Whole 30 Day 5

I'm super excited to share today's post with you all! Remember that new protein dish I hinted about yesterday? Well it turned out fantastically! It really was super yummy and I'm excited to eat the leftovers for the next...two meals or so? But before I can share that, I need to share another new recipe I tried yesterday for breakfast.

See? I'm really trying here!

What you see is something called a Thai Rolled Omelette (yes, again via nom nom paleo) It was relatively easy to make and, despite looking a little overdone, still gloriously fluffy and tasty. Since it requires chopped herbs, it might be one of those weekend things...I'm not sure that I, or anyone else, has time in the busy morning to finely chop much of anything. Thinking about that, I guess you could keep some chopped herbs in your fridge ready to go. Might be something to consider, as this was indeed delicious. I added a side of avocado (just salted lightly) for some extra fat. Yes, I know, my plate is curiously void of any qualifying veggies. And no, I didn't have any raw carrots (gag me) or celery, or anything else after eating this yummy plate. Once it was done, I was done. End of story.

(I'll still try to get veggies in when possible (like leftovers from the night before in the fridge) but I was fresh out. I've decided I'm not going to push the veggie-in-the-morning thing for right now. I feel that as long as I'm getting plenty of other veggies into my other meals, I'm doing pretty good. )

In the afternoon, I was so busy working to prepare for tonight's supper (it requires a bit of time to marinade) and making some HOMEMADE MAYO that I somehow didn't get the normal belly rumblings telling me it was time to eat. (Trust me, I'm not one of those girls who just conveniently "forgets to eat", so this was a strange occurrence indeed.) It also may or may not have had something to do with how much fun I was having singing along with my cranked-up music and scaring my poor puppy Lucy. Nevertheless, when I looked up and saw that it was 2:00, I decided that I'd better get something in me before my dinner was spoiled (aren't you proud, Mom?). So, I had a half of an apple with almond butter and 2 hard boiled eggs topped with my brand-spanking-new mayo and some crumbled pancetta. Talk about yummy!

Why a half of an apple, you ask? Just keep reading, reading...(thanks to those of you who sang that a la Finding Nemo!)

Alright, here it is! These yummy Asian Chicken Thighs was super easy to create and extremely delicious! The only advance work needed is to make the marinade, which was as simple as throwing things into a blender. Then (after so many hours of marinading time) you bake it! As you can see, mine did retain some of the green color from the marinade, but honestly, that was my favorite part! It was very flavorful and added something special to regular chicken thighs. Want the recipe? Head on over to (you guessed it!) nom nom paleo. What? I can't help it if she is an amazing source for Whole 30 complaint meals. I do eventually want to create some of my own ideas to share here, but for right now, it's easier not to reinvent the wheel, if you know what I mean! We ate this with some roasted broccoli and carrots that we put in the oven along with the chicken thighs after 10 minutes of bake time. They turned out perfectly! What a welcome change from all that cabbage!

So, that's it for Day 5! What about you? Are you doing, or thinking of doing, the Whole 30 Challenge? If you already are, how are you doing? Finding any great meals lately?? Let me know in the comments below!

Whole 30 Days 2-4

Eleven inches of snow have put Mr. Honestly Delightful and I on an unexpected mini stay-cation where we've unplugged, relaxed, and just enjoyed being together without the normal stresses of daily life. I have to say, it's been pretty nice! Playing Bananagrams and watching multiple (!) seasons of How I Met Your Mother, along with lounging around in pajamas and no makeup (the latter only me, of course) have certainly spoiled us both.

If there's one thing that wasn't perfect about being snowed in, it was the lingering feeling that I should be making cookies, brownies, or some otherwise sweet treat for us to enjoy, along with some homemade hot chocolate to warm us up (despite it staying a constant 73 in the house). That and the fact that Mr. HD was enjoying the taste of a refreshing beer and I was on the outs with only my water, sometimes fancied up with the squeeze of a lemon or lime. And I'm not going to say that it's been easy! But, knowing that I'm going to be writing about and documenting my meal choices, along with the knowing that I'm doing this for a reason (and hey, it's only 30 days {giggle/sigh here}) have helped a little. Not a lot. Just a little. It's probably my sheer stubbornness that still has me in this thing, but here I am.

So what have I eaten while being snowed in by 3 feet snow drifts? Well, it hasn't been exactly pretty, but I haven't wasted away yet!

Remember how I had that aversion to eating vegetables for breakfast? Well, surprises of all surprises, but when I woke up on Day 2, these leftover brussels sprouts were calling my name. Not even I would have predicted that! I again had 2 of those yummy egg rollups. Delicious!

