Paleo Savory Zucchini Fritters {recipe}

Yesterday we went out to work in the garden and found these ginormous zucchini's. It had been a few days since we did a walk through but wow, they were a surprise. I can only assume it was the unnatural heat wave we had come though the past week. The humidity was horrid, thank goodness we have a cool down heading our way.

So with these super fabulous zucchini's it is time to think of delicious recipes! I love zucchini fritters (or cakes). A few years ago I posted a recipe for an Italian Zucchini Cake that is amazing. However now that I have switched to the Paleo lifestyle I had to revamp the recipe. I must say, you can not tell the difference in flavor from that recipe to the new Paleo recipe, it is delicious! Enjoy!

2 cups shredded zucchini

1/4 cup almond flour

1 egg

Italian seasoning

Sea salt

Garlic powder

Bacon grease

Shred a large zucchini and drain. I used paper towels to help squeeze out the moisture. Add remaining ingredients to the shredded zucchini except for the oil and mix.

Heat bacon grease in a large skillet. When oil is hot add large spoonful of mixture into pan and cook until brown and crispy on both sides.

Remove fritters to a paper towel lined plate. I served mine topped with uncured bacon and a egg that I fried along side the fritters. Delicious!!

Oatmeal Carob Chip Cookies - Gluten, Dairy & Egg Free {recipe}

I made these cookies last night in anticipation of being able to have a delicious treat today. I was excited for the girls to get home yesterday and to try them because I can count on them for the brutal truth. I hoped they would be excited about them especially since I took a black garbage bag to the pantry a few weeks back and gutted their normal "special sweet treats" stash.

So when they got home and after the backpacks had been emptied I told them I had a special treat...mommy baked! I told them I made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Okay so a little white lie, but unlike the way I grew up, my girls do not know what carob is. I realized how sad that was because I LOVE carob! That was our "chocolate" growing up and I forgot how much I loved it until I popped a few unsweetened carob pieces in my mouth while baking...heaven! Pretty sure that explains why I am not a chocolate eater. I have never been a fan of chocolate chip cookies, even warm out of the oven, and can only eat chocolate in very small doses.

Anyways, my girls loved the cookies...wahoo! Score one for mom! When I told them they were "healthy" it helped them to understood that just because I am cleaning up our diets does not mean that we have to live without the good stuff we enjoy.

I found this recipe from The Fast Metabolism Diet website. I added and deleted some items due to what I had on hand and my taste preferences. Enjoy!!!

Oatmeal Carob Chip Cookies:

Preheat oven to 400

1/3 cup raw nut butter (I used Almond butter)

1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 Tbls. grapeseed oil

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup organic coconut sugar

1 cup Bob’s Red Mill Spelt Flour

Pinch sea salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon 

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup oats

1/2 cup organic carob chips or unsweetened chocolate chips 

1/2 chopped raw walnuts

In a stand mixer (can also use a hand mixer) add the nut butter and oil, turn on Med to cream. Slowly add the almond milk and vanilla to the mix. Once incorporated and creamy add the coconut sugar and and mix on low until fully blended.

In a large bowl add all the dry ingredients...spelt flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. When the wet ingredients are ready add to the bowl.

Add the carob chips, chopped walnuts and mix and fold in. Once all ingredients have been fully mixed it will look like a thick, sticky batter. Drop by the teaspoon full onto a ungreased cookie sheet (like parchment paper)

Bake for 9-10 minutes until cookie looks dry but not over baked. Let cool and eat! Delicious!!!

FMD Day 10 &11 (Phase 2)

Weds Snack - Panera's Spinach salad with grilled chicken, bacon, diced eggs and grilled mushrooms. No dressing.

Weds and Thursday was tough this week. These are Phase 2 days which means only protein and veggies for all meals and snacks. While I am still finding a daily increase of energy, I did not have the energy to eat any more protein and had to force myself to eat. Hubby actually felt the opposite effect with his energy on these days. He felt so lethargic, tired and like me, had to force himself to eat.

Weds  Lunch - Leftover grilled chicken with sauteed broccoli, spinach and red onions.

 Weds Dinner - Steak and fresh steam green beans

Hubby woke Thursday to another 2 lb loss. That makes 13 lbs for him in 11 days...HATE him! While I am still suck at 4 lbs loss (grrr) I have dropped full inches everywhere. So while I try not to concentrate on the scale number, come on...i'm a girl, sometimes I just can't help it :)

Thursday Lunch - Leftover Steak from Weds dinner with spinach, carrots and cucumbers.

In anticipation for Phase 3 foods starting Friday I baked up some Oatmeal Carob cookies!! Spelt flour, organic coconut sugar, almond milk and more. I will be sharing the recipe later this afternoon so keep an eye out for an amazing vegan cookie recipe!!

