Category Archives: Paleo

I’m jumping back into the kitchen. My attempt at No Bake Berry Bars!

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I decided to get jump back into the kitchen this past week after a long lay-off due to school and schedules. My attempts at new Paleo creations has restarted. This time around I’m of course following in the famous footsteps of a Paleoista of sorts, miss Juli Bauer, a.k.a PaleOMG.

Of course I have to dive into a dessert / treat / snack: NO BAKE BERRY BARS 

INGREDIENTS:

Crust
12 medjool dates, pits removed
1 cup cashews
2 tablespoons almond butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of salt

Toppings
6-8 oz blackberries
6-8 oz blueberries
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut butter
sprinkle of cinnamon
pinch of salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. First make your crust. Add all ingredients for the crust to a food processor.
2. Put crust ingredients in an bread pan, press down until evenly distributed.
3. Now heat up a small saucepan under medium heat. Add your blackberries and blueberries, along with your maple syrup.
4.Once blueberries and blackberries begin to break down and slightly explode so there is more juice in the pan, add your syrup. Be sure to continuously stir so the mixture doesn’t stick to the bottom or burn.
5. Once you have almost a runny jam, add your melted/softened coconut cream concentrate along with cinnamon and salt.
6. When all ingredients are incorporated, pour mixture on top of crust and press flat. Put in the fridge to harden for 30-45 minutes.
7.Cut into squares and serve!!

Via Again Faster – Equipment for CrossFit – No Bake Berry Bars

After the initial read and watching the video, I knew I could pull it off except for the coconut butter. I tried to find some at my local stores, but came up short. I made a vain attempt at a substitution by adding coconut oil. I don’t think it was an equivalent sub, but it worked out ok.

Here are my ingredients getting ready to start:

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I have no experience with dates of any kind, so I was a lil nervous about chopping up these dates in my food processor… (thankfully they did fine)

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The blueberries did not break down, nor did they burst to help turn the topping into a syrup-like glaze, so my bars had whole blue berries in them (not such a bad thing). I also added raspberries.

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This was the coconut butter I had microwaved and melted down. Like I said, I didn’t know the first thing about coconut butter, so I sort of winged it. I come to find out later, I could have made my own coconut butter! (Lesson learned for the next batch I attempt)

 

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The crust turned out good, although I think I may have added too many nuts. Here I’m pouring the glaze over the crust:

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And the final product:

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I actually let this sit for several hours before I even attempted cutting it up. The glaze didn’t really ‘form’ much, it was still soft and liquid-like when I went to cut it up. Nonetheless it was still tasty and the bars cut up nicely:

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I’ll definitely tweak my preparation by adding the coconut butter next time, and I’ll wait out the blueberries cooking down to see how it should look. Either way, I’ll be making this one again real soon. It was quite tasty.

PROS:

  • SUPER EASY to make
  • fairly quick prep-time
  • minimal equipment: only needed a food processor and a sauce pan
  • tasty: super sweet

CONS:

  • does not ‘hold’ well once out of refrigerator (temperature dependent)
  • raspberry and blackberry seeds make the glaze a bit ‘grainy’ (sees in my teeth)
  • I’ll actually have to make my own coconut butter [;)]

Thanks Juli, for another amazing creation.

Obesity rises even as calorie consumption lowers

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I was doing some light reading and I came across an article this morning that caught my attention. It discussed the discovery of continued obesity, even though as a population we are eating ‘fewer’ total net calories.

(Reuters) – U.S. adults have been eating steadily fewer calories for almost a decade, despite the continued increase in obesity rates, according to survey data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Researchers, whose findings appeared in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, analyzed trends since the 1970s and found that among adults, average daily energy intake rose by a total of 314 calories from 1971 to 2003, then fell by 74 calories between 2003 and 2010.

“It’s hard to reconcile what these data show, and what is happening with the prevalence of obesity,” said co-author William Dietz, former CDC director of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, to Reuters Health.

“Seventy-four calorie sis a lot, and as I said before, we would expect to see a measurable impact on obesity.”

