Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Pancakes!

Courtesy of PerformanceMenu.com

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 C unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 C nut butter (not peanut butter! - cashew/macadamia nut butter works well)
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• coconut oil

Mix all of the ingredients except the coconut oil in a bowl. Stir well, until you have a uniform batter. Next, use a bit of coconut oil to grease a non stick skillet. Spread some of the batter into the skillet to form a pancake, then cook over low/medium heat. Flip after 1 to 2 minutes, being careful not to burn them!

Once you've cooked all of your pancakes, you can serve them with a variety of toppings. A few that I like: chopped apples and cinnamon; heated blueberries; real maple syrup; and unsweetened applesauce.

Zone info: 3 servings at 1/2 carb block, ~1/2 protein block, 15 fat blocks

Baked Deliciousness

Almond Macaroons
----------------
1-1/4 cups almonds
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons grated lemon peel
2 egg whites, beaten
1/4 cup raw honey
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Grind almonds coarsely. Combine cinnamon and lemon and add. Beat egg
whites very stiff, fold in honey and continue beating. Fold in lemon
juice with almond mixture and blend. Drop from a teaspoon onto ungreased
parchment paper. Bake 30 minutes at 250 degrees F. Remove from paper
while still slightly warm. Makes 30 macaroons.


Carrot Cake
-----------
This is a moist and delicious carrot cake with a hint of orange. Very much
like a 'real cake'.

6 eggs, separated
1/2 cup honey (or less)
1 1/2 cups carrots, cooked and pureed
1 Tlbs grated orange rind
1 Tlbs frozen orange juice
3 cups almond flour

Preheat over to 325° F.
Beat the egg yolks and honey together. Mix in carrot puree, orange rind,
orange juice and almond flour. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold in.
Spoon into a greased loose bottomed 9 inch springform pan. Bake for about
50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out
clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to
cool completely.

Almond muffins
--------------
1 cup almond butter
1 cup sliced raw almonds
1 cup pure coconut milk
2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
3 eggs

Beat and pour in muffin cups. Cook at 400 for 15 minutes.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Cod Fillet with Mushrooms, Marinated Artichoke Hearts and Tomato Sauce

I just made this dish this evening with a side of green beans, and it was incredible. Plate licking delicious!

Ingredients
*Cod Fillet (size of fillet is up to you)
*3-4 large baby porto mushrooms, sliced
*can of marinated artichoke hearts, drained slightly, use the oil already present as the fat of the meal
*small can of tomato paste, thinned into a sauce-like viscosity

Directions
1. Sear the cod fillet(s) in a large saucepan
2. Before the cod is cooked all the way through, throw in the artichoke hearts and saute for around a minute
3. Throw in mushrooms and tomato paste sauce, you want it to cover the ingredients but not be soupy
4. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and leave for around 8-10 minutes, maybe less depending on how thick the cod fillets are
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste

YUM!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Sea Scallops with Roasted Cauliflower and Raisins

YES! As soon as I'm back on with fruit, I'm all over this dish. Thanks to Lauren for sending it in!!


Ingredients

1. 1 head of cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into florets
2. 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3. Salt and freshly ground pepper
4. 1/2 cup pine nuts
5. 1 cup golden raisins
6. 1/4 cup saba or aged balsamic vinegar (see Note)
7. 1/4 cup water
8. 1 small shallot, minced
9. 8 jumbo sea scallops (about 2 ounces each)
10. 1/3 cup tarragon leaves

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°. In a medium bowl, toss the cauliflower with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Spread the cauliflower on a large rimmed baking sheet and roast for about 50 minutes, stirring once or twice, until tender and browned in spots. Spread the pine nuts on a pie plate and toast for about 3 minutes, until golden.
2. Meanwhile, in a small, microwave-safe bowl, combine the raisins, saba and water and microwave at high power for 3 minutes. Cover and let stand until the raisins are plump, about 30 minutes.
3. Strain the soaking liquid into a small saucepan and simmer until reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the olive oil and the shallot and season the dressing with salt and pepper. Set the raisins aside.
4. In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil until smoking. Season the scallops with salt and pepper and add them to the skillet in a single layer. Cook over high heat until deeply browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Turn and cook the scallops until lightly browned, about 2 minutes longer.
5. In a bowl, gently toss the cauliflower with the pine nuts, raisins, tarragon and dressing. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to plates. Top with the scallops and serve right away.

