Fall goes Primal?

October has to be one of my favorite months of the year. I love decorating for Halloween even though the candy is lurking around every aisle at the store tempting me. Damn you fun size Snickers! The weather has finally dropped below 100 but not so cold that I'm bundled up like an Eskimo (anything below 55 requires gloves, multiple layers, and a scarf...I'm an AZ native after all.) Finally, pumpkins are everywhere and make amazing additions to any meal.


Today I tried to "primalize" two pumpkin recipes...pumpkin spice cake and pumpkin pancakes. Both turned out pretty good except the pumpkin cake never really cooked all the way through in the very middle.  If you're interested, here are the recipes:

PROTEIN PUMPKIN PANCAKES

Ingredients

• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup milk (I use unsweetened almond milk)
• 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 vanilla whey protein powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• coconut oil or butter for frying

Directions

1. Mix ingredients and cook on griddle like you would any other kind of pancake

PUMPKIN SPICE CAKE

Ingredients:

Maybe I took the diet too far...I'm all skin & bones!
(yes...I'm a Halloween nerd!)

• 1/2 cup coconut flour, sifted
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour, sifted
• 5 eggs
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 3/4 cup pure pumpkin puree
• 1/2 tsp sea salt 
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine wet ingredients.
4. Pour wet ingredients into dry and blend with a mixer until evenly combined.
5. Lightly grease 13x9" pan with oil and pour batter into pan
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes, check with a toothpick.

Day 16- A brief reflection

My thought for the day: An often overlooked part of our lives, unfortunately, is the relationships of those closest to us.

As part of the primal challenge, diet & fitness may take center stage, but play & family are equally as important. The first time I tried this challenge my mood was severly affected. I had a lot of "nasty" moments where even the slightest gesture would spin me into a negative mood. It was like I was enshrouded by negativity. Don't get me wrong there were some really good days, but I let the limitations of the diet affect my mood.

I am happy to say that this time around I have had a much more pleasant experience (and so has my crew & my man who bear the brunt of my moods). There have been a few negative moments this time around but much less severe and shorter in duration. So what is different? One is that after the last challenge I did not revert to a carb-fiend so this time around the limitations of the challenge seem just like the everyday choices I've been making since the last time. Second, and probably more important, is that I feel more support. Jesse has been helping me in the kitchen so it doesn't feel like so much work to cook almost every meal. My crew has adapted meals to fit my needs and even let me opt out of chow a few times. My new "Crossfit family" has been amazing. I especially want to thank Heather for spearheading our group discussion boards so we can exchange ideas and share our struggles and ways to overcome them.

Last time I tried to do this on my own. Now I realize that part of this experience is to discover that sense of community and closeness that is often missing in our fast-paced lives. Living primal means slowing down to enjoy the moment and the company we keep.

Day 12- Experimenting in the kitchen

So after a conversation at the gym yesterday about the difficulties of baking primal...I decided to rework one of my favorite gluten-free biscuit recipes into one that is also primal friendly.


The original recipe is for Pão de queijo, which is a very popular Brazilian cheese roll made with tapioca flour. The biscuits when done right are crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Because they are made with tapioca flour (from the cassava root), this recipe is naturally gluten free. They are, however, NOT primal due to the cup of milk and two cups of cheese!


So this morning I decided to switch up the recipe a little to see if I couldn't render something savory and primal! 

The original non-Primal Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups tapioca flour
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 beaten eggs

My attempt at Primal: 

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup organic butter
• 1 cup unsweetened original flavor Almond milk
• 2 cups tapioca flour
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup spinach
• 1 Aidells All Natural Andouille pork sausage (diced)

Baking Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
2. Pour olive oil, water, almond milk, and butter into a large saucepan, and place over high heat. When the mixture comes to a boil, remove from heat immediately, and stir in tapioca flour until smooth. 
3. Stir egg into the tapioca mixture, one at a time, until well combined, the mixture will be chunky like cottage cheese. Add sausage and spinach. 
4. Drop rounded, 1/4 cup-sized balls of the mixture onto an ungreased baking sheet.
5. Bake until the tops are lightly browned, approx. 20 minutes

What to try next time:

• So the biscuits came out with the right texture (a major concern I had cooking with almond milk) but they lacked a little flavor. The sausage and spinach were a nice touch but the dough itself was a little bland. I omitted the teaspoon of salt thinking the sausage would add enough, but I was wrong. Perhaps a teaspoon or two of minced garlic or other spice will perk the dough up next time.
• I know those of you on a strict "Paleo" diet cannot eat butter. So I'll try subbing that 1/4 cup butter with either 1/4 cup olive oil or maybe some other paleo oil like flaxseed oil or pumpkin oil. Ghee is also an option.
• The protein count was a little lower than I wanted (only 2g per biscuit) so I might sub the water for low-sodium organic chicken or beef broth. That will bring it up to 3g of protein per biscuit. 

