After the cleanse...

Sorry I haven't been on here over the past week and a half!!  I actually ended up sick right after the challenge ended!  How crazy is that?!  When I'm sick my body rejects pretty much any food haha.  I have to eat whatever I can get down so I don't become too weak. So my diet for a few days was a milk shake, some fries, and a couple smoothies.  That was it!! I know bad Michele, sugar, and dairy and fried foods, but that's all that I could even stand to think about eating! Even today all I could eat really was some chicken at lunch, and fries for dinner.  So horrible for me! But if that is what it takes for me to eat right now, that's what I eat! (I have though lost another 1/2 inch around my belly! haha)

I haven't even gotten to work out since the end of the cleanse!  I've done some home stuff, but not a whole lot.  It's been a lot of sleeping for me.  So yeah that's fun!  I have to get better before my trip that I leave for on Friday!  I'm starting to feel much better, so hopefully it just keeps going!  I'm planning on making a shake tomorrow morning before work and seeing how that works for me!

I've already decided that when I get back from my trip that I will be keeping my diet pretty much the same as the cleanse...2 shakes a day, and a clean meal, along with 2 snacks.  I'm going to do a little dairy, but not a whole lot.  Also trying to intensify my work out!  We're trying to work up towards being able to climb a 14er this year, so I have a lot of work ahead of me!  But since the weather is just getting nicer each week, hopefully we'll be able to get out there and start hiking more!

For Josh we reintroduced dairy back, his trainer said that he really needed those healthy fats.  He's still going strong with working out, and I could not be more proud of him!  I can't wait to take another pic of him towards the end of the month to see even more results with him!  You can tell that he just has more and more energy everyday!  He is by far the healthiest he has ever been in his life!

I do have some exciting news though!  I have decided to become a rep for Arbonne!!  It has made such a difference in our lives, that I want to be able to help others out there as well reach their goals!! Not only does Arbonne have some amazing products for nutrition, but they have amazing all natural skin and hair care lines!  Please message me if you want to know more!

Well that's all for tonight, I just wanted to give a quick update to what's been going on, and why I haven't been on here!  I'll be gone on vacation, so my next post will be after I get back!!

Keep pushing for those dreams and goals!

Final Cleanse Weigh In!!

Yesterday was our final day of the Arbonne Clean Eating Challenge!!!  And I cannot express how happy I am with the results! This past month was an emotional roller coaster with this!  Like I've said before, detox is so much for than just cutting food out!  It's about will power!  I've also been working towards making smarter decisions in my life and learning to love my life!  This detox has given me so much more energy!  I feel amazing, I'm able to push my self harder, and I cannot wait to keep going!

So my final weight after the cleanse.......170!!!!! DOWN 7 lbs in a month!!  That is not the most amazing part though!! I'm down 7 inches! And that's just measuring around my bust, waist, and hips! I know that I've gone done all around as well!

Now comes the next step...reintroducing some food items back into our diets.  We're going to still eat healthy and make healthy decisions for our selves, but not be so restrictive.  Our first thing we're going to reintroduce is milk and dairy.  Instead of buying whole milk like I normally would, I got 2%! I also got us some cheese for snacks.  I'm going to have to monitor very closely the calorie and fat content I'm taking in, so that way nothing is sneaking up on me!!  We're going to continue with making our morning shakes, and eating 3 meals and 2 snacks a day.

I know this is a short post, but unfortunately I've gotten sick.  Go figure right after the cleanse haha.  So that's all I'm going to write for tonight.  I have an awesome recipe to share with you all, hopefully tomorrow!

Weight = 170
Bust =  37 inches
Wait = 35 inches
Hips = 41 inches

Keep pushing, and keep going, reach those dreams!

Cleanse friendly Shepherd's Pie

So on Wednesday here in Colorado we had a really nasty Blizzard!  So much so that both of us got stuck at home for the day.  I wanted something really warm and hearty to make, so I came up with this little gem!

Shepherd's pie is one of my favorite comfort foods!  Just thinking of the potatoes, the cheese, the beer stout sauce...mmmmmmmm.. OK enough dreaming!  I had to think of a way to make this friendly for the cleanse!  Then it dawned on me...mashed cauliflower in place of the potatoes...and no cheese.  Then came the thought of the missing beer..what to do there? Well just a basic "gravy" I guess could work.  I knew that I needed to pack it full of flavor in order to make this work, that's why I added the mushrooms!

