DIY Italian Seasoning

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meatballs

Yes I got up early. And I have just enough energy to whip up some meatballs, tomato sauce and a lovely smelling batch of Italian seasoning. Now time for a nap!

Thanks to my wonderful pup (I have to tell myself that right now), I woke up at 4:30 a.m. She decided that I was in bed long enough. And she had things to do…like play, eat, play, go for a walk, and play.

In between 2 play sessions, I decided to make some coffee to help wake me up.

D’oh! Never make coffee when you are sleepy…or with the lights off. Never! Bad things happen. Now I don’t know what happened since the lights were off, but it was the worst thing I’ve ever created.

Sure enough that awful taste woke me up. I think I brushed my teeth 20 times.

I’m hoping to catch a quick nap soon. But for some reason I decided I needed to make a batch of Italian meatballs. And that lead to whipping up some tomato sauce.

But before either, I had to make my own Italian seasoning. Why? Because I have no Italian seasoning in my house. I stopped buying it because I figured I can make my own. Of course I picked the morning with lack of sleep to do it.

Of course.

Soon all will be in the slow cooker.

Then the nap.

Italian Seasoning Recipe
The Italian seasoning smells wonderful. It seems like I got that right.  I kept it with 6 ingredients: basil, marjoram, oregano, rosemary, thyme and sage. I decided to leave the garlic powder out since I tend to use real garlic. I also left out the red pepper flakes…for now. I may reconsider. I do love heat.

This makes yields about 52 servings with a serving size of 1/2 teaspoon. Net carbs are 0g (0.2g total carbs).

Italian Seasoning
Serving size: 1/2 teaspoon
Yield: 52 servings

  • 2 tbsp. Dried basil leaves
  • 2 tbsp. Dried oregano leaves
  • 2 tbsp. dried marjoram leaves
  • 1 tbsp. Dried Rosemary leaves, crumbled
  • 1 tbsp. Dried thyme leaves
  • 2 tsp. Dried sage leaves
  • 1 tbsp. Red Pepper Flakes (optional; may use less for less heat)

Nutrition: 1 Calorie/0g Protein/0g Fat/0.2g Carbs/0.2g Fiber

Q: Who Are You To Trust With Your Health? A: Yourself

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badgovt

After 50 years, the government, medical, fitness and food industries are still peddling the same bad advice that is making us sick and fat. Time for a change.

I keep harping on the experts in the field of diet and nutrition not being all that expert. Why? Because they are so boneheaded dogmatic about their own beliefs they can’t see the mountains of evidence that those beliefs are wrong. The article  Health Authorities Continue To Fail Us poses a great question: Who are we to trust when it comes to dietary advice?

The article is a great read that sums up that our “experts” have gotten so much wrong, much to our detriment. From calories in/calories out to saturated fat is bad — it’s all bunk.

Yet the American Heart Association, American Medical Association, nutritionist, dietitians, doctors, fitness industry, Big Pharma, the food industry…hell the whole lot continue to push the same bad advice for more than 50 years.

The results? Obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and a host of other chronic diseases have skyrocketed.  That isn’t evolution. It’s environmental.

The food chain, built on this advice, is slowly killing us.

Since the medical, fitness and food industry has no interest in changing, the writer of the article has a very simple solution for you — not easy — but simple:

“So who are we to trust then? The list would appear to be getting smaller every day.

Now more than ever the message is clear: if you want to truly be healthy, it’s up to the individual to do their own research and come to their own conclusions. There is a mountain of information out there to go through, and you’ll need to sift through the bias of people selling you diets, fringe groups promoting their social agenda, and the media misinterpreting real research findings.

While it may sound like too much trouble, is your health really of that little importance that you’d trust it to anyone else but yourself?”

Amen!

 

 

 

Grilled Thai Steak Salad

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I’ve been caught up in a whirlwind of chores, home repairs and working out that blogging has taken a back seat (unfortunately).  But the good news is that my energy level is up. I don’t know if it’s due to changes in my supplements, the mindfulness is kicking in, my increased workout schedule or a combo of the three.

Just a couple of big projects to wrap up and then regularly scheduled blogging and cooking videos can commence.  Whew!

Anyway, here is a great way to start your day:  Grilled Thai Steak Salad.

Yep, that’s right. A salad for breakfast.

Lemon Herb Chicken Casserole

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This video is actually two recipes in one. The first is for my lemon herb chicken. The chicken comes out so tender, juicy and delicious. Normally I use chicken thighs with skin. But the second recipe — a creamy chicken casserole — calls for no skin.

The casserole recipe is from The Ketogenic Cookbook and is wonderful. You can use any leftover chicken for the dish, but my lemon herb chicken a nice flavor.

Both are tasty and easy to make.

Chicken Stuffed Peppers

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My dad use to make stuffed peppers when I was a kid. Green peppers, diced onions, cheese, ground beef, hot sauce and “milk.” Actually I think the milk was really cream of mushroom soup, but it’s not like that’s something you can tell 5 food-fussy kids. A man’s gotta do what he’s gotta do, right?

Anyway here’s a version from The Complete Guide To Fasting by Dr. Jason Fung (yes, a fasting book with recipes!). This recipe replaces ground beef with chicken and tosses in some spices and grape tomatoes.

Easy to make and, like other recipes from the book I’ve tried, very yummy.

Fat V Carbs: They Still Don’t Get It

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Sometimes you really can’t see the forest for the trees.

The most surprising thing in this video for me isn’t that a low carb, high fat diet works when it comes to improving your health. It’s the number of medical professionals who still don’t have a clue.

I believe most of today’s ills (chronic health problems and skyrocketing health care costs) are caused by the rise of carb-driven fake food over the last 40+ years. The medical community better wake up. Thanks to the Internet, we’re reaching the tipping point where the majority of people will find this information on their own. If that happens, GPs, nutritionist and dieticians just may find themselves obsolete.

 

Going Primal! 21-Day Challenge Starts May 1

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Starting May 1 I’m taking The Primal Blueprint 21-Day Challenge. Created by Mark Sisson’s of Mark’s Daily Apple (one of my favorite blogs), the challenge is designed to help you make a few foundational changes to how you approach food, exercise and life.

What Can I Eat?
Since I already eat low carb, I’ve got the food part nailed down…for the most part. I’m already eating real food (when it’s on sale!) and avoiding sugar, grains, bad fats, legumes and processed foods.

The Primal Food Pyramid is much different (and healthier!) than the junk pushed by the USDA. Source: Mark's Daily Apple.

The Primal Food Pyramid is much different (and healthier!) than the junk pushed by the USDA. Source: MarksDailyApple.com.

I’m starting to menu plan. My normal meals and snacks are pretty much on target. But Mark’s site has plenty of tasty-looking, low carb recipes I plan to try out during the challenge. Read More