The Paleo Mama

Homegrown and Handmade

paleo

Chocolate Bacon Smoothie

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Oh YES I DID!!! I had an epiphany today. I was drinking a smoothie and eating a few pieces of bacon, and I was like, “WOAH,”…I need to put this sh*t together.” I don’t usually swear, but this is the first thing that came to my mind.

So, here is what I came up with. Don’t knock it till you try it. I thought chocolate-covered-bacon pieces was nasty until I tried it, and now I’m a believer. That salty, savori-ness mixed with that sweet, chocolate….mmmmmmmmmmm!

If you still are repulsed by the though, make it for your man for Valentine’s Day and steal a sip! 🙂

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Ingredients:

1 cup of coconut milk

1TB of cocoa powder

1TB of honey or maple syrup

1 banana

4 strips of cooked regular bacon (or 2 strips of thick bacon)

6-9 ice cubes

Directions:

It’s so difficult. Throw everything in a blender and blend till smooth! Eat with bacon on the side!

I Just Put Butter in My Coffee

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bulletproof

I’ve been hearing rumors about people putting butter in their coffee. Supposedly, this is called a Bulletproof Coffee. Why on earth would someone want to put butter in their coffee??? Well, if you have been around the “Paleo World” for long, you know that we aren’t scared of fat. In fact, we know that our bodies thrive on fat. And, butter is, essentially, cream all churned up, so why be scared?

I took the plunge! And I must say, IT IS UN-friggin-BELIEVABLE! It came out frothy, smooth, and filling! I love my coffee in the morning, in fact, it’s one thing I have always said I will never give up. I’ve given up enough in my life…my coffee is staying!

I used this recipe but I didn’t have any of the MCT Oil. I know some people use coconut oil as a substitute.

Ingredients:

(at least) 2 TB of unsalted Kerrigold Butter or other unsalted, high quality butter.

1-2 TB of MCT oil or coconut oil

2 cups of High Quality Coffee

5 Steps:

1- Make coffee as you normally would.

2- Preheat your blender by putting hot water in it while you make the coffee. I didn’t do this because I used a stick blender.

3- Empty hot water from the now pre-heated blender and add the brewed coffee, butter, and MCT oil. Blend until there is a thick layer of foam on top like a latte. A Blend-tec or Vitamix blender will do it quickly, a normal countertop blender takes longer, and a handblender works ok if you don’t have a real blender.

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4- (optional) Add cinnamon, vanilla, dark chocolate, or a sweetener like Stevia, erythritol, or xylitol (this is technically a sacrilege if you use awesome beans, but some people love their mocha…)

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5- Put on a satisfied look and enjoy the high performance buzz from your creamy mug of Bulletproof Coffee as you watch your chubby, tired coworkers eat low-fat yogurt and twigs for breakfast. It’s almost unfair.

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Weekend Giveaway: eMeals 3-Month Dinner Meal Planner (closed)

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As you may know, I am a huge fan of using meal planning as a way to say time, money, and stress! Eating Paleo can be very difficult when you are just starting out…heck, it can be difficult when you are, somewhat, of a Paleo veteran like me!

In comes my new, best friend and meal plan savior, eMeals.com! I signed up for eMeals.com at the beginning of the New Year and it has definitely solved the dinnertime dilemma and made my life a whole lot easier.

How does eMeals.com work?

emeals how works Screen-Shot-2012-12-10-at-3_39_02-PM

What plans does eMeals.com offer?

They offer a wide variety of plans, but, of course, I show favors to the Paleo plan!

emeals plans

My review of eMeals.com:

I absolutely love the Paleo eMeals.com meal plan. I receive 7 dinners every week and an attached shopping list. It’s a no-brainer! I print out the meal plan and shopping list and stick the menu on my fridge. With the Paleo plan there has been about 2 crockpot meals every week and a nice variety of proteins (fish, pork, beef, chicken, and eggs). There is one side dish included in each meal and I am very happy to say that my kids have done great tasting the new vegetables and dishes that eMeals has sent me. If you follow me on my Facebook page, I, frequently, post our eMeals Paleo dinners!

