Local’s Gym Nutrition

I just tried this for the first time last week. I was very pleased with how it turned out; so pleased, in fact, that I forgot to take a picture before it was all gone. If you have a dehydrator definitely try this recipe in there. I don’t have a dehydrator so I dried the jerky in my oven at its lowest setting which is 170°F. I was concerned that this might dry the meat out too much, but it worked perfectly. I used flank steak, but I think any cut that doesn’t have a lot of fat will work.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. flank steak, thinly sliced
1/4 t. paprika, or to taste
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 t. salt

Trim the cut of meat of as much fat as possible, the fat can turn rancid after the meat is dried. Use a sharp knife to cut the flank steak into 1/4 inch thick slices. In a container that can be sealed, mix the sliced meat and spices. Let the meat marinade overnight.

Heat oven to 170°F. Lay meat on a wire rack and place the wire rack on a baking sheet. This allows the meat to dehydrate evenly on both sides. Cook for 2-4 hours, leaving the oven door slightly propped open. Test to see if the jerky is done after an hour and a half. The jerky should still be chewy, if you cook it too long it will get crunchy.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 32P

Finding interesting ways to eat eggs in the morning can sometimes be a challenge. I’ve found that quiche not only provides many options, but is an easy breakfast to take on the go. Most quiches are made with a crust, I usually don’t do one because I think it’s easier to take with me on my way to work. Normally, quiche has milk or cream I’ve left it out so the recipe requires more eggs than other quiches.

You’ll need:
pie plate, skillet

Ingredients:
10 eggs
8 oz. leanest ground beef
1c. chopped mushrooms
1/2c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped broccoli

Pre-heat oven to 350°F.

Heat a skillet over medium heat, add butter or oil to pan and allow to heat up. Add onion to the pan, cook until they start to soften then add ground beef. Allow ground beef to brown, then add mushrooms and broccoli, cook until softened.

While the filling is cooking, whisk eggs together in a bowl incorporating a lot of air.

Put filling in the bottom of the pie plate and pour eggs over the top. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 12 2/3P, 1C

I made my co-workers’ mouths water with this recipe. A tangy lemon sauce is the key, it smells and tastes fantastic. One of the few ingredients to this dish is capers. Capers add great flavor to the overall dish but I was disappointed to find that capers are brined. To help reduce the salty flavor, I soaked them in water while I was prepping and cooking and then rinsed them really well before adding them to the pan. The other trick to this recipe is not cooking the chicken in the pan for too long. Make sure the outsides are cooked and lightly brown, then let them finish in the oven. Cooking the chicken too long will turn the sauce made in the pan a dark, unappealing color.

You’ll need:
skillet, oven safe cooking sheet

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
2 lemons
1 c.  chicken broth
1/4 c. onion, minced
1/4 t. garlic, minced
3 t. capers, soaked and rinsed
butter or oil for cooking

Preheat oven to 350°F. Put cooking sheet on a rack near the bottom of the oven.

Cut one lemon in half lengthwise. Thinly slice one half of the lemon and set aside. Juice the other half of the lemon and the remaining lemon into a bowl and set aside.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add butter and let it melt. Cook the chicken breasts in the pan for 5-7 minutes on each side until lightly browned. Transfer the chicken to the cooking tray and return to the oven to finish cooking.

In the now vacant pan, add the onion and garlic. Cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the chicken broth and lemon slices and simmer to reduce by half, about 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and capers, reduce by half again, about 2 minutes. Remove the sauce from the heat.

Plate the cooked chicken and top with sauce.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 16P, .5C, 2F

Coconut milk ice cream. I’ve made it before and I’ve had a few problems. The most significant being that it ususally tastes a lot like coconut and not a lot like anything else.  When I made it this week my goal was to eliminate that problem. I decided to try heating the coconut milk on the stove with honey and vanilla. My other tactic was to choose a strongly flavored fruit, strawberries, so I would have the best chance at overcoming the coconut flavor. I use frozen fruit because it’s convenient and it speeds up the freezing process.

