Homemade Olive Oil Mayo Fail

Holy hell its hot already. 81 at 9am…. yeah, it’s going to be hot today.

So yesterday morning I decided to make some Whole30 approved homemade mayo so that I could make some tartar sauce to go with my salmon cakes. The recipe is super simple and easy to make (from Well Fed of course). But I of course managed to mess it up. Basically because I didn’t read the directions entirely. They specifically said, “Use light olive oil. NOT EXTRA VIRGIN”. Yep, I used extra virgin. Another blonde moment FTW.

But here is the recipe in case you want to try it. I gotta get out there and get some light olive oil (From The Clothing Makes the Girl:

Homemade Olive Oil Mayo

Ingredients:

– 1 egg

– 2 TBSP lemon juice (at room temp)

– 1/2 tsp dry mustard

– 1/2 tsp salt

– 1/2 cup (plus 1 cup olive oil light, NOT EXTRA VIRGIN) <<– hellooooooo

Directions:

Place the egg and lemon juice in a blender or food processor. Let them come to room temperature together, about 30-60 minutes. Add the dry mustard, salt, and  1/4 cup of the oil. Whirl until well mixed – about 20 to 30 seconds.

THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART!

The only remaining job is to incorporate the remaining 1 cup oil into the mixture. To do this, you must pour very slowly… the skinniest drizzle you can manage and still have movement in the oil. This takes about three minutes or so. Think about three minutes during a WOD; it’s a fairly long time. Breathe. Relax. Drizzle slowly.

If you’re using a blender, you’ll hear the pitch change as the liquid starts to form the emulsion. Eventually, the substance inside the blender will start to look like regular mayonnaise, only far more beautiful. Do not lose your nerve and consider dumping! Continue to drizzle.

I know this recipe is good and works because mine came out looking beautifully, and I would guess had I used the correct olive oil, would have tasted beautiful too. So give this a whirl and let me know what you think! Use it anywhere you would normally use mayo: tuna salad, tartar sauce, potato salad, you name it!

 

Salmon cakes, Mangos, and the Creepy old Man Moth

Good morning 🙂

It’s hot today… and not in a good way. I know its May, but I don’t want to see this kind of heat until Memorial Day. Oh well.

Back to the Salmon Cakes I made last night and baked up this morning. Boy were they good. I ended up having two for breakfast  with two cups of coffee. Honestly didn’t really go together, but made a good breakfast nonetheless. Here is the recipe, and I think you all should seriously try these:

It Starts With Food- No Fuss Salmon Cakes

(serves 2-3) **I doubled the recipe**

Ingredients:

1 can (14.75 oz) wild-caught pink or red salmon (you can also use wild caught tuna)

1 cup “canned sweet potatoes” ** I used fresh-baked light-skinned sweet potatoes

1 large egg

1/2 cup almond flour

2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley (or 2 tsp dried)

2 Scallions, white and green, very thinly sliced

2 Tbsp minced fresh dill (or 2 tsp dried)

1 tsp hot-pepper sauce

1/2 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

2 Tbs clarified butter or coconut oil, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425* and cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper (I used foil). Drain the liquid from the salmon and use your fingers to crumble the finish into a large mixing bowl. Add all the remaining ingredients except the butter- and mix with a wooden spoon until well combined (I used a spatula). Pop into the fridge to chill for 10 minutes or so. Brush the parchment paper (or foil) with melted butter or coconut oil. (You can also use coconut oil spray here). Using a 1/3 cup, scoop out the salmon mixture and form patties. You want these about 1″ thick and 2 1/2″ wide. Bake for 20 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10 minutes. You can squeeze some lemon on them (I didn’t feel it was necessary) or serve with ISWF Tartar Sauce.

Super easy right?  I’m thinking that I could triple or even quadruple the recipe, make a ton of these, and then freeze them prior to cooking. That way when I reach my hangry state, I just pop them into the oven and I’ll have a healthy balanced meal in about 30 minutes.

While these were baking this morning, I was attempting to cut up a mango. Does anyone know how to successfully cut up a mango? That pit is huge! and although this is only my third time attempting this, I’ve ended up at the sink gnawing on the pit, trying to get as much of the fruit off as possible. And then it end sup all in my teeth. And then I have to floss, and it’s really just a sad process. There has to be a better way!

