Wrap-Up and Weigh-In

Our goals:

1) Reset our way of eating and seeing food

2) Russ wanted to get a jumpstart on losing 15-20lbs, I wanted to lose 3-5 lbs, but my main focus was on eliminating the junk

3) Meet the challenge of the strict diet without having to eat the same thing every day (try new recipes, new foods, new ways of preparing old dishes)

Things we learned along the way:

1) We don't consistently look at food as fuel for our bodies (Even though we should and hopefully will moving forward). Instead, we've seen it as more of an experience and even sometimes a comfort (at the end of a long day, eating ice cream after dinner not because we're still hungry - just because it can be a comfort). Same thing with me drinking a Coke every afternoon - I was seeing that as a way to get through the afternoon (especially if it was a long afternoon with kids skipping naps, etc.).

2) Eating well (lean meats, lots of vegetables and fruit, nuts and eggs, no preservatives) really makes us feel better. Russ said he sleeps better and we both noticed a difference in our energy levels throughout the day.

3) Like I've said from Day 1, planning is the key. Finding new staples that you like (for us it was sweet potatoes, roasted carrots, apples, almonds) is helpful. I hope to keep meal-planning the way I did over the last 30 days (planning and shopping ahead) - it really made things easier.

4) If I can successfully complete the Whole 30, ANYONE CAN. I am the junkiest of junk food junkies (ask my family or my husband). There were a lot of temptations along the way, but I love a particular quote from the whole9life website, referring to the Whole30, when it says something like "Breaking a heroine addiction is hard. Drinking your coffee black for 30 days is not hard." If you can keep that mindset, it's easier than you think.

Tips:

1) Even though I felt like a broken record typing "egg casserole" for breakfast almost every day, the casseroles were a lifesaver. Our mornings are kind of nuts with getting our kids fed, Russ out the door for work, and getting our day going. Knowing that the casserole just had to be microwaved for about 30 seconds and paired with fruit made things super simple.

2) Find approved foods that help with temptations/cravings. For us, it was sweet potato chips and plantain chips with salsa, frozen blueberries, and the occasional pudding/ice cream made from frozen bananas, cocoa powder, and coconut milk.

3) Anything you can prep ahead of time is helpful (chop vegetables, grill meat for lunches, soup, brown ground turkey or beef)

Weigh-in:

Russ lost 17 lbs, I lost 7. We think some of that weight might come back as we're adjusting to what real-life eating looks like, but we're both in an ideal weight window, so we're hoping to maintain it.

Moving forward:

1) We aren't ready to take the plunge back into our old eating habits. At the same time, the strict Whole30 diet isn't going to cut it in real life, either.

2) Our plan is to transition to clean eating (lean meats/protein, veggies, fruits, whole grains and some dairy). Basically incorporating the healthiest options of each food group back into our diet. I plan to sit down on Sunday and plan out what that looks like.

3) The ideal situation would be 3 meals, 2 snacks, all incorporating protein, fruit and/or vegetable, and whole grain. We want to see food more as fuel than as entertainment, comfort or convenience.

4) THAT BEING SAID... this is not going to be an obsession for our family. It will hopefully become routine, but because food is often a part of get-togethers with our friends, celebrations and date nights, and life is short, we are still going to have the occasional cupcake, take the occasional family trip to Chick-fil-a, and eat the occasional pizza. I'm still going to bake cookies with my kids and I'll probably have a Coke every once in a while (maybe just on weekends or for special occasions). But treats will hopefully be outweighed by healthy, clean eating the rest of the time.

Ultimately, our goal as individuals and as a couple is serving Jesus Christ with our lives - loving our children, our families and our friends well, helping those in need, and using the gifts God has given us. Our desire is that every area of our lives point back to God and make Him more famous. I believe that we honor Him by eating well and taking care of the bodies He gave us, but I also know that my time, talents and treasure shouldn't revolve around what I'm eating.

Day 30: D-O-N-E - done!

