Hungarian Goulash... paleo style

No, this is not the final picture of the amazing Hungarian style goulash I made today. I quite simply forgot to take a picture of it once it was in my bowl. I couldn't wait to eat it. And boy, was it ever delicious!!!

I used this recipe as a guideline, but tweaked it quite a bit. Instead of stew meat I used a chuck roast. The reason I did this is that I just can't seem to make any good roasts, and I really didn't want to waste anymore good grass fed beef on a meal I don't enjoy. I browned the beef, then added it to my Crockpot, then browned onions and garlic, and also added it to the Crockpot. Then I added a can of tomatoes, a can of tomato paste, and a jar of beef stock, seasoned the whole thing with salt, pepper, paprika, and some cumin powder. I cooked it on low, and after about three hours added the green bell peppers (I used two of those). The goulash cooked on low for almost 8 hours. The meat came out super tender, and the goulash tasted awesome. Not very spicy at all, which was nice for my kids. It was definitely a great fall recipe on yet another rainy Oregon day. :)

Tomorrow I'm going to try to paleofy Danish butter cookies. I had a request for those, and I do love a challenge.

Got anything that you really want paleofied? Let me know... I may (or may not) give it a try. ;) Just comment here or on my FB page. :(

Is this Paleo?

I think it is safe to say that all modern cavemen agree what constitutes a paleo diet... in general. Meat, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, and berries. We have plenty of evidence indicating that this is what our ancestors ate.

I think it is also safe to say that we all understand how lucky we are to get our hands on raw honey in the winter, bananas year round, and meat comes out of a freezer.

And finally, the majority of us have learned that not all modern cavemen agree on the subject of dairy... hence the differentiation between paleo and primal folks out there. During the few months I've worked for FastPaleo.com (and these months have been nothing short of amazing!) I've read many, many comments from readers, cooks, cavepeeps... To serve everyone in the cavepeople community we cater to dairy and non-dairy eaters. Of course this has also created some "controversy" as many ask, sometimes in disbelief, sometimes with utter disgust, what we are thinking to post "this" recipe as PALEO when it clearly is not.

It is important, as you embark on your paleo journey to keep an open mind. You proved once that you are willing to break out of the prison of conventional wisdom by ditching all grains and sugars. Please don't stop there. Yes, you've learned a valuable lesson about diet and exercise. You know that those so called healthy whole grains mess with your gut, and that saturated fat is good for you. Don't let this make you arrogant. Don't feel like you are done learning, that from this day forward there will be nothing new to learn about nutrition, health, and exercise.

Us humans have only just begun to understand what we should eat to stay fit and strong. Not all things we added to our diet after our ancestors settled down and discovered agriculture, are bad. When you do your homework on dark chocolate, raw honey, red wine, and bacon, do so with the open mind of a scientist. Only if you are willing to adjust your ways now and in the future you will really become better and healthier.

Dr. Loren Cordain is an excellent example of just such a scientist. In his first book he recommends eating only lean meat, promotes the use of canola oil, and suggests to steer clear of salt. In the meantime he has adjusted his views on all of these issues. He has admitted his mistakes publicly and moved on with his new knowledge to a better and healthier life, which is ultimately everyone's goal...

So, I urge you to really research, do your homework. Don't be a blind follower. Take charge and make YOUR decisions based on what YOU find to work for yourself.

FastPaleo recipes

Pumpkin Butter Truffles... Oh my gosh... these things are absolutely, incredibly delicious! And I didn't even have the protein powder to add to them. I'll admit that my first try of the truffles came out a bit soft. They have to be stored in the fridge pretty much all the time. As soon as they're sitting out they start warming up and they get very soft. I will add a little more almond flour... or maybe I'll even get some protein powder. Yum! I highly recommend these... and I'm sending a great big thanks to Kate's Healthy Cupboard.

Tonight we ate Chicken Pad Thai. I didn't have fish sauce, so I added a mix of GF Worcestershire Sauce, coconut aminos, and some red curry paste. This dish came out most delicious, and my husband and I both went back for seconds... AND I finished up my daughter's. She thought it was too spicy.
Yum yum yum! Big thumbs up for this recipe. Thank you to rlm9477 for uploading it to FastPaleo.com. Love it!!