It definitely hit the spot, and was very comforting for a cold day like it was!  We ended up with a little over a foot of snow, which is crazy!!  Just walking and playing in the snow was a work out in it's self!! And we did just that! Ok ok, enough blabbing! Here's the recipe for ya! (sorry the pic isn't the best, totally forgot to take a picture before diving into it!)

Cauliflower Shepherd's Pie

1 lb grass feed beef

bag of frozen carrots and peas

2 cups diced mushrooms

2 T oil of choice

2 celery stalks

2 cloves garlic diced

1 yellow onion

1 head cauliflower

1 cup beef broth

1 T worcestershire sauce

2 T gluten free flour

1/4 C coconut milk

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

In a saucepan heat up oil over medium high heat.  Saute onion, celery, and mushrooms until onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook until it becomes fragrant. Set aside.

In same pan brown ground beef until done.  Add flour to beef stirring well, and cook for additional 2 minutes.  Stir back in onion, mushroom, celery mix, along with frozen carrots and peas.  Whisk in beef broth, worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer.  Simmer for about 5 minutes, until gravy becomes thick.  

Meanwhile take head of cauliflower and break down.  Place in a microwave safe bowl, and just cover with water.  Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 5 minutes.  Let sit an additional 5 minutes.  (test the cauliflower with a fork to make sure it is tender.  If not microwave until it is)

After cauliflower is super tender, drain off water and blend cauliflower with coconut milk until light and fluffy.  If you need to add more milk you can, but be careful to not make too soupy. Add salt and pepper to taste.  

Layer the beef mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish then top with the mashed cauliflower.  Spray the top of the cauliflower with cooking spray (I have just canola oil spray) and place in oven.

Bake for 30 minutes.  If top of cauliflower is not browned you can turn the oven to broil for 5 minutes.  Mine personally did not want to brown.

Enjoy!

Josh's results!

So my husband Josh decided to take an "after" picture yesterday!  He did not take one at the beginning of the month, but had one on his phone from September, which was his "after" picture from the first cleanse we did! And all I can say is WOW!  What a difference!!  He is down 35 lbs since September, and several inches! I do not know the exact amount!  He now has enough energy to workout and start building some muscle.  His headaches have gotten better, and he just over all feels really healthy!!

I will take my after photo at the end of this week, along with posting all my final stats from the cleanse!  But that does not mean that it ends there! NO WAY! This is a fresh start to our new life styles!!  2016 is the year of us!! We're becoming healthier, gaining new habbits, and hopefully will be purchasing our first house! So excited!!

I'll post later today with a new recipe :-)

Weigh in day 3 / Final Stretch!!!

So today was weigh in day!! And I"m happy to announce I am down 2 more lbs and 1 1/2 more inches!!! This past week was an interesting week.  I really focused this past week on how much I was eating by keeping track of my calories.  This cleanse is not about counting carbs, but it is good to know where you stand.  And it turns out, I was not eating enough!  No wonder I was having the headaches!!!  I was actually working out almost too much for the amount of food I was eating!  So I cut back on working out for the week to focus on my food side of things.  I think I finally got it down on how much I need to be eating every day when I do not work out!  So my challenge for my self this week is to re introduce working out, but to make sure I'm amping up my food intake to go along with it!!

When loosing weight, at least for women, you should be having a net balance of 1200 calories. It does not mean eat 1200 calories, burn off 300 working out and you will loose more weight! NO WAY!! 1200-300 = only 900 calories for the day.  Your body will go into starvation mode at this point!  When starvation mode happens your body may convert any food it gets into fat to store!  It's thinking that it needs to build up in order to survive.  Please do not do this to your body!  Make sure you eat enough!

Now this does not give you a free for all!  Still make sure the foods you are eating are pure clean healthy foods. Just up the healthy fats some if you are struggling to hit your calorie goal!  That means more flax seeds, chia seeds, coconut oil, etc.  Avocado is a great source of healthy fats if you are not allergic like me haha.  Same with nuts!  We love cashews!  And Josh also loves pistachios!