Yay for 30 days of no sugar, dairy, grains and legumes (a.k.a black beans and peanut butter, etc!) Or maybe just yay for being done! :) Seriously, we're glad we did it, but we're glad to be done.

I intended to have our wrap-up post tonight, but we have two sick kiddos and technically won't weigh in until tomorrow morning, so tune in tomorrow night for the "Weigh-in, Wrap-up and Next Steps" post.

Breakfast - coffee with coconut milk, pineapple, grapefruit and strawberries, egg casserole with chicken apple sausage and mushrooms

Lunch - leftover spaghetti squash with sauce, banana

Snack - apple with almond butter, garlic cashews

Dinner - Chiloso take-out: grilled avocado with grilled chicken, steak salad with mixed greens, guacamole and salsa.

Day 29: Two Questions

People keep asking me two questions:
1) What "forbidden" food am I going to eat on Wednesday when our Whole30 is done?
2) What will our diet look like going forward?

Anwers:
1) The only thing I know for SURE that I'm going to have is sweetened creamer in my coffee. It's already in the fridge. But I will say, it is all natural - milk, cream, sugar and natural flavors. Not too different than what I used to use. I also really want oatmeal. Maybe it's because that is what our son eats every morning for breakfast. I have a good crockpot recipe for steel cut oats that I will probably make. As for everything else, I guess we'll just see what comes up. The meals I have planned for this week are still Whole30ish, and I don't have any desire to jump back into full-on sugar, dairy and carbs.

2) I'm not sure about that either. We don't want to undo everything we just did by eating carelessly. I'm investigating a couple of different things and will update as we move forward. We've talked about continuing to eat lots of vegetables, and limiting desserts and sweets to weekends and special occasions. Will post more thoughts in a wrap-up tomorrow on our Whole30 experience.

Breakfast: egg casserole with chicken apple sausage and grapefruit & pineapple

Lunch: salad with grilled chicken, boiled eggs, broccoli and carrots with oil and vinegar

Snack: garlic cashews, apple with almond butter

Dinner: spaghetti squash with tomato sauce (ground turkey, tomato sauce, garlic, salt, pepper, chili powder, oregano) and salad (mixed baby greens, carrots, bell pepper, homemade balsamic vinaigrette)

Day 28: Homemade Plantain Chips

Breakfast(on the way to church): apple and coffee with coconut milk

Brunch/Lunch: egg casserole with chicken apple sausage and mushrooms, banana, coffee with coconut milk

Snack: apple with almond butter

Dinner: hamburgers (we made double last night) with caramelized onions, roasted broccoli and homemade plantain chips with salsa.

Today Sprouts had green plantains, so I decided to get a couple and try making homemade chips. They were pretty simple to make and they turned out really good. If you want to make chips, you need to get greenish plantains instead of yellow or brown (the green ones aren't quite ripe yet, but have the flavor, starchiness and consistency you need for crispy chips). They are tricky to peel - you have to slice the skin the length of the plantain and then peel from there. I sliced the chips by hand, but I'm sure you could use a food processor (but for the time it would take to clean the processor, I decided doing it by hand was easier).

After they are sliced, add olive oil (either spray or coat in a bowl), sprinkle with salt, lay out in a single layer on a baking sheet. I put them on a baking rack on top of the baking sheet to help air circulate. I baked them at 375 on convection for 8 minutes, then flipped them and baked for another 7 minutes until the edges were just brown.

The bowl of the finished product below only shows half of what I made. Pretty good little snack!

Day 27 (a day late)

Breakfast - scrambled eggs, grapefruit

Lunch - Zoe's chicken shish kabobs again (lunch on the run between a 3-yr-old birthday party and a wedding shower).

Dinner - hamburgers with caramelized onions with spicy brown mustard, sweet potato fries with salsa, roasted Brussels sprouts

After dinner - applesauce

Day 26

Breakfast - scrambled eggs, banana, coffee with date-sweetened creamer (it turned out to be ok - will use it again tomorrow)

Lunch - salad with blackened chicken, avocado, dressed with lemon juice, salt and pepper; apple with almond butter

Dinner - back to Zoe's for date night! Russ had never been before. I has chicken kabobs, salad and roasted veggies. He had the same except shrimp instead of chicken.