FMD Day 8 & Awesome Facebook Sites To Follow

Lunch Monday 4/22/13

Monday is the start of week two! I had so much energy that I was literally doing squats and plies at my ironing board while working. My daughter C who was home sick walked in and started laughing at me. "What? It's called multitasking" I told her. She just though I was crazy and frankly I kinda did too. I just had so much energy I had to do something.

Monday breakfast is grain and fruit so I had a slice of sprouted bread with an apple. Snack is fruit and veggies and lunch is grain, protein, fruit and a veg. For lunch I found a leftover uncooked burger patty from last week and the leftover sauteed veggies from the night before so I decided to put it all together with a piece of sprouted bread.

I toasted up the bread, cooked the burger in a nonstick pan and when the burger was just about ready I threw in the veggies to warm up. Piled it all on top of the warm toast and enjoy! Super healthy and a great way to use up leftovers.

I have been finding some amazing FB pages that not only have great information but recipes that I have been pinning like crazy! So I thought I would share a few of my favorites..have fun :)

Just Eat Real Food

Clean Food Living

Girls Meets Nourishment

CHEESESLAVE

Traditional Foods

Civilized Caveman

Health Extremist

Day 5, 6 & 7 Healthy Eating / Fast Metabolism Diet {recipes}

Friday Dinner - Day 5

Day 5, 6 and 7 are all about eat everything! Protein, grains, veggies and fruit..all day long! Friday was Day 5 so for breakfast I had Ezekiel bread with almond butter and fruit. For lunch I had a tuna salad with sliced apples. Dinner was super yummy...burgers! We had a burger on Ezekiel burger buns with safflower mayo and I topped mine with red onion and red pepper slices.

Breakfast Day 6

Saturday I had a craft show. So for a quick breakfast I made a mango and almond butter with unsweetened almond milk. I wasn't sure how mango's and almond butter would taste together, but trust me..it was delicious! 

1 cup frozen Mango's

1 Tb Almond Butter

1 cup Almond Milk

Blend and enjoy!

I packed a roast beef sandwich, fruit, carrots and raw almonds and cashews for the craft show. It is pretty easy to pack healthy when you know what combinations of food you are having that day. For dinner hubby made chicken. He has been doing very well with the sudden change in foods and diet, so it was sweet of him to have dinner ready for me when I returned from a little birthday celebration I attended for a girlfriend that night.

Sunday Breakfast Day 7

On Sunday I wanted to make some pancakes for breakfast. I found a recipe for Buckwheat Pancakes on The Fast Metabolism Diet's website. I am so glad to find that earth Balance has a Soy Free spread. No dairy, no GMO, no Soy...perfect! I added cinnamon as the recipe states, but I also added fresh nutmeg. They smelled so good on the griddle. The girls had their with some syrup and ate them up, hubby was not as impressed. By not having a sweet batter and drowning it in syrup I wondered how he would like it. The buckwheat flour was dense. I actually didn't mind it, I found the flavor kind of nutty. Although I think it would be much better with a fruit compote of some sort, and I think the family would like it more too. 

Lunch 

For lunch I had organic turkey and roast beef on Ezekiel Sesame bread with safflower mayo and stone ground mustard. On the side was my fruit and veggies as usual.

Dinner

This was the family favorite dinner of the week. Grilled steak with wild rice and a medley of sauteed veggies. I literally grabbed every vegetable from my fridge and started slicing. Carrots, red onions, broccoli, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, portabello mushrooms and garlic. I sauteed them in a little chicken broth with Trader Joe's 21 Seasoning, black pepper and kosher salt. Delish!

Week One Results  -

This week could have went easier but when you have to sit in a hospital for 18 hours and your trying to take care of a sick kid, what can you do. I was surprised at how well we did with keeping to our eating schedule and never cheated. We packed food and water if we knew we had to be out for long periods of time and didn't give up.

I found that I lost 4.5 lbs this week and my energy is UP! My ability to handle stressful situations like an extended hospital stay was nothing like I have experienced before. Before I would have been tense, irritated, snappy, but I was calm, mellow and just taking it as it came. I even took my dog for a little job down our road Tuesday morning after I put the girls on the bus. We haven't ran together since we moved from San Diego, so it was nice and it felt great.

Hubby lost almost 10 lbs (grrr). We ate the same thing all week at the same times....what the hell...10 lbs!!! I still do not understand how that happens but whatever. He hasn't noticed a change in energy but I suspect that will come along this week.

I'm ready for week two...bring it!!

