New Year's Resolutions

See ya, 2014! Sure, we had some good times, but I think 2015 could totally be better...by a landslide! 

I think we all want to run faster, work out harder, eat better, sleep better, and have less stress in 2015. And our resolutions might even work for the three hours while we're still full of pork and sauerkraut (that's our traditional New Year's Day dish - sub whatever you eat! Black eyed peas? Shrimp? Ramen??)

My resolution is to cook good food and share it on the blog! The hardest part of posting (for me) is to remember to get a picture to go with the post before 10 pm when I'm too tired, and then I say I'll do it tomorrow, and then three weeks go by! So I promise to post MORE in 2015 and share all the goodies with you.

Beyond that, my recommendation is to break the year up into chunks...like maybe 12 of them. Yeah, that would work. You aren't going to lose 50 pounds in January. Trust me. I've never been able to. And you're going to go back to your old friend, COOKIES, when things aren't progressing by January 15 (or 3rd!). So instead, make mini goals for yourself. I'm planning to do some thirty-day challenges in January (squats, push-ups, and planks). I printed out the calendars so I can cross off the days, and I know once I start X-ing them off, I won't want to miss a day. 

Here are some additional suggestions I saw or came up with myself: 

• Pack your lunch four days a week.
• One day a week, drink nothing but water (or pledge to get your 64 ounces in every day for a month)
• Exercise every day, for at least 20 minutes (that's walking one mile at 3 mph)
• Try out a new group fitness class
• Set a mileage goal for the month.
• Make time once a week for a cause you feel passionate about
• Spend 15 minutes a day outside, soaking up the sun
• Try a new recipe once a week
• Journal your food - and that means everything you eat or drink!
• Find a buddy to help keep you accountable in your goals
• Make time to read a devotional, the Bible, pray, or meditate in the morning before you start your day
• Go to bed earlier to get your 8 hours in

I'm sure there are more, and they can totally be customized to your long-term goals. Do you need to give up sugar or caffeine or morning donut runs? Wouldn't that be easier to do for 30 days than saying you're giving it up for the whole year - or forever? 

I'm very specifically not giving myself a weight-loss goal (even though I have the same 10 pounds that I keep losing/gaining). Instead, I'm just going to focus on overall health and fitness, being happy with what my body can do and challenging it to do better. After all, the number is just a number.

Boca 10k/5k Race Report

We lucked out and found a really well organized race for our vacation/last race of 2014. And this completes my 14 race goal for 2014!! I don't think I'll attempt 15 in 2015... have to think of something else! 

We got up at the ungodly hour of 5. Yes, AM. And I'm freaking out because it's race day and thinking we should have gotten up earlier, but we had plenty of time. We drove up A1A from Lauderdale-by-the-Sea to Boca Raton, past about a million bicyclists and some REALLY nice mansions. (In the dark)

See? Dark!

The race organizers let everyone know that parking is limited so plan to get there early, which we did, and had no problem getting a primo spot. I was able to switch from the 10k to the 5k because I've barely run all week and the idea of 6 miles was kind of stressing me out, but I knew I could do 3.1 easily. Steve, of course, was signed up for the 10k. And what's awesome about this race is that EVERYONE gets medals! 

The beach! Jealous/?

We started right at 7:30 (on time! Awesome!) and ran down A1A, which is by the beach, although you couldn't see it most of the time through trees. It was an out and back, and all the runners started at the same time. The 5kers turned around, while the 10kers went through a residential neighborhood for a few miles. 

The first two miles were awesome! Great breeze, slightly downhill....didn't realize it was downhill until we turned around and it was uphill!! It was 71 to start and about 80% humidity, which I'm not used too, but like I said, the breeze was nice.

I finished in 32:22 (11th in my age group - not my best, but better than my last race) and Steve finished the 10k in 47 minutes (7th in his age group). Besides the medals and a nice shirt, you can print out a certificate that says you finished! 

