Pigging Out!

A day of feasting on porcine treats - to health!

Breakfast/Lunch: A delicious rack of pork, with a heady layer of crackling to boot!



No, I didn't manage to down the whole lot! I ate the crackling first, then the fatty parts of the chops, and then a tiny bit of lean before I was stuffed! What an indulgence!

Dinner: I wasn't expecting to be hungry again, but around 5pm I felt a sensation that wasn't quite hunger, but was suggestive that I would be some time while I was out in the city, and I didn't want to have to resort to fast food... So, I grilled up some tasty tasty bacon, and tried my experimental purchase of the week - Bertocchi's Italian Pork Roast, Porchetta-Style. Oh my word. Pork roast, salt, and spices. That's it. A thick layer of fat. Tender, perfectly prepared meat. I'm in love!


And there's more in the fridge for tomorrow...

So with a belly full of Porky, I'm off to the theatre in my best, slim-fitting dress! Take THAT, conventional wisdom!

Another Day Playing "How Many Animals?"

Breakfast: Sheep meat & cow milk


Dinner: Pig meat & chicken ova


Just call me Young McDonald... :)

And to herald the arrival of a luxurious weekend of mild weather, after another week of unseasonably hot, humid days and nights, here are some online articles and blog posts that appealed to me this week:

Don Matesz posted his second review of The Vegetarian Myth, this time breaking down Keith's argument detailing the misconceptions held and propagated by political vegetarians. Another must-read and a great one to forward to friends who lean away from the realities presented here.

Mark Sisson tears the grain advocates a new one - share it with your healthywholegrain-loving friends!

Very little on the Internet has excited me as much as the promise of an online show demolishing diet myths, starring a true academic, Dr. James Carlson. I haven't watched the first episode, but just his promo has me tingling with excitement!



Finally, Mark Sisson responded to the reader question, "Is the Primal Blueprint a kind of asceticism?" Particularly when I limit my food consumption to animal products, I'm asked whether I get bored, or whether I miss certain "tasty" foods. Of course, I don't. Meat is my favourite tasty food, so I have come to realise. As much as I can enjoy other flavours, meat by itself entertains my palate, and with such a wide variety of meat out there, who gets bored? When I first found the pack of ZC-ers that live on ground beef and water, I did think that the lifestyle is nothing but asceticism, and given the way the individuals report their lives on the Zeroing In On Health forum, I suspect that it is the ascetic nature of the lifestyle that appeals to a lot of them. Not having to worry about food, food as nothing but fuel, eating one meal per day, quickly... But at the same time I'm sure there are beef & water folk who enjoy every single plate of beef. I can certainly relate to the idea of finding water delicious - I love the stuff! Fresh, cool, crisp water is all I will drink. I drink tea in cold weather for the warmth more than the taste!

And with a lovely, fatty rack of pork waiting for me to cook up and savour tomorrow, how could I ever call my way of eating a pleasureless existence?! I'm already drooling at the thought! I'll be popping it in the oven first thing in the morning, and it will be my one meal of the day since I doubt I'll be able to stop at just one or two chops. And all that crackling...

Scorching

Another unseasonable scorcher today, yet I didn't turn to whipping up a few icy protein shakes, but stuck to grilling meat for breakfast and dinner. Even with my sexy, new Sigg bottle following me everywhere, I still fell behind when trying to keep my fluids up, so I'm suffering from a dehydration headache right now. So this will be brief so that I can get back to the one room in the house with air-conditioning...

Breakfast: a lamb forequarter chop and a copious amount of bacon. Mmmmmm...


Dinner: Bacon & Beef burgers - the beau took his with a side of organic lettuce...


...whilst I enjoyed mine with a hunk of fried haloumi! Yummmmmmm!


And back I scurry to the cool room - such a huge day of rushing around, and now this heat exhaustion; at least I should sleep well tonight! One more day and then a restful weekend... I have some culinary experiments up my sleeve for Saturday, so here's hoping they go well and appear here soon! :)

Back In The Habit

To my joy, the transition back to my usual breakfast/dinner eating schedule was a breeze! My delicious breakfast of porterhouse steak and bacon kept me going for TWELVE HOURS:


I indulged my desire for a large quantity of meat by ordering the mixed grill platter at Kouzina, where we ignored most of the carbs (the beau still nibbles on the white crap more than I'd like) but demolished the meat promptly!


It feels good to be back on a mostly meat way of eating, although - due to popular demand - I will keep my food options a bit more open in order to spend more time developing recipes for you to try! Especially with Christmas coming - there will be lots of primal holiday treats in the mix!

