Growing Pains

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Paleo Baked Apples

Ingredients

4 large Fuji, Gala, or Honeycrisp apples

4 tsp coconut oil

1/4 cup raisins

4 tsp apple cider

1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 cup walnuts , chopped

 

Directions

Peel apples.  Using a melon baller, scoop out the core until you get just past the seeds (you don’t want to go all the way through.) Stand apples in 8-inch by 8-inch glass baking dish or 9-inch glass pie plate. Fill center of each apple with 1 coconut oil, 1 tbs of raisins, and 1 tsp cider.

Sprinkle spice over apples in dish. Cover with waxed paper, and cook in microwave on Medium-High (70% power) 14 minutes or until apples are very tender when tested with fork.

Let apples stand, covered, 5 minutes. Serve with chopped walnuts on top.

Paleo Quick Coq Au Vin

Oui. I know what you are thinking.  You are thinking, what kind of silly French dish is this?  Coq au vin?  Really? 

The original French concoction was a way for provincial French wives to make use of an old rooster and took a long time to prepare.

My version is quick and easy and best of all, fits into the paleo diet.

Note, I personally do not eat mushrooms.  I leave them out when I make this, but I will put them in the recipe for those of you who do enjoy them.

So, let’s get to the food!

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts

5-6 strips of thick cut bacon

Package frozen pearl onions (thawed)

2-3 carrots

Container of cremini or button mushrooms

¼ cup of almond flour

2 tbs of tomato paste

1 ½ tsp dried thyme

1 tsp sea salt

½ tsp black pepper

3-4 cloves garlic minced

Red wine of choice

Directions:

1. Cut chicken into bite-sized chunks and put in a zip top with almond flour.  Shake to coat.
2. Peel carrots and cut into ¼ inch slices.  Set aside.
3. If you choose to partake of the mushrooms, wash them and cut them into quarters.  Set aside.
4. Cut bacon into half inch strips (these little chunks of bacon are refered to as “lardons” by the French) Put into large skillet or stew pot over medium heat.  Brown.
5. Remove bacon.
6. Add onions and carrots and cook until they start to caramelize (get brown and release their sugars), about 5-10 minutes.  Remove the onions.
7. If you are a mushroom eater, now is the time to add them and brown them.  Pull them out and set them aside.
8. Add chicken to the pot.  Brown.  Pull chicken out.
9. Put garlic and tomato paste in the pot along with the rest of the almond flour from the chicken.  Cook for a couple of minutes (be careful not to burn the garlic)
10. Add in a little wine and scrape up all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. (This is known as de-glazing)
11. Add in half to three quarters of the bottle of wine.  Add in spices, carrots, chicken, onions, and mushrooms. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the broth starts to thicken.
12. Sprinkle bacon over the top and serve hot.

I like to serve this over spaghetti squash or zucchini that has been sliced into strips and sautéed until soft in olive oil and garlic. 

Paleo Coconut Shrimp

Ingredients:

12-15 shrimp

1 egg

½ tsp salt

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp garlic powder

½ cup almond flour

¼ cup unsweetened shredded coconut

3 tbs coconut oil

 

Directions:

Peel and de-vein shrimp.  Run under cool water and then pat dry with paper towels.

Beat egg with spices.

Combine coconut and almond flour on a plate or shallow dish.

Set up dredging station.  Working from left to right, put shrimp, eggs, flour mix and a plate.

Use your left hand as the “wet” hand and your right as the “dry.”  Pick up shrimp with left hand, drop in egg and pick up with left hand and drop in flour.  Use right hand to toss flour over shrimp, then pick up and gently shake off excess crumbs.  Lay on plate to set for 10 minutes.

Put oil in pan and heat to medium high heat.

Once all shrimp have been dredged and have set, put in hot pan and cook for about 2-3 minutes and then flip and cook another 2-3 minutes.  Remove shrimp to a clean plate and let sit for 5 minutes to make sure crust sticks to shrimp.

Paleo Hot Greens with Bacon Dressing

Mmmmm….bacon. This will make any guy eat his greens!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil or bacon grease

2 tbs lemon juice

2 tbs whole-grain mustard

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp fresh-ground black pepper

1/2 tsp pepper

3 cloves garlic, crushed

About 3 large heads kale (or collard greens), washed, dried, and cut horizontally into 3/4-inch strips

1 lb thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/2-inch strips

How to assemble:

1. Cook bacon pieces until browned.  Set aside bacon pieces.  Pour off most of the oil. 
2. Add garlic clove and the greens and sauté until tender–5 to 6 minutes.
3. In a large bowl, combine 3 tablespoons olive oil (or bacon grease), lemon juice, mustard, salt, pepper, and whisk to combine.    Put greens over dressing and toss to combine.
4. Sprinkle with bacon pieces, and serve immediately.

Roasted Pork and Persimmons

I have just stumbled upon a most delightful fruit, the persimmon.

I was totally unfamiliar with them and saw them in the grocery store and thought, why not?  I should give these weird tomato-looking things a try.  

Persimmons are widely available September through December, with a peak during November.

Choose persimmons with deep red undertones. Look for persimmons that are round, plump, and have glossy and smooth skin. Avoid fruits with blemishes, bruises or cracked skin and missing the green leaves at the top. Select ripe persimmons only if you plan to eat them immediately. Otherwise, buy firmer fruits and allow them to ripen.

