So Paleo, a caveman would eat it.

Congratulations Paleo challengers you've made it to the final week of the Sweet Cheeks Paleo Challenge! You are now all official Cavemen! : ) And what healthy Cavemen you are. Here's some of what you neanderthals are saying:

"I love it and I feel better than ever and have easily lost weight."
"Due to illness I have been unable to train so I didn't expect much. Imagine my surprise when I stepped on the scale and discovered I had lost 8 pounds. I'm looking forward to making this a permanent lifestyle."
"Feeling great, yesterday my Endurance class was really good, running a 5K felt so good! For me it's all about how I feel, don't have much weight to lose, but I am feeling great when I get up in the morning, when I work out......it's really a great feeling!!!!!!!"
"My waist size measures 1.5 " LESS than when I started this Paleo Challenge. Woo Hoo!!"

Awesome, awesome and more awesome!

This week put it on cruise control, sit back and reap the Paleo benefits! Continue on with all the good habits we've put into fruition this past month - no sugar, dairy, grains, legumes or processed foods.
And then on the 4th of July, throw caution to the wind and eat your face off. Drink beer, gorge on barbecue chicken, potato salad and flag cake! Enjoy every single second of it because the next day you may not be feeling so well. As delicious as a flag cake is, it was not a diet staple of the old school Cavepeople. Hopefully your belly ache will motivate you to continue on with Paleo as a permanent part of your daily eating. And I mean that in the nicest way.

Shrimp "Pad Thai"

1 pound of cooked large shrimp unfrozen
1/2 head of cabbage finely shredded or sliced
1 onion finely sliced
1 green pepper and 1 red pepper, sliced into strips
1 bunch of green onions, sliced into 2 inch pieces (separate whites from greens)
2 eggs
1/4 cup chopped cashews
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
3 Tablespoons sesame oil
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce or other hot sauce
1 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 fresh limes, squeezed


First fry the scrambled eggs in a skillet and then slice into strips and set aside.
Next heat a large skillet with the coconut oil and add cabbage, peppers, onion and the whites from the green onions. Saute at medium high heat until the vegetables are tender.
As the veggies are cooking, in a small bowl mix together sesame oil, olive oil, Sriracha sauce, ginger and lime. This is your sauce.
Then add the green part of the green onions, egg strips, shrimp and sauce. Mix together well and stir until the shrimp are hot.
Sprinkle with cashews.
Enjoy!

Looks like hummus, tastes like hummus, Paleo hummus!

Congratulations challengers!! it's week three of the Sweet Cheeks Paleo Challenge! We've been getting great feedback from you so far and we're super duper proud of you! This week we're tacking on TWO more - no grains and no legumes (Which includes peanuts, beans and soy).

Two of the most common questions I'm going to address are 1. why no legumes? and 2. if you don't eat grains, what do you eat?!

First off, legumes. We all remember the childhood song "Beans, beans good for the heart! The more you eat, the more y..." well you know the rest of it! So why on earth are we giving up beans? The answer is in the song folks! Just the fact that they can cause gastrointestinal distress should be enough for our concern.
I'm gonna get a little scientific on you, ready? Legumes are high in lectins, protease inhibitors and phytates. Although beans have been pegged as the healthy protein alternative to meat, they in fact may actually make protein deficiency worse! Protease inhibitors actually interfere with the breakdown of proteins into amino acids. Poor vegetarians are just flat out of luck! Phytates are known to inhibit the absorption of important minerals such as calcium magnesium, iron and zinc in our digestive tracts. And lectins are a culprit found in inflammation and autoimmune diseases. Along with making you...ahem... gassy, most legumes are actually poisonous if eaten raw. Does this mean cavemen never tooted??!

