Resistance

It seems that every time it comes up in conversation, with people who do not eat Paleo, I am always given a really hard time about the way I choose to eat. More times than not, the opposition is based on the perception (of the masses, I know) that we should be eating in line with the government-recommended food guide pyramid. This pyramid has been drilled in our minds since we were all children. This is how, most people, believe we are supposed to be eating - the basis of our diet should be whole grains and PROCESSED foods (crazy!). If we all stopped to think for ourselves for a minute we would see that consuming the amount of  processed foods they recommend, cannot be better and more healthy then eating food that are naturally found on this earth.

Take a minute to read this article that was posted by Dianne at Balanced Bites. She does a great job explaining how the Food Guide Pyramid is, in no way, how we should be eating.

http://balancedbites.com/2010/09/weve-been-fed-a-pyramid-built-of-processed-food-bricks.html

Rogan Josh

A few weeks ago I ordered some lamb from a local farmer. I was SO excited when I went to pick it up and couldn't wait to cook it. I wanted to wait until I had a "special" occasion to have it so when Adam said that he invited a friend over for dinner I knew that I had to cook it! I had recently made a homemade Rogan Josh spice blend using the following spices: ground cardamon, ground cloves, ginger, paprika, chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper. I used this amazing spice blend in this dish

Ingredients (remaining):

• Rogan Josh spice blend
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 1/4 cups water

Instructions:

1. In a large skillet, heat coconut oil over medium high heat.
2. Sear the lamb on all sides, approx 5 minutes total
3. Saute the onions in the same skillet until translucent
4. Add the Rogan Josh spice blend to the pan and combine well
5. Pour coconut milk and water into the skillet - bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to simmer for approx 30 minutes (if you can wait that long!)

I served this dish with cauliflower pilaf, mashed sweet potatoes, grilled veggies, and cumin roasted carrots. It was a wonderful night with a good friend!

Sweet Potato Spaghetti

I have been working really late at work this week and haven't had time to go to the grocery store, cook, or blog! My dinners have been really simple and I have tried to use what I had in the fridge. Here is what I had: 2 lbs veal, onions, celery, minced garlic, a couple sweet potatoes and 2 cans of diced tomatoes. My result? SWEET POTATO SPAGHETTI!

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs veal
• coconut oil
• 1/4 yellow onion, minced
• 3 stalks celery, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 sweet potatoes, shredded with a cheese grater
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes, pureed in food processor

Instructions:

1. Heat large non stick skillet over medium heat. Cook veal until no longer pink - drain excess fat
2. Meanwhile, heat a small skillet over medium heat and melt coconut oil. Saute minced onions, minced celery, and minced garlic until veggies are tender and garlic is fragrant
3. Add the sauteed veggies/garlic and shredded sweet potatoes to the skillet with veal. Stir
4. Add the tomato sauce to the skillet, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes
5. Enjoy!

Roasted Acorn Squash

This is a great side dish or snack to make during the week! If you are going to save some for leftovers, I wouldn't advise drizzling the balsamic over the pieces you are saving. Just wait until you are about to eat the leftovers.

Ingredients:

• 1 acorn sqash
• 1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar
• Sea salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Cut off top and bottom of acorn squash, then slice squash into circles. Remove seeds and slice the circles in half
3. On a parchment lined baking sheet, lay squash in single layer. Sprinkle with sea salt
4. Bake for approx 35 minutes or until squash is tender
5. Meanwhile, heat balsamic vinegar in a sauce pan over medium heat. Allow vinegar to reduce by half
6. Remove squash from oven and drizzle with balsamic vinegar

Beef Stir Fry

Last night I made a beef stir fry and incorporated a few ingredients that I have never cooked with before. The result?? I think I have some new favorite foods!! The three ingredients that were new to me were Bok Choy, Eggplant, and Acorn Squash. The flavor of this dish was a combination of sweet and salty - just how I like! I used a kiwi to give it the sweet flavor, and while it was great, I think I will use an orange with some zest next time! Yumm! And of course I served this with roasted broccoli and acorn squash.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs top round, sliced thin
• coconut oil
• 1 head bok choy
• 5 green onions, chopped
• 1 small eggplant, diced
• 1 kiwi, peeled and diced
• A handful of mushrooms
• 1/3 cup coconut aminos
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp fish sauce
• 2 Tbsp honey
• salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add coconut oil and sear the meat on all sides
2. Remove meat from pan and add a bit more coconut oil. Add bok choy, green onions, eggplant, and mushrooms and stir fry until done, approx 5 minutes. Add the kiwi and stir to combine flavors
3. Return meat to the pan and add coconut aminos, sesame oil, fish sauce, honey, and salt to pan. Let everything combine, then simmer on low for a few minutes. 
4. Enjoy!

