It's only Tuesday, but I think lack of sunshine in Vancouver is tiring me out.  Rain, rain go away...  We are going to Alberta to visit my parents soon and I hope to find some sun there.

Paleo Grandad is off doing extra work for a movie this week, so when I get home from work, I'm hungry and need to have dinner for Paleo Grandad when he gets home around 9 p.m.  He has found that movie food for extras is not good, so he always takes Paleo leftovers and snacks with him.

I love researching health and nutrition and the relationship to food we eat, and I'm also trying to figure out why I can't get rid of the eczema I have had on my face for the last several years.  It is the one thing my much healthier diet does not seem able to clear up.  I even make my own face cream (more about that on a future post), but nothing keeps it away.  It goes away for a few days and then comes back.  I found some information on the Perfect Health Diet website that suggests that the primary cause of eczema is Omega-6 deficiency.  I eat a lot of kale and nuts, so I don't think that's the reason.  Has anyone else researched this?

Last week was a short week at work due to the Victoria Day long weekend and the sun was shining most of the week - nothing better than a sunny day in Vancouver and a short work week.

Wondering what to make for dinner?  I have two ideas for you - both using chicken.  The first recipe is based on one from OMG that's Paleo by Juli Bauer - Pumpkin Cashew Coconut Curry over Coconut Rice -  but I didn't like some of the ingredients (not a fan of cumin) so I used some Thai curry paste and it turned out pretty good.  The recipe serves four, so there was enough for lunch for both me and Paleo Grandad the next day.

Monday on the Victoria Day long weekend - a day for laundry and cooking.  I made some coffee while I put another Paleo breakfast together - My Favourite Paleo Breakfast 2:

• Turkey Mediterranean Sausage (turkey, sun-dried tomatoes, salt, pepper, garlic, spices and delicious)
• Scrambled eggs
• Sauerkraut, sauteed with the sausages
• Fresh blackberries

Growing up in the 1950's, I remember Saturday shopping as being a special occasion.  I was about nine years old and we lived in a small hamlet in Alberta called Manola - there were about 50 people living in the hamlet itself, with lots of farms surrounding the town.  The big shopping was done in Barrhead, Alberta about 15 miles north of Manola.

My parents would load themselves and me and my brothers and sister into the car and, in Barrhead, we would each be given 25 cents to go to the local (only!) movie theatre in town.  The 25 cents would get us each into the afternoon matinee with enough money leftover for popcorn, while my parents did the shopping.

I was the oldest at nine years old, so I was responsible for my 8-year old brother, 6-year old sister and 4-year old brother. Imagine what would happen these days if you left a nine-year old in charge of three other children.

Today, Saturday is usually our shopping day, as I am still working during the week but, since I can't drop Paleo Grandad off at the movies, he comes with me and carries the heavy stuff and learns how to pick out good food.  One thing we have discovered since we began Paleo is the taste of food - good food has so much flavour, even cooked simply as we cook now, and that we no longer like the taste of processed food, especially fast food.  We also don't feel too great when we eat the processed food (lethargic and needing a nap).  We've also noticed that we spend less on our weekly grocery bill than we did before.

If you haven’t heard about bone broth before, you are about to now.  It is another great food that I discovered since I started the Paleo lifestyle.  Besides being incredibly healthy, it is almost like drinking gravy (but you aren’t!) without the fat and carbs.  Besides bacon, what could be easier to add to your diet?

Broth (or stock) is a highly nutrient dense food – it is an excellent source of minerals and is known to boost the immune system and improve digestion. It’s high in calcium, magnesium and phosphorus and supports your joints, hair, skin and nails due to its high collagen content. I’ve read that it helps eliminate cellulite as it supports smooth connective tissue – bonus!

I think the Paleo Mom explains it well:  “Glycine and proline are two key components of connective tissue, the biological “glue” that holds our bodies together. There are many types of connective tissue and these two amino acids feature prominently in most of them, from the cartilage that forms our joints to the extracellular matrix that acts as a scaffold for the cells in our individual organs, muscles, arteries etc. Without these two amino acids, we would literally fall apart. So, it is no surprise that we need these two amino acids to heal, not only gaping wounds, but also the microscopic damage done to blood vessels and other tissues in our body caused by inflammation and infection. In fact, glycine is known to inhibit the immune system and reduce activation of inflammatory cells in your body.