Snacks - we ran errands then went to a late movie. We hit Central Market in search of freeze dried fruit, but didn't have any luck, so we ended up with unsweetened banana chips (which were surprisingly unsweet - not sure how they get the natural sugar out, but they did), almonds, and the winner of the evening - garlic cashews.

Day 25: Heebie -Jeebies Take 2

After hearing from someone that she tried and really likes the date-sweetened dairy-free, sugar-free coffee creamer, I decided to try it again (last week I tried the recipe with raisins instead of dates because we already had them and I was trying to save a trip to the store). So today I was at Sprouts and after looking for a few minutes, I found the dates. I didn't take a picture because the dates kind of grossed me out (as I mentioned in a previous post, dried fruit gives me the heebie-jeebies, with the exception of craisins), but I pressed on. I had to pit them, then threw them in the food processor (equal parts dates and hot water). Then I added 1/4 cup of the paste/puree to 1 cup of coconut milk and sprinkled a little cinnamon. And it was delicious :). The true test will be using it in my coffee tomorrow morning, but all signs point to good at this juncture. Will definitely report back tomorrow.

Breakfast: scrambled eggs, apple, coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: blackened chicken breast (pan blackened with olive oil, salt, pepper and lemon juice), apple with almond butter

Dinner: grilled chicken breast (marinated in lemon juice, oil and vinegar), roasted vegetables (grape tomatoes, onions, broccoli, carrots)

After dinner snack: grapefruit

Day 24: Greek food

Breakfast - egg casserole with prosciutto and mushrooms, half of a banana, coffee with coconut milk

Lunch - left over spaghetti squash with tomato sauce, apple with almond butter

Dinner - out to eat at Zoe's (girly, Greek restaurant): chicken shish kabob with peppers and onions, grilled vegetables, greek side salad.

I'm going to try to replicate tonight's dinner tomorrow night at home. We'll see how it goes!

Day 23: one week left!

Breakfast - egg casserole with prosciutto and mushrooms, apple, coffee with coconut milk

Lunch - apple with almond butter, hb egg, salad

Dinner - pecan-crusted chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted Brussel sprouts

After dinner - frozen blueberries with coconut milk

Day 22: It Was An Experiment

So, we've really enjoyed plantain chips with salsa over the last couple of weeks, so I decided to try to see what other plantain options would be. Last night I read about "aranitas" (which I think translates to "little spider), and they are traditionally fried bunches of shredded plantain. I was thinking they would be like hashbrowns (sort of). I didn't want to fry them, so I decided to try to oven-fry them, using just a little bit of olive oil.

They shredded beautifully in the food processor and looked like they were going to pan out. Unfortunately, in my opinion, the finished product ranked just above inedible. Maybe they were overcooked, maybe they were just a bad idea (but would have been really good fried!). Regardless, they won't be a repeat. But we may roast or grill some plantains as an alternative soon.

Breakfast: egg casserole with mushrooms and proscuitto, banana, coffee with coconut milk and cinnamon

Lunch: Leftover spaghetti squash with tomato sauce, ground turkey, and sauteed vegetables

Snack: apple with almond butter

Dinner: Crock-pot taco roast on mixed greens with avocado, plantain "aranitas" with salsa

Day 21: A Great Purchase

Last weekend Russ was at his parents' house with the kids while I was in Nashville, and his mom had this cool thing called a Misto. It's for spraying cooking spray, but you add your own oil. When he told me about it, I knew it would be great for spraying olive oil on the vegetables we've been roasting (rather that drizzling the oil or mixing it in a bowl). So last night we went to Bed, Bath and Beyond and got one. It works with any oil, but for now we'll just be using it for olive oil. So fun! For $10, you can't beat it.

