Meal Prep and Emergency Preparedness #WellnessWednesday

Hello Everyone! This Wellness Wednesday Week 4 and I'm here to talk to you about Paleo Meal Prep and Emergency Preparedness. One of the easiest ways to fail with a Paleo diet is to not have a plan. It's so easy to get home late and think to yourself "I don't have time to cook now, we can get takeout tonight." That may be okay if you choose the right restaurant and pick a paleo option, but it's really
easy to let "tonight" become tomorrow night, and the night after that, and before you know it, you have been eating out for several weeks in a row. Taking the time to form a plan for your meals for the week ahead of time can not only save you time, but also be easier on your budget (eating out is expensive!).

Some of the best ways to prepare are baking a whole chicken and/or ham; steaming several day's worth of quinoa or wild rice; baking sweet potatoes, spaghetti squash, butternut squash, or another starch; or even preparing breakfast foods such as pancakes, egg cups, waffles, or baked oatmeal. Don't forget that a crockpot can also be an excellent asset, allowing you to prepare tomorrow's meal today.

You can either prepare enough meals for a few days and use all of them fresh, or you can prepare enough for the entire week and freeze some for the end of the week. This is also helpful for when the primary cook in your house is going out of town. It can also be great for when your children are home from school with a babysitter or when you are preparing for a big storm. I grew up in rural Connecticut and we lost power several times a year for days at a time because of the weather, and it was always nice to have food prepared ahead of time rather than having to live on processed foods and tuna fish.

While you're at the store, don't forget to pick up a few gallons of drinking water, extra batteries for flashlights, anything missing from your first aid kit, and stop by your local sandbag distributor if your home could be in a flood zone (also a good idea to check evacuation routes!).

Stay safe, stay dry and please remember to reschedule your appointment if you won't be able to make it!
Yours in Health,
Dr. Chelsea

Simple Paleo Recipes

There are probably thousands of Paleo recipes on the internet, but if you need a starting block, you have come to the right place. Here are a few simple Paleo recipes with short ingredient lists to get you started. Once you get the hang of it, you will be able to modify your own family favorites as well!

Let me know which ones you fall in love with and if you find any that are even better!

Enjoy!

Dr. Chelsea

Breakfast

Any egg dish with a side of meat and veggies. Omelettes are easy. So are fried eggs with chicken sausage and baby spinach or sauteed peppers.

Twice Baked Breakfast Sweet Potatoes Highly recommend you cook the potatoes the night before!

Sweet Plantain Apple Bacon Hash

Flourless Banana Pancakes I make variations of this regularly, they are my favorite!

Pumpkin Pancakes (21 DSD)

Beef

Mini Pepper "Nachos" I would actually add some more toppings to this like tomatoes, beans, olives, and jalapeños

Mexican Zucchini and Beef

Beef and Butternut Squash Stew

Chicken

Sweet Potato Broccoli Chicken Bake

Creamy Maple Dijon Chicken (DF)

Whole30 Chicken Tenders

Mustard Glazed Chicken

Seafood

Honey Garlic Shrimp and Broccoli

Baked Salmon with Almond Parsley Salad

Thai Coconut Mussels

Your Health Is In Your Hands

When we discuss diet changes with our patients, our friends, and the people around us, something we frequently hear is "Wow, I would love to do that, but it just sounds so hard".

Change is daunting, I get it. Particularly when the people around you aren't supportive or even worse, are critical.

I'm here today to tell you that it's worth it.

Growing up, I was always overweight for my age class. I don't think I ever completely passed the fitness test in school, despite having very active parents who promoted outdoor activitie, and encouraged fruits and vegetables. My "seasonal" allergies (which were supposedly limited to ragweed and dust according to traditional allergy testing) were year round, included a constant supply of new (and piles of used) kleenex tissues, were significant enough to require an inhaler for the asthma component and made physical exercise unenjoyable. Sugar and dairy cravings were 24/7; in high school, my friends would come over for movie night and we would eat pounds of candy or cookies dipped in a whole container of frosting. I always felt uncomfortable; my stomach would hurt, I ate, then I felt worse. Bloating and gas were constant issues, as was acid reflux, all of which left me feeling chronically fatigued and perpetually embarrassed. I was taking over the counter pain medication 3-4 days a week for migraines that otherwise forced me to spend hours lying in a dark room and not able to study. In 2012, I was living the life of a full time graduate student and hit the breaking point. One morning, I looked in the mirror and decided I wasn't happy with my health or how I looked and decided to make a change. 

It started slow.

I hit a lot of barriers and did some backsliding. New symptoms emerged as others dissipated and then those went away too. 

Every struggle was worth it.

