Paleo MEATloaf!

I'm just a tad behind on my blogging............I apologize!  My goals of blogging daily turned into weekly and now monthly seems to be how I roll these days!

These 3 little cuties keep mommy busy! 

Not only do I want to share with you this recipe, I want to show you how you can make simple substitutions to turn any regular recipe into a Paleo recipe!!

I LOVE meatloaf.  It's a comfort food that I not only love in the fall but I love it in the summer too!!!

I do.

I call this recipe "Lin's Meatloaf."  My awesome sister-in-law, Lindsey, gave me this recipe.  I made a few adjustments and now it's PALEO!!

Lin's Meatloaf

2 organic eggs

3/4 cup coconut milk

2/3 cup almond flour

1/4 c chopped onion

2 Tablespoons fresh organic parsley

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/8 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 lbs grass fed lean ground beef

Topping:

1/4 c ketchup (I have yet to make homemade Paleo ketchup but at least find ketchup with no high fructose corn syrup, etc!)

a little raw organic honey

1 tsp dry mustard

 I like to double the topping recipe!

Combine eggs and milk; stir in almond flour, onion, parsley, salt, basil and pepper.  Add meat.  Mix well.  Lightly pat mix into bread pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1-1.25 hours or until the internal temp reaches 160 degrees. 
Spoon off fat.

Combine ketchup, honey and dry mustard.  Spread over meat.  Bake 10 minutes longer!

Paleo meatloaf LOVE!!!



 

The original "Lin's Meatloaf" recipe called for cow's milk, bread crumbs and brown sugar.  I used almond flour instead of bread crumbs, coconut milk instead of dairy and a little honey instead of brown sugar.  There weren't too many substitutions that needed to be made but it was so EASY to do!!!

Enjoy!!!  :)

Summer's End Bake

I am long overdue to share with you one of my favorite Paleo dinners.  It's full of meat, meat and more meat!

I have a very busy life schedule so I need quick, easy AND healthy Paleo meals.  I've been meaning to share this recipe for quite some time.  It's delicious!!!!!!!!!!

I love meat!

SUMMER'S END BAKE

• 1 lb hot Italian sausage
• assortment of veggies (eggplant, onion, mushrooms, zucchini, etc.), chopped
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
• olive oil
• s&p
• fresh mozzarella or raw cheddar
• fresh basil, chopped

Method

Preheat your oven to 300ºF. Line a sheet pan with a silpat, if you have one, or parchment paper (just to keep the little buggers from sticking). Place the halved tomatoes, cut side up (skin side down) on the sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Place in the oven and let them cook down until the tomato edges are slightly crisp, curled up and the juicy insides no longer quite so juicy–about 20 minutes. Once the tomatoes are done, remove them from the oven and crank up the oven to 375ºF.
In a large saute pan, brown the sausage along with any other vegetables you’re using.
Now it’s time for assemblage. Get out an oven-safe baking dish, somewhere around 8×8, and start layering with the sausage/veggie mixture. Now add the oven roasted tomatoes, basil and cheese. Continue layering until everything’s all used up, trying to end with cheese and basil.
Stick in the oven and get the cheese melty and gooey, anywhere from 5-10 minutes.

If you are wondering why fresh mozzarella is ok in this recipe, it is the quality of the dairy consumed by those that can manage it that is very important. Full fat, organic, pastured (raw, if available) dairy products are okay for some individuals for a special treat!!

Enjoy!!!

Gluten

My friend Donni and I have started a business creating delicious gluten free baked goods.  Our business is called "Paleo Eats." Our yummy snacks aren't only gluten free but they are most importantly Paleo.  Many people don't know what Paleo is but they have heard about gluten free diets.  They've heard that gluten is "bad" and they should omit or limit gluten from their diets.

Wheat, so pretty yet so inflammatory!

My son Kellen, at age 2, was complaining of tummy aches daily.  He also had bloating and diarrhea.  Like his sister Gracie, I took him off dairy.  The symptoms were still there.  After 4 months of wondering why he never got over the flu, we spent hundreds of dollars testing his stools for a variety of causes.  Everything came back negative.  Then I decided to take him off of gluten.  He stopped complaining about his tummy aches, the bloating and diarrhea went away.  Not only did his physical symptoms stop but his behavioral issues also came to a halt. 

