Saturday, June 25, 2011

The Quest for Energy: Achievement Unlocked!! (and more recipes!)

Awake Early?  On a Saturday??  Yes, I am as puzzled as anyone about this.  I can't remember the last time I woke up, on my own, before 6am.  I figured this would be a fantastic time to give a short update on my progress thus far, and to include some links to more fantastic recipes. 

As my quest for more energy continues, I find myself going to the doctor more frequently.  It turns out, I have a severe vitamin B12 deficiency on top of everything else going on with my body.  If you were to look up the symptoms of B12 deficiency they would go something like this: "Fatigue, inability to feel rested upon waking, insomnia, easy bruising, etc."  I wonder why this was never brought up during any of my myriad appointments to discuss possible causes/treatments for fatigue...

I've been supplementing with Methyl-B12 for a few weeks now, and I really do notice a difference.  I hope it continues improving over time.  I also went in for an upper endoscopy to rule out pernicious anemia (a nasty autoimmune disorder that causes low B12) and celiac--I don't have either :) 

I guess the big picture here is that things are improving.  Slowly.  I have more energy than when I started this primal journey, I'm sleeping better, and I've lost almost 20lbs.  I can't envision a time in my future when I go back to the way I used to eat.  On that note, here are some more great recipes!

Primal Toad's Pumpkin Banana Bread Smoothie

I added a little extra pumpkin and cinnamon.  Yum!!

Moroccan Orange Salad and Moroccan Grilled Salmon from The Clothes Make the Girl

These are 2 of my new favorite recipes.  I get to grill, which is awesome, and the flavors here are outstanding.  I added an avocado to the salad, as per Mel's suggestion on the recipe page.  So good.

Rutabaga Fries from The Functional Foodie

Nom nom nom.  Rutabaga is slightly sweet, and while these don't crisp up the same way french fries do, I find them even more satisfying.

Lemon Kale Chips from Elana's Pantry

Eat these.  Love them.  They will completely remove your need for potato chips.  With or without the lemon, they are fantastic. 

Portabella Mushroom Caps with Spinach and Goat Cheese from The Food Lover's Primal Palate

I substituted feta for the goat cheese, but I will be making these with a million types of cheese over time, I'm sure.

Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream from This Is So Good...

I used raspberries because I had them on hand.  This is delicious, and kind of tastes like a smoothie, but warning:  this stuff freezes up harder than you can imagine.  I did a little research and next time I plan on adding about a tablespoon of alcohol to help with keep it a little more scoop-able.  Vodka is most often recommended. This picture is what it looked like right out of the ice cream maker.



And, because I miss baked goods a little bit...
Elana's Chocolate Chip Scones

I used honey instead of agave, and added orange zest to mine.  The batter was a little sticky, but the scones turned out great!