It's Finally Happened.....

I've become a food elitist. And ya wanna know something? I LIKE IT! Throughout the summer, I've been really fortunate to have wonderful neighbors who are blessed with the gardening gene and they are more than happy to share their bounty with me. I've made fresh tomato sauce twice so far and I can not even describe how amazing it tastes. So simple: just garlic, onions, tomatoes and fresh basil, with a bit of seasonings to your liking. How easy is that? The first batch I peeled, seeded and chopped. Too much work, so the second batch I peeled the skin then broke the whole tomatoes up with my hands. A quick blend with the immersion blender to break up the bigger chunks and it was perfect. So in an effort to really eat local this year, I am saddened that as we harvest the last of their tomatoes, I will have to wait nine months to begin enjoying fresh ones again. Needless to say, this weekend I will be cooking more sauce and freezing it to enjoy sparingly in the winter.

So the other day, I went to my local Fred Meyer to pick up something completely non-food related. (I think it was Ziploc bags or something.) And while I was there, I thought that maybe I should pick up some extra tomatoes to supplement the fresh stuff. I picked up a bright, shiny Roma and I almost gagged. It was so waxy, the thought of eating it literally almost made me gag. I'm pretty sure my lip moved to a snarl as I was standing there. I mean, where the hell did the wax come from? THIS is what I have been eating all these years? GROSS! And then it hit me.....I've become a food elitist. I will never again be able to walk into a regular grocery store and just mindlessly buy off the shelf. Then I started to giggle, and smile really wide, and I realized this is not a bad place to be. If being a food elitist means knowing only the freshest, organic produce and humanely raised, free-range, grass-fed meats are nourishing my body, then bring it on!

Cookie Dough!

Here is a great cookie dough substitute: http://www.grainfreefoodie.blogspot.com/ I made it with unsweetened coconut and coconut flour and just mixed it and left it in the fridge like cookie dough. OMG! Wonderful! Play with the ingredients to fit your taste. And as Siera writes, "you gotta love a diet that looks for ways to get more butter in your diet!" One suggestion would be to use unsalted butter. Delish!

A Weekend Full of Cooking

Thanks to Mark for the shout out on the Primal Blueprint Insider email! It's a great community you have inspired Mark,and I am happy to be part of it!

This weekend I tried a bunch of new recipes that I am really excited about. I love this time of year, I get in a serious cooking mode!

First, I did Jamaican Ribs from Elizabeth at Caveman Food. These were delicious! I made them for a friend and I believe his comment was "Wow! These are so good! The crisping at the end really makes a difference!" So easy, and so delicious, you have to try these! I used (pastured) pork spareribs this time, and am going to try lamb ribs next weekend. I hope I get the same awesome results!

I also made Kahula Pork, which is the simpliest thing in the world! Here is all you have to do: pull out your crockpot (you know how much I love mine). Take a pork shoulder roast or pork butt roast, rub with sea salt (lightly..or you can use Hawaiian Salt or seasoning salt) then sprinkle with liquid smoke (sparingly). Leave it in the crockpot on low for 8-10 hours. That's it! It will fall apart! Tastes just like the pork you get at a Hawaiian Luau.

Next up was pizza crust courtesy of Son of Grok. This crust stood up well to fresh tomato sauce, ham and pineapple. It was a little dense for my liking but then again, I like fluffy pan pizza. I might add an extra egg next time or some cheese to the crust. Check it out and come up with your own personalized version.

I also did an experiment with meatballs. I am surprised they came out so good! And they make a great grab and go option to have on hand. Here is what I used: 1 pound each grass fed ground beef and pastured ground pork, 4 eggs, thinly sliced onion, Monterey Steak seasoning. Mush it all together with your hands. (4 eggs made it a bit runny, so I added some pork rinds crumbs. Next time I will start with only 2 eggs, and see if any more are needed). Roll into meatballs, and brown in bacon grease. Finish by baking in a 350-degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Yummy!!

So did any of you try something delish this week? Feel free to leave your recipes in the comment section so everyone can enjoy.

Sugar!