What is gluten?

Gluten is a type of protein. It’s found in wheat, rye and barley, so it is in a lot of bread products; it’s what gives our bread that chewy texture.




A nice big pile of gluten!



Gluten intolerance is the most undiagnosed disorder in the U.S.  Symptoms vary from headaches to infertility.

Why is this profound?  Two reasons:

1. There is no other autoimmune disease where the exact trigger is known.

2. Gluten and the damage it causes to the small intestine may very well be the root cause of other autoimmune diseases!

The Longer You Eat Gluten, the Higher Your Risk

A paper published by the New England Journal of Medicine advises that several diseases have the root cause as eating gluten:

-Osteoporosis

- Irritable Bowel Syndrome

- Anemia

-Cancer

-Rheumatoid Arthritis

-Lupus

-M.S.

- Other Autoimmune Diseases

-Depression

-Schizophrenia

-Dementia

-Epilepsy

As an MRI tech, I see patients with these conditions every single day.

In our Paleo baked goods business, we use almond flour or coconut flour and we LOVE it!!!  There are other options besides white and wheat flour.  It is very possible to omit gluten, you just have to make that change!

I have a strong desire to educate people and prevent these diseases from happening.  We really could meet somewhere else besides in MRI!  :)

What is CrossFit?

CrossFit is general fitness. The workouts involve functional movements. You don’t step on a box for an hour.  Everything is simulating functional everyday movements like putting something heavy on a high shelf, safely.


More than anything, CrossFit is performance-based fitness. We care more about what we can do (How fast can you run a mile? How many pull-ups can you do? How much weight can you pick up off the ground?) than the numbers on the scale, or some BMI chart. This same approach applies to the nutrition side of things.

Donni mastering a strict pull up!




 

Practicing CrossFit gives us a chance to run, jump, push, & pull with our bodies in a way that is physiologically sound and the most beneficial in the least amount of time.

Debbie rocking the box jumps!

CrossFit actually encourages you to eat better. When you know you’re going to be working out, eating an ice cream or drinking a coke does not sound appealing! Eating the healthy food, that is packed with goodness will carry you through any workout. You will quickly find the days you do not stick to Paleo are the hardest to get through!

Whether you are doing CrossFit or any other type of physical exercise, just remember what you put into your body will  help your performance.  Having a six pack of beer and doughnuts the night before a workout will not help your performance at all, it will hinder you.  Eating a Paleo diet will give you energy to give CrossFit a try!

Healthiest Oil on Earth

What type of oil do you cook with? 

If your answer is canola oil, for example, please go to your kitchen and give it the boot, NOW!!!!!!!!!

Canola oil is a genetically engineered from the Rapeseed plant.  By nature, these rapeseed oils are toxic to humans.  It is actually used as an insect repellent!  Rapeseed contains trans fatty acids linking it directly to cancer, especially lung cancer.  The effects are cumulative, possibly taking 10 years before symptoms are seen.  I'll pass on the canola oil, thank you.

What you should be cooking and baking with is COCONUT OIL.  Coconut oil is a naturally occurring saturated fat, not genetically engineered like canola oil is.

Did you know that fat composes our bone marrow and most of our brain?

Yes, I still am a MRI tech at heart!

Saturated fat has been demonized because most sources are high in cholesterol.  Every cell in your body needs cholesterol, the brain contains large amounts and cholesterol is the precursor to all sex hormones.

There are two types of cholesterol.  HDL or the good cholesterol and LDL or the bad cholesterol.

Bad cholesterol gets deposited in the inner walls of the arteries and poses a threat for the heart, good cholesterol does the opposite.  It actually helps lower the bad cholesterol, provide energy and nutrition to the cells.

What makes coconut oil so good for you?

The difference is in the fat molecule.  All fats and oils are composed of molecules called fatty acids.  Fatty acids can be classified in two ways.  The first method is based on saturation, the other is based on molecule size or length of the carbon chain within each fatty acid.  Coconut oil is composed mostly of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA's).