Chicken Satay

My newest obsession is with George at Civilized Caveman. I have been recreating many of his recipes lately and every single one of them has been a huge hit. I stalk him constantly, and I'm not afraid to admit it. Multiple times throughout the day I will check his website just to see if he has happened to post something new. You should show him some virtual love and hit up his website. This recipe is also one of his, and like always it did not disappoint. The dipping sauce is very reminiscent of a peanut sauce - delish!

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• 1/2 cup Sunflower seed butter
• 1 cup coconut milk
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 Tbsp coconut aminos
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1/2 tsp red pepper 

Instructions:

1. Place all ingredients, except the chicken, in a food processor and pulse until smooth
2. Use about 1/3 of the sauce to marinate your chicken in the fridge for at least 1 hour and up to a day
3. Once you are ready to cook your chicken, heat a non stick skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken for approx 5 minutes, then flip and cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until done.
4. While chicken is cooking, use another 1/3 of sauce to brush over chicken
5. Enjoy!

I served it with this side dish.

Mustard Greens

I made a huge mistake at the grocery store last night....I went without my glasses. I had planned on buying a big bag of kale to make a yummy kale salad, kale chips, and sauteed kale this week. Well, I brought home mustard greens instead. I was so upset when I realized this. MUSTARD GREENS?!?!?! YUCK! What the heck am I going to do with all these mustard greens? Then I stopped and thought to myself  "Leesa, you have never even tried mustard greens - at least give them a chance". Yes, I talk to myself. I'm awesome like that. I had no idea where to even begin, so I began by trying a mustard green leaf right out of the bag. Whoa. It was strong and peppery! My thought was to saute the mess out of these little green leaves to help minimize the strong flavor. I must admit, they were actually pretty good! I will keep experimenting with them throughout the week since I don't want to waste them. If you have never tried mustard greens before, you should. They still aren't my favorite, but it was an (unexpected) nice variation to dinner.

Ingredients:

• a few handfuls of mustard greens, roughly chopped
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1/4 yellow onion, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp pine nuts

Instructions:

1. In a non stick skillet, melt coconut oil over medium heat.
2. Add onion and let cook until translucent. Add garlic and pine nuts.
3. Once the garlic is fragrant, add mustard greens.
4. Allow the mustard greens to cook down. They will significantly reduce in size.
5. The longer they simmer the less pepper-y they will be

Oven Roasted Okra

Okra might be one of my favorite vegetables, although I often forget about it. I had only had it prepared one way my whole life and that was fried! When I was a child and went to the grocery store with my mom, my treat was always fried okra. I was thrilled when I was allowed to get it, because we never ate it at home (my mom HATES it!). I kind of feel bad for okra. It seems it has a bad rep for being slimy - I will be the first to say that I also don't like slimy okra. Yuck. And I guarantee you, this oven roasted okra is not slimy. It is also not fried, so eat to your heart's desire.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb okra, washed
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (or be lazy and use spray, like me!)
• 2 Tbsp ground cumin*
• 1 tsp of both salt and pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne

*note that this is quite a bit of cumin. Its delicious and bold but if you are not the biggest fan, reduce the amount, or use something else!

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Toss (or spray) coconut oil over okra and lay okra in single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
3. Sprinkle spices over okra
4. Roast in oven for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway through

Leftover Lunch

One night this past week, I cooked Apple and Onion Porkchops, except this time I stuck them in the oven for an hour. For lunch one day, I mixed all my leftovers together for a yummy salad! I chopped the rest of my romaine leaves from Crock Pot Roast Lettuce Wraps, added my cooked pork chops (apples & onions), and used the Strawberry Salsa for the dressing. I love when my leftovers make a completely new meal!!!

Fun food Friday - Spring Chicken

Spring. I love that word. It brings to mind: sun, lake, tank tops, flip flops, outdoor concerts, pool, baseball (and now T-ball; go Wyatt!) cookouts, fresh herbs, afternoon rain storms, all-day-daiquiri-days, vacation, sun-kissed cheeks, fresh fruit (hello mango!), farmers markets, iced coffee....I digress. With the onset of spring, I made this delicious Spring Chicken. The chicken tastes and smells of spring and is quite possibly the best I've made. I topped the chicken with strawberry salsa which gave it a totally different - but still spring - fruity kick. There will definitely be some of this chicken at a cookout and the salsa would work wonders on pork, steak, and salad! I have to give credit to George at CivilizedCaveman for this creation and thank him for a new favorite! Pure genius.

For the chicken-

I topped mine with mango, because I love it.

