Water is getting old....

Since the day Brynlee Ann was born, I drank AT LEAST 1 can of Coke a day...I say at least, because there were days I would go to Sonic to get a large vanilla coke...several times a week. It's a nasty habit. As my genius mother-in-love says "Go clean a toilet with it and then you won't drink it...." I still drank it! I didn't drink Coke much during my pregnancy because of the caffeine and the sugar, but I made a deal with myself -- if I delivered Brynlee Ann with NO pain medications, I would reward myself with a Coke...problem was, I didn't put an end to it!

March 20 I stopped drinking Coke COLD TURKEY! And honestly, I haven't even craved it! But, I have been getting tired of ONLY water here recently -- I last 4 weeks before getting tired of JUST water...not bad! So I thought I'd share a few favorite options of mine:

Fruit/Veggie Infused Water -- in a pitcher, add thin slices of: 2 limes, 1 grapefruit, 1 lemon, & 8 strawberries. Top with ice & cold water. Stir and serve.

This was ABSOLUTELY refreshing! Try not to squish or smash the fruits too much, or the water becomes quite sour from the citrus. Also, experiment with cucumbers, peaches, and other great refreshing fruits & veggies! Not only does it taste good, but isn't it pretty??

 Kombucha Tea -- Our favorite brand is from a Fort Worth company - Holy Kombucha. They are available at WholeFoods Markets here in DFW, and you can contact them via their website to find where else it can soon be found! If I need a sweet, refreshing drink, I usually drink about 8 oz. It has GREAT health benefits -- it naturally contains probiotics, antioxidants, enzymes, and amino acids that are so vital to our body functioning properly. We have not tried a flavor in this brand we didn't love!

Low calorie & low in sugar. This has been a HUGE asset to me not craving soda. My one caution (personal opinion) is to avoid the Synergy brand of Kombucha tea -- it is derived from Green Tea extracts and contains high caffeine (they have a larger selection of flavors, but it doesn't taste as fresh/refreshing as Holy Kombucha). I will keep y'all updated if I find other brands I like! 

What is your favorite sugar-free, natural drink? 

Apple Pie...minus the pie...a la mode!

I am venturing to guess we all experience a sweet tooth now and then...am I correct? I sure do! One of the most amazing "creations" I've gone back to over & over again is my Apple Pie a la mode. There is nothing sinful about this amazingly delicious dessert....did I mention it only takes 2 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook...oh, and 4 ingredients?!

Ingredients:
1 Apple, thinly sliced (I use my Pampered Chef mandolin slicer on the thinnest setting)
Ground Cinnamon, to taste
Coconut [palm] sugar, to taste
SO Delicious brand (dairy, soy, gluten free) Vanilla Bean Ice Cream [no sugar added, if available]

Preheat oven to 375-400 degrees. In an oven safe bowl (I use my small, personal size, Corningware bowl), place one layer of apple slices to cover the bottom. Sprinkle cinnamon & coconut sugar. Repeat until you are out of apples. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve into new bowl and top with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream! Serves 2...oh yea, it's also a great date night recipe!!

Yummy Rating (1 being the worst & 10 being the best/closest to traditional recipe): 10

Why? Who needs crust when you've got something this delicious?!?! Enough said.

What is your favorite type of pie? I may attempt to make other crustless desserts! 

Taco Pie...minus the Pie

I found a really promising recipe that sounded delicious -- pie crust + taco meat topped with avocado & lettuce? YUM! Problem...the original recipe called for Almond Flour (can't have nuts) and butter (can't have dairy), so I thought, why not replace almond flour with coconut flour and butter with coconut butter....not so much! I'll give you the original recipe, and if you have nuts & dairy in your diet, let me know how it goes!

Ingredients:
Crust: 1 1/2 cup almond flour + 1/4 cup butter, melted -- mix and pour into 9 inch pie pan & pat down
Pie Filling
1 lb ground meat, organic/grass fed, hormone free
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tbsp coconut oil
Taco Seasoning (the original calls for BBQ sauce, but there are so many things I can't have in BBQ sauce, and I know I just love taco seasoning, so I made this concoction): 1 1/2 tbsp cumin, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 2 tsp ground oregano, pinch of crushed red pepper (I'm technically not allowed red pepper, but I figured just a few wouldn't hurt!)
Lettuce
Avocado

Directions
Make pie crust. Use coconut oil to saute chopped onion. Add in ground beef, brown. Once browned, at about 3 tbsp of taco seasoning and stir well (add 1/4 cup of water, if necessary). Let simmer for about 5 minutes, then pour into pie crust. Put in oven for 30 minutes on 350 degrees.

Since we didn't enjoy the flavor of the "crust", we scooped the beef out and ate it on top lettuce with avocado -- a taco salad :-)

Yummy Rating (1 being the worst & 10 being the best/closest to traditional recipe): sans crust...9...with crust....2

Why? I liked the idea of having a crust...but the crust pretty much tasted like coconut flavored sand...but the taco beef was DELICIOUS!! I love this recipe! 

I will be uploading my absolute favorite taco recipe soon! Between this recipe & the one with veggies in it, I doubt we'll ever eat "normal" tacos again! 

