Bacon Potato Sausage Fritatta

     Here's a helpful hint: Do not start this program when you have 2 boys hitting a growth spurt. So I told you the first week they lost weight. And I've been worried all week about them getting enough to eat. Well, I should hope they are, because literally, they won't stop eating. Like, in the afternoons, I have to watch them, because they will come home and eat applesauce, a carrot, 1/2 can of nuts, a banana, and yesterday Ryland got into the hotdogs, and ate 4, finishing off the pack. I'm sorry, but I can't afford to feed these youngins'. They did weigh in this morning, and each of them had gained 2 pounds, so that was good. Chase's teacher texted me this week, and said I should probably start packing him double the lunch and snack. I'm going to send her the grocery bill.
   
     In all seriousness though, and for the sake of openness and honesty I promised, this is turning out to be very expensive. I have spent at least $700 in groceries this month. But I'm working hard in my garden, and hoping later this summer we can live off of that for a while. I'm also hoping that there's a learning curve, and in time, I will know how and where to purchase the quality of food I want for a fraction of the cost. Plus, you also have to remember, when we started this month, we literally had no food in the pantry, fridge, or freezer. And some of the groceries I've bought this month was stocking up a little on organic meats when they go on sale for the freezer.

     We have noticed some positive changes in the two weeks that we've been doing this. Obviously there is some weight loss going on. I feel like I have more energy. And Chase has been struggling with his "restroom habits" since he went gluten-free several months ago, but that seems to be resolved now. And that's awesome, because that poor kid went though a tough time, gagging down prune juice, which did nothing, and taking miralax, which did just a little, and several other unpleasant things. And to think, by changing to a healthy diet, all that was resolved (so far) with no medication.

    Now, let's talk about what we've been eating. I have three recipes to fill you in on, all from PaleOMG.com. First we have Beef, Bacon, and Plantain Casserole, which to be honest, is not something we would normally eat for dinner. We are not adventurous eaters. Pork chops with apples is probably the most exotic I've ever gone with my cooking. I just look at these recipes with these weird combinations, and I'm curious, but I'm scared to try it, especially with my kind of picky boys. So, the boys did not like the plantains. I thought they were okay, but a little weird in this casserole. There was nothing to hold it all together, and it wasn't bad, but it just didn't go together.

     Then, last night we had Southwest Meatballs with Creamy Cilantro Dipping Sauce...minus the cilantro, because I didn't have any. I thought they were just okay. The main thing I tasted was the cumin. Cory, Chase and Ryland loved them, and Cory really liked the sauce too, which is weird because he hates avocado. I know they will want me to fix them again sometime, but I might tweak them a little. They have potential.

     Then tonight, oh my goodness, we had Bacon Potato Sausage Frittata. Ryland and I loved it. But we really like sweet potatoes. Cory and Chase really dislike sweet potatoes, but Cory was the one who picked the recipe. I bet he didn't notice what it was. If you love sweet potatoes, you will love this recipe. If you hate sweet potatoes, you will only kind of like this recipe. I was so surprised to see them eat it! And the sausage that we used was from the meat counter at Earth Fare, and it was so good! 10 times better than Johnsonville Sausage. Maybe that made the difference. Anyways, I highly recommend it.

Bacon Potato Sausage Frittata

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Prep time

25 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

40 mins

Serves: 4-5

Ingredients

• ½ pound bacon, cut into lardons
• 1 small sweet potato or yam, diced into small cubes
• ½ pound italian sausage (or other ground meat)
• 8 eggs, whisked
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• ½ teaspoon ground paprika
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Place bacon in a large cast iron skillet or in an oven safe sauté pan. Cook bacon until crispy. Remove and place on a paper towel lined plate. Remove bacon fat as necessary, leaving behind 3-4 tablespoons.
3. Add sweet potato, coat in bacon fat and let cook for 10-12 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are soft.
4. Add italian sausage to the pan with the potatoes, break apart with a wooden spoon and cook until no pink remains.
5. Once sausage is cooked through, remove pan from heat to let cool.
6. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, garlic powder, red pepper, paprika and salt and pepper.
7. Once pan has cooled, pour in eggs and add the bacon on top of the sausage and potatoes. Mix well to evenly distribute the eggs around the pan.
8. Place in oven and bake for 12-15 minutes until the eggs are fully cooked in the middle of the pan.