If you were keeping track, week 5 officially concludes my 30-day trial on the AIP diet (technically January 2 to February 2). Let me rephrase that, week 5 concludes 30 days of strict AIP food eliminations; but then, after this month-long trial comes the slow reintroduction phase. And when I say slow, I’m talking molasses. But, that’s for next week’s post. So, for now, I’m wrapping up my elimination period with an update on my progress and a couple recipes I made on week 5 of strict AIP eating.

I will admit, my first week on AIP, I felt pretty good. My energy levels were still my usual Energizer-bunny status, as my husband likes to refer to me. I felt pretty darn good doing CrossFit and lifting weights at the gym, sticking to my usual routine. Week 2, energy-wise, I felt mostly the same as the first week, although I was mentally drowning inside from all the food deprivation. It’s a serious stressor when you can’t enjoy the foods you love. Weeks 3 and 4 started to take a toll on me. I began to feel more depleted, lethargic, and tired. I found myself needing to take naps on days when I was not at work, which is very unlike me. I would wake up early in the morning full of energy and ready to conquer the day, but by early afternoon, I was completely spent. I also developed a pesky cold around this time, so that didn’t help my current situation. As week 4 turned into week 5, my sluggishness became more profound, and I found myself spending a day or two resting in bed all day. Of course, when you’re a do-it-now, productive, constantly-have-to-be-moving type person like me, guilt sets in for being lazy. I had to remind myself many times that my body needed rest. God has graciously given me a flexible schedule whereby I can give my body the rest it so desperately craves, and for this, I am truly grateful.

As I anticipated though, with a diet this strict and with limited carb and protein sources, weight loss is inevitable for me, and with weight loss comes a loss in strength. Boy, did I feel that void in strength this past week during my workouts. It’s frustrating, but my goal is to be able to gain back everything I lost, plus 10 or 15 pounds more. I’m hoping that my gut has had adequate time to heal so I can begin to digest food properly and absorb nutrients.

This past week, my diet consisted of lots of canned tuna, because it’s quick, cheap, and convenient (although I know I probably shouldn’t have eaten so much of that high-mercury fish in one week); of course my normal avocados, sweet potatoes, and kabocha squashes; and then some homemade cassava tortillas and another round of chicken meatballs.

I used the recipe on the back of the Otto’s cassava flour bag to make the tortillas, and even though they were disappointingly small, they were delicious! After mixing the cassava flour with the water and oil, the dough forms together into a fine corn masa-like mixture that’s ready to be pressed into rounds. I omitted the salt in the recipe per my preference. I rolled the dough into six small balls, according to the recipe, and then using a water glass, pressed each one between two sheets of wax paper to flatten into small disks. I then “fried” them in a dry non-stick pan. They tasted just like homemade corn tortillas! I dipped mine in extra virgin olive oil, because that’s just in my Italian DNA. Warm, slightly nutty, perfectly chewy – delightful! These were my after-dinner snack every evening this week, perfect with a cup of tea.

For the chicken meatballs this week, I decided to incorporate the cilantro and scallions right into the meatball itself instead of preparing a sauce with them. First, I blended the scallions and cilantro in the food processor with apple cider vinegar, a clove of garlic, salt, and a bit of water to loosen the mixture into a chimichurri. I then strained the mixture through a fine mesh sieve, reserving the pungent liquid that squeezed out – the “vinaigrette” that would become the finishing drizzle for my meatballs. The cilantro-scallion pulp I mixed into my ground chicken, and then I rolled the chicken into rounds for meatballs. I baked these at 350F for about 15 minutes, until they were juicy and tender, but fully cooked on the inside. I served these meatballs over sweet potatoes (brown rice for hubby) and steamed kale, topped with avocado and the reserved cilantro vinaigrette. So flavorful!

Below are my recipes from this past week, my last week on a strict AIP diet. This week starts my food re-introductions! Wish me luck! I’m so excited to start incorporating some foods back into my diet!

Cassava tortillas

makes 6 small tortillas

3/4 cup cassava flour

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/3 cup warm water

1/4 tsp. salt (optional)

If using salt, mix the cassava flour and salt. Add in the warm water and oil. Incorporate all the ingredients together and knead until one uniform texture. The texture should not be too dry or wet. Roll into six small balls. Press each dough ball between two pieces of wax paper or parchment paper until you achieve a thin, flat disk. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and place one tortilla at a time into the skillet. Allow the tortilla to cook until small air bubbles begin to form around the edges, then flip the tortilla. Each side should be slightly browned. Repeat until all tortillas are cooked.

Cilantro chicken meatballs

1 lb. chicken breast, ground

1/2 tsp. salt

1 large bunch of cilantro, washed and dried

3 scallions

1 clove garlic

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

Preheat the oven to 350F. In a food processor, blend the cilantro, scallions, apple cider vinegar, salt, and garlic clove. Add a bit of water, one tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is slightly loose and liquidy, not a paste. Place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl and pour the mixture into the sieve. Using the back of a spoon or spatula, press down on the cilantro-scallion mixture so that all of the liquid squeezes out into the bowl beneath. Reserve this extracted liquid. In a separate bowl, place the ground chicken. Add the cilantro-scallion pulp to the ground chicken and gently mix with your hands. Roll into uniform balls, about the size of a golfball (or smaller, depending on preference). Place the meatballs on a foil-lined baking sheet at bake at 350F for about 15 minutes. Serve over sweet potatoes and kale, and top with avocado and a drizzle of the reserved vinegar from the cilantro-scallion mixture.