And one final note for the day. This guy is chillin on our porch this morning

Old Man Moth

 

 

 

Chicken Cook Up and Burpee Challenge

Hi everyone 🙂

Weird I’m writing this at night lol. Steven has some tests he’s doing on his computer so I figured I’d stay up with him and keep him company.

So Today was a typical Tuesday of work and boot camp. Except that tonight was the last day of our month-long burpee challenge. Yep, 5 minutes to do as many burpees as you can. I started this month at 53. I went balls out, and I remember it vividly. Thought I was going to die. Welp, today I met my goal of 70, and again felt like I was going to die. Part of me was disappointed. I should have practiced more during the month. I really should have been able to get to 75. And I want that number, so I’m going to keep trying until I get there. Plus my shoulders are lookin pretty good.

After boot camp we had our dining room table and chairs delivered, which we are so excited about. Our house is coming along so nicely. The next project is finding the right chandelier. After that, we have some little projects to get done around the house, and some bigger projects like the backyard.

Onto the chicken cook-up. Melissa, the author of Well Fed, goes into detail about how important it is to have food on hand. She is so right it’s not even funny. Not having enough cooked protein available or easy to prepare meals causes one of two things: me to get hangry, or me to fail. I don’t like to fail at anything. So I’m usually hangry, trying to figure out what to make so I stay on track. It’s frustrating because I continually underestimate how much protein I will eat for a few days. Plus I’m cooking for Steven and myself. So I need to double it, and I haven’t been doing that. But this morning I had a plan and took out two packs of frozen chicken thighs. And tonight I made some simple grilled chicken thighs.

In my packs of organic chicken from Costco, each pack had 4 good size thighs. I rinsed each one off, trimming a little bit of the fat (leaving most of it), and padded each one dry.

Next I lined a large cookie sheet with two layers of foil (you’ll thank me) and put a cookie cooling rack on top. I placed the 8 chicken thighs on the rack (skin side up) and seasoned generously with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Popped these bad boys into a 400 degree pre-heated over and let them roll for 30-40 minutes. The smaller pieces cooked within 35 minutes, and the two larger took about 40-42 minutes. The skin crisped up (yes I ate the skin, and Melissa encourages it as well). It’s good fat people. You’ll learn about it, don’t worry.

I had two pieces with some steamed veggies per the usj. Broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots were on tonight’s menu. While the chicken was cooking I ate a handful of strawberries too.

Because I was feeling so productive, I also made the Salmon Cakes from ISWF, but I decided to cook them up tomorrow, so they’re chillin in the fridge (quite literally actually lol).  I’ll go over the recipe more tomorrow, along with the home-made mayo I’m planning to make for the tartar sauce. Exciting 🙂

Have a great night everyone!

Whole30 taco salad and need some hair advise…

Morning everyone! How are you all doin?

So before I get into my delicious taco salad from last night I have a serious hair issue. Sunday I did a mud run and got mud all through my hair. I rinsed it at the event, and have washed it 3 times since. My hair STILL feels like straw. I don’t know what to do… any suggestions?

Ok back to the taco salad. I love taco salad. But I don’t love the way rice and tortillas make me feel. BUT I do love the comfort of carbs. (Yep, still dealing with the cravings of mashed potatoes and cake. ) So I thought why not build this taco salad on top of a sweet potato? Here’s how I did it:

Ingredients:
1 medium sweet potato
1 package ground turkey
1 package ground beef
Organic Salsa
2 avocados (for guac- see recipe below)
Lettuce
tomato
Chopped garlic
Salt, pepper, garlic powder
Taco seasoning

I first cooked one medium size sweet potato in the microwave for about 6 minutes and then finished it in the oven, wrapped in foil.

I browned up some ground turkey and ground beef (so that I had lots of leftovers). For the turkey I used some natural taco seasoning, and beef I seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

I made up a batch of guacamole: 2 avocados, 1 chopped garlic clove, lime juice, salt, pepper, cumin.

