Throwback Thursday: Products to Make Eating Right a Bit Easier

This post originally appeared here on February 18, 2019.

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Every year, millions of us go on diets, claiming to lose a few pounds, get fit, or transform our lives. But it's difficult to stick with bland diet programs and sheer hell to keep a gym schedule. (Me, I'm more into dancing than treadmills.) There's not a one of us who doesn't get what I call, "snacky," a condition that often leads to a diet downfall. The rest of the time, we might just have a hard time finding the right substitutions for products we can no longer eat on whatever plan we're on at the time.

Personally, I'd love a diet that consisted entirely of coffee, cheese, chocolate, and sugar. Ok, so that is my regular diet. But I can't lose weight that way. Whole30 does work for me, albeit slowly, and it really works for Mr Minx. The following food products are great for fellow Whole30 adherents; they're delicious too, which is the most important thing.

I discovered this product and the next while perusing the many delight-filled aisles at last year's Fancy Food Show in NY. First there's Tio Gazpacho. I must admit I’m a bit of a gazpachoholic and can eat it every day, but I’m not into washing the blender on a daily basis. Enter Tio, a bottled chilled soup that owes its deliciousness to chef and humanitarian José Andrés, who crafted each flavor. Tio Gazpacho is made from real ingredients like carrots, tomatoes, sherry vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil, and is certified organic, non-GMO, vegan, and gluten-, dairy-, and soy-free, plus four of the five flavors are Whole30 approved. I love that I can tuck a bottle into my lunch bag and enjoy my fave soup every day.

In another aisle, as I was attempting to shovel a sample of chamomile tea-flavored ice cream into my mouth, I was interrupted by a group of French guys hawking mayonnaise made with microalgae. It’s hard to find non-soy (soy being a no-no on Whole30) mayo that tastes good. I’ve tried the ones with avocado oil and nuh-uh, they don’t work for me; let’s say I was skeptical about the algae stuff. But after a few spoonfuls, I was convinced. I swear it tastes like homemade mayo, yet it contains no eggs. No eggs means less fat, but that also makes it vegan. Who knew lowly microalgae could be transformed into something that doesn’t taste like, well, algae? The Good Spoon Mayonnaise comes in classic, curry, garlic & herbs, and smoky spicy flavors, all great in everything from potato salad to a turkey sandwich.

A Whole30-friendly product I found on my own is Nutpods. There are squillions of non-dairy milks out there, but dairy-free creamers that aren’t full of sugar are as rare as hen’s teeth. You might think: why not just use plain unsweetened almond milk? Have you tried doing that? It takes far more “milk” to adequately lighten a cup of coffee or tea to the same degree as a few teaspoons of cow-based half-and-half. All that liquid also makes hot coffee cold. That’s why I was excited to find Nutpods. Made from coconut and almonds, it only takes a tablespoon or so to make my coffee as light as I like. It also comes in flavors, all of which are unsweetened. Vanilla is tasty year ‘round, but the holiday season will bring Pumpkin Spice and Peppermint Mocha, too.

Last but not least are two snack bars that we use as meal replacements, though that's not quite in the "spirit of the diet." But when I am trying to lose a pound or ten and embark on some new eating plan that requires me to give up my three favorite food groups (sugar, grains, and dairy), I find breakfast and lunch a bit hard to deal with. I can’t have oatmeal or cereal, but I can have eggs if I don’t eat toast. Doughnuts or bagels are verboten. What I find myself relying on, especially during the work week, are RX Bars and Larabars. They’re both made with fruit and nuts, with natural sweetness provided by dates. RX Bars have a chewier texture, thanks to the addition of egg whites, while Larabars are softer. Each has 200-ish calories, which is plenty to keep me going for a few hours. I think they taste great, and eat one for either breakfast or lunch most days.

Anything that doesn't break the rules and keeps me sane are good things, right?

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com. 

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

WholeMinx

I have no idea what week this is. I'm guessing Week 116? It's crazy how staying home for a year has altered my reality. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it's for the better.

While it was a bit weird not eating in restaurants, especially as food writers, hubby and I quickly got accustomed to regular carry-out meals. When the weather is nice, we dine outdoors at a few of our favorite places, with a caveat: no tents. I mean, that's not really outdoors, is it? The rest of the time we're eating leftovers or something I've concocted. The grocery store that we visit every two weeks has had all of the necessities for many months now, and I can get fancier produce delivered from Washington's Green Grocer. 