Lunch was a salad with leftover salmon and mango avocado salsa (you'll notice the salmon as a common theme these next few days). It looked delicious but somehow set me on edge. Who knows? I think it was a bad texture combo with the soggy avocado and lettuce. I did eat it, but don't think I'll be featuring that combo again anytime soon.

Dinner was a conglomerate of leftovers featuring, you guessed it, salmon, brussels sprouts, and sauteed cabbage. It was delicious, but the appeal of the Costco salmon was waning.

Day 3 was kicked off with a yummy scramble of sweet potatoes, apples, and sausage. This had really great potential but I think I'm going to keep working on the recipe. When it's to my liking, I will post it with much better pictures. I promise! Of course, it was topped with a fried egg (my favorite).

On another note, I continue to struggle with having veggies for breakfast. I know, yesterday the brussels sprouts were calling my name, but every other day since then has been difficult, almost to the point where it's ruining breakfast for me. Breakfast has always been my favorite meal of the day, so this is really hitting me hard. I've searched endlessly on the Whole 30 forums and other Whole 30 blogs for recipes that could make eating 2 cups of vegetables for breakfast more bearable, but almost everyone says that you just have to tough it out and by the end of the 30 days you will magically crave vegetables for breakfast and not be able to think of having anything else. I'm trying to stay positive about it, but it is a daily struggle. If you have any ideas, please let me know in the comments!

Lunch was a created out of a desperate attempt to avoid the leftovers that were giving me the stare down in the refrigerator. I swear, Mr. HD could eat the exact same thing for all three meals for an entire month and not bat an eye, but not this girl. I'm all up for making extra so we can eat the same thing for lunch the next day, and maybe even another dinner, but days upon days of the exact same thing can make my stomach turn. It just loses its appeal! So, here you see a tasty conglomerate of things: hardboiled eggs topped with chopped pancetta, grape tomatoes, half an avocado, and an apple with almond butter (consumed last as my "dessert"). I know, I know, nowhere on this cutting board do you see 2-3 cups of vegetables, but hey, this girl was snowed in and tired of the cabbage in the fridge. Cut me some slack.

Dinner was a piece of salmon (notice it's again without the mango avocado salsa...that stuff was seriously not working with me), sauteed napa cabbage, and a big stack of roasted eggplant. The napa cabbage was just ok. (Lucky for me there are leftovers for tomorrow morning. Can you hear the lack of enthusiasm in my voice??) But the eggplant, oh the eggplant. It was delicious! I don't know if I'm just tired of cabbage (and really, who wouldn't be at this point) but this was some seriously fine eggplant. Absolutely amazing! I'll be having this stuff more in the future. And don't worry, I'll also post a tutorial on how you can have your own amazing eggplant. Yummmm...

Breakfast on Day 4 was seriously less than spectacular. So not spectacular that I refused to take a picture of it. What was it you asked? Well, I'll bet, considering that you know I had leftover cabbage and I've not made my love for fried eggs a secret, you already know! Yep, I had a big plate of leftover cabbage with 2 fried eggs on top. It was alright. I'm still struggling with this breakfast thing. But I refuse to give up!

(Cue heart-warming and optimistic music here)

Lunch was a salad with 2 hard boiled eggs, some grape tomatoes, and an avocado dressing that you should not try. No, I will not give you the recipe, nor even a clue about what was in it (other than avocado). Trust me, it's not worth it. Normally this kind of salad, sans the dressing, would be right up my alley; but for some reason, this just wasn't doing it for me. I have a sneaking suspicion that it's the amount of vegetables I've consumed in the last 4 days. Ya, WAY more than I normally eat. I'm still holding out that my body will get used to this and soon begin to like it. Heck, let's be real, I'm waiting for those vegetable cravings that I've laughed at heard about. But what's happening right now is that eating, something that used to be a joy, is starting to lose its appeal. Maybe that's what this whole thing is about. They make you eat all those yucky vegetables with every meal so that you start to hate eating and never want to do it again.

Whoa. I think that's the KILL ALL THE THINGS starting to come out. While I haven't wanted to kill Mr. HD or my sweet puppy, Lucy, I definitely am not having very nice thoughts about the creators of the Whole 30 program.

Moving on!

Dinner on Day 4 was again nothing spectacular. What was it? The LAST (FINALLY!!!) of our salmon and sauteed sweet potatoes (just cut, add some fat to the skillet, and cook; easiest thing ever). I also made Mr. HD eat the rest of the cabbage that was hanging out in our fridge.