Ripen persimmons at room temperature in a paper bag with an apple or banana. Store them in the refrigerator when ripe. Be sure to eat the fruit as soon as possible because overripe persimmons quickly turn to a mushy texture.

Ripe Fuyu persimmons, which look kind of like flattened tomatoes, will be crisp, while the acorn-shaped Hachiyas will be very soft and juicy.

Unripe Hachiya persimmons taste very bitter and will suck all the moisture from your mouth — not very pleasant. The tartness will go away as the fruit ripens.

They kind of have a texture like apples and are sweet.  I thought they would be a nice compliment to pork.

Ingredients:

pork tenderloin

4 ripe persimmons

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

white wine

Directions:

Cut off stem of persimmon and peel and quarter the fruit.  Put in bottom of slow cooker and just cover with white wine. 

Put pork on top and cover with all spices.

Place a layer of aluminum foil over pork and then put lid on top.

Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.  Pork should shred up and persimmons should cook down into a nice sauce to serve with the meat.

Paleo Butternut Squash Soup

There’s just something about the soothing texture of a creamy soup, especially on a cold day. This is comfort food done paleo-style. My mom actually came up with this one.  She is pretty amazing! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Ingredients:

Large butternut squash

32 oz box of chicken stock

½ tsp Corriander

½ tsp Allspice

¼ tsp Cayenne

1 tsp Cumin

½ cup coconut milk

Seeds from squash

1 tsp garlic powder

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp paprika

Directions:

 Take a cleaver and place lengthwise along the squash. Use a small rubber mallet to tap cleaver blade through the squash. Once it is split, pull out the seeds and pulp using a spoon. Set seeds aside.

Put a tsp of olive oil on a foil-lined baking sheet and spread around. Place the squash flat side down on the sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. Once squash is soft and caramelized, remove from oven and let cool slightly. Use an oven mitt to flip over and scoop out the center using an ice cream scoop.

Put into a stock pot and add in chicken stock and spices. Use a stick blender to puree the squash into the broth for a creamy consistency. If you don’t have a stick blender, puree in batches in the regular blender and then pour into the pot. Heat over medium heat until soup is warmed through.

In the meantime, wash the goo off of the seeds. In a bowl, combine seeds with garlic powder, salt, pepper, and paprika. Lay flat layer on baking sheet that you have lightly greased with olive oil. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Once soup is heated up, stir in ½ cup of coconut milk. Serve with toasted spiced seeds on top for garnish.

Hot Spiced Cider

It’s that time of year when apple cider starts appearing at local farmers’ markets and grocery stores alike.  Look at the ingredients.  The only ingredient should be apples. 

To warm things up, you will need:

4 cups of apple cider

1 cinnamon stick or 1 tsp ground cinnamon (you could also use 1 tsp of pumpkin pie spice)

 

Combine cider and cinnamon in a microwave safe container and zap it for a couple of minutes or until desired heat is acheived.  Remove stick and serve in mugs.

Serves 4.

Chicken With 40 Cloves of Garlic

I know what you’re thinking.  40 cloves of garlic?!?!?!!  I know that vampires have been the in thing lately, but isn’t this a little TOO much insurance?  Won’t my breath demolish anyone I meet for a week after eating this? 

Never fear.  The garlic cooks down in this slow cooker dish, so it is no longer potent and overwhelming. 

Ingredients:

3 lbs of chicken (this could be a whole butchered chicken, a chicken you butcher yourself, breasts only, etc.)

5 heads of garlic (yes, the ENTIRE head)

1 lb bacon

white wine or chicken broth

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme

 

Directions:

Cut bacon into inch wide chunks.  Brown in a pan.  Set bacon aside.  Put about 1 tbs of the bacon grease in the bottom of the crock pot.

Separate out all the cloves of garlic from the heads.  Smash them with the flat side of your Chinese cleaver to easily remove the paper.  Put all cloves in the bottom of the crock pot.

Pour in either white wine or chicken stock to barely cover the garlic.  (Note, if you use stock, I would also add in 2 tbs of lemon juice to help brighten up the flavor)

Sprinkle salt, pepper, and thyme over the garlic. 

Put chicken on top of the garlic.  Put bacon on top of chicken

Place a layer of Aluminum foil over the crock pot and THEN the lid.  This will keep the steam from escaping and you from running out of liquid.

If you cook at low, this should take about 7-8 hours.

If you cook at high, this should take about 4 hours.

Once done, pull out chicken and bacon and set aside.  Pour liquid and garlic into a blender (or use your stick blender) to puree into a delicious sauce.  Pour over chicken and serve!

Cauliflower Mash

To substitute for mashed potatoes, I’m making a cauliflower mash.  You can’t boil the cauliflower to make the mash or else it gets way too soggy and yuck. 

Here’s what I do:

Cut the head of cauliflower into florets.

Put into a microwave-safe dish with about 3-4 tbs of water. Cover.  Microwave for 3 minutes and stir.  Microwave another 2 minutes.  Check for softness. If not soft, microwave another minute or so.

Mash with a potato masher, or my favorite, the stick blender.

Add salt to taste and some coconut milk for creaminess.