February Meal - Meatball Soup

This is by far one of my favorite winter meals.  This is my February meal - and follows Paleo guidelines. 

I got the recipe off of http://www.cavemanstrong.com/ .

It took no time at all to make and we had leftovers for the next two days!

Definitely recommend!

Paleo Spaghetti

My goal for 2011 is to eat 90% Paleo.  January's meal is Spaghetti, but instead of pasta, using spaghetti squash.

It was so easy to make!!

The spaghetti sauce was already made and I froze it last week - all I had to do was heat up the sauce and cook the spaghetti sauce.

Took 30 minutes!

Very easy on a work day during the week!


Spaghetti Sauce

1-2 lbs of ground beef / chicken
1 can of diced tomatoes (drained)
1 can of tomato paste
Onions
Celery
Red Pepper or Green Pepper
Bay Leaf
Chili Pepper to taste
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 tsps of Oregano

Spaghetti Squash

1 spaghetti squash,
Cut in half – scoop out the seeds and insides
Lay face down on cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 30 mins
Remove and scrape with fork the sides of the squash (this takes the place of your noodles)


ENJOY!! :)

Bread-less Pizza is possible!!

Since I started cooking 3 times a week at home - these mushroom pizzas have become one of my signature dishes and is so quick on a busy night.

 Ingredients

Portobello mushrooms
Pizza sauce (I like homemade pizza sauce)
Vegetables (of your choice)
Meat (of your choice)
Cheese
Garnish






Instructions

On flat side of portobello mushrooms spread pizza sauce, toppings & cheese

Put in oven at 325 until cheese is golden brown

Serve with salad of your choice (I love greek salad!)

So Simple, So Tasty!

I wanted to make something healthy for my friend's birthday  - but wasn't sure what to make.  I was browsing Paleo recipes and came across a Pecan Pie recipe that consisted of all natural ingredients. It was the perfect desert!

Here is a photo of the Pecan Pie I made!  It looks good - but was a bit "puddingish" probably because I didn't have a food processer and had to use a blender and add much more water han called for. I can't remember where I found the recipe - but below are the ingredients.

Ingredients:

2 cups of almonds (soaked & drained)

36 pitted dates

1 tablespoon of fresh lemon

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon of seasalt

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 cups of pecans (soaked & drained)

olive oil

Instructions

Soak almonds for an 1 hour and drain (save the water)

Put almonds and 10 dates in a food processor and blend until they come together into a crust-like consistency.

Add a small amount of water (saved from soaking the dates) if necessary to aid in bringing almonds and dates together.

Grease a pie plate with olive oil

Use a spatula to press the almond-date crust into the bottom of the plate or pan forming a full pie crust.

Put the finished crust in the freezer until you are ready to fill it.

Combine the remaining dates, fresh lemon or lime juice, cinnamon, sea salt, and vanilla in a food processor and blend until the mixture takes on a smooth consistency. If needed use a small amount of water left over from soaking dates

Spread the date filling evenly over the almond-date crust.

Arrange pecans on top of date filling and press down lightly to help keep the pecans in place.

April Meal

April's meal was fabulous and easy!  Homemade battered chicken and broccoli walnut salad.

The chicken recipe came from my friend Dan's blog - Dan's Quest for Fitness . Rather than me retyping it here - check out his blog. He has detailed a step-by-step process with photos for each step. I was amazed at how easy this recip was.

The brocolli salad came from the Paleo book - by Dr Loren Cordain - such an easy recipe that i don't follow the exact measurements anymore. 

This is what I do - "freestyle" -

2 carrots chopped
1 stalk of brocolli chopped
1 white onion chopped (love onions!)
1/4 cup of walnuts chopped
walnut oil

Mix all together in frying pan and sautee until cooked.

With an easy dinner  - comes an easy desert! Fruit salad! Use whatever fruit you enjoy!

Another Meal (for February) - Taco Salad

After this meal - I am officially caught up for April!!!

