Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Whole30 Week 2 Menu & Progress


We're now into our third week of Whole30, and remain a little mystified at how much easier it seems to be this time out. The first time this was when we crashed and burned and dropped out, running away as if we'd survived a horror movie.

The second time, we got through the 30 days, but the very idea of another couple of weeks doing a slow reintroduction was beyond us.

This time, we know where most of our potential pitfalls are, and mentally prepped for them to the point where they don't seem that hard at all. We miss the occasional drink.  I miss cheese on things that are simply better with cheese - but not so much that I no longer want to eat what I have.  Neither of us miss bread, unless there's a good sauce on our plate and no easy way to sop it up.

(I do realize that I have no totally jinxed us for this next week!)

During our second week, we had a couple days where we had to eat out, and that's by far the most challenging. No matter where you go, things are either breaded, ON bread, with cheese or sugared in some way. So. Much. Sugar.

The first time, we had a day full of errands, so we stopped at lunch at a local area chain of diners called the Silver Diner. They locally source their food, so the quality was a good bet. Even there, though, the only safe-ish bet was to stick to the breakfast menu and have eggs and bacon (which likely was sugar cured, so not perfect), and we ordered a side of roasted mix veggies that turned ou to be butternut squash, brussels sprouts and beets.

Our second time out was after an early showing of The Post - we went to a Nando's Peri-Peri Chicken, which was a great choice - their chicken was flavorful and succulent, and not breaded, and here also there was a side of delicious roasted veggies in balsamic vinegar.  There were also salads that could be modified slightly and still be interesting.

I'd hate to have to wrestle with restaurants often while on Whole30, although we did pretty well.  It does make it easier if you check the menu online before you go and develop a plan.

So here's the rest of what we ate this past week:



Cashew Chicken with Stir-Fried Cabbage
No real recipe here - I used cooked chicken from last week's roast chicken.  I stir-fried a half a bag of cole slaw cabbage mix along with some sliced mushrooms in a blend of coconut oil and sesame oil   and seasoned it in a sort of vaguely curry-ish blend of spices, a bit of fish sauce and hot sauce.  The chicken was added in and heated through, and a good sprinkle  of cashews was added to serve.





Pan-Fried Rib Eye Steak,
Caramelized Onions, Tomatoes and Mushrooms, 
and Avocado Slices
This was a joint effort - I put together the onions, tomatoes and mushrooms, intending to slow-braise them.  They got away from us though and before we knew it, they'd begun to scald on the bottom of the pan. I carefully scooped out the part that didn't get burned quickly enough to avoid an off flavor.

So we had much less than I'd hoped for - but the upside was that what we did have had cooked down
to a sort of marvelous savory jam that made a very nice accompaniment for Michael's steak, seasonedwith salt, pepper and Sweet Hungarian paprika, and cooked to a perfect medium rare.





Peruvian Aji Chicken over Coconut Cauliflower Rice 
with Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Spinach
Ok, this is where it got weird - I occasionally get meal plan kits but I was sure I'd set them to Skip for this month.  Then a Plated box showed up at my door - oops. Since I hadn't planned for it, it was totally random what was in it, of course neither of the two meals were Whole30.  Fortunately, this one, chicken with a yellow chile sauce and vegetables, served over coconut quinoa, was easy to fix by switching out the quinoa for cauliflower rice.  Very tasty!





Pan Roasted Chicken Over Cauliflower Rice, Brussels and Apple Salad
This was the other Plated dish - originally, it involved Farro instead of the cauliflower, and included Parmesan and a buttermilk dressing.  We skipped the dressing and used a drizzle of a Whole30 compliant Ranch dressing, instead.  I really liked how the tart apples added flavor and crunch to the dish.





Eggs, Hash Browns, Bacon, Guacamole
Then there was the day when I hated everything, so Michael made me breakfast for dinner.





Deconstructed Salmon Sushi
I really, really loved this one.  I used this recipe, and added some wasabi paste. The brightly flavored orange sauce and hint of heat from the wasabi was delicious!  We'll be doing this again.





Egg Muffins
Finally, this is a part of how we kept ourselves fed for breakfast on busy morings.  These take just a few minutes to prepare, and are infinitely modifiable.  The are fluffy and heat up well in the microwave.  I think they'd freeze fine too, although we just kept them in the fridge as grab-and-go options.

Here's all it takes:

Egg Muffins
(makes 12)

6 eggs
3 T water or coconut milk
2 cups. cooked vegetables (tomatoes and spinach are good - we used leftover cooked Brussels sprouts this time), and meat as desired (I sprinkled in some chopped prosciutto)
Seasonings as desired

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Grease a 12 cup muffin pan with coconut oil.  

In a large bowl, beat the eggs along with the water or coconut milk, and add in vegetables, meats and any seasonings.

Scoop some egg with fillings into each prepared muffin cup, leaving about a half inch at the top.

Bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown on top.  Remove from oven, let cool a couple minutes and then carefully use a table knife to help pop them out of the muffin cups.

Enjoy!



(And yes - if you're not doing Whole30, these would be wonderful with the addition of some cheese!)




13 comments:

  1. Hello! I found you through Shelbee's link up. I've never done the whole 30 but am always looking to keep my diet healthy and eat real food. So these options are great. Can you link the deconstructed salmon sushi recipe? I found that one very appealing!

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  2. It all looks delicious. We have been eating paleo for a few months now and have noticed such a difference! We fell off the wagon at Christmas time...but jumped right back up there on New Years. I like to make muffins on the weekends and freeze them for breakfast during the week. Breakfast, I find, is the hardest meal.

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  3. I love egg muffins! One of my favorite breakfasts during the busy week.

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  4. Good luck with your diet! This is how I regularly eat due to health reasons so I know it can be difficult! Thanks for sharing at The Blogger's Pit Stop! Roseann from This Autoimmunelife

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  5. Wow - I want to eat at your house. I like the egg muffins and most of the other dishes. Got to try several of them.

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  6. What a great menu and recipes,it all looks so good! Thanks so much for sharing your post with us at Full Plate Thursday. Have a great week and come back soon!
    Miz Helen

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  7. You are really eating well girl. The dishes really do look delicious! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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  8. I need to go whip up a batch of these now! Thanks for linking up at the Friday Frenzy Link Party! PINNED!

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  9. These look good! Thanks for sharing at the What's for Dinner party!

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  10. Oh my, those dishes look amazing...making this diet seem not so difficult at all! I may have to explore this further!

    Thanks so much for linking up with me On the Edge!

    Shelbee
    www.shelbeeontheedge.com

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  11. You are doing so well! I have always wanted to try Whole 30 but haven't been brave enough! I followed you on Pinterest and Facebook and would love for you to follow me!
    Pinterest… https://www.pinterest.com/mintsandacherry/boards/
    Facebook… https://www.facebook.com/mintsandacherry/
    Blessings!

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  12. Well done for sticking to the plan! Healthy eating is so important. Your menu looks delicious, lots of wonderful choices. Good luck with your resolutions and I hope Whole 30 is a real success for you. Thank you so much for being a part of the Hearth and Soul Link party.

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  13. I have heard of this diet, but did not know much about it. Thanks for sharing these recipes. Good luck!

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