I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables, though I am not anywhere near a vegetarian. Some days I'm doing the whole Mark Bittman "Vegan Before 6" thing, not eating any meat until dinnertime. Other times--more rarely--I have meat for lunch (it depends on what leftovers need to be eaten soonest). I have been doing my own version of Whole30 for the last 2 years now, and it's a lifestyle that works for me. I'm going to call it WholeMinx.

The basis of Whole30 is to eat only whole foods and to give up processed ones. Also, one must give up grains, sugars, alcohol, dairy, and legumes. It's pretty strict about what one cannot eat, but it does allow fruits, veg, meats and fats. It's not a weight loss diet, but one intended to "reset" eating habits from crappy to healthy. Still, I've lost 50 lbs so far. I've always had trouble losing weight. The last time I did significant dieting, I ate 700 calories per day and exercised like a fiend. Those calories weren't always nutritious...I went more for filling. In other words, I ingested terrible low-calorie bread that was probably more cardboard than wheat, low-fat cheese slices, and "diet" salad dressings and such that are more poison than food. I'd eat cans of zucchini in tomato sauce (about 120 calories) for dinner. Yes, I felt light-headed frequently. But the weight fell off me, and, for a few years, I was slim (ish) and cute (er). But that kind of eating is not at all sustainable, so I fell back to old habits and gained all of the weight back, and more, rapidly.

That was dumb. And unhealthy. Now I know better.

After a few weeks of doing Whole30, I decided that wheat was probably my downfall. Bread and pizza are my favorite foods, and I can't say no to cookies, cake, pie, or donuts. If I eat any of those things and count calories, I don't lose weight. But if I don't eat any of that stuff, and don't count calories, I do lose weight. If I add a little sugar to my diet, but stay off the grains, I continue to lose weight. Adding beans and corn (which they count as a grain, but I count as a vegetable) to my diet does not affect the weight loss. Dairy doesn't, either. In other words, I found that if I eat a balanced diet of everything but grains, I can lose weight. Not just like that, of course, I have to exercise, too, and reduce my portion sizes, but considering I can eat just about anything I want, that part is fairly easy.

I'm going to tell you about my typical eating day, and you're going to say it sounds like a punishment diet. But it really isn't. These days, eating is one of the few things I look forward to, and I make sure to create meals that I really enjoy. (I am fortunate to like pretty much all fruits and veg, which makes things so much easier. YMMV.)

Weekdays

Breakfast: a smoothie. I've never been a smoothie person; the ones from juice bars are crazy expensive and full of sugar. But I got a bag of Bob's Red Mill Vanilla Protein Powder as part of my ongoing promotion with them and figured I had to use it. I put a single scoop (using the scoop that comes in the bag, a serving size is 2 scoops) in a blender with a whole banana (frozen, if possible), a cup of hemp milk (use the milk of your choice), and various goodies like chia seeds, golden flax meal, matcha, gotu kola, collagen, and cacao nibs, plus some water to top it off. (I bought some reusable smoothie straws to make drinking easier.) The protein powder has monkfruit extract, cornstarch, and a tiny bit of sugar, so it's definitely not Whole30 compliant, but it fits fine with WholeMinx. I also drink at least one cup of coffee and have a bowl of assorted berries and pineapple.

Breakfast is preceded by a half hour video workout of some sort. My favorite is Jessica Smith's Walk On series of low-impact walking cardio, but I also ride my exercise bike, do weight training with dumbells and kettlebell, and just walk around the neighborhood. This might sound horrible to some of you, but I have to admit that my mornings have become my favorite part of the day.

(Who am I? and what did I do with Kathy?)

Lunch is often a cold cooked beet dressed in a lemon vinaigrette and topped with crumbled feta, bleu, or goat cheese and some walnut pieces. Sometimes I make some non-garbanzo bean hummus (they give me stomach cramps) and eat it with the beets, or roasted carrots, a sweet potato, or winter squash. For crunch, I'll eat some Simple Mills almond flour crackers (which are super yummy). Today, however, I have some leftover carry-out chicken wings. Mmm!

Dinner is whatever we feel like eating. Except pizza. If hubby wants pasta, he has pasta and I eat zucchini noodles. If we get carry-out Chinese or Indian or Thai or Vietnamese food, I don't eat the rice. I've had burgers in bowls from Five Guys and wrapped in lettuce from Red Robin (damn, I miss the buns though), super fatty pork belly from Red Pepper in Towson, and Korean BBQ fries from The Local Fry. Pretty much anything goes.

