Spaghetti (squash) for Breakfast

I made spaghetti squash for one of our sides the other night and decided to incorporate it into my breakfast bake for the week.  It actually turned out quite yummy, so here's another exciting Whole30 blog update!

Ingredients

• 1/2 spaghetti squash (hint: make it the night before and use the other half as your side... to cook, heat oven to 375, halve the squash and scoop out the seeds.  Bake for 30-45 minutes, until the squash is tender, and scoop out the insides)
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 small shallot
• 1 sausage link, casing removed
• 3 whole eggs
• 10 egg whites
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 Tbsp basil
• 1 Tbsp parsley
• 2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 Tbsp grape seed oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat and place the sausage in the pan.  Separate the meat so it is in bite sized pieces and cook thoroughly
3. While the sausage is cooking, send your sweet potato and peeled shallot through a food processor (or finely chop them if you do not have a processor)
4. Place the sweet potato mixture into the skillet and cook thoroughly
5. Once cooked, add the spaghetti squash so that it heats up
6. Whisk your eggs in a separate bowl.  Add the vegetable/sausage mixture to the bowl and stir so that the ingredients are mixed
7. Pour the mixture into a 8" glass baking dish and bake in the oven for about 30-45 minutes *until the eggs are fully cooked
8. Remove from the oven, let set for about 10 minutes and then serve!

Makes approximately 8 servings

Cuban Cigars...err I mean.. Pork

Week 1 into the Whole30 and I'm sad to say, I've fallen off track.  Call me crazy but my scale scared the heck out of me. I guess I should have paid attention to the "do not step on the scale" warning because this healthy way of life really is effective... seriously... if you want to lose unhealthy weight, do the Whole30.  I'm back on the wine... and I'm sorry, I'm not sorry about it.

So, tonight I must have been wishing I was by the ocean instead of in the middle of God's Country because I channeled the Cuban (that this little white chick does not have) in me.  I had a leftover pork tenderloin from my Trader Joe's pack (did you know they pack two tenderloins in there?) and went for it.  Just go with it... I'm back on the wine again.

Ingredients
For the pork:
1 pork tenderloin (approximately 1lb)
1 lime
4 garlic cloves (or if you have the giant tub of minced garlic like I do, two heaping spoonfuls of the stuff)
1 and 1/2  tsp dried oregano
1 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp grape seed oil (or healthy oil of choice)

For the sweet potatoes:
2 small sweet potatoes
1 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp grape seed oil (or, again, healthy oil of choice)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• For the pork

1. Zest the lime, then peel the fruit and discard the peel.  Halve the fruit and place both the zest and the fruit in a food processor (or most preferred, your Ninja).  
2. Add garlic, oregano, salt and oil to the Ninja and blend well
3. Place the tenderloin in a glass dish and pour the mixture over the meat.  Marinate in the refrigerator while you prep the sweet potatoes

• For the sweet potatoes

1. Cube the sweet potatoes (ensure that the ends are cut off and discarded)
2. Grab a handy Ziploc bag and place the cubed potatoes in the bag. 
3. Add the grape seed oil and sprinkle the cumin into the bag
4. Shake the bag until the oil/spice mixture is well distributed
5. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread the sweet potatoes over the baking sheet
6. Place in the oven and set the timer for 15 minutes
1. When the timer goes off, turn the sweet potatoes and return to the oven. Adjust the temperature to 400 degrees
2. Remove the tenderloin from the refrigerator and cover the glass dish it is in with tin foil
3. Place the dish into the oven and bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes (or until the temperature of the meat is 140 degrees or higher)
4. Remove tenderloin from the oven and let sit for five minutes
5. I would recommend sauteing a vegetable blend to accompany the dish so if this is your desire, feel free to saute away... and make the chimichurri sauce
6. At the five minute mark, remove the sweet potatoes from the oven.
7. Slice and serve the tenderloin with the potatoes and dipping sauce (and vegetables, if desired)

• Optional Tenderloin Dipping Sauce (Chimichurri)

1. 1 Tbsp dried parsley
2. 2 garlic cloves (or 1 heaping tsp of the minced jarred type)
3. 1 Tbsp grape seed oil, or olive oil\
4. 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
5. 1/2 tsp sea salt
6. 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (or less... if you're one of those anti-spice people)

Enjoy!

Beef... it's not for breakfast (coffee marinated steak)

So Zack just had a record of a day in sales, so I decided to make one of his favorite meals - meat, potatoes and green beans.  The meat was marinated overnight in a coffee marinade, and I added sides of garlic green beans and sweet sweet potatoes.

Start off the night before by marinating your beef

Ingredients - Coffee Marinade

• 2 lean sirloin steaks, fat trimmed (if applicable)
• 2 Tbs brewed strong coffee
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 and 1/2 tsp agave nectar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• salt and pepper to your liking - I recommend using a pepper mill

Directions

1. In a glass dish, whisk together all ingredients.
2. Add steak and spoon ingredients over the top
3. Marinate for at least 8 hours (recommend overnight, minimum)

Next up, your taters... obviously this comes either 8 hours later or the next day

Ingredients - Sweet Sweet Potatoes

• 2 small sweet potatoes, cubed
• 1 tbs honey
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Place cubed sweet potatoes in a plastic bag, add all ingredient and shake until the potatoes are coated
3. Drop into a glass baking dish and place into the oven
4. Bake for 1 hour, turning potatoes every 15 minutes

When the potatoes are about 45 minutes in, start the steak

Directions - Steak

1. Preheat a drizzle of olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium-high and turn on your hood fan... it's going to get smokey in here
2. Gently place your steaks on the skillet and sear each side for about 4 minutes each
3. Place the skillet (with the steaks) in the oven and cook to your desired doneness, about 5-15 minutes
4. While your steaks are cooking, saute green beans (see below)
5. Remove the steaks from the skillet immediately and place on your plates.

Now for the greens

Ingredients - Green Beans

• 2 cups green beans
• cooking spray
• 1 garlic clove, minced

Directions

1. Spray a saute pan with cooking spray and roast your garlic over medium heat
2. Add green beans and cook, approximately 5 minutes
3. At this point, your potatoes and steak should be fully cooked.  Plate, serve and add your favorite cab