Day 4: Chicken with Zucchini and Lentils

Yesterday, Katelyn taught me how to make chicken with zucchini and lentils.  It was delicious! Here are my extrememly over detailed instructions for what we did. Once again, I write these instructions so that I will be able to follow them.  They may be too detailed for you in some areas, and in others lack certain details. 

• Rinse chicken and take out gross innards packet.
• Put chicken in big roasting pan
• Sprinkle paprika over chicken, lightly covering surface.
• Add 1 tsp Salt. Sprinkle it all over the chicken
• Add a scant tsp Rosemary. Crush it up in your hand, sprinkle all over chicken.
• Put chicken in oven at 425 for 1hr and 15 minutes.

This is what the chicken looks like before it goes into the oven.

Paprika, Salt, and Rosemary

• Get 1 sweet or yellow onion
• Chop off each side of onions
• Peel off skin until soft under layer is exposed
• Put on end, cut down middle so circles are on each side

• Lay on flat side and slice it up.
• Start crying immediately.
• Once sliced in one direction, slide it in the other direction. Dice it, as it were, so they are tiny like you would see on a McDonald's happy meal hamburger.
• Stick onions in a pan and place on oven.
• Add heaping tbsp of coconut oil to pan.
• Add 1/2 tsp of salt to pan.
• Turn oven on a little over medium.

• Get 6 medium size zucchini
• Cut the ends off
• Rinse zucchini
• Make sure they will fit inside our food processor entry port. If not, cut them in half.
• Make sure elevated blade is on top.
• Use food processor to slice them into coin sizes slices.
• Add lentils to a pot at proportions 2 cups water to 1 cup lentils
• Put on stove at medium high. DO NOT add salt to the water.
• Start peeling 1/4 clove of garlic. See day 1 instructions.
• Lose one piece of garlic to the trash. If possible, avoid step in future.
• Cut up garlic so it fits into garlic press.  Press garlic
• Add garlic to onions on stove over after the onions are slightly browned

Slightly browned onions

• Add 1 tsp of butter to onions.
• Add zucchini
• Flip and stir zucchini mixture occasionally.
• Once lentils are at a rolling boil, put temp to just under medium so they can simmer.
• Stir and flip onions occasionally
• Test lentils after 15 minutes from simmering.
• Check zucchini every 2 minutes, if it gets too brown, check more frequently. Go by look, not time, to tell when it's done.

Finished zucchini

• Once lentils are done, rinse then and then drain water.
• Add olive oil and salt. Taste and see if it's good and add more if needed.
• Put lentils back on stove at medium to warm them up form the rinse.
• Take out chicken and cut into the leg joint, if it's still red, put it back in.
• Cover lentils with tin foil to keep them warm.
• As you pull chicken out of over tilt it because juices get caught inside the bird. This will reduce your pain.
• Let the chicken sit out of the oven for 8 minutes to lock in the juices. It also keeps cooking if it sits there
• Enjoy your meal!



Delicious finished product!

Day 3: Meal Planning

Yesterday we had a worship night at the church, so I didn't eat dinner.  I did, however, make a list of possible meals to make! Many of these are from a recipe list that Katelyn made for our friends that are on the slow carb diet. She's amazing!  Here they are: 

• Modified Tomato Soup Recipe
• Modified Meatballs recipe
• Modified the Buffalo Chili Recipe
• Modified Schmidt Medley – lentils instead of quinoa
• Soy Beans, Burgers with yogurt and cucumber salad 
• http://www.slowcarbrevolution.com/showthread.php/15149-Slow-Carb-Recipe-Soy-Beans-Burgers-with-Yoghurt-and-Cucumber-Salad - needs some modification
• Zucchini with Chicken
• Chicken Curry
• that one meal that we ate when Sarah came over.  Some sort of beef curry thing with asparagus.
• Chicken salad w/ avocado and nuts
• Baked Brown Cimini Mushroom Stuffed with Minced Pork
• http://www.slowcarbrevolution.com/showthread.php/14952-Baked-Brown-Crimini-Mushroom-Stuffed-with-Minced-Pork Looks yummy as is
• Italien Sasuage Stew
• http://www.slowcarbrevolution.com/showthread.php/15071-Slow-Carb-Recipe-Italian-Sausage-Stew Will be really good with some slight modifications
• Broccoli with Lentils and Chicken
• http://www.slowcarbrevolution.com/showthread.php/15166-Slow-Carb-Recipe-Broccoli-with-Lentils-and-Chicken - good with a few modifications.