I do have a late snack most nights, either dried or fresh fruit or a few nuts.

Weekends

Breakfast one day is sunny-side-up eggs, which I eat with Utz plain potato chips instead of toast, plus fruit and coffee. The other day is occasionally a grain-free porridge made with stuff like coconut flour and hazelnut meal, or oatmeal for Mr Minx and a sweet potato or leftovers or an RX Bar for me.

No lunch normally. Maybe a handful of potato chips.

Dinner is whatever I feel like eating that doesn't involve wheat or other grains. Last week it was pork chops with sautéed grapes and leeks. This week we'll be celebrating the 4th with various grilled meats and corn on the cob.

So not torture! I am eating so well and feeling good these days. I did have a plateau earlier in the year that lasted a few frustrating months. In May I allowed myself pizza and pie and other wheat-y stuff, which made me feel like crap but reset whatever it is in the brain that decided I had lost enough weight. I lost 4.5 lbs in June, and if I keep up that pace, I should reach my 2020 goal by mid-fall.

If you've read this far down the post, you probably deserve a medal or something. At least a fun new recipe. And I promise you'll get one, just not today. I really wanted to re-set this blog, which has felt neglected recently (by me and by you!) and hope to feature more nutritious food in the future. That is not to say "diet" food - I won't be trying to sell you on anything with that word on the label. But I will promote more products that fit in my new eating lifestyle, and hopefully in yours, too.

I predict the pandemic will be with us well into 2021. This is as good a time as any to start taking better care of yourself. Stop using being stuck at home as an excuse for constant baking and binge eating. Use the extra time--if you have it--to start a new exercise routine. No need to go crazy, just take a walk around the neighborhood every day rather than turning on the TV. Exercise is just as good for the mind as it is for the body, and we all could use a mental pick-me-up right now.

**Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats.
*** Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Avocado Oil Mayonnaise #sponsored

Mr Minx and I have been on the Whole30 diet off and on for a couple of years. While it's fairly strict about the carbohydrates allowed, it's much more generous with fats. Mayonnaise is not an enemy--except if it's made with soybean oil. Soy products are verboten on the diet.

It's fairly difficult to find a commercial mayo not made with soybean oil. We've tried a couple of fancy ones procured at Whole Foods, but didn't enjoy them. One was made with avocado oil, and it was pretty awful. So when Better Body Foods asked me if they could send me some of their Avocado Oil Mayo to try, I almost said no. I am glad I didn't! Their mayo, made with 100% avocado oil, tastes like the best commercial mayonnaises on the market, without the funky flavor of other brands we've tried.

When asked to create a recipe for Avocado Oil Mayo, I could think of no better way to use it than as an accompaniment to steamed artichokes. Mayo with a bit of lemon juice makes a perfect dipper for a vegetable that we don't eat nearly often enough. Of course the mayo is also great in things like chicken salad, as a sandwich spread, in deviled eggs, etc.

Better Body Foods Avocado Oil Mayo comes in three flavors, chipotle lime, lime, and original, and can be purchased at Amazon.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Products to Make Eating Right a Bit Easier

Every year, millions of us go on diets, claiming to lose a few pounds, get fit, or transform our lives. But it's difficult to stick with bland diet programs and sheer hell to keep a gym schedule. (Me, I'm more into dancing than treadmills.) There's not a one of us who doesn't get what I call, "snacky," a condition that often leads to a diet downfall. The rest of the time, we might just have a hard time finding the right substitutions for products we can no longer eat on whatever plan we're on at the time.

Personally, I'd love a diet that consisted entirely of coffee, cheese, chocolate, and sugar. Ok, so that is my regular diet. But I can't lose weight that way. Whole30 does work for me, albeit slowly, and it really works for Mr Minx. The following food products are great for fellow Whole30 adherents; they're delicious too, which is the most important thing.

I discovered this product and the next while perusing the many delight-filled aisles at last year's Fancy Food Show in NY. First there's Tio Gazpacho. I must admit I’m a bit of a gazpachoholic and can eat it every day, but I’m not into washing the blender on a daily basis. Enter Tio, a bottled chilled soup that owes its deliciousness to chef and humanitarian José Andrés, who crafted each flavor. Tio Gazpacho is made from real ingredients like carrots, tomatoes, sherry vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil, and is certified organic, non-GMO, vegan, and gluten-, dairy-, and soy-free, plus four of the five flavors are Whole30 approved. I love that I can tuck a bottle into my lunch bag and enjoy my fave soup every day.