Day 4 More Muscle Building Foods

Thursday was Day 4, high protein muscle building foods...mega protein! For breakfast I made a turkey bacon "scramble" with some baby portabella mushrooms, red and green bell peppers, red onions, garlic and broccoli. The turkey bacon was so flavorful I did not even have to add seasoning tot he dish...yumm!

For lunch I had my usual tasty tuna cucumber salad but for dinner I made Stuffed Peppers! Now this is not my great grandma's delish meat and rice stuffed peppers covered in red sauce. This is a healthier version and just as tasty! Another fabulous recipe from The Fast Metabolism Diet book that is not only tasty but easy to make. The filling is ground beef, red onions, celery, garlic, dried herbs, cilantro and spinach. Stuff it in a red pepper (mine were wicked small so I filled them to the top) and bake for 30 minutes. I baked it for less than what the recipe called for because I still wanted some crunch left in the pepper.

I have noticed that in just these short 4 days, my stress level has decreased and when I do have stress (i.e. spending all day at the hospital) I was much more calm and mellow than I normally would have been. Coincidence? I think not. I feel great!

Day 2 & Day 3 Metabolism and Muscle Building Foods

Day #2 / Phase 1 Dinner (Tuesday)

Had a trip to the hospital yesterday with my youngest so I was unable to post about Day #2 yesterday. So today you will get Day #2 and #3..yay!

On Day #2 you are still in the metabolism building phase so my breakfast and lunch meals for Day #2 were the same as the previous day. However for dinner I had Chicken Sausage with Brown Rice Pasta and Veggies. It was delicious!

Adapted from The Fast Metabolism Diet

12 oz chicken sausage (I got the Italian because of the spices in the meat but make sure to check for Nitrate Free)

2 cups brown rice pasta cooked

2 Tb + 1/4c chicken broth

zucchini, broccoli, red onion, garlic, green bell pepper

Sea salt and black pepper

Prepare pasta, drain and set aside

Slice sausage, I cut mine into 1/2" pieces. Prepare veggies.

I didn't put an amount to use on the veggies, I just kinda winged it based on what we prefer.

Heat 2 Tb chicken stock in a skillet over Med heat. Add sausage, garlic and onions and brown sausage. Add the veggies and 1/4 c chicken stock. Cover and reduce to med low to steam the veggies stirring occasionally. I like my veggies with a little snap left in them, but you cook them until your desired consistency. Add the pasta, toss, cover and remove from heat. Let set for a couple minutes to warm the pasta. Season to taste and serve.

Breakfast Day #3/Phase 2 - Muscle building

Phase 2 which lasts two days is all about building muscle. So we will be eating protein and veggies for not only the 3 main meals but for our 2 snacks as well. 

So for breakfast I had a 3 egg white scramble with sauteed baby portabella mushrooms, red onions, garlic and bell peppers.

Lunch 

For the 20 minutes we were home between hospital trip and then having to go to the ER hubby and I had to eat something. So for me I made a salad with tuna, red onions and cucumbers over spinach. For the "dressing" I mixed a couple tablespoons of stone ground mustard with lemon juice and drizzled it over the salad. Yummy!

Hubby's Lunch

Hubby made his own creative lunch with sliced organic roast beef, red onions, fresh cilantro and mixed greens.

For dinner I had NY steak with peppers and onions planned for dinner. Since we were in the ER all day and night obviously we were not home for dinner. So instead I packed a cooler bag with sliced raw veggies and organic sliced roast beef and smoked turkey that we snacked on throughout our hospital stay. 

Building Up The Metabolism - Day 1, Phase 1

Breakfast 0700

So we made it through day number one, barely I think for my hubby. He must have called at least 10 times with questions about his schedule. See my hubby will drink coffee ONLY from wake up until he gets home at 1600. No food eaten all day except maybe an occasional bear claw from the vending machine...lol Then he comes home and raids the pantry only to then get his fill of dinner only an hour later. Not good for the metabolism. So having a schedule of what time to eat and what to eat was throwing him all out of whack. Plus he has to eat 5 times a day..what??? Like anything else, you do something enough and it becomes habit right?

For my wake up breakfast I had Oatmeal with diced apples, cinnamon and nutmeg. After I took the oatmeal off the fire I added the oatmeal and spices, covered it and let sit for 5 minutes. The apples were still crunchy but had started to release some of the natural sugars. Honestly I did miss my pat of butter and sprinkling of brown sugar on top, but it was still very tasty.

Lunch 1200

In between my breakfast and lunch I had an orange for snack. I cut some carrots thinking an orange might not be enough, but it was. For lunch I had a whole can (5 oz) of tuna mixed with diced apples, cucumbers and red onions on top of a spinach salad and finished with Balsamic vinegar. I was one the phone with my girlfriend Courtney while making my lunch and as I watched my plate grow I said "there is so much food here, I can't eat this all"!!

