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Paleo Challenge {Prep Week: Introducing the Spaghetti Squash!}

July 27, 2013


Here’s another Paleo practice meal, this time with ground turkey and spaghetti squash.  Think you’ll miss pasta too much if you go Paleo?  If you’ve never tried spaghetti squash, now is the time!  This handy squash is easy to cook and gives you long thin strands just like spaghetti.  What else is so great about spaghetti squash?  Not only does it cut down on your calories if you swap it out for pasta, but it’s also super versatile.  Use it in Italian dishes, Asian noodle dishes, and even in place of potatoes! 

What you’ll need:

  • 1 large Spaghetti Squash
  • 1 batch of your own homemade spaghetti meat sauce (here’s a great recipe) 

-OR-

  • 2 lbs ground meat mixed with your favorite jar of Paleo-friendly spaghetti sauce (we won’t tell!)

We used ground turkey in this since I was a little burned out on beef and pork for the week.

Roasting the Spaghetti Squash:
Carefully puncture the spaghetti squash several times with a small knife or skewer and place in a shallow baking dish.  Cook at 375ºF for an hour and 20 minutes, turning the squash over halfway through.  The skin should be tender when pierced with a knife.  When it’s cooled down, slice the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.  You can then use a fork to scoop out the strands of squash.  Serve on a plate and top with spaghetti meat sauce.





Just joining and want to take a look back at my 4 Week Paleo Challenge?  Look below for the links to all my Paleo posts:

Prep Week
Prep Week: Why Paleo?
Prep Week: Meatloaf and Mashed Faux-tatoes
Prep Week: Introducing the Spaghetti Squash

Week 1 Daily Updates 
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4 (My Shopping List)
Day 5 (Paleo on a Budget)
Day 6
Day 7 (Week 1 Lessons)

Weekly Updates
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4


_____________________
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A Humble Bumble

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Filed Under: Meals, Uncategorized Tagged: diet, healty, meals, Paleo

Five Minute Friday – Broken

July 26, 2013

Photo by zzpza

It’s Friday again!  Every Friday, Lisa-Jo hosts a great party called Five Minute Friday.  This is where we get one word to write about for five minutes, no editing.  Today, the word is: Broken.  

GO.

It must have been in some book like Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus where I read that women talk about their problems and men have this natural urge to fix them.  This is so true!  Women don’t usually want suggestions on how to fix the problems they encounter everyday, just to get their frustrations off their chest.  When our husbands try to offer a solution, we get confused and further frustrated.  If he zones out, we get irritated.  First, there’s nothing broken, so don’t try to fix it.  Just listening and offering a few consoling words is a huge help.  If we want input on how to fix something, we’ll ask for it.  

Women must understand this about their husbands as well.  Try keeping it simple and not going off on random tangents – this is when you’ll see his eyes start to glaze over.  Make sure you warn him before you start your rant about your terrible day that you just need him to listen to you vent.  Remember, communicating about how you both think, feel, and understand each other is a huge part of keeping your relationship healthy.  It’s an ongoing project.

STOP.

I must have marriage on the brain, but who can blame me with less than two months until the big day!  Happy Friday, everyone!

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Filed Under: Marriage, Uncategorized

Paleo Challenge {Prep Week: Meatloaf and Mashed Faux-tatoes}

July 24, 2013

Part of the Paleo Challenge Prep Week is experimenting with different recipes.  This week, we’re trying out various ingredients and substitutes to make our favorite meals.  Grass-fed ground beef and pureed cauliflower are the two staples of tonight’s Paleo practice meal.  
I’m using a combination of two recipes to create my own nut-free Paleo meat loaf.  One is the Paleo Correct Meat Loaf from The Paleo Diet by Loren Cordain, Ph.D. and the other is Homestyle Meatloaf from Johnny at Eating for Idiots.  We’ll be using beef only and we have to use a substitute for the almond flour since my fiancé is allergic to almonds.
I first tried mashed “faux”-tatoes when my dad (awesome hobby-chef) made it during a holiday visit.  I never really loved cauliflower – I thought of it as a bland version of broccoli, but this was a buttery, creamy delight.  And it tasted just like creamy mashed potatoes!  Jacob and I later tried it on our own for a vegetarian meal with grilled Shitake mushroom steaks.  My carnivore dad’s reaction?  His cauliflower creation “was supposed to be the basis for a more healthy option and a nice mound to set a BEEF steak upon.”  Oh well, gotta love creative license, right?  Now I’m altering it once more to make it a Paleo side.  Instead of milk or cream, I’m using Coconut milk and I’m substituting butter with ghee.
Here is my own creation, but feel free to experiment with different dairy-free milks and herbs:
Nut-Free Paleo Meat Loaf
  • 1 1/4 lbs ground beef (grass-fed preferred)
  • 8 oz mushrooms, pulsed until finely ground in food processor
  • 2 eggs beaten
  • 3 tbsp coconut flour
  • ½ of batch of ketchup (recipe from Eating for Idiots)
  • ½ onion, very finely diced in a food processor
  • 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 1/4 cup of finely chopped cilantro
  • 1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp Coconut oil to grease loaf pan

