Chloe's Coconut Christmas Cookies
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Green Pea & Mint Pesto
10 oz frozen peas
1/2 c pine nuts
1/2 c mint leaves
2 cloves of garlic
1/3 c extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt
Pepper
*1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (not necessary for the dairy free crowd)
Place peas, pine nuts, mint & garlic in the food processor. Pulse to a rough chop. With the machine running add the olive oil in a steady stream and process a smooth paste. Remove from food processor add *cheese, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.
-A great compliment with grilled salmon and other summer dishes!
10 oz frozen peas
1/2 c pine nuts
1/2 c mint leaves
2 cloves of garlic
1/3 c extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt
Pepper
*1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (not necessary for the dairy free crowd)
Place peas, pine nuts, mint & garlic in the food processor. Pulse to a rough chop. With the machine running add the olive oil in a steady stream and process a smooth paste. Remove from food processor add *cheese, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
The Philly Cow Share
Following closely after our Primal/Paleo Challenge I received an email from Jessica Moore from the PhillyCow Share. Asking if we had interest in a Cow Share. You might wonder what it is...well, it's similar to a crop share. You go in with others to buy high quality, local, grass-fed beef in bulk by splitting the purchase of a cow with other people. We at CrossFit believe in the Paleo-lifestyle and low and behold, Jessica had them fresh as can be...Yes, they just stepped off the farm. This Cow, grass fed since it came off it's mothers milk came from a family owned farm, straight to a family owned butcher and then delivered directly to our door at CrossFit KoP! I posted a blurb on the blog to get a gauge of interest shortly after hearing about the prospect, it was ON! We had enough interest to buy a cow and a half. Click here to see the pricing.
It was delivered looking like this - Yep, that's JB getting his 2 shares.
Cate and I helped carry in the extra shares for the CrossFitters to arrive at 4:30PM.
An 1/8 of a share was two boxes measuring 13" x 13" x 8" and enough to fit in an empty standard size freezer.
And the meat, well it speaks for itself, it was AMAZING!
The London Broil above
and
The T-Bone and Delmonico below
Here are few tips on cooking Grass Fed Beef:
Grass Fed Beef has less fat and less water so cook at lower temps, you can use regular beef recipes but cut the heat back by 25 degrees F. They defrost faster and when seasoning make sure to use less salt.
Thank you Philly Cow Share!
We will hopefully be making another delivery soon, to contact Jessica her email is info@phillycowshare.com
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Paleo Coconut Truffles
2 cups walnuts (soaked for 3 hours and drained)
1 cup pitted medjool dates
1 tablespoon raw almond butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Shredded coconut (garnish)
What You Do:
1. In a food processor, blend walnuts until finely chopped.
2. While food processor is running, add dates one at a time until a sticky ball forms.
3. Open lid of food processor and add almond butter and cinnamon. Process until mixed. Form into small balls and roll in shredded coconut.
Monday, January 10, 2011
4 Tips to transition from a Modern Diet to a Paleo Diet
If you are just starting out down the path of paleo, then making the transition to a paleo diet from the diet you have been accustomed to for so many years might seem like a difficult step, but in actual fact, once you start, nothing will seem more natural than eating like your caveman ancestors.
Here are 4 essential bits of advice to help you make the transition to the paleo diet.
1. Remember Why You're Doing It
Keep reading about paleo and reminding yourself why you want to live this way. Knowing the terrific improvement you are making to your well being and the years by which you are extending your life will make the transition easier and more exciting.
2. Don't Worry About Getting Your Carbs
We simply aren't built to process grains, dairy and other processed foods healthfully, and the fact is that we don't need these things. On the paleo diet you'll be increasing your protein and fat consumption whilst naturally lowering your carb intake. Your carbs will come from fruits and vegetables providing you with a wealth of healthy micronutrients and plenty of energy stores.
3. Increasing Your Protein Intake
Many of your calories will come from protein, and you will be naturally eating more protein than with a modern day diet. The best protein comes from lean meats such as organic chicken and turkey and grass-fed lean beef. Lean organic meat has low levels of saturated fats, and fish - also a great protein source - will also provide you with high levels of Omega-3.
4. Make Sure You Have a Plethora of Choice
The paleo diet is effortless once you know how. The body will adapt very well to the transition and the food it is biologically engineered to consume.
The one aspect of paleo people tend to struggle with though, is knowing what to eat, when to eat it and how to cook it.
So arm yourself with enough recipes to be able to draw inspiration at any time, don't go back to anti-nutrients and fake foods, eat well and hear your body hum like the well-oiled machine it's meant to be.
