Grapefruit Salad

Yet another favorite of mine from the Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook and Action Plan. My husband would like to eat this every night!!

Ingredients

FOR THE DRESSING:

1/2 c EVOO

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp local organic honey

1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon

Pinch sea salt

FOR THE SALAD:

3 cups spinach

2 red grapefruits, peeled, sectioned, and chopped

1/4 c dried cranberries

Directions

1. Whisk all dressing ingredients together until well combined and set aside.

2. Mix salad ingredients in large bowl.

3 Add dressing and toss. Eat it up!!

Roasted Zucchini Salad

Ingredients
6 zucchini, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
2 Tbsp balsalmic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c shredded fresh basil

Directions
1. Place zucchini and onion on parchment paper covered baking pan
2. Preheat oven to 450. Roast, turning once, until lightly browned and tender, about 10-15 minutes.
3. Transfer to a bowl and let cool for about 30 minutes. Then add balsalmic vinegar, salt, and basil. Toss to combine before serving.

Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients
1 Tbsp EVOO
3 tsp minced fresh garlic
1 lb (21-35 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 c chopped fresh parsley
zest of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1 lemon

Direction
1. Place large skillet over med- hi heat and add olive oil. Saute the garlic until fragrant and soft.
2. Add the shrim and saute until pink and cooked, through, about 5 minutes.
3. Remove the skillet from the heat and add parsley, lemon zest, and lemon juice and toss to mix.

Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Ingredients
1 lb strawberries, diced
1 lb pineapple, diced
12 oz blueberries
12 oz red grapes
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
15 oz mandarin oranges, drained well

Dressing:
1/4 c honey
2 tsp lime zest (or zest of 2 limes)
1 Tbsp lime juice
2 drops Citrus Fresh essential oil (optional)

Directions
1. Combine all fruit in large mixing bowl.
2. In separate bowl, whisk together honey, lime zest, lime juice and Citrus Fresh. Pour over fruit just before serving and toss evenly to coat.

Chewy Sugar Cookies (Vegan)

Ingredients
1 c unbleached flour
1 1/4 c whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c sucanat or raw sugar
1/2 c brown sugar
1/4 c non-dairy plain or vanilla yogurt (I used So Delicious Greek coconut milk vanilla yogurt)
1 Tbsp cornstarch
6 Tbsp vegan butter (I use Earth Balance)
1/3 c coconut oil
1 Tbsp non-dairy milk (I used Almond Coconut milk blend)
1-2 tsp vanilla extract (pure vanilla)
cinnamon to sprinkle on top (optional)


Directions
1. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt.
2. In a large bowl, whisk sugar, yogurt, cornstarch, melted butter, oil, milk, vanilla
3. Pour dry into wet ingredients and stir to combine. Cover dough and chill in fridge for at least one hour.
4. Preheat oven to 350 deg and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
5. Roll cookie dough balls and flatten slightly. Sprinkle with cinnamon (or sprinkles ;)
6. Bake for 10 min or until bottoms are brown.

Beanless Chili

Ingredients
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
5 cloves garlic, diced/minced
1/2 jalepeno, seeded and diced
2 lbs organic grass fed beef
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 box Pomi diced tomatoes/ 1-2 cans diced tomatoes
30 oz tomato sauce
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp cinnamon (no more!!)

Directions
1. Saute onions, peppers, garlic, jalepeno in coconut oil until onions translucent. Add beef and season. Brown meat.
2. Once meat is brown, add in brown sugar, worcestershire sauce, cinnamon. Simmer about 30-45 min. Taste and re-season as needed.

Protein Smoothie (Without the Powder!)

