Recipes

I posted a few pics and a generic recipe for lobster on the public forum but, lets get some Thrive specific meal recipes going on here. Share what you've created. Throw in a picture and some tips to make sure it turns out right.

This is a really cool opportunity because we have people from all over the globe here in Thrive and we can learn some recipes that we may never have heard of otherwise. [no pressure on the French and Italians] 

I'll post some stuff but I really want to see what you guys are doing. 

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for putting this program together and for this idea here... looking forward to the recipes.  

For now, this 'recipe' has been a bit of a game changer for me due to it's simplicity.  I now have no excuse to not have eggs ready to go.  I used to hard boil but that became a bit tedious.  I'm far from lazy but with a newborn at home and busy schedule I'll take any chance I get to be a bit more efficient.

I now make the majority of my eggs in a muffin tin - a little coconut oil spray, salt, pepper and throw them in the oven.  Of course, you can get more creative here and make mini omelettes but right now I prefer the basic so I can eat them alone with some Jamaican scotch bonnet pepper sauce or add them to my salads.   Enjoy!

http://fitfoodiefinds.com/2012/11/how-to-bake-eggs-in-oven/

This is a GIANT picture of a soup I like to make. It's a knock-off of the Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana (which I've never actually had; so no idea how close it is to the real thing!). I love this soup because the sausage is delightfully spicy and infuses the whole soup with flavor. It's so simple to throw together, hearty, and satisfying to eat. Here's the recipe in full. 

I learned of this recipe back when I didn't eat carbs (silly me!) so I used to make it with a head of cauliflower instead of potatoes. I like it this way so much, I still haven't made it with potatoes! Now I just eat my carbs on the side

I don't want to spoil any Thrive tasks, but I'd like to share my method for making soups while on Thrive. 

Instead of following the recipe to a T, I figure how many servings of this soup I will eat (let's say I plan to eat this zuppa toscana for four meals). Then I measure out the minimum serving of vegetables x 4, the minimum serving of protein x 4, and the minimum serving of fat x 4. After the soup is made, I divide into four equal containers and know I have the protein, fat, and vegetables in the correct ratios for that meal. 

This same principle can be applied to other dishes that mix everything together (casseroles, stir fry, etc.). This works for me because I'd rather figure out servings during prep than tear apart my  beautiful meal to add up the piece parts. 

If anyone tries it, let me know!

Todays lunch, easy to make and delicious. Baked potatos, burger meat (sadly didn't have a steak) and cucumber salad (with greek yoghurt, garlic, dill, vinegar, s+p).

My lunch, nothing special.

Hamburgers from grass fed cows, mashed potatoes (with butter and milk), salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

I don't have a pic but will see if I can add it later. As part of what my family are doing to try and introduce my kids to new foods, we have started spinning the globe and they choose a country once a week. We then get some recipes from the country and put together a meal to share on a Saturday night. Most recently we had Cameroon and came up with a coconut rice recipe copied below but from here

Coconut Rice

1 1/2 cups long grain rice

20 ounces coconut milk

1 onion, chopped

2 carrots, diced

1 lemon, grated zest only

1 yellow pepperoni (sweet pepper), seeded and diced

1 teaspoon allspice

1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme,

1 fresh, hot green chili, chopped finely

2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large, heavy bottomed pan and fry the onion until soft and translucent. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in the coconut milk and bring to boil. Stir in the carrots, the pepperoni, thyme, allspice, chili, lemon zest and the rice and bring to a brisk simmer. Cover and cook over low heat until the rice has absorbed almost all the liquid – stirring occasionally. Cover the pot with aluminum foil, put the lid on tightly and steam very gently until the rice is cooked.

It is really tasty and has made a good combo with my standard lunch during the week of rice and a salad usually consisting of Cabbage, coriander, grated carrot, cucumber, capsicum and tomato but depends on what we have around. this week I have added Cauliflower, cauliflower leaves and celery tops.

The coconut rice sounds great! Adding it to my list of recipes to try. 