If you are just starting out down the path of paleo, then making the transition to a paleo diet from the diet you have been accustomed to for so many years might seem like a difficult step, but in actual fact, once you start, nothing will seem more natural than eating like your caveman ancestors.
Here are 4 essential bits of advice to help you make the transition to the paleo diet.
1. Remember Why You're Doing It
Keep reading about paleo and reminding yourself why you want to live this way. Knowing the terrific improvement you are making to your well being and the years by which you are extending your life will make the transition easier and more exciting.
2. Don't Worry About Getting Your Carbs
We simply aren't built to process grains, dairy and other processed foods healthfully, and the fact is that we don't need these things. On the paleo diet you'll be increasing your protein and fat consumption whilst naturally lowering your carb intake. Your carbs will come from fruits and vegetables providing you with a wealth of healthy micronutrients and plenty of energy stores.
3. Increasing Your Protein Intake
Many of your calories will come from protein, and you will be naturally eating more protein than with a modern day diet. The best protein comes from lean meats such as organic chicken and turkey and grass-fed lean beef. Lean organic meat has low levels of saturated fats, and fish - also a great protein source - will also provide you with high levels of Omega-3.
4. Make Sure You Have a Plethora of Choice
The paleo diet is effortless once you know how. The body will adapt very well to the transition and the food it is biologically engineered to consume.
The one aspect of paleo people tend to struggle with though, is knowing what to eat, when to eat it and how to cook it.
So arm yourself with enough recipes to be able to draw inspiration at any time, don't go back to anti-nutrients and fake foods, eat well and hear your body hum like the well-oiled machine it's meant to be.
Friday, January 7, 2011
To give you a helping hand in clearing out your cupboards of non-paleo friendly foods for the new year, here is a quick 6-point list of things you don't want to find in your kitchen.
Once you have expelled these demons from your kitchen be sure no-one tries to sneak them back in!
1. Corn-Fed Beef - Cattle evolved to eat grass, not corn. This is no secret, but something that is generally hidden and not spoken about by government health agencies. Many farmers feed animals corn, grains and soya beans to fatten them up faster for slaughter, all at the detriment of our nutrition. Grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, Omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium; and lower in saturated fats.
2. Milk (Dairy) - Milk is not part of the paleo diet, simply because the human body isn't biologically designed to consume dairy. Dairy cattle are treated with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) to boost milk production. Milk also contains IGF-1, which contributes to breast, prostate and colon cancers.
3. Farmed Salmon - Salmon are not meant to live on a diet of grains and soy, neither are they supposed to be crammed into pens. Farmed salmon is nutritionally weak and contains carcinogens, PCBs and pesticides. For safe and healthy salmon switch to wild-caught Alaska salmon.
4. Sweets - Refined sugar causes a plethora of health problems, not limited to causing a spike in insulin and playing havoc with your hormones and energy levels (causing unnatural peaks and lows).
5. Grains - Our ancestors thought of grains as starvation food, only to be considered where death by starvation loomed. Historically grains were near impossible to eat because it takes a ton of manual work just to make them edible. Then there is the gluten, found in wheat, rye, and barley. This is causing 1% of the population celiac disease and a further 40% problems with bloating and digestion.
6. Snacks - Be careful of snacks that appear paleo friendly on the surface but underneath are coated with corn syrup or added preservatives. Beware of banana chips dipped in vegetable oil or dried fruit with added sugar. If you are unsure about which snacks to buy then why not make them yourself?
Go for nut bars and other healthy on-the-move paleo friendly snacks such as those found in the Simple Paleo Recipes cookbook.
Here's the link:
Paleo Recipes
Once you have expelled these demons from your kitchen be sure no-one tries to sneak them back in!
1. Corn-Fed Beef - Cattle evolved to eat grass, not corn. This is no secret, but something that is generally hidden and not spoken about by government health agencies. Many farmers feed animals corn, grains and soya beans to fatten them up faster for slaughter, all at the detriment of our nutrition. Grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, Omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium; and lower in saturated fats.
2. Milk (Dairy) - Milk is not part of the paleo diet, simply because the human body isn't biologically designed to consume dairy. Dairy cattle are treated with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) to boost milk production. Milk also contains IGF-1, which contributes to breast, prostate and colon cancers.
3. Farmed Salmon - Salmon are not meant to live on a diet of grains and soy, neither are they supposed to be crammed into pens. Farmed salmon is nutritionally weak and contains carcinogens, PCBs and pesticides. For safe and healthy salmon switch to wild-caught Alaska salmon.
