The Sweet Potato: A New Way to Dress It and How it Can Help During Your Whole 30

It's Day 21! Bob and I are 2/3 of the way done with Whole 30. We still feel great! I have to tell you. If you are doing Whole 30 or plan to, the first two weeks are tough, but after you make it half way you feel great and it's totally worth it! So stick with it!

On a different note: We made baked sweet potatoes as a side for dinner last night. I garnished mine with coconut oil, ghee, rosemary, and dry roasted pecan pieces! So good. Try adding pecans to your sweet potato. A sweet potato with butter (clarified of course) and pecans tastes so decadent, it feels like it can't be Whole 30 approved. I felt like I was being bad! But without the physical repercussions.

This was last night's dinner: pork steak, roasted broccoli with garlic, and a sweet potato. It was too much food, especially with the filling sweet potato. I only ate about a third of my pork and not quite half of the sweet potato. But I did eat all of my broccoli! Gotta get those greens!

 Baked sweet potato at 400 degrees for 50 minutes. Dressed with coconut oil, ghee, rosemary, and dry roasted pecan pieces.

When I belonged to CrossFit Seattle, I went to the paleo seminars led by Dave Werner often. I have heard him mention in his seminars and to people personally as a piece of advice that if you were struggling with carb withdrawal you could eat a little sweet potato for an energy boost. I didn't follow this advice during my first week of Whole 30, because I was being very stubborn and decided that I wanted to rid myself of carb dependence as quickly as possible by pretty much not eating any significant source of carbohydrates. It did work, I guess... but it probably would have been a little less painful if I incorporated a little sweet potato or a little more fruit in my diet during the first week. In the end, I probably would have had the same results and still feel just as great as I do now.

Try Cooking a Food Item You Have Never Cooked Before

I cooked eggplant for the first time a couple of days ago. Even though I have enjoyed eating eggplant I never thought about trying to cook it myself. But when I got a couple of eggplants from Suzie’s Farm’s tour I had no reason to put this venture off. I did a little research online and decided to follow this video. Although I didn’t brush the olive oil on the eggplant…I drizzled…well I poured the olive oil on the eggplant halves and spread it around with my fingertips. I also seasoned the eggplant with garlic powder, thyme, and fresh cracked black pepper. The eggplant soaked up the flavors nicely. I just ate the eggplant meat right out of the skin. It reminded me of a baked squash or a baked potato. Not sure if the texture is supposed to get that mushy. The video warns that eggplant “has a tendency to suck up oil like a sponge when you cook it” if not prepared properly…as if that would be a problem..??? That sounds like a good thing to me. Anyway, not sure if the eggplant turned out the way it was “supposed” to, but it was delicious regardless. I ate both eggplants in one sitting. Mmmm. The roasted/baked eggplant would be a good substitute for a baked potato when you’re craving some hearty comfort food.

 Since starting the Whole 30 I have cooked two things I have never cooked before – pork chops and eggplant. It’s been so fun trying new foods! I implore all of you doing the Whole 30 program to TRY NEW THINGS. Try new foods, recipes, preparations! It will keep you from getting bored and you will stay excited about eating this way!

Recipe: Garlic Mashed Cauliflower

Mashed cauliflower is a great side dish alternative to mashed potatoes. I highly recommend cooking and trying mashed cauliflower for your self – especially if you are craving some comfort food. Mashed cauliflower is just as warm, cozy, and fulfilling as mashed potatoes, but without all the starch, carbs, and calories. Online you will find a bunch of different recipes. Some call for milk, cheese, oil, butter, etc. My recipe doesn’t call for any of that stuff. It’s completely paleo and Whole 30 approved. It doesn’t call for an oil or fat either (making it very low calorie), because it tastes great without it! Additionally, you don’t need a food processor or blender for my recipe! That always makes me happy, because they are a pain to clean.

