Our Whole 30 Experience & Recipes

I'm taking a break from home decor talk today to share a little bit of our experience with whole 30 in case any of you are interested in trying it.  I mentioned a few weeks ago that my husband and I, as well as a few other family members, had been doing the whole 30 eating plan.  If you aren't familiar with it you can click here for more info.  It basically eliminates grains, dairy, sugar, and legumes for 30 days.  The first week was hard.  I had no idea how much my body loved sugar!  But really after the first few weeks things became much easier and just part of our routine.  I thought we ate pretty healthy prior to starting whole 30, but it definitely made us take a look at a lot of the empty calories and sugar that we were eating.  It also made me realize that sugar is in pretty much everything!

We finished it last weekend and my husband I have both seen great results.  My body feels totally different and I lost a little weight which was a nice bonus!  My husband says he feels great and has lost weight too.  We both have more energy and sleep better.  I feel like I wake up more refreshed and earlier than I used to.  I also rarely feel bloated anymore.  I thought I'd share a few of my favorite recipes and things that made it easier for us in case it might help some of you.

First, a few things that are great to have and may make your life a little easier during the Whole 30.

Food Processor-This would have made my life a lot easier especially when it comes to shredding sweet potatoes!  I guess my arms could always use a little extra workout, but I think we will be investing in one of these soon.  I've heard great things about the Cuisinart one, but if you have any suggestions I'm all ears.  Lara Bars-Not something you want to eat all the time, but they definitely saved me a time or two.  Not all their flavors are compliant so you definitely need to check the labels just to make sure.  Banana Bread, Coconut Cream Pie, and Pecan Pie were our favorites.  I'm thinking about trying a homemade version soon.  A Slow Cooker-I used my slow cooker a lot before we started whole 30, but it was really a life saver once we started.  You do a whole lot of cooking and prepping so it's nice to be able to just throw something in the crock pot and not have to worry about it.  Julienne Peeler-This makes eating zucchini much more fun and makes you feel like you're eating noodles.  Obviously it's not exactly the same, but it cuts the zucchini into small strips similar to noodles which is great when you get a craving for spaghetti. 

And here are a few of our favorite recipes.  Pardon the not so great food photography, I snapped most of them with my phone when it was dark outside.  And try not to be too jealous of my plastic green zebra plates, we like to keep it classy around here.

Sweet Potato Hash with eggs and bacon.

Homemade Mayo

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Baked Mustard Lime Chicken

Broccoli Salad    

Monkey Salad

Garlic "Mashed Potatoes"

Balsamic Pot Roast (Omit sugar and soy sauce and sub carrots for potatoes) 

Cauliflower Rice
Apples sprinkled with cinnamon dipped in almond butter is a nice little treat

I also have a Pinterest board titled whole 30/Paleo with some recipes I've been wanting to try.  You can follow here.

We also really like taco salad.  Just brown some grass fed beef and add some seasoning.  I used this recipe for homemade taco seasoning and we loved it, it does have a kick though.  Add lettuce and top it with your favorite veggies and some guacamole.  It's delicious and satisfies your cravings for mexican, well mostly anyway :)

A few nights ago I made shepherd's pie but didn't follow an exact recipe since I couldn't find one that worked with what I had.  I just browned grass fed beef and cooked that with garlic and onions.  Once it was cooked I added about 1/4 cup of cashew meal and let it cook for about a minute.  Then I added a cup of broth (I used chicken b/c it's what I had but beef would probably be even better) and let it cook down and thicken (about 5-7 min).  Then I added some carrots and a little parsley and salt and pepper to the mix, put it in a pan and topped it with the above recipe for garlic "mashed potatoes"  We really enjoyed it and didn't miss the potatoes or normally starchy gravy one bit. 

So where do we go from here?  We plan to follow a mostly Paleo lifestyle with a few splurges here and there.  We both have felt so great eating this way, that we can't really see doing anything different.  Like I said we will still splurge from time to time, there's always birthday parties and other times you just want to indulge but for the most part we really enjoyed the food we have been eating and never felt deprived.  Have any of you tried whole 30?  Any favorite recipes?

On a side note, I'm finally almost finished with my mom's nightstands and I'm so excited to share them. They are definitely bold, but I think they will make a great statement in her room.  I'm hoping to get them to her this weekend and snap a few pics to share on Monday!