We would TOTALLY do this race again if we were in the area - and probably anything else the group sponsors. More info here. It would have been nice to finish the year with a PR, but we all have to keep working toward something, right? Next year, sub 30-minute 5k. 

The medal is HUGE! And awesome!

Holiday blahs

If you want to lose weight over the holidays, just get the flu. Steve and I are both down for the count, and even Chico seems to just want to cuddle. I'm at the point where I'm debating solid food, but even if we had cookies, which we don't, I don't think I'm ready to indulge! 

I had one cold this year, and I totally thought how it's great that we're healthy and we rarely get sick. HA! I think some bugs you just can't avoid. 

I'm actually kind of curious what Paleo people eat when they're sick. You can't have crackers or toast or even rice or ginger ale. More sweet potatoes, probably. Me, I've had ginger ale and sherbet, and they were both pretty good. I would've had crackers, too, but Steve forgot them! 

We are travelling for the holidays, so we brought about 5 bags of food with us, and so far haven't eaten much of it. We spent $120 at the grocery store, too! Next time, I have to remember to pack SPICES, because they're too expensive to buy a whole jar for one teaspoon, when you have some at home! We also brought our Ninja blender and food processor. It's quite a production. There are a few places we looked up where we might eat out, but it's better to eat at home if we can. Even at family's houses, we have to be extra careful, because (real-life example) they might not realize that not all chicken broth is gluten free! 

We are planning to have spaghetti squash tomorrow (very Christmas-y) with meat sauce (ground turkey, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce). And maybe eggs for breakfast, to test the waters! 

I hope you're enjoying a happy and healthy holiday with your family! Merry Christmas!

COOKIES!!!

Any cookie with "mix-ins" is good enough for me!

We went on a "Cookie Walk" today - 3.1 miles, 36 stores, 36 cookies. But Steve can't eat any of them! So we're making him some sweet potato breakfast cookies, and they look better than some of the chocolate chips cookies I got today (not that I have anything against you, chocolate chips. I just prefer your snickerdoodle cousins!). We also got one cupcake from the bakery. YUM! 

Anyway, this recipe from The Paleo Mama was easy (after I shorted out the microwave trying to melt the coconut butter to usable consistency) and offers endless possibilities! 

Sweet Potato Breakfast Cookies

1/2 C coconut butter
1/2 C sweet potato
1/4 C maple syrup or honey (we used half of each)
2 eggs
1/2 tea vanilla
1/2 tea baking soda
2 tea pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tea sea salt
2-3 cups of mix-ins (we used cacao, pecans, coconut and raisins) 

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350
2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl
3. Drop onto parchment papered baking sheet. 
4. Bake 12-15 minutes until golden brown.

Ours made 15 cookies (we needed two sheets!)

Plus, they're good for breakfast! It's in the name! 

Tuesday Chicken for Thursday Dinner

Steve found this recipe for "Tuesday Chicken" and we bought the fire roasted tomatoes for it a few weeks ago, but didn't make it until tonight (because we had chicken to cook!). It was good! And easy ... and only a little messy! 

Ingredients

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in quarters
seasoning of choice - we used Greek seasoning and it was delish!
extra virgin olive oil
small to medium diced onion
1/2 tea. sea salt
1/4 tea cinnamon
1 14 oz. can of fire-roasted tomatoes 
1 14 oz. can or jar of artichokes

Directions

Season the chicken and sear it in enough EVOO to coat the pan over medium-high heat. (Don't cook it through, just brown each side.)

Move the chicken to a plate.

Add onion, more seasoning, salt, and cinnamon and saute the onion over medium heat until translucent. 

Add the tomatoes and mix. When it starts to bubble, add the chicken back into the pan, along with the artichokes.. Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.

This would be good with roasted potatoes, pasta, quinoa, or a salad. Our Greek seasoning is a little salty (we get it from a spice shop) so next time I won't add the sea salt. The original recipe also calls for garlic, which I forgot, and suggests some spice blends you can mix yourself. I think you could mix this up with all kinds of vegetables. It's a one-pan meal (if you have a big enough pan!) but you could also probably pour the sauce over the seared chicken and bake it until done. 