What does that sound like, my friends?? A clean refrigerator??? YES!!!! Day 5 starts a brand new supply of (hopefully) yummy protein and veggies. I am beyond excited to try my hand at some new Whole 30-compliant recipe. Come back tomorrow to check it out!

Oh, and because this post isn't long enough, I thought that I'd share my major mishap, proving that we all can make mistakes. Costly mistakes. Yes, that's THREE, count them THREE, blocks of Kerry Gold butter that I tried making into ghee, then promptly forgot about when the Colts game came on.

I think my pan is ruined.

(Sad, pouty face)

Whole 30 Day 1

Day 1 went by painlessly, just as predicted on Whole30's timeline. My meals were planned out, and they kept me full and satisfied for a surprising amount of time. So what exactly DID I eat? I'm glad you asked.

(Sorry there's no picture of breakfast...I forgot to take one.)

Breakfast was 2 egg rollups with grass-fed salami (just a fried egg rolled up with a piece of salami). Prior to Whole30, I would have a toasted Ezekial sprouted English muffin, one half smeared with goat cheese topped with a piece of salami and a fried egg, the other half smeared with lots of butter and homemake apple butter. SO YUMMY! (But wait, I'm not here to promote that kind of eating! Oops.) My point is that the egg rollup was surprisingly good and actually kept me full for about 5 hours! That is amazing, considering that I used to think I needed those carbs to make a meal last. I did not, however, have any vegetables to accompany my breakfast. Call me weird normal, but vegetables with breakfast? That one's going to take a bit of work.

Lunch was 2 hard-boiled eggs (done perfectly, thankyouverymuch, from the help of nom nom paleo) topped with sliced salami and LO sauteed cabbage. YUMMMM. Seriously. I could probably eat cabbage every meal for the rest of my life and still be in love with it. Except breakfast. Seriously? Vegetables for breakfast??

Dinner was pan-seared salmon with a mango avocado salsa (again, nom nom paleo) and roasted brussels sprouts. We seared up enough salmon for the next 2-3 days last night (thank you, Costco) so I'll be chowing down on that amazing stuff for the foreseeable future. Oh, and the delicious-looking salsa? YES, it is as delicious as it looks, and you should probably head on over there for the recipe! Tip: fresh mango was not to be found at our regular grocery store, but frozen mango was. It worked just as well, and BONUS! it was already cut up. 

Aside from those three meals, I did have a small snack while Mr. Honestly Delightful and I were out running around town. It consisted of an Apple Pie Larabar (can you say amazing!?) and about 1/2 cup of frozen bananas & mangos. Yes, frozen. My snack came right after our trip to the grocery store. Hey, shopping for food and not eating any? Not gonna happen! At least they were Whole 30 compliant. 

Sidenote: Yes, larabars are whole 30 compliant, BUT they suggest that you eat them sparingly. Why? Well, they're packed with carbs and sugar, of course! Plus, they taste basically like a fruity candy bar. Delicious? Yes. Addicting? Oh yeah! And the whole point of the Whole 30 is to get your body and brain OFF of the addicting substance that is sugar. 

So, to wrap it up, my first day of Whole 30 went splendidly. We have lots of left-overs to enjoy for tomorrow and I'm still looking forward to finding out how my body does sans dairy, bread, and sugar. We'll see if/how that changes in the coming days!

What about you? Are you ready to give Whole 30 a shot? 

Whole30 Encounter: Day One

I'm headed down the path of no return. Yes, no return. Once I make a decision, I stick with it, Rosie the Riveter style.

(Ahem...)

Alright, I'll admit it. I talk a big game, but where will I end up? Even the good people at Whole30 predict this will be the feeling on Day 1. (You can see their timeline of predicted emotions here.) It was, in fact, that very timeline that prompted me to document my Whole30 encounter. I mean, I was already eating a pretty clean diet, mostly free of sugar and grains. So will my experience be as advertised? Who knows! But it definitely has me curious...

Throughout the next 30 days, I'll journal my experiences, and even what I've ate (that's right, every last gory detail). Keeping in spirit of the Whole30, I will not be posting my weight or measurements; in fact, I won't even be keeping track of those things (I haven't for a while now). I don't expect to lose any weight while I'm doing this, but if some fat should choose to melt away, I won't beg it to come back.

So, if not to lose weight, then why am I choosing to eat what many would consider a very extreme restricted diet? Well, I'm a firm believer in the importance of a healthy gut, and hitting the "reset" button, so to speak, is a great way to get started. Additionally, while I do consider myself to eat a fairly healthy diet, I'm curious to see how I would feel if I cut out all dairy, grains, and sugars. Will I even notice a difference? I don't think I suffer from any symptoms of intolerance, but how do I really know until I cut out those food items? I aim to find out in these next 30 days.