Version 1: with fruit so slightly higher in carbs (about 53g protein)
1/2 c frozen wild blueberries
1/4 lemon with rind
1 1/2 c kefir or 1 c milk and 1/2 c plain greek yogurt
1/4 c dried cranberries
1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
2 walnuts
1 Tbsp chia seeds
2 Tbsp flax seeds
2 Tbsp almond butter
1/2 Tbsp coconut butter
1/4 avocado (optional)
3 Tbsp rolled oats
optional stevia and/or honey to sweeten

Version 2:  no fruit, but still pretty high in carbs (about 52g protein)
1 1/2 c kefir or 1 c milk and 1/2 c plain greek yogurt
1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
2 walnuts
1 Tbsp chia seeds
1 Tbsp flax seeds
2 Tbsp almond butter
1/2 Tbsp coconut butter
3 Tbsp rolled oats
dash of cinnamon and vanilla
optional 1/2 Tbsp cocoa powder and/or stevia and/or honey to sweeten
*confession: sometimes I add a little coffee to mine in the morning ;)

Lemon Steamed Salmon

Ingredients
1/2 filet salmon
1/4 c white wine
3 garlic cloves
1 lemon, zested then sliced
water
salt and pepper to taste


Directions
1. Season salmon with salt and pepper to taste.
Mix wine, garlic, lemon zest together. Rub over salmon. You can let this sit about 30 min if you have the time.
2. Line basket (if using bamboo steamer) with parchment paper or cabbage, etc. Add salmon and lay sliced lemons on top.
3. With water in the bottom of a pot, place steamer basket with food into pot. Heat to boil. Steam about 15 minutes.

Kale chips

Ingredients
1 bunch kale, stems removed, cut into bite-sized pieces
2-4 tsp olive oil
salt and seasoning of choice to taste

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 300 deg. Line pan with parchment paper.
2. Lay out kale in single layer. Drizzle with olive oil. Season to taste.
3. Bake for 11-15 minutes until edges are browned and kale is crispy when moved in pan.

Avocado Salad Dressing

Ingredients
1/2 avocado
1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 Tbsp EVOO

Directions
1. Mash avocado in a bowl. Mix in other ingredients. Stir to combine. Serve over any salad.

Sauteed Kale

Ingredients

1 lb kale

2 cloves garlic

1 Tbsp EVOO

1/2  c water

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

Directions

1. Heat EVOO in large saucepan over med hi. Add garlic and cook to fragrant, but not colored.

2. Add water and kale. Toss to combine. Increase heat and cover. Cook for 5 minutes

3. Remove cover and continue to cook until liquid evaporated. Season to taste. Add vinegar if desired.

Dijon Pork Chops

Ingredients
4 pork chops
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 c clean spicy brown or dijon mustard
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp thyme
1 clove crushed garlic
1 Tbsp coconut oil

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 425. Season pork chops lightly with salt and pepper.
2. In a small bowl, combine mustard, thyme, garlic. Mix well and spread evenly over both sides of the chops.
3. Heat oil in large oven-proof skillet over medium high. Add the pork and brown for about 2 min per side.
4. Transfer pork in skillet to oven and cook for an additional 15minutes or so, until no longer pink and cooked through

Dr Oz 3 Day Detox Cleanse: My Review

My goals for this journey: Overall, detoxing is important for the body. So obviously that is one of the main goals for me. I am also hoping to "reset" my cravings for unhealthy foods as my body re-aquires a taste for and craving for whole and healthy foods. I have not lost any of the baby weight that has been clinging to my body since my youngest was born 1 year ago, so a jump start for weight loss is a big big plus.

Caveats and things I learned along the way:
1. Yes, I peeled the mangoes, no I did not peel the lemons. I also did not peel the apples, but think it would better better to do so. These are not my expert opinions or necessarily what Dr Oz had in mind, but I wasn't sure so this is what I did.
2. Also, when you grocery shop, just recognize that the list is enough for the breakfast, lunch and dinner smoothies, but not necessarily the snack smoothie (which you can make whatever is your favorite or skip if you are not hungry.)
3. Prep before hand. Seriously. There's work here.
4. The smoothies always taste better cold. Some suggest freezing some of the ingredients
5. Don't take your vitamins on an empty stomach!! Unless you like to vomit.
6. To make the evening smoothie better, here's my cheat: I put the cayenne in a small cup with about half cup of smoothie and downed it like a shot.
7. Yes, lunch is awful. Without altering the recipe ingredients, I would say chop the celery super super fine and puree as much as you can before adding the other ingredients and then add about 1 c water for a better texture. A lot of people decrease the amount of celery and increase the pineapple. I did this (and a few other tweaks- see below) my last day. Definitely helped

