Without further adieu, below you’ll find a recipe for my most favoritest (yes, I know that’s a double superlative and ‘favoritest’ isn’t a real word) hors d’oevure/snack/small meal:

Smoked Salmon Tartines

• 1 recipe All-Purpose Primal Crackers
• Smoked Salmon/Lox (Costco carries an excellent-tasting, wild option)
• Cream Cheese
• Red Onion, sliced thinly
• Fresh Dill
• Capers
• Sea Salt and Cracked Pepper

Take a cracker, layer with cream cheese (you can simply skip this step if you’re avoiding dairy), salmon, red onions, capers, fresh dill, and sprinkle with salt/pepper.  Enjoy!

First, let’s address that “worst” moniker. You’re at a restaurant, YOU are putting the food into YOUR body, and most of the time, YOU are paying for it. Order what you want, how you want it. Get over trying to be “easy.” Get what you want.

To help you visualize this concept, here’s a story:

The other night, Lisa and I met up at Hula Hut for some patio fun time and margaritas. I was hungry, but we quickly found out that they wouldn’t serve the full menu on the patio (no fajitas?!), so we had to choose from only appetizers.

So we ordered this:

“What did THEY order?!” exclaimed the next table over when we received our meal. Our waiter finally stammered out something along these lines: The Palm Tree Hugger Nachos without nachos, without beans, without sour cream, plus chicken (free-range!).

And a guacamole salad, of course:

Which makes for one amazing, totally Paleo meal.

We also ordered margaritas without sweet-and-sour, which made for some very tart ‘ritas. I digress.

Now, how can you creatively order at ANY restaurant to make eating out totally Paleo?

7 Tips for Paleo Eating in a Restaurant*

1. Meat or chicken. Order it without sauces, or with sauces on the side.

2. Sides: replace potatoes/rice/beans/etc. with extra veggies. If they won’t do it, ask for no sides.
(Story time! I recently tried to order a pasta dish at a really nice restaurant without pasta and with extra vegetables. The waiter indicated it wouldn’t be enough food without the pasta but I insisted that I wouldn’t eat the pasta, so he said, ‘I really don’t think this will be enough food for you. Why don’t you order this other fish dish, which comes with vegetables, and I can remove the potatoes for you?’ The new dish was amazing, and I was very grateful that the man worked with me.)

3. Seafood often comes in creamy sauces, often dairy-based. Order them on the side, or ask for your prepared way of cooking–grilled, seared, or baked.

4. Mexican food is actually really easy. Order the tacos/burrito with the best ingredients. Then MAN UP AND DON’T EAT THE TORTILLA. Even better, order it without the tortilla–they might even give you more filling. At Hula Hut, I order the Tubular Taco without the tortilla and get a HUGE pile of veggies and protein. Add in guacamole and you’re totally set with fat, protein, and good carbs!

5. Italian food got you down? They ALWAYS have a high-quality steak or chicken dish and I nicely-done fish on the menu. Think of all the crap you would have put in your body with pasta, then get really excited that you’re getting the intense Italian flavorings on a tasty protein canvas.

6. Sushi is always a win, just order without rice. Some places (Sushi Zushi, Kenichi) will even make you some cool rolls (or at least hand rolls) without rice, using thinly-sliced cucumber to fill the wrapper. JUST ASK.

7. My go-to eating out option? Ahi tuna. It’s widely available as an appetizer, salad, or entree, even at sports bars.

*I’m going to go ahead and assume you KNOW not to eat the bread or chips and salsa beforehand; you KNOW not to order anything fried; you KNOW butter is dairy and eggs and mayo aren’t. If you don’t, you should probably start HERE or HERE. Also, visit a Farmer’s Market. Don’t eat anything you can’t buy there (which is NOT the same as saying that you can eat anything you can buy there).

Post to the comments below if you have any Paleo ordering tips I forgot!

Curtis Stone’s total meal cost: $8.87
Slowly cooked pork shoulder with braised cabbage

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2-pound pork shoulder
• 1 carrot, peeled and cut and diced into 2-inch pieces
• 1 onion, peeled and cut and diced into 2-inch pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 stick of celery, cut and diced into 2-inch pieces
• 2 bay leaves
• Sprig of thyme
• 1 cup of red wine
• 2 cups of veal or chicken stock (brown)

For the braised cabbage

• 3 ounces applewood-smoked bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1 carrot, peeled and thinly sliced diagonally
• 1 leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise then cut crosswise into 3/4-inch pieces
• 8-ounce head of cabbage, cored, cut into 1/2-inch ribbons
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 1/2 cup chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• Sprig of thyme

DIRECTIONS

To prepare the braised cabbage:
Sauté the bacon in a heavy large wide pot over medium heat until golden brown, about 12 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate. Add the carrots, onions and leeks to the same pot and sauté until the leeks soften, about 3 minutes.

Separate the cabbage leaves, add the garlic and thyme and add them to the pot. Cook until the cabbage wilts, stirring often, about 12 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the sherry and simmer until most of the liquid evaporates, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a simmer.

Cover the pot and simmer over medium-low heat until the cabbage is tender, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Stir in the cooked bacon and season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.

To prepare the pork shoulder:
Place a large cast-iron casserole dish over a high heat, season pork with salt and pepper, place fat side down into the hot pan. Brown all sides. Remove from, the pan and pour off excess fat. 

Add the onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes until soft, add the garlic and herbs and sauté for a further 2 minutes. Add the carrots, celery and cook for 2-3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add pork. Deglaze with red wine and reduce for 5 minutes. Add stock and cover and slowly cook for 2-3 hours until pork literally falls apart when picked up.*Remove from pot and strain, discard and remove vegetables. Strain and remove jus. Place a small saucepan over a medium heat and jus for 10-15 minutes. Place a large nonstick sauté pan over a high heat. Once the pork is cool, break into 4 pieces. Place the pork into a hot pan and sauté until the outside is crisp. Remove from the pan and serve with braised cabbage.

