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Quick & Easy Mustard Chicken

Need something quick and easy for dinner tonight? Here is delicious solution:

MUSTARD CHICKEN

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Salt and Pepper
2 TBSP Ghee
2 TBSP olive oil
6 TBSP fresh chopped parsley
6 TBSP chopped scallions (about 5)
3 TBSP Dijon Mustard
3 TBSP fresh lime juice
1/2 cup homemade chicken broth

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Warm 1 TBSP (each)Ghee and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until cooked through, turning once (about 6-8 minutes). Remove chicken to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm.

Reduce heat to medium low. Add parsley, scallions, mustard and lime juice to skillet and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes, until well blended and heated through, taking care to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Increase heat to medium. Add broth and remaining oil and ghee. Cook, whisking until ghee has melted and sauce is hot. Divide chicken among four plates, spoon sauce over top and serve. Add roasted brussel sprouts as a complimentary side.

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Go Green!

You look all around you these days, it is “in” to be green. You have “GREEN” office buildings,”GREEN” office supplies, “GREEN” fuel, “GREEN” housewares, even “GREEN” vacations. It is hip to be green. So, let’s “GREEN” up our diet! No, I am not talking about sustainable, environmentally friendly diet (although if you go that route, that is awesome.) I am talking about LEAFY GREENS.

Leafy greens are powerhouse vegetables. They are jammed-packed with lots of nutritional value like: Vitamins A,K, & C, fiber, calcium, iron, folate, and potassium. A diet that includes these greens often are known to reduce the risk of some heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Another wonderful bonus, is that they are low in calories and sodium. So why are Americans not including them in their diets?

I suspect that we see them in the market place and really don’t know what to do with them other than maybe one or two recipes. But, these leafy super veggies are really very easy to work with, inexpensive, and oh so yummy! We just need to know a little bit about them and have some good recipes.

Here are my top three Leafy Green choices and a little bit about them. I have included a simple recipe for you to try:
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KALE:
It’s just not for decorating your veggie trays anymore! Its ruffled leaves are greenish-blue to green with a very mild cabbage flavor. Kale is as versatile like spinach and cabbage. Try it raw, steamed or sauteed. Add to soups & salad, bake them as chips, or you can even substitute it for spinach in recipes. Before cooking with kale, clean the greens in a water-filled sink and then drain the sink, repeat until dirt free, otherwise you can get a gritty taste in your mouth if not properly cleaned. Use within a few days, for kale develops a stronger and more pronounced bitter flavor when stored too long and goes limp quickly.

Sauteed Kale: 1 1/2 pounds young kale, stems and leaves coarsely chopped, 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 cloves garlic, finely sliced, 1/2 cup vegetable stock or water, Salt and pepper, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until soft, but not colored. Raise heat to high, add the stock and kale and toss to combine. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove cover and continue to cook, stirring until all the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add vinegar.

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COLLARDS:
They aren’t just a southern thing! Collard greens are similar in nutrition to kale. But they have a heartier and chewier texture and a stronger cabbage-like taste. These wide leafy greens are gaining momentum in the raw food circles because their leaves can be used as wraps or tortillas. In traditional southern cooking, collards are cooked slowly for several hours to yield very tender eating, and usually with ham or bacon. But they can also be simmered in a seasoned broth for 20 to 30 minutes. Season collards with garlic, onion, chili peppers, ginger or curry. When you are preparing collards, be sure to cut out the center stem as that can leave a bitter taste if not discarded.

Collard Pesto without the Cheese: 1 1/2 to 2 cups basil, 1 1/2 to 2 cups collard greens, 3 cloves garlic, 2 ounces parsley, 3/4 cup olive oil, 3 TBSP toasted walnuts, Salt and pepper to taste

Remove collard stems and parsley stems. Using a food processor chop parsley, collards and basil. Add garlic and oil. Process for 20 seconds. Add walnuts. Process. Serve at once or place pesto in jar in fridge with a little olive oil on top to preserve. Use on top of fish, chicken, steamed veggies, or spaghetti squash.

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CHARD:
Chard is a relative of the beets. Common chard is the one with white stalks and deep green leaves. Rainbow chard has various colors – orange, red, pink or purple stalks. Swiss Chard is with red stems, stalks, and veins on its leaves. Swiss chard has a beet-like taste, has a soft texture that’s perfect for sauteeing, and is slightly sweeter than spinach. Chard is a good source of vitamins A and C and is low in calories, but high in nutrients. Swiss chard is also rich in beta-carotene and supplies certain carotenoids that may lower the risk of macular degeneration. Swiss chard contain oxalates, which are slightly reduced by cooking and can bind to calcium, a concern for people prone to kidney stones. The leaves can be used raw in salads or cooked as other greens. To prepare Chard: Wash the greens and trim the stems (just cut an inch or so off the bottom); thinly slice the stems and coarsely chop the leaves.

