Its that time of year where you want to eat soup! My husband also needed a root canal, so he needed to eat soup too. Kind of a win win situation for me. I get to try out a new recipe, feed the family, and stick to my By Design way of eating!!
The soup was/is absolutely delicious, and really quite easy to make. I skipped a few steps and changed a few things, but I will add those notes into the recipe for you ;-) The first time I made the soup I measured most of the ingredients, and stuck to the recipe (minus the veggies). The second time I made it I didn't measure a thing, and I added shrimp and crab. Delicious.
Paleo Thai Chicken Soup
Ingredients: (8 servings)
1 tablespoon grape-seed oil - I used olive oil
3 shallots, chopped - I just used a regular old onion
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro I didn't bother chopping it since you strain it out anyways
4 cups chicken stock - I just used whatever came in the carton I bought
2 (14 ounce) cans coconut milk - I had coconut cream
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 (8 ounce) package crimini mushrooms, sliced - we skipped the veggies
1 head broccoli, cut into florets
1 pound thinly sliced chicken breast meat - i just pulled a part a rotisserie chicken
2 teaspoons red curry paste - i used 1/2 the jar, added some cayenne pepper and smoked paprika
3 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 Serrano chile peppers, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped green onions
8 lime wedges
Directions:
1. Heat the grapeseed oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Cook and
stir the shallots and 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro in the hot pan
until the shallot has softened and turned translucent, about 4 minutes.
3. Pour in the chicken stock, coconut milk, and agave nectar; bring to a
simmer over medium-high heat.
4. Once the broth reaches a simmer, strain through a mesh strainer into a
clean saucepan; discard the shallot and cilantro. I scooped mine out with a spoon so I did not need to use and extra pots. It worked fine (i did not chop my cilantro and i cut big chunks of onion to make it easier)
5. Return the broth to a
simmer; stir in the mushrooms and broccoli and cook until the broccoli
becomes tender, about 4 minutes. once again i skipped this step. I added my shrimp to cook at this point!
6. Add the chicken and cook until no longer pink, stirring constantly.
7. Stir the curry paste, lime juice, and fish sauce in a small bowl to
dissolve the curry paste; mix into the simmering soup.this is where i added my smoked paprika and cayenne pepper
8. Ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with 1/2 cup cilantro, serrano peppers, green onions, and lime wedges to serve.
A big thank you to http://www.paleodietmealplans.com/paleo-thai-chicken-soup/ for the original recipe! Its a keeper!!
Enjoy...
JoJo!!
Yep! You got it! I survived 30... yes THIRTY days of Eating By Design, and it really wasn't all that bad!!
I told my husband that this was day 30, and the last day. He said we should celebrate, it's not over yet! I have to finish the day out! It's been a long week. Not a great week for me either. With lack of sleep and some long days at work I am pretty tired. I was resting on the couch, and didnt even realize what time it was, I asked my mom and realized I had missed crossfit. I really wanted to go tonight. BOO
My husband is leaving for Nigeria on Tuesday for a month. So it will be just me, my mom, and the baby. I won't have anyone to hang out with or drink wine with in the evening, so I may end up getting some extra sleep. IF we can get the baby back to sleeping through the night! My plan while he is gone is to make up some lost time at Crossfit.
This morning I weighed myself, as I do most mornings right before I get in the shower, and was pleasantly surprised (I actually have been all week). I have miraculously lost 5lbs out of nowhere. I am pretty sure it will find its way back somehow. It seems to do that.
What did I eat today?
Breakfast - coffee, scrambled eggs with banana peppers
lunch - roasted veggies
dinner - roasted veggies, chicken with tomato sauce
snack - handful of nuts
treat - red wine and dark chocolate
How Do I feel?
Hahaha! Tired! Glad it is the weekend!
How Do I feel about my 30 day challenge?
Pretty good. I am giving myself a pat of the back to taking the challenge and sticking to it. I have had a few things that are not ideally by design over the past 30 days (I'm sure my yam fries were not cooked in olive or coconut oil), and I may have eaten a little more dark chocolate and drank a little more red wine that prescribed, but I still did it. My dark chocolate isn't always as dark as it should be and I've been using liquid whipping cream in my coffee.
