Monday - Pan seared pork chops with braised red cabbage & apples
review: I used supermarket pork chops for this dinner, but I really wish I had some more of the bone in chops from the farm. They are so much more flavorful and juicy!! I seasoned the chops with Gateway to the North Maple Garlic seasoning blend from The Spice House, then I seared on the stove top and finished in the oven. The cabbage was delicious, will definitely make it again.
Tuesday - Jerk chicken and mango stuffed avocados with side salad
review: I got lazy and just put cut up mangoes on top of my chicken, which by the way was very good! It was not hot however, and my husband didn't believe that I put a whole habanero in the marinade. Maybe next time I will add two!! I had a homemade balsamic vinaigrette on my spring mix.
Wednesday - Green chili turkey burgers with Asian asparagus and orange salad
review: I must have been tired when I put this combination together! I was pretty much laughing at myself while I was cooking the meal. The burgers were ok, there was waaaay too much cumin in the recipe, so instead of tasting like turkey and chili, they tasted like CUMIN! I will never get sick of using avocado as a condiment!!! Agian, I think I prefer to just have ground beef burgers and skip using ground chicken and turkey. Then there was the asian asparagus, this was a easy salad. I love sesame oil & seeds and the oranges were a nice way to change things up a bit.
Thursday- Mustard lime chicken
I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I didn't want to cook dinner so I thought I could eat out if I could find something acceptable to eat... where there is a will there is a way!! I went to the Chipotle website to confirm that their pork is raised antibiotic free and then I ordered a salad with carnitas, green salsa and guacamole. It was so ridiculously tasty!!!!! I didn't even miss the rice, beans, cheese, sour cream or CHIPS! Actually I did miss the chips, and put them in the way back of the car for the ride back across town ;) Sorry you didn't get a before picture of my plate, I was obviously extremely hungry!
Friday - Mustard lime chicken with brussels sprouts & prosciutto
review: We only had lemons, so I whipped up Mustard Lemon Chicken on the grill and made the brussels sprouts in the house... also forgot to get prosciutto so I used bacon! My method is slightly different than the recipe, I pan steam the veggies, take them out of the pan and render the bacon, then add the vegs back in and season. I like color on my veggies so these were perfectly done to me. I would definitely make both dishes again, they were easy and delicious. Thanks to my buddy Beth for the heads up on the chicken recipe, great recommendation :)
Saturday - Grilled spice-rubbed flank steak, roasted portabello & herb mashed cauliflower
review: we looooved this rub on the flank steak and can't wait to have it again. I added a little olive oil to the paste to make it more spreadable and only marinated it 30 minutes while waiting on the coals. The flavor was fantastic. The mushrooms were good, and strangely resembled the meat in shape & color. I was too tired to make the cauliflower and was full from this so it all worked out.
Sunday - Dry Brined Rotisserie Chicken with Cuban Flavors with fresh artichoke and lemon-tahini sauce
review: no, there is nothing wrong with your screen, that is not chicken. Long story short, I didn't make chicken. I did have the dry brine made so I put it on the pork chops for a few hours, then rinsed them off and prepared by pan searing and finishing off in the oven. The pork turned out great, quite juicy compared to the same pork chops I made earlier in the week. A bit salty in spots from the brine, but overall a solid recipe. I made some thyme mashed cauliflower as a side. I was pretty tired from working in the yard and doing other chores, so I saved the artichoke for another day.
Week 2 recap... I was tired. I spent Sunday and Monday very low on energy and then woke up Tuesday with a sore throat. Wednesday and Thursday were no better, sore, achy, tired. I went to bed early on these nights and tried to take it easy during the day. By the time I woke up Friday I was feeling back to my normal self and ready to tackle the weekend. My friend Danielle told me that it could be Low Carb Flu. I had never heard of this before, but sure enough it exists. The body has to learn how to make energy from burning fat instead of using carbs. What I realized is that this temporary setback pales in comparison to the benefits once the transition has passed. I just cant wait for the transition to pass! I am happy to say that I am down another three pounds this week! I really enjoy planning my menu every week, something I did before Whole30. The difference is now it really helps me get excited about the things I can eat :) I find my confidence in staying positive... and now I am going to go whip up another weekly menu!
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