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Paleo Cookie Dough Truffles

• 1 TBS raw honey
• 1 TBS coconut milk or almond milk
• 1 TBS ground flaxseed meal
• 4 TBS shredded unsweetened organic coconut
• 3/4 cup almond meal
• 1 TBS melted coconut oil
• 1 TBS vanilla
• chocolate - to taste. Use as high % dark as possible. (less sugar, more cocoa - the Lindt 90% only has 3 grams sugar per serving. I chopped up half the bar.

Mix all of these ingredients in a small bowl, roll into truffles, chill for 30 minutes, then enjoy! Makes about 6-10 truffles. My boyfriend and I enjoyed one each as a Saturday night treat, then I put the rest in the freezer with the plan to unthaw at room temperature for future enjoyment.

Note: this is a once in a while treat only. Whilst technically "paleo," consuming in large quantities isn't cool man.

Saturday night higher-carb dinner:
Organic lean beef burgers on bed of spinach, acorn squash, asparagus with lemon pepper.

2013 - Best Year Ever!

weekend paleo brunch - greens, garlic asparagus, eggs, nitrate-free  ham, oranges

Its a marvelous thing when what you want to do, and what you know you should do, and what you actually have the will to do, all align. If you've read back on this blog over the years you will see a big pattern of me starting something... and then failing to go very far with it. Ups and downs. At first I felt embarrassed reading back on the past few years. But you know, I am not embarrassed  This is my story, my highs and lows, accomplishments and lack thereof. Snapshots of the current times. But I digress. I was talking about my new found good decisions. I feel like that I'm finally OK sacrificing certain things to the advancement of others.

So I'm two weeks into eating "Paleo" style. The paleo plan is meat, veggies, healthy fats, some fruit, some nuts and seeds. Read - no dairy, no grains, no legumes. When I mentioned eating this style while out at lunch with some co-workers last week, someone was like, "moderation in all things, I don't believe in cutting out entire food groups." and I feel sorry for that perspective. Grains and legumes are inedible in their natural state, and just because modern cultivation and need for cheap, carb-heavy processed food to feed an enormous amount of people can take something and make it edible, doesn't mean there are health benefits from eating it. But you know, that's just me. There is no perfect way. Whatever works for people... eating is like religion, whatever makes you feel good - do it! And I feel so good eating paleo. Even better than clean eating, which still contains dairy and "whole grains." Grains make me feel sluggish and unwell. If I need good carbs pre or post workout, I'm going to pick fruit and squashes, not wheat or oats. 

The coolest thing is that I am down 15 lbs in two weeks. Of course, the "before" weight was at the very height of New Year's day, post Holiday excess and bloat. But still, that's cool. real cool. 

I'm also taking college courses full-time. On Wednesdays and Thursdays I have class from 5:30pm - 10:00pm. And homework to boot. Juggling work, school, and life is tricky and I have to keep on my toes. 

What this means for me is a few things, and these things are my areas of focus this year. The PLAN!

1. Adequate rest. I am the WORST morning person ever. I hate getting up & at 'em. I wish I could be a morning person who jumps out of bed with a zest for life, but I am not. I'm like, nooooo the light! it blinds us! actually, my brother Nik (who is hilarious) calls the condition sleep inertia. If sleeping, must stay asleep. If I'm awake, must stay awake, lest I miss something!! I'm working on it. The goal here soon is to workout in the mornings before work. If I can do that consistently, I'll know I've made it. But anyway, a full work and school schedule means I need to get to bed by 10, 10:30 so I can get enough sleep to function.

2. Preparedness. This is in the areas of laundry and food. On school nights, I have to pack enough food for the day to last me from 8 am to 10 pm. That takes prior planning. And I need to have clean clothes, of course.

3. Sobriety. Is it sad that I listed that? Maybe. Drinking was really holding me back, despite years of justifying it as letting loose and just having fun. When you drink, you make stupid food choices, and when you're hungover (and it can take days to get recovered after an especially rowdy evening), you also make bad food choices, PLUS you don't do anything to get prepared. You sit around on the computer, or watching Netflix, only getting up long enough to answer the door when the delivery guy comes. I'm speaking about myself, my own truths. I was kidding myself thinking I could be a weekend warrior and still get my crap together enough to ensure a successful week ahead. Drinking has been holding me back for years. Plus, I'm over it! I just don't want that to be a part of my life. Now that I'm almost 29, I feel sad for the people who still go out to the bars or who center all of their fun around drinking. I'm not ruling out some future celebrations, but I'm thinking 0-4 times per year, rather than 50-70. Big difference!

4. Financial Fitness. This is the year of really saving up. By not spending money on take-out and cocktails, I can really stash the cash. I've done an ok job of this up tp this point, but I have made some wasteful and frivolous decisions. I think this was a maturity thing too. So this year, I am really focusing on making big strides in the frugality zone.

5. Enriching Activities. This means reading more, working on my art more, attending community or cultral events, volunteering, calling my family more. My spare time is so precious, I can't spend it sitting around on the computer or watching TV. I plan to do more.


Oh, and an update to the relationship....(since for some reason I feel the need to blog about something so personal here)... after a few months apart, and some therapy working out issues (I'm a child of divorce and I come from a line of crazies), we worked through our problems. Hey - love is love. When someone not only accepts your irrational shortcomings but helps you through them with compassion.... plus they are kind and make you laugh, well they are a keeper. 

So that's what I have to say about all that. I'll be over here chopping wood and carrying water.