Whole30 Day 12 - Another Long Day

From Extended Stay America to Whole Foods NA Category Review to CrossFit Medusa to HealthWorks to CrossFit Back Bay to PPL Labs to The Club by George Foreman lll to San Diego for a bachelorette party (on the Whole30)...

Was it serendipitous that I stayed at Extended Stay America...???

There are perks staying at Extended Stay America...

Woke up to an image of Carl's Jr Thickburger on 
Good Morning America...
I couldn't even image how I'd feel after eating one of those...

CrossFit Medusa, a woman's only CrossFit Box.


The Club by George Foreman 111

Look who it is...???

A snack before my 6 1/2 hour flight from Boston to San Diego. Although my tuna salad was good, the guy's pizza next to me looked a lot better:-(

Temptations all over the place. 
Jet Blue actually handed out FREE snacks. 
No airline does that anymore... 

Ate a quick dinner before I met my friends out at the bar...
Whole30 TIP
Try and eat before you meet up people, then you won't be tempted!

Should I stay or should I go...???

Well, I went and it wasn't hard to stay Whole30 compliant:-)

Today's Stats
Water Consumption:

90 oz - I need more water

Sleep:

6 1/2 hours

If I didn't get re-directly to Extended Stay America, I would've gotten to bed earlier and slept in a more comfortable bed.

Daily Meals:

7:30am - Coconut Milk Latte

7:45am - 2 Hard Boiled Eggs

11am - 3 Pieces Beef Jerky

2pm - 3 Pieces Beef Jerky

4:30pm - Tuna Salad, Carrots, Broccoli & Asparagus

6:30pm - Handful Macadamia Nuts

9:30pm - Homemade Chicken Salad and Veggies

Holiday Hash - A Cast Iron Skillet One Pan Primal Wonder

If you don't have a cast iron skillet yet, you should ask for it for the holidays...They are inexpensive and usually available at your local hardware or cooking store...It's my go-to pot that if taken care of correctly, develops flavor the more you use it...Click here for seasoning and caring instructions...

I usually make a hash at least once a week on the weekends...It is a great way to use up leftovers and is so quick, easy, delicious to make...

Below are is a photo of my day after Thanksgiving Hash...Feel free substitute any of the ingredients with whatsoever in your fridge...

Ingredients

- 5 slices bacon, cut into pieces

- 2 cups leftover turkey (ham, pot roast, duck, ground beef, chicken, pork, etc)

- 3 cups roasted sweet potatoes

- 1 cup roasted mushrooms

- Other Options: kale, spinach, chard, cherry tomatoes, onions, jalapeño, bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, etc...the options are endless

Instructions

1. Preheat Over to 325 degrees.

2. Cook bacon

3. Add leftover turkey or whatever leftovers you have.

4. Add the roasted sweet potatoes and mix all together. You can also take a mash to the mix if you want smash it up.

6. Crack eggs on top...I usually do at least 1 egg per person...

7. Place in oven for 5-8 minutes, until eggs are cooks over easy. Take out of oven and let rest for 3-5 minutes. 

8. Serve up however you like it...I like my hash over a bed of spinach, the yolk helps soften the spinach, but you can also add the spinach to the skillet as you are sautéing the mixture, it all depends how you like your spinach...

There are so many ways to make this One Pan Wonder, however you decide to make it your own, don't forget to use up your primal leftovers...

Happy Holidays!!!!

Homemade Jerky - Primal Eats

If you have dehydrator and you haven't made homemade jerky, you need to. If you don't have a dehydrator you should consider investing in one. It's a great way to make lots of different kinds of homemade snacks...dried fruits, dried veggies, roll-ups, meats, etc...

Homemade jerky is my favorite primal eats...My husband & I actually started a jerky company right after college because we did so many road trips and ate so much jerky we thought it would save and earn us money if we made our own....It was called Trekkin' Jerky...Although the company doesn't exist anymore, it doesn't stop me from making it...

I pride myself as being a jerky connoisseur and refuse to buy bad stuff, although I will try new brands as long as they use quality ingredients...Many brands on the market are loaded with MSG, artificial flavors, sodium and made with conventional meats...Also, hard to find the right texture, dryness or thickness...For a product that is relatively expensive you'd think there would be better options on the market, so since there aren't I just make my own...