Here are a few of the meals that I have made from the eMeals.com Paleo version:

Crockpot Harissa Pork Shoulder with Sun Dried Tomatoe Salad
Crockpot Harissa Pork Shoulder with Sun Dried Tomatoe Salad
Chicken Breast topped with Walnut Pesto and Saute Squash
Chicken Breast topped with Walnut Pesto and Saute Squash
Almond Crusted Fish with Radish Salad
Almond Crusted Fish with Radish Salad
Southwest Chicken Avocado Salad
Southwest Chicken Avocado Salad

How to enter the giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

…congrats Cari K.!!!

Thank you to everyone who entered and participated! I would like to encourage everyone to consider signing up for eMeals! I really can’t say enough good things about this company and their meals. Take a look at their meal options below:

eMeals Dinner Subscription

Please choose your desired subscription length, which will be automatically renewed.

  3 months: $21 ($7 per month)   6 months: $35 ($6 per month)   12 months: $58 ($5 per month) Best Value!
There are also some add-ons for if you would like breakfast (extra $3 a month)and lunch (extra $4 a month)meals to be included. You may also use this 15% off coupon code: NEWYEAR for signing up for a 6 or 12 month dinner subscription!!! Click on the banner below to sign up!!!

 


Green (or Red) Chile Pork Taco-Salad

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We had these last night…by chance! I had some leftover pulled pork from our previous dinner that I used with leftover Harissa pork shoulder and it was DELISH!  The flavors definitely all came together and the plantain chips on the top gave the salad that “nacho-y” crunch that I needed. Enjoy!

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Ingredients:

2 pork tenderloins

3 TB of olive oil or coconut oil, divided

1 ts ground cumin

1 ts of garlic powder

1 ts of sea salt

1 onion, sliced thin

3 cups of red or green enchilada sauce. I recommend El Pato Hot Tomato Sauce

1 ts of oregano

Garnish: cilantro, olives, cheddar cheese and sour cream (if you do dairy), romaine, tomatoes, guacamole or sliced avocado, salsa, and plantain chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Combine the cumin, garlic powder, and sea salt in a small bowl. Cut the pork in half crosswise and rub in the spice mixture all over the pork. In a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, brown both sides of the pork in 2 TB of oil. Set aside.

Placed the onion in a 9×13 baking dish. Then add the enchilada sauce and oregano. Add the pork and cover with foil. Roast for 30 minutes.

Remove pork (save juices) to cutting board and let cool. Shred or chop the pork and return to bowl with the juices.

Place the pork on top of a prepared salad and garnish with foods of your choice! `

Why We Ditched Our iPhone’s

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Disclosure: By writing this post, I am, by NOOOOO means, trying to make anyone else feel guilty for having or using an iPhone. This is all about me and my husband and how ditching our iPhone’s have changed our relationship with each other and our children. 

About 9 months ago, I read a post called, “How to Miss a Childhood” over  at Hands Free Mama and I was, literally, gasping in tears as I was reading it. I realized that much of what she was talking about…was me. It was me, plain and simple.

While pushing your child on a swing, do you pull out your phone and start checking Facebook? …yes.

Does your child bring you your phone excitedly, like she found your most prized possession? …yes.

Do you pull out your phone at a stoplight?…yes.

Do you look at your phone at the dinner table? Do you pull out your phone when you are at a restaurant waiting for your food?…yes and yes.

Does your child look up from doing something proudly to see if you were watching, only to find you looking down at your phone? …unfortunately, yes.

Do you get irritated when your kids are talking to you when you are focused on your phone? …yes.

Do you feel like you can’t leave home without your iPhone? …yes I did.

And there’s more…

Do you check your phone first thing in the morning … even before you kiss, hug, or greet the people in your family?

Do you look up from your phone when your child speaks to you or just reply with an “uh huh” so she thinks you were listening?

Do you use drive time to call other people regardless of the fact you could be talking to your kids about their day—or about their worries, their fears, or their dreams?

Do you decide the app you’re playing is more important than throwing the ball in the yard with your kids? Even better, yell at them to leave you alone while you play your game.

Do you take your children to the zoo and spend so much time on your phone that your child looks longingly at the mother who is engaged with her children and wishes she was with her instead?

After reading these questions, my eyes filled with tears and my heart weighed heavy with guilt. How many moments had I missed with my children because I was playing with my Iphone? How many memories were never made? The tears fell freely as I kept thinking about how my life had become so connected to my iPhone. The guilt for what I had done to my kids was overwhelming. I couldn’t bear it.

