Hawaiian Meatballs

I just call these Hawaiian meatballs because it's catchy.  I suppose the only thing that makes 'em remotely Hawaiian is the addition of pineapple in the sauce.  But one thing about it, they're pretty tasty.  Slightly sweet from the pineapple with a little kick on your taste buds from the red pepper flakes, plus a little savory or perhaps "umami" from the fish sauce. 

I had two recipes that I didn't quite have the ingredients for and as I was looking at them trying to decide which on to make I thought I would pull a little bit from each.  I'm trying these with ground pork the next time but I had to use chicken and turkey since it's what I had on hand.  One thing I wish I had was a little arrowroot to thicken the sauce some but really it's quite fine without it.  A thicker sauce is simply more visually appealing.

This recipe just sort of came together over the stove so I might tweak it a little the next time.  Perhaps bump up the heat a little or add some more pineapple.  But at any rate this gives you a good jumping off point.

Hawaiian Meatballs

For the meatballs:

2 lbs of ground meat (pork, chicken, turkey, etc)

2T Red Boat fish sauce

2T Coconut Aminos

2t. curry powder

2 green onions, diced

1t. ginger, minced

1t. cilantro, chopped

salt & pepper to taste

For the sauce:

1 can coconut milk

1C chicken broth

1 t. Red Boat fish sauce

1t. Coconut Aminos

1/2 t. curry powder

1 green onion, diced

1/2 T. red pepper flakes (more if you like it hot)

juice from 1/2 lime

juice from 1/2 lemon

2T. crushed pineapple

3T pineapple juice

2t. basil, chopped

1.  Mix all the ingredient for the meatballs in a bowl and then form into meatballs.  Make them whatever size you like.

2.  Put a little fat of your choice in a large skillet and fry up the meatballs.  I like them to be a little crispy on the outside.

3.  Remove from skillet.  Then add the ingredients for the sauce to the skillet. 

4.  Stir and bring to a simmer.  Add the meatballs and simmer in the sauce for 10 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through.

Reboot

So, things have been a little tough for me the past couple of weeks.  I sort of just let things (Paleo things) go to the wayside.  Not totally but about 40 percent.  Between my normal work hours and heading out of town to do my usual stint at the folks plus helping my friend pack her home, I've been lucky to sleep in my own bed.  Today was the first day to myself and I made good use of it.  I've been totally Paleo today and even managed to take a mile run in my new Invisible Shoes (huaraches for the minimalist shoe camp) and went to the pool to swim some laps.  It was a great day and aside from my feet being a little tender from the huaraches (I'm just starting out in them) I feel great.

I just had some leftover babybacks that I grilled up for a dinner party Sunday night.  They were awesome.  Here's my iPhone pick of them smoking away on the barbie.

Life is good kids!  I'm glad to have a chance to regroup and get my Paleo life back in order.  I'll be cooking up some meals for my weekend on and will get them posted.  I'm also going to start blogging a little about my attempts to exercise.  Hopefully I can keep myself healthy for that.  I tend to over do it and end up a hurting unit but maybe I can keep it together.

I lost my mojo

For about one month now I've been less than inspired.  I haven't fallen off the wagon (well not completely) but it's been a bumpy ride.  I suppose it all started when I hit my third month of zero weight loss.  I don't understand why this is happening and it does take it's toll on my psyche.  I am not concentrating on weight loss but still I want it to happen...it needs to happen.  Other mitigating circumstances may be that in July I moved.  It wasn't very taxing and the move went well but there was some distraction and loss of internet for a time.  Previously I would spend quite a bit of time immersing myself in the Paleo world by visiting blogs and recipe gathering.  I haven't done that for about a month (my last post was July 12th and it was simply pictures).  I did, at least, start working out during this time (C25K, rowing and swimming) but suffered some musculo-skeletal pain/soreness.  It has ended up requiring chiropractor visits and regular doses of muscle relaxants and pain relievers (stuff I never take) as well as liniments and hot/cold packs.  I haven't been able to workout for the past week while I recoop but look forward to starting back up the end of this week. 

While my main meals have been Paleo and I continue to prepare my meals, I have been snacking on non Paleo foodstuffs.  Mini candy bars are a main source of cheating and I've also had a few handfuls of chip during this month.  I've eaten 4 non paleo meals and certainly paid a price for that.  It may not seem like much for the time frame but it feels considerable to me. 

I have been reflecting on what has happened.  I've made it 6 months living Paleo and enjoy it.  I love how I feel and the way I'm beginning to look.  I loved the control I was able to exert over my life.  But it's been slipping this past month.  I really think the fact that I haven't been totally immersed in Paleo is a major factor.  Sometimes being the only Paleo person in my household and within my circle is isolating.  Maybe my lone wolf personality needs a pack sometimes.

Lately I've been seeing facebook updates from Paleoites about the AHS convention.  Tonight I finally put some effort into visiting some of the Paleo blogs I follow and read their recaps of the symposium.  I have to say that I'm feeling quite inspired.  I enjoyed reading about people finally meeting some of the bloggers they've been following and listening to the speakers and just immersing theirselves in Paleo.  I'm really looking forward to getting dedicated to my lifestyle choice.  I want to stay up late at night visiting all the blogs I used to stop by.  I'm looking forward to re-energizing my meal choices and my weekly menu.  I'm excited about rebooting my exercise program. 

I just realized that it all comes down to effort.  I haven't been putting forth the same level of effort that I used to.  I've simply been on cruise control for the past month.  Only putting forth the minimal effort needing to stay marginally Paleo.  I'm going to reinvigorate myself and my outlook and get this life back in gear!

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