Breakfast has always been my favourite meal of the day, and the biggest one to be honest. Right after switching to a Paleo nutrition, my breakfast mostly consisted of fruit. I ate about 5 pieces of fruit in the morning, along with a handful of nuts. The thought of having meat or eggs for breakfast just hadn't occured to me. Since the fruit wasn't able to keep me going until lunch at all and I suffered from a blood sugar crash around 11AM, I decided to do things differently.
I started having eggs for breakfast. I figured 2 eggs would be enough, along with some fruit and nuts. I didn't get that blood sugar crash anymore, but instead I just got really hungry around 11AM. I gradually started increasing protein and fat in my breakfast, and instead of fruit, I started eating a large amount of vegetables. That's the way I've been eating for years now, and it still works for me. I feel energized all morning, don't need a big lunch, am seldomly really hungry and what's even better is that I no longer suffer from any blood sugar crashes at all.
Last week I figured that frying eggs wasn't all that convenient: when breaking an egg, it never really ends up nice and round. The egg white just runs everywhere and it doesn't look pretty when you intend to use your egg to top a hamburger with. I know there are some silicon molds available to get the job done, but I didn't feel like buying those. While browsing online, I stumbled upon something else: cut a bell pepper into rings and use it to hold your egg together. It's a simple idea, yet convenient and it tastes good too. As seen on the pictures below, some egg white still ran under the pepper rings, but most of it stayed nicely inside. Of course I couldn't resist adding some bacon..
Eggs in pepper rings with bacon
Ingredients:
- 1 red bell pepper
- 30g bacon pieces
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp coconut oil
1. Rinse the pepper, cut off the top and bottom and remove the seeds. Cut the pepper into 3 rings of approx. 1,5 cm (a little more than 1/2 inch) thick.
2. Heat coconut oil in a frying pan and fry the pepper rings over medium heat on one sice.
3. Flip the rings and divide half of the bacon pieces over them.
4. Carefully crack an egg above each ring and divide the other half of the bacon over them.
5. Fry for approx. 10-15 minutes over medium heat, until the whites have set, but the yolks are still runny.
6. Serve hot and enjoy!
This morning I figured I'd give myself a good start by making this high-protein breakfast. I served it with some oven-roasted bimi (which is even yummier than roasted broccoli!) from last night.
I had gone to bed at 10p.m. but woke up at 4.30 already with an empty stomach. Luckily I was able to sleep for a while but I still managed to wake up before 6 again and feeling really fit. What a change since the last couple of days!
Perhaps the hard days of carb withdrawal symptoms are over now. Finally. And hey, it wasn't that hard!! Why did I cave in every single weekend over the last couple of weeks? I just don't know. I also don't have a clue why it feels different and easier this time.
I've already been eating along the guidelines of the Whole 30 this week, but I am getting hungrier by the day and need huge amounts of food. I'm still going to keep my starting date of the Whole 30 after my birthday though.
And yeah, that's because I know my mom's going to make me an awesome and delicious pie and I don't want to miss out on that, and I'm not going to either. Plus I want to stick to my Whole 30 plan for 30 days, no cheating, so I'm going to have to wait another week to start. Until then, I'm already enjoying the benefits of eating clean.
I'll be spending the afternoon and evening in Amsterdam today, having a good time with a friend. We're also planning to go to see a movie and hopefully I won't be hungry, thus able to resist buying popcorn. They really just don't have any paleo-friendly snacks at movie theatres.. (unless you only eat the salsa that is supposed to come with tortilla chips)
Once again, a recipe for fritters! I just love fritters so I couldn't help myself. These were part of my breakfast this morning.
I'd never really grated a celeriac, except for using a peeler to make thick noodles, but my Magimix did the job wonderfully. And this was a whole new way of using celeriac, because I normally just add it to stews or curries and I occasionally turn it into fries. In all of these methods, the celeriac usually takes a longer time to cook than any other vegetable I add, which isn't exactly a problem, but I consider it to be inconvenient.
Anyhow, enough nagging about celeriacs; it's a delicious veggie, and you should try these fritters!
