Where There Is Smoke, There Might Not Be Fire

Paleo Prep (Sunday)

I went grocery shopping for the beginning of the Paleo meal plan. In total, we spent about $180 on groceries for the week minus food that my husband was able to have and I had to avoid  and items that weren't edible. Looking at our grocery receipts, there is a sizable amount of produce and meat. It looks about right since that's about all I am allowed to eat. 

One of the recipes I selected for this week involved coconut aminos. Coconut aminos are a non-soy, gluten-free sauce made from the sap of a coconut tree. This was the hardest thing for me to buy. Not only because the employees at my usual grocery store had no clue what I was talking about (much like 90% of the planet), but they were also almost twice the price of other non-gluten soy-like sauces.  According to the author of the book I have been using as a guide, it tastes just like soy sauce. 

I find it odd that coconut aminos are allowable on a Paleo plan. If I travelled back thousands of years and asked cave people to pass the coconut aminos, would they know what I was talking about? Or would I get the same glazed-over look from them that I got from the stockers at the grocery store? 

At Whole Foods I conveniently found them in the "ethnic" section without any assistance. Then came the price dilemma, this uber-special seasoning cost $6.59 a bottle. The other gluten-free soy sauce substitute was only $3.49 a bottle (on special). The only issue was that soy was an ingredient, which is not allowed on the plan. My husband reminded me that if I was going to do this, I had to fully commit and that included incurring the cost.

This stuff better taste like soy sauce. 

That evening I prepped a week worth of breakfasts. (There is something to be said about what one can accomplish when football isn't on.) Since I was mostly forgoing eggs, in addition to grains, there really isn't anything substantial one can have for breakfast that can be prepared quick. This meant I was turning to the recipes in the Practical Paleo book for breakfast ideas. I decided to make the Pumpkin Pancakes. They used a low amount of eggs and were seemingly the least amount of work. 

The only thing these "pancakes" had in common with your typical pancake is that I made them in a pan. The first two I made were incredibly runny rather than oozy, like a thick pancake batter. (Not terribly shocking since there was no sort of grain in it.) Then I realized, I didn't add butter to the batter. The recipe called for 2 tablespoons of butter or coconut oil to be mixed in. Instead, I put 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in the pan for cooking. (Oops.) Since I already had 2 tablespoons of fat in the pan,  I opted for 2 tablespoons of butter for what was left of the batter for the double batch I was making. These pancakes were less runny than the first ones I made, but still not the same consistency. I had come too far now to toss them so I finished making the batch.

The other main component of breakfast would be baked bacon, which is exactly what it sounds like. This was way simpler to make than the pancakes. All I had to do was put a baking rack on a cookie sheet, place each strip of bacon on the rack so they weren't overlapping, place the bacon filled pan in the oven (preheated to 325 degrees), and bake for 25 minutes. The time can be more or less depending on your desired crispiness. I had not eaten bacon in awhile, so I was more excited about this than I was about the pancakes.

Week One in Review: 

• Bacon is great day for one day, good on day two, but I'm pretty sure my arteries were narrowing by day three. How does anyone have meat for breakfast everyday? 
• I am not a fan of eating things I do not derive pleasure from. In this particular case, canned wild salmon is one of those things. 
• Coconut oil has a low smoke point. Please keep this mind if you are using it as a fat for broiling. Your food won't catch fire, but your kitchen sure will be hazy. Opt for butter or olive oil over coconut oil. Scratch the butter, as I recently learned that also will create smoke under the broiler.
• Coconut aminos are to soy sauce as alligator is to chicken. Disclaimer: I have never had alligator.  
• Eating at restaurants can be difficult. In particular, Cuban restaurants. Most menu items had beans and rice as a part of the dish. I settled on a sandwich and asked for it without the bun. The server laughed as she said "This is your sandwich, without the bun." Thanks, lady. I miss bread. 
• It also be very tasty. At a local winery I opted for the meat plate with Salami with Herbes de Provence shingled in two rows, Prosciutto piled in thin mounds down the center, and heart-shaped Hot Soprasseta slices (pictured above) arranged on the opposite side. All of which were melt-in-your-mouth delicious. On a normal night I would have shared the cheese board with my husband. (I'll admit that I took a few bites of his cheese. I'm a Sconnie girl at heart, not dead.) 
• I was able to mostly stick the "Paleo" adult beverage stipulations. Saturday night I had more than the one drink limit, but not by much. Living in the Northwest there is no shortage of good Pinot Noirs. I still miss beer though. 

