W30D15

I woke up this morning and decided that I wanted to fast today. At the time of this post, I'll have gone without food for 27 hours. I don't know all of the reasons why, but I always feel GREAT when I fast. I have no stomach issues, no headaches, and consistent energy levels. I even worked out tonight. I did 45 minutes on my rowing machine and then spent 15 minutes doing yoga stretches and working on inversions (a.k.a. head stands).

I really need to research fasting some more, because as great as I feel now, not eating for extended periods of time is just not going to work for me. So I need to figure out what it is that I'm eating that is causing me to have lingering stomach issues. Thoughts anyone?

Roast Chicken

4 lb free-range chicken

2 Tbls olive oil

3 tsp salt

3 tsp pepper

1 lemon

4 cloves garlic, smashed

2 sweet potatoes, chopped into 2" pieces

10 carrots, roughly chopped

1 yellow onion, thickly sliced

1 bunch celery, roughly chopped

1. Preheat the oven or roaster to 350 F.

2. Rinse the inside and outside of the chicken. Pat dry and then coat with olive oil.

3. Rub 2 tsp salt and 2 tsp pepper into the skin of the bird. Make cuts in the skin near the wings of the bird and use the holes to rub salt and pepper under the skin as well.

4. Rub the remaining salt and pepper on the inside of the bird.

5. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the lemon on the inside of the bird. Then place the lemon halves and the smashed garlic cloves into the chicken.

6. Spread the sweet potatoes, onion, carrots, and celery chunks across the bottom of the pan. Use a rack to place the chicken above the vegetables.

7. Cook for 1 hour (roughly 15 minutes per pound of chicken). Halfway through, baste the chicken and drain off the liquid in the bottom of the pan; this will make sure the bottom of the chicken gets crispy as well.

ECD7: 45 minutes rowing machine, 15 minutes yoga

W30D10

Well, I managed to wake up at 4:58 a.m. to get my ass over to my Krav Maga studio for their 5:25 a.m. Meta (metamorphosis/boot camp) class, followed by the 6 a.m. Krav Maga 1 class. In the 30 minutes of Meta, I did 66 burpees, 54 hollow rocks, 54 kettle bell push-presses, 54 up-down planks, and 54 Krav get-ups. We were supposed to do more, but I did move fast enough... for good reason, I was exhausted. We worked on elbows, knees, head-butts, and side choke holds today. By the time I got done with my Krav class, I had scraped off the skin of my right elbow due to throwing elbows against a pad, had gotten elbowed in the head more times that I could count, and had a slightly rug-burned neck from snatching my partner's hands away from it and out of the choke hold. Yeah, it can get a bit violent, but I always leave feeling happy and energetic. Right now, roughly 16 hours after the start of my first workout, I'm starting to feel the muscle soreness. I can only imagine what tomorrow is going to be like.

I'm thinking about getting a Fitbit. Any thoughts? Suggestions? Is it worth getting one?

Chicken and Sweet Potato Stuffed Peppers

(this is pretty similar to a recipe I posted last year, with some differences)

1 1/2 lb chicken, cut into 1" pieces

3 bell peppers, whichever color you want

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1/2 green pepper, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 small jalapeno, finely diced

2 tsp chili pepper

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 Tbls lime juice

2 Tbls olive oil

1 sweet potato

1. Mix your ingredients together in a large bowl or gallon-sized plastic bag. Toss/shake until the chicken is evenly coated. Cover/seal and place in the fridge for an hour or two. Take a break, read a book, or cook other things.

2. In the meantime or after you get back to cooking after your break, heat your oven to 400 F. Prick your sweet potato with a fork all over and bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes, or until tender. Remove from oven and let cool. Then chop up half to all of the sweet potato into 1 cm chunks. Set aside.

3. Remove for chicken/veggie mixture from the oven and spread on a pan. Cook in the 400 F for 25-30 minutes until almost completely done.

4. While this is cooking, slice the tops off of the bell peppers and remove the seeds.

5. Mix together the chicken and the sweet potatoes and stuff into the peppers.

6. Place on a pan and cook for 30 minutes, or until peppers have softened.

ECD2: 30 minute boot camp style + 1 hour Krav Maga

W30D9

This round of Whole 30 isn't going as well as some of my others. Usually I feel better within a few days of starting a round of what I term super-strict Paleo. I normally feel more energetic, I sleep better, my stomach gives me no issues, and so on. My skin has gotten a bit better on this round, but it's still isn't clear. I'm not as bloated as I was the morning that I started (1" from my waist to be exact).