Breakfast: (weird Sunday schedule again) - apple, coffee with coconut milk on the way to church

Brunch/Lunch: banana, scrambled eggs with proscuitto, more coffee with coconut milk

Snack: apple with almond butter

Dinner: spaghetti squash with homemade tomato sauce (tomato sauce, oregano, garlic, onion, ground turkey, chili powder, salt), topped with sauteed squash, zucchini and mushrooms

After dinner snack: frozen blueberries with coconut milk

Day 20: 2/3 of the way done!

Breakfast - scrambled eggs, grapefruit, coffee with coconut milk

Lunch - Cobb salad (chicken, hb eggs, greens, bacon, avocado, red wine vinaigrette).

Snack - apple with almond butter

Dinner - (Chiloso again for date night!) grilled avocado with grilled chicken, salad with steak, grilled vegetables and salsa.

Day 19: Don't Put Raisins in Your Coffee

So, first off, quick update. I tried my homemade dairy-free, sugar-free coffee creamer this morning (the one I made yesterday with the experimental raisin paste/syrup). While the raisin paste served as a great sweetener for the barbecue sauce, it did something awful to the flavor of my coffee this morning. I barely managed two sips (the second was purely out of hope that I misunderstood the first), but indeed, it was the worst coffee I've ever had. Hands down. Back to coffee with unsweetened coconut milk for me. I may try date paste/syrup later on (since that is what was recommended on the website with the recipe). We'll see.

Breakfast: egg casserole with chicken apple sausage and mushrooms. Coffee with coconut milk.

Lunch: left over pecan-crusted chicken, green beans and roasted sweet potatoes.

Snack: frozen blueberries with coconut milk

Dinner: grilled hamburger patties (seasoned with salt and pepper) with caramelized onions and mushrooms (spicy brown mustard for dipping), roasted broccoli (sprinkled with lemon juice, salt and pepper), sweet potato oven fries with salsa.

Day 18: Secret Ingredient

The other day I read an article about how to make homemade dairy-free, sugar-free coffee creamer. Basically you use dates and water to make a paste that is a natural sweetener that can be used in place of honey, maple syrup, sugar, etc. A couple of times this week have looked for dates at different stores with no luck, which in a way was fine with me because dates, figs and most dried, wrinkly fruit in general gives me the heebie-jeebies. Nothing about putting that in my coffee appealed to me.

However, today I wanted to make barbecue sauce. After researching different paleo recipes, I realized that in order to get a sauce similar to what we are used to making, I needed some sort of sweetener. Faced with the fact that it was naptime for the kids and I didn't have dates, I found some raisins and decided to give it a go. I threw about a cup of raisins into the food processor with about a half cup of hot water and let it go for a while. It turned into a syrup-y paste. I mixed about 2 tablespoons of it into the barbecue sauce that had already been simmering, and it totally brought the flavors together.

While feeling adventurous with the new secret ingredient, I decided to go ahead and mix up some coffee creamer. I can't say for sure if it is good or not, but will let you know tomorrow. Recipe below.

Breakfast: egg casserole with chicken apple sausage, banana, coffee with coconut milk and cinnamon

Lunch: taco salad (same as yesterday) leftover pot roast, avocado, red bell pepper, mixed baby greens, crushed up plantain chips, dressed with salsa and fresh lime juice

Dinner: Grilled pork chop, mashed cauliflower "potatoes"(steamed cauliflower, salt, pepper, beef broth, coconut milk - next time I will add garlic, I just forgot this time), roasted carrots and barbecue sauce

The barbecue sauce was a nice addition and I'm sure we will continue to use it on other things. Here's the recipe(ish - I didn't measure much):
6 oz tomato paste
1cup liquid coffee
1 cup beef broth
splash of apple cider vinegar
2 fresh garlic cloves, pressed or micro-planed
salt
cumin
pepper
2-3 T raisin paste

Combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until desired consistency (the longer the better to mix the flavors). I simmered ours for about an hour.

Sweetened Coffee Creamer
1 C coconut milk
1/4 c raisin paste

Wisk together. Strain (I double-strained mine to make sure it was really smooth). Store in the fridge. If it turns out that this is good, I'll experiment with different flavors.

