Tag Archives: BBQ

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

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)

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

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cupcake tin with paper forms.
Whisk together almond flour, potato starch, baking powder, and salt.
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).
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.
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I originally made this recipe as a cake inspired by the queen herself (Martha Stewart’s Zucchini Almond Cake).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

BBQ Pulled Pork Sweat Potato Bun Sandwiches | Whole 30 & Paleo

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Truth be told…these were too messy to pick up and eat like a sandwich! BUT…the flavors are so good together, and it looks so good as a “sandwich”!!

🙂 Blog Paleo Whole 30 BBQ Pulled Pork Sweat Potato Bun Sandwiches-1 Ingredients (feeds 4 with leftovers)

1 Large Pork Loin or 2 small
1 Can of Low Sodium Chicken or Vegetable Stock
1/2 teaspoon crushed ginger
1/2 Teaspoon crushed garlic
2 Medium size sweet potato
1 Medium Avocado
1 Medium to Large Onion
Olive oil + Salt + Pepper to lightly coat the sweet potato
BBQ Sauce. If you aren’t on any dietary restrictions use whatever you’d like. There are lots of healthy options out there that are Paleo and Whole 30 approved. Try here.

Directions

Place Pork Loin(s), Chicken/Vegetable Stock, Crushed Ginger, and Crushed Garlic in the crockpot, and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 5.
When it’s done, drain all but 1 cup of the liquid. Shred with a fork, stir it all up in the liquid, and pour half a jar of BBQ sauce on.

When you are closer to dinner… Blog Paleo Whole 30 BBQ Pulled Pork Sweat Potato Bun Sandwiches-3

Light Grill and set to medium heat.
Cut sweet potato in 1/2 inch slices (lengthwise not width wise.) Then they actually look like buns!
Cut Onion in 1/2 inch slices
Lightly coat both and in olive oil (or oil of your choosing), and salt and pepper to taste
Grill both 7-8 minutes on each side.
Layer a flat sweet potato round, pork, slice of grilled onion, slice of avocado, and top with the end piece of the sweet potato! Drizzle more BBQ sauce over if you’d like!

Enjoy!

You might also like Esther’s Bacon Avocado Chipotle Sweet Potato Burger

Bacon Avocado Chipotle Sweet Potato Burger

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Bacon avocado chipotle sauce sweet potato burger with asparagus!? What? Yes! Because all of these flavors are awesome together and this is a fabulous paleo dinner!

When I first went strict gluten free years ago because of a severe allergy (and I avoid most grains and legumes for health reasons) I had no idea how I would “survive without bread”. I loved it and flour and gluten is in “everything”! Well, I’ve learned a lot about gluten free and paleo cooking over the years, was in part inspiration for this blog with Lauren, and this is just one example of how a burger can be totally delicious.. without the bun and with more veggies! Enjoy. 🙂

paleo bacon avocado sweetpotato burger blog (2)

Ingredients

Hamburgers (fried or grilled)
Bacon strips (cooked)
Sweet potato rounds (peel potatoes, slice in 1/2 rounds, bake on oiled baking pan for ~20 minutes
Avocado slices
Chipotle sauce (1/4 cup mayo + 1/2 tsp taco or chipotle spice whisked together and refrigerated until ready to use)
Fresh steamed or grilled asparagus

Directions

Stack items as desired, smother in the chipotle sauce and serve!
Enjoy with a chilled beverage, my favorite is pear or apple cider! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Red, White, and Blue Salad | Happy 4th of July!

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So, I’m not recreating the wheel by any means with this salad, but for those of you that need inspiration for a 4th of July dinner/picnic…done 🙂 All of these items are from Trader Joe’s 🙂 Ingredients

Mixed Greens
Kale Broccoli Mix
Blueberries
Beets
Raspberries
Goat Cheese
Cranberry Walnut Vinagrette What to do
Dice up the beets, and toss it all together-DONE! Enjoy and Happy 4th of July!

Grilled Chicken, Onions, and Peaches with Avocado Tomato Salsa // Paleo and Whole30

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I love when one ingredient is the basis for a meal. In this case it was some peaches that I bought that weren’t quite ripe, but I was itching to eat them. So…I BBQ’d them! I swear everything tastes better when you put it on the grill! Although, I may still be still flushed with my new found grilling ability 🙂 Ingredients (to serve 4)

2 peaches (I used ones that were almost ripe, but still a little on the firm side)
4 boneless chicken breasts
1 large sweet onion
1 avocado
10 cherry tomatos
3 large leaves of basil
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (amount not measured, but will describe in instructions :))
Sea Salt and Pepper

Directions

Light your grill and set it to a medium heat.
Cut your onion into 1/2 inch slices
Season the chicken breasts and onion with olive oil, sea salt and pepper.
Set both on the grill for 8-10 minutes (depending on the size of your chicken breasts)
Cut peaches in half and lightly coat with olive oil and a little bit of sea salt.
At the 8-10 minute mark, flip both the chicken and onion and add the peaches to the grill.
Cook everything for another 8-10 minutes until chicken cooked all the way through.
During the cooking, cut avocado and tomatoes into 1/2 inch squares. Dice up the basil and toss all together in a bowl.
Layer everything together and ENJOY!!! 🙂

Grilled Chicken Salad on a Portobello Mushroom // Paleo // Whole30

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I saw these gorgeous Portobello mushrooms at Costco and had to make something with them. The Huz was out of town, and we didn’t have the boys, so I had my parents over for a taste test. I’m posting the recipe “as is”, but am noting things at the end I might do/add differently next time 🙂 All that said, I thought it was really good. Maya chowed it down and asked for more 🙂

Ingredients (Serves 4)