I guess part of it probably comes down to the fact that I've continued to consume alcohol for the last week, which means I'm technically not doing a Whole 30. While I'm not drinking on a daily basis, I'm thinking that I'd probably feel better if I cut out the alcohol completely. The problem is that I like drinking alcohol with friends. So I'm making my own rule: no alcohol Sunday through Thursday. In addition to this, I'm no longer going to watch TV shows on my iPad just before bed. I'm not going to cut TV out completely, because I fully intend on watching some of the Olympics which starts up this weekend, but not watching it while laying in bed is probably a good idea and will help me fall asleep more quickly. Starting today, I'm also cutting myself off from facebook, excluding my blog posts to my facebook page: Adventures in Paleo-land. I seem to have a lot of caveats to everything. Here's the complete list of my new rules:

1. No alcohol Sunday through Thursday
2. No TV at night, except for the Olympics, but not within 1 hour of bed time
3. No social media
4. Exercise every day -- The most important of the bunch!

According to the Mayo Clinic, exercise...

1. controls weight
2. combats health conditions and diseases
3. improves mood
4. boosts energy
5. promotes better sleep
6. puts a spark back into your sex life
7. can be fun

And based on the article "Physical Activity and the Prevention of Depression: A Systemic Review of Prospective Studies" by George Mammen and Guy Faulkner, moderate exercise can both treat and prevent depression. American Journal of Preventive Medicine 2013; 45(5):649–657.

I'm really bad about exercising these days. I need a goal or some sort of punishment if I don't exercise. Which is why I'm having my parents hold me accountable. If I don't exercise in some form, whether it's a walk, yoga, rowing, or Krav Maga, for at least 1 hour per day (barring the plague/flu or serious injury), I have to pay my parents $100 each. That's $200 that I could devote to shopping or travel or eating out. And that's $200 that my parents get to hold over me. I don't like failing. And I really don't like giving my money away when I have control over the cause. Plus, if I win, my parents have to buy me a steak dinner. Yum! So wish me luck.

Exercise Challenge Day (ECD) 1: 1 hour Krav Maga Flex (somewhat intense yoga)

Spicy Pepper Frittata

6 eggs

1 1/2 Tbls coconut oil

1/2 cup diced onions

1/2 cup diced green pepper

2 minced jalapeno

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Heat 1 Tbls coconut oil in a medium oven-proof pan. Add the onions, green pepper, jalapeno and spices to the pan, cooking for about 5 minutes.

3. Add the last 1/2 Tbls of coconut oil and spread across the pan. Pour in the whisked eggs, and cook for 2 minutes or until the eggs at the bottom of the pan start to firm up.

4. Transfer pan to the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the eggs are thoroughly cooked. Remove from pan, slice, and serve. I ate mine with a quarter of an avocado.

Bolognese Sauce

Bolognese sauce refers to a meat-based red sauce generally used on broad/flat pasta (e.g. tagliatelle or fettuccine) or shorter tube shapes (e.g. penne). It typically consists of onion, carrots, and celery, as well as meat like ground beef or pancetta, a bit of tomato, and some wine. I cooked mine without the wine, but it still tastes delicious. The carrots give it a bit of sweetness. Enjoy!

Bolognese Sauce

1 Tbls olive oil
1 1/4 lb grass-fed ground beef
1/2 red onion, finely diced
1 cup carrots, finely diced
1/4 cup celery, finely diced
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 6-oz can tomato puree

1. Heat 1 Tbls olive oil over medium heat on the stove.
2. Break up the beef into small pieces and cook until thoroughly brown.
3. Once cooked, remove the beef from the heat and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
4. Drain some of the fat from the pan, then add the onions, carrots, and celery to the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes or until veggies start to soften.
5. Mix the beef back in and stir in the tomatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 20-30 minutes to thicken.
6. Serve with zucchini noodles. If you don't have a mandoline, use a peeler to cut the zucchini thin and wide.

Meatloaf Muffins

I have no recollection of ever eating meatloaf growing up. I asked my mom and she insists that we she did make it a few times, and I guess I can't remember every meal my family ever ate, so if I forgot a a few servings of meatloaf... oh well. If I go with my memory though, these "muffins" are the first meatloaf I've ever had. For some reason I had this preconceived notion that I didn't like meatloaf... that it was gross. It appears that I was wrong, because I thoroughly enjoyed these.

