Persimmon Love
First, I am so excited and thrilled that the Everyday Paleo book is nearing completion and I want to thank you all for your continued support and for your kind comments! Your feedback continues to motivate and encourage me to keep this think going. Thank you so much!
Now – FOOD! Continue reading
Chicken Chili Soup
I must say, this soup was a huge success! So good in fact that the leftovers I imagined enjoying today were gone in a flash as I watched the last bits of soup being scraped from the bottom of the pot. I’m not sure what the heck I’m going to do as my boys continue to grow, and eat, and eat, and grow and holy cow – it’s crazy how much food these creatures consume! If I had a dollar for every time I heard the words, “I’m hungry” well – you get the picture. So, the moral of the story is, if you have as many hungry mouths to feed as I do, or if you make this over the weekend and want plenty of leftovers to get you through another busy week, double this recipe!!
Also, stay tuned for my next blog which will feature an entire paleo Thanksgiving meal plan! In the spirit of the holidays, check out this blog from Cavegirl Cafe – a great reminder that it’s time to start getting ready for the season! Continue reading
After finally completing the recipe section for my book, which included cooking and photographing over 100 recipes in 3 weeks, I’m kind of tired of cooking…. But – we still have to eat, so tonight I made the simplest dinner that I could eek out and in fact it was so easy, it shouldn’t have tasted as good as it did. This was however an important reminder that when eating paleo it’s actually really hard to go wrong. Fresh veggies, meat, and fat is not all that complicated and one has to try pretty darn hard to mess up, especially when keeping it simple. Here’s a “It Can Be This Easy” meal that I hope you all enjoy as much as we did! Continue reading
Ever wonder what the heck to do with okra? I personally do not like the slimy stuff unless it’s well, you know, breaded and fried… With that not being an option I have just avoided the vegetable altogether until my friend at Norcal, Katie D. advised me how to make it and now I have a new found affection for the stuff – and I hope you will too! I recommend that you double or triple the recipe because my kids were eating them like popcorn and I almost did not get any at all!! We also made the yummiest stuffed eggplant that I highly recommend trying – take advantage of the summer veggies while you can because fall is just around the corner!! Continue reading
Chicken Piccata is simple and succulent but typically this dish calls for the chicken to be dredged in flour before being tossed into the frying pan. I decided to try to make this dish without, of course, the usual flour dredging and I dressed it up with some savory garlic and green onions in addition to the traditional capers. Here is my take on piccata – paleo style! Continue reading
Pesto is an amazing sauce; it makes anything taste good from scrambled eggs to salad – so I have been working on a decent paleo version. I think I came up with a pesto recipe, that in my humble opinion is better then most pestos which are laden with parmesean – and it’s super easy to put together. Tonight I grilled some chicken and poured the green goodness on top and served this dish with a Warm Arugula Salad, and our favorite Smashed Cauliflower. I have a bunch of left over pesto that I can’t wait to use as a topping for whatever else I eat tomorrow!!
Grilled Chicken with Walnut Pesto Sauce
Chicken
3-4 Chicken Breasts
Trader Joe’s Everyday Seasoning to taste (or just some cracked black pepper)
Pesto Sauce
4 oz fresh basil (3 ½ cups)
1 cup walnut halves and pieces
6 garlic cloves
1 cup olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
Juice from ½ a lemon
Heat your grill over medium high heat for approximately 10 min. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with either the Trader Joe’s seasoning or with just some black pepper. Turn grill down to low and place the chicken on the grill. Close the lid and grill for 7-10 minutes. Flip the chicken, close the lid, and grill for another 7-10 minutes. Remove the chicken and cover with tinfoil and set aside. Now it’s time for the pesto. In a food processor add the walnuts, garlic, sea salt, and olive oil. Process until smooth. Add the basil and lemon juice and process again until smooth. Slice the chicken and spoon the pesto sauce on top to serve.
Warm Arugula Salad
6 strips nitrate free bacon diced
2 shallots finely chopped
7 oz arugula
1/4 cup olive oil
Handful of chopped walnuts
Ground black pepper to taste
Place the arugula in a large salad bowl and set aside. In a medium sized skillet brown the diced bacon. Add the shallots and saute with the bacon until the shallots are translucent. Add the olive oil to the pan and heat just until warm. Pour the olive oil, bacon, shallot mixture over the arugula and mix well. The heat from the bacon mixture will slightly wilt the arugula – this is what you want! Add some fresh ground black pepper and serve immediately topped with a sprinkle of walnuts.
I love, love, love my crock pot and came up with a new and insanely easy spice rub chicken recipe that I hope you all enjoy!
Spice Rub Crock Pot Chicken
1 5-6 lb free range organic chicken - giblets removed, rinsed, and patted dry with paper towels
1 white onion sliced
1 tsp sea salt (optional)
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
Cover the bottom of the crock pot with the sliced onions. Mix all spices in a small bowl and then rub the spice mixture all over the whole chicken. Place the spiced chicken on top of the onions in the crock pot, cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours (depending on your crock pot). No need for any liquid, the chicken will cook in it’s own juices. Make sure you spoon the onions and a little bit of the juices over the chicken when you serve it. I served my chicken with our favorite brussel sprouts, steamed for 5 minutes and then sauteed with a little olive oil, dried dill, garlic powder, and pepper.
Enjoy!