And then we build:

In a large bowl I took half of the sweet potato and mashed it up with a fork for my base. I then layered ground turkey and ground beef (about 4-6 ounces) on the sweet potato. About 1/2 cup of guacamole, 1/2 cup salsa, chopped tomato and lettuce.

I’m telling you, this meal was huge. I couldn’t finish it all.

And the best part is that I have leftovers for today, and enough sweet potato left to make these tuna cakes from It Starts With Food.

Tonight I will be grilling up a bunch of chicken thighs and stir-frying a few packages of frozen veggies for the rest of the week.

Tomorrow I will post an update on the stockpile from Costco and show you how I’m making it last. Have a great rest of your day!

Since this is about being honest…

I had some alcohol this weekend. And cake. And possibly a little cupcake. EEK!

It’s ok though. It really is. Although I’m doing the Whole30, I’ve already decided that this is a lifestyle I want to live. So I’m going to do this for as long as I want to. So there really is no 30 day goal, rather trying to figure out how to make this my life while still enjoying the things I really love every once in a while. Which happen to be cake and alcohol. Wine to be specific. And Margaritas.

Here’s what I’ve figured out so far: cake (aka wheat and sugar) don’t make me feel good. Alcohol (margaritas made with agave tequila, splash of triple sec, and lime juice) don’t affect me too bad, except for make me feel hungrier after I’ve finished eating. Wine I’m not sure about because it was consumed in conjunction with the cake. More test to come on that one.

Sunday I was back to my whole30 plan. Lots of water, protein, veggies, and fruit. Along with a mud run with some of my workout buddies. Tons of fun. Today’s eats are also back to normal:

Breakfast was a spinach and mushroom scramble with 3 eggs. Followed with a blended coffee.

Lunch was a big salad from Mollie Stones with grilled chicken and tons of veggies.

Snack will be some strawberries and cashews.

Tonight Steven is making his famous taco salad for dinner which I am very excited about. I will make this whole30 approved by making some swaps. For example: instead of a tortilla or rice as my base, I’m going to bake up a sweet potato and build from there. I will have all the regular fixings: lettuce, tomato, olives, guacamole, organic salsa, and ground beef. It will be delicious no doubt. And I think the sweetness from the sweet potato will actually be really good with the spicy savory elements of the rest of the ingredients. I will report back tomorrow.

I hope you are all surviving this heat. And yes 91 is HOT where I live. Have a great rest of your Monday!

Whole30 Morning Coffee and My Favorite Running Shoes

Well hello there 🙂 Its Friday! Yay! I’m stoked, are you stoked? The weekend is finally here and quite frankly I think I’m a little more exacited than usual because I’m slightly hyped up on caffeine….slightly. 🙂

This morning while making my usual breakfast (3 scrambled eggs w/ coconut milk, cauliflower mash (I ran out of steamed broccoli) and coconut aminos, Steven made me a pot of coffee. He makes the best coffee, hands down. I was standing there, smelling the deliciousness that twas a brewing, looked at my coconut milk, and happened to glance at my Magic Bullet and thought, “HOLY CRAP. LETS MAKE FRAPPUCCINOS!”. I think I may have yelled that actually. And right then and there, my morning got THAT much better. Here’s how I did it:

1) Take your large Magic Bullet cup thing, fill it with ice (it will melt if the coffee is piping hot like mine was). Then pour your coffee over that to the Max line. Add a wee bit of vanilla extract.

2) Blend till frothy.

3) Pour in some coconut milk and shake (with a lid on of course). And wa-la. Whole30 appropved blended coffee concoction. Or frappuccino. Whatever you want to call it. Get yourself a cool little staw like I did and enjoy.

Ok now onto some retail therapy. A few months ago Steven and I were at Big 5 browsing around and found they were having an athletic shoe sale. I’ve always been partial to Asics and Saucony’s, specifically the Gel Kayanos and Hurricanes because of how I run/walk. Apparently I’m a “Stability+”. So when I came across these super light weight Nike Flex 2012 running shoes, I was skeptical. But they were on sale for $50. My usual running shoes are three times that. I figured I try them on, walk around the store. They were surprisingly really comfy. And light. Super light. So I bought em to put them in my rotation of workout/running/training shoes. Its been a few months now, and they’ve become my favorite running shoes. And what do you know, Zappos has them on sale!