Meatloaf Muffins

1 lb ground beef

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup shredded cabbage

2 Tbls tomato paste

3 Tbls almond flour

1 egg

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Mix all ingredients together and distribute into muffin tin, filling to the brim. (The mix makes roughly 8 muffins)

3. Bake for 30 minutes. Then transfer to paper-towel lined plate.

Pumpkin Sausage Soup

In honor of the first week of October happening this week, I've decided to do a week of pumpkin recipes. Someone forgot to tell Texas weather that it's fall, but the spirit of fall is in the air. Grocery stores are displaying tons of pumpkin desserts, Halloween stores are open, and Christmas decorations are already on sale. But then again, I've seen Christmas decorations in stores since June. Anyways, pumpkin recipes will be happening for the week. I'm pretty excited, but since I'm cooking for one, and apparently never cook small batches of anything, I'm going to be eating pumpkin at EVERY meal this week. I would say that I'm concerned about getting tired of pumpkin, but I LOVE pumpkin, so I think we're safe.

Pumpkin Sausage Soup

2 Tbls olive oil

1 pound sweet Italian sausage (bulk if you can find it)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, diced

1.5 Tbls sage leaves, chiffonade

3/4 cup white wine (I used Pinot Grigio)

1 1/4 cup chicken broth, homemade if you have it

1 bay leaf

1 cup pureed pumpkin

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Salt and pepper, to your taste

1. Heat 1 Tbls of olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Once the olive oil is hot, add the sausage. If you couldn't find mild (a.k.a. "sweet") Italian sausage, and instead have the sausage itself, make a light cut lengthwise along the sausage, then fold flip the sausage inside how, keeping hold of the casing. Use your hands to break up the sausage to smaller chunks.

2. Cook the sausage for a few minutes, until it's thoroughly cooked.

3. Transfer the sausage to paper towel, to allow the fat to be drained.

4. Heat another 1 Tbls of olive oil to a skillet and toss in the garlic and onions. Cook for 5 minutes until onions are soft.

5. Now add the sage, bay leaf, and wine to the pan. Cook for about 5 minutes to allow the wine to reduce. (To chiffonade the sage, roll up the leaves, and then make small slices from the rolled edge.)

6. Mix in the chicken broth and pumpkin puree. Once the concoction starts to bubble, reduce the heat to low.

7. Stir in the coconut milk and the sausage, and cook for 5-10 minutes to allow the soup to thicken.

Whole 30 - Day 22

I smell like a candy cane right now. Weird, right? Especially considering that it's September; I'm a few months early for the Christmas holiday... just a few. Anyways, you're probably wondering why the smell of peppermint is wafting from my skin. Well, in my ever-encompassing effort to incorporate the Paleo ideals into my life, I bought a bottle of Dr. Bronners Magic "All-One" castile soap which is supposedly a good option for Paleo/all-natural-fanatics, of which I'm becoming (or have already become). There are a lot of different scents available: tea tree, lavender, eucalyptus, almond, citrus, rose, peppermint, peppermint/hemp, aloe, and unscented. You can purchase it in bar form or in liquid form. Personally, I got my hands on an 8-oz bottle of the liquid soap. I probably would have gone for a different scent than peppermint, but it was the only option that came in 8-oz at the grocery store, and I didn't want to invest in a giant 32-oz bottle if I didn't like the stuff or the smell. Now, I've only used it once, but I have no complaints so far. My skin feels soft and minty-fresh. It also feels moisturized, which means that my skin isn't itchy right now, if you exclude the locations mosquito bites magically appeared after my Saturday morning row, and even they aren't terribly itchy.

You may be wondering what is castile soap, and why should I use it? Well, castile soap is the name of olive oil-based soaps that are made in similar style to that originating in Castile, Spain. Dr. Bronner's soap is a popular version that is well-known for the insane amount of tiny text all over the bottle's label, and more importantly for its foaminess. If you're like me, you're used to your soaps developing into a lather when you use them, however, there's some soaps out there that don't lather. For instance, Cetaphil is a soap that had been recommended to me by my dermatologist as a gentle face wash. It was moisturizing and gentle as claimed, but it didn't lather and I just felt like I wasn't getting clean. That being said, my experience with Cetaphil was ages ago (a.k.a. high school), and now that I've switched over to the oil cleansing method for my face, I no longer need that foaming action to consider my face clean. I haven't completely accepted that for my shower though, so Dr. Bronner's Magic "All-One" is a good option for me to start going more natural for soaps. I've looked up some recipes for making my own soap though, and I imagine it's going to happen some day. I mean, I've taken to making everything else and using natural household ingredients for everything from face wash to toothpaste to leave-in conditioner and moisturizer. Why wouldn't I eventually get around to making soap. Yeah, I see that in my future.