I have finally found the perfect use for sugar! Mix some sugar, white or brown, with some olive oil. It is the best body scrub ever! Use it on your face, your hands, everywhere! The absolute best use of sugar I have heard of!

We're over a week into Mark's 30 Day Challenge and if you have not started yet, what is holding you back? I love the way he has formatted it. It's all about what changes YOU can make, regardless how small. If all you want to do is start eating more veggies, then you are in. Baby steps will lead to success in the end. The tough part is taking that first baby step.

The great thing about the challenge is the daily contests. He is giving away a ton of fun, primal stuff!! Here's my entry for the "Show Us Your Breakfast" contest. It's a version of "Joe's Special" this time containing ground buffalo sauteed with garlic, onion, butter, pastured bacon and organic spinach. I love simple dishes like this that I can adjust to whatever I have on hand, then have it available for several days. Primal eating doesn't have to be difficult, the key is being prepared.

The contests can be as easy as leaving a comment or submitting a picture, to much more involved tasks like creating a workout video. All in all, it's a fun way to immerse yourself in the primal community.

So how have I been doing on my goals that I set for this challenge? Here's an update:

1- Get more sleep: I really need to work on this! Since the challenge started, I have actually been getting less sleep...oops!
2- Walk the Talk: I have been eating full primal about 80% of the time. I have had a couple slips, with travel and graduation celebrations, etc. I still have a lot of travel this month, so it will continue to be a challenge, but I have less functions to attend so I can better control what I am eating. What I find interesting is how quick conventional thinkers are to critize. And of course, their way must be right. I was traveling with my parents last weekend, and my mom was quick to point out how fattening/salty/etc beef jerky was or commenting how heavy an omelet in the morning is. I wanted to say "fat doesn't make you fat" but it doesn't quite make sense coming from me since I still have weight to lose. Soon, I will be a living, breathing example of how amazing the Primal lifestyle can be.
3- Limit alcohol intake: This has been going very well. I've only indulged three days since the challenge started with is a big decrease for me.
4- More time outside: I was able to spend quite a bit of time outside while I was in Indiana, then I came home to rain. But it should be clearing up so I hope to get some outside time in this weekend. Next week won't be a problem as I will be in Hawaii....I will be getting lots of outside time then!
5- Drink more water: I have definitely been getting more water. Since I am not having cocktails in the evening, I find myself drinking a lot of water.

Yesterday was a challenging day as I was traveling all day to get to West Lafayette Indiana from Seattle. Jeez, it takes all stinkin' day! We flew out of Sea-Tac at 10:20 am and arrived at the hotel at almost 9:00 pm. Granted there is a three hour time difference but man, was I wiped!
I actually did ok eating wise, and was able to avoid some of the usual pitfalls.

Primal eats:
Morning: Protein Pack - hard boiled egg, three ham and cheese roll ups, a tablespoon mayo.
Snacks: raw almonds, grass-fed/finished beef jerkey
Dinner: side salad with garlic ranch, chicken breasts topped with ricotta, goat cheese and sun dried tomatos, and a small side of pasta with red sauce, one beer

Yes, I had pasta. I caved, I admit. I didn't realize that it came with the meal I ordered, and there it was. I only had a couple bites, and then pushed it away, so I won't beat myself up too much.
Hope everyone is doing well on the challenge. Baby steps get you a long way in the long run!

Primal eats:
Morning: big cup of homemade chicken broth, handful of raw almonds
Afternoon: grilled grass-fed/finished top sirloin (which had been marinated in fresh garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil), 1/4 avocado, cucumber and onion marinated in raw vinegar
Evening: Salad - lettuce, tomato, grilled chicken, bacon, shredded cheddar, red onion and Blueberry dressing. 4 beers.

My main accomplishment for the day? Ordering a takeout salad, without any dressing or bread. In a matter of a minute or two, I whipped up some homemade blueberry vinaigrette. Using a Silver Bullet (or other small blender) puree together: fresh (or thawed) blueberries (or any other berry), olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a bit of honey, salt and pepper. It is the perfect summer salad dressing!!