Another great thing we were able to this week was finally get Josh's diet under control! He did not loose anything this week and gained an inch across his chest!! He met up with a personal trainer this past week and is going to sign up for 5 sessions to get a great work out down to help him start bulking up!  He's never been more excited!!  I'm excited for him!  He's going to also help me out by showing me some of the stuff he learns!

So I have about 3 weeks until my cruise!! If I keep up the weight loss I've been going at, with 2 lbs a week, I'll be down 12 lbs in time for the cruise! Down to the weight I was at before my latest accident!!!  I am so excited!  I feel so good, and feel more and more healthy every day!  It's defiantly a struggle and true testament to my will power, but I'm proud of my self!  As you should be of your self! Even if it's just drinking water instead of soda one day.  Celebrate that accomplishment!!

I'm going to leave you today with a fun Sponge Bob meme about working out haha.  This one always cracks me up!!

Weight = 171
Bust = 38
Waist = 35
Hips = 41

It's not easy!

If anyone ever tells you weight loss is easy....run...it is not easy!  There is no miracle pill, or no miracle drink out there.  Those are all great for quick fixes, but not a lifestyle change!  That is what Josh and I are focusing on.  A lifestyle change!  One step at a time.  There are defiantly moments of weakness, but it is all about over coming them.  And then if you do give into that weakness, forgive your self and move on.  Do not give up! Keep pushing through!

The other night we both just had the urge to go to Old Chicago, have some appetizers and drinks.  It took every ounce of will power we had to not go.  We're dedicated to this cleanse and cannot let our weakness show!  Now after our cleanse we can do that once in a while, in moderation.  That's the key..moderation.  We do not want to completely undo our progress!  Once again, it's all about life style change.  Being healthy beyond doing the cleanse!

Speaking of the cleanse, the past few days have been our days we drink the detox drink portion of all this.  It really helps cleanse out the system, and boy does it!  My energy levels have been a little lower from it, and with the weather change my back has not been happy.  I haven't been able to go to the gym as much as liked this week, but I have to listen to what my body says :-)

My best friend visited the other night, and I needed to do something in a hurry for dinner.  I was really craving breakfast!  So I cam up with this recipe :-) I also did a little side salad with it, and it was pretty darn good if I say so my self!! Also it was super easy!!  Let me know what you think!

Eggs and Sweet Potato

2 sweet potatoes

4 eggs

2 Tablespoons fresh rosemary

1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1/4 cup soft herbed goat cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Arugula, about 2 cups

Dressing for Salad

1 Tablespoon dijon mustard

1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 Tablespoon agave syrup or honey

1/4 cup oil (I use canola, but you can use olive oil)

salt and pepper to taste

Turn oven onto broil

Shred sweet potatoes.  Heat up oil in skillet and cook sweet potatoes until tender, about 8-10 minutes.  Add rosemary salt and pepper.  Make 4 divots in sweet potato hash.  Crack eggs into divots and cook for a few minutes until whites are partially set.  Sprinkle the top with goat cheese. 

Place skillet in oven for about 5 minutes, until egg are cooked to desired doneness.

In the mean time whisk all ingredients together for dressing. Toss arugula in dressing

Serves 2

See I told you it was easy!! Once again, let me know what you think of it!!

Weigh in and PI day!

Happy Monday! We are officially half way through the 30 day detox / cleanse!!! WOHO!! So proud of us!  We had our weigh in this morning! I'm down another 2 lbs, and 2 1/2 inches!!  Once again, I was hoping for more, but I had to once again remind my self that it's still a loss!! And all together it is 4 lbs lost!  I'm on my way towards my goal!!  I'm fitting into my "tight" jeans, except my one pair that is a size 10.  I can actually button and zip them, but they're super tight!  I'll get back to them sooner than later!

So I've been reading my book and the past chapter I read was all about how we are in a society of wanting things right now, and that quantum leap essentially that we all expect to happen.  This was a great one to read with my weigh in day.  It was just a great reminder that there is no quantum leap when it comes to weight loss!  It's little by little, but they all add up over time!  And as I've mentioned before, this isn't just about weight loss.  It's about being healthier, and having the energy! That way we can enjoy life more!

The advice that I'm getting from the book I'm not only applying to my weight loss, but also to my Jamberry business.  It's the little things that I do each day for it, that will help me succeed in the long run!  There is no such thing as over night success, but it's so hard to get out of that mental state!!  It's hard to not just run away every time something doesn't go exactly right, but just have to keep going!

