Category Archives: Food

Blackberry Vanilla Coconut Pops

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Ready for some more blackberry inspiration? Try these Blackberry Vanilla Coconut Pops. Low sugar and kid approved! Not just for the kids, these are a cool treat for anyone on a summer day.

blackberry coconut paleo popcicles blog

Ingredients

  • 2 cups blackberries
  • 2 Tbsp honey, divided (or more if needed)
  • 1 tsp vanilla, divided
  • 1 can full fat coconut milk
  • 1 Tbsp water

Directions

  • In a saucepan over medium-low heat, combine blackberries, 1 Tbsp water, 1 heaping Tbsp honey. Simmer, stirring gently, 3 to 5 minutes. Mash berries with a spatula as they cook. Remove from heat and add 1/2 tsp vanilla.
  • Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing with spatula to extract all liquid. Discard solids, and set liquids aside to cool.
  • In another saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the coconut milk with another 1 heaping Tbsp honey. Simmer, stirring constantly, 2 to 3 minutes or until thoroughly blended. Remove from heat, stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla, and set aside to cool.
  • Fill pop molds 2/3 full with coconut mixture and then pour in blackberry mixture until mold is full. Insert sticks and freeze.
  • Enjoy! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Blackberry Crisp with Vanilla Ice Cream

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As mentioned in my blog post on the topic last week, Blackberry season is in full swing and so much fun! The berries are fun to pick, eat and make yummy things with. Today, a Blackberry Crisp.. pretty much paleo, but add some vanilla ice cream for some non-paleo, but totally delicious, goodness!

Blackberry paleo crumble 2016 with vanilla icecream for blog

Ingredients

  • 4 cups blackberries
  • 1/4 cup sweetener like honey or sugar as needed (if you have very ripe blackberries this may not be needed and you can certainly make it without sweetener for a slightly tarter crisp)

For the topping

  • 1 cup almond meal
  • 1/2 cup golden flax meal (or any ground flax)
  • 1 Tbsp honey
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • Vanilla Ice Cream and mint leaves for garnish

Directions

  • Rinse blackberries, drain well and pour into glass baking dish (9×11″ works well) and drizzle with some honey or sprinkle with sugar (as needed)
  • Mix topping ingredients with a fork until butter is distributed and ingredients are combined well
  • Sprinkle topping evenly over berries
  • Bake @ 350 for 35-45 minutes with tinfoil on. Remove tinfoil and bake for another 10 minutes as needed or until crust is a golden brown.
  • Enjoy with your favorite vanilla ice cream or drizzled with some cold coconut milk

Modified quite a bit, but thanks for the inspiration http://paleoleap.com/berry-crumble/

dit-elle-Esther

Blackberry Season

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It’s blackberry season in Seattle! The season can be pretty long depending on weather. A bunch can have flowers, little green berries, ripening red berries and juicy sweet blackberries all at once! 🙂

Blackberries are known for their fiber and nutrients (like vitamin C and K) and antioxidant properties.. and of course, their tastiness! They are a great berry for pies, cobblers, crisps, shakes, cordial and other drinks.

We have a lot of recipes with blackberries on this blog, simply type in the keyword on our homepage! Because blackberries tend to grow wherever the vines reach, it’s a great activity for big and small.. berries are often found at or near ground level. Pick, eat, enjoy! And I’ll be posting more recipes as the summer goes on! 🙂

Blackberries july 2016 for blog (1)Blackberries july 2016 for blog (3)Blackberries july 2016 for blog (2)

Enjoy blackberry season! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Watermelon Mint Infused Water

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I’ve been wanting to try more infused waters lately.  In my mind, they are a lot of work, but really…they aren’t!

I carved up a watermelon for the 4th of July, and we had some pieces left over in the fridge that I didn’t think were going to get eaten.  SO…I poured some of the left over juice and a few pieces of watermelon with some mint into a few water bottles.

I mean to let them sit for a day, but… “LIFE”

Two days later, I tried them, and YUM!!!Blog Watermelon Mint Infused Water-1 Blog Watermelon Mint Infused Water-2 Blog Watermelon Mint Infused Water-3Maya wasn’t as sure.  She was more consumed with getting the watermelon out of the bottom haha 🙂 Blog Watermelon Mint Infused Water-4What you need…

  • 2 cups of Watermelon (depending on how much water you want to infuse!)
  • 1/4 Cup Watermelon juice (I made this after I had cut a watermelon a few days earlier and there was juice at the bottom of the dish.  You could also muddle a few pieces if you are doing this all at once.)
  • 5-6 sprigs of mind torn into pieces

What you do…

  • Put water, watermelon, watermelon juice, and mint into (individual water glasses or a giant water container).
  • Let it sit overnight….or two 🙂  Then…

Enjoy!dit-elle-Lauren

Salmon Avocado Mango “Tacos” | Paleo // Whole30

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This was a leftover meal from the already ridiculously easy Salmon Avocado Mango Salad with Soft Boiled Egg that I made a few weeks ago.  I meant to do a follow up post right away, but…

You know….LIFE!  Summer has been kicking my arse lately!