Wrapping Up The Six-Week Cure & Getting On With Life

Now that I have determined that the Eades' program could well work for my Mum in her bid to lose her belly before my cousin's wedding, I'm relaxing back into my usual primal programming. I shed just over 2kg in the past four weeks, with a solid inch coming off my waist. I'm very happy with this considering the insane stress I've been under this past month, and the sleepless nights I've suffered courtesy of the past week's freak heat wave. I always know that other forces are at work at that I shouldn't pay too much attention to the scale one those days where I can't seem to stop my hand reaching for the nut jar... Hello stress! Hello hormones!

And we won't mention just how many nuts I've eaten in the past two post-Cure days...

What we will mention, are the lovely primal meals I have enjoyed today, including some more of the now-famous Primal Chicken Fingers, thanks to link love from Mark Sisson!

Porterhouse for breakfast! Ah, back to normality.


Bacon & egg smash for a late afternoon snack.


Then, fried chicken fingers for dinner! Yum! I made them extra flavourful - zing! ;)


Meanwhile, I am trialling probiotics - out with the old experiment, in with the new!

Chicken & Chips

With a protein shake in my belly, I took Melbourne by storm and shopped until I almost literally dropped. The goal was to find summer clothes for work, but everything I like tends to be on the tailored-therefore-warm side. Nonetheless, I did find a couple of sheer, breezy tops that will work for school, as well as a couple of very exciting purchases - a high-waisted work skirt (I could never wear high waists before since my muffin-top was too prominent, but now it tucks away seamlessly!) and my first ever Little Black Dress - satin, slim-fitting, short, and skimpy! The beau approves! Now I just need a cocktail event to wear it to...

After such a big day, I skipped the bother of cooking and picked up a roast chook, and served it with a brand new treat - kale chips!


Kale chips have done the rounds of the low-carb & paleo communities a few times, but I never jumped on board because a) I didn't have access to kale, and b) they sounded totally foul. Well, a) kale showed up in this week's veggie box, and b) I was totally wrong!

I was reminded of the recipe via Simply Sugar & Gluten Free, and followed their basic recipe. Here's exactly what I did, in case your oven is more like mine and less like Amy's -

Recipe - Kale Chips

Ingredients:

Kale
Olive oil
Salt

Method:

Heat oven to 180° Celsius. Line a tray with foil.

Wash and dry kale in a salad spinner, then tear into chip-sized pieces. Place in a bowl, and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat.

Place kale on the tray in a single layer.

Bake for 10 minutes, watching for browning. If chips shatter slightly when firmly prodded, they're ready. Leave them in for 5 minute increments if they're still floppy.

Sprinkle with salt, and serve hot or cold. You could let them rest on some paper towel if they're too oily for your preference. Yum!!


I love how the sunlight has filtered through the fragile, transparent chips to leave green shadows...

Finally, I've been hearing a lot of doom and gloom about genetically modified/engineered soy and other products making their way into the global market, with the first (we assume) GM soy being used in Aussie products recently/soon. When I bring this up with people, sometimes I receive blank stares, or questions wondering why it matters. Yipe. So when I found this Civil Eats article today, neatly dealing with the whats and whys of GM food, I thought I should share it here in case you haven't found a reliable resource of your own. This is also one to pass on to friends who consume mindlessly.

Enjoy your safe, healthy & tasty food choices!

Junk Food! Recipe: Fried Chicken Fingers

Decided to end a long, hot week with a luxurious plate of anything-but-guilty pleasures! Namely, junk food, paleo style!

Dinner: fried chicken fingers & spicy beefburger.


This is my second successful attempt at making fried chicken with paleo ingredients - utterly delicious! Here's how -

Recipe: Fried Chicken Fingers

Ingredients:

500g chicken thigh, skin on or off
2 eggs, beaten in a bowl
50g almond flour
1t paprika
1t cumin
1t thyme
1t garlic powder
1t parsley
... or your preferred herbs and spices
Optional salt & pepper
1/2 cup coconut oil

Method:

1. Heat oil in a solid (ceramic or cast iron) frying pan over low heat.

2. Slice chicken into long strips, about 1/2" thick.

3. Place strips in bowl of beaten egg, and toss with hands until coated.

4. In a wide bowl or plate, mix almond flour, herbs and spices.


5. Dip chicken strips in coating mixture, individually.


6. Place strips in pan, being careful of splashing oil. Fry until browned, then flip and fry until chicken is cooked through.


The finished product:



Definitely keeping this one in rotation! Healthy fats, low carbs, and a psychological treat! :)