I will say that today was one of the most difficult of the cleanse so far, mentally any ways.  We woke up late, so didn't get to the gym. Then we had running around to do and had to eat out.  Not going to lie, that's when we tend to bicker the most! Over where to eat, and then when we're on this cleanse and so limited it makes it even worse!  We finally came to the decision on Wahoo Fish Tacos.  We each had one salmon one, and on wahoo one, both with no cheese.  When we got them, we forgot to ask without the sour cream sauce, so we just ate them as they were.  Oh well.  A little cheat, but it was better than arguing more over it haha.

Today was also international PI day!  Seeing pictures of pies all over Facebook today was a little bit of a killer!! This made the day that much worse with cravings. So what did I do? I got inspired!! I got inspired to make a clean eating challenge friendly pie.  Ok so it was more like a cobbler than a pie, but still hit the spot!!

Tomorrow is a new day, a fresh day, and it will be a better day!  I'm excited to meet up with my awesome Arbonne coach Ashely, and catch up!!  Who knows, maybe here soon Josh and I will be the newest reps of Arbonne!  We really cannot lie on how much this program has helped us out, and how we would love to help others out as well!  Have a great day everyone, and I will catch up with all of you soon!!

Weight = 173 lbs
Bust = 39 inches
Waist = 35.5 inches
Hips = 41 inches

Gluten Free, Sugar Free Apple Cobbler

2 Granny Smith Apples (Peeled, Diced and Cored)

2 T agave syrup

1 T lemon juice

1/2 T gluten free flour

Cinnamon (as much as you like)

Clove (as much as you like)

a pinch of nutmeg

1/2 t salt

Crumble

1 cup gluten free oats

1/2 cup gluten free flour

1 packet stevia

1/2 t salt

1/2 T cinnamon

2 T coconut oil (softened)

Preheat the oven to 350

Combine apples, agave syrup, lemon juice, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, 1/2 t salt, and 1/2 T gluten free flour all together and place in a greased casserole dish.

In a separate bowl work together all the crumble ingredients, until well combined.  Top the apple mixture with the crumble.

Cover in aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes

Uncover and continue to bake for 30 more minutes.  

Voila, a cleanse friendly apple crumble!!

It was pretty darn good, deff hit the spot.  Could have used some ice cream...but that's no cleanse friendly haha!!  Let me know what ya think!!!

Cheat Day and the after effect

Yesterday was a our cheat day!! We finally had a day off together, which is rare to come by these days!  So we decided to use it as our cheat day.  Normally our day is suppose to be exactly half way, but we decided this would be better.  So we took the day and drove up to Estes Park to go to our favorite burger/gyro place! Baba's burgers.  

We had some eggs and OJ before heading up so that it wasn't too terrible for us.  After that we got to go fight with Comcast for a little before heading up.  Always so much fun!  The drive up was amazing!  Such a beautiful day out here in Colorado!  So relaxing.

At Baba's I had their traditional Gyro, and Josh had double cheese burger. We split an order of greek fries, and a soda.  I could only eat about half of my gyro and a few fries before I was full and done.  It did taste really good, but I didn't find my self gorging my self on it.  Now Josh on the other, can eat like there's no tomorrow haha.  He ate all of his, and the rest of the fries!

After we were done wondering around in Estes Park we headed up to Black Hawk.  Here we got to have a couple of drinks, but we were both so full from lunch that we did not end up eating any dinner!  Drinks were good as always, and so was the gambling haha.  We only lost $10, but to play for quite a while. Black Jack is always our go to, and we have our few annoying penny slots that we really enjoy!

So now we are here the day after cheating.  We were a little sluggish to wake but, but we did and got straight to the gym!  I have had a goal the past week to hit 5000 reps on the elliptical in my 35 min weight loss work out, and finally hit it today!! I was proud of my self!  I may have to start upping the intensity on the workout, because now it's getting to the point of being easy!  I would not have believed you if you would have told me that at the beginning of the year!  We have a free session with a trainer, so Josh is going to utilize that on Thursday to learn some proper weight lifting techniques so that he can start building some muscle. 

The only side effect we're feeling from yesterday is that our stomachs are a little girgley, and gassey, but not too bad.  We still have great energy, and really had an easy time going straight back to eating well. The only down fall we had was eating some dark chocolate, but I really needed to curb that craving before going ballistic!

