Peyton Kathleen

Fall weather still hasn't reached Houston, but my menu has definitely changed seasons! I love fall harvest foods like cinnamon apples, hearty soups and pumpkin flavored anything. Last Friday when my mom was in Houston, we went to Pax Americana and ordered a stuffed acorn squash. It was incredible! I was inspired to try and make one myself, so I googled different recipes and made my own Paleo version. Cut off both ends. Cut in half. Remove seeds with a spoon. I melted a tablespoon of butter, stirred in some garlic salt and ground sage, then brushed it over the squash. I put them in the oven at 400 degrees for one hour. While the acorn squash was in the oven I browned a pound of pork sausage, added peppers, onion, spinach, two apple and an egg together in a large skillet. When the squash was done, I added the stuffing into the squash, then covered them with foil. They went back into the oven for twenty minutes. They were flavorful, fill...

I have bee wanting one of these veggie slicers for so long. I was a Bed Bath & Beyond this weekend and finally found one. It was less expensive than anything I have seen online so buying it felt like a deal! Veggetti Spiral Vegetable Cutter I saw some recipes on Pinterest and was inspired by a lot of them. This time I just used what I had in the fridge: Brat Hans chicken sausage 2 zucchini 3 squash Sun dried tomatoes Bacon fat Salt and pepper After making the zucchini and squash "zoodles" I put 1 tablespoon of bacon fat in a pan over medium high heat and sauteed them. I cut up the chicken sausage, added sun dried tomatoes, salt and pepper. I ate this with a big garden salad, it was so satisfying! I saw a bunch of recipes for avocado pesto to go with it, next time I will definitely be giving that a try! 

Every Sunday I dedicate between 2 to 3 hours of time to planning/buying/and prepping my food for the upcoming week. Having healthy food ready is the best way for me to have a successful week of eating. Here are a few things I purchased and prepped for this week: $100 goes far when it's the right kind of food! Meat: pork chops, bacon, chicken thighs, ground pork, turkey, chicken sausage Vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower, squash, zucchini, celery, lettuce, brussel sprouts, yams Fruit: strawberries, green apples, avocado   Eating the rainbow!   Green Apple Pork Sausage- this picture doesn't do them justice! They are incredibly flavorful and delicious. Bacon, spinach, peppers (sauteed) Squash and zucchini (sauteed) Drumsticks with salt and pepper Lunch Monday-Friday I hear people talk about how they "can't cook". I have to laugh because I honestly am pretty bad at it too. I burn things, mess them up, leave a key ingredient...

The month of May marks the 5 year anniversary of when I decided to change my life. I can't believe I was 20 years old five years ago; it seems so much more recent than that! If you have read My Story on my profile, you will know that I began my healthy journey after my sophomore year of college (2010). I remember being 35+ pounds overweight, packing up the last of my things in my sorority room, looking in the full-length mirror and saying, "I will never look like this again." And five years later, I have kept that promise.  That summer I counted calories, cut out carbs, dairy, soda and alcohol. I worked out relentlessly seven days a week. I lost 20 pounds in about three months . My junior year I maintained my weight and lost some by working out at my college rec center, eating decently well, and doing the occasional "crash diet". That year I lost an additional 15 pounds. My senior year was pretty stressful; I lost a group of friends over a fight, was g...

Something I often find myself craving is granola! Before I started the paleo lifestyle, I was a granola lover. Nature Valley Bars, Special K cereal...oh man that sounds so good right now! However, cutting out grains and gluten has had a huge impact on my weight, bloating, and overall intestinal health. To keep these cravings at bay, I tried Diane Sanfilippo's "Grain Free Banola" recipe from her 21 Day Sugar Detox book.  The first time I made it, I botched it up horribly by over-chopping the nuts. I basically made it into a nut butter!  This time, I bought nuts that were already halved and made the "banola" super chunky . Pecan, walnuts, almond slivers, macadamia nuts I portioned it into seven smaller  containers  (one per day, control yourself Peyton!)  because I seriously could eat half of this in one sitting!  If you haven't already, buy 21 Day Sugar Detox, even if it is just for the recipes. It is my go-to book in the kitc...

Ingredient: 4 fillets of tilapia 2/3 cup of whole almonds 1/2 cup of dijon mustard 2 teaspoons smoked paprika salt & pepper coconut oil for frying Directions: 1. Place almonds in food processor and process until finely chopped. 2. Transfer almonds into a shallow dish, add paprika and mix together. 3. Lay out tilapia fillets. Lightly salt and pepper both sides, then with a brush, generously coat fillets with dijon mustard. 4. Lay fillets in almond mix and coat evenly on both sides. 5. Add coconut oil to a frying pan over medium heat. Cook both sides until the fish is flaky and exterior looks brown and crispy. This was a family approved meal! Even my ten year old brother gave it props! I had a hard time with getting the "breading" on the fillets to not fall off when I flipped them. I have never made fried chicken or fish before so if anyone has any tips on how to do this like a pro, I would love to know for next time! They tur...