I am really glad I did it too. I feel better. My belly generally feels better. My digestive system still needs some work, but It has only been 30 days and it is working much more efficiently, and I haven't had a gassy bloated belly feeling. I proved to myself that I can do it, that I can eat healthy, and I can do it without having negative feelings or missing the foods I eliminated. Sure there are times that I want to eat something I shouldn't, but it is only usually when that food is right in my face. Although, I wouldn't mind eating a pizza. I think that is one food I will definitely miss.
What Were My Biggest Challenges?
The first week or so was tough when I was explaining to people what I was doing. but everyone got used to it. I think the explaining it to people (the best I could) helped me stay on track. It just kept reiterating the facts/ reasons for me deciding to do the challenge in the first place.
The time. It is for sure time consuming to Eat By Design. You have to be prepared. You have to have meals and snacks ready that you can eat. When lunch was being catered at work I had to pack a lunch. You can't really get caught on the run hungry, because it is hard to find an appropriate snack. You have to give yourself extra time in the morning to scramble those eggs.
(Did I ever tell you that I don't really care for eggs? Well I dont. In the past I have had to be in the mood for eggs. The have to be scrambled, in an omelet or in egg salad. I will only eat egg salad I make myself too. I cannot stand hard boiled, poached, or deviled eggs. Egg yolk is just vile, and the texture is even worse! Over the past month I have gotten over some of my distaste for eggs. I am eating scrambles every day! Still can only eat them scrambled though. Funny how things change)
Back on track.... my challenges
I thought eating out would be a challenge, but it has not been all that bad. Everywhere serves chicken or fish with roasted veggies... you just need to skip the sauce.
Which brings me to my last challenge..... sauce. I love sauce. I am a dipper.... Ranch, Ketchup, Tartar Sauce, Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce etc. I miss having sauces. I tried making mayo so I could make some sauces, but it never worked out. Please share your mayo recipes with me!!
So What will I do now?
I will continue to eat relatively by design. The principles make sense to me. It fits well into my life. I just need to get my husband and baby on board! I don't foresee myself changing the way I am eating now. I have enjoyed the meals I have made, and the recipes I have tried. I like the way my belly is starting to feel, and I think my body needs some more time to adjust. I would really like to see how I feel in another 30 days!!
So stay tuned. I won't be blogging daily about eating by design anymore, but I will get back to blogging about my recipes I am trying and my going ons as I did before.
JoJo!!
Wow wow wow!! Only 1 more day to go!! Can you believe that it has already been 29 days?? I sure can't!!
Today was a long day. I was at the chiropractor at 7:30am. I spent the morning at my school in Claireview, went to the office for a few hours, then off to the west end for a meeting at another school, that lasted until 4pm. All that driving, especially in this weather, makes for a very tiresome day. It doesn't help that I was up with Avery again at 4am.... silly baby. She needs to get back to her good sleeping habits! I'm just exhausted. 4 Nights in a row without a full nights sleep, it is really taking its toll on me.
What did I eat today?
Breakfast - coffee, eggs and salsa
lunch - sphagetti squash and ragu sauce (it was all we had in the house)
Dinner - roasted veggies, rotisserie chicken
Snack - handful of nuts
Treats - dark chocolate, red wine
How Do I Feel?
Other than being exhausted, I feel pretty good. Today I was yawning all day long, but generally, even when I am not getting great sleep, I am not feeling the fatigue until I come home and sit home, which is great!
My Biggest Challenge today?
Making my lunch. My Father-in-Law has been visiting us, and so we have been eating out a bit. I haven't bought any groceries and I haven't done any shopping. When it came time time to make my lunch I was kind of at a loss. I grabbed some Ragu (not ideal, but not the worst thing I could have chosen) and poured it over some spaghetti squash and packed it up!! It was tasty.
See you on day 30!!
JoJo!!
