Tag Archives: paleo

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp with Coconut Topping

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You know summer is just around the corner when rhubarb is ready for the picking! Love rhubarb? So do we! Check out the “Rhubarb Collection” of recipes below, in addition to my latest FAVORITE Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp with Coconut Topping ! 🙂

rhubarb strawberry paleo crisp blog (2)rhubarb strawberry paleo crisp blog (1)

Ingredients

Filling

  • 6 large stalks of rhubarb, cleaned and cut into 1/8″ slices (about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 2 lbs fresh strawberries, hulled
  • 2 Tbsp arrowroot powder (this is a thickener)
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Topping

  • 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1/4 cup golden flax meal
  • 2 Tbsp coconut flour
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil or butter
  • 2 Tbsp honey

Directions

  • Oven to 350
  • For filling: place rhubarb and strawberries in a large bowl
  • In a small bowl, mix orange juice and arrowroot powder until dissolved and then toss thoroughly with fruit
  • For topping: pulse together shredded coconut, flax, coconut flour in food processor
  • Add oil or butter and honey and pulse until dough forms
  • Sprinkle topping over fruit
  • Cover dish with tinfoil and bake 30-40 minutes until bubbling.. remove tinfoil and bake an additional 10 minutes until topping is crispy and golden
  • Serve warm!

I love making paleo dishes and then adding something totally non-paleo like ice-cream. 🙂 This crisp is on the tarter side, so vanilla ice-cream or simply some coconut milk actually adds a delicious balance! Without the ice-cream, this dish is paleo, gluten-free, dairy free, soy free, vegetarian, vegan.. you get the picture. Enjoy however it works best for you! 🙂

Thank you for the recipes and inspiration Elana’s Pantry.

Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Roasted Garlic

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Roasted Garlic is one of the easiest and elegant baked dishes! Slice top of garlic bulb, drizzle with some coconut oil, olive oil, or butter, bake in a hot oven for about an hour and voila. Perfectly tender garlic! The garlic will be soft and smooth so that you can spread it on toast or eat with veggies, add it to pasta, salad, or anything where you want some roasted garlic flavor. Enjoy!

roasted garlic blog (3)roasted garlic blog (2)roasted garlic blog (1)

Ingredients

  • One bulb of garlic, top sliced off (crosswise and you’ll slice some of the garlic cloves as well)
  • Oil or butter

Directions

  • Put oil or butter on garlic half, put top back on and bake for around one hour in a 400* hot oven
  • Serve hot or let cool and wrap in plastic or tinfoil and refrigerate

dit-elle-Esther

Avocado Brownies

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Avocado brownies? Why? Because they are moist, soft, rich and delicious! Almost paleo (minus the sugar) and very rich, I would not give these to kids but they are a nice grown-up treat! Cut into squares and eat warm or store in the freezer for a cool dark chocolate treat!

avocado brownie blog

Ingredients

  • 2 large, ripe avocados, mashed until creamy (about 1 cup)
  • 8 ounces semisweet or dark chocolate, melted
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup rice flour
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350° F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or grease baking dish.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together mashed avocados, melted chocolate and coconut oil until smooth and creamy. Whisk in sugar. Mix in eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Add vanilla.
  • In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Stir dry mixture into avocado mixture until just combined — be careful not to overmix! Spread batter into the prepared pan.
  • Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool and then cut into squares.

Modified slightly from the original and thanks PCC Natural Markets

dit-elle-Esther

Sweet Potato, Guacamole, Chicken Sausage, Soft Boiled Egg…Breakfast for dinner?

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I know I’m not the only person that loves breakfast for dinner!  And, I also know that it’s kind of a repeat for me, but…it’s easy and DELICIOUS!  Who wouldn’t want that?!

I literally came up with this meal 30 minutes before I was supposed to make it, and it took me approximately 30 minutes to make.  Admittedly, because I ran inside while Maya was playing with our neighbors.  I turned on the oven, peeled and chopped the sweet potatoes, seasoned them, and turned on the pot for the eggs, in…less than 5 minutes.  Then…we played for a few more minutes.

THANK GOD FOR LITTLE DISTRACTIONS, NO?!!!

And, precooked chicken sausages are a godsend in our household.  I freeze them for later, and soak them in a warm water bath right before I need them!

Diced up for a pasta meal, or sliced in half for this!  SO easy, delicious, and healthy!

Blog Sweet Potato Guacamole Chicken Sausage Soft Boiled Egg Whole30 Paleo Gluten Free-1 Blog Sweet Potato Guacamole Chicken Sausage Soft Boiled Egg Whole30 Paleo Gluten Free-2 What you need…

  • One sweet potato (for 2-4 people)
  • Olive Oil
  • Sea salt
  • 3 Pre Cooked Chicken sausage (Depending on the amount of people you want to feed!  I did one per adult, and half for Maya) I love Aidell’s, but there are so many good ones!
  • Avocado (or pre-made guacamole-yes, I cheated on this one!)
  • Eggs (2 for me and the Huz, one for Maya)