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 lemon, zested (is that even a word???)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup EVOO
• 1 garlic clove

Instructions:

1. In a food processor, combine all the above ingredients, except the chicken, pulsing until you get a nice marinade.
2. Place the chicken in a bowl and pour about half the marinade over chicken - rub marinade on said chicken.
3. Heat a non stick skillet over medium heat and once hot, add the chicken. Pour reserved marinade over chicken and cook for approx 6 minutes on each side, or until cooked all the way through.
4. Top with Strawberry Salsa

For the Strawberry Salsa-

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh strawberries
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed and diced
• 1 lime, juiced

Instructions:

1. Combine all the above ingredients in a food processor until you reach desired salsa consistency. 
2. Serve with Spring Chicken, or anything else you can think of! 

Crock Pot Roast Lettuce Wraps

It has been a while since I have busted out the trusty (and dusty) crock pot. I really should use it more - it's just kind of a pain to clean. That really isn't a reason not to use the crock pot because the fall apart meat that is the result of slow cooking is totally worth the time it takes to pour out the leftover juice and stick the pot in the dishwasher :) So really, I have no excuses. Especially when the final product is as delicious as this recipe. I loved the idea of lettuce wraps, but Adam choose to just pile the meat on top of the slaw and drizzled bbq sauce over it. I served this with sweet potato fries and baked asparagus! It was a yummy, and colorful meal!

Ingredients:

• 1 head of lettuce - I bought romaine, but any large leaf would do!

Everything in the crock pot!

For the roast:

• 2 lb roast
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 orange, juiced and zested
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 Tbsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• salt and pepper to taste

For the slaw:

• 1 head of purple cabbage, sliced thin
• 5 dill pickles, sliced thin
• 5 Tbsp yellow mustard (check ingredients!) 
• 2 Tbsp EVOO
• salt and pepper to taste

Shredded meat - ready to go in the lettuce boat!

Instructions:

*There is no particular order in which to do the crock pot part, but here is what I did : 

1. Put sliced onion in bottom of crock pot. Add veggie broth. 
2. Season roast with oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper
3. Add roast to crockpot
4. Zest the orange over the roast, then juice it over the roast
5. Juice the lime over the roast
6. Add smashed garlic to crock pot and place a few of the cloves on top of roast
7. Cook on low for 6-8 hours
8. Remove and shred with forks

For the slaw:

1. Combine all ingredients. This can be done when you turn on the crock pot (for full flavor!) or right before you serve the roast

Serve the roast, onion, and slaw in a lettuce leaf and enjoy!

Don't mind my starting-to-turn-brown lettuce :)

Easter Carrot Cake Cupcakes

For Easter this year my parents had all of us over for lunch. We had a big crowd of 19 people!!!! I knew that the desserts would not be something that I could eat and I also knew that I would really want a sweet treat after lunch! I decided that Carrot Cake (how festive!) would be a perfect option and browsed the web to find the perfect recipe. The week prior, I made a sample batch to make sure they turned out good. They did, but I wasn't completely sold on them. I scoured the web some more and ultimately ended up combining quite a few different ideas to come up with the best carrot cake cupcakes ever, IMO. I hope you had a wonderful Easter and were able to spend it with family and friends!

Ingredients:
Cake:

• 7 medium carrots, shredded
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 3 cups almond flour
• 2 Tbsp coconut flour
• 2 Tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 6 eggs
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
• 1 cup coconut oil
• 10 medjool dates
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 4-ish Tbsp water

Icing:

• 1 cup coconut milk
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp coconut flour
• 1 cup coconut oil

Cake Instructions:

1. In a food processor, shred carrots. Place in ziplock bag with 1 cup of maple syrup and let the carrots soak for an hour
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees
3. In a mixing bowl, combine both flours, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and baking soda
4. Now, make the following date mixture - 
1. Put all dates in a microwave safe bowl. Add 3 Tbsp water and microwave for 30 seconds. Mash with a fork. Add another Tbsp water and heat for another 30 seconds. Mash some more - you are trying for a smooth consistency. Next add 2 Tbsp of maple syrup and mash again.
5. In a large mixing bowl blend eggs, vanilla, melted coconut oil, and date mixture
6. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and combine well
7. Remove carrots from ziplock and drain excess syrup
8. Stir carrots into cake batter
9. Line 24 muffin tins with muffin cup liners and fill
10. Bake for approx 25-35 minutes or until the muffin passes the tooth pick test

Icing:

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut milk, vanilla, maple syrup and cinnamon. Whisk until evenly combined. 
2. Remove from heat and stir in coconut flour and melted coconut oil.
3. Put in an airtight container and let the icing sit in fridge overnight

Spread icing on cupcakes and top with chopped walnuts if desired.

