Paleo Pals - Health, Weight Loss & Support

Ksuze (Grand Masta' Snoop Dog Latte) - WORD!!

Book recommendation:

Rusty Bed Springs by I.P. Knightly

TGIF Cave Chicklettes!!

Second day in a row of sunshine here.....anything to make a liar out of me )))) Enjoying it and plan on using up as much free Vit D as my skin can get it's grubby hands on Foodie Friday post to follow shortly!

Vampriella - The meal sounds yum....hope you're gonna post pics and or recipes! The biscuits sound amazing! Workout plan....my apologies, we did talk about that and I went and forgot (blame my fridge!). Ok, so no problem, would love to put together a routine for you...and anyone else that needs help in that direction. What I need from you first is you short/long term goals, a list of any equipment you have at home, and most importantly any physical limitations you have. We can gab about this or you can list here. Every program has to be designed to the 'worker-outter'....but yeah, let's get er' done )))))

Back at y'all soon

FOODIE FRIDAY – YAY!!!

Come one, come all!! (all three of us :))))) Let us drag out our culinary skills or not-so-skills to round out the week!

I've been whining about cold, damp and miserable days here in good ol' Heli-fax. Time for a nice hearty bowl of deliciousbraised meat in a warmly spiced gravy…nom nom nom. Make the house smell yummy for my returning Cavedude after his long hard day. Yeah…….time for……

OFADA STEW WITH FUFU!!!

What the hell is Egads cooking up this time?!?!?"....and you may be saying to your screen "I bet in involves crickets or beetroot in the panna cotta". Nope.

Ofada is a West African dish…specifically a Nigerian stew made with a blend of warm seasonings….. lots of leftovers and 'must get rid of' refrigerator items. Mine included leftover chicken and spicy sausage.much like the way a stew anywhere in the world might be made…..but this one was awesome! Garlic, onions, tomatoes, ajwain seed, ginger, cinnamon, smoked paprika, black cumin, chili peppers, touch of honey, base done in 10 minutes and simmered until it got 'that' taste. You know the one! J

It was the FUFU that caught my attention while flipping through the web (pronouced foo-foo, not eff u eff u )))……love saying fufu. Fufu is traditionally made from pulverized starchy root veg, like cassava, potato etc.Mashed and cooked down to a thick/dry-ish mashed potato consistency. It's also called Swallow….because good Nigerian manners demand you swallow the small finger formed dumplings whole…chewing FuFu is rude and only for children….I guess I'm rude )))))

Tradition also holds that it's rather bland and used to sop up the stew…take a piece, roll into a flat dumpling with the fingers, dip, eat. Fufu is placed on a plate in the middle of the table and it's dipped into by everyone's fingers ….ummmmm…..No thanks, we used forks.Carby though *sigh*

Good news!…. carb aware Nigerian peeps have mastered Fufu making to a whole new level….by using lower carb non-starchy veg….cabbage is the top choice. Watch this……….

There are variations, eggplant, carrot and I suppose cauliflower, but not too sure if you could get the same consistency without a wee bit of starch in the veg. I can see Fufu topping a shepherd's pie ….finally something that has a mash potato texture... a toping without the carb levels!

Problem is, a huge a**ed head of cabbage is mostly water, so the end product is rather small….like two - four servings (and probably why Nigerians take finger full instead of spoonfuls)…….

So I made mini FUFU balls to top my Nigerian stew…kinda cute dontcha' think...………..

Made for a delish meal, Cavedude has a new fav, and has been making double barrelled jokes about how much he loves Fufu since....oy vey! )))) Actually....if you look real close....meh....

I'll post when I construct a shepards pie a'la FuFu )

Good morning Chickies!!

Vegas Monday is upon us!!

…….and what a fine day it is! Sun is shining (for now) and I've finally managed to get the Cavedude off to work and out of my hair ))) We spent the weekend on our pantry reno and it's turned into a lot more work than expected (figures). We're getting there and expect to finish by my Personal Challenge deadline (fingers crossed). ….if we don't kill each other first )))))

Looks like we're starting Vegas Monday offwell….nice to see all the lovely posts! No cheats for me this weekend, although I ate far too many nuts during the reno work…..too busy to make lunch….not the dreaded pignons though…blech! So down to business…….

Ksuze – Little hints for the Fufu making…..wrap in at least 4 layers of cheesecloth and twist to get excess water out. Put into colander and put something heavy on it….like a cast iron frying pan and leave it for ½ hour. Twist again. The cooking part is to get more water out…..add the tapioca start when it's starting to ball up in the pot.I'm going to be making it from a few other veggies….should be interesting, will post. Mushrooms…..interesting. From what I've readyou'd have to eat a helluva lot of raw before you hit carcinogenic levels, and that the benefits (even with the agaritine) for breast cancer outweighs the small risk.Is there new evidence? Please post what you have on this….always great to get more info! Your new Mediterranian regime looks great! Keep us posted on the progress please. Any shift down in weight yet? Did you try a carb load? One last question….bee stings & chocolate?? Hell I eat chocolate if the door rings!! )))) Oh and your breakfast looks AMAZING…..think I might put that one together tomorrow morn….YuM!!!

