WOD updates & Cauliflower Mashed Taters

Thrust, Walk, Sit...then don't walk for a few days
(this is no joke.  I was still walking funny 3 days later.)

5 rounds
10 thrusters (I did 55#)
20 overhead walking lunges 20#
30 sit ups

 Yeah. Finished this in 17:40. We were going to make it an AMRAP workout of like 10-12 minutes...that would've been a better idea!

Still feeling the effects of it for Sunday's WOD...

8 min AMRAP
8 pushups
8 wall balls (13#)
8 med ball slams (15#)
Got in 8 rounds and 8 pushups, whoop!


Then Monday was:

EMOTM (every minute on the minute) for 12 minutes
7 knees to elbows
1 front squat (85#)

Wow--Looks easy right?  Trust me, it's not.  I couldn't grip the bar to hang clean it up to the front squat position for the last two rounds, Sean had to help me get it up [that's what she said].  The squat was no problem, but my hands were just done lol.  I gotta work on my cleans.

Anyhow, what you're really here for...the food!

I've been hesitant to try the cauliflower substitution for mashed potatoes, since I've heard mixed reviews.  I don't know wtf I waited so long, they're freaking delicious!  I used the recipe from NomNomPaleo here, and holy shit.  Sean said they tasted better then actual mashed potatoes.  I might agree with him.  Next time I'm going to try roasting the garlic first... NOM!

Aren't they beautiful?

It definitely reheats well, too.  This was only one head of cauliflower and made 4 ginormous servings.  We took the leftovers for lunch the next day. 

Paleo Zucchini Muffins

Would you believe me if I told you I made muffins with no flour (of ANY kind), no sugar, no artificial (or "natural") sweeteners, AND it had vegetables?

No? 

I don't blame you.  I was skeptical as well, but holy crap, what a surprise when I opened the oven and saw these beautiful muffins staring back at me. 

 

 They even rose perfectly!  And taste like actual muffins.  No soggy, falling apart mess here! AND they're delicious.  Whodathought? Check out the ingredients:

2 cups almond butter
3 eggs
2 cups shredded zucchini, strained or squeezed (a LOT--you want to get as much moisture out as you can.  Measure 2 cups out AFTER you have strained it)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp. vanilla
1 tbsp. cinnamon
Any other spices you desire--pumpkin spice would probably be awesome for fall

Add almond butter to mixing bowl.  I used a hand mixer to get mine nice and smooth.  Add eggs and mix.  Mix in zucchini and the rest of ingredients and stir well.  Pour into paper lined muffin tins, filling about 2/3 of the way.  I used 1/4 measuring cup for mine.  Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes until passes toothpick test.  Makes 12 muffins.


Source: Life as A Plate

I had some with my breakfasts last week, and froze the rest.  They are really good reheated!  Just defrost in the microwave and stick in the toaster oven.  Mmmmm.

BBQ Chicken & Grilled Zucchini

Day 9 of Whole30 today, and still sticking to the plan!  Pretty impressed with myself, made it through the weekend (and beer/wine and waffles) with no cheats!  I've also made 100% of my meals so far.  :)  Even if that just includes scrambled eggs or throwing together a salad.

I had a strawberry yesterday--and don't usually like strawberries unless they're covered in chocolate or chopped up in a salad/wrap.  But it was delicious.  I then went out and bought a whole carton of them.  This no sugar thing has apparently changed my tastebuds (and wallet- organic strawberries are not cheap!)! 

I'm feeling pretty good.  Had about zero energy for the first week, while my body was I guess going through sugar withdrawls and being forced to rely on fat for energy, but seem to be getting it back this week.  Thank God.

Since I can't use honey like I usually do in BBQ sauce, I substituted with mango for sweetener.  It actually came out pretty damn good in this recipe, I was impressed.  Also, LOVED grilled zucchini this way.  I could have eaten the whole ginormous foot long squash by myself.  [TWSS? No?]  But I didn't.  I shared.  I can't believe I've been making it wrong all this time!


Bacon Mango BBQ Sauce

2-3 slices bacon
1 tsp coconut oil
1 mango--chopped
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Fry bacon on stove until crispy, remove and rest on paper towels. Eat a piece, if you wish.  Add coconut oil to bacon fat and fry chopped mango in fat for 5-8 minutes, until soft.  Add tomato paste, water, apple cider vinegar and spices- bring to a simmer.  Break bacon up into pieces and mix back into sauce.  Simmer for 10 minutes or so until everything is incorporated.  (you can simmer for longer on low heat if you'd like, but I didn't have time)  Dump sauce into food processor and puree until smooth.