Most of the fats in our diets are composed of long-chain fatty acids (LCFA's).  MCFA's are very different from LCFA.  MCFA's, found in coconut oil, does not have a negative effect on cholesterol and helps to protect against heart disease.  It is primarily due to the MCFA's in coconut oil that make it so special.

Even the coating of our lungs contains saturated fat! Studies have been found that children with asthma have a diet too low in saturated fat, therefore the lung surfactant is compromised and the lung's airspace can collapse.

With all my research on coconut oil, I was amazed how many benefits there are,  There are too many to list so here are a few key benefits:

Prevents infection.  Coconut oil contains 40% lauric acid which is a fatty acid also found in breast milk.  The body converts it into a substance that fights bacterial, viral and protozoal infections in infants. 

Controls blood sugar.  People with diabetes find that coconut oil improves the secretion of insulin.

Dissolves kidney stones.

Stimulates the thyroid gland.  When the thyroid works properly, it uses cholesterol to make chemicals that are important for preventing disease.

Prevent cancer.  A healthy thyroid function has been linked to reduced cancer risk.

Reduce weight.  Coconut oil removes unnecessary stress on the pancreas which helps burn energy and reduces weight!

There are so many more benefits! 

Just remember, good fats are our main source of energy.  Good fats DON'T make you fat. 

Give it a try!!!!!!!!!!

Cupcakes for breakfast? Yes please.

I want to apologize for not keeping up with my blog lately.  My friend Donni and I have been beyond BUSY trying to get our new Paleo business up and running!!!!!! 

Yes, you read right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are starting a business called "Paleo EATS."  Located here in Bend, OR, we will be supplying everything from yummy Paleo breakfast muffins, energy bars to sinful salads and eventually ready to go Paleo dinners too!  We are both very busy mommas so my cute little blog has been ignored for a few days, just a little bit!

So to give my blog just a little bit of lovin', I'd love to share another recipe with you.

I LOVE breakfast!  It's the first thing I want when I wake up!

With the Paleo lifestyle, breakfast is SO important in keeping our energy up, especially with the RIGHT foods!  This recipe is simple, delicious, portable and kid friendly!  What kiddo doesn't like the word "cupcakes?"  Right?

Egg Cupcakes

10 -12 eggs whisked well
1 green onion
2 zucchini
3 big handfuls of spinach
1/2 a jar of roasted red and yellow peppers
6-8 slices of COOKED bacon
sea salt and black pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease with olive oil two muffin pans. Whisk all your eggs in a big bowl. In a food processor throw in the green onion, zucchini, bacon, and peppers and process until finely chopped but NOT smooth (yuck…). Add this mixture to your eggs. Throw your spinach into the processor and finely chop and also add to your eggs. Mix the egg mixture well and using a 1/4 measuring cup, fill the muffin pans (you’ll be able to make 18-20 cupcakes). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the eggs are set in the middle. These are great to take on the go and I like mine with some sliced avocado and green salsa.

I like to make these on the weekend so you have tons of leftovers for the beginning of your busy week!  Genius!!  You can also freeze these little guys for future use and I also recommend doubling the recipe.

Enjoy!!!

Bacon LOVE!

When Gracie was 1 year old, I decided to host a "Little Cupids Valentine Brunch" for Gracie's friends and their moms.   Dressed in their best little Valentine outfits, here are the kiddos back in 2008.




Where are those smiles????



This Valentine brunch has become a tradition ever since.  I provide a main dish and each mom brings a brunch item to share.  We started out with 6 kids the first year and this year I think we had at least 20!  We always have tons of delicious food and lots of great laughs!

This year I had to decide on a Paleo dish that my non Paleo friends would still love.  I found this Bacon-Crusted Quiche and it was AMAZING!!! 

Bacon-Crusted Quiche

8 Eggs

1 c. Coconut Milk

½ Onion, chopped

2 c Fresh Spinach, chopped

1 t Baking Powder

2 T Almond Meal

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 Package Nitrate-Free Bacon

I added in some mushrooms and bell peppers too ~ feel free to add in any other veggies that you like!

