#friendsgiving

December 1, 2014December 2, 2014 / peacel0vepale0 / Leave a comment

On Saturday my husband and I prepared our first thanksgiving dinner for our friends. We were pleased with the turn out! The following foods in a wonderful atmosphere were enjoyed….

The napkins are actually dish towels from IKEA – a little secret, all restaurants use these to add to their “farm to table – rustic” look. I cut off the inside label and the hanging string, ironed them and my husband rolled up the silverware! The poinsettias are from Wegman’s and were repotted in these awesome tin cans from IKEA. We had a fun time at IKEA the day after thanksgiving to do some non-sale shopping.

The food warming up and getting ready for your meal tour:

We must begin with the foundation of every good thanksgiving meal…TURKEY:

The turkey was purchased from Wegman’s – nothing fancy just a basic turkey that took forever to defrost! We seasoned it with salt, pepper and garlic powder. The turkey was extremely moist (sorry that’s the only word that properly describes the food) with delicious flavor!

Some other traditional favorites:

Cranberry Sauce: I mixed one 12oz bag of cranberries, 3/4 cup water, 1/2 cup honey and a few tbsps of coconut palm sugar to taste (see under Vittles section which product I keep in my cabinet). I cooked this mixture for about 25 minutes to ensure all the water had been absorbed, the cranberries had popped and the sauce was adequately thick. The sauce was a little tart, however, my taste buds prefer this flavor as I “believe” it is more natural and less man-made.

Mashed…turnips & parnsips for me and potatoes for the others. I used this recipe for my paleo side dish: mashed turnips and parsnips from Primal Palate. Very basic ingredients and simple instructions, I used half an onion, instead of the full for a sweeter lighter taste… ENJOY! The texture was thick lite and fluffy; I think I will use this recipe for our little one’s baby food!! Pictured below: paleo mash is featured first, followed by the potatoes being mashed & the final product.

Brussel Sprouts: we dolled these bland veggies up. They were seasoned with salt, pepper & olive oil and baked with dried cherries & pistachios, They were enjoyed by all, even those who don’t normally eat this vegetable…SUCCESS!!

Stuffing… quinoa & red rice Williams Sonoma mix. To make this treat more paleo friendly, I did not use butter – substituted with olive oil. Additionally, I used half an onion, a full yellow pepper and the zest of half a lemon to add additional flavor. Not a paleo dish as these are super food grains, however, you gotta splurge every now and then!

Biscuits: No bread!!! We made the famous Bacon and Chive Sweet Potato Biscuits from PaleOMG. We had made these last year and fell in love with them, after being pregnant and eating GF CARBSSS I hadn’t made them since. We forgot how good these biscuits are and will be making them again this weekend just to have around during the week!

Pecan Pie: You just have to have some dessert!! I made Gluten-Free Pie Crust by following the recipe from Living Without Gluten Free’s online recipes. I used Cup4Cup flour, coconut oil and coconut palm sugar and followed the rest of the recipe as stated! The filling, I cheated, I used Williams Sonoma’s Chocolate Pecan Pie filling which is sold in a glass jar and is absolutely divine!!! Note: the coconut ingredients gave the crust an additional unexpected coconut flavor, which paired with the chocolate pecan filling very nicely!

Last but not least, you must sit down and feast!!!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!!! My goal for this week… EXERCISE EVERYDAY!!!!

peace. love. paleo.

revealing the Instagram #mysteryfood

November 21, 2014November 21, 2014 / peacel0vepale0 / Leave a comment

It’s before noon, I can still say: GOOD MORNING READERS!

Here is some winter, I mean fall, uplifting photos to get your through the cold, actually warm, days here in the Mid-Atlantic!

PUERTO RICO (circa 2012 finale)

Don’t get me wrong I do love winter scenery, cold breezes while bundled up in a Canada Goose, fire place warmth and lounging on the couch covered in blankets beside your loved ones. However, I also enjoy the escape to a warmer climate; this getaway really helps anyone’s mental state during the shorter colder drearier days. The walks on the beach and rich healthy looking scenery helps put my mind at ease. I find true stillness and ultimate relaxation throughout my body while walking on the beach and listening to the ocean waves crash onto the white sand shoreline. One year I believe I managed to pack in a marathon distance walk on the beach all in a days work! Last year I didn’t take a trip to soak up the sun (or sit by my light box) probably since I was in diapers, and I SURVIVED!! I am looking forward to a view of paradise this year. Our baby already hates the cold weather; I think I’ve already conditioned him to being a summer lover too!

Let me change subjects here… FOOD!