In another aisle, as I was attempting to shovel a sample of chamomile tea-flavored ice cream into my mouth, I was interrupted by a group of French guys hawking mayonnaise made with microalgae. It’s hard to find non-soy (soy being a no-no on Whole30) mayo that tastes good. I’ve tried the ones with avocado oil and nuh-uh, they don’t work for me; let’s say I was skeptical about the algae stuff. But after a few spoonfuls, I was convinced. I swear it tastes like homemade mayo, yet it contains no eggs. No eggs means less fat, but that also makes it vegan. Who knew lowly microalgae could be transformed into something that doesn’t taste like, well, algae? The Good Spoon Mayonnaise comes in classic, curry, garlic & herbs, and smoky spicy flavors, all great in everything from potato salad to a turkey sandwich.

A Whole30-friendly product I found on my own is Nutpods. There are squillions of non-dairy milks out there, but dairy-free creamers that aren’t full of sugar are as rare as hen’s teeth. You might think: why not just use plain unsweetened almond milk? Have you tried doing that? It takes far more “milk” to adequately lighten a cup of coffee or tea to the same degree as a few teaspoons of cow-based half-and-half. All that liquid also makes hot coffee cold. That’s why I was excited to find Nutpods. Made from coconut and almonds, it only takes a tablespoon or so to make my coffee as light as I like. It also comes in flavors, all of which are unsweetened. Vanilla is tasty year ‘round, but the holiday season will bring Pumpkin Spice and Peppermint Mocha, too.

Last but not least are two snack bars that we use as meal replacements, though that's not quite in the "spirit of the diet." But when I am trying to lose a pound or ten and embark on some new eating plan that requires me to give up my three favorite food groups (sugar, grains, and dairy), I find breakfast and lunch a bit hard to deal with. I can’t have oatmeal or cereal, but I can have eggs if I don’t eat toast. Doughnuts or bagels are verboten. What I find myself relying on, especially during the work week, are RX Bars and Larabars. They’re both made with fruit and nuts, with natural sweetness provided by dates. RX Bars have a chewier texture, thanks to the addition of egg whites, while Larabars are softer. Each has 200-ish calories, which is plenty to keep me going for a few hours. I think they taste great, and eat one for either breakfast or lunch most days.

Anything that doesn't break the rules and keeps me sane are good things, right?

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com. 

Whole 30 Compliant Turkey Sloppy Joe

Like a lot of moms in the 1970s, my mom had to go back to work when I was nine years old to help out with the economic realities that an oil crisis and runaway inflation imposed on our country. No longer could we rely on the kind of complicated and time-consuming dinners we had once enjoyed like pot roast, fried chicken, and meatloaf. By the time my mom got home from the law office where she worked as a secretary (they were still called secretaries back then), she needed some quick and easy meals to get on the table.

One of her go-to meals was sloppy joe, made all the quicker by the ready-made sauce known as Manwich. Brown some ground beef, dump on the Manwich, stir it up and slap it on some hamburger buns. I was more than happy to dig into this salty mess as a kid, but today it doesn't sound all that appealing, which is why I haven't eaten sloppy joe in decades.

Recently, the Minx and I have been on the Whole 30 diet and have been seeing some positive results. In a nutshell, the diet requires that one eat non-processed foods for 30 days, which eliminates a helluva lot of food when you get down to it. This makes coming up with filling meals that are also Whole 30 compliant a bit of a challenge. One day while we were trying to come up with dinner possibilities, the Minx suggested making sloppy joe. While we could make it with ground beef and stay within the diet, she thought it would be even healthier to try to make it with ground turkey.

I liked the idea because it would give me a chance to create a sloppy joe that would taste better than the from-a-can stuff I ate as a kid. The tricky part was that sloppy joe is usually slightly sweet, and you can't use any sugar or sweeteners on Whole 30. We decided to replace sugar with finely chopped dates. They dissolve in the mixture and add just enough sweetness to balance the tartness of the mustard and the acidity of the tomatoes.

Our recipe requires about 15 ounces of tomatoes, pureed to create a smooth sauce. Since it's unlikely you will find pureed tomatoes in a can that small, we used a can of diced tomatoes and whizzed them up with a stick blender plunged straight into the can. You have to be careful not to make a mess, but it does work. Otherwise, some chunky tomato in the sauce is probably fine. (And yes, though canned vegetables are technically "processed," if there are no weird additives they still qualify as "whole" foods.)