Line a greased 9-inch pie plate with bacon, being extra careful to “fortify” the sides. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.

Meanwhile, beat eggs and coconut milk, then whisk in all other ingredients.

When bacon is done, remove from the oven and drain off the grease. Pour in egg mixture and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

 

 



So good!!!







SUGAR ~ not so sweet

I have a sweet tooth.  I'm a Carmel Macchiato, smores, fist full of chocolate chips in my mouth kind of girl.  Well, I used to be.....

Just a little bit of sugar in here!  Right?

You have to live a little, we can't take everything away that we enjoy BUT I've found with the Paleo lifestyle, there are at least substitutions you can make for most everything!

Why bother making a substitution? 

Sugar is not a health food.  Not so much.  It tastes like a little bit of heaven but it's actually been quoted as "toxic" in some articles I've read.  I'll explain this as simple as possible. 

Let's start with glucose.  Glucose is a fancy term for "sugar in the blood" or "blood sugar."  It's an important energy source that is needed by the body, all cells and organs.  Glucose comes from the food we eat.  Carbs such as pasta, bread and fruit are common sources of glucose.  These carbs are broken down into sugar and then absorbed into the bloodstream.

Then there's the pancreas.  The pancreas produces chemicals that regulate these blood sugar levels.  It must secrete insulin to mitigate the elevating glucose levels.

Insulin's job is to feed the glucose in your bloodstream to hungry cells and send the leftovers to the liver to be turned into triglycerides for storage in your fat cells.

YEP.  STORAGE IN YOUR FAT CELLS.

This can lead to insulin resistance in cells that use glucose as energy.  Insulin resistance is when insulin is always present so the pancreas must produce more insulin to get the job done.  Now we have too much insulin in our bodies.  The body can only store a small amount of glucose but it can store an infinite amount of fat.

Infinite!

When insulin is in the blood, you have insulin to take care of before you use your stored fat. 

Make sense?

Hyperinsulinsim (above normal level of insulin in the blood) is a problem.  It keeps you in fat storage mode, without the ability to access your stored fat for energy.  In other words, you can't lose that weight!  Those last few pounds won't budge.

Carbs and insulin are a normal part of human nutrition.  What isn't normal is the mass consumption of processed carbs.  We just have to choose our foods wisely!  With Paleo we would give back insulin sensitivity and help re-adapt to using the stored fat as energy. 

Here are some healthier sugar substitutes for you to try, all from nature:

honey

fresh fruit juice

molasses

coconut sugar

maple syrup

green leaf stevia/vanilla stevia drops

agave

The Paleo way is simple.  By eating natural whole foods such as nuts, meat, veggies, fruit, you'll be supporting your health and eliminating sugar and refined carbs at the same time.  Because these whole foods don't contain processed sugar or refined carbs, no additional effort is needed to avoid them!! 

Primal Pancakes

Good morning!!

I have the day off today so it's time to make the kids a special Paleo breakfast!!!

I like to make my youngest, Cashton, an egg scramble.  This consists of sauteed veggies in coconut oil (mushrooms, spinach, kale, chard, bell peppers) and egg.  He eats most everything so I'm trying to make the most of that now!!

The other two kiddos enjoy their "bomber eggs."  My husband nicknamed them as "bomber" so they think they are REALLY special, aka, the bomb!!  They have a few fried eggs.  We have 7 hens on our property so our eggs are AMAZING!!

Here is a recipe for my "go to" pancakes.  It's very simple and I typically use this mix for waffles, just because they are a little thicker.  The kids LOVE them!!!




My Cash man enjoying his Primal breakfast! 

PRIMAL PANCAKES:

1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup of coconut milk or whole milk
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp of vanilla or almond extract
1 tsp of baking powder (optional, I have made with and without seen no difference)
1 egg

Mix all ingredients together. Pour onto hot pancake griddle that has been glazed with
olive or coconut oil. Cook each pancake for about 3mins on each side.

I double the batch to feed my 3 kids and myself.  I also add flax to the batter to thicken it up a bit.  They are divine!!!!  Enjoy!