4. Sweets - Refined sugar causes a plethora of health problems, not limited to causing a spike in insulin and playing havoc with your hormones and energy levels (causing unnatural peaks and lows).
5. Grains - Our ancestors thought of grains as starvation food, only to be considered where death by starvation loomed. Historically grains were near impossible to eat because it takes a ton of manual work just to make them edible. Then there is the gluten, found in wheat, rye, and barley. This is causing 1% of the population celiac disease and a further 40% problems with bloating and digestion.
6. Snacks - Be careful of snacks that appear paleo friendly on the surface but underneath are coated with corn syrup or added preservatives. Beware of banana chips dipped in vegetable oil or dried fruit with added sugar. If you are unsure about which snacks to buy then why not make them yourself?
Go for nut bars and other healthy on-the-move paleo friendly snacks such as those found in the Simple Paleo Recipes cookbook.
Here's the link:
Paleo Recipes
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Why are grains and legumes so unhealthy? (for our Bread-A-Holic)
The original question:
So far I have been reading and learning. Ihave a question that stems from talking with a nutritionist and Drs. Thefollowing quote kinda sums up my question I guess. "We have had several people starting problemsarguing about how soy and grains (or other illegals, such as sucralose)" are good foods;
Why are the soy and grains not good? What makes them bad? In other diets
such as that are gluten free, some grains are allowed. Why are they not
allowed in SCD? And does leaving all grains out put you at a risk of not
getting enough carbs and will it lower your energy level?
The answer:
A good question..
It's good to point out that grains and soy aren't edible in nature
without processing and so it's safe to assume we haven't eaten them for
millions of years. Only since the advent of agriculture we started to
rely on grains for our food supply. That was a huge mistake. There are
several reasons why grains and soy are bad:
Grains are in fact a large supply of starch, surrounded by a kernel.
Starch decomposes (digests) into maltose and isomaltose in the
intestines, which then decompose into glucose. You can look at it this
way. When you take a slice of bread and crush it in your hand, you are
virtually eating that amount of refined sugar. The problem is that that
amount of sugar elevates the bloodsugar levels amazingly fast and
causes your pancreas to produce lots and lots of insulin to metabolise
it. Humans are not adapted to eat such amounts of concentrated
carbohydrates and the pancreas (and adrenals) aren't fit to the job.
Over time one will develop insulin resistance, hypoglycemia, diabetes
II. Another problem is that the immune system crashes when your
bloodsugar levels increases to high levels. It takes *hours* for the
the immune system to recover fully.
Another problem with refined grains is that it's void of minerals and
vitamins, which are needed to properly digest and metabolise the huge
amount of starch. So, each time you eat a slice of bread, your body
needs to take minerals and vitamins from its limited stores to digest
and metabolise it. Over time, you will develop deficincies of these
vitamines and minerals.
You could eat the grains unrefined, but then a lot of antinutrients
will remain. Antinutrients are substances that bind to essential
vitamins and minerals, making them worthless or impossible to absorb
from the digestive tract.
So, either way, refined or unrefined, grains will cause problems..
Further, many grains contain a lot of allergens which upset your immune
system and causes the development of allergies. Imagine this: Humans
have never in their evolution of millions of years eaten grains and
now, since only 4.000-10.000 years ago, we are relying on this food.
Our genes aren't adapted to these foods. Grains are in fact
incompatible with humans (and also dogs and cats and many mammals)...
Soy beans aren't edible raw and they are full of antinutrients and
substances that act like hormones in the human body. Eating soy can
cause women to have menstruations that last 2 days longer than normal
and are way more painfull.
Another problems with grains and soy bean it that they can't be eaten
raw, which only allows us to eat them cooked. Cooking essentially
damages all foods. The more you eat raw, the better you will feel..
I forgot perhaps the most important reason why grains are bad: They are
very hard to digest properly. As I said above, they need to be digested
in two phases.. First, the starches, which are very long chains of
carbohydrate molecules, must be seperated into small pieces consisting
of 2 glucose molecules. This is called maltose (or isomaltose). Next,
the intestines need to produce enough enzymes (maltase) to digest the
maltose into the elemental glucose molecules. As you see, quite a lot
of work.. The problem is that the human body isn't fit for this job and
a part of the starch isn't absorbed and descends into the large
intestines, feeding critters, causing inflammation, gasses, damage to
the wall of the intestines, and other problems.
Compare this to fruit and honey, which are predigested foods. They
primarily contain glucose and fructose, which don't need to be digested
at all and can be absorbed painlessly by the intestines. Because
everything is easily absorbed it can't feed the critters..