I've had a super busy week this week, not really with Christmas activities, just with a lot of regular stuff falling at the same time. Tomorrow we're helping with the Expo for the Hot Chocolate Run. We can't run the race, unfortunately, because it's on a Sunday, and we have to be at church -- I'm singing in the Christmas cantata! (I'd like to say I'm the star, as much as any alto is the star). I prefer races on Saturdays (take note, race directors of the world!!). I did run 7 miles today in the cold (ok, it wasn't THAT cold) and the wind (again, not as bad as it has been, which is why I went outside). The sun actually came out, and it was a great run, except that my phone died after 3 miles so I had to run without Christmas music to fuel me! 

An Ode to My Roaster

We had some friends of the family give us an electric roaster for our wedding (however many years ago that was). I only dig it out a few times a year (Thanksgiving....maybe that's it) But I need to use it more often, because IT. IS. AWESOME.

I just roasted a chicken in like 45 minutes, maybe. If you need something last minute and impressive, this is the way to go! (Make sure you check the cavity first. Little bits of liver and innards in there. Yuck!) First, we got a whole chicken ON SALE for $1-something a pound (yay) and then I rubbed it with butter, salt, pepper, and sage. Just look at it:

I mean, it's practically effortless (well, I burned three fingers because I grabbed the thermometer probe. That was dumb). Now someone just needs to whip up some quick sides, and we'll have dinner when I get out of the gym! 

Think of all the possibilities. I could make MORE CHICKENS! Or a pot roast (except Steve wouldn't eat it). The turkey for Thanksgiving was great. I need to read the recipe book that came with this thing! 

Someone dropped a bag of apples this morning and turned some of them to mush, so I had to make applesauce - five BIG apples only made two cups! I might be making some pear sauce soon, too. BUT, since I now have apple sauce, I can use it for those cookie recipes I mentioned yesterday! Also, the floor got cleaned (and it needed it) because it was sticky with apple juice. So sort of a lose-win-win.

Finally, I was watching Home and Family on Hallmark and they had a pumpkin chili recipe. It's pretty similar to ours, so I think I can adapt it! Check it out on their page.

Christmas Cookies

We found a new website! He won't know it's Paleo (unless he's the one that found the recipes!).They have a pumpkin cookie that I want to try, but I need a bigger food processor to make it easy, and I won't get it until Christmas! 

We made some "morning glory" cookies yesterday from this site.

Ingredients

• ⅓ c dates, chopped
• 1 green plantain
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 1 medium apple, peeled and grated (about ½ c)
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated (about ½ c)
• ½ c unsweetened medium shredded coconut
• ¼ c coconut flour

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Process plantain until the consistency of a paste (or at lest very finely chopped). Then add chopped dates. Pulse a few times until plantain and dates are well combined, but dates are not pureed. Add oil, vanilla, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and coconut flour. Pulse to combine.
3. Add the shredded apple, carrot, and coconut. Pulse a few times more, but, again, be careful not to over process.
4. Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheet. The shape will not change during baking.
5. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely in order to firm up.
6. Store in the refrigerator. These can also be frozen.

I didn't think the cookies held together very well - too much apple? Steve said they're better today. If they had raisins or chocolate or something, I think they'd be really good! When I was looking for the recipe again, I found a lot of different variations, with sweet potato, or banana, or zucchini. I think we'll be experimenting to find the best one!

I'm looking at pumpkin cookies and snickerdoodles from the first site for Christmas, and I might break down and make some chocolate chip cookies with gluten-free Bisquick and some sugar cookies with gluten free all purpose flour. The gf flour tastes more "cake-y" to me, but that doesn't mean they'll be bad! 

Appl-icious Dessert

Are you looking for a healthy dessert that's like apple pie? Here you go! *Also doubles as an acceptable breakfast!