Growing up in the 1950's (or mid-century as they say on the Antiques Roadshow - nice to know we are considered antiques), you probably had the big Sunday dinner in the early afternoon, as I did.  My parents did not have much money and we had a family of six, but we always had a big dinner on Sundays, usually with aunts, uncles and cousins added.  Or we would go to another relatives house for dinner.  Supper later on would be sandwiches made from the leftover roast meat - I think it is a prairies thing.

My parents both grew up on farms and my grandparents raised their own livestock, planted crops and gardens.  My Mom's family had eleven children and my Dad's nine - a lot of mouths to feed and, amazingly, they only ate what they grew themselves.  Unfortunately, that included grains in homemade bread, cakes, pies and cookies, and lots of sugar so that is what I learnt to eat and why, I think, to this day after I have eaten my evening meal, my body starts craving something sweet.

Reading other websites/blogs, the sugar cravings especially after meal seems to be a common problem even with the younger generation.  Some people never get over it, they just try to control it as much as possible - I am in that category.  Jason Sieb on Everday Paleo (follow the link to get the whole post) explained it well, I think.

Saturday morning - love it as I have time to cook a real Paleo breakfast.  Two eggs on top of sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts and chopped jalapeno is my favourite breakfast.  Paleo Grandad likes it too, but then he eats anything as long as he doesn't have to cook it.

One of the Paleo sites I follow is Paleoista (see right hand menu) and Nell Stephenson posted on kombucha today and I wanted to weigh in on my (now) favourite beverage. During the ten months I have been reading everything I can get my hands on about the Paleo lifestyle, I came across references to kombucha - a fermented tea that has been around for a long time.  Apparently it had a renaissance in the '70's, which I missed, though I do have all the original Moosewood Cookbooks - my vegetarian period.

Depending on which book you read and what appeals to you, fermented food can have benefits or do nothing, or just taste good.  Sauerkraut, for example, can be added to your breakfast to aide in digestion.  I can see the face you are making - but bacon, eggs and 1/4 cup of sauerkraut is a good breakfast for me!  If you like sauerkraut (or have never had it) try it and then you can make a face if you don't like it.

On Friday our office held a Cinco De Mayo Cook-Off and Birthday Bash - we like to get all our celebrations in at once - saves time. 

I love cook-offs as it is a good excuse to try new recipes (previously non-paleo, high sugar, high fat recipes), so this time I looked for a Mexican Paleo recipe and found one on Fast Paleo -  Chorizo and Sweet Potato Jalapeno Poppers - there are those delicious sweet potatoes again.  I didn't follow the recipe exactly, but then I usually don't.  Sometimes it is just because I don't have all the ingredients so I substitute for what I do have, and sometimes I just don't like how certain ingredients make me feel, so they get switched out.

This is not strictly a Paleo recipe as it has cheese in it, and I'm pretty sure the chorizo had sugar in it, but wow were they good.  If a Paleo recipe has any dairy products in it, remember use full-fat dairy only.  When they make dairy or any other food low-fat, they have to add a ton of chemical-y things just to make it palatable.

I have several Paleo blogs (all U.S. based) that I follow regularly, and several of them have just published or will be publishing cookbooks soon.  I have a Kobo reader and I have several cookbooks loaded on there, but there is nothing like a nice new paper cookbook to hold in my hands.  I love finding new recipes to try and seeing pictures of great food.  This particular  new cookbook is OMG that's Paleo by Juli Bauer from Paleomg.com.

This 100-recipe, 165 page cookbook is a nice size - doesn't take up too much room on your counter - and the recipes (70 which you can find on her blog, and 30 new ones) sound great.  I have tried several of the recipes off her blog, and they were all good, but I am going to work through a lot more and I will let you know how they work out.  I am making Slow Cooked Salsa Chicken with coconut caul-rice for tonight's dinner - I can smell it cooking in the slow cooker and it smells delicious.  Stay tuned for the recipe and pictures.

Dinner last night was also from this cookbook - Paleo Sweet Potato Fries - and, if you try nothing else, you have to try these. 

Finished Sweet Potato Poutine