We went around and did some shopping.  I needed some ore clothes for my cruise coming up.  And over all I'm liking the way things are looking.  I'm proud of my progress! Weigh in day 2 is coming up here in a few days and I'm excited to see where I stand with everything!  Almost half way through this 30 day detox!!  

Strange things are happening....

So I had a couple of revelations across the past couple of days.  Just some settle changes I'm noticing about my body, and mind.  All great part of the detox!

First off, while getting doughnuts yesterday and today for my class that I teach, I could hardly stand the smell of them!! They smelled incredibly overwhelmingly sweet!!  It almost made me nauseous! Just a couple of weeks ago I could wolf down a couple of these bad boys, but I was so turned off by the smell I had no desire at all to eat any!  I cannot believe how incredible my will power has been here lately!  With my position I literally have junky food staring me down all day long!  I should have gotten a picture to show you!!  I set up my tables for my training class with chips, candy, cookies or doughnuts, and then some fruit as well, all down the center of it.  I look at it all day long!! But not once, since starting my detox, have I had an urge to grab something!

Then today at work I bought lunch for the group.  Good 'ol friend chicken with 2 sides.  I drank my shake like a good girl, and it did not bother me one bit.  I never once found my self going, oh man I wish I could have that too....I enjoyed my shake, felt full, and was ready to keep going.  My mind is slowly shifting towards thinking of food as fuel, and not as a way to cope, or reward my self.  It's crazy how much I'm learning about what my body truly needs and wants, and listening to it is so rewarding!

Now I didn't get to work out today like I wanted to do so.  The pressure in the air must be changing because my back and neck are pretty sore this evening.  This is something I have really learned over time is that I need to listen to my body.  There is a point of pushing, but the over doing it and making it worse.  I think it's coming up time for another massage :-)  Time to reward my body for all it's hard work and everything I have been putting it through!  Now that's a reward not food!

We have our first cheat day coming up.  Technically it's suppose to be next Monday, but we're doing it Friday since we actually have a day off together.  We're planning on heading up to Estes Park! All Josh wants is a burger from our favorite burger place, Baba's burgers.  They really are good!  But while we're up there, we're going to try to go for a hike if it isn't too snowy.  If it is, we'll just end up wondering around the town and enjoying each other's company.  I cannot wait!

Another note, another strange thing I noticed about my body....When I bend over my fat rolls are different....Such a weird statement I know!! But it's true! My fat is folding weird hahaha.  I think it's a good thing!  So crazy to notice all these little changes going on!

Anyways I'm going to leave you with this recipe!  It turned out so amazing!! I cannot take the credit for this one though.  I found it on Pinterest!! So I'll show my picture and give you the link to it!!

Click here for the recipe

So it's Sunday fun day! We started our morning with an amazing hike!! The weather has been so beautiful out here the past few weeks!! We've really taken advantage of being able to get out side! Our total hike was just about two hours, and 4 miles! We climed about 80 flights of stairs! Such a beautiful day. And what's great is our younger dog, Fry, loves to go hiking with us!

When we got home we had lunch! Some awesome salmon and asparagus. So yummy!! I'll post that recipie at the end of this post for all of you! I also started working on meal preping for the week.

Today I was chocked full of energy, and ready to rock and roll!! Zero cravings!! It's pretty amazing! I went to my parents for the evening and made my own version of what they were having and also got me some "ice cream" I can have!  But the urge to cheat is not there at all!

So Josh and I tend to work complete opposite meals, so I try to make enough meals for 5-6 days. I'll make enough of each dish to feed us twice, so I make 5-6 different meals for the week! Now most Arbonne coaches give a meal plan out that is amazing to follow, but I love coming up with my own. I will fail if I follow someone else's meal plan haha. I also have a lot of allergies to food. So I have to be careful!

For our meals this week it was $100 for 10 meals, which makes it out to be $5 per meal per person. Not bad right? I splurged a little for today's lunch with salmon and asparagus cause neither were on sale! I shop primarily at King Soopers, being that we both work for the company, and they have a great line of organics with their simple truth line!

This week we are having...