(And then the post finished by saying…)

But by now, “people should be losing weight,” Dietz said. The fact that they are not could be bad news

Via Despite obesity rise, U.S. calories trending downwards | Reuters

Once again, I’m no expert, but don’t you think this may have something to do with the QUALITY of the calories we are consuming, not the QUANTITY? 

GARBAGE IN = GARBAGE OUT

Perfect timing.. spooky news feed

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This came through my news feed this AM. How weird is this? I’m heading to the movie theater this afternoon?? And I was thinking to myself, hmm what can I snack on that is Paleo-friendly??

Here are a few limited choices for the Paleo nut heading to the movies this weekend.

 

  • Dehydrated Fruits: Don’t worry about adopting a raw-food diet on top of it; you can dehydrate all sorts of fruits in the oven. Apples, mangoes, and blueberries are all tasty options. The best part about these munchies? They’re eaten as easily as candy and have natural sugar, so you won’t miss that box of Skittles.
  • Pistachios: No need to worry about the crackling amongst a room of popcorn eaters. Pistachios, once opened, are delicious little morsels that will leave your salt craving at bay. By pouring the right portion into a container beforehand, you’re snacking in a smart way. Fret about snacking in the dark no longer.
  • Dark, dark chocolate: Bet you didn’t know chocolate was on the meal plan. As long as your bar is 90-99 percent dark chocolate, you’re in the clear. Most versions are around 70 percent, so your new form of chocolate might be stronger than you’re used to, but that just means you’ll be satisfied sooner. Break it up into pieces beforehand and put them in a bag for easy access.
  • Coconut water: Pepsi who? Forget your Big Gulp; on paleo there are tons of nutritious and yummy beverages at your disposal. Coconut is a great one for its ability to hydrate you, which can also ward off hunger. Opt for an unpasteurized version right before the show. Although they don’t last in your fridge as long as the pasteurized type, they’re straight from the coconut so completely legal on paleo.

via Healthy Paleo Snacks.

 

A Game Changer – What if everything we know about Cholesterol is wrong??

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I foresee this being a game changer. I’ve been keeping my ear to the ground about the paradigm shift that’s happen in the world of nutrition concerning health & wellness. The preconceived notions of the Food Pyramid and now the My Plate are being challenged on a daily basis with anectdotal data and personal experiences. What I’ve been waiting for is the empirical evidence from the medical community. (check out all things related to Paleo eating)

And it’s slowly gaining momentum. More and more established physicians and medical professionals are pursuing the idea that we’ve been wrong all these years. Here’s another interesting video, this time from my arch nemesis, Dr. Oz:

Source: doctoroz.com via Sean on Pinterest

 

 

 

Via Is Everything You Know About Cholesterol Wrong? Pt 1 | The Dr. Oz Show

Follow the link above to check out the video series where Dr. Oz admits that he may be changing his mind on how we approach Cholesterol. A controversial new book by Dr. Stephen Sinatra and Dr. Johnny Bowden called “The Great Cholesterol Myth: Why Lowering Your Cholesterol Won’t Prevent Heart Disease-and the Statin-Free Plan That Will”.

Check em out and keep your eyes and ears open. A change is coming. 

Sweet Potato Brownies?

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Again Faster – Equipment for CrossFit – Sweet Potato Brownies.

Hmm. I love brownies. I can’t get enough of sweet potatoes. Uhm, yeah. How can I go wrong with this recipe?

If you haven’t been following me via the SoMe circles over the past 8 months or so, I started to transition to almost all things Paleo. I tried it as an experiment in weight loss, and it’s morphed into much more. I’ll give a fair explanation of it sooner or later, but for now let’s just say that eating mostly-Paleo has changed me in such a profound way.

Mostly, how I feel everyday.

Anyhoo.. back to these brownies. I plan on attempting the recipe by the end of the weekend. Wish me luck!!!

 

P.S.

Does anyone care that I post my CrossFit / Paleo shtuff over here? I’m getting a lil’ tired of splitting up my blogging. Hmm.

Baaacon!!!

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I tell ya I must may have to start stock piling my bacon for the remainder of the year, simply because I don’t want the rumors to be true.

I gotta have my bacon. Here’s what the ladies over at CNN’s HLN News had to say..