These are the ones that I have…

And these are the ones I’m getting…

On Sale for $63.99! Helloooooooo. Plus no shipping cause Zappos is cool like that.

Enjoy the rest of your Friday and have a great weekend!!

I had a plan, and then life happened…

I was suppose to write a post yesterday on how to navigate Costco Whole30 style, and clearly that didn’t happen. Lots going on over in my neck of the woods, so I apologize about that. And work has been crazy busy the last week or so with 24/7 projects so I’m a wee bit tired.

Nonetheless- lets get back to Costco. Oh Costco. You are like disneyland on a Saturday in July. Home Depot during a lawn and garden sale. Ikea on a Saturday afternoon. Crowded, uncomfortable, and just a straight up hot mess. But you have upped your game there sir. With organic ground beef, wild caught shrimp, and organic free range eggs. You make it easy to stock up on the foods I need. And here’s how I did it:

1) Go with a list: I took the Whole30 Grocery Shopping Guide, Good Meat Guide, Pantry Stocking Guide, and Grocery List to help me with this. I starred what I knew I wanted to find, highlighted the key words (organic, free range, grass fed, etc) and listed them all in seperate sections (fresh meat, fresh seafood, pantry items, frozen items) so my list was easy to navigate, and therefore Costco was easy to navigate.

2) Go during “off peak” hours: My costco closes at 8:30 on weeknights, so Steven and I stopped in around 7:30. Although it was crowded, we were able to navigate at our own pace and got in and out in less than an hour.

3) Know that you are buying in bulk: When you look at the price tag and see $26 for 1 pack of beef dont flip. Look at the total pounds, and price per pound. I found that most of what I bought was cheaper than buying at my local Safeway or Molly Stones.

4) Stock up on freezer bags: Costco’s got em. In like a pack of 400,000. You’ll never run out.

5) Check out the frozen meats and seafood: I found packs of organic chicken breasts and wild caught shrimp. The shrimp was pricey (Whole Foods is cheaper) but the chicken breast was alright.

6) Check out the frozen vegetables too. Huge packs of mized vegetables.

7) Buy pantry items in bulk: Organic olive oil, coconut oil, nuts, organic crushed tomatoes, organic tomato paste, and a buttload of spices. All pretty cheap.

8) Dont be tempted by the Moose Munch. Its there. Its delicious. But its NOT WORTH IT. Except for maybe in December. When it comes in large packs of two. With Dark Chocolate. I dont go to Costco during the holidays for this reason. I will eat the entire bag during my shopping trip and have to be carted out myself with my frozen shrimp and olive oil.

9) This one probably sounds stupid and we’ve all heard it before. But don’t go to Costco hungry. Go after you’ve eaten a meal. With the food court there and the free tastings, temptations are EVERYWHERE. Its much easier to stay on track with a full and satisfied stomach. That I can promise you.

So these are my basic tips. I highly recommend using Costco for your basic protein needs and stocking up for a few weeks. It makes creating meals that much easier. The worst thing is following a new diet, with no food in the house, starving. Keeping options in the house will keep you on track. I’m only on day 5 of Whole30, but im on day 12 of no grains, no legumes, no dairy, no sugar, no alcohol. And its working 🙂

Day 3 and What is the Whole30?

Hello hello!! How are you all on this fine afternoon? I just finished lunch so I’m pretty happy.

I wanted to do a quick recap of what exactly the Whole30 is, why I’m doing it, and how I’m doing it. I’ve had a few people ask me questions about it and a few others who want to try it as well.