I used my sauce on some grilled chicken breasts.  Just brushed the sauce on them while they were grilling.  Delicious!  You could probably marinate them too, if you'd like.

For the grilled zucchini:
1 large zucchini (or 2-3 small ones)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup EVOO
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp assorted spices (oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, or a combination)--I used rosemary, basil and oregano

Slice zucchini into spears equal in thickness and put into a large bowl.  In smaller bowl, mix vinegar, oil, garlic powder and spices.  Pour mixture over zucchini and mix well.  Let marinate for 30 minutes.  When grill is hot, grill on each side for 5-7 minutes, until slightly charred.  Eat!

so.good.

 

Whole30 - Day 1

I ordered and read "It Starts with Food" last month.  Awesome book.  I cannot recommend it enough.  I learned so much about how our bodies work, why we should eat paleo, and the effect overcarbsumption has on our hormones/psyche/waistline/health. 

I also took it up a few notches, and had to re-read a bunch and explain 80% of the book to Sean, because he "doesn't read."   He also wanted to know about energy sources and ATP (which isn't referenced in the book).  I just gave myself a biology lesson.  Thanks Wikipedia!

Anyway, moving on.

The authors offer a plan to break free from conventional eating (the Standard American Diet-appropriately abbreviated SAD) called the Whole30.  It's 30 days of whole, real, food.  Nothing processed, no alcohol, no sugar, no grains, lots of (healthy) fat.  The point is to eliminate everything that doesn't meet the Good Food criteria from your diet for 30 days in order to let your body heal from all the crap you've been feeding it.  Then, you introduce the foods back in to see how you react--and how often (if at all) you should continue eating them

I have already been eating pretty clean, and was somewhat "paleo" but would still splurge. Often.  Ice cream and sugar (and beer...) was consumed way too much.  And 2 "cups" of coffee a day?  Even with just cream. It's a bit excessive.

So, yesterday started my Whole30.

And, so far so good!

Breakfast was 3 scrambled eggs in coconut oil, with a handful of sauteed kale, and 2 pieces of bacon.  Would have taken a picture, but was already late for work! (naturally) 

Lunch (made the night before)

Chicken breast, broccoli + 1/2 avocado

Dinner

Citrus chicken cooked in coconut oil, sweet potatoes and green beans

Snack was a handful of macadamia nuts while cooking dinner

I gave up coffee as well, even though you can have it black (or with coconut milk-from the can) on the "rules" of the plan.  No headaches today, and while I was super sleepy this morning, it wasn't so bad.  And I've been chugging water all day, so that's a good thing, right?

In addition to giving up coffee, I'm making it my personal goal to get more green leafy veggies into my (our) meals. (sorry babe!) I've had an aversion to them my entire childhood, and once able to cook for myself, just avoided them completely.  I know this is not good.

I have a feeling I'm going to be best friends with sweet potatoes and coconut butter this month....


In case you want more info on the Whole30 Program:
http://whole9life.com/2012/08/the-whole30-program/

Rugged Maniac

So...there was a reason I started (and finished!) that couch to 5k program.  I had scheduled a crazy mud run 5k for July 14th!

http://www.ruggedmaniac.com/

The Tri-State Rugged Maniac!  It was SO.MUCH.FUN. If you can't tell from the pictures :)

Crossing the finish line!

 We ended up not running for the whole 5k, but still finished in 50 minutes.  I had such a blast!  The camera on Sean's chest was supposed to record the whole race, but only got about the first 30 minutes of it.  If you can see the water pic up there ^^^ He hit the camera going over one of the buoys, and it cracked the case open.  We're hoping the warranty will cover it (especially since we borrowed it)!  But, the good news is, the footage was saved :)  Once we get that uploaded on the computer, I'll share (some of) that as well.

The race was a blast.  This was our second time doing it, and I did MUCH better this go around.  There were 10 foot walls again, which I needed help getting over last year, and this year, pulled myself up and over no problemo.  So proud!  I also would have been able to run the whole thing easily, but we waited for Sean's friend so we could finish together.  Fine by me!

Now the question is, to Tough Mudder, or not to Tough Mudder?

WOD-ing it up!

