I Wish I Could Be Vegetarian But I Love Meat Too Darn Much

I’ve had a recent twist in diet since June this year.  I’ve lost my taste for carbs by going on a low carb diet.  Now when I eat sweets, I feel just yucky afterwards.  I don’t have the same cravings for chocolate, (although few things are better tasting…I haven’t lost my mind).  My daughter’s Halloween bag was safe this year.  Instead of sweets, I find that I crave MEAT!

I dream of juicy steaks, chops, tender turkey, and roast chicken more than any other foods.  I only want a modest portion to get me by, so I haven’t gained any weight back that I’ve lost this summer.    I’m not going to wear the stuff like Lady Gaga either but I love eating it for the fringe benefits.

I give blood regularly to the Red Cross and these last few times my iron levels have been really good.  They won’t allow anything under 12.5 gram/deciliter and I’m glad they always check this for free.  Iron is the carrier of oxygen to the body’s organs and a good iron level helps you fight fatigue.  I need all the energy I can get!  There are also other people who need that good blood to fight serious conditions like hemophilia, leukemia, and life threatening loss of blood.  I’m happy to be a donor of iron rich blood!

I feel like I have much more energy with this Paleo style diet and It seems also that I don’t get as hungry as when I eat carbs like pasta and potatoes to get that energy.  Less starchy or sweet foods combined with the meat leaves me more satisfied with a meal.  I don’t eat meat at every meal, but try as I might (and have), I can’t be a vegetarian.

I found a great bargain on a Pork roast the a while back and have had this in the deep freezer about 4 months.  It was time to rotate a little stock so I took a whole pork butt roast out to thaw.  It took a few days but finally I decided to roast this big guy outside on the barbecue grill.

The first step was to brine it in a large container of water and about 1/2 cup of salt.  I let that go about four hours.  Next, I made up a dry rub of salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder.  To prepare the grill, I cleaned it well, cranked up the heat,  placed a drip pan under the grate, oiled the rungs and set the roast, all covered in spices and a pinch of parsley, right in the middle with the two end burners on only, for indirect heat.  It took three hours for the inside to reach a temperature of 160.   A piece of meat this large needs about thirty minutes of rest to redistribute the juices inside.  With the drippings I made a glaze using a splash of orange juice, a handful of brown sugar and a tablespoon of corn starch.  I mixed it all together over medium heat on the stove then poured this over the top and sliced it up for my peeps.  This kind of indirect grilling could also be done with beef brisket, or a whole turkey.  I found this roast at $.89/lb.  There would be lots of people to feed in the next couple of days and this large piece of meat would go a long way…and it did.  With Thanksgiving approaching quickly, I think I’ll give this a go with a nice 12 lb. turkey on the grill next time.  Keeping the oven free only means room for more pie!