Is Junk food really cheaper?

This was posted last night on Facebook from a nutrition coach that I follow and greatly respect www.precisionutrition.com

I have heard this argument quite a few times and have even agreed to some degree with others that eating healthy can be expensive, but my usual response is that you either pay for it now or you are going to pay a whole lot more for it in the long run with bad health caused by poor nutrition.

This graph is a great example that it is in fact more expensive to eat out! Again the benefits with out a doubt out way the convenience of a fast meal at the Drive Thur.

(the text is a little hard to see in the graph, go to the link to read the entire article in the New York Times then click the same graph on the left hand side to get a better image)

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/opinion/sunday/is-junk-food-really-cheaper.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

Sugar is toxic

Disclaimer: I am aware that people get crazy when it comes to their nutrition/food, it's like religion they believe that their way is the only way or they dont want to be told what to eat or what not to eat. (I felt this same way when people would try and take away my cigarettes) This is by no means a judgement. It is only to inform you of the truth about sugar. I believe this message not only because this Docotor says it's so but because I have seen the changes within my own family. We are not only slowly killing ourselves but we are slowly killing our children!
http://jacobscove.net/2012/04/is-sugar-toxic/

Agave...Another food disappointment

I am getting pretty sick of  the lies the food industry is allowed to get away with! Everyday you see a new atricle on whats really in our food.

Here is my latest findings...Although I am not eating agave now because of Paleo, I have had my fare share of it and use it for many things I make for the kids. And then I ran into this article yesterday...http://www.foodrenegade.com/agave-nectar-good-or-bad/

It states:

"Agave nectar is bad for you. It’s not traditional, not natural, highly refined, and contains more concentrated fructose than high fructose corn syrup."

Some days it feels like the only way to go is to buy your own damn farm, cows, chickens, a garden the whole 9 yards. That way you would at least know what the hell is in your food and what your putting into your families bodies!

CPK Grilled Vegetable Salad my way

 Another attempt at a PALEO MEAL while spending time with the girls. I was inspired by a grilled vegetable salad that I had a couple weeks ago with two ladies that I CROSSFIT with and now call my friends :) The dressing is a recipe that I have been using for years and every time I serve it to friends and family they want the recipe. Like some who cant live with out having their covetted ranch dressing in there fridges, we have a hard time living with out this dressing for many things. Although not every part of this meal went over with the girls we had enough variety in vegetables that they could build there own salads with the veggies they would eat...that is unless they don't eat veggies at all...in that case your on your own to figure that one out :)I did serve this with a bit of sweet potato fries too.

Italian Balsamic Vinaigrette

2 cloves of garlic

1/3 c balsamic vinegar

2bsp lemon juice

1½ tbsp Dijon mustard

1 ½ tbsp parsley and chives

1 cup olive oil

½ tsp salt and pepper

Vegetables

¼ c diced Sun dried tomatoes

2 cooked Artichoke hearts or canned (I have never bought canned, so pay attention to whats really in them)

1 bundle Asparagus

1 cob of corn (no corn for strict paleo)

1-2 Avocados halved and pit removed

1 Eggplant halved

2 yellow Squash halved

2 zucchini halved

½ cup mushrooms cremini or baby portabella

Cherry tomatoes

1/2 tsp cummin 

1/4 tsp cayenne if wanting a little heat

Coat the vegetables in the 1/4 cup of oil and season lightly with salt, pepper, cummin and cayenne. Let marinate in with sprig of basil and or thyme for at least a 1/2 hour. Grill the vegetables, baste with more oil as needed, over medium-high heat until tender, but not mushy. Remove from the grill and cut vegetable's into bite size or slightly bigger pieces. With a sharp knife, gently run the blade down the corn to remove the kernels from the cob. Gently toss the vegetables with Balsamic dressing. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm on a mix of greens.

Protein

Flank steak

Chicken

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Tenderize meat drizzle a little olive oil and salt and pepper. I know it may seem too simple as far as seasoning but if you have chosen good quality meat you would be surprised how little seasoning is needed. This also is a major point if you will be slicing up your meat to add to the salad as we did. The flavors of the salad are enough to carry your proteins flavors even further. Grill flank until desired doneness; be careful with this cut it cooks quickly. Cook chicken all the way through, should be firm to touch with juices running clear. Do not over cook this as well…Let your meats rest 10-15 minutes before cutting. Top your greens and grilled veggies with meat of your choice.

Feel free to add whatever suits your mood. Fresh goat cheese would be amazing if your not going for Paleo.



Thai Chili Soup

PALEO is not to far from how me and my family were eating previous to this CAVEWOMAN ADVENTURE. A few adjustments in the dairy department and that's about it. However for a week I will be cooking for not only my kids but for 3 girls that I ADORE and consider my own. This means I am going to have to get a little more creative in my cooking. I will be serving what I normally cook for my family but will be making some adjustment for the girls...after all I do want them to ENJOY the time that I am with them and not feel like the FOOD NAZI has taken over the kitchen!  