I just had a really great day with my mom, who came over to visit me. We made a lovely meal together (recipe will be posted later) and enjoyed ourselves browsing around in the city center of Nijmegen. Shopping, eating, food shopping.. Great times!
My mom got me a super nice dress (I feel so spoiled!) and some yummy chocolates too. Foodwise, we enjoyed ourselves at the Asian supermarket, and couldn't resist having some (dairy-free) ice-cream.
Yesterday's breakfast consisted of cinnamon pancakes (with avocado and sausage stir-fry) and so did my breakfast the day before. The reason I made these pancakes twice is because I wasn't too satisfied with the result the first time. In my second batch I used less coconut flour and they worked out much better. So, here's the recipe;
In my opinion, a satisfying, filling breakfast really gives you a good start for the day. In the mornings, my digestive system seems to work most efficiently and I often find myself getting hungry again before my lunch break at work. (which is when I take a quick walk to the restaurant and buy myself a boiled egg and sometimes a tomato as well)
And it doesn't just work until lunch, everytime I get hungry before lunchtime, I will also get even more hungry before dinner. Hunger makes cycling back home, motivating myself to cook a nice dinner, and not collapsing on the couch afterwards become pretty hard. Let alone going for a workout in the evening!
So, a good breakfast is key!
The breakfast I made this morning will certainly keep me going for a longer time and I'll be energized all through the day. I served this fritatta with 1/2 avocado on top, really good!
Oh and something completely different; I booked the perfect accomodation for Yosemite National Park last night! I'm going to stay at Curry Village, in a canvas tent. I always wanted to sleep in the park for a night and this seemed like the perfect way to do it. It's just for 1 night, but I'm going to love it. It's my second time visiting Yosemite NP so I felt I didn't need to stay there for a longer time. On my way there I'll drive over the Tioga pass (since I'm coming from Lake Tahoe) and I plan to do some hiking in the valley in the afternoon. Let's just hope no bears will pay curry village a visit when I'm there.. Just the idea that I need to store all food and scented items (toiletries and such) in a bear proof locker on the outside of my tent gets me all excited. (and hoping none will attack my tent of course, you never know, but if this would happen on a regular basis, the village would probably have closed down by now)
Yesterday I found this amazing recipe for Primal Tex-Mex Tortillas at Mark's Daily Apple, and figured I should try it. His seasoning recipe is tasty too, but I made my own version, which you can see below.
His blog post says that these tortillas are the best primal ones out there so far, and well, they are! They're really easy to make, firm, won't fall apart when you flip them and they actually resemble tortillas, without the grains of course. Yum!! Made me a really good breakfast this morning and I thought I'd share it with everyone.
I'm not sure if my cravings will ever go away.. Every single time I eat Paleo for over a week, HUGE cravings come over me and it's so hard to get past those..
Anyhow, this morning I made myself a good paleo breakfast, consisting of a beef burger, some cucumber and turnip fritters.
Last time I had turnips, I combined them with parsnips and turned them into fritters as well. But I found out turnips make great fritters on their own as well, so here's the recipe for you all to enjoy.
I also made a very, very tasty pie, but I'll post that recipe later, so make sure to check back tomorrow.
Tomorrow also is my race day.. 5k and I'm already nervous.. Hopefully it'll all go well.
My first breakfast back home again. And I must say it isn't as much fun as having breakfast at Whole Foods, but it's probably still healthier (the eggs and my beloved chicken sausages at Whole Foods were really salty, and I loaded up on some more carbs too) and I enjoyed making this myself.
Even though it's 7am now, it still feels like 1am and time for bed. Even while I just clocked 9,5 hours of sleep. Luckily I only have 3 days of work to go and will probably feel better after relaxing over the Easter weekend.
I think I'm going to go for a workout this afternoon too, I really missed that while in New York. Especially with all those jogging people around me over there. (no, the Chinese elderly didn't inspire me to do Tai Chi, I admire them for doing so, but it's just not my thing)
Had a brand new workout schedule today. Fun!
I mostly trained my arms and core, so my legs got spared a little. That was a good thing, because last thursday's squats with 40kg (instead of 35) were slightly too hard on my knees. Not that they hurt, but the muscles around them are still a bit sore and I don't want to force anything. (I mean, I need my knees and I especially don't want to see them getting injured)
Last thursday's training was fun though! A circuit built up out of 7 exercises, I started doing 15 reps of each exercise, then 14, then 13 etc, all the way down to 1. Nice :)
Finally made me able to get rid of some stress that had built up in my head.
Yesterday I made a long list of stuff I need to pack into either my suitcase or my hand luggage next week, and bought the last few items I didn't already have. I also got myself some US Dollars so I'll be able to do quite the amount shopping during the first few days.
This morning I made a different version of last night's sesame chicken by adding dessicated coconut and cinnamon. Combined with a simple salad made out of thinly grated carrot it made a tasty breakfast.
Breakfast was easy this morning, I simply whipped myself up this stir-fry and I already know it'll keep me going all morning.
I'm planning to go for a good workout after work today and I hope I'll still feel like it when I get home by then. I've been pretty tired over the last couple of days, as if I can never get too much sleep. So lots of healthy eating for me!
This breakfast was a good start for sure.
These days I'm really enjoying making new breakfast dishes. Normally I'd eat pretty much the same breakfast every day, but since I'm not eating as much fruit and nuts anymore and a simple dish with some meat won't fill me up, I have to get creative.
Today's breakfast was really tasty and it did keep me full for quite some time. I made a quick dish with beef sausages, a 2-egg-omelet and served it with a small avocado. Nonetheless I was hungry again by 11.30am, which was late because I normally get hungry before 11am. Maybe my digestion just works very effectively in the morning.. Does anyone have any good theories on that?
Had a really good, big breakfast today, one that will keep me going all morning, and possibly even longer.
I made myself an omelet out of 2 eggs, together with some paprika, black pepper, ginger and cinnamon. Added iceberg lettuce and a few slices of roasted pumpkin, which tastes very well with the skin on by the way. There's no need to cut that off, as long as you scrub the pumpkin clean before roasting it.
And last but not least, I added this chicken with warming spices. Yum!
This morning I spent some extra time making breakfast, just because I felt like it. I made yesterday's turnip parsnip fritters first, and then this quick and easy dish to go with it. Very yummy!
It filled me all the way up and I feel ready to go to the gym for a good workout, CrossFit style! I love spending my Sunday mornings this way. The weather outside is beautiful and I got woken up by the birds, I feel good :)
Yesterday I made the mistake of stepping into a bookstore and going to the travel section.. Made me want to buy so many great books and book a huge trip around the world! Maybe I can make a good Indian meal someday soon, I always love those and they make me feel like I'm on a trip.
Another thing I did to get me into travelling mode was browsing the Abercrombie & Fitch website (my all-time favourite clothing store in the USA) and listening to their playlist. They always play very, very loud music in those stores, and it's often a little wrong, but I love it because of the feeling it gives me.
Now all I need is some Starbucks tea and a trip to Whole Foods Market and I'll be in heaven!
Finally, it's weekend again!
My weekend plans might change a bit, I'm not sure yet, but I'll hear about that later tonight. I'm going to enjoy my weekend anyhow.
Fridays at work usually are the best days, me and my colleagues always have a lot of fun and we don't really care what happens simply because it's Friday. We always end up laughing about it.
A small update on my nut and fruit free diet; it's still going really well! I don't miss any of it to be honest. Although that might just change over the weekend, because that's when I usually feel like snacking. (on sweet things)
As long as I make myself a satisfying breakfast, I'll be alright I guess. Just like I did today. When I told my colleagues what I had for breakfast this morning they practically told me I'm insane. I, however, loved my breakfast and have already been thinking about making it again soon.
After using half of a butternut for my chicken curry yesterday, I pureed the other half and used it this morning to make a creamy and thick breakfast pudding. You shouldn't be eating this too often, because it contains a generous amount of nuts and carbs. The pudding is quite filling and warming because of the spices and perfect for a (lazy) Sunday morning.
My Sunday morning won't be lazy at all today; I'll be off to the gym in an hour for another CrossFit workout. I wonder what it'll be like today..
Yesterday's breakfast inspired me to make these muffins. They're really easy to take with you as a snack or to use them as a part of any meal. Together with some leftover chicken and veggies they will make a great breakfast, lunch or even dinner.
Another option is to serve these to your guests as a small snack mid afternoon or in the evening.
Myself, I'm mostly going to make these a part of my breakfast, and I might take some with me for lunch at work too.
I can hardly believe it myself, but today's only the second day I'm having eggs for breakfast. Which means I drastically reduced my egg intake from 14 a week to only 6. Not that I don't like them anymore, but as I've said before, I like having some chicken or meat better. And I figured a person could also eat too many eggs..
Today I didn't have any leftovers I could have for breakfast however, and I thought a big omelet would be nice.
This spinach omelet has a bit of an Indian flavour by using cardamom.
I had it together with some fresh coconut to keep me full a little longer. Fresh coconut is one of my favourite comfort foods, and it's very nutritional as well.
The recipe below is what I had for breakfast today. I've been having different kinds of beef stew for breakfast for 3 days now and I love it. It fills me up pretty well and keeps me going for quite a long time.
I decided to use the cranberry sauce I still had in my freezer from Christmas time and it combined really well. Cranberries are really healthy, especially for your bladder, and they don't contain much carbs at all. And they make a tasty combination with beef and kale too!
I'm aware that this dish doesn't look tasty at all, but just give it a try, it certainly tastes good!
Here's an easy Paleo breakfast dish for everyone to enjoy. It's got lots of protein and it's a great way to use some leftover zucchini and a sausage from yesterday's dinner.
I used a sausage with calf meat, which tasted really good. I guess chipolata sausages, or plain beef sausages would be very good in this dish as well.
In a few hours I'll be off on a day trip to Amsterdam with my mom, mostly for shopping, but we're also going to check out if there are good Paleo eating options available. We'll also be going to the farmer's market ('Noordermarkt'), which is supposed to be pretty nice. Can't wait!
But first, I need to pack my bags and I also wanted to dye my hair again, which is going to take a while. So maybe it's a good thing after all that I woke up at 4am and couldn't sleep anymore at all... (I do hope I'll get a much better night sleep tonight..)
When you're not at home for breakfast and the people you're staying aren't Paleo, it sometimes is hard to make something that suits your diet. Most people have something that involves lots of grains for breakfast, and when the groceries still need to be done you have yo get creative in order to stick to your diet.
Below, there's an easy recipe to make with ingredients most people have at home, I used apples and eggs, and some cinnamon. This is an ideal breakfast recipe for people who want to get started on a Paleo diet as well. It's still sweet because of the apple, but has a lot of protein because of the eggs and by far not as much carbs as the usual sandwich, muffin or bagel.
When I got home today I found a few bags with vegetables (winter carrots, leeks and beets, yum!) in my hallway and when I went up the stairs to my living room there was a large bag from a cookware store waiting for me! Without me knowing, my parents had visited (unfortunately I wasn't home...) and left me all those things.
In the bag was some tea, trail mix and.. a brand new frying pan!! The most luxurious frying pan I've ever seen, I must say.. I totally love it!
I used to buy a new frying pan every 4 months or so, because the nonstick layer kept getting nasty, greasy spots on it. Even while I cleaned my pan right after cooking every single time! Besides, I'd heard those nonstick layers are poisonous when they're damaged and even when they're intact you might still get small amounts of it in your system. Not something I was keen on getting..
The pan is from the WOLL Induction line. It's pretty heavy and looks very, very durable. It has a titanium coating, which doesn't involve health risks. You can even remove the handle, so you can put it in the oven. How easy is that? I can't wait to start cooking with it really soon! Thank you mom and dad!!
Apple omelet (serves 1)
- 1 small apple, grated or finely chopped
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp vegetable oil
1. Put the chopped or grated apple in a bowl. Add the eggs and cinnamon and stir until well combined.
2. Heat the oil in a small frying pan and pour in the apple mixture.
3. Reduce heat to medium and fry the omelet for a few minutes until the top is set and the bottom is browned.
4. Flip the omelet and fry the other side for another couple of minutes until the other side has browned as well. Serve warm.
