Steak wrapped veggies! Carrots, bell peppers, green onions and zucchini cut into matchsticks and wrapped in thin cut steaks.  I found the recipe on pinterest and we had them before we started Paleo.  The Well Fed cookbook has a recipe for homemade Italian dressing, we dipped these little puppies in the creamy dressing and savored every last bite.

Served along side our steaks was this dish, also found on pinterest.  Boil 2 beets, slice them up and put them on the bottom of the pan.  Shred a large sweet potato and fry it up in a pan with coconut oil.  The directions called for a special seasoning spice that I don't have, so I put cinnamon on the papas while they were cooking... can we say, Hello Autumn?  The two combined have got to be my new favorite.  Add the hashbrowns on top of the beets and create holes to crack your eggs into.  They cooked up in about 30 minutes at 350. You could do less if you want a runny yoke but I have a 5 year old with texture issues so I cooked them through.

So yummy, and so good for you too.  I love making dishes that look interesting to my 5 year old and this was one of them.  She couldn't get over the eggs in the hashbrowns, she thought it was the coolest thing ever.  She also didn't mind her beets because they turned everything a special shade of pinkish/purplish.  So she had no problem eating those either:)

Moroccan Meatballs with Rice Pilaf from Well Fed, was what we dined on last night.  The colors may look a bit bland in the picture (all of my pics are taken from my phone) but the taste was (insert opera voice here) *awesome*! The rice pilaf was made from cauliflower with yummy spices, apricots and raisins.  The meatballs I rolled by hand were made from pork and a plethora of spices boiled to squeeky perfection in a home made tomato sauce.  Who ate the most meat balls you ask? My 5 year old.  She ate up the rice and licked her plate too.  After dinner we went for a walk and she learned how to ride her bike.  It was an exciting day for her :) After a walk/bike ride, in the rain I might add, we came home, cut up some mango's and served them with the left over coconut cream whip cream from my 2 year old's party the night before.  Mango's and Coconut Whip cream have got to be my new favorite tasty treat. Sorry, no pic.  I ate it too fast.  

 Something has happened to me when I enter the kitchen and I love it.  Now that I'm understanding new ways of cooking, discovering combinations and admiring the beautiful colors of these nutritious veggies...a creative force is beginning to take over.  As well as a self proclaimed Italian opera singing voice.  It's safe to say this new way of eating has boosted my energy and has possibly made me a little nutty:) Here is another weeks worth of delicious meals.  Most of these meals come from my trusty cookbook, "Well Fed", so I'm sorry I don't post the recipes.  However, I do hope you look at these, somehow get a whiff of the aroma and tingle in you taste buds and are somehow inspired to eat just a little healthier too. DIG IN!

Are those mashed potatoes? Close. In fact so close my family couldn't taste the difference.  The famous cauliflower mashed potatoes had me at the first bite.  Steam your cauliflower until tender, then give em a whirl in your food processor with a splash of canned coconut milk and some chives. I've always seen this method on Pinterest, but never gave it a go.  So glad we tried them.  Top with more chives, salt and pepper and hello yum! We ate them with Cinnamon Beef Stew & Orange Gremolata from Well Fed. I had no portion control.

Moroccan Chicken from It Starts With Food served over a frozen stir fry veggie mix.  I gave the veggies a dash of coconut aminos just to offer extra flavor.  Delish.

HELLLOOO Sunday Dinner.  Do you feel bad for my family and my forcing new habits on them by looking at this picture?  First time ever steaming a lobster tail and it was a success! I love shopping at Smith's and walking straight back to the discounted meat section.  I find great deals on their shrimp, scallops and yes...lobster tail.  Also served were the scallops, cubed sweet papa's cooked in a bit of EVOO and sprinkled with cinnamon and a side of broccoli. 

Just a simple salad, with a simple ranch dressing recipe found in both of my fave books. Simple yet I'm licking the plate when I'm done.

Asian Beef and Broccoli.  I love it when my husband uses the phrase "horked it down", as that's what I associate this meal with.  My family, namely my kiddos, horked it down.

This was the winner meal of the week.  Pad Thai made with spaghetti squash.  The creamy peanut dressing was made with real almond butter and I added extra cabbage and carrots to the "noodles".  I topped ours with shrimp (our family refers to it as "poppy shrimp" when cooked correctly), scallions, toasted almonds and extra lime wedges because you really can never have too many limes.  Come to think of it, cilantro would have been good on top as well..mmm.  So good I made it twice this week.