Day 17: Pecan-Crusted Chicken

Breakfast: egg casserole with chicken apple sausage and mushrooms, banana and coffee with cinnamon and coconut milk



Lunch: Remember the pot roast from last night that I said lacked flavor? It was repurposed. Taco salad - mixed baby greens, avocado, shredded beef, crumbled plantain chips dressed with salsa and fresh lime juice.

Dinner: We've had a bag of pecans sitting in the freezer since before Christmas. Normally I would make spiced pecans or something like that for salads, but that requires some sort of added sweetener and/or butter (at least my recipes do).

So today I decided to try Pecan-crusted Chicken, and it turned out really good. Russ said it's a keeper. We had it with roasted sweet potatoes and steamed green beans.

To make the chicken, I put about 1.5 cups of pecans in the food processor with salt, pepper and orange zest(trust me on the orange zest - I was skeptical, but it definitely adds . I scrambled an egg and mixed in a little coconut milk. I used two large chicken breasts and basically butterflied them, but ended up with four separate pieces(you could also pound it out to get it thin). I dipped the chicken in the egg mixture, then in the pecans (and sort of had to pat the pecans into the meat). Then I seared them on each side in a pan with a little bit of olive oil and transferred them to the oven to cook at 350 for about 30 minutes. I cooked them on a rack in a roasting pan to try to get all sides crispy.

Day 16: Don't Knock 'em 'til You've Tried 'em

Breakfast: scrambled eggs with proscuitto, banana

Lunch: leftover spaghetti squash with meat sauce, apple with almond butter

Snack: plantain chips with salsa

Dinner: pot roast (beef in beef broth, onion and rosemary in the crockpot all day - it was ok, but needed more flavor, in my opinion), roasted carrots and...wait for it... BRUSSEL SPROUTS.

I have only had brussel sprouts once before, and today was the first day I've ever prepared them. I'll be honest - they get a bad rap. Cooked the right way, they are delicious. Russ and I agree that they will be added to our repertoire of meals moving forward.

To cook them, cut off the brown tip, slice them in half length-wise, use a touch of olive oil, season 'em up and roast them in the oven at 450 until they get a little crispy (the edges get a little brown).

If you have never tried them, my personal challenge to you is to try them sometime in the next month (prepared the way I mentioned above).

Day 15: Spaghetti

Breakfast: omelette with proscuitto, bananas and strawberries, coffee with coconut milk (I did come across a way to make dairy-free, sugar-free creamer - may try that later this week).

Lunch: apple with almond butter, salad with mixed greens, hb eggs and peppers with balsamic vinaigrette

Snack - almonds, sweet potato chips with salsa

Dinner - I decided it was time to try to something new. I've always heard about spaghetti squash and how it looks like pasta, but I was always skeptical. I decided now was as good a time as any to try it out. I went to Sprouts yesterday, then googled cooking instructions today and voila!

I was actually very surprised and pleased with how similar it was to real spaghetti. All you have to do it wash the outside, cut it in half, scoop out the pulp and seeds then roast for 30-40 minutes (rind side up) at 375. Then use a fork to pull the flesh out, and it comes out in strings/strands similar to pasta.

We went a traditional route and topped our squash with a tomato meat sauce (1 can tomato sauce, 1 lb super lean ground beef, oregano, fresh garlic, chili powder, salt and pepper to taste).

Salad was mixed greens with carrots, red pepper, hb egg and dressed with oil & vinegar.

Russ said he would definitely eat this again, even after our whole 30 is done, and I agree. I also think the squash can be worked into other dishes that normally use pasta.

Day 14: Chiloso!

Today was an interesting meal day because I was traveling back home from Nashville right at lunch time.

Breakfast -Omelette with mushrooms and bacon, orange juice and water

Snack/Lunch on the plane - trail mix I found at the airport in a little organic store. It had all kinds of nuts and seeds, plus dried raisins, cranberries and blueberries. This is the first time I've seen unsweetened dried cranberries - they usually have sugar added.