If anyone has any suggestions on how to further tweak this recipe....please please let me know.

Grain free blueberry muffins

Day 3:

So a big part of the primal challenge is to rein in my daily carb intake. It is a huge adjustment to go from eating lots of fruit and oatmeal to trying to keep my daily intake around 100-150g.  The thing that helps the most is switching to low carb veggies and berries and healthy nuts when I need a quick pick-me-up before a workout.  Another trick is to take recipes and tweak them so they meet the primal criteria: low carb and high protein and healthy fat.

Luckily for me, there are lots of people who have done the work for me and I can browse their blogs to get ideas. Today's recipe comes from fastpaleo.com.

Grain free blueberry muffins

Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients and Cooking Steps

• 2 1/2 cups almond meal
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 300°. Line 12 muffin cups with muffin liners (or grease each cup well with coconut oil).
In a large bowl, whisk together everything but the blueberries until fully combined. Gently fold in the blueberries to incorporate.

Fill each liner 3/4 full with batter and bake for 30-40 minutes. The top should be spongey but firm when pressed and your finger should not go through into the muffin. Cool for 5 minutes and remove from muffin pans.

Per muffin:
Cal: 182
Total carbs: 12g
Fiber: 3g
Sugar: 8g
Fat: 12g
Protein: 7g

Day 1- Primal challenge 2011

So as usual for these challenges, I am going to start off by listing my goals.

The first goal is to make sure I get adequate rest. I'm not talking about taking days off from exercises...I'm talking about sleep. Deep, uninterrupted sleep. The kind that helps my body and mind heal.  Obviously that is not going to happen at work, but on my days off, my goal is to get into a routine where I shut off electronics and get consistent about going to bed and getting up at the same time everyday.  Oh and of course a few power naps for the days I didn't get to sleep through the night at work.

My other main goal is to work on my damn sweet tooth! The plan is to reach for veggies and healthy protein and fats instead of "carby" and sugary snacks.  Or go for a walk or pick up a fun new hobby or finish some projects to get my mind off my sweet tooth.

The goal of this challenge is not to diet but to change what my body craves and give it what will turn me into a well-oiled machine.  My new mantra is "food is fuel, not fun." Say it with me people, "food is fuel, not fun!"

Heads up! 30 day challenge starts Sept 12!

So I am an avid reader of Mark's Daily Apple, and part of his blog is an annual 30 Day Primal Challenge. It was what motivated me to really start trying to eat cleaner and give paleo a shot. Well, his annual challenge starts September 12 so I thought I would put this challenge out for everyone who might be interested. You can check out the details on the challenge here!

I encourage everyone to at least check out his website even if you don't join the challenge this time around.  He has lots of information on supplements, workouts, and of course eating healthier.

On a personal note, I would like to thank everyone who supported me and my brother during the 2011 World Police & Fire Games.  I won gold in the hammer and we finished in 7th in the Toughest Competitor Alive (TCA).  We learned a lot and saw some amazing competitors.  They are definitely going to be my motivation during this challenge. It will put me that much closer to where I need to be in two years when we make the trip to Belfast, Ireland.

So get your minds right...six days until the challenge starts!  Keep me posted if you decide to participate.

Primal can be global

Although I am not as strict with my paleo diet, especially at work, I still manage to follow most of the guidelines while at home. The other day I made gluten-free/paleo friendly (minus the dairy but at least it was organic) Swedish meatballs and Brazilian Pão de quiejo (tapioca cheese biscuits). I was inspired by my latest trip to Sweden. It was amazing how easy it was to eat organic and gluten free there. They are so far ahead of us when it comes to healthy eating. They avoid "fake sugars" and instead use beet sugar grown locally to not only promote the economy but promote all-natural and simplistic meals. Even the Coca-Cola uses real sugar and minimal dyes. It might actually be better than Mexican coke. Maybe.

Anyways...I was so inspired by my trip that I brought back a few recipes including meatballs, roasted mushrooms, & mandeltårta (almond cake that's naturally gluten free).

The secret to the meatballs is nutmeg, allspice, and almond meal (crushed almonds) as the binder. The sauce was made with organic heavy cream, potato starch, spices, & organic butter. I'll figure out how to post the recipes just in case any one is interested.