Secondly, sans grains what does one eat. Some of you may remember our first no grains challenge so you already know there is plenty of grub that's grain free to choose from. Please turn around and hug someone who is giving up grains for the first time and let them know everything is gonna be alright. Heehee! People, don't freak out, you don't have to give up your favorite breads or muffins, just modify! Instead of cooking with flour, substitute almond meal or coconut flour. Find inspiration in our cinnamon bun muffins, coconut blueberry cakes and banana pancakes !! Sounds too good to be true, I know, but I promise, it's grain free! When grains go, a lot of folks are also stumped with what to snack on. Well lucky for you this post is dedicated to the munchies! Please find an appropriate snack and go to town.

Before I get to the food I want to remind everyone of one more very important message. As with all of our challenges, take this one to whatever level works best for YOU. I want you to be successful. I want this challenge to teach you about healthy lifestyle choices that will stay with you after our challenge is over. I want you to be happy and look forward to eating. There are a lot of foods we are limiting beginning this week, but don't be so strict. Starving, miserable and bored with your meals, aint' gonna get us nowhere!

This has now turned into the longest post I've ever written. : ) Ahhhhh thank you very much!!

Zucchini Hummus
3 medium zucchini
1/2 cup tahini (found at Trader Joes)
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons lemon Juice

1 Teaspoon sea salt

1 Teaspoon cumin

1 1/2 Teaspoons crushed garlic

Sprinkle of Paprika (for garnish)

Peel the green skins off the zucchini. Slice peeled zucchini into thin slices or small chunks.
Combine all ingredients except Paprika into food processor and blend until creamy and thick.
If not desired consistency add a little bit of water while blending. Sprinkle with paprika for garnish.
Enjoy!

Inspired by makeeverydayraw.




It's kinda odd, every once and a while one of 'em does actually taste like a potato chip!


Spicy Kale Chips

1 medium bunch kale, washed, stemmed, and chopped into 1-inch pieces OR you can buy this organic and already prepared at Whole Foods, and it wasn't even that expensive.
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Whisk together olive oil, sea salt and cayenne pepper in a small bowl. Place kale in a large bowl and pour dressing over it, then massage into the leaves with your hands.
Spread kale onto a large baking sheet in a single layer (you may have to do this in batches).
Bake for 10 minutes. Then stir the chips up. Then bake in the oven for another 8 minutes or until the chips turn crispy.
Enjoy!




Cherry tomatoes!! A tangy tastey snack to pop in your mouth!



Paleo PB&J

1 jar almond butter
1 jar apple sauce
spoon
you


Dip spoon into almond butter.
Dip spoon into apple sauce.
Insert in mouth.
Enjoy!




Salty and sweet!! This deluxe duo can be found at Whole Foods.





And finally...Darren's Protein Bars!

A fellow CFLA-er has been cooking up a storm in his own kitchen! Yes, there is sweetener in these bars, Darren is not Paleo-ing strict. Remember what I said folks, enjoy what you eat!

8 Egg whites
1 cup Raw unsweetened coconut
2-3 oz. unsweetened blueberries
1 package raw coco nibs
1lb. whole almonds cut and diced
10oz. almond flour
5 "scoops" pure stevia powder
5-6oz. honey
1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract


Mix in BIG bowl, spread out in VERY WELL GREASED glass dish and bake for approximately 25 minutes at 375º. Then remove from oven cool and reheat to "dehydrate" at 290-300 for 35-40 minutes to make firm.

Cut and enjoy!

Farewell to the cream in your coffee, the sprinkles of feta on your salad and the beloved butter. This week we are eliminating dairy from our diets! Hooray- The cows can keep their milk this week, and next and the next one too!

Why dairy you ask. Well, as some of you might know we are one of the only populations that continues to drink milk past our years as an infant. Many adults have lactose intolerance, which means they lack the enzyme to digest milk. Not to mention so many of the cows that give us milk found in the grocery store are full of antibiotics and hormone which are then passed onto us when we consume their products. If these cows were grass fed and there was no pasteurization process, maybe we could say lets enjoy a glass of milk.

What about calcium? Milk and dairy products is where you get it right? There are many better sources to get calcium from, try sesame seeds, flax seeds, many different nuts, green leafy vegtables, sardines and salmon too!! This small list seems good to me!