So for my first go at cooking for 3 new palates I thought I would try a THAI CHILI SOUP, which was inspired by a container of Thai chili's I bought and had no idea what i was going to do with them. This happens a lot, even with me having a list, its like I need at least one challenge for every time I go to the store :)

Below you will find the recipes as I would do it if I were just feeding me. These are the adjustment I made for the girls...

1. I left the meat out until the end and let the girls add which kind they liked as I had some who liked chicken and some who like shrimp (I added both to my bowl :))

2. I dropped the Thai chili's in at the very end for just a couple minutes and did not serve them in the girls bowls, they are a pretty hot chili. I added them to my bowl and pierced them in the bowl.

3. The ginger seemed to be a little much for beautiful little diners so I would suggest maybe doing a minced ginger if you have smaller diners (OK all but one of my diners is as tall or taller than me :)).

                                                      Ingredients

14 oz. coconut milk

14 oz. reduced-sodium chicken broth

6 quarter-size slices fresh ginger

1 pound chicken or shrimp

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce 

1 teaspoon Thai chili paste

6 whole Thai (optional),

2 cups baby bok choy

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

Kosher salt

pepper

Preparation

  

Season chicken or shrimp with salt and pepper and sauté in a medium pot (if cooking shrimp cook until barely pink, they will continue to cook once it hits the soup). Once meat is cooked pull it from pot and set aside combine coconut milk, broth, ginger and bring to boil over high heat. Add meat back to the pot, mushrooms, lime juice, fish sauce, and chili paste. Pierce the Thai chili's drop in pot, let flavors develop 10 minutes or so. Add baby bok choy, basil and cilantro for just a few minutes right before serving.

Garnish with more cilantro and a lime wedge

Cravings and Eggs

Finally I feel like I am getting a little more of a handle on my sugar cravings. Yesterday and today don't seem to be bad, so hopefully I am at the end of that part of this Paleo challenge. I did however figure out something I have been missing yesterday as I was preparing some burritos to freeze for my sons lunches. The majority of the burritos contain whole wheat tortillas, shredded chicken, peppers, onions a yogurt sauce and a little cheese. I ventured out of that yesterday and added refried beans...yup I am sure you can see where I am gong with this...I had to taste them, check the seasoning, see if it needed more salsa added to it etc..etc...OH MY! They were delicious! I felt like I had been deprived of them for years, I did stick to just one taste but I truly could have jumped in the pot and ate my way back out of it. They tasted to good!

For now here I am still working out the details of this new eating life style and tackling one craving at a time...hopefully my little bout with beans yesterday doesn't turn into the new craving I cant get out of my head.

One thing I cant  get enough of are my mini egg frittatas. There are lots of recipes on other Paleo websites for these little disks of deliciousness some are more complicated than others. Mix up different versions of meat, veggies and seasoning to find the perfect one for you.

These have so much flavor. They make for a great snack or as a meal, (also pictured the breakfast my kids often have, directions to follow)...Salute!

Mini Egg Frittatas

 (pictured on the right, sorry for the bad photography )

• 1/2 medium onion, finely diced
• 1/2 lb chopped spinach, or your choice of veggie
• 8 eggs
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 5 ounces of prosciutto, ham or bacon
• red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 
chop all veggies
mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased  regular 12 cup muffin tin (I use the 1/4 measuring cup that I used for the coconut milk to help with portion)
Cook for 20 minutes (some recipes say to turn half way through but I didn't.
I like to top mine with...you guessed it Srirracha or salsa

 Egg Muffins

The picture features something I do for the kids for a quick breakfast. I crack regular eggs sprinkled with salt and pepper in a sprayed muffin tin and cook at 350 for 15 minutes.

In the morning they pull them out of the fridege top them with ham and cheese and heat them in the microwave for 30-40 seconds. Put them on a whole wheat English muffin (be careful when buying many English muffins contain a lot of junk, we use Ezekiel brand, you can find them in the organic freezer section)

WHALA! you have a egg muffin (beats the hell out of McDonald's any day!)

Lemon and Dill Orange Roughy

I discovered these new parchment bags at the grocery store and thought they would be a great addition to my new Paleo ways. You could do so many variations of this, here's mine...

Oven at 400°
Orange roughy
Lemon Pepper
Sprig of Dill
Slice of lemon
Asparagus

Cook for 15-20 minutes depending on thickness of the fish
When its done plate, add a bit of olive oil, cherry tomato's and slivered almonds.

This was so delicious the fish was cooked to perfection. It was very moist with a ton of flavor.

Make two servings for leftovers.