One of my favorite meals is Taco Salad - normally I'd have them with Tostitoes - but since I am trying to follow the Paleo way of eating - I omitted the tostitoes & the sourcream. I did however add a bit of cheddar cheese (cheese is by far my vice). This meal is so quick and easy.

For dessert I made a frozen berry mixture

Again, this berry mixture is extremely easy! This also satisfies my sweet tooth.


Taco Salad Recipe:

• 1 pound of ground beef/venison - cooked on frying pan. Once cooked add homemade taco seasoning
• 2 green onions chopped
• 1 tomatoe diced
• 1/4 cup of chedder cheese grated
• bowl of lettuce

Frozen Berry Mixture:

• 1 cup of mixed berries
• a couple of drops of vanilla extract OR have a dropper of stevia
• sliced almonds

*Blend the berries and vanilla until mixed. Put in freezer for 30 minutes. Remove and garnish with sliced almonds

Another Meal (For December) - Omelet with Spinach

I'm getting caught up with my meals! This meal is to make up for my December meal.

Eggs are staple meal for my Paleo eating lifestyle. I have them often. I try to buy the free-range eggs - I figure these are the best choice in store.

Very easy to make: Eggs-spinach-salsa-and almond butter cooked in a pan with Organic butter. I occasionally will put a little bit of feta in the omelet.



I LOVE eggs! I must say this was the best looking omelette I've ever made. Many times I do not have the patience and my omelet turns in to scrambled ;)

Another Meal (for November) - Kyle's Tuna 'n' Cashew

Okay, since I'm so behind on my meals, I'm going to play a little catch up. I made this particular meal last night for dinner. I've made it many times, but never took a photo and claimed it as my "one meal per month for my 101 list".

Kyle Pichie from Cornwall Crossfit (http://www.cornwallcrossfit.com/), posted this Paleo recipe one day on Facebook: Tuna, Cashews, Dressing all mixed together.

Sounded so good I had to try it and loved it! Last night I added one more ingredient - watercress, the superfood http://bit.ly/cqfBEX .


Recipe:

1 Can of Tuna
2 cups of watercress
1/4 cup of cashews
2-3 tbsp of Farmboy's Lemon Garlic Dressing


Instructions:

Blend watercress, cashews and half of dressing in blender.
Mix blended mix with Tuna
Drizzle remaining dressing on Tuna mixture
Garnish with 3-4 whole cashews





Very TASTY!

March Meal - Almond Banada Pancakes

I visit Marks Daily Apple regularly as he has some very good information about eating clean & primal. When I'm eating Paleo-Style, I feel so much better in terms of mood, energy, seep, awareness etc. My Crossfit workouts are amazing, and my body composition changes drastically. My goal is to maintian a 90/10 Paleo Lifestyle. (BTW, me, holding a Heineken beer bottle on the front page of my blog would be me during the 10%!! HA!)

This month I decided to post a breakfast meal. I've been making this meal - Almond Banana Pancakes - for quite some time now.

Here's a photo of my Almond Banana Pancakes with a side of mixed berries:



For the recipe (with photos) click here. My photo doesn't quite look like his - but I'm sure it was just as tasty!!!

January Meal - Lemon Chicken Feta

I've been behind on #40 which was make a meal once a month (I'll make up for it soon!)

For the month of January, I made Lemon Chicken Feta for my friend Liz & I. She found the recipe in a Chatelaine magazine. It was a very easy recipe and we enjoyed it!

Below is the recipe :

Next time ,I will add black olives and sundried tomatoes!

October Meal - Pork Chops & Spaghetti Squash

My husband usually does all of the cooking - if I have to cook for myself - I seem to resort to a protein shake. It's not because I don't like to cook - it's because I'm not quite good at it.

#40 on my list is to cook at least 1 meal per month. I am eating "paleo style"- which means you'll find meat (animal) and veges on my plate (usually). This month I cooked Pork Chops & Spaghetti Squash.






Okay, so next time I'll learn how to cook the spaghetti squash a bit better - without the seeds!!!

All in all, it wasn't that bad....November is another month!