The first thing I will cover is the mystery food that was featured on Instagram. This was a remake of an appetizer from Patowmack Farm, which would have been discovered in an earlier post – Kale Chips with Nutritional Yeast. Basically we ripped the meatier sides off the main steam of Tuscan Kale and placed the pieces in the dehydrator until completely crispy. After removing them from this device we sprinkled on Nutritional Yeast, which actually is not as hard, as we thought, to find. The taste is interesting, but a great rich flavor – if my husband will eat this then it isn’t too earthy and actually has a taste other than dirt. A recommendation: since the kale is very crunchy, when you bite into a bigger piece the yeast flies in the air and makes a mess. We quickly learned that making smaller bite size pieces rather than longer strips is actually easier to eat.

You could also use the nutritional yeast sprinkled on a kale salad and dressed with olive oil.

Following this kale treat, you could indulge in another kale app – might as well bulk up on your nutrients today!

This is a carrot paper wrapped skinny veggie roll for all you vegetarians and vegans out there! We sliced avocado and cucumber, ripped of the sides of Tuscan Kale into long strips and sprinkled on a Garden Mix of Sprouts. The carrot paper was bought at Wegman’s in a pack looking like this:

I do have to be honest though – there is some soy protein isolate in the ingredients. Now that we have experimented with this product and would use it again I will look for a paleo friendly version!

Following these random appetizers we enjoyed a roasted chicken from Wegman’s (please excuse the one legged chicken pictured below, someone got into it before we sat down for dinner) and a Creamy Paleo Bacon Pumpkin Soup from Fed & Fit.

We were not sure if the recipe called for bacon fat. We added some of the remaining lard to the soup just because we are obsessed with bacon, like the rest of mainstream Americans.

And to polish off a good meal you must indulge in dessert, no matter how full you are – am I right?!

I, yet again, doubled the recipe. I tend to do this so the treat will last for the whole week since it is hard to make a new batch every few days. The pictured dessert is Living Healthy with Chocolate’s Raw, No Bake Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownie. I enjoyed the mixture of cookie and brownie flavors, however, I find myself eating the brownie first and then gobbling the cookie dough section. I am not one to mix all my foods, I like to savor each flavor. Both, cookie and brownie, are pretty much spot on with regard to resembling the taste of conventional Toll House Break n’ Bake products without the unhealthy aspects. This is a great item to make as it will keep in your refrigerator for quite some time without going sour – that’s if you can keep them around long enough to enjoy at a later point in time!

Before eating all this food you might want to engage in a workout because you will be couch bound after this feast!

I just found out that Safari does not support my videos all the time – if you see a blank black screen that reads blocked plug-in, try opening my webpage in another browser, such as, Google Chrome.

Sweat, Eat, Be Merry. NOMaste.

weekend recap y’all.

November 3, 2014November 19, 2014 / peacel0vepale0 / Leave a comment

lazy sunday.

Breakfast: sweet potato & pork hash with a poached egg

Made by my wonderful husband (I will have to work on getting the secret recipe ;p ).

Lunch: Frankie’s meatballs, tomato sauce & spaghetti squash

These meatballs are a modification of Frankie Spuntino’s Meatballs (click on link for recipe) – we omitted cheese. Guilty, we used gluten-free bread, next batch I would like to omit that ingredient as well. Thankfully my husband bares with my diet restrictions and kindly adjusts the recipe for himself and I. The tomato sauce is simply whole canned tomatoes strained and cooked on medium heat until thick consistency meets your liking. Refer back to squash post for preparation for spaghetti replacement: spaghetti squash (click on link for cooking instructions).

Dinner: sausage with bacon & apple cider vinegar kale and parsnip fries.

This mild italian sausage was purchased from Wegman’s (their own brand), no additives. The kale was sauteed in bacon grease and topped off with finely chopped bacon of two pieces and apple cider vinegar (add until your taste buds appreciate the flavor, I used about 4 tbsp on my serving). My husband made parsnip fries again, twice fried in avocado oil. This round he made the slices a bit thicker – I thoroughly enjoyed the “meatier” fry compared to the thinner crispy fries. However, I do have to say both are excellent and I highly recommend making this side.

paired with and

Dessert: Paleo Lemon Bars

These yummy treats were made from the recipe on Paleo Cupboard’s website: Paleo Lemon Bars. This is the second recipe I have tried for paleo lemon bars. This recipe produces bars that hold their shape and are firmer, given that tapioca flour is used. However, I do prefer the taste of the lemon filling from the other recipe I have tried – I will share that recipe with you the next time I make them. Maybe I could mix and match recipes… use this crust and the filling of the other recipe! Experimenting in the kitchen will happen!!

Along with this food collection I have some home exercise routines you can do while your baby is awake and not stirring. The Baby Bjorn is a fabulous accessory! Place baby in this pouch and begin… squats, lunges, squat walks, heel raises, tree pose ya-da-ya-da-ya. Followed by a casual stroll, you and your baby will be happy as clams.

happy monday:

peace. love. paleo.