Vampriella – Big hugs for today's scan darlin'!! I'll echo Ksuze…..it always is such a mix….great they're being vigilant, but oh the damn knuckle biting! We're here for you…..and crossing everything it's all good…which I'm sure it will be! My phone is always open to ya! That looks like some mighty fine cauliflower Hawaiian crunchies!!! How'd they turn out?? Good lord woman….you wonder why your tummy hurt…pepperoni, reeces & licorice????You get the Vegas Award this week )))))) Joking of course…..yeah….blame the tamoxifen….I read that 'eat reeces pieces' SE on the Mayo Clinic site LOL!!! Meh, pick up, dust off and onwards…..I have no doubts you'll crush this challenge! You have done WONDERFUL work and have come so far sweetie!! Your workout plan….found something I need to yak at you about….easy peasy, light and doable. I think perfect for your situation. Let's chat soon.

JKL –Flu and cough all gone yet?? Sure hope so!! Couldn't have helped with the 'leaks'….coughing is so very good for pant wetting ! I quickly looked up the Emsella you spoke about ….looks safe enough but (you knew there was a 'but' coming didntcha? ))))) I honestly think you'd benefit so much more from squats and lunges ….not just the bladder, everything….strength, bone building, muscle building, core building. S & Q's are foundation movements for good reason. That said I understand why peeps fear for their knees…..by all appearances these moves look to put a whole lot of pressure on the knees. Big ol' myth….done properly, and with correct form, they build the muscles that support weak (or bad knees), along with relieving pain. I found out through my diagnostic scans that I have arthritis in both knees…had no idea, and didn't feel anything until moving to a damp climate. When autumn comes around, the ache starts. Adding extra squats & lunges plus collagen has obliterated the ache…..quickly. …and my pants are dry YAY! ) Proper form and SLOW build up is VITAL. I posted a series a while back….I'm going to dreg it up and re-post as well as send to you in PM. Choice is yours, but honestly think it's worth a gentle careful shot. Within a few months your knees may not be any concern.If not interested, just tell me to shaaaaad up )))))) Thanks for asking about my cavecub…..check out below

Inna (godda davida) – Hey darlin! Omg do I know the pain of too many squats, especially getting to your car…..it's like…..

How many rads down? Feeling better I guess if you're doing squats!!

Last, and certainly not least…..

PebblesV – Hello and a big Cave Chick welcome to you!! You hope you can join late in the game??? Darlin' we've been trying to figure out how to get you to join!! )) I think you'll like it around here…..the Cave Chicks are great group of gals. We practice various regimes, and it's all good. No judgments, lots of support, learning, laughs …..oh the laughs! Btw, just in case you're wondering, we refer to Monday as 'Vegas'….or 'Going Vegas' It's a personal choice whether to post a 'cheat' food, usually consumed over a weekend (what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas;) It helps accountability, but more often than not, it's a chance to poke fun at ourselves…totally human!

Big congrats on your two lil' embryos….that put a huge smile on my face when I read that!! Another congrats for the weight loss…..look at you go! *high 5*!!! Like you I had some to lose before diagnosis, and after I ate like a maniac….the only exercise was lifting a fork to my mouth ))) I know the struggle of losing on tamoxifen. I went the veggie/vegan/low cal/ etc etc… route and NOTHING. Paleo solved that for me.Thing is, declining estrogen levels (menopause, estrogen blockers) takes away from our cells being able to efficiently 'let go' of fat….hangs on to it longer. This is why post/peri menopausal women tend to 'barrel' outwards…..add tamoxifen or an AI into the mix and you've got a double whammy happening!It's def harder, but not impossible. Carbs….reduce em' down to 50-80 grams per day and we see the weight fall off……as you are now..yay!!! Kudos on dropping processed foods. Setting your macro levels (protein/carb/fat) is helpful and can be personalized. I'll be posting some 'paleo 101' this week that might be helpful….hope so! From what you posted you fall into the Paleo/Primal category….my fav!! Again welcome to the Cave Crew and hope to see you post again soon……much luck with those rads!!

Everyone - *singing* I am strong….I am invincible….I am nauseous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ))))))

Piece of cake really….we just wonder where the other two staples went…they aren't in his head!

ETA: JunieBee…….where you be at darlin??

Inna (godda davida) - You beautiful girl !!! WOOT!!! YOU DID IT!!! CONGRATS!!

Ksuze - Oh yeah, carbs tend to suck up and hold water.....4 grams to one gram of carb. I'm thinking it's water weight. Takes 1-3 days to notice a diff when I carb load....sorry it didn't work that way for you! Funny about mushrooms, I stopped eating them raw a few years back, afraid of ecoli. The few VERY times I had in the past years I scrub the bejesus out of them, hardly any mushroom left )))

So kids, was making a meat sauce for my Cavecub this afternoon, he's requested pasta (before he launches a rebellion). I opened up a new tube of organic tomato paste and thought I'd share. I can't stand when it either turns black in the fridge (canned) or needs to be used up in 2 weeks (organic)…..found a little trick.....

Wrap in saran in tablespoon portions...….

then fold and stack.....

Pop into your freeze in a ziplock bag, grab a 'puck' and toss into whatever, melts in fast. No more wasted tomato paste. Waste sucks!!

Same goes for fresh ginger.....rots quickly! Toss in a ziplock and freeze. Grate as needed (grates easily while frozen) and pop back into the freezer for another day. If you need large slices drag it out 1/2 hour before using. Here is my stash...….

They yell that at me every time I open the door ))))