Four years later, I'm down 60 pounds and 10 pants sizes, I eat (mostly) clean (mostly paleo), and for the first time in my life I feel truly healthy. I'm still human; I have cheat days, I fall off of the fitness wagon, and I don't always take my own advice, but I have completely turned my life around from a path that would have lead to diabetes, heart disease, and other health problems. I have only had one bad allergy attack in the last 3 years and it was self-inflicted, otherwise my allergies are 99% gone, I have so much more energy, and I have fallen in love with aerobic activities. Cravings are almost non-existent and I have control over what I eat without feeling deprived or obsessive about it. I'm glad I went through all of this because I can tell you from the inside what it looks like, feels like, and what to do about it. Cutting out gluten and dairy was the best thing I have ever done for myself.

What I want you to take from this story is that you have the power to transform your life. It's not about making one massive change, the most successful way to do it is to make a series of small changes and to be consistent with them. No one can do it for you. However, when you make the decision to seize control over your habits you will not only improve your health but also find strength and empowerment within yourself. 

That being said, we want to help you along your journey. Starting this week, I'll be posting a Simple Paleo recipe weekly. It will be something with few ingredients that doesn't require hours of preparation time. My goal is to teach you how to make small conversions in the things you eat every day that can have a monumental impact on your health. Not only is it much easier than you think, it also can be a lot of fun. And you can do it without feeling like you are dieting or depriving yourself!

What kind of transformation would you like to see? Let's see if we can get you there!

Yours in health,

Dr. Chelsea

In case you're a skeptic, here's some proof. The first photo is from 2012, the second from 2015 in my "fat pants" and the third from this morning in my (formerly) "skinny pants".

Lemon Berry Angel Food Layer Cake GF DF SF

Angel food cake is one of my favorite things to bake gluten free! One of the biggest complaints about gluten free baking is that the product is too heavy; angel food solves that with the whipped egg whites, adding air and height and rising as beautifully as a full-gluten cake. Not to mention that it is naturally dairy free and absolutely delicious! This is the quintessential summer dessert and you can make it so many different ways!

This recipe comes from the King Arthur Flour website. I would recommend preparing it a day ahead if you can so everything chills properly; the angel food cake requires a minimum of 2 hours of cooling time and coconut cream always holds together better when it has had time to chill. If you're going to create all of the components today, go right now and stick a metal or glass bowl in your freezer for the cream and put the cans of coconut milk in the fridge. Also read all of the instructions first, I missed the note about having to sift the flour with the sugar and cornstarch and had to do it on the fly.

Lemon Berry Angel Food Layer Cake GF DF SF

King Arthur Angel Food Cake

• 3/4 cup King Arthur Gluten-Free Multi-Purpose Flour or ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons brown rice flour blend*
• 3/4 cup Baker's Special Sugar** or superfine sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cups egg whites (10 to 11 large eggs, separated, yolks discarded or reserved for another use)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract or Fiori di Sicilia, optional 
• 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons Baker's Special Sugar** or superfine sugar
• **Can you substitute regular granulated sugar? Yes; it'll take much longer for the egg whites to attain their require volume, and the cake's texture won't be as fine.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the oven rack in its lowest position.

1. Whisk together and then sift the flour, cornstarch, and 3/4 cup sugar. Set aside.

1. In a large, clean (grease-free) mixing bowl, beat together the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar until foamy.
2. Add the flavorings. Gradually increase the speed of the mixer and continue beating until the egg whites have increased in volume, and thickened.
3. Gradually beat in the 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar, a bit at a time, until the meringue holds soft peaks.
4. Gently fold in the sifted flour/sugar blend ¼ cup at a time, just until incorporated.
5. Spoon the batter into an ungreased 10" round angel food pan. Gently tap the pan on the counter to settle the batter and remove any large air bubbles.
6. Bake the cake until it's a deep golden brown, and the top springs back when pressed lightly, about 45 minutes.
7. Remove the cake from the oven and invert the pan onto the neck of a heatproof bottle or funnel, to suspend the cake upside down as it sets and cools, about 2 hours.
8. Remove the cake from the pan by running a thin spatula or knife around the edges of the pan, and turning the cake out onto a plate.
9. Cut the cake with a serrated knife or angel food cake comb. If it's difficult to cut, wet the knife and wipe it clean between slices.
10. Serve with whipped cream and fruit. Wrap any leftovers airtight, and store at room temperature.
11. Yield: one 10" cake, about 12 to 16 servings.
12. *Make your own blend
    Many of our gluten-free recipes use our King Arthur Gluten-Free Multi-Purpose Flour, which includes ingredients that reduce the grittiness sometimes found in gluten-free baked goods. Our flour also increases the shelf life of your treats, keeping them fresh longer. 
13. 
    The following make-at-home blend, featuring stabilized brown rice flour, works pretty well when substituted; and it tastes better than a blend using regular brown rice flour. 
14. 
    Whisk together 6 cups (28 1/2 ounces) King Arthur stabilized brown rice flour; 2 cups (10 3/4 ounces) potato starch; and 1 cup (4 ounces) tapioca flour or tapioca starch. Store airtight at room temperature. 
15. Note: You can substitute white rice flour for the brown rice flour if you like; it'll make your baked goods grittier (unless you manage to find a finely ground version).