Lemon & Herb Chicken Marinade & Baked Brussels Sprouts

While out in the Wild West, I wanted to try some new recipes. Right now, Brian and I are loving grilled chicken, so I decided to try a marinade, then we grilled the chicken. The recipe I followed recommended baking the chicken in the juices, but I much prefer grilled chicken :-)

Lemon & Herb Chicken Marinade

1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
2-3 garlic cloves, minched
2-3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

Mix up well then put chicken & marinade in a zip lock bag. Place in a bowl (to keep from leaking) and marinade in refrigerator for 2+ hours. Be sure to turn the bag half-way through to make sure the chicken is being evenly marinaded. If you plan to grill the chicken, lay it out on the counter 30 minutes before grilling.

Although I LOVED the chicken, I much rather pair my entree with a yummy vegetable. Since Brussels Sprouts are my favorite vegetable, Nancy (Brian's mom) roasted them in the oven! So simple, exquisitely yummy!

 Roasted Brussels Sprouts (I did this with cabbage for lunch today)

Slice brussels sprouts in half (slice cabbage into four-five, 1 inch pieces)
Toss in 2 tbsp olive oil (brush cabbage slices with olive oil)
Spring with Kosher Salt & fresh cracked pepper

Bake on 400 for 35-40 (45-50 for cabbage) minutes, flipping halfway through.

Yummy Rating (1 being the worst & 10 being the best/closest to traditional recipe): 7 

Why? We have been eating tons of grilled chicken...and to have something fresh and tangy like this was delicious! The brussels sprouts gave a great additive to the chicken! I even ate the leftover chicken on a salad at lunch a couple days...I must say, the chicken was better fresh off the grill than reheated (thus, the rating of 7).

What is your favorite veggie? How do you cook it?

 

April Life Update

Be prepared for an insane amount of pictures from our Easter weekend!

For Brian's mom's 50th birthday & Easter, we traveled to the Wild West to spend time as a family. We started out our journey late Thursday night. Brynlee Ann has a very special message to share...


Friday was Nancy's 50th birthday, so after grocery shopping (so we can stay with our healthy eating plan) all day, we headed to a yummy hibachi restaurant to celebrate! At the end of dinner, our waiter brought out dessert for Nancy with a special gift from all of us :-)

 We custom created an Origami Owl Living Locket (stayed tuned for a website, or comment below for more info) -- the birthstones are Brian's, Matthew's, mine & Brynlee Ann's

Next, was Good Friday service at church. We went home, began relaxing, and SURPRISE! Aunt Susu, Nancy's childhood friend walked through the door and surprised her!

 This is the most still picture I could get of our little busy toddler! Isn't that little romper precious??

Brynlee Ann absolutely LOVED hanging out on the back porch on the swing with Papa.

Saturday was the day of Nancy's Grace Adele party, but what she didn't know is it was really a surprise birthday party! Nearly 20 of her closest friends, including Aunt Susu, were able to join us to celebrate 50 years, complete with a DELICIOUS cake (yes, I may have cheated and had a couple of bites...the smallest piece of cake I've ever eaten!), gag gifts, and Grace Adele purses!

 Our friend, Anlee, made this hilarious, and delicious cake!

 Birthday song for the birthday girl!

Nancy being a good sport & trying out her new cane :-)

Sunday, we worshiped together while celebrating our RISEN Lord, Jesus! He is Risen, indeed!

 I am so blessed to be a part of this family!

The highlight of our trip was watching Papa & Brynlee Ann share in their love of airplanes! We got to spend a bit of our day on Saturday "flying" Papa's airplane!

So to cap off this update, I'm so excited to share my progress on the RepairVite program! I have been enjoying delicious food, while losing weight and feeling better than ever! I "cheated" a little bit with a couple bites of cake, and I also ate about 5 bites of steamed rice at dinner Friday night, but considering I was away from home for 4 days, I'm quite proud of myself!

This week, I have a delicious marinade coming up, as well as my favorite recipe so far, tacos...yuuum! I need to eat lunch ;-)

Starting weight on 3/19 - 253.6 lbs
Current weight - 240 lbs

Carrot & Sweet Potato "Chili"

We have been having an abnormally chilly end to our March, so I started craving a chili. I scavenged Pinterest & other websites for any sort of recipe that falls within my regulations that resembles chili.

I found this recipe for Carrot & Sweet Potato Chili. The problem I run into, is when I think of Chili, I think of spicy. Unfortunately, at this time I have no type of peppers (jalepeños, chili peppers, red peppers, etc.) in my diet. I decided to try this out.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme
1 cup carrots, cut into large chunks
2 cup sweet potatoes (not yams), cut into large chunks
2 cups chicken stock/broth
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 pounds grass-fed ground beef
1 avocados
cilantro for garnish (optional)

Heat your coconut oil in the bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for another couple of minutes, stirring. Add the carrots and sweet potatoes and cook for 5 minutes, or until gently browned. Add the stock/broth and sea salt and bring to a boil, cover and then simmer for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Meanwhile, cook the ground beef in a skillet until thoroughly cooked throughout and browned. Set aside. When the vegetables are finished, add the ground beef and stir to combine. Continue cooking for another 15 minutes covered at a simmer. Serve each bowl garnished with avocado slices and fresh parsley.

Yummy Rating (1 being the worst & 10 being the best/closest to traditional recipe): 3 

Why? I'm not a fan of plain ground beef -- I like to spice it up. I ate 1 bowl of this, and did not eat any leftovers. It lacked flavor, in my opinion. Brian, on the other hand, who does like plain meat, would likely rate this recipe around 5-6. Because I'm such a picky eater, I probably will not make this again.

Did you try this? What do you think? Do you have any autoimmune pale/RepairVite diet approved chili recipes?