Paleo Eats: 12/14/11 (A Well Fed Day)

I stayed up late last night perusing my copy of Melissa Joulwan’s Well Fed: Paleo Recipes For People Who Love To Eat.

There’s so much good stuff in it – lots of useful kitchen tips and so many iterations of EVERY recipe. Before my head hit the pillow, I vowed to grill up her “The Best Chicken You Will Ever Eat” for tomorrow’s dinner.

First thing in the morning, I ate some breakfast and headed to the womens’ class at CrossFit Palo Alto. For my pre-workout fuel, I ate leftover slow roasted lamb sirloin, roasted bell pepper salad, and sauteed spinach.

I also gulped down an espresso and a small serving of coconut cream.

After my medicine ball beat-down, I drove to Penzeys with Lil-O (who amazingly bounced back from his tummy illness overnight) and spent a small fortune on spices. Having a PDF copy of Mel’s book on my iPhone was super convenient as I was raiding the store. I knew exactly what I needed to buy for all the recipes I wanted to try. Or maybe it was a bad idea I had her e-book in my pocket because I ended up blowing our kids’ future college savings. I guess one will have to go to Hamburger University and the other to Clown College.

When I came home, I blitzed a batch of homemade Dukka with hazelnuts, pistachios. and spices…

…before scarfing down a bowl of leftover Moroccan-spiced lamb and chestnut stew and sauteed spinach.

Right after lunch, Lil-O and I started working on Melicious’s “The Best Chicken You Will Ever Eat.” The breasts soak in a brine for a couple of hours, so we had to get a move on. My little chef smashed the garlic cloves…

…and peeled them…

…before dunking them in the brine.

We also threw together the spice blend…

…that was measured and mixed by my assistant.

By the time Big-O was home from school, the chicken was ready for the grill. He helped me massage the spice-infused coconut oil into the chicken…

…and I threw it on the Weber in the backyard.

Have you ever seen grilled chicken breast that looks this moist?

Not me!

The chicken seasoning was smoky and complex PLUS it was tender and juicy. I’ve never eaten skinless and boneless chicken breasts that taste this good – especially cooked on a hot grill.

For dinner, we scarfed down a ton of Mel’s chicken along with roasted Dukka-spiced cauliflower.