Sweet potato Brussels sprout hash with chicken
Steak rellenos
Frittata
Quinoa and mushroom with chicken
Pizza (yes pizza)
And then the salmon we had for lunch today!

So that's all to report for today!! Good luck to those of you starting tomorrow! I'll be posting my first week results tomorrow with weigh in! I cannot wait!!!!!

Dijon Crusted Salmon with asparagus

2 salmon filets
2 T Dijon mustard
1/4 C gluten free bread crumbs
2 T oil
1 bunch asparagus
2 t paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread 1 T Dijon mustard over each filet. Season with sale and pepper. Combine 1 T oil with bread crumbs, then sprinkle evenly over the filets. Sprinkle with paprika.
Trim the ends off the asparagus and toss in rest of oil. Place asparagus to the side of the pan and salt and pepper.
Bake for 10 minutes. My oven took 12, so be sure to check for doneness!!
Enjoy!!

Gluten free, dairy free quiche

So my hub and and I are doing he 30 day Arbonne detox and loving it! Having awesome results so far!! I'm having to get festive with the whole gluten and dairy free but doing pretty good! I came up with this recipe because one of my favorite things is breakfast!! It turned out awesome and I've learned to love goat cheese!!! Hope you all enjoy it as well!

Quiche

1 White sweet potato

5 eggs 

4 slices turkey bacon

3/4 cup spinach

3 T coconut milk

Oil

Salt to taste

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar goat cheese 

Heat oven to 425

Peel and shred up the sweet potato. I used like 3/4 of the shavings and froze the rest. Toss in some oil if your choice and salt. Press into a pie plate coming up the edges to make a crust. Make sure that it is covered pretty well so your egg doesn't seep through

Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes

In the mean time five up bacon and sauté until crispy. Mix in spinach and sauté until wilted. Make sure to taste and see if there is enough salt.

Beat 5 eggs and add coconut milk, salt and pepper. I also threw in some green onion. 

When crust is done baking lower oven to 400 degrees

Place the bacon and spinach mixture in the crust then top with the egg mixtures.

Too the whole thing off with your goat cheese.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until set!

And enjoy!!!

Gluten Free Skinny Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Fall is defiantly in the air here in Colorado, and there is nothing better than your whole home smelling like pumpkin.  Come to think of it, there's nothing better than pumpkin spice well....everything haha.  It just screams fall.  I am always looking for an easy breakfast to take with me to work and this week I had such a craving for some pumpkin chocolate chip muffins.  My family has a recipe for some fabulous pumpkin chocolate chip muffin, but truth be told...they're full of oil and sugar.  So bad for you, but oh so delicious.  So it got me to thinking of what can I do to make some that are gluten free, and well all-in-all healthier.  After looking around on pinterest for a while I found a few recipes that I really liked, and kind of just combined and made some changes to make them what I wanted.  I also love to make mini muffins, as opposed to the normal sized ones.  I think they just end up way more connivent.
So make your self a nice cup of coffee and enjoy these wonderful muffins on a crisp fall day :-)

Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 1/2 cup gluten free flour blend
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup coconut sugar
1 can pumpkin
1 whole egg
1 egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup milk (any variety)
3 Tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup mini semi chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl (excluding the chocolate chips)  Whisk all the wet ingredients together making sure they are mixed well.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix thoroughly, but do not over do it.
Either line your mini muffin pan with liner or spray really well
Fill muffin tin about 3/4 full
Bake for 12 minutes if you are doing mini muffins, or for 15-17 mins if you are doing large muffins
Be sure to check for doneness with a toothpick.
Cool on a cooling rack, and be sure to store in an air tight container

Now the Best Part.... ENJOY

Paleo Gluten Free Crock Pot Cashew Chicken

So generally on Fridays my husband is off while I work during the day then we have the evening together.  There is nothing more I hate then having to go to work for 10 hrs, then come home and have to cook.  So I am always trying to come up with something easy for my husband to make (he's really not that great in the kitchen, but he tries :-) )  So I was craving some Chinese food, but what could I possible make that is both paleo and gluten free? Well Cashews were on sale at the store so I had picked up some of those then it came to me.... Cashew Chicken!  This couldn't be that hard in the crock pot!  And all Josh would need to do is throw it all in the crock pot and turn it on! SIMPLE!!!  One thing to keep in mind if you are gluten free is that Soy Sauce is FULL of GLUTEN!!!  But there are gluten free soy sauces out there, so just keep an eye out for it! I get mine at Sprouts, which is our local health food store.  I believe Whole Foods has it as well.
I then ran into the problem with the brown sugar needed for the sauce, this is not Paleo...now what to do... Then I stumbled across coconut sugar.  After researching all it is is processed coconut flesh to be very fine.  It's pretty delicious too, and it reminds me of brown sugar! Perfect!!  Alright enough blabbing, here we go!