Nutrient Breakdown

Previous to the Paleo plan, my diet was roughly 45% carbohydrates (mainly from beans and fruit), 30% fat (mainly from olive oil), and 25% protein (mainly from whey protein). These numbers are fairly in line with what the USDA recommends for Americans. This past week my diet was 50% fat (butter and oils), 30% carbohydrates (vegetables and fruit), and 20% protein (from meats).

My cholesterol intake has skyrocketed. Before, I averaged 300 milligrams of cholesterol, which is the "limit" set by the Food and Nutrition Board and the Institute of Medicine. I used quotation marks around limit because there is no Estimated Average Requirement (EAR), Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), or Adequate Intake (AI) set for cholesterol. This is because all of our tissues are capable of producing enough cholesterol for their needs meaning there really is no gain by us consuming cholesterol. There is also no Upper Limit (UL) set because any increased amount of dietary cholesterol intake increases the risk of Coronary Heart Disease. Cholesterol is present in all animal tissues, so there is no way to avoid it. That is unless you are vegan. Needless to say, once I moved from my mainly vegetarian diet to the Paleo plan my cholesterol intake jumped. This past week I averaged 400 mg of dietary cholesterol a day.

I'm going to take this opportunity to stress the importance of exercise while on a high-meat intake plan like this. Physical activity can increase your High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) levels. HDL serves as the "street sweeper" of your arteries. Their job is to pick up cholesterol in your blood and deliver it to the liver, where it is repackaged into bile and excreted from the body. The more HDL you have the better, especially if your dietary cholesterol intake is high.

As for minerals, with the Paleo plan my intake of iron is above and beyond what the RDA is for it. However, my calcium intake is way down. This shouldn't be surprising since dairy is a no-no with Paleo. Currently, I am getting on average 25% of the RDA for calcium from my diet alone. As noted in Practical Paleo, spinach is a good source for calcium. But you would have to eat a lot of spinach to get your RDA for calcium in one day. I'm not talking eating one big bag (about 8 cups) of spinach in a day, its more like 10 of those bags in a day. Other good plant-based sources of calcium include kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower. Although I am eating all of these items, my intake is still pretty low. Admittedly, I am still taking a multivitamin with calcium and even with that I am well below the RDA. (I know cavemen didn't have multivitamins and minerals, but I'm also sure they never heard of coconut amnios either. I live in the cloudy Northwest and I'd rather not have osteoporosis.)    

Goal Update

In regards to my goals, I'm not feeling anymore energetic than before. In fact I feel like I have had less energy. I still get about 7 hours of sleep a night (which is about what I usually get). Maybe its because I am having meat in the morning. It's no wonder bacon and coffee make such a great duo.

This is taking the bacon and coffee combination to a new level. Image from: http://wanderingbeancoffeeco.blogspot.com/ 

I have not been able to tell a difference in my tolerance of cold either. I have warm socks, though, and they definitely do the trick. I would rather have eggs, nuts, and seeds in my diet and wear warm clothes to keep my toes warm than be on a severely restrictive diet in hopes that by doing that it will work.

Now that I am done with the Paleo for autoimmune conditions version, I am moving on to a more "typical" Paleo diet. Signing off from week one and onward to week two! 

