Whole30, Week 3, Round 2

Hey Whole30ers! I hope you have had a fabulous last week. Our week was, to say the least, a little bit crazy and unfortunately because of that, we didn't have a perfect Whole30 week. Last Thursday we had to go to an award's ceremony followed by a private reception (at which point it was 7:30 and we had not eaten since 11:30 that morning). We had to eat what was available at the reception and 99% of the food items were not Whole30 approved. After eating some spinach dip with tortilla chips, several fried chicken wings and a few dumplings-- I came home feeling like crap. Emotionally I felt really guilty for cheating on the plan, even though the circumstances were a little out of our control and I felt physically ill. At one point, I even felt as though I may get sick. The gluten and the dairy did NOT settle in my stomach. It was as if my body was screaming at me, NOOOOOOOO!!!!! This alone was very telling. It made me realize how amazing and on-point this program really is and that we really shouldn't be putting these things in our bodies. It's not meant to be and they don't make us FEEL good. Long story short, we got back on track for the weekend and are now good to go! That's really all you can do. Use your common sense if you are in a situation with no Whole30 approved items and if you MUST go off-track, get right back on board the next day! I still lost 1 pound last week, so luckily my efforts weren't totally destroyed. I didn't take as many food photos as I usually do, but here are the pictures and recipes that I did document! Enjoy! 

Yep. You are seeing this right...Baby. Back. Ribs. We found some pretty good quality ribs while shopping in WY over the weekend, so we decided to give these a try. We marinated them in a Whole30 approved BBQ dry rub and let them soak over night. Nick then slow smoked them on the pellet grill for about five hours and they were so tender they literally fell off the bone. This is one of those items that FEELS like a cheat, but it isn't. So yummy! 

Eggs with Spanish "rice" not only look delicious..they taste it too. I pretty much put spanish rice on just about anything and everything. It is THAT delicious. See previous blog post for the "rice" recipe, scramble up a couple eggs, and top with it! Perfect protein breakfast combo:) 

As I always say, quick lunches are important on the Whole30...or any program really. I love applegate hot dogs and here I paired with some sweet peppers dipped in Wholly Guacamole. These little packets are about $4 at the store and they are SO convenient! They make for great snacks on the go as well! Yum! 

I have long been wanting to try these La Croix club sodas. They are different than their regular club sodas. I finally found them at a grocery store in Cheyenne, so I had to give them a try. Longer, skinnier and more colorful packaging. Different flavors. We tried the Apple Berry and it is by far my favorite club soda to date! So much more flavorful than their regular kind. I highly recommend these!!

Lettuce "bun" burgers are one of my favorite meals. They are great to just throw on the grille on a Saturday night. I like to top with some dill relish, paleo mayo, a little ketchup, tomato, and onion. Have lots of napkins on hand! These babies pack a messy punch! Pair it with some potato "chips" with chipotle mayo and you'll be good to go! For the chips, just cut some potatoes into rounds, toss in olive oil and desired seasonings and bake on lined baking sheet for about 35-45 minutes at 400 degrees. For chipotle mayo, I just add a little Franks Red Hot, chili powder, penzey's bangkok seasongs and a dash of cayenne. Really, really yummy. 

Now...I know I have a Whole30 home-run when Nick REALLY likes something that I make for dessert. These little guys are raw "brownie bites" and are super easy, no baking required. All you need is 1 1/2 cups of walnut and a pinch of salt blended in a food processor until finely ground. Then add 1tbsp. vanilla, 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 cup pitted dates. Blend until combined. I then added several drops of water and about 2tbsp. almond butter as a binder so that it would harden and form more of a "dough." Let sit for 30 minutes in the fridge and then roll into balls. Store in an air-tight container and enjoy all week!

Smoked chicken on the grille is one of my very favorite things. Especially when paired with some homemade garlic red mashed potatoes. For the potatoes, boil them first to get them tender and then place in a large bowl. With a hand mixer, mix in about 4tbsp. ghee, several tablespoons of water and about 3-4 cloves fresh garlic, salt, pepper, rosemary and a pinch of cayenne. They turn out really creamy and delicious! 

Steak and potatoes never gets hold. It's almost official grilling season, so season up those steaks however you want and throw them on the grille! Serve with a potato and some broccoli. Yum! 

If you want to switch things up a little bit, I dare you to try a tuna steak (wild-caught of course). I was never a big tuna person until recently once I actually learned how to cook it correctly. Season up however you would like ( I like things spicy, so I used a lot of cajun seasonings for this) and then pan sear in a little coconut oil for about 2 minutes each side. It's very easy to over-cook and dry out tuna steak, so be sure not to over-do it. Serve with veggies and a sweet potato!

A favorite lunch of mine is definitely tuna salad paleo wraps. You can find the "Paleo Wraps" on Amazon, at Whole Foods and probably any other health foods store. For my tuna salad, all I do is add some diced apple, a couple tablespoons of dill relish and a tablespoon of paleo mayo. Sometimes I add nuts--here, I added a handful of walnuts and topped with tomato and lettuce. Delicious and really filling. Served with a side of pineapple and a club soda! Perfect lunch! 

I have no idea how/why I didn't think to make this sooner....but this weekend I tried a turkey wrap "BLT" and it was freakin awesome!!! All you do is make sure to get a thicker cut of turkey from the deli (uncured, no sugar, no carageenan). Spread a little paleo mayo right on the turkey and then top with your tomato slices, bacon (uncured, no sugar added) and lettuce. SO GOOD!!!!

I just really, really like potatoes. We do stick with sweet potatoes much more often than we do white potatoes (lots of starch in them) but sometimes, home made fries are just all you need for comfort food. Slice potatoes thin, toss in olive oil and desired seasonings and bake on lined sheet for about 40 minutes at 400 degrees. My favorite dipping sauce for any white potato is chipotle mayo. AH-MA-ZING. Here I paired my "fries" with a turkey paleo wrap. Yummo. 

I hope you find these recipes useful! Until next time, I want to remind you and remind myself that every small decision, every small step we take is getting us closer to our end goal! If you get off track for one meal, don't let it spiral into a cheat day! Get right back on board and keep going! Why? Because you. are. worth. it!!!

-J