If there was anything I didn’t expect from Whole 30, I didn’t expect to be this dehydrated. I’m tantalizingly close to two weeks, but I’m still feeling super thirsty no matter how much water I drink AND the break outs have continued. It makes me wonder if this whole diet thing is worth it. Maybe it’s my bodies way of telling me I’m meant to eat ice cream…

I’m still losing weight, but I’m not sure if it’s because of my accidental thousand calorie diet or because of Whole 30. I guess we’ll see once it’s all over. I wish I could say I felt more energetic or slept better, but I’m not getting any of the espoused benefits of Whole 30 so far.

This week I worked on finishing up my ox tail soup and giving it away to my Whole 30 support group. But I still have a lot left over. I don’t really like having the same meal twice so I’ve been cooking through the week again. Some of my favorite dishes were Salmon Mayonnaise with Spinach Omelet and a watermelon mint salad I made last night with my friends. A main dish for the week was Shepherd’s Pie. Several of my friends asked for the recipe so I’ve decided to post it here.

Whole 30 Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients for meat

• 1 shallot
• 2 carrots
• 1 tomato
• 1 lb ground beef (80/20)
• 2 tbsp coconut aminos
• 1 egg (beaten)
• parchment paper
• loaf pan

1. Preheat oven to 350 ° F
2. Finely mince the shallot, carrot and tomato and place in a large mixing bowl
3. Add the ground beef, coconut aminos, and egg to the bowl and mix well. I use a gloved hand to mix it all together more easily.  Salt and pepper to taste. * Of course you don’t want to put raw meat in your mouth, so the easiest way to do this is to take a small piece of the mixture and a hot frying pan and test the small cooked pieces adjusting the seasoning to taste. *
4. Line your loaf pan with parchment paper and add in the mix patting it down to fit the shape of the pan.
5. Bake for an hour or until meat is no longer pink on the inside. The meat will have a lot of liquid, don’t throw this away as it makes an excellent sauce for the mashed potato.

Ingredients for Cauliflower Mashed Potato

• 1 potato
• 1 cup cauliflower (approximately 1/3 of a head of cauliflower)
• 1 pot
• 1 tsp nutmeg (optional)
• 2 tbsp ghee

1. Peel and quarter potato
2. Cut cauliflower to same approximated size as the quartered potato
3. Place potato and cauliflower in the pot and fill with enough water to cover. Heat on medium until it reaches a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender.
4. Strain and mash
5. Add ghee and nutmeg
6. Salt and pepper to taste

Serve together with the meat and an additional vegetable if desired.

Bon appetit!