Our crack colleague at CNN Christine Romans talked to Chicago hog futures trader Scott Shellady this morning, who claimed that in the United States, “There is no pig shortage, there will be no bacon shortage.” We’ll see. But for now, there’s still plenty of bacon for your breakfast sandwich, or these days, in your bacon sundae and on your pork donuts.

 

via Pig out! Bacon shortage panic refuted | HLNtv.com

Oh.. and Turkey Bacon IS NOT BACON.

Listen up peeps… there really is no RIGHT answer to weight loss and healthy eating

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Even the so-called ‘experts’ can’t agree on what’s the right way to eat.. or the ‘key’ to losing weight and maintaining good nutritional health.

There is a wrong answer….. not trying. 

 

But, just because it AINT  easy, doesn’t mean it’s not possible. Remember that.

The obesity epidemic conundrum. A possible answer? | DietDoctor.com

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My obsession with all thing Paleo is no secret. Over the past 5 months my body has made some pretty awesome changes and I haven’t even come close to being 100% Paleo. At this stage of the game I’m about 85%-ish.

But it’s not ‘Paleo’ in particular that I’m obsessed with, it’s nutrition. Our nutritional psyche, and the brain-washing and zombie -like trance our society continues to preach that motivates me to step up on my own lil’ pedestal.

We’re fat. We’re fatter now that we’ve ever been. Our fatness = health risk. Fatness has led to obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and a host of other chronic illnesses that are not only sky rocketing out of control, but are not sling-shotting across the opposite end of the life span timeline. We are hurting our children. Our youth are now developing adult diseases. Children with high blood pressure, and diabetes.

Something went wrong somewhere, and up until now I can’t say I’ve found anyone, anything or any ‘entity’ that was willing to merge scientific reasoning with the state of our nutritional epidemic.

Not until now….

Obesity and diabetes rates are skyrocketing across the world and the consequences are staggering. How will we stop it? Not by continuing to do what we’re doing, because it’s obviously not working.

We need to question some of our fundamental beliefs that are, amazingly, not grounded in good science.

Enter Gary Taubes and Peter Attia, the co-founders of the non-profit organization Nutrition Science Initiative (NuSI, pronounced “new see”), which launches today. It’s goal is to make sure that the important scientific studies get done. We’re talking about very major studies on for example low carb diets.

After spending some time discussing it with Taubes and Attia at the AHS conference recently I was extremely impressed by their thinking and plans. I do believe that this could change the world.

I’ll write more about NuSI and post a video interview I did with Peter Attia on it. But for now see the video message from Peter Attia (above) and then check out their website:

NuSI.org

What do you think?

Also, both Gary Taubes and Peter Attia have posted on NuSI on their blogs today.

via Is the Solution to the Obesity Epidemic Launching Today? | DietDoctor.com.

I’ve been a fan of Gary Taubes ever since I found him via his ties to the CrossFit community. I for one am very interested to see where NuSI takes us.

Interested in learning about Paleo…

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Mark Sisson over at Mark’s Daily Apple has a 21 day challenge that could kick-start your new Paleo lifestyle.

Even if you don’t accept the challenge be sure to read up on his information. All of it is worthwhile.

What Is the 21-Day Challenge and Who Is It For?

What’s the challenge? To get Primal, of course! I hold this 21-Day Challenge every year to encourage Primal beginners to give this way of eating, moving and living a try because I know it works, I know how empowering it is, and I know it changes lives.

I also do it to motivate those that have been dabbling with the Primal lifestyle for a while, but haven’t fully committed or still have some room for improvement (myself included!), to go all in and resolve to finally tackle whatever it is they want to address in their lives.

There’s something here for Primal veterans, too. It’s a good idea to revisit the basics from time to time. And hey, the chance to win free stuff isn’t half bad either.

The actual challenge itself is pretty straightforward. The details can be found in the image below. I recommend downloading the 21-Day Challenge flyer here, and clicking on the links to learn more about each of the topics. (And maybe print a few copies to hand out to friends!)

via The 2012 Primal Blueprint 21-Day Challenge Begins Now | Mark’s Daily Apple.