Since we've bought almost everything that we could possibly need to do crossfit at home (helllllo $2k worth of equipment for $500! Thank you Craigslist!), we are saving $300+/month by not going to an affiliate.  As much as I LOVED the camaraderie and support offered at the box, I just can't justify that price point when my husband WORKS at a gym, and I can do most of the workouts at home.  And now I can do even more of them since we just acquired some barbells, bumper plates, a bench press and squat rack.  Woohoo!  Now we just need a garage/basement so we both have room to workout at the same time.  It's a little cramped in the spare bedroom ;)

With all this WOD-at-home fun, Sean looked into the "science" (none, really) behind creating a Crossfit workout of the day, and we've been playing around with a few he's made up.

July17
5 rounds for time
50 jump rope
20 box jumps
15 burpees
Rach: 16:11

July18
3 rounds
40 air squats
15 hang cleans 45#
30 OH walking lunges 25#
Rach: 13:14   Those walking lunges were KILLER.

July24
100 jump ropes
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 burpees
(alternating with)
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 wall balls
100 jump ropes
Rach: 9:01   I'll graduate to double unders some day.

And we won't talk about his "Fran" on steroids we did last week...take Fran, then add snatches.  I didn't realize what he had done until after I killed myself.  Needless to say, we won't be doing that one again.

Yankee sits on our new futon and hangs out with us while we are lifting.  It's too damn cute:

Paleo Coconut Waffles

I'm always skeptical in trying a new "paleo-fied" recipe.  Basically because I'm expecting the real thing, and it never comes close.  My last attempt at paleo "waffles" ended up on the griddle as a lame attempt with pancakes after they were destroyed by my waffle maker. 

This recipe actually works in the waffle maker!  I was impressed.  It contains absolutely no grains, and no sugar.  19g of protein, AND they taste awesome.  Win all around!  I ate one for breakfast this morning plain, but I'm planning on topping one with some almond or peanut butter for breakfast tomorrow :)  As you can guess, they heat up great as well!

Paleo Coconut Waffles 

Source: Whole Wheat or Bust

4 whole eggs
8 egg whites
1/3 cup coconut milk, unsweetened (I used almond breeze coconut almond milk)


2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 of a ripe banana, mashed
2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup coconut flour

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, egg yolks, coconut beverage, vanilla, and banana. In a separate bowl, mix together the baking soda, coconut flour, cinnamon, and salt. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and mix. I blended it in a blender for a few seconds to ensure it is perfectly smooth. Pour back into bowl. Whisk in the melted coconut oil. Pour into a preheated waffle maker and follow the instructions for the waffle maker.  (I cooked mine 3-4 minutes each)

This recipe made 4 belgian waffles for me, coming in at 265 calories each, 12g fat (good fat!), 20g carbs, 4g sugar, and 19g of protein!

It's grill season!

So we have recently acquired a grill.  Like a legit, propane, free standing, on wheels grill.  I'm irrationally excited about this!  My cousin Jill had it sitting at her house and never.used.it.  I cannot understand this...  I love grilling, and will probably grill anything and everything that I can in the next few months.  This also means Sean gets to help with cooking, WITHOUT setting the kitchen on fire (true story).

So far this week we've made...burgers (twice), BBQ chicken kabobs, and london broil.  All were amazing.  Oh and I grilled some zucchini and sweet potatoes, too :)

I was looking at Bubba Burgers in the food store a few weeks ago, and noticed there weren't any ingredients listed on the boxes.  Nothing on the website either.  I sent them an email and a rep confirmed that it was in fact 100% beef, and offered to send me some coupons.  Score! 

Sean making the burgers

BBQ chicken skewers and broccoli

So GOOD!  I love summer :)

Sweet Potato Hash

This meal is awesome, because you could eat it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  I've done all three.  It also comes together super fast,  so it's an easy weeknight meal.  And there are TONS of leftovers, not to mention, bacon?  Sean and I love it. 

Sweet Potato Hash
 1 ½ lbs. sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice (2-3 potatoes)
1 tbsp (or more) coconut oil (or olive oil)
5-6 strips bacon
2 medium summer squash (or zucchini), diced into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, cut into ½-inch dice
1/2 red onion,  chopped small
sea salt & pepper
5-6 eggs

Heat a large skillet (preferably cast-iron) over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until done, drain on paper towels.  Add sweet potatoes to the skillet and cook in the leftover bacon fat.  Stir occasionally until potatoes are beginning to soften, 8-10 minutes.  In the meantime, in another skillet, heat coconut oil and fry eggs to your liking.  If necessary, add coconut oil to the sweet potatoes.  Add chopped red onion and bell pepper, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook for another 3-4 minutes until soft. After 4 minutes, add in the zucchini and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes more, stirring.  Turn off heat and crumble bacon over top.  Stir to mix everything up.  Top with 1-2 fried eggs.