Ingredients: One head of cauliflower, trimmed and cut into small florets 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons (grass fed) butter Sea salt, ground black pepper My mom told me about this and I thought there was no way I would like it. I caved and tried it, oh my gosh, delicious. Low carb, filling, and paleo! Directions: 1. Bring a pot of water to boil. Meanwhile, cut head of cauliflower in small florets. 2. Put cauliflower in boiling water, turn down to medium heat and cover. 3. When cauliflower is soft enough to easily push  a fork through, remove from heat and drain. 21 DSD in the background! 4. Put in a food processor or blender with oil and butter. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste! So surprisingly good!

I have read several different paleo books and countless paleo blogs and they all repeat the same message: ditch the dairy! I could not do them justice in explaining all the scientific reasons BUT I do know that the majority of the worlds population is dairy/lactose intolerant. The feeling of bloat or gas is most likely due to intake of dairy products! I would say give dairy (milk, cheese, yogurt)  the heave-ho for a week or two and see what a difference it makes. I know I love how I feel without it! Great Dairy Alternatives: Milk- Almond milk (unsweetened)  Yogurt - Cultured Coconut milk Ice Cream- there is a brand called So Delicious with ice creams made from coconut or almond milk Butter- Ghee or Coconut oil  Cheese- learn to live without it! You can, I promise! I rarely buy yogurt alternatives (of all the cravings I have, dairy is never one of them) but I saw these at Trader Joe's and bought a few!  Raspberries, Blueberries, Local Honey ...

Ingredients: Four bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded 1 teaspoon extra virgin, olive oil 12 cherry tomatoes, cut in half 6 strips of bacon, diced 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced 1 cup of spinach, chopped 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt Salt and pepper to taste 4 eggs Directions  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees 2. Cut tops off of bell peppers and remove all seeds from inside. 3. Pour olive oil into a pan and saute cherry tomatoes, bacon, onion, and spinach. 4. Saute over medium heat until spinach is cooked down and bacon is browning. 5. Spoon into bell peppers. 6. In a medium bowl, whisk 4 eggs. Evenly pour over vegetable mixture in each bell pepper. 7. Bake for 30 minutes. Yum!

Ingredients : 1 sweet potato 1 lb turkey breakfast sausage 10 eggs 1/2 white onion, diced 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil 2 cups chopped spinach 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 12 cherry tomatoes, halved This recipe is a combination of my two favorite paleo experts: PaleOMG and 21 Day Sugar Detox by Diane Sanfilippo. I love having a hearty breakfast that is satisfying and can be packed up in advance for mornings on the go (aka every morning). Women at work always compliment how amazing it smells and several have asked for the recipe!  Directions : 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2. Wash and pat dry sweet potato, cover in coconut oil and lightly sprinkle with sea salt. Place in oven for 20-25 mins. 3. While sweet potato bakes, in a skillet cook turkey sausage with chopped onions. Cook until all pink is gone. 4. In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, garlic, chives, basil,...

Ingredients : 1/2 cup mashed sweet potato 3 eggs 1 tbsp almond flour 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp vanilla cinnamon to sprinkle on top Directions: 1. Whisk 1/2 cup mashed sweet potatoes and eggs together in a large bowl. I started out with two eggs, but the mixture was too thick so I whisked in a third.  2. Mix in almond flour, cinnamon, baking soda and vanilla. 3. Over medium heat, pour about 1/4 cup of batter into frying pan. 4. Flip, and continue cooking the rest of the batter. Should yield 7-8 pancakes. I had a few for breakfast with a tablespoon of almond butter on top. So amazing.

Paleo Stuffed Zucchini Boats Ingredients: 3 or 4 zucchini, cut in half length-wise 1/2 tbsp coconut oil 1/2 cup onion, diced 1 clove garlic, minced 1/2 red bell pepper, diced 1/2 green bell pepper, diced 1 cup tomatoes, diced 1 cup cooked chickpeas  1/2 cup arugula 1/2 lb ground turkey 1 tbsp dried Italian seasoning Salt and Pepper to taste Directions: 1. Cut zucchini in half length-wise then scoop out insides with a spoon. Place insides in a bowl and set aside. 2. Dice your onion, bell peppers, and tomato. In a pan over medium/high heat, put in 1/2 tsp coconut oil, diced onion, and garlic. Sauté onions until they begin to look clear. The beauty of nature's food! 4. Add bell peppers, tomato, chickpeas, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to the sauteed onions.  5. In a separate pan, begin to brown your ground turkey.   6. Add arugula to other veggies and stir until it has cooked down. 7. Stir in ground turkey then sco...