*Does this remind anyone of Ryon’s post?

Three Thoughts on Meetings, Travel, & Dining out:

1) The Meeting: Try to be the one who has final say over the menu for your meeting. It isn’t a huge task and it allows you to ensure that you can actually eat something. I had a whole room of physician volunteers and co-workers eating paleo without them even realizing it! Ok, so there were the obligatory cookies, dessert bars, sodas, and bread rolls, BUT most people stuck with water and avoided the desserts and rolls all by themselves. It was beautiful! And, the pecan crusted chicken & thinly cut beef were both huge hits! I’m got people to eat healthier & they loved it!

2) Travel: Specifically air travel. Just spend the extra money on the overpriced almond mix. Maybe there’s a wilted salad out there you can eat but it’s just easier to throw the nuts in your carry-on. I splurged on the one that had dark chocolate in it. Lots of people are smarter & more prepared than me & they get (or make) Paleo Kits when they know they’ll be travelling.

Paleo goodness!

3) Dining out: A steakhouse is always an easy choice. Meat…veg…done! However, I really enjoy ethnic cuisine. Fortunately for me, so do a lot of my friends and this is how I was introduced to Vietnamese food for the first time this past week. We got a hot pot of seafood goodness. This baby was loaded with shrimp, scallops, oysters, greens, and a delicious coconut-y broth. HEAVEN!!! Neither Dickie nor I had ever gotten a hot pot before and we were totally clueless as to what to do. Confused? Ask your server! Ours was super excited that we were being adventurous and helped us with every step aside from actually eating the yummy goodness. Beyond the soup we got there were pages upon pages of paleo offerings. So, the next time you’re wondering where to eat or lamenting that you no longer have rice with your Thai curry or Chinese stirfry suggest to your dining companions that you try your local Vietnamese restaurant. Bonus – you’re opening up your world & your palate, therefore you are becoming a more well-rounded & interesting person!

Here’s a quick recipe for one of my Thai favorites – Tom Ka Gai aka Coconut Ginger Chicken Soup.

Time – 20-30 mins

Ingredients

1 lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken (cut into strips)

1 “A Taste of Thai” Coconut Ginger Soup Base (I use this brand found at HEB as it is easier than tracking down Thai ingredients like Galangal and Fish Sauce – it’s got a trace amount of Sugar but no gluten or preservatives.)

1 can Coconut Milk (not the Lite kind please)

14.5 Chicken Broth (make sure you don’t get one loaded with preservatives or ingredients you can’t pronounce)

1 Lime

1 Carrot

1/4 Cauliflower

A couple of sprigs of Cilantro

In a pan, combine the Soup Base and Coconut milk over high heat, bringing it to boil. Add chicken, cauliflower, carrots, stir and bring to boil. I toss in the carrots and cauliflower to get my daily dose of vegetables. Continue to cook until the chicken is cooked. Add the Chicken broth, stir and return to boil. Add the lime based on the level of sourness you would like. Remove from heat, garnish with Cilantro and voila – a quick easy and  filling meal.

Then, Jen wrote about the big excuse and Crystal called me out, and I realized exactly what I was doing: setting myself up for a new years resolution. I was creating ready-made excuses to  indulge in treats, and figuring that I would deal with it in the new  year.

So, here I am. On Saturday, Georgia pointed out that if we started right away, 30 days of paleo would be over just in time for my birthday. This was just the push I needed. It will be the perfect birthday present to myself.

And the timing of this could not be more perfect. Desserts and junk food have been flying at me this week. I’ve been presented with movie popcorn, cinnamon buns, cornbread, kolaches, and the hardest to resist: homemade cookies and cakes. Each time, I’ve surprised myself by how easy it was to resist. I made this commitment, and I know it will be worth it. Yes, I love dessert. But I’m healthier and happier without it, so I felt good about saying no.

Until the lemon pound cake incident.

There is a teacher at my school is one of the most giving, caring, all around nice people I know. She baked a cake, and before I even saw it, I heard from multiple people about how delicious this cake was. Still, I’m committed, I’m happier without the cake. Then, said teacher comes to me with a piece of her now-famous cake. Here, you have to try this cake! Eek! I was actually speechless for a few seconds. It still wasn’t that I actually wanted the cake- now there was a bigger issue of not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings/seem ungrateful/come off as a food snob.

It was tough, and that’s where this challenge comes in handy. Ordinarily, I’d take the cake out of guilt. I’d eat every last bite because a) it’s a delicious cake and b) I’m a sugar-holic. And then afterwards, I’d feel guilty again. Do you see what just happened there? I’d take the cake to avoid feeling guilty … and then I would feel guilty. Something is wrong with that.

It’s strange and sad that there is such a stigma around food that people feel guilty for saying no and trying to make themselves healthy. I think this is going to play a major role in this challenge, for me at least. But I also think that this where I stand to gain a lot. If I can practice saying no for 30 days, then surely it will be easier for me once I’m done with the challenge.

So how did I avoid the cake? I swear, I tried to be honest and polite and say no thank you- but the look on her face told me she wasn’t accepting that. So I eventually took the cake. I put it next to my chicken sausage and broccoli lunch, and I said thank you, this looks delicious. I waited until the perfect time, and then I dumped the cake in the trash. Do I feel great about throwing away cake? Not really. Do I feel great about not eating it? Absolutely. It may not have been the most tactful solution, but it got the job done. In case anyone is looking for more grown-up ways to handle unwanted cake, Mark Sisson has some great suggestions, which I’m sure will come in handy sometime soon.