wrap it in bacon

Ok, we’re on day four.

Holdin’ strong. I didn’t crack and eat some of the five dozen sea salt chocolate chunk pecan cookies I made at work today.

It was rough. To combat the temptation I went to the grocery store and loaded up on supplies to keep hungry and busy.

Ian and I both feel pretty good thus far. He did say he woke up in the middle of the night feeling kind of hungry, so he downed some almonds and all was well. But that makes sense if you’re just eating when you’re hungry. Right? My energy has been great as well and I even had a killer weights session with my gym buddy, Emily, with solid energy throughout my 40 minute intervals and leg/core workout.

Anywho, here’s my first paleo recipe. We ate them with some brussel sprouts and steamed wintersquash with ghee to make it a whole meal. In addition to be delicious the first time they made enviable leftovers. For reals. All of my coworkers were turning heads because they smelled so good.

They’re wrapped in bacon, so you know it’s going to be good.

Bacon Wrapped Mini Meatloaves

1 lb lean ground turkey

1 cup grated and squeezed zucchini

1/2 cup almond meal

1 egg

1/2 small white onion, chopped

1 tablespoon salt free seasoning (I love love love Bragg’s Sprinkle)

1 teaspoon salt

6 slices nitrate free all natural bacon, cut in half

(8 oz tomato sauce, seasoning salt, 2 T coconut sugar for topping)

serves 4 to 6

Combine all ingredients thoroughly, but gently. You want it evenly mixed but don’t mix too hard or it could be tough

Spray cupcakes pan with non stick spray. Take bacon halves and line the each opening with a slice. Divide meatloaf mix among the 12 evenly.

*Optional: Mix tomato sauce, sugar, and seasoning salt to taste and top meatloaves with the mixture

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. Pop under broiler for 3 to 5 minutes to get the tops nice and crispy. The zucchini keeps them super moist and they may not form a crust without the broiler.

Let cool slightly and enjoy!

day one

I have a sweet tooth. And a bread tooth. And a cheese tooth.

The lines of moderation have become blurred.

It’s hard! It’s just, you know, there all the time.

This is my life.

So now seems like a good time for a change, even if it’s for a little while. For the month of April I’ve decided to do a Whole30 challenge. The Clothes Make the Girl and MODG both have great lists of reasons to do this and I’m excited to dive in. Things like being creative in the kitchen, taking extra care about what goes in, the end of “dieting”, being clear headed, etc… I have lots of reasons that will be shared later!

If you’ve never heard of it, the Whole30 is adhering to the paleo style diet for 30 days. This means no sugar, no grains, no dairy, and no beans. (no soy either, ew) All of which have different benefits but a big one is that it makes you more conscious about personal nutrition. Nothing out of a box. Well, Larabars have a wrapper but you get the idea.

Working in Austin (which is full of “paleo-heads”) left a bad taste in my mouth and the paleo idea but after a lot of researching I have decided that this reset is just what I need. Luckily Ian has agreed to do this with me, which is killer and supportive. Any diet and/or exercise plan is better with a buddy.

After the 3o days I will adjust my diet to my personal needs and lifestyle. Greek yogurt and some Ezekiel bread may make an encore appearance but mostly, I’m a chef and I love food. If you think I’m not going to enjoy a mushroom and gruyere croissant at Elizabeth St Cafe, you’re crazy.

So, here’s day one!

DAY ONE:

Breakfast: Applegate Farms nitrate free breakfast sausage, poached eggs, avocado, steamed spinach and an almond milk latte. DELICIOUS.

Snack 1: Ian and I had some errands in Austin, so I packed some snacks. The first one was a Tropical Tart Larabar. I’d never had this one and the orange peel was awesome in it.

Lunch: Thank goodness for Whole Foods and their anal retentive product labeling. It was very easy to grab a quick, grain free, lunch. Complete with a side of pineapple and super greens kombucha.

Treat (?): We were in Austin after all and Lick is great about dairy free ice creams, this lemon berry coconut was tasty. There was honey added, but I’m working on that.

Snack 2: Now, I read a lot that people don’t snack a lot on this lifestyle but we were seriously running around for like 6 hours or more. We got hungry. Some maté and pastured organic beef jerky did the trick.

Dinner: Oh dinner. This was phenomenal. Lean turkey zucchini meatloaves wrapped in nitrate free bacon. Sides included puréed winter squash and sautéed brussel sprouts.

So that’s that! Day one. The recipe for the meatloaf is coming up because they were delicious and made even better left overs.

see you soon,

-b