 Last night's dinner

Garlic Mashed Cauliflower

(Makes 2 servings)

What you need:

2 heads of roasted garlic (Never roasted garlic before? Here’s how: Roasted Garlic Recipe)

1 large head of cauliflower

3 cups of organic chicken broth

Fresh cracked ground pepper

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Rosemary

Thyme

Cut cauliflower into florets. Don’t worry about cutting small pieces – the cauliflower cooks down really well and you will not have problem mashing it. Put cauliflower florets (you can throw in the stems too) in a pot with the chicken broth. Add pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, and thyme.

 

Place a lid on the pot and cook over medium-high heat for 25 minutes or when the cauliflower falls apart when you touch it with a fork. I usually just keep the cauliflower cooking until the roasted garlic is cooked and cooled.

Strain chicken broth. You may want to add some of the broth back in if you don’t feel like your mash is moist enough, but I have never had that problem. Add roasted garlic (I keep my hand around the foil to avoid burning my fingers and squeeze the cloves out) to the drained cauliflower. Mash with a fork or a potato masher. You can add more pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, and thyme to taste. I never add salt when I make mashed cauliflower, because chicken broth generally has a lot of sodium. If you use a low-sodium broth you can add salt to taste.

 Voila! Mashed Cauliflower!

Recipe: Paleo Chicken Verde Fajitas

I made paleo chicken verde fajitas last night. This is by no means a gourmet dinner, but it's delicious, healthy, very EASY (kitchen illiterate proof), and kid friendly.

 

Paleo Chicken Verde Fajitas

(Recipe serves 4-6)

What you need:

2 lbs of organic chicken breasts (trim fat)

3 cups of salsa verde (if you are not making it yourself, be sure to check ingredients)

1 large onion, cut in long thick slices (fajita style)

3 bell peppers, cut in long thick slices (fajita style)

4 serranos or jalepenos, cut in long slices (optional)

3 Tablespoons of coconut oil

Cracked black pepper

Himalayan pink salt or sea salt

Romaine lettuce “tortillas”

For the chicken:

Season chicken with pepper. Brown in skillet at medium high. I don’t use any oil in the skillet, but you can if you want to. I usually have the chicken on each side for about 30-60 seconds. Cover bottom of your crockpot with a thin layer of chicken broth. Place chicken breasts in crockpot and pour one cup of salsa verde on top. I cook the chicken on the 6 hour setting. It still usually only takes about 4 hours. Either high or low settings will work. When the chicken is done, remove from the chicken from the juices in the crockpot

 and pull apart with a fork in a large mixing bowl. Mix in 2 cups of salsa verde.

 

For the onions and peppers:

Put heat on med-high. Put coconut oil in the skillet. Add onions and peppers. Add black pepper and salt to taste. Stir occasionally for about 20-30 minutes or when the onions and peppers are nicely charred.

 Top large romaine leaves with chicken, onions and peppers, and avocado slices or guacamole. We topped ours with my homemade guacamole (I make the best). 

Another Little Bit on Vegetables

Well it's Day 16, so Bob and I are halfway through our Whole 30! I am feeling pretty good too. I don't get ravenously hungry. My energy levels are restored. No more headache. Bob is feeling good too!


Another Little Bit on Vegetables:

Sometimes in the afternoon I steam broccoli and cauliflower for a snack. I put melted coconut oil and a little bit of sea salt or Himalayan pink salt on the veggies and they are so good. You may already know that cooking destroys the natural enzymes in vegetables. Alternatively, cooking vegetables makes them easier to digest. I personally, have a hard time digesting certain vegetables, especially broccoli, if they aren’t cooked enough. Cooking the vegetables in a healthy fat, such as olive oil or coconut oil, serves as a digestive lubricant in a sense. Your troubled tummy will thank you! Additionally, you actually NEED healthy fat to absorb most of the nutrients in the vegetables you eat, because those nutrients are fat-soluble.  So I say: Eat some of your vegetables raw and some of your vegetables cooked with a healthy fat every day and you will cover your bases!

