Primal Chicken Bacon Spaghetti Squash Alfredo

I know fall is pretty in Ohio and all...but I am missing Hawaii again.
I think I would not mind being island bound for a few years...I mean turning leaves and fresh snow fall is something great to many people, but I'm just done!
Give me ocean breezes, constant temperatures, palm trees...heck! Just give me the ocean!!
Oh well, the reality is I live in Ohio and it's cold this morning...as it was last night.
I decided to make more than just a piece of protein for my husband for dinner.
I have been seriously uninterested in food lately and it has harshed his world.
My husband would love to cook and create marvelous and varied meals together.
Bleh.
I don't want to think too much about food, it has lost it's appeal and hold on me and I am not anxious to go back to that place.
But for him I made a comfort meal extraordinaire last night...Chicken Bacon Spaghetti Alfredo.
It was as creamy and satisfying as if it was made with pasta, but didn't have that heavy and bloating after effect that true carbs give you.

You start buy cutting your spaghetti squash in half...

I have to use an electric knife...so much quicker.

Once the squash is open, scrape out the seeds and discard (or clean and roast if you like)

I salt and pepper mine and then roast it in a 350 oven face down on a foil lined cookie sheet for 50-60 minutes.

While the squash is baking I gather all the ingredients for the Alfredo sauce and get it started.

Finally smooth and creamy, ready for all the other good things to be tossed in.

The squash is done, but as always the cooking has released the water in the gourd and now the strands are mushy. I can fix that!

After all the strands are scooped out down to the skin, I put mine in a fine mesh colander.

I place a bowl on top of the squash, wrap my hand in a towel (because that stuff is a boiling hot mess!) and press out as much of the liquid as I can.

My husband cut and chopped up all of the chicken breasts and bacon for me while I was squishing the squash within an inch of it's life.

Looking warm and yummy with almost everything added in, it's just missing the bacon now.

Here is my plate (with my two handfuls of spinach I have everyday!) all that is missing is my apple.

Primal Spaghetti Squash Alfredo with Roast Chicken and Bacon:

1 Spaghetti Squash
3 Large chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
8 Pieces of bacon, cooked and chopped
1 Stick of butter (grassfed if possible)
1 cup of heavy whipping cream or half and half
1 - 8 oz package of cream cheese, cut into cubes
1/2 cup of shredded cheese (I used Kerrygold Dubliner grassfed cheese, for it's flavor)
3 Cloves of minced garlic or 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 teaspoon of dried parsley or fresh (I was out!)

Slice the squash in half and scrape out the seeds and middle parts.
Salt and pepper the squash, placing it face down on a foil lined baking sheet.
Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes.
Scrape out all the strands into a fine mesh colander and with a bowl push out as much water as you can get out of it.

Sauce:

In a sauce pan melt the butter over a medium heat
Add the cubed cream cheese and stir until it has melted together
Slowly pour in the heavy cream and whisk quickly for a few minutes
Add in the cheese a little at a time, and then add the spices, whisking continuously.
As it begins to thicken add in the squash, chicken, and bacon.

Serve warm with your favorite salad or veggies.

I hope you enjoy this casserole as much as we did.