If you are really particular about thickness, you should get a automatic slicer...They are not that expensive, will save you time, produce consistent slices and makes it very easy to slice not just meat but fruits and veggies...

Ingredients

- Top Round Beef, Grassfed & Finished: I usually buy at least 8-10 lbs, but buy as much as you want...remember, you will yield about 60% of the total you start with...

- Seasoning or Marinade: I usually do a dry rub of salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, cayenne, turmeric, coriander...But you can really use whatever you want...If you are using a wet marinade you should let if marinade overnight...

Instructions

1. Trim the fat, if needed. 

2. Then cut the big piece of meat into 4-6 smaller pieces so it's easier to cut on my slicer. 

3. Place meat in freeze, frozen meat is easier to slice. If you don't have a slicer you want to partially freeze mea and cut by hand.

4. Slice or cut the frozen meat.

5. If marinading, marinade sliced meat overnight. If using a dry a rub, place the meat on the dehydrator.

6. Season with a strainer so it is coated evenly.

7. Set the timer and temperature according to your dehydrator. I set mine at 160 for about 3 hours.

8. Enjoy! 

Remember, this is fresh-homemade jerky without any preservatives so if you don't eat it within 10-14 days you might want to vacuum seal it or refrigerate it...

Now Casting - Next Food Network Star Season 11

If you know me then you know I love to cook, coach and sell. You also probably know I've been trying out for the Next Food Network Star for the past 6 or 7 years; it's been so long I can't keep track any more. The finalists of the NFNS compete for their own cooking show. To become a finalist you first need a creative and unique cooking perspective. 

My cooking perspective has definitely evolved with my lifestyle and current health trends. Growing up in the 80's made me fat-phobic. The major message back then was - Fat made you fat, so don't eat anything with fat or else you will be fat. The grocery aisles were filled with fat-free, sugar-filled, processed products which is what I ate. Highly additive foods that were not at all satiating or nutritious, but were fat-free...

Although an athlete throughout high school and college I didn't understand the connection between performance and diet. 'You are what you eat.' How many times have you heard that before. Well, there is a difference between hearing it and actually living it...and I was not living it until... 

About 2 years ago I found Crossfit and was introduced to the Paleo community, which has helped change my fat-phobic mentality. Eating (good quality) fat will not make you fat. I've been in the natural foods industry for over 10 years, a fitness coach for over 15 years and a trained chef for 6. I thought I was living a healthy lifestyle, but now I know I was duped...

I'm not 100% Paleo ..I like to say 'I'm 100% Paleo 80% of the time'. It's my 80-20 rule:-) 

I like food way too much to deprive myself, but I know I perform better eating Paleo. 

When I was first introduced to paleo I was turned off by it. WHAT!?!? I can't cook or consume any bread, beans, soy, peanuts, dairy, pasta, etc...!!! I'm a trained chef, how could I cook without those ingredients...??? I love to eat, why would I restrict myself from those tasty foods...??? 

NO-WAY, NO-HOW.!.!.!

It took awhile to warm up to a Paleo Lifestyle. I started with baby steps and reluctantly eliminated some foods from my diet and started paying attention to how much better I felt. I think the major reason why I was so stubborn about going Paleo was because I was more focused on what I had to eliminate instead what I was going to gain. As soon as I shifted my negative thoughts to positive ones, I started seeing and feeling differences in my mind and body. 

Anyhow, the reason for this post is to get some feedback. I will be auditioning for the Next Food Network Star again and want to incorporate my Paleo-ish lifestyle into my culinary point of view, but I believe words like 'Paleo' or 'Primal' might turn people off...What do you think?

My tagline for this show is Real Food.Quality Ingredients.

BUT I need a show title that reflects my culinary point of view while relating to the masses...

Below is a list of show titles, which one resonates with the most...

- Partially Paleo

- Paleo Kitchen

- Primal Cooking

- Primal Eats

- Real Food Cooking

- The Cavegirl Cook

- Cave Crave

- Cavegirl's Kitchen

- Karen's Cave or Karen's Kave

- Lifestyle Cook 

     

Or if you have other ideas, shout them out...All feedback is welcomed...THANKS!!!