Category Archives: Paleo

Baked Bacon

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Ever felt stumped when trying to make more than a few strips of bacon, perhaps for a big breakfast, brunch or party? I usually microwave bacon, occasionally will fry it, but that works best in small batches and ends up taking a while and sometimes making a mess! Baked bacon to the rescue!

This is a super simple way to cook bacon! You’ll need a large glass dish (9″ x 13″) and you’ll simply lay the strips of bacon side by side – bake it in a hot oven until desired crispiness and then remove, let drain on paper towels and voila!

baked bacon blog

Ingredients

  • Bacon

Directions

  • Heat oven to 400*
  • I recommend using a large dish with sides, e.g. a 9″ x 13″ glass dish
  • Lay strips of bacon side by side and bake for 20 minutes or until desired crispiness is reached

Serve with.. pretty much anything! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Wellness Remedy: Turmeric

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I’ve alluded to the “super powers” of Turmeric  on this blog before (see this general Wellness Post) and I recently wrote about Ginger as a wellness remedy (to ward off colds and aid in digestion)! Turmeric and Ginger are actually in the same family and both are known for their medicinal properties, specifically for their anti-inflammatory properties.

You will perhaps know turmeric best from Indian cuisine (it’s a common ingredient in curry, but does not taste or smell anything like curry), Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Asian cuisine. It is used for flavor (warm and slightly spicy) and as a natural color agent – creating a beautiful rich golden color in anything you add it to.

I learned about the medicinal properties of turmeric from an Indian colleague years ago. She would give a tiny pinch of turmeric in milk to her kids to help build a strong immune system. I was intrigued – having two little ones myself. But there’s more! There seems to be a lot of recent research on natural remedies and turmeric has other benefits including: fighting various types of cancer, supporting brain, liver and eye health, used as natural painkiller and anti-depressant, and used for better sleep! Further reading included in links below.

Anyway, I am preparing for some upcoming international travel and also fighting a bit of a spring cold which has been going around. So.. turmeric to the rescue. Icarry the dry powder with me when I travel and drink it in hot water with breakfast.

The only downside I’ve found is that it is very yellow – so brush your teeth or eat some crunchy food (like an apple) after eating turmeric.

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Ingredients

  • Fresh turmeric, rinsed and peeled
  • Turmeric powder (found in the spice aisle or bulk section)
  • Water or milk

Directions

  • Heat liquid and add desired amount of fresh or dry turmeric (I will use ~1 tsp of dry or 1 Tbsp of fresh in a cup of boiling water)

Further reading

Enjoy, stay well, and be happy!

dit-elle-Esther

Paleo Blueberry Coffee Cake

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I made this Blueberry Coffee Cake for our Easter Brunch a few weeks ago and it was a big hit with big and small! This recipe is from Elana’s Pantry

It is not very sweet and the almond flour gives it a rich hearty flavor.

blueberry almond flour paleo cake blog (2)blueberry almond flour paleo cake blog (1)

Ingredients

  • 2 cup almond flour
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup shortening or butter
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar
  • 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
  • Topping: 1/4 cup shortening or butter, 1/4 cup coconut sugar, 1/2 cup almond flour, 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

Directions

  • Oven to 350
  • Grease 8″ round baking pan
  • Combine flour, baking soda in bowl
  • In another bowl, whisk together eggs, shortening, coconut sugar, vanilla
  • Stir wet ingredients into the almond flour mixture until thoroughly combined, then stir in the blueberries
  • Pour batter in pan
  • To make topping, cream shortening and coconut sugar, stir in almond flour and cinnamon, then sprinkle over cake batter
  • Bake for 30-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out almost clean
  • Let cake cool in pan for an hour, then serve

dit-elle-Esther

Fruit Platter

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Need a beautiful addition to breakfast, brunch or a garden party? Try this super simple, colorful and lovely, fruit platter. Select fruits and berries that are in season, and arrange to your liking! That’s it! Want fancier? See my Basil Lime Fruit Salad here.