The Whole30 nutrition plan is based on of Dallas and Melissa Hartwig’s extensive research on how the typical american diet affects our insides. Both have exceptional credentials and a few years ago decided to create the Whole9 group. As the Whole9 home page states, “Whole9 is a community focused on health, fitness, balance and sanity, all built on a foundation of real food and healthy nutritional habits.” It sounds really simple, and actually it is. Their book It Starts With Food clearly outlines (in terms all of us can understand) why certain foods (specifically dairy, grains, legumes, sugar, alcohol, processed foods, etc) create systemic inflammation throughout our bodies and what that looks and feels like to the normal population. The book then outlines the Whole30 nutrition plan: a diet in which brings us back to our human roots, avoiding foods that our great grandparents wouldn’t recognize and avoiding the majority of the food American’s consume. Protein, vegetables, fruit, healthy fats. It really is that simple. Their book and website provide detailed guides on how to stock up your pantry and refrigerator to create the optimal environment for us to succeed in. Dallas and Melissa also give us basic recipes to play with as we begin our journey. I opted to purchase Well Fed by Melissa Joulwan. Her cook book is whole30 approved, creative, beautiful, and delicious. I’m already meal planning my recipes throughout that and so far Well Fed does not disappoint.

Onto Day 3! This morning I woke up to my alarm slightly tired (as I only got about 5 hours of sleep) but awake in only 20 minutes after waking up. For me this is pretty good. I didn’t require coffee, but I had a cup this morning anyway. My breakfasts over the last few days look something like this: 1 1/2 -2 cups vegetable (broccoli this morning) heated up in my saute pan with salt and pepper. I add in 2 chopped all natural pork sausage links and scramble with two eggs. This morning I had some extra roasted kale so I added that in as well. This meal leaves me completely satisfied for hours and tastes pretty good too.

Lunch today was Chipotle! Yep, you heard me. Chipotle is Whole30 approved. Well, not every at Chipotle is Whole30, but a lot of it is. Here’s the scoop: Chipotle offers salads now that you can get anyway you like. Start with a big bed of lettuce and move right along to your protein. I opt for double meal servings (mostly becuase yo unever really know how much you’re going to get from the servers there. Some under pour, and some way over pour. The way I look at it, it reduces the amount of time I have to ask for more, and I keep the line moving). Today I got chicken and carnitas. Yep carnitas! Here’s why, straight from the Chipotle website: “Naturally raised pork seasoned with thyme, bay, juniper berries and cracked black pepper. Braised until meltingly tender.” And their chicken? “Marinated overnight in our smoky, spicy chipotle pepper adobo, then grilled. The char marks impart a subtle caramelized flavor.” Top that with some mild salsa (Chopped red, ripe sweet tomatoes, mixed with red onions, jalapeño peppers and freshly chopped cilantro) and guacamole (Hand mashed, ripe Hass avocados, mixed with freshly chopped cilantro, red onions, jalapeño peppers, citrus juice, salt and selected spices) and you’re good to go! A Whole30 approved meal. Here is what you look for when creating your optimal Whole30 meal: the majority of your plate is veggies, you have between 4-6 ounces of protein (for women) or 1-2 palm fulls, and a portion of healthy fat. Avocados you can have 1/2- 1 portion. See how easy that is. And again, it’s totally filling.

It takes time, but you will learn to appreciate the reasoning behind this when you feel the difference eating real, nutritious food makes. And the more you understand the science behind this plan the more successful you will be. Because it makes sense. And if it doesn’t, give it a try. The positive changes to your body might be all you need 🙂

As you read through It Starts with Food and Well Fed you may be daunted by the amount of protein, veggies, fruits, and fats you have to buy to keep yourself fed. I was at first, but I did some exploring and found some great tips and tools that I want to share with you all tomorrow. So stay tuned for how I navigate Costco and fill my fridge, freezer, and pantry with real food.

Until next time…

Keep cool my babeeeeesssssssssss <— high five if you know this reference

Cleanse Recap, and the beginning of the Whole30

Morning everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend. Mine was insanely productive, in case you were wondering. I was on call this weekend for work (I’m in logistics), working every 6 hours for one of my clients. Crazy huh? In between work, I got in 2 great workouts Saturday and Sunday (thanks to my awesome and creative trainer Ami), ate some delicious food (which I will go over shortly), washed all 3 of our cars,  and made some highly anticipated purchases for my home: BBQ, rug for my dining room, dining room table & chairs, walk way lights for my front yard, and a full length mirror for our bedroom. Like I  said, highly productive.