Whole 30 Compliant Turkey Sloppy Joe

1 pound ground turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
Kosher salt
14.5 ounce can chopped tomatoes, pureed
6 dates, chopped
1 tablespoon ground mustard
1 tablespoon brown mustard
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Freshly ground black pepper

Brown the ground turkey in a skillet over high heat. Once the meat is browned, reduce heat and add the onion and bell pepper. Sprinkle a little salt on the mixture at this point to help draw out the moisture of the vegetables. When the onion becomes translucent, thoroughly mix in the tomato puree, dates, ground mustard, brown mustard, garlic powder, and smoked paprika. Turn the heat to low and allow to simmer covered for fifteen minutes. Taste and add salt and pepper to your liking.

If you are using this recipe as part of a Whole 30 diet, you can replace the bun one might normally serve sloppy joe on with a baked potato or French fries.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Whole30 Pork and Mushroom Omelet

Over the past couple of months, I've become addicted to the Milk Street Radio podcast. Milk Street is Christopher Kickball's new gig, after America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Country. Recently I subscribed to the new magazine and was excited by several of the recipes, particularly those I thought could easily be converted to Whole30. Like this pork and mushroom "omelet," based on a Cambodian dish called pong mouan snol. The authentic recipe folds a traditional flat omelet over a meaty filling, but Milk Street combines it all into one dish to make something more like a frittata.

The recipe only had two forbidden ingredients: soy sauce and sugar. Both are easily substituted with legal items like coconut aminos and dates. I made a few other adjustments as well, because I do like my food to be flavorful and I didn't think 1 tablespoon of fish sauce was enough. Nor did I think that 3 tablespoons of oil were at all necessary. Pork is plenty oily.

The result was delicious--spicy, savory, lightly sweet, and packed with protein. And leftovers made for fabulous breakfasts, eaten at room temperature or warmed up.

Cambodian Pork and Mushroom Omelet (adapted from Milk Street)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
6 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps finely chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
Salt
8 ounces ground pork
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon coconut aminos, divided
1-2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon sambal oelek
3 dates, pitted and chopped
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
Ground white pepper
4 scallions, finely chopped
8 large eggs
Lime wedges, to serve

Heat the oven to 400°F with a rack in the upper-middle position.

Add the oil to a 12" non-stick, oven-safe skillet or cast iron pan and cook mushrooms and onion with a pinch of salt over medium high heat until the mushrooms give up all of their moisture and the onion is translucent. Add the pork and cook, stirring frequently and breaking up the meat into small pieces with a wooden spoon. Add 1 tablespoon of the coconut aminos, 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce, the sambal, dates, ginger, and white pepper, and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the pork is cooked through. Taste for seasoning and add some or all of the other tablespoon of fish sauce. You can also add more sambal to taste, if desired. Sprinkle the scallions over the meat.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, beating well with a fork. Season with the teaspoon of coconut aminos. Pour the eggs over the meat in the pan and cook, stirring from the edges to the center, until the eggs begin to set, 2-3 minutes. Place the skillet in the oven and bake until the top is set, 5-7 minutes.

Put the skillet on a wire rack and allow to cool for a few minutes. Run a rubber spatula around the edge and under the frittata to loosen. Slide onto a cutting board and cut into 8 wedges.

Serve with lime wedges.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Whole30 Chili

Sorry for the lousy photo. I took it at Dad's, where we ate out of paper bowls on the balcony.

Mr Minx and I have recently started the Whole30 diet, which claims to be life-changing. I'm not sure about that, but it definitely makes life more difficult around mealtimes. We can't have dairy, grains, soy, legumes, or sugar. That means no bread, rice, pasta, yogurt, tofu, or sweets, which cuts out pretty much everything I want to eat for breakfast or lunch. Eggs and more eggs are fine, as are all meats, fruits, and vegetables. We can eat both regular and sweet potatoes, and any root vegetables, but I'm not a big fan of potatoes. Still, we intend to stick to this diet for the full 30 days and maybe do some variation beyond that. We've definitely cut back on empty calories, no sandwiches on bread, no cookies or cheese puffs for snacks, no ice cream on the weekends. And no alcohol. Not that we're boozers to begin with, but we're used to having a glass of wine or something stronger at least once or twice a week. But alcohol is just a lot of empty calories, and we don't need that.