Here's a recipe I've been enjoying with lunch or as a snack between lunch and dinner---cucumber avocado shake. It's based on this gazpacho recipe from Elana's Pantry (picture from her website). She includes some cucumber chunks serves it as a cold soup; I blend everything and drink it out of a glass.

My adapted, full recipe is to toss everything below into a blender and blitz until smooth:

• 1 peeled cucumber (I don't bother deseeding mine)
• 1 avocado
• 1 cup of cold water
• 1 tbsp minced raw onion
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• Lemon juice (yield from half a lemon, at least 1 tbsp)
• 1/4 TSP chili powder
• Salt to taste 

It's a wonderfully light, refreshing, and acidic beverage. You can scale down to fit your portion goals. I've made it in the morning and had it last wonderfully in the fridge until the afternoon, so you could always make a batch and have half with lunch and half as part of an afternoon snack. 

Today's lunch:

Freestyle sushi + salad

I've been rocking this one a bit lately.

Sushi rice w/ fish topping: today I mixed some smoked oysters into tuna with a bit of home made aioli and topped with toasted sesame seeds and nori flakes.

Sushi rice: Use any recipe, but substituting sugar for a small amount of stevia leaf

Salad: Mixed salad things with a dressing of olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar

Toasted nori sheets: Transport some of the fish and rice mixture to the nori sheets for a crunchy lazy sushi lunch.

Nice! I like that one

I haven't made these tuna stuff potatoes since I finished Thrive, but I'm getting a hankering for them and will adapt the recipe to Thrive portions (should be pretty easy). The recipe is from Domestic Man (one of my favorite food bloggers). I make it as he directs, except I usually use sour cream instead of homemade mayo.

Slow Roasted Venison Loin

Step 1: Get a live animal or hunt your own and gut it.

Step 2: Start a small fire in the bottom of large roaster. I used oak but you can use hickory, apple, or whatever you like.

Step 3: Slow roast the animal (it doesn't have to be a deer), taking off quarters as they are done. (Vension takes 2 -5 hours - first shoulders, then loins, followed by hind quarters.) Save the bones for a rich homemade broth!

(Link to bone broth recipe)

The smoke filled, smell of the backyard cooking process is enjoyable and the loins where so tender they nearly fell apart as you picked them up to eat with your hands. Another friend brought their homemade garden salad and I also threw on some purple potatoes and sweet potatoes from the garden to roast with the deer. The leftover Venison (whatever the friends and family did not devour) was nice to put away for future Thrive meals.

That is awesome!!

Awesome, Ryan.  Tough to top that one!

Just ate. Hungry again.

Butter: Rich, Raw, Creamy, at Home

(The picture shows the store bought butter in the back along side our raw, homeade butter in the front)

Enjoy.

Ryan, you are the man!

Too funny Jeff, Thanks!

We'll give my wife the props on this one...

This brings back memories! We used to make butter every year for Thanksgiving. When I was very young, my mom put cream in a jar with a marble and I shook it until it separated. 

When I was older, I graduated to the electric mixer.

I buy Kerrygold butter now, but your raw butter looks mighty tempting.

Guys! I'm obsessed with this salad. 

Salad: 1 bunch lascinato kale shredded (almost minced) + 1 cup mint leaves, sliced.

I combine this at the beginning of the week and then take out individual servings. The size of your kale depends on how many servings you'll get, but I'd say it typically yields 4 servings. 

Ok. Here comes the magic! Sprinkle some walnuts on your serving and dress with the following spicy peanut dressing: 

3 tablespoons smooth natural peanut butter

3 tablespoons warm water

3tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1tablespoon pomegranate molasses

1tablespoon soy sauce

1teaspoon fresh garlic, minced

2teaspoons fresh ginger, peeled and minced

1teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon dried red chili flakes

This salad dressing packs a punch, so put less on your serving than you think you'll need.

Seriously, this salad is the bomb. I think you could easily add animal protein and put it all on a bed rice for a complete lunch.

(Recipe and photo credit to Food52)

Ryan Bailey,

LEGIT! I want to come hang with you and your wife for a week and get out of the grocery stores!