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and grease the loaf pan.  Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, using more or less coconut flour depending on consistency of the mixture.  It should be sticky and easy to form into a loaf pan.  Alternatively, form into a loaf in a glass dish.  After forming in the pan, take the remaining ketchup and spread over the top.  Cook for 1 hour.

Paleo Mashed Faux-tatoes
Almost half-way through the meat loaf cooking process, prepare the cauliflower.  This is what you’ll need:
  • 1 large head of cauliflower
  • 1 tbsp ghee (or grass-fed butter if preferred)
  • 1 tbsp coconut milk
  • salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (optional)

Start by washing and draining the cauliflower.  Cut the cauliflower into medium sized florets and steam them until tender, about 20 minutes.  Drain well and transfer to a blender or food processor.  Add all ingredients and blend well until smooth and creamy.

Serve and enjoy!  What is your favorite Paleo meal?  

Just joining and want to take a look back at my 4 Week Paleo Challenge?  Look below for the links to all my Paleo posts:

Prep Week
Prep Week: Why Paleo?
Prep Week: Meatloaf and Mashed Faux-tatoes
Prep Week: Introducing the Spaghetti Squash

Week 1 Daily Updates 
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4 (My Shopping List)
Day 5 (Paleo on a Budget)
Day 6
Day 7 (Week 1 Lessons)

Weekly Updates
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
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Filed Under: Meals, Uncategorized Tagged: diet, healty, meals, Paleo

Thrift Store Essentials: Perfect Jeans

July 24, 2013

I love great thrift store finds, but my absolute favorite are the perfect pair of jeans.  In the past, when I needed a new pair and decided to buy them at the mall, I was always disappointed.  The jeans shrink when I get them home and wash them for the first time, or the waist stretches out and I have to wear a belt.  But the most disappointing thing is that I pay way too much on them and only wear them a few times.  
These are my most recent pair that I found at a local second hand clothing shop for $9.00.  They are nearly brand new, but were made to look worn.  I don’t usually go with skinny jeans, but I needed something to wear with my favorite boots, and these were perfect!  These are stretchy, but not too stretchy that they’ll lose their shape.  Since they’ve been worn and washed, I know they won’t shrink on me.  With thrift store jeans, what I try on at the store is what I get when I take them home.   
Last year, a study was done showing that women spend an average of $125,000 on clothing in a lifetime.  If you want to start saving money on clothes, but buying something used gives you the heebie geebies, start with jeans!  Just this one item purchased at a thrift store can save you a ton in the long run.  
So how do you find quality jeans and get a great deal?

First, know what you’re willing to spend.  I’ve never spent more than $15 on a pair of jeans, even when they’re name brand.  I’ve found the perfect pair of Levi’s at a Goodwill for $5.00, Lucky Brand jeans at a consignment shop marked down to about $15.00, and my all-time favorite were a pair of Paper Denim & Cloth jeans for $12.00.  But, don’t be afraid to branch out from the name brands.  
Know when to shop.  Goodwill has their half-off sale one Saturday a month.  Call to find out which Saturday it is and go early.  Higher-end consignment shops will mark down their clothing at the close of a season to make room for the next season’s clothes.  Sometimes jeans get a mark down, too!
Know your size and deviate from it!  Every pair is not made equally.  Remember, these jeans have been worn and washed (and shrunk), so the size you normally wear might not fit you when you start trying things on.  Go through the racks, grabbing your size as well as larger and smaller sizes.  
Inspect, Inspect, Inspect.  Try every pair on and spend some time in each one.  Take a walk down the fitting room hallway and sit in them to make sure they’re comfortable.  Check yourself out in the mirror and see where the back pockets are positioned – this can make or break  your look.  Always choose styles that are flattering to your figure and never settle on jeans that you don’t love.  And of course, look for any stains, missing buttons, tears, or holes in the fabric.  It’s okay to be picky!  Be sure you love them because you usually can’t return things from a thrift store.    
Don’t get discouraged if you don’t find the perfect pair of jeans on the first try.  You will eventually have that Eureka! moment and it will be well worth the wait.  Good luck and happy shopping!