Still Going Strong and 70 Pounds Down Plus Weigh Loss Before And After Pictures

Good morning!
I have been thinking everyday of blogging, but feel I have not much to say.
I eat almost the same thing everyday...a meat, spinach, an apple, maybe some nuts...some days some cheese, and almost everyday a little dark chocolate.
I really have no interest in other foods right now, no interest in meal planning either.
If I look on Pinterest or Foodgawker for ideas, that gets my stomach thinking about food.
I am almost never hungry anymore so I avoid looking at those pages to keep away from the pictures of food :)
I am losing weight, but to me it seems so slow.
I know that is better for my body in the long run...but it's making me nutty!
I just want to be a normal size...walk in to any store and be able to fit in to something.
I went from a 3x last December to and XL or L in tops, so that is a drastic improvement.
My butt was a 22/24 pants and sadly I am still in most 18's. I do have 2 pairs of 16's that I can get into, but mostly a solid 18.
PFFFFTT!
This is killing me.
I only just started to exercise in August. I am diligent and do either cardio or weights everyday.
I am trying to follow Mark Sisson's advice to not overdo the exercise...but I am going crazy in my head wanting to be a size 14 and under 200 SOON!
I truly thought that I would be further by now...sigh...
I know I did not put it all on in a year and I have a few months until the first year is up...but still...I am impatient some days...I guess today is one of those days.
I keep looking on Mark's Daily Apple for information on how to shed more fat, and the information that came up was about intermittent fasting...which I already do.
I eat one Primal meal a day.
But being the impatient whiner I am...I am thinking about skipping a day eating once a week...just to see if that kicks things up a bit.
I try not to let the scale get to me, because I am getting muscle under that flabby skin I carry around.
But if I could drop a size in pants...who am I kidding? I want to drop two sizes! I would feel much more accomplished in my weight loss.
I have to say, I will never eat The Standard American Diet ever again.
I have been healthier, happier, not sick once, not one zit or breakout, and have been building muscle since I changed to living Primal, I will never go back to the old way of living.
I just had a fantasy in my head that I would be a size 10 already...but when you have over 100 pounds to lose it takes time and work.
I am so proud of my mom, she has gone from a size 14 to a size 6 in just six months time.
She looks amazing and has finally lost her dependence on food to make her happy or fulfilled.
I will finally get the courage to show a before and during picture.




Me at my heaviest :(

 

looking better, but still a ways to go

I have more of a chin now instead of a mass of flesh

These weight loss before and after pictures show I have done a good job, but am looking forward to seeing my results in December at the one year mark.
Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a great day and keep eating clean.

What Happened Thursday...

 

Today I worked hard.
I walked and ran on the treadmill for an hour.
It has gotten much easier as the weeks have fallen away.
It was skanky whore day on that treadmill :)
I ran to some terribly dirty System Of A Down songs, and then cooled down to MGMT's Electric Feel. I got my wind back and ran again to Silvertide's Maryjane and some super skanky Buckcherry songs. Cooled down again to Robin Thicke and some great Passion Pit songs.
I worked out with hand weights for a few minutes because my upper arms are still the size of Easter hams :(
I cleaned my son's room out...completely.
Boys are gross...just sayin'.
He is coming home from college for the first time on this long holiday weekend, so I wanted him to walk into a clean room with fresh sheets. Just to remind him what he's missing.
I'm not kidding myself...he's not missing anything!
It took forever to get that room spic and span, and I was sweating as much as when I had run on the treadmill by the time I was done.
Tonight was volley ball night.
Truthfully, I have not played since junior high.
So I might have misrepresented myself when I said I could play well.
Sorry ladies, but this mom needed to get out of the house, hopefully my team mates will be patient as I get into the swing of the game again.
After a few hours of trying to push my bod around in that deep sand in the heat and sun, I'm pretty sure a good deal of calories were burned!
Today I ate a burger without bun, bowl of spinach leafs, some pistachios, and a small hunk of Kerrygold Dunbliner cheese.

I hope you had a good day too!

Coming Farther Than I Ever Thought

It has been a wonderful summer.
My son's graduation party went very well, and was a blast.

I was forced to take my son to college...and leave him there.
His choice, not mine.

 

I had a bit of a break down after he left and went back to being a brunette after almost two decades of being a bottle blond.
The biggest change out of all this is that I have gone from a 3x top to a size large.
Dropped ten more pounds, and found the strength inside myself to start exercising.
I really had hoped deep inside myself that it would not come to this...because I hated exercising!!
Eeeewwww!
To be sweaty, sore, and have absolutely no results is how it always was in the past.
This time I have noticed some interesting things that make it all quite different.
1. My joints, knees, wrists, and ankles don't hurt anymore when I work out. (no grains, or packaged foods makes this possible)
2. Even the next day, my soreness is minimal. (see...no grains...no inflammation!)
3. I don't feel gross while I'm doing it, just stronger.
4. For the first time ever...I look forward to it.


