned out to be a cross between a chili and a stew, but it was very good and I managed to stop them from getting thirds, so there just might be enough leftover for tomorrow.  We topped off the meal with herbal tea.

Eager anticipation

I generally prefer to go grocery shopping alone...I can stick to my list and there's no one to ask "can we get this?" Today I took the kids with me and it worked out, they bought into "the new diet we're starting," the Whole 30.  Albeit, my son is disappointed about giving up grains because of his passion for carbs - pasta, snacks, cereal, etc.   However, my daughter was able to conceptualize ways to innovate her snacking - sugar snap peas, haricots verte, in addition to the nuts that I planned.

We bought chicken thighs, veggies, frozen fruit for coconut milk smoothies (I know we should limit fruit but I'm not sure we can do that), cashews, almonds, and pistachio meat (I plan to pull out the gumball machine and stock with nuts for a quick snack).  My husband was in a slight panic about the planned snacks - turkey jerky, veggies, and nuts...he insisted on getting apples, pears, and bananas, despite the plan to limit fruit.

My menu is planned for the week and we're stocked on food, to the tune of $150 and I still need to pick up a few items - coconut creamer, beef bacon from WF, maybe some almond yogurt, kelp noodles, coconut oil, and a new gallon of Braggs.

I'm excited!

Diet reset

I've been complaining to my friend that I'm gaining inches & pounds; she suggested that we start the Whole 30 after our birthday...this means Thursday is showtime.  Today I'm all over Paleo sites trying to put together a menu.  I'm avoiding grains, legumes, dairy, and sweeteners; I think this should be relatively easy for dinner but I'm worried about breakfast, lunch, and snacks - particularly since I'm not a huge fan of eggs.  My husband wants to implement this as well but I think the kids will likely have a forbidden item or two during lunch.

Fortunately, Every Day Paleo, offers a great starting point and I was able to develop a skeleton menu plan for Thursday - Sunday and will make a plan for the following week on Sunday when I go to the market.  I'm also going to need another cow share or some lamb - we have only a few pieces remaining (london broil, cubes, tri-tip, t-bone & filet mignon, ground, and of course liver).  I have a standing Thai lunch date scheduled in the midst of this but fortunately my friend is accommodating and willing to deviate from our quest.

So here it goes, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated:

Thursday - sweet potato latkes;  broccoli, cabbage, & chicken salad; chili w/ carrots & green beans
Friday - sweet potato & sausage hash; salad; t-bone & artichokes
Saturday - veggie quiche; salad; tri-tip
Sunday - veggie quiche; lettuce wrapped burger; cod & beets

Tomato pie

My 13 year old takes her school work very seriously.  Before winter break she embarked on a creative writing assignment about Edisto - of course she was thrilled when we actually went there.  It was as if she had embarked on a research project as she made note of how long it takes to get to Edisto island (Atlantic Intercoastal Highway) from the main road and then the distance to Edisto Beach and finally to our lodging.   She also took pains to identify the various sea birds.

To invoke a sense of place, she wanted to describe the food; not the seafood, but something she considers unique to the place - tomato pie.  Her assumption is that in the north most people think of an Italian pizza style dish when you say tomato pie, however she recalls our first introduction to tomato pie almost two years ago and the Gullah woman that told me how to make it.

Needless to say, she's been nagging me for days because she wanted to experience the pie so that she could write an accurate description that would conjure up the taste.  I complained that tomatoes weren't in season but she was confident that WF would have something and they did - tomatoes from New England that weren't bad...unlike the pink Mexican tomatoes that are all over supermarkets this time of year.

She sat in the kitchen with her legal pad, taking notes as I prepared the pie.  I made one adjustment - I diced the tomatoes and mixed in the peppers, onions, basil, and seasoning rather than layering with slices - this produced a more robust flavor.  I also added a dash of tabasco to the cheese and mayo topping mix and I couldn't remember if the crackers (I use cheez-its instead of oyster or saltine crackers) went on or under the cheese.  She got a little nervous because I was deviating from what she considered authenticity but the results were superb - she actually enjoyed the pie...my little cousin on the other hand acted as if he was being poisoned with every bite.

Finally

I'm sitting here eating a coconut Liberte yogurt for dessert after what now seems like a surreal day.  I got off to a productive start and was pleasantly surprised when the PGW guy arrived at the beginning of the 12-4 service window and found nothing wrong with our hot water heater.

I planned to make curried chicken but hadn't decided if I was going to do it Caribbean, Indian, or Thai style.  It turned out that it didn't matter because the water wasn't working and of course PWD had no idea when it would be restored.  Fortunately the water was back on by 5 (although they are still doing who knows what and water has been gushing out of the street since they started "correcting" the problem at 3pm).

While my son was at ice hockey I cut up the onions & garlic; skinned & seasoned the chicken; and had my daughter peel the potatoes.  That's when I thought about salona, which I haven't made in ages - I was going to have to adjust the method a bit by using the pressure cooker and substituting okra for peas.  When we returned from hockey I seared the thighs, sauteed the onions, added tomato paste, tomatoes, and a little liquid, bizaara, then cooked the chicken under pressure for a few minutes.  I added the potatoes and okra and brought to pressure again.

I was smiling as I thought of my Emirati friend who introduced me to salona when the phone rang.  It was her!  I haven't spoken with her in at least a year so it was such a pleasant surprise that I chatted while the kids helped themselves to seconds and possibly thirds.

Slow cooked sausage

I had a surprisingly simple dinner tonight and now I'm trying to figure other recipes that are just as easy.  Last night I flipped through GRIND while my son was at yoga; the issue was about using the pig from snout to tail so it featured a recipe for sausage & cabbage.  It just so happened that my friend gave me a pack of nitrate free chicken sausages so I thought I'd give it a try.

The recipe simply calls for layering the ingredients in the crockpot and cooking on high for 3-4 hours...

1 1/2 pounds smoked sausage, cut into 2-inch pieces

3 cooking apples, thickly sliced

1/2 head cabbage, shredded

1 medium onion, sliced

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup apple juice

Because I was a little concerned about flavor intensity, I used cider instead of juice (and a splash or so more), a large onion, and I seasoned the cabbage well.  I also substituted turbinado for the brown sugar.  It was delicious - not too sweet, with a little kick.  Next time I would probably use the entire head of cabbage.

Due to ice hockey, Tuesday has become crockpot night so I'm on the hunt for yummy recipes.