Shrimp and Zucchini

I was cooking for myself tonight, and really wanted simple, quick and little mess! I love shrimp... (it really is my favorite). It's a pretty perfect Paleo food choice, too. I buy the raw, tail-on frozen shrimp from Costco. It's already peeled and deveined. So it's super easy to just pull out exactly how many shrimp I want, thaw it really quick in some water, and cook a simple personal-sized meal (of course it's easy to cook larger portions, too).

For a 3 block meal, I grabbed 9 shrimp.

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp olive oil

1 T lemon grass herb blend (Gourmet Garden 4 oz tube, found in most produce departments)

curry powder

black pepper

3 small zucchini

Saute garlic in olive oil (at about med. high temp.) Add shrimp, cook until pink (cooks pretty quickly). Sprinkle with a little curry... not too much. Curry can be overpowering, for this dish I just wanted a hint. I sprinkled with black pepper, too. While I was cooking shrimp, I steamed the zucchini... not too long because I wanted it al dente. I added the zucchini with the shrimp, tossed together quickly, and served! That's it... 15 minutes and I was fed Paleo cuisine, full and happy! :-)

Enjoy and I hope you're having a great weekend!

**Zone-Paleo challenge meeting tomorrow... Sunday... 12:30. See you then!

Meatloaf, Again??

Ok... this is similar to the meatloaf post in September, but with a twist! It's like a "max effort" meatloaf. It was really good (however I needed more spinach in my meatloaf tonight, so the recipe reflects what I think would be a better amount).
My friend Miriam introduced me to roasted Flax Seeds... and I'm hooked. They are a great compliment... to just about anything! They are rich in omega 3's and add a nice nutty flavor! Tonight I sprinkled them over the meatloaf, as well as the baked sweet potatoes! They are also wonderful toppings for salads! :-)
"Max effort" meatloaf ingredients:

2 lbs lean ground beef (93/7)

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1/2 C fresh Italian parsley, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 T flaxseed oil

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp pepper

1 egg, beaten

2 hard boiled eggs

about 12 oz fresh spinach (or approx. 3 C)... error on the generous side as it shrinks down so much!

1 tsp olive oil

about 1 T roasted flaxseeds

Saute spinach in 1 tsp olive oil, and let cool slightly. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients (except roasted flaxseeds, and hard boiled eggs). Spread a little less than half the beef mixture in the bottom of a loaf pan. Place a layer of spinach over beef mixture, without touching sides of the loaf pan. Place the two hard boiled eggs in the center, and cover with more spinach... tucking in the eggs nicely and still not touching the sides of the pan. Now top with the remainder of beef mixture, and sprinkle with the roasted flaxseeds. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. This should yield about 6 4oz servings (3F, 4P)

While the meatloaf was cooking, I simultaneously was cooking 1 sweet potato, sliced. I sprayed a baking pan with olive oil spray, added sweet potato slices, sprinkled a little garlic powder, ground pepper, and some more roasted flaxseeds! This was ready about the same time as the meatloaf. I also added a green salad to balance out the carbs! Hope you enjoy... it was a fun twist on the usual!

*Reminder: Paleo/Zone Challenge meeting this Sunday at 12:30. Bring in a favorite recipe for the Eat This site!! :-)

Peppered Tri Tip

Tri tip is my husband's favorite!! So, I was pretty popular tonight! :-) I am also lucky enough to have some fresh rosemary growing in my yard.... Tri tip & rosemary, what a beautiful combination! I also recommend saving some carbs for a glass of red wine to pair this meal with! ... In my opinion... it is a must! :-) Not to mention it may help take your mind off your shoulders! ...OHS's, ring dips and presses, Oh My!!

2-3 lb tri tip - trimmed of all visible fat

2 T fresh rosemary, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 T olive oil

2-3 tsp ground black pepper

After trimming the fat, especially that big fatty layer on the back side, rub the tri tip with a little olive oil and the rosemary, garlic, and pepper (If you can, let it sit like that for about 15 minutes). In a cast iron pan heat olive oil on med/hi heat and brown tri tip on all sides (searing all the spices). Place in a 375 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes (until internal temp is 145-150 degrees)... do not over cook! I start checking the temperature after about 10 minutes (depends on the size of the tri tip).

While I was cooking the tri tip, I cooked one sweet potato, sliced, at the same temperature. I sprayed a little olive oil cooking spray in a pan and put in the sliced sweet potatoes. I then seasoned with garlic powder and some more fresh rosemary! Whola... This was also served with some steamed yellow squash... AND there was still room for 1 glass of cabernet sauvignon! This was a 4 block Paleo meal (3 oz portion of tri tip!) Very peppery, delicious and filling!

Enjoy!

*Paleo/Zone Challengers! I'm always looking for good recipes to try! I was thinking it would be fun for you to bring in a favorite recipe... maybe one you would like to zone or find a Paleo version for! Bring it in this Sunday, and I'll do my best to get it on Eat This!! :-)

Chicken Florentine

This was an experiment gone.... GOOD! Whew. We had a Costco supply of spinach, and I was ready to sink my teeth into some chicken... Chicken florentine!!! But.... how can that possibly be paleo? I was fully prepared to blog a failed attempt. However, this was great. We all really really liked it (and that's saying a lot with this picky household)!! Hope you like it, too. :-)

4 large skinless boneless chicken breasts (slightly pounded and cut in half)... so, it will yield 8, 3-4 oz portions! (leftovers=good!)