In the meantime, let's talk about the present, or technically the past at this point. After getting home from Krav Maga and a brief stop at Trader Joe's for some veggies and unsweetened dried fruit, I whipped up some steak with fajita veggies, and a side of plantain chips with salsa. For the fajita seasonings, refer to my post here: http://adventurepaleo.blogspot.com/2013/08/whole-30-day-4.html

I used a bag of frozen 3-pepper medley (red, green, and yellow) with onions. Toss that into a cast-iron skillet, and cook with the seasonings until it's melted and the excess water from freezing has started to evaporate. Then toss in the steak (or half a steak as shown above), cooking for a few minutes on each side until the insider reaches your desired pinkness. As always, go for the grass-fed beef if you can find it. And the plantain chips are a good option (when you can find them not cooked in canola oil) if you're really craving chips and salsa. Don't go wild on it, because we don't want to have too much dried fruit, and it falls into that iffy region of "Sex With Your Pants On." But I feel that as long as you don't eat ALL of the plantain chips in one sitting, you're probably okay. And if it feeds the craving, that great, and you can get back to all of the other healthier options.

Whole 30 - Day 16

Want an easy and inexpensive family meal? Go for a roast chicken. It's one of the least expensive options and it can easily feed your family. Oh, you're single? Join the club, and congrats! You now have enough chicken to last you for the next few days. I've posted recipes for roasting a whole chicken in the past, but here we go again. Slight variation from what I made when I went to Atlanta in April for my family's first round of chemo, so here you go.

Crispy Roast Chicken

1 whole chicken ~5-6 lb

2 small lemons, cut in half

1/2 bunch of thyme

salt and pepper - I used roughly equal portions, probably 2 Tbls each

3 Tbls olive oil

1 onion, halved and sliced

4 carrots, cut into 1" pieces

3 stalks celery, cut into 2" pieces

1 leek, sliced

1. Preheat oven to 425 F and set rack in the middle of the oven - if you have two racks in the middle, pick the upper one.

2. Thoroughly rinse the inside and outside of the chicken. Pat dry.

3. Sprinkle the entire inside and outside of the bird with salt and pepper. Rub in with your hands.

4. Make two small slices in the skin near the legs, and use your fingers to rub salt and pepper under the skin.

5. Stuff the inside of the bird with the thyme and three of the lemon halves.

6. Spread olive oil over the outside of the bird, rubbing it in (of course).

7. Sprinkle again with salt and pepper, and rub into the skin, yet again.

8. Squeeze the remaining lemon half over the bird to get some lemon flavor on the outside. Use a zester to add lemon zest to the outside of the bird.
9. Put the bird into a roasting pan if you have one, breast side down. If not, you can use a lasagna pan. 

10. Surround the bird with the onion, carrots, celery, and leek. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and a little bit of thyme if you have any leftover.

11. Cook for one hour, then flip over the bird. Use a baster to remove some of the liquid to a leftover glass jar. Remove the veggies from the tray.

12. Cook for another 30 minutes, then remove more of the liquid from the pan. Flip the bird over again, and cook for another 10 minutes. This is mainly to get the skin crispy and brown. Congrats, you're done.

Whole 30 - Day 4

Steak Fajitas

1 lb flank steak

1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 green pepper, cut into strips
1/2 red pepper, cut into strips
1/2 onion, cut into quarters and then into strips

1. Mix spices together and rub over the steak.

2. Place steak in a Ziploc bag in the fridge for at least an hour.
3. Heat 2 Tbls olive oil in a cast iron pan (or any pan) over medium-high heat. The pan is hot when a few drops of water sizzles when sprinkled onto the pan.
4. Place the peppers and onion into the pan and cook for a couple minutes, then clear out a space in the center and add the steak.

5. Cook for a few minutes on each side. Transfer steak to a plate and cover with tin foil. Let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Then serve with your veggies.

Pulled Pork

Pulled Pork

5-6 lb pork butt roast - bone-in
1 yellow onion, sliced
3 Tbls chili powder
1 Tbls parsley
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix the spices together in a large bowl (large enough to hold your pork roast).

Use your hands to rub the dry spices onto the pork roast.