Day 1
Cravings: I am craving MEAT!! As others have said, there is something satisfactory about chewing, so chewing would be nice, but it was not that big of a deal to me today. I just want meat! I guess my body needs the protein.
The smoothies: Breakfast smoothie was fine, Lunch not so hot. I did not detest it as some, but I also could not finish it in its entirety. Definitely my least favorite. Truth be told, I only could finish half, and will finish the rest for tomorrow's lunch. Some people prefer the breakfast, but the supper smoothie was my favorite.  However, I did follow someone's advice and put a small amount in a little cup, and mix the full dose of cayenne and downed it that way. Then drank the rest of the smoothie cayenne free, which was delicious. For my snack, I didn't have enough provisions for two of the suppers (which was my favorite) so I repeated the breakfast smoothie simply because that is what I had more groceries for.
How I feel: Overall, I feel pretty normal. Maybe a slight bit foggy and a teensy headache, but overall, I feel ok. Emotionally, I worry if I will make it three days, LOL. I had to make meals for the hubby and kids and that was hard. Cause I WANT MEAT!! However, I must say, I have not felt hungry at all.
Thoughts for tomorrow: I normally drink green tea without anything, so I think I will skip the stevia tomorrow, and just do the lemon. I also have read that others decreased the amount of celery and/or used a food processor the pureed the lunch smoothie better. Think I will try both tomorrow.

Day 2
Overall: Woke feeling fine, normal, no headache. DO NOT TAKE YOUR VITAMINS ON AN EMPTY STOMACHE :) Oops. I know this about myself. I just can't tolerate vitamins on an empty stomach and I took them before the smoothie. Got really nauseous and then really sick. Thankfully, that passed quickly. I drank the green tea stevia free.
The smoothies: Woke up looking forward to breakfast. Dreading lunch. Really wanted tasty food as I fix everyone else's meals and feed the little one. Confession: I took a bite of the pineapple as I was prepping. And I still want meat. For lunch, I used the left over of my lunch yesterday, but added about a half cup of water and another 1/2 c or so of pineapple and pureed it as much as my little machine would go. It was more palatable and I was able to get it all down. Did the cayenne in a cup with a bit of smoothie and then thoroughly enjoyed my dinner.  I did not have a snack smoothie.
How I feel: I took a nap in the afternoon, but I would have been fine without it. Still a bit foggy, but really feel pretty normal. Between breakfast and lunch was the first time I felt really  hungry.
Thoughts for tomorrow: Will stay stevia free with the tea, and won't take the vitamins until I have the smoothie. Thinking I will only make a half batch of lunch? Or add more water, more pineapple, and/or less celery? I am sure I will cheat and weigh myself. I am dying to know. I really don't notice much difference.

Day 3
Overall: Grumpy. Despite what most say about feeling amazing, I really don't notice any changes. Perhaps my normal cravings are curbed? Have lost 2.5lbs. Wish it were more, but at least it's something.
The smoothies: As always, breakfast and dinner were great. My attempt to make lunch better recipe: 2 celery stalks, 1/2 cucumber, 1 cup kale, 1/2 green apple, 1/2 lime, 1 Tbsp coconut oil, 1/2 c almond milk, 1 c water, 1 1/2 c or so pineapple. Hoping that does't change the overall effect too much. I was way to hungry to skip lunch and just couldn't bring myself to stomache the regular recipe.  This one was pretty good. Texture was DEFINITELY improved.
How I feel: Ready for completion. No outstanding changes.

Day 4
Cannot wait to eat REAL food!! To chew and taste. Although I am enjoying green tea as we speak and just made a breakfast smoothie ;) I feel the same. No great aha I am cleansed moment. Sorry folks. My overall weight loss was 3 lbs. I was hoping for much better (I have a lot to lose) But that is a start I suppose. Would I do this again- probably not. There are a number of detoxes that are smoothies for breakfast and lunch, and then food for supper. Thinking of doing Dr Hyman's 10 day!  Although I am also contemplating a juice fast. So we shall see :)

Moving on from here: I have been paleo for about 3 months now. I don't buy into the paleo model, but I do agree with some of the foods that they eliminate. I definitely feel better off of gluten and dairy. So, I am sure I will continue with gluten and dairy free. Strongly considering Dr Hyman's 10 day detox for weight loss. Look out for my review! Mostly, in our house, we eat lean meats or fish and veggies and fruit anyway. And I love nuts! I am really hoping this helped curb the cravings for refined sugar which I usually do not consume but crave anyway. Not so sure!! Good luck on your detox!