Happy Spring! 🙂

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Ingredients and directions

  • As mentioned, select fruits and berries that are in season for you
  • I made this for my Easter Brunch Party and used: pineapple, mango, papaya, raspberries, and kiwi
  • Clean fruit and then slice or dice to your liking
  • Arrange on platter
  • Serve immediately or store covered in refrigerator overnight
  • Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Papaya and Lime

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Papaya is one of those super foods with all sorts of amazing nutrients in it including antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins, minerals and special digestive enzymes. When Papaya is in season I will cut it in half to make a ‘boat’, discard the seeds and eat the papaya straight out of the peel. As previously blogged, t’s the perfect Island Breakfast served with coconut milk. I was serving Papaya for brunch the other day though and wanted an easier way to present it, than a “Papaya boat”. Super simple. Cut in half, discard seeds, peel, and slice. Serve with lime wedges!

Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Wellness Remedy: Ginger

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This one is for all the tired moms out there.. and everyone else who is interested in ginger as a wellness remedy!

I’m traveling in the US this week and have some international travel coming up later this month. How do you stay healthy? People ask. I have two kids in preschool and most of us have been on that plane where you’re surrounded by people sneezing! Cover, please!

When my kids come home with the sniffles I tell them “sleep fixes everything”. OK, maybe I want them to go to bed early when they have the sniffles – but I mostly just want them to feel better and we all want to “get rid of the grouchies” as we call them in our house..

Sleep does do wonders for body and mood! So, sleep is the #1 remedy but sometimes hard for YOU to get when you have young children. My youngest is 3 years old and I am just now starting to have regular full nights of sleep! Yes, I’m a tired mama! Ack! But wow, 7-8 hours of sleep feels amazing. Anyway, I digress.. what else? Ginger! I’m a huge fan of wellness remedies – and at the first sign or onset of a cold will brew myself some super potent ginger tea and then go to bed.

The kids brought home a cold a few weeks ago and I have – so far – completely evaded it! I use fresh ginger at home and bring dry powdered ginger (and/or turmeric!) for the road. Ginger has the additional super power of being really good for your digestion and nausea (read more about nausea remedies here)! Double benefit!

Ingredients

  • Fresh ginger root – rinsed, peeled and grated – or – a teaspoon of dry powdered ginger
  • Hot water
  • Honey (optional)

Directions

  • Boil water and stir in fresh or powdered ginger
  • Enjoy and go to bed! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Guacamole three ways

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Avocado + salsa + sour cream + chips = yum! Now you just need a pitcher of margaritas, a cabana by the beach and some Latin music.. OK, even if you don’t have those last three, you can still enjoy chips and guac any day! 🙂 Here, a very simple way to make guacamole three ways – done progressively for max efficiency and ease!

guacamole three ways blog (2)guacamole three ways blog (1)

Ingredients

  • Avocados
  • Garlic
  • Lemon juice
  • Pico de Gallo or fresh salsa
  • Greek yogurt or sour cream
  • Salt as needed
  • Tortilla chips

Directions

  • You’ll make the three varieties of guacamole in a progressive fashion – starting simple and adding to it
  • Start by mashing all avocadoes in a bowl
  • Remove about a third of the mashed avocado, add some garlic and/or lemon juice and salt if you wish, and set aside – this is your first bowl
  • With the 2/3rds remaining avocado, mix in some salsa (this is a great quick way to make guacamole) – set aside half of this mixture
  • With the remaining avocado/salsa mixture, add in some yogurt
  • Garnish with extra ingredients!
  • Serve with tortilla chips
  • There you go – guacamole – three ways!

dit-elle-Esther

Carrot, Beet & Sesame Salad

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This is a delicious raw salad – grated beets, carrots, and kale are tossed with some vinegar, maple syrup and sesame seeds. The results is a light, fresh and crispy salad. Make it a meal by serving with a side of avocado or fried eggs!