Put one layer of onion slices at the bottom of the crock pot. Then put in the roast and cover with more onion.

Set the slow cooker on high for 4 hours, then change setting to low and cook for 4 hours.

Remove from crock-pot and transfer to a bowl/plate to let cool for a bit. Then grab a couple forks and start shredding.

21DSD Day 8 - Chemo

Well folks, I'm back in Atl to be with my parents for this next round of chemo. Yesterday we just took things easy. We took the dogs for two walks, finished one puzzle, and watching Rise of the Guardians and Resident Evil: Resurrection. I really enjoyed the first one. I thought it was super cute and funny. Resident Evil was a bit of a let down though. I've been a faithful Resident Evil since I watched the second film during my senior year of high school, probably slightly becasue of the movie itself, but mainly because of the good memories I associate with it. (Yes, you heard that right. Zombie movie = good times. I'm weird, right?) Anywho, we stayed busy, while still taking it easy. I whipped up some steak and roasted Brussels sprouts for dinner.

And got to use my parents' handy Wustof Silverpoint steak knives. Yep, they copied me because of how much I raved about my set.

Today we spent about 4 hours at the facility, which is a lot less than what we expected. The doctors started the chemo drip slowly (50 mL/h, then 100, 150, 200, and 300 after 30-minute intervals) in order to watch for any signs of allergic reaction, which of course kicked in after about 45 minutes. The allergic reaction we got today was a "weird-feeling," slightly itchy throat. We notified the nurse (Vanessa is really helpful), and they paused the chemo and started up a steroid drip to stop the reaction. The doctor basically told the nurse to use whatever drugs (steroids, anti-nausea, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, etc.) she thought we needed, considering all of the issues we encountered with the supposedly "nicer" chemo drug. After the steroid we progressed without a hitch.

We then headed home to start a new puzzle, (maybe you can tell that we like puzzles?), and eat a late lunch. We brought some food to snack on while we were at the doctor's office, but it didn't count as a meal. I brought a sugar-free chicken-andouille sausage, some proscuitto, and a mixture of almonds, pistachios, pecans, and pumpkin seeds.

After about an hour working on the puzzle, we took a nap break because some light-headedness and tiredness had set in. We checked temperature and blood pressure just to make sure there wasn't any fever, which is a concern if it goes over 100 F, or anything like that. I headed back to the puzzle after placing a trash can next to the bed just in case and leaving the yorkies in the room to "keep an eye on things" (Yes. The two 8-lb dogs are worriers and will stick close by when they know something isn't quite right.) A couple hours later, we were pulling together some dinner before calling it an early night, with some Benadryl to hopefully prevent any other possible side effects.

In summary, things are going well so far. Fingers crossed that the good continues!

And just to leave you with some comfort food, here's a garden vegetable soup recipe I made last week:

Garden Vegetable Soup

4 cups vegetable broth

1 cup tomato puree

3/4 cup water

1 14-oz can diced tomatoes

1 14-oz. can tomato puree

2 cups carrots, sliced

2 cups celery, sliced

1 red pepper, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbls olive oil

1 small yellow onion, diced

1. Toss everything into a large stock pot. Heat over medium-high heat on the stove for 2 hours.

Man, again with the one-step recipes. Awesome, right?

21DSD Day 7 - Paleo Chili

Slow Cooker Paleo Chili
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground turkey
24 oz. can of diced tomatoes

2 cups beef broth

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 poblano pepper
1 jalapeno

1 small yellow onion

2 Tbls parsley, chopped

1 Tbls cumin

1 Tbls chili powder

1 1/2 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1. Toss everything together into the crock pot. Set for low - 8 hours. And you're done. (Don't you just love it when there's only one step? At least after you chop everything.)

Chemo - Part 13 - Day 16

Have I mentioned that cancer sucks? Apparently the allergic reaction is enough that my parents made a trip to the dermatologist. The doctor biopsied a part of the rash to run some tests. They also ran blood work to test liver and kidney functioning. My parents finished off the day with two units of blood transfusion. They were at the doctor from 7:45-8:40 a.m., and from 10:40 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. Yikes. I'm hoping that the transfusion will help and improve energy. At this point it looks as though the second round of chemo will get pushed back a bit. We'll have to wait and see what the test results are.

While we're waiting, check out this YUMMY version of Paleo lasagna. It's delicious! Enjoy!