You see, my husband, a few months prior to this day, had already ditched his iPhone. He did it for a much different reason. To him, the iPhone was temptation. It was a means to access pornography in the deep, dark secret places of his life. His old addiction was sparked when the iPhone came into his life. It was an addiction that he had broken several times prior, but with the access of porn at his fingertips, he was overwhelmed with temptation. It hurt when I found out…when he confessed to me, with guilt and tears in his eyes. My self wanted to slug him. How could he do this to me again? But instead, I hugged him and cried with him and told him we would get through this. He smashed his iPhone to bits and pieces and we have never looked back. This was a year ago and I am so proud of the changes that my husband has made since he made the decision to get rid of his iPhone. I’m proud of the changes I have made.

I don’t miss any moments with my children.

If I leave my phone at home and forget it…so what.

I am FULLY there.

My kids have ALL of me…not just some. I am with them. I see them. I rejoice with them. I learn with them. I dance with them. I sing in the car with them.

My relationship with my husband has deepened to a new level through all of this. I am there for my children and he is there for me. We have decided that our family is more important than technology at our fingertips. Do we miss it? Sure! Especially when we are out on a day trip and lost! However, we have learned that good ole Mapquest printed with ink and paper is still good enough. We’ve learned that it is much more fun to wonder into a new restaurant instead of planning ahead. We’ve learned to hold each other hands…”family hands” as my daughter calls it…instead of holding our phones.

We are here…

in this moment…

in this time.

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The Paleo Mama’s Guide to Dining Out Paleo-style

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dining out

When I started to eat Paleo, I was overwhelmed with where to eat, what to eat, and how to order. In fact, I don’t think we ate out much in the beginning because I didn’t want to stray from our diet. However, as time went on and mommy needed a break from cooking, we ventured out into the world of American chain restaurants and I learned A LOT about food. I remember asking so many questions that the waiter usually had to go ask the cook.

Now, I am easier on myself. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again…I am not 100% Paleo. I am more like 85% Paleo. The other 15% is covered with lots and lots of grace and the occasional pizza. Dining out seems hard in the Paleo world…but it doesn’t have to be.

Here’s my quick guide on what to eat and where to eat.  So GET OUT, stop stressing, and make the best choice you can. Leave room for grace 🙂

One thing restaurants confuse very often is REAL butter and fake butter. Make sure when you are ordering or eating that you ask for REAL butter. Also, most vegetables are cooked in vegetable oils, which is a no-no eating Paleo. Look for steamed options or request for your food to be cooked in olive oil. Avoid any dishes that have gravy. Gravy is loaded with flour. And when ordering dressings, remember that most are loaded with high fructose corn syrup, so ask for OLIVE oil and vinegar. Please use the word olive. They have, and will bring you out a bottle of canola oil and vinegar.

Always ask for NO SEASONING SALT in restaurants, wherever you go. MSG is added to this, as is sugar.

Also, I’ve learned that steakhouses are the BEST choice. However, I know I get tired of eating at the same places so I wanted to include other restaurants that offer good alternatives.

1) TGI Fridays – Fridays is actually very Paleo-friendly! It is one of the few restaurants where you get to pick your two sides.

Best Salad: The Grilled Chicken Cobb salad is great and you can request no cheese and ask for olive oil and vinegar for dressing.

Best Beef: The “Premium Black Angus Steaks” are great and a good Paleo choice.  Avoid the Jack Daniel dishes if you want to avoid dairy and any other questionable sauces. The burgers are also questionable in my option. Friday’s doesn’t disclose their gluten-free menu, so the burgers “may” have white flour in them. However, you feel like indulging and want a burger, get it…just ask for extra lettuce and eat it between two lettuce leaves.

Best Chicken: can’t recommend one since they are all smothered in sauce and cheese

2) Outback – Another great Paleo-friendly restaurant! Most steakhouses, for that matter, are! With all orders, ask for vegetables as a side or a baked potato.

Best Salad: The Aussie Cobb Salad, California Chicken Salad, Steakhouse Salad are all great. Just make sure you request only grilled chicken and no croutons.

Best Beef: These steaks (Outback Special, Victoria’s Filet, NY Strip, Ribeye, and Porterhouse) are a great choice and GF according to their menu so you don’t have to worry about weird sauces! The sirloin is the leanest cut. Also, Outback, burgers are 100% beef! So, order that burger if you want, just avoid the bread! Aussie fries come with the burgers so just request a vegetable substitute or indulge in a baked potato.

