Wok It Out!

Shrimp, Scallops, Brolly & Purple Cabbage Stir Fry: A recipe developed by our very own Kevin Slaughter!

What you will need:

1.5 lbs of shrimp
1.5 lbs of scallops
Broccoli
Purple cabbage
Red peppers
Onions
Garlic
Coconut Oil
[amount of veggies and oil per your discretion]

Method:

1. Sautee onion, garlic and peppers (in coconut oil) until onions are transparent
2. Add seafood until fully cooked
3. Finally, add remaining vegetables and cook until desired softness



(We encourage all Atlas Athletes to send any Paleo or Zone recipes you may have to jessicawilliams@atlascrossfit.com)

Chard, Bacon & Apple

Walking through the grocery store the other day I was trying to find new vegetables that I hadn't tried before. Spinach and kale were getting old and I know that trying new, brightly colored vegetables and fruit is a great way to get different nutrients into your diet!
What caught my eye was rainbow chard, with its red, yellow and orange stalks, like celery.
After a quick google search, I found this delicious recipe....you can't go wrong with bacon!

Ingredients

3 slices bacon, diced
1 small yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 organic Gala apple, cored and diced
1 bunch (about 3/4 pound) organic chard, well rinsed
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

 

Method

Place a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Remove bacon from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add onion to the pan and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in apple.

Meanwhile, cut off the stems of the chard and slice them thinly. Chop the leaves. Stir stems and leaves into the skillet along with the bacon, salt and pepper. Pour in 2 tablespoons water; cover the skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until chard is tender, about 8 more minutes.

What Does "Organic" Mean?

There can be some confusion about what exactly an "organic" food is these days. Often times there is an idea that a food is healthier for you and will help you on your journey to fat-loss if it comes with that label.
In reality, "organic" means that your food was produced without pesticides. This is a good thing, yes, and important when you are purchasing fruits or vegetables with thin, permeable skins that require extra doses of chemicals to keep the pests off.
Blueberries or apples, for example, are typically loaded with pesticides because they are particularly susceptible to pests.

When we are talking about most other organic products though, the organic label is pretty useless. A waffle is still carbohydrate dense and will produce a significant insulin response regardless if it is made with organic wheat, or not.

It's important to remember that when it comes to fat-loss, our big ticket is monitoring portions and our macronutrient ratios. In terms of ideal body composition, top priority is making sure we get adequate protein throughout the day, balanced with some healthy carbohydrates and fat, therefore controlling our insulin response.

Sunday Morning Buttercups

Here is a recipe for "buttercups" to pull out on a lazy Sunday morning. Also a great "finger food" for when you have weekend guests as they are easy to make with relatively easy clean-up.

Ingredients used: Eggs, ham, coconut oil, and pepper.

(I used humanely raised eggs and an Applegate Farms, uncured ham which was free of nitrates. )

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. 

2. Grease muffin tin with coconut oil, then place ham slices inside.

3. pour whole eggs gently into each cup

4. Sprinkle pepper and cook for 15 minutes

Quick and Easy Breakfast

I will always tell people who are changing their nutrition profiles to start with one meal a day if they are hesitant or not completely committed.  Start with breakfast and pay attention to how you feel after.  This is usually enough to get people to make more permanent changes.

As fun as cooking healthy can be, we don't always have more than a few minutes.  Meet chicken sausage.  This brand is at CostCo, very affordable.. and minimal ingredients with minimal processing.  Heat this up with or without a few eggs, add some avocado and you have a good start to face the day!

Staple breakfast that takes less than 5 minutes!

Bacon & Spinach Medley

Bacon is a staple at my house, it just makes everything taste better!  I came up with this a few weeks ago as I was trying to get rid of a few things in my fridge. Bacon grease makes a great substitute for cooking with olive or coconut oil. I'm sure this could be altered a few different ways with different veggies.

Bacon & Spinach Medley

8 slices bacon
1 cup sliced mushrooms
4 cups raw spinach
1-2 eggs

Cook bacon in pan and remove.  Use bacon grease to cook mushrooms until they have absorbed most of the grease and are soft to the touch.  Add raw spinach and cook until wilted.  You can use kitchen shears to cut bacon into smaller pieces and then add back to mixture.  I chose to cook a couple of over-medium eggs and serve it on top of this spinach medley... delish!

"Walk the Walk"

So I have made the commitment to "walk the walk".  My pregnancy excuses are over and I am now back to disciplined eating for a few reasons:  1. I know that my body feels better when I am eating clean.  2.  I want to set a good example for athletes at Atlas as well as my family and 3. I am anxious to get back to both pre-baby performance and body composition... nutrition will be the MOST important way to get there.

We have had almost 10 challenges at Atlas since we have started and I will say with confidence that when the emphasis is on the "quality" of food vs. the "quantity" of food... the results are significantly better!  What does this mean?  Well... everyone that has sat through one of my nutrition lectures knows that I like to teach balance FIRST in terms of nutritional guidance, ie... "Zone" eating.  However, I think after you have a basic knowledge of how much food your body needs to be properly fueled, the emphasis should be placed back on what you are shoveling in your mouth, and that emphasis should be grass-fed meats, wild-caught seafood, lots of veggies and some good-quality fats.  Wheat in any form does not have a place on an athletes table, period.

With that being said - and my challenge to myself of taking on the "I Am CrossFit" challenge with my team, I picked up two good Paleo recipe books last week.  "Everyday Paleo" by Sarah Fragoso and Sisson's "Quick and Easy Paleo Meals" I have since made literally a recipe from them everyday, if not two!  I will share them with you guys, as well as reviews.

First on my list is the Pecan Crusted Chicken from Everyday Paleo.

Pecan Crusted Chicken

4 chicken breasts

1/2 cup organic spicy brown mustard

2 tbsp raw organic honey

1 cup pecans

sea salt

Pre-heat oven to 350. In a medium sized mixing bowl blend together the mustard and honey.  Toss the pecans in a food processor and pulse until the nuts are finely chopped.  Pour the chopped pecans either on a plate or in a pie pan if you have one.  Using a paper towel, remove any excess moisture from the outside of your chicken breasts.  Taking one chicken breast at a time, first place the chicken into the mustard/honey mixture and coat on both sides.  Transfer chicken to the chopped pecans and again cover both sides.  Place coated chicken into a greased glass baking dish (I used a little olive oil spray to cover the bottom of the dish) and sprinkle each chicken breast with just a little sea salt.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until the chicken juices run clear.

Verdict:  It was a little messy, but seriously the best chicken I've had maybe ever.  Seriously, it is that good... or maybe it is because I couldn't stand the thought of chicken when I was pregnant, but it is definitely worth the prep time!