I bet there are even a dozen more reasons why grains and soy are bad
but I think these are the most important..
As for the problem of not getting enough carbs: No such problem exists.
Carbohydrates are optional. You can survive and feel perfectly healthy
on a zero-carbohydrate diet.. Look at the Eskimo's who virtually eat
zero carbohydrates and look at the thousands of people eating according
to a low-carbohydrate diet.. They are a *lot* healthier than people
eating their grains each day..
By the way, on http://www.healingcrow.com there are some great articles
on this topic..
The original question:
So far I have been reading and learning. Ihave a question that stems from talking with a nutritionist and Drs. Thefollowing quote kinda sums up my question I guess. "We have had several people starting problemsarguing about how soy and grains (or other illegals, such as sucralose)" are good foods;
Why are the soy and grains not good? What makes them bad? In other diets
such as that are gluten free, some grains are allowed. Why are they not
allowed in SCD? And does leaving all grains out put you at a risk of not
getting enough carbs and will it lower your energy level?
The answer:
A good question..
It's good to point out that grains and soy aren't edible in nature
without processing and so it's safe to assume we haven't eaten them for
millions of years. Only since the advent of agriculture we started to
rely on grains for our food supply. That was a huge mistake. There are
several reasons why grains and soy are bad:
Grains are in fact a large supply of starch, surrounded by a kernel.
Starch decomposes (digests) into maltose and isomaltose in the
intestines, which then decompose into glucose. You can look at it this
way. When you take a slice of bread and crush it in your hand, you are
virtually eating that amount of refined sugar. The problem is that that
amount of sugar elevates the bloodsugar levels amazingly fast and
causes your pancreas to produce lots and lots of insulin to metabolise
it. Humans are not adapted to eat such amounts of concentrated
carbohydrates and the pancreas (and adrenals) aren't fit to the job.
Over time one will develop insulin resistance, hypoglycemia, diabetes
II. Another problem is that the immune system crashes when your
bloodsugar levels increases to high levels. It takes *hours* for the
the immune system to recover fully.
Another problem with refined grains is that it's void of minerals and
vitamins, which are needed to properly digest and metabolise the huge
amount of starch. So, each time you eat a slice of bread, your body
needs to take minerals and vitamins from its limited stores to digest
and metabolise it. Over time, you will develop deficincies of these
vitamines and minerals.
You could eat the grains unrefined, but then a lot of antinutrients
will remain. Antinutrients are substances that bind to essential
vitamins and minerals, making them worthless or impossible to absorb
from the digestive tract.
So, either way, refined or unrefined, grains will cause problems..
Further, many grains contain a lot of allergens which upset your immune
system and causes the development of allergies. Imagine this: Humans
have never in their evolution of millions of years eaten grains and
now, since only 4.000-10.000 years ago, we are relying on this food.
Our genes aren't adapted to these foods. Grains are in fact
incompatible with humans (and also dogs and cats and many mammals)...
Soy beans aren't edible raw and they are full of antinutrients and
substances that act like hormones in the human body. Eating soy can
cause women to have menstruations that last 2 days longer than normal
and are way more painfull.
Another problems with grains and soy bean it that they can't be eaten
raw, which only allows us to eat them cooked. Cooking essentially
damages all foods. The more you eat raw, the better you will feel..
I forgot perhaps the most important reason why grains are bad: They are
very hard to digest properly. As I said above, they need to be digested
in two phases.. First, the starches, which are very long chains of
carbohydrate molecules, must be seperated into small pieces consisting
of 2 glucose molecules. This is called maltose (or isomaltose). Next,
the intestines need to produce enough enzymes (maltase) to digest the
maltose into the elemental glucose molecules. As you see, quite a lot
of work.. The problem is that the human body isn't fit for this job and
a part of the starch isn't absorbed and descends into the large
intestines, feeding critters, causing inflammation, gasses, damage to
the wall of the intestines, and other problems.
Compare this to fruit and honey, which are predigested foods. They
primarily contain glucose and fructose, which don't need to be digested
at all and can be absorbed painlessly by the intestines. Because
everything is easily absorbed it can't feed the critters..
I bet there are even a dozen more reasons why grains and soy are bad
but I think these are the most important..
As for the problem of not getting enough carbs: No such problem exists.
Carbohydrates are optional. You can survive and feel perfectly healthy
on a zero-carbohydrate diet.. Look at the Eskimo's who virtually eat
zero carbohydrates and look at the thousands of people eating according
to a low-carbohydrate diet.. They are a *lot* healthier than people
eating their grains each day..