Kellen sure does!!!

What? No dairy????

Let's start by talking about what Paleo is.  Paleo is all about eating natural foods, just like our ancestors did years and years ago.  It's nothing more than ditching today's processed food habits and switching to high quality foods that our digestive system was meant to consume.  It's actually pretty simple!

Such a happy cave woman!

When my daughter Gracie was an infant, she had "colic."  She would cry for hours for no apparent reason.  This went on for months.  I then noticed her bowels had changed to a greenish color and then spots of blood appeared in her diaper.  I was panicked!  Her pediatrician diagnosed  her with an allergy to the cows milk protein, or casein.  I was nursing her at the time so once I stopped consuming dairy in my diet, her symptoms were no longer.  I had a happy baby!





My Gracie girl at 5 months!

 

Dairy causes inflammation in the body, hence the blood in Gracie's stools.  Her gut was irritated from the dairy that I was consuming.  I won't go on at this time about "leaky gut" but I'll direct you to a website that talks about it if you'd like to learn more!

http://paleoparents.com/featured/how-do-grains-legumes-and-dairy-cause-a-leaky-gut-part-2-saponins-and-protease-inhibitors/

What about calcium?  Most people believe milk is the main source of calcium in our diets.  Not true!  There are many seeds, nuts, fruits, veggies and even seafood that can provide this mineral.  Calcium needs a happy, calm alkaline environment to get absorbed in the body.  Dairy is very acidic.  When you consume dairy, the body leaches the calcium from the bones to digest your meal.  If we consume a balanced Paleo diet, we will have an adequate acid-base balance where calcium can be absorbed.

What to use instead of milk for cooking:

Coconut milk

Nut milk (almond)

no milk

The decision is up to you.  I'm not always 100% Paleo.  If I want some cheese, I go for the full fat, fresh mozzarella as a treat every now and then!

I would suggest cutting dairy out for a few weeks, maybe a month, and see how you feel and what type of results you get with your weight loss and heath.  Give it a try!

Paleo in BEND, Oregon!

Welcome to my Paleo blog!  This is my very first blog so here we gooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

My name is Deb.  I am lucky enough to live in Bend, OR.  If you have never been to central Oregon, it is neatly tucked beween high desert plateaus and snow-covered peaks.  It's known as a town of outdoor enthusiasts and vacationers in search of active healthy pursuits.  It's absolutely gorgeous!

I am a wife, mom and a MRI technologist.  I work three ten hour days a week.  On my two off days, I shuttle my littles to swim, soccer and dance:  Gracie (5), Kellen (3) and Cashton (1).  I am one busy mom but every minute I spend with my sweet kiddos is beyond precious to me. 

Feeding my family healthy meals and snacks is nothing but a MUST!

Paleo Bender is a blog dedicated to my personal quest to keep my family healthy from the inside out.   I have always been a health nut but after having a family, it became even more important.  I'm excited to post Paleo recipes that I have tried and that are actually delicous!!  This is one of my favorite cookbooks.....

My brother-in-law introduced me to Paleo last year.  At the time I thought he was a bit over the top (shhhhhh!) only because I was naive and uneducated on the topic.  I started doing some research and realized he was on to something!  I read more and more, went to a Paleo seminar and decided to give it a go.  Once on Paleo, I felt like I had more energy, my skin was clear and I could handle the daily stresses of being a mom to three kids age 5 and under AND work 30 hours a week even better!!

In August of 2011, I joined a Cross Fit gym.  My husband, Ryan, had been going to this gym 8 months prior.  I've always been the "dancer", never the fast runner, etc.  I felt intimidated just by the thought of going to Cross Fit.  After watching one of the Cross Fit Games last summer, I realized I CAN DO THIS!!!  From that point on I made it a goal, I'd give it a try! 

Cross Fit plus Paleo has equalled to be the perfect balance for me.

I feel very passionate about Paleo.  I believe that being in the medical profession and seeing patients with cancer, ms or any other autoimmune disease, has sealed the deal.  Paleo is a lifestyle, not a diet.  If people can prevent these diseases, amongst other issues, let's DO IT!!  :)