Ok so let’s get back to the Cleanse. I’m done! =) Saturday was my last day and it was full of delicious goods (I just spelled delicious, delishishous… first blonde moment of the day). Sasha prepared paleo banana waffles and mango/strawberry compote for my breakfast saturday. I ended up eating one waffle before my workout and the other after. Lunch was 3 tuna cakes and roasted kale (I ended up only eating 2 and saving the third for dinner). Dinner was a huge ass salad, 1 tuna cake, and avocado. Really good.

I weighed myself Sunday morning, and lost about 3.4lbs total. Not my biggest weight loss, but definitely a start on my weight loss journey. All of the other benefits completely trump the weight loss anyway. My acne is gone, and what I had before the cleanse is healing. My sugar cravings are virtually gone (the emotional ones I’m still dealing with as they come), I am energized/awake/alert, happier!, my hair is thick and manageable. My outlook on food is slowly changing. I’m seeing more of what I eat as fuel and nourishment instead of just stuffing my face. I’m trying to deal with my emotions as they come, instead of turning to food for comfort. My quality of sleep has improved (this weekend doesn’t count with the whole being on call thing). All and all good changes.

I decided that I would follow the Whole30 plan once I finished this cleanse to continue the reset and see how my body would do on a mostly protein/veggie/fruit/healthy fat diet. I started promptly Sunday morning with an egg, pork sausage and broccoli scramble. (one egg, 2 small links, about 1 cup broccoli). This was my pre-workout fuel and breakfast and it worked great. No bloating, didn’t feel like I was going to puke during my workout, and gave me the energy I needed. For lunch we stopped at the Whole Foods and grabbed some goods. I had steamed and sautéed veggies and some pork verde (all natural whole30 approved). I ended up only eating half of my portion, and ate the other half about 3 hours later. For dinner, I wanted to make something delicious out of Well Fed (my staple for the next month). So Steven and I had grilled Salmon (mine in coconut oil), sautéed green beans, and I added cauliflower mash because it’s just so comforting and good. We were both totally satisfied. Of course we sat there reminiscing about Reeses for about 5 minutes, trying to convince ourselves that in fact they are good for us. Peanut butter? Gooood. Dark Chocolate? Goooood. LoL. Only in our dreams…

Tonight were off to the Gigantes game to watch them pummel the D-backs. I just realized that every time I do a cleanse, I go to a Giants game lol. I’m not on my cleanse, but I am bringing my own food again. Leftover cauliflower mash, green beans, and grilled salmon. Plus were taking the train… and usually Coors Lite accompanies us on our journey. It’s gonna be a test, but the end game is totally worth it.

Hope you all have a great rest of your day, enjoy this heat and GO GIANTS!!!

Thank god for day 5

Well hi 🙂 It’s day five of this wonderful cleanse. Clearly, as you can tell by my chipper mood, I woke up much happier today. Today for the first time in a long time, I woke up with some energy. Mentally and physically I was ready to get up when my alarm went off. And it felt good.Real good. Just to get the day going, pack up my food for the day, take my time getting ready, and spending a few extra minutes with the pups. The mornings are always fun with Harley and Kodi. We have a routine that they seem to enjoy: Let them out of their crates, eat, go to the bathroom outside, run around outside (if they’re feeling spunky), and chillin on their perches. They’ve become the official guard dogs of the neighborhood. As you can see here:

Today is my last day of all liquids, which makes for a total of three liquid only days. Considering I’ve been dreaming of steak, take out chinese food, and shredded chicken, I’m ready to start noshing on some goods. On today’s menu, I have another amazing chia/banana/coconut milk smoothie for breakfast, carrot/pineapple smoothie that I ate earlier, pear/parsley/cucumber juice for snack, green soup w/ avocado for dinner, a green juice concoction, and a vege broth that I’m having a really hard time not chugging. Plus remember I take the digestive stimulator packs with apple juice or grapefruit juice 5 times a day. It’s a lot of liquid, I’m peeing all the time. But I feel good today. I’m really looking forward to my workout, and to get my sweat on. I haven’t worked out since Monday so it’s on tonight.

More updates to come tomorrow!