______
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Filed Under: Budgeting, Uncategorized

Paleo Challenge {Prep Week}

July 22, 2013

Why Paleo?

A few weeks ago, my mother and I received some interesting advice from an ER doctor: “Eat only what God created for us to eat.”  He told us that he became healthy and lost a ton of weight by going on the Paleo diet and eating as much as he wanted, along with exercise, of course.  I’ve heard of this diet before, but from the little research I had done, it sounded like a dramatic lifestyle change that would be more difficult than going Vegan.
I decided to take another look into it after hearing what this doctor had to say, and it’s really not as difficult as I thought.  On the Paleo Diet, you will eat like our ancestors in the Paleolithic (Stone Age) era ate.  They were hunter-gatherers and didn’t process anything.
You can eat grass-fed meats, fish and seafood, fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, nuts and seeds, and oils (like olive, walnut, flaxseed, macadamia, avocado, and coconut oils).  Things that are not allowed are cereal grains, legumes, dairy, refined sugar, potatoes, processed foods, salt, and refined vegetable oils.
Read more about the Paleo Diet here.
So, what am I hoping to get out of this diet?  I’m already thin (don’t hate me), and I really don’t want to lose any weight.  My wedding is coming up soon, so I’d like to tone up and I know the healthy proteins and fats will help me do this while I’m working out.  Because of some strange hormonal shift in my body recently, I’ve developed a slight case of adult acne.  Gross, I know.  I cut out dairy already and that seemed to help.  Maybe going fully Paleo will really make it clear up.  And hopefully, just in time for wedding photos!  But the biggest thing: even though I might look healthy on the outside, I know my insides could be better–much better.  
I decided that I’ll go all Paleo for a month starting this Sunday.  I’ll let you know how I’m doing on a daily basis during the first week, and then once a week for the rest of the month.  This week is all about preparation.  I’m gathering recipes, making Paleo bread, stocking up on ingredients, and practicing with a few meals here and there.  So let’s do this!

Prep Week Begins Now!

I started my morning off in a hurry without much of a plan.  Luckily, my awesome fiancé had leftovers in the fridge packed and ready to grab for lunch.  I just had to scramble to find something to throw in my bag for breakfast and snacks.  Last night, we made our meal plan for the week, incorporating a couple Paleo meals, so dinner won’t be too big of a problem.
This is what I ate today, trying to ease into it:
Breakfast: Lara bar and cherries
Lunch: Vegetarian Chili (not so Paleo) and a side salad (lettuce, boiled eggs, avocado, carrots, cucumber, tomatoes, and black olives) with a drizzle of flaxseed oil and balsamic vinaigrette
Snack: Crunchy Cinnamon Apple Chips from Bare Fruit  
Afternoon chocolate fix: a small handful of dark chocolate covered cranberries
Dinner: Ground turkey and veggie stew (not quite Paleo either)

Please take a moment to share any advice you might have and your own experience on the Paleo diet.  I would love to hear how difficult/easy it was for you, and any good recipes you can share.  If you’re interested in taking this challenge with me, I’d love the company!

Sharing at:

A Humble Bumble

Just joining and want to take a look back at my 4 Week Paleo Challenge?  Look below for the links to all my Paleo posts:

Prep Week
Prep Week: Why Paleo?
Prep Week: Meatloaf and Mashed Faux-tatoes
Prep Week: Introducing the Spaghetti Squash

Week 1 Daily Updates 
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4 (My Shopping List)
Day 5 (Paleo on a Budget)
Day 6
Day 7 (Week 1 Lessons)

Weekly Updates
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Follow me on Pinterest!


Filed Under: Uncategorized

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Hi there!

Hello and welcome! I’m Jen, a proposal writer by day, blogger by night, happy wife and mommy. I live in SW Virginia with my husband, Jacob and our sweet girls, Julia and Jocelyn.

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