Cauliflower Rice

Ingredients
1 head cauliflower
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 Tbsp coconut oil

Directions
1. Prep head of cauliflower and chop coarsely. Place in food processor and chop to the consistency of rice.
2. Place in pot on stove with cauliflower. DO NOT ADD WATER. Mix in oil and seasonings. Heat over med low for about 10 minutes to a desired rice-like softness. Enjoy guiltlessly in place of rice.

Ginger and Lime Steamed Salmon

Ingredients
2 limes, zested
1-2 lb salmon filet, skinned and cut into pieces that will fit into bamboo steamer
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
Lime wedges (optional)

Directions
1.  Cover bottom of steamer basket with parchment paper or lettuce to prevent sticking. After zesting limes, think slice and lay slices evenly at the bottom of steamer basket. Place the fish in a single layer on top of the limes.
2. Stir ginger, reserved lime peel, salt, pepper into sesame oil. Brush generously over fish.
3. Steam fish approximately 12-15 minutes in steamer basket. Let stand 1 min before eating. Tastes great with garlic lime green beans!

Garlic, Lime Green Beans

Ingredients
Olive oil
1 lb fresh green beans
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c almonds, sliced, toasted
juice of 1 lime
1/2 c water

Directions
1. Heat oil over med. Add garlic and cook 1 min.
2. Add green beans and 1/4 c water. Cover with lid and steam 3-5 min.
3. Add lime, remaining water and almonds. Stir green beans until coated and cook another 1-2 min

Blueberry Muffins Gluten free/Paleo/Clean/Vegan

Ingredients
2 cups almond flour
1/2 c coconut flour
1 flax egg
1 chia egg
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 c raw honey
1/4 c agave
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 c blueberries

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 300/350. Grease muffin pan or line with paper.
2. In large bowl, mix all ingredients except blueberries. Once all is mixed well, gently fold in blueberries.
3. Fill each muffin 3/4 full. Bake for approximately 30-40 minutes. Top should be spongy but firm when pressed. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan.

***I am still working out the temperature and time length for this. To be honest, I baked at 300 for 30 minutes, as suggested by a similar recipe, but found they did not cook through. So I baked another 10 minutes at 350. I'll update when I try again!***

*you could also use all agave or all honey rather than doing both, or 2 flax eggs vs 2 flax and 1 chia, etc. If you are not vegan or with egg allergies, you would eliminate the following and replace with 3 eggs:
1 flax egg
1 chia egg
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup coconut oil

Garlic and Dill Salmon

Ingredients
1 filet salmon
4 cloves garlic
3-4 Tbsp fresh dill
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste


Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350.  Grease pan large enough for your filet or cut filet in half to fit into standard pan.
2. Pulse garlic cloves in food processor until minced well. Add olive oil until mixed. Remove from food processor and stir in dill.
3. Spread mix over salmon. Place in pan, skin down, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Bake in oven 15 to 20 minutes until it flakes easily with fork.

Mediterranean Vegetables

Ingredients
2 tomatoes, sliced
1 small red onion, sliced
1 small eggplant, sliced
1 small yellow squash, sliced
1 large portobello mushroom, sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp rosemary
3 Tbsp olive oil
2/3 c dry white wine
can diced tomatoes
salt and black pepper to taste
*some people also add potatoes to this

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease bottom of casserole 13x9 baking dish. Place vegetables in pan. Pour wine over vegetables. Sprinkle with garlic and seasonings.
2. Cover loosely with foil. Bake 30 min. Uncover; bake 15 additional minutes until vegetables are tender.

Crockpot short ribs

Ingredients

5-6 lbs beef short ribs

1 container of gluten free, clean BBQ sauce

Directions

1. Put it all in the crockpot. Cook 8-9 hours on low or 4-5 on high. Easy peasy