When it’s hot…

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You need a cool, colorful meal! It makes me sad (being the seasons person I am) when it’s in the mid-90’s in mid-October. Either way, a refreshing light meal made me feel better: Grilled Ahi, Salad and Strawberries:

We made a trip to Whole Foods last weekend to pick-up quality meat (grass-fed beef), but as we know, once in that store, you wonder and end up with more (paleo treats, organic honeycrisp apples, humane pastured chicken…). We bought ahi steaks that looked amazing (which might explain the cost @$29.99/lb, ouch!). They were sustainable, wild caught, and deep red in color. Seth grilled them with nothing more than kosher salt/pepp and little oil. Some of the better tuna, I’ve ever had.

I added different flavors to the salad this time, I’m getting back into my carrot obsession (again, wanting Fall, maybe?). They’re so versatile, and much to my surprise, the commissary now sells large carrots in big bags, for $.79! WIN!

Colors in this light, refreshing meal: orange, red, green, purple with lots of protein and omega fish oils 🙂

Thursday Thoughts

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Challenges are gifts that force us to search for a new center of gravity. Don’t fight them. Just find a different way to stand.

—Oprah Winfrey, TV personality, producer, and founder of O Magazine

Baked Apples

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One of the reasons I love this time of year (I used to call it Fall, but I’m not feeling the Fall love this year in San Diego), are the root vegetables and crisp apples. I look forward to being in the kitchen more, roasting vegetables, and finding healthy alternatives to baked desserts that are a little more quick (like apple crisp, pies, etc.).

Concoctions like this often come from, “oh these are getting soft, better use them before they spoil,” or “what needs to be used first.” Sunday, it was apples. I had six Gala apples that were not as crisp as they were initially, and needed to be used. I decided to bake them and see what I ended up with.

Baked Apples

  • 6 (organic) Gala apples
  • Cinnamon
  • Ground cloves
  • Butter pats (I use Organic Valley salted, pastured)
  • Kosher salt

I put 4 pats of butter in the bottom of a pyrex 8×8 dish and popped it in the oven to melt the butter. I took it back out and layered apples, cinnamon, ground cloves, butter pats, and kosher salt, until the pan was full:

I cooked them for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees, but cook them until the apples have the texture you prefer. Mine weren’t crisp, but they weren’t mushy either. The butter had formed to a thick rich sauce, that was bubbly:

I loved them (in part because the house smelled wonderful), they reheated so well, and with no added sugar. The options here are endless-I thought about adding bacon, cheese, onion, sage, on and on 🙂

My Mother, an Inspiration!

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We all struggle with our weight. I used to think it was just people within my circle, but it’s everybody; its me, my husband, my friends, my co-workers. It isn’t necessarily related to food either, but can come as a result of different things our bodies go through in life, stress levels, current health status, etc.

The Paleo lifestyle (notice I said lifestyle) has helped me manage my weight on a consistent basis, which only helps me feel better. Learning about food, cooking, ingredients, and new ways of cooking food have been an enjoyment for me, that I want to share with others (because it isn’t as hard as some may think!), hence this blog. It’s truly inspirational and empowering when I receive feedback and questions from readers or followers, that they’re slowly making changes in their life, way of cooking, things they’re eating, education, etc. Knowing that someone else feels so much better as a result of these changes, is amazing.

My mom (my most loyal blog follower 🙂 ) started making lifestyle changes back when I started my blog (unknown to me at the time), she texted me over the weekend to let me know, that she has lost…55 POUNDS! She, like I, understand that it’s a slow progression, that takes time, but the rewards are aplenty. I would like to think that some tips/tricks/recipes that I’ve shared have helped, but really, she’s the inspiration to me!! I am so proud of her and I love that she is taking ownership of her health!!

It is not always easy, but it is worth the effort.

Thursday Thoughts

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Maturity includes the recognition that no one is going to see anything in us that we don’t see in ourselves. Stop waiting for a producer. Produce yourself.

–Marianne Williamson, author, lecturer, and founder of The Peace Alliance