Crock Pot Cashew Chicken

2 chicken breasts, (leave whole)
1-2 cups frozen broccoli 
1 cup carrots, chopped into bite sized pieces 
1/2 cup cashews 
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/2 cup gluten free soy sauce
4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
3 Tablespoons ketchup (try to get sugar free for paleo)
1 Tablespoon coconut sugar
1 Tablespoon garlic powder 
1 Tablespoon ginger powder 
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup chicken broth

Layer chicken, and vegetables in the crockpot
Combine remaining ingredients except water and cashews, and pour over chicken in crockpot
Add water or broth if necessary so that the chicken and veggies are almost completely covered
Cook for 5 hrs on low
Take the chicken out and dice into bite sized pieces, throw back in the crock pot and add the cashews and cook for another hour on low.

You can enjoy this on rice if you are not Paleo, or if you are Paleo you can do riced cauliflower (which is pretty amazing).  Best part of cooking the meal...ENJOY

Kale Chips

Kale Chips

I adore Kale!!  It's so incredibly good for you it's not even funny!  I know a lot of people out there hate it, and I just cannot understand why!!

Now it's not something that I love just eating raw, or just in a salad..then I say yuck.  But the best thing ever is when I'm craving something salty and crunchy...Yes most people would reach for the chips or popcorn...but remember we're Paleo!! Neither of those things are a go.  So my favorite thing?  Kale chips!!  What is even better is you can flavor them however you want! If you're feeling spicy add some chili powder or red pepper flakes. If you want more those fall flavors do some cinnamon and nutmeg (not sure how that would taste...)  Or you can do just plain salt and pepper!  The possibilities are ENDLESS!  Ok I'll stop rambling!

Kale chips

4 Kale leaves

1 T oil

1/2 t salt

1/4 t garlic powder

1/4 t onion powder

Preheat oven to 300 degrease.  Take leafy parts off of the kale leaving the stem behind.  Break up into bite size pieces (remember when they are cooked they shrink some) Toss the kale bits with oil, and seasonings.  Lay out flat on a foil lined cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-15 minutes, careful to not let them burn!  I start checking at that 10 minute mark and 2 minutes at a time from there.  Take out of over and transfer to some paper towels to pat off excess oil.  And...ENJOY!

Paleo Burger with Egg on top

Paleo Burger with egg on top and sauted spinach

So a couple of weeks ago, before venturing into the world of Paleo, my husband and I tried a new trendy burger, one with a fried egg on top.  We were pretty reluctant to try it, but wow! Was it good!!! I got to thinking about using this with the Paleo diet, just without the bun, but wanted to incorporate some kind of veggie with it.  Then it dawned on me...spinach goes excellent with eggs!  So, here are! Hope you enjoy it as much as my husband and I did!!

Paleo Burger with egg on top and sauteed Spinach

1/2 lb hamburger meat
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 T Worcester sauce
1 bunch of spinach
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs

Take and mix the hamburger meat with salt, pepper, onion and garlic powder, and the Worcester sauce.  Do not over work the meat and it will fall apart easier.  Shape into 2 patties.  Cook patties on a screaming hot skillet, until desired doneness.  (I like mine medium rare, which takes about 4 mins each side)  Set hamburgers to the side to rest and cover with foil.  In the same pan place the spinach and apple cider vinegar along with salt and pepper to taste.  Saute for about 3 minutes.  Remove from pan
Spray the pan with some non-stick spray and fry your eggs until done the way you like :-) I love still having the yolk runny!  Place the spinach on the plate and top with your hamburger followed by the egg.
Now ENJOY!