You’ll Need:
sauce pan, food processor or hefty blender  

Ingredients:
1 13.5 oz can of coconut milk
scant 1/4c. honey
1/8 t. vanilla
1 bag whole frozen strawberries (1 1/2 c.)

Pour the coconut milk in a sauce pan and heat over medium heat so that it comes to a gentle simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the honey and vanilla to the sauce pan, stirring to combine and continue to cook for another 10 minutes. Take the coconut milk mixture off the heat and cool to room temperature.

Take the frozen strawberries out of the freezer and allow to defrost a little bit on the counter while the coconut milk cools.

Add about 2/3 of the strawberries to the food processor and process. They should be roughly chopped. Add the cooled coconut milk mixture and continue to process. Then add the remaining strawberries and process until they are incorporated into the ice cream.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 0P, 10C, 54F

Pancakes are delicious; I love them. I was happy to find that paleo pancakes are possible. I modified this recipe from Elana’s Pantry, eliminating the agave and replacing it with water. Make sure to eat these with some breakfast meat, like bacon to balance out the blocks if you’re zoning. I topped them with applesauce, but they’re good with other fruit or honey too.

You’ll need:
Skillet, bowl

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/4c. water
1 1/2c. almond flour
1/2t. baking soda

In a bowl, combine water, eggs, almond flour, and baking soda. Stir until well mixed. The batter may be a little thick.

Heat a skillet over medium heat. When the  pan is warm, melt some butter to keep the batter from sticking. Pour, or use a spoon to ladle, some batter in the pan. Wait for bubbles to form in the pancake, then flip. Cook for another 3-5 minutes, until cooked through.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 2P, 28F

This is a meal I’ve been wanting to make for a while. The results satisfied my craving for pork fried rice.  This also turned out to be a great way to use the odds and ends of vegetables that were hanging around in my frig. The only ingredient I ended up purchasing specifically for this recipe was one pork chop, but if you have leftover tenderloin or another cut of pork, it will cut down the cooking time a little bit.

You’ll need:
Frying pan

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 8oz. pork chop, cut into 1 in. pieces
2-3 c. shredded cauliflower, pre-cooked
2 medium carrots, chopped
2 small zucchini, chopped
1 t. garlic, minced
3 T. green onion, chopped
Butter or oil for frying

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Mix the two eggs together in a bowl to be scrambled. When the pan is warm add some butter and scramble the eggs. Set the eggs aside.

Cook the pork in the now vacant frying pan, after the pork is mostly cooked add more butter to the pan, when the butter has melted add the cauliflower and carrots. Cook until the carrots have softened, about 10 minutes. Add the eggs back into the pan with the zucchini. Cook for 2-5 minutes to let the zucchini soften a little. Garnish with the green onion.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 10P, 3.75C, 9F

I am passing this recipe along from my cousin, Jenai, who made it the other day when I was over for lunch. Originally it seemed like an odd combination, but it’s rather tasty. I made it for myself this week and was pleased with how easily it came together. My week was really busy so I used Dellalo pasta sauce, which doesn’t have any ingredients I seriously object to, rather than homemade.

You’ll need:
9×13 pan, sauce pan

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
20 oz. broccoli florets
24 oz. tomato sauce
1 tsp. garlic, minced

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Put the broccoli in the 9×13 pan in one layer, add the minced garlic and set aside. When the oven is ready, cook the broccoli in the oven for about 20 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes. The broccoli florets will be slightly singed when they are done and the stalks will be fork tender.

Put the pasta sauce and the whole chicken breasts in the sauce pan, bring the sauce to a simmer. Cook the chicken breast in the sauce until it is cooked through, stirring the sauce occasionally to keep it from burning on the bottom of the pan. This should take about 20-30 minutes. When the chicken is done transfer it to a plate and use two forks to shred the chicken, one fork holding the chicken in place and the other running along the grain of the meat to break it into pieces. Add the shredded chicken back to the pasta sauce and stir to combine.