I have not been a great blogger.
I have slacked off, not because I was too busy (even though I kind of was) or uninspired.
I have found a new place inside of me and it does not jive with what I wanted my blog to be in the beginning.
I most likely will not post recipes on here anymore.
I don't feel like trying out new things, cooking constantly, or even full meal planning.
I am not hungry.
I found that sometimes eating every other day works better for me.
I am hungry when I smell food being cooked, but if I walk away from it, the feeling goes away.
I only want a small piece of meat, some spinach, an apple, and some nuts.
That makes me feel good and satisfied.
So from now on I am going to post pictures of what I ate that day, exercises that I did, and progress photos.
Progress photos...that is a tricky thing.
I want to see them of other people...but slapping one out on the Internet for all to see...my huge...everything...well that might take me a few more weeks of progress.
Thank you to everyone who has viewed my blog and not made fun of me!

Have a wonderful day...and ditch the grains!!

Primal Creamy Pork Chops and a Return To Reality

I'm back!
I've been back from vacation for a while but have been slacking on blogging, mostly because I make us the same old things to eat. Nothing fun to share with you all.
Our vacation was amazing.
Hawaii was gorgeous, and stunning.
Everyday we saw something new, and had great adventures together as a family.
My kids bonded a little bit again since they were stuck with each other for two weeks, which was nice to see.

We hiked, swam, and were Primal everyday.
It was easy and convinient to be this way in Hawaii, where food and restaurants are very expensive.
Right after our plane landed on The Big Island we made our way over to the Kona Costco to pick up our food for the first week.
The prices were a little higher than here in Ohio, but not terrible.
My biggest downfall of the whole trip was the amount of dark chocolate macadamia nut products I consumed.
We all were in love with them.
Most days we would pack a cooler of veggies, fruits, chicken, and nuts. We would throw in some waters and be set for a day of exploring.
I would have coffee in the morning on our lani, watching the wild goat family eat grass on the golf coarse and then have a snack from the cooler in the middle of the day. When we would get back in the evenings we would grill out and watch the sun set.
Heaven.
It was nice not to worry about reservations and waiting for a table some place every night.
We spent our money on wild adventures instead.

We took an ATV tour one day for six hours, over hills and jungle that even most Hawaiians don't get to see because it is private land. The trip was very exciting, and the sights were stunning.

It was something none of us will forget!

One day we hiked straight down a mountain into that gorgeous valley. It was hard! But amazing.

Another day we drove to the top of Mauna Kea Volcano to watch the sunset.
It is 14,000 feet above sea level. Now...it is a super weird thing to go from the actual sea to the top of a mountain...and believe me...you notice the difference in your body right away.
we drank lots of water and popped our ears constantly while we made the trek up, but it still did a number on us. By the time the sun had set and we made our way down to the visitor center to watch the stars, we were loopy, short of breath, and freezing!!

The top of the world is spectacular.

After the first week my husband had to go home, the kids and I stayed one more week.
It was a time of swimming and chilling out.
My favorite thing to do was to make a huge cup of coffee and head out to a different beach each morning. I would sit and drink in the beauty of the sea while enjoying my brew and then head out to snorkel before the waves kicked up. I swam with sea turtles at least three times and saw some really large fish that made me a little nervous.

This was my absolute favorite beach. I came to swim here more than once because of just how pretty it was.

The wild Hawaiian kitties were alays happy to see me in the morning.

But now I'm home, and planning my son's graduation party.
So you will have to hear waaaaaay too much about that before it even happens ;)

The other day I decided to use up some pork chops that were sitting in the fridge, but didnt want to make them the same old way.
All the recipes that I found on Pinterest had bread crumbs or some other carb filled thing.
So I made up my own version of Creamy Baked Pork Chops.

Primal Creamy Baked Pork Chops

• 6 boneless pork chops
• 16 ounce sour cream
• 1/2 cup of crushed Primal crackers
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon of rosemary
• salt and pepper

Mix the ingredients together in a large bowl
Pat dry the pork chops with paper towels
Dip each chop into the mixture and coat it heavily on all sides
Place onto a foil lined baking pan
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes until their internal temperature reaches 145 to 150 degrees to be safe

We enjoyed these with pan roasted brussel sprouts with mushrooms and bacon.
It was an easy and yummy dinner.

