It’s a Zoo

Posted by Lisa Eirene

For Logan’s birthday my parents got us a zoo membership. So for the first time ever, Logan went to the zoo this weekend! I haven’t been to the Oregon Zoo in about 10 years I think. I think the last time I went was with friends for Zoo Lights at Christmas time.

I was pretty excited about sharing the zoo experience with Logan and for a long time thought about taking him but just never did. So we were pretty excited about having a membership now. The nice thing about having a membership is that members get into the zoo 30 minutes early. This weekend we got an email that members could get in an hour early! So we decided to get up early Saturday and go out there. It was nice that they opened early for members because when we were leaving later the parking lot was already full. It was crazy!

We told Logan we were going on an adventure. He was super excited! I knew his mind would be completely BLOWN. And it was. I think, honestly, it was overwhelming for him. He was shot out of a cannon, running like a madman. But it was ok.

His favorite thing of all was the lion exhibit. Of course, I should have guessed! His favorite movie has been The Lion King, so of course.

I thought for sure the elephants would be the most exciting thing for him. They were always my favorites. 🙂

It was pretty fun. Despite the meltdown when it was time to go. 😉 Next time we’ll bring snacks and water and a stroller for when Logan gets tired. I think it was just too much of everything. We ended up walking 2 miles in an hour and a half in the zoo. Logan probably walked/ran 3!

We didn’t even see half of the zoo. There’s a ton more to see and do. Next time we’ll have to do the train, too. That will probably be Logan’s favorite thing. 😉

We were home by 11. Logan had lunch and then crashed. I went to the gym for a quick session. I’m still taking it easy. I did a short cardio session and then my first weight lifting session since before my surgery.

And when Logan woke up from his nap he watched the Lion King movie with his Lion and Monkey stuffed animals. 😀

Keto Update

Posted by Lisa Eirene

I think I’ve been back to keto for about two full weeks now? Maybe three. I weighed in last weekend and I was happy to see that I was exactly the same weight I was right before my surgery. So taking two weeks off and eating all the carbs didn’t do a ton of damage, thankfully! I weighed in this week and am down another pound, so moving in the right direction.

I’ve doing ok back on the keto diet. I’m still struggling to get to 20 net carbs a day. No matter what I do, I am still averaging around 25-30 net carbs each day. I looked at my diet and I guess I should probably drop my plain Greek yogurt. I mean, it’s not a ton of carbs because I eat a half a serving, but I add berries to it, and those are the carbs. I thought I was being smart by adding a spoonful of ground flaxseed (fiber) and chia seeds to it to try and offset it but I am still getting carbs with the berries. So I think next week I will try and go back to trying nuts, bone broth and maybe cheese sticks for snacks at work and see what happens.

I found a keto recipe website I like a lot. I’ve only tried a few of the recipe so far but so far I like it and the website/instagram is really visually pretty, so there’s that, too. 🙂

PERUVIAN CHICKEN WITH TANGY GREEN SAUCE

INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 2 tablespoon avocado oil
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • 4 lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken

Salsa Criolla (Lime Pickled Onions + Tomatoes)

  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 roma tomatoes, quartered
  • Juice of 2 limes
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Tangy Green Sauce:

  • 1 large bunch cilantro, stems and all
  • 10 large mint leaves
  • 1 jalapeño
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • Salt, to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 400° F.
  2. Mix together the cumin, avocado oil, paprika, salt, pepper, oregano, and lemon zest in a small bowl. Brush the chicken with the lemon juice then rub with spice mixture. Place the chicken in a large cast iron skillet and transfer to the oven.
  3. Roast the chicken for about 60 minutes until the internal temperature reads 165° F.
  4. While the chicken is roasting make the salsa criolla by placing all of the ingredients into a jar and shaking well, refrigerate until ready to use. *They get better as they sit so feel free to make ahead
  5. To make the cilantro green sauce simply blend together all of the ingredients.
  6. Serve the chicken with the green sauce, salsa criolla, and additional lime if desired. 

Calories: 824 Net Carbs: 4.3 Protein: 58.2

I used chicken thighs instead of a whole chicken. So I think the calories are a little off for the recipe. Chicken thighs are generally around 250-300 calories each, depending on the size (we had small ones). The sauce was made with real mayo, so there was definitely calories there. But overall, I don’t think the dinner was 800 calories worth. I’d put it more around 500.

I cooked the chicken thighs for about 45 minutes in the oven.

The dinner was absolutely divine! One of my favorite new recipes I’ve tried! I loved the tangy sauce. I love the “salsa” with the chicken. All the flavors worked great together.

This would be a great recipe to make for a dinner party if you want to impress your friends!