Serve chicken and pasta sauce over the broccoli.

Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 19P, 10C, 28F

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve become consumed with the idea of making oat-free granola bars. I was convinced that I could come up with an approximation of a granola bar that would be made of nuts and seeds rather than oats and rice cereal. I did some research and a lot of experimentation and after 5 batches; I’ve finally come up with something that I’m happy with. The recipe in the quantities below will make about 14 bars. I used dates for these bars because I had them on hand, and because I think raisins are too sweet in combination with the honey. Feel free to experiment with the kinds of dried fruit, nuts, and seeds in the bars. I forgot to take a picture of these before I cut them up, so forgive the lack of detail in the photo. 

You’ll need:
Small sauce pan, measuring cups, 9×9 pan, a food processor (this is not necessary but will uniformly dice the dates and nuts which is helpful) or a sharp knife, parchment paper

Ingredients:
¼ c. whole walnuts
½ c. pitted dates, firmly packed into the measuring cup
1 c. shredded coconut
½ c. sunflower seeds
¼ c. slivered almonds, toasted
1T. flax meal
1T. egg white powder
¼ c. honey
½ – 1t. cinnamon

Add the walnuts and dates to the food processor, unpack the dates with your fingers a little bit so they will chop more easily. Process the nuts and dates together until they are finely chopped. Dump the nut and date mixture into a separate bowl. Add the shredded coconut, sunflower seeds, and toasted almonds.

Put the honey in the small sauce pan and cook over medium heat. When the honey starts to bubble add cinnamon, flax meal, and egg white powder. Stir in each of the ingredients to the honey by itself and combine well before adding the next ingredient. The honey mixture should become very sticky and thick. Add the honey to the bowl of nuts and seeds. Use a spatula or your hands to combine the honey mixture with the nuts and seeds.  

Line the 9×9 pan with parchment paper, keeping a significant overhang on each side. Dump the mixture into the pan and use the parchment paper to pack the ingredients firmly into the pan. They will probably not fill the entire pan. When the mixture cools, cut them up into bars. I wrap them individually so they’re easy to take with me.Enjoy!

Sara

Zone Info: 15C, 35F

The idea of making chili has been in my head for a while, Josie’s request pushed me to work on it this week. After eating chili at almost every meal for the past 7 days, I think I have come up with something. The challenge with paleo chili is that beans and cheese, which were in my opinion two important elements, are now eliminated. A fantastic chili can be achieved without incorporating beans or cheese. I used a tip from my uncle Goffe and cooked down fresh tomatoes to make the base. I parboiled the tomatoes in order to remove the skin. Parboiling, is simply boiling something in water for a short period of time. If you’re making this for a large group, you’ll want to double the recipe.
 
You’ll Need: 
Sauce pan, potato masher, sharp knife
 
Ingredients:
5 ripe tomatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green or red bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 lb. ground beef
2T chili powder
pinch of cayenne
1/2t. cumin
1/2T. butter
 
Boil enough water to cover your tomatoes in a sauce pan. When the water is boiling, add the tomatoes and cook until the skin splits, about 3 minutes. Remove the tomatoes from the water and allow to cool for a couple of minutes before removing the skin.
 
In the now vacant pan, turn the heat to medium and melt the butter in the pan. Add the onions and garlic to the pan and cook until the onions are translucent. Add the ground beef to the onions and garlic and cook until browned. When the ground beef is cooked add the whole tomatoes back to the pan. Use a potato masher to squish the tomatoes enough to release the juices and break down the tomatoes a little bit. The heat from cooking will continue to break down the tomatoes, the less they are mashed at the beginning the more substantial they will be when the chili is done. Add the chili powder, cayenne, and cumin. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cover the pan. Let the chili cook for at least 2 hours. Add the bell pepper after 1 hour or 1 hour before taking the chili off the stove. Adding the peppers near the end help them to retain some of their texture.
 
Enjoy!
 
Sara

Zone Info: 5 1/3P, 8C, 1 1/2F