Snack at home - frozen blueberries with coconut milk

Dinner - fun discovery - we can eat at Chiloso! After studying the menu, with a few modifications we split a grilled avocado filled with grilled chicken (if you haven't eaten there, this isn't on the menu but it is AMAZING! It's normally served on top of queso and sprinkled with shredded cheese, with rice and beans). We just had the avocado and chicken, no queso, cheese, rice or beans. We also split a salad that had romaine, grilled vegetables, steak, guacamole and salsa. It was all delicious.

I planned our meals for this week after I got home this afternoon and we are going to be trying some new recipes this week. I'm kind of tired of typing "cauliflower rice" :)

Day 13 - Travel Temptations

So today was Misty's baby shower and then dinner out in Nashville. Here is the list of things I wanted to eat (and Misty said she wouldn't tell), but didn't: quiche, fruit tea, cupcakes, salad with blue cheese, smoked Gouda grits and lobster brie mac and cheese.

Yeah, I didn't know lobster brie mac and cheese was even a real thing. It is. I have no idea how good it is.

Thankfully food choices and options weren't a big deal and didn't interfere with having a fun time. :)

Breakfast - apple with almond butter, coffee with coconut milk

Brunch/lunch- egg casserole with mushrooms, sausage and prosciutto, fresh fruit salad, orange juice

Snacks- almonds, freeze dried fruit, coffee with coconut milk

Dinner - steak filet, roasted vegetables, steamed broccoli

After dinner - fresh fruit salad

Day 12: Nashville bound!

This evening I'm headed to Nashville to celebrate my friend Misty and the fact that this time next month she will be a mom. Yay! Sticking to the whole30 while traveling might be a bit tricky, but I've packed a few things to help.

One thing I brought is a new favorite that I found at Target (where I find a lot of favorite things). It's called "Crunchies". It's different kinds of freeze dried fruit, and it is really good. Almost candy-like. I would totally sneak these into a movie theater, if I were the sneaking-type.

Moving on...
Breakfast - egg casserole with sausage and prosciutto, cinnamon coffee with coconut milk, half a banana

Lunch - leftover taco meat, apple, almonds, black olives (so random - this is what happens when you have to get yourself and two littles packed for the weekend and naps don't overlap).

Dinner - hamburger, sweet potato chips (one step closer to perfecting the recipe), salad with spinach, hb egg, avocado, and lime pepper vinaigrette.

Airport snack while waiting for my flight- Crunchies :) a big change from my typical preflight peanut butter m&ms.

Day 11: Goldfish and Cheerios

I think pre-whole 30 I must have eaten a lot more Cheerios and Goldfish (a.k.a. toddler crack) than I'd like to admit. I'm constantly catching myself wanting to eat them as I dole them out to the kiddos. I almost gave in today, and then I thought "really? I'm going to throw the last 10 days out the window for a handful of goldfish??" Nope. Well, not today, at least. :)

Breakfast- a different egg casserole with eggs, mushrooms, sausage and prosciutto. Coffee with coconut milk and CINNAMON. Don't know why it took me 11 days to think of that one.

Snacks - almonds, apple slices

Lunch - leftover taco pork and cauliflower rice

Snack - frozen blueberries with coconut milk

Dinner - an experiment. Lemon pepper chicken in the crockpot. It turned out pretty similar to the lemon caper chicken from the other night. Added Tabasco to spice it up a bit. Overall, not bad. Served on cauliflower rice with a side salad (spinach, hb eggs, balsamic vinaigrette).

Day 10: Ice cream

Breakfast - mushroom and prosciutto egg casserole, half of a banana, coffee with coconut milk

Lunch - leftovers from last night (taco pork, cauliflower rice, avocado, salsa, sweet potato chips)

Snack - frozen blueberries

Dinner - grilled pork chop with spicy mustard, roasted carrots and broccoli

Dessert - I attempted to make a smoothie a couple of hours after dinner because I was pretty hungry. I used two frozen bananas, 1.5 tablespoons cocoa powder, one tablespoon almond butter and about a cup of coconut milk (this was for two servings). The result? Whole30 ice cream. Russ said it reminded him of frozen yogurt.