Now, the question is, how brave are YOU feeling? Are you wondering those exact same things? Or maybe you have some extra weight you're looking to get rid of (haven't we all!). Mark Sisson, in the Primal Blueprint, says that your diet influences 80% of your body composition. That's a lot! And I feel like I can back that up, because it is what I've noticed throughout my life, as well. So then, are you ready to embark on a journey that's guaranteed to change your life?

"We cannot possibly put enough emphasis on this simple fact--the next 30 days will change your life. It will change the way you think about food, it will change your tastes, it will change your habits and your cravings...It has the potential to change the way you eat for the rest of your life."

-whole30.com

If you are ready to do it with me, or even if you're just a little bit interested, first tell me in the comments below. Writing your commitment (and even tracking your success along with me) is a great way to give yourself accountability. Then, head on over to Whole30. There is so much information for you outlined there; they will equip you with exactly what you need. I just love it when people do all the hard work for me!

I'm beyond excited to start this journey with you!!

How To: Devein Shrimp

Does this package look daunting to you? Unsuspecting in nature, it contains something that can be fairly intimidating for a midwestern home cook, you know, those who only see the ocean while on vacation. Unfortunately, I happen to be included among that group; however, I was unwilling to let fear get in the way of an awesome deal at my local grocery store. I came home armed with the knowledge that my neighbors are from the Louisiana, and would be willing to help me out if I made a total mess out of things.  

What is it that I'm going on and on about? Shrimp. Yep, shrimp. You see, most of the time when I buy shrimp, I get the frozen kind that are already shelled and deveined. But, I cannot pass up a deal, so I was forced to buy some that were fresh(er) with the shell on. At least they were de-headed; I'm not sure that even a good deal could have forced me into that situation! Nevertheless, when I came home, I had a pound of shrimp that needed to be shelled and deveined. What did I do? Conquer the shrimp on my own? Nope! I enlisted the help of my fearless husband.    :)  

(Those are his hands in all of the photos below! Thanks for modeling for me honey!!)

Turns out, there's really not that much to it. It's a bit labor-intensive, which is why I think they were on sale. Ha Ha! But all in all, it's really not too difficult. So, if you are game for learning a new skill to impress your family (or even yourself) then you should definitely get thee to the supermarket and pick up some fresh(er) shrimp of thy own and follow along with us! 

First, the set up. You will need two bowls: one empty bowl for the trash and one filled with ice water for the finished shrimp. It is vital that you keep the raw shrimp cold for bacteria preventing purposes!! You also need a good sharp knife because raw shrimp are fairly delicate and you don't want to smash the meat. 

On to the shrimp. First, you need to pull off the legs. Just grab them at the top (on the head side) and pull down toward the tail. They sometimes come off all together and other times you might have to pull them off individually. Either way, just get those little legs off!

The next step is to pull off the shell. When you pulled off the legs, you made a break in the surface of the shell, so I found that if I grabbed the shell from the underside, it was super easy to peel off. Eric liked to start at the head side where you could already see the meat of the shrimp and pull it off from there. Whatever way works for you; all that matters is that you get it off of that glorious meat! (Seeing a trend here? This is pretty easy stuff, it just takes experimenting to figure out the way that's easiest for you.) After I had the shell and legs taken off, I liked to run my finger along the underside (where the legs were) just to make sure that all of the bones and pieces of shell were taken off. 

Once the shell is off, you can pull off the tail if you want to. Some people like to cook shrimp with the tail on, so this part is totally optional! 

Now, take your knife and, starting at the head end, make a cut about a quarter of an inch deep. Extend this cut all the way from the head to the tail. You should be exposing the vein as you cut.

See how the vein becomes exposed? That's what we're looking for! Make sure to cut all the way to the end, since the vein runs along the whole top side.

Now, just slip your knife tip in between the vein and the meat. It will come off very easily, it's really just a matter of making sure you get it all! You could probably use your fingers if you wanted, but I felt that my fingers were a bit too big for getting into the small space. Also, if you look closely, you can actually see the little pink vein, not just the greenish-black stuff in the vein. I went ahead and made sure that was out, as well, just to be safe.   ;)    Oh, and by the way, not all shrimp have a vein. Not sure how that works out, exactly, but we had a few in our batch with no vein to speak of. 

And that's it! Now you just have 60 more to go! But really, as you go, you do get faster and more efficient. And at the end, you'll have beautiful shrimp just begging to be cooked in a delicious recipe. Oh, and wouldn't you know it, I have just the recipe! My next post will feature what I did with our hard-earned shrimp. Make sure you come back and check it out!