In any case!  This is a great two-fer meal.  Make one and then the other the next day.  Isn’t that the mom holy grail???!!

Adjust the measurements as needed! 🙂Blog Whole30 Paleo Salmon Avocado Mango Lettuce Tacos-1 Blog Whole30 Paleo Salmon Avocado Mango Lettuce Tacos-2 Blog Whole30 Paleo Salmon Avocado Mango Lettuce Tacos-3From the original post (makes both meals!)

Ingredients (Would serve 4)

  • 3 6oz cans of wild Alaskan Salmon
  • 10 grape tomatoes (cut in half)
  • 1 large avocados
  • 1 Mango diced
  • 1/2 and inch slice red onion diced (or a scallion)
  • 1/3 cup diced pickles
  • Sea Salt and Pepper to taste
  • Head of Butter Lettuce
  • For garnish and a bit of heat- my favorite…Garlic Hot Sauce

Directions

  • Drain Salmon, place in large bowl, and break it up.
  • Dice tomato, avocado, mango, and onions and stir into salmon
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • Scoop into butter lettuce cups, and pierce with a toothpick and an extra tomato for garnish

Enjoy!

dit-elle-Lauren

Poached Chicken

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This is a staple recipe in my house and a great way to prepare chicken. I like to make a big batch and freeze in small containers. Hungry toddler? No problem! Heat up the chicken and some veggies or make a chicken and cheese quesadilla.. and you have a quick and healthy dinner.

I also like this as a base recipe for tacos – poach the chicken, shred it, and then add taco seasoning!

poached chicken blog (2) poached chicken blog (1)

Ingredients

  • Whole chicken or 4 large chicken breasts
  • 1 onion, roughly sliced
  • Water

Directions

  • Put everything in a pot and add water till it almost covers the chicken
  • Bring to a boil and let simmer for 45-60 minutes
  • Remove chicken, put on a plate and let cool
  • Once cool enough to handle, de-bone the chicken and remove skin
  • Shred meat with a fork and put back in a new pot
  • Add 1/2 cup of the chicken stock back and bring to a simmer – add additional spices as desired
  • As for the rest of the liquid (in original pot), remove onions, but save the liquid as this is excellent chicken stock that you can freeze and use later

dit-elle-Esther

Grilled Chicken, Onion, and Pepper Shish Kabobs

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It’s summer, and what screams summer more than grilling?!!  Ok, pools, popsicles, all of Esther’s yummy cocktails (!!)….ok, a lot of things scream summer.  BUT…grilling.  YUM!

I’ve talked many times about my love of grilling.  Ok, the EASE of grilling!!  It used to intimidate me, but now I LOVE it!  I usually do whole chicken breasts, but decided to try and do shish kabobs.  SO GOOD!Blog Whole30 Paleo Grilled Chicken Peppers Onions Shish Kabobs-1 Blog Whole30 Paleo Grilled Chicken Peppers Onions Shish Kabobs-2Ingredients (varies people you want to feed)

  • Chicken Breasts (cut into 1-1.5 inch cubes)
  • Bell Peppers-I used red, yellow, and orange (cut into 1-1.5 inch cubes)
  • Large Onion (cut into 1-1.5 inch cubes)
  • Olive Oil
  • Balsamic Vinegar
  • Trader Joe’s Every Day Seasoning

What to do

  • It’s not absolutely necessary, but if you can marinate the chicken a few hours before you’d like to grill, that’s the best.  Just put the cubed chicken in a bowl.  Drizzle with olive oil, balsamic, and grind the Trader Joe’s Every Day Seasoning over it.  I honestly had all these ideas of various spices I was going to add, and then (OF COURSE!) was running late and reached for what’s easy, and good!
  • Do the same for the veggies (not as necessary to have those marinate!)Blog Whole30 Paleo Grilled Chicken Peppers Onions Shish Kabobs-3 Blog Whole30 Paleo Grilled Chicken Peppers Onions Shish Kabobs-4
  • You can use wooden sticks to spear all the meat and veggies.  If you do, make sure you soak the them for a good 10 minutes prior.
  • Preheat  your grill to medium heat.
  • Evenly spear chicken and veggies until everything is used up.Blog Whole30 Paleo Grilled Chicken Peppers Onions Shish Kabobs-5Grill for 7-8 minutes on each side. Blog Whole30 Paleo Grilled Chicken Peppers Onions Shish Kabobs-6Oh, and Maya is in this stage where she doesn’t want her picture taken, UNLESS I’m trying to take pictures of something other than her… haha.Blog Outtake

Enjoy!dit-elle-Lauren

4th of July Almond Zucchini Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

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Happy 4th of July, happy Independence Day! Hope you have a wonderful and safe holiday!