4 Portobello Mushrooms
1 Large Sweet Onion (sliced into four 1″ thick slices)
4 Chicken Breasts
Handfull (about 8-10) cherry tomatoes
3-4 small sweet peppers or I used 1/3 of a yellow, red, and orange pepper
1 Shallot or thick slice of red onion diced
4 Bay leaves (or you could use cilantro)
1 large avocado
2-4 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (basically whatever you need to marinate the chicken and drizzle on the onion and mushrooms)
Sea Salt and Pepper to taste (rosemary-optional)

Directions

You can do almost all of it in the Cuisinart if you are pressed for time (which I was). In my mind I did thicker chunks of everything, but I ran out of time and just threw it all in the food processor :{

Marinade the chicken in olive oil, salt and pepper, and dried rosemary (optional)
Drizzle a little olive oil on the onion and mushroom and salt/pepper
Grill the chicken for 8 minutes each side (can do it on BBQ or on a grill pan inside)
During the last 8 minutes of the chicken, put on the onion and the mushrooms-turning after 4 minutes.
Toss red onions/shallot, tomatoes, and peppers into a Cuisinart and pulse a few times (or cut into 1/4-1/2″ pieces if you want a more chunky salad)
Add in Avocado (salt and pepper to taste. I barely used any)
Once chicken is done, cut into 1/2″ cubes. Can toss them into the Cuisinart too (which is what I did), or fold into cubed mixture.
Layer one onion slice on top of each mushroom and then pile on the salad! I added Sriracha to mine for some added heat 🙂

What I might do/add next time…

I really liked it, but it was probably too healthy for the Huz and teenage boys… I think a few slices of diced bacon would be amazing!! Or some freshly grated Parmeson… Maybe some finely diced jalepenos (not in Maya’s though!)?

If anyone makes it, I’d love to hear what you did differently!

Enjoy!

Lamb Lettuce Wraps with Feta Sauce

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Tasty seasoned lamb patties wrapped in lettuce with cucumbers, tomato and yogurt feta sauce – these are great prepared on the BBQ or simply in the broiler of your oven. Yum! 🙂

Ingredients

2 Tbsp chopped fresh mint
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried)
1 Tbsp sherry vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
1 tsp ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1/8 tsp ground allspice
3 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 lb lean ground lamb

Dressing

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 English cucumber, sliced
10 romaine lettuce leaves
1 1 tomato, sliced

Directions

Combine first 8 ingredients – herbs and spices, add lamb and combine
Shape into 10 small 1/4 inch thick oval patties
Place on a broiler pan (or BBQ) and broil ~2 minutes on each side or until done
Combine cheese and yogurt in bowl
Serve lamb patties with cucumber and tomato slices on lettuce with a dollop of yogurt/cheese mixture

Grilled Chicken, Sweet Pototato, and Onion with Basil Guacamole // Paleo // Whole30

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Here’s another super simple healthy Paleo and Whole30 recipe for you. I don’t know why, but I always feel so bada$$ when I grill on my own! Am I the only female that feels that way? Sounds totally sexist, but usually it’s such a nice ~~excuse not to cook~~ break to have the Huz do the grilling. It’s so easy, less dishes to cook, and I swear everything tastes better off the grill… This dinner was no exception!Ingredients (Would serve 4)

For the Guacamole

10 grape tomatoes (cut in half)
1 large avocados
1 inch cut of red onion
Salt and pepper to to taste
5 Fresh Basil Leaves // Honestly, I didn’t have any cilantro, so I used basil (I had it) and LOVE the change of flavor from the usual guacamole!
Sea salt and Pepper to taste

Pulse all this in a Cuisinart or blender until chunky.

For the BBQ

1 large sweet onion
4 chicken breasts
2 Sweet Potatoes cut in half
Olive Oil
Sea Salt and Pepper to taste
Dried Rosemary

Directions

Light your grill to medium heat
Cut the sweet potato in half and pierce with a fork, lightly coat with Olive Oil, S&P, and dried rosemary.
Once preheated, Place Sweet Potatoes on the grill first, because they take longer to cook. Make sure they cook for 15 minutes before you add other items to grill. I placed them directly on the grill-no tinfoil.
Lightly coat chicken in olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt, pepper, and rosemary. Set aside.
Peel and cut the onion into 4ths (about 3/4″ slices), then lightly coat with olive oil, S&P, and rosemary
Once sweet potato has cooked for 15, add chicken and onion. Cook both of those for 8-10 on each side (depending on size of the chicken)
Layer sweet potato, guacamole, chicken, a little more quacamole, with onion on the side.

ENJOY!

Paleo BBQ pork in the crock pot

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BBQ pork is one of the few recipes that does very well in the crock pot. Pair with *polenta (or riced cauliflower for a paleo alternative) and some sautéed spinach or steamed broccoli.

Ingredients

2 pork loins
1 onion, sliced in rings
2 c ketchup (or contents of a 24 oz bottle) – HFCS/sugar free
1/2 warm water
1/4 c apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp coconut sugar or brown sugar (optional and omit if paleo)
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (optional)
1 tsp Tabasco sauce (optional)
salt as needed

Directions: place meat into the stoneware with onion rings. Stir ketchup, warm water, vinegar, sugar, and sauces. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until meat shreds easily with fork.

*Nothing says comfort food like polenta! Especially with parmesan cheese. So not paleo, but so yummy. Polenta is super easy to make. 1 cup polenta to 3-4 cups water, a dash of salt, bring to boil, constantly stirring, simmer for 20-30 minutes or so. At end whisk in some olive oil or butter and parmesan cheese. Serve hot.

Love BBQ pork and want more recipes to try? Lauren posted an awesome looking Pulled Pork Sandwiches recipe as well!

Super mom tip: You guessed it – BBQ pork freezes well. Polenta does NOT though! 🙂

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