Are you in love with milk and need a milk replacement? Try coconut milk, almond or other nut milks. Be weary of soy because is has also gone through a lot of processing to be what it is.

Good Luck Sweet Cheeks Paleo Challenge Participants! Now a little poultry recipe to share!

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Orange Chicken

3 chicken breasts (or more depending on who your feeding)
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp crushed garlic

orange sauce
juice of 3 large oranges-about 1 1/2c
1 tsp minced ginger (they sell some at Whole foods)
1 small pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
3 tsp coconut flour and enough warm water to dissolve (use small bowl and whisk to dissolve)

1-Cut chicken breast into small pieces.
2-Heat fry pan with coconut oil, then add chicken.
3- While chicken is browning-Juice three oranges- I cut them and half and squeezed them, also used a wooden spoon to get as much juice out as I could.
4-Mix juice, ginger and seasonings in large bowl, in a smaller bowl dissolve coconut flour in enough hot water to make creamy paste, when chicken is brown add garlic then orange juice mixture to pan and let simmer to thicken.

Cook for another 10 min

Steam your favorite vegetables while cooking your chicken- I had broccoli and bok choy on hand! Enjoy this diary free dish and let us know what's happening with you all in the paleo challenge!

And so it begins! We start our Paleo challenge with week one of NO SUGAR. No sugar? No problem! Our friend No Sugar has visited us many times before. In fact we LOVE when No Sug' comes into town! No Sug' is a flirt and is full of compliments always telling me how rested I look, how productive I'm being, how fresh and clear my skin is and how slim I'm looking. Oh No Sug' stop, tee hee! Just stop it, (blush) you're too kind!

Week 1 guidelines: Do not eat sugars of any kind, real or artificial. No maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, Splenda, Stevia, molasses, sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, fructose, any processed sugar, etc, you get the idea.

Mark Sisson has an excellent blog post I highly recommend reading which discusses why you should avoid sugars and explains the different types of sugars out there.

Good luck Sweet Cheekees and keep us updated!

Turkey meatloaf muffins

1 pound ground turkey
1 egg
1/2 cup salsa (I recommend using Trader Joes Salsa Athentica. It contains no sugar and is quite delicious!)
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 zucchini shredded, about 1 cup
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup coconut flour or almond meal
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl combine the turkey, egg, salsa, red bell pepper, zucchini, onion, coconut flour and pepper. Mix well with hands until blended.

Line muffin pan with muffin cups. Fill cups with rounded handfuls of the meat mixture. I filled 12 muffin cups with this recipe.

Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Top with salsa.

Enjoy!

No chameleons were harmed in the making of this salad.

Salads are like chameleons! (Go with me on this one.) As a chameleon can change colors with it's surrounding environments, salads change colors with it's surrounding season. The fall brings orange colors of pumpkins and squash, winter is white with bok choy and cauliflower, spring brings greens of artichokes and asparagus, and summer is reds with strawberries and peppers. (Now you're picking up what I'm throwing down!) How can anyone ever get sick of salads with such an endless and changing variety of crunchy combinations?!

Paleo pointer of the post: As we transition into Paleo eating next month with our challenge, I want everyone to remember the importance of balancing the food groups we consume. Don't eat a big breakfast of only protein eggs and bacon, followed by the carb loaded lunch of a big salad. Instead eat a balance of proteins, fats and carbs for every meal. I believe Jeff Martin, founder of CFKids says it best - "Look at your plate, make a fist, eat that much meat every meal; turn your hand over and fill it with nuts and seeds, eat that much good fat, fill the rest of your plate with stuff you found in the fruit and vegetable aisle. Fill your plate this way at every meal, don't eat more." Simple and doable, just what Sweet Cheeks is all about!


Summertime Salad with Orange Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lime
1 orange
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
10 cups fresh spinach
½ cup walnuts, toasted
1 avocado, cubed
1 ½ cups strawberries, quartered
1 lemon to squeeze on top
Fresh cracked pepper to shake on top

To toast walnuts, place in a frying pan over medium high heat. Cook 3-4 minutes, shaking the pan often to keep the nuts from burning. The nuts are done when they are slightly golden. Set aside to cool.