Progress made!

Day 2: Leftovers

I had a volunteer meeting at the church tonight, so I didn't get a chance to make anything.  Left over barbacoa night!  Actually, there wasn't enough for both lunch and dinner, so I went to Chipotle for dinner.

If you are on the slow carb diet, here is the Chipotle meal I recommend: burrito bowl with both kind of beans, no rice, fajita vegetables, chicken, salsa, guacamole, and lettuce.  Enjoy!

Joe's 4 Steps to a Successful Blogrimage!

1. Choose a Blogrimage
Choose a blogrimage that you are passionate about.  This is the perfect opportunity to do something that you’ve always had a hard time committing to, because now you’re not alone!  Or just try out a social experiment and tell everyone your findings!  Whatever journey you want to take, we want to be a part.

2. Write Everyday
After you’ve chosen a blogrimage, do whatever it is and blog about it everyday.  It could be anything from a full chapter about your day, down to even one sentence, or a video blog!  Whatever you decide to do, consistency is the key.

3. Don’t beat yourself up
If you miss a day, or even if you start late, don’t beat yourself up.  Most blogrimages end because people feel like since they didn’t start when everyone else did, or because they missed a few days, that they should just stop.  The blogrimage community is a safe and supportive community, and no matter how often, we always want to see more of you!

4. Get involved in the movement!
Get out there and find other blogrimages!  The culture and community of the blogrimage is what makes it so effective, and so fun at the same time.  If you don’t read anyone else’s blogs, read them.  If you read others blogs but don’t comment, start commenting!  Also, make sure that you join the facebook group 30 Day Blogrimage, and everytime that you post something to your blog, copy and paste the link there so we can all have a central meeting place. Getting involved in the community will not only encourage others, but those that get involved have a much higher completion rate!  Meet and greet your fellow Blogrim’s!

Day 1: Schmidt-style Barbacoa

The Back Story
For my blogrimage I will be learning how to cook.  My wife is a truly outstanding chef, and she makes gourmet meals all the time for me and our friends, however the best meal I can make is ramen.  Thankfully, the blogrimage is here to save the day!

The Diet
There is one thing you should know about this blogrimage, I'm doing it at possibly the worst time ever.  Katelyn and I are 8 days into a 30 day slow carb diet right now (read more in 4 Hour Body), so we won't be making anything with grains, breads, sugars, fruits, or many other tasty things.  We will, however, be able to use all meats, spices, vegetables, and legumes.  If I can, I'll write how you can make each recipe more delicious if you aren't on a slow carb diet.  There is one binge day a week (Saturday) so maybe Saturdays will be more interesting.  If you're interested in the slow carb diet, this blogrimage is for you!

The goal:
1. Spend the first 15 days of the blogrimage learning how to cook from my wife, and hopefully learning a specific recipe each day
2. Spend the last 15 days making food for my wife and I, hopefully implementing the recipes that I learned in the first 15 days.
3. Invite 1 friend over for each of the last 5 days to either enjoy or suffer through eating one of my meals!


Day 1: Schmidt style barbacoa
Katelyn thankfully started out simple and we used the crock pot.  Here is my version of the directions for making schmidt-style barbacoa.  It's Schmidt style because we don't cut off a cow's head and bury it in the ground for 3 days or whatever the crazy traditional way of making it is.  They are my version because I wrote them down so I could understand them later if Katelyn wasn't there, meaning they are over simplified:

1. Buy ground chuck - well marbled (lots of fat)
2. Rinse meat
3. Put meat in crock pot
4. Add a quart of water
5. Add a tbsp of cinnamon, yes, cinnamon
6. Add 4 or 5 dried chilies
7. Add 3 bay leaves
8. Add 1.5 to 2 tsp of salt
9. Add half a clove of garlic.  Whole cloves, not crushed.  Take off the skin first.
10. Add 1.5 tbsp of cumin
11. Cover and put on high over night

Here's what it looks like before you cover and cook it:

Here's what it looks like in the morning before you put it in a Tupperware and take it to work for lunch:

I hope in the future to have more appetizing pictures.  For a side you can make a can of beans or lentils.  I know, this slow carb diet is boring.

If you're a normal person you can eat it with tortilla chips with a hint of lime and have a great time with all your friends as you laugh and point at people on the slow carb diet!!!!........22 more days of slow carb....29 more days of Blogrimage!!!!


AMENDMENT: I think its chuck roast, not ground chuck.  Also, in the morning you have to take two forks and use them to pull apart the meat so its not all chucks, but its stringy.