My Inner Wilma

February is crawling to a close and March will give away to, hopefully, glimpses of hope (e.g. Spring). March is also National Nutrition Month. National Nutrition Month is the perfect time for anyone to fine tune their diet to get ready for Spring break and/ or Summer vacations (also known as "swimsuit season").

For the past two years I have enlisted myself as a guinea pig to try out different diets. I tried out the DASH, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, and Vegan diet for a week apiece. Last year, my challenge was to make every meal a MyPlate meal. I am kicking off my challenge a little early this year because Spring break is the last week of March for me (and there is a lounge chair by a pool with my name on it).   

This year, I'm going to go back in time. Forget the idea of eating things my grandma would recognize. I'm only going to eat things that Wilma Flintstone would recognize. This type of eating is more commonly known as the Paleo Diet. Paleo is short for the Paleolithic Era, which happens to be the only era you can eat foods from. 

Wilma Flintstone (l) soaks in some rays with her best friend, Betty Rubble. This will be me in 4 weeks. 

This type of diet was first introduced in 1985 as the Caveman Diet by Dr. Boyd Eaton. Fast forward about 20 years, the diet has been promoted (heavily) by Crossfit enthusiasts and nutrition social media outlets, given a more hip name, and is once again gaining popularity. Dr. Loren Courdain developed the use of the term "Paleo" and worked with Dr. Boyd Eaton to create what we currently know as eating Paleo.  

There are numerous claims in regards to following the Paleo Diet. Some claims I have found include being able to control autoimmune diseases, increase athletic performance, and (my favorite) lose weight without diet or exercise. (Because we all know that cave people didn't have to be active to find food or to avoid being eaten by saber tooth tigers.) 

Enough with the background, lets get into the meat of this diet- literally. What did our paleolithic ancestors eat to help them be the epitomes of health that they allegedly were? For starters, there was a lot of protein available. These foods include grass-fed meats, fish, seafood, eggs, nuts, and seeds. They didn't just hunt though, they also gathered food. Fruits and most vegetables are also permitted on this plan. Last, but not least, they needed something to make sure that their meat didn't stick to their roasting sticks. This means that healthful oils, like olive, flaxseed, coconut and avocado, are allowed as well. 

Next are the foods that they didn't eat, so we shouldn't either. These items include grains (especially wheat/ gluten containing ones), legumes (bye, bye beans and peanuts), dairy, refined sugar, potatoes, processed foods, salt, and refined vegetable oils. 

I thought potatoes were a vegetable. 

The last set of rules to follow pertain to beverages, since our ancestors had to drink something to avoid dehydration. Herbal tea and water are allowed, in fact lots of water. Caffeinated beverages, such as coffee and tea, are also allowed in moderation. Yeast is older than cave people, therefore things must have fermented back in the day. As a result, certain alcoholic beverages are also permitted. There is still the usual one drink max for women, two for men on any given day. The caveat is that it can't have gluten, this means that beer is out.    

Now that the basic rules are listed, its time to add more restrictions. For the first week I am going to mostly be following the diet suggested for autoimmune diseases by the book Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo. I was recently diagnosed with Raynaud's Syndrome, which is associated with a few autoimmune diseases. Thankfully, I have been cleared of the diseases connected to it so I am able to blame yet another thing on Wisconsin winters.   

There is a disclaimer in the book that what they are suggesting is not intended to be a replacement for professional medical diagnosis or treatment for a medical condition. This being said, in accordance with the recommendations in the book I will also be avoiding eggs, nuts, and seeds- mostly. I am not going to cut them out completely due to there are a few recipes in this book that require these ingredients. I also need something to snack on, and generally speaking, nuts and seeds are easy to transport. 

My goals with the Paleo Diet include:

• Increased energy, especially in regards to workouts
• Better manage my sensitivity to cold 
• Bikini- ready shape (I'll be honest, Spring break is at the end of this and a warm, sunny destination is involved.)

