Sweet and Spicy Chicken

    Being tired from lack of sleep and a little heartbroken I needed dinner to be simple and quick. My husband is pretty easy to please when it comes to food which helps when I don't feel like cooking. Scrambled eggs and bacon for dinner will make him happy. With the help of Juli from PaleOmg I found a great recipe that will please even my grumpy self. I used her sweet and sexy chicken wing recipe and substituted chicken tenders. The sauce has some bite to it so I put a little extra honey which left a nice spice that wasn't overwhelming.

     Good ol' podunk HEB in Odessa has surprised me once again by carrying Live Kombucha Soda. This stuff is usually only found at the Natural Grocers store in Midland and in major cities of course. The major highlight of my day was definitely the kombucha soda.

Superbowl Snack: Sweet and Sexy Wings

 

Ingredients

• 24 chicken wings
• ⅓ cup raw honey
• ½ cup coconut aminos
• ½ cup red wine
• 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix all your sauce ingredients together in a large bowl..
3. Place chicken wings on a cookie sheet that has been covered with aluminum foil.
4. Pour sauce over your wings, leaving ¼ of it still in the bowl.
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, turning once half way through.
6. Add wings directly into your leftover sauce and toss them to coat.
7. Then serve those guests of yours!!

The finished product with a side salad.

Stirring the spicy sauce for the chicken tenders.

I'm not frazzled just hungry.

The yummy ingredients sans honey which had already been put back into the cabinet.

My startling find at HEB!

My little sister watching me cook.

Weekend Report

   Happy Mother's Day to all the mother's out there! I gave my mom some serious pampering for Mother's Day, mainly because she takes care of everyone else first before herself. So I secretly made appointments to get her hair done and get a facial. She loved being waited on and looked utterly fabulous afterwards. I had fun watching her get to feel like a girly girl and not a nurse, or a wife, or a mom taking care of the rest of us. Happy Mother's Day to the best mom I could have asked for :).

   Yesterday, I was able to witness my best friend Greg walk across the stage to receive his 2nd degree which is a BSN of nursing.  He received his first degree in Biochemistry three years ago. His boyfriend Logan and I totally cried and screamed our heads off as he walked across the stage. So proud of you darling, Go Greg Go! My darling bestie will be moving to Denver, Colorado with the love of his life in mid June. I am both sad to see him leave but so proud that he is brave enough to chase his dreams and move to be with his sweetheart. I wish nothing but the best for these two amazing people on their life journey together.

Isn't he adorable?

I can't believe I met Greg back in 7th grade! We have grown up so fast.

Logan and I before we started tearing up.

       Last night I had trouble sleeping due to all the driving and excitement of the day, so I made cookies! Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies came to be partly because I found a recipe on paleomg.com and I had few ingredients. The recipe is pretty simple and the cookies are almost all gone. Paleo treats are still treats and should not be consumed all the time but a girl has cravings and these cookies are a tad healthier than eating an entire pint of Ben & Jerry's.

Paleo cookies nom nom.

Yay Cookies!!

   No workout for me today instead I will lie in the sun and eat a cookie. The end of the semester is a beautiful thing. Hope every mom has a delightful day!

What I Ate Today

 

These were my carrot fries (recipe from paleoomg.com). 

   Today I ate very little due to my stomach and intestines waging war with each other. The past week I have had to miss work and school due to severe abdominal stress, throwing up, chills/fever, and just feeling crappy. I went to see my nurse practitioner Laura who was a God send!! Instead of telling me to go home, she took action. She had my blood drawn, stool samples taken, and went over my long list of symptoms. Laura thinks it might be irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), celiac disease, etc. Personally, I find these options a bit comforting because it validates my symptoms and my gut instinct (could not resist). In a few days I should have answers and hopefully an easier time with my stomach troubles.

   In the interest of saving myself from doubling over, I refused pizza from my husband. Severe gastro symptoms have taken away any craving for junk food. While perusing my new cookbook +Michelle Tam Food for Humans , I found a recipe for baked carrot fries. My bountiful basket gave me lots of carrots and I have olive oil, Himalayan pink sea salt, and crushed red pepper. This recipe is so easy a girl sick as a dog can do it! Pre-heat the oven to 425 and slice up 6 carrots, spread them on a parchment lined baking sheet, pour olive oil over the carrots, add sea salt and spread mixture evenly over the carrots. I added crushed red pepper flakes for fun and because I live in Texas :). Bake for 15 minutes, flip over the carrots, and then bake for an additional 11 minutes. Viola! Easy, healthy, and very delicious. My fries did not upset my stomach in the slightest and I can't wait to make them again.   For dinner I made a beet smoothie that also played nice with my insides. The website www.paleomg.com gave me the recipe for the smoothie. This is a great website if you are curious about Crossfit or paleo. 

Stomach friendly beet smoothie.   

Here is the recipe from paleomg:

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 1 large beet, peeled and diced (equivalent to 1 cup diced beets)
• 1 banana, peeled and diced
• ½ cup frozen berries (I used strawberries and raspberries)
• ½ cup canned coconut milk
• ½ cup water
• 1 scoop egg protein (or protein powder of your choice)
• 1 tablespoon raw honey (optional)

Instructions

1. First you gotta roast your beets. Try biting into one of those raw. No fun. So preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Wash and peel your beets and dice them up.
3. Arrange pieces on a baking sheet then drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of coconut oil on top.
4. Bake in oven for about 45 minutes or until they are tender.
5. Let cool.
6. Once your beets are cooled, add all ingredients to a food processor and puree until smooth. Add more coconut milk or water if needed.
7. Drink up!

Food Love

    If you have never heard of a little website called www.primalpalate.com, then you must go visit it right now. Laundry, dishes, and a small grease fire can wait.  The food pictures will make you drool, the easy recipes will inspire your inner Betty Crocker, and did I mention the pictures are wonderful?!

   For the past several months I have been experimenting with different recipes that lean more toward the Paleo side of the fence. I happened upon this gem via www.paleomg.com while reading one of Juli's posts. Now I am in love and want to neglect my homework in favor of making duck confit with roasted lemon green beans.

  
   Speaking of wanting to be in the kitchen all day, my mama has lovingly fashioned a recipe book of food that she and my grandmother made, when mama was a child. I cannot wait to get my hands dirty! There is something quite special when recipes are handed down through the generations. From farm to my table is how these recipes came to be.

   Happy cooking to everyone :)!