Greens and Eggs: Chop chard in smaller pieces and sautee in cloves of garlic and olive oil over medium-low heat. Season with salt & peppper. Top with a poached egg and a sprinkling of crushed red pepper.

So, as your mama would say, eat your greens, they are good for you!

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Favorite Recipe Blogs

Since beginning Paelo, I have struggled with finding good recipe blogs. When you are searching for recipes on blogs, often you have to sift through a bunch of opinions and verbage just to get to the ingredients and directions. This drives me crazy. How can you follow a recipe when all the way through it you have to listen to the bloggers rantings? Furthermore, because Paleo is a relatively new on the scene, some folks are trying to substitute Paelo friendly ingredients for traditional ones. Working with coconut flour, almond flour, or coconut milk has very different results than your traditional flour and oil recipes. So, sometimes, those recipes just taste like dirt if they are not tried and tested.

Besides CrossFit West Houston, here are a few of my favorite recipe sites. Try some of them this week see how you like them.

I. Everyday Paleo – Sarah Frogoso has done an excellent job in making Paleo part of an everyday lifestyle. She has recipes that work in with an active lifestyle and one that is friendly to kids.

II. Paleo Betty- Nicole Tanzillo is a CrossFit gal, but believes that eating healthy foods, doesn’t mean you give up flavor. This morning I just had her Sweet Potato Pancakes. Oh my, were they good AND easy. Instead of doing the apples, I reduced down some fresh strawberries and blueberries and they were YUMMY. I gave them to a non-paleo friend to try and she was raving about them.

III. Elana’s Pantry – Now, Elana Amersterdam is not technically Paleo. She was diagnosed with Celiac’s disease and was forced into a gluten-free diet. Out of that experience and her love of cooking and baking, she has developed a gluten-free repertoire. However, she has taken a liking to the Paleo diet and has included some Paleo friendly recipes on her website.So be careful as you are sifting through her site. Her pumpkin pie muffins are to die for!

IV. Primal Women in the Kitchen – this is a local CrossFit Gym in my area that I just discovered. Their nutrition website has some great recipes with wonderful flavor mixtures.

Do you have any favorites? If so, please comment and share — I think we all look for inspiration in cooking!

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New Year’s Paleo Brunch

We at Crossfit West Houston hope you had a wonderful holiday this past weekend. As 2012 (did I just say that?) approaches, we look forward to a new year. I LOVE the promise and hope that a new year brings. It is a fresh start, a new beginning. So even if you blew it over the holidays, and ate those 7 dozen cookies that grandma baked or ate that dairy & processed laden smorgasboard of temptations… don’t fret. It is a NEW day, AND a NEW year. Let’s start fresh!

So, as I thought about this post I was inspired by the fact that breakfast is an important start to the day. So, to start the new year off right, start Januray 01, 2012 off with a nice New Year’s Day brunch. All recipes below serves 8-12 people.

Grapefruit & Orange slices with Mint
3 Oranges
3 Grapfruit
3 Sprigs of Fresh Mint

With a knife slice off rind of both grapefruit and oranges. Slice the fruit. Place fruit slices nicely in a bowl. Snip 1-2 sprigs of fresh mint over the fruit slices. Garnish with one sprig of mint

Southwest Egg Bake Recipe
4 large Egg, whole, raw, fresh
6 large Egg White
1 1/2 cups homemade Salsa
1 cup Onions
1/2 cup Green Bell Pepper (sweet)
1/2 cup Red Bell Peppers
4 oz Raw Milk 4oz
2 tsp Ground Cumin
1 tbsp Chili Powder Generic
1 1/2 tsp Salt, Tsp.
1/2 cup Cilantro, chopped
5 oz ground sausage (remember to buy grass fed)

Prepare a small casserole(8×10)by spraying the bottom with coconut spray (or grease with coconut oil). Beat the eggs and milk together along with 1/4 cup of the fresh cilantro and 1/2 tsp. of salt,a pinch of cumin and chili powder; set aside.

In a large skillet sauté onion and peppers with coconut oil. Add ground sausage, 1 tsp. salt, cumin and chili powder and cook until meat cooked through. Add the salsa and cook into the meat, then spread this mixture into the prepared dish. Pour the meat mixture and pour the egg mixture on top.

Bake @ 350 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour OR until done. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the fresh cilantro on top. Cut into 12 squares and serve each square with 1 TBS. fresh salsa and fresh chopped cilantro.