Recipe: Kale Chips

Eating kale provides our bodies with an impressive amount of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and antioxidants. Can you ask anything else from a vegetable? Unfortunately, kale has kind of a funny texture raw. I have had roasted kale before and it was delicious, but other than that I have only eaten kale in the form of dehydrated chips – kale chips! Kale chips are generally very expensive when you buy them at the store. Especially considering how fast those suckers go down. Just like any other chip, the crispy, salty kale chips are addicting. But this time you don’t have to feel bad if you eat them all! It’s much cheaper to make your own kale chips. It is also very easy.

What you need:

1 large bunch of kale

3 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon of apple cider vinegar

Fresh cracked black pepper

Sea salt

Cayenne powder (optional)

Take a large bunch of kale rinse, dry, and cut into squares the best you can. Keep in mind that the kale shrinks a lot when it dehydrates, but even the little pieces are good, so don’t worry about it too much. Cut around the stems. The stems are hard and very bitter when dehydrated with the leaves, so it’s best to leave them out. Place the cut up kale in a mixing bowl.

 

In a separate bowl mix 3 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1 Tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, fresh cracked ground pepper, sea salt, and cayenne powder (if you  like a little spice) to taste. Pour over kale and massage the liquid mixture evenly throughout the kale pieces with your hands.

                                   Bob is massaging the liquid mixture evenly throughout the kale

 Place marinated kale in the dehydrator. Give each piece a little space.

 After 12 hours in the dehydrator, your kale chips are ready to be consumed! Store in an airtight container or else your kale chips will go stale quickly. I read that if that happens you can pop them back in the dehydrator for a bit and they will crisp right back up. I can’t say I have tested that theory myself.

 

If you don’t have a dehydrator, it’s just as easy to dehydrate your kale in the oven. You also don’t have to wait as long before they are ready to eat.

Eating Out on Whole 30

I went out to eat at a restaurant for the first time during this Whole 30 challenge on Friday night. It was Bob’s dad’s birthday. And of course, dinner was at an Italian restaurant! Luckily for Bob and me – we aren’t really into eating noodles (paleo lifestyle aside). It also helped that 4 out of the 5 people at the table got salads. His dad ordered spaghetti. I have never been a spaghetti fan. I am not going to lie – before my dinner came I was eying the cheesy lasagna that the kid a table away was munching away at.

When it was Bob’s and my turn to order we had a few questions and few requests. We each ordered the cobb salad – one of my paleo go-to’s at restaurants. We got the salad with no blue cheese. Their cobb salad came with your choice of turkey, ham, or bacon. We requested chicken instead. I also told our waitress that we were on a special diet and if they use oil to cook the chicken to use olive oil. She informed us that the chicken was baked. I probably should have made sure they didn’t use any kind of marinade, since many marinades have gluten in them. When we got our salads it looked like the chicken just had a few dry spices on it, so I think we were safe. After our substitutions our salads were made up of lettuce, tomato, cucumber, chicken, avocado, and boiled egg. We dressed our salads with oil and vinegar. It wasn’t a super exciting dinner, BUT we passed a major test during the Whole 30 challenge.

We didn’t even succumb to the birthday brownies for dessert. I have a pretty incredible sweet tooth, so seeing everyone eat dessert was the most challenging part of dinner for me. But I think of how much good I did my body by not ordering a cocktail, eating from the bread basket, munching down on cheesy lasagna, or going ape shit on that sheet of frosted brownies.

I have been eating out on a paleo diet for years now. It’s okay to request substitutions. Don’t be afraid to ask the server questions or to specially modify your food. You are paying for it and putting it in your body, so you have the right to get exactly what you want. There may be upcharges for certain substitutions – don’t be cheap and don’t be an ass about it. Besides salads with no cheese, dressing on the side, my other go to’s at restaurants are: steak or fish with no starch, add extra veggies; hamburger, no cheese, no bun, add grilled onions and peppers, no fries, sub salad; egg scramble with meat and vegetables, no cheese, no toast, no potatoes, sub fruit; carne asada or carnitas, with no tortilla, rice, beans, sour cream, add extra guacamole; Thai curry (most are made with coconut milk) and I choose one without potatoes; pho without the rice noodles, add vegetables; ceviche, shrimp cocktail, mussels, or clams are paleo appetizers you probably don’t have to modify.