Need a festive dessert for the holiday? Make these cupcakes and decorate with berries – a beautiful and great cooking project for kids to help with (especially the decorating part)! 🙂

And.. the secret ingredient? Zucchini! This makes them moist and delicious, and who can say no to some extra healthiness? 🙂

zucchini cupcakes with lemon cream cheese frosting blog (2) zucchini cupcakes with lemon cream cheese frosting blog (1)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 stick butter
  • 1 1/2 cups almond flour (spooned and leveled)
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons potato starch (or corn starch is fine)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
  • dash sea salt
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/3 cup coconut sugar (or other sugar, white/brown)
  • 2 tsps pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup finely grated zucchini (from 1 medium zucchini), squeezed of excess liquid

Frosting

  • 16 oz cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 3 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp lemon zest
  • Berries for garnish (I used raspberries and blueberries)
  • Shredded coconut for garnish

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cupcake tin with paper forms.
  2. Whisk together almond flour, potato starch, baking powder, and salt.
  3. Set a large heatproof bowl over (not in) a pot with 1 inch barely simmering water. Add eggs and whisk until foamy, about 1 minute. Whisk in sugar and continue to whisk until mixture is fluffy and sugar is dissolved, 3 minutes. Remove bowl from pot and, using a mixer, whisk on high until mixture is thick and pale, 7 to 10 minutes (I did this in my food processor with the standard chopper blade).
  4. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in melted butter, flour mixture, vanilla, and zucchini. Pour into tin and bake until cupcakes are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cupcakes cool.
  5. For frosting, with mixer (or again I used the food processor here) beat together room-temperature butter, cream cheese, lemon juice and zest until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar and beat until combined. Spread on top of cupcakes and decorate with berries and shredded coconut.

 

I originally made this recipe as a cake inspired by the queen herself (Martha Stewart’s Zucchini Almond Cake).

Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Salmon Avocado Mango Salad with Soft Boiled Egg | Paleo // Whole30

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Anyone else guilty of thinking up recipes about 30 minutes before you need to start making dinner?

There’s benefits to thinking on the fly, but a lot of times I’ll forget what I did.  That makes it hard to recreate if it turns out well.  I’m also forced to use what I have on hand, as a trip to the supermarket is out… Somehow, they always turn out ok…

This one was more than ok!  Light and refreshing, yet totally satisfying with lots of healthy fats!

So glad I wrote it all down 🙂Blog Paleo Whole30 Salmon Avocado Mango Salad with Soft Boiled Egg -1 Blog Paleo Whole30 Salmon Avocado Mango Salad with Soft Boiled Egg -2

Ingredients (Would serve 4)

  • 3 6oz cans of wild Alaskan Salmon
  • 10 grape tomatoes (cut in half)
  • 6-8 eggs (The Huz and I each had two, but Maya only had one)
  • 1 large avocados
  • 1 Mango diced
  • 1/2 and inch slice red onion diced (or a scallion)
  • 1/3 cup diced pickles
  • Sea Salt and Pepper to taste
  • Head of Butter Lettuce

Directions

  • Boil water and cook eggs for 7-8 minutes (I accidentally forgot to set the timer and cooked mine a little longer than I had planned)  7 minutes for a runny yolk, 8 for a soft one as pictured.  Take off burner and add cold water and ice until they are cool.  Very important to have them fully cool, in order to peel properly.  Set aside while you make everything else.
  • Drain Salmon, place in large bowl, and break it up.
  • Dice tomato, avocado, mango, and onions and stir into salmon
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • Set butter lettuce in a bowl, and scoop large cub of mixture on top.  Top with eggs.

Enjoy!

Next week, I’ll show you how I ate this for lunch the next day!  It was almost better!!

dit-elle-Lauren

Avocado and Apple Salad with Sea Vegetables

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This is a great salad and I can’t wait to make it again! I have been experimenting with kelp noodles recently and came across a mix of “sea vegetables” (which was a variety of seaweeds) in the local grocery store. I found a packet of the “Sea Tangle” brand of fresh seaweed in the refrigerator aisle. It’s supposed to be high in calcium and iron, and known to promote thyroid function and skin support. the seaweed was crispy and tasted fresh and good! The only downside, as my husband likes to point out, is that you are paying for “not a lot of calories”. Well, however you want to look at that 🙂 these are a great alternative to starchy pasta noodles and a great way to try some new foods!

avocado and apple seaweed salad blog (2)avocado and apple seaweed salad blog (1)Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tsps. lemon juice
  • 1 avocado, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped
  • 3 oz. sea vegetable mix

Directions

  • Whisk olive oil, lemon juice
  • Add avocado, apple, and sea vegetables and gently toss
  • Serve fresh or refrigerate for a while
  • Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther