I've been doing more cooking!

Now granted, that's not why I've not been keeping up with blogging...I've just been too flippin busy between work, the kiddo, the husband, planning an actual vacation (seriously...it is booked, I've ordered a passport, I have requested the time off work...we will be nowhere near NW Ohio the day I turn 40), stepping up my game at the gym to make sure I can rock a bikini on my birthday on a cruise ship far far away, etc.  And cooking.  I've discovered that I kind of actually like it.  So far, this whole paleo thing, the recipes haven't disappointed.  And have been easy.  Even fun.  Some of the highlights:

Spaghetti Squash & Meatballs

This was seriously simple.  And seriously good.  I cannot recall ever having spaghetti squash previously, so wasn't really sure what to expect.  What went into this?  Well, besides the spaghetti squash...I made the meatballs from ground turkey with various spices, onions, etc. thrown in and a tomato sauce/paste combo with, again, various spices thrown in as well as onions and garlic.  If nothing else, Stella certain enjoyed playing with it!  I was going to throw a picture of that in here as well...but really, I don't want to overkill the toddler making a mess out of spaghetti sauce thing!

Apple Streusel Egg Muffins (I think that's what they were called):

I got up early one morning to make these...figuring I'd get these started, in the oven and I'd do a yoga video while they were baking.  I underestimated the time I'd need to prepare!  By the time I had them in the oven, I needed to get a shower or run the risk of being late for work (actually, the fear these days is getting Stella to daycare late, but that is a story for a different day).  These were good...definitely...I think was expecting something a bit more sweet (given the apples involved) so wasn't sure what to make of them initially when biting into one.  However, once my taste buds readjusted, I realized they were quite good.  And from what I understand, Stella thought so as well...eating one in three bites before dinner that night.

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

Yeah, these definitely didn't disappoint.  And so simple!!  I made these up Saturday morning...and Stella and I definitely had our share Saturday!

I made up other dishes...a few repeats, a few simple items using typical paleo ingredients.  We always have a bag of chicken breasts in the freezer so if we aren't planning something specific or whatever, just defrost a few of those, cook them up in coconut oil and throw whatever spices catch my eye at that point.  Since we've started experimenting with this, seems we always have veggies in the fridge ready to go for a side dish.  For the most part, I haven't had much difficulty finding the necessary ingredients to keep with the paleo diet.  All of the recipes so far have come out of the two cookbooks I posted previously but I have a couple of additional paleo cookbooks downloaded on my kindle and my husband bought one that is specifically for athletes.  Given that most of the dishes have been simple to make and tasty, I haven't had much problem getting him on board with this.  However, we haven't gone 100%.  I love my morning oatmeal at work as well as a bowl of granola with almond milk at night and a few other odds and ends.  I have, however, given up most dairy at this point as well as bread and pasta.  I am also giving seriously consideration to getting into crossfit and seems that a paleo diet seems to be a big part of the crossfit lifestyle.  I'll keep you (whoever 'you' may be) posted from time to time on this paleo thing. 

If you (again, whoever 'you' maybe) are at all interesting in finding out more about paleo, I have a few links posted on my blog (just look to the right...under the heading "What I find interesting...").  I'd also recommend doing some additional research on your own.  The two cookbooks I have purchased would be decent starting points...especially the 'Practical Paleo' book.  It includes a section that has several 30-day meal plan to meet individual (health, medical fitness, etc.) individual needs.