I hope you try these amazingly tasty chops and enjoy them too.

Gluten Free Low Carb Bread...Primaly Delicious!

I have been craving a sandwich.
Since we shun the overly processed-wheat-belly hurting-grain type stuff, I didn't know what to do.
I could have made one of the coconut flour biscuits and flattened it out, but they still are a bit crumbly at times.
I knew there had to be a way.
I turned to Pinterest, my favorite all time web site these days.
I finally found a few recipes that suited what I was looking for.
I fiddled around with them and added the spices I was looking for...and voila!
I had a low carb-gluten free-primal-paleo bread to make a sandwich with.
It was perfect and quite yummy.
The texture was firm enough to hold and not break apart like coconut flour breads tend to do (no GLUE-ten in them to hold it all together).

Isn't that a lovely sandwich?
Fresh turkey with Kerrygold grass fed sharp cheddar cheese...mmmm.
I would have dolled it up with lettuce, tomatoes, and other good things but I had no idea if it would taste very good at all?!
I wanted to still be able to get a good taste of this type of Primal bread.

The ingredients were mixed up, poured into a glass storage dish, and microwaved.

I tipped it out of the dish and cut it across the middle with a long serrated knife.

Here it is getting roasty-toasty on the griddle.

A glass mixing bowl got the heat and steam going to melt that thick tangy cheese to molten goodness.

Here is the recipe;

• 1 tablespoon butter melted
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons of coconut flour
• 2 eggs mixed
• dash of aluminum free baking powder
• dash of salt and pepper
• I added a few extra spices I enjoy

Mix everything up in a bowl
Let it set for a few minutes and mix again (this gives the coconut flour time to absorb the liquids and mix up smoothly)
Scrape into a glass bowl (mine was square making it perfect for sandwich bread making)
Microwave on high for three minutes
Let rest for a minute or two and then loosen from the bowl onto a cutting board
I used a long serrated knife to separate into a top and bottom.
Grill it up with your favorite sandwich fixings!

I made this into an egg, bacon, cheese, and avocado sandwich for my husband this morning.

Our recent graduate was very pleased with this new bread.
I hope you try the recipe and enjoy it too!

Primal Chicken Pizza Casserole Saves The Band

The Stone Bunnies Rocking The House

My husband's band had a gig this weekend.
They are THE premiere benefit band.
If you need to raise money for a worthy cause...just give them a shout...they will be there.
My husband met these great guys when our boys were all in cub scouts together.
Sitting around a campfire one night Matt brought out a guitar and began to play, my husband knew the song and began to sing...thus The Stone Bunnies were born.
Soon they cajoled and shamed their other friend Scott into playing the drums and he dragged Jeff who knew the bass along too.
Seven years later they are still rockin' strong.

Charles on the violin adds a haunting beauty to many of the bands originals and covers.

The crowd was light at the beginning of the show, but appreciated the ROCK in this band's ROLL!

The wives of the band love to come to the benefit shows, Laura won one of the Split-The-Pots!

Sheila won the MUCH coveted huge basket of boozes in the raffles, she is now our favorite friend!

Before we left that night I made sure we had some good Primal eats, so that the husband would have the energy to give a good show.
I made us a Primal Chicken Pizza Casserole.
Comfort food at it's best.

Primal Chicken Pizza Casserole

• 8 ounces of cream cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
• handful of your favorite spices

Toppings;

• 1 cup of cooked chopped chicken and any other pizza meat you enjoy
• 1 cup of pizza sauce
• 1 cup of veggies, mushrooms or whatever you enjoy
• 1 cup of cheese (we used a combo of our favorites)

Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees
For the crust, mix the cream cheese with the eggs and spices in a large bowl with a hand mixer
Scrape the sides occasionally and mix until it is a loose liquid mixture
Pour into a greased 9x13 glass pan and bake for 15 minutes
When baked, top with the pizza sauce, chicken, cheeses, and veggies of your choice
Return to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes
When it is hot and bubbly remove from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving

My son enjoyed this for breakfast the next day!
I hope you try this yummy Primal Chicken Pizza Casserole and enjoy it too.