beet carrot kale salad blog

 

Ingredients

  • 2 medium red beets, peeled and grated
  • 3 medium carrots, peeled and grated
  • 1 cup baby kale
  • 3 Tbsp sesame seeds
  • 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1-2 Tbsp maple syrup

Directions

  • Grate the beets and carrots. The easiest way I’ve found to grate vegetables is to use the grater blade in a food processor – takes <30 seconds!
  • Finely chop the kale
  • Toss with vinegar, syrup and sesame seeds
  • Season with salt
  • Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Coconut Almond Dark Chocolate Mug Cakes // Paleo + Gluten Free

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I made one other mug cake here, and I have NO idea why I don’t do them more often.  There’s no shortage of variations, and they are ridiculously easy to make, enough for one or two to share, and with nominal clean up=TOTAL WIN!!Blog Paleo Coconut Flour Almond Mug Cake-1 Blog Paleo Coconut Flour Almond Mug Cake-2

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons coconut flour
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons Almond Butter (can use Sun Butter for a nut free option)
  • 1-½ tablespoons melted coconut oil
  • 1-½ tablespoons raw honey
  • 1 tablespoon almond milk (or any milk you’d like)
  • ½ a vanilla bean (scrape out the inside, throw away the shell) or ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Optional topping ideas- dark chocolate chips, coconut flakes, or berries (dried or fresh)!

Directions

  • In a separate bowl whisk together coconut flour, and baking powder.
  • Add egg, almond butter, coconut oil, honey, almond milk and vanilla bean and blend until creamy.  Super easy to have your child do all the mixing!  Not so easy to keep them from eating the batter 😉Blog Paleo Coconut Almond Mug Cake with Banana Ice Cream-2
  • It will look like this in the mug before you microwave it.
  • Blog Paleo Coconut Flour Almond Mug Cake-3Microwave for 2 minutes (depending on your microwave) and you magically have cake!!Blog Coconut Flour Dark Chocolate Almond Mug Cake-5
  • That’s IT!!!

Enjoy!

Thank you to Regina, from Leelalicious for the inspiration!dit-elle-Lauren

Avocado Sweet Potato “Toast” with a Fried Egg…

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I’ve talked before about my love of avocado toast and…having it as breakfast for dinner.  Honestly, we eat a variation of avocado toast with eggs quite a lot for dinner.  Maya requests it all the time, and it’s such an easy thing to whip up, that I rarely say no haha.

We didn’t have any good bread the other night, but we did have a sweet potato.  SO, we unintentionally went the  healthier route haha.  And it was SO GOOD!!!! Blog Whole 30 Avocado Sweet Potato Toast Fried Egg-1 Blog Whole 30 Avocado Sweet Potato Toast Fried Egg-2 Blog Whole 30 Avocado Sweet Potato Toast Fried Egg-3Ingredients

  • 1 Medium size sweet potato
  • Avocado (amount varies on how many people you are going to feed)
  • Eggs (depends on how many people you want to feed)
  • Olive oil + Salt + Pepper to lightly coat the sweet potato

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  • Cut sweet potato in 1/2 inch slices
  • Lightly coat in olive oil (or oil of your choosing), and salt and pepper to taste
  • Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, flipping over half way through.
  • Once the sweet potatoes are crispy on the outside, take them out.
  • Fry up your eggs.  I like mine runny, so they only take a few minutes.  I cook Maya’s for a little bit longer, so her yolks aren’t runny.
  • Mash up the avocado on top of the layered sweet potatoes, then top with your egg.
  • Serve as is or with a yummy salad or slaw (check out Esther’s recipes here,  here,  and here.
  • I cheated and used Trader Joe’s Cruciferous Crunch Collection of Chopped Kale, Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli and Green Cabbage & Red Cabbage, and added some bell peppers, tomatos, and avocado.  It was delicious!!!  And Maya chowed the whole thing down 🙂

Enjoy!dit-elle-Lauren