Stay tuned for related topics that I'm sure will arise in the next four weeks. I'm hoping readers can find something useful in this experiment, if not entertaining.

Sharpen those knives and let's get broiling!  

 

(Un)Junked Candy

Last week as I strolled through the aisles of Target, I did what most people do.

I impulse shopped.

As I came upon the food section, an end cap caught my eye. Candy. Unjunked. I blinked my eyes a couple times and shook my head to make sure I was actually seeing this.

It was still there when I reopened my eyes. This was not a mirage of black wrapped candy bars with glints of bright colors of red, purple, and green decorating the end of this aisle. These candy bars looked more like they should be placed with the video games rather than in the food section. I picked one up to see what was not-so-junk about this candy bar.

This is what was printed on the label:
UNJUNKED
NO ARTIFICIALS
NO HYDROGENATEDS
NO CORN SYRUPS
NO PRESERVATIVES
NO GMOS
UNREAL (This happens to be the brand name as well.)

Personally, no matter what is in candy, candy in itself is junk food. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. So I found it amusing they were claiming that because their bars didn't contain any of the items listed above, it was therefore "unjunked." Sugar, as in added sugar- including cane sugar (which is sucrose), is junk. Yes, it can assist in making food tasty, but it's true.

The one I happened to pick up was UNREAL8, their "unjunked" version of a Snickers bar. I am my mother's daughter (and Snickers is a guilty pleasure for me), so I had to try this. I already had my glorified candy bar, an Almond Brownie Balance Bar (which I consider a not-so-guilty pleasure), why not get this too?

When I returned home, I was famished from my Target trip. (Okay, not really... I just really wanted chocolate.) I pulled out the candy bar and tore into the wrapper to take a look at candy, unjunked.

Wow, not nearly as appetizing as a Snickers looks. Mars at least goes through the trouble to make the chocolate look like it was poured onto the bar by the ripple effect on the top. This candy bar only has dimples, from the wrapper. Maybe this tastes better than it looks. 

I think I broke a tooth... wait, nope. My teeth are still in tact (thank goodness). But man, this is a workout for my jaw. Ah, yes. There are no preservatives in this candy bar. They aren't kidding either. The first two bites were the most difficult to chew. For some reason, it got easier as I progressed through the candy bar. I'm not sure if it was any "fresher" than the end of it or if I worked up enough jaw strength. 

As for taste, it was decent. Nothing to write home about (but enough for me to blog about). It had enough sweeteners to make up for the corn syrups typically found in candy bars. These sweeteners included cane sugar, organic blue agave inulin, more cane sugar, a little more cane sugar, and evaporated cane syrup. It took all of those sweeteners to make up for what is usually used in a candy bar. 

The other notable ingredient in this "unjunked" candy bar was palm kernel oil. Palm kernel oil, like coconut and palm oil, is an oil that is relatively high in saturated fat. According to the nutrition facts, one of these candy bars alone makes up 25% of your daily saturated fat intake (on a 2,000 calorie diet). Yikes!

Now if you click on the link above (or conveniently right here), UNREAL not only takes the time to compare UNREAL8 to Snickers, but also to a pear. It shows that a pear and their "unjunked" candy bar have the same amount of sugar. No way! What they fail to highlight is that a pear also has fewer calories and contains no fat. Oh, and that the sugar in a pear occurs naturally.    

There is no reason to think the "unjunked" candy bar is above the typical candy bar. Either way, it is candy. It is no more nutritious for you than what you find from other candy companies. If you really want to be healthy, reach for a piece of fruit. If you really want to be naughty, have what you crave. 

  

Touchdown Taco Dip

Here is the scene. You've mentally committed to staying as much on track as you possibly can for the Super Bowl. You've come bearing light (or as I call it "diet") beer and a I-can-do-this attitude. Then you spot it. Taco dip in all of its cool, creamy goodness. It may be one of the most popular items to grace the snack line at a party. It has lettuce AND tomato on it, that has to count for something. (Stop right there, do not head down that road. This is not proper rationalization in the taco dip is healthy arguement.)

Taco dip can easily be tweaked into a healthier form by using light or fat-free cream cheese. But why stop there? Many things can be added, and some things substituted, to make the healthiest taco dip you've ever tasted. With this mindset, I have created Touchdown Taco Dip.

What You Need:

1 1/2 cups of Guacamole (pre-made or if you have the time, make your own)

1- 8 oz Package of Fat-Free or Light Cream Cheese

2 tsp of Cumin, dried

1/2 Tbsp of Cilantro, dried

1 Tbsp of Chipotle Chili Seasoning  

1/2 cup of Reduced Fat, Shredded Mexican Cheese

1 cup of Grape Tomatoes, halved

1 cup of Black Beans

What To Do:

Put the cream cheese in a bowl and mix in the cumin, cilantro, and chili seasoning until the cream cheese mixture looks uniform. Next, spread the mixture on the center of a plate. Outline the cream cheese mixture with the guacamole. Sprinkle the top of the dip with the shredded cheese, tomatoes, and black beans. Serve with tortilla chips. (Please note: Hippie Chips will not withstand the weight of this thick dip. Instead, use whole grain tortilla chips in order to get more whole grains. I can attest that Garden of Eatin's Multi Grain Tortilla Chips did the job quite well.)

More whole nutrition and prettier than what you'll find at the store, too!

   

   

Hippie Chips

The end is near. No, not the apocalypse but rather the end of football season. Yes folks, this is the last weekend to waste away a Sunday on a couch or in an crowded establishment with fellow yelling fans. This Sunday, many people will be hosting or headed to Super Bowl parties for one last excuse to gather and indulge in bar food and drinks. This is the time of year when most people are about to give in, or in some cases abandon, their New Years Resolutions. Come on, what is a Super Bowl Party without chips, dip, meat treats, and drinks?  

A pretty lame one, especially if you have no interest in either team winning this year's game. I challenge you to not give in to the temptation of the Super Bowl party.  Let's try this year not to have the snacks and drinks at your party match what is seen on TV commercials. 

In order to help you accomplish this, I have devised a few snacks that can easily fill your party plates and your nutrition tank. Today, I'm starting with something simple: the kale chip. Or as I will refer to it, the Hippie Chip.

What You Need:

1 Pack of Kale

1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil

Salt, to taste

What To Do:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash the kale and dry it thoroughly. Cut off the stems (if it has any) and tear the kale into "chip" size pieces. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and place the kale on the sheet. Next drizzle the olive oil over the kale, mix it in, and sprinkle with salt. I used Black Diamond salt, but any salt will do. 

 

Not sure if this a kale on a baking sheet or a train set.

Bake it in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. The kale should be crispy with some browning on the edges. 

Nice and toasted. 

Hippie Chips can be served immediately or a little later. These chips have a light taste and beat the heck out of a potato chip nutritionally. Yay Vitamin K! Go MUFAs! It's super food for the Super Bowl. 

Stay tuned to see what I have revamped next!    

  

   

  

Pumped Up Eggs

Eggs are a staple on a many breakfast plates. You can fry them, turn them over easy, scramble them, boil them, make an omelet .. the possibilities are endless. Egg whites are a commonly recommended food by many "nutrition experts" due to them being a good protein source. Many people get this information and begin to eat same eggs, day in and day out. If you've ever tasted an egg white, you already know that they are a pretty plain food. That is, if you haven't already doused your egg with hot sauce, salt, and pepper.

Egg whites also aren't as high in protein as one might think. One egg white contains almost 4 grams of protein. Almost. Kind of bummer once you go through the process of cracking the egg, easing the yolk out from the white, and then dumping half of your egg down the sink. Only to repeat the process until you get whatever looks like enough or you're frustrated from separating the yolk.    

That sounds like a lot of work for a few grams of protein. I have another way to up the protein, and taste, of your morning meal.  