Shrimp Scampi

Shrimp is one of my favorite creatures from the sea, although I rarely cook it. I am not sure why. It's weird really. I will typically cook some sort of fish (tilapia, salmon, etc) but I never like fish as leftovers. However, I could eat shrimp as leftovers with no concern at all! You would think that my go-to sea food would be shrimp if for no other reason. When I knew that I was going to cook shrimp, I couldn't decide what to serve it with. I ultimately decided to make Shrimp Scampi, because everything is better with spaghetti squash noodles!. This dish turned out really good and now I want to go to the beach for some fresh seafood!

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 Spaghetti Squash, halved and seeds removed
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 Tbsp oregano
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 Tbsp Evoo + 1 additional Tbsp
• 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 3 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• Splash of cooking white wine
• Sea salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 
2. Sprinkle the flesh of spaghetti squash with sea salt and place cut side down on baking sheet
3. Bake for 35-40 minutes
4. Meanwhile, combine the shrimp in a large bowl with the lemon juice, oregano, garlic and Evoo. Allow to marinate for 15 minutes
5. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the additional Tbsp of evoo, and then add the onion and peppers, cooking until onions are soft
6. Increase the heat to medium high and add the shrimp mixture. Stir often. Once shrimp have turned pink, add in tomatoes and splash of wine.
7. Cook until tomatoes are heated through
8. Once spaghetti squash is done, remove scrape insides of squash with fork to produce pasta like strands. Be careful as the squash is VERY hot.
9. Put spaghetti squash noodles in bowl and top with shrimp mixture.
10. Consume!

Turkey Meatloaf

My good friend, and coworker Denise, recently joined IronTribe. She has also made the lifestyle switch to Paleo and has seen amazing results! She has lost several inches in her waist alone and has gained strength and confidence in the process. We often talk of food and recipes and she mentioned that one of her favorite meals of all times is meatloaf. I, on the other hand have never had meatloaf. The word 'meatloaf' does not appeal to me. The sight of meatloaf does not appeal to me. I have always thought of some nasty highschool lunch cafeteria food and have never been interested in taking a bite. That is, until I actually made it! I am so glad that Denise mentioned it the other day and that I attempted to make, and eat, something new! I liked it so much that I actually ate it for breakfast and lunch the following day, and breakfast the day after that!
Of course, another reason I liked it was that it was super easy and very few ingredients.

Ingredients:
• 2 lbs ground turkey
• 1 egg, whisked
• 2 tbsp coconut aminos
• 1 tsp each of garlic powder, salt, and pepper
• 1/2 cup each of chopped onion, and celery
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped

Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 375
2) Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl
3) Spray loaf pan with coconut oil
4) Pour ground turkey mixture into loaf pan. Put loaf pan on top of baking sheet to catch any run-over juices
5) Bake for 1 hour

Honey Baked Pears

I am trying I not bake as many Paleo Treats, but I still have a huge sweet tooth and LOVE dessert!! I was trying to think of a dessert I could prepare that didn't involve almond flour or dark chocolate. I had some spare pears laying around, and since fruit is natures dessert, I figured I could come up with something good!!

Ingredients:
• 2 pears
• vanilla extract
• honey
• cinnamon
• sea salt
• crushed walnuts

Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2) Core and halve pears
3) Drizzle with vanilla extract and honey
4) Sprinkle with cinnamon and a pinch of sea salt. Top with walnuts
5) Bake for approx 20 minutes

Raspberry Upside Down Cake

This past weekend Adam and I grilled out with some good friends of ours. They were hosting us, so we decided to bring (most of) the food. My favorite thing we brought, if you can imagine, was dessert!!!! The original recipe from Civilized Caveman called for blueberries, but I could not find them anywhere! Well, that's not entirely true. Whole Foods did have them, but I thought they were too expensive. So I went to Publix to get some, and they were out. Sitting right next to where the blueberries were supposed to be, sat some bright raspberries that I couldn't take my eyes off of - so I went with them! The original recipe also said that the cooking time was 20 minutes - HA! I probably cooked my cake for 40 minutes. But it is okay - it was delicious and well worth the wait.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 pint fresh raspberries
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Pour melted coconut oil and maple syrup in cake pan
3. Put entire pint of raspberries in the pan and place in preheating oven for 5 minutes
4. Meanwhile, combine all remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix well
5. Take your cake pan out of the oven and add in your cake batter. Use a spoon to ensure an even distribution throughout the cake pan
6. Once the oven is fully preheated, place your pan in and bake for about 35 minutes, or until the cake passes the toothpick test
7. Once cool, place a plate on top of the pan and then flip it over putting the raspberries on top
8. Serve warm. This would also be amazing with some coconut milk ice cream, if you had any!

I took this picture after the cake was in the oven for 20 minutes, that is why it looks a little runny. This bad boy went back in for an additional 20.