Best Chicken: Grilled Chicken on the Barbie (ask for them to put their BBQ sauce on the side)

Best Seafood: Norwegian Salmon or Simply Grilled Mahi

3) Applebees – their menu is pretty diverse. Obviously avoid anything that has chips, bread, pasta or is fried.

Best Salad: Grilled Shrimp ‘N Spinach Salad (ask for olive oil and vinegar as a dressing)

Best Beef: The Ribeye and NY Strip are the only two steaks that aren’t cooked in soybean oil.

Best Chicken:  The Chipotle Lime Chicken is the only chicken dish that doesn’t contain dairy. Ask for a salad substitute for the rice and beans that comes with it.

Best Seafood: Grilled Jalapeno-Lime Shrimp or Garlic Herb Salmon

4) Cracker Barrel: Breakfast is always a great option when eating out! Eggs, bacon, ham, sausage is all good Paleo-options.

Best Salad: Grilled Chicken N’ Fresh Vegetable Salad (just hold the corn relish and order olive oil and vinegar for a dressing)

Best Beef: 10oz Rib Eye Steak or the Grilled 8oz Sirloin Steak. The Hamburger Steak is also a great option.

Best Chicken: Grilled Chicken Tenderloins (make sure you specify you want them grilled)

Best Seafood: Grilled Rainbow Trout or the Grilled Catfish

5) P.F. Chang’s – I love P.F. Chang’s and they have lots of great options!

Best Starter: Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps or Egg Drop Soup

Best Beef: none I can recommend

Best Chicken: Quite a few chicken dishes are listed on their gluten-free menu: Moo Goo Gai Pan, Ginger Chicken with Broccoli, Philip’s Better Lemon Chicken, Chang’s Spicy Chicken,  and Dali Chicken. I should note that just because they are on the gluten-free menu, does not mean they are 100% Paleo. They are however a much better choice.

Best Seafood: Shrimp with Lobster Sauce, Chang’s Lemon Scallops, Catonese Shrimp or Scallops, and Wild Alaskan Salmon Steamed with Ginger

6) Red Lobster

Best Salad: Cobb Salad or Bar Harbor Salad with your choice of meat and without croutons. Ask for olive oil and vinegar dressing.

Best Beef: Center-Cut NY Strip Steak -ask for your steak to be broiled without marinades or sauces

Best Chicken: most their chicken meals have sauces. You may request to have a broiled chicken without a sauce or marinade

Best Seafood: North Pacific King Crab Legs, Chilled Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail, Snow Crab Legs, and Live Maine Lobster – ask for all these dishes to be steamed and served with melted butter (make sure it’s real butter)

7) Chili’s

Best Salad: Dinner House Salad – ask for no croutons and olive oil and vinegar dressing

Best Beef: Cajun Ribeye, Guiltless Carne Asada Steak, Flame Grilled Ribeye, or the Classic Sirloin – ask for no savory steak butter as this contains gluten. If you want a burger, the Bacon Burger or the Old time Burger (ask for no bun or onion strings) are good choices and listed as being gluten-free.

Best Chicken: none I can recommended

Best Seafood: Guiltless Grilled Salmon or the Salmon with Garlic & Herbs

8) Cheesecake Factory

Best Salad: Cobb Salad, Herb-Crusted Salmon, or any of their Weight Management Salads. Make sure you ask for no crispy noodles, beans, corn, or cheese on them. Also order olive oil and vinegar dressing.

Best Beef: Grilled Rib-Eye Steak and Filet Mignon are good steak choices. You will need to ask for them to hold the onion rings andorder a salad or other veggie side dish.

Best Chicken: Weight Management Grilled Chicken or Grilled Chicken Medallions. Ask for no white rice but extra veggies instead.

Best Seafood: Fresh Grilled Salmon or Fresh Grilled Mahi Mahi

9) Jimmy John’s – this is one of my favorite places to eat out! Get the sandwich you want, avoiding cheese if you wish, and any other questionable sauces and have them make it “Unwich” style. They wrap the sandwich all up in a lettuce wrap and it’s still oh-so delish!

10) Moes & Chipotle – this is another place I love eating at. Tell them you want a burrito bowl and just pile on the meat, veggies, guacamole, and salsa! Chipotle also advertises that their meat is hormone free!

…seriously…stop stressing. Life is short.