Additional Ingredients:
12 oz. raspberry jam

Fruit of choice

1 package organic blueberries

1 package organic raspberries

Whipped Coconut Cream

4 cans of full fat coconut milk (I like Thai Kitchen Organic)

1/4 cup of sugar

6 teaspoons lemon extract

This is not a paid advertisement, simply a celebration because I have always been a huge fan of King Arthur products. I also happen to feel that trying to combine
8 different kinds of gluten free flours to get the right consistency is a pain, so any opportunity to use a great blend is highly cherished! I substituted the 2 tsp  vanilla extract and 1/4 tsp almond for 1 tsp vanillaand 1 1/4 tsp lemon extract to give this a bright flavor.

Like many of you, I'm a home cook with limited space, so I don't just keep superfine sugar in my 

cabinet, and I wasn't about to go buy some just for this recipe. The solution? Throwing cane sugar

in the food processor! 

I recommend processing it in small amounts to make sure 

it grinds evenly and when you go to sift the ingredients 

together, this doesn't happen.

When it is ground properly and sifted, it will be lovely 

and fine, and actually resemble cake flour 

like this.

It will be very tempting to stop beating the egg whites

at this point, keep going a little bit longer!

This is as close as I have ever been able to get to perfect "soft peaks" in a meringue

I panicked a bit when it said to suspend the cake upside down on a funnel; exactly which way

is upside down for an angel food cake? So I settled for placing it on a wire rack and extending

the cooling time a bit. See how it rises so beautifully? You would never know it's gluten free!

Since I had time, this project got separated into a 2-day process in my kitchen, but you can 

easily construct the coconut whipped cream while the cake is baking or cooling (it's quick

and easy if you chilled the bowl ahead of time). For this cake, I omitted the usual vanilla

and cinnamon and instead added 4 teaspoons of lemon extract. I multiplied my usual recipe

by 4 because of the size of the cake, so you may only need 1-2, just taste it as you go and

adjust accordingly.

Whipped Coconut Cream is a staple in my house because it is quick, easy, and decadent!

Knowing this dessert could spend some time sitting out, I opted for layering in a trifle dish.

Coconut cream melts just like standard whipped cream, so you can't leave it out for long. 

If you cut the cake into fewer layers (2-3) and can freeze the construction before serving, you

may be able to make a layer cake like this one. For this cake, cut the cooled angel food into 4-5

sections horizontally. Place the first piece of cake on the bottom of the dish, then layer in coconut

cream, jam, and berries, followed by the next layer of cake.

Get creative with the decoration on top!

Happy Birthday Dr. Holstein!

Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Bon Appetit,
Dr. Chelsea

Post note: I made another variety for Laure's birthday too! She doesn't do well with gum additives like guar gum that are in coconut milk, so I improvised a little on the cream. Yes, I have tried using the gum-free coconut milk, no it does not set up properly. However, I found that the So Delicious coconut milk "yogurt" is gum free!

Instead of using raspberry jam and my coconut cream, I used lemon curd (I LOVE Stonewall Kitchen) and what I can only in good consciousness refer to as blueberry "cream" sauce (see below). In addition, I used 2 Tablespoons of lemon extract with 1/4 Tablespoon of almond extract.

Blueberry "Cream" Sauce (recipe in progress)
Ingredients:
4 cups blueberries
1 large banana
1 cup unsweet coconut milk "yogurt"
1 cup coconut palm sugar (or regular sugar or honey)
6 drops lemon essential oil or 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice (to taste)
2 cups Kerry Gold butter or dairy-free butter

Instructions:
1. Add all sauce ingredients to blender.
2. Puree until smooth.
3. Alternate layers of angel food cake with lemon curd, blueberries, and blueberry sauce.
4. Garnish with berries and lemon slices.
5. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate until serving.

If I was going to do this again, I would simmer the berries first and skim off the skins to improve the texture of the sauce. You could also easily skip the banana and/or butter and use more "yogurt", or if you're fine with gums go ahead and blend the berries into my coconut cream. Let me know if you create a variation you like!