Flour mixture (for dredging):

1/2 C almond meal

3+ T dried parsley flakes

2 tsp paprika

1 T dried minced onion

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp poultry seasoning

1 tsp ground pepper

1 C white wine

1 C LF coconut milk

2-3 T olive oil

2 T fresh chopped italian parsley

1 Shallot, chopped

3 cloves garlic

Spinach, fresh (about 16 oz)

Combine dredging ingredients in a shallow bowl. After (slightly) pounding chicken, dredge each piece in flour mixture (shake off any extra). This actually worked out to be a PERFECT amount of flour... I used every last bit! Heat about 1 T olive oil in a pan and brown chicken breasts (about 5 min. on each side). Remove from pan and put on a plate. In the same pan, add a little more oil and add shallots and garlic. Saute until translucent. Add white wine and deglaze pan, scraping every bit. Add coconut milk and the fresh parsley. Bring to a boil and simmer until sauce thickens and reduces a little. Add chicken back to pan. Cover with lid and cook on low for another 10ish minutes.

Now in a separate pan, heat 1-2 tsp. olive oil. Saute a little more garlic and add spinach. When done, put spinach on a plate and top with chicken piece, and sauce! I also served this with a side salad. Hope you enjoy... we sure did! :-) Paleo creations are so much FUN. Especially when they turn out!! This is about a 4 block, Paleo meal.

*Paleo/Zone challengers! We will be having an optional check-in and information meeting this Sunday at 12:30. Come by and tell us how it's going?? Only 3 weeks left in the challenge! :-)

Honey Baked Cod

In honor of today's WOD, "The Bear"... I served fish tonight! Bear love fish, right? And honey? (or is that just Pooh Bear?). Anyway, I definitely needed some solid protein and omega 3's to help the recovery process!!! Ouch, my shoulders! :)

This recipe was really simple and really good, and really Paleo.

2 cod filets (about 8oz each)

1 T olive oil

4 T honey

1/4 C finely chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Add oil to baking dish and heat the dish. When hot (about 5 minutes), remove from oven and add fish filets. Scatter the pecans evenly over the filets and Drizzle the honey over the top. Place the fish back in the oven ad cook for 10 minutes. When done, cut the filets in half for 4-4oz servings... Zone blocks: 3F, 4P, 2C

I balanced out this meal with 1 1/2 C sauteed spinach (1 tsp olive oil, 2 cloves garlic, 1/4 onion, diced) ... and a side salad!

The sweetness in this meal felt like a nice treat! Hope you enjoy...

Jerk Pork Burgers

I'm loving the ground pork lately! I still had a package leftover from last weeks sale at Safeway. This time I decided to add some jerk type seasoning for a little different flavor. It was a good low maintenance family pleaser!

I used about 1 lb. ground pork

1 tsp fax seed oil

spices:

1 tsp each:

ginger

chili pepper

garlic powder

onion powder

paprika

allspice

thyme

black pepper

cumin

nutmeg

and 1/8 tsp cayenne

It was just enough for 4 patties. I grilled them and put them on a bed of lettuce with a side of avocado and tomato (a salad of sorts).

I sliced one small sweet potato (like fries) and baked it at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. I sprayed the pan with some olive oil spray and seasoned the sweet potatoes with a little garlic powder and pepper. I then sprinkled a few crushed pecans over the top!

The other side dish for this meal was steamed yellow zucchini! I sauteed some onion, garlic, and orange bell pepper in about a tsp olive oil, added the yellow squash. Cover with lid, and steam until squash is tender.

This is only about a 3 block paleo-zone dinner! ... Enjoy!

Beef Stew

This is one of my favorite Fall/Winter meals. It really didn't take much at all to Paleoize this recipe! I was so tired from today's 800m x3 WOD...AND we had a very busy "kids" social evening planned, so this was done in the crock pot! It was OH SO nice to come home to! :)

This recipe is fun because I get to use some different veggies (the kind the check-out clerks usually have to look up the codes for!) I think it adds a great, unique flavor to the stew. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 lbs. lean stew meat, left in big chunks!

about 3 T olive oil

1 C red wine

32 oz. low sodium beef stock

1 -14 oz. can stewed tomatoes, no added salt

1/4 C almond flour

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

veggies:

1 large rutabaga, cut into big chunks

1 large parsnip, cut into large chunks

1 large turnip, big chunks

3 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 C baby carrots, whole

1 C pearl onions, pealed and left whole (added in the last 1/2 hour of cooking)

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

In a plastic bag, combine almond flour and spices. Add stew meat to plastic bag and shake until meat is well coated. Heat about 2 tsp olive oil in pan (I used my favorite cast iron pan). Brown meat in pan... this may take two batches. Add a little more olive oil if needed. When browned, put stew meat in crock pot. I deglazed pan with 1/2 C of the red wine, scraping every bit from the pan, and added to crock pot. Add additional 1/2 C red wine to pot along with everything else (except pearl onions)! I cooked this on high for about 3 hours, then turned in down low for another 2 hours. Add the pearl onion about 1/2 hour before serving. If they are added too soon, they break down too much. The pearl onions are my FAVORITE thing about this stew. They are a pain to peal and trim, but are soooooo worth it. Yum!!! Even my kids eat these onions!

This is total paleo, and 1 C is about a 4 block meal.