What you need: 

2 eggs
1/4 cup of fat free or low-fat cottage cheese
Cooking spray
Chives (optional)

What to do:

Spray a frying pan with cooking spray and heat the pan over medium heat on the stove. Crack one egg and separate the white from the yolk over the bowl, dispose of the yolk. Crack the second egg and either put the entire egg in the bowl or separate the yolk from the egg white again. (For the happy medium, take a spoon and remove half of the egg yolk.) Mix in the cottage cheese. Pour the mixture into the pan and cook until the egg become opaque and solidifies. Feel free to flip or stir the egg in the pan to cook entirely. (If using only whites, it can be a bit watery from the cottage cheese. This is normal.) Sprinkle with chives for a little added flavor and color.

       
Pumped Up Eggs (using one whole egg, one egg white, and fat free cottage cheese)

Calories: 127
Fat: 5 grams
Carbohydrates: 4 grams
Protein: 18 grams

Celebrate Your Fuel

There is no shortage of random holidays. Heck, Chase's is a whole book dedicated to every event, everywhere in the world, for every day of the year. One year my cousin Sarah and I were looking for something to celebrate on a whim and utilized Chase's book to come to the decision to celebrate Jon Stewart's birthday (which just happens to be November 28th).

I recently learned of a couple food related holidays. No, not Halloween or Thanksgiving. I may live under a rock, especially concerning pop culture, but I'm not that sheltered. The holidays that I'm thinking of are less about stuffing your face with food and more about putting some thought into what you are stuffing your face with. These days are Food Day, on October 24th, and National Eating Healthy Day, on November 7th.

Food Day dubs itself as "a national celebration and a movement for healthy, affordable, and sustainable food." The idea to know where your food comes from is not a new concept nor is it exclusive to the yoga mat toting, patchouli wearing, bike riding/ hybrid driving population. Although your odds of seeing/ smelling at least one of those defining characteristics exponentially rises in a Whole Foods parking lot. Since authors such as Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser brought the idea of knowing where your food comes from, the "eat real food" concept has gained momentum. (Shocking this isn't common sense.)

More and more stores are offering natural, organic, and locally grown foods. Farmers markets have been popping up in city centers and people across the spectrum are drawn to them. Do you wonder how your diet stacks up to these ideas about healthy, sustainable food? Go ahead and take the Eat Real Quiz and see how your fare fares on it.

National Eating Healthy Day is brought to us by the American Heart Association. In 2010 the AHA launched a goal to get the nation on the road to better heart health. Their aim is to get more employers to initiate wellness programs. There's no reason though that we can't recognize this day as individuals.

The ideas that the AHA promotes are being aware of the difference between healthy fats and not-so-healthy fats and watching sodium in your diet as part of its eating healthy campaign. Healthy fats, for instance, are mono- and polyunsaturated fats that are found in plant products. These types of fats are found in olive oil, avocados, salmon, and nuts for example. As for sodium, many canned products contain large amounts of sodium. Try to look for "low sodium" on product labels or reach for fresh or frozen veggies rather than canned.

I would like to take the AHA's "eating healthy" concept a step further. A lot of chronic diseases, not just those that affect the heart like high blood pressure or high cholesterol, can be prevented with a healthy diet. Fruits and vegetables not only contain vitamins and minerals, but also phytochemicals which may reduce your risk for certain cancers. Check Eat to Defeat Cancer for a list of their suggested foods. Whole grains contain fiber which can help fill you up and has been linked to reducing cholesterol as well. To round out these additional eating healthy concepts, fat free and low fat dairy products contain bone building calcium.

But why limit yourself to celebrating these ideas once a year? Go ahead, you party animal you, and celebrate these days as often as you like. Your body, and the planet, will appreciate you for it.

Notice: Wearing one of these on your head while celebrating either holiday will hamper your ability to appropriately execute your celebration.