New Name...New View...New Outlook

I'm back! Yeah, I've been quiet for a while. NaNoWriMo came and went, and I successfully finished the first draft of my FIRST FICTION NOVEL!! I'm a little excited.

The holidays hit, and then January sent Indiana into a whirlwind of horrible weather. Actually, that's what I kept hearing. What I felt like I was experiencing was an Indiana winter from my childhood...only a little colder than I remember. Seriously, I don't remember having that many days under 0 degrees F.

I've also done some thinking on my diet. I totally blew the Paleo thing over the holidays and never completely jumped back on the bandwagon, so to speak. While Paleo does give me a decent blueprint for dealing with some of my allergies, I have a hard time with the whole "no grain...EVER" thing.

I kinda miss rice.

And Kroger has some really good gluten free frozen waffles.

And Udi makes really good gluten free bread (better than I ever came up with, anyway), pizza crust, and blueberry muffins (though I was less than impressed with the cinammon rolls).

My doctor had said that I could incorporate gluten free grains back into my diet in small amounts...and preferably as whole grains. While I still don't eat a lot of grains...and most of my baking still only involves using almond and coconut flour...I just don't feel like I'm..."religious,"...or even dedicated enough to call myself Paleo or Primal.

But I am a totally a Hoosier (whether I like it or not). And I still love food!

And I've had some amazing food (non-Paleo) that I really want to talk about, and I want to do it guilt-free. Because I'm tired of feeling guilty about eating. And I'm tired of being labeled for what I eat.

Leaves Falling and Recipe Gathering

It's the Holiday Season...but not that one!

So I was walking into Costco a couple of weeks ago to pick up a couple of things, and I saw all the lovely Christmas decorations.

It was the BEGINNING of September. What???!!!!

Really, Christmas decorations being out before the middle of November, in my humble opinion, is a sin! Before my birthday is an abomination! (My birthday is at the end of September, in case you were wondering.) It's Autumn, people! We should be eagerly watching for the leaves to be falling from the trees, not looking for snow falling from the sky.

My brother doesn't even acknowledge Christmas decorations are in the store until the weekend after Thanksgiving. He will look at the shelves and comment, "Look at all those empty shelves. You would think the store would want to put merchandise on those shelves."

My brother cracks me up. Never a dull moment around that man.

But this does make me start thinking about that wonderful holiday tradition that everyone in my family loves...cookie baking season. I'm going to start hunting around for awesome Paleo/Primal cookie recipes. Keep coming back for more yummy ideas as I find and test them out.

Since it's currently Autumn, what are your favorite Fall recipes? Do any include cookies?

A Long Time Gone...But Now I'm Back

I dropped the ball. I'm sorry.

I admit it. I said I would post once a week, and then several weeks past with...nothing. I swear I didn't fall off the face of the world.

I got a contract job. And it ate my life.

And I wasn't prepared!

I should have had some posts back-logged, so I could just go in and post instead of needing to take the time to write one out (because time was something I didn't have).

My excuses are lame...I know. But it is what it is. And I'm back, ready to blog again...and backlogging like a mad woman!

Heart Healthy? Or Not?

My mother has a congenital heart defect that causes holes to develop in the heart muscle. Recently she had heart surgery. Again.

This is the second heart surgery she has had in her life, but the procedure was totally different. The first time she had surgery, they cracked her breast bone and opened her up. Then they put in a plastic piece to fix a hole in her heart.

That was 40 years ago.

 

Now, however, they didn’t even put her completely under anesthesia; she was in “twilight mode.” They used a catheter that went up from her groin arteries to reach her heart. Once there, the doctor used a tool that entered the holes (there were four of them!) in her heart, injected a glue-like substance, and removed the tool. The substance expanded and stuck to the heart muscle around it, closing off the hole.

We joked that my mother had her heart spackled. Ever having an awesome sense of humor, she thought that was funny.

I love my mother.

While visiting her in the hospital, though, I noticed something that bothered me. They had her on a “heart healthy” diet…makes sense when you consider she just had heart surgery! But the first thing they fed her was spaghetti with meat sauce, salad with Italian dressing, and a breadstick. Really?! That’s heart healthy?

When the attendant came and took her order for breakfast the next morning, her options were 1 of the following:

• Cream of Wheat
• Oatmeal
• Rice cereal

She also had the option of applesauce or bananas, turkey sausage, and wheat toast or an English muffin.

I sat appalled at what they were feeding my mother, and it took everything in my self-control to not throw a fit in the hospital! Pasta and bread stick? Cream of wheat AND wheat toast? Really?

Feed her meat, I wanted to yell! Feed her an avocado slice and some sauteed onions or tomato slices with her turkey sausage. Add some strawberries (she loves them!). And for goodness sake, add an egg to the plate!

I realized I would be in serious trouble if I went into the hospital for any cardiovascular issues. Between my allergies and intolerances, the “heart healthy” diet that the FDA encourages heart patients to follow would either starve me or kill me!

Apparently they brought her fish that evening…she’s allergic to the mercury in fish. Thankfully they listened to her and brought her something else to eat. I think she said it was a chef salad…and it was wonderful! 

Have you encountered any dietary issues while staying in the hospital? How did you address those issues with the staff? Did they listen? Please share, so we can all get some ideas on how to handle this situation.

"Primal" Parfait? Really??!!

I was at the Howard County 4-H Fair last week, waiting for the 4-H Junior Miss Queen Pageant to start. My niece was competing. So while waiting, I did what most people do at fairs in the Midwest.

Eat. Of course. Why else do people go to fairs and festivals? It's not like we can get elephant ears, walking tacos, and deep fried Oreos just anywhere.

As I was wandering around, wondering if there was anything even remotely Primal/Paleo that I could eat at this deep fried fest, I came upon Porky's BBQ of Lafayette, Indiana, home of the Pork Parfait.

Pork Parfait. Really. Check this out!

The Pork Parfait. Yes, I had already taken a bite out of it. But...you get the idea.

I had to ask. How could I not?

A Pork Parfait is barbecued pulled pork, mashed potatoes, and barbecue sauce layered an ice cream parfait cup. Ignoring the soy and corn syrup that is probably in the sauce (and the milk in the potatoes...or the potatoes), this might be the closest thing to Primal/Paleo at the entire fair!

Of course, I had to try one. It was quite yummy. A little too heavy eating for the hot Indiana summer sun for my taste, but I would happily sit down with this parfait anytime in the other three seasons here in the Hoosier state.

Porky's BBQ also has pulled pork you can get without the mashed potatoes and parfait cup. They also have beef brisket, which is quite yummy (I had a sample). Their meats are slow cooked to moist, melt in your mouth perfection.

I highly recommend them if you're at the Indiana State Fair this August 2-18. According to Porky BBQ's Facebook page, they're going to be there. And their website has a coupon for 10% off at the fair. An excellent deal for excellent barbecue!

Back and Ready to go!

Good ole Chicago...home of some tasty Primal eating

Yes, I'm back. Sorry about the pause in thoughts. My full time job ended, and I was in the process of starting up my new endeavor, SDG Scribal Solutions. Check out my writing website.

I admit I wasn't as good about my eating habits in the past month or so as I should have been. But I'm back on track and ready to post on a regular basis.

This week there will be two posts. After this week, look for me on Tuesdays to see what crazy adventures I've been on in my Primal/Paleo journey.

A Good Paleo Dinner

Now THIS is more like it!

Top sirloin steak broiled to a medium rare. Baked sweet potato with some Kerrygold butter and cinnamon, and steamed Brussels sprouts. This is more like it.

Enjoy your holiday weekend!