So, I recently started a (semi-revised) Whole30 plan, which is basically a super intense Paleo cleanse. If you don't know anything about Paleo, or the Paleo "diet", let me learn you a thing. So the Paleo "diet" (and yes, I promise there's a reason for the quotations) is an eating plan that mimics the diet of our Paleolithic ancestors. And by mimic, I mean that the things you're allowed to eat on the plan are things that would have been readily available to our Paleolithic ancestors. You can eat organic grass-fed meat, organic pasture-raised poultry and eggs, fish, organic vegetables, organic fruit, nuts, and lots of healthy fats. You can't eat grains, legumes (including peanuts, who knew?), pasteurized dairy (I specify here, because there's some debate about whether or not Raw milk is considered Paleo--I've been drinking it because 1, It's great for you and 2, In what world would I actually permanently give up cheese and ice cream?!?!), refined sugars, white potatoes, processed foods, refined vegetable oils.
I have mixed feelings about the Paleo diet, mainly because I'm not a millionaire. I'm a stay at home mom living in a one-income household, so buying organic and grass-fed meat, pastured poultry and eggs, and $10 a container priced almond-butter every single week is just not feasible. Also, the Paleo lifestyle just isn't sustainable. We, as a country, do not have enough undeveloped farm land available to feed the amount of animals that we would need to switch to a totally grass-fed diet. It just ain't gonna happen. And we like paying farmers to grow GMO corn and soy instead of healthy organic grass to feed animals in the first place, but I digress.
The Whole30 plan is a 30 day intensive Paleo cleanse...thing... While eating Paleo, you're allowed to have natural sweeteners like maple syrup (yum!) and coconut palm sugar, as opposed to the Whole30 plan, during which you aren't supposed to have any sugar, processed or natural. (Yeah--I realized that about four days in...)
The first day I started the Whole30 (Friday, January 10, 2014), I realized I'd need to look at alternative condiments for the next 30 days. Because, in case you didn't realize, there is sugar in like every flipping thing! Salsa, sugar; ketchup, sugar; spicy ginger dressing, SUGAR! Sugar, sugar everywhere! And where there's not sugar, there's inevitably preservatives! UGH! So, I did something about it.
I made mayonnaise. Sounds simple, yes, but from that mayonnaise I can now create sauces, dips, and dressings--because who in their right mind eats a salad to actually eat a salad?
I found a method involving a Mason jar and an immersion blender, which made me very happy, because as a Southern girl, I enjoy anything I can both make and keep in a jar. *nonchalantly toes the jar of moonshine back into the pantry* Ahem...well, yes! Mayonnaise!
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| Mason jar lovin', lemon slicin', mustard squeezin' madness! |
Recipe for ~1.5 cups of Paleo Mayonnaise:
1 organic egg yolk
1 TBS. water
Juice from 1/2 lemon
A dab/squeeze of (Paleo friendly!) Dijon mustard (I found that the Greenwise brand from our local Publix was sugar free and spicy!)
1 cup neutral oil (I used grapeseed)
Add all ingredients to a Mason jar, then plunge your immersion blender in. Turn it on and watch some magic happen! Store in the jar you made it in for up to a week--if you can keep yourself from eating it for that long.
I have no aspirations to, after this 30 days is up, suddenly become Paleo. As I said, I haven't got a million bucks, and I like cheese too much. (And hello! If I couldn't ever gorge myself on buttered soda bread again, I think I'd collapse in a puddle of tears. And chocolate croissants! And pie! And cake!) But, I do plan on trying to keep as much processed foods and refined sugars out of my diet as possible. It's been years since I was truly active (shout-out to my volleyball girls), so I'm also adding some low-impact cardio (helloooooo bad knees!), yoga, and hopefully some weight lifting as well.
If you, out of the kindness of your precious little heart, want to sponsor/help me on this endeavor for a better, healthier me, I happen to have a handy-dandy Amazon Wishlist with healthy snacks, Paleo Cookbooks, and various items that would be really useful! To find said list, you can click RIGHT HERE, and to send me something from the list, all you have to do is order the item from the list and it gets sent straight to me! (Nifty huh?)
Expect more recipes and probably some griping about not being able to have chocolate cake to come. I have a particularly delicious smoothie recipe that's in the middle of being typed!
Until next time, Kitchen (and Cardio) Comrades!
-M
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