Triple Stacked

October 21, 2014November 19, 2014 / peacel0vepale0 / Leave a comment

After a sleepless night, literally, I asked my husband to pick me up BurgerFi on his way home from work. Today consisted of an unintentional day of fasting, and rolling around in bed attempting to nap with the little one; I decided I deserved a glutenous meal. My order was almost artery clogging, however, I left out the fried egg and I exercised (made it to the 6 week postpartum mark!).

don’t forget followed by

That’s stacked three high with natural burgers, plus bacon, tomato and pickle. I always opt for lettuce wrapped. Unfortunately, they don’t have sweet potato fries so I settled for salted fries. I devoured this meal, quite an attractive sight! I am sad to report that the coconut slush is gone; it’s time for the next dessert! This round I added the macadamia nut butter and drizzled on some left over raspberry sauce my husband used in his latest batch of macarons (recipe to follow).

Home-made Raspberry Sauce: (modified Laduree’s raspberry macaron filling recipe for paleo-friendly eaters)

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1.5 cup fresh raspberries

juice of 1/4 lemon

few tbsp coconut milk

*In a food processor gently blend raspberries, warm them in a pan, add the other ingredients and bring mixture to a boil for two minutes.

The work-out I chose today was one I have done in the past –

I highly recommend this channel, they have a wide variety of different routines of all different fitness levels and durations.

As I pray for a restful night, I remind myself:

peace. love. paleo.

The First One Is Here!!

October 17, 2014November 19, 2014 / peacel0vepale0 / 1 Comment

Despite the blog pages not being completed in their entirety I have decided the show must go on. I have been anxiously awaiting the first post, and I am happy to announce that this blog is active. I will try to post everyday, however, with a baby on board it might be a little challenging some days. I will quickly guide you through my blog, I have links at the top which will take you to a particular page where you will find a description of that subject and perhaps some examples of what it is I am sharing with you. These pages are intended to make it easier for my readers to go out and purchase the items I am particularly fond of or to understand the different elements of my healthy lifestyle.

Today I wanted to share with everyone the most amazing meal, food I dream about when I fall asleep… I introduce you to wine marinated steak, roasted butternut squash and sauteed leeks, followed by a coconut milk slush with pomegranate seeds & home-made macadamia nut butter.

The preparation for this meat is very basic, it is comprised of the following marinade, which you let absorb into a piece of flank steak for an hour or so (we let one batch sit for this amount of time, as it was a last minute idea, and then we made another cut of meat that rested over night — both tasted the same!). For this marinade we used red wine (cheapest is perfectly suitable), garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and honey. My husband attempted to vacuum seal the meat + marinade, however, the Food Saver did not like this idea – in the future we will just use a Ziploc bag to prevent wasting the precious Food Saver bags. The flavor and tender meat melts in your mouth, it is unreal. This idea was inspired by meat purchase at The Wine’ing Butcher in Ashburn, Virginia.

The roasted butternut squash is a breeze to make as well. First, peel the skin off, then cut the squash into cubes and place the pieces in a large mixing bowl, add olive oil – salt – pepper – thyme (none of these are measured, add oil so that all pieces have a shiny glaze and season to your liking), shake the bowl, pour the mixture onto a cooking sheet that is lined with tin foil, and bake at 400 degree for approximately 40-45 minutes or until they are tender/ slightly mushy.

The leeks, again, are an easy side dish. Ensure you clean this vegetable WELL with water prior to cooking, the dirt gets wedged between the long leaves, from the outside it may appear clean but once you start slicing the veggie you will soon notice your food covered with dirt. Slice the entire leek – I’m not sure of the proper disposal of certain parts of this veggie, but the entire thing is edible and tastes exactly the same from the leaves to the root! On a stove top, add olive oil, pepper and thai ginger flavored salt to a large pan (sautee at a medium to high temp) once warm place the leeks in the pan – stand back to ensure you don’t get splashed with oil! Allow them to sit for a few minutes then slowly start to move the pieces around with tongs, and repeat this multiple times until they achieve a slight golden brown appearance on the edges.

This dessert is another quick prep and was created by accident and turned out magnificent! Instead of whipping only the cream in a can of coconut milk, I poured the entire can into the Kitchen Aid bowl with 1-2 tbsp of coconut sugar and watched it attempt to whip… nothing happened. I decided to put it in the freezer to get a little thicker. Well as with pregnancy, the sleepless mom days leave me with a forgetful mind, the mixture sat in the freezer through dinner prep and consumption. We removed the bowl from the freezer and began slowly chopping apart pieces with a whisk. The coconut milk melts relatively fast so it turned into a slush quite rapidly, which I was not disappointed about! Instead of a whipped coconut cream over fresh berries it turned into a sundae! I took two scoops of the slush and added some fresh pomegranate seeds and drizzled over some fresh macadamia nut butter (this seriously replaced caramel sauce, I was completely satisfied with the flavor in this treat). This dessert had the perfect combination of salty & sweet tastes and crunchy & smooth textures all in one spoonful.

As always:

peace. love. paleo.