Back on track... in more than one way

You see that girl? Besides sporting her awesome OSU Beavers t-shirt she looks like she's IN PAIN!! And indeed, she is! Her lungs were about to burst, her legs were feeling weak, and after each Kettlebell swing she felt like setting the friggin' thing down and being done with this shit. :)

This girl is back! After months of excruciating back pain, I am back at my Crossfit box, and I'm loving life. Give me this kind of pain any day over the pain I experienced, when I lay flat on my belly on the living room floor, crying, because I couldn't move.
The truth is, my back is not completely healed. And I'm not sure that it ever will. But it doesn't matter, because I can work out, and that means the world to me. There really is nothing like this kind of wake up call to make you aware, that pushing yourself to the limit is great... but pushing yourself over the edge is not. Every time I walk into the box I check out the WOD (workout of the day) and try to decide what I can do and how heavy I can lift. This means that most of the time I'm scaling my weights. It means I'm stepping up onto the box with 20lbs instead of 50, I'm swinging 26lbs instead of 35, and I'm still doing single jump ropes rather than double unders. I no longer glance at the people I thought I was somehow competing with or trying to keep up with. I focus on myself. Already I'm gaining back some strength, and the feeling is absolutely exhilarating. I have been getting lots of support from my coaches and the other box members, and I appreciate the ability to work out more than ever before.

I'm also back on track in another department... the sugar department. I'm not even entirely sure what made me jump back on the bandwagon. I just did, one day about a month ago. It's like I just stopped eating sugar treats. I did not stop eating treats though. I made coconut flour brownies, pumpkin streusel pie (twice), and pumpkin butter truffles, and I thoroughly enjoyed eating it all... in MODERATION! I did not experience the usual withdrawals after giving up sugar. It just happened. Yes, it probably helped that I got sick right then and really did not feel like eating anything at all. But even after Thanksgiving at my friend's house and eating an unbelievably delicious pumpkin roll with powdered sugar, I didn't fall off the bandwagon. I feel great, and I intend to keep it that way. Obviously I cannot guarantee that from now on I'll be fine for the rest of my life. There is this Germany trip coming up December 17th, which no doubt going to take a lot of willpower, as everyone else will indulge in lots of German goodies. But my intention is to be good and to stay good... for my own sake. :)

So, nothing but good news from my world. How about that??? :)

Paleo Pumpkin Bread

I felt like baking this morning, so I browsed the fabulous recipe collection at FastPaleo.com and found the Paleo Pumpkin Bread. I've learned to always check the comment section below a recipe for trying it.

Sometimes negative comments actually help get the recipe just right, because you know how to tweak it. This was the case for this Pumpkin Bread. Some people commented that it was too moist even after much longer baking times. I took that into consideration, so instead of using the whole can of pumpkin, I left about half a cup in the can. Additionally, I used 1 3/4 cups of almond flour rather than 1 1/2 cups. I also added about 3tbsp more coconut flour than the recipe called for.

I baked for 45 minutes, and the bread was starting to get a bit crumbly on top, but was still too moist inside. I covered it with aluminum foil to prevent further browning, and left it in for another 10 minutes. Due to the somewhat crumbly crust it still doesn't cut all that well. But it sure does taste delicious. Both kids enjoyed it for breakfast today. :)

Of steak and sugar cookies... Why can you overeat on sugar?

It was always sort of a mystery, why I could eat cookies and chocolate in huge quantities without experiencing the feeling of fullness the way I did when eating a steak. Usually I can't even eat a whole steak before my body tells me to stop. In the meantime I have learned that it has to do with the fact, that my steak consists of complete protein and other nutrients, which my body recognizes as actual nutrition. I start eating with great appetite, love my first and second and third bite and so on... but the more bites I eat, the less appealing my food looks to me. This is because my body is sending feelings of satiation to my brain.

Also, when I eat steak, I have to do lots of chewing and swallowing. All of this takes time, and eventually satiety sets in, my body's way of saying, "I'm nourished and well fed." Time to stop.

When I eat a sugar cookie or other sweet treat that is made with ingredients like flour and sugar and chemically processed ingredients, I spend very little time chewing and swallowing, and because these "foods" are devoid of any nutrients, my body doesn't recognize them as food/nutrition, hence it doesn't send the "I'm full" signal to my brain, and so I keep eating.

Of course, in addition to this I am convinced that I'm actually addicted to sugar, so in addition to my body not recognizing sugar as food, I believe that sugar does something else to me. Dopamine levels are higher when you eat sugary treats, and dopamine regulates "reward" in your brain. While modern scientists don't officially recognize sugar as an addictive substance, they are careful not to say its' not possible.
The fact is, when I eat anything with refined sugar in it, I instantly get this reward feeling. And because I like that feeling, I want more of it. Give me more, more, more!!

We also know that we evolved to be attracted to sweets. To get a better understanding on why this is, check out this great article on The Perfect Health Diet. It is well written and makes sense of some of that science talk, that I find so difficult to understand sometimes.

Have a great day, Everyone.