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Autumnal Eating Doesn't Have to Sink You

Now that the temperature in Austin has dived down past the 100 degree mark and we are soaking up the first weekend of rain in months, I have developed a hankering for stews, stocks and soups. Autumn is a slippery slope for eating well, as our bodies revert back to preparation for a long winter, we tend to crave rich foods more frequently. Understanding your body's cravings is the first step to successfully staying healthy during seasonal changes.

I don't need to cite large studies and reports to tell you eating habits take a nose dive as the temperature falls. There is a reason why we crave fats, sugars and hearty meals during this time and it correlates directly to thousands of years of living off the land, not the grocery store. Our bodies need sugar and fat to keep going and unfortunately, due to processed fats and sugars being readily available in large quantities only in the last 60 years or so our internal primal clock hasn't been reset. Therein lies the problem. We have thousands of years of biology telling us to eat eat eat, because food becomes scarcer as the temperature falls, and yet thanks to the modernized food industry nothing ever really becomes scarce...just terribly expensive.

How is a person supposed to handle this maddening conundrum? My strategy is careful planning, and adjustments to comfort foods so they remain healthy and within my nutrition structure, but taste damn near scandalous.

This morning I discovered this Beef Burgundy recipe, sure to quell the most vocal of tastebuds, from Mark's Daily Apple. Please check out the link and see the pictures of this dish being created. The mushrooms are to die for.

Ingredients

1/4 pound bacon
4 tablespoons butter (or lard)
2 1/2 – 3 pounds of beef cut into 2-inch cubes. Rump roast, chuck roast, sirloin tip, and top or bottom round are all options.
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons almond flour
2 carrots, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
3 cups full-bodied red wine such Cotes du Rhone or Chianti
2 1/2 cups beef stock
1 pound white or brown crimini mushrooms

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425.

Cut the bacon into short strips. In a deep saucepan, saute the bacon in 1 tablespoon of butter until bacon is cooked but not crispy.

Pat beef dry with a paper towel and add it to the bacon in 3-4 batches. Brown each batch of meat then remove from pan.

Set bacon and meat aside in the casserole baking dish you will use in the oven. Sprinkle salt, pepper and almond flour evenly over the meat. Bake meat in the oven without a cover for 10 minutes so the flour is absorbed into the meat and hopefully creates a slight crust on the outside. Remove from the oven and turn the heat down to 325.

In the saucepan on the stove, add 1 tablespoon of butter to the remaining fat from the bacon and meat and sauté the carrots and onion until soft, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste, garlic, thyme, parsley and bay leaf. Stir in the wine and beef broth and bring to a gentle boil. Let simmer for 3-5 minutes, then pour over the meat in the casserole pan. Cover the dish and cook in the oven for about 2 1/2 hours. The liquid should be gently bubbling the whole time. You’ll know it’s done when the meat is so tender that it easily pulls apart with a fork.

While the meat is cooking, slice the mushrooms and sauté in the remaining tablespoons of butter.


Here is a tip directly from Julie Child: Don’t crowd the mushrooms. If you cook too many at once the pan will fill with liquid and they won’t brown. Saute them in 3-4 batches, adding butter as needed. Set the mushrooms aside.

When the meat is done, remove the casserole pan from the oven.

Put a bowl under a colander and pour the meat and liquid into the colander so the liquid drains out. Bring the liquid to a gentle boil and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Pour over meat and mushrooms. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Almond Flour Biscuits via Healthy Indulgences

Ingredients:
1 and 1/2 tablespoons of unsalted organic butter or non-hydrogenated shortening
1 cup plus two tablespoons of finely ground almond flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
4 egg whites

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

1. Cut cold fat (butter or shortening) into dry ingredients with the tines of your fork, rotating the bowl around with your other hand until the mixture has pea-sized chunks throughout. You could also use a pastry blender, in which case you probably don't need to read these instructions.