**I've used both zucchini and summer squash in this.  I prefer the squash, Sean likes the zucchini.  Both turn out great.  You can also top with scallions or throw in some grilled corn for an extra sumthin sumthin ;)**
                                                                                                                                                              
On another note, Sean and I went out to dinner last weekend to celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary.  We ended up at Bahama Breeze to use up some giftcards that have been laying around since Christmas (okay, okay, we'd been saving them :P)   We went with the intention to try all the drinks on their menu.  Well, that didn't happen, but this Coconut Pineapple Martini did!

I think I'm going to have to figure out how to make this at home.  So good!  In the background was Sean's mojito.  They use fresh cane juice to sweeten it.  Like, we literally watched them put the cane into a machine to turn it into juice.  Pretty awesome.

We also hit up Longwood Gardens and spent 2 hours wandering around looking at flowers (and people watching).  Then some yoga.  My feet were killlllllllling me. But it was a blast, so it's all good!

Short week this week, then headed home (NJ) for the long weekend! I can't wait!

Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas

Happy ocho de mayo!  Yeah, I know.  I'm a little late on the celebrations.  ;)  I had chicken and sweet potatoes on the meal plan for last friday, but was feeling festive for cinco de mayo, so asked Sean if he had any Mexican suggestions.  "Enchiladas, spanish rice and watermelon margaritas!"  Well, okay then!  Challenge: accepted.

I'm usually not a fan of enchiladas, so I've never made them before.  I don't like how they fall apart and don't stay pretty.  I don't mind the taste, but I'm a texture girl, so it always bugged me when they'd turn into a pile of mush upon scooping them out of the pan.  But, as I've learned, mix the broken enchilada with some rice, throw some sour cream or guacamole on top, and I've got myself a burrito bowl (kind of)!  LOL, either way, these were delicious.  If anyone has any tips on keeping enchiladas from falling apart upon serving, I'm all ears!

They're so pretty in the dish....

To make the chicken:



Spicy Tequila chicken (adapted from Tasty Kitchen)
½ cups Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice (about 2 Limes)
¼ cups Tequilla
1 ounce, fluid Triple Sec
2 cloves Garlic
1 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1  jalepeno pepper
¼ teaspoons Cumin
½ teaspoons Chili Powder
2-3 Chicken Breasts

Combine all ingredients listed (except chicken) into a food processor. Pulse until all ingredients are finely chopped and mixture is smooth.  Put chicken into ziploc bag or into a shallow dish and pour marinade over.  Leave to marinate for 1-2 hours.

Place a pan over medium high heat and sear the chicken breasts on each side. It should take about 4-5 minutes per side. Reserve excess marinade.  After both sides are golden brown, reduce heat to medium low and remove chicken from pan. Put chicken onto a cutting board and slice chicken into small bite sized pieces.

Return chicken to pan and add the excess marinade. Stir everything to combine and let simmer for another 3-4 minutes, or until chicken is cooked all the way through.  Remove from heat and use chicken in enchiladas!

Enchiladas
2-3 cups cooked chicken
2 (10 oz) cans red enchilada sauce
8  low carb tortillas
1 cups shredded cheddar cheese &
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, mixed together
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 jalapeno, chopped
green onions
sour cream and guacamole for topping

Preheat the oven to 425.  Heat beans and jalapenos in pan on stove over medium heat for 3-4 minutes.  Add chicken and 1 can of enchilada sauce. Spray with cooking spray, then pour a thin layer of enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with the other can.  Take one tortilla, spoon chicken mixture in a straight line into the center and sprinkle with a sprinkling of cheese. Wrap the tortilla tightly and place it seam down in the baking dish. Repeat until all enchiladas are rolled.  They should fit in the dish perfectly.

Spray the tops of the enchiladas with cooking spray. Place in the oven, uncovered, for 7 minutes or so, until the tortillas start to brown.

Reduce the oven temperature to 400˚ F. Remove the enchiladas from the oven and pour the rest of the sauce oven the top. Sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese and onions. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 15 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is browned. Remove from the oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving. 

At your service, my love ;)

Margarita, anyone?