Blueberry Coconut Muffins
¼ cup sifted Organic Coconut Flour
3 tablespoons Organic Virgin Coconut Oil melted
3 eggs
3 tablespoons raw honey
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon vanilla
⅛ teaspoon almond extract
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ cup fresh blueberries

Blend together eggs, butter, honey, salt and vanilla. Combine coconut flour with baking powder and thoroughly mix into batter until there are no lumps. Fold blueberries into batter. Blueberries should be dry. If rinsed, dry them off before adding to batter. Pour batter into greased muffin cups. Bake at 400 degrees F for 16-18 minutes. Makes 6 muffins. Double recipe to make 12.

Crossfit West Houston wishes you a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year! May 2012 may be your best and strongest year yet!

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Garlic Rosemary Venison Tenderloin

My husband is a hunter. He has put food on our table again this year! Last week I fixed a YUMMY venison tenderloin. For the Paleo diet, the “hunted”, natural meat is the best, right? You can’t get any better than this, your own personal hunter bringing it right to your table. If you have access to fresh venison, here is a delicous recipe just in time for Christmas dinner.

Garlic Rosemary Venison Tenderloin

1 lb Venison Tenderloin
4 TBSP chopped garlic
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper
Fresh Sprigs of Rosemary
Horseradish for garnish

Place the Venison Tenderloin in Tin Foil and place in a shallow baking pan. Split the top of the roash and stuff 2 TBSP garlic in it. Drizzle Olive Oil on roast (about 2 TBSP). Sprinkle with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper. Place the Sprigs of Rosemary on Top. Take the remaining garlic and rub on the sides. Pull up foil along sides and top, DO NOT SEAL THE FOIL. Place on center rack of oven and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20-25 minutes for rare, and 30-35 minutes for medium. When done, let rest for 5 minutes and slice. To serve place a generous dollop of horseradish on the plate, and serve sliced tenderloin on top. Place a fresh sprig of rosemary beside it.

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Party Thyme & Hazelnut Crusted Grapes

Wow your party guests with this gourmet dish!

1 1/2 cups of white grape juice (use the juicer to make your own juice)
2 lb seedless white grapes, peeled
2 oz roasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
4 sprigs of thyme (preferably lemon thyme), leave finely chopped
Festive Party skewers

Reserve about 20 grapes peeled for the dish. Juice the rest to yield 1 1/2 cups of juice. In a medium skillet over medium heat, bring juice to a rapid simmer. Cook until thick and syrupy and reduced to about 1/3 cup, about 15 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Skewer grapes with toothpicks or party skewers. Dip each into grape syrup, then roll in hazelnuts. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with thyme.

An adapted recipe from Country Living September 2011 issue.

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‘Tis the Season to be Paleo

Yes, the Holiday Party season has begun. With all the lights, festivities, enticing foods, and that rum-laced eggnog that only come once a year, you might be tempted to throw those dietary resolves to the wind for a few weeks. Besides, you gotta have SOMETHING for those New Year’s Resolutions, right? WRONG! You CAN be different this year and avoid the unwanted creep. I know, I know, it is easier said than done, but here are some helpful tips to get you through the holiday season and still maintain your Paleo resolve.

Begin a food log. Logging what you eat every day, all week helps you to get into the mindset of healthy eating. It also helps you to be aware of what is coming next to help you plan for those parties. And it makes you accountable. If you have to log it the next day, you might not eat it in the first place.

Continue exercising through the holiday season. I know, with all the hustle and bustle of shopping, parties, wrapping, family events, it is easy to forgo the exercise. Don’t! An added benefit of exercise in the holiday season is that it makes you more responsive to when you are REALLY hungry. It helps you manage your eating. Further, exercise relieves anxiety, so when you arrive at those parties you can do so relaxed and in control, which makes you less susceptible to emotional eating.

Have a plan of attack. For many of the events you go to you, know somewhat of what is going to be there. Decide ahead of time what you will eat, how much you will eat, drink and whether or not you will indulge in dessert or something special. Also, plan what you eat during the day of your event(s). Don’t overindulge at lunch if you know you are going to the office party that night.

Reframe how you view the holiday get togethers. Instead of looking at it as a whole month of parties to get through, take each day as they come. Try to focus on normal schedules and eating the rest of the days. Also, look at these events to be centered around focusing on relationships and seeing people you know, rather than centered around food. Food is secondary. Meet new people, rekindle and strengthen friendships and family bonds.

Manage Stress. Let’s face it. Parties, schedules, and family can bring on stress. Take some time before you hit the party scene or go to grandma’s to identify any triggers for stress. Knowing your triggers before going into the moment will reduce your desire to emotionally eat everything in sight. Have a plan for how you will graciously deal with each trigger.

Fill up before you go to the party. Eat healthy items, such as protein and veggies about an hour before the event. Also, drink at least 8 oz or more of water. Noshing on healthy options helps to stave off hunger and will keep you fuller longer. All this helps to not get caught up in the “eat, drink, and be merry” spirit where you consume too much of everything before you know it. Try this combo: a hardboiled egg, a handful of carrots and an 8 oz. glass of water.