Paleo Zucchini Lasagna

Ingredients

2 zucchini, sliced
1 lb grass-fed ground beef

Macadamia Nut Cheese

• 2 cup macadamia nuts
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp basil
• 1/2 tsp parsley
• 2 Tbls of water

Sun-dried Tomato Pasta Sauce

• 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, soaked in water for 1 hour
• 2 Tbls olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large can of tomato sauce
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 3/4 head of broccoli, chopped to ~1" pieces
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 4 carrots, diced
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp parsley
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 2 tsp fresh basil, chiffonaded
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Macadamia Nut Cheese

1. Dump the nuts into a food processor and run until the macadamia nuts are fully ground. 

2. Mix in the lemon, salt, oregano, basil, and parsley.

3. Add in the water 1 Tbls at a time. The mixture should become slightly sticky and look a bit like ricotta cheese.

Sun-dried Tomato Pasta Sauce

1. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large pot.

2. Add the onions and garlic, cooking until onions are translucent.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients, cover, and cook for 30 minutes until the broccoli and other veggies are slightly soft.

Paleo Zucchini Lasagna

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Use a mandolin slicer to cut the zucchini into thick slices.

3. Place one layer of the zucchini slices at the bottom of a greased 8"x8" square pan

4. Spread out a ~ 1 cup of the Sun-dried Tomato Pasta Sauce and top with ground beef. Spread out some of the Macadamia Nut Cheese on top of the ground beef.

5. Repeat the layers, finishing with the pasta sauce.

(You can also use small Corningware if you have leftovers like me.)

6. Bake for 30 minutes in the oven. Let cool for a bit, then devour!

Chemo - Part 3 - Day 2

Today was pretty similar to yesterday's visit to the doctor, except that we got an actual room and I knitted instead of blogging. Yes folks, I knit. I find it relaxing. We were only at the doctor for two and a half hours today. I guess things go faster once you get the procedure down. Things are going well so far - a bit more tired, but overall still staying active (we took the dogs for two walks today - the dogs are out cold right now because they're so worn out). Fingers crossed that things continue to go well.

Now to food... While I was at Whole Foods the other day I picked up a chicken to cook and make chicken broth out of (recipe to come). Because my co-worker BA was so unhappy with me for using a whole chicken to make my last chicken broth instead of using just the bones, I decided to follow his advice and roast the chicken first. Here's what I did for the roast chicken:

Roast Chicken

1 5-lb chicken
Inside the chicken
5 sprigs fresh thyme
1 lemon, cut in half
1 head garlic (yes, the whole head), with the outer layers peeled and cut in half
Outside the chicken
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 Tbls olive oil
1 onion, sliced (~3/8" thickness)
6 carrots, cut into large chunks
2 bags of Brussels sprouts, rinsed and trimmed
1 bulb fennel
Both inside and outside
Salt
Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Remove the giblets/whatever they're called from the inside of the chicken. Rinse both the inside and outside of the chicken, and pat dry. Liberally sprinkle salt and pepper inside the chicken. Stuff the chicken with the thyme, lemon, and garlic. Use kitchen string/twine to tie the legs together, or use something like the metal prongs that I found in one of my parents' kitchen drawers to skewer the poor thing closed. Rub the outside of the chicken with olive oil so that the chicken is thoroughly coated, then rub with salt and pepper. Don't be stingy.

Spread the carrots, Brussels sprouts, onion, fennel, and thyme in the roasting pan. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Make a hole in the center of the veggies and position the chicken in the opening. Place the roasting pan in the oven. Cook for 1 1/2 hours or until the inside of the chicken reaches 170 F with a meat thermometer.

Remove the chicken from the roasting pan and transfer to a platter, covering with tinfoil. Let rest for 20 minutes.

Then cut and serve. It's so yummy!

I also want to point out that this is the first time that I've ever cooked a whole chicken. Or whole anything for that matter. The last time I had to deal with a whole raw bird was Thanksgiving three and a half years ago. My parents had come out to Texas with the dogs to celebrate with me. My mom took charge of the bird and called me over to help out at the sink. I tried. I really tried, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't reach inside to pull out the giblets and whatnot. I actually shrank away... I was too chicken (yes, that horrible pun was intended).

However, thanks to Paleo and my need to eat meat, I've learned to handle raw meat, in particular raw poultry (I'm still working on fish). So when I roasted this chicken, I passed with flying colors, though I washed my hands like 15 times over the course of prepping the chicken. So I'm a bit crazy about germs right now... or technically always... it just means that I'm a safe chef, right? You're welcome, kitchen counters and bottle of olive oil for keeping you clean.