I know - it's blasphemy to purist whole30-ers. But as previously mentioned, we love sweets and while I'm craving them a lot less than normal, I really wanted dessert tonight and I might as well figure out some healthy options.

And it hit the spot.

Day 9: Old Habits Die Hard

Part of the reason we're doing the Whole 30 is to pinpoint bad habits and figure out ways to change them. Today was the most "normal" day since we started the Whole 30 last week, meaning, I wasn't just home with the kids all day. It was a day of running errands, doctor appointments, to-do lists, etc. And it definitely was a day that brought out my tendencies toward bad eating habits.

1) While making my son's lunch for MDO (which included a pb&honey), I realized I typically make one for myself to eat for breakfast on my way to drop him off. Or I grab a pack of peanut butter crackers. It's quick, it's easy, I like it, and it doesn't take much thought at all. Instead of doing that, I actually had to put thought into my breakfast and take extra time to sit and eat it. And it was hard.

2) While I was out running errands with our baby, I got super hungry. I hadn't thought to throw healthy snacks in the car. Normally I would just pick something up somewhere to save time, but that wasn't an option today. And it was frustrating. Not because I couldn't have a bagel or smoothie, but because it was changing my plans for the day.

Eating well takes time, planning, and commitment. I'm banking on that getting easier with practice. We'll see. :)

Breakfast: proscuitto and mushroom egg casserole, 1/2 banana, coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: Taco soup (same as yesterday)

Snack: apple, mixed nuts (not peanuts)

Dinner: Similar recipe to last week - the crockpot taco meat - but this time I used pork, served on seasoned cauliflower rice with avocado, and sweet potato oven chips and salsa on the side.

After dinner: frozen blueberries with coconut milk


As a side note, I figure by the end of our Whole 30 challenge, I will have perfected a sweet potato oven chip/fry recipe. Tonight I baked them at 375 on convection for about 40 minutes, turning once, and they turned out pretty well. Seasoned with garlic salt, cayenne pepper and a little olive oil.

Day 8: Proscuitto, Portobellos and Taco Soup

Breakfast: proscuitto, portobello (left over from NYE) and egg casserole for breakfast. I cooked the proscuitto to crisp it up like bacon. I'd read where some people have found approved bacon, but after checking Sprouts and Whole Foods, every package of bacon I've seen has sugar. The proscuitto is just pork and salt. Russ said he likes this one a lot better than the one we had at the beginning of last week.

Lunch: Taco Soup - ground turkey, tomato juice, sauteed onions, peppers & mushrooms, black olives and approved taco seasoning. Also much better than the soup I attempted last week.

Snack: apple with almond butter

Dinner: grilled chicken (marinated in lime juice, salt and pepper) topped with caramelized onions, roasted carrots, spinach salad with hard boiled eggs, bell peppers, sunflower seeds, and homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

After dinner snack: frozen blueberries with coconut milk (the coconut milk freezes around the berries making it all kind of slushy and good).

Day 7 - One week!

Well, we have one week of the 30-day Whole30 challenge under our belts. I spent a lot of time today planning out and shopping for this next week's meals and feel a lot more confident in knowing what we will like and what we need to make it all work.

Today's meals: (Sunday's are a little different around here because we leave early for church and then have brunch afterwards).

Breakfast: banana and water in the car on the way to church :)
Brunch: scrambled eggs, chicken apple sausage, strawberries and coffee with coconut milk
Snack: apple with almond butter, cashews
Dinner: cauliflower rice topped with lemon caper chicken (sauteed and then simmered in approved chicken stock, lemon juice, capers, salt, pepper and paprika), steamed broccoli. This is a recreated family recipe that originally was chicken that was lightly breaded and fried, then simmered in a similar sauce.