Limit alcohol consumption. Drinking too much can lower your inhibitions and cause you to over indulge. Try drinking two glasses of water or club soda for every drink of alcohol. It will help you be less likely to throw your Paleo diet to the wind and will probably save you from seeing embarrassing photos posted on social media sites the next day.

Contribute a healthy dish and find healthy eats on the table. Ask your host if you can bring something. At least that way, you know there is one thing you can put on your plate. Then choose a YUMMY Paleo recipe. Most likely you can probably find some Paleo friendly items to eat along the way. Be on the lookout for some of these items: protein (shrimp, beef, chicken, scallops), veggie trays or crudités, and fruit. Fill up on those items. Skip the breads, dips, and cheeses.

WOW your friends with a great outfit and your fit self! Wear clothes that are flattering and show off how hard you have been working this year to stay in shape. Looking great and wearing form fitting, flattering clothes will motivate you when you are tempted to indulge. Hearing how great you look, and answering the questions of how you got to this point, will also inspire you to stay clear of that eggnog.

Now, are you feeling prepared? Let the festivities begin. In the coming days prior to Christmas, we will be posting holiday recipes for you to enjoy taking to parties or serving your family and friends. Just because you are eating healthy, doesn’t mean you forgo great tasting food and elegant dishes!

Until next time, may your festivities be merry and bright!

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Overstuffed from Thanksgiving?

We at CFWH hope that you had a wonderful holiday. Feeling stuffed from so much good food? Here’s a quick, light healthy drink that will fill you up, but keeps it light.

1 cucumber (unpeeled), cut into spears
3 stalks celery, cut into 2 inch lengths
3 leaves of kale, cut into 2 inch wide strips
1 apple (unpeeled), cored and cut into chuncks
1/3 cup flat-leaf parsley
1/2 lemon, peel removed with a knife

Feed the cucumber, celery, kale, apple, parsley, and lemon into a juicer. Discard solids.

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Sweet Carmalized Onion Chicken Breast with Balsamic Glazed Asparagus

Hope you all did well on your Whole 9 challenge. Here is a recipe that will help you ease back into introducing other foods, but will still keep you near the Whole 9 way of life.

Sweet Carmalized Onion Chicken Breast with Balsamic Glazed Asparagus

1 bunch asparagus (trim bottoms 1 inch from the end)
1 TBSP balsamic vinegar
Sea salt & fresh ground pepper, to taste
Olive Oil Cooking Spray
1 medium Vidalia sweet onion, thinly sliced in strips
2 TBSP unsweetened dried cranberries
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin

Heat large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over high heat for 1 minute. Reduce heat to low and mist with cooking spray. Add onion and cook until carmalized (about 20 minutes). Add cranberries and saute for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat, place in a separate dish, but keep warm.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place asparagus spears on a nonstick cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil. Drizzle asparagus with vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove from the heat. Place foil over the pan to keep warm.

Heat the same skillet or pan that you cooked the onions in. Add chicken and cook for about 3-4 minutes per side until browned on each side. Cook through until no longer pink. Season with salt and pepper. Add onion-cranberry mixture to chcken and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat.

Serves: 4

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Kristen M

CrossFit West Houston is a fantastic place to work out.  The CrossFit philosophy of “constantly varied, functional movements” ensures a fun workout that changes daily.  What, to me, sets CFWH apart is the strong sense of community within the group.  The expertise and experience of the coaches doesn’t need explanation; you’ll experience it first hand during your workout.

I’ve been training at CFWH since Feb 2010.  The ways in which I’ve transformed since joining the gym are nearly indescribable, both physically and mentally.  Endurance improvement shows with my mile time currently at just over 7 minutes, down from over 12.  Strength has improved across the board, most notably from overhead squats transitioning from hollow PVC pipe to a recent 125lb personal record.  Flexibility, mobility, and agility have improved in exponential amounts, aided in part by our yoga classes.  Perhaps most importantly, what I have gained from CFWH is nutrition guidance.

Rob has guided me down the paleo nutrition path by helping to refine my ideas of the paleo concept.  He has held several nutrition challenges, and has hosted nutrition seminars from gurus such as Dallas and Melissa of the Whole9; Diane Sanfilippo of Balanced Bites; and Robb Wolf, author of The Paleo Solution.  I have, admittedly, completely geeked out on the nutrition side of things, reading nearly every paleo/primal nutrition book I could get my hands on.  There’s a quote on our whiteboard stating: “You can’t out-train a bad lifestyle.”   Perhaps, more than anything I’ve read, that message has hit home and made me reevaluate my eating habits.

I can go on for quite some length about my appreciation of CFWH, Rob, and the amazing trainers he has acquired; but they say a picture is worth a thousand words.  I’ll let my transformation speak for itself.

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