2. Chill mixture in the fridge for 5-10 minutes or as long as you can stand it. The longer the better. The more the fat can get cold and hard, the puffier your biscuits will be. Remember that!

3. Separate the egg yolks from the whites (using the shell halves to tip the yolk back and forth a few times). Reserve yolks (save all that creamy goodness for ice cream or homemade mayo!) and whisk egg whites with a fork in a bowl for 20 seconds, until no longer stringy and gloopy. You just want 'em a little foamy.

4. Remove mixture from fridge and whisk in the egg whites for a couple of seconds, breaking up any massive chunks in the dough with your whisk or fork. It'll be an extremely runny dough with chunks of the almond mixture. Pour it into greased foil-lined ramekins/nonstick muffin cups/a muffin top pan and get that sucker in the hot oven before the fat can even THINK about softening!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Sweet Potato Post-Workout Mash, No Fork Needed

Many weeks ago I needed an easy way to eat sweet potatoes after a workout and I was often without a fork so decided to put my cake icing experience to good use.

Easy, No Utensil Sweet Potato Mash

*Bake the sweet potato until soft throughout.
-450 degree oven for 45mins, wrap in foil
*Let the potato cool, and then take the skin off.
*Place in ziploc bag and mash it up.
*Rip off small corner tip at the bottom of the bag with your teeth.
*Use the opening to squeeze the sweet potato into your mouth.
*Hooray!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Curried Chicken Salad

Catherine Hart made this dee-lish recipe from Mark's Daily Apple for a Labor Day BBQ. So. Darn. Delicious.

Homemade Mayonnaise

Ingredients:
(adapted from Marian Burros recipe from Pure and Simple)

* 1 egg
* 1 1/4 cup olive oil
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
* pinch of cayenne pepper
* 1 teaspoon dry mustard

Directions:

Blend egg, mustard, pepper and 1/4 cup oil in blender until smooth. Add the rest of the oil and blend again until well mixed. After blending, take off lid and add lemon juice, mixing well with a spatula. Put lid back on and blend again until mixed. Pour into bowl or Mason jar and refrigerate.

The mixture will not be as thick as the chemically produced store-bought brand, but it will mix nicely with the chicken, and the meat will soak up some of the flavors.

Curried Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

* 1 pound organic, boneless skinless chicken breast
* 3-4 stalks of celery, sliced lengthwise then chopped
* 1 cup chopped apple
* ½ cup chopped walnuts
* 3-4 tablespoons blender homemade Mayonnaise (more if needed)
* Curry powder (lots!)
* Sea salt & pepper to taste

Large fresh leaves of Bibb or other lettuce

Directions:

Slice uncooked chicken breast into long, thin strips, then cut down into 1-inch cubes. Add to skillet with a little bit of water, and cook until just tender and white all the way through. When done, drain and set aside. In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, curry powder, and salt and pepper, adding curry until it reaches your heat level of satisfaction.


In a separate bowl, toss chicken with nuts, celery and apple. Finally, add chicken to wet ingredients and stir it all together. Spoon into lettuce leaves, wrap up, and enjoy.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Green Chile Sauce ala Lauren J.

**Send me your favorite paleo/zone recipes to upload for everyone to enjoy!!!**

Ingredients

* 6 Anaheim chiles
* 1 tablespoon canola oil
* 2 cups chopped onion
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon ground coriander
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Preparation

Preheat broiler.

Place chiles on a foil-lined baking sheet; broil 14 minutes or until blackened and charred, turning after 7 minutes. Place in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 15 minutes. Peel and discard skins. Cut a lengthwise slit in each chile. Remove and discard seeds and tops. Chop chiles to measure 3/4 cup.

Heat canola oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; sauté for 1 minute. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute. Add chiles, coriander, salt, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Place half of chile mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Return pureed chile mixture to pan; stir well. Remove from heat; cool completely.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Primal Nutella

Coach Jen Cardella, this one's for you....

101 Salads

Many weeks ago The New York Times posted an article listing 101 simple salad recipes. It's a GREAT resource, bookmark it and refer to it frequently for inspiration. Get Yer Salad On!