Paleo Crock Pot Beef Stew

Paleo Crock Pot Beef Stew

Ahhhh there is nothing better than on a cool fall day to have the smell of beef stew cooking away in the crock pot.  So homey, and relaxing.  That would be perfect for a day like today here in Colorado.  It's currently 52 degrees out and I'm stuck at work until 4:30 pm.  The greatest thing about beef stew is that it really cannot be over cooked haha.   You can leave it in the crock pot on low allllllllllllll day long. Going Paleo means giving up a very important part of beef stew, potatoes.  How was I ever going to come up with a stew that still tastes that amazing with out it?!?  Well lets add another favorite veggie, green beans.  Yes, yes, this will be perfect!!  And yes there is wine in the stew, is wine Paleo?  Well people argue it both ways.  All I know is I'm not ready to give up my alcohol...so yeah...I will be drinking wine and cooking with it haha. So here we go!

Wish it looked a little better haha, but trust me it tastes wonderful!

Paleo Crock Pot Beef Stew

2 lbs stew beef (cubed or not cubed doesn't matter)
5 slices of bacon
1 large yellow onion (diced)
4 cloves of garlic (I love garlic)
4 large carrots (chopped into bite sized pieces)
1/2 lb green beans (trimmed)
Can of beef stock
1 cup red wine
1 bay leaf

Cook up the bacon in a pan until nice and crispy. Let cool and set aside reserving the leftover grease.  Take and brown off the stew meat, weather it's whole and you wanna shred it later or the individual cubes.  Place in crock pot.  Saute the onions in the bacon grease until tender, and add the garlic to cook for a couple of minutes.  De-glaze the pan with the onions and garlic still in it with the red wine.  Let reduce for about 5 minutes. Pour everything into the crock pot.  Add can of beef stock, veggies, bay leaf and the bacon crumbled to the crock pot.  Cook on low for 8-10 hrs.

Now the best part... ENJOY! 

Gluten Free Homemade Granola Bars

I am always looking for something easy to make for breakfast that is a good on the go.  I  work at 6:30 in the morning, having to leave my house at 5:45 am and just do not have time to make anything. Yeah sure one can make muffins, or buy the over processed to go things they sell in the stores, but those have so much such and blah!  And they're expensive for no more than you get!! So I decided I would try my hand at some homemade granola bars that are the healthier side.  I took some notes from some oat meal cookies I've made in the past with mashed bananas and took that concept to this bar recipe.

Gluten Free Homemade Granola Bars

2 Cups Oats
2 Cups Shredded Coconut (no sugar added)
2 large bananas mashed
2 t Vanilla
2 t Coconut Sugar
1/2 Cup Milk (any variety)
1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips (or raisins)

Preheat your oven to 350.
Mix everything together.  (I mixed with my hands to make sure that it all comes together nicely, especially the bananas.
Place ingredients in a 11" X 7" greased pan, patting down so everything is stuck together
Bake for 30 minutes (until edges are golden brown)
Let cool for at least an hr
Cut into bars and ENJOY! Be sure to store them in an air tight container and they should last for a week.

With these you can always do some variation with the choco-chips, you can add nuts, or raisins, or cranberries, or yogurt chips, or whatever.  The possibilities are endless!! I really hope you enjoy then, and these are also wonderful for kids!

Carrot Coconut GF muffins (advocare friendly)

Recently my husband has had to move to a primarily glutten free diet. It's been tough wasp evilly when it comes down to baked goods!! But I came across a primarily healthy muffin recipe and kind if expanded upon it adding the carrot and coconut along with making it gluten free. Now you can use all purpose flower for this recipe as well!! Hope you enjoy!!

1 1/2 cup gluten free all purpose flour*

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup sugar free apple sauce

1/2 cup honey

1 tsp vanilla

2 T melted butter

1 egg (lightly beaten)

2/3 cup grated carrot

1/3 cup shredded coconut

*if you use all purpose flower cut the baking down to 1 tsp

Prepare a muffin tin (I used small ones) with either liners or grease. Preheat oven to 350 degreese.

Whisk together all dry ingredients (except coconut and carrot.) Make a well in the middle and add all wet ingredients. Mix all together until combined... Do not over mix. Fold in carrot and coconut. 

Spoon into muffin tin filling about 3/4 full. Bake for 13 mins for the small guys, larger ones will take prob about 18 minutes. Check with a tooth pick and if it comes out clean it's done!!

Now the hard part... Let them cool before eating! The flavors come out more and more as they cool! Enjoy!!