We also celebrated two birthdays in our family this week.  My supportive husband, David, turned 31.  Isn't he handsome? We didn't cheat on our 30 day reset but I did want to make some kind of a "treat" for him.  We sliced peaches, strawberries, bananas and blueberries and topped it with coconut milk whip cream, toasted coconut flakes (seasoned with cinnamon) and almonds.  For not having sugar in 2-3 weeks, this really was a treat!  My youngest also turned two, I would have posted a pic of her with her mini personal cake, peaches and coconut whip cream but I'm making this blog strictly paleo and to show a picture of cake would just be mean. Don't worry, David and I didn't have cake, we relished in our fruits, berries and whip cream without complaint. 

This coming Tuesday will be our 3rd week mark of no sugar, legumes, grains or dairy.  I don't feel as though I've given these things up, I feel like I've introduced a new level of flavor, very guiltless flavor. My body has noticed a little bit of wiggle room in the waistline and over all I just feel really good about myself.  Quote from David, "I am one with nature, food is my fuel and my body a machine"  I asked for some input from him and how he feels about this last week and this was his response.  I guess he's feeling a little nutty too :)

Here we are, my 2 new favorite books.  My husband and I are dong a 30 day reset program that consists of eating only fruits, veggies and meats and cooking with healthy fats such as coconut oil, EVOO and using fresh herbs and spices.  We've completely eliminated sugars, dairy, grains and legumes.  We have successfully made it through 2 weeks now and I'd love to share with you the yummy meals I've created in my kitchen:)

Thai Curry Shrimp with coconut flakes.  Instead of rice I stuck a head of cauliflower in the food processor and chopped until it had the consistency of rice. Loved it!

Easy Salmon Cakes with home made tartar sauce.  Salmon, sweet papas, almond flour and spices all jammed into one awesome little patty.  I'm a huge fan on these on those soccer/ballet/rushing to everything nights.

This little number came out of the top of my head.  We have had soooo many tomatoes from our garden, I couldn't keep up!  So I made my own spaghetti sauce with them.  I hate to use the term "garbage" here.  But I really do just toss is all the left over veggies that I don't know what I'm going to do with to create a dancing taste bud sauce.  We eat this over spaghetti squash.

Salad me up!  In one of these books is a recipe for Avocado dressing and Ranch dressing.  I make just enough to last us the week (no preservatives, so I don't want to test just how long it'll last) Perfect to have as a side or as a meal. You can never go wrong with a plate of veggies tossed in these dressings :)

Asian Lettuce Wraps.  This is my own variation of a lettuce wrap.  I put close to everything in these babies, chicken i grind up with the food processor, carrots, peppers, cabbage, fresh ginger, garlic, apple chunks...another good use of the term...left over garbage from the fridge, haha! Add some Red Boat fish sauce, coconut aminos and voila!  I make a ginormous batch of this on Mondays for our lunches through out the week.  Beats PB & J!

Scallops and Oven Bakes Sweet Papa Fries.  Only thing missing is our greens.  Don't worry, side salad not pictured:)

Peach and Raspberry Omelet.  Every morning we have veggie omelets with fresh spinach, mushrooms, olives and tomatoes.  But sometimes we make these beauties instead and my mouth is watering just talking about them.  Dare I say they are better than crepes??? Did I mention I have 2 kiddos I cook for as well? I've never been a cook-to-order mom, so they eat what I make or they starve.  Sound harsh? Well before you call child protective services, know that they've loved everything I've put in front of them over the past 2 weeks.  My 5 year old calls this one a peach taco and requests it on a regular basis.  

 

So there you have it.  One weeks worth of Whole30 meals, I have the 2nd weeks pics as well, those will be coming soon.  I'd have to say the first week was the hardest. Both Davey and I were a bit crabby and had a "feed my now, dammit" attitude.  We had a few headaches from no sugar (I never knew it had that control over me!) Davey played a soccer game that first week in which he thought he would die and I work as a massage therapist and experienced a couple of nights I thought I'd fall over as well...but according to "It Starts with Food" that was all normal.  Now that we have started the 3rd week, those hunger pains and aches are gone and we're back to our activity level...and then some!  David quits sugar for 3 days and loses a whole inch from his waste of course, I wish I could give you those same physical results for myself, but I can't.  What I can tell you is how awesome I'm feeling.  I haven't been weighted down by a meal and I'm not passing out for a nap every day at 2 in the afternoon.  We've been finding our new routine lately with my oldest starting kindergarten/ballet/soccer.  This new way of eating calls for a bit more plan and preparation, but if you want to make that change for yourself, you'll find a way to do it.  I haven't perfected it yet, but I'm learning new ways to cook and incorporate all the good things we want into our nutritious bellies.