The past few weekends I've been doing a lot of cooking and freezing meals so we have some stuff to defrost when we come home with the new baby! My mom will be here on December 1 and is always amazing in the kitchen so I figured we just needed enough to get us through a week or two to get us started (plus I ran out of room in the freezer a lot faster than I thought I would).

Here's what's in my freezer right now:

• Fit Foodie Finds' Healthy Chicken Enchilada Casserole. I used white rice and it looked so good that Rob and I had some before I popped it in the freezer. It's delicious and I'm already looking forward to defrosting it and having it sometime in the next couple of weeks.
• These hash browns that I usually do with sweet potatoes, but used white potatoes instead. I froze them in 1 cup increments so we can defrost a little at a time and just scramble some eggs as we need them.
• My "famous" bacon-wrapped dates--they're a great snack and Rob loves them. I skipped the goat cheese this time.
• Some easy Paleo pumpkin banana muffins that I made up one morning when I realized I had bananas about to go bad and a can of pumpkin in the pantry:
  • 4 bananas
  • 3-4 tablespoons canned pumpkin
  • 2/3 cup coconut flour
  • 1/3 cup coconut oil
  • 3 eggs
  • Maybe 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • A few handfuls of chocolate chips
  • Mix everything together and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes
• I wanted to make these sheet pan eggs but ended up freezing about 4 servings of a breakfast casserole that I made for book club the other day (basically it's this one but I skipped the meat and added some cheese).
• More Christmas cookies than anyone needs--I'm sharing a bunch of those recipes the first week of December, so stay tuned!

I still want to make these recipes:

• Kale Soup with Potatoes and Sausage. My aunt Pat sent me a great list of freezer-friendly dishes to make if you're having a baby and this was one of them.
• Another from that list: Scallion Meatballs with Soy-Ginger Glaze
• When my mom gets here I may ask her to make her empanadas so I can write down the recipe and share them with you guys. They're the best and we never have them because they aren't even a little Paleo, but I'm thinking a hand-held meat pie might be the perfect breastfeeding snack, so we may have to make an exception.
• A few things from my new book: fat bombs, "granola" bars, cheeseburger casserole, and buffalo chicken dip.

Do you have any favorite freezer-friendly meals? I want to hear them! I'm sure we'll do another round of cooking once my mom gets here so I want to have a new list ready to go!

Rob and I are starting to think about what we need to pack in our hospital bag so it's ready to go when we are! My "birth plan" is basically to see how things go and labor at home for as long as possible (my wonderful aunt Joanne is going to be our doula so she'll meet us at our house first) before heading to the hospital to do the damn thing! I don't really know what to expect, but from what I've read about other people's experiences I don't really think I need a huge bag full of stuff, so I'm just planning to pack a few things to make myself a little more comfortable (and so I can brush my teeth at some point).

• I have no problem wearing a hospital gown through labor and delivery but think it might be nice to have something a little warmer and softer for later, like this robe.
• I can't get enough of this face spray and find myself using it a lot more often when I'm stressed out, so I'm definitely bringing it with me as a little pick-me-up.
• Definitely bringing my Snoogle. I haven't been able to sleep without it for months now.
• Sticky socks to wear around the hospital room.
• Some nice lip balm. Can you tell I love rose-scented stuff?
• A soft and comfy bra--I have a nursing bra like this one and it's pretty much the only thing I want to wear under my tops lately.

Other stuff:

• Phone, iPad or laptop and chargers (I fully intend to binge-watch Netflix shows through contractions).
• Hair ties, our toothbrushes, face wash.
• Maternity leggings, a few comfy tops, and a sweater.
• Baby clothes to bring her home in--a onesie, little sweatpants, socks, a hat, and a blanket.
• Pillows and blankets for Rob.
• A few snacks, although I don't think I'll be eating much once we get checked in and after the baby comes you guys all know I'm just having a huge cold turkey sandwich.

What am I forgetting? I'd love to hear what you brought to the hospital if you've done this before! 

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I'm so excited to be sharing a recipe from my new book with you today! I asked you guys to choose between two recipes on my Instagram Stories about a week ago and this Salmon Romesco was the winner. 

I tried really hard to come up with recipes that didn't feel diet-y or super hardcore ketogenic, so you could feel good about making them even if high-fat, low-carb eating isn't your thing. This salmon with romesco sauce is super easy to make and incredibly delicious--you can even make extra sauce and freeze it for later and serve it with pretty much anything you want. I hope you love it as much as I do. 

Salmon Romesco from The Big 15 Ketogenic Diet Cookbook

Ingredients: 

• 1/4 cup almonds
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 tomato
• 4 6-ounce salmon fillets
• 2 red bell peppers
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon ground cayenne pepper
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 375.
2. On a large baking sheet, spread out the almonds and add the garlic and tomato. Roast for 10 minutes or until the almonds are fragrant and just starting to brown. Remove the almonds and continue roasting the garlic and tomato for 15-20 minutes more, until the garlic is browned and the tomato has softened.
3. While the almonds, garlic, and tomato roast, on a separate baking sheet bake the salmon for 30-35 minutes, or until the flesh is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.
4. Meanwhile, roast the red peppers for 3-5 minutes over an open flame or on a hot (medium-high) grill until the skins are blackened. Cover with plastic wrap and let sweat until cool enough to handle. Peel off the blackened skin and remove the seeds.
5. In a food processor, combine the almonds, garlic, tomato, bell peppers, olive oil, vinegar, paprika, cayenne, and some salt and pepper. Puree until smooth. Serve over the salmon and enjoy immediately.

Let me know if you make this dish! I love seeing your photos on Instagram, so make sure to tag me @mflynnpete and use #big15keto. Don't forget to preorder your copy for 149 more keto recipes--the book goes on sale officially December 5!

Photo by Linda Schneider for The Big 15 Ketogenic Diet Cookbook.