Paleo Apple Crisp (original recipe here)

3 apples, diced
2 T coconut oil
2 T cinnamon
1/2 C coconut milk (the original calls for full fat, but we never use full fat, and it caramelizes and turns out fine!)
1 C pecans
2 T maple syrup

1. Saute the apples for about 3 minutes in coconut oil
2. Add the coconut milk and cinnamon and continue to saute for another 5 minutes
3. Add the maple syrup and pecans about halfway through the five minutes, so they warm up, and the pecans get a little toasted.

Serve with more coconut milk (or ice cream!)

We've made this a couple times, and Steve requested it the other day because I bought peppermint ice cream and he can't have any. 

I am trying to get my Christmas cards done so we can mail them from Santa Claus, Indiana this weekend (I guess they have a special stamp!). 

I ran 6 miles around the park yesterday. First time I was off the treadmill in a while! It wasn't a hard run, but it felt like it was taking forever! I was happy to get a little sunshine! Time to start training for the next half again. I'm trying to up my mileage, which is hard when it's cold out! But good for Christmas cookie consumption! 

What are your holiday goals? Are you ok to eat as much as you want, or you trying to stay healthy/on track?

Roasted Veggies

We had the best dinner. It's a good thing we don't have kids, because there wouldn't have been enough to feed them, too ... except it was mostly veggies, and kids don't eat veggie anyway, right? And if you aren't a fan, here's what you have to do:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Chop up your veggies. We had (giant farmer's market) carrots, a head of cauliflower, and two zucchini. Cover three (or however many you need!) cookie sheets with aluminum foil. Arrange the veggies (by type) on the sheets. Coat with some combo of oil and seasoning. For the carrots, I used coconut oil, cinnamon, and salt, and for the cauliflower and zucchini, I used olive oil and a Greek seasoning blend we bought at the St. Charles spice shop. 

We put the cauliflower in first, for 30 minutes, the carrots for 20, and the zucchini for 15 (I looked up roasting times and then guessed, based on having them all set at 400 - check them for your preferred softness). We had some leftover chicken breast with it, but it would be great over rice or quinoa for a meatless night. 

Here's my boy Chico in TWO blankets and my Steelers hat. It's so cold! Everyone at the gym was complaining about how much they've been eating, and then that they had to come to the gym to work it off, even though it's cold! Once you get there, you warm up, and it's HOT! 

I also ran on the treadmill which watching a Dean Cain Christmas movie. I've loved him since he was Superman! 

What to Do with That Leftover Turkey

Well, all our leftovers are gone, except a lone piece of pumpkin pie that no one is really craving any more. We stayed home for Thanksgiving, and since most of the side dishes aren't gluten free or paleo (or healthy in any way), we managed to avoid gaining any weight by not having any of them! We had turkey, Brussels sprouts, mashed sweet potatoes and apples, and crustless pumpkin and pecan pie. (Ok, the pecan pie wasn't healthy at all either but Steve ate most of it! That's why you get married!)

Anyway, our bird was 13 pounds, so we had quite a lot of meat left, and I made a turkey vegetable soup. It is super delicious and worth all the veggie chopping I had to do! Of course, I modified the original recipe.

























TURKEY VEGGIE SOUP

2 T olive oil
1 medium red onion, chopped
4 medium red potatoes, diced (we had the fingerling size, so I used 12 since I didn't add any of the beans the original recipe called for)
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 bay leaves


1 zucchini, cut in half lengthwise then diced
2 tea. Old Bay seasoning
1 can diced tomatoes with sauce
4 cups chicken broth + 1 cup water (because that's all we had and I needed more juice!)
3/4 tea. salt
1/2 tea pepper
2 1/2 C turkey, cooked and diced (it was probably more than this - whatever was left!)

1. In a large soup pot, cook the veggies and bay leaves on medium-high for 8 minutes.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients.
3. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes on low. 
4. Discard bay leaves before serving.

I was kind of scared the first taste I took, but I must've had extra pepper on the spoon because it seemed spicy, and ended up being delicious! You could probably use any veggies to change it up. 

And then I had a bowl of peppermint ice cream to celebrate.