By the way, on http://www.healingcrow.com there are some great articles
on this topic..
The Evolution of Obesity?
The CrossFit KoP Primal Challenge is here!!
It begins on 1.4.11...following our kick off on 1.3.11 at 7:30PM. Read below for a few details to give you a taste of what the challenge will encompass and the different levels.
Novice Level: Are you a new to all this Primal and Paleo stuff? Where are you supposed? To start, we suggest with cutting Processed Sugar! The goal is to remove all processed sugars and sugar substitutes from your diet for the duration of the challenge. Remove all the cake, cookies, desserts, etc that got into your diet over the holidays. Cut the sodas (including diet sodas), the juice, other sugary drinks like Vitamin Water or Gatorade, and the sugar in your coffee or tea. Start reading labels, you'll see that sugar is added to almost everything packaged. Reduce your bread intake, which is also surprisingly high in sugars.
What is ok to still eat - natural sugars in fruit, dried fruit (check to make sure sugar isn't added), some honey, learn to identify and control your sugar cravings and try not to depend too much on multiple servings of fruit every day. Start to dial in your food and be more aware about what you eat will start you feeling better and will spark new gains at the gym too!
Bonus: cut beer and stick to wine or clear alcohols in moderation (e.g. NorCal Margarita, tequilia, lots of lime, and club soda)
Partyer: Are you the kind of person that is always partying? You go out during the week, have a few drinks, hang with your friends on the weekend and have a few, and drink every time a football game is on (Sat, Sun, Mon, and Thurs)? Want to try to cut alcohol out of your diet but need a reason, well here it is. At the Partyer level, cut all alcohol and sugary drinks for the duration of the challenge, along with all of the types of food that we tend to imbibe in while drinking: pizza, wings, nachos, chips, fries and fried food in general.
Take these things out of your diet and try to focus on removing other processed foods and sugars from your diet and you'll definitely notice a difference in how you feel, your sleep quality and your performance at the gym.
Bonus: Also do the Novice or Bread Lover level and dial in your food
The Bread-A-Holic or Bread-Lover: Are you a bread lover, a loaf-a-bread a week kind of person? For the duration of the challenge try to remove all grains from you diet, that means bread (wheat), noodles, rice, barley, couscous, and quinoa. Cut the bread and see what it does to your performance and how you can find substitutes for the things that you thought you couldn't live without: spaghetti squash or zucchini "noodles" instead of pasta, roll-ups or un-whiches instead of sandwiches, delicious homemade chicken soup chock full of chicken and veggies, etc. Cutting bread will improve your performance at the gym and how you feel all the time. You'd be surprised at the other things that may go away too, headaches, allergies, stuffiness.
Bonus: try to go gluten-free, read labels and see whats in the food you're eating, and try to cut out beer (with gluten) for the duration of the challenge
Paleo perfectionist: Is your diet already fairly dialed in, you've done a challenge before and already experiment with your food. Take this challenge as on opportunity to go super strict, and really dial everything in, go no grains, legumes, dairy, processed sugar, and alcohol. Take the time to really focus on starting this year out right and really treating your body with respect and seeing how you look, feel, and perform at the gym & how your sleep improves.
Bonus: Limit fruit, dried fruits, nuts, liquid calories - try to just eat real food verses a protein shake, experiment with some intermittent fasting (if you don't know what this is, its not for you to try yet)
Points system:
1 point a day for food compliance (based on which level you choose)
1 point per week for getting sleep (at least 8 hours for three nights a week)
1 point per week for CrossFit Workouts (3 Days a week and 1 rest day for full credit) (You can have a functional Workout count as well)
Rewards for compliance:
80% compliance = 1 Semi-private session with a CFKoP coach
90% compliance = 1 Semi-private session and a FREE T-shirt
100% compliance = 1 Free month at CFKoP *
*(If there is more than one winner in each category (Novice, Partyer, Bread-lover and Paleo-perfectionist, there will be a drawing for the GRAND PRIZE winner)
The Kick Off:
We will discuss all of the above levels and nutrition (including Zone, Paleo, Primal and the 80/20% rule) at our kick off meeting on Monday, January 3rd at 7:30PM, come prepared with questions and comments.
The Challenge will be backed up by events to support you along the way click here to read about the events we have lined up.
A CrossFit KoP Coach can take your body measurements and fat caliper test pre and post challenge if you are interested inquire at the box.
Helpful information:
Laura has helped us pull together some helpful websites and reference material. Click here to get the information first hand. Click here for the Food Matrix.
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