I'm not imagining I'll lose a lot of weight--it's extremely difficult for me. I'd be happy if I lost 5 pounds during the month. Mr Minx will probably lose 15 pounds, because that's just the way things work. Pbbbblt!!!

In any case, I have a story about some Whole30 chili I concocted last week. It's possibly the best-tasting chili I ever made. I can't really give you a recipe, but I can share some guidelines.

I originally was going to make the chili on a Sunday afternoon, when it would have all day to simmer. But then my brother requested that I come stay with our Dad that day. Dad has dementia and shouldn't be left alone for long periods of time. Or short periods, actually. So I would have to make the chili on Saturday, before we headed out for our Saturday evening plans.

I prefer to make chili with chunks of meat, rather than the ground stuff. It's just more pleasant to eat that way, IMHO. Stew meat is expensive for no good reason, so I cut up a chuck roast instead. Normally I do that the same day I cook it, but because of the time crunch, I cubed my meat the night before. I got the idea to add a few teaspoons of kosher salt to the zip-top bag in which I stored the cubed meat, so it would dry brine overnight. And it was a BRILLIANT IDEA!

I think I make some damn good chili. But I know it can always be better. And the dry brining made this particular chili completely amazing. The meat was flavorful all the way through. It was so good, my Dad--whose tastebuds really only react to spicy and sweet flavors these days--swooned. He was eating with his eyes closed so he could savor the flavors and textures. He kept marveling at how tender the beef was, and how nicely the spices melded into the meat. He also enjoyed the sprinkling of green onions and toasted pumpkin seeds I put on top. I did too.

For this recipe, I didn't add a set amount of spices. I added some at the beginning, at the middle, and at the end. I didn't measure, just did it to taste, so this is a real "your mileage may vary" situation. But here's what I did, roughly:

Cut a 3-ish-pound chuck roast into about 1 1/2" - 2" cubes, removing and discarding excess fat. Place the meat into a zip-top bag with about 2 teaspoons of kosher salt. Shake the bag around to distribute the salt and refrigerate overnight. The next day, brown the meat on all sides in a hot dutch oven. I did this in three batches. Remove meat from the pan and add 1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped. There should be enough fat in the pan to cook the onion. Stir the onion well to pick up any browned bits of meat. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring regularly, until the onions have softened. Then add a good tablespoon of regular chili powder (I used McCormick) and stir to coat the onions. Return the meat back to the pan and add 2 15-ounce cans of fire roasted tomatoes, 1 1/2-2 cups of chicken broth, and about 2 tablespoons of tomato paste. (You don't have to add the tomato paste if you don't want to. We had an open container of it in the fridge, and knowing how fast it gets moldy, I thought I should use it up.) Bring mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat so it gently simmers. Cover the pan and cook for about three hours, or until the meat is very tender.

But wait...there's more! You don't think I seasoned the chili with only 1 tablespoon of chili powder, do you? I probably added 4 more tablespoons of chili spice, both the standard chili powder blend and pure ancho chile powder. I also added cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, dried oregano, cinnamon, cocoa powder, and several shakes from a container of True Lime lime/cilantro/garlic seasoning. I had some Hatch chili sauce that I had made a week or so earlier in the fridge and tossed in a few tablespoons of that as well. I kept tasting and seasoning and tasting and seasoning and burning my mouth and seasoning again through the whole cooking time until I felt it was perfect. The sauce went from a bright-ish red color to a deep brown. Part of the cooking was done with the lid off the pan, so some of the liquid would evaporate and thicken. (Some chili cooks use cornmeal for thickening, but corn isn't allowed on the Whole30 diet.) I normally like to add a bit of sweetness to the pot, a dribble of agave or maple syrup, but that's verboten on Whole30, too. What's not forbidden, however, is fruit, so I tossed in two whole pitted dates, hoping they'd just sort of break up. Because the meat had been salted in advance, I didn't really need to add much more salinity, just a pinch of kosher salt at the end of the cooktime. Then I packaged the chili up and left it in the fridge for 24 hours before reheating and eating. It was so. good.

Sorry there's no more cohesive recipe, but I seldom use recipes as more than a guideline (unless I'm baking). Experienced cooks will know exactly what I'm talking about, and they'll have better luck with this dish, if they try it. But I encourage everyone to make a pot of chili using hand-cut meat that is dry-brined overnight. Season it to your palate, not mine, using whatever you like. It will be delicious.