Crock Pot Catastrophe

   Well, the beautiful Thai Beef Stew I told you about was ruined!  My crock pot decided low was the perfect temperature setting for boiling and burning my dinner.  I was a little majorly sad but my husband saved the day.  He told me to go to my favorite fitness studio for a class and he would research crock pots for me online.  This is a man who knows my heart!  We trashed the stew-filled crockpot and I danced away my frustration. 

   The new slow cooker in my life is pretty spectacular...this is not an exaggeration.  It has a brown/sauté feature which is a huge time-saver and helps with clean-up.  You can also steam veggies and of course, use the slow-cooker feature.  It is a little expensive in comparison to most models but Amazon has a pretty great deal.  Totally worth the price!

My first meal in my slow cooker was Against All Grain's Chicken Verde.  It is a fabulous recipe from her Meals Made Simple book.  It is easy, delicious, and makes for great leftovers!  I also made her coconut-lime cauli-rice and cumin-garlic squash.  A perfect, simple supper.  It's even Whole30 approved! (just leave out the honey for the 'rice') 

**All three recipes are from Meals Made Simple.**

You Say You Want a Resolution...

Happy Sunday!

January usually brings new health and wellness resolutions.  My goal is to do more of the same...I want to continue eating clean, predominantly Paleo/Primal food, and working out consistently.  I did kick off the year with the Whole30 approach to reset my eating habits.  I definitely enjoyed gluten-free Rice Krispies and some lovely Paleo-fied treats over the holidays and need a break!  

It's Day 7 of my Whole30.  I miss wine.  I miss cheese.  I miss my Paleo French Vanilla Coffee Creamer from Danielle Walker at Against All Grain.  It is a delicious replacement for chemical-filled Coffeemate.  I don't mind black coffee but it sure does taste better with some of this dairy-free goodness!

Against All Grain

Even though I am cleaning up my diet a bit, it doesn't mean I'm missing out on flavorful meals!  This morning I prepped one of my all-time favorite recipes for the crockpot.  Against All Grain's Crockpot Thai Beef Stew is simply amazing and Whole30 friendly.  A little prep work in the morning makes for a beautiful supper tonight!  My kitchen smells wonderful right now!!  3 more hours to go!

Against All Grain

Here is my sous chef, Sophie, helping with meal planning for the week.  She always has to know what's going on!!

 I'm prepping a large batch of taco meat to be used in a few recipes this week as well as enough to freeze for a busy day.  I'll chop some veggies for the frittata I'll make in the morning for a few day's worth of breakfasts.  I have another recipe to use in the crockpot that will make great leftovers.  My goal is to always plan meals that will be enough to spread throughout the week for lunch and dinner leftovers.  Chopping veggies today that I will use this week is a huge timesaver on busy nights.  I've also seen great ideas like making salads in mason jars for the week.  

Tone It Up

I also like to schedule my workouts for the week in my planner so I treat them like appointments.  Tone It Up shares weekly workout schedules on their website each week.  This is a great resource and keeps me motivated!  

What do you like to do to help prep for a successful week?