Whisk together olive oil, the juice of 1 lime, the juice of 1 orange and 1/8 teaspoon each of sea salt and pepper. You've just made orange vinaigrette!

Toss together spinach, strawberries, walnuts, avocado and orange vinaigrette in a large bowl. Top with the juice of 1 lemon and freshly cracked pepper.

Enjoy!

A little humor to break the ice ; )

Have you been hiding bagels underneath your pillow lately? Is your Brita pitcher filled with milk? Do you sprinkle sugar on your scrambled eggs in the morning but pretend it's sea salt when someone asks? If you answered yes to any of these questions then you have ... PALEOPHOBIA!

Trying out a Paleo lifestyle is nothing to be afraid of. Here at HQ, we've devised a plan that breaks down Paleo eating into simple doable steps. Instead of going cold turkey on everything all at once (eeeep!), we'll be progressively phasing out one food group per week, which will gently ease us into this unfamiliar territory and land us in full on Paleo power mode for the entire last week of our challenge!

Here's an overview of the Sweet Cheeks strategy:

Week 1 NO SUGAR
6/1-6/6 No sugar?! No problem. We've all successfully completed the Sweet Cheeks no sugar challenges of the past! This week will be a piece of cake...cake! Errrr... you know what I mean.

Week 2 NO DAIRY
6/7-6/13 In addition to no sugar, we're tacking on dairy in week 2. Time to rinse out your Brita!

Week 3 NO GRAINS AND LEGUMES
6/14-6/20 This is the week s#@t gets serious! No sugar, no dairy, no grains and no legumes. Take a deep breath!! Relax, you can do it! Luckily you've been prepped by The Cheeks with our recent no grains challenge and already know how awesome you'll be feeling by the end of week 3.

Week 4 NO PROCESSED FOODS
6/21-6/27 Make it yourself! This is what you've been training for all these months with The Cheeks! We're so proud of how many of you have told us you are cooking now. Time to step up and prep up ... your foods that is!

Week 5 LIVING THE PALEO LIFESTYLE
6/28-7/4 You've now eliminated everything un-Paleo and put it into cruise control! This week you can just sit back and enjoy while reaping the many wonderful benefits of living the Paleo lifestyle.

See Cheekees? It's not so scary after all, is it? : )

Cavemen had sausage, right?!


"Paleo?! You mean that caveman stuff? So you're telling me you want me to eat twigs and grass and meat and stuff?! Gross."
No, no, no that's not what I want! The point of our up coming month long Paleo challenge isn't for you to dislike eating. Sweet Cheeks LOVE eating!! As with all of our challenges, you may take this one to whatever level works best for you. If there is a teeny tiny bit of sugar found in the salsa you love to pour over your morning eggs, it's okay, eat it. If you love chowing on Trader Joes chicken mango sausages (I do, I do!!), that's fine, it's a great protein source. You MUST enjoy what you're eating for this challenge to work. Paleo isn't a temporary fad diet, it's a way of life.
So what's the point of all this then? To continue to challenge your relationship with food. To cut cravings and bad habits, to change the emotional connection you have with food, to understand the impact of all the irritating foods you don't even realize are causing you to feel groggy and foggy, to cut back on muffin tops and love handles and sausage casings or whatever you call it, and to just flat our feel pretty darn amazing (and of course, PERKY!!).


Sausage Stuffed Tomatoes

1 pound uncooked sausage, squeezed out of casing (There are a variety of sausages you can use for this recipe, I chose Trader Joes Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage)
4 large firm tomatoes - red, yellow or orange
1 medium onion, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook the sausage and onion together in a skillet until mostly cooked through. Drain any excess fat.
Chop the tops off of the tomatoes and scoop out the insides with a spoon.
Place the tomatoes in an oven proof dish.
Fill the tomatoes with the sausage mixture.
Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes until the tomatoes are soft.
Enjoy!

Inspired by Recipe Source.