What to do…

  • 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
  • Start a pot of boiling water.  For me, it’s a LOT easier to soft boil eggs for more than two people.  If you want a runny egg and there’s more than 2, it’s way too much for me to manage on top of everything else!!!
  • Bake the sweet potatos in the oven for 20-25 minutes, flipping over half way through.
  • At the half way mark add chicken sausages that are cute in half.
  •  In that time, remove the eggs from the boiling water.  7 minutes = runny yolk, 8 minutes, less, so…I remove ours at 7, and then turn the heat off for Maya’s while ours then run under a cool water bath.
  • Once the sweet potatoes are crispy on the outside, take them and the chicken sausages out.
  • Layer everything and enjoy!dit-elle-Lauren

 

Baked Zucchini Sticks

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Zucchini is in season and what a better way to prepare it than roll it in some almond meal, seasoning and parmesan cheese. Serve hot and crispy with your favorite marinara sauce.

paleo zucchini sticks blog (2)paleo zucchini sticks blog (1)

Ingredients

  • 2 egg whites, beaten
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 cup almond meal
  • 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 medium sliced zucchini – sliced into 3 x 1/2″ sticks
  • Marinara sauce for serving (optional)

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Place egg whites in a shallow dish and season with salt and pepper. Combine breadcrumbs, cheese, oregano and garlic powder in a resealable plastic bag; shake well.
  • Working with a few at a time, dip zucchini sticks in egg whites to cover. Place in the plastic bag and gently shake to cover with breadcrumb mixture. Place breaded zucchini in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and lightly spray with cooking oil. Repeat with remaining zucchini sticks.
  • Bake until golden and crispy, 20 to 25 minutes, flipping halfway through baking. Serve hot with ketchup or marinara sauce.

Modified from the original from PCC Natural Markets.

dit-elle-Esther

Asparagus Pistachio Pesto

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It’s asparagus season and we are seeing a lot of beautiful crisp fresh green stalks in stores locally. If you love asparagus, lemon, garlic, olive oil and pistachios, you will LOVE this! It is totally, amazingly, delicious. This recipe directs you to blanch the asparagus quickly and then process into pesto. Perfect spring or summer appetizer or side! Enjoy! 🙂

asparagus pistachio pesto (2)asparagus pistachio pesto (1)

Ingredients

  • 1 lb asparagus, tough ends removed
  • 2-3 cloves minced garlic
  • 1/2 cup pistachios
  • 1 lemon, juiced (2 to 3 Tbsps, I used Champagne Vinegar)
  • Salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 3/4 cup olive oil

Directions

  • Blanch or steam asparagus until al dente and still a bold green
  • Refresh in cool water
  • Cut asparagus into 1-inch pieces
  • In food processor, pulse garlic, pistachios, lemon juice, salt and pepper a few times, then add asparagus
  • Pulse the processor to make sure mixture is not over mixed, while gradually adding olive oil
  • Process until desired consistency

Thanks PCC Natural Markets!

dit-elle-Esther

Ginger, Chicken Sausage, Spaghetti Squash, Egg Muffins | Paleo, Whole30

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I have always loved the taste of ginger, but have been even more inspired to add it into things after reading Esther’s post on the health benefits of it.  I mainly just loved the taste haha.

I had made another variation of these muffins a few months ago (with spinach!), and have kept meaning to make them again.  They are a little time consuming, but it’s SO worth it to have these ready to eat in the morning!  OR…for a snack 🙂Blog Whole 30 Paleo Ginger Spaghetti Squash Chicken Sausage Egg Muffins-1 Blog Whole 30 Paleo Ginger Spaghetti Squash Chicken Sausage Egg Muffins-2

What you need… (12 Muffins)

  • 5 Large Eggs
  • 2 cups spaghetti squash, cooked with water squeezed out.
  • 6 precooked chicken sausages, chopped into bite size pieces (I used these)
  • 1 Teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 Teaspoon crushed garlic
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil (or fat of choice)
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

What to do…

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees
  • Squeeze out all the moisture from the spaghetti squash with a paper towel and evenly distribute into lined muffin tins (This is my 2nd time making these and I spent almost as much time scrubbing the tins both times, even though I greased them!!).  I had Maya push a paper towel into them to get even more moisture out.  She thought it was fun, and it helped pack them in there!
  • Bake for 10 minutes til the spaghetti squash gets slightly browned at the edges.
  • While that is baking…In a large frying pan, heat up your oil (or fat of choice) with the ginger and garlic, and cook diced onions until soft.  I let Maya stir these up.  🙂
  • While these are cooking you can dice up your chicken sausage.  Once the onions are soft, add in the chicken sausage for a few minutes to warm them up and release the juices.
  • After the spaghetti squash has cooked, reduce  your heat to 350.
  • Evenly distribute the onion/chicken sausage on top of the spaghetti squash in the muffin tins.
  • Whisk all the eggs, and add salt and pepper to taste.  Maya loves whisking eggs, and it was an easy way for her to help!
  • Pour over the sausage and onion mixture until you can see the egg.  Not quite covering the sausage.
  • Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, or until the eggs are all the way cooked through.
  • Store in an air tight container, and eat through out the week!

Here are some behind the scenes video from us making these.  I’m totally inept at Snapchat, but we are both having fun with it.  Find us at lkahan-ditelle 🙂

ENJOY!! 🙂dit-elle-Lauren

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)paleo bacon avocado sweetpotato burger blog (1)IMG_1546

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

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.

turmeric blog (3)turmeric blog (2)turmeric blog (1)

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