I then remember what I read in the book. The author wrote for the first few days your going to say to yourself  "this is too much", "I can not eat all this", "how can I loss weight eating all this food". When I read that I chuckled to myself thinking "yeah right, it can't be that much food"....I was wrong. Guess what though, I ate it all *gulp*.

Dinner 1800

For dinner we had Turkey Chili from the slow cooker. This recipe not only made enough for all four of us to eat for dinner, but also for hubby to take a serving for lunch today and one for the freezer for next week! This recipe was delicious! I had to tweak it for what I had on hand and the addition of fresh Cilantro put it over the top bursting with flavor!

Turkey Chili (1 1/2 c serving size)

(adapted from The Fast Metabolism Diet)

1 lb ground lean turkey

1/2 c diced red onion

1- 1 1/2 Tbl chopped cilantro

1- 2 Tbl chopped garlic

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Chili Powder (to taste)

Black Pepper (to taste)

1 heaping tsp Sea Salt

15oz white beans

15oz kidney beans

15oz black beans

15 oz pinto beans

32 oz diced tomatoes with green chilies *

Brown turkey and drain off any fat. Drain all beans and add to crockpot. Add browned meat, veggies and spices. Stir and cover. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 6-8. Adjust seasoning as need before serving.

* The original recipe calls for organic bell pepper tomato soup or plain tomato soup as long as it is not milk based. I have tomato soup in the pantry but when looking at the ingredients I realized while it was not milk based, the second ingredient was corn syrup and it had wheat in it! So I opted to use the diced tomatoes b/c the only ingredients are tomatoes, water and green chilies.

Time to Boost Metabolism and Eat Healthy To Save My Santity

The past week I have been dealing with my ulcer. Stress is a bitch and when I get overwhelmed my body throws it right back at me in the form of awful pain, vomiting and diarrhea. This could last for a day or a week, I never know. I could have all three symptoms or just one or two but regardless, pain is always the first to the party and the last to leave.

I am so tired. tired of the ulcer, tired of the pain, tired of having a crappy attitude, tired of being sad and just tired of being tired. So what happens when you think your getting close to the comfy padded room with the stylish strappy white jacket with big shinny buckles? You figure out what the hell you can do to fix the problem.

One of the major changes I am making is how I eat. I saw a short segment on GMA while in and out of conciseness from the pain meds about a book called "The Fast Metabolism Diet". That short mention piqued my interest. Not just because I have been at a plateau for weeks and can not brake it to save my life, but because I liked the idea behind it.

We all know food is fuel, a high metabolism burns fat, chemicals are bad, blah blah blah. I am a chronic dieter, always have been..even if I didn't need it. I have read so many diet books and have never stuck with it because I never really connected, until now. Just her section explaining the  "five major players" as she calls it, had me addicted to her book. While reading her book I was having flash backs of listening to my doctors over the years talk about the Adrenals in association with stress, the Thyroid, the Pituitary, ect. Only this time it sunk in, it finally made sense. Or maybe I was just willing to finally listen and that is when I had my "Ah Ha" moment.

The "ah ha" wasn't just for me, but for my oldest daughter "C". Last week she got her first pimple and I just about had a mini stroke. She is a month and a half away from turning 8...that's right 8, and she already had a pimple...WTF? Then I started thinking about her wicked mood swings she has had the past few months. Could she be that close to puberty? Is her period right around the corner? NOOOOO!!!! I didn't get my period until I was 14....she's not even 8! Yes, it is possible after talking with many friends of tween girls, it is closer than I think.

It is so time for a change. So based on the foods listed in Haley Pomroy book I wiped out my pantry and went through the fridge. Clean raw eating is going to be our new family lifestyle. NO wheat, sugar, corn, nitrates, soy, processed foods, GMO foods, caffeine and alcohol. "So what is left" some of my friends posted on my FB page. What is left is raw fruit, veggies and lean organic meats. Do not get me wrong, we are not "horrible" eaters. As you've seen from my bento lunches I try and feed my family from every food group, make dinner every night and even grow our own garden. But there is more I can do to help not just my own body but my girls so why wouldn't I do it.

So this is my 4 week challenge as laid out by The Fast Metabolism Diet. Eat 5 times a day. Eat raw, clean and lean. After 4 weeks we will see how everyone feels and either keep going or make adjustments. I am hoping to not even feel a tinge of pain from my ulcer and really hoping to see an attitude shift in my daughter.